Celine Dion

For our 2 year anniversary, Emily and I got tickets to go see Celine Dion. This has been a dream of Emily for years. She was so bummed when Celine stopped singing in Vegas, since she thought that we had lost our chance. Em loves Celine, and I think this definitely was one thing on her bucket list. We could not get tickets to her concert in Madison Square Garden, so we saw her in Long Island, at the Nassau Coliseum, where the NY Islanders play hockey. Thanks Doug & Amber Doxey for letting us use your car!

The show was amazing!! She really did a phenomenal job! Her voice is so clear and perfect, it was hard to realize that we were seeing her in person. We really had a good time. I dont think I have ever seen so many women gathered in one place at one time as I did at the concert. But we both had a wonderful time.

Tribute to 9/11

It is hard to believe that it has been 7 years since Sept 11. It was interesting to be here to commemorate that tragic event. Beginning on Sunday night before 9/11, there were 2 large beams of light shooting upwards, to show where the twin towers stood. It was cool to see them from the apartment every night and to think about those events. Gratefully there has not been another attack.

Since I get off the subway 1 block from ground zero, I get to walk by every day. On 9/11 there were people everywhere trying to get to the ceremony service. After work, I walked to the site and reflected briefly about that sad day. If I would have been in New York at the time when they struck and I have the same routine as I do now, I would have been right there when the planes hit. It is scary to think about. We took this pictures from our window. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity to see it in person.

Philadelphia

Emily and I decided to spend the weekend in Philadelphia to see the founding of our country. We absolutely had a ball. We went with our good friends Kevin & Heather Hirst. This was Emily's first time to Philly - so we had a blast. We saw the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Ben Franklin's Grave, University of Pennsylvania, Quaker House, Washington Square, Betsy Ross' House, and much more. Of course we had to get a Philly Cheesesteak - it was so good! Lastly, we got to hear interesting stories from actors as they presented "Once Upon A Nation" - at each of the 12 benches. Here are some pics - enjoy!

The Hamptons

So we got the pictures from our private beach in the Hamptons. It was such an incredible experience. The lighthouse is literally the very tip of Long Island. We spent some time in Mantauk before spending some time on the beach. It was fun to just play and swim.

Anne & Steve Prince Visit

Although this is a little old, our good friends Anne & Steve Prince came out an visited us for a week. It was good to see them and to spend some time with them. Actually, Anne and Steve are the people that set me and Emily up on our first date. We owe all of our happiness to them. Anne/Em were roommates (they met in CA when they were both doing temple pageant, then they were both in Helaman Halls together Freshman year). Steve and I live 1/2 mile from each other, and went to good old Highland High School together. They said that we would be good together, introduced us, and the rest is history.

Grand Central station above & below.


What is a NYC trip without a stop in Chinatown to buy a Gucci or Fendi purse. The experience is all about the black secretive bags, the secret rooms and doors so that the police don't find out. Look at the smile on their faces - children at Christmas. Good times!

At a Yankees game! Thanks Anne/Steve - we loved it.

The 7 train of the subway - the love of our lives (as long as it works!)

HAPPY 2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY EM!

We made it! 2 full years! Who would have thought we would have made it? Two years ago today, Emily and I were married in the Oakland LDS temple. It has been a wonderful 2 years and I couldn't be happier. I love you darling!

Now, kind of a funny story. I am celebrating this anniversary by myself. I am alone. Emily is still in California with her family. It just isnt the same going out to an anniversary dinner alone.

The really interesting thing is that Emily and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary apart as well. I was living in New York last summer doing an internship while Emily was doing an internship in Chicago. We were separated for the summer - a Tale of Two Cities if you will. They both ended on Aug 31, and so we were apart and were not together then.

I hope this isnt becoming a habit babe? :-) I love you. Happy Anniversary.

A Lone Man in NYC

The rumors are true. Emily is leaving me and going back home to California. She is saying good-bye Friday Aug 22, and will be gone until late on Aug 31. I dont blame her though, if I had to live with myself, I would be bolting for the other side of the country as well.

Actually, her good friend Jessica is leaving on a mission to Canada, and so Emily wants to go to support her. Emily is going to stay with her parents and is so excited to see their puppy Mousse. It will be sad to see her go. I will be a lone man in the jungle of New York.

It actually works out really well, because Emily has 2 days off work she has to use before Sept, and so she can use these over there. Also, she is going to work out of the San Fran office for a few days, to meet the team over there and get some work done. This is a good thing to actually meet the people that she works with everyday.

Have a great trip babe! Love you!

Kobe Grill

Great news! The New York restaurant week has been extended until Labor Day! We were so happy when we found out the news. I guess that the economy really is struggling, and so these restaurants needed to do everything in their power to attract more customers. We are not complaining!

So we decided to go to this place called Kobe Grill. Emily and I have never before eaten Kobe beef. We have heard rumors that it is the best tasting beef in the world - so we decided that this was our chance to go for gold.

This place was crazy. The ambiance and atmosphere was incredible. We could tell that this "club" truly was for the rich and famous. The dim lighting and interesting design made for an extremely interesting evening. The mood was certainly set.

We dined and had a wonderful time. To learn more about this just search wikipedia for kobe beef. This was a great experience. The food was delicious, the atmosphere unique, and we really really enjoyed ourselves. Now, I think the picture below, those 2,000 hanging things are actually Samurai swords (securely fastened we were promised).

The Hamptons

We did it! We saw the Hamptons. After hearing about it on Seinfeld, we can now say we have done it! Thank you Taylor and Melinda for the pictures.

We went for a day and had the time of our lives. It did start to rain for a little their, but we were not deterred. We stayed true and strong, and our efforts paid off. We ended up spending almost a full hour on the beach by ourselves. It was truly heaven on earth.

We drove through the town of South Hampton and mingled with the extremely rich. I have never seen so many nice cars. We looked at some real estate for sale, normally selling between $5 million and $25 million. Insane! South Hampton even had their own Sachs 5th Ave store and Louis Vuitton.

We drove to the very tip of Long Island, saw the lighthouse, and experienced the end. It was a fantistic time!

Breaking Dawn

Emily is ignoring me and banished me to the living room, commanding me "Not to Disturb Her!" The new book "Breaking Dawn" by Stephanie Meyer came out yesterday and Emily has been looking forward to this moment for months. I think in the last 5 months, she has re-read the Twilight series 4 or 5 times. When she gets bored, she just picks them up and starts reading them, just so that she remembers everything. It is pretty incredible to see the dedicated cult following to this Meyer woman's books.

Funny story -- so we went to the Hampton's and the end of Long Island yesterday with our good friends Taylor and Melinda Jones. Emily was a little distraught, because at midnight on Friday evening, the new book was coming out. Emily begged me to go the midnight showing, but being the bad husband that I am, I turned her down.

So there we are, walking around the Hampton's, surrounded by Porsche's, Lamborghini's, Bentley's, and other extremely expensive cars and super rich people, and we see this little bookstore. Emily drags me over just to see if they have Breaking Dawn. Regrettably, they don't, but they mention to check K-mart. So we drive a little bit further and find this great place to stop for lunch, and guess what, K-mart was next door.

After lunch, we rushed into the store, but could only find the older 3 books. The first person we asked had absolutely no people skills nor knowledge about the store, so we found someone else. Much to our surprise, he had never heard of the series, but went in the back to check, just to see if they had it. After 10 anxious minutes of waiting, he emerges with a jewel worth more than all the riches in the world, the Breaking Dawn book. Emily was esctatic!

Now, she reads, and I am enjoying bachelorhood. Now, there are a couple of take-a-ways:

1) It doesnt surprise me that K-mart is a struggling company, they have tons of Breaking Dawn books, but have not put them out. Nice marketing strategy guys, that will keep you competitive.
2) If you ever want something that is tough to come by, go to K-mart, because there are not going to be any other shoppers there. As long as you find a K-mart worker who has communication skills, you should find what you are looking for.
3) The Hampton's are everything you thought it would be and more. It has a really cool feel, it is a fun atmosphere, everyone is extremely rich, and the homes are selling for $5 million to $25 million. Pretty ridiculous stuff, but it was fun to go and see all of Long Island and to spend some time on the beach.

Ruth's Chris Steakhouse

We love NYC. Every summer, for 2 weeks, a handful of very very expensive restaurants open their doors to those of us in the middle class, who cannot afford to normally eat there. This is called Restaurant Week, and it is incredible! For a flat fee, you get a 3 or 4 course meal.

So of course, Emily and I had to capitalize on this opportunity. We decided to go to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. I dont think words can describe our experience. Rob got the Filet Mignon while Emily got the Ribeye. We really had a wonderful time, and are anxiously looking forward to next summer, when we can feast like this again! :-)

Boston

We absolutely LOVE Boston! The city is gorgeous! It is so clean compared to NYC, and is just a really fun town. It is nice how small it is, and how it truly is a walking city. During the summer, there is such a fun feeling. People are strolling along the streets, relaxing in the Boston Common, and of course, wearing their Boston sports shirts.

We went over the weekend with our friends Kevin/Heather Hirst. We actually were pretty pampered, so that probably added to the enjoyment of the trip. We stayed at the Ritz Carlton, in an executive suite. We had access to the Club Lounge, where there was complimentary meals, drinks, etc. It was truly phenomenal.

Our favorite part was of course going to see Harvard. We took a tour, and really had a good time hopefully seeing our future home. :-) We walked the Freedom Trail, and saw Paul Revere's house, the famous church (1 by land, 2 by sea), and many other sites. It was awesome.

It wouldn't be a trip to Boston if we didn't see Fenway Park, and support the Champions the Red Sox. Unfortunately, they were out of town, so we couldn't join in on the fun. Lastly, we had a delicious dinner on the Boston Harbor. Emily and I both got our own 1 lb Lobster! Who could resist? I think the best part was watching us try to get to all of the meat.

We hope you enjoy the pictures below! Hope all is well!