I saw something that mentioned my first blog entry being two years ago in June 2006. Wow. I can't believe I've really been running my mouth (fingers) for that long. Its kinda cool. I actually went back and read some of the stuff from back then just to see what was going on in my life. SO much changes in such short periods of time. So to those of you who are still coming back to share in my life's journey - thanks for your support! :-)
I hope everyone had a holiday week as fun as mine. The weekend before the 4th, Sharifa and I met up in Miami for a super fun girls weekend. We started our trip with a spa day at Ugo Di Roma Salon and Day Spa in Coconut Grove. After the weirdest massage on earth (I refuse to believe Carlos is a professional masseuse) we chatted it up with a few patrons and nail techs about Miami nightlife and compiled a list of their recommendations for fun and food. A few hours after we landed, we emerged from the spa with freshly painted nails and toes, hopped into our convertible rental and began our weekend of fun. Over the course of the weekend we managed to see a comedy show at the Miami Improv, spend countless hours catching rays and eating Pineapple 
Coconut Haagen Dazs on South Beach, eat the worlds best lobster tail at The Chart House (the service was impeccable!), rub shoulders with a few celebrities over dinner at the elite restaurant Prime 112 and "party" (i.e. stand around in amazement) at Mansion until we were yawning our eyes out (which sadly began to happen just after midnight). Our spare time was spent at the resort pool swimming and lounging poolside with tasty Mango Pina Coladas. The Marriott Villas at Doral were nice accommodations and the nearby, world famous Doral Golf Resort and Spa resort (to which full access was given to all Villa guests) was top notch in every way. Pic of me on South Beach and a pic of the view from the Villa balcony...
My other South Beach pics have... uhm... bystanders in the background who are not... shall we say "properly clothed" for web viewing. Welcome to Miami... LOL... and for the record I settled on a Diane von Furstenburg swimsuit I found on sale at Saks Fifth Avenue (same as pictures but in an orange and fuchsia print). It turned out to be perfect! Sorry guys, I'm not posting pics of myself in the bikini so you'll have to settle for the website pic ;-)
For the actual holiday weekend I had a fun Chicago Style 4th of July. Mikyra showed me all over the town... and when I say that I mean ALL over the town. LOL. We checked out the annual Old School House Music Picnic which was WAY more fun than I expected it to be! My parents brought me a bicycle on their visit and my Dad convinced me to bike ride up and down Lake Shore Drive with him. It was a hilariously rough journey as he rides regularly and this was my first time on a bike in over 15 years. But now I'm hooked, I want to ride my bike all the time! We also managed to fit in a Segway tour through the parks and the Taste of Chicago. Some photos I captured on the tour...
Item of the day... I'm so obsessed with the Marc Jacobs Viva la Val hand bags. Then two I like are in the $400-$500 price range... hence, not in my current range... but I'm working on that! I saw this bag in the Miami Nordstrom store and almost lost my mind. Since then I found a reason to stop in the Chicago store and drool some more. Can't find it available for purchase online anywhere but here's a camera phone pic I took of the Medium and Large bags in Chocolate... perfect for a professional woman's handbag that is stylish and yet functional!
