A Martini with the Rossis

Happy Birthday Dan!

2010-04-22T21:50:00.001-07:00

Today is Dan's 32nd birthday! Unfortunately he had to work today, but thankfully his colleagues spoiled him with a lunch at Delfino's and Ice Cream Drumsticks for dessert. Tonight we had a fun celebration at the Melting Pot with a four course fondue extravaganza! It was soooo tasty!! After dinner we headed back to our casa and Dan opened his gifts which included a coupon for a new pair of shoes of his choice, a movie, book, and the entire West Wing Series. He was a happy camper!

Rufus is just like a little kid always wanting to help open the presents

Pikes Place BBQ Competition 4/17-4/18

2010-04-20T23:08:00.001-07:00

Dan and Dad were back at it again this year competing at the Pikes Place BBQ competition. They setup Saturday night and fired up the BBQ around 11pm to prepare for their first turn in on Sunday at 11am. They competed in chicken, pulled pork, ribs, and brisket. This year they placed 4th in ribs and 6th in chicken out of 32 teams. Way to go guys!! It was a fun day at the market!

Amy and Rufus helping with setup night

Dan and Dad (3 Alarm BBQ) next to Uncle Danny and Anthony

Starbucks right across from our tent piping out great music all day

Dad's Amazing new BBQ, fabricated by his own hands. Impressive!!

reaping the BBQ benefits

Leave it to Dan to be making business deals during the competition. While the rules say you cannot feed the public (only your friends/family) it didn't say anything about bartering. Dan scored big time by agreeing to supply Piroshky Piroshky with a full plate of BBQ and in return they supplied us with a full box of Piroshky's. Delicious!! We loved watching the line out the door at Piroshkys all day across from our tent while we had a box to ourselves.

A beautiful day in Seattle near 70 degrees

4th in Ribs and 6th in Chicken. Not bad boys!!

Uncle Danny and Anthony also placed in their chicken and brisket. It was a good day for all!!

All lined up waiting for the results

Sounders vs Kansas City Wizards

2010-04-20T23:06:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday (4/17) we were back on the soccer field watching the Sounders defeat the Kansas City Wizards. The match was a bit painful with no score until the 90th minute when a Sounders rookie who had entered the match late scored. The crowd went wild. What an ending!!

Sia at the Showbox

2010-04-20T23:05:00.000-07:00

On April 12th we hopped back on the concert bandwagon and saw Sia at the Showbox near the Pikes Place Market. Sia is from Australia and if you don't know her you should check her out on You Tube...you will likely recognize some of her songs (Breathe Me and Day Too Soon are two of my favorites). She is quite talented and has a cute quirky personality. Dan bought me the tickets for Valentine's Day and I enjoyed his gift tremendously. Thanks Dan!!

We grabbed a bite of dinner at Steelhead Diner before the show with Dustin and Dania

Unfortunately they banned my new camera from entering the show :( Dan took this pic with his I Phone and it is a bit fuzzy

Amy's Trapeze Recital

2010-04-20T22:54:00.000-07:00

Some people invite you to their piano recital, or perhaps they play the french horn and ask you to come watch them in the orchestra. Not my sister. She invited me to a different kind of recital...that's right, a trapeze recital. Absent from the proceedings were the bearded woman and Dan, but my mom and I went and enjoyed watching Amy fly through the air with the greatest of ease.

Happy Easter

2010-04-06T22:43:00.002-07:00

Hello Everyone! I hope you all had a great Easter. I am happy to report that I have finally caught up on my blog. For as much time as I spent catching up, I am now motivated to keep up with my blog again. Having a new camera is helping too :) Thank you for taking the time to scroll through my long list of new updates...I think there are about 40 new updates total--eek--so if you feel compelled to read them all you will need to keep hitting "older posts" at the bottom of each page to keep scrolling through. I hope you are all doing well!! - Mandy

Rufus enjoying his new "blankey" and squirrel for Easter (he loves his blankeys)!

Michael Buble @ Key Arena 4/3/10

2010-04-06T22:43:00.001-07:00

What a week...John Mayer on Wednesday and Michael Buble on Saturday--Awesome! One of my New Year's resolutions this year was to see more concerts and so far I'm off to a great start. Amy is in love with Michael Buble, so for Christmas I bought floor seats for the two of us. The concert was soooo good!! As Michael grew up in Vancouver BC and his family still lives there, his entire family was in the audience and they were sitting just a few rows ahead of us. This was one of the best concerts I have ever seen...Micheal Buble is an amazing entertainer!! Amy and I finished the night with a little dessert fondue at the melting pot

Michael Jackson inspiration

A cute video of Michael bringing his darling nephew up on stage. Unfortunately my camera didn't pick up the acoustics of the music videos I took so have to post one of him talking. Forgive my video skills...just getting used to my new camera.

John Mayer @ Key Arena 3/31/10

2010-04-02T17:51:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know I am a HUGE fan of John Mayer's music. I have all of his albums and am continually amazed at how talented of a guitar player he is. I was able to see him at the Gorge last time he was in town and jumped again at good seats at the Key. He did not disappoint. I tried to take several videos with my new camera, but the acoustics just didn't turn out well on the video. Probably a good thing as the videos may have made you sick...Dan had to take the camera away and take over as he said I was having too much fun when he looked over at me and I was singing, dancing, and trying to video.

Michael Franti opening the show

below is a link to John performing Crossroads at the Key

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQtwMvwAuXI

New Camera = More Blog Updates

2010-03-30T21:08:00.002-07:00

Happy Early Birthday to Me!! Even though my birthday is not until July, Dan gave me an early gift by picking out this new nikon SLR camera for me! I am soooo excited to learn more about photography and hoping it will keep me inspired to keep this blog up to date!!

My subjects :) Expect to see many more pics of these two rascals

We have also finally joined the flat screen world

1st Sounders Game of the 2010 Season

2010-03-30T21:08:00.001-07:00

On March 25th Dan and I attended the first Sounders game of the 2010 Season. We signed up for season tickets again this year and are so excited the season has finally kicked off. Unfortunately it rained most of the game...at least we won the game 2-0 against the new expansion team - Philadelphia Union.

Legally Blonde

2010-03-30T21:07:00.004-07:00

On March 9th Amy, Mom, and I had a fun evening watching Legally Blonde The Musical at the 5th Ave. Theater. She show was so cute and very girly...a perfect girls night out on the town!!

Oscar Party

2010-03-30T21:07:00.003-07:00

On March 9th I threw my second annual small Oscar party at the Rossi house. This year Dan and I were joined by Amy and Donnie. We started the evening at The Counter in Ballard...the best new "build your own burger" joint in town. During dinner we each filled out our Oscar Ballots. Before the Oscars started I revealed the prizes: Season 1 and 2 of the Cosby Show, The Proposal movie, Lady Antebellum CD, and 6 months subscription to Entertainment weekly Magazine. Each person won a prize with the first place winner picking first followed by the 2nd and so on. During the Oscars we also played Oscar Bingo for a few small movie prizes. We had a great time. I was the BIG winner of the evening and picked The Proposal...Dan won the Cosby show...Amy won Lady Antebellum and Donnie took home the magazine. Can't wait for next years party.

Chicago at the Paramount

2010-03-30T21:07:00.001-07:00

On March 3rd Dan and I attended Chicago at the Paramount. The show was fabulous and starred John O'hurley...he was great!!

Congrats to Dan

2010-03-30T21:06:00.003-07:00

Dan will probably kill me for posting this, but I am a proud wife :) Dan won 2009 Online Salesperson of the Year at the Times!! Congrats Dan!! I love You...xoxo!

Vancouver 2010 Olympics

2010-03-30T21:06:00.001-07:00

We can now officially check "Winter Olympics" off of our bucket list!! On Feb. 27th we attended the Men's Bronze Medal Curling event at the Olympics in Vancouver. We all agreed that this day turned out to be one of the most amazing days of memory!!! The curling event started at 9am, so we left our house in seattle at 4:45am. We had no problems crossing the border (a 2 minute wait if that). We parked a bit outside the city at a Park and Ride and rode their new Canada Line metro system all day...we made it to our event with plenty of time to spare and enjoyed the day at a nice pace. It couldn't have been easier. The curling event was awesome. It came down to the last curl (I hope I am saying that right) with Switzerland beating out Sweden. The crowd went wild. I had my new camera with me and figured out the video feature just in time for the ending...you can see it below. After the event we spent the day downtown walking around, people watching, shopping, eating, and visiting the Cauldron. We left around 10pm after dinner in Yale town and since Dan drove us up, I drove us back and we got home around 1am (again with no border problems). It was such a fun day that I wish we could do it all over again!! Maybe next time we can cross Summer Olympics off the bucket list...you never know with the Rossis!!

It was a rainy day

Curling event center

Final Curl Video...Switzerland Takes Home The Bronze Medal

Downtown Vancouver

Zip Lining above the city

Lunch with a little Canadian Molson beer

Cheers to a fun day. Dinner in Yale Town before heading home! We had the best waiter...a perfect ending to an awesome day!

Random Rufus Pics

2010-03-30T21:05:00.000-07:00

A few random Rufus pics Dan has taken on his I Phone

Rufus chillin with his mom on the couch

Exhausted! Using his stuffed animals as a pillow again

A hard days work

"Rufus was here"

Belated Valentine's Day

2010-03-08T21:47:00.001-08:00

Since Dan and I were in Mt. Hood with the gang over Valentine's Day we decided to have a little belated Valentine's Day on Feb. 21st. We spent the morning opening a few V-day gifts before heading over to Queen Anne for a little breakfast at the 5 Spot. The day was absolutely gorgeous so we headed down to Kerry park with Rufus for a little walk on Queen Anne. This February day felt like Spring with flowers already in bloom!

Vancouver Olympics here we come!! Tickets to Men's Bronze Medal Curling!!

Dan's "Reading is Sexy" Mug...he loved it

This is actually the tree in our front yard

Dinner with Cousins

2010-03-08T21:46:00.004-08:00

After Becky's baby shower on Feb 20th I headed from Chehalis up to Olympia to have dinner with my cousins Jennifer and Renee. Amy was already in Olympia. It was great to spend the evening catching up over dinner and a little shopping.

Becky's Baby Shower

2010-03-08T21:46:00.003-08:00

On Feb. 20th I spent the afternoon in Chehalis for Becky's baby shower. It was so great to get to see Becky two weekends in a row (after just getting back from Mt. Hood)!! The shower was lovely. Since our good friend Kara was unable to make it from Florida she had a special cake made for Becky. Not only was the cake darling, it was probably the best cake I have ever eaten...so yummy!!

I love my Che-town girls

Isn't this cake darling?!!

Mt. Hood

2010-03-08T21:46:00.001-08:00

Since Dan finished school we were finally able to make the annual Presidents Day ski trip again with the Langan, Spacciante, and Boknecht clan. This year we headed back to Mt. Hood Oregon for a fun filled long weekend. Unfortunately with the warm winter we have had it was a rainy warm weekend with not nearly enough snow. We still enjoyed spending the weekend relaxing, watching the start of the Winter Olympics on TV, eating tons of great food, and enjoying the bit of snow that we did see.

Kate making Valentine's Day cookies

out for a walk

our cabin

Sledding!!

Timberline Ski Lodge (Where the movie "The Shining" was filmed)

Fondue--so good!!

The sun came out on our drive home and we finally got a clear view of Mt. Hood

New Years Day 2010 - Buckeyes vs. Ducks in the Rose Bowl

2010-03-08T21:45:00.003-08:00

On New Year's Day we got into the "Buckeye Spirit" by celebrating the Buckeye's Rose Bowl appearance and Big Win over the Ducks!! In honor of Ohio we made one of our favorite Ohio meals -- the Mighty Mort and Parmesan Salad from Zuppas in Columbus. It was the perfect way to start off the year!!

Even Rufus joined in on the celebration with his OSU collar

New Years Eve 2009

2010-03-08T21:45:00.001-08:00

New Year's Eve turned out to be our last adventure of the year. We had reservations at the Palisade restaurant, but unfortunately when we got there they had a set menu that included only seafood and red meat (both of which I don't eat). We asked if they could make me something vegetarian or with chicken and they said no, so Dan insisted we go somewhere else that we both could enjoy. I felt so bad for my picky eating habits. Unfortunately the restaurant didn't mention the set menu when we called or on their website and we didn't think it would be an issue as we'd gone there for New Years a few years back. Dan was such a good sport!! We ended up at Ray's Boathouse Cafe and had a yummy dinner of seafood for Dan and chicken for me! We talked about all we had accomplished in the last decade and our goals for the future. We made it back in time to watch the Ball Drop and toasted with pepsi at midnight :) It ended up to be what Dan called our last adventure of the year!

Happy New Year!!

Beautiful December Day in Seattle

2010-03-08T21:44:00.000-08:00

A beautiful December day overlooking Green Lake

Christmas Day 2009

2010-03-08T21:43:00.004-08:00

We made a yummy ham dinner with all the fixins

our cute little tree

Rufus opening his stocking. He was so excited!

Enjoying his new toys

Christmas Eve 2009

2010-03-08T21:43:00.003-08:00

After Christmas Eve service at church we headed to mom's condo for a full meal of horsdevours. It was quite the spread. We were absolutely stuffed at the end of the night

Dan made stuffed dates with blue cheese and wrapped in bacon. We had this at one of the local tapas bars in town and Dan decided to try and duplicate it. It was spot on! They looked and tasted amazing

Rufus enjoying his stuffed strawberry from grandma

Visit with Kelly

2010-03-08T21:43:00.001-08:00

Over Christmas break I had dinner with my dear friend Kelly who was in town from LA visiting the fam for Christmas. We had a fun evening catching up and sharing a few good laughs as always. I was finally able to see Kelly's pictures from her recent trip to the Galapagos Islands with the Jeopardy crew...a fun evening!

Mom's Birthday

2010-03-08T21:41:00.003-08:00

Happy Birthday Mom! On Dec. 11th we enjoyed a fun dinner with mom at the Cheesecake Factory

Dan Finishes his MBA!!!

2010-03-08T21:41:00.001-08:00

On Dec. 10th Dan finished his final class of the UW MBA program. I'm so proud of him...his hard work paid off and he was able to finish the program two quarters early. When he got home from class we toasted with champagne and I gave him a few gifts that included a poem I wrote for him about his MBA experience. He has decided to walk with his class in June...can't wait to see him in his cap and gown!!

Goodbye Dinner for Brian, Emily, and Ashley

2010-03-08T21:40:00.003-08:00

On Dec. 5th the neighbors gathered together at Greenlake Bar and Grill to wish our neighbors, Brian, Emily, Ashley (and their dog Brody--not present), well on their move to Portland. Brian just graduated from the UW Physicians Assistant program and took a job in CT surgery down in Portland. We are sure going to miss having the Timm Family as neighbors!!

Boes Family Christmas 2009

2010-03-08T21:40:00.001-08:00

Catching up with Grandma Boes

Rufus decided to make his bed right on top of Grandpa's Beaver pelt

So tired after too much excitement on "the farm"

Thanksgiving 2009

2010-03-08T21:39:00.001-08:00

Aunt Susan and Uncle Glenn hosted Thanksgiving again this year down in Olympia. The feast was delicious and the day was filled with fun and laughter!!!

cousins

Let the feast begin...after this picture that is. Let's just say I have a little bit of Grandma Jake in me :)

Kids table

Addison

David Gray at the Paramount

2010-03-08T21:38:00.003-08:00

On Nov. 5th Amy and I attended the David Gray concert at the Paramount. Unfortunately Dan was unable to make it (due to school) as we are both huge fans. David Gray is from Ireland and is the biggest selling artist ever in Ireland. His show was awesome...he is an amazing live performer!!

Lisa Hannigan (also from Ireland) opened the show for David Gray. We met her after the show signing autographs...she was darling

Performing "Fugitive" off of his new album

Performing "Babylon" one of my favorites

"This Year's Love"

Matt Visits Seattle

2010-03-08T21:38:00.001-08:00

Dan's best college buddy Matt came out to visit us from Ohio on Dec. 12 through the 17th. We had a great visit with him running around the city, eating at some of our favorite spots, and just catching up on life. We can't wait for him to visit us again!!!

View from Kerry Park

Amy and Rufus at the Candlelight walk at Green Lake

Pike's Place

Triple Door Burlesque Nutcracker Show

12 egg omelet at Beth's Cafe

Rufus Turns 6

2010-03-08T21:37:00.003-08:00

Rufus smiled ear to ear on his birthday enjoying all of his special presents. He had a great day...we started at the dog park then headed to the "doggie food store" where he was able to pick out his own present. He had a great day!!

Rufus picked out this squirrel with 16 squeakers in it

Halloween 2009

2010-03-08T21:37:00.001-08:00

Dan, Rufus and I headed to U-Village this Halloween to watch the kids tricker treat. We grabbed a coffee, sat outside and rated all of the costumes. Amy stopped by on her way to a party to show us her costume. We gave her a 10!! She looked fabulous dressed up as "Breakfast at Tiffany's."

Sounders Playoff Match #1 vs. Houston & MLS Cup in Seattle

2010-03-08T21:36:00.001-08:00

Sounders Playoff Match #1 Against Houston (10/29/09). We tied, but then lost the next game down in Houston :(

The crowd is ready

MLS CUP 11/22/09- Salt Lake vs LA Galaxy

Seattle hosted the MLS Cup this year. Sadly the Sounders didn't make the Cup, but we still enjoyed a great game between Salt Lake and LA. It was an exciting match that came down to a final shootout between the two teams. Salt Lake came away with the trophy

Third Eye Blind played on the stage outside the stadium

Beckham

Final Shootout

Sounders vs Dallas: Last Match of the Season

2010-03-08T21:35:00.000-08:00

Drew Carey (part owner of the team) thanking fans for a successful first season

Dad's Birthday

2010-03-08T21:34:00.001-08:00

Celebrating Dad's 61st birthday in Che-town with a yummy BBQ

Steven and Allison's Wedding

2010-03-08T21:33:00.003-08:00

In October we headed back to Columbus to attend Steven and Allison's wedding which took place on Oct 3rd. Dan and his brother Dave were co-best men. We had a great time hanging out with the Rossi family while also helping with final wedding preparations. Unfortunately it was a quick trip as Dan started Fall quarter on Tuesday, but the wedding was beautiful and we always love our time in Ohio.

Trader Joe's with Molly and Christina

Dinner at Easton with the girls

Katie helping lick the bowl

Sofia

Being silly with Grandma at the Rehearsal dinner

Dan and I helped decorate the reception hall the morning of the wedding. It turned out nicely

Reception Hall

All of the kids were in the wedding -- So cute!!

Rice Family

Dan giving the toast

Katie

Christina and I

Dave, Melanie, and Joey

Steven and Allison opening gifts the next day at the Rossi's

Katie and Molly dancing with Belo :)

Europe: Netherlands, Belgium, and France

2010-03-08T21:33:00.001-08:00

Dan says I have to toot my own horn here. This year I planned another fantastic trip to Europe. I presented Dan with a power point presentation last April with three trip options. To my surprise he picked a trip to Amsterdam, Bruges, Brussels, Paris and the French Riviera. I was surprised as Dan tends to like more beach time and one of the options was the islands of Greece...I guess when it came down to it though he wanted a mixture of history, art, culture, and beach. We were gone from Sept. 2nd through the 18th and as you can see from our pictures below we had a great time. Hope you enjoy the pics

Amsterdam

2010-03-08T21:32:00.003-08:00

We loved our time in Amsterdam. The canals were picturesque. You look across the canals and down the lanes and every home even though connected had its own unique facade. All of these things combined made Amsterdam one of the most charming cities we've ever visited.

We have arrived!! It is 8am and after flying all night we are ready to hit the city

Taking the train from the Airport into Amsterdam

a parking garage for bikes - bikes are everywhere

Our hotel

The charming canals

Anne Frank House

Rembrandt's tomb inside the church below

Dam Square

Magna Plaza Shopping Center-So different than our malls

hidden pod of homes in the center of the city

Heineken brewery

Rijksmuseum - largest collection of Rembrandt works

breakfast at our hotel

visiting the sunday street market

Van Gogh Museum - Amazing!!

Trying Dutch Stroop Wafel's at the Albert Cuyp outdoor market

Rembrandt's home

Inside Rembrandt's Art Studio - very cool

Rembrandt Corner

Amstelkring Museum - hidden catholic church inside the attic of a 17th century merchant's house

view outside our hotel room

Pancake Bakery

Traditional dutch pancakes - yummy!

view of our hotel at night

I was in french fry heaven on this trip

we bought this etching from the artist directly

Mango...I have found you...just in time to add to my european jacket collection before leaving Amsterdam

Bruges

2010-03-08T21:32:00.001-08:00

We thought it couldn't get any more charming than Amsterdam...then we went to the gothic city of Bruges. How can I best describe Bruges to you if you've never been? Think of a Walt Disney fairytale town and that is the perfect description. Narrow cobbled lanes, high stone towers, picturesque canals, waffles with ice cream, and even a painting of Rufus...it was perfect!!

passing the windmills of Holland by train

On the way to Bruges

We have arrived

Bell Tower on Market Square. We hiked to the top of the tower one day

Market Square - Just darling

view out our hotel window

breakfast at our hotel

We found this painting that looked just like Rufus in a shop right near our hotel. We bought it immediately and shipped it home to Seattle. Such a great conversation piece

Belgium Chocolate!!

Mango, I have found you again

Church of Our Lady with Michelangelo's Madonna and Child in the background...Michelangelo's only work to leave Italy. I lit one of the candles you see there

We took a canal tour

Waffles with ice cream on top...why have we not been doing this at home?

We bought chocolates here

climbing the bell tower

views overlooking Bruges from the Bell Tower

Basilica of the Holy Blood

Having a Belgium Beer on Market Square and working on postcards

Dan picked our dinner spot and of course it would be called De Hobbit :)

I bought this jacket minus the belt

the darling little shop we bought the Rufus painting from. The painting was all the way to the right in the window...waiting for us

Brussels

2010-03-08T21:30:00.002-08:00

After leaving Bruges we made a quick one night stop in Brussels (the unofficial capital of Europe with the European Union Headquarters) before heading to Paris. We hit the ground running covering most of the city in a day. The highlight was visiting the original Godiva and Neuhaus shops on the Grand Place. Dan was also able to add "Eating Mussels in Brussels" to his bucket list

Arriving in Brussels by train

The Grand Place

Manneken-Pis. A very famous statue in Brussels. Sometimes the statue is dressed in one of the 700 different costumes that visiting VIPs have brought to him over the years

Royal Palace

Notre-Dame du Sablon Church

views from the upper city walk

Dan's mussels in brussels and mixed seafood plate (It cost almost as much as my Mango coat--just kidding--sorta)

Paris

2010-03-08T21:30:00.001-08:00

Paris. It's pristine, It's historic, It's Metropolitan, and we could go back there every year. Truly a Rossi favorite and a gem of Europe!!

Notre Dame

Just a few of our favorite works in our favorite museum in Europe, d'Orsay

Monet's Water Lilies in the Orangerie Museum

The Louvre

Venus de Milo

Night shots of Notre Dame while walking back to our hotel

Awesome gelato across the street from our hotel

Our hotel on the little island of Ile St. Louis in the center of the city

breakfast in Paris

Versailles

The Amazing "Hall of Mirrors" in Versailles

Grounds of Versailles

Banana and Nutella Crepe. It was so good!! We've started making these at home

Saint-Chapelle, one of our favorite chapels in Europe. Unfortunately it is undergoing renovations right now, but we were lucky enough to see it in its full glory on our last trip to Paris

views from the top of the Notre Dame

Inside the Notre Dame

Disneyland Paris -- crossed off Mandy's bucket list :)

Arc de Triomphe

Hot Chocolate at Foquets on the grand boulevard of the Champs-Elysees. Famous cafe to the french celebrities

The Eiffel Tower -- Absolutely Breathtaking

Just in time to see it sparkle at 9pm

We ate so much fondue in Paris. We loved every minute of it

Villefranche-Sur-Mer

2010-03-08T21:29:00.000-08:00

We ended the trip in the French Riviera in Villefranche-Sur-Mer where we were hoping to find the sun and the beach. While we did get the sun on the first two days, the rest of our trip poured rain. We anchored ourselves in the town of Villefranche each night, but hopped along the Riviera by train each day to visit the towns of Nice, Cannes, Antibes and Monaco.

Dan finishing one of his great e-mail trip updates on the train

Our hotel in Villefranche

The town of Villefranche-sur-mer...beautiful!!

Dan being silly at dinner

As you can see he was cracking me up :)

More scenes from Villefranche

Beach in Villefranche

NICE

We spent one day in Nice on the beach

BACK in VILLEFRANCHE

a little snack on our balcony

The best gnocchi ever!! We had it 3 times we loved it so much

CANNES

We spent one beach day in Cannes

location of the Cannes film festival

BACK in VILLEFRANCHE

We walked along this cobblestone path each day to get to our hotel from the main town/train

chilling on our hotel balcony

ANTIBES

We spent one rainy day in the charming city of Antibes

Picasso Museum in Antibes

views from the Museum

We are drenched

I bought this cute plaid umbrella in town so that I could continue shopping :)

MONACO

We spent our last day in Monaco--another rainy day

Monte Carlo

lunch with views of Monte Carlo

Royal palace

church where Grace Kelly is buried along with her husband

Grace Kelly's burial stone

LAST NIGHT in VILLEFRANCHE

BACK HOME IN SEATTLE

Our painting beat us home from Bruges

Happy Autumn!

2009-09-29T18:04:00.000-07:00

Well it seems that Fall has officially arrived in Seattle. I hope you all had a wonderful summer and are easing back into the school year. Once again I have fallen WAY behind on our Rossi blog. Dan and I are leaving for Ohio tomorrow for his brothers wedding. I had hoped to post pics of our recent Europe trip before leaving, but will instead let you catch up on the rest of our spring/summer and will goal myself to post pics of Europe/the Ohio wedding after we get back next week. Hope you are all doing well!!

Mandy and Dan

Anniversary #7

2009-09-28T20:16:00.001-07:00

On August 17th Dan and I celebrated our 7th Anniversary. We had a wonderful evening that began with flowers and a cute card from Dan. No itch here :)

Visit with my Che-town Girls!!

2009-09-28T20:15:00.001-07:00

On August 10th I met up with my high school girlfriends at Carrie's house in Mill Creek. We try and see each other every summer if possible and had the best time catching up. I feel so blessed to have such wonderful friendships that go WAY back!!

Kara, Carrie, Becky, Aryn, and Me

A cake for the summer birthdays

Chehalis BBQ Competition

2009-09-28T20:14:00.003-07:00

On August 8th and 9th Dan and Dad competed in their annual Chehalis BBQ competition. They placed 4th with their chicken this year. Dad also won a trophy in the car show portion of the event for his 55 Chevy.

Sounders vs Barcelona

2009-09-28T20:14:00.001-07:00

On August 5th we attended the Sounders vs Barcelona game. Dan was thrilled as he was able to see Lionel Messi play. Messi is Argentine and one of the best players in the world. He scored two goals on the Sounders in the first half -- eek!

Messi

Messi was named Man of the Match

Neighborhood Block Party

2009-09-28T20:13:00.006-07:00

On Tuesday August 4th our neighborhood had our annual block party to go along with the National Neighborhood Night Out. As always it was a great showing with good food and friends.

Our neighbor Kylee

Record Breaking Heat in Seattle

2009-09-28T20:13:00.005-07:00

On July 29th Seattle hit a record breaking heat wave of 103 degrees. Since none of our homes have air conditioning most of Seattle was congregating at the Lake to cool off. This is a picture of Greenlake at 10pm. There were at least 200 people on different sections of the lake cooling off.

White Salmon with the Millers

2009-09-28T20:13:00.003-07:00

On August 1st through the 3rd we joined our neighbors, Dustin, Dania, and their dog Lilly on a trip to Dustin's home town of White Salmon, Washington. We had a wonderful weekend touring the local wineries, swimming with the dogs, and checking out White Salmon and Hood River. The area was just beautiful!

We made a stop at Multnomah Falls before reaching White Salmon and we all hiked to the top of the falls

Upon arriving at Dustins parents home Rufus found an apple to play fetch with. Look at how happy he is

The view of the Gorge from Dustins parents home

Maryhill Winery

Rufus and Lilly

view of Mt. Hood from Dustin's parents home

Swimming with the dogs in the river. Rufus was in heaven again!

Sunset while eating dinner on Dustin's parents deck

Sounders vs Chelsea

2009-09-28T20:13:00.001-07:00

July 25th

Mandy's #32

2009-09-28T20:12:00.001-07:00

Happy 32nd Birthday to me! The night before the big day we celebrated at Marie Callendars with family and pie. On my official birthday Dan took me to Rialto for my favorite pasta and then to see the movie The Proposal (very cute!).

Coldplay at the Gorge

2009-09-28T20:11:00.000-07:00

On July 11th Dan and I made the drive to the Gorge to see Coldplay in concert. The concert was AMAZING and you can't beat the gorgeous setting of the Gorge!! Dan and I have all of their CD's and we listened to them the entire drive over...we picked all of our favorites that we hoped they would play and were thrilled when we heard almost all of them. A great mix of all of their music!

Rossis Visit Seattle

2009-09-28T20:10:00.002-07:00

From June 26th through July 5th the Rossi's were in Seattle for their annual visit from Columbus. As always we had the best time and tried to throw in a few new sights.

Sounders Game

Museum of Glass

High Tea at the Queen Mary (We had a girls day while the boys went to Mt. Rainier)

After tea we rode the Duck

Tapas at Tango!

Happy 4th of July

At Gas Works Park for Fireworks with MBA teammates, neighbors, and Mom and Dad Rossi

Sisters in Lake Chelan

2009-09-28T20:10:00.001-07:00

Amy and I decided to take a mini vacation to Lake Chelan June 3rd through the 8th. Chelan has always been near and dear to our hearts as we used to camp in Chelan every summer growing up. The last time we had been there was in high school, so we had a fun time reminiscing. The weather was fabulous in the 90's. We had a massage, laid by the pool, played tennis, saw a movie, visited several wineries, and enjoyed the local food.

Sounders vs Columbus Crew

2009-09-28T20:08:00.000-07:00

On May 30th we attended the Sounders vs Columbus Crew game. It was a big game since our coach came from Columbus last year. The game ended with a tie.

Dan showing some Columbus love underneath his Sounders gear.

Freddie Lundberg

Amy's Birthday

2009-09-28T20:07:00.001-07:00

On May 29th we celebrated Amy's birthday with a fabulous Italian dinner at La Spiga.

That weekend we headed down to Chehalis where we had a BBQ with Dad. Anne Marie also came with her family to wish Amy a Happy Birthday.

Mitchell Housewarming/Memorial Day

2009-09-28T20:05:00.001-07:00

On May 25th we headed to a housewarming BBQ at the Mitchells new home. Kelly was also in town from LA, so we had a great time catching up on the latest.

College roomies together again :)

Steve, Dan, Donnie, and Jim

Nanocel Wins Big

2009-09-28T20:04:00.000-07:00

On May 21st Dan and Dustin took first place at the UW Business plan competition beating out 99 teams over several rounds of competition. On the final day Dan and Dustin pitched their Nanocel business plan to a panel of VC's. I couldn't have been more proud of Dan...he and Dustin were amazing!! They were announced the winners that evening at a dinner downtown on the pier. Dan and I sat next to the CEO of Big Fish Games, the keynote speaker for the evening. The big prize was $25,000 towards their company.

Celebrating with the team at the Millers on a later date

Mothers Day

2009-09-28T20:03:00.005-07:00

Mothers Day with Mom at Sonrisa Mexican Restaurant in U Village (one of her favorite places)

Sounders vs San Jose

2009-09-28T20:03:00.003-07:00

May 10th, 2009

Vancouver with Amy

2009-09-28T20:03:00.001-07:00

On May 3rd Amy and I headed to Vancouver BC for the day to do a little shopping. When we came home Dan had put a shirt on Rufus because they had been studying outside and Rufus was shivering, but refused to go inside. His shirt was a gift from his Nanny Rossi.

Tony and Liz's Engagement Party

2009-09-28T20:01:00.000-07:00

On May 1st we attended Tony and Liz's engagement party with the rest of Dan's MBA team 5. We started with a little pre funk at Noah and Jocelyn's apartment before heading down to the official party

All of team 5 and their significant others. Dan and I sort of made the pic

Tulip Festival

2009-04-27T14:31:00.001-07:00

Dan, Rufus and I made a quick trip to the Skagit valley tulip festival on Sunday April 26th. Dan had a lot of studying to do, so we left late in the afternoon thinking we'd beat the Sunday rush. Well I guess everyone had the same idea as us as it was packed. The sun came out just in time for our trip and the tulips were beautiful!!!

Tulips here we come!

Sunset Blackout

2009-04-27T14:30:00.000-07:00

On Saturday April 25th we skipped the Sounders Game and attended the Sunset Blackout party hosted by our neighbors, Trent and Rachelle Mitchell. They actually won the use of the Sunset Tavern Bar in Ballard through an online auction and hosted a party with 200 of their dearest friends. It was a great party with a live band, Half Acre Day. We had a great evening cathing up with the 85 Stoners.

Neighbors

Dania and Dustin

Emily and Brian

Brian and Dan with the party host Trent

Dan's 31st Birthday

2009-04-27T14:29:00.002-07:00

Dan had what he called an "Adult Birthday" this year...it consisted of a full days work and a full nights class :( When he got home close to 10pm we had a small celebration. I made him his favorite flan dessert and he opened a small gift to go along with the previous Sounders tickets.

Rufus always the big helper when it comes to presents

Family Outing to the UW Cherry Blossoms

2009-04-27T14:29:00.001-07:00

On Sunday April 19th Dan, Rufus and I went for one last look at the UW Cherry Blossoms. It was another beautiful day and Mt. Rainier was absolutely stunning...the pictures just don't do it justice.

Rufus loving the Cherry Blossoms

Dan's Early Birthday Dinner at Tango!

2009-04-27T14:28:00.002-07:00

Unfortunately Dan's birthday fell on one of his class days this year. The good and dedicated student that he is decided not to skip and to instead celebrate an early birthday with me on the 18th. Sticking with our date night theme of picking new restaurants, I selected Tango a tapas bar on Capitol Hill. The tapas were fabulous and reminded us of our time in Spain. We both agreed that this was one of our favorite new restaurant picks.

The dessert was called El Diablo. The waiter told us it was ranked the best dessert in the city by Seattle Metropolitan Magazine, so of course we had to try it. We both loved it.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-27T14:28:00.001-07:00

After church on Easter Sunday we headed to the Spaghetti Factory for the not so traditional spaghetti dinner. We had a great time and the food actually hit the spot for all of us. Later that evening though I decided to make a small (7lb..the smallest Safeway had) ham dinner for just Dan and I.

Sounders FC vs. Kansas City

2009-04-27T14:27:00.002-07:00

Back at it again for match #3 on April 11th. Unfortunately we lost, but we still had a blast.

Dan trying to show off his not so impressive whistling skills

Cherry Blossom Lunch Break

2009-04-27T14:27:00.001-07:00

On April 7th we had another 70 degree day, so I headed up to the UW campus on my lunch break to check out the famous cherry blossoms that were in full bloom. The trees were gorgeous and the quad was packed.

Pikes Place BBQ Competition

2009-04-27T14:26:00.002-07:00

On April 5th Dan and Dad were back at it again for their third annual Pikes Place BBQ competition. The weather couldn't have been more perfect nearing 70 degrees...a nice change from the snow and cold we had last year. Dan enjoyed all who came out to support the 3 Alarm BBQ team which included MBA teammates, work colleagues, neighbors, family, and friends. Dan and Dad fed us all well with BBQ pork sandwiches and several samples of their meat. The competition consisted of: chicken, ribs, pork, and brisket. This year they placed 3rd in Brisket and 8th overall out of 30 teams. Way to go guys!!

A few of the many visitors

Chicken about to be turned in

Their team tent right under the Pikes Place sign

The market was full of beautiful tulips

Sounders FC vs. Salt Lake City

2009-04-27T14:26:00.001-07:00

On 3/28 we attended match #2 at Qwest Field. Another win for the Sounders (2 - o)!!

Seattle Sounder FC Inaugural Game

2009-03-20T21:06:00.001-07:00

I gave Dan and early birthday present this year...season tickets to the new Seattle Souncers FC Soccer team. Dan is a huge soccer fan and I must say that I'm really getting into it too. Below is Dan opening his gift of season tickets the night before the Inaugural game on 3/19. The Inaugural games was a blast. The crowd was awesome and everywhere you looked it was a sea of green scarves. The top it all off, they won the match.

Rufus helping Dan open his gift

Sea of scarves

Mission West Seattle

2009-03-17T20:47:00.001-07:00

Continuing on with our mission to eat at new restaurants Dan took us to Mission in West Seattle for mexican food. Another great pick.

Rufus waiting for us when we came out of the restaurant. He loves his rides in the car

Cake Decorating Sisters

2009-03-17T20:46:00.000-07:00

I was sitting having pizza with Dan and Amy one Friday night and I told them that one of my goals this year was to take a cake decorating class. Amy got so excited and pulled out of her purse a cooking class schedule from Whole Foods and pointed to the Cake Decorating class. I decided it must have been meant to be and we signed up. We had a great afternoon learning how to cut, frost, and decorate cakes. It wasn't easy though and I left thinking maybe I should start smaller with cupcakes.

An African Themed Valentines Weekend

2009-03-17T20:45:00.002-07:00

Dan and I had a fun filled Valentines weekend that seemed to have a bit of an African theme without having planned it to be. We started on the 13th with an evening planned by Dan that started with dinner at the Purple Cafe followed by the Lion King at the Paramount. The show was amazing. The next morning we had brunch with mom and Amy and exchanged Valentine's Day gifts over coffee afterwards. One of the gifts we gave Amy was an African Safari planner as we tried to inspire her to plan her dream vacation. The rest of the afternoon we headed back to our house where Dan and I opened gifts. That evening it was my turn to plan for a new restaurant, so I picked the Moroccan restaurant Marrakesh. Dan was so thrilled and surprised by my pick. He had tried to guess all week and I only agreed to give him one hint...I washed his hands for him...since we would be eating with our hands. He never guessed though and all he could think of was eating pizza. A great end to the weekend came on Sunday when I had brunch with my dear friend Jill who was in town from Rhode Island. jill and I worked together in D.C. and I love seeing her.

Dinner at Purple Cafe

The Amazing Lion King

Exchanging Valentines with Mom and Amy

Watch Out Africa...here she comes!

My Valentine

Rufus working on his Valentine

I gave Dan a Sounders scarf to wear to the Inaugural game coming in March

Along with US Magazine I got a Fray CD and a Norman Rockwell Puzzle (I don't know why, but it has been one of my goals this year to finish a hard puzzle)

4 Course dinner at Marrakesh. It was so good!!

One of the courses. Phyllo dough filled with ground chicken and almonds topped with cinnamon and sugar. It was so good. We both really enjoyed the food.

Main course

Belly Dancer at Marakesh

Brunch on Sunday at Portage Bay Cafe with Jill

Bob Greene Book Signing

2009-03-17T20:45:00.001-07:00

On February 6th Mom, Amy, and I attended a talk and book signing by Bob Greene (of Oprah show fame) at the U-Village Barnes and Noble. It was perfect timing as Dan and I had just started to read his book. Before the signing he was only supposed to give a short talk on his book along with a few questions from the audience, but instead he stayed until the audience was done asking questions. He seemed very humble and kind. During the signing he also spent a few minutes with each individual person answering questions. We were impressed.

Dan unfortunately couldn't make it as he had something going for school, but he did give me a question to ask Bob...here I am asking it for Dan.

Mom and Bob

Restaurant Critics In Our Own Town

2009-03-17T20:44:00.000-07:00

When Dan started his MBA program we committed to a Saturday night date night to ensure quality time together during all of the busyness. Well this quarter we decided to kick the dates up a notch by challenging ourselves to try a new restaurant each week. Dan and I rotate picking the restaurant each week and planning the date. It has been a blast. This is a picture of one of my picks...La Rustica a great Italian restaurant on West Seattle. While I don't have pictures of all of the restaurants, a few of the places we've enjoyed are Monsoon, Flying Fish, & Lee's Asian in West Seattle.

Driving along Alki Beach on a rainy evening towards La Rustica

Christmas/New Years in Ohio

2009-03-17T20:43:00.000-07:00

On December 26th we left the snow of Seattle to visit Dan's family in Ohio. The first day we arrived the weather in Columbus was in the high 60's. Crazy! We had a wonderful week spending time with family and running around Columbus. It was hard to leave!!

Coloring with Katie

Meeting Sofia

Joey and Elizabeth

Brothers Together Again!

Molly and Will joining in the fun with Dan and Joey

More time with Katie

Breakfast with Dan's good friend Andy Betts and his family

Will playing Wii. We had a blast spending the day with the Rice family competing on the Wii

Cousins

Dinner at Molly Woo's one of my favorite restaurants in Columbus. Yummy!

Dan and Molly

Maria and Jason (Dan's sister)

Christina, John and Will (Dan's sister).

I'm mad I didn't get a picture of Dan with his sisters

Dan and Katie

Kathy made Dan and I Churros con Chocolate to remind us of our time in Spain. They were soooooo good!!

We had a fun day with Jorge and Kathy at the Norman Rockwell exhibit

Dan made gnocchi for our time with Dave and Melanie

Mama Rossi reading to Joey and Elizabeth

Jorge and Elizabeth

For Christmas we gave Kathy a creme brulee set including the ramekins, torch, and a cookbook we made for her.

Kathy torching the creme brulee. It was so good!

Dan with his good friend Dave Stewart. He is very special to Dan and I as he was the pastor who married us.

New Years Eve fun with this kids

David, Melanie and Joey

Working on a bead craft with the kids

We had a fun girls day at Easton Mall and Melanie even got her ears pierced

We stayed one night with the Cooks in Sunbury. Here we were heading out for a late night walk in the neighborhood.

Dan with Mom and Dad in the kitchen

Jorge and Dan made Cioppino on our last night

They were so happy

Rufus enjoying his gifts from Nanny and Belo when we got home

A White Christmas

2009-03-17T20:40:00.000-07:00

We sure did get our white christmas this year. Christmas morning Dan and I hosted a Christmas brunch with Mom, Amy and Adam. Adam was fortunately able to make it up mom's steep hill with his SUV in the snow, so that mom could join us in the fun. The snow sure made for an adventurous holiday season.

This was our tree this year as we decided to keep it low key with going to Ohio on the 26th.

Rufus ready to open his stocking on Christmas morning

Christmas Eve with the 85 Stoners

2009-03-17T20:35:00.001-07:00

While we had planned to get together with family on Christmas Eve, the Blizzard of 2008 had other plans for us. Many of our neighbors were also stranded on Stone Avenue after flights and travel plans had to be cancelled due to the snow. We all made the best of the situation and enjoyed an evening of fun and games.

Dan making Strombolli

Dustin and Dania came for dinner. They brought oysters and a special rice dish

Tricia/Steve & Jeff/Rhiannon later joined for wine and games

Merry Christmas from the Rossis!

2008-12-21T00:40:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Seattle Blizzard of '08

2008-12-21T00:37:00.003-08:00

Deep Freeze 2008! To be said in a deep weatherman's voice as Dan would say. The weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful and when there's no place to go let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. Unless you're in Seattle where there are hills and we don't own a 4 Wheel Drive Vehicle with tire chains, in that case let it rain, let it rain, let it rain so Dan can go to work even though he says this is exactly the kind of break he needs before next quarter.

Although Dan tells me he has enjoyed "working from home," I unfortunately don't have a "work from home" job, so have made the treacherous trek into work via the 48 bus that has been a bit sketchy with its schedule. We have enjoyed our time with our neighbors and are thankful for the brief outing to get breakfast at Mae's Cafe in our neighbor Dustin's jeep. We are hopeful to make our flight to Columbus on Friday as some of our friends have been less fortunate and have had to cancel their flights home as they were told they would not get out before Christmas with all of the cancelled flights.

We haven't seen a storm like this since the early 90's...it is definitely a winter wonderland in Seattle!! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!!

Dan and I in front of the Stone Avenue Snowman

Dan and Rufus staying warm after playing in the snow

The first night of the storm brings the beginning of major snow to our little yard

Can I please go out Mom and Dad

Not without your sweater!!

Dan and our neighbor Dustin (also Dan's new business partner)

Family photo

More Stone Avenue pictures

Our garbage still hasn't been picked up. Hopefully next week!

Dan and Rufus playing ball

The Greenlake sign with snow pouring down

Walking back from dinner at Blue Water Bistro

Stone Avenue Sign

Stone Avenue Neighbors Christmas Caroling!! You can't see them very well, but they sure do sound good! We love our neighbors!!!

Boes Family Christmas

2008-12-21T00:37:00.001-08:00

After seeing the James family we headed down to Chehalis to spend the night with dad. We had a fun evening of chilling out with dad before attending the annual Boes family Christmas party on Dec. 14th. We had a fun time eating good food and catching up with the Boes family. We had a long drive home as it started snowing on our way home...the beginning of a long cold spell in Seattle.

Opening Christmas presents after the party

Rufus with his new ball from Grandpa

Early Christmas Eve with the James Gang

2008-12-21T00:36:00.006-08:00

For as long as I can remember we have been celebrating Christmas Eve with the James family. However, with growing families and living in different cities, last year it didn't work out to celebrate and it just didn't feel the same! So this year on Dec. 13th we headed down to Olympia to celebrate an early Christmas Eve. We had a fabulous time chatting and munching on our favorite Christmas Eve menu of horsdevours. Mom even celebrated her birthday again with her favorite red cake made by Aunt Susan.

Nice spread!

Mom's 60th Birthday

2008-12-21T00:36:00.005-08:00

On December 11th we helped mom celebrate her 60th Birthday in style at Serafina, a wonderful Italian restaurant located on Eastlake in Seattle. We had a lovely evening full of good food and fun. Happy Birthday mom!

New Danskos...Yeah!!

Thanksgiving

2008-12-21T00:36:00.003-08:00

Dan and I hosted Thanksgiving at our house this year! We had a fabulous turkey dinner with Mom, Dad, Grandma, Amy and Adam! Thanks for all of the help everyone! It was a great time.

Rufus turns 5

2008-12-21T00:36:00.001-08:00

Rufus turned 5 years old on November 8th. To commemorate his special day, Dan and I made Rufus new dog bowls. Up until now Rufus has had stainless steel bowls, but it became obvious to us that he didn't like them when he kept going all the way upstairs to drink water out of his porcelain bowl. They turned out great and Rufus feels special knowing that his bowls were made with love from mom and dad (we know because he told us so in French, per Dan). Happy Birthday Rufus!!

Dan and I at the U-Village Paint the Town

Rufus opening his present

Finished product

Poppy

2008-12-21T00:35:00.001-08:00

Dan and I had a lovely evening out with the Spacciantes at a new restaurant located on Capitol Hill called Poppy. The restaurant was started by Jerry Traunfeld (former Chef of the infamous Herb Farm in Woodinville). The food at Poppy is inspired by the Indian "thali" which means a platter served to each person with a variety of small dishes served all at once. The "thali" at Poppy highlights a modern Northwest tasting menu. It was a fun experience! Thanks for the invite Leah and Anthony! Check out the poppy website at www.poppyseattle.com

Dad's Day to Shine

2008-10-21T17:42:00.001-07:00

On October 18th we headed down to Chehalis to celebrate an early 60th Birthday with dad and to attend the grand opening ceremony of the new Vernetta Smith Chehalis Timberland Library. Dad was the Project Manager for the library and he received many many thanks and "job well done" praises throughout the day! We couldn't have been more proud. The new library was jump started by a huge donation from Orin Smith the former Starbucks CEO and a Chehalis alumni. Way to go Dad!

Dad opening his present before heading out to the library

People starting to gather for the ceremony. The high school jazz bland playing on the steps

Grandma, Amy, and I claimed our seats on the fountain early

Vernetta Smith cutting the ribbon

Family photo inside the library

Beautiful ceilings! The library even has the first drive up window in the state

Recapping Portugal and Spain

2008-10-14T20:39:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends and Family:

Happy Autumn!!! We hope you had a wonderful summer and are off to a great start to the school year. We started Fall in high gear with Dan starting back to school in his second year of the UW MBA program. We were so blessed to have two amazing weeks together in Europe before the quarter started. I'm finally getting around to posting a recap of our Europe trip on the blog. I took over 1,200 pictures, so to say the least it was difficult narrowing them down for the blog. We started our trip in Lisbon and ended in Barcelona. Each city was unique and amazing in its own way. I hope you will enjoy a small snapshot of each city.

Love, Dan and Mandy

LISBON

2008-10-03T20:51:00.001-07:00

Lisbon is what Rick Steve's describes as a ramshackle but charming mix of now and then. The city has vintage trolleys, grand squares, and well worn people. The highlight of Lisbon for us was a guided walking tour that took us through each of the different neighborhoods within Lisbon, on the #28 Trolley, and to several spectacular viewpoints over the city. We also had a couple of our best meals in Lisbon.

Our hotel on the "eating lane"

Breakfast provided by our hotel...voted the best by us on our vacation

Rossio Square...the main square of the city

Monastery of Jeronimos...Vasco da Gama's tomb is inside

Cloisters at the Monastery

Pastel de nata...famous custard tart at Casa Pasteis de Belem

The "eating lane" where our hotel was

The "Elevator," Lisbon's version of the space needle

Cafe where famous poets used to hang out. We wrote postcards here

Heading towards Praca Do Comercio Square

We joined a Lisbon Walking Tour one day...our guide has the orange backpack

Our matching shoes. All of the streets are tiled like this

View of Rossio Square from the "Elevator"

We rode the trolley nicknames "The American" after the San Francisco trolley

Sao Jorge Castle...we hiked to the castle after our walking tour

More views of Lisbon

At the castle

Night view of Rossio square