We Are One

"As God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness,

humility, meekness, and patience.

Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other;

just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony."

(Colossians 3:12-14)

Scripture reading from our wedding program (Colossians 3:12-17)

 

I hope everyone enjoyed Memorial Day weekend! Our 1st wedding anniversary was on Sunday, and we spent it in Chicago, where we visited family and friends over the long weekend. Thank you to our wonderful hosts Grace and Tommy, as well as Vivien and Jace; we were so happy to spend time with our nephews and niece and celebrate my mother-in-law's birthday, and to meet baby James and play with Anna.
 

Of course we indulged in some great Chicago food during our trip: a late night dinner at GT Fish & Oyster, a drive-through lunch from Portillo's, a great selection of Do-Rite Donuts, Intelligentsia Coffee (which I found out just opened at The High Line Hotel in NYC), delicious croissants at Hendrickx Belgian Bread Crafter, and deep-dish pizza delivery from Giordano's. Today I emailed my friend Jee Young a list of foods and places she should try when she visits Chicago this summer, which included these and others from previous trips.

Our Anniversary Dinner

On Sunday evening, we checked into The Westin Lombard, a nice hotel outside of Chicago. For our anniversary dinner that night, we went to RPM Italian, a restaurant owned by Giuliana and Bill Rancic. The vibe was modern and trendy but the layout was smart and comfortable, and the food was great; if you go, try the lobster caprese and Mama DePandi's bucatini pomodoro. Our server recently moved to Chicago from the Chelsea neighborhood of NYC, and told me he loved my nails (I had tried lacquer strips for the first time that day, which I posted a photo of on Instagram), and at the end of our meal remarked on how very proud of us he was for how much we ate! I really wanted to order the tartufo at my sister-in-law's recommendation, but after a huge meal and a complimentary dessert, we decided to save that for next time. 

Just a few of many courses we consumed

My cherry print nails

Our Wedding Cake, One Year Later

Yes, we ate our one-year-old defrosted wedding cake, and surprisingly, it tasted pretty good! We only had a quarter of the top tier, since my father had cut and kept the rest to eat at home after the wedding. I decorated our cake -- vanilla with strawberries and cream -- with mini cake bunting that read "We Are One" in pastel pink and purple, printed from The TomKat Studio and strung on pink pastel baker's twine.

With pretty flowers Sam bought several days earlier

Get the double meaning? (I thought I was clever.)

This was crammed in the corner of our freezer for a year

Wedding Cake Recipe

4 lbs. love

1/2 lb. good looks

1 lb. sweet temper

1 lb. butter of youth

1 lb. blindness of faults

1 lb. wit

1 lb. good humor

2 tablespoons sweet argument

1 pint rippling laughter

1 wine glass of common sense

A dash of modesty
 

Put the love, good looks, and sweet temper into a well-furnished house. Beat the butter of youth to a cream, and mix well together with the blindness of faults. Stir the wit and good humor into the sweet argument, then add the rippling laughter and common sense. Work the whole together until everything is well-mixed, and bake gently forever. (Author Unknown)

To my dear husband: Happy 1st anniversary! I'm looking forward to continuing to experience life together and discovering what our future brings.