Greek Honeymoon

I’m back! My husband (so excited I get to say “husband” now) and I had an amazing honeymoon in Greece!

We spent two days in Athens and hit all the top tourist destinations, including the Acropolis, the Pantheon, the Temple of Zeus, and Hadrian’s Arch. We also wandered around the city, walked through flea markets, and swam in the hotel’s rooftop pool.

 

We also hiked Lycabettus Hill, the highest point in the city of Athens, and found Saint George’s Chapel at the top.

 

We then ferried over to Naxos, the largest island of the Cyclades. We rented an ATV and hit the beaches and explored various towns around the island.

 

On our second day, we hiked Mount Zeus, the highest peak in the Greek Cyclades.

In ancient times, the Greeks believed that a cave located near the bottom of the mountain was the birthplace of Zeus!

After 3 days, we took the ferry to Paros, a smaller Cyclades island in the Aegean sea.

The first day, we walked around the main town Parikia, and then rented bikes and rode through the hills of the island. So much fun!

The next day we rented an ATV and visited several towns, including Lefkes, a town of approximately 500, and Naussa. On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at a beautiful beach and hiked around, led by a stray dog we named Helen. (She actually looked like a mix between Sam (Sio’s dog) and Sosa (my dog), or at least I like to think so).

 

Greece has many stray dogs and cats that roam the streets, everywhere you look. These animals are friendly and NEED homes. To learn more about the strays in Greece and how to adopt a cat or dog in Greece, please visit the GRASP and PAWS websites.

On our last full day in Paros, we took a boat trip to the small island of Antiparos and snorkeled in 4 different areas. The water was clear and beautiful, but the husband and I agreed that the coral reefs are much more impressive in the Caribbean.

In terms of the food-we ate a lot of pasta, bread, cheese (well, I did, since the husband is allergic), chicken, sausage, pork, meatballs, and fruit. The Greeks love their siestas, and we indulged in daily afternoon naps! Overall, we had an amazing, unforgettable trip, and every day was something new and different. The memories we made are something we will hold onto for the rest of our lives.

Our suitcases are unpacked. Laundry is done. Groceries are purchased. Bills are paid. First full workout is complete. Now it’s time to settle down and get into our married life routine!

-KRG

Always a Bridesmaid

Well this title is a little misleading as I have been a bride before but as more and more of my friends are starting to get engaged and married, I am getting to partake more in all of the fun of being a bridesmaid. I cannot even begin to describe how much fun I had celebrating Kara’s wedding this weekend. Part of what made it so fun, I think, was due to the immense amount of planning that the couple and their families put in to it. Nearly every person in attendance was traveling from outside of Pittsburgh so they wanted to make sure we were able to see the sights and always had something to do. Most people flew in Friday and by 5 pm that evening we were all at PNC Park, getting ready to watch the Pittsburgh Pirates play the Cincinnati Reds. This was no small feat, nearly 50 wedding guests were a part of this event. We all got to sit in the same section and it was such a fun way to start to get to know everyone we were going to get to spend the next 4 days with.

The rest of the weekend included some mani/pedis (courtesy of our beautiful bride, as a thank you gift). An amazing rehearsal dinner at Del’s Restaurant and a beautiful Catholic nuptials ceremony.

My dress was a gift from a friend who it didn’t fit when it arrived so she generously let me have it 🙂 It’s Everly and Kara’s is ML Monique Lhuillier.

As you can see from the pics that Kara already posted, the wedding was absolutely flawless. Below is my absolute favorite picture of Kara and I from the weekend as well as the gifts she gave us for being her bridesmaids. Both she and her hubs nailed the gifts – they were all so thoughtful!

Bridesmaid gifts:

Kara’s new sister-in-law has this amazing embroidery business, Sew Stinkin’ Cute, and together they created the most amazing bridesmaid gifts. She had these tote bags embroidered with our initials in our favorite colors and then we all got matching gray button ups with our initials embroidered on the pocket. We all wore the button ups while getting our hair and make up done the day of the wedding. She also included these adorable pendant necklaces from Francesca’s. In addition to our shirts, she also made Kara a white one with her initials and the date of her wedding on one cuff and “I do” on the other. I didn’t grab a picture of it so I stole this one from her Facebook page. Seriously the cutest thing ever!

Now Kara is off enjoying her honeymoon in Greece! I cannot wait to hear about all of their adventures on their much deserved getaway. Hope you are all having a great week thus far!

-XO, Sio

I’m a Mrs.!

It’s official! I’m married!

Before I jet off to Greece TOMORROW with my husband and leave Sio responsible for the blog for the next 10 days, I thought I’d post a few pictures from the wedding!

This past weekend, I was surrounded by my close family and friends as I said “I do” to my best friend. I cannot express how much love and thankfulness I have for the family and friends who helped make this wedding weekend perfect.

 

Thank you to my mom, who helped us obtain the most perfect reception venue ever! She also gave me my “something old, something blue, and something new.” (My bff Katie gave me the something borrowed). Love you Mom!

My bridesmaids-Morissa (Sister and Maid of Honor), Samantha, Katie, Siobhan, Margaret, and Maureen. Wow. What amazing and supportive women. I am so lucky to have them in my life! Thank you all for traveling from afar to join us and help us celebrate our special day(s)!

My dad, who helped pay for the wedding, gave an amazing toast, and even wrote and recorded an incredible, unbelievable song to dance to during the reception! And during the honeymoon, he’s dog-sitting Sosa! What an unbelievable father I have!

Frank’s parents, who helped make this wedding a reality. They were more than generous in every way possible and helped make this wedding planning process a breeze!

I also have to give a shout out to my high school friend Rob, even though he will never, ever read this blog post. I asked him for so many favors this weekend-from running to get my phone so I could get a hold of the limo, to holding my umbrella, to carrying the flowers, to directing the limo driver. What a trooper. Thank you Rob, I truly appreciated all of your help this weekend!

And finally, I have to say thank you to my husband, Frank. He perfected so many small details of the wedding that I was too busy to take care of while I started my new job this past month. My husband (ahhhh) is so amazing!

 

Have a great couple of weeks everyone!

-KRG (formerly KRD :))