Like A Polish Danica Patrick

Say hello to my new MINI Cooper S!  I'm loving it and my new British accent I have while I drive it.

That's What She Says!

There isn't a better place for a big ol' Irish family to celebrate St. Patrick's day than in Chicago.  To celebrate the holiday and two others born on the day - my dad (Patrick, obviously) and my Grandma Audrey, who turned 80, the whole family headed to Chicago for the weekend.  It was kicked off with a delicious steak dinner & cake at Kate & Joe's house  followed by a whole weekend honoring my Grandma's 80 years... the weekend is best told through pics... 

 Loading up the trolley...

We all jumped on board ready to take a trip down 'memory lane' with Grandma as she took us to her old schools, homes, and places she worked.  Kyle, Kellie, Kate & Joe getting ready for the 5 hour tour...

  

Dad explaining to Grandma that she would be the 'tour guide'.

What a good looking couple! :)

They aren't so bad either :)

 And then... "The best way to keep the party rolling" ...broke down on the side of I-90...

So we waited all had to wait on the side of the highway for the new trolley to arrive.... good thing for road sodas.

It was leaking green!

Here comes the new trolley...

On the road again!

Stopping at the family's old home - the 7 Shaw lineup.

Family Pic - Notice the one person not looking at the camera because someone was to the right of me messing with me... thanks Nick!

Somewhere along the tour stopping at the home my Grandparents moved into right after they got married, as my Grandma was explaining the home my Grandpa grabbed the microphone from her and goes 'That's what she says!' - We gotta give the man credit for attempting to throw a 'That's what she said' joke in there even though he was a little off, but it quickly became the theme of the weekend. 

Strike a pose, Kel!

 

After the Trolley we headed to Uncle Randy & Aunt Donna's place for some great dinner and a dance party..who am I kidding...it was a 3 day dance party! Dance WIDE! 

The March birthdays!

 

Kick'n off St. Patrick's Day @ Carlos & Carlos!  A cousins pic: Kate, Kellie, myself & Courtney

Mom & Me :)

Crazy ladies!

The Birthday Girl - 80 years!

 The crazy ladies recruited another crazy lady :)

Following Carlos & Carlos we headed to the Metropolis for an improv show called 'Flannigan's Wake' - the entire thing was completely improv and at one point they called my Grandma up there to sing 'O' Danny Boy' and she did AMAZING!

 Dad opening up his gifts.  Dying at the fact that he got 3 'Awkward Family Photo' cards.

A shot of the March birthday crew!

My 'Signature' 28th

Saturday we celebrated my birthday - it started with a fabulous dinner @ Hillstone with the ladies followed by one of my absolute favorite ways to do Denver.  This little tradition is something that Nick created a few months back and I could think of no better way to ring in my 28th year.  Let me introduce you to Hotel Bar Night.  How does this work?  You hop from hotel bar to hotel bar and whoever picks the next hotel bar has to drink the 'Signature' drink at that place.  What is a signature drink?  A 'Denver Ricky', a 'Sleigh Ride', a 'Legspreader'... the list goes on.  Typically, just that person has to stomach the drink (and they range from fruity to milky) but this time, since I'm friends with a bunch of rock stars, there was no shortage of sugar & food coloring flowing.  

Just a note - this is probably the only time you'll see a group of men standing around with pink and blue drinks.  

First up, Embassy Suites and their signature drink the 'Jamaican 10-Speed' (basically, the equivalent to drinking sunscreen)

The guys decided to pass on the Hawaiian Tropic drink and stick with beer.

At the Four Seasons.  Did you know they made Zach's margarita with mexican gasoline?

The result of too many pink drinks: my lips & Zach's face.

Moving on to the Marriott Courtyard...

And folks, my personal favorite - the Crowne Plaza.  We took a pedi-cab here and even invited our driver in to share a cocktail with us.  Unfortunately for us tho, our waitress was a sour puss and wanted nothing to do with the signature drink idea :(  While I was up at the bar trying to work my magic - I  made friends with these two gentlemen who I found out were also celebrating March birthdays... these pictures show me explaining to them how the signature drink & hotel bar night works and then here they are trying their hardest to convince the bartender to make us one...

Stephanie:  'No signature drink here.'

Nick: 'WHAT?!?!?'

Sydney Elizabeth

Congratulations to my cousins Kristy & Jim who gave birth to their second daughter Sydney Elizabeth (Baby Cadillac) today, March 10th.  Looking forward to meeting her soon!

Keystone

 It was a beautiful weekend in Keystone - here are just a few pics courtesy of Karen!