swartz update - by leslie

Since Casey doesn't have internet, I thought I'd do a little update for her this week...although I'm sure she'll fill you in on all the details.

After a week at the Jersey Shore with Snooki and The Situation, she did the final packing in TX and got on the road with Matt and Sadie. They made the road trip to Pensacola and have been staying in a hotel on the base for the past week. Mostly they have been looking at houses to rent and getting a feel for their surroundings, but they've also had some fun too...she texted me a picture of herself with a cocktail in a mason jar which means she's loving FL, haha. The last time I talked to Case she told me they had found a house will be moving in this weekend! They were also looking at washer and dryers....big adult purchase.

Casey enjoying the jersey shore with friends

Dog Days of Summer

I'm not sure where that phrase "dogs days" came from, because our dog doesn't love the summer.

sure....he likes the later evenings and longer walks, but one thing is for sure...he doesn't love the heat and humidity. His tongue starts to hang way out and he walks a little slower. In Richmond he liked to find nicely landscaped lawns to collapse in. In NYC he loves the dog park pool where he plays the role of "king cole" very well...take a look:



being social


For those of you who don't know...adjusting to life after Hawaii hasn't been an easy ride. For two weeks we had a battle with our landlord about our broken AC unit. We lost the battle and gained an expensive electricity bill for running 8 fans all the time...we also gained an expensive and rather large portable AC unit. Room is not something we have to spare, folks.

smart dog...sitting in front of the AC unit


But we have embraced this little R2D2 sized unit b/c it cools our apartment pretty well. The heat in NYC is unlike VA/DC....the sidewalks heat up, the subway is suffocatingly hot, and the buildings block the breeze...in essence, you bake and melt away, haha. We feel pretty lucky to live by the river where there is a nice breeze in the morning and evening...makes for some pleasant dog walks.

best friends...for those you who don't know...Cole is OBSESSED with Nick


Don't worry - we're surviving :) We were lucky to spend 4th of July in Boston with Andy, Shannon, and baby Smith on the way. We had a great bbq with their friends and got to join in on a great rooftop party for the 4th of July fireworks. (sorry for lack of pics of the actual PEOPLE we were spending time with...)

boston skyline - pre fireworks


We also had a great trip to DC where I got some quality time with my girlfriends and Nick and I both got to enjoy dinner and drinks with friends in DC. This trip also included a family wedding! We got to spend some time with my family and have lunch in DC on the old Hotel Washington (now the W) roof deck which has an incredible view of the monuments and white house. Then we had the wedding...my cousin, Anthony got married to his high school sweetheart, Cara. It was a beautiful backyard wedding and the details, food, drinks, and music were all perfect! The wedding was just right for the Colorado couple...no heels, lots of sandals and comfortable summer atire. It was a really fun summer wedding. (again, wish I had taken more pics of everyone we visited that weekend...!)

visiting with tina and joey's dog, gus...love him!


White house view from the W


My parents enjoying the view


Anthony and Cara getting married!


Nick, Dad, and Andy at the wedding


We came back just in time for the world cup finals in nyc...world cup has been a BIG DEAL in the city, because obviously people from all over the world live here. One of my customers had a big block party for the final game...we helped supply them with a beer truck, supplies and giveaways. It was an awesome experience being in one of the world's biggest cities during such a worldly event.

TV for world cup game


the crowd


This past weekend we had yet another family wedding....although it's the last for a couple years we think. My 2nd cousin, Paul got married to his high school sweetheart (apparently commitment is really in our blood), Jenn in Rochester, NY. Rochester is where my mom's side of the family originated and where she grew up....my family has made many trips here for holidays, summer trips to see the grandparents and for family events. Jenn was a stunning bride and it was great wedding.

beautiful bride



This weekend we're off to the beaches....although not together :( I'm headed to my family vacation in Sunset Beach from thursday-tuesday and since nick doesn't have any vacation days left, he is spending the weekend with his buddies in Dewey Beach. Wish we could do both! Cole is visiting Grandma Gupta in delaware :)

Nick & I last year at sunset beach....

Hawaii Part II - Maui

get ready this blog post is lengthy....i couldn't leave anything out!

Now onto part II of the honeymoon...Maui! Many of our family and friends have been to Maui, so I was excited to see it myself. Nick's family used to vacation fairly often in Maui, so he is familiar with certain parts of the island. Although we did a lot of different things than he's done before plus we were on our honeymoon :)

We arrived in Maui at night and decided to rent a Jeep Wrangler for our first few days. pretty awesome. We stayed in Wailea at the Wailea Marriott Resort & Spa. Definitely a nice resort with a big open air lobby...everything was more sleek and modern at this hotel. That night a local recommended a local karaoke sushi bar...so good and fun!

Riding Jeep Style!


Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa


Day 1 in Maui was spent going to the Tedeschi Vineyards at the Ulupalakua Ranch. This was Nick's wedding present to me! We stopped and got sandwiches at Grandma's House in "upcountry" Maui and then drove the winding road to the winery. This is Maui's only commercial winery and has some great wines! We did the tasting and then had our picnic outside on the ranch. The rest of our day was spent relaxing at the resort and sharing a bottle of wine during a BEAUTIFUL Maui sunset :)

Getting lunch at Grandma's House


Wine Tasting!


Oceanside wine


sunset and a sunburn


Day 2 was our adventure on the Road to Hana! AMAZING. We left Poipu at about 8am and it took us all day...we loved every second of this day though and were so glad we had an open top jeep to enjoy it. The Road to Hana is a 68 mile highway from Kahului to the town of Hana. It is a winding road through lush tropical rain forest that goes over 59 bridges (mostly 1 lane) and 620 curves...although the whole thing is curves, so I don't know how they count. The scenery is amazing and we followed our guidebook to see almost everything along the way. We saw many beautiful waterfalls right off the road as well as some awesome coastline views.

Road to Hana 4WD


Start of all the turns


View of Road to Hana from the other side of the road


One of many waterfalls we saw along the way


One of the main things we did along the way was the hike to The Four Falls of Na’ili’ili-Haele. Quite an adventure...we ended up following a man and his two sons because they had done it on a previous trip. The hike included a bamboo forest, boulder hopping over creeks, climbing on a rope ladder that scaled the waterfall, swimming through one waterfall pool to get to the next and seeing 4 beautiful waterfalls. Took up about 2.5 hours but was worth it!

entering the trail in the bamboo forest


the trail to Na’ili’ili-Haele waterfalls


waterfall #3


We grabbed snacks at the halfway to hana roadside stand, made it to Hana, and kept going to the Seven Sacred Pools. We finally made it there before sunset to get some beautiful pictures...we didn't swim because the water was pretty cold! Most people turn around at this point and head back through Hana and home on the same road, but there is a 1 lane grated dirt road that takes you along the south coast of the island and along the back of the Haleakala Volcano. It takes a 4WD, so we did it! The road this way is insane....no guard rails, no yield signs, RIGHT along the cliff. Once you get to the countryside of the volcano it's pretty easy....unless you see a cow headed straight for you in the middle of the road! luckily i had my high beams on and have good vision! That night we were pretty tired, so we ordered room service :)

view from road to hana


hawaiian ice at black sand beach national park


seven sacred pools


another shot of seven sacred pools


it's scary to drive on the edge of a sea cliff!


driving along the backside of the Haleakala Volcano


Day 3 of Maui was my wedding present to Nick...surfing lessons in Lahaina! We had a blast...we both got up and surfed...some better than others ;) We then went sight seeing through Lahaina and up to Kapalua and Black Rock. We tried to snorkel in Black Rock but the water wasn't very clear...however we did bump into (literally) a very large sea turtle....which caused me to suck in a lot of water.

ready to surf!


riding waves


Nick is up!


Surfing pair


Nick hanging loose with our surfing instructor, Danny


trying local brews at Cool Cats in Lahaina



Day 4 we had our last adventure....seeing the sunrise on the Haleakala volcano and biking riding down the bottom. This means you have to get up at 2:30am (during your vacation....), drive to the bike shop where they load you in a van and drive you to the top of the volcano. The sunrise was incredible and they do a native chant when it comes up. We then rode our bikes all the way back down the volcano to the shop. Luckily we chose to do a self guided bike ride so we could go at our own pace...plus we got to stop for a full breakfast at the Kula Lodge! yummmy. We had a really fun time doing this, but due to the early wake up call...we wouldn't do it again :)

4:30 AM


Haleakala Sunrise


Kalahalu Overlook on Haleakala crater


biking our way down!


The rest of our day was spent napping and eating at the other resorts in Wailea...the Grand Hyatt pool bar for lunch and the Four Seasons Farraro's for dinner.

dinner at Ferraro's


Day 5 and our last full honeymoon day was "Leslie and Nick relaxation day"....Nick played golf at the Wailea gold course and I got a massage from the Grand Wailea Spa Grande...which was incredible!! Since it was our last night we had a very special dinner at Mama's Fish House in Paia. It was the best dinner of our trip...the restaurant itself is beautiful and really cool with canopies and flowers through the restaurant. Then the food was to die for....amazing fish. What a way to end the trip!

Nick golfing at Wailea Gold


Mama's fish house


love :)


awesome cocktails and dinner at mama's fish house


The morning before we left we did some awesome snorkeling at Wailea Beach and worked really hard to pack under the bag weight limit...we made it but it was not easy!

Wailea Beach



All I can say is we love Hawaii and were incredibly lucky to spend 10 days in Kauai and Maui...we loved all the adventure, the food, the beaches, and the relaxation of traveling. I want to go back!