Artisans Open House Review

This past weekend the great artist herself, Lizzy Dugan hosted the 4th Annual Artisans Open House in Elma, NY. An event where local artists come together and display and sell their work. Each year the event has grown bigger and better, but not to big to the point where you may feel like you're getting lost or overwhelmed. This year there was even a baby Alpaca born during the event. In case you couldn't make it, but wanted to see the participating vendors click here.

Make sure to like the Facebook page to stay up to date on future events.

-B

Hello September...

September has arrived, kids are back to school, Labor Day has passed and everyone is preparing for their pumpkin spiced lattes. Fall is one of my favorite seasons, but we still have a few more weeks until the season actually arrives.

In the meantime I'm looking forward to enjoying some of these things this month:

Football Season is back and I can't wait to be back at the Ralph on September 14th for the Buffalo Bills home opener.

With more time on my hands now I'm looking forward to checking out some of these restaurants that I haven't been to yet. Oshun - Seafood Restaurant, Public House, New food truck Philly Flattop, and Squeeze Juicery.

The weather is still nice enough to go outside get some fresh air and get a good workout in. Going for hikes, taking yoga classes and just running along the harbor are also on my list of things to do for this month.

The Lake Erie Pub Crawl,  Ballpark Brew Bash and checking out Her Story Boutique's one of a kind perfume bar are some of the activities I have on my "agenda."

What are some things you have planned for this month? Whatever you may have planned make sure to take time for yourself and enjoy it!

-B

Sun, Sand, Summertime

Below are a list of the other beaches around Western New York and Southern Ontario that I feel are worthwhile to go to. What makes them worthwhile to me is the cleanliness, the friendly atmosphere, the ability to rent cottages, water activities available and the scenery. -B

{ I always went here with my family when I was little and still love Crystal Beach (located in Canada)}

{ Sherkston Beach located in Ontario Canada }

{ Beaver Island State Park is not only a beach, but offers a park, golf course and other amenities to make for a relaxing and fun day }

Angola, NY

 {Check out their line up for Labor Day weekend here. }

To keep with the beach continuation, my second favorite beach in Western New York is Mickey Rats. Just down the road from Bennett Beach in Angola, Mickey Rats has been around since the 1980's and is a great place to go for some sun, swimming and sand during the day and live music and drinks by the water at night.

-B

A Food Truck Rodeo with a little Buffalo History

Taking place the first Wednesday of the month, a handful of Buffalo food trucks lined up outside the Buffalo History Museum's parking lot for the annual Food Truck Rodeo. Its a great opportunity to come out and have dinner with your family, friends or significant others and enjoy the History Museum for free. The next one taking place is on Wednesday, September 3 from 5-8pm. Bring the kids for free face painting, grab a blanket or folding chairs and have a picnic. For more details click here.

-B

Lovely Lewiston

Every time I go to Lewiston, I'm simply amazed at the beauty there, from Artpark to Old Fort Niagara it is simply amazing, especially in the summer months. My friend Lauren and I decided to spend a Saturday afternoon just walking around and taking in that "small" town feel. We first stopped at Artpark where we were able to be "big kids" and make some clay pottery for free. We then walked around and saw some of the sculpture artwork that was in the park.

After Artpark we hit up the ever so popular Silo to grab some lunch and ice cream, from there we walked down by the water and saw the Whirlpool Jet Boat tours that take place by Water St. Landing. We didn't have enough time to take a jet boat tour, but it is on my list of things to do. We drove through the Main St. and just looked at shops and restaurants that filled the street. It was a relaxing afternoon just exploring the "hidden treasures" that are only minutes away. Have you ever been to Lewiston? What are some of your favorites places to go when you're there?

 -B

One fish, Two fish, Red fish, Blue fish

A couple weekends ago organizers of the annual Chalkfest event in downtown Buffalo had tons of artwork on display themed around Dr. Seuss. People drew sketches from there favorite Dr. Seuss books, volunteers re-enacted skits from books, food trucks were on hand and you could even draw something artsy on the sidewalks and parking lots if you felt up for it. With the weather forecast predicting rain, the turnout wasn't as big as I thought it would be on Sunday, but there were still a lot of people in attendance. Proceeds from t-shirts and renting space to draw went to the Theater of Youth.

I am no artist, but my niece and I did draw some flowers, hearts, our names and Buffalove down to leave our "mark" at the festival. I thought it was a great family friendly event.

-B

Fun festivals and fetes in town

This past week has been full of fun festivals and lawn fetes in Western New York; Canal Fest, Italian Fest, Queen of Heaven Lawn Fete and my favorite one, the Polish Festival. What are some of your favorite things to do at a festival or lawn fete? Some of my favorite things to do are: hit up the beer tent {duh! that's a given}, walk around and see what activities are going on; for example at the Polish Fest I love watching the people who polka on the stage, at the Italian Fest I love the bocce tournaments that take place and at lawn fetes I love hearing the live bands play. There is still more summer left and more festivals and fetes to attend! What are some of the ones you are looking forward to attending?

-B

Some Upcoming Festivals:

Garden Walk: July 26 & 27

Eden Corn Fest: July 31, August 1, 2, 3

Chalk Fest: August 2 & 3

Lewiston Jazz Festival: August 22

Erie County Fair: August 6 -17

Elmwood Art Festival: August 23 & 24

Scottish Festival: August 16

Annunciation Lawn Fete: August 15, 16, 17

14 Holy Helpers Lawn Fete: August 22, 23, 24

Allentown Art Fest Recap

A couple weeks back my sister, niece and friend Jen attended the Allentown Art Fest. It was a beautiful day and it seemed like they incorporated some new vendors into the mix which was nice to see. While I only usually go to browse, I actually bought a custom Buffalove Mason glass and Buffalo t-shirt. All in all is was a great community event that showcased a lot of talent. -B

#WorldCup2014 Canalside Buffalo

Sunday Canalside Buffalo held a viewing for the USA vs. Portugal game. The weather was beautiful, the scenery was great and the game was, well so-so. Its great to see a "little" life come back to downtown and what's even more better is to see all the activities starting to take shape down at canalside.

There were a lot of people who turned out to view the World Cup Soccer game on the big screens, the Cheesy Chick food truck and beverage tents were on hand as well. While I think the viewing screens could have been a little bigger it was nice they were allowing people to bring in their own food and drink, some brought the family down and had picnic's set up. Those people were smart because they didn't have to wait in long lines.

There was even what I am calling a "Buffalove" tent set-up for people to purchase Buffalo shirts and pictures. For putting the event together in just a couple days, the turnout was great and people not only showed their American pride in Red, White and Blue, but they showed their Buffalo pride too.

-B

Oh the adventures I will go; Pre-Dating Speed Dating

I'm not one to go out and look for love, as cliché as it is I believe if something is going to happen it will happen when you least expect it. Maybe that's good, maybe that's bad, who knows, but with the schedule I have right now, I'm lucky if I can find one day a week to catch up on things in my life, like just relaxing. So this past Sunday I attended a Pre-dating speed dating night at the Chocolate Bar {located on Chippewa}. Let's just say I was fulfilling a sort of bet with some of my friends. Annette and Sandra came for support and to make sure I stayed for the whole duration {because I told them I would leave the minute I felt like I was wasting my time}.

The event overall was ok, I met some interesting people and a majority of them were from out of town. The age bracket was from 24-39 which was a wide age range in my opinion. When it first started the first guy and I felt like we were in a race because we only had 6 minutes to talk, but after the first minute or so it wasn't so bad. I didn't like the bell that was rung every 6 minutes, it got annoying after a while.

Some guys were cool and I could carry a conversation with them and others I felt like those were the longest 6 minutes of my life. There was one guy who started talking to my friends downstairs during the 5 minute break we had and then there was another guy who was a little "stalkerish" to me so when it ended I bolted for the door not even waiting for my friends. The event lasted for about 2 hours {a little long I thought} and as the night went on I felt I met the more "interesting" guys.

If anything, it was nice to carry a conversation with someone in an somewhat organized setting compared to just going to a bar or something like that. Would I ever do this again? Well, I don't see it in my near future, but it was an experience that I didn't think I would ever do and I'm happy to have done it and I have some good stories to share with people.

Have you ever done speed dating or some sort of pre dating event before? What did you think of it?

-B

{Photos courtesy  of Annette }

{ Waiting for my drink }

{ Talking with one of the girls who was doing the speed dating too }

{ table #12 }

{ Chatting away }

{ Making notes before my next "date" }

Memorial Day Decor and Ideas

Memorial Day is just a few days away and while its not the "official" first day of summer it always serves as the kickoff to summer vacations and warmer months ahead. Whether you're hosting a get together or going to one, below are some of my favorite ideas for Memorial Day from Pinterest. -B

{ Mason Jars are good for a variety of things including this rice colored candle décor DIY }

{ For those hosting Memorial Day parties this is a fun and festive drink cart idea }

{ Another simple way to add a little festive flavor to your Memorial Day get together }

{ The most important thing to remember is to fly the American Flag and remember those who dies while serving the United States of America }

My Good Luck Elephant

Saturday I was lucky enough to finally meet the one animal I am literally in love with at the Zoo, no not Luna {though she is up there} it was Surapa the Asian Elephant. She has been at the Buffalo Zoo since she was a baby. Elephants are one of my favorite animals ever, so having the chance to meet her up close, feed her celery, watch her paint and do some tricks was one of the best things I've ever had the opportunity to do. Having my niece and sister with me made it even more special. Mindy her trainer was awesome, she gave us a background on the elephants, the elephant house and what she does there. Overall it was a great time and I couldn't be luckier. I was able to cross something off my bucket list. While we were there we also stopped by to see Luna and Kali and many more animals. Don't forget that you can see the animals at Buffalove Fest on May 30 at the Zoo. Proceeds go directly back to helping the animals!

-B

{ trunks up mean good luck }

{ she has some artistic skills }

{ showing off her moves }

{ I love this picture }

{ the lion was looking at us when we were waving }

{ up close }

{ what are you looking at?!? }

{ just having a good time }

{ morning swim }

May {To-Do's}

{ Maxi dress from Ooo La La Boutique. Matt & Nat bag, you can find at Anna Grace on Elmwood. Stay up to date on the events I have coming up on my events page }

Happy Cinco De Mayo!! Today is a great day to celebrate some delicious margarita's at Cantina Loco! The month of May for me is a month to continue to get things done. By that I mean spring cleaning, organizing, traveling at the end of the month, training for the half marathon next month, trying new things & visiting new places {Newbury Street & The Boat House specifically} and kick starting a variety of events that are coming up throughout the summer that I have a part in.

What are some things you are looking forward to this month?

-B

Dyngus Day Wrap Up

Dyngus day has come and past and while I enjoyed my time with friends I must say I have to voice my "concerns" on how I feel about the event this year. Going down to the Polonia District in the east side of Buffalo is a tradition. It brings back memories of my old neighborhood, where I grew up and celebrating at the Central Terminal is a great time.

This year there were crowds and crowds of people, more so than in past years {I think the nice weather had something to do with that}, but with that came no sense of organization on the event planners part, people were cutting through fences, more garbage lined the streets than normal, the bands didn't stick with the tradition of playing just Polka music, I'm sorry but in past years that's all that was played, no modern music was played. There was no TYSKIE beer {how can you not have Tyskie Beer at Dyngus Day}, I thought there was a "lack of security" and I felt $5 per drink ticket was fairly high. Where does this money go to? If you have Sobieski Vodka or a beer sponsor, sponsoring your event, where does the money go from ticket and drink sales? Does it go to help renovations at the Terminal or Churches that are still open on the East side of Buffalo? I would like to know.

I don't like to be negative, but after attending this past yea,r all of these questions arose and I thought I would put it out there. All things aside I had a good time, the weather was great, the company was better and I'm looking forward to 2015, hopefully back inside the Terminal.

-B  

Paint and Sip #Repeat

One thing I enjoy more and more is doing things I wouldn't normally do {my theme for 2014 is trying new things}. So for my birthday this year I wanted to do something different than the normal happy hour, dinner and drinks type thing. Paint on Tap Studios on Main Street in Williamsville was the perfect thing!

A group of 10 of my friends and my Mom spent a few hours painting and sipping on wine and beer with me. It was fantastic! Not only did we get to spend time together, we all created pretty pieces of art that we were able to take home and I made new memories that I will take with me for a very long time.

Paint on tap offers a packages at a variety of different price points. I thought all the options they offer are very reasonable. The private party package I chose included all the supplies, wine and beer and you could bring in light snacks as well. I can't wait to plan another get together there. It was a great time and I recommend it to anyone who is looking for something fun to do.

-B

{Our instructor Kaitlin was awesome! }

{ Concentration at this table #whysoserious }

{ Step by step of my peacock progress }

My Snowboarding Adventure #BuffaloStyle

One thing I've wanted to do was learn to snowboard so over the weekend my friend Annette {a veteran snowboarder} and I went to Holiday Valley. I have never had any experience in any winter sports, the most I've ever done was gone tubing, so I was all sorts of emotions, anxious, nervous, scared, excited - you get the point. We started off making a pit stop at EBC {Ellicottville Brewing Company} to "warm" up - meaning have a drink or so in me, so I wasn't so tense.

{ The Blueberry beer is my favorite their }

Then it was onto the slopes. We arrived at Holiday Valley around 4pm and purchased the night time pass for $33. Then a friendly gentleman {employee} showed us to where we could get our rental equipment. We both got boots and boards for $26.

Next it was on to the lesson...

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After that short five minute lesson we stopped to take some photos {its all about the documentation} and then it was on to the bunny hill.

{All ready to go}

Once we got on the ski lift, {I don't know how Annette didn't push me off} I must have panted and rambled and almost cried the whole way up the slope, I was so scared { I don't like heights as it is so this was a huge step for me}. Once we got to the top I fell {LOL} off. The first time down it took about 45 minutes and then the second time it took around 30 minutes. I fell, but got back up and I did have some moments where I had the hang of it, it was just when I felt like I was going to fast or thought I would hit a tree that I plopped back down.

{ We took a photo break on our second time down the bunny hill }

{ Its a little blurry, but believe it or not that's me! }

{ Go Bills }

{ We took a drinking and eating break inside the lodge }

{ Live music from Jay Mcdonell }

After our little break I was ready to sit by the fire and relax, but Annette convinced me to try the big hill, so here we went out into the much lower temperatures and up the big slope. Once to the top - I chickened out {LOL} I was tired, it was a much longer way down and it was a lot colder, I took the ski lift back down where Annette {who snowboarded down} was waiting for me. While I went back into the lodge to warm up, the friendly gentleman who showed us to the rental equipment earlier in the day came up and asked how my first time riding was and also asked if I lost my friend.

The staff was very friendly and the fact that, that employee came up and asked how my first experience was, made it even better. Its because of that extra effort he made that will make me want to come back again. While I am no pro I was happy that I faced a fear and accomplished something on my bucket list, all while doing it with one of my closest friends by my side. It's definitely a memory I will always remember and I can't wait to get back on the slopes {after my butt heals from all the falling}. Oh and the other nice thing- I got multiple compliments on my Buffalo Bills hat! ;)

{ Me running off the ski lift }

{ Photo credit by Annette }

{The end}

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Don't let fear stop you from trying new things, you only have one life, so make the most of it!

-B

Beauty Barre at BikeorBar

With Valentine's Day on Friday, the ladies at BikeorBar on Elmwood hosted a Beauty Barre event on Sunday. If you paid for one of the services {Eyelash/hair extensions, spray tanning, waxing, facial or massage} you received a free Barre class. The event in my eyes was a big success. There was a crowd of women who filled the back room and for some {like me} it was my first time taking a barre class. After class they offered the services and while you waited they had wine, mimosas, sushi and some sweet treats. It was a nice event, made you feel pretty, do something for yourself and all in time for Valentine's Day. -B

{$20 for a service or 3 services for $45 (great deals!)}

#BfloBridalExpo14

This past Sunday, the Seneca Niagara Casino and Event Center were hosts to over 3,000 brides, grooms and bridal parties from all over Western New York. The Buffalo Bridal Association held their ninth annual Buffalo Bridal Expo from 11-6pm. Florists, limousine companies, photographers, deejays, health and fitness vendors and bakeries were just some of the vendors in the wedding industry represented at this great event.

The Buffalo Bridal Association {BBA} was created over 25 years ago by Key Video Production owner, Michael Fantaske to do one thing, provide quality products and vendors to the brides. Brides go through three stages; 1. Excitement 2. Planning and 3. Fear. The BBA takes the fear out of the planning and brings the excitement back. All members of the BBA apply to be a member and go through an application process. You have to be the best of the best and if excepted into the association you sign a code of ethics, easing the brides mind knowing she can trust your services.

BBA's Bridal expo is the largest expo in the Northeast with 20 staff working around the clock to make this event the best it can be for those in attendance {that doesn't include the casino's staff and the BBA volunteers}. The BBA is there to tell you and provide you with the people you CAN trust, their the liaison between the brides and the vendor.

While walking around, each and every vendor was engaged with the potential "new" customer. They were inviting and sociable, handing out take home gifts and offering discount services if you signed up with them.  The event overall was informative and entertaining. Some of my favorite booths were;

• Toy Bros (Jeff and his team do amazing work!)
• Key Video Productions
• Zoladz limousine
• Floral Accents
• Status limousine
• Sweet Melody's
• Creative Beginning's Wedding décor
• Statler
• Ohlson's Bakery

You can find a complete list of vendors {over 150} that are members of the BBA here. Also, make sure to mark your calendars on August 24 for BBA's summer expo at Salvatore's Italian Gardens. And make sure to catch Wedding Planning Weekly on Sunday evenings on the CW 23.

-B

{ 2 fashion shows took place, showing off bridal gowns from Bridal Chateau and tuxedos from Tuxedo Junction }

{ Table centerpieces }

{ There was a masquerade theme at this expo }

Get A Clue - Buffalo Museum of Science

Friday Night the Buffalo Museum of Science was revamped into the well known board game- Clue! A handful of rooms on the second level of the building had volunteers holding clues to solve the mystery. Teams ran (some did) from room to room trying to figure out the murder mystery to win tickets to Beerology or Star Lights (both are Buffalo Science Museum events). The event was a lot of fun and had 200 people in attendance. It was an event out of the box, not a same old thing you would attend and you got to walk around the science museum, check things out and have a couple drinks to kill the time.

My only suggestion is letting teams chose times when they register, we arrived at 6pm thinking we would get to start the game right away and we had to wait until the 7:45 spot. Overall though it was a fun night out and our team; Buffalo's Solving Justice League Kids were close to winning!

-B

{ Buffalo's Solving Justice League Kids - #Teamname }