Please note: The Thermos Hydration Bottle giveaway is open to US residents only!! I forgot to note it in the original post by mistake and want to clarify. I also updated the giveaway post for future entries. If you already entered and are NOT a US resident, accept my sincerest apologies. Please forgive this error. Thank you.

Saturday. How I love you. I love knowing that I don’t have as many to-dos to get done on Saturdays and therefore can sleep in a bit. I love knowing that fun things await me, whether relaxing or exciting. I love spending time together as a family and all curling up in bed together for a lingering 30 minutes in the morning. What a glorious day!

Today started off just like that, too. We lazed about until 8 am (yes, that’s late for me!) and then Peter decided to make us pancakes for breakfast.

He attempted to do lemon ones, but the lemon flavor didn’t come out and somehow made them more dense and a little dry. I still ate them with a drizzle of syrup though. I bet they would have been better dipped in some strawberry Oikos. Oh well. My man made an effort to treat me to breakfast, so I’m going to eat it!

I used the bulk of the day to prep for the lingerie shower/bachelorette party I’m helping host tonight. It turns out only around 10 people will be there so I had to limit the spread I planned on making. Knowing my friend’s preferences, that I had to travel with the food, and that drinking will be involved, I picked appropriate finger food.

Veggie Bars (recipe from my friend Angie but you can find something similar here)

Spinach & Sundried Tomato Pinwheels (recipe from RecipeGirl – thanks!)

Oreo Truffles to go with the pink & black polka dot theme

Chocolate-covered strawberries (because, well, it IS a lingerie shower after all – thanks Melissa!)

So many of you shared such great ideas that I definitely plan on holding onto for future parties and events. If my friend had me host the recipe shower (like we originally planned) I would have used all of them. Artichoke bites, fruit salsas, fruit/cookie pizzas, BLT dips, mango salsa, avocado-feta dip, and more. Check out the comments if you’re interested in any of those.

Well, have a great night all! Wish me luck! We’re partying it up in a Game Day Condo in my college town first and going out to the bars later. This could get interesting. Me, a 5 months pregnant chick, hitting up bars filled with a bunch of college students (likely using fake IDs) the first week after classes began on the #1 party school in the nation’s campus. Oh me, oh my!

•  What do you love about Saturdays?
• What’s the craziest thing you’ve had to do for a friend? I think tonight might top the list for me. I guess I owe her though for that time in Switzerland where she had to get all up in my crotch to help get out a tic.

Shall I serenade you all? You’re right. It may be best to leave that to Sinead O’Connor.

You know what I think? Nothing compares to old 80s and 90s music. I never get sick of listening to it. Give the video a play. I dare you to try not to sing along.

Today’s lunch held a few treasures which, in my mind, nothing (or at least very little) can compare to. I met a friend for lunch at a cute little cafe in one of those quaint “downtown” areas.

I would rather wander the streets and find myself in a kitschy place like this, than go through the hassle of reservations months in advance and valet parking for a high-end, well-known eatery any day. Nothing compares to the food or the atmosphere. Or tea with mint in it. What a perfect summer beverage!

I had such a hard time deciding what to order. Stuffed portabella caps, spinach quiches, wraps and salads galore all leaped off the page and proceeded to do a little arm-waving dance while shouting “pick me! pick me! pick me!”. Yes, that really happened. 😉

I finally opted for the Cherry Bleu Chicken Wrap with their “famous” lobster bisque on the side.

Let’s just say…nothing compares. I will allow the pictures to do the talking.

Speaking of which, nothing compares to natural sunlight for food pictures either. I want to eat that lunch all over again. Although not the way cows do it. That’s gross. So I guess I’ll play Patient Patty until I can get myself back there.

I savored this meal alongside a heavy course of catching up with a good friend. We haven’t seen each other in MONTHS, and don’t talk nearly enough, but easily slid back into our conversation like into an old pair of favorite jeans. Nothing compares to friendship like that. We lived together a few years at the end of college and just after, then took somewhat different paths. Even though we have grown into different people, our friendship still has a luster to it. It was nice give it a little spit shine today.

Something else with no comparison – a leftover piece of cake for a snack. Sometimes you just gotta!

• Finish the sentence – nothing compares to _____?
• What style or era of music always makes you smile?
• Be sure to enter the THERMOS GIVEAWAY!