surprise!

i threw a surprise party for one of my best friend's 25th birthday.  we've been plotting this for weeks and boy was it stressful!  i had to lie and make some people upset (mostly the birthday girl who didn't think there were plans for her birthday) but the surprise was awesome and she was pretty shocked to see 20 of her friends waiting for her.  we went to caffe luna (so so good!) and it was a great night.

happy birthday, alli!

i recently got a fish eye lens and am pretty much obsessed.

more to come on that later.

 the food at caffe luna really is the best!

let me see that sushi roll

in honor of my sister-in-law's birthday today, the other emily and i decided to surprise her with a homemade sushi dinner.  you wouldn't think that making the birthday girl cook her own birthday dinner would be the best idea but it was so much fun!  i've never eaten sushi before (raw fish, no thank you) so making and eating it in the same night was a big step for me.  it turned out to be pretty easy (after a few practice rounds) and i would definitely suggest giving it a try!

ready for our sushi party!

"Ni Hao Jessica!"

the right amount of rice is key

the birthday girl 

crab, avocado, cucumber... perfect california roll

working hard to get the perfect roll

our finished product... not the best presentation but oh so good!

and the night ended as all great nights should...
with the most delicious chocolate molten cake from chili's

30 seconds later...