A perfect night.

Last Tuesday night was one of those perfect evenings that I will remember for a very long time. There was nothing particularly special about; just friends catching up over drinks and dinner. Yet, the combination of old friends, perfect summer weather, the sunset, my love, and views of the Manhattan skyline made me so incredibly grateful. I still sometimes can't believe the cards I have been dealt and how happy I am with where my life has taken me. Just so happy.

Brian, Sara, and I made our way to Brooklyn early that evening to meet up with our friend Andrew to catch up and have dinner. Sara and I both grew up with Andrew in Minnesota, and I always enjoy hanging out with him now that we both live in the city.

We decided to hang out on his roof and have drinks before dinner. As we stepped into the first level of his roof, we were surrounded by views of other Brooklyn rooftops, the M train, and the setting sun. Andrew told us for maximum viewing pleasure, we needed to climb the ladder to the second, smaller roof. I eagerly climbed up first and as my hands reached the final rung and I pulled myself up, I screamed. Brian, knowing my fear of heights, offered words of encouragement and told me I was almost to the top. I shouted down, "No, I am fine, wait until you see this!" Because this is what I saw... standing on one of the highest rooftops in Brooklyn, I could see the entire Manhattan skyline with the most beautiful pink and blue sky backdrop. Oh my god, it was so beautiful.

Champagne was popped and slowly sipped as we talked and took in the views.

We continued to sit as the sun disappeared and the buildings in Manhattan lit up the nighttime sky.

For dinner, we walked across the street to Moto. It felt like the neighborhood's best kept secret, dimly lit and only marked with a few chalk words on an open door and a hanging bike on the side of the building. Candles lit up each table and antique mirrors and lanterns hung from the walls. We started with fonduta (fontina and gruyere fondu with bread), heirloom tomatoes and feta, and eggs stuffed with tuna and anchovies (I passed on those!). For dinner, Brian loved the scallop special with beets, grapefruit, and orange, I enjoyed my panini with brie, pear, and mixed greens, and Sara and Andrew both devoured their aepler macronnen (swiss alps mac and cheese with onion and homemade apple sauce). Everything was so delicious and fresh. For dessert, we ordered the chilled chocolate pudding and warm date cake with toffee sauce and fresh cream. I would have never been drawn to the date cake, but both Andrew and the server said it was a must-order before we even began talking about what to get. And they were right. I could eat that cake every day for the rest of my life. It was a-mazing. Start to finish, our dinner at Moto was wonderful. It was the perfect way to end our evening in Brooklyn.