Blizzard Nemo Blows in Happy Heart Day... NYC Style 2013

I love Valentine's Day! Did you know that February is American Heart Month? A few years ago I sat on the American Heart Association's Board - Mesquite Chapter. I feel like that kinda makes you a lifelong advocate. So, I started the 14th with a jog through my favorite place in the city... Carl Schurz Park!

Carl Schurz - View During My Jog

But let's back up three days...

You will notice the snow on the ground in the above picture... that is the remains of Nemo. No, no... there was not a sad Disney tragedy. I'm talking about the snowstorm. NYC did not get the "bad" of the storm...just a lot of pretty snow! However, all activities in the city were cancelled by Friday night (I did have to take an overnight train from DC to NYC Thursday night to beat the storm...but the joke was on me since our train broke down...and arrived in NYC at 3:30AM...YAWN!). However, we gladly welcomed a free Saturday and took advantage of sledding in Central Park with friends! Not going to lie...we were pretty much the only ones in the park without kids. It. was. awesome.

It also makes you realize how much you miss being a kid and having no fear whatsoever. I was positive that I was going to take out a 4 year old while gliding down the hills. Instead, I "braked" with my feet every few seconds and ended up soaking wet from the snow. I can't believe how many New Yorkers own sleds in their closet-sized apartments - but they come out in full force when snow hits. Anyways, I gracefully glided through the weekend snow and ice without any issues. Then Monday hits and I'm alone. Things always seem to happen when I'm left alone (at least that is what Richard will tell you). I busted it INSIDE our apartment building down a flight a stairs, Pickle in tow. Lucky for Pickle, she's my "main squeeze" and boy did I squeeze her tightly. She was just fine, although she decided to play it safe and hide in our bed the rest of the day (quite the drama queen). I, however, landed a swollen shin that swelled twice its size, badly pulled a muscle and bruised my fingers. Whatever though, I'm still walking. So by Thursday, I was ready for physical activity, hence my morning run. I suppose most would have the common sense to not run when ice is still on the ground...right? But everyone else was doing it...yes, I'm one of those...and yes, I paid for it. And now my "good" leg has a pulled muscle. I call it war pains of living in NYC for the first year.

My fancy ice pack!

Back to v-day though...

You know what every girl wants for v-day right? Yep, Indian food. Richard knows me well. I received a special lunch delivery from Seamless (the amazing online food delivery service that almost every restaurant is connected to). Baluchi's restaurant was fantastic! And you know what - they actually made it spicy! We always have to say, "we don't want it white people spicy"...because we've been told a few times that "white people" don't understand spice levels. Ha! These people obviously haven't been to our family dinners in Texas.

On Saturday, we celebrated Valentine's Day on the Upper East Side at Le Moulin a Cafe with wine and their award-winning croissants (really good)! The little French spot has a kitchen feel in front near the deli and a very charming fireplace, decor and seating at the back. We followed with dinner at our favorite Italian restaurant in New York City, Caffe Buon Gusto. NewYork Mag can paint a much prettier picture of the restaurant than I can... "This small, boxy Upper East Side café exudes comfort and conviviality, with parchment shades that soften light from sconces and warm the room despite the tightly packed tables. Eager to please, the kitchen uses high-quality ingredients for its mix-and-match philosophy." 

To sum it up, the fettuccine alfredo and the Veal Buon Gusto were amazing. The desserts are adorable and filled with chocolate-y goodness. In the summer months, there is an ultra-romantic garden in back. However, in the winter months, your only option is indoor seating. The ambiance is great, but the tables are practically on top of each other...so our meal became quite"entertaining" with one couple making out over their food, across the table... nonstop. And on the other side, the "couple"that were on a "date"... This guy was old enough to be this girl's father and his woo-ing techniques were hilarious. At one point, he made her guess how much her necklace cost and then told her he was going to take her to Mexico on a private jet (trust me, if he had a private jet, he would not have been dining at this restaurant). She wasn't any better though (don't ask). At one point, we thought we were busted from making fun of them... but then they opened their next bottle of wine and all was well. Ah, the love stories of New York City...

I stole the cutest idea from one of my favorite blogs! Instead of buying a traditional Valentine's Day card for Richard, I made his a "live" card! The idea is to write a series of messages and then flip through the messages to music. It sounds a little odd to describe, but it is so fun when it comes to life. I love the creativity and how personable it becomes! Below is a snapshot of the beginning of my "card"...but that is all you get! Can't share just how cheesy I am with the world. :)

But what I am really excited to share are my new earrings from the Noonday Collection. I am a tad obsessed with (as my friends and family know) gifts that have a double impact (i.e., Toms, World Vision Gift Catalogue and Kohls CARES). You can read the full story of the impact each purchase makes in developing countries here.

Here is a short blurb about the company..

Our passion at Noonday Collection is to connect you with the lives of artisans struggling for a better future while styling you along the way. Fashion and design are a vehicle for opportunity and change. You, too, can be a voice for the oppressed!

Pretty awesome, right? And they have amazing jewelry!

I am so lucky to not only have a romantic husband, but a very creative one! Happy Valentine's Day!

Here is some doxie love for you.

xoxo

I am in DC for THREE days and Richard turns into Abraham Lincoln!

I wish I could say I was kidding, but nope. Richard turned into Abraham Lincoln. Remember last year's beard contest? Well, it returned again this year. Funny how that happens, huh? The contest wrapped up in February (obviously someone was thinking...just in time for Valentine's Day). Last year I happily graciously agreed to let Richard grow a beard for 3 months. I forgot he was part werewolf. This year, I half-agreed to let him grow his beard out for one month. Being Richard, he puts a twist on things. I guess it could be worse...the "twist" could have involved a mustache like this...

Instead, he was much more timely given that Lincoln is currently in theaters. Richard became Abraham Lincoln. Beard. Hat. Attire. He even made his own hat with construction paper and tape (must be all that time spent in Destination Imagination)! During this time, I was in DC for work. My second day away, I woke up to my "sneak peek" picture.

Richard wasn't the only one having fun with his job (although we define "fun" a tad differently as facial hair is not involved in my definition)! I was away on a team retreat. During our team retreat, we were broken into teams, given 2 hours and $200 dollars to put together a "new homeowners basket" for the nonprofit, Mi Casa, Inc.

I love their vision and mission.

vision

...a world where families and individuals have access to affordable and sustainable housing...

mission

...to provide affordable housing in the D.C. area to foster healthy and thriving communities...

                                    
If you haven't driven in DC/VA traffic...don't. Since we only had 2 hours to make the best basket, we drove straight to Bed, Bath and Beyond (McLean, VA)...where all your dreams come true. I'm not going to lie, being in a CAR and driving to a store like BBB made me miss Texas a little bit. And then it happened. I SAW HAND SOAP ON CLEARANCE FOR $1. I'm a sucker for loading up on discounted hand soap (new reality TV show?)... When you live in 450 square feet, you really can't do this. I did however grab a bottle for our basket. Our basket ended up being pretty awesome. In addition to the cool finds we snatched up, we wanted the basket to have a personal feel. Becoming a homeowner is EXCITING...or so I've heard! Ha! We took a group photo (with leftover gigantic Cap1 shirts) with a welcome home sign thanks to my amazing new iphone app, TimerCam. Also, big shout out to BBB for donating not once, but twice to our basket.
  

I know I document just about everything in my life, but this is a new one. I'm all about green initiatives, but this one made me laugh out loud. I love how our hotel installed a double-headed (which looks like a venus fly trap) shower head and placed a large sign directly below it asking you to be a good citizen and conserve water by only turning on one. I mean... really?

The best part of my trip...my boss and I wore matching shirts. Thing 1 and Thing 2.

Cheers!!!

Governor's Island - Jazz Age Lawn Party

Since temperatures are freezing (10 degrees) in New York City right now, I am thinking of warmer thoughts... which brought me back to our first summer in New York City...

We dressed to impress and attended the Governor's Island Jazz Age Lawn Party over the summer...channeling the Prohibition era with the Charleston, Model T Fords, fringy skirts and vintage threads. What could be more fun?

Think The Great Gatsby  (What's that? Ohhh you didn't read the book and copied off of your neighbor in high school? Here are the spark notes...you are welcome.)

To get to Governor's Island, you must take a ferry. There are not very many things that will make a New Yorker turn their head, but hundreds of people dressed in 20's attire IS one of them. When you arrive on the island, you immediately realize something very odd - not a single person actually lives there. Sounds like a great set-up for a murder mystery, right? Luckily, we left well before sunset.

We failed miserably at dancing, but did a fantastic job drinking. The party had all sorts of fun drinks - well two actually, but they were fun (St. Germain liqueur and white sangria).

The band was fanstastic! 20's style tunes by Michael Arenella and His Dreamland Orchestra

The shops were overpriced cool and featured things that I'm just not brave enough to wear.

I loved that 98% of the crowd was dressed up and that "20's style" took on a different look to everyone (meaning: we live in the twenty first century and it can be difficult to find something from that era that you are able to afford and willing to buy). Everyone looked fabulous.

Other fun things to do on Govenors Island

Isn't Richard manly in 20's attire?

The way you spend your days...

The way you spend your days is the way you spend your life. Want to change your life?

Change a day.

Don't I sound inspirational? Okay, okay...I totally stole that from Kathie Lee and Hoda.Yes, I can feel the stares from my Republican friends all the way from Texas. I admit it, my Today Show obsession has stretched into the Today's Show 4th hour. It COULD be worse, would you rather I watch MTV's Buckwild? That's what I thought.

And here is a picture of a street...excuse me, an inspirational street.

Upper West Side

My [not-so-artistic] review of the MoMA...

If you are like me, then you are probably wondering what the heck the MoMA means! The Museum of Modern Art is one of the quirkier museums in New York City...and from what we were told, a must see! So of course my next thought was, how can we get in for a discount (museums can add up here)?! Well, we were in luck. Thanks to Target's free Fridays, we got to experience the weirdness at no cost. You do, however, have to check all bags (no cost, but loooong lines). We also found out that while you must check your bag, you cannot check your laptop....Richard's bag only contained a laptop . . . We were told to remove the laptop, and take it with us while checking the empty bag . . . I think Richard's confusion scared the girl checking bags. Ha! So our journey through the MoMa began . . . with laptop in hand.

And so the weirdness began. Here is my "collage art" featuring exhibits on display at the MoMA. Take particular note of the photo in the center of the top row. The CIA (Crazy I'm-not-going-to-let-you-take-a-crappy-photo-on-your-phone Associates) were ready to throw us out of the super special 6th floor exhibit. What exactly is the exhibit in the photo you ask? Great question. So the thing about the MoMA is...well, they really don't give you descriptions of anything (except for the last photo in this post...but don't scroll down yet). Everyone and I do mean EVERYONE takes photos of EVERYTHING here. Just don't let the guy of the 6th floor see you...he will stare. you. down. So naturally, Richard finds this amusing and decides to go and stand next to the guy. This particular CIA guy continued to give his speech about photo taking (as photography flashes were going off around him) and Richard proceeds to inform the guy that he is trying to enjoy the artwork (whatever the artwork was...) and that his staring was "distracting" (with a straight face). I had to walk away.

Ah, the classics. We found actual art. And look - Picasso!

The definition of "definition" on paper followed by deep thought of painting.

Alright, so we have the girl from The Ring, an apartment floor layout "creatively" placed on the ceiling, feet, a naked statue sitting at a desk, a Dyson vacuum (no really, it was in a glass case), and a feminism piece which a 7 year old boy proudly announced to his mother looked like butts hanging from the wall. Smart boy.

Richard taking in the art...

Performance art. Remember the movie Jeepers Creepers? It came to life at the MoMA. Inside of this trailer, there are two [well known] dancers (you can see them if you look close) slowly crawling around. It drew quite the crowd. I'd love to know how the dancers describe this job on their resumes.

Being Moved: The Caravan Project

 

And now... the best piece of artwork at the MoMA...

Wait for it....

Here it comes...

Are you sure you are ready for this?

Ta Da!!!

That's right...someone worked *really* hard to paint a white canvas. How do I know this (aside from the massive white canvas)? Oh you know, there was a long description about the white canvas (one of the few descriptions we could find). There were SEVERAL people stopping to take pictures of this piece. Mind blowing....

Overall thoughts on the Museum of Modern Art? I'm not a huge fan of museums to begin with, but this museum definitely held my interest since it was so odd and the jokes kept coming. If you want to see a museum in New York and can only pick one...go here. It's definitely entertaining....the art and people.

Do what you love...

This is so true! In 2013, I am trying to not schedule my time to a "t" so much! Instead, I want to get lost in the moment while at the park, having drinks, chatting with friends, taking a bubble bath, watching tv, exploring the city, or reading a good book. Whatever I love!

Ringing in 2013

The end of each year is always so exciting! Work and projects are placed on a back burner while new memories are created with family and friends. We say goodbye to the current year and happily welcome the new year. 2012 was huge for us. We sold and donated most of our belongings, said goodbye to life as we knew it and moved across the United States for a fun, challenging, exciting and new adventure. Through the excitement came several tears. One of my biggest concerns was that we would lose the close relationships that we had worked so hard and for so long to build. I knew we would miss celebrations, happy hours, movie nights and dinners. But I also knew that if we didn't follow our strong desire for an adventure outside of Texas, we would one day regret not leaping at the chance for such a life changing experience. In 2012, we put our trust in God and are beyond thankful we did.

Psalm 118:8 “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.”

Given that 2012 was such a transitional year, I'm excited that in 2013 we have the opportunity to continue to explore this amazing city we are living and working in. We still have quite the list of places to eat at and things to see - an ever-growing list I am learning. I am thankful for the close relationships we are building with new friends and for a strong church that inspires us. This year we will celebrate our 5 year anniversary with a trip to Europe - a dream come true for us! Maybe our new year's resolution should have been to learn a new language for the trip...ha! Who am I kidding? Bonjour!

We were also so happy to ring in the new year with two of my dearest friends - Brenda and Olivia! I was beyond excited they made the trek from Dallas to NYC. They were met with snowflakes, chilly weather and the excitement of a 5 year old the morning of Christmas (me!)! We explored just about every part of Manhattan and made so many new memories. I am so blessed to have strong friendships and reassured that moving across the US had no impact on those friendships! Pickle and Sundae loved the extra attention they received too! Below are a few of my favorite photos!

Times Square New Year's Eve

Sweets at Magnolia Bakery 

Carl Schurz Park - Upper East Side

Happy New Year!

FAO Schwarz

Headed to our first Opera!

Cheers to 2013!
XOXO