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This past weekend was one of those rare New York weekends where everything was blissful and stress free. It was the perfect balance of being social, checking things of my to-do list and time to myself.  Between catching up with old friends and a night out in the West Village, these were the simple, yet lovely things that make Monday so difficult.

Trader Joe’s Vanilla & Cinnamon Black Tea- perfect for the holiday season.A little DIY is therapeuticOn my morning walk through Central Park  I discovered this Christmas tree. It celebrates and remembers all the Manhattan dogs that have passed.   Sunday ended with some holiday reading and snuggle with Chip by candlelight.

A Girl Can Dream

Recently I’ve been in need of some design inspiration in my life. I’m in a bit of a funk with my apartment and have been itching to rearrange, redesign and renovate. Here are some rooms I find particularly inspring. I may not have the time or resources to put these plans into action at this point in my life, but a girl can dream.
Check out and follow my Design Pinterest board for your daily dose of design.

Instagramming

Motivational coffee to get me through my long and busy workdays.
A trip to Chicago brought me to Historic Navy Pier and its’ ginormous Ferris Wheel.A delectable Chicago Portillo’s hotdogDuring NYC’s Wine & Food Festival my fellow food blogger Tommy and I had the opportunity to meet and interview the one and only Miss Anne Burell.
Chip fearlessly braved Sandy’s wrath.

Inspired

Despite living in a concrete jungle waves will be crashing onto the shores of New York over the next 48 hours. With Hurricane Sandy in mind I’m bringing some sea designs to NYC. To begin here are some inspiring Etsy seascape paintings.
Vintage Framed Oil Painting of Seascape brought to you by My Best Goods

  Vintage Oil on Canvas Row Boat Seascape brought to you by Gems of Time Vintage

Rocky Waves Breaking Shore Beach Seascape brought to you by Art Wave Art Warehouse

To coincide with these seascape paintings here are some ocean inspired designs

A very literal depiction of water in design with hand-drawn wave wallpaper.
The ocean’s deep blue and dark tones are depicted in this gorgeous room with a vintage navy blue sofa. Thomas Paul pillows bring vintage sea flair to your bedroom.

Birthday Brush up

My 26th birthday was a roaring success so much so that it took me this this long to recover and put together a follow up post. Now I’m not so self-involved that I believe people actually care what happened on my birthday, but I do believe you’re all going to drool over the delectable treats I consumed during this year’s celebration.

It all began with a surprise (two week early surprise) gathering when I went home to NH for Labor Day. 10 balloons, 3 bottles of champagne and 2 of my best friends equals birthday bliss.

To kick off my birthday week I received a box of Birthday Cake Cookies from my best blogging friend at brunchforeverymeal. A woman after my own heart, she knew confetti cake batter and rainbow sprinkles from The Cravory would make me smile. It was the perfect way to kick off my week. I averaged 2 cookies a day for the following five days.

The treats continued Tuesday night with Mrs. Prindable’s candied apples. This was my mom’s way of providing a “healthy” birthday treat. With flavors like triple chocolate fudge and milk chocolate walnut, these were unlike any caramel apple you could ever imagine.

The gluttony continued on my actual birthday when treats from Dough Boy Bakery graced our office. After devouring a pizza, my coworkers and I enjoyed some red velvet cake, a marshmallow rice crispy treat and a peanut butter marble brownie.

Along with  pumpkin ale and a tapas dinner out, I received my favorite: yellow roses.

And just when I came out of my diabetic coma, the sweets returned. On Friday my college roommates travled to NYC to celebrate and they brought with them a dozen cupcakes from Zabars.

Finally a meal without sugar. My friends and I enjoyed a messy bellini brunch with one of the best eggs benedict I’ve ever had. The reason for its success? This benedict comes with thick cut bacon and is served over a freshly baked biscuit.

The weekend ended with a competitive birthday scavenger hunt where I was able to burn off some of the calories I consumed throughout the week. My friends and I ran all around the city searching for clues. This final clue brought us here, to Strawberry Fields- John Lennon’s Memorial, where you can find me giving a peace sign.

The week was hectic and gluttonous and I can’t imagine it any other way. Thanks to everyone for not only increasing my waistline, but making this past birthday a week to remember.

My (kind of) backdoor

During August in NYC I’m typically cursing the city for its ridiculously hot subways, expensive a.c. units and its lack of beautiful beaches. Although I’m dying to get off the island and enjoy some fresh air and ocean breeze, rather then complaining I’m going to pay homage to the city I love. I take for granted the fact that I can just walk outside on my patio and take in a breathtaking view every single day. It may not be the Cape or even a riverfront, but it’s sweaty over-crowded New York and I love it.
{Spring view from my apartment}

{Summer Storm brewing from my apartment}

{Fall Nighttime view from my apartment}

{Random October snow storm view from my apartment}

{Sunset view from my apartment}

WHAT WAS I THINKING?

During my last trip home to New Hampshire I foolishly decided to to clean out my desk, which in turn lead to a trip down memory lane. You may ask, what came out of this “trip”? Well a whole lot of laughter, some serious shame and me asking myself repeatedly, WHAT WAS I THINKING?

1. To begin, here is my senior year high school yearbook photo. Besides the hideous photo (thank god I’ve grown into my looks) my decision to include a quote from the 1980’s musical Fame is beyond me.

What was I thinking to include such an embarrassing quote? Not only does this make me look like the biggest musical theatre nerd around, but I put a ton of pressure on myself to live up to such a quote! Will my fellow classmates now seven years later look back and call me a failure? What in the world was I thinking and more importantly where were my parents to tell me this was a terrible idea.

2. Here is a note I wrote to Santa on Christmas Eve. I’m assuming I must have been about 6 years old….

First off, what is a toilet handley? Secondly, if Santa isn’t afraid of a bunch of reindeer he certainly is going to be scared of our tiny puppy Willie. And finally, I was apparently very concerned with Santa’s bladder and/or bowel movements.

3. Finally, when I was younger I was given a box of personalized stationary with a stack of business cards. Obviously every eight year old needs a supply of fifty business cards. I took it upon myself to fill in some very useful contact information.

Funny, I never received any calls…..

Snapshots

This past month has been a whirlwind of puppy training, work caos, sleep deprivation and travel. In an effort to catch all of you up, here are some snapshots of my hectic life.Work has been so hectic, that we’ve called in a new assistant to help file.Only one weekend spent outdoors this past month. Here, my friends and I enjoyed The Public’s Into The Woods nestled in the beautiful theatre in rainy Central Park.Most weekends have been spent indoors due to the rainy weather, but I can’t complain when I have Chip by my side.Although I didn’t want to leave my little man, work was calling and it was time to travel South to Dallas, TX.Exhausting days of interviewing and driving around Dallas meant indulging in a little treat. What’s the point of working hard if you can’t reward yourself every once in a while? (Note: half of the above beverages are for my coworker. I haven’t hit rock bottom yet)From Dallas we flew to Chicago where my coworker and I spotted this man driving his “car” in a Chicago suburb. If you can’t see, the man behind the wheel has a long white beard and red cap. Yes, we spotted Santa in Chicago- guess he’s relaxing in the Midwest during his off-season?A well deserved dinner at Q in Chicago complete with the Tennessee Sunrise cocktail, homemade potato chips and dill pickles. To follow, we enjoyed a pulled pork sammy, fried green tomato and some creamy mac n’ cheese.Work trips are tough when you have a little pup at home, but returning home after a week gone to this face is the best feeling in the world.

Mommy Syndrome

I have officially turned into a Mom. I’ve only had Chip for 3 weeks, but I’ve been rocking stains on my clothes and have been showering significantly less than I should be. You always hear stories about new moms who let themselves go the first few months after having their babies. The difference between me and those moms (besides the obvious fact that I have a puppy and not an actual baby) is that I’m not on maternity leave, but have been going to work in this grotesque state for the past 21 days.

Besides my sleep deprivation, pee stained wardrobe and messy hair buns this mommy syndrom has moved past my physical appearance. Instead of going to the gym or making it to my hair appointment (which I’ve reschedule  3 times now) I’ve been spending my days oogling over puppy photos. I’ve  basically been forcing my friends and coworkers to stop work in order enjoy photo after photo of Chip. When I’m not on my computer scanning through the album I’ve created of him on Facebook then I’m on the subway perusing the photos on my phone! To make matters worse, I’ve been making excuses to stay in with my little pup, cozying up on the couch and watching more Lifetime and TLC than one twenty-five year old should be viewing.I’ve officially jumped off the deep end with love for my Dog. I’ve turned into someone that I used to make fun of, but I couldn’t be more happy.

If you want to make plans with me, don’t bother because I’ll probably be at home laying around with Chip, eating cookie dough and watching Say Yes To The Dress. 

City Escape

The one thing that really drives me crazy about Manhattan is how difficult it is to get off the island. Fleeing NYC during the hot summer months is a must, but being a car-less twenty-five year old makes things very tricky. It is because of this that I only get to travel home about five times a year. With that being said, when I do head home to New Hampshire, I always make the most out of it.{It all began with two things that I can’t get in NYC: A drive in my car and a real New England Dunkin’ coffee}

{Taking in a little nature with a trip to buy flowers with my Dad}

{No more public pools for me! There’s something about laying out next to your own pool and, of course, the rubber ducks that double as chlorine filters}

{My mom’s restaurant quality cooking. She made one of my favorites: bacon wrapped dates stuffed with goat cheese!}

{A traditional New England Lopstah dinner!}

{A sister trip to our favorite small town ice cream shop-Mack’s Apples}

{Nothing like some mint patty frozen yogurt!}{We burned off that ice cream with a trip to Boston and a run…well jog/walk around the Charles River}

It’s weekends like this that make me wanna ditch Manhattan’s public transportation and outrageous expenses and move to the suburbs of tax-free NH.

Oh, New Hampshire as long as NYC allows, I’ll be back soon.