Monday's Musings 6.25.12

Good morning, friends!  I hope you all had a lovely weekend and have something fun to look forward to this week.  It's a rainy, gloomy morning here in NYC, so what a perfect morning to find a comfy spot in my office (aka Starbucks) and blog away.

• To celebrate my parents' anniversary on Friday, we went out to dinner at Stone Creek Inn in Quogue (NY) and it was absolutely delicious.  The atmosphere of the entire restaurant is quite soothing and pleasant, so if you are looking for a low key but special dining experience, Stone Creek is a great choice.  P.S.  I highly recommend the tuna tartare appetizer and the salted caramel ice cream.

a photo taken in a spot where i spent much of the night -

the ladies bathroom.

the girls always have to visit the ladies room at least once,

occasionally twice or three times, during a meal at a restaurant,

so i spend more than my fair share of time in bathroom stalls.

luckily, the bathroom at stone creek inn was lovely with a beautifully tiled floor,

but it was a little chilly in there!

• Have you heard of the artist Nick Cave?  

He is a Missouri-born, 50 something, mixed media artist who creates incredibly elaborate costumes (for lack of a better word) out of a variety of materials.  The actual costumes are sold, as are photographs of the artist wearing the costumes, and one of his photographs was what I first saw and loved.  To give you an idea of his work:

the above is made out of human hair.

• There was an article in this weekend's Wall Street Journal about Underground New York Public Library, a "visual library featuring the Reading-Riders of the NYC subways." The photographer and blog's creator, Ourit Ben-Haim, is a self-proclaimed street photographer who captures subway riders engrossed in their books on a daily basis. Warning: once you start looking through the photos on the blog, you may not be able to stop.

Friday Fun 6.22.12

Time for some fun now that the weekend is almost here!

• Today is my parents' 48th wedding anniversary, so I want to wish them a big 

 H  A  P  P  Y   A  N  N  I  V  E  R  S  A  R  Y  !

• the Wonder Scarf (colors and pom poms!) will add fun to any outfit

• get some eeboo craft supplies and get busy!

• A good article about women and what we should have/know before turning 30 (from The Huffington Post)

• I saw this on Pinterest, and it makes me smile every time:

I love this guy/gal!

• Lego stairs anyone?

• Read this on Dooce.  Heather Armstrong makes me laugh.

That's all for now.  Have a great weekend, everyone.  Stay cool and have fun.

Thursday's Threads 6.21.12

Thursday's Threads!  Time for some fashion, my friends.


You guys probably know by now that I have a major thing for Calypso St. Barth.  I mean, their clothing is just beautiful, and I love how it all looks so effortless and easy (not fussy and uncomfortable).  I envision myself waking up with perfect beach wave hair and throwing on a Calypso dress for a day spent reading, making art with the girls, going on long walks, and just enjoying life's simple pleasures.  The reality is that my hair is frizzy and crazy and our days are spent trying to manage the chaos rather than appreciating the simple moments while looking like a tanned beach goddess.  Oh well, a girl can dream.

Anyway, on to the clothing:

I tried on this dress a while ago and loved it.  But where is a mom whose life is filled with school drop-offs and trips to the playground going to where it?  Now that it is on sale, that question may be flying out the window.

Find it here.

The Velma Dress is another one that I'm loving.  Made of breathable cotton and accented with sequins, it's comfy and glam, or sporty and spice, if you will...

Also, for all of you Scooby Doo fans out there, not sure when another dress will be called the Velma, so you may want to snatch it up while you have the chance.

Thank you, Calypso.  

P.S.  Today I am wearing this Calypso for Target dress that I bought last year (slightly more affordable than the regular Calypso clothes!):

Wednesday's Words 6.20.12

Wednesday's Words will simply share an inspirational quote that I have found that has stuck with me.  Sometimes all we need are the right words to make us stop and think and to help us put it all in perspective.  So, enjoy.

Tuesday's Tales 6.19.12

As part of my new blog experiment, Tuesdays will now be Tuesday's Tales, where I cover a book that has grabbed my attention.  I have a big thing for children's picture books, so I may post about something the gals and I are reading, or I may share the book I am currently reading, or both.  Who knows?  Let's just see where this goes.

A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip Stead and Erin Stead is an absolutely charming book about friendship that is simple enough for little ones and big ones alike.  It is hard not to fall in love with simple Amos and his animal friends.  Stead's illustrations are what really draw me into this sweet story, with their fine detail and selective use of muted color.  She uses traditional woodblock printing techniques and pencil to create her illustrations, and to learn more about the process, check it out here.  It is easy to see why she won a Caldecott.  Oh, and if you really love the illustrations, you can buy prints from the book here.

Happy reading.

365 gratitude project: Days 173 and 174

Day 173 (Wednesday, June 20):

holy heat wave!

despite the temperature, we managed to have an action-packed day of fun.

after camp, we took the girls to run in the sprinkler

 (which was then followed by a quick trip to children's place to buy p some dry clothes),

saw madagascar 3 in a nice, cool, air-conditioned theater,

and went over to a friend's house for dinner.

so much fun to see friends that we have missed dearly over the last two years.

so much gratitude for a fun day, air conditioning, a trip to the movies,

and a fun night with good friends.

oh, and the photo above: our clever friend got the kids to play "statue"

where they had to lie on the floor as still and silent as possible.

what a great way to chill everyone out before we had to say goodbye...

Day 174 (Thursday, June 21):

the official first day of summer!

holy moly it is hot.

luckily, the sprinklers at the playgrounds here in nyc are kicking',

so the gals are as happy as could be.

we are all extremely grateful for those cool sprinklers these days.

Monday's Musings 6.18.12

Now that we have been in NYC for over a week, I have had time to think about what I miss most in Richmond.  Obviously our friends and the people who made our time there so great top anything on the list below, so other than people, here are my top 10 for the RIC:

1. The Visual Arts Center

• This lovely place is where i took classes in pottery, watercolor painting, and creativity and motherhood, and they were all absolutely fantastic.  The teachers, the students, the lessons - it was really one of my happy places in Richmond and I cannot recommend it enough.  

2. Canterbury Community Nursery School

• CCNS was such a great school for both of my very different girls.  It is a small, kind, caring community of excellent teachers and great parents, and I was very sad to say goodbye to the school.  If you have a child between the ages of 15 months and 5 years, check out Canterbury.  Mia, the director, is wonderful, and tell her I sent you.  (Hopefully she won't say, " Katie who?")

3. bbgb

• I have posted about this sweet little children's bookstore in The Fan before, but it is definitely on my RIC top 10 list, so here I go again.  I am a total nut for children's books, especially picture books, and while Barnes and Noble usually has what I am looking for, I really enjoy a more intimate place for book browsing sometimes.  Taking the girls to a huge bookstore to look around is just too stressful and exhausting - I lose them among the shelves of books and toys, and they usually end up begging for some junky book or toy.  At bbgb, the selection is fun and unusual (but you can still find most classics), the space is small enough that the kids can look around on their own, and the women who work there are extremely knowledgeable about children's books.  It's just a great little place that is charming and wonderful, and I never left empty-handed.

4. South of the James Farmers Market

• Most Saturday mornings during the spring, summer, and fall, this is where you could find us.  We would go to buy fresh fruits and veggies, of course, but there were so many tasty food trucks or stands and fun music to listen to that it also just became a great morning out.  B loved the shaved ice guys (whom we haven't seen there for a year), the girls loved the ice cream and the music man (a guy who was always there, belting out tunes while playing the guitar - we still don't know his real name, but we affectionately always refer to him as the  music man), and I just kind of loved it all.  The fresh pasta from Bombolini, the freshly baked breads, the incredible assortment of fruits and vegetables, and the various musicians...it was all incredible.  We would often go and spend 2-3 hours there, so if you've never been, plan on making a morning out of it (I think it's only open from 8am - noon on Saturdays).

5. The Fountain at Stony Point Fashion Park

• This may seem a bit random, but the fountain at Stony Point provided so many hours of fun for my girls that it was definitely one of our favorite places to go play in the warm weather.  The girls would be grinning from the moment we arrived until we left, and I loved watching them have so much fun.  Ok, here is another random tidbit, but one that mothers will appreciate: the bathrooms at Stony Point are lovely.  They have 2 huge family bathrooms with small toilets and sinks for the kids, regular size toilets and sinks for the adults, and enough room to change out of wet bathing suits.  If we went to the fountain in the afternoon, we would often hop on over to Chipotle for dinner afterwards.  Done and done!

terrible photo. not mine. sorry.

6. Montana Gold Bread Co.

• If you still eat carbs, like my family and I do, go to Montana Gold and get yourself some bread.  It is absolutely delicious.  The Hearty White is great for sandwiches, the Cinnamon Swirl makes the best french toast, and the Blue Ridge Mountain Herb is great on it's own.  The shop is in Carytown, but if you go to the South of the James Farmers Market, they are usually there.  Oh, and if you like pumpkin or banana breads, don't forget to try theirs.  Ours never lasted more than a day.

7. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

• The VMFA is an incredibly beautiful place, filled with some truly incredible art.  Whether you are interested in architecture, photography, Japanese woodblock prints, sculpture, or contemporary art (just to name a few), you will not be disappointed by their collection.  If you go, don't miss their outdoor sculpture garden and peaceful deck/fountain area.  This place is like a little haven of calm and peace (as long as my girls aren't there!).

8. Stuzzi

• This tasty Italian restaurant is one of our family's favorites.  We all love the pizza margherita, B and I love the arugula salad with shaved parmesan, and the penne with vodka sauce is rich and delicious.  Oh, and if your kids need something to do before the food arrives at the table (as our girls do), ask for balls of dough to play with.  Fun and tasty food for all!

9. Sweet Frog

• When Sweet Frog first opened, I would pick the girls up from school and take them there...well...way too often.  So, I had to make a once a week rule so we didn't spend all of our money there, and it became our Friday afternoon treat.  Sweet Frog is a self-serve frozen yogurt place with lots of flavors and tons of toppings.  Whatever you are in the mood for (chocolatey goodness or tart yogurt with fruit), you can find it there.  Oh, I could really go for one right now thinking about the balmy 97 degree day we are having here in NYC.

10. The Tuckahoe Library

• This is by far the nicest public library I have ever been to.  The children's area is huge and has a great selection for all ages, and the adult areas are comfortable, clean, and great.  I would sometimes go on my own to just sit and read their magazines (they had every magazine I could have possibly wished for) while looking out on their beautifully landscaped garden out back.  The gals and I would go for story time and to chose books, books on CD, or videos.  Checking out was always a breeze with many self checkout stations throughout, and returning books in person or via the drive through made it all as easy and pleasant as possible.  What a great place!