Friday, July 29, 2016

Whale & Wishful Thinking

Whale, hello there. (too much?) 

After a relatively quiet week as far as any social channels are concerned, here's what's been taking up some brain space for the last seven days. 


1. Planners

You guys, I just ordered a planner. It's absolutely beautiful and I'm hoping it makes me into an all around better and less stressed human being. When I was in college, I used to stay organized solely using my laptop calendar, but now that I'm "adulting," it's a little more complicated. Currently, I have all my plans scattered across my work calendar, my phone calendar, my home calendar and my mind palace, and somehow they're all never in sync. So, I'm taking a page out of the good old high school handbook (#mandatoryplanners) and bringing my schedule back to never fail pen and paper. 

As a bonus, whenever I use my new planner I plan to sing (in my mind or out loud) "planning for the future, see him now as he stands on the bow of a ship heading for a new land..." Spontaneous Hamilton outbursts are my life.


2. The Sold Out Museum of Ice Cream

This is why I need a planner, people. The pop up museum dedicated to everyone's favorite frozen treat (get out of here, snow cone lovers) is for real 100% sold out. It officially opened today, complete with edible balloons and a chocolate room. It will be in New York's meatpacking district for just over a month. 

Seriously though, who are these people who are crazy on top of their ice cream museum ticket game? -- I only dream to be that good with my schedule. I guess, for now, I'll just have to enjoy my ice cream minus a pool full of sprinkles.


3. Creative Projects

Sadly, I haven't been feeling very inspired as of late (see my recent 11 day Instagram lull for proof). A lack of inspiration is borderline unacceptable when you live in New York, so I've been making a list of creativity sparking activities -- visiting Blick and learning new skills are at the top of that list. My awesome friend Alyssa recently gave a quick class at work on how to make animated gifs using photoshop, and it was seriously the coolest thing I've seen in a while. TBD on what my new project will be, but I'll keep you posted. 


4. This Weekend

Weekend adventures are always top of mind as I approach Friday. This weekend's plans include a double dose of brunch (I mean who are you talking to?) and some Astoria adventuring. Both Saturday and Sunday, my friends have committed to making the long trek to Queens from other boroughs just for me! It's extra exciting because my Saturday brunch is with Alana who I haven't seen since this little adventure


Recent Instas:





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Monday, July 18, 2016

Picnic in Pink


Last weekend Stephen and I made the first dent in our summer bucket list!

Honestly, I don't even know where to start with Pinknic. It's essentially a huge 6 hour long pink picnic on Governor's Island. You eat, listen to music, and drink lots of rosé, all while wearing pink and/or white. 


Our day started on the Governor's island ferry. Waiting for it was seriously one of the highlights of my day for two reasons:

1. The outfits. Having a "pink and white" dress code leaves a lot of room for interpretation and boy, did the guests interpret. Outfits ran the gamut from super dressy to incredibly casual, and it was so fun to see what people chose to wear as we waited to leave for the island. 

2. Stephen had me laughing the entire time... primarily because there was a VIP and a non VIP line to get onto the ferry, and we did not spring for the VIP tickets. VIPs had priority boarding and we actually missed the first ferry that left because of it. It was hilarious.



I have to say, the set up was pretty adorable: hundreds of picnic blankets in various shades of pink, a cotton candy booth, an ice cream truck, bars full of rosé,  and a stage for entertainment... don't ask me who performed. 


Similar to a school lunch, picnics were buy or bring your own. So, I packed us a bag full of goodies: peanut butter sandwiches, chips, chocolate chip cookies and salt water taffy were on the menu. Minus the bottle of rosé, we literally ate like 2nd graders. 



I wore a dress that I rented from Le Tote (which if you haven't heard, is my new obsession). I honestly don't think I own one article of pink clothing, so renting a dress was an ideal situation. This one from Cupcakes and Cashmere was adorable. 


If you live in New York and have never made it out to Governor's Island, I highly recommend it. On a non Pinknic day, it might just be one of the most relaxing places in the city. You can walk around or rent bikes. It's so beautiful with gardens and hammocks, and the views are unbeatable. 





Some serious lounging.

Sunday, July 17, 2016

Positively Medieval

When I say "it's a hike to the cloisters," I'm speaking metaphorically and literally. The Met's medieval branch is not only located at the very top of Manhattan (which means an hour and 15 minutes on the subway for me), but it also requires a 10 minute winding walk up a hill in Fort Tryon Park to reach the entrance. Was all of this worth it? Absolutely.

This gorgeous museum is something out of a fantasy land and spending a few hours there yesterday with my friends Shay and Astrid was magical.







The gorgeous grounds of the Cloisters are truly a photographers dream. There are so many alcoves to explore, incredible lighting and crazy beautiful details.



A sleeveless dress and floral kimono are a winning summer combo in my book, but in 90 degree weather, I'm not going to lie, I was still so hot. 


Of course every view from the museum was gorgeous... I expected nothing less since I for real hiked up a mountain to get there. #dramatic




Sunday, July 10, 2016

Seas the Day

After a week of family fun at the beach it's "back to life, back to reality" as my mom likes to sing. She's right, if "back to reality" means attending a pink party with Stephen, because that's where you'll find me today! 
I can't even begin to tell you how much fun I had in Avalon this week, but the fact that I took over 1000 pictures might say something. I've included a selection here of some of my favorites and I think together they capture a week full of Wawa runs, Isabel's breakfast sandwiches, boardwalk rides, ice cream, family dinners, and of course the sound of the ocean. 



Climbing on this Jetty is probably the most rebellious thing I do every summer.









It's honestly not summer until I eat a chipwich on the beach super fast while it melts in my hands. 

Monday, July 4, 2016

How to Pack the Perfect Beach Bag

Hello from the shore and Happy 4th! 

If, like me, you're planning on never leaving the beach today, you'll want to make sure you're fully prepared for hours of relaxation. That's why, I'm sharing my beach bag must-haves with you today. Pack these, and you'll worry less that you're forgetting something, and focus more on forgetting everything. 


Above is a beautiful diagram of yesterday's beach bag.... let's all just get over the fact that I made a diagram in my spare time on vacation. The important thing is that these are the items that make up a perfectly packed tote! 

Want more details? Well since you asked...


Start with a hilariously adorable bag. This one is from Old Navy and was a birthday gift from my sister Alexandra. 

Then add the following: 

sunglasses: 

Remember when I told you I lost my sunglasses (*she said through tears*)? Well, this is a new pair from Madewell that I'm obsessed with. They have a vintage vibe and are super flattering for round faces like mine. They also have them in a ton of colors (pssst: some are on sale!)

book:

I'm currently reading the New York Times Best Seller Modern Lovers with the rest of the world. I'm still at the beginning. I'll report back when I finish.


cover up:

Livinggg for this nautical striped cover up by Old Navy -- Another birthday present from Alexandra!

headphones:

It's not a beach day without music. Don't forget to prep your perfect playlist before you go!




Saturday, July 2, 2016

A New Summer Series


Stephen was a baby freshman when I was a junior at Fordham. Now he'll be starting his senior year and I feel old. We've been friends ever since I interviewed him for a position on the campus activities board about three years ago.  He was so cute and profesh, talking about how he couldn't wait to get involved. The following year he interviewed wearing a bunny costume. I'm not joking. 

Sometimes I just can't even with Stephen. He makes me laugh so much and since he just got back from having five months of study abroad adventures in South Africa, we have so many summer plans! 

That brings me to this post. Not too long ago, I helped Stephen start a blog of his own called No Map, Just Baggage focusing on travel, life and everything in between. I don't think he's written a single post where I didn't laugh out loud. And so, we decided to do a linked series this summer. Together we made a list of 7 things we want to do in the next two months and we'll be simultaneously blogging about each! Although the topics will be the same, I can only imagine how insanely different the posts will be. Ready for the list!?

Friday, July 1, 2016

Whale & Wishful Thinking

A week already? 
Here's what I've been thinking about during the past 7 crazy and chaotic days:

1. Avalon: 

For real, there were a million things on my mind this week and besides work, they all revolved around one of my favorite places in the world. On Saturday, I'm leaving New York for a week of beach, sun and family fun. Could I be any more excited? - said Chandler's voice.

My family has been going to Avalon, New Jersey every summer since I can remember, but this will be the first time in years that everyone will be there. I'll seriously see my mom's entire side of the family: Grandmom, aunts, uncles, and seven cousins included. Reunions are fun, plus I love this town with all my heart. To accurately convey my excitement here's that weird music video from the end of the Even Stevens Movie. Christy Carlson Romano is #livinggg. 


All other thoughts are simply sub categories of the first: 


2. Packing: 


If you tell me you enjoy packing, I maybe don't trust you. If you tell me you enjoy unpacking, you're straight up lying. 
I adore traveling, but I am a textbook over packer. I'm currently in the middle of packing for my trip and it's the worst. The "maybe I'll need it" thought wins out every single time, and I end up with a suitcase so heavy that I'm embarrassed to hand it over to guy loading the Megabus. 

Knowing my overpacking is 100% genetic helps. My mom is an even worse packer than me, if you can believe it. She's been known to pack her entire closet for a weekend trip.... Although, she always looks flawless. So is this really a problem?

Side Note: Although I bring way too much, the inside of my suitcase always looks beautiful if you were wondering.