my thanksgiving adventure.

i thought that spending my first thanksgiving away from family would be tough, but it wasn't! i still had family, they just weren't mine! i spent the holiday in middletown, new jersey with my friend kelsey and her family. kelsey and i were roommates in college and we still see each other as often as we can.

unfortunately, i had to work at 5:30am, but was off and headed to new jersey by noon (not without encountering THOUSANDS of parade patrons, though!).

it was a great day--really. i've met most of her family so i felt like i was back at home; the smell of turkey, stuffing (or as us southerners call it-dressing), and potatoes, and the merriment of family was lovely. it was successful day--i left feeling just as stuffed as i always do and had a nice turkey nap on the train ride home :)

                

Kelsey (R) and her sister, Molly, who I hadn't 
seen in forever! 

Molly's youngest, Kate, who I met for the first time
on Thursday!

And of course Ava, Molly's oldest, who steals
the show :)

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

thanksgiving eve.

well, the holiday season is upon us! and for the first time in 23 (almost 24) years, i am spending thanksgiving away from my entire family.  it's crazy to think of it like that, but i suppose it's just part of growing up.

i work at a very popular bakery in rockefeller plaza so we will be open tomorrow for the parade.  what does that mean for me? 4:30am wake up call.  fortunately, i have friends in the tri-state so my college roommate has been kind enough to invite me to her house in New Jersey to spend thanksgiving with her and her family! i've been baking for the past few days (quite a task in a tiny nyc apartment-stay tuned for that later!) to get ready for thanksgiving and the start of a great holiday season.

today though, i spent my thanksgiving "eve" doing a pretty touristy thing--i went to see the balloons being blown up for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade! since i can't see the actual parade, i suppose this was the next best thing. tonight, i'm spending it indoors where it's warm (it's finally getting cold up here!) drinking hot chocolate out of my trusty Zabar's mug, burning my first holiday candles, and watching a good holiday movie.

if i could, i would list everything i am thankful for this holiday season but, i suppose you would get tired of reading as there are a ton! but for now, i will just tell you all that i feel so blessed to be where i am in my life and for all the people who are in it :)

 

                       

 

                       

   

happy turkey day!

my inspiration for today and everyday.

unfortunately i can't take credit for discovering this but my friend amy posted this to facebook a few weeks ago as inspiration to anyone struggling to live in new york city. 

not only is it an inspiration, but it's a daily reminder that we are the few (well, 8 million) that are lucky enough to live in this great city and to have survived the ups and downs that come with making such a huge change in our lives.

so, to those of you new yorkers that read this, bask in the fact that you probably know all the spots where this was filmed. enjoy the goosebumps you get when you see the skyline from the 7 train (i know i did and do), as well as the goosebumps you get when you realize that this is your city; this is home.

to those of you that are just visitors, let it be a reminder that there are places in our great country where change is made everyday and there really is a place where dreams are realized.

watch it. over and over again.

A Year In New York

autumn in new york

boy did i pick the right weekend to walk through the park and go for a run around the reservoir! i kept waiting for fall to "fall" and it finally has! i won't talk about how it was nearly 70 today, though...

enjoy!

if you look closely towards the bottom right, you
can see a couple getting married! i saw 3 weddings in
the park that day.

scenes from occupy wall street.

one of the biggest things going on right now in the city--occupy wall street.

i headed down to Zuccotti Park last weekend to see what was going on--it wasn't a lot but it was something.

        

snow!

yes, you saw that right--snow! in october! if this is a sign of what's to come, i'm in for a rude awakening for my first real winter and my first winter in nyc!

we woke up this morning to our clanking radiators and rain. then, just a couple of hours later, there were HUGE flakes "raining" down outside! i figured it looked like more than it was, but it wasn't--tons of snow was falling from the sky! if i seem like i'm overly excited, i am. i grew up in nc as you all know, and we never got snow--especially in october!

so, as the snow is still coming down outside, our radiators are getting overly warm, and i am preparing to disguise myself in halloween gear, i leave you with these wintry pictures.

and, as the news says, trick or sleet!!

how many times can you say you've
seen GREEN leaves with snow on them?!

a tribute to my hannie.

just on the brink of our 9 month anniversary (whoa!), hannah, my roommate, has decided to move home to north carolina.  when you know what's right, you know. and she knew that new york would always be that place she moved to in order to realize her real home was north carolina.  this is my tribute to my ny partner in crime.

when hannah asked me if i wanted to move to new york, i remember it was sometime mid-summer.  i'd been out of school for just a couple of months and i had NO CLUE what i was going to do with my life.  she called me up and said "do you still want to live in new york?" to which i responded "uh, always! why?" to which she then beat around the bush a little until she asked "do you want to move to new york...in say, the beginning of next year?" UM, YEAH I DO! 

moving out of sublet #1

so, we made the plan to move and set about trying to plan our lives in one of the biggest cities in the world.  eventually, we found a sublet--a small one-room studio in midtown east for the first 3 weeks of february.  to no avail, we searched for apartments for march. we learned the city well in that first month due in large part to our apartment search. finally, we found our little home--a small 2-bedroom in the heart of the Upper West Side.  we made it ours, and we settled into our lives as 2 naive girls from north carolina just trying to make it in the city. not to bore you with the professional job stuff (it's not fun, let's face it), we figured out the city together.  the months went by and our days usually ended with stories of the city--someone's story would always be crazier than the other's--somehow.  we went through our ups and downs together, our job changes, and our friends.  we made friends together, and we developed our own routines--something we both found out was rather difficult in new york city.

sublet #2

when we finally found our place!

but, as the months trailed on, we did it. somehow, we survived this city and we began to feel like it was our home--that of 8 million people, we were 2 that were figuring it out together. eventually the city did thaw out and the summer came and went (not without a few sweat-drenched days, though!).  then, hannah told me she had decided to move home.

now, here i am, 9 months into my great adventure, and my hannie is gone.  yes, i am a little upset, but i am also so happy for her to be back where she is happiest. i already miss her coming home from work (at 10pm!) and us talking about our day.  i miss us conquering our problems together because we knew we were both going through it for the first time, and at the same time.  however, i feel like if she had to leave, now was an okay time to do it. it's been 9 months, and this big city of 8 million people is starting to feel like home.  my days are more routine, and my mind is now in city mode.  i don't get overwhelmed anymore with the people, the trains, the buses, and, oh yeah, did i say the PEOPLE?! this is my home now and without hannah, i never would've made it.

through all the apartments, experiences, and hair colors, we made it.  miss you hans!!