Rrrroooomba!

So, my friends who visited last weekend will be surprised to hear that I'm in a relationship. I didn't tell them while they were here simply because I didn't yet realize it. Tuesday morning as I was getting ready for work, I had my Roomba doing it's job of keeping my floors clean. I was trying to stay out of its way but at one point I accidentally bumped into it. When I did, I looked down at it and said "Sorry, babe!" So, yeah, apparently my Roomba is the closest thing I have to a relationship.  Sigh.

 

I do have to say that I am loving my Roomba. It is the greatest thing ever. I have a really hard time keeping my floors clean - NYC is dirty and dusty and it shows up quickly on my wood floors. Not to mention the days I come in from the rain or snow and bring a wet mess with me. My rugs were pretty filthy and no matter what I did I could not get them clean by beating them or using my dust buster. The Roomba, however, has taken care of everything. I love that I can just turn it on and let it do its thing while I do other things. And it does such a great job! I used to always wear flip flops or sandals or slippers around my apartment because I hate the feel of dirt on the bottom of my feet. Now, I am comfortable going barefoot and I don't get little pieces of dirt or dust on my feet. Love it! And I think my feet are going to love it as well...my feet have gone through some trauma since moving to NYC and I think the fact that they went 4 years with rarely being free from shoes has taken its toll. Hoping this new freedom helps them feel a bit better! 

Name That Actress

Okay, it's time for another round of "Name that Actor/tress"!

As I sat having brunch at Popover Cafe on Sunday morning with Kate and Maggie, I glanced out the window to see a lady I am sure is an actress. I could not place who she is though or what she has been in. Since my readers have pulled through for me a couple of times before in the game of "Name that Actor/tress" I thought I'd try you again.

This woman was older...I'm going to say around 80 or pretty close to it. She had dark grey hair that was about shoulder length. Her face is a bit freckled...probably some aging spots. I picture her in a movie where she plays the grouchy old lady.

That's all I've got...guess away!!

WINNER!

I have never been big on entering contests, under the assumption that the chances of me winning are so slim, there's no way I'll ever win.  Well, recently, I decided if I never put my name in the bucket, there is 0% chance of me winning.  I began entering any contest that crossed my path.  It has paid off!  In the past couple of months, I won two contests!

First, I won an enormous supply of Aquaphor.  It must be like a life-time supply because I got many bottles of every product they carry and some of them are huge and their stuff seems to last forever anyway.  The pictures don't do it justice...the bottles are really big!  I'm definitely fully stocked up in the lotion department and plan to give away a bunch as well.  I've tried a few of the products and my favorite is definitely the hand lotion...I took both tubes to work because my hands get really dry there.

I really like the blue pail the products came in...figure

I can come up with some use for it at a party or something!

Lots of products!  Kewpie girls, you better show

up with some extra space in your carry-ons!

So, yes, Aquaphor doesn't sound like that exciting of a prize to win.  But, not too shabby.  Guess what came with it??  A $100 Visa gift card!  Woo-hoo!  So, yes, I basically won $100!

The second contest I won was for the Olay Skin Care starter.  I'm more excited about this than the Aquaphor (but not ther $100!).  I am always trying new face cleansing products and so many of them are so expensive.  I think Olay makes some good stuff so I'm excited to try this out and see what I think!

Good Housekeeping 125th Anniversary Gala

I got to go to another fun Gala show last week.  Joy and I bought the cheap tickets just to go to the show (not the fancy reception afterwards).  It was so much fun!  They basically did a tribute to women who have done amazing things over the past 125 years.  It was a great show with so many great speakers giving tributes to the women of our past.  However, I also kept thinking to myself that many of the women accomplished things that I'm not so sure we should be celebrating.  It just reminded me that the things this world views as successful are often not the things that I, as a Christian, should view as success.  Nonetheless, it was a fun night of star-gazing.

Brooke Shields hosted the show and she is the only person I got a picture of.  I got in trouble for taking that picture and although a ton of people were taking pictures throughout the show, I wasn't going to try again and risk being thrown out!

Other celebrities who were there included:

- Martha Stewart
- Meryl Streep
- Jessica Simpson (Poor girl, her dress was so not flattering and she looked terribly uncomfortable).
- Hilary Duff (she kind of made me a fan that night.  she looked great and spoke so well).
- Kristen Bell
- Nora Ephron
- Anika Noni Rose (also loved this girl!)
- Marlo Thomas
- Dorothy Hamill was honored and stood up in the audience
- Kelli O'Hara did a musical performance
- Candice Bergen
- Marlee Matlin
- Aretha Franklin sang at the end

It was a very entertaining show.  I love being able to go to fun things like this!

Four Years!

Today is my NYC 4-year Anniversary.  Crazy!  It doesn't feel like 4 years at all.  I can't believe I'm well on my way to hitting the 7-year mark I hit living in Dallas post-college.  I sometimes wonder if I'll get the 7-year-itch like I got in Dallas.  And, yes, as of now, I could easily see making it to that 7-year mark.  The only goal I have for myself at this point is to stay at the NHL a total of 5-years, just because I've never been at a job that long and at this age it would probably be pretty smart to become fully vested in a benefit plan (okay, VERY smart).  My 5-year anniversary as an employee at the NHL will be January 2012.  I don't really have a reason to leave anyway.  I love this place and my job and am quite comfortable and happy here.  I never run out of things I want to see or do (or eat!), so I can't really imagine becoming bored here.  Occasionally I long for more closet space, but most of the time I enjoy having much less space to clean!  For me, for now, it's perfect.  So, happy 4-years to me!!

Annnnd, my NYC anniversary has served a great purpose in helping me remember what a special day this is for other special people in my life, so Happy 6th Anniversary to Maggie & Mike and Jennifer & Todd.  And Happy Birthday to Miriam!  Love you all!

March Madness

March Madness was a lot of fun this year! It helps when you have a team do really well. I don't think anyone can believe Baylor made it to the Elite 8. That's quite a come-back from 2003 when they lost their entire team after the players started killing each other (literally). Hoping they have many good years to come...but, acknowledging the bad luck cloud that seems to hover over all Baylor athletics. I was only able to make it out to one Baylor watch-party. I haven't seen so many Bears in one place since college...especially in NYC. It was great! What a way to start showing some spirit, BU alums! And all that hype with the boys overflowed into the girls play...Final Four with 3 freshman starters?? We're totally the next UConn.

I joined the office Bracket Pool. I had high hopes since the only other time I've done a pool I won the entire thing! I won a George Foreman out of it that time. This time there was big bucks at stake and I just knew I had the skillz to win.

Well, it actually turns out I'm not an expert when it comes to Brackets. Say what? It's true, I lost this one big time. If only I had supported my own team when I filled out the Bracket I would have been at least a little higher up on the list. I played the bad luck card and was wrong. I even tried to convince my boss (who had Baylor in the Championship game) that he was making a big mistake. These east coasters just couldn't grasp the bad luck factor. In fact, some of them were pretty ignorant about where/what Baylor is at all. Hellloooo....It's the largest Baptist University in the world! (just kidding...I don't know what half their schools are either and I'm sure they're great schools).

Let the Madness Begin!

I am gearing up for a busy couple of months and I'm excited. We're starting off with some serious reunions/visits from friends this month and next.

-- My college roommate, Nicole, is staying out in Queens right now with her best friend from grad school (Nicole is a HUGE part of why I live in NYC. My first few visits here were when she lived here for dental school). I'll see Nicole this weekend and Shera will join us. We all three lived on the same hall freshman year!

-- Next weekend, 4 of my closest high school friends will hit NYC. I am so excited we'll all 5 be in one place. Better yet, MY place (even though we'll be super squeezed into my tiny studio).

-- A few days after the Kewpies leave, my mom arrives! I always love a visit from mom and we have a weekend full of fun events!

-- I get about 10 days off before Michelle, my most frequent visitor, arrives from Dallas. It's been a year and a half since her last visit! But, she still holds that coveted spot.

-- Just about as soon as Michelle leaves, Becca arrives. Ahh, so freakin' excited about this one! Becca is my very best friend from college. She's a bit of a homebody (self admitted) so getting her to come to NYC was something I wasn't sure would ever happen. It's going to be a super quick trip, but I don't care. She's never been to NYC and we're going to have a lot to accomplish in her short visit.

All my visitors are followed by back-to-back trips to Charlottesville, VA and Dallas. Then, I get a few weeks off before heading to Maine for a weekend of summer fun! Let the Madness Begin!

Village Voice Choice Eats

Lucy, Amanda, Jessica, and I went to Village Voice Choice Eats in March. I've been looking forward to going to this ever since I heard about it last year. A ton of great restaurants come in and provide food and drink samples. It was amazing!! Other than the fact that it was super crowded and hot and by the end of the evening my feet were aching. But, seriously, it was fun and good food. And a great way to find out about restaurants in this restaurant saturated city.  As if I need to add to my already ever growing list of restaurants to check out. Here are some of the my favorites from the night:

Sandwich from Cheeky Sandwich in the Lower East Side.

What can go wrong when fried goat chesse is involved?

Paired with a yam spread, beets and arugula...yum! 

Pulled pork with cole slaw from Juliette in
Williamsburg, BK. This was yummy, but I
especially loved the cute rectangular matchboxes
they were giving out (in background)

This noodle dish was so good!  It came

from Bamboo Pavilion in Brooklyn.

I also loved the chorizo sandwich from Despana in Soho. 

I can't believe I'm about to say this, but Ta Cocina was there serving brisket tacos and I have to admit that they rivaled those from Dallas' Mi Cocina.  Never thought I'd say something that complimentary about mexcian food in NYC.

So, those were just a few of the delicious bites we tried that evening.  Fun night!

Alicia Keys

I got to sit in our suite for the Alicia Keys concert back in March. I had put in for my own tickets, but got 4 for the New Jersey concert, which happened to be on the night of the Masquerade Ball. So, I was trying to decide which to go to when Olivia, a co-worker, asked if I wanted to go with her to the NYC concert. It was a perfect solution to my dilema! One of our staff had 2 more tickets for NYC so I traded those for my NJ ones and my co-worker Nil and her husband went with Olivia and I. Then 4 of our staff got to go together to the Jersey concert with my tickets. We were all happy! Those of us at the NYC concert got the better deal, though. An easy commute AND Jay-Z and Beyonce. Being the NYC concert, I figured that Jay-Z would show up for Empire State of Mind, but was thrilled when Beyonce came out earlier in the show to do her duet with Alicia. Alicia Keys is uber talented and I forgot how many songs of hers I actually knew. We had a great time!

Saturday Service Days

I've decided that I want to be more intentional about making my Saturdays days of service.  Of course, as soon as I made this declaration, I realized that most of my Saturdays for several upcoming weeks are booked with either visitors or trips.  I'll do what I can, though. 

I believe that my main (only?) purposes in life are to enjoy God and to glorify Him.  So, my first priority is my relationship with Him.  To seek it and enjoy it.  Then, as I am filled with His love, power, and joy, I pray that would overflow out of me and unto others and that, ultimately, He would be glorified through that.  I'm not explaining that well, but listen to the lyrics of the new song on my page...that's what I'm trying to say!

I had 3 different Saturday opportunites to serve others in March.  My first Saturday was spent at a March Madness basketball clinic that was being held for the kids in the Chelsea projects.  Many of our Kids Club kids came, but there were a LOT of kids we didn't know there - especially older teenage boys.  It was great to have them all join in. 

Warming up!

Running drills

Losing team doing push-ups

Nakkia did not have interest in basketball, but was the

hostest with the mostest helping us behind the scenes.

She also was the keeper of the medals

Medal ceremony!

L.A. Checking out his medal

Proud boyz

Too cool girls

Chec won the trophy for best attitude

Kendra won for most improved

End of weekend team huddle

Another Saturday in March, I had the opportunity to serve a meal at the Ronald McDonald house at Sloan Kettering, one of the top cancer hospitals in the USA.  I loved every minute of this experience.  It was very humbling.  I assumed that the ill children would be in the hospital and we would just be serving their families, so I was a little shocked when many of the kids were there for dinner. It was extremely sad to me. These families have come from all over the US in hopes of receiving treatment from the best so that their kids may be healed. One family from Oklahoma has been living at the Ronald McDonald house for 3 years! Ugh, I cannot imagine. Another family I spoke with has a baby, 10 months, with cancer. He was so sweet and looked so perfect. He is here with his mom and grandma while his 5-year-old sister and dad are back in South Carolina working and going to school. A family split apart by this awful disease. So difficult.

We did a Saint Patrick's day themed dinner and activity for the children.  Becky came up with an awesome dinner menu with Irish foods or green foods!  After dinner, we took the kids to the playroom and had a hunt for pots of gold!

Karyn grating cheese!  We were serving

100 people...that's a lot of cheese to grate!

Becky & Radhika working on the potato casserole

Annie was my partner for the cooking.  We were in

charge of making Irish soda bread.  Then, we made

the dressing for the cole slaw.

Becky and I trying to figure out how the potato casserole

ended up so greasy and trying to scoop some of it out

(it was gross, but we drained it and it turned out fine).

Our Irish Soda Bread!

Taking hams out of the oven

Decorating the dining room green

Becky the menu planner, husband Steve and baby

(due any day)!  This shows the green fruit

salad and fun rice krispy treats.

We helped serve the families their meal

The whole crew from my church

Sweet boy named Nathan...been here 3 years and

beyond ready to go home!  Pray for him!

This guy volunteers at the house each week.  He is

a singer and wrote a song and taught this little girl

to sing harmony with him.  It was precious.

My final Saturday in March was spent helping with and Easter Egg Hunt for the families of my church.  This year, I was just in charge of the gift bags and showing up to help the day of.  If you remember, last year we were rained out.  This year, we planned to have it the day before Palm Sunday so that if it rained, we'd have 1 more Saturday before Easter to fall back on. 

If you are a mom or involved with kids in other ways and do not know about Oriental Trading Company, you need to know!  I bought all the fun stuff for their gift bags off this site.  Everything was Easter themed...a stamp, bubbles, an Easter Egg craft project, stickers, a notepad, a pencil, an Egg shaped ball.  The craziest part?  With all that stuff, each bag cost less than $2.00!  Such cute stuff for so cheap!

I also made Easter sugar cookies to go in the bags.

I didn't get a picture of the final product all put together, but they were pretty cute and the kids seemed to love them.  We had 18 kids sign up for the hunt, but had 24 show up.  Amazingly, I had made exactly 6 extra.  Pretty sure God was in the details that day.

It was chilly that day, but beautifully sunny!  Friend Murph took some amazing pictures, but I haven't gotten my hands on them yet.  Here are some one of the dad's took that day.

Rebecca, Esther, their friend, and Chase

The girls working on some crafts

Jackson (left) brought his friend Cameron!

The crafting area

Finished project!

The Boyz

The girls

Chatting with Neely

My Sunday School boy, Jackson & Judson

Angela reading from the Jesus Storybook Bible

The kids listening to the Easter story

Syd & Neely climbing a tree.  Yes, Sydney is

doing so in a dress.  I think she actually wore

flats that day, she is usually in heels.  Yet still

loves to get down & dirty outside.

Savannah looks happy with her Egg Findings

Not sure if JR or Korey is more excited about the hunt!

Judson is finding eggs!

Neely is searching high and low

Sydney, my only regular SS class

member last year.  Love her.

Rebecca!

Pastor & Family