dear new york.

we {heart} you in the rain.

we most definitely {heart} you in the sun.

but once the snowflakes start to fall we're
not going to {heart} you a whole ton.

emergency chocolate cake.

I was craving a little something something tonight and found this delicious chocolate-cake-in-a-mug recipe. And even better...it's so simple!

Fluffy chocolaty heaven. A mug full of cupcake. Decadence in 2 minutes.

2 tablespoons cake flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 (slightly heaping) teaspoons cocoa powder
a pinch of salt
2 tablespoons of milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons oil

Spray the inside of a microwave-safe coffee mug with nonstick spray. Measure the ingredients into the mug and stir with a fork until smooth and no lumps remain. Microwave on high for 60 seconds.

That's it!!!

You can eat it straight out of the mug, or plop some ice cream inside, or flip it onto a plate and drizzle some chocolate syrup. Yummy hey?

blissful afternoon.

strawberrys for breakfast.

lunch with lauren.

laundry folded.

ellen on the tube.

wicked on broadway.

4 months in NYC and we've finally seen a Broadway!

After another no-go day on the job front, I decided
to try my luck in another area: the Wicked lottery drawing.
Hundreds of people line up in the heat, put their names in a fishbowl,
and 13 lucky fans win front row seats to the show.

and I WON!!
{I haven't seen this kind of luck since I won the Cake Walk in the 5th Grade!}

So I got my tickets (and my cute little pin, as seen above)
and Todd and I enjoyed a most amazing show!

It's been a few days since the show, but I still catch Todd singing
"Popular, I want to be popular"

corner bistro.

Last night Todd and I enjoyed dinner at Corner Bistro,
a grungy hole-in-the-wall burger joint in the West Village.
It was crowded beyond belief and we waited 45 minutes to snatch
one of the six available tables, but it was worth it.

The burgers were cheap, gigantic {as seen above} and delicious!
And for Todd to approve of a restaurant after a 45 minute wait,
it's gotta be dang good!

once upon a dream.

Who would have known that this beautiful and quaint street
was in the middle of Manhattan.

Washington Mews. My Dream Street.

weekend adventures.

Todd and I really enjoyed the time we had together this weekend and spent it traveling around this lovely city of ours. While the weather was quite hot, it's nothing we weren't used to.

Cruising around in Central ParkCentral Park's Bethesda Water Fountain

Washing Square Park

It was fun sitting on the steps watching kids and even adults romping

around in the fountain. I guess living in the city, this is the closest
thing to a water park.

when life hands you lemons...

You Cleanse.

So this delicious "New York Diet" that I've been on has really

taken a toll on not only my scale but also my health, so I decided to try something new.

The Master Cleanse.

It's quite simple actually. Just drink lemon juice, cayenne pepper, 

and maple syrup at least 6 times a day, every day. 

Oh, and don't forget your quart of salt water in the morning.

Yuck, right? It is. It's so bad. I'm only in one day, but I'm sticking 

with it. I even discovered that adding ice and making a spicy lemonade 

smoothie is quite delicious. 

I'll let you know how I do. 

But feel free to cross your fingers for me. *and toes*

day at the beach.

We took the train to Connecticut to spend the weekend with 

Kim and Gary at their adorable beach house.

After the beach, we took the cruisers over to a charming ice cream shop

Then we rode to the Fairfield Pier to watch the fishermen 

and enjoy the beautiful weather

After our little bike tour, the boys BBQed a delicious surf & turf

dinner which was followed by a belly full of dessert and a movie!

stew leonards.

Our first destination once we got to Fairfield, CT was 

Stew Leonards!

It's a huge grocery store well-known for their great

 customer service and fresh dairy products. 

*So fresh, they even had a few cows and chickens outside...*

Now if only we could get one of these in the city.

kayaking trip II

Free kayaking on a beautiful day, how can you say no?

brooklyn bridge.

We had a fun time walking the Brooklyn Bridge with Klane, Angie, 

and Carly on our way to delicious pizza at Grimaldi's

After walking the bridge, we had a few more hours(!) to stand

until we actually got to eat (2 to be exact)

Tired of standing

It's such a quirky restaurant run by a bunch of funny Italian men 

(mafia you might ask? quite possibly, but you didn't hear it from me)

Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory afterwards