Last Day of School

School ended on Friday.

Sigh.

My tiny school in Harlem is one of my favorite places in New York City, which says a lot about the place where I spend most of my days. Honestly, how many people can say that they LOVE where they work? Not. Too. Many. I love the kids, the teachers, and the staff… I could go on and on and make everyone jealous, but that wouldn’t be nice.

The last day of school is my favorite day of the year. It consists pretty much of pizza parties, hugs, and chaos – three things I dearly love. I particularly love the cards and drawings from the kids. They are so cute and sweet and original.

This year, I got a great letter from one of my best students (she will now be in second grade) who also happens to be the cutest little girl IN THE WORLD. It deserves to be spotlighted. Spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure are unchanged.

“June /22/2009

Drea Miss. Muliszbit

You tech poeplo at school and you tech poeplo to lef up ore tung so they can lins too you tech them the th and the ch to you play games with us to when we do wrting wrok shop you tech us how to play bingo too.”

Translation: I teach people how to listen, AND lift their tongues to make the /th/ and /ch/ sounds, AND how to do ‘writing workshop’ while playing Bingo.

Could my kids get any cuter? Not possible. And, this proves it.

A Walk In The Park

Nathan and Ben enjoy a Sunday stroll through Central Park. A nice place to catch up with friends, people watch, and get a tan.

Another Celebrity Sighting

I shared a brief encounter with another celebrity this past weekend. Actually, I don't know if I consider a person with a small recurring role on an MTV reality series a celebrity per se... but, we'll go with it for now.

Ben and I ran into a bodega in Gramercy to get drinks for a party and there she was - Allie from the show "The City" starring Whitney Port - getting dinner. She's a model and, expectedly, very skinny. I spotted her right away. Ben had no idea who she was and even after I explained that she's Allie from The City which airs on MTV and whose target audience is tweens, he still didn't care. Humph.

Well, there you have it.

Modern Dog Magazine

Guess what?!?! The first advertisement for Licks & Giggles is up on Modern Dog Magazine's website... and a photo I took is used in the ad! Can you spot the famous "Doggie BBQ" picture?

Go to Modern Dog Magazine website and click on SHOP. Every time the page refreshes the ads change places, so you may have to search for it.

Here is a screen shot with the ad top and center (just like it should be)...

Summertime in the City

I love the summer in NYC. It’s the best time of year here. Period.

Every night, something exciting and new is going on somewhere with someone. Free concerts in the park, dining outside restaurants, movies on the pier, parties on rooftop decks… there is never a dull moment. With multiple groups of friends calling, each suggesting something fun to do... what’s a girl to do?

Summer suits me considering all of the leg transportation we, New Yorkers, do. It’s not so bad and I really don’t mind walking everywhere when the weather is nice, when it’s warm. I consider it my main form of exercise during the summer – a way to counterbalance all those desserts from the ice cream trucks parked at every corner.

If summer lasted all year round, I could stay here forever. And, due to the speedy process of global warming, that might be sooner rather than later. But, until then, I will have to accept myself as more of a snowbird in the winter and an NYC summer socialite in the summer.

Hold Up

A couple of weekends ago, we ventured up to 113^th street and Broadway for a graduation party. It was a nice part of town with sections of Columbia University wedged between brownstones and buildings. We climbed the stairs out of the subway and started walking down the sidewalk when we suddenly heard… “Get down! Everybody, GET DOWN!”

People dropped to the ground. They fled down the street. We stood, stricken with fear and confusion. I thought, is this it for Itty Bitty? Would her end really be in an old school quintessential New York way?

Ben flinched. Our girlfriend froze. I was nervous, yet slightly intrigued.

Suddenly, unmarked police vehicles squealed to a halt at the corner. Plain-clothes police officers jumped out and tackled a guy. Then they drug him a little ways down the street. Roughed him up, perhaps? I wasn’t close enough to see.

But, apparently, a lady with a first row seat did. She told us that the man tried to rob a stock boy from the corner bodega as he wheeled his cart of merchandise into the store. Miraculously, the police appeared (seemingly out of nowhere) and captured the bad guy, making our city safe again. Hip, hip hooray! Hip, hip hooray!

We continued to walk to the party pretty unfazed by the experience, which once again proved that our minds had slowly shifted to the New York mindset of Whatever, I’ve got places to be and people to see. It’s New York City, baby. My girlfriend said frankly, “If my dad was here to see that, he would have me on a plane back home right now.”

I totally agreed.

Del Brenna

This is Sebastian, the jewelry designer and maker from Italy, mentioned and photographed in an older post. He married one of Ben's cousins from Kansas. She was studying abroad in Italy when they met, fell in love, and got married. They now live happily ever after in Cortona (the place "where they filmed Under The Tuscan Sun") with their two family owned jewelry shops.

Sebastian exudes the such energy and life, and he called me "Elizabeta" all weekend, which I loved. Their jewelry and stores are called Del Brenna, and Sebastian outfitted each bridesmaid with a necklace and earrings. Visit Sebastian's store's website to admire the incredible craftsmanship and artistry of their jewelry.

Sitting At The Big Kids' Table

My nephew, barely big enough, peeks over the table at the wedding in Kansas.

Chocolate Robber

In Kansas, the wedding couple gave each invited guest staying at a hotel a gift bag that included snacks, an information booklet about the town, and a large box of Russell Stover chocolates. I love chocolate. So, I highly anticipated the quiet moments in our hotel room when I would get to try and savor each piece.

Most of the chocolate disappeared sometime between our arrival on Thursday night and the following Saturday morning. The chocolate left in the box exhibited bite marks or missing corners. I never thought about it, knowing that I was the one who nibbled on and taste-tested the pieces. Ben’s not a chocolate fan, so who would ever notice?

A three-year-old… that’s who.

Our three-year-old nephew repeatedly asked for candy on Saturday morning after smelling chocolate on my breath upon return to his room from ours. Finally, Ben took him to our room and when they came back, Theo walked directly toward me, looked me straight in the eye, and in front of my husband’s family asked, “Why you eat bites off ALL the chocolate?”

Ben echoed Theo’s sentiment with, “Yeah, Theo couldn’t find ANY pieces that weren’t half-eaten.”

Oops. Some aunt I am.

Licks and Giggles Boutique

My good friend, Melissa Johnson, officially launches her online doggie clothing and accessories store called "Licks and Giggles Boutique" today! "Licks and Giggles" is the perfect place for all dog lovers to shop. Her store has adorable clothing and accessories for those who love to pamper their pooches. Please visit "Licks and Giggles"!

Several weeks ago, Melissa asked me to photograph the talent for the website using the merchandise from her store. We spent a sunny Sunday afternoon at a park in Queens taking pictures, posing dogs, and fighting off swarms of paparazzi. Thanks to Melissa's faith in my (menial) photography abilities, I am now a bone-a-fide photographer! I can say that since I was "paid" with a hearty dinner at the Bohemian Hall and Beer Garden after the shoot.

The pictures I took of the dogs are found throughout the website, specifically on the "home", "blog", and "contact" pages. Pictures can also be found in the "I Heart NY" section here and here. I am so HAPPY for Melissa and her new business venture. Enjoy the pictures!

Below are a few of my favorites from the shoot.