Serena With a Baby?

After drinking tequila sunrises and chatting about life-changing decisions last Thursday night with my friend Karen, the conversation shifted to blogging. She's working on launching a complete overhaul of her website, Happelstance. She has big dreams for her writing career with the talent, tenacity and PR and designer team to back them up. 

Taking my own blog to the next level - developing my marketing strategy, building community, acquiring sponsors, posting more frequently - is on my must-do list. Karen's assessment might be just the kick in the ass that I needed. She has built an enviable career casting for reality television shows like Biggest Loser and Hells Kitchen. "From a casting point of view, you and Savannah have such a great online persona. You're like Serena with a baby! You're living a dream life in Manhattan." Now, certainly, I could write using the "Serena with a baby" archetype as my filter. (That's a Gossip Girl reference.) Savannah does enjoy using the steps of the Met as stair-climbing practice, but our day-to-day life is not fancy. We just happen to live in the place that everyone watches on TV. 

Today Rob, Savvy and I spent the day in Central Park with a picnic beneath a giant flowering tree, followed by a walk through the Conservatory Garden. As Savvy pointed out the double decker tourist buses driving down Fifth Avenue, I felt consciously lucky to live in the place that people clammer to visit from all over the world. But that's where the "Serena with a baby" comparison ends. Our picnic included deli sandwiches and a shared water, not charcuterie and champagne; in my scramble to get out of the house, I didn't put any makeup on and cursed myself for going another weekend without dying my hair, but it was a perfect Sunday afternoon in my version of Manhattan paradise. 

Our magical family moments of the day included climbing rocks, throwing fallen petals, using tree roots like a balance beam, smelling lilacs, and sharing an ice cream cone. Take a look...

What about you? How conscious are you of your online brand and persona when it comes to your blog? Do you consciously portray yourself as a "type"?

For those of you visiting from Glamamom's Monday Mingle, my Sunday picnic outfit is: Top from Williamsburg boutique, Citizens of Humanity Jeans, Blowfish flats, and a target cross-body bag.

Cascabel Taqueria & the Great Hot Sauce Incident of 2010

Cascabel - 1542 2nd Ave NYC - image via

Oh Cascabel. Your upscale yet affordable Mexican cuisine is fantastic. You're in my neighborhood. Your decor is fun and welcoming. But your service is usually lacking. *Understatement* But the menu and its mouthwatering execution keeps me coming back despite the Great Hot Sauce Incident of 2010. And I finally had a wonderful experience all around during our last visit.

What's the Great Hot Sauce Incident of 2010, you ask? 

Well, it started with a fun Mexican brunch with my husband, my 2 month old baby, my Mellie, and her boyfriend. We ordered plates of food and margaritas. The plates could barely fit on the table, we ordered so much food!

Our meal quickly went downhill because someone on staff didn't do their side work. The hot sauce bottles were clogged and their nozzles gooky. In order to get any of the thick homemade sauces out of their containers, you really needed to squeeze them as hard as you could resulting in a massive spray of sauce.

Mellie attempted to spice up her huevos with some spicy red sauce and after some aggressive finagling, a GEYSER OF SAUCE ricocheted off her chilaquiles into her eyes and hair and all over Savvy and I, staining our clothes, crusting our hair, dotting our stroller with red sauce, smearing my makeup. At the time it was both funny and horrifying, and a huge spectacle at the crowded brunch spot. Thank GOD I was holding Savvy with her head resting over my shoulder. If the hot sauce had splattered on her face instead of her hair there would have been true hell to pay from this mama. I'm still bitter that they didn't comp our meal. They gave us a wet rag and free hot chocolate, but seriously, we were not in the mood to linger.

THE GREAT HOT SAUCE INCIDENT OF 2010

One of our first family portraits

But I don't hold a grudge. I've been back several times since then, most recently for "Fiesta Time" with my bff Carrie and Savvy after an afternoon at London Candy Company and Central Park.

This visit was perfect. We arrived at 4:30pm so Cascabel wasn't very crowded, and much to our surprise their amazing margaritas were on special for $6 and several of their best dishes were offered in appetizer-sized portions for $4 each.  

And what a difference a year and a half makes. The salsa bottles were pristinely maintained and Savvy was old enough to serve herself the mild tomatillo sauce. How far we've come!

She obviously wasn't traumatized for life by the Great Hot Sauce Incident of 2010

My little lump of a snuggly newborn has grown into such a huge toddler personality. While Carrie and I sipped cucumber and watermelon margaritas, she entertained us by dancing, showing off the yoga poses she learned in class, taking pictures of her feet and the floor, "reading" the menus ("dah dah DAH dah DAH DAH DAH") and saying "dog poop" over and over like she learned from her Aunt Carrie, all while giggling and bursting with smiles.

Cascabel Tamale - $4 during Fiesta Time, 4-7pm

Carrie enjoys a cucumber margarita

Bursting with smiles

Savvy walks around like she owns the place

Take a $50 Spa-Cation: My NYC Spa Week Picks

Image via

Ever feel like you need a vacation RIGHT NOW? Sometimes the quickest way to escape everyday life is to allow someone else to pamper you at the spa - with a massage, a facial, a full body exfoliation, a luxury mani/pedi. For me, going to the spa is not part of my usual routine, but the few times I've gone for a massage or facial has been incredibly restorative.

I'm going for a Rolling Stone massage at Spa Martier later this month (with a lovely massage therapist whose Ecuadorian accent brought me right back to Quito) because....

Spa Week is next week! Hundreds of spas across the US are offering $50 treatments from April 16-22.


My $50 NYC Spa-cation Picks:

1. Ayurveda Sampling Package including Gharshana, Ahbyanga massage, and Shirodhra at Fine Living New York Ayurveda in the West Village.

Because you'll need to Google everything and have an impressive story.

2. Authentic Korean Body Scrub and Cucumber Mask at Tribeca Spa of Tranquility.

Because Korean sloughing technique must be better than your own!

3. Green Tea Body Wrap at Ada Spa in Tribeca.

Because it sounds warm, wet, and moisturizing.

4. Massage with Thai Herbal Compress at Bunya Citi Spa in Soho.

Because it sounds fragrant and healing.

5. 1/4 Syringe of Juvederm Lip Injections at Verve Medical Cosmetics in Midtown.

Because, whoa, imagine impulse purchasing a Hollywood pout?!

This is the perfect opportunity to take a mini spa-cation without tons of advance planning or a big monetary investment. Try a new treatment to challenge your comfort zone, immerse yourself in a cultural experience you've never had, make yourself feel great, have a new story to tell -- all the reasons I love to travel!

~~~Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post. I attended a Spa Week-hosted event at Spa Martier where I sampled their massage and nail art treatments. I will be paying for my return trip~~~

Joe Fresh Opens in NYC: Blame Canada

If these photos make you squint, you can blame Canada for my new ridiculously bright orange pants -- I bought them at the Joe Fresh pop-up shop on Madison Avenue for $49 a few weeks ago. In honor of the Canadian brand's flagship store grand opening, here is my first "typical style blog post" on how I wore my new pants for their first appearance.  Can't wait to check out their new space on 5th Ave at 43rd Street!

After looking at the photos my husband snapped before leaving for work this morning, I promptly removed the belt. What do you think?

Also, what are your thoughts on pairing these pants with a black top? Too Halloween-y or is that rule as old fashioned as the no-white-after-Labor-Day rule?

Shirt: Anne Taylor Loft  /  Belt: H&M /  Pants: Joe Fresh /  Shoes: Target /  Necklace: Topshop

Comfortable stretch

A billowy white shirt tucked in might be a better choice and more on trend for 2012.

Nude monkey wanted to pose too

Will my badonkadonk stop traffic in traffic-cone-orange?

Time to chug coffee and hit the town!

The London Candy Company - our latest treat

When I lived in London, my tamest guilty pleasure was Cadbury chocolate. Every time I had an extra minute and a few coins in my pocket, I bought a chocolate bar from vending machines in the Tube. The chocolate was always a bit melty from the hot Underground air. Extra yummy.

Fast forward 10 years, and a neighborhood mama friend told me about The London Candy Company on the Upper East Side -- 94th and Lex. Savvy and I stopped there for some Easter candy last week--Cadbury bars, Mini Eggs, Galaxy bars & mini caramel eggs, and some Walkers crisps for good measure. Naturally, I've eaten it all already, with just a little bit of help from Rob and Savvy... 

The store is meticulously designed and has a wide open, shabby chic feel to it, with the perfect amount of British paraphernalia to be kitschy without sacrificing smart style. Being a candy shop, there is an unspoken "you're allowed to act like a kid here" vibe, and we were there the same time as a 3 year old duo that ran laps around Savannah. Even with grabby hands, she was angelic in comparison.

But it's really a place for adult anglophiles. In addition to the Cadbury, Glaxy and Aero bars, there are high end gifts, teas, and they serve Stumptown coffee. Beginning April 12th, they'll be hosting Sick Sweets, a painting series featuring "sherbit dips, walnut whips and curley wurlys." I don't know what any of those things are, so I will need to return and find out! 

Hunting for the perfect bag of "dipsh" (chips).

Yummy Prawn Crisps

Crunchity crunch