The Museum Mile

A couple weeks ago I braved NYC alone.

Jason was nervous about the whole thing, stating it would be too easy to get lost/robbed/kidnapped, etc. going solo, but I brushed him off with some sort of "I'm a big girl" statement. Well I guess maybe, kinda, sorta, he was just a little bit right...

No, I didn't get robbed or kidnapped, I mean obviously. But I may just have gotten myself a teensy bit lost delayed.

I was determined to attend NYC's annual Museum Mile. I'm a fan of Shabby Apple on Facebook, and it just so happens that the Shabby Apple chick is from New York so she'll occasionally post the goings-on of her hometown. Town? Can New York City ever be referenced as town? Never mind.

So I saw this blip about NY's museum mile, checked it out and decided to go. Apparently thousands of tourists come from all over the country for this and I'm a mere 20 minutes, so why not check it out right??

Here's how it goes. Nine major museums along Fifth Avenue are free to the public one night each year. They've been at this for 32 years- collectively opening their doors to the public for three hours that evening. It's like one big New York block party. They close off the streets, que the music and call in the hot dog stands. There's art in the street, activities for kids, and nearly 50,000 visitors. Now that last part I somehow didn't expect...

First- I was late getting started. Pretty much my zits refused to hide, my straightener started smoking, my dog wanted to come and my mac and cheese took too long. Oh and I got halfway to the station before I remembered my camera. So I missed the 5 o' clock train. That left me only the 6 o' clock one, and the musuems would open at six. Oh well, I figured. I can be late.

Well, apparently all the trains thought they could be late too, because the time I got out of New Jersey we were well past 6. But that's when the real torture  fun started. Jason had written me out a detailed plan of which train would take me to which station and where to get off when. Well somewhere in there I got on the right train going the wrong way. Yeah that'll mess ya up. For the next 25 minutes I stopped New Yorker after New Yorker, desperately trying to get directions from where I was.

Finally I made it to my last stop, and only then did I realize I didn't actually know where the museums were from my last stop. I'd been so eager to get off the trains I hadn't really thought about what to do once I'd reached the Upper East Side. Thankfully a nice NYU student directed me to Central Park, where I found a huge line of people snaked around the corner. Yup, I must be in the right spot.

Originally I had hopes of seeing the Guggenheim, the Met, and the Museum of the city of New York during Museum Mile, but it was 7:50 and I sure didn't feel much more navigating. I settled on the Guggenheim and joined the line where we were ushered into the building.

It's a pretty cool building, you have to admit, but by the time I got through the doors I was pretty much a genuine grump ray of sunshine. An entire half of the building was blocked off for the construction of a new exhibit, so I enjoyed the cattle of people pushing their way up the stairs since the elevators were going beserk with overuse.

Fourth floor- the children's exhibit or something of that sort. Pretty much it was a bunch of clay sculptures, foil-made robots and painted rainbows. I walked through real quick and moved on to the next floor. If I wanted to see kid's art I'd hit up my local elementary school. 

Third floor was all cubism. You know, all that Picasso-type stuff. Triangles in boxes, and circles within squares, red yellow and blue sort of stuff. That was better than little Tommy's school project, but I swear I could paint that exact same stuff.

Onward- to the second floor. That was a lot better than the previous two, but not near enough to keep me around. I jumped in line, yes there was a line through each exhibit, although it sure wasn't moving much, and studied the paintings of old farm towns, fields, and macho women's backs. Next!

Finally, I was back at the first floor. I grabbed a brochure, eager to read about the fantastic art that I had somehow missed, and noticed a sign for a Hugo Boss exhibit. If there was one exhibit even remotely interesting  I hadn't seen, I had to find it! So I climbed the stairs once more to retrace my steps, and returned to square one as disappointed as before. That must be the exhibit they're working on. Ugh.

On my way out I spotted the gift shop and decided to give that a whirl. And let me be honest here, the gift shop was the best part of the museum! I found the coolest napkin rings, NYC Monopoly boards, and vintage covers of the New Yorker. There was the coolest stuff, and in the gift shop for cryin out loud!

I may be uncultured. So sue me. (Natasha that's for you ;) The Guggenheim may be one of the 20th Century's most important architectural landmarks, but I've seen it once that's enough for this girl.

Wanna know what my favorite landmark is?

That's because that building is totally worth your money. Although you won't get any less people that's for sure. And who can resist those pretty colors? I love that they light it up for holidays and special occasions. So fun. I heard that's how everyone gages direction around here- in relation to the Empire State just like we do with the Wasatch Mountains in Utah.  Even people across the river can see this buildings' beauty. Aka: I can see it on my way to Walmart in Jersey, or when I'm at Nicole's apartment- they have the most amazing view of the city.

 

Speaking of view to the city- well you know how I said the Guggenheim is right by Central Park? As I was walking back to the subway I noticed a few people up these stairs, past this monument for some long gone mayor, and on the other side of the jogging trail- I found the most amazing view of the big lake in Central Park. The sun was setting and birds were settling and the city lights were beginning to flicker on... It's amazing how you can find that much beauty, that much serenity, in one of the largest, busiest cities in America. But it was serene. So calming and perfect watching the city from afar, hearing the sound of nature, and a fountain nearby. I wish Jason would have been there so we could reenact our engagement. ;)

Anyways, while I appreciated the time spent out of the house, the Museum Mile didn't exactly pan out the way I would have liked. As it turns out maybe the Guggenheim isn't all that glamorous, and maybe I'm not the big girl I thought I was. Next time I'll know which museum not to hit, and I'll know just who to take with me.


 

Beachbound

On Sunday we were beachbound. Destination: The Jersey Shore.

 

Jace just being Jace.

 

We walked through the area for beachclub members only where they had the coolest playhouses for kids- jeeps, castles, rocketships and pirate ships. Makes me wanna be a kid again! 

There were the prettiest homes along Ocean Ave. And they were huge homes too. Like, you could have nine kids and still have room for guests huge. These two are some of the smaller ones. But boy are they gorgeous.

One of the few mexican restaurants on the east coast. It's about time!

It was a relaxing Father's Day at the beach. Love it.

Cupcakefest

It was 1:58 when I realized the flea market I was heading to ended at 2:00. It was the only thing I had planned for my day besides sending out late Father's Day cards and walking Ollie.

Defeated, I headed home to take Ollie up on that walk. But as I drove through town I spotted some white tents in the middle of East Rutherford's little town square. It looked like a farmer's market from the street, what with people swarming around bartering for goods, except that it couldn't be because that is held down the street from Avalon, and only on Wednesdays.

My curiosity got the best of me and I parked to explore the goings-on of my new city. To my surprise, I had stumbled upon New Jersey's annual Cupcakefest.

The all-day concert and festival was in full-swing with The Nico Blues jamming out on stage, free cupcakes all around, and local crafters and vendors selling a variety of sweet goods. This year the fest benefited a local animal shelter so a number of dogs joined in the party, hoping to find a good family to take them home.

Jace and I have talked about getting a second pup, but today just wasn't the day. Pinnacle contacted us a few weeks ago about having a pet in their provided housing so our options were pretty much to pay the $2000 rent or to "get rid of him." Much to our dismay the only realistic option is to send him back to Utah to live with my family for the rest of the summer. It's pretty safe to say that me and the property manager aren't great friends. >:( Anyway, so for the next few months I'm going to have to live without my new best friend. I just don't know how I'll do it. :'(

Anyway, I moved from booth to booth, checking out what each vendor had to offer.

Vegan-themed pins at one booth

Little-girl tutus at another



Canned goods sold here

Jewelry sold there

The jewelry was my favorite. There were so many unique items, and I just so happened to have cash on me from my previous plans for the flea market. I got a swinging deal on this little beauty. I didn't want the set so the vendor lowered the price for the single necklace.
 

 
Then I spotted this little charm necklace for just a couple bucks. And hey, who couldn't use a little bit of luck around their neck??  :)
 
 

 
Finally, I spotted some adorable hand-made cards. Cupcakes, ice cream cones, umbrellas and whales, each so cute and brightly-colored you don't want to give them away! So I sprung for this one, in hopes of framing and hanging it in my kitchen. Wouldn't that be fun with a yellow or pink frame??
 
 

 
Finding this little festival made my day. Because who needs fleas when you've got cupcakes?!
 
 

Mind, Body, Spirit

During the summers Jason works 10 hour days, six days a week. Do the math and you'll find one exhausted husband and one very bored me.

You've heard the saying, "It takes a strong woman behind ever successful man."  ...or something like that. Jason always teases me about my ability to botch the quoting of every well-known phrase. Anyway, you get the drift. When you're riding the Pinnacle train, you can pretty much guarantee an irritated wife at one point during the four months of summer. You see, it's really hard to be bored. I know that sounds like a load of bull, I'm sure many of you roll your eyes and say geeze I wish I had time to be downright, plain old, hard core, very much, miserably, cant-stand-it-any-longer, bored.

Yeah well, one thing's for sure too much of a good thing can turn straight into a bad thing. Unlimited amounts of cake, cookies and brownies can quickly outweigh all your favorite jeans, skirts, and anything else in your closet for that matter. Unlimited fame and fortune can quickly get you high, wasted, or arrogant and sent straight to your local jail or rehab.

Anyways, my point is for every wife you see following her husband out of town for a Pinnacle summer, you'll find a bored wife. And that wife is ready to pull her hair out.

:)

In an effort to stave off the boredom blues I got a dog, set up Netflix, staked out the mall, deep-cleaned the car, planned all our Sundays, made friends with the doorman, and began an obsession with Lost. And yet still my days are long. However, upon moving to New Jersey I got to know the only other wife in the office, a cute little mom with another little one on the way. Our friendship has kept me sane, what with weekly trips to Target and Costco, and just as frequent getaways to the mall and Panera. It's crazy the difference a friend will make in the grand scheme of the summer. Just having someone to talk to, or someone to borrow ingredients from dinner's missing one thing.

On that note, this post is really about the four goals I have made to keep myself happy, sane, and supportive.

My first goal this summer is to put my body to good use; to get out and get moving.

Don't get me wrong, I get out of the apartment whenever I can, soaking up sun in the plaza and taking Ollie on three, four walks a day. Seriously, I think we've walked all over East Rutherford. But our apartments have an awesome gym that is always empty, and filled with enough treadmills, elipticals, weights and mats to keep me busy for a while. Honestly, why not put my time to good use and start feeling good??

Well, I guess I overthought that one, because the first day of my fitness goal I did way too many reps for way too long a time, resulting in a week long 'breather,' to get my abs feeling somewhat normal again. But I have resolved to get back on that treadmill and spend at least four days a week in the gym. It's fun having the whole gym to myself, for whatever lame get-up-and-go music I want to bump over the ihome, for all sorts of grunting and I-don't-think-my-nonexistent-muscles-can-take-one-more-rep noises, and/or not worrying about flashing too much during certain inner-thigh exercises.

It's been nice to spend time focusing on the strength of my body, working soley to feel good and pass the time. Of course defined abs, and toned limbs wouldn't be bad either.  ;)

My second goal is to bring out my inner chef.

Sweet Nicole, the wife I mentioned before, lent me all her Taste of Home magazines. The system is, I take three at a time, post-it the recipes I'd like to try, return to Nicole's apartment, copy the pages, insert in my new Taste of Home recipe binder, and begin experimenting my favorites. Seriously, I credit her for my new interest in cooking. I cooked quite a bit in Charlotte, since I felt bad for the single guys in our office and their sad diet of ramen and mac and cheese, but once it was just Jason and I again my interest dwindled. I hate leftovers, and it's a lot of work to feed just one other person. But recently the hubbs and I had a talk about what makes us feel the most appreciated.

Right after our marriage, literally on our honeymoon, we started reading The 5 Love Languages- a book I would highly recommend to anyone married, once married, and/or planning on being married. In it, Gary Chapman explains five ways to express and understand your love for another. So we referred to this book a few weeks ago, when I expressed my need for quality time. With only one day each week to really spend time with my significant other, I explained to Jason the importance it is to me that that day be really quality time. In turn Jason expressed his need, or love language- acts of service. He told me just how grateful he was to me for making dinner that night, and how my humble meals made him feel more loved and appreciated. We resolved to focus more on each other's specified needs, and thus began my bigger dinner-making efforts.

Cooking became much more enjoyable when done from my Taste of Home recipes. For months I had avoided cookbooks, as the long instructions and absence of pictures left me overwhelmed and uninterested. But with Taste of Home, I developed a system that really worked for me- picking out the pages that really sound good and looked easy, writing out a shopping list for a week's worth of recipe ingredients, and then choosing from my plans what looked good each night. It's been really easy, my only challenge being that of timing the meal just right for Jason's return.

I'm proud of my progress. For one unusually close to the frozen section, I've become intimate with new produce and meat, searching out tomatillos, jalapeno and cilantro, salmon, pork and steak. I made the meal in the picture above, maple-glazed pork chops and lime carrots, much to the happiness of my husband, and it turned out surprisingly well! I've also done banana bread, orange bundt cake, meatloaf (never in a thousand years did I expect myself to be making this, let alone liking this, but it was so good!), beef and bean enchiladas, jamaican-jerk chicken, shrimp pad thai, barbecue cobb salad, hazelnut-filled croissants, cafe-rio style burritos (complete with cilantro lime rice and house dressing) and artichoke chicken casserole. We've had so much summer produce too, red grapes, corn on the cob, roasted red potatoes, sliced strawberries, fuji apples, and plenty of caesar salad (no more pre-made packets as we used to do so religiously).

At the end of a slow day I feel I accomplished something when my husband says, "Honey thank you so much for dinner, this is really good." He's working all day every day for me, so the least I can do is prepare a hot meal for him. It's not gourmet, but it's a start, and one day all this practice may just add up to some sort of perfect.

My third goal is to nourish my spirit, to be a quiet listener, and act now.

For the first 20 years of my life there was always a goal in mind- to marry in the House of the Lord. Now that I've made it, spiritual expectations are not so outlined. I mean, endure to the end is not incredibly specific. But everyone knows when it's time to shape up. Even after a temple marriage people have weaknesses and faults, sins to be forgiven. It's up to us to repent of those things and consistently do better.

A friend of mine recently commented on the blog about my recent boredom. She said, "Shannon, pray and listen to the Spirit. You are out there for a reason and only YOU can do what you're meant to do." That hit me hard. I hadn't thought like that. But yes, maybe I've been left without a job, without friends and without family for the next few months of my life because I need the time to reflect on what's really important- my testimony. I've been given the time to be a quiet listener, not so distracted by the crazy hustle and bustle of daily life.

Jason and I packed our temple clothes with us in an effort to attend the Columbia Temple in SC. It was 1.5 hours away from home, however, and obviously they're not open on the only day Jace has off. So now that we're so close to the Manhattan Temple, (30 mins with traffic) we're planning on a session before his work meeting. It's funny how one can justify lack of temple activity when it's a mere 5 minutes away. So much adversity comes up against you when you have even the best intentions to attend. I can't even imagine how hard it is for those around the world who have to travel to reach the House of the Lord. If we can't make ourselves go when we're 5 minutes away, then will we ever?

The next few months I need to really focus on my relationship with my Heavenly Father. I've always said I want my children to grow up in a strong, righteous home, a Heaven on Earth, but that must first start with my husband and myself.

Now is the time.

My third goal is to feed my mind.

 I've become incredibly obsessed with books lately. I've ordered plenty from Amazon, and made one too many trips to Barnes and Noble. I'm trying so hard not to buy things out here, as anything I buy will need to be packed up and hauled across the country, but there's just something about a book that can extract you from life and plant your feet somewhere new.

I have had zero desire to pick up a book for a long time. Junior and Senior years of high school were filled with so many AP classes I had no time to read anything of choice. Instead, I read The Grapes of Wrath, The Scarlet Letter and The Adventures of Huck Finn. I loved those books, and I'll be forever grateful for those classes, but I despised them at the time. College was worse of course, this time with textbooks in place of classic novels. Studying and cramming, underlining and note-taking left me no desire to read anything more than what I had to.

Now that I've been out of school for a year I am finally ready to turn some pages. I'm constantly reviewing the New York Times Bestseller lists and consulting family and friends alike for recommendations. On our trip to Carlos' Bakery I came across The Kite Runner at a sidewalk sale outside a tiny Hoboken book store, and the lady running the register gave it to me for $3 when she could see I did not have $5 in cash. I'm developing quite the little collection, and I can't wait to paint up an old bookcase when we get home to display my new goods.

I like this new reading hobby. It's a self-education at its' finest, and entertainment at its' best.

For the next few months of summer I'll nourish my mind, body and spirit. And if there's still time left in the day I'm sure I'll think of something. 

;)

A Tale of Two Bakeries

This is the story of a husband and wife with a wicked sweet tooth. Together they go on an adventure to discover the delectable goodness of two famous bakeries, square pb&j donuts and unobtainable cupcakes.

By far the best double chocolate cookies I've had were found at Levain Bakery, a tiny little shop in Harlem. Levain was new to me, and so ordinary from the outside that I never would have tried it if it weren't for my new friend Megan, an NYC local for six years now. She knew all about the bakery, including a woman who worked the register so not only did we pick up a box of assorted cookies, but we also scored a sweet deal with a hushed employee discount. 

From the register we watched them plop hearty mounds of dough onto spacious sheets from a gigantic pile of chocolate chipped goodness, soon ready for the ovens. Oprah loves this place too, I learned as I perused awards and reviews on their wall. The cinnamon buns at Levain Bakery had earned a place on Oprah's favorite things, an honor I would be proud of.

We returned to Megan's apartment and broke out the milk, cutting the cookies into quarters and seperating onto plates. Between the chocolate chip, double chocolate and chocolate peanut butter, one quarter of the double chocolate had me completely satisfied. They're rich and moist, amazing from a cookie that is so fat. You think the middle wouldn't cook from such a big blob of dough, but I had absolutely no complaints for these little wonders.

So you know Cake Boss, the amazing cake decorator featured on TLC? I've watched his show over and over, marveling at each detailed, beautiful cake he creates, but I never realized his whereabouts until my friend Marie pointed out that Carlos' Bake Shop is in New Jersey. Little did I know, that Cake Boss is located just 15 minutes away from our humble abode in East Rutherford.

We rushed off one morning to track down Buddy's bakery, only to find a huge line sneaking down the street. Camera men wandered around the front, likely gathering shots for the show. 

We had no time though, with Jason's meeting approaching and me nowhere near the doors, we left with a promise to return later, next time with lots of time, and much more patience.  

So Sunday, with the sky gloomy and threatening rain, we decided a sweet treat tour of NY and NJ bakeries was in order. First stop: Carlos'. 

We figure we waited an hour before we were let into the tiny shop, a clusterbomb of people squeezing their way around each other to see the treats through the glass.

With dozens of cakes, pastries, breads and pies, I had no idea what to try so I asked one of the young girls at the register what the most popular items were and went with that: A lobster tail, large cannoli and my own pick, a pastry with whipped chocolate and a dainty raspberry on top.

 I've been cooking lately, and Sunday morning I happened to make chocolate pastries- the inspiration for our sweet tour of NY and NJ. Anyway, I was surprised to see the exact pastry at Carlos', complete with powdered sugar and all. Not surprisingly, his were much prettier than mine, and better I'm sure.

The next stop on our tour was Doughnut Plant at Jason's request. He had seen it featured on Food Network months ago, and had been dying to try their pb&j donut ever since. I'm not so crazy about jelly filled donuts, but we compromise, and parallel-parked ourselves into a miracle spot right near the shop.

Located at the Chelsea Hotel, Doughnut Plant was busy, but nowhere near as nuts as Carlos' was. I snapped pictures outside with Ollie, and Jason was out in no time with his beloved treat.

 He loved it. I barely got a picture before he wolfed it down.

 The wall art was just too cute. And each fabric donut as big as my head!

With cookies, cakes, pastries and doughnuts, we needed a stop for cupcakes to complete our 'tour.' Jason wasn't the only one, lusting after a particular bake shop. I heard about Sprinkles soon after my trip to the Big Apple last summer. It was supposedly the first shop to start the cupcake craze in America, originating in L.A. I believe, then to NYC and then all over the country. Sprinkles was featured on GMA, Regis and Kelly, Oprah... everyone was suckered into Sprinkles, and so was I... am I. Whatever.

So we set off to sample their cupcakes, the last of our sweet treat tour. The traffic was awful though, people merging everywhere to avoid the blocked off streets officials were directing. We figured they were doing construction, but with no orange cones, hard hats, or mess, that couldn't be it. Maybe a bomb threat? NYPD was everywhere, but there were still a few people walking up and down the sidewalks. Finally, we concluded they must be filming a movie, what with the proximity to Central Park and everything. I don't know. But one thing was sure, it just wasn't a day for Sprinkles. Little puppy was getting carsick and we were all getting hungry, so we went to Madison Square Park instead, a favorite of ours lately.

 



We'll go to Sprinkles some other time, I told Jace. We've had plenty of sugar for one day.   :)