The Internat

Just Peachy Keen

2011-09-12T11:10:00.003-04:00

After a much needed weekend at home in NYC after weeks of travel, I had the pleasure of visiting the Union Square Green market this weekend. In addition to a special surprise from Kate Spade, I was overwhelmed by the bounty of the late summer harvest. Corn, tomatoes of all colors...and my favorite, peaches! I picked up quite a few.

While they need a couple days to be juicy ripe for biting straight into, they are perfect for baking in the meantime. Ever since I purchased, Martha Stewart Pies and Tarts cookbook, I've been obsessed with this recipe for Pate Sucree, which is a nice sweet pie crust that is easy to make (especially with a food processor) and when baked is the flaky light crust that just melts in your mouth. Especially when it is covered in peaches!

I'm particularly fond of this free form galette style pie/tart which requires you simply roll out the dough, pile a fruit of your choice on top (mix it with 1/4 cup of sugar and the juice from half a lemon), and fold the edges in. Bake it for 45 minutes at 375 and it will be golden (literally)! I've made it with blueberries, peaches, and a mix of the two (as pictured). It made the end of family dinner just peachy!

Big News!

2011-09-08T12:42:00.004-04:00

It's finally official! After 6 weeks of contracting, I was hired full-time on Monday as a Product Marketing Manager at Etsy. Here I am at my desk with my hand embroidered Etsy Labs coat! How cool is that?!

I couldn't be happier about this. Here is a pic of me with the entire Product Marketing Team.....

So, yeah, I'm the first one, but we will be hiring soon! Contact me for more details.

Come on Irene

2011-09-03T08:41:00.007-04:00

I'm 6 days late on this, but its still worth reporting that last week held many natural disaster 'firsts' for me, and for New York City. I actually felt the earthquake on Tuesday, and on Saturday and Sunday there was enough rain and wind to shut down the city. Hurricane Irene, possibly the most over-hyped storm I've experienced, was proof that the media can essentially fabricate natural disaster. After a weekend of hibernation, board games and eating like it was the end of the world, Monday brought sunny skies and little damage (aside from some minor flooding) in NYC.

Here are some photos I snapped on Monday morning of "the aftermath" in the West Village.

Hair Salon

Restaurant/Venue

Jonathan Adler, I'm rather embarrassed that the design store couldn't do better than this.

Love Doctors

2011-08-25T09:32:00.014-04:00

Oh hello, yes, I know, it's been a while. Truth is, I've been refraining from blogging for the past few months, while I was funemployed because I knew it would just be too mean. You didn't really want to hear about my life of midday outdoor yoga classes in bryant park, leisurely afternoons reading on the highline, evenings cruising with a cocktail on my way to the Yankees game now did you? See, it was generous of me, I knew the jealousy would be too much. So you're welcome.

But now I'm back, a month into my new job at Etsy, which I understand may make some of you jealous (who could blame you, I get to craft AT work), but I think it's an appropriate enough time to start blogging again. Some notable things have happened since I last updated the Internat, and I'll fill you in little by little. At the moment I'd like to dedicated this post to several very special doctors in my life. These three docs are all very important in the well-being of one my vital organs: my heart!

First up: The Drs. O'Malley, finally got married this month (see this post on their engagement a mere 28 months ago!), and it was a blissfully wonderful weekend in Sonoma. We stayed at the beautiful H2 Hotel, and I felt like a VIP getting to spend some great quality time with the future Mrs.O'Malley on her big day. The whole bridal party took off for a group run and bike on the morning of the wedding, borrowing perfectly picturesque white beach cruisers from the hotel. Later when we were dressed up, the bikes came in handy for ridiculously adorable pics! (See many more here thanks to the Paul-parazzi)

It was a tearful day as I watched my mom preform Kit and Ryan's thoughtful and personal ceremony and pronounce them husband and wife. Hey, it's not every bridesmaid that gets to kiss the officiant in the recessional.

I must say after a weekend full of such love, I've been suffering from a little PWSD! The only cure will be seeing them soon, so I'll have to make a trip to Boston.

The third Doctor is actually a Dr-to-be (can we call her a DTR?), one Rebecca Sista-girl Schwartz, is officially white-coated and ready to take on the world of medicine at UPenn armed with endless textbooks, a stethoscope and a banana. Clearly.

I think that during this glamorous white-coat photo shoot (talk about Dr. McDreamy) my mom said something like "Paging Dr.Schwwwaaaartz!" and Bec whipped that out of her pocket. Not sure though. I, sadly, could not make it to the white coat ceremony, but I came in for the celebration dinner (and fro yo).

Can you tell we are very proud?

I love you Drs!

Dressing Up

2011-06-14T17:06:00.003-04:00

As I mentioned in my last post, Lily and Matt's fabulous nuptials kicked off my wedding season this year. It was a flawless event at the Boston Seaport Hotel, and the bride left no detail behind. If I had to pick one favorite detail of this spectacular event is was Lily's absolutely swoon-worthy dress.

There hasn't been a wedding so far where I haven't loved the bride's dress pick-- it always seems to fit the bride's and setting's personality. I have loved some of the simpler dresses, like that worn by Alex last summer; but at the same time, I always adore the big fabulous dresses with trains and the whole nine-yards, which I call "the cupcake dress" (that is not a technical term). It doesn't fit every bride, but for those who can handle it, I say embrace it. It's your day and it's probably the only day you will be able to wear a dress that you could hide people under (unless you're into victorian reenactments or something).

Clearly it was the perfect choice for Lil. So perfect in fact that even Vera Wang decided it should be on her blog :)

What do you like better, Christmas or Wedding Season?!

2011-06-03T15:20:00.004-04:00

Wedding season!!

On my way to the official kick off of this years wedding season, and I feel like a kid on Christmas eve! Lily and Matt are first up this summer so I'm headed to beantown to celebrate with some high school friends and the parents. I know these Colby kids like to party (nothing better to do when go to college in Maine) so it promises to be a great time...stay tuned for pictures post weekend!

Ok off to keep playing on my new iPad...which I'm blogging from right now. Woot! I heart technology. And weddings!

Smartification

2011-05-23T09:28:00.010-04:00

It's smartification season. It's May, and the April showers have brought May flowers, babies and graduations. I had the pleasure of attending one cousin's graduation last week from Penn. Most of Schwartz-Sweet-Petri-Egger family (Schweetezieneggers?) headed to Philly to be there to watch Alex get an award and get her wizard of city planning diploma. In between, we did a lot of sitting, waiting, eating mini sandwiches, clapping, reading in seats, biting nails (I know, sad, I relapsed) and trying not to fall asleep. But for the 30 seconds that Alex was being honored, we were really excited and proud. Here we are looking so proud:

Being on the Penn campus around so many students made me nostalgic-like-whoa for the years of sauntering through the sun-drenched quad, biking through campus, and living within a half mile radius of all my friends. It made me smile, it made me want to cry, and most of all it made me wish Kaitlin would hurry up and get that time machine running already so we could go back and relive the glory days. Hurry up girl, Senior year is waiting!

In honor of Alex's Master of City Planning degree, I decided to test my Master of Sewing skills and make her a bag to show of her style as the queen of urban transportation. Here's the bag I sewed myself:

Bikes on the outside, subways on the inside. And yes, that is a customized "Handmade by Natalie Schwartz" tag (thanks Allison!).

I also made some matching pencil cases:

Here is Alex with her gifts: I think she liked them? Yay.

This week much of the same crowd is headed out to Colorado to watch Kroger graduate from college! Sadly I'm sitting this one out in NYC, hoping to make someone proud and get a job... It's a proud time for families everywhere, and I am also very proud of my San Francisco Stanfordites turned MBAs Dary, Kat and Chase who are graduating this week and next!

Spring Babies

2011-05-14T17:34:00.003-04:00

Chelsea has decided to be coworker extraordinaire (not surprised) and commissioned me to make this preppy fresh diaper cake for what promises to be the best dressed baby boy in DC!

In other news I got my first order from a stranger on Etsy! Woot! Maybe I can just build cakes (points for the movie reference on that one) full time? Probably not.

Books

2011-05-11T09:51:00.005-04:00

Hello, hello. I got a lot of positive response from my previous book review post, so figured I should let you all know what I have read since then. I'm not necessarily proud that I spent hours reading some of the books listed below, but cut me some slack, I don't have a TV. I'm allowed to read for mind-numbing amusement sometimes.

How Did You Get this Number by Sloane Crosby

This is the second book by the brilliant author of I was Told there'd be Cake, which I wrote about previously. I thought this was only slightly less amusing than the first, (perhaps it was just the novelty of this hilarious writer wearing off) but definitely still great. Sloane recounts stories from her childhood, to life as a 20-something in NYC with descriptions so vivid you will feel like it was you...who was doing an illegal furniture trade in a dark alley of Manhattan with a mysterious man who you met at Design within Reach? Really, funny.

My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One Night Stands by Chelsea Handler

This is where the aforementioned note about not judging my junk reading comes into play. I had always wanted to read this book when I saw it on display in the airport book stores, but I was too embarrassed to be carrying it around, risking that a co-worker or elder might see me (or hear me laughing) and look over to see me reading about *gasp* one night stands! Well, that is the glory of the kindle, my friends- no one knows what you're reading! So I downloaded this sucker and plowed through it. It is, as titled, a bizarre and truly unbelievable--not as in "amazing" unbelievable, but as in "I'm really not sure if I believe you" unbelievable-- collection of one night stands. Whether true or not, they are laugh out loud funny, and I quickly hit download on her next title.

Are You There, Vodka? It's me Chelsea by Chelsea Handler

This didn't differ all that much from the first book, and honestly I can't remember which stories were from which book at this point. Despite the adult-only titles, Chelsea writes a fair amount about her childhood: from walking in on her parents, to the missteps of her embarrassingly nerdy father, and stories of trying to fit-in with the cool kids. After finishing this in a day, I read....

Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang by Chelsea Handler

This is the most recent of Chelsea's books and so recounts more recent stories from her life. The book takes place when she already has 'made it' (she has a show apparently? yes, I don't have a TV). It contains some pretty funny stories of the ridiculousness of the LA scene, and how much she seems to torment her long-term live in boyfriend. Mostly it made me feel bad for him. And laugh a lot. Luckily she doesn't have any more books so I was forced to return to more intellectual reading.

The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss

Appropriately, I decided to download this on my way to Mexico which marked the start of my time off from work, in search of new work. It's a best-seller, but honestly I think it's a little shallow. While there are some lessons to be learned from this guy about how to maximize efficiency in life and in work, I think his overall proposal was weak. Basically he thinks that everyone should create some sort of online business in which they can set up to function almost completely without their supervision, but by which they can rake in buckets of money monthly to spend on travel and fun. Sounds nice, huh? He uses himself as a model-- he managed to set up a very lucrative online vitamin business. I think he over-simplifies the ease of doing such a thing, assuming unrealistic demand and success. Furthermore, he makes the assumption that to all of us, this would be satisfying. This part bothered more more than the simplification-- the idea that no one would actually derive pleasure or satisfaction from his/her job, or life's work and that everyone should work on minimizing their time working. It is the complete opposite of the more popular concept of finding a passion that can be your work, or work that ignites your passion. In any case, interesting read, if for no other reason than for suggesting that everyone hire a remote personal assistant in India. I'm looking into it.

Breaking Night by Liz Murray

If you're going to read one book from this list, read this. In fact, if you're going to read one book all year, read this. This is an incredible memoir of a girl who was born to two drug addicted parents in the Bronx. She lives with them through her middle school years, as they spend their welfare checks on coke, and she scrounges for food on the street, sometimes resorting to eating ice cubes because chewing makes her think she's eating. Despite the clear abuse of her addicted parents, Liz tells her story without distaste or anger towards them, which leaves the reader feeling compassionate towards the whole family. After her mother's mental illness causes her to be taken to a hospital, and she ends up living with her mother's abusive boyfriend and finally runs away, spending almost two years sleeping in the subway and on friends' couches. She misses all of her first two years of high school, but at the age of 16, after her mother dies of AIDS, and Liz feels she's about to hit rock bottom, Liz comes to the realization that she wants to turn her life around. She begins applying to alternative high schools and eventually gets in, impressively finishes in two years, and wins a NYT Scholarship to Harvard. This story is real, and it is one of the most unbelievable testaments to the will of the human spirit. It's beautifully written, humbling, heartbreaking and inspirational. MUST READ.

Bossypants by Tina Fey

As you've probably read in every liberal publication, Tina Fey wrote a book. And, no surprise, it's funny. My experience of this book was definitely influenced by the fact that Lauren and I read it aloud to each other in Mexico, while lounging in on the beach, or while listening to the waves as we fell asleep. I'm pretty sure I would enjoy it anywhere, but in that setting, it was pretty much heaven. I enjoyed the first half more than the second-- her stories of her childhood and post-college days of "making it" as a comedian and actress are hilarious, and as is the story of a cruise ship fire on her honeymoon (confirming my commitment to lifelong avoidance of cruise ships). Read it.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I'm embarrassed that I started reading this, and even more embarrassed that I finished it. This is the first of a series (but the last that I'll read of it) set in a futuristic world where teens from each state are chosen for an annual survival test called the Hunger Games, where they fight to kill each other off while living inside some sort of life-sized terrarium controlled by the game makers. Now I know I'm not one for fantasy, but if I'm going to read it, I'd at least like it to be vivid and well-written. I was as disturbed by the attack of the larger than life foxes as I was by the horrible writing quality. Apparently after the whole Eclipse saga swept the nation, teen lit is now completely socially acceptable for not-so-young adult readers. Verdict: I'd rather read Judy Blume.

I'm Bacccccck

2011-04-26T10:06:00.008-04:00

Sorry. I'm back to fill you in on a couple of things, and then hopefully pick up blogging more regularly.

1. It's spring in NYC. This makes me VERY happy. There are birds chirping, I got the bike tuned up, there's a skip in my step and I went outside with bare legs yesterday. GREAT NEWS. If you don't live here, come visit now, it will make you want to move.

2. I went on an incredible vacation to Three Jewels Retreats in Puerto Vallarta for some yoga, surfing and R&R with Lauren. I simply cannot speak highly enough about it-- I got hooked on surfing, back into Yoga, a nice tan and some amazing authentic mexican food. Going back next year for sure. Here's what Yoga looked like every morning:

3. I'm officially on the market for a new job. Please forward any potential prospects my way. I'm taking the month off from Goog to look both at new jobs at Goog and outside. Holler if you have some ideas for me (or if you want to play hooky and hang out during the day and pretend to be funemployed like me!) In the spirit of job searching and self-promotion, I have seen this poster several times in the subway:

Maybe I should just print my resume on poster-sized hot pink paper and start papering the subways? Or print it on a sandwich board and hire some homeless man to wear it on the corner of 23rd and 8th?

There's Sunlight at the end of the Tunnel

2011-03-30T16:34:00.005-04:00

As March draws to a close, it's still freezing in NY. Literally: 30 degrees, and it was sleeting and snowing last week. Enough is enough, Mother Nature. You're a liar, Punxatuney Phil. Good news is, there is sunlight at the end of this dark NYC tunnel. Well, for me at least.

Headed here tomorrow:

Then here for a week:

Magic Stick Pesto

2011-03-22T12:21:00.007-04:00

Of all the kitchen appliances stuffed into my mini-kitchen, each one has a special place in my heart and in my overflowing cabinets. But today's post is dedicated to one very special appliance which I call the Magic Stick.

If you've never owned an immersion blender, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. But if you have, I bet you'll be calling yours the magic stick too...because this little electric wand has tricks to make treats like you've never seen. It can turn lumpy potatoes into a silky smooth mashed, it's a souper way to puree soups and, in the case of last night, make a presto pesto.

So I came home last night and had a serving of delish fresh pasta from Eataly left in my fridge....unfortunately, I did not have any sauce leftover. I quickly surveyed the contents of the fridge (which are quite dismal) and noticed I had half a bag of arugula that looked like my best bet. I quickly whipped out the magic stick and turned that half a bag of arugula into a delicious arugula pesto. I loosely followed a pesto recipe and created my own masterpiece (that's the magic of the stick)-- here's how I did it.

Arugula Pesto

Ingredients:
- 2 cups arugula
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup of freshly shaved parmesan
- 3 tablespoons toasted pinenuts
- 2 pinches of salt
- 1 pinch of pepper

Throw all ingredients in the mini chopper attachment to the magic stick and press GO until its chopped into a creamy greeny pesto! Yum.

PS- You can also make this with a mini or full sized food processor (it's just a lot bigger mess to clean up).

Go Green!

2011-03-17T11:06:00.008-04:00

So, it's St.Patty's day. I have no idea what this celebration is actually for (other than four leaf clovers, Irish people and green beer drinking), but I never met a holiday I didn't like. Any excuse for dressing in theme, wearing costumes and using food coloring.

This morning on my run (sporting a green jacket, duh) I ran into a little dog wearing a hat....I didn't have my camera but this is what it looked like:

Things like this always make me smile-- New Yorkers never do seise to surprise me.

To celebrate the holiday I decided to whip up some rice crispy treats with a hint of color. It was an experiment but it worked surprisingly well-- I just added about 8 drops of green food coloring to the melted marshmallow mixture before adding the cereal, and then proceed with the classic rice crispy treat recipe. Then I melted some chocolate and let it cool in the fridge until it was frosting-like enough for spreading into a little clover (please excuse my drawing skills, I didn't have a clover cookie cutter in my collection so this was freehand).

(and yes, Meg, I still have fake nails on)

It struck me after the fact that maybe I should have substituted Lucky Charms for Rice Crispies, since they are all about rainbows and leprechauns and seem to be related to the holiday more than Snap, Crackle and Pop (or were they leprechauns too?)...but oh well.

Best thing about Rice Crispy treats? They're cereal, so it's totally appropriate to them eat for breakfast! Go Green!

Magic in the Middle

2011-03-15T16:39:00.009-04:00

Everyone loves a surprise inside. That was the theme for this Winter's edition of the Winsor Weekend (the WWW for short). Luring us by telling us she had recently renovated her kitchen to include TWO ovens (as well as literally 10x my counter space), we headed deep into suburbia to visit Meg in her West Hartford home/palace.

First things first, Dr.Rossin arrived with her stethoscope to see if she could hear Baby G's (yes, there is a new baby-to-be G!) heartbeat....There's magic in her middle! (stretch, sorry)
We then made ourselves at home and set up shop for an afternoon of baking and reminiscing. We whipped up some Magic in the Middle cookies which were the pretty much a cookie version of a peanut butter cup. Its a much easier recipe than the sophisticated result may suggest, so I recommend you test it out.
Completely chocolate and unassuming on the outside, but a delish peanut butter surprise when you bite in!
Thanks for the Magical weekend Meg, we'll be back!

Yay, Sista Girl!

2011-03-14T14:37:00.004-04:00

If you cant read her text it is "Here's a photo of me being provisionally accepted to Penn. Taken by my physics partner as I opened the status page."

So yes, jury is out, the future Dr. Schwartz (!!!!!!!!) will be going to UPenn next year, provided she nail the MCAT out of the park next month. GOOOOOOOOOOOOO BEC!

Email of the Day

2011-03-11T11:40:00.003-05:00

Sent by Meghan in correspondence regarding my visit to her house in West Hartford tomorrow...Needless to say, I can't wait for a suburban bake-a-thon.

Gimme S'more Whoopie Pies!

2011-03-10T11:16:00.007-05:00

As you know, I love me a campfire and not just because it's cozy and smells like summer. S'mores have long been on list of favorite desserts--nothing tops their gooey, chocolatey, crunch!

So when looking for inspiration for a dessert to bring to a dinner party tonight, I nearly started drooling when I saw these S'Mores Whoopie Pies on the Capital Baker (Allison's step sister) blog. I've never made whoopie pies, but if there was ever a recipe that would inspire me this was it!

I must admit it was a little more involved than my standard weeknight baking project, but thanks to my AMAZING new standing mixer, start to finish it probably took about 2 hours. I followed the instructions using just a tablespoon dollop for each pie but they turned out a lot smaller than I expected....more like mini whoopie pies.
Equally tasty and adorable, but more fun-sized, making it even easier to justify saying gimme s'more!

This Weekend Was Sew Productive

2011-03-08T10:17:00.006-05:00

My first weekend in NYC in a month was domestic to the max with a hint of spice-- yes, I got out on Saturday night. I vacummed, did laundry, got a facial, cleaned, ran errands, went running, made delicious lentil soup and finished my first home sewing project! (Am I housewife year old trapped in a 28 year old's body? Sometimes I wonder...)

I've had bare windows in my kitchen/living area ever since I moved in. I managed to put up some blinds to prevent any perv neighbors from watching me vacum in my birthday suit, but they're plain white-- borrrrrring. Since curtains seemed a little overwhelming for my first solo sewing project, so I decided to try something a little easier to practice my skills. So here they are:

Yes, some may say they turn my already nautical or childlike apartment into a circus, but they make me happy (and isn't that what apartments are supposed to do anyway?). Here's a close up of the happy flags, so you can marvel at my imperfect sewing skills:

I got the pattern/instructions from this little book called Home Sewn: 30 Projects for Every Room in the House. Lots of fun little projects in there-- next up, new tablecloth!

Bonjour Baby Batiste!

2011-03-02T19:03:00.008-05:00

So I've been in SF since Friday. Apologies for the Internat outage, and even more apologies if you happen to live in SF and I haven't seen you. I've been working, wedding showering and hanging out with a special little man who I realize has not yet made his Internat debut. So at the ripe age of 5 weeks, here he is:

As you know my middle name is babysnatcher, so naturally the birth of Baby Batiste, Dyani and Brice's little bi-lingual bebe, has made me batty (in the best way possible). I visited him last month when he was 6 days old; which I now realize was probably pretty inappropriate at the time since only family had visited, sorry Deej. He slept through approximately 99% of my first visit, a boy after my own heart. This time though, he was a whole new little man.

Since I consider all teammates sisters, I have already assumed the role of Tante Natalie and am gunning to be his favorite aunt by the time he can say "Oui!" Which, I may add, is probably going to be sooner rather than later since he is the product of an MD, DDS and PHD from Harvard. Anyway, I spent Friday afternoon strapped into the baby bijorn (watch out Deej, I could make a run for it with him) and bouncing around the house singing and dancing. Pretty much a typical afternoon for me anyway...aside from the 10lb nugget.

Clearly I insisted on seeing him again this visit, so Jess volunteered to host Baby's first dinner party, where I spent the evening bouncing Batiste with one hand and sipping low sodiYUM cioppino with the other. Heaven.

Rekindling my Love of Reading

2011-02-25T14:13:00.005-05:00

Ever since I got my Kindle in the fall, it's become my favorite device of the dozens of digital goodies that can be found in my apt or bag. Not only is the Kindle the cutest little thing in the world, but it's often smaller, lighter and and more versatile than its paper and cardboard book counterparts. Plus if you are someone that likes to read more than one thing at a time, or is tearing through books at the speed of light, this device will change your life because you can buy new books at the snap of a finger and access dozens of them all at once.

The best feature is that you can keep up with your reading even if you forget your Kindle, using the iphone or Android app. So if I'm in the subway and can't even access my email, I can still get ahead in my book-- and it auto-syncs with the kindle so I just pick up where I left of. Rad.

Ok, enough of the Kindle love-fest. And no, Amazon did not pay me for this promotion...though they should. The real purpose of this post was to tell you about my favorite books of the year so far. Here's what I've read:

The Help, by Kathryn Stockett

This was the first novel that I have read in probably a year, and I was pleasantly surprised to find out how much I enjoyed a novel! If you are a frequent novel reader (and a female), you've probably read this already, but if you haven't, buy it, read it, love it. It's a page turner (or in the words of R. Kelly, "a cliff hanga"), with a very compelling plot about racial relations in the south in the 50s, and a very lovable cast of female characters.

Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose, by Toni Hsieh

The story of the man who started Zappos, this book is not as impeccably written as some other of the business books I've read, but Tony's exciting story through the ups and downs of starting, selling, funding and running tech companies kept me reading. Lots of lessons to be heard about entrepreneurialism...and of course, many interesting anecdotes about Zappos.

Making Ideas Happen: Overcoming the Obstacles Between Vision and Reality, by Scott Belsky

Unlike, Delivering Happiness, this book takes the more traditional business book approach of stating and explaining best practices about business behavior, through research and examples from experts and example companies. I felt it was lacking a true point of view, and subsequently repeated itself often, hammering home somewhat obvious efficiency techniques for successful teams and businesses. Verdict: Eh, skip it.

The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin

This is hands down my favorite book of the year. It may sound cheesy, and I must admit it holds the same sort of stigma as Eat, Pray, Love (which after getting over it, I finally read last year...and loved), but this book is great. This is the story of a very successful woman, in a happy relationship, with two great kids and a great job, who simply decides that she is not as happy as she wants to be. She takes the self-aware approach to focus on happiness for a year-- making resolutions to promote her happiness, reading and researching the history and schools of thought around happiness, and ultimately discovering that we are all in charge of our own destiny and can chose whether to be happy! This is not a desperate woman attempting to make herself happy-- this is a busy New Yorker who is sick of being always in a rush, unappreciative or feeling that her mood is not within her control. I highlighted and note-took all over this book (yes, you can do that electronically with the kindle!) and caught myself making changes to my behavior based on the things I'd read. I even did a massive kitchen clean and reorganization which was one of the most satisfying Saturday's I've had in forever. Read it.

I Was Told There'd Be Cake, by Sloane Crosley

Recommended by a co-worker as a fun read, I've since recommended it to everyone who wants to be entertained on a vacation, plane, or just wants some light-hearted reading before bed. It's a collection of true(?) short stories about a Westchester native and 20 something Manhattanite, told with a heavy dose of sarcasm, self-deprecation and wit. From stories about locking herself out twice in one day (sounds familiar doesn't it?), to serving as a bride's maid (and yes, that spelling is intentional: this job is equal to that of a household maid/slave), the writing style is hilarious, and I found myself literally laughing out loud on the subway. The only disappointment was finishing it; and with that, I pressed "order" on my kindle and purchased her second book, How Did You Get this Number, which I'm currently plowing through.

Words to Live By

2011-02-24T13:23:00.003-05:00

This birthday gift arrived today (thanks Neva!), and I think you know it's right up my alley. And what better to wear while I cover myself in glitter and glue?!

My Child-Idols

2011-02-23T10:22:00.002-05:00

Most likely you (and 6 Million others) have already seen Jessica's daily affirmations (below). If you haven't watch this immediately. Even if you have, its always a good way to re-orient yourself with a fabulous attitude. When it first became popular a couple months back I had more than one friend send it to me wondering whether I was blonde as a child? I was not. But thanks for the compliment.

Yesterday one of my coworkers sent me the below video of a very young feminist with a strong stance on women in the workplace. I'd love to see how she feels in 20 years, once she's been in the workforce for a while...

Surprised and Delighted!

2011-02-18T15:30:00.005-05:00

Surprised and Delighted is the theme for today, February 18th, in New York City. Why?

1. I woke up and, as I often am after a night of many glasses of wine, was a bit disoriented and had forgotten that my sister was in bed with me. Surprise #1, oh how wonderful it was to find her there! She had come into town for a 12 hour flash visit to spend my birthday eve with me. Horray. I was also surprised that she brought the birthday bird with her, along with some Patagucci loot. Delightful!

2. IT IS 66 DEGREES IN NY! Yes, 66. Yes, it's Febuary. Yes, I'm thrilled. Yes, I went for a run on the westside highway to start my day, and yes, I actually danced while waiting at the stop light. And sang. Oh and during my run there was a topless man on rollerblades gliding down the westside highway. I'm serious. Clearly, this is my day.

3. I got to work and after logging into my email, I went to google.com and BAM- this is what I saw.

This was surprising-- why would Google have a birthday doodle on the homepage? (I mean, I know I'm kinda a big deal but not THAT big a deal.....yet). When I rolled my mouse over it it said "Happy Birthday Natalie!" OMG. That is QUITE a delightful little feature that seems to be only for logged in Google employees on their birthdays. Loves it!

4. I've gotten showered with love in the form of flowers, phone calls, facebook messages, emails, texts, cupcakes, chocolate cakes, and hugs. WIN WIN WIN I love you all!

Also as my team at work managed to out-do last years' celebration and get me this. WOW, this is VERY exciting.

Granola!

2011-02-17T09:30:00.005-05:00

Mmmmmm, Granola. It has always been one of my favorite breakfast foods (and nicknames for my sister). Sometime over Thanksgiving I was randomly inspired to try to make it myself, and Kit and I made our first batch with some pretty good success. Since its not a very common thing to make from scratch, people always seem especially surprised when you say 'I made this!', which is a bonus, because, if they knew how easy it was, they'd be much less impressed.

Since Thanksgiving I've made a about a half dozen batches, experimenting with varying recipes and baking times. Drawing from the best, and my personal taste, here's my go-to recipe.

Natty's Granola

Ingredients:

5 cups of Quaker Oats

2 cups raw slivered almonds

1 1/4 cup raw coconut shavings

1 1/2 cup raw pecans

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 cups of dried cranberries or raisins

1/2 tsp salt (unless you are making it for Jess)

2/3 cup canola oil

2/3 cup pure maple syrup (don't even ATTEMPT with fake)

2 tsp almond extract

1 tsp vanilla extract

Here's what to do:

Preheat oven to 300. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Make sure your baking sheets are rimmed-- if yours are flat, you are going to make a mess. It's worth buying disposable rimmed ones if you don't have them.

Mix all dry ingredients, except the cranberries or raisins, in large mixing bowl. In a separate small mixing bowl whisk together oil, syrup and extracts. Then pour the wet mixture over the try and toss with wooden spoon to coat. Spread the mixture evenly over the two cookie sheets and put in the oven. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the mixture is browned but not burned, rotating baking sheets and moving the mix around with a spatula every 15 mins or so. Sprinkle the cranberries or raisins (or both!) over the mixture and let cool and dry completely. Then sprinkle on top of yogurt and berries, enjoy straight up with milk, or package it up in some mason jars for a sweet and healthy treat for friends!

Granola will last at least 2 weeks in sealed containers, and is a lot less fragile than trying to send cookies!

Valentine's Day Card Round Up

2011-02-16T17:03:00.009-05:00

So yeah, it's too late to provide inspiration for your card making this year, but thought I would share some of this years' creations from my den of love anyway. Because, after all, you never know when you may want to surprise someone with a heart-inspired message. Rather than focus on paper valentines, I expanded my mediums this year with some new craft tools and techniques...

The two cards below are brought to you by the glorious glue gun that has recently joined my ever-expanding collection of craft tools (thanks, Santa). It has proved it's worth not only for securing buttons and ribbons on paper, but also for repairing furniture in my apartment. Loves it.

On a side note I'm considering launching a glue gun marketing campaign called "Make Crafts Not War," with some iconic hand gun and glue gun imagery...think it has potential? prob not.

The cards below require no glue at all-- they are pure tape. Japanese masking tape of assorted colors is REALLY fun.

For much less neat project, I tried stenciled valentines over at Etsy Craft Night last week. I usually try to avoid using paint in my apt as it will likely end up on my furniture and clothing, so trying it out in Etsy's amazing craft studio was rad. I made this real heart Valentine with a stencil, then I got my thumbs dirty and created this little thumbprint heart bookmark.

Last of all of all I had to create this web-inspired card for the nerdiest of my valentines.

Ok, now time to get over vday and on to the next holiday....my bday is Friday!

Sneak Attack Shots

2011-02-15T15:33:00.001-05:00

Exhibit #1: Gu Energy Gel, a popular gel used for athletes participating in endurance sports.

Exhibit #2: Spotted in bodega, a pocket shot of energy....errr alchol. This is a rather sick marketing trick. Imagine reaching into your pocket half way through a marathon and taking a shot of warm tequila!

Does anyone else find this disturbing?

Sweet Hearts

2011-02-14T18:18:00.005-05:00

Since today is all about chocolate, and hearts, what could be better than baking up some chocolate hearts!?!

I had to share these super easy tasty treats that will make any sweet toothed sweethearts' heart melt (how's that for a tongue twister!). These light airy chocolate crisps are simple to whip up and only 50 calories a heart! Thank you Martha for coming through as usual. Recipe here.

I stacked some up in this reused little circular canister that came with cupcake liners in it, added some paper, ribbon and voila! The perfect little gift for the hostess of the vday girls dinner tonight :)

Love Muffins

2011-02-14T10:30:00.003-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day! For the LOVEliest day of the year, I whipped up some banana chocolate chip muffins. Here's my recipe below, sure to please any sweetheart with a sweet-tooth.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins (or Bread)

Makes about 20 Muffins or 1 Loaf

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (about 3 bananas)
1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk.

Place sugar and butter in a large bowl, and beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 1 minute). Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, yogurt, and vanilla; beat until blended. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until moist. Spoon into paper lined muffins tins (or greased loaf pan). Bake at 350° for about 25 mins or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. (Bake for about 1 hour if making a loaf) Cool 10 minutes in tins on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

It's a Small World After All

2011-02-10T20:21:00.005-05:00

So every once in a while I have those experiences where the stars align or the dots connect or [insert cliche here] where you are reminded that the world is SMALL. A big one of those moments came for me on Tuesday, when I headed up to Niketown to meet up with the Nike Running Club, which I have recently started running with on Tuesdays.

Tonight, they announced at the door, there is a special event going on with a celebrity athlete. Minutes later, riding up the escalator to drop off my bag, who should I run into but the celebrity athlete (and my freshman roommate!!!) the fabulous Ogonna Nnamani of Stanford and US Olympic Volleyball fame! We scared most of her high school volleyball fans with hugging, and screaming OMG I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!

The world is small. Turns out, she's living in NYC with her fiance (looks like I'm the only of our 3 freshman roommates to be riding the single train), and finishing her requirements to apply for med school. And, as it appeared, making some special celebrity appearances (this one was for the launch of the Nike Training Club app). As we used to say freshman year, GO OG!

And yes, we both were coincidentally dressed in matching Stanford/Nike gear :)

Sew exciting!

2011-02-04T13:55:00.006-05:00

New year, new hobby. (And yes, I'll also be trying to maintain the old hobby of blogging, which I know I've been failing at lately)

In an effort to further morph into the modern Martha, I signed up for a Sewing 101 at 3rd Ward (rad place BTW) with Christina. I've done some sewing projects before, but only with the help of my master-seamster dad who basically set everything up so I could sit there and push the pedal. Sew, I decided, time for me to learn to do sewing projects on my own. For the first 3 Wednesday's of the year we trekked out to Brooklyn learned how to wind a bobbin, thread a machine and sew (semi-)straight lines. We made simple bags for the first 2 classes and on the third we learned the skill/thrill of installing a zipper...which turns out to be one of the more satisfying projects I've ever finished!
Needless to say, I'm hooked, and ordered a sewing machine which arrived this week! Not taking requests yet, but stay tuned...

Christmas Cookies!

2010-12-14T15:49:00.003-05:00

Yes, it's officially the most wonderful time of the year...Signs of the season: lights are strung all over the city, the halls are decked, we've had our first snowflakes, and my apartment has smelled of cookies for 2 weeks straight.

While I've decorated dozens of the classics, I've also decided to add a new flavor this holiday-- chocolate peppermint crunch cookies. I found the recipe in Bon Appetit (thank you Leslie) and found that these festive cookies are the perfect compliment to the classics. Cause while those sugar cookies look oh so festive frosted, they don't do much for the chocolate lovers....Here's a little box I wrapped up for some very special neighbors :)

Chocolate Peppermint in the bottom left (duh)

Birthday Becca

2010-11-17T13:33:00.004-05:00

She's so excited. Really.

I'm thrilled to be celebrating the 25th Anniversary of NOT being an only child today! Yes, that's right, my not-so-little sister has reached the peak of her mid twenties. The good news is, I'm still a hair taller. And no one can tell who's older. Well I wish I could do what they do in Katroo.... but since I can't, I'm taking the train to Philly for a delicious dinner with the birthday girl and cousin Alex. And here's to hoping the Birthday Bird shows up in Newton next week!

Celebrity Status

2010-11-16T15:39:00.002-05:00

So this morning I went back to the Martha Stewart show...unfortunately this time I was a second class citizen/audience member rather than guest/winning chef. Not as fun, but still quite a lovely way to break up the monotony of a rainy Tuesday. And, unlike those audience members who came to my show who were probably disappointed by the lack of celebrities, I was pleased to see both Emeril and Russel Simmons on the set this morning! Woo hoo.

You can check out the turkey recipe that Emeril and Martha made here. And I must admit it looked quite delish and simple too, none of this crazy intensive brining. Even more tastey than that, though, was that we all got a 6 piece Emeril bakeware collection to take home! Man am I thankful that I live near Martha's studios!

Fall Family Feast

2010-11-15T10:47:00.004-05:00

Erin and I hosted family dinner last night and it was one fab fall feast. We had homemade hummus, curried butternut squash soup, balsamic brussel sprouts and lemon herb roast chickens. Wow was it delish. As usual, my favorite part of dinner was desert...I experimented with a new recipe as I'm searching for a new desert to add to the Thanksgiving spread in a couple weeks.

Let me tell you I hit the jackpot with this one: Pumpkin Cake with Brown Butter Icing

Now I know I am a pretty avid baker but usually it takes many tries to find recipes worth repeating. This one is AMAZING- this is a perfect perfect substitute (or accompaniment) to Thanksgiving pumpkin pie. It is quick and easy and the cake is moist and reaches that perfect combo of sweet and spicy pumpkin. The recipe for cake is here, and icing is here (I recommend doubling the frosting because this is just not enough for one cake). Enjoy! I am most definitely bringing this one home for Thanksgiving....Man, am I thankful for MarthaStewart.com

Natty Cakes?

2010-11-12T11:57:00.004-05:00

I'm thinking of opening an etsy shop and I need a name by which to call these diaper cake creations....suggestions?

Here's the latest: an all-organic diaper masterpiece (wrapped in burp cloths) for coworker, Amanda.

Here's a catalog of all the ones I've made to help you brainstorm creative names :) leave suggestions below!

Oh Jess, We Did (raise $10,000 for Lupus and run the marathon!)

2010-11-11T12:54:00.007-05:00

Sorry for the delay, I've been processing the fabulousness of Sunday's marathon, and letting my bod recover. And oh wow, how could I possibly describe this experience?! It was marvelous and mind-numbing, exhilarating and exhausting, humbling and heroic (yes, I just called myself a hero).

First things' first- I DID IT! I ran 26.2 miles through the streets of NYC with 45,000 fellow lunatics. I didn't have to stop to pee, barf, or relieve any pain; I hydrated and GUed while running; I didn't suffer from any blisters, cramps or chafing. And I managed to do it in a respectable time: four hours, two minutes and eleven seconds, to be exact. As far as I'm concerned, that was enough thrill for the day. But really, it wasn't crossing the finish line that was the most satisfying part of the day...(though that did feel pretty f'ing good!)

It really was the friends and family cheering me on both before, during and after the race that made the experience so magical. It was just unreal to have my family and friends on the sidelines, jumping and cheering and waving; and to feel the support of far away friends calling, emailing and texting their good luck and congrats before and after the race. And then there was my superhero sister who jumped in and ran the last 7 miles with me, continually reminding me "Nat, I can't believe you're WINNING this race!" It really did make me feel all warm and fuzzy, even when my body felt beat and heavy at mile 22. So thank you all, you know who you are, and you should know that I love you :)

As you probably know, I decided to run this race to raise money for Lupus, in honor of Jessica, my dearest friend and hero who has been racing to stay ahead of this disease for the past 7 years. I know I speak for both of us when I say, that we were blown away by the support and generosity of our friends and family. I probably shouldn't have been worried about raising money when it had to do with Jess, because, well, she's just so damn popular! And, to quote her brother's fabulous wedding toast "Jess is cooler than everyone here." But I guess I just didn't have a grip on exactly how popular she was-- we had over 150 people support us. And I'm proud to say we raised (cue Austin Powers voice....)over Ten Thooooooooousand Dollars. Whoa. That feels great.

And you know what felt even better? Hugging Jess at the end of the race.

If you want to hear about this whole thing from Jess' point of view, check out her blog post. (tissues advised) And to see a lot more unattractive sweaty, but smiley pics, check out the Paulparazzi's album.

Let's do this

2010-11-04T19:27:00.004-04:00

Hit up the Expo today at lunch and picked up my official number. Guess I gotta do this now. YIKES! I'm excited. Whether or not I finish in 4 hours or 14 (I may still beat Al Roker), I feel as though I have already won: We have raised over $10,000 for Lupus!!!!

Keeping my fingers and toes crossed that my good luck charm, Jess, feels healthy enough to make the cross country trip!

A High Hi 5 for the Bday girl!

2010-11-02T09:26:00.001-04:00

Two gifts for the beautiful birthday girl, LPR (previously LJP).

1. The Hi 5* that keeps on giving:

2. And of course some homemade (magnolia recipe) cupcakes in the bday girl's fav hue.

* I am somewhat embarrassed to admit that looking at these sweet HI 5 mittens, actually caused me to go to wonder to whether this was the correct spelling; or, whether it was spelled as I previously assumed "High 5." It caused me to think it either/both as the gesture is both a greeting (as in "hi") and also elevated (as in "high")....wikipedia says correct spelling is High 5. I might just have to call it a Hi High 5 from now on.....

SO CLOSE!

2010-11-01T11:31:00.004-04:00

Well folks, as I announced nearly 4 months ago, I'm running the NYC Marathon, and it's THIS WEEKEND. Training for my first marathon has been laborious and time consuming (it's at least partially culprit in the recent months' internat outage), but I hear it's going to be very rewarding. I'm terrified and excited, and I just want it to GET HERE ALREADY. So this week I'm tapering down my running, getting good sleep, hydrating and trying to chill the F out (which I've never been very good at!) so I'll be cool as a clam and ready to run this city on Sunday!

Also, as you probably know, I'm running it for the SLE Lupus foundation, and thanks to many of you reading right now, I've raised almost $10,000! I'm incredibly proud of this accomplishment, since it will go to help patients like my beloved friend Jessica Goldman, who I am running this race for. Jess has been fighting Lupus daily for years, and the fight continues, so if you haven't donated (or even if you have), I would SO appreciate your support to get me to my goal...it's so close I can taste it! I'm thinking every good thought and praying to ever god I don't believe in that she'll feel healthy enough to travel to NYC this weekend. And if you're in NYC this weekend, check out the official Natty spectators guide!

Do you think we can raise $10,000 AND Run 26.2 Miles this week!?!

JESS WE CAN!!!

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T10:50:00.009-04:00

Greetings goblins!

It's the the greatest holiday ever-- the one day dedicated to two of my most favorite things: costumes and sweets!

I've had several things a-brewing in my little apt turned sweetshop that I thought I should share...

Halloween Cuppie Cakes:

I used Martha's chocolate chip cupcake recipe with my (now standard and favorite) Billy's Bakery buttercream recipe to make them tasty.

Then I dressed them up for hallowen with these beautiful colored sugars and rings-turned-cupcake toppers from my new fav site BakeItPretty.com. They were a huge hit.

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

These have been one of my favorite treats forever. Something about that mix of salty and sweet, crunchie and smooth, that just makes these absolutely irresistible. I've been wanting to try making them for a while, and this was my first attempt.

I looked up several recipes requiring a double boiler, which I dont have, then tried just doing it on low heat over the stove (actually a tried this, and consequently threw out 2 batches of burned chocolate, twice!) and finally resorted to the microwave version (god bless modern technology). I ended up having to add about 3 tablespoons of heavy cream to the chocolate nice and liquidy for dipping, but other than that, worked like a charm.

I sprinkled some reeces pieces on some of them for an extra snap of delish and halloween color.

Well, that's all for now, if those recipes don't suit your fancy-- you can check out last years'.

Baby G's Shower/Homecoming

2010-10-26T11:49:00.006-04:00

So, yes, it's been a while. But 2 months, 6 cross-country trips, 3 weddings, hundreds of miles run and god knows how many cookies baked, later, I'm baaaaaack. So let's just get on with it and start with the present, cool? Alright, good. Hopefully I'll have time to post some of the highlights from the hiatus, but I can't be bothered at the moment.

So I just returned from my latest cross-country trip: Stanford 5 year reunion. My my my, how time flies. Truth is, I've gone to homecoming every year since I graduated (see last years' post), so it wasn't all that different to be back on the Farm. The big difference this year over the others, was that, in addition to my 20+ friends who are in the die-hard homecoming-every-year-til-I-die group, there were also hundreds of our classmates on campus, many of whom I had not laid eyes on since '05. This made for a couple of fun conversations, and a healthy dose of awkward stop-and-chats or walk-by waves. The class seems to have matured partially-- many blinging fingers, some new facial hair and love handles, and a couple of pregnant bellies...One of which was our dearest Dyani Jones Gaudillière!

Dyani, who was married away in a fairy tale wedding back in April, is officially 6 months pregnant with a boy...and for the record this was a planned honeymoon baby :). As soon as we heard the news, the team nicknamed him Baby G (for Gaudilliere) or Napoleon (he is french after all). In any case, before hitting the tailgates, we threw a little Baby Shower in the Pi Phi Lounge for the hottest mama. Though it was our first team shower, we blew it out of the water (if I do say so myself).

Everyone brought their favorite children's book to start a collection for Baby G, and some even brought it in English AND French, a lovely touch for what promises to be a bi-lingual baby. Ashlee crafted up some amazing banners ("Bonjour Bebe G") and baby bottles with custom labels which doubled as our champagne flutes.

Dyani wearing Ashlee's "This is what a MILF looks like" party hat...

We decorated onesies, ate mini cupcakes, and showered the mama in gifts including a carseat (you cant leave home without it) and of course, I made the ultimate Stanny baby cake.

This baby has some crazy aunties :)

Stanford Family Camp Roundup

2010-08-27T13:30:00.012-04:00

Two weekends ago we held the first (of what is requested to be an annual or quarterly) Stanford Family Camp weekend at Post Pond. The idea's been in the works for a while and sadly some of our campers had to back out due to jobs (boring), but the 7 of us had a hell of a weekend/GB.

It was a beautiful day on Saturday and the boys (including Ballew the bday boy) hit the Dartmouth Golf Course early and we met them post for a lovely lunch in Hanover.
The afternoon was filled with activities: swimming, canoeing, kayaking, fishing, tennis, ping pong, trips to the ice cream shop, and many hours of Celebrity and Loaded Questions. We shopped uber-local and feasted on New Hampshire's finest summer veggies and steak.
And finished off our fabulous summer feast in front of the campfire making s'mores.
All campers were well behaved and quite happy-- we are planning fall foilage and ice fishing weekends at Post Pond to come! Many more photos here.

Back to Baking: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies and Coconut Chocolate Cupcakes

2010-08-24T14:55:00.006-04:00

Perhaps due to the cooling temperature, I've started heating it up in the kitchen in the past couple weeks. In case the east coast gloom is getting to you too, I am posting some yummy treat recipes today. Disclaimer: they are not my own-- I stole both, but added my own touch :)

First up: my personal favorite cookie of all time: oatmeal chocolate chip. You don't have to look far to find this recipe, in fact, it's probably in your cabinet already. The recipe on the underside of the Quaker Oats top, is by far my favorite cookie, as long as you substitute raisins with chocolate chips. These cookies are so chewy and delish you won't miss the chewy raisins, I promise. They are also excellent with butterscotch chips. Warning: There is a reason they are called Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies-- you'll want to consume these sans restrictive waistband...Enjoy!
The second recipe is a bit more involved. For Lara's birthday I mixed up something that combined her two favorite sweets: coconut and chocolate. I started with Martha's recipe for coconut cupcakes and then topped with this rich chocolate frosting.

I will admit that Martha's cupcakes are a bit laborious, but let me tell you, they are worth the extra beating, mixing and washing because they are just that light and fluffy. After trying various cupcake recipes, I think I've dialed in on her secret: what Martha makes you do that others don't is beat a separate batch of egg whites which you fold into the batter after the rest of the ingredients are mixed. This is quite a PITA, and it makes your beautiful shiny batter look gross, but after my testing, I have determined this extra step helps keep the cupcakes moist and light. YUM....and if you think you've made a mess, just imagine my dishwasher-less kitchen ;)

This frosting is a cinch (who uses that word?) to make and it's chocastically rich-- heavy on the milk chocolate flavor, which I much prefer to buttercream. It's basically the closest thing I've ever made to that awesome Duncan Hines frosting you grew up with. And, it stores easily too and is delicious by the spoonful (which probably explains why I haven't lost a pound despite the fact I'm logging 30+ miles a week for marathon training).

To top the cupcakes off (and remind coconut-haters to back away) I covered the top of some of them with coconut flakes.

Coney Island

2010-08-17T09:52:00.005-04:00

View from the top of the Ferris Wheel

Saturday Dary and I joined Yasmin and Bri for an off island adventure. The destination: Coney Island-- a NYC classic that I had yet to visit. We were all pleasantly surprised by it all-- the beach was (contrary to popular belief) quite nice....huge, clean sand, with vendors selling everything from popsicles to pina coladas....I haven't seen such beach service since Brazil!

After bronzing ourselves we checked out the park-- some odd games no doubt:

Somewhere along our stroll, I got pulled into the line for the Cyclone. Despite explanation and pleading that I do not DO roller coasters, I was forced into the tiny seats of this rickety excuse for an amusement park ride. Let me tell you, I was far from amused. Safe to say it was one of the scariest experiences of my life...being jolted from the free-fall sensation to full stop, all the while hearing and feeling the unsteadiness of the wooden rails below us. Biggest regret of the day (aside from the ride itself) was not purchasing the picture that they took of our group (and were probably selling for $20 dolla). It was pretty similiar to this one which we took before the ride began, except my eyes and mouth were clenched shut and knuckles white with the force of my grip. The others, of course were mouths wide open, hands up, full grins.

After my stomach finally settled from the ride of my life, we headed to Totonno's Pizzeria (clearly a Yasmin-the-food-genius find). As our mouths watered waiting over an hour for our pies, Yasmin informed us that it was the oldest continuously operating pizzeria in the US that is still run by the original family....and clearly, there's a reason for that. The pizza was near perfect, we all agreed-- thin crispy crust, sweet tomato sauce, and a perfect ratio of cheese. Worth the wait, and the weight (the 4 of us downed 2 large pizzas).

The perfect ending to a perfect day.

SoCal Sweethearts: A&P say "We Do!"

2010-08-12T14:41:00.012-04:00

Team Photo w/Bride #2

So I am still reeling from the excitement of Alex and Pat's wedding weekend extravaganza 2 weeks ago. It seems to me that every wedding has some element of Fairy Tale-- for Dyani and Brice the french chateau setting said it all, for Leslie and Ben it was the reading of their beautiful love letters, and for Alex and Pat-- it was a Fairy Tale 14 years in the making. Though it was indeed aboutfingtime.com, I think the couple and their every guest would agree, it was worth the wait for this special day.

The wedding was held in the picturesque beach town of La Jolla, and the ceremony and reception were held at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, where Alex's dad is director; and which is only several miles from Muirlands Middle School where Alex and Pat met 14 years ago. I arrived on Wednesday night, not to miss out on any of the action, and to help the bride prepare and ward off any nervs. Lucky for me, Alex (surprise surprise) was the chillest bride ever.

Festivities began Friday afternoon with a day at the beach of meeting and greeting, followed by a rehersal filled with sunshine and a "Rehersal Fiesta," complete with many margs, and toasts. Since A & P are always the last ones to leave the party, the only struggle of the weekend was actually getting them to leave the bar Friday night so that they could get their beauty rest before the big day!

The wedding day was so happy it is impossible to capture. Jessica "The Party Pope" Goldman officiating the ceremony was brilliant. I don't remember ever crying, laughing and cheering so hard within the span of 5 minutes. There was cheering, hooting and even noisemakers when they kissed- the energy of the event rivaled a graduation-- nothing but celebration. And the celebration continued all evening....
Dancing started early and went late-- we were twisting and turning and even danced the hora (why not?).
I don't know who brought the glow sticks but as I recall around 1am it turned rave wedding...
Shoes were taken off, cigars smoked, glasses toasted and school cheers chanted. The last song was dedicated to the couple, though somehow they had sneaked out the door without the rest of us noticing. Nevertheless, we circled up and "pretended" they were in the middle toasting to them and swaying.....
Many more pics here courtesy of Paparazzi Paul.

Winsor Reunion Part 2: Delayed Post for my Fabulous Hosts!

2010-08-02T13:56:00.007-04:00

Delayed post, but must be documented that Erica and Meghan (the real working-but-living-in-houses wives of Connecticut) hosted Yasmin and me for a fabulous weekend in the burbs, two weeks back. We hung out at the lovely Fairfield town beach all day, and came home to hanging in the Beckers' yard (oh, to have a YARD!) with the dogs, sipping Meghan's Mango Mint Margaritas. The CT ladies prepared an amazing fresh summer meal of grilled chicken and veggies as we city dwellers watched the sunset from the hammock. They are living the suburban dream these ladies!! It will be a tough act to follow when Yasmin and I host them in lower Manhattan for our next reunion...

Leslie and Ben's Dream Wedding

2010-07-29T12:06:00.001-04:00

Me, Allison, Andy (our boss) and the bride!

My wedding season is now going into full effect, and was kicked off this past weekend with Leslie's wedding. Horray! It was the classiest affair I've ever witnessed- a spectacular evening at the Mandrin Oriental. And though it was one of the largest weddings' I've witnessed, it was also the most intimate and confirmed my obsession with Jewish weddings. The Rabbi spoke at length about Les and Ben's relationship, how they met, and then made everyone break out the tissues by reading love letters they had written to each other. Between that and her dad quoting "Father of the Bride" in his opening speech, the evening gave my waterproof mascara a run for it's money.

The band was a hit, the setting magnificent and the view stunning, but the ear-to-ear smile on Leslie's face from the moment she walked down the aisle until the very last dance was the highlight of the evening. It was a glorious NYC kick-off and made me more excited than ever to dance my way down the aisle next weekend with Alex and Pat in San Diego!

Happy Birthday Rollerblade Skipper!

2010-07-22T09:36:00.000-04:00

Check her out: She's turning 25 today....Ms. Allison (Skipper) Kronick!

I think she could use a little snazzier an outfit- and maybe fewer pads? Hopefully those are on her Bday wish list.

Delayed post for Early Arrival!

2010-07-20T14:16:00.003-04:00

Forgot to post this several weeks back...and as it turns out Joanne had her baby early anyway!

Here is the Googliest diaper cake around which I made for my coworker. I found out that the Google Store has been revamped and is selling the cutest little Google doodle onesies! Don't you just love the cookie monster one?! Best part- I can order online and avoid awkwardness of being the only single girl shopping at Buy Buy Baby.

Celeb Spotting

2010-07-20T10:37:00.003-04:00

NBD just on the front of the New York Magazine HOMEPAGE: LAUREN GROSS as one of NYC's hedge funds' greatest assets...duh. Oh and I love that they stole her facebook photo which is from the Call on Me Party in 2008.

PS: the hair that hangs onto right shoulder is mine. So I'm like, totally almost famous!

Spotted

2010-07-14T09:18:00.003-04:00

Living in NYC you get a taste of all weird parts of society...and occasionally you see something truly bizarre. Things I've seen in the past year that fall into the latter category have been: a man segwaying down park avenue in a business suit at rush hour, a fully cloaked nun rollerblading on the Westside Highway, and then this morning this, spotted at the corner of Lexington Avenue and WACKO:

Here's how my weekend went:

2010-07-12T13:35:00.009-04:00

Summer in NYC by NYC Natty on Polyvore.com

Also, after 17 months in NYC I caved and bought an air conditioner. I love the tropics, but living in 90% humidity while training for a marathon was getting a little old....

Time Flies

2010-07-09T14:05:00.003-04:00

Since I've spent much of the past month flying (virgin america, duh), there is no surprise that time has also been flying and the internat has suffered. Wah wah. Hopefully many of you have been traveling and making merry themselves and have not suffered the normal depression that comes with an internat outage.

In any case, since my last post I've been in the states of Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Vermont and California. Becca and I pulled a father's day surprise at Post Pond and had a typical relaxing Schwartz family weekend: ping pong, reading, cooking and 40 miles of biking ("the best father's day gift ever"). I then headed out and spent the past 2+ weeks in California, enjoying the coldest winter I ever spent (aka Summer in SF) and being a serious student at the Wharton Marketing Academy. I finished off the trip celebrating our countries independence/becoming Dupree for a long weekend in Santa Monica at Casa Taylor. And of course, I couldn't agree with Katy Perry more: California girls are unforgettable; and it was a joy to see them all.

However, I'm now back in NYC and excited to kick it here for a couple weeks before wedding-palooza in August. That's it. Boring post, but I had to brake the ice and come back from my silence somehow. I'm cookin' up some fun projects and activities for the next couple weeks so don't fret- the internat will heat up.

Jess We Can! (I'm running the NYC Marathon)

2010-06-03T14:38:00.008-04:00

[Apologies for those of you who received this via email blast]

So I've been waiting for weeks to announce this and since Lady Gaga's Lupus scare is all over the blogosphere and yesterday was National Running Day, I thought no better time to let you know:

I've registered to run my first (and likely my last) full Marathon, Nov 7th in NYC, to benefit Lupus!

Lupus is a lifelong, chronic autoimmune disease that effects over 1.5 Million Americans and 1 amazing Jessica Goldman. If you ask anyone who's met Jess to describe her, they will undoubtedly comment on her ever-present smile and positive energy. What many of them don't know is that she battles Lupus, and its side effects, every day.

Jess was diagnosed with Lupus 7 years ago when it attacked her brain and kidneys. Since then I have watched Jess go through chemo, dialysis and countless other treatments. Though at times she may have lost physical strength, her hair, and her mind (not really, but you know what I mean), she NEVER lost her positive attitude and her effervescent smile. She is the only person I know who can send a photo of themselves in a hospital gown, attached to an IV with the biggest grin on her face....Her spirit has inspired everyone she's touched-- sick or healthy. She now lives a full (and totally rad) life in SF: freelance writing, blogging, dancing, cooking and otherwise making (everyone she sees) merry.

Ok, I'm rambling (an you're probably crying)...so now its time to ask you to grab a tissue and your credit card, and help Jess and I raise some money for Lupus.

We are doing this Obama style: We're asking for only $10 dollars from everyone we know. So give us ten bucks and pass this along to spread the word about Lupus! Think we can do it? JESS WE CAN!!!!

Donate here.

FAQ:

Q: Lupus Poopus-- What is Lupus? I've never heard of it!

A: Lupus is more common than you think! It's an autoimmune disease that can attack many organs in the body. It's severity and side effects vary, but unfortunately it's a lifelong illness that over 1.5 americans struggle with. There is lots to learn and many ways to help. Check them out here.

Q: Does lupus develop disproportionately in legendary performers?

A: Though Lady Gaga, Jessica Goldman and Michael Jackson all suffered from/will suffer from Lupus, there is no evidence that this has anything to do with their fabulous voices, killer dance moves or celebrity status.

Q: Dude, that Jess chick looks super healthy? Are you lying to us about this Lupus thing?

A: Well, according to Jess, the one positive about Lupus is that it is mostly internal and "easy to hide." There are a few telltale signs however, used for diagnosis which include: 1) the butterfly rash (a rosy coloration on the cheeks, chin, and nose that looks like...well, you guessed it, a butterfly), 2) swelling in arms, feet, and face, usually as a result of Lupus-related kidney disease, and 3) hair loss.

Q: Are you really going to run 26.2 Miles? Do I get a refund if you don't finish?
A: Yes, training has begun and I am determined to run the NYC marathon this November 7th with a Jessica Goldman smile on my face! And no, no refunds will be granted until Jess regains all function in her kidneys.

Q: You say this disease is chronic. How does Lupus effect someone's life on a daily basis?

A: Everyday with Lupus is different. It can flare and calm down erratically, often provoked by stress and illness. Some days people with Lupus can feel great and active, and within the next few hours, they'll be on their backs as if they just finished a forty day bender. The symptoms of Lupus can include simpler, daily manifestations - like chronic exhaustion, joint pain, chest pain, migraines - or more severe conditions - like major organ failure and immune suppression. Lupus patients also take daily medication (Jess pops about 20 pills every morning) and must see doctors regularly, on a rather irregular schedule.

Q: This Jess chick sounds awesome-- is she single? Is she looking for friends?

A: She is beyond awesome. She is rocked up to quite a guy (sorry), but she is the friendliest gal around.

Q: Ten bucks is a lot, do I get a physical/edible prize?

A: Yes, if you made it this far in the email, and the following conditions apply, you will receive a prize in the mail. It might be a loaf of love, or maybe a love muffin, or some dried fruit. I havent decided yet.

Conditions: 1) you have donated $10 dollars
2) you have convinced at least 2 other people not on this email list to donate 10 dollars (proof required)

It's that time of year:

2010-06-02T16:01:00.002-04:00

Rabbit Rabbit

2010-06-01T11:45:00.003-04:00

Happy June 1st. Today signifies two very important events:

1. It's officially after memorial day: and it's fair game to pull out the white pants, shorts, capris, skirts, jumpsuits and whatever else. (Paisley and seersucker are also officially in season and highly encouraged.) I think it also means it's appropriate to put neon nail polish on your toes...but would request that someone more stylish than myself to verify.

2. (did you really think I'd forget?) It's Neva's Birthday! So this has been a very important day to me since we met in the 6th grade and became bff: she was too cool for school in her purple doc martins and I was wearing limited too spandex and matching headbands. No idea why she friended me, but thank god she did. The most memorable Neva birthdays were spent at Water Country where we celebrated every June in middle school. Ah to be back at Water Country today sporting a one piece speedo and riding the pludge.....Happy Birthday Love, hope your birthday is more exciting than water slides and cotton candy!

All aboard the fun wagon!

2010-05-28T10:14:00.003-04:00

About a month ago I got an email from my coworker Kerry, saying I had been nominated for the office-wide "fun committee," with the mission of bringing fun back to the NYC office (this was partially confusing because my team is pretty fun). In any case, I met with a dozen or so other people that Kerry had appointed as "fun" and we brainstormed how we could make everyone happy.

We decided that things became less fun when they were forced, and always more fun when spontaneous. I suggested a "fun wagon" or a little red wagon that traveled the office for fun. Yesterday my dream came true and at 3:30 I took the fun wagon (filled with champagne, beer and mini cupcakes) out for it's maiden roll. Kerry and I pulled through several sales teams bumping some tunes and wishing people a Happy Thursday. The response was great-- most people were very confused "who's birthday is it?" "wait, why are you here?" our response, "FOR FUN!"

Kinda a (Mr.) Big Deal

2010-05-25T13:58:00.010-04:00

Yes, I am a sucker for Sex and The City just like every other 20-50 something woman in the US. No, I've never had a TV, but I did have the pleasure of watching every episode countless times at Stanny in the comfort of a bed full of girls at 517 Cowell Lane. So, when I my coworker offered me his ticket to the premiere yesterday afternoon, I swooned and graciously accepted. (We were given tickets as part of our media buy at work because our Parisian Love Search Story--previously viewed on the super bowl-- is playing before the movie).

With a 15 min turn around time at home to turn monday workday into red carpet ready, I arrived at Radio City Music hall perspiring....with thousands of other nobodies. Apparently we were too late for the red carpet, and instead I was waiting in line with women from who knows where who couldnt have cared less about what I was wearing...not the quite the glam entrance we all dream of. But I wasnt exactly red carpet ready.
The movie was spectacular- of course the Liza Minelli cameo was ridiculous and Charlotte falling off the camel seemed a little absurd-- but screw the critics, these women are hot and hilarious and I will love them til they are old and grey. And judging from the crowds response last night, I am not alone. Everyone cheered when favorite characters showed up and laughed and boo'ed when they disapproved of their behavior (Spoiler alert: I'm keeping my lips sealed passed that!).

The after party was in a huge Middle East themed tent (though I'm not sure how indigenous red roses are to the Middle East-- there were no less than 10k of them), outside Lincoln Center. Allison and I arrived early and managed to sneak our way into the vip section. When Aidan (who's real name I just learned this morning was John Corbett) had a free moment, and we had had a drink to ease the nerves, we made our way over to congratulate him and ask for a picture.
After posing I spilled out "I must say, I have always been a bigger fan of yours than Bigs" (smoooooth entrance huh?). Allison and I chatted him about how great he was, asked whether there would be a SATC3 (he said not for him- he had his moment), and when he said it was the first time he himself had seen it, we asked why....
Aidan: "oh I just flew in..."
Me: "From where?"
Aidan: "Santa Barabara, I live out there."
Me: "OH I absolutely LOOOOOOVE Santa Barabara, I was just out there for a bachelorette party [please note this is the second friend bachelorette shout out we've given in the company of Stars-- first being Erin's "5-way" comment on Martha]
Aidan: "Oh yeah? It's pretty nice huh"
Me: "I love it, I want to move there.....all my favorite people live there: You, Jack Johnson..."

"YOU and JACK JOHNSON?" Did I really say that? UGH. Yes, that came out of my mouth. I don't remember what happened after that, I think we excused ourselves and said have a nice night. Bottom line, I blew it with Aidan (but then again, so did Carrie?!)

Other notable siting of the evening were:

A very drunk Mr. Big with a mean body guard who he kept telling to ward off the girls and not allow any more pictures-- lame, typical. Sidenote: he looked good, and I am not a Mr. Big fan
SJP was pretty private, didnt get very close but she was doing that awkward brush your hair back from behind your face but not behind your ear move that I hate.....
A very fake and baked Smith Jarred was clearly trying to cover up his aging, and failing drastically.
Various other celebs we paparazzi'ed in our full album

Ok, this is officially the most shallow absurd post in Internat history, and I humbly apologize to my male reader-base (and Lauren). For this I will punish myself by writing at least 2 very intellectual posts soon to prove I am not the new Perez Hilton or whatever his name is. And yes, I am going to hell for all these comments.

In any case, perhaps we were already punished (or at least Allison was): the night ended in a typical SATC-like tragedy. At 1am, after a goodbye dance with the hummus and babaganush platter, we went to retrieve our bags and Allison's designer purse was missing. Reminded me of the shoe thief episode. Seems there must only be one solution: have Allison register at Chanel for her upcoming 25th Bday party.....

Look what landed on my desk

2010-05-24T15:48:00.002-04:00

Tix to the Sex and the City 2 Premiere and after party tonight. Now how is that for a Goog perk?! Luckily I just found out, so didn't have all weekend to spend too much money on a dress!

Edgey Brownie Pan Innovation

2010-05-24T12:39:00.005-04:00

Allison gave me this sweet brownie pan for my birthday, and I've been dying to try it. Genius idea- everyone loves those chewy crusty edges so why not have more of them?

They were as delish as I imagined, quite a hit for Erin's LOST finale dinner party. She indulged us with homemade Barefoot Contesssa grilled cheese and tomato soup, and I sat there completely lost (bad pun intended) as to what was going on on the screen since it was my first, and apparently last time watching the show.

PacGoog

2010-05-21T11:47:00.003-04:00

Well if you haven't noticed already, today is the first time we've put up an interactive doodle on google.com. Just hit "insert coin" button (which has replaced the "I'm feeling lucky" button), and you can play Pacman to your hearts content. I completely suck at this game so haven't made it close to completing level 1, but according to the nerd press there are 255 levels. I wonder whether searches will go down today as people waste hours trying to beat the homepage....

I have no idea whether this is goign to become a pattern but I hope some day there is an etchasketch doodle where you can shake your computer and clear the screen....

Pretty in Polyvore

2010-05-20T10:34:00.007-04:00

Natty's Outfit Today 5/20/10 by NYC Natty featuring J Crew skirts

The one and only Katrina Lake has accepted a summer internship at Polyvore.com which appears to be a pretty neato mix of technology + business + fashion--which also accurately describes Ms KMLake, so doesnt that just work out perfectly!? I'm pretty sure she'll be running that show in no time.

Since I also love technology and clothing (though far from fashionista Katrina), I decided to try it out. Also, I can't illustrate my outfits like Ed can, so maybe I will start polyvoring them? This is fun. Here's my outfit today. Or pretty close to it. Note: I do not have this exact shirt, mine is authentic french, and I do not have this necklace (but I want it bad- hint hint!).

Team 12 Pack completes Ragnar Relay!

2010-05-18T15:39:00.017-04:00

Several months back Jonathan threw a flier at my desk for the Ragnar Relay: a 180 mile running relay from Woodstock to NYC with 12 runners. Since then we've been recruiting teammates to join us (most recruiting took place after work and after at least 3 beers) and after assembling 10 other "runners" we named ourselves the 12 pack (with Natty Light as captain). After a handful of training runs and little logistical preparation, we headed north to Woodstock last Thursday night.

Having only done single leg relays (when there are multiple runners and each runner runs ONE leg), I had no idea what I was getting into with this. The Ragnar involves 12 runners rotating legs, each running 3 legs of varying distances. Of course I had signed up for this in my post-half marathon I-can-run-anything state of mind (which was pretty far from the state I was in last Thursday as I drove the 15 passenger van to Kingston NY to sleep in the Holidae Innnnnnn before the race).

The race took us just under 30 hours, and was pretty well organized other than some occassional faulty signage (nbd, Erin was lost at 2am on the dark streets of upstate nyc). With 12 runners, we would have thought there would be significant "down time" between runs. This time was hardly "down", as it was spent picking up and dropping off runners, stopping to cheer on runners, lying by the side of the road, singing, checking out the "RagMag" for directions on the next route, attempting to sleep in fetal position in 2 seats of a van, getting lost, eating granola bars, using porta potties, huddling together for warmth and 2 hours of sleep on a gymnasium floor. So really, running was the least of the challenge. Somehow we managed to survive.

Highlights included:

Jon Chonko, ("Fat Tire") the designated driver and least likely to be shot by hunter or hit by car, wore this outfit the entire time. He also drove at least 90% of the miles, biked along side when our runners got tired, and stepped in to run the last leg for an injured 12-packer, and yes, he was wearing this outfit (and high top sneakers):

7pm Slumber Party:

Ji Lee ("Ji and Tonic"): Giving Chonko a run for his money on the best outfit contest, sported a eye of the tiger shirt from asia, and a glow in the dark Hulk shirt for his night run. And the yellow ray bans, duh. He also was the best looking while spectating:

Ed Sanders ("Keg Standers") and Jonathan ("Malt Quicker"): decided to try for the "best baton hand off" award by getting on shoulders and casting out and reeling Erin in to the finish like a fish.

Night running on highways in a lightening storm after 1.5 hours of sleep....this is me about to take off, boy do I look excited!

And finally, running across the finish line at 12:30pm on Saturday! Complete photos here courtesy of Ji Lee. Oh and duh, this team wouldn't go anywhere without shirts with a sick logo:

Rainy Day Blogs

2010-05-18T13:55:00.005-04:00

Since it's raining it's pouring and I'd rather be snoring, I'm not writing my own post today (or for the past week- whoops!). And I've been saving these awesome blogs for a rainy day and, well, here it is! Here are my coworkers' blogs. They are both designers so naturally more interesting, artsy and pretty than the Internat.

1. Wear Today My coworker, Ed launched his blog this week and it's rad. It's called wear today and he illustrates his outfit every day. He's talented. Good news is, if this whole Google thing doesnt work out, he can always get a job drawing paper doll clothes-- doncha think?

2. Scanwiches My nextdoor deskmate Chonko has a pretty famous blog called scanwiches. And as you may guess, he scans sandwiches. I get kinda grossed out cause it makes me think of mayo (ick!) but if you like sandwiches its quite nice.

Likes and Dislikes

2010-05-10T00:10:00.007-04:00

So after a rather rough week at work, I've begun thinking a bit more about the inevitable "what next?" question. I'm not quitting or leaving anytime soon, but its always good to evaluate options. And several events at work, as well as rereading Strengths Finder 2.0, for a leadership class I'm taking, have made me stop to think.

The "what next?" (or as I still refer to it the "What do I want to be when I grow up?") question is loaded, overwhelming and tends to make me want to jump up and down, cry or shake my hands at high speed. So, in an effort to step back and make the question less daunting, I've compiled a quick list of my basic likes and dislikes to frame thoughts about my future.

What do I like to do?

Smile
Manage projects
Create stuff in a day
Write- blogs, letters, about products, to-dos
Craft
Meet new people
Play with kids
Exercise
Buy people gifts
Be outside
Geek out with cool social internet tools
Surprise people
Organize
Plan events
Hang out with my family
Help people figure out what they want to do
Talk
Entertain
Run
Try new exercise classes/athletic activities
Travel

What don't I like to do?
Lie
Try to convince people of things I don't believe in
Powerpoint decks
Worry about money
Be quiet
Be treated disrespectfully
Wear Black
Feel replaceable
Be super serious
Swim
Use excel
Work late at night
Spend more time presenting and selling than making and executing
The good news is that the list of likes is bigger than my list of dislikes. The bad news is I don't know how to make a career/living out of smiling, gifting and generally making merry. To be continued....

Swagger Wagon

2010-05-07T11:39:00.006-04:00

This is ad is genius. And it makes me proud to have been voted "first to have three kids an a minivan" as a Stanny senior. The whole site is amazing-- reminds me of Modern Family.

Weekend on Wheels

2010-05-03T14:47:00.008-04:00

It was my first weekend in NYC in far too long, and it was a wheely fun one (I know, I know, lamo pun). Alex finally ordered his blades and on Saturday we set off on his maiden voyage on the West Side Highway. Though he was just learning how, he'd already taken care of thehardest part of learning how to rollerblade, so it was pretty much a breeze to hit the streets. We cruised up the WSH to Riverside park and stopped on the way back down for a drink at Pier i. By the end of the ride, Alex was hooked: "Wow, I feel like I just got admitted to this new awesome club." Yes, Alex, you have. We are planning to train for rollerblade marathon by end of summer. woot woot!

Sat afternoon Daph and Paul came in for the 5 Borough Ride on Sunday morning. It was pretty rad-- well, except for waiting at the starting line from 6:30 to 9 with 32,000 fellow cyclist fanatics. Luckily I can sleep anywhere. Seriously.

It turned out to be a pretty cool event. We got to bike across tons of bridges (wish I knew geography better, no idea which ones they were) and through all 5 boroughs of the city (duh). There were all kinds of people out for it. Including several families with triple cycles and trailing kids and dogs! Less costumes than I would have imagined, but I guess I'm not in San Francisco anymore....The ride was 42 miles but we put in another 18 getting to and from the start and finish. Here we are at the finish on Staten Island:

And here's a family photo we took on the boat home:

What can I say? It was a long ride....

MyTracks Morning

2010-04-30T10:10:00.004-04:00

Oh how I love the spring in NYC! Took the Sarthe out this morning for my first pre-work bike ride of the season with Adam. We met on the WSH and headed up for the park....after a loop and a half we went down to La Grainne Cafe for a latte and crossiant. This is becoming my fav neighborhood spot: great french cafe food + sunny windows + lots of children walking to school (total perv comment, sorry). Anyway, what a way to start a Friday.

Adam used the MyTracks app on his phone to track our ride which is pretty rad. I've got to get this thing set up-- shows your route, speed, elevation...wowza, Paul Schwartz is going to be jealous. Will have to show him this weekend so we can track our 5 Borough Ride on Sunday!

View Friday Morning in a larger map

Well stated:

2010-04-27T14:56:00.005-04:00

This NYT article resonated with me bigtime today....

HAIR

2010-04-23T15:02:00.006-04:00

View from stage of Hair

I had been pretty excited about seeing HAIR, this month's Broadway date with Alex, and I feel let down. The show kicked off with "Age of Aquarius" (strong) and concluded with the audience on stage dancing with them to "Let the Sunshine In" (strong), but nothing in between was memorable. Oh except for the part when Alex kicked me and whispered "Wake up, they're naked." At which point I opened my eyes to find that yes, the entire cast was butt naked on stage. Though that may sound enticing to some of you, there are cheaper places to see (better looking and less hairy) naked people.

On the way out, Alex pointed out that how many times I fall asleep is a good way to rate shows- so far of the shows we've seen together here's how they've preformed on the Narcoleptic Natty Scale:

Avenue Q- nodded off a couple times, stayed out for no longer than 5 mins at a time
In the Heights- A for Alert
Next to Normal- Almost as Alert
HAIR- consistant head bobbing followed by full fledged REM sleep

I figured a musical about the happy and free hippies of the 60s would keep me awake over one about a severely depressed middle-aged mom, but alas I've learned my lesson: don't judge a musical by it's subject...

A Shower in Sunny San Diego

2010-04-22T12:19:00.006-04:00

Isn't she lovely?!

Last weekend I hopped a plane to SoCal to join Alex for her wedding shower-- I couldn't miss the one and only shower for the one (well, two) and only Alex and Pat. It was an impressive affair at her Aunt Cindy's fabulous pad in Rancho Santa Fe. Her sister put me to shame with her DIY invitations, bath salts and cupcakes, she's also getting a letterpress this week which makes me have serious craft envy. Here's the first pic of bridesmaids and our bridey:
We nibbled on the brides favorite goodies (including guac, duh) and watched as Alex opened every kitchen aid appliance known to man (jealous). Highlights included playing team golf on their putting green, soaking our feet in the hot tub and this picture which Alex's step mom brought to the party. Alex and Pat circa 1997:
Mostly it made me insanely excited for their big day...itsaboutfingtime.com!!

mini Mini-Martha

2010-04-19T15:51:00.005-04:00

Last week between the French wedding and the SoCal wedding shower, I found some time to help out on a local nuptial celebration. Allison and I made some cookies for her sister Lizzie's engagement party.

Kron's idea was to do L and M (initials of the bride and groom). We found a great set of letters and numbers at Bowery Kitchen Supply in Chelsea market, and spent two mornings and one evening making the dough, rollin it out, and frosting those suckers up.

Though Kron claims that she "always sucked at arts and crafts," I must admit she is surprising me (and herself) with her creative endeavors as of late. After hours of mixing and frosting, she even turned to me proudly displaying a stripped L cookie and proclaimed, "look at me, I'm the new mini Mini-Martha!"

Oh la la...(and yes, guilty as charged)

2010-04-16T19:30:00.018-04:00

Congratulations Dyani and Brice!
This makes me happy.

I know, I know, I have not updated the Internat for over a week. Here's the thing: whenever something monumental happens, I feel extreme pressure write the most wicked-killer post ever, and consequently get very nervous, push it off another day, and wake up in the early morning thinking about how I'm letting you, my loyal readers, down.

I know this doesn't help the fact that you have been hitting refresh constantly for the past week and have taken to perusing Facebook instead for your midday mindless-pleasure/voyeurism fix, but I want you to know I feel guilty and I'm sorry. That said, let's dive into the french fairy-tale that was my 3 night whirlwind trip to la France. May I suggest you grab un boisson first, since this is going to be a long one.... (if you just want the pictures check out these, or these)

As I last reported from l'aeroport, Jessica's tummy (damn you Lupus poopus) prevented her from coming to Paris at the last minute. As consolation (I hope) I decided to bring her along in paper form and utlized the excellent Google printers yet again. Here's Jess enjoying breakfast a lovely cafe in Paris:
I arrived Thursday morning, and after spending Thursday afternoon taking in the Parisian sites (and pastries), Erin and I reunited with Megan, Sally and Jeff for dinner. Tim, who coincidentally (?) was in town for work, also joined us.

Most of us dined on escargot and steak frites, accompanied by plenty of red wine and pain. There was much chatter about the wedding weekend ahead-- we had heard rumors of the groom wearing a sword and the celebration featuring a harpsicord concert...oh la la, we were excited to see what was in store. Tim was jealous, clearly. And after several glasses of wine he agreed to come with us as Erin's +1/Jess' body double, assuming this was fine with the bride. Lucky for all, she said Mais oui!

So Friday morning, the 6 of us headed off for Chateau de Chailly, where Dyani and Bryce would wed, in the largest car available in France (a modest 5 seater van with 2 miniseats in the back). The aventure was lead by Jeff, who I quickly renamed 'dad', for his excellent skill in car packing, navigating french roadways, and carrying his large camera with that cross-shoulder strap only dads purchase. Here's a pic from the backseat of the Eurovan...luckily Jess took up very little room and we both slept a fair amount:

When not sleeping we did a dramatic reading of the new Universal movie script, codename "Hopper," that Sally is working on. When hunger struck, Dad happily ablidged and we exited for lunch at a random spot which turned out to be "the most typical french town" according to Wikipedia:
Typical french town meant plenty of choices for anything but typical snacks, and after wine, sandwiches and mini macaroons, we were on our way to Chailly.

In Chailly we were united with the rest of the Stanny crew: Kat, Chels and Kbo, Nikki and Gab. Dream dream dream (or shall I say: rêve, rêve, rêve). We all headed into town to the only open restaurant for dinner. There was of course much more Pain, Vin and escargot. And many toasts to our lovely Bride. Since there were no bars open in town, Tim talked the restaurant owner into letting us purchase a half case of wine to bring back to l'hotel. Clearly the french ablidged as they shared deep concern for letting any hours pass without wine.

Saturday morning we were up early to head over to the Chateau where we would all stay for the night. That was of course not before a stop in town-- apparently there is no such thing as brunch in France, so full service breakfast was unavailable at 10:30am. Instead we hit up the boulangerie for some goodies and brought them into the bar, which was I might add, bumping. Here we have le wedding crasherre enjoying the finest of le petite village:
The chateau was exactly as you would imagine: completely magnifique! We stayed just across the lawn at an adorable little apartment, which was perfect for le preparty: we popped some bubbly and got ready, then met up with all guests outside of the chateau entrace. The bride processed down this fabulous stone staircase and out the door of 16th century Chateau to meet her dad. It was nothing short of fairy tale:
French tradition has the entire wedding process through town to the church, so off we went behind the bride. The gentlemen layed down their swords (yes, multiple men were in french naval costume including swords) before entering the church, and we sat in pews older than the USA for the french-english ceremony. We all walked out and the newlywed couple led us back to the Chateau for celebration:
Following that there was a harpsicord concert, and champagne hour. And then came the food. And then came more food. And then came toasts. And then came more food. Several hours and several dozen decedent courses later, dancing began. Brice and Dyani's coregraphed 1st (salsa) dance, kicked off the party...which was fueled by plenty of bub and featured everything from the electric slide, to line dancing, to Lady Gaga.
Oh la la what a wedding.... (and Internat debut for Tim!)

Au Revoir!

2010-04-07T18:17:00.002-04:00

I am off to Paris to watch Dyani and Brice get married! Sadly ma copine Jessica could not make it. Lucky for me I got to video chat her from the JFK (which is a sauna- hellooooo wheres the AC?!). That's better than flying with her since I'll sleep the whole flight anyway :)

Spring with the Sarthe!

2010-04-06T11:20:00.004-04:00

Though I am a fan of the west coast and the land of no seasons, I must admit there are few seasons as wonderful as spring in NYC. There's so much to do, and everyone is outside: bbqing, walking, jogging, lounging in the parks and frolicking (ok, maybe that's just me). The light in the air is magic and there is a new bounce in everyone's step. You may even catch a New Yorker smiling at a stranger....

This past weekend was the first true spring weekend of the year, and I got back to one of my favorite warm weather activities: biking! I got the Sarthe tuned up last week and took her our for her 2010 inaugural ride. I took a spin around the park on Sat with Emily, which was great, except for being cut off by a horse and buggy and falling over...yes, I'm OK, just some bruised knees.

On Sunday Adam lead me up the west side highway and over the GW bridge into Jersey for my first time. It's quite an experience riding over the bridge, and certainly not for those afraid of heights. That thing is HIIIIIGH! Great views of the city though:
Next spring activity to check off the list: blading. Still working on Allison and Alex to buy some so I can have a rollerbuddy :)

Bunny Cakes!

2010-04-05T16:36:00.004-04:00

I purchased this glorious bunny cake pan from Williams-Sonoma 4 years back, though it's not really appropriate for anything other than Easter or Chase Ormond's birthday, it makes one hell of a cake. This year I frosted them with buttercream using the star tip on my sweet new pastry bag (thanks Kronick!).

Email of the Day

2010-04-02T10:38:00.006-04:00

I woke up to this email and pic from Lauren's mom this morning. What a great email to wake up to on this glorious Good Friday:

Dear Natalie,

You inspired me!
Joan xo

Proud to be a Topekan

2010-04-01T10:03:00.004-04:00

Big news at work is that we've changed our name to Topeka, to honor the city of Google, Kansas (formerly Topeka, Kansas). Though I'm not sure "I totally topeka'd him" rolls off the tongue as well as Google, but I suppose I'll get used to it. I guess we're still working on changing the URL because www.google.com still leads to Topeka search....

Boston Baby

2010-03-31T16:07:00.003-04:00

Finished up my 4th baby cake this week. This one is for a family friend, who's popping out a Beantown boy any day now. Since its a toss up whether he'll arrive before or after Opening Day, I thought it only appropriate that we prepare the mini-fan for the season ahead!

She's leaving on a jetplane

2010-03-31T15:49:00.004-04:00

Sad news: Orla, queen of banoffee pie and Irish beer, is leaving NYC tomorrow after a quarter in the USA. We sent her off in true Creative Lab fashion with a bottle of wine....each, at Ed's house on Monday night. She will be missed, but luckily she will also be back.

In honor of her departure I baked the above chocolate peanut butter cup cakes. The only thing better than peanut butter is peanut butter with butter and sugar added (this is peanut butter frosting). Yummo.

Early Start on Easter

2010-03-30T10:15:00.000-04:00

Since I don't like eggs and I'm a horrible Jew, I decided to decorate cookies on the eve of passover. Why so soon you ask? Well, the bunny has to hop allllll the way across the country for some very special deliveries....
Sorry if the easter bunny leaves you out this year, you can blame a very hungry Saturday afternoon visitor who ate half of my supply of freshly baked and un-frosted carrots, bunnies and eggs.
If you want to sample some yourself, HOP TO IT (obvious/unavoidable pun intended)and get cookin-- same recipe as my spooky sweets and holiday treats.

Martha Approved, Stanny Family Agrees!

2010-03-29T18:23:00.003-04:00

Friday night, Family Dinner with the Stanny gang resumed after a long hiatus. Ever since the Stanny Fam heard Martha say "This one's my favorite!" to our Lamb Tacos, they've been dying to try them. So Friday night Erin and I invaded Berto's kitchen and roasted up 3 racks of lamb tacos, while sipping on Lara's fabulous mango margs, and eating at least 3 avocados worth of Ballew's guac and salsa.
It was couples night at Family Dinner-- we cooked for Kait and Shine, Berto and Lara, Adam and "The visitor" (Sarah), Taco and Calzo, Ballew and Becca:
The tacos were a unanimous winner...though since everyone was at least 2 margs in by the time they tasted the winning dish, standards may have been slightly lower than Martha's. Whatever, we'll take it.

Surprise Weekend Visit

2010-03-29T14:45:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday to Em, the Red Velvet Queen!

2010-03-26T12:00:00.008-04:00

Today's Emily's birthday, and in her honor I baked 2 dozen red velvet cuppy cakes last night...
when the clock struck midnight, I threw a pajama party to celebrate (I was the only attendee): Emily introduced me this very sweet flavor, and I've since become a bit obsessed. The bestest ones ever are from Sprinkles in LA. But, this recipe from Cooking Light is adopted from Sprinkles' and is lighter with the same delish taste-- AMAZING!

I also packaged some up in this adorable cupcake box for a very special neighbor: The rest will be desert after family dinner tonight :)

Spring Training 2K10

2010-03-24T16:45:00.015-04:00

So yes, as you may have heard Erin mention on National TV, we headed to Scottsdale for a 5 way bachelorette weekend directly following our big Martha win. It was a repeat trip-- after the best weekend of our lives last year, we just had to return to the Valley Ho for some spring training fun.This time we had more to celebrate than just ourselves, as 5 of the 12 team members have been rocked up since last year's training.

Unfortunately us NYC girls had a bit of trouble getting there-- it started with the worlds most anxious cab driver, we then missed our flight and were faced with frustrated and rude US airways employee and 3 screaming crying fellow passengers. We kept our cool, found out Jet Blue had a flight out, and sprinted to their terminal. We got lucky with a gem of a gate agent who processed our tickets, checked our bags, ran us to the gate, AND wore a birthday hat (which clearly I offered her) in less than 35 minutes, to get us on our flight.
The crazy departure made our late arrival at the Ho even more exciting, there was screaming hugging and laughing that sent security to our room shortly thereafter....

In true Team and Pi Phi fashion, all the single ladies (*queue Beyonce song) acted as though the 5 ladies: Dyani, Ashlee, Jess, Alex and Megan ("DA JAM" for short) were our pledges.
Here they are, aren't they just the cutest?! (we totally won rush)
Here goes the recap:

Friday night: We lock DA JAM in one room to make up a dance to be performed on Saturday night, while the single ladies got to work decking out the room with banners, pictures, posters and assembling gift bags of tshirts, cups, rings and all sorts of goodies:

The single ladies then preformed a rhyming roast/toast, complete with a drink to honor each bachelorette:
We then continued to have our cake (and champagne) and eat it too.... lots of catching up.

Saturday was a perfect Scottsdale day, high 70s and sunny, with 0% humidity and 100% awesomeness. We spent it by the pool, drinking Go Bananas and mimosas until early afternoon when we headed to the Giants/A's game. Unfortunately unlike last year we did not get kidnapped on a party bus, but we did get taken for a free ride on a pedicab....
We were careful to monitor our beer intake at the game, for fear of passing out by 9pm, and luckily we managed to keep it in check. We trapped DA JAM in the side room again and set up for Red Night (another pi phi tradition).

Rather than buy some standard pink bachelorette crowns/veils, I decided to make DIY headwear for the ladies....I found the stretchy sequinned trim, lace, letters and feathers all MJ Trimmings, and went to town fashioning these Red Night meets flapper accessories for our rocked up ladies:
We then played a "how well do you know DA JAM" game...we had asked them all for random facts ahead of time, and the single ladies had to guess. Following that there was a very odd Pi Phi tradition interlude....The Cookie Shine, where basically we lay out a sheet and ate cookies and read stories sent by the boys about their fiances. Cheesy? Yes. Necessary? Definitely. (and of course there were tears shed).

Next stop before dinner was getting a shot of the group in the tub, clearly. So we called the bellhop and about 50 flashes later we were ready to roll. Locked up Ladies:
And the whole group:

Last but not least, we made DA JAM preform their dance....which looked strikingly similar to the "Devil Dance" several of the ladies had performed at rush 5 years ago, with the brilliant addition of Dyani doing the worm as the finale (video coming soon).
If you've read this far, you probably want to check out the rest of the pics. Let's just say, this weekend sets a hiiiiigh bar for bachelorettes!

Martha, Martha, Martha

2010-03-22T20:51:00.010-04:00

How can I even begin to explain how thrilling it was to be on Martha?!? I'll try but there are really NO words.

Lucky for me, we got a last minute ticket so my mom could be in the studio audience. She arrived the day before the show to help me finish sewing the aprons, pack for Scottsdale, put together the bachelorette goodies, make a gift for Martha, and of course, find the perfect outfit for my TV debut. She was THE perfect assistant and the experience (which she calls "Jumping with the Stars!") would not have been complete without her. Photos here.

We arrived at the studio at 7:45am, and from the moment the receptionist wrote our names on those "MARTHA" branded name tags, I could hardly contain my excitement:
We were taken to the green room where we hung out with the other teams, and put on the embellished aprons, courtesy of the amazing selection of grosgrain ribbon at MJ trimmings. Lindsay's BF, Erik, had got us a little surprise-- chef's hats!
We decided not to wear them on the show...After half an hour of bouncing and grinning, we were taken to get hair and makeup. No big deal, just sitting around getting my hair done next to Amy Sedaris....
My goodness what a thrill it was when the show started!

Somehow we managed to make the lamb tacos (which we practiced 3 times the week prior), while being filmed live in front of a crowd of brightly clad middle aged women. I think we were kinda the crowd favorite....must have been the aprons and the way the makeup artists made us look like stepford wives. It was totally surreal: lights, camera, live action AND all the while trying to prepare a meal without cutting a finger off.

The producer told us "I want a price is right ending if you win"-- and that is what she got. I was jumping up and down like.....well, myself.
Then we went home and watched the show on TV and went out to celebrate Erin's birthday, and our big win. Best day EVER. I realize that I use that phrase a lot, I'm kind of the girl that cried "BEST," but this time, I'm serious. It HAS NEVER BEEN nor will it EVER BE better than this. How's that for a bold statement.
And of course, if you missed the show-- the video is here!

The week of AMAZING.

2010-03-22T13:14:00.006-04:00

Apologies for the Internat outage-- I have been too busy winning cooking competitions on national TV, celebrating 5 hot bachelorettes, learning about the 5 c's of marketing at the Google Wharton Marketing Academy, and running 13 miles through the streets of Manhattan, to blog. I know, it's possibly been the most crazy amazing week of my life.

I will attempt to update starting with the most recent activities since they're freshest in my mind. After a weekend in Scottsdale, and week in SF, I returned to NYC and brought the spring with me. It was GORGEOUS all weekend-- and I spent close to all waking hours outside. Walking, running, or otherwise making merry.

Saturday I checked out the Brooklyn Bridge (awesome) and had Grimaldi's pizza (over-rated).

After a fabulous fresh pasta dinner cooked by my live in girlfriend/wife/housemate/mom/chef, Erin, on Saturday night, I was stuffed with carbs and ready to run this town! Erin and I ran the whole way together, on a perfect 55 and sunny day. The course went through the park, times square and down the westside highway...with fabulous city views, bands and spectators along the way. This was the most fun half marathon I've done yet (and also my fastest time, woo hoo!)

Here's my favorite spectator with me at the end:

I'm not the only one who's excited...

2010-03-11T11:17:00.002-05:00

Text Message Received 6:31am from mom:

I am on my way!!!!!
Thrilled.
Trying to sleep.
LOVE you and that you love ME!
Yippee
- Martha-mom
(Actually I hope I am a lot nicer than Martha and that I never go to prison)

My Debut on MarthaStewart.com!!!

2010-03-10T17:15:00.004-05:00

It's official: they even have a video featuring us in "coming soon" on the site...

Chances of me sleeping between now and Friday morning? Slim to none.

Natty had a Little Lamb...

2010-03-10T06:40:00.001-05:00

Title of this post is drastic understatement, I have in fact had A LOTTA lamb!

Ever since we found out from the Martha producers late Friday that our secret ingredient for the show is rack of lamb, we've been doing nothing but research, think about, saute, crust, fry, roast, bake and eat lamb. For a girl who was a bigger fan of lambskin accessories than meat, I'm suffering from an extreme Lambover. Here are some of the things we experimented with:

Lamb, asparagus baked samosas with apricot chutney:

Lamb tacos with asparagus salsa and chipotle crema:
And potato pizza with rosemary lamb and asparagus:
What will we be cooking on Friday??? Well you're have to tune in to find out!

JEANious Birthday!

2010-03-08T22:03:00.008-05:00

Since we'll be in on National TV (PS: Set your TiVo for Friday's Martha Stewart Show) and flying to Scottsdale on Erin's actual birthday this Friday, we celebrated this weekend. The theme was Canadian Tuxedo-- though, in fact, this Jardy was in the USA....

The night began at my/Erin's place where we got the jardy started and getting decked out. I made my headband with jean scraps, and a "Jardy Girl" crown which Erin deemed too much (her hair looked pretty sweet) to wear. Whateva, her joots surely made up for it. Kait looked straight out of an 80's sitcom in my mom's vintage Wrangler jacket and I borrowed a jean dress and pulled out the full length "jench" coat from Jess's birthday in SF:At Bills Bar and Burger, we got to applaud all attendees costumes over pitchers of beer. From cutoffs to Weans (white jeans), to vests, to Linsday's jean jumper, we were pretty impressed by the costuming. As usual, Alberto's arrival was highly awaited, and he did not disappoint in jean capris and a jean blazer with shoulder pads:
Best story was Lara recounting Berto getting dressed-- "so he comes out of the room in the blazer and capris and is like 'should I wear the white shoes or the brown? I mean, I don't want to look ridiculous!'"

We then headed to 675 bar, where we were joined by many more jean-clad friends. Full pictures from the night are here. The night ended, as many of Erin's birthday nights do, at Japas.
Jardy on.

Mini Martha meets the Legend

2010-03-05T18:06:00.011-05:00

OMG OMG I DONT EVEN KNOW WHAT TO SAY. AT THIS TIME NEXT WEEK I WILL BE ON NATIONAL TV WITH MARTHA STEWART!

The contest went like this:

We decided to be Team USA: Trapped in the Kitchen, because, well, who doesn't want to cheer for the USA? (And love R.Kelly's Trapped in the Closet) That would be completely unpatriotic. Plus I happen to have a lot of red white and blue. We dressed up and strung up a flag at our station. We met the judges beforehand: 3 Google NYC execs and celebrity chef Todd English. Naturally I told him I grew up going to Figs and Olives, and was from Newton. He signed a cookbook for me "Cooking with Love." My thoughts exactly, Todd.

Then we got set up for the relay. There were 3 tasks: peeling 4 hardboiled eggs, de-veining 6 shrimp, and trimming a hanger steak. I started with the eggs:

Lindsay peeled shrimp and Erin man handled that steak, with Todd looking on, impressed:

We came in second out of 6 teams in this round.

Then came the "cooking" round, which wasn't cooking at all, just 5 minutes to prepare an "amuse-bouche" with items from a microkitchen. It was slim pickings but we decided to go with a strawberry/banana toast made from strawberry, banana, yogurt on a cinamon sugar pita chip. Most other teams had a similar idea, but we WON 1st because of our creative presentation (using cupcake frosting to put dabs of Google color on the plate). What can I say, I'm in the creative lab!

We were happy:

This narrowed it down to three teams for the food trivia round. The questions were quite random, everything from the ratio of sugar to air in cotton candy, to the function of cream of tartar. We were neck and neck for second 5 questions in a row....NERVE RACKING! But we had an insane cheering squad (thanks to my team), complete with pom poms and USA cheers...

We finally got knocked out for not knowing the president responsible for importing the Olive Tree! BUT they decided to let us go to Martha anyway. This is a dream. Like, OMG a DREAM. I feel like jumping up and down. Oh wait, I did:

I can hardly wait.

Trapped in the Kitchen

2010-03-03T20:11:00.003-05:00

So tomorrow is the "Google Chef" competition at work, and Erin, Lindsay and I decided to join at the last minute. I'm pretty sure that I am NOT the best chef at Google, but I'm also pretty sure Erin is, so I'm hoping she can order me around the kitchen and we can win this thang. What's at stake?

The top two teams tomorrow compete for the title on Martha Stewart's Show next Friday. Yes, you read that right, that is the possibility of me. live. with. MARTHA. Clearly I have been waiting for this moment my whole life. In fact, maybe this blog will be read in two weeks after I'm on the show and she immediately offers me my own segment, takes me on as her young mini-Martha and hands her empire over to me. People will read this post, and think, wow, can you believe she was just a REGULAR girl with a regular (well, actually kinda sweet) desk job?!

Probably not. But a girl can dream. Ok, off to practice my knife skills with Erin so can be helpful in competition. If all else fails, I'll "accidentally" cut off a finger to get a sympathy vote from the judges. Yeah, that's how much I care, I'd give a finger to be on this show.

Mobile Is the Future

2010-03-02T10:47:00.002-05:00

Here's a shameless plug for the video that introduces Eric Schmidt at the Mobile World Congress, which was worked on by yours truly. I had nothing to do with the speech, so you can stop watching after 3 minutes ;)

Poisoned in the Bay

2010-02-25T20:40:00.002-05:00

I'm in SF for the week for work. Life is good- except a waitress at Ozumo on Monday night decided to spoil my fun (and my stomach) and served me sushi with a side of food poisoning. Luckily the Vitale beds are comfy, I have a fabulous bedside nurse, and I'm catching up on Olympic coverage. I am starting to feel like myself again, but only after 2 days of misery on my deathbed/over my deathtoliet. Best advice was recieved from Dr. Dusty: "I think you're gonna be OK, but if you're asleep do NOT walk towards the white light." Woof. Hopefully there will be a more exciting post to come.

Blue Hill Stone Barns courtesy of Guest Blogger, Lauren Gross

2010-02-24T17:14:00.009-05:00

This is the first (of a series?) of guest blogger posts brought to you by my soulmate, Lauren B Gross. If you like it, she may be back for more. If you're jealous, send me a post and you may just see it on this very blog :)

"Just get there man." So read one review that, amongst more eloquent but equally elated others, lured the inter-Nat, Erin and your guest blogger Lo to venture 30 miles outside Manhattan to the promised land of Blue Hill at Stone Barns-- the four-season farm and American restaurant sourcing from its very pastures. The yelpers had hailed, Zagat applauded, the elite powerfully praised and our blessed trio was out to test...
Our early reservation and accompanying pre-twilight arrival enabled us to admire the green grounds before sundown (and, let’s be honest, return to NYC in time for urban dance hour). Through a stoney entry and aside a cozy fireplace and inviting barroom, we encountered our first taste-bud-tingler: a round of delight-filled cocktails – Blood Orange Margarita (tequila, blood orange juice, fresh ginger, lime) for Erin, Black Currant Cosmo (citrus vodka, triple sec, black currant puree) for Natty and the Elderflower Royale (cava, elderflower liqueur) for me. In harmony with the remainder of Blue Hill, oh so pretty and delicious!
Following cocktails, we were escorted into the main dining room composed of cream colored walls, high arched ceilings and framed with dark wooden beams. Like its local farm ingredients, the entirety of Blue Hill's interior oozes FRESH. Refined, clean lines collectively create simplicity of setting, both elegant and comfortable. Freckled with free flowing floral arrangements, an oversized central oak table serves as the room’s focal point and servers’ home base, further intimatizing the space of nurturing neutrals.

Amidst ambiance’s pure perfection and ballet-like service (impeccable throughout – upscale yet understated and entirely unpretentious, the staff was absolutely lovely!), our Farmer’s Feast began: a five-course tasting inspired by the week's harvest and customized to each individual’s taste. No menu, just a list of February 20^th’s freshest. I opted vegetarian but Blue Hill transcends such titling…black trumpet mushrooms, Tuscan kale, wild arugula…Cheeses? Yes. Eggs from our property chickens? I’ll pass. Natty picked pescatarian and our exploratory Erin basically said “give it to me.” And they did. To all of us really.

Amuse bouche – mini beet burgers, silver-dollar-sized dollops of flawlessness:

Course 1 – beets (grown in heaven) dusted with a pine nut puree, light leafy greens and a frothy yogurt sauce. Except in their shared exquisiteness, the remaining three savory selections differed for each of us, I’ll save you (myself) from recalling them all, but some favorites included:

Potato onion bread with homemade (well, everything is) butter and vegetable salts:

Ricotta and trumpet mushroom ravioli, and eight-row corn pollenta:

Dessert – lemon meringue atop goat cheese ice cream:

Needless to say, the farm-to-table transcendent experience seduced us all – I want to live there, Natty wants to wed there and Erin “could have died happy drinking bud heavy with those jersey shore cast members we met on the metro north on the way home.”

The celebration continues...

2010-02-19T17:14:00.013-05:00

Had a fab morning yesterday and the day just got better. I was pleasantly surprised by my team at 4pm with a life sized natroid:Yes the droid is throwing balloons, confetti and Michael's gift cards. They know me well...

They also strayed from the classic (and dare I say overdone?) birthday cupcakes and ordered a cookie cake. Excellent choice!
Then headed up to TGIAF for some beer tasting and flip cup (what? at the office? yes, I know: Google is great/I'm probably getting fired)

Then went to a delish din at Yerba Buena Perry with some special ladies. Chelsea sent us this fabulous desert, and Mom and Dad the wine...could life get better?
Apparently it could: Lauren arrived at 11pm to meet us for drinks at Village Tavern. If yesterday has anything to do with it, this year is lookin good.

Great start to my 27th Year....

2010-02-18T10:57:00.005-05:00

This morning has been a fab start to my 27th year. I woke up to a text message from the birthday bird (wow that bird is tech savvy), a bottle of champagne and cookies outside my door from my fabulous neighbor Erin, and then hit up Physique 57 to tone this 27 year old butt into shape. Allison told the teacher it was my birthday so mid class everyone was punching "Happy" "Birthday" "Natalie" while shaking their hips. That's a happy birthday indeed. My coworkers are doing a fab job as the "replacement spirit fairy" (since that is usually my job). Even big bird is wearing a hat!

The best birthday wish in my inbox so far goes to my sister who made this someecard for me. Um, clearly she knows me well:

Lookin forward to celebrating through the weekend!

You earned it, girls. (LA Recap)

2010-02-17T12:00:00.015-05:00

For my birthday din in LA on Monday night at Katsua (DELISH), there were several emails sent beforehand about whether it would be internat worthy....It would have made it even before desert, but when this cake came out it was a slam dunk.

Here are the rest of the ladies who partook in that fabulous oh so LA dinner. Not included was Ricki Lake, who Emily spotted in the restaurant, and I wanted to invite to join us...

This girls early bday din was the finale to a fabulous LA weekend which began on Friday night. I was greeted at the airport by Garz and her new man, and then whisked off to heaven--the Wagner casa on the beach in Ventura. I spent the next two days there with Lauren, Nick and Ryan.

We spent the next two days lounging, bike cruising, grilling, napping, running and surfing all the while soaking up the perfect Cali weather. Here's my sweetheart serving Valentine's breakfast on the deck.

I also taught the group some Intensati and did some warm up exercises pre surfing!

Unfortunately the only time I was standing on a "surf board" was in our dry land training:

It was still an awesome adventure, despite spending the majority of the time being thrashed in the waves rather than riding them. After a picnic with the Wagner and Caswell fams, we hit the road and headed to LA for Alex and Pat's fabulous Valentine's Day Party.

I added flare to everyone's outfits and it turned into a dance party. Here's me and my Valentine:

I spent Sunday with the lovely Mrs. Taylor at her AMAZING new castle in Santa Monica. Luckily, she offered me either to move into one of her guest rooms (yes, there are multiple), or to pay my first months' rent in LA. Sounds IDEAL. Faced with another sickly perfect day (80 and sunning in Feb?!), we headed to "The Bu" (malibu) to relax on the beach and dream of days when this will be a weekly occassion.

The weekend was, well, what dreams are made of. I love you Cali, and I left wishing we all could be California girls....

My oh my.

2010-02-16T19:31:00.005-05:00

Just arrived back in NYC this morning after a spontaneous, fabulous, last-minute visit to SoCal. I am too tired to begin to recount the weekend's events in all their glory, and believe me there was a LOT of glory-- So stay tuned til tomorrow.

AND, Huge apologies to Allison, who mixed all the frosting to frost the Conversation Cookies mentioned in my Valentine's post...and of course provided plenty of conversation herself as my kitchen companion.