The Union Square Farmer’s Market

Monday, February 16, 2015

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I have a surprise for you.

This week, there will be no snow….no kids….no lake….no booze….no feast. I know, I know, why muck with tradition. But sometimes you need to shake things up. Show some diversity. Act like you have a life beyond your four walls and backyard.

New York is an interesting place. Yes, it’s the big, bustling city that we all know. But in many respects it’s like a village. You bump into your neighbors, know your mailman on a first name basis, say hello to the Super who works a few buildings down the street.

Often, particularly if you have no reason (work, school, etc) to get outside of your neighborhood, you become complacent and live within a 1-mile radius. Everything you need – good restaurants, dentists, doctors, movie theaters, food shopping, toy stores – is right there. Quite literally, there is no reason to leave. Except for the guilt that reminds you that you chose to live in this city for everything that exists beyond that 1-mile radius.

I took these photos a few weeks ago when I visited the Union Square farmer’s market. Union Square is right next to Chelsea, a 10-15 minute walk depending on my energy level; but sometimes, particularly in the winter, it feels like a trek. It’s just so darn cold, and ordering my groceries on Fresh Direct with the click of a button is too darn easy.

But I miss it. I miss the market and its earnest farmers. I miss the conversations about weather and yield. Most of all, I miss the heirloom varieties of radish, squash, turnip and carrot, in colors that range from vibrant purple and forest green to maize and garnet and goldenrod.

So here, without further ado, are a few photos from my latest visit to the Union Square farmer’s market. Which had me buying so much produce that I was forced to hail a taxi for the return trip to my apartment. Always a good sign.

If you’re in New York, or any city for that matter, pay a visit to your local farmer’s market. Prime season is coming up soon, but it’ll be a few more cold weeks before we get there. I’m sure that your local farmers would appreciate the love.

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NYC

Tarallucci E Vino at the new Cooper Hewitt

Monday, December 29, 2014

It’s December 29, just a few short days before New Year’s Eve. I’m spent from this holiday. In a good way…but suffering from that specific type of exhaustion that comes from raising young kids.

Today was more of the usual: we made breakfast, we cleaned. I cleaned. We got dressed for skiing. We drove to the ski resort where the green Magic Carpet still isn’t open. I walked their skis up the bunny hill. I chased them down. I yelled “pizza not French fries! Don’t forget the pizza!” They prefer French fries. Skis railroaded, out of control, heading towards netting, SLOW signs and other beginners. Nobody was injured, at least not today.

I drove back home. They took naps while I dreamt that one day, I might be able to take one of those again.

I went grocery shopping. We made sandwiches for dinner. Sam no longer likes avocado. Emma no longer likes crusts. Fortunately she doesn’t ask me to cut them. She just rips them off her sandwich and scatters them onto the floor. Crusts no longer interest Jackson either. He sits and waits for the high-ticket items: the dropped turkey slice; the leftover cheese.

And me? I’m biding my time until 8:30PM when I can give the kids a nuzzle, tuck them in, fix myself a warm milk & Bailey’s and relax in bed with a good read. I have so many photos to share from the holidays, but I’m saving them until next week. Next week, life gets back on track, work resumes, the kids are back at school, and I can ease myself back into the business of blogging. With some exciting new directions for this space, so stay tuned.

Until then, I wanted to share with you some images that I took a few weeks ago at the launch party for the new Cooper Hewitt Museum in New York. I was covering social media that evening for Tarallucci e Vino, the museum’s new restaurant, so the images are iphone only, but still give a sense for the space. The new Cooper Hewitt Museum is housed in the old Carnegie mansion, built in 1899. The juxtaposition of old and new design is omnipresent, and highlighted by the modern Tarallucci e Vino café, which sits on the ground floor of the Museum.

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NYC

The Rockettes!

Monday, December 15, 2014

I got an email a few years ago from a friend who lives in Philly. She’d bought group tickets to see the Rockettes in New York City in December and one of the families had to pull out due to illness. She had a few extra tickets, would I care to join?

At that point, the only kid in the house was Lauren, age 1 year 11 months. It was a questionable move to bring a young toddler to a full-length performance, but I thought that she might be able to hack it. This, after all, was the child who could stare at a feather for 10 minutes straight, no doubt investigating its detailed ridges, contours and variegated colors.

We accepted the offer, and off we went, Lauren dressed in her best outfit – a mini dress and corresponding pair of faux Ugg boots. There might have been a hair flower (aka a barette) to finish the outfit; branding that way used to be the only way to a hair clip into that strawberry blonde fluff.

Hard to believe that we’ve been to the show for 6 years running. It’s become our annual tradition, which we celebrate in honor of Lauren’s birthday in December. For the first 4 years it was just the two of us. Last year we invited Sam, who’d just turned 4. Sam was devastated that we wouldn’t buy the $20 light-up whirling dervish sold in the lobby and could barely concentrate on the show without streaming tears of frustration. That was his last invitation. He was subsequently disinvited from watching Annie on Broadway, replaced by his 2-year-old sister, who was more than happy to swap in. Maybe he’ll get another Rockettes invite down the road, but first I need to get over the trauma, and I haven’t quite healed.

For now, I’m keeping the show sacred for those who will appreciate it. This year, it was Lauren’s best friend from school. Their personalities are aligned all the way down to their matching dimples.

Lauren was so excited for the show that she picked out her outfit the night before, and spent the morning decorating the apartment…

The kids made Lauren cards….

And we finished decorating our mini tree. With two weeks of active tree time before we head to the lake, it wasn’t worth it to haul in a beast.

(hi!)

We headed up to the show, our first stop Rock Center to see the world famous tree…

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NYC

Remembrance Day

Monday, November 17, 2014

Last Tuesday was Veterans Day and the older kids were out of school. Sam had a birthday party that chewed up the middle few hours of the day, leaving Lauren and I with some much anticipated one-on-one time.

There was a time when it was always like this. Just me, my girl, and a front-loading baby carrier with all of New York City to explore. I took her to museums, to restaurants, to Central Park and to the Hudson River where we’d spend hours wandering.

The need to explore is in her blood. It’s in mine. I’m restless by nature, which is why this city feeds my soul.

We headed up to Sam’s birthday party at a movie theater near Penn Station. On the way we passed the James A. Farley post office, one of the city’s landmark buildings.

It seemed fitting to peer inside since the kids have always asked me about this building. It’s impressive in size and stature, taking up an entire city block, its entrance made prominent with a set of solid Greek columns. Today its stairs attract drifters from neighboring Penn Station, but step inside and you’re transported to an earlier era. A time when ceilings were gilded even lowly government buildings were considered a thing of beauty.

We dropped Sam off at his event, and then Lauren and I rode the subway to Midtown. Our goal was to watch some of the Veterans Day parade, and then spend some time at one of our favorite museums.

Holidays typically mean street fairs in this city, and last week was no exception, with one set up directly in front of the museum.

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NYC

Our little Chelsea

Monday, October 20, 2014

With all of the attention that I’ve given to the time that we spend at our lake house in New Jersey, it’s easy to forget that we spend most of the week’s waking hours in New York City.

Maybe it’s because I’m from Toronto but I still get butterflies when we cross the George Washington Bridge each weekend and head back into the city.

I love the transition between quiet weekends in the country and our busy city life. Once we park the car, Emma usually joins to help walk Jackson around the block for his final evening stroll, hairbrush in hand.

The irony of this situation is that no matter how hard I try, now matter what sums of glittering gold and cheap Barbie merchandise I offer, Emma will not allow me to come within 3 feet while brandishing a hairbrush. But hairbrush as purse-like accessory? Why not…

Our lake house neighbors are shocked that we’re able to keep everyone, including our dog, alive and free of Rickets when we’re required to take an elevator to get outside. The inconvenience! The lack of fresh air! The sunlight- does your family get any sunlight in that box?

Don’t get me wrong, life in the country has its benefits….but city life has some pretty good perks too.