Photo Friday No. 58

Inspired by "Jenna" in

New Jersey

4 Eyes in

Pennsylvania

 

PAINT

I think I'm finally ready to undertake a project and paint my powder room.  Thinking about a dark grey color but I need a color consult.  Check out Sherwin Williams - Thunder Gray (SW 7645).  

The next project is the boys bedroom.  I think we should put together a design board.  I need paint, light sconces and yes, I will pay you for the vintage, camp blankets :)  Do not use them!

Tracy

"Before"

Spring is in the Air and...

Spring is in the air and
antiques are everywhere..

I am not sure what spring has to do with antique shops and flea markets,
but this t has been out and about poking around.

A favorite stop in Summit had several good picks: (see photo)

* vintage, gold anchor buttons: just the thing to customize a navy, JCrew blazer

* a black, metal box: clean, modern lines & perfect for organization

* crystal, orb paperweight -- > I am obsessed!!!

* remember flash cards? A pile of fun sight words - think framed
{my lucky stars gave me the words "gray", "sail" and "crab"!!!)

Tricia

PS I happened to score a pair of vintage, camp blankets for the other t ~ stay tuned for an upcoming project - and t owes me $ or else I'm keeping the blankets. ;)

PEEPS

I had the opportunity to tour a warehouse facility last week (exciting I know) but in the end it was.  It highlighted a really great company that is in our backyard and has been for 80 years. 

So think Mike & Ike candy, Hot Tamales, Peanut Chews and you guessed it ... PEEPS!  All made right here in the Lehigh Valley by the Just Born company.  The candy is manufactured in one facility and then shipped to a warehouse nearby by for final distribution all over the country.

We received a tour of the distribution warehouse because they did a large renovation project back in 2009 and received the LEEDS Gold Certification (it is now a "green" building).  There were about 50 of us there for the tour and we were all impressed that the two owners of the company attended our event. 

The owners are cousins and their grandfathers started this company back in the mid-1920's.  The two of them together had such a great synergy and sense of humor.  They sealed the deal to being great when the one owner stopped off to talk to a bunch of workers on the assembly line putting boxes together.

While on the tour, we received some inside scoop that "Mike & Ike" are being a bit mischievous lately (keep an eye out for the Mike & Ike candy boxes in early April).  And I encourage you to buy those yummy Peeps this Easter season.  The big question asked of all of us was do you like your Peeps fresh or stale?  I like mine stale. 

If you don't know what I am talking about, buy two boxes of Peeps.  Box # 1 --- eat the Peeps fresh out of the box.  Box # 2 --- poke a hole in the packaging and wait a couple of days until they get a bit hard, then eat them.

Enjoy!

Tracy

Tales from a Stay-at-Home Mom

1. Emma wears the SAME denim shorts and purple underwear every day. :/

2. William insists on changing his shorts and boxers EACH time he goes to the bathroom. This is not a joke - I am completely serious. :/

3. Imagine: two preschoolers in the back of my van singing, "I'm sexy and I know it."

4. A "perfect world" essay in third grade: Henry writes, "Bacon would be a veggie."

5. William (4 1/2 yr.) tells me he is a boy because he has a "wiggly thing"..

6. I read an article about "places to go in your home for relaxation" ~ one choice was a laundry room. What??!!! {in their photo, the laundry room looked like a sleek spaceship with no sign of laundry or a machine - just a bowl of clementines} Enough said.

Tricia

PS and one more time..LEHIGH BEAT DUKE

Photo Friday No. 57

Waiting for Tim Tebow in

New Jersey

Kindergarten Artwork in
Pennsylvania

YOUTUBE

It's funny sister how you are drawn to print and I am drawn to the big black screen (think TV, movie or computer screen).  My new thing is You Tube.  With Lehigh's win over Duke, check out this You Tube post:

Lehigh Beat Duke

Then I stumbled upon some fun Taylor Swift Posts (for all the Swifties out there - that is code for Taylor Swift fans).  You have to go to the Official Taylor Swift You Tube page.  She has a bunch of video blogs.  They are so great.  A glimpse of her in every day life with her friends and family.  

There was a funny post when Taylor and her mom were shopping and they saw her dad in the same store.  Taylor snuck up on him and scared him.  I was trying to get a glimpse of the store they were in (it looked really normal).  There are glimpses of their house and I thought I saw some clutter on the kitchen counters.  I can't stop watching these posts --- check them out.

Tracy

Miles of Piles

I must admit --> I have a STACK of things to read. All sorts of things.
Mind if I share?

Books:

The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
Room by Emma Donoghue
The Descendants by Kaui Hart Hemmings
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

Decorating Books:

American Modern by Thomas O'Brien
The Houses of Greenwich Village by Kevin D. Murphy

Magazines:

Architectural Digest - March issue with Brooke Shields on the cover
House Beautiful - March issue
Elle Decor - April issue

New York Times Magazine:

Articles on Bobbi Brown and Stella McCartney

Flipboard:

Everything that pops up!

What are you reading?

Tricia

CHEER

Did you tune in Friday night ... Lehigh vs. Duke in college hoops.  Super exciting.  Lehigh won!

Funny tid bit ... when they were getting ready for the games, the arena folks had Lehigh listed on the scoreboard as the Mountain Lions instead of the Mountain Hawks (mistake was noticed and change was made).

The next game was on Sunday night vs. Xavier.  Lehigh lost but played a most respectable game.  Can't wait until next season.

Go team!

Tracy

Day after the big win.

Kinfolk: A Guide for Small Gatherings

By accident or chance, I came across the magazine/book Kinfolk. In the words of the editor Nathan Williams: "As you will soon find out, this magazine is about more than cooking or eating. We are interested in why we cook and eat together, and in the people, relationships, and social elements that keep us inviting people into our homes."

The magazine is filled with breathtaking photographs and beautiful "words", as they call them. It is the type of read to be savored slowly with a hot cup of tea. Visit www.kinfolkmag.com/subscribe and you can enjoy four volumes each year too. Let me know what you think.

Tricia

WOW

Special Edition Saturday Post

From New Jersey

From Pennsylvania


Go team!

Photo Friday No. 56

Baking in

New Jersey

Shamrock in
Pennsylvania

BRACKETS

March Madness has started!  Yeah I suppose.  I'm not a true fan but I've always liked basketball and I do enjoy college sports.  

Here is why it is exciting (at least in our household).  Lehigh University made it to "The Dance"!  Mike and the kids are true LU fans and go to as many home games as possible.  Our house is speckled with brown and white pom-poms, signs, clothing, hats, etc.  

The brackets were announced and Lehigh's first opponent is none other than Duke.  That is crazy.  Duke is obviously a tougher than tough opponent but it is still super exciting for Lehigh.  Check out the game on Friday night at 7:30 pm on CBS.  Go team!

Tracy

  Matthew & Jack with star player C.J. McCollum (2010)

100 Cameras.

Back in 2008, four women in New York City decided they could make a difference. A difference in the lives of children around the world by using cameras. Their theory was that a child could document a community through photogrpahs as an insider better than someone from the outside. Selling these photographs could raise money to help the children and their communities. And, so, 100Cameras. was born.


The first exhibit took place in a small NYC apartment. On display were photographs taken by children in the Sudan. From here, the interest in the project grew tremendously. There are now young photographers from Sudan, Cuba, and New York City.


In their own words: "100Cameras. empowers marginalized children to document their lives through photography and to create positive change in their own communities." 100% of the profits from the children's purchased photographs go back to the children. Go to www.100cameras.org\ to view the photographs and, perhaps, purchase one.


I have already chosen a few photographs. I wonder what you will choose.


Tricia

BUBBLE

For those readers who don’t ski, this could be boring and useless information.  I will make it quick.  We are just getting back from a long weekend in Vermont.  We heart Vermont.  Believe it or not, the weather was favorable for skiing.  Definitely Friday night into Saturday.  It got nice and cold and it snowed about 3 inches.

So we encountered something new on this trip at Mount Snow.  The Bluebird Express.  A brand new ski lift that has a plastic bubble around each chair.  The seats and backs are super cushioned --- it was like sitting on a couch.  The bubble protects you from the elements and cuts the wind.  Skiing in the Northeast can be bitter.  At the end of the night, they take all the chairs and store them in a barn. 

Super cool.  Definitely better than a gondola.  Way to go Mount Snow.

Tracy

look close and you will see the blue bubble

This & That

1. Did you catch any of Fashion Week in NY? I like to see what the attendees are wearing in the audience even more than what the models are wearing on the runways. It is interesting to see how fashion is executed in a "real" way on "real" people. Bonus: I adore fall fashion -- sweaters, coats, wool, leather, gray, and black. (sigh)


2. My new closet motto: "out with the old/in with the new"! In an attempt to keep my closet in tip-top shape, I am sticking to my motto, no matter what. Good example --> purchased some colorful athletic socks, pitched the old, tired ones. Do you have a closet motto?


3. Did you spy Tory Burch's new digs in the Hamptons? (truly, it is hard to miss a manor house that grand) I find it refreshing to read how she is genuine and nice, an involved mom, and super stylish to boot. What isn't there to like?


4. I just heard/read --> computers make smart people smarter and dumb people dumber. And, if that isn't bad enough, people with "fancy" cars are more likely to cut off other drivers. Not surprised about this one! The minivan is always getting cut off and passed.


Happy Monday!


Tricia

Photo Friday ~ Gone Fishing?

I love quaint shops that post signs: "out to lunch" or "gone fishing" when the owners take a much needed break. I respect that.

Instead of photos today..I read this quote on my Flipboard awhile ago. It is long, but keep at it and you will be glad you did. Powerful stuff to ponder over the weekend.

"Solitude of Self"

By Elizabeth Stanton - during a speech to committees of both houses of Congress in 1892

"The point I wish plainly to bring before you on this occasion is the individuality of each human soul...the right of individual conscience and judgement... We come into the world alone unlike all who have gone before us; we leave it alone under circumstances peculiar to ourselves. No mortal ever has been, no mortal ever will be like the soul just launched on the sea of life... Nature never repeats herself, and the possibilities of one human soul will never be found in another... In that solemn solitude of self, that links us with the immeasurable and the eternal, each soul lives forever... One inner being, which we call ourself, no eye nor touch of man or angel has ever pierced... Such is individual life. Who, I ask you, can take, dare take, on himself the rights, the duties, the responsibilities of another human soul?"

Tricia

PICK

me&t is gearing up for a trip to the Big Apple.  We have a decision to make regarding the hotel.  We are looking to stay in the Meat Packing District and are deciding between two different hotels.  


The first option is a hotel that was built in 1908.  I just read that survivors of the Titanic stayed here.  There are rooms with bunk beds and no en suite bathroom - you have to use a shared bathroom.  The problem is there were reports of bed bugs on bedbugregistry.com.  But only on floors 3 & 4.  Hmm.


The second option is a new hotel that is getting rave reviews for architecture, views, and just about everything.  It was described as the most unusual and significant building in New York in recent years.  The problem here is rooms only have one double bed (no option for two double beds) and the shower is connected to the room with a glass shower wall.  So sisters would have to share a bed and one sister would have to leave the room while the other showers.


Last year we stayed at the Gansevoort Park on Park Avenue.  It was fairly new at the time.  Fun fact --- this is the same hotel that Kim and Kourtney Kardashian stayed at when the filmed their show this past fall.  They ate at Asellina (restaurant in the hotel) and had drinks at the bar where we frequented as well.  Crazy.


So what does everyone think for this year --- old hotel (could be an adventure) or new hotel (could be hip and glamorous)?  What should we pick?


Tracy

Pay it Backwards

Try this --> the next time you use a gift card and have a useless amount leftover (95 cents on a Barnes & Noble card?), turn around and hand it to the person in line behind you. Simple. Your random act of kindness will #1 make someone's day #2 prevent a plastic card from cluttering your wallet.


Grace told me about "pay it backwards" ~ thanks Grace. It seems to be something the teachers at her school do. Smart teachers! And, I do something similar..after we have had enough of the amusement rides on the boardwalk, I hand our leftover tickets to an unsuspecting, lucky child. :)


Tricia


PS how do I get a key to Fred's?? It is only an hour from here..worth the drive. Such a key would make great birthday present for this sister.

FREDS

This past weekend was fun and included an impromptu sleepover to visit a friend who lives in Lambertville, NJ.  Picture three old friends from the primary school days and their four little girls.  No dinner, just pick food, a good beverage and up until 2:00 am talking. 

On the morning agenda was breakfast of course.  My friend wanted to take us to a little breakfast joint across the bridge in New Hope, PA.  All she really said was that it is members only and she has a "key" to get in.  Huh --- what on earth is she talking about.

So all 7 of us make our way over to Fred's for breakfast.  OMG --- how cute and what a great concept.  I'm so glad we went.  There is no signage on the outside of the building which is very minimal but in a perfect way.  You literally need a key to get in the locked door (we forgot our key so we knocked and still got in). 

Inside there are no tables but just a U shaped counter with all the cooking and prep work happening in the middle.  There is a wall of windows that overlooks the Delaware River (think George Washington making a historical crossing).  There is a coffee bar set up (which is free).  And the owners have an adjoining office with a 1/2 door so you can peep in to see their 3 dogs.  The one dog will bark/howl Happy Birthday which we got to witness.

We sat down for breakfast which was amazing.  Everything is freshly prepared on-site (including their bagels) and the chef was gracious enough to pop out of the kitchen to discuss and plan around some food allergies.

I wish I could bottle up an establishment like that and bring it home.  I'd suggest you check it out but you need a key.

Tracy

Miss Kate at Fred's

Soup Night

A few weeks ago, I received a lovely invitation to "Soup Night" (thanks Megan!) It went like this..three guests offered to make soup and the other three filled in with salads, sandwiches and dessert. We enjoyed three courses of soup (yum) and an evening of friendship. Plenty of wine and laughs rounded out the night.


Soup Night is a perfect, easy way to chase away the winter doldrums. {my event was just the ladies, but it would work well with husbands too ;}


Tricia

Photo Friday No. 55

End of Swim Season in

New Jersey

Composing Something Beautiful in
Pennsylvania