My current favorite type of hat is the Box Hat — yes, I look Russian, yes, I look Upper East Side — but hey, I am warm, cozy and fashionable, so I will take being a Russian Upper East-sider.
First introduced to me by my friend, Catherine — she found this maroon hat in Paris and I fell in love with it.
I know that this is weird, but I discovered the best socks on Amazon, and I need to share them with you. 10 socks for less than 25 dollars. Not only is the price amazing (some times socks cost 25 dollars per PAIR!!! This is 10 pairs for 25 dollars!!!), but the socks themselves are the perfect sock. The colors, the fit, the comfort, the appropriate thickness — they check every box. Every time I reach for a pair of socks in my (unorganized) sock bin, I hope to grab one of these pairs. They are hands down the best socks.
Technically, they are men’s socks, but they are a perfect fit for men and women! I love the Fall color scheme of them, too.
My favorite sweater this season is the most INCREDIBLY warm, thick, luscious layer that I have been wearing it NON STOP. Literally, the moment I wake up to walk the dog, I put it on top of my workout clothes, under my jacket, and start my day off like that. Then, I wear it all day long over any other sweater. (It has been VERY VERY VERY cold in NYC recently…)
SO THICK and warm.
At the VERY start of break (yes, I am very behind on all posts and catch ups), we went to one of our favorite dumplings spots, Din Tai Fung, and also to a fun immersive art experience, Luna Luna. I highly suggest going to both — for taste, color, experience!
Luna Luna
Lots of color — and super cool to learn about everything. (It was VERY cold and we stayed in our coats the entire time)
Winter Break is officially over, but to summarize, here are my favorite things that I loved from Winter Break (and I hope you all had a great break! Can’t believe it is 2025!)
1. Sunsets
Taken in Mexico — there is nothing like seeing the sun set over the Pacific Ocean.
Just a couple of days left until Winter Break…and we have squeezed in so many fun activities in the city. If you happen to be in NYC in the next couple of weeks, highly suggest doing the following:
Is there anything more beautiful than Radio City Hall?
Tusia’s bestie performed at the start of the Rockettes, which gave us an excuse to buy tickets and go see the Rockettes. Always puts you in the holiday spirit! And her bestie ROCKED it. Future rockette!
Always on a hunt for an adventure and a new restaurant, I read about Thai Diner and knew it was somewhere I needed to try. So I dragged the family there this past weekend — and loved every minute. HIGHLY recommend if you are in the city! Or if you come to visit — loved it. A mixture of diner food and Thai food — lots of flavor, spice, and deliciousness. It opens at 10 am, we got there at 11:45 am and had a 45 minute wait, but. we roamed the streets of Soho, so didn’t feel like a wait. There was a line around the block for 2 hours when we left. 2 HOURS!!!!
Located in Nolita on Mott street — across the street from my favorite (but no longer there) retail store, Warm, RIP). Easy to get to from our place on the subway.
Mid way through December, say what??? Here is what I am currently loving at this very moment in time.
1. Funny Meme
I had NO idea about this until I saw this — and now feel so dumb. Thought I would share with you all too, just to make us all smarter!
In our jammed pack time out west, we had our annual Food Eating Tour. Last year, we did San Francisco with Avital tours, but this year, our hostess picked the East Bay with a different company, Edible Excursions. It is now becoming an annual activity — to eat EVEN more after Thanksgiving meal — and I love it oh so much. I absolutely loved our tour this year — our guide was incredible (Rebecca), the food ridiculously delicious, and we experienced new cuisine together as a family — which I really loved. Highly, highly recommend.
Edible Excursions has been around for 20 years! Check them out if you are in the Bay Area!
WHO KNEW THAT YOU NEEDED TO GET A SCALP TREATMENT? Our dearest friend, Katie, told us about it (she drove from Sonoma down to Burlingame for this treatment), and so we added it to our itinerary of activities for Thanksgiving break. Tusia is obsessed with her scalp — probably in an unhealthy way — so she was dying for this treatment and so excited to try it out. I had never heard of this treatment before, and love trying new things — so it was for sure worth it. Zen Scalp Studio.
Totally random — but apparently all the rage. First, they look at your scalp with a camera so they can assess your scalp and its needs. It almost made me gag because it was so gross — like SO GROSS — but I went through with it nonetheless.
Over Thanksgiving break, we went on our annual trip to Northern California (well, we go to Northern California a lot more than once a year, but we have done it the past three Thanksgivings…). It was a nonstop fun filled weekend, not just with food, but with tons of activities. Hands down, one of the highlights was glass blowing. I mean, what is more fun than creating a holiday ornament! A BIG shout out to our hosts (sister from another mister) for organizing every single activity and finding all these fun experiences for us to do together — love doing life (and / or glass blowing) together.
It was a drive from where we were staying — but well worth it. Located on Mare Island, it is a random studio, but has everything you need to blow glass!
Recently, I came across a booth at a farmer’s market with the most incredibly happy and delightful garlands. Ever since I saw them, I am trying to figure out (a) how to make them (b) what I would do with them. Take a look at these insane beauties.
Ombre of colors.
This morning when I was walking the dog, I was in disbelief that there were Christmas lights on so many of the stores along Madison Avenue….but then I realized, we are 2/3 done with November and it is almost December….how did this happen? In any case, Christmas light season here we are. And here is what I am currently loving.
When I went to visit Cruzzie, I thought it would be nice to bring him and his friends something from NYC to CA. It had to be compact, easy to travel with, and something everything would like — which turns out to be candy. Bonbon candy. It was a huge hit and worth lugging it across the country.
During my California visit to see Cruzzie at Thacher, I also had the chance to spend a couple days with a beloved friend who moved to Montecito. Not only do I love my friend dearly, but I also love Montecito. It is the most picturesque, paradise, perfect place. This visit, a new bakery, Oat Bakery, opened up at The Montecito Country Mart and OAT MY GOD, (I love puns but can’t take credit for this one — it is from their website) it is so amazing. We went to get a little croissant / baguette / sweetness deliciousness, and three minutes after we left, I went BACK to get more.
The cutest bakery – The Oat Bakery.
Last weekend, I had the privilege of going to see my son at boarding school in Ojai, California. Although I had been there three weeks before to attend Family Weekend, I wanted another chance to just go see Cruzzie and his friends, and be with him for a relaxed weekend. It was an absolute incredible time — not just because I spent precious time with my boy, but also because I stayed in a secret gem hotel, the Turtle Conservancy.
The entry way.
There is nothing more awkward than me taking a selfie, but here it is! Me and a selfie wearing sunglasses. I recently discovered Eva Masaki sunglasses and I love (that said, my daughter hates them on me and is not a fan). They are a statement, but sometimes, it is fun to change things up and have a different look, and these are definitely different than my normal sunglasses I wear.
Awkward photo. Cute glasses.
Yes, I realize that this is a trend of the summer and we are now in November (but, hello it is in the 70s this week in NYC!), but when one of your most stylish friends tells you about her favorite shoe — you buy it. I would buy everything and anything she tells me to. And this time around — a pair of jelly shoes from AMAZON! Yep, AMAZON. Done, done, done.
Plastic jelly, so super comfortable. And fun to wear!
One of my favorite days of the year in NYC is Marathon Day. There is an electric feel everywhere you go — so many people with smiles, cheering people on for accomplishing something they dreamed of doing, an inexplainable excitement. Truly a magical day in the city. The second best thing to RUNNING the marathon, is cheering all the runners on. Since this year, I ran the Chicago Marathon and have been dealing with a nagging injury (I can barely run right now, which is devastating, but resting it is the best thing for it), I opted out of running the NYC marathon, and instead cheered everyone on. And what a glorious day it was! With Tusia and two of her friends, we decided to make signs to go cheer everyone on at mile 25. Making signs was a great activity in itself!
The first problem was trying to find poster board. We didn’t think about making signs until. the day of, and on Sunday morning, no store nearby had poster boards. So I had to get creative with how to make a poster board — in this case, I had a big gift bag, that I cut into parts, put white paper on the side, and taped it all together. You do what you gotta do!
OK, this might be old news for most, but I just found this out so I had to share! And yes, I am a boomer and bad with technology. DID YOU KNOW that you can find out the type of plant / flower / dog / any information on your photo when you take a photo with your iPhone? It is GENIUS.
So you click on the photo and there is a button with ‘I” on it, and it tells you the type of tree.
Part two currently loving, here we are! Short week (traveled back from CA on Monday and it has flown by!) and yet felt like I accomplished quite a bit. Here is what I am loving part deux.
1. Clever Scaffolding in NYC
HOW SMART AND COOL IS THIS scaffolding on the Louis Vuitton store? GENIUS.
WELP, October here we are! (or actually mid October!) It has been a whirlwind month of the Chicago Marathon and then visiting weekend at my son’s boarding school. Maybe life will slow down now??? Or not…but in the meantime, here is what I am currently loving!
1. Cruzzie’s Dining Hall
Cruzzie’s school, The Thacher School, is located in Ojai, California. It is the dreamiest place I have ever been — not just the academics, people, community, program, ethics, but also just the pure beauty of the school. Here is the dining hall at dinner. LOOK AT THAT SUNSET. You can eat outside. IT IS INCREDIBLE.
Spotted on one of my favorite style Instagram friends, I asked immediately where her reading glasses were from. Thankfully, they were affordable, in stock, and OH SO CUTE! Reading glasses from Anthropologie! WHO KNEW????
Ok, I might not look cute, but I love that they are different. AND THEY ARE 35 dollars!!!! I am so blind (read old) now that I need pairs in my bags because I can’t read anything anywhere.
One of Tusia’s best friends brought over THE BEST BAGELS AND BUTTER I have ever tasted. Currently all the rage, Pop Up Bagels, is rumored to be one of the best (if not the best) bagel in NYC at this time.
They have a lot of locations in the tristate area — 3 in the city (UWS, UES, downtown) — Westchester, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. Every time I have walked by, the lines have been out the door. So when our bestie stopped by with bagels and butter for us, it was a win win HAPPY day!
What a treat! A last minute trip to Storm King — 500-acre outdoor museum located in theHudson Valley — where I have visited with the family several times before but this time, I went with some friends, and had a personal guided trip which meant GOLF CARTS, not excessive walking, so much interesting information. Highly recommend making the trek to visit Storm King — especially in the Fall foliage and glorious colors — and if you can get a tour, even better. I feel like I attended a class and learned so much.
The leaves, the colors, the sunshine, the art!
In all my years of running, I have never wanted to “look” like a runner — because I have never FELT like a runner. Meaning, I have always seen these athletes running that are in this awesome gear and look all fresh and hip and FAST and like they belong to the “runner” label. But I have never felt like that, call it imposter syndrome, but it has taken me time to dress like a real runner. Finally, this Fall, I decided to bite the bullet on a top I have seen on all the fast runners in Central Park, and purchase it. It’s what the REAL runners wear….and real runner or not, I now know why it is everywhere. It is the best top and I wish I had purchased it in the Spring and worn it all summer — it is so good — that I have been wearing it and washing it the same day, so I can wear it the next day.
Bandit running top. Built in bra so there is only ONE top — and it is tight and. smooth and does not chafe. A little cropped — I would size up — but sadly, they were out of the size I wanted, so I had to go with what is left, and it is a little TOO cropped, but I still love it oh so much.
