I thought I'd share a few things that made this year better, easier, more interesting... (in no particular order, and I'm sure I'm forgetting lots of things, but my 40 yo brain is a sieve...)
1) Red Thread Good Cold Brew Coffee:
I discovered this by accident on our trip to the Hamptons this summer. In Sag Harbor, where we hadn't been since 2011, there is a little shop (near the new Jayson Home summer outpost) called Sylvester & Co. (a "modern general store" owned by interior designer Lynda Sylvester). I stopped in since I saw the sign for coffee and it was amazing. They serve it hot and iced in their café and while I prefer the latter, I'm still enjoying it this winter hot. By some strange coincidence, her other shop is in Savannah, so we went there as well the very next month. (FYI: she just announced she is closing her Savannah store) Thankfully, you can order the beans or cold brew concentrate (which I highly recommend) online from her site. My fave is Dreamy Decaf (which has a bit of chocolate in it). I'm considering investing in her retail expansion. Exciting times for this cool company! Bye bye Starbucks...
2) Lavender ice cream from Leopold's Ice Cream:
This is a seasonal flavor from the famous Leopold's in Savannah, GA, where they've been making ice cream since 1919. I can't even explain how good it is. Just trust me. You can order their ice cream online, but only when in season (which is April and September for lavender).
3) Hamilton (the Broadway show, the PBS documentary, the soundtrack, the mixed tape, the legend)
When I was in NYC in last summer, Hamilton was still in previews and the President was in town taking it in (we went to Larry David's Fish in the Dark). Watching it debut at the White House in 2009 is worth the view. It wasn't really a cultural phenomenon yet, though since several of my friends from college went the high school with Lin-Manual Miranda, I'd been following it for awhile on social media. The show has recently now opened in Chicago (with a new cast), and soon will also be in London and San Fran, but if you want to hear the original NY cast, check out the soundtrack, which is amazing. I also highly recommend the Mixed Tape (which is other artists singing some of the songs), which if there was ever something that actually improved on the original... Both are labeled "explicit", so if you want to listen (perhaps in the car) with kids, which gets me through some days and they also love, you can buy the edited versions. It is a such an inspiring show, and for a history buff, it's great to see so many people interested in it. It actually got me excited about and prompted me to ask my mother more about our ancestor, Johann Daniel Miesse, who fought in Washington's army.
4) My VanMommy (aka the Honda Odyssey, aka Mr. Blue)
I've already sung its praises and five months (and nearly 10K miles!) in, I'm still a fan. Ugh, recalls...
5) Odd Mom Out
I don't otherwise do Bravo and I don't do reality TV. But I do do this scripted comedy, which has been picked up for a third season. It's amazing and hilarious and if you aren't watching it, you are seriously missing out. I think you can stream all the episodes online. It got me through getting called up for jury duty and sitting around waiting out the day to make my whopping 30 bucks.
6) Out on the boat
My dad is an odd duck. He got a power boat about the time I went away to college (convenient, right?) which he almost never takes out, and since we aren't up north that much in the summer, we don't get out much either. Well, we spent a lot more time up this summer to see my step-father, and made sure to rectify that this year and the kids had an absolute blast.
7) Last Chance/Nordstrom Rack
I've never been a big Nordstrom shopper (though I love their café), but I finally started hitting the Rack (especially for kids' stuff, Tea, Peek, Boden, Hanna, et al) and now it's like an addiction. I got M a $300 silk Oscar de la Renta dress there for $40. We also just got only their second Last Chance Store in the country (so maybe like the next to last chance), where I scored a J. McLaughlin dress for myself for $10. This is part of how I support my Tory Burch clothing addiction, while still being financially prudent.
8) The Inside Track...
Patagonia is one of the only brands where a name label will conspicuously grace my children. Mine don't advertise for free people, but I make an exception for them. They donated all $10 million of their Black Friday sales to environmental charities. Typically, I shop their great sales and get all we need, but now a friend of mine from high school is working there as a designer (after cutting her teeth at Lands End), so I am lucky to have access to generously shared discount codes for 40% off. Let me know if you need one.
9) Bon Iver's 22, a million
Another new Bon Iver album, this one for my 40th birthday. My high school (in podunk nowhere) also somehow produced two-time Grammy winner Justin Vernon (who I didn't know then, as he was four years behind me).
10) 23 and me
My mom's been a busy bee researching our ancestry for several years now (prompted by her retirement to care for my late grandmother), but I decided to spring for a DNA ancestry and health analysis on 23 and me, to see what came back. Because at the end, you know I'm just a numbers person. Thrilling, right?
11) Wellesley Women of the World
About the time my gen on the Bump boards moved, imploded, or whatever, sometime after the twins were born, I moved on and then happened to accidentally come across all the Wellesley boards on FB, which very happily took their place. Between familiar faces from the Bump (hi ladies!) and from my college days, it felt like home. I have a complicated relationship with the place (I went back for the first time in several years the day before the election), and it's been one hell of a year to be an alum, but as I like to keep the drama to a minimum and need smart, honest, compassionate women by my side, I'd have a hard time finding a better place to land.
12) Last but not least, The Man Repeller (aka Leandra Medine Cohen) who I didn't follow previously, recently very sadly lost her first pregnancy (from a WTF IVF break) in her 14th week, and her post(s) about it since are definitely worth the read. This is an especially hard time of year to experience loss (and be dealing with infertility generally). It's been six whole long years already since I lost my first. My how the time passes.
1) Red Thread Good Cold Brew Coffee:
I discovered this by accident on our trip to the Hamptons this summer. In Sag Harbor, where we hadn't been since 2011, there is a little shop (near the new Jayson Home summer outpost) called Sylvester & Co. (a "modern general store" owned by interior designer Lynda Sylvester). I stopped in since I saw the sign for coffee and it was amazing. They serve it hot and iced in their café and while I prefer the latter, I'm still enjoying it this winter hot. By some strange coincidence, her other shop is in Savannah, so we went there as well the very next month. (FYI: she just announced she is closing her Savannah store) Thankfully, you can order the beans or cold brew concentrate (which I highly recommend) online from her site. My fave is Dreamy Decaf (which has a bit of chocolate in it). I'm considering investing in her retail expansion. Exciting times for this cool company! Bye bye Starbucks...
2) Lavender ice cream from Leopold's Ice Cream:
This is a seasonal flavor from the famous Leopold's in Savannah, GA, where they've been making ice cream since 1919. I can't even explain how good it is. Just trust me. You can order their ice cream online, but only when in season (which is April and September for lavender).
3) Hamilton (the Broadway show, the PBS documentary, the soundtrack, the mixed tape, the legend)
When I was in NYC in last summer, Hamilton was still in previews and the President was in town taking it in (we went to Larry David's Fish in the Dark). Watching it debut at the White House in 2009 is worth the view. It wasn't really a cultural phenomenon yet, though since several of my friends from college went the high school with Lin-Manual Miranda, I'd been following it for awhile on social media. The show has recently now opened in Chicago (with a new cast), and soon will also be in London and San Fran, but if you want to hear the original NY cast, check out the soundtrack, which is amazing. I also highly recommend the Mixed Tape (which is other artists singing some of the songs), which if there was ever something that actually improved on the original... Both are labeled "explicit", so if you want to listen (perhaps in the car) with kids, which gets me through some days and they also love, you can buy the edited versions. It is a such an inspiring show, and for a history buff, it's great to see so many people interested in it. It actually got me excited about and prompted me to ask my mother more about our ancestor, Johann Daniel Miesse, who fought in Washington's army.
4) My VanMommy (aka the Honda Odyssey, aka Mr. Blue)
I've already sung its praises and five months (and nearly 10K miles!) in, I'm still a fan. Ugh, recalls...
5) Odd Mom Out
I don't otherwise do Bravo and I don't do reality TV. But I do do this scripted comedy, which has been picked up for a third season. It's amazing and hilarious and if you aren't watching it, you are seriously missing out. I think you can stream all the episodes online. It got me through getting called up for jury duty and sitting around waiting out the day to make my whopping 30 bucks.
6) Out on the boat
My dad is an odd duck. He got a power boat about the time I went away to college (convenient, right?) which he almost never takes out, and since we aren't up north that much in the summer, we don't get out much either. Well, we spent a lot more time up this summer to see my step-father, and made sure to rectify that this year and the kids had an absolute blast.
7) Last Chance/Nordstrom Rack
I've never been a big Nordstrom shopper (though I love their café), but I finally started hitting the Rack (especially for kids' stuff, Tea, Peek, Boden, Hanna, et al) and now it's like an addiction. I got M a $300 silk Oscar de la Renta dress there for $40. We also just got only their second Last Chance Store in the country (so maybe like the next to last chance), where I scored a J. McLaughlin dress for myself for $10. This is part of how I support my Tory Burch clothing addiction, while still being financially prudent.
8) The Inside Track...
Patagonia is one of the only brands where a name label will conspicuously grace my children. Mine don't advertise for free people, but I make an exception for them. They donated all $10 million of their Black Friday sales to environmental charities. Typically, I shop their great sales and get all we need, but now a friend of mine from high school is working there as a designer (after cutting her teeth at Lands End), so I am lucky to have access to generously shared discount codes for 40% off. Let me know if you need one.
9) Bon Iver's 22, a million
Another new Bon Iver album, this one for my 40th birthday. My high school (in podunk nowhere) also somehow produced two-time Grammy winner Justin Vernon (who I didn't know then, as he was four years behind me).
10) 23 and me
My mom's been a busy bee researching our ancestry for several years now (prompted by her retirement to care for my late grandmother), but I decided to spring for a DNA ancestry and health analysis on 23 and me, to see what came back. Because at the end, you know I'm just a numbers person. Thrilling, right?
About the time my gen on the Bump boards moved, imploded, or whatever, sometime after the twins were born, I moved on and then happened to accidentally come across all the Wellesley boards on FB, which very happily took their place. Between familiar faces from the Bump (hi ladies!) and from my college days, it felt like home. I have a complicated relationship with the place (I went back for the first time in several years the day before the election), and it's been one hell of a year to be an alum, but as I like to keep the drama to a minimum and need smart, honest, compassionate women by my side, I'd have a hard time finding a better place to land.
12) Last but not least, The Man Repeller (aka Leandra Medine Cohen) who I didn't follow previously, recently very sadly lost her first pregnancy (from a WTF IVF break) in her 14th week, and her post(s) about it since are definitely worth the read. This is an especially hard time of year to experience loss (and be dealing with infertility generally). It's been six whole long years already since I lost my first. My how the time passes.
