New York City Archives - Popcorn and Pandas

{30} Lately…

*Just a note on this photo. My boys spent the day together at the grocery store on Sunday so I could get some work done. I received this text message while they were gone! Nothing better than knowing my baby is happy and smiling while he is away from me 🙂 Okay, now onto the rest of the post…

Lately I’ve been…

reading The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy. Great for any entrepreneur or entrepreneur in the making.

writing Down my goals for 2015. 1) Get fit and stay healthy. 2) Start a successful business as a Beachbody Fitness Coach. What’s this, you ask? We basically motivate and help others achieve their fitness goals. Happy to share more information with whoever is interested. Please feel free to e-mail or message me! 3) Travel more. So far I have been keeping up with my workouts and doing my best to motivate the challengers I have in my groups thus far. I also have a trip to Tulum, Mexico on the books, so here we go 2015! Bring it on!

listening I’m still singing Christmas music in my head. Is that weird?

thinking As I sit here in my neighborhood cafe working, I have run into three moms I know, and I am so grateful to have such a wonderful community here.

smelling Not much right now. It seems my cold has returned and I’m currently stuffy and drinking loads of hot tea.

watching Maleficent. As an avid Disney fan, this was a must see for me! I was very much impressed with the animation and graphics, and I enjoyed the switch on the storyline from the traditional Sleeping Beauty! It reminded me of the show Wicked in that regard.

wishing Upon a star.

hoping For warmer weather. Oh wait, it’s only January…sigh.

wearing My new Panda sweater. Unfortunately this one is sold out, but this vintage sweater from the 80’s is pretty darn amazing. I’m also wearing a heavy scarf, because this coffee shop I’m in is FREEZING.

loving My new snow boots from my mother-in-law. Thank God for them, because I have already needed to wear them twice this year.

laughing At these doorbell notes from Moms. I can’t believe I haven’t resorted to one of these notes yet! This is real life!

wanting A massage. These workouts are no joke!

needing To go through photos from Nico’s first year and pull out his monthly chair photos to put in a frame. This has been on my to-do list since he turned 1 (he’s now 16.5 months old), and I still haven’t gotten to it. This week is the week!

feeling Sick at the moment. And a bit tired. But happy I still got my workout in this morning.

craving Caffeine.

clicking Through photos of Tulum, Mexico and dreaming of our paradise vacation that is only 43 days away.

What have you been up to lately?

XO,

Gina

***I was inspired by Tina of Like Ordinary Life to create this post, and she was inspired by Lauren of siddathornton, who started The Sunday Currently.

2014 Fashion Round Up

Enjoying the week here in Maryland with family & friends and trying to avoid the sickness going around. Can’t believe 2014 is almost coming to an end. Hope you enjoyed the round up of outfits from the past year!

XO,

Gina

Santa Success

I consider seeing Santa without crying this year a “GREAT SUCCESS!” (in a Borat voice). I was anticipating some possible tears due to the sheer fact of toddlerhood, but we tried to prep him with little Santa videos, talks about what we were going to do and just acting straight up excited about the experience. Of course, the toddler right in front of us started screaming bloody murder as soon as he got anywhere close to Santa, so I sensed Nico getting a little scared/nervous about what was going to happen. We ended up just easing our way up toward Santa slowly, chatting with him and giving him high fives, before we actually did the lap sitting. Luckily, the staff at Bloomingdale’s was incredibly patient. They did not rush us at all, and I love that you can also take your own photos there. Nico gave Santa a few sideways glances and seemed a little unsure about the whole thing, but eventually he cracked a slight smile…enough to capture on camera. And like I said previously, no tears this year equals success in my book!

We are now down in Maryland with family preparing for the holidays. I went shopping with the mama last night and braved the crazy crowds. I have also spent most of this week wrapping presents for family and friends. We are getting excited for our Seven Fishes Christmas Eve dinner tomorrow night!

Happy Holidays to you all!

XO,

Gina

Plaid + (Faux) Fur

(Faux) Chinchilla Fur Jacket: Express (a couple years old, but similar here) / Plaid Button Up: Target (on sale!) / Denim: Rag & Bone / Booties: Target (on sale!) / Sunglasses: ModCloth / Bracelets: Tory Burch (similar), Stella & Sparkle / Watch: Michael Kors / Lip: Lancome Luxe

Call me crazy, but I absolutely adore the mix of plaid & fur right now! To me, it’s a perfect fall or winter look. I was gifted this amazing jacket for Christmas a couple years ago, and I recently scored this bright button up at Target. Mixed the two together, and boom. I all the sudden look a lot more put together than I really am. 😉

I wore this on a little trip to downtown Annapolis when we were visiting family and friends for the holidays. We started at Miss Shirley’s for breakfast. Let me tell you, if you are a Maryland local, and you have not yet been to Miss Shirley’s, you need to go there…like immediately. They have the best southern comfort food you could ever imagine. Proof here. From there, we headed down to walk around the gorgeous harbor, the historical homes, and popped into the amazing consignment shop, Navette. I found this shop through Instagram, ordered from them over the phone, and even met one of their amazing owners for coffee in NYC, yet I still hadn’t visited their store front until this day! I was very excited and delighted to see a bustling shop full of fantastic treasures and happy customers. Unfortunately, due to a toddler naptime meltdown, I had to cut my trip there short, but I didn’t leave without scoring this fabulous Jonathan Adler clutch.

I’m looking forward to returning to Maryland again for Christmas, but until then, I am enjoying the holiday spirit up here in NYC. Our tree is up, and we took Nico to see Santa last weekend. Much to my surprise, there were no tears! Yay! I love New York City at Christmastime. If you missed yesterday’s post about things to do in December, check it out here.

This week I have been working on my holiday cards (which is pretty difficult with a bum thumb), online shopping for gifts, and listening to Christmas music non-stop. Tonight, I am getting out of the house to go to a holiday party with a friend, and I’m really looking forward to it.

Hope you are all enjoying the season!

XO,

Gina

{29} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Just started The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, and so far it has my attention.

writing I have been writing a ton lately. A few opportunities have arisen lately in the writing world, and it’s all very exciting! I’m not quite ready to share yet, but keep a look out in the next month!

listening Love this song, Stay, by tyDi featuring Dia Frampton (Frank Pole Remix)

thinking We had a lovely Friendsgiving dinner at our house the other night. We decided to do a sit down and all write things we are thankful for about each other. We also had a new addition to the crew this year as my friend brought her newborn baby. I am very thankful for my NYC Upper East side loves.

smelling (and eating) lots of pumpkin pie! Mmmm.

watching The hubby and I watched 12 Years A Slave over the weekend. It was an incredible film, and also extremely heartbreaking. I was pretty much in tears the entire time.

wishing Everyone safe travels and a Happy Thanksgiving!

hoping That all my little soccer students enjoyed our session! We had our last class of the season yesterday. It was a lot of fun, and it was definitely a learning experience coaching such young children (ages 2-5) !

wearing Lots of plaid and aztec prints this fall.

loving At how quickly Nico is picking up new words. He is like a little parrot right now just copying everything we say. It’s super adorable, but I realize I also need to start watching my potty mouth!

laughing At Weird Things All BFFs do.

wanting To find some time to edit my personal photos. I am super back-logged! Maybe I will get a chance over the break, although that is probably wishful thinking.

needing To get packing. We are heading back to Maryland for the holiday, and excited to see family and friends.

feeling Motivated.

craving What else? Thankgiving food. Turkey, stuffing, corn, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. All the essentials.

clicking Through family photos to try and pick one for the holiday card this year.

What have you been up to lately?

Hope you all enjoy the holiday week!

XO,

Gina

***I was inspired by Tina of Like Ordinary Life to create this post, and she was inspired by Lauren of siddathornton, who started The Sunday Currently.

{28} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading I Am Hutterite by Mary Ann Kirby. An inside peek into the life into a Hutterite community (similar to Amish), leaving the community, adapting to the English world, and trying to reclaim a heritage.

writing A practice schedule for today’s soccer class this afternoon. Since I have some free time on my hands these days and there was desire for a soccer class in the neighborhood, I have spent the last few weeks obtaining a permit from the Prospect Park office, and my class is now ready to go! We had our first one last week, and seemed to go well, so my assistant, Nico, and I are looking forward to the next 8 weeks of soccer fun.

listening To a lot of kid’s music. Luckily, we have amazing bands like The Dad Beats around here which makes listening to kid’s music (somewhat) bearable.

thinking About the next steps I want to take career-wise. Soccer class is great, my Poshmark closet is selling well, and I love spending time with my little Nico, but still craving something a little more creative in my life on the job front (that – full disclosure – can also bring in a little more cash for the family). I have a few ideas in mind, but still researching and will see what might come about.

smelling I can still smell those apple cider donuts in my mind that we ate at Stakey’s Farm on Sunday. Mmmmazing.

watching I FINALLY watched The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. I was a big fan of the series, but wasn’t able to get to the movie theatre when this one was released. It was everything I thought it would be.

wishing Congratulations to Nico’s former nanny who just presented the world with a brand new baby girl last night! So happy for her, and can’t wait to meet that baby!

hoping To find some time to carve the amazing pumpkins we got from the patch. I always say I want to carve, and then I rarely get around to it.

wearing My new custom made Guilty Jean bracelet given to me as a gift from a dear friend. The coordinates are from the place where we originally met. Love love love it!

loving The fact that our neighborhood is currently the set of the newest Steven Spielberg movie starring Tom Hanks. He’s pretty much my favorite actor. And I got to see him on set yesterday which was pretty damn amazing. The film is also starring a friend of mine who I met on an airplane, who at the time was a soap opera actor and asked me to rehearse lines with him on the plane. Although, I was incredibly embarrassed, I obliged because he was so nice. He’s now making movies with Spielberg and Tom Hanks. Way to make it big Billy Magnussen! Can’t wait to see you rock out this film.

laughing At how my son continuously manages to outsmart me.

wanting A date night for the hubby and I in the near future. It’s been too long!

needing To figure out what I am going to be wearing to the black-tie optional wedding we are invited to this weekend! And needing to figure out what Nico will be wearing as well. Looking forward to seeing my cousin walk down that aisle!

feeling So proud of my little guy who took his first steps this weekend! He took even more yesterday, and this mama is going to be in big trouble soon!

craving Candy corn. I’m still wondering why we only eat this one month out of the year.

clicking Away on career research. Thinking of making a switch up. We shall see!

What have you been up to lately?

Hope you are all having a fantastic week!

XO,

Gina

***I was inspired by Tina of Like Ordinary Life to create this post, and she was inspired by Lauren of siddathornton, who started The Sunday Currently.

Happy 2nd Birthday to P + P

While I was down for the count last week, my little here blog turned TWO. It’s been a lot of fun having this little creative space, and although I’ve had less time for blogging this year, it’s still just as enjoyable for me. Thanks for continuing to come back here day after day to read and comment and share. Truth is, I blog for myself, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t love all the support. It makes taking the time out for a post even more worthwhile. I would love to hear any feedback you have for the upcoming year of p + p. If there are particular things you like or dislike, what you want to see more of, if there is something I haven’t touched on that you are interested in, etc. Comment below! Now, I have put together a recap of some of your favorite posts from the past year:

You enjoyed Nico’s Nursery photos:

As well as the DIY Nursery Letters Tutorial:

The first family dinner out after having Nico:

A very formal affair in which I was proud to be a bridesmaid, and our first big event as a family of three:

The time I regretted wearing white:

But I clearly kept on wearing it anyway…like when we traveled to San Fran:

I wore this pastel coat:

Pops of Spring with Stella & Dot:

I got these fantastic red rain boots from the hubs and wore them on our trip to New Hampshire:

Spent my first Mother’s Day in Coney Island with my new Love, Lori Michelle necklace made with Nico’s initial:

I rocked these amazing hair extensions from Irresistible Me:

My baby turned ONE:

And here is all the gear that got us through:

Lastly, saying goodbye to summer (sadly):

And there you have it folks…you’re favorite posts from the past year. Looking forward to what the 3rd year will bring for p + p.

Speaking of birthdays…since I have been so terrible at remembering them this year (my sincere apologies to those of you, you know who you are!)…I’m taking advantage of the fact that I remembered this one today…and I want to wish a Happy 30th to my cousin and half brain, Misa.

Hope you are all enjoying the week so far!

XO,

Gina

All About Hair

As most of you know, I recently got my hair cut by the amazing, Tim Dueñas, at Arrojo Studio. Having recently celebrated my 30th Birthday, I decided to treat myself to a fancy hair cut, and I am so glad I did. Tim asked about my lifestyle and my daily routine, and without even needing me to show him a photo, he knew exactly what I needed in a hair cut. Long enough to still put up in a pony and go (mom life doesn’t give me much time for styling), but plenty of layers and shape if I do find a moment to wear it down. I am incredibly happy with how it turned out.

That being said…Irresistible Me sent over their fantastic extensions, and I couldn’t wait to try them on! Now, let me be straight with you. I know ladies have been rocking extensions for awhile now, but I never jumped on board. To be honest, as much as I wanted to try them out, it was extremely intimidating to me. I am not the best stylist when it comes to hair, and even when I received the box, I took one look, and e-mailed my contact there freaking out about how I was supposed to apply these things! She sent me a video tutorial, and I have to say, I am completely surprised at how easy it was to clip them in. While, I love my fresh new cut, it’s exciting to know that if I am craving a longer, fuller look for a date night or event, I can now achieve that without spending a fortune at the salon.

I have posted Before and After shots, and you can really see how natural they turned out. A lot of other extensions I have seen have the potential to appear mullet-like, showing a clear separation between the real hair and the “fake” hair. These flowed beautifully with my natural hair. Speaking of natural…Irresistible Me boasts 100% natural hair in all their clips.

So what do you all think of extensions? Have you tried them before? Which look do you like better?

Before:

After:

*** I apologize for the blurriness in some of these photos. We are trying out a new lens, and my husband was also taking these with a baby strapped to him, so there was some shake-age. Haha.***

Hair Extensions: c/o Irresistible Me / Top: Necessary Clothing / Scalloped Shorts: Necessary Clothing / Shoes: ALDO (similar) / Bag: Rebecca Minkoff / Shades: Vintage / Earrings: c/o Stella & Dot (now on sale!) / Bracelets: Henri Bendel, Baublebar, Stella & Sparkle / Watch: Michael Kors / Lip: MAC Impassioned

And can you believe my outfit is actually a top and shorts set? I wore them together, but apart, I think they would be just as cute styled in a different way. I went on a sets kick this past shopping trip. I don’t know what it was, but I was alone for once and excited, and I kept seeing adorable sets, so there you go. The one I’m wearing is sold out online, but if you live in NYC, you may still be able to catch it in-store. I also purchased this adorable two-piece top and skirt set, and I hope I can find the perfect occasion to break it out.

We spent the weekend in Brooklyn with our nieces, celebrated Nico’s 1st Birthday with a slice of rainbow cake (the big celebration is coming up this Saturday), and reminisced back to last year’s Labor Day Weekend when I was actually in labor. My how much has changed since then.

Hope you all had a fantastic holiday weekend as well!

XO,

Gina

{27} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Finished beachy read, Another Piece of My Heart, by Jane Green. Nothing groundbreaking, but a decent vacation read.

writing A deposition for a court date. I’m a witness! Don’t get too excited, it’s just traffic court…

listening To lots of upbeat music, because Friday I returned to the gym after a 20 month hiatus. And I actually went again on Monday, and went for a run this morning. Hoping to keep this momentum going, because I’m already feeling more energized (apart from my sore limbs).

thinking That we had a really great time last Sunday at the Industry City Dance Party in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. Zack was eager to go, and I was a little worried that we would be “those people” bringing a baby into an entirely inappropriate situation, but I was happy to find all sorts of kids and babies rockin’ out on the dance floor with the best of them. It was definitely a party. And not a kid’s party. But the fact that kids were welcomed and deemed appropriate there was pretty cool. Nico (not surprisingly) loved it, and our little fam had a really great time getting our dance on.

smelling My fav scent, Light Blue.

watching All the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge videos. I was a little annoyed by them at first…people dousing themselves so they didn’t have to donate…didn’t make a lot of sense to me. But after reading this blog post, I have a new perspective.

wishing Nico an early Happy 1st Birthday! He is turning ONE on Friday. I just can’t believe it.

hoping That I can get my act together this week for a party planning extravaganza. And by extravaganza, I mean myself, a glass of wine, my living room, and some DIY crafting.

wearing In the photo above I’m wearing my new ModCloth dress that I got at their 70% off sale! It’s sold out, but check out some of their other sale dresses here. Did I mention I was able to go shopping this weekend…ALONE? It was kind of amazing.

loving My new haircut (also seen in photo above) from the amazing Tim Dueñas. Feels so much lighter and loving having some layers again.

laughing At this adorable friendship on Daily Laughs.

wanting The summer to stick around a little longer. I’m not ready for the beach days to end…

needing To start checking some more things off my bucket list. And as I’m looking at it…thinking about making some edits.

feeling Incredibly nervous as today is Nico’s first day with his new nanny and new playmate. We are going to miss our old one so much, and it’s going to be a tough transition week for all of us, but I’m hoping he will adjust quickly.

craving These sweet cinnamon oven roasted peaches. Thinking this is just the recipe I need for the peaches in our yard this year.

clicking Looking for a few sweet new baby gifts for little ones on the way.

What have you been up to lately?

Hope you are all having a fantastic week!

XO,

Gina

***I was inspired by Tina of Like Ordinary Life to create this post, and she was inspired by Lauren of siddathornton, who started The Sunday Currently.

{26} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Finished a few good ones recently. First up was The Fault in Our Stars. I wanted to read the book before watching the movie. Of course, it’s predictable and a total tearjerker, but I was pleasantly surprised with how well a male author (John Green) was able to capture the mind of a sixteen year old girl. Next, I read Dark Places, by Gillian Flynn. This author never disappoints. Although the main character, Libby, is a little unlikable in my opinion, Gillian Flynn is always keeping you on your toes with her novels and makes you want more. Heading to the beach this weekend, so if you have any beach reads to recommend, please do!

writing A ginormous to-do list of everything I need to get done before our trip to the Outer Banks. And a packing list.

listening Summer…my summer anthem by Calvin Harris. Prepping a little playlist for our road trip.

thinking That this beautifully written blog post from my friend Sascha really hits home for the working mom.

smelling The delicious homemade eggplant parm the hubby cooked this week. Fresh eggplant, tomatoes, and basil from the garden. Melt in your mouth amazingness.

watching The Bachelorette finale really threw me for a loop! I realize I am delayed on watching my shows, so sorry for being late to the party. I won’t throw out any spoilers for those who may also be behind on their TV watching, but let’s just say I was really surprised!

wishing Time would slow down a bit. My little baby is almost a year old already! I can’t even take it.

hoping I can pull off this fabulous fishtail braid at the beach next week shown in this tutorial by Nikki.

wearing Lots of leopard print this week. Feeling feisty.

loving The end of summer sales! ModCloth, Free People, J. Crew, & Zara have some pretty good ones going on right now.

laughing At how Nico loves to be chased around the house. I will crawl after him, and he will start crawling away squealing with delight…then come back and start chasing me while laughing. That belly laugh is enough to get me laughing and smiling all day long.

wanting To be with my little boy today. In case you couldn’t tell, I’m missing him a lot while at work this week. Looking forward to spending a whole week with him at the beach and introducing him to the place I have vacationed since I was a small child. Also excited that the whole family will be able to see how much he has grown.

needing A little girl (one day) so I can buy these adorable ribbons from Brit!

feeling Totally inspired by hometown friend Candice as she becomes the first plus-sized model to appear in next year’s Pirelli calendar. Doesn’t she look fantastic!!??

craving Something sweet. What else is new?

clicking On 1st birthday party ideas for my little guy.

What have you been up to lately?

Hope you are all having a fantastic week!

XO,

Gina

***I was inspired by Tina of Like Ordinary Life to create this post, and she was inspired by Lauren of siddathornton, who started The Sunday Currently.