photos Archives - Popcorn and Pandas

Sunrise on Branch Lake

It’s 4:13am and I am awoken in the middle of the night due to pregnancy and my inability to control my bladder from the urgency to relieve itself these days. So, I hop out of bed to make my way downstairs to the restroom in the lake house, when I look out the bedroom window. Holy sky. This is amazing. We had thought about waking up early to watch the sunrise, and had set our alarms for 4:55am since the sun was supposed to come up at 5:00am, but we weren’t really sure if we would be able to force ourselves out of bed at that hour. After waking up and taking care of business, I quickly grabbed my camera and took a few shots across the lake and into the colorful sky. It was eerily quiet, peaceful and serene. Just me and the lake and the brightly colored sky. I wrestled with the idea of whether or not to wake the rest of the gang this early, and ultimately decided that they needed to see what I was seeing at that moment. It would just be too selfish to exclude them from this view, and by 4:55am, they may have missed all of this. So I woke up Zack and our friends, Erin and Rai. They weren’t too pleased at first, grumbling and groaning, but when I showed them a photo I had taken of the sky, they knew they too needed to jump up before they missed this magical moment. Zack and Erin got so excited in fact, that they broke out the kayaks and enjoyed the sunrise from atop the water. Rai and I stayed behind taking in the moment from the lake house dock and capturing photos. I know photos can’t really do justice, but my memories and these photos are all I’ve got. Hope you enjoy.

If you were still unsure about whether or not you should visit Maine, then these photos probably did the trick. We were lucky enough to wake up to this view every morning, even though it might have been a bit earlier than we were used to!

Hope everyone is having a good Thursday. I am looking forward to a little girl’s night. My friend Jess is moving to New Jersey at the end of the month, so this will be the last one she hosts in her NYC apartment. I then have to go home to pack for our trip to Maryland this weekend for both my friend Teri’s bridal shower and my baby shower for the Little Monkey. We are trying to get the guest bedroom cleared out, and after this weekend it’s go time on that nursery!

XOXO,

Gina

{11} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Finished reading Wild by Cheryl Strayed, about a woman who finds herself while hiking the Pacific Coast Trail. Sort of an Eat, Pray, Love in the wilderness if you will. I would definitely recommend to anyone who enjoys the outdoors. I am now starting Bossypants by Tina Fey, and hoping for a laugh.

writing Other than blog posts, I haven’t been writing much of anything else lately…

listening Violin and Dubstep? Who knew this combo could work. Check out Lindsey Stirling’s Crystallize. She’s mad talented.

thinking That I am extremely grateful to my husband and neighbor for installing our A/C window units this week. It’s 90 degrees here today!

smelling Yankee Candle’s Summer Scoop. A candle that smells like my favorite dessert? Yes please!

watching Well, I got dragged into a “Bachelorette Draft” this past weekend. Yes, it’s like fantasy football, but with Des and a bunch of hot guys. I really had no interest in this show whatsoever, but after investing time into making draft picks for a friend that couldn’t make the event…I am now finding myself wanting to know how this whole thing is going to pan out. Go Juan Pablo!

wishing Everyone a Happy Last Day of May! Can’t believe it’s going to be June tomorrow.

hoping For a fun-filled weekend with friends in the Big Apple.

wearing A dress that I found at Nordstrom Rack a couple years ago along with red, strappy Sam Edelman sandals.

loving This strawberry, banana, pineapple smoothie I’m consuming right now.

laughing At what happened when Vine tried to make a commercial for Vine. See over at FunnyorDie.com

wanting To meet my new little cousin, Noelle Raelyn, who was born yesterday! Congrats to her Mama and Papa, my cousins Brittany and R.J.

needing To figure out what to wear to a costume party on Saturday…Disney princess or pregnant Britney Spears? Hmmm…

feeling My little one kicking up a storm in there all day long. It’s such a crazy and awesome feeling!

craving I had been craving a pedicure (since I can no longer reach my toes well enough to paint my own), and luckily this was fulfilled on Wednesday. I went with the new Essie 2013 Neon Collection’s DJ Play That Song. I can now proceed with open-toed shoes again.

clicking Researching pediatricians and birthing classes for the little one.

What have you been up to lately?

Happy Friday!

Love,

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.

Our Brooklyn Garden

Since moving from the Upper East Side to Brooklyn, we have acquired a ton of outdoor space. Last year, my husband and I decided to grow a little garden in our front yard. It was crazy plentiful with tons of basil and other fresh herbs, tomatoes, lettuce, green beans, peas, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, and of course some pretty flowers as well. But as you can see from this photo, it was also quite a bit of a mess. This could possibly (ok definitely) have a lot to do with the fact that I think we only weeded once the entire growing season, but regardless, this year my husband was bound and determined to create a much more organized and clean structured looking garden. He even created raised beds…raised beds! I have to say, I have been very impressed with all the work he has put into it. He has been working his tail off, while I haven’t even lifted a finger this year. I’m using my pregnancy as an excuse, but frankly, I’m just not that into yard work. I would much rather be doing laundry. Luckily, our neighbors have been very helpful. Our one main problem is the stray cats in the area, which is the reason we fenced off portions of the garden last year. They like to dig up our fresh eats and relieve themselves in our flower beds. Darn cats. So anyway…here is the transformation from last year’s garden, to the new and improved 2013 Brooklyn Garden.

Last year…

This year…

IMG_8248_Layers_v1 — This empty space here is waiting for a nice little outdoor table and chairs set

IMG_8249_Layers_v1 — Fresh spinach growing

Since I took these photos, those darn cats have returned, and they have started to dig into the spinach bed. Therefore, my husband was back out there last night putting up a little fence around the bed, and I’m sure he will have to do the same with the other beds as well. Hopefully that will do the trick as it did last year. I am dreaming about making fresh homemade tomato sauce and fresh pesto sauce this year…mmm…I can’t wait!

Tomorrow, Zack and I are leaving on a jet plane and heading west to Arizona! We are super excited for our 10 day adventure and state tour. I’m pretty sure I won’t really get around to posting or editing anything next week, since I will be too busy exploring, so follow along with my adventures on Instagram!

XO,

Gina

Boston Love

I finally found some time to go through the tons of photos I took at Jamie and Kaitlyn’s wedding in Boston. For those that don’t remember, their wedding took place on the same day as the manhunt for the Boston Marathon bomber. It was an extremely crazy day, and I am proud of the bride and groom for taking everything in stride. Their original ceremony location was supposed to be held at a church that was in a lockdown area, so they had to move it at the last minute to the same location at the reception. I think they did a phenomenal job with the transformation, and this couple proved that the show must go on and love prevails!

Tons of love, patriotism, and Boston pride were shown at this wedding from start to finish. The groom and his men dressed in Naval attire, the sword arch ceremony, the altered speeches, and the irish jig and Bostonian song lyrics gave this wedding a special touch. It was so nice to see their family and friends rally around the bride and groom on their special day, and also rally around their city in light of such crazy times. I’m sure you can see the love here in the photos below. Enjoy!

IMG_7959_Layers_v1 — Me and the hubby (with the little one doing a good job of hiding)

What a fun night!

Stay tuned for more photos from our Boston trip to come.

This past weekend we went to Maryland for the 1st Annual John Petrovick Memorial 5K in Baltimore. You may remember I ran for John and raised over $5,000 for the Johns Hopkins Departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery back in October. Well, yesterday marked the 1 year anniversary of his passing, and some good friends of mine put on this special event to honor his memory and inspire others. John was a truly inspirational person, and I am so happy this event went off without a hitch. It was a gorgeous, sunny day, and about 250 runners and walkers participated. This was definitely the best possible way we could have spent the day. “Inside all of us is HOPE.” Miss you, John.

Hope you all are having a great start to your week!

XO,

Gina

{10} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading May issues of Health Magazine and Marie Claire. Got some yummy new recipes and a desire to return to Italy!

writing Thank you notes for all of the kindness my family and friends have shown toward Little Monkey so far! He is a lucky little boy!

listening To the news. I admit, I am not the best when it comes to keeping up with the news. I usually get my updates from Facebook and Twitter (I know, that’s horrible, but true). But events from the past week have kept me tuned in.

thinking That I cannot believe I am halfway through my pregnancy! 20 weeks in, and 20 weeks left until I get to meet my Baby Boy!

smelling Not much of anything. I have been sick and stuffed up all week.

watching The always entertaining Real Housewives of Orange County. Never a dull dinner party.

wishing For safe travels as we head down to Maryland this weekend.

hoping That I can pack my bags in less than 2 hours. For me this would be an accomplishment.

wearing Today is a lazy day. I blame it on being sick all week. I’m literally in yoga pants, New Balance tennis shoes, layered tank, tshirt, and sweater. On days like today, I’m so very lucky my office is low key.

loving The fact that 215 people have signed up for the John Petrovick Memorial 5K this weekend! I am so thankful to my friends who have put this event together. This is a great turnout for the very first event, and John would be so happy and proud. So excited to see you all in Baltimore!

laughing At myself trying on bathing suits with my prego belly last night in preparation for our trip to warm-weather Arizona. No really…it was quite comical.

wanting To be outside playing in this sunshine today. It’s gorgeous in NYC!

needing To flush this sickness throughly out of my system as soon as possible.

feeling Super excited for our trip to Arizona at the beginning of May. Hanging out with my pen pal in her hometown for the first time, seeing family and friends, the Grand Canyon, Sedona, warm weather, Mexican food, our two year wedding anniversary, and our “baby moon” trip…so many reasons for this excitement!

craving Everything and anything neon. As seen on Monday’s post.

clicking I took a million photos during our Boston trip last weekend of the wedding and the rest of our adventures. Once again, I’m blaming my sickness for my delay in posting these, but I promise they should be up sometime next week!

*Sidenote: I just got my Waveborn shades in the mail today, and I cannot wait to rock them oh so soon!

What have you been up to lately?

Happy Friday!

Love,

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.

{9} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Just finished The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg which I strongly recommend to everyone. Currently reading The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown. It’s decent so far.

writing A birthday card for a special someone.

listening I’ve got a Mumford & Sons station on Pandora at the moment. Fun tunes from Passion Pit, Cold War Kids, MGMT and the likes.

thinking About the fact that Tissycole and Lisa are coming to visit tomorrow!!! Super excited!

smelling The rain. Is it weird that I could smell it before it even started coming down?

watching The always fabulous Rachel Zoe Project. Dying over the fashion weekly. Also just started watching the Real World Portland. Yes, I still watch the Real World.

wishing For sunshine. We were so spoiled at the beginning of the week with warm temperatures, and I’m wishing for them back this weekend!

hoping That the laundry will do itself. No? Not possible? Oh well, I tried.

wearing My “Amaze” sweater from ASOS (now on sale!) with an Old Navy poly button-down underneath. Black skinny jeans from Motherhood. Leopard print rain boots similar to these. Red Haute lip from Lancome.

loving I never realized how much you can love someone you have never even met. So excited for my baby boy to get here in September, and so in love already.

laughing At the fact I actually tried to straighten my hair this morning. The hair in the photo above lasted all of 2 minutes as I stepped out into the wind and rain this morning. You know those days where your umbrella decides to flip itself out over and over again? Did wonders for my hair today.

wanting To finish the friendship bracelet I started making over a month ago. My 4th grade skills just aren’t where they used to be…

needing To paint my nails tonight. They are in dire need of some Essie love.

feeling Excited for the girls to get here this weekend! Can’t wait for a weekend of shopping, photographing and girl talk.

craving Strangely enough, I am not getting any weird pregnancy cravings. I mean, I want ice cream…but I always want ice cream. Nothing new. I haven’t started liking condiments, so I think my appetite is relatively the same.

clicking Through fashion blogs of expecting mamas. Trying to figure out some tricks to looking chic while prego.

What have you been up to lately?

Happy Friday!

Love,

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.

Saturday at the Market

This past weekend, we had a wonderful visit from the in-laws, and we decided to take them to the Union Square Greenmarket on Saturday. If you have never been to the Greenmarket, you should definitely make the trip. There are fresh, local, organic fruits and vegetables galore, potted plants and herbs, flowers, local cheeses, meats, fresh pastas, honey, pies, candles, yarn products, and so much more. Your mouth is watering the entire time you are there, and I felt like I had a bit of an attention problem, because my eyes were constantly being taken in different directions. It’s hard to focus on any one thing, because there is something else amazing in the booth next door! We had a great time walking around there, and we continued our day by taking my in-laws to the famous hot-spots Russ and Daughters and Katz’s Delicatessen. They really enjoyed the day, and we headed back to Brooklyn afterward where we all fell into a food coma (i.e. a two hour nap.)

We had a really great weekend spending time with family. We hadn’t seen them since the holidays, so it was a lot of fun getting together. We are also getting excited for this upcoming weekend as well where we will see my side of the family for Easter in Maryland.

I want to wish everyone celebrating this week a Happy Passover!

Also, Happy 92nd Birthday to my Granny today! She is the sweetest most amazing lady!

Have a great week everyone.

XO,

Gina

{8} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Just finished Belong to Me by Marisa de Santos. Now I’m reading Love Walked In by the same author. Someone should have told me I should have reversed that reading order. Oh well.

writing Bills Bills Bills. Yes, I still do most of mine by hand. Call me old-fashioned.

listening The Sound of Music station on Pandora. Complete with musical ensembles from Phantom of the Opera, Beauty and the Beast, and many more Disney and show tune favorites. So guilty, yet so not ashamed.

thinking About my upcoming girl’s night tonight! Yay for friends and Mexican food!

smelling Juicy Couture Eau de Parfum

watching My favorite restaurant in the Outer Banks, NC, Tortuga’s Lie was featured on Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives last night! My cousin’s uncle (Richard Welch) is a chef and owner, and my cousin worked there for years. It’s amazing, and Guy Fieri gave Tortuga’s rave reviews for their Jerk Chicken and Pork Antonio. I’m so proud of them!

wishing For warmer weather. Snow be gone! It’s time for Spring now.

hoping For a good doctor’s report tomorrow.

wearing This photo is from over the weekend pre-shopping trip, but today I am wearing…jeans, J. Crew navy and white polka dot button down, cream and navy striped GAP sweater w/ red bow over top, Steve Madden boots, and some fun baubles.

loving The fact that my tax documents have already been organized and shipped out to my accountant, and I can let her take over from here. Totally worth the money to not have to do them myself.

laughing We watched a few documentaries over the weekend on Vice.com, and stumbled across this genre of music called Turbofolk in Serbia. Serbian pop star, Goga Sekulic came out with this hit “Seksi Bizinesmen” (note the spelling) and we couldn’t not stop cracking up at how serious they were while performing this video. Is that a fox on her shoulder? The worst part is that after to listening to this song three times, I am starting to think it’s kinda catchy.

wanting Warm weather. Did I say that already??? Well let me just reiterate…spring cannot come soon enough.

needing Before this weekend I was needing pants that fit! I am now satisfied, and banning myself from shopping until spring is over since I went a bit crazy. We’ll see how long that lasts.

feeling A bit more energized, and a lot less nausea than the past few weeks.

craving Family time. I haven’t seen the fam since the holidays, so I am looking forward to my in-laws visiting this weekend, and also looking forward to seeing my side of the family on Easter weekend. It’s been too long!

clicking Through baby toys. What does one get a 1 year old for their 1st birthday? I’m new at this baby thing, folks!

What have you been up to lately?

Happy Tuesday!

Love,

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.

{7} Lately…

Lately I’ve been…

reading Catching up on my Marie Claire reading. The February & March issues are featuring so many spring trends that have me itching for warmer weather.

writing A Birthday card for the hubby. His Birthday is on Tuesday, but we are celebrating this weekend.

listening Swedish House Mafia all day today. Gotta pump myself up for the concert tonight at Madison Square Garden. Can’t believe this is their last tour. Sad face. I scored tix to start off the hubby’s b-day celebration. I’ll leave you with one of my favs: Don’t You Worry Child ft. John Martin

thinking About how much fun this concert is going to be. It’s consuming my mind today!

smelling The yummy bagel with cream cheese that I am about to consume.

watching Don’t hate, but I have been loving the Snooki & JWoww show this season. I mean, how cute is little Lorenzo?!?!

wishing That we hadn’t been woken up at 4am last night with the doorbell ringing from a cab driver that got stiffed by my neighbor. I mean, really?

hoping For positivity and strength to surround my Uncle and help him fight off the sickness he has been faced with at this point in his life. I also hope that my Mom can find equal strength since she has been his rock during this time.

wearing Black leggings with a pink and grey striped top, black and white striped cardigan, studded combat boots, my panda necklace, and my new MAC Candy Yum Yum from my bestie, Nichole! You rock!

loving The fact that we started making friendship bracelets at our last girl’s night on Tuesday. What a trip down memory lane! So fun, but I realize my skills need some brushing up.

laughing At this poor girl who tried to do a hair tutorial. I know it shouldn’t be funny, but it’s kinda funny.

wanting A big cup of coffee from Starbucks. Preferably a Cinnamon Dolce Latte.

needing The winner of my Flair Accessories giveaway to reply back with her shipping information. If I don’t hear from her soon, someone else may become the lucky winner instead.

feeling A bit sleepy due to being woken up last night.

craving This gold Rebecca Minkoff Mini M.A.C. Oh wait…I already bought it. I’m not allowed to crave anything else for awhile…

clicking Through Amazon for some photo paper to print on for class. We are learning to use Camera RAW and Photoshop, so exciting!

What have you been up to lately?

Happy Weekend!

Love,

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.

Bright Lights Bigger City

I typically tend to avoid touristy areas like Times Square, but I happened to be here last Friday night with my camera in tow, and I decided to take advantage. As much as the crowds can be crazy and frustrating, there is something about Times Square that fills you with energy and excitement. The bright lights. The big city. It makes you feel as if you are a part of something really magnificent. So I took the opportunity to dive right in there with the tourists and take some photos. I hadn’t really taken any night shots since I started my photography class, so I experimented with what I had been learning, and here is what I came up with. Hope you like.

And now for a little tune to put you in the spirit:

Bright Lights Bigger City – Cee Lo Green

Happy Hump Day!

XO,

Gina