Back on the Saddle

Ok so I am WELL aware of the fact that this blog post is more than long overdue. Since my last update was the end of September and it is now the beginning of December, I have all of October and November to update you all on. I figured the easiest way to do so without boring the hell out of you would be in pictures and brief descriptions, so here goes my lousy attempt at an October update – back on the saddle again! ;-)

I started the month off perfectly with a weekend visit to Kansas City for my nephew Carson’s Baptism. I got into town late Thursday night, which means I got to spend all day Friday with my mom and the 3 most adorable kids on the planet! Spending time with Jaxson, Audrina and Carson is one of my absolute favorite things to do. I can honestly say that even though I live thousands of miles away from them, I think about them every single day!

Jaxson & Audrina on Friday morning

Baby Carson greeted Aunt Lisa with smiles!

Saturday morning the whole fam headed to watch Jaxson’s soccer game in Edwardsville. This was the first game of Jaxson’s I ever got to see since I wasn’t ever in town during Tball. It was so much fun to watch him run around and kick the soccer ball. I’m not even his mother and I was unbelievably proud of that little boy.

Jax playing soccer with the Sharks

The cutest player on the team

Audrina cheering for big brother on the sidelines

Carson's Aunt Rocks! ;-)

Saturday afternoon we headed to Sacred Heart Catholic Church for Carson’s Baptism. It was so nice to welcome Carson into our faith as another member of our parish. After mass and his christening, we headed to the Bonner Springs Community Center for the reception. It was nice to sit and chat with family and friends over a meal. Everyone passed around Carson like a little doll and although a little greedy, I held him every chance I got. I didn’t want to let the little guy go. When someone would come to take him from me, I wanted to say, “You live here, he’s mine right now!” But I didn’t, of course. I did get a lot of time with him and he did so well throughout the entire day of being passed around.

Carson looking adorable in his Baptism outfit

Carson and Aunt Lisa

Saturday night we celebrated my Tio’s 40th Birthday at a Salsa Club in downtown Kansas City. There was good food, great music, and fabulous company. It was my dad’s side of the family so of course there were about 50-60 people celebrating and having fun. It was the perfect way to get an update on everyone’s lives and update them on mine. Sadly, I don’t keep in touch with everyone (can you blame me, my family is huge) so family gatherings while I’m in town work out so nicely.

My mom & me at the salsa club

Sunday my immediate family woke up and headed to the Pumpkin Patch. It was a beautiful day outside and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Jaxson, Audrina and Carson (even though he slept most of the time) having fun at Kirby Farm. Fall is one of my favorite times of the year and annual visits to the Pumpkin Patch are one of the reasons why.

Jax & Drina enjoying the Pumpkin Patch

Cutest scarecrow ever!

I love her faces

Most precious pumpkin in the patch

Sisters (and sleepy Carson)

Sunday after the Pumpkin Patch we headed back to Edwardsville for another one of Jaxson’s soccer games. Again, it was so fun for me to get to watch my nephew play soccer.

Jax blocking the goal

After the game it was time for me to head to the airport so I had to say goodbye to my family, never an easy task. The hardest part is always saying bye to the kids and every single time I do it, no matter how hard I try to fight it, I get tears in my eyes. This time was no different.

I got back to New York late Sunday night and on Monday evening, I had another visitor. Although I was tired and didn’t really have much time to adjust after my weekend trip, I was more than excited for my friend Cassie to visit. I met Cassie my sophomore year at KU as she was an exchange student from England. I was fortunate enough to get to visit her while she lived in Scotland and I was studying in Spain, but hadn’t seen her since. During her 9-day visit she did a lot of exploring on her own while I was at work and then we spent the evenings together. We also did some touristy things over the weekend that she was here, including lunch at South Street Seaport and walking over the Brooklyn Bridge.

Brooklyn Bridge

Manhattan Bridge

I can’t recall if I ever mentioned that I put together a team of co-workers and joined the NYC Social Sports Club Volleyball League. If not, I just did. We played games every Wednesday night in September and October and ended up placing 8th out of 16 teams, which really isn’t bad considering some of the players had never played volleyball in their lives. I forgot how much I love volleyball considering I hadn’t played since sand volleyball over a year ago. I really enjoyed it and it was good exercise and fun spending time with co-workers outside of the office. Not to mention, having something to do every Wednesday was nice. It beats the usual going home from work to either go to the gym, read, or watch TV.

Patch Set Hit

Another notable for the month of October (and again in November) was a work conference in the city. The October conference was right in the heart of NYC and the November conference was in San Francisco. Although these conferences were A LOT of work to prepare for and meant a lot of late hours at the office, they were really fun and it was enjoyable to see the execution a success.

Co-worker and friend Megan and me at the conference

Co-worker and friend Claudia and me enjoying the conference

October ended with a Sweet 16 party for Alex’s niece, Ashley and Halloween. Ashley’s Sweet 16 reminded me of my Quinceañera, which brought back fond memories from 8 years ago (I can’t believe it has been that long!) I didn’t really do too much for Halloween except dress up for a work party the Friday before - I was a zebra because it was easy and I already had the stuff.

Alex & Me at Ashley's Sweet 16

As you can tell, October was a busy, but great month!

Girl's Weekend in NYC

As promised, here is a little preview of Girl's Weekend in the City:

Jen, Megs and Kate arrived at my apartment around 9:30pm. Val and I welcomed them to our neat and clean apartment with hugs and glasses of wine! As always, we were so excited to see each other, but this time was different, it was a little more special. We were all in the same room, but in New York City! We chit chatted, got ready, finished our wine, and headed out the door. On the walk to the train station I couldn’t stop smiling. You know the smile I am talking about, the ridiculously cheesy one you see on people’s faces when they are just so happy. That’s the one I had on mine. I was just so excited that my best friends and I were hopping on the train on a Friday night in NYC. No big deal, right!? ;-)

Welcome drinks in Brooklyn

We headed to Norwood, an excusive club where my friend Jacey works. She pulled some strings and got us on the list. We arrived just as Jacey was getting off work so we all headed to the 3rd floor where we received VIP treatment. First, the floor manager moved some chairs around so we would have our own little lounge area to sit. Then, he brought us our own bottle of Absolut Vodka with 3 pitchers of mixers, Orange juice, Cranberry juice, and Sprite. All 6 of us drank, danced, and just caught up on life until the wee hours of the morning. We finally made it home around 5:00am and needless to say, didn’t get an early start on Saturday morning.

Bonner Springs hits Norwood

Finally around 1:00pm on Saturday we headed to brunch at a diner just down the street from our apartment. Sadly, Jacey had to work so it was just the 5 of us. We were all a bit hungover (some more than others, but I won’t say any names! ;-) so the food helped tremendously. After we ate we headed to Battery Park in Manhattan to take the Staten Island Ferry. We got great views of the Statue of Liberty and the city itself. Afterward, we walked around a little bit and the girls did some souvenir shopping. We then headed back to the apartment to get ready for what Saturday night had in store for us. Did I mention that all 5 of us girls plus my roommate Katy and her mom who was in town visiting for the weekend as well had to manage sharing a 3 bedroom apartment with only 1 bathroom? It was interesting, but we managed. We got all dolled up and headed to the Kimberly Hotel in Midtown Manhattan where we met Peejay (Jacey’s friend from work) and his friend for cocktails on the rooftop bar to the hotel. Given that we were about 40 stories high, we enjoyed the views of the city as well as the swanky atmosphere of the hotel and delicious drinks, which were complimentary of course! (We got the hookups all weekend. Let’s just say, we know people! ;-)

Loving the public transportation system

Staten Island Ferry

View of the city from the ferry

After cocktail hour we cabbed it to Juliet, a restaurant turned nightclub after hours. We ate an ungodly amount of food and drank champagne, all free once again, until the real party started. The lights turned down low, the DJ pumped it up, and the bouncer let the long line of people waiting inside to dance the night away. It was a really cool place. One minute we were enjoying a nice meal and the next we were jamming at an exclusive nightclub. And when I say excusive, I mean exclusive. To even get your name on the list to get in is difficult, you basically have to be somebody or know somebody, and we were lucky enough to know somebody! And here we were, drinking really expensive bottles of champagne and dancing it up NYC style!

Jen and I at the Kimberly Hotel

My girls!

Obviously Saturday night was special for everyone, but it was especially special for me as it was the night I got to introduce my boyfriend to all my best friends. This was a moment I had been looking forward to for a while and I’m happy to report that it went even better than I expected. Kate, Megs and Jen all gave him their stamp of approval and even better than that, at one point or another during the night, they all personally commented on how from the short time they were able to talk to him, they all thought he was a great guy and could tell how happy we both were together. It meant the world to me that they all loved him and that he loved all of them!

Alex and Me

Roomies! ;-)

Jace, Kate, and Me sipping on FREE champagne

Jen and Megs dancing with the awesome saxophone and drum players

BFF and BF - loves it! ;-)

We made it home from the club at about 3:00am and promised ourselves we would wake up at a decent hour on Sunday to get some sight seeing done. Although we didn’t leave the apartment super early, we did leave before noon and this time, a lot less hungover, thank goodness! We grabbed a bite and then headed to Ground Zero to check out the September 11 memorial. I have been there before, but I was excited to go again as I was interested to see how the girls would react. They had the same reaction as me, they were moved. You don’t have to cry or really say anything at all; you can just feel the emotion. It’s just crazy to even think about what went on that day and how many people suffered and how our lives have changed ever since. Pretty powerful, I must say. After the 911 Memorial, we walked around the Financial District a little bit. We walked down Wall Street, saw the New York Stock Exchange, and the infamous bull (if you’ve seen the movie Hitch you know which one I am talking about). We then walked to South Street Seaport and ate lunch right on the water. SSS provides a great atmosphere with a lot of shops and restraints and most importantly, great views of the city and the Brooklyn Bridge. After we ate we headed back to my apartment to rest up a little bit and then got ready to head to Times Square and dinner. The girls absolutely loved Times Square as it is the epitome of NYC. It’s just like the song says, “these lights will inspire you”.

Great view of the Brooklyn Bridge from South Street Seaport

Wall Street Bull

Times Square

Laughing hysterically on the train

After Times Square we headed to one of my favorite places, the Yaffa Café. Yaffa is one of the first places I ate/drank at in NYC when I first visited my Tios the summer after my senior year. I went back there during every visit to the city and now it’s my pleasure to take others there. The Yaffa itself has a really cute, young alternative vibe to it (The Olsen Twins hang out there sometimes) as it is in the East Village near NYU. It is located on St. Marks Place, which is an incredibly historic street that I was sure my friend Jen would appreciate, and she did. My roommate Katy joined the 6 of us and we all had a nice dinner and farewell drinks as Jen, Megs and Kate were leaving in the morning. We then headed back to the apartment, the girls packed up and we all went to bed. I was so exhausted so it probably only took me 5 minutes to fall asleep, but I do remember that right before I did, I thought to myself, “How lucky am I?”

Jen and Me in NYC together...I'm obsessed!

I am honestly so thankful to have such wonderful friends. We all made a pact that we would stay in touch after high school even though we all had our own separate plans post-graduation and I am so happy to say that we’ve kept it. So many people say they’ll stay in touch, and then their 10-year high school reunion comes around and they realize they didn’t do a very good job. Not us, we have stuck to it. Every year at least once, if not twice or three times, since high school we have had a girl’s night. This time, it was not just one night, but a girl’s weekend, and not just anywhere, in New York City!

Thank you Val, Jacey, Jen, Megs, and Kate for being such wonderful friends and for coming to visit me in the city. You have no idea how much it means to me. I love that we are all different in our own separate ways, but get along with each other so well. We are a fierce group of gals! I am so thankful for each and every one of you!

Side note: We were only 6 for 7 as Sarah (the 7th girl) wasn’t able to make it to NYC. I just wanted to say, Sarah - we missed you dearly! I am already looking forward to next time!

Before I knew it, Monday morning came and it was off to work for me. I must admit it was difficult to get back to the daily grind because I was so exhausted from my lack of weekend sleep, and because I was sad the girls were gone. It was such a fantastic weekend and I look forward to many more years of girl’s nights with my fabulous friends!

Girl's Weekend in New York City - One for the records books!

On the Move

Upon my sister’s request, here is the latest in the life of Lisa.

Since my last update (10 day vacation – to Kansas City) I have been back in NY and on the move (in every sense of the word). I have been on the move in that I’ve been super busy and literally in that I moved out of Stuy Town, Manhattan and into Park Slope, Brooklyn.

On Wednesday, September 1 my Tio and I moved out of Stuy Town. Other than being a pain in the ass (I hate moving), it was kind of sad as we both really liked Stuy Town and both enjoyed being roomies. My Tio moved to the Jersey Shore and I moved to the borough of Brooklyn. My friends from the KU J-school, Val and Katy, drove a moving truck from Kansas to NYC and after a few weeks of unpacking, painting and decorating, our apartment looks great! Katy and I will be permanent roommates for a year, and Val and a friend from high school, Jacey, are our temporary roomies. Jacey has been staying with us since day 1, but is leaving for Cali in October and Val is spending the entire Fall semester in New York and then is most likely moving back to KC. I of course miss living with my Tio, but am really glad to live with my friends. We have a lot of fun together even we aren’t doing much, like watching the friends DVDs.

Speaking of Friends, all 4 of us girls are obsessed with friends so we decided to attend Friend’s Trivia Night at a bar/restaurant last week and won first place! For this reason, and many others, I love having girl roommates. We like the same shows, share clothes, help “style” each other’s “going out” outfits, you know, all the good stuff.

All 4 of us absolutely love our Brooklyn neighborhood of Park Slope. It is considered one of New York City's most desirable neighborhoods. In 2010, it was ranked #1 in New York by New York Magazine citing its quality public schools, dining, nightlife, shopping, access to public transit, green space, quality housing, safety, and creative capital, among other aspects. The apartment is on the 2nd level of a 6 story walk-up and right next to Prospect Park (a huge park that is the Central Park of Brooklyn), right next to the train station (20 minutes to get to my job in Manhattan), and right next to a laundry mat, brand new YMCA, and lots of cute restaurants and shops. The more time I spend in BK, the more I love it! My next order of business is getting to know Prospect Park and it's surrounding attractions a little more (The Brooklyn Museum and the Botanical Garden). I plan on doing this by taking jogs/walks though the park. I NEED the exercise and want to enjoy the lovely fall weather that is approaching. Fall is my favorite season. It’s football season for one, but also, I love Halloween, Thanksgiving, and of course, my birthday in November! I also enjoy the cool crisp weather and appreciate the beauty of watching the leaves change on the trees. Not to mention it’s sweater and cute boots season, you have got to love that.

My room

Window view

Dresser, TV, closet

In other news, I am recently “in a relationship” or shall we say “Facebook official”. Alex and I have been dating since the first week in July and things have gone so well. Every single date has been amazing, even the times where we just stay home and he cooks me dinner. Oh yeah, did I mention he cooks?! And not just anything, yummy Puerto Rican food! We have so much fun together and I haven’t laughed and smiled more than I have in the past few months. We compliment each other very well because we are similar, but have our differences, which makes the relationship fun and interesting. I am happy to call such an awesome man my boyfriend! ;-)

Alex had no idea I was taking this pic, and would

probably hate me if he knew I posted it on my blog! ;-)

On another food note, other than PR food that Alex (and his mother – who is an amazing cook) has been making me, I have had some phenomenal Indian food. Last Saturday I attended a traditional Hindu wedding with my Tio and the celebration afterward included an amazing array of Indian food. The ceremony itself was beautiful. It was honestly a cultural experience that I very much enjoyed. As most of you know, since I did a study abroad in Spain I have been very interested in travel and learning about other cultures and although I didn’t understand all the traditions at this wedding, I appreciated the beauty. It was interesting and emotional, to the point where I cried, which I know isn’t saying too much because I am a basket case sometimes, but I didn’t even know these people that well and I cried so you can imagine the emotion that goes along with Hindu weddings. The celebration afterward (not the reception as that was the next day – Hindu weddings are multiple day affairs) featured great food and music. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the women all fancy in their traditional Indian clothing (sari’s) dancing to the upbeat rhythm of the music. I’m not going to lie, it reminded me of Slumdog Millionaire.

Hindu wedding

Yummy Indian food

And lastly, the weather update. Last Thursday there was a tornado in Park Slope. It is very rare for a tornado to hit NY, but the crazy thing is that not only did it hit Brooklyn, but it hit my new neighborhood. And to be more specific, I was basically in it! Apparently you can take the girl out of Kansas, but you can’t stop Kansas from following her! To make a long story super short, I was in the laundry mat down the street when a huge storm blew through Park Slope, literally, the twister touched down and caused some decent damage. I was a little scared, but not nearly as frantic as the other people in the laundry mat. Like I said, tornados are pretty much unheard of on the East Coast so to most people, this storm was pretty insane. After about 5-10 minutes of serious downpour, and I mean fierce rain that would probably hurt your body like needles and ferocious winds and flying debris, it was over, but left a mess behind. Tree limbs were everywhere – on the sidewalks, blocking the street, and worst of all, on top of buildings and cars. Whole tree stumps were out of the ground and multiple glass windows were shattered. Luckily, no one was seriously hurt. Photos and videos that popped up on the internet afterward show the funnel right above where I was, which is just crazy!

The second big storm to pass through NYC was straight from Kansas – Girls Weekend in the City!! With me, Val, and Jacey already living in New York, 3 of our girlfriends, Jen, Kate, and Megs came to visit this past weekend and let’s just say we took this city by storm! ;-) From Friday night when they arrived until Monday morning when they returned to Kansas we had a blast! More details and pics to follow!

All the girls in the Financial District w/ the famous bull

(minus me - taking the photo)

10 Day Vacation!

I decided the best way to blog about my vacation to Kansas City is by breaking it down day by day and through visual aides, aka, pictures! :)

It was a very busy 10 days, the breakdown:

Friday – I arrived in KC around 10:30pm where my brother-in-law George picked me up from the airport and took me over to my sister Kim’s house so I could stay the night with her and Baby Carson. Michael was out of town so it was a perfect opportunity for me to spend time with my sister and nephew, although I didn’t really help much until Saturday morning considering I didn’t wake up at all during the night time feedings. I still am unsure how mothers do it. I NEED my sleep and can sleep through just about anything. I didn’t even wake up when Carson cried because he was hungry. This makes me a little nervous to be a mom as I’m not so sure I’m cut out for the job. I guess I have plenty of time to worry about that though.

Get in line girls, Carson is a stud

Saturday – I spent Saturday morning spending time with Kim and Carson and then we met up with my mom and sister Andrea and headed to a baby shower for my cousin’s wife. It went well and I’m excited to meet the newest Zarate addition when he/she (they didn’t find out the sex) arrives. Have I ever mentioned how big my family is? Between my mom’s side and dad’s side, I have a huge family, and it continues to grow with more and more babies being born every year. It definitely has its pros and cons, but for the most part I absolutely love it. I’m not going to lie, it can get exhausting (when I lived in Kansas) trying to attend every family function because there are SO many, but at the same time, I love that there is always something to do, something to celebrate, people to see, etc. I tell people all the time that I love my family, we are the best in the world, and I’m obviously not biased at all. ;) Saturday night my parents, grandma, the Elmer clan and me went to my Madrina Monica’s pool to barbeque and swim. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed this night. It was simple yes, but the combination of family, food, margaritas, and swimming made for a nice Saturday night in Kansas!

Audrina and Mina (Godmother in Spanish)

Jaxson and Aunt Wesa

Sunday – Sunday morning I didn’t feel too hot considering the margs and tequila shots from the night before, but I managed to wake up to go shopping with my mom and sister Kim. I am not going to lie, I felt like crap, but it was still fun spending time with lovely Zarate women minus the fact that my sister Kim encourages me to spend my money. I went to KC with a half empty suitcase and I came back with a 50 pounder…can you say, Shopping Spree? I spent Sunday night hanging out at my parent’s house with by BFF Val. It goes without saying that I very much enjoyed the QT (for you out of daters, that means quality time). Lastly, Jaxson had a sleepover with me on Sunday night. After Val left, Jaxson and I watched a movie and went to sleep. He always asks to have sleepovers with Aunt Wesa when she’s in town, but little does he know, I enjoy it way more than he does. I absolutely love spending time with my nephews and niece.

Jax and me at the Movie Theater

Monday – I spent Monday at home with my mom, Jaxson and Audrina and then we went to visit Kim and Baby Carson. I know I say this ALL the time, but I really do love spending time with the kiddos. They are so much fun to be around. It’s amazing to watch them grow and learn. I am envious of my mother’s job of being a stay at home Nana. Monday night I met my 2 Bonner BFFs for dinner at Jose Peppers. Jen, Megs and Me are unbelievably close (we have matching tattoos to prove it) and always have so much fun together, even if it’s just chatting over dinner and margs. It’s always so nice to catch up in each other’s lives. I can’t wait until they come visit me in NYC in Sept! After dinner I drove to Basehor to have a few drinks with my long time friend Nick. Once again, it was so nice to catch up with friends. I made a conscious effort to spend time with as many family members and friends that I could during my 10 day vacay.

Jen and I at Jose Peppers

Tuesday – Tuesday day I spent over Kim’s house with her and Carson. I tried to soak up the little man as much as possible as I know he is going to grow so fast and I’m going to miss so much. Tuesday night I went on a Sushi date with Kim and Michael. We are the only ones who like, let me rephrase, LOVE sushi so we went to an awesome Sushi Bar called Sakura. Kim and I have been planning this dinner for months. She wasn’t able to eat sushi while pregnant so we promised each other that after Carson was born, we’d go out for sushi and boy did we. We ate lots of delicious sushi and had a nice time chatting. Afterwards, I headed to my friend Blake’s house to hang out with him, Val and other high school buddies. We sipped wine, chatted, and I helped Val look for some jobs in NY. She is moving to the city with me at the beginning of September and I can’t hardly wait! More details to come on the big move! ;)

Baby Carson is so sweet!

Wednesday – Wednesday day I spent more time with the fam and Wednesday night I headed to downtown KC to spend time with friends at a bar to benefit a good cause. A friend of ours had a bad golf cart accident and was in the hospital for about 2 months. The Shark Bar at KC Power & Light held a benefit night for him in order to raise money to help pay the medical bills. It was a fun night with friends and it was nice to know my money was going to a good place. After P&L we headed to Westport to have a few drinks and do a little dancing. Well actually, we hadn’t planned on the dancing part, but when you get us girls together, dancing is inevitable. Needless to say, it was a fun night with my girls.

BFFs!

BFF from high school, Jen & BFF from college, Val

Thursday – Thursday was one of the only days my entire vacation that I didn’t do too much, which was nice and relaxing. I spent time at home with my fam and then a few of us headed to dinner for Taco Thursdays. My mom and I then pampered ourselves with manicures and pedicures. It was definitely nice mother/daughter time that was much needed.

My beautiful momma and me

Friday – Friday was Audrina’s first birthday so my mom and me packed up the kiddos and headed to Andrea’s job to have lunch with her. It was nice to visit my sis at work and her co-workers very much enjoyed meeting Jax and Drina. Friday night we ate dinner (Red Fortune Chinese – one of my favs that I wish we had in New York!) and then sang Happy Birthday to Princess A! She got her first cup cake, which she loved (the proof is in the pictures). Afterward I headed to a local bar for a night out with friends. Again, it was nice to catch up with people while I was in town and knowing I wouldn’t visit again for a while, I really tried to see everyone.

The birthday girl loved her first cupcake!

Mi otro mitad and soon to be roomie! :)

Saturday – Saturday afternoon I went to my cousin’s Baby shower (Again, the fam just keeps growing) and from there I headed to a wedding. My sister’s Brother-in-Law got married and considering our families are really close, it was nice to be in attendance for the big day.

Abuelo and Miss A

That face makes my heart melt!

So handsome in his tux! ;)

Sisterly love!

Being an aunt is the best job in the world, I'm so blessed!

Sunday – Sunday was Audrina’s birthday celebration so we headed to Lion’s Park for the party. It was so much fun to see all the kiddos playing and having a good time and so nice to see all babies of family and friends. The best part of it all was obviously seeing Princess Audrina enjoy her big day. The pictures say it all, and what they don’t say, Andrea does: The Elmers. Happy Birthday Sweat Pea, Mina Lisa loves you so much!

Audrina loved to be the center of attention, of course, she's a diva! ;)

She enjoyed her cake and presents too!

Carson sporting his I <3 NY onesie!

After the party I headed home to pack my bag and then it was off to the airport. It was definitely hard to say goodbye, especially after being home for so long, but at the same time I was ready to get back to the city. On the plane I reflected on my vacation and couldn’t do anything but smile. I thoroughly enjoyed every single day, spending time with every single person. I am one lucky girl to have such a great life with amazing people in it. To every one of you, thanks!

July came and went

Once again, I apologize for my lack of updates lately, I know it’s not a good excuse, but I have been very busy.

Considering I completely neglected my blog during the month of July, I thought I would give you all a super duper brief summary of the past month.

First of all, summer was in full bloom in New York and it was hotter than hell, pardon my language, but I am not exaggerating, it was in the hundreds for much of July. I tried to enjoy the nice weather, but to be honest it was miserably hot so I spent a lot of time indoors. With that being said, I should probably mention that much of this “indoor” time was spent at the office. Yes, I know what you’re thinking, I’m a workaholic, but I didn’t really have a choice as I had to prepare for my week vacation and then following my vacation I had to play catch up. The good news is, Patch hired an Office Assistant to help me out so slowly but surely, I have become less stressed out. Since Megan has been on-board, my hours have become more normal so my goal for August is to not stay at the office past 6:30-7:00pm. I will keep you updated on how that goes.

July in the City consisted of Gay Pride week, a few friends’ birthday celebrations, Friday night Happy Hours, and a lot of watching World Cup games. As I am sure you can imagine, I was super exited that Spain won the Championship! I of course would have loved to see the USA or Mexico win it all considering those are my “home” teams, but ever since studying abroad in Santiago, I consider Spain a third home so I was thrilled when they won.

Drag Queen at the Gay Pride Garden Party

Meaw's Birthday

¡Viva España!

Another July notable is the fact that I spent time with some familiar faces, and by familiar I mean Kansas girls, Jacey and Katy. Well, technically Katy is from Virginia, but we met at KU so I consider her a Kansan. Katy attended the NYU Summer Publishing Institute and is currently looking for full time employment in the city. She came to Happy Hour with my friends and me one Friday night, which was fun. It was so nice for me to actually bring someone I know rather than be introduced to new people that others know. Jacey is in the city for the summer. She has been a friend of mine since the 6th grade. She went to college in LA and I haven’t lived in the same state as her since high school so you can imagine how excited I was/am that we’ve been hanging out in NYC.

Jace and Me in NYC!

It is really nice to know a lot of people now, which is precisely why I have been so busy lately. When I am not working, I am hanging out with…someone. I have so many friends I have met through my Tio and others I have met/know on my own. It’s been nice to call up a friend at lunch time to see if they want to go grab a bite or go out to lunch with some of my co-workers who are now friends. It’s like I actually have a life here. Before I still felt like my life was in Kansas, but I’m in NYC for now. And now, I feel like my life is in New York, but I always have Kansas to return to.

I must admit that part of this “belonging” feeling I am experiencing is partly because of a new man in my life, Alex. I won’t go into details as I don’t want to jinx anything, but I will say that I have had a crush on this guy since March and we finally went on a date at the beginning of July. Needless to say, a first date led to a second, third, fourth, so on and so forth. Of course it’s New York City so our dates are amazing…Walking along the water at South Street Seaport, Watching fireworks in Central Park, Dancing in the middle of the street, I will stop right there before you gag. ;) All you need to know is, I absolutely enjoy spending time with him and I’m happy!

Alex & Me out on a Saturday night in the city

The biggest July notable was my vacation to Kansas City, pictures and details in my blog to follow!