Days like these make long distance relationships a pain because it's another special day that we're not able to celebrate together. The last time I was with him on his birthday was 5 years ago when we were in high school. We've missed many birthdays, anniversaries, college graduation, job promotions, and other celebratory events due to the distance between us. Although we can always celebrate ahead of time or after, there's something special with spending your actual birthday with those closest to you, or your anniversary with the person you share it with. Well, I'm hopeful and I look forward to the day where that'll happen once again. Just have to stay positive! I made this quick video in honor of Kyle's 23rd birthday!
Kyle's 23rd Birthday Weekend!
So this past weekend I went up to New York to celebrate Kyle's 23rd birthday (which is TOMORROW) early! Kyle and I are not really good with planning ahead of time and usually we spend about an hour asking each other "what do you want to do?" or "what now?" so most of what we ever do is spontaneous. Saturday was A LOT of walking. We ate brunch in the city, grabbed some good old La Colombe coffee, walked over the Manhattan bridge to Brooklyn, walked all around Brooklyn, grabbed dinner, ate ice cream, and spent the rest of the night watching How I Met Your Mother back at Kyle's apartment. Whew... I still have blisters.
FOOD (some of the yummy food I had this weekend that I definitely recommend if ever you're in the area):
- Union Republic (Jersey City, NJ) - try their Nose to Tail Ramen! My tip here. They even have a Foursquare deal for a free small drip coffee or agua frescos with purchase of $10 or more!
- Café Orlin (New York, NY) - ANYTHING. They have tons of delicious brunch options. Also they have this deal that includes your choice of eggs benedict, a small cup of orange juice, and a cup of either a cappuccino, latte, amareicano, or tea for only $16. My tip, here.
- La Colombe (New York, NY) - Their espressos are smooth, with so much flavor, which makes their iced latte to die for. They have locations in NY, Philly, D.C., and Chicago. Try them out, if there's one near you! My tip here applies to any of the locations.
- The Halal Guys (New York, NY) - Combo Chicken & Gyro over rice! This is such a popular street food in NY and you MUST try it. They have different locations around the city and just recently opened up their first ever restaurant! It was the first time I tried them and I loved it. My biggest tip is that if you're in the city looking to try them out, look for their locations ahead of time! There's a lot phonies out there and they'll try to fool you saying that they're the real Halal Guys, but don't fall for it. My tip here.
A really cool feature that I love with Foursquare is that you can make lists ahead of time and save awesome places like these to, say for instance your "NY" list, and then you have an organized location to look up where you want to go when you do go to NY! :)
Liebster Award!
A huge thanks to Life-Lovers for nominating my blog for the Liebster Award - an awesome way to discover new and upcoming blogs.
Here are the rules:
- Thank & link the person who nominated you.
- Answer the nominator’s 11 questions.
- Nominate 11 small blogs who have less than 200 followers. You should believe that they deserve this award, and include their links in your post.
- Create 11 new questions for your nominees to answer. Notify these nominees via social media/blogs.
Here are the questions I received:
- Favorite childhood Tv show or cartoon?
I Love Lucy. This was my all-time favorite TV show and I recorded every single episode, bought all the seasons on DVD when I got older, and even visited Lucielle Ball's hometown in Jamestown, NY as one of my birthday presents.
- What's the last book you read?
The last book I read was Just One Day by Gayle Forman... Ok I'm still currently reading it. The last actual book I finished was Looking For Alaska by John Green which I enjoyed and would definitely recommend!
- What's your dream job?
To be the greatest mom - the greatest job I could ever ask for. Nothing will fill my heart with more joy than knowing I had fulfilled my duties as a mother.
- Where is the last place you traveled to?
Philippines! I traveled back to the home country after 7 years of not visiting. It was a graduation present from my parents and I had such a blast reuniting with families and old friends. It's great to be able to experience cultural differences because it allows you to gain knowledge about different customs of different cultures and be able to appreciate the little things you may have looked over. Here's a video I put together of our trip.
- Why did you start blogging?
I just wanted a place to share my quirky thoughts and showcase different events in my life through photographs and videos.
- Do you have a fashion inspiration? If yes, who?
Not necessarily. I like to keep up with what's the latest trend but I don't really have a fashion idol. I'm pretty simple. I do love to dress nicely and I have always believed in quality over quantity, even if it means I'll have to pay more.
- What language do you wish you could speak?
I wish I could learn sign language. I think it's unique and allows you to communicate with those who can't even hear a spoken language.
- What is your biggest pet peeve?
I have a few small pet peeves but the biggest would probably be the cleanliness of my bed. I'm not even a huge hand-sanitizer user or a super clean freak, but I keep my bed clean. I have three sets of clothes, my outside clothes, lounging clothes, and my bed clothes. Once I enter the house, I change out of my outside clothes, change into my lounging clothes, and then my bed clothes are not touched unless I'm clean and ready for bed.
- What's your favorite season? And why?
Winter! I love it because my favorite holiday occurs in the winter, I actually enjoy the cold, and I love the snow.
- Going to a fancy party and being underdressed OR going to a very casual party and being overdressed?
Definitely going to a very casual party overdressed!
- If you could go back in time would you change anything?
I wouldn't change a single thing. I believe that all things happen for a reason and that we are suppose to experience the good and bad encounters in our lives. Life is not meant to be perfect, it's a learning experience and we are thrown with all types of curveballs so that we can learn and grow.
My 11 questions are:
- Why did you start blogging?
- What is your favorite hobby?
- What is your favorite type of food?
- What are you looking forward to most this upcoming year?
- Beach side or pool side?
- Name your go-to coffee drink.
- Name the most important quality you look for in a relationship.
- Name your all-time favorite movie.
- If you could be an animal, which would you be? Why?
- If you could recommend any must-see/eat place in your hometown/state/country to your followers, what/where would it be and why?
- If you could travel anywhere in the world tomorrow for a week (money aside), where would it be? And why?
Let me know if you guys answer these questions. I would love to read your responses!
