June felt so long, but also insanely short at the same time? I type that and realize it’s already July 7th and I’m not sure I have fully accepted we’re that far into summer! This month’s Gabbing Away is coming late because I have been in FULL summer mode the last week, where I’m doing as little as possible that requires me to either 1. not be with my family or 2. not be outside. Thankfully, everyone at work seemed to feel that way last week, too, and I got to lean into a remote week up at the beach! Coming back to a desk this morning has been extra painful…
So much of my June was spent in the car, if I’m being totally honest. My first weekend of June, I hit the full Tri-State area (NY, NJ and CT) and then Philly! My family thinks I’m crazy, sometimes, and it does get tiring, but it’s always the good kind of tired. Where it’s 8PM and I can’t wait to crawl into bed because I just had a wildly full day, seeing people I adore, and doing things I love.
Because of the mayhem of June, I’m structuring Gabbing Away a bit differently this time. Let me know what you think of it?!
June Week 1
This was the kicker weekend. I knew it was going to be a long one, but there simply was NOTHING I was willing to miss out on. The week leading up to it was fairly chill (at least from what I can tell by my photos).
Friday I went hiking with Steph, the friend I recently reconnected with, in NJ early before work, and then went to the premier of Miley Cyrus’ visual album with my Dad and Jenna! Saturday I drove out to Darien for my best friend’s baby shower, and Sunday drove to Philly for my Goddaughter’s baptism. Look at sweet baby Hads! I don’t think the world could handle anything cuter than her. Her mama is a lawyer and I sent Hadley this book (amongst others) for July Fourth, which made me giggle.
June Week 2
From my photos, it looks like I did a whole lot of dog walking and I finally finished all of Brothers & Sisters. I started re-watching months ago, put it on ice for a bit, and came back to it this early summer.
That weekend was Lara’s bachelorette! It was honestly my dream. Or maybe more of Jackie’s dream. I feel like I should be the Gemini in our family because I’d love two bachelorettes. One exactly like Lara’s where we sit on the couch and are cozy, gossiping and eating banana bread all weekend. And another where we’re wild in Vegas for like 32 hours exactly (nothing more necessary).
For the bachelorette: we ate at Le Fat Poodle, walked around her neighborhood, lunched at Meli Melo, had a chef come for Lara’s “Final Fiesta”, and had some pretty adorable babies visit. I should mention that the bach was held in her hometown, which is my hometown, making us all feel so nostalgic. I also got to share a bed with Lani. If you know me, you know how much I adore a sleepover party.
The weekend ended with Father’s Day, so I made my way to Bedford to meet my fam and gifted Max two super poopy diaper changes for his Father’s Day gift. I think I’m a pretty good SIL!
One important thing to note: I think this is the week I discovered Good Sugar. I am now a regular and go for the Happy Muffin and Beauty Berry smoothie for dinner way too often. It’s heaven and very healthy! And the Happy Muffin actually works - it makes me very very happy. I was great in June with my no sugar, besides 24-hours at Lara’s bach (can’t ever turn down Anna’s banana bread) and Good Sugar made that very easy :).
June Week 3
This week was a bit more overwhelming socially, but so fun. Highlights include Char scoring us a prime time dinner reservation at Balthazar to celebrate our book club reading “I Regret Almost Everything” (review below), Hillstone bar apps with Dad and Jenna before checking out the Portrait Bar, a date(!), Mahjong lesson, and a big Friday wandering session with Dad and Jenna.
Said date was lovely - a set up through a friend of a friend and, while there was nothing spectacular about the date, there was nothing wrong with it either. The conversation flowed easily and I truly enjoyed myself. I felt myself spiraling a bit the next day, almost feeling a little desperate to make something out of nothing with this date? I think in the end, this boy and I could be lovely friends, but because I had heard such great things about him going into the date, I was almost too eager to have it become something. Always something I’m working on reminding myself in the moment - what’s meant for me will not pass me by! I don’t need to act like I’m running to catch the bus frantically to find my person.
This weekend, I drove out to NY/CT (again…) to scoop up Jackie and meet our mom at the Mayflower’s Fenmore Lane Design Bazaar. It was SO hot, but beautifully decorate stands and tents. Our mom isn’t really one for shopping & wandering, she more of a shopper with a mission, so we ended up mostly sitting on the lovely covered porch chatting and grabbing lunch. Jackie and I did snag some really cute antique things for her home and Mom’s home, and multiple art pieces captured my attention, but I’ve been really holding back on personal CC swiping.
Jackie and I drove through Ridgefield, my new town obsession, on the way home and they were having their Make Music Day where little bands or one-man shows were posted up on different corners. Talk about wholesome! A babysitter was then procured and a last minute reservation at the Inn at Pound Ridge and Jackie, Max and I had a wild night out! Talking three course meal, cocktails, and out past 10PM!
Sunday was for Sunny (and me of course): We visited Char’s fam home in CT where Sunny went wild in the adult and kiddie pool, her best friend Tucker came and they wreaked havoc on the plants, I went home with some farm-fresh eggs, and introduced Grace to Aux Delices. Home by 6PM and couldn’t have been happier.
June Week 4
Well this week started off with a banger. I ran into my ex-boyfriend for the first time in like a year and a half while walking Sunny to Central Park at 7AM. That was fun! Lol. JK though - it was actually totally pleasant and I knew bound to happen, since he was staying nearby for the summer. That day ended with my old “nothing but something” situation boy trying to late night me…
It’s kind of incredible how little I remember from my past weeks, but at the same time, when I’m looking forward, I know exactly what is on my calendar without even putting it physically (or digitally?) on my calendar. I think I have memory problems. Must look into a supplement for this?
Anyways, that Tuesday Dad and I got a last minute bite together at Casa Mono (YUM), Wednesday my boss/friend, Kara, and old coworker/friend, Karina, and I attended a work happy hour and then got drinks at Fanelli’s (where we felt way too lame compared to the crown) and then Milady’s (where the music vibes were ON POINT) and then a walk-in Anton’s dinner (where I almost had Karina give my number to someone who we ended up determining batted for the other team. It’s the thought that counts), Thursday some uptown friends and I welcomed a new UES resident to the hood with dinner at Cafe Commerce (where we ate ourselves into a coma), and Friday I drove up to GLP to start my two weeks remote in my happiest place!
In Between: Reading and Watching
Between all of the above, I managed to read a few books, and watch a couple of shows. I have done extremely minimal shopping (yay!), so really no new links to post there.
I Regret Almost Everything: One of the best book club picks to date. I am not usually a memoir girlie, but this was a great read. It’s Keith McNally’s memoir - if you don’t know him, he is a famous restauranteur who re-invented many NYC neighborhoods with his fantastic restaurants, mostly known for their French-American cuisine. It did have a slower start to me, but once I was halfway through, I tore through it. A really unique read with NYC history that reminds you how incredible the city is. 5/5
The Postcard: My mom raved about this book and WW2 stories are usually my jam, but I really struggled with this one! It’s the true story of author Anne Berest’s family history during WW2 and parts were very captivating, but I felt like it jumped around too much and too quickly. Which is a wild statement given the book is about 500 pages, but I didn’t really feel like I was in it with some of the characters, despite the details shared. That said, it was beautifully written and I think I’m interested in trying another one of her novels. 3.75/5
Atmosphere: My type of book 100%. I love Taylor Jenkins Reid - her writing is such a great display of historical fiction where you feel like it’s a non-fiction book, in my opinion. Embarrassingly enough, after reading Daisy Jones and the Six, I asked my dad if he had ever heard of the band. Major eye roll. The exploration of NASA, Space, love and the universe had me thinking so much about my own beliefs about this world. Tore through it in a couple of days. 5/5
Brothers & Sisters: As I mentioned, I rewatched this and finally finished it in June. Great background show, with high drama, a great family kitchen, and some pretty people.
The Better Sister: My mom was on me about watching this and it was so good! A little eery, but a complex murder mystery that left you with a good tee-up for a second season.
The Summer I Turned Pretty: Don’t talk to me if you don’t have June 16th marked on your calendar for the Season 3 premier of this fantastic show. I am re-watching Season 1 & 2 in preparation of my watch party on the 16th with my co-workers.
Thoughts
These updates on Gabbing Away are starting to feel a bit silly. I mean does anyone really even care how I’m spending my month when I feel like I’m doing what all New Yorkers are doing. I love reading about other people’s lives and how they fill their time, but it feels super…egotistical to write something like this and think people will read to the end of the post or even care. Would Gabbing Away be better spent sharing a narration on one silly event (like a night out or a date play-by-play), in addition to “reading & watching”? What do you guys care to read? What’s fun for you?!
I love gabbing away as is!!