Kalamazoo in the Spring

Bob and I spent the weekend in Kalamazoo visiting his brother Dan, his wife Amy and our niece Clara. Amy is also expecting a little boy in about a month! We went to two concerts (one was a Ben Folds solo show- amazing! check out Bob's instagram for a snippet @bobmervak), played with our niece, baked banana bread and read so so so many books. 

On our way out to Kzoo, we stopped at a really beautiful park that Bob had been wanting to go to and went for a walk. Its such a treat to be outside!

Baking banana bread with Clara! 

She was really good at shmoosing the banana's!

Clara's first bubbles!

Bob's brother, Dan. Notice the Oberon? Yay Kzoo brewing! 

You know it's spring when you see Oberon on the shelves. :)

We had such a nice visit with our family.

iz

Easter 2014

This year we spent Easter with the Nelson family. My Great Aunt is a nun and she hosted- such a blessing to have so many generations in my family. My Grandparents were there too! Gosh do they crack me up. After dinner, Grandpa fell right asleep- I think he's napped more than any living person- ever. Point is, it was a fantastic day with family. Just as it should be.

In the morning, we had friends over for brunch- we had a friend Easter and then a family Easter! So much wonderfulness!

iz

NYC

I traveled to NYC last week for work but went early and turned it into a nice little weekend getaway, filled with family and food. I'm very fortunate to have family in the area- they show me the ropes. NYC can be an intimidating city but when you're with New Yorkers, it's so much easier to adjust and navigate. I spent Saturday in the burbs- Larchmont and the rest of my time in Manhattan.

I met my Dad's cousin, Nancy. I met her as a small child, but don't remember. So fun to reconnect with extended family. On the right is my Aunt Lisa.

Uncle Tom at his new (to me) office on Park Ave, Gardner Nelson and Partners.

Ummm... if you haven't had Momofuku Milk Bar you're missing out so hard core. The home made "cereal milk" soft serve is KILLER.

Lobby of the Gramercy Park Hotel, where I stayed.

Been wanting to eat at Shake Shack for ages! SO worth the wait. Delish.

I looked out the window of my office on my last night there and noticed this ad- my little sister Celia created this ad! I'm such a proud big sister!!!!!!!!

Bob & Cousin David

This is the ceiling of one of the rooms on the Gramercy Park Hotel Terrace. Incredible.
iz

Scottsdale

Our very good friend Danielle got married! She moved to Scottsdale, AZ this year and the wedding was down there. No complaints here, considering the insane winter we've had. The warm weather was a welcome retreat. We had such a lovely time celebrating Danielle and Scott. They had two parties, the first was at the Four Seasons Scottsdale, the next night was a larger party at Greyhawk Country Club. The views were stunning. During non wedding festivities, we hung out by the pool and went exploring Old Town (which is like the old west and the shops are filled with real deal cowboy boots, Indian made turquoise jewelry, Minnetonkas (YES), Mexican imports and great restaurants). Can't wait to go back next winter- hopefully -to enjoy the warm weather and hang with D and Scott.

We hiked Pinnacle Peak!

Beautiful views.

Wishing I was back here about now... we're expecting around 6 more inches of snow in Detroit tomorrow. Please spring... hurry the heck up!

iz

Pinky Frenchie

I saw blogger Oh Joy! post a pic of a mani a couple weeks back on instagram (totally worth following, she and her daughter Ruby are adorable). It was a french but had neon pink tips. I'm a manicure junkie. Manicures are such a luxury but something I would rather spend money on than going out to dinner or getting a daily Starbucks- it's an hour for me to zone out and treat myself every other week. 

This week, I had to get something that would last two weeks for an upcoming trip to Scottsdale and then to SXSW for work. It had to be neutral so you couldn't notice the grow out but I still wanted something fun- so I stole Joy's idea and got a colorful French!

Can't wait for my upcoming trips to AZ and TX, two states 

I've never visited and they are WARM. 

**dream**

iz

Boston Continued

Finally got the rest of the Boston pics off the camera. We had such an awesome visit. Riz is family and it was like old times being together again. Can I just say how much I love Boston?! It's such a fantastic city. I really admire that the city has kept it's history alive while continuing to grow and develop. Some of the historic apartment buildings and brownstones were just dreamy. Boston really does hold a sweet place in my heart, it's such a special city.

The morning after the wedding, Riz took us to his favorite breakfast spot, Wilson's Diner. We had a delicious and filling breakfast (to soak up those wedding party drinks) and it was truly an authentic American Diner. The best!

^^ There are four people in this picture ;)  ^^

 For our last night in town, we went to China town and had the most authentically Chinese meal I've had since I was in China. 

And our last meal in Boston was... Lobster Rolls!!! 

Can you tell how large a part of our travel consists of FOOD?!

Until next time, I love you Boston.

Thanks for the great weekend Riz.

iz