adventures

shop my #TravelMustHaves

Jan 23, 2015 By marissa in adventures, fashion, her No Comments Tags: paris, travel, travel must haves, what to pack

for some reason on our trip to paris i did the best job packing… and i promise, i am not bragging… i am normally not a great packer. i am always minimal to a fault, i pack things that i don’t like and am super frustrated normally, but this time i got smart about it. i packed everything into “looks” (with the help of my dear friend megan who helped me determine what was really worth bringing–enlisting a friend’s help was my best move!).

i decided that i needed to document some of the crucial items so that i wouldn’t forget for my next winter getaway! this is a mix of some of my key carry-ons, beauty essentials, accessories and looks!

day three: the louvre #paris

Jan 22, 2015 By marissa in adventures, her, him No Comments Tags: l'hotel, louvre, notre dame, paris, saint germain

day three was literally jam-packed with action from morning to night.

confession… that was totally my fault. i am one of those people who, when traveling, feels the need to fit in as much into one day as possible. i think i warned our friends who were traveling with us (the prescotts), but i don’t think they really knew what they were in for. oops. lets just say, i found it necessary to make it to claus for croissants and coffee at 8am–when they opened and when seemingly no one in paris is awake.

we were heading to the louvre after that and i think that once they saw the lines at the louvre they weren’t too mad.

reflections of la pyramide du louvre

les jardins du tuileries

la pyramide du louvre

#GroupSelfie in the pyramid… suz and i climbed up to get a shot inside the pyramid and almost got sick with vertigo. eek.

i love the entrance the the louvre… it is pretty impressive.

i remember the first time i walked through the louvre and first encountered the winged victory. it is as if it was always meant to be in the very spot it is in within the louvre. i could sense the excitement within myself to see it again after over 10 years, but i was even more excited to share it with nate, ryan and suzanne since it was their first time seeing it. i guess no one will love it as much as the art history geek in me does, but i think they were pretty impressed nonetheless.

nate captured this shot of me… this is probably what i looked like the entire time i was in the museum. completely in awe.

should you be traveling to paris in the winter… above are some of my picks to stay warm!

spoiler alert: in case you haven’t seen the mona lisa… this is how it goes. i mean, imagine a really small incredibly famous painting hiding behind a big sheet of class and a barricade and a hundred people gathered around it. sounds dramatic, but its true… and its almost worse now with all the iphones sticking up in the air.

i wasn’t kidding. that said, its still pretty impressive to see in person.

seemed like a good photo op, right suz?

what i didn’t remember about my previous visits to the louvre was the views out the windows.

or the views from inside!

isn’t this amazing? so breathtaking.

i think you would literally need a couple days to see everything in the louvre… and maybe a week to actually be able to digest it all. if you are only there for a short while i recommend either getting a guide for a specific area of the louvre for a couple hours, or just make a point to see the big hitters–the latter is what we did. honestly, there is something just utterly rewarding about simply walking around the halls of the louvre… its like walking through moments in history.

ryan and suzanne had the genius idea to re-enact art… i think they did pretty well.

group shot love. can i just throw in here that of all the things we did in paris for 5 days the boys said that the louvre was one of their favorites. suz–i think we have some winners on our hands :-)

notre dame is magical anytime of year… but the holidays is especially spectacular.

mid day we moved from our hotel in the marais to l’hotel in saint germain. this hotel was phenomenal. nate actually said we are only ever staying here from now on–i didn’t fight him on that and i love change. it is a quintessential spot on the left back (rive gauche) and happens to be where oscar wilde spent his last days–in room 16! aside from being in the best location it is utterly charming and unique. the bedrooms are small–but most are in the best hotels in paris. one of our favorite parts was the hamman–an underground private pool that you can reserve for an hour at a time. it was utterly romantic.

for dinner i had been told that no matter what we had to eat at la relais de l’entrecote. there is no menu, only the set meal for 26.50 EUR. for that price, you get a salad and 2 servings of some of the best steak and fries in the world. seriously it was so delicious. their first seating starts at 7pm…. we ended up waiting an hour, i think if we had gotten there at 6:30pm we would have been seated in the first seating. the cool thing was that it wasn’t just tourists waiting… there were locals raving about it too. if people are willing to wait outsite in 30 degree drizzly weather it has to be good right? one of the great parts was that it was just so effortless. order wine and desert… everything else just comes. the fact that you get second servings of steak and fries is pretty awesome–especially for the boys. i love LOVE steak… and i like it pretty rare so i was in heaven too. :-)

here are the details for all of our spots for the evening. be sure not to miss bar du marche for drinks and people watching or cafe de flore for drinks and food at anytime of the day–its a classic!

i’m not sure you could enjoy a day more than we did… but i hope you try! go hard… go all day… make it magical.

paris: our first evening

Jan 8, 2015 By marissa in adventures, her, him No Comments Tags: chez robert et louise, hotel du petit moulin, paris, travel

i’ve anxiously been waiting to blog about paris since we got there–seriously… maybe even since before we left! for those of you that follow nate and i on social media you know that this trip was in celebration of our 10 year anniversary. its funny because we had originally planned to go to africa, but that was before we had two kids–all of a sudden africa seemed a little too far away and a bit ambitious. so, since paris is possibly my favorite city in the world… and happens to be incredibly romantic, it seemed like the perfect destination. nate and i had been to paris together once before with alexa when she was a baby–for me, this was going to be my 7th time in paris, but that almost made it that much easier–a low stress trip of wandering, eating, drinking and just enjoying ourselves.

i spent a lot of time getting recommendations from friends who have lived in paris or travel there often and ended up with a list so long i could be there for a year and not see everything or eat everywhere that was recommended. that said, i think for 6 days we did extremely well and loved each and every stop we made. here is the beginning of our journey… i hope you enjoy all the posts about paris… if you need any extra tips after i finish blogging about all of our adventures, let me know! x

cafe la perle feels like a true local’s bar tucked away on a corner in the marais… we stayed at the hotel du petit moulin which was just around the corner. cafe la perle also happens to be the spot where a certain fashion industry icon fell from grace (read here for more).

something about this shot seems so magical to me… a bit of mystery and romance. i might have to blow this one up for our place.

ivanka actually shared the recommendation with me to stop by place des vosges in the marais and have a drink at cafe hugo (which happens to be near the home of victor hugo). it was a lovely spot.

along our stroll to dinner we came across this charming little photobooth on the side of the street… it felt like a midnight in paris movie moment. so fun.

a came across this little restaurant, chez robert et louise, on instagram, a french photographer that i follow posted it and i was so charmed by the image that i had to visit. its funny how social media can effect so many decisions these days. the restaurant feels like you are in someone’s home kitchen… someone who happens to be serving up escargot and deliciously seasoned t-bone steaks. they do take reservations, but i think you can just walk in as well. a great little neighborhood haunt.

after an amazing dinner, we headed back to our adorable little hotel (featured below) and got some much needed sleep… our next day was a biggie… we were headed to versailles! stay tuned for more!

playing in our backyard. #dumbo

Nov 29, 2014 By marissa in adventures, little ones No Comments Tags: brooklyn, brooklyn with kids, dumbo, new york with kids, pier 1, pier 2

it is funny… someone recently told us at a dinner party that they thought it must be impossible to live in new york and be healthy. i thought it was funny because i actually think we live an incredibly healthy lifestyle here… we are constantly active and probably have more access to organic and farm raised foods then i could imagine having elsewhere… ok, maybe california has us beat, but still. the reality is one of the reasons we moved to dumbo to years ago was to offer the kids a healthier lifestyle as well. living here is kind of like having a playground in our backyard. a couple days ago nate took the kids out just to bike and run around and i’m so glad he took his camera because he captured some of the most beautiful moments in “our backyard.”

heading to jane’s carousel along the waterfront.

dumbo has an amazing creative community, here the kids ride by Reflection/Kolonihavehus, the audience winner of the 2014 dumbo arts festival.

after riding along the boardwalk the kids head over to pier 2, just past the brooklyn bridge.

pier 2 is a part of brooklyn bridge park. it is a recreation pier–it features five acres of active recreation courts for basketball, handball, shuffleboard and bocce, as well as a full size roller skating rink, swings, picnic tables, restrooms and fitness equipment.

one of the best parts of pier 2 for the kids is the swings. it is so magical to see all of downtown in the backdrop of them swinging through the air.

no outing in dumbo is complete without at stop at the brooklyn bridge ice cream factory.

lastly, time to play at the pirate park in the very beginning of brooklyn bridge park–their favorite spot.

we are moving apartments next week, but thankfully we are just changing floors in our building! our hope is to stay in our hood as long as we live in the city. not sure what the future holds, but we feel pretty thankful with life just as it is.

a little family roadtrip to baltimore

Nov 18, 2014 By marissa in adventures, little ones No Comments Tags: baltimore, mica, roadtrip

this past weekend we took a quick (really quick!) road trip to baltimore to visit my little sister (aka tia gaby) at school. she is a sophmore at mica (the maryland institute and college of art). she has visited us in nyc more times then we can count so it was the least we could do to take a little trip to see her! it was actually a pretty easy 4 hour drive and alexa and hayden did pretty well considering they are not “car” kids. subways and taxis are really much more their style ;-)

the campus at mica is small, but charming. it was so great to get a little sneak peek into my little sis’s everyday life at school.

gaby’s dorm/apartment is pretty amazing. it is easily way nicer than nate and i’s first and second… maybe even third apartment in nyc. her room instantly brought out the creative energy in the kids… they immediately asked to sit with their tia and draw.

gaby is a fibers major. it is so exciting to see her talents develop. she is a true artist and seeing her blossom is such a treat. she and i are 14.5 years apart… i was actually in the delivery room when she was born–i cut her umbilical cord!! she and i have been close since then. i remember rushing home on the weekends when i was in college just so i could pick her up from daycare, take her to mcdonalds and then to go feed the ducks at our neighborhood lake. kind of surreal that now we are driving to her college to take her out to dinner! life passes by fast!

gaby showed us around baltimore… one of my favorite areas was fells point–the historic district of baltimore. it was so SO cold that day. we were fully layered from head to toe! special thanks to lilla p. and this cozy sweater they sent me–love!

here are a couple of the spots we hit for food!
papi’s taco – yummy chips, salsa and margaritas!
regi’s bistro – cheese and bacon covered tater tots… need i say more?
kilwin’s chocolate kitchen – dark chocolate covered marshmallows with sprinkles for them and sea salt and caramel for us!
on the hill cafe – delicious coffee… and food apparently, although we tried to eat there and it was too full both times! next time!!
artifact coffee – the BEST sausage, egg and cheese english muffin sandwich you will ever have… and that says a lot since i am from the south!

also, as a side note, we stayed at the lord baltimore hotel and it was lovely! definitely would stay there again.

lastly, we made one quick stop at this charming stoop. this is where frank and claire underwood live on the tv show house of cards. seriously can’t wait for the show to come back on–c’mon netflix!!

it was such a fun trip–we can’t wait to go back and visit tia gaby again!

stay tuned… #TheStrollersOfNewYork

Nov 12, 2014 By marissa in adventures, little ones No Comments Tags: dumbo, inglesina baby usa, strollers, thestrollersofnewyork

super excited about the launch of a video series with Inglesina Baby USA called #TheStrollersOfNewYork. the lady & prince video will be released next week on the 20th! i can’t wait to share… but in the meantime, check out this adorable teaser! love love! (especially love rider’s cameo!)

a directorial debut… kind of!

Oct 19, 2014 By marissa in adventures, him, little ones 1 Comment Tags: apple picking, bikes, nyc with kids, videos, washington square park

confession: one of my dreams is to work in the movies.

yes, i know that is not an uncommon dream, but i want to work behind the scenes. i love the process, the production… everything about it. one of my favorite projects i over directed was a video for kate spade years back called swandive or cannonball. i love art directing photo shots, but there is something so stimulating and inspiring to me about moving image. (click here to see a bunch of the other videos i have done throughout my career so far)

since i don’t really have time to take a film studies class, i’m going to make my directorial debut in iMovie! ha! i’m going to start making mini movies about our life and hopefully over time i will start to get better and better at this. hope you enjoy–no movie critics allowed… yet! ;-)

sweet disposition.

apple picking at stuart’s farm.

washington square

picking pumpkins & climbing apple trees

Oct 13, 2014 By marissa in adventures, fashion, little ones 2 Comments

sunday was such a perfect–beyond perfect, actually–day. besides some seriously annoying traffic and a period of “are we there yet,” it was wonderful. it’s funny, i don’t remember going pumpkin or apple picking as a kid growing up… that may be because i spent the earlier part of my childhood in florida where i imagine this was not as popular of an event. it seems like pumpkin and apple picking is one of the “things you do” in the northeast and i am super thankful for this new family tradition.

this year we decided to stay close to the city. we went to stuart’s farm in westchester. it was definitely a bit busy–especially because of the amazing weather–but, it was totally manageable and lots of fun. stuart’s farm has been a family-operated farm since 1828–how cool is that?

we had already packed lunches in the car so when we arrived we meant business… time to pick the perfect pumpkins and a bushel of apples!

how adorable is hayden’s camo sweatshirt (on sale on mini boden). jeans are gap kids and shoes are puma.

alexa’s first time climbing a tree… let’s just say, we are still talking about this! she was SO excited and proud.

i’m loving mini boden’s casual graphic tees for the kids these days. they do a great job with non cheesy graphics that feel playful, but not obnoxious (why is this hard to find?). she is wearing crewcuts jeans with richer for poorer socks and aster kids shoes.

yesterday was perfect–i love fall in new york. beautiful, bright, colorful and so happy.

when the cat is away, the mice will play.

Oct 4, 2014 By marissa in adventures, him, little ones 3 Comments Tags: daddy duty, sofa diving

i had more after work events this week than normal so nate was on hard core daddy duty. on wednesday night, after my event, nate showed me what they had been up to. clearly this would not have happened under my watch… but this is why nate and i are a good balance. he adds that little bit of physically daring adventure to their lives. my bedtime ritual involves reading storybooks… his involves sofa diving!

alexa is wiped out… and hayden goes in for the last dive with perfect form!

a morning stroll

Sep 30, 2014 By marissa in adventures, her, little ones, trends 1 Comment Tags: ivanka trump, school, shoes

i think one of my favorite parts about alexa starting school is our morning walk there! it’s our special time to chit chat. today however, i asked nate to follow along and snap some pics of us as we walked along the way.

today alexa and i are both rockin’ some ivankatrump shoes. i’m wearing the green carra suede pumps (which i am totally obsessed with) and alexa is wearing the abigail suede ballet flats with a darling little jeweled flower embellishment on the toe. she has moved onto tights, but i’m holding out as long as i can!

when we pass through cadman’s park, alexa always insists walking along the raised barrier between the sidewalk and the grass. i told her a story once about how my mom used to play a game like this with me where we couldn’t fall off because there was a lagoon and a crocodile would get us… she loves “avoiding” the crocodile. :-)

my top and skirt–yes, it is not a dress–is from reformation. it’s called the huck two piece… its like 3 wardrobe staples in one. can’t beat that.

our little walk to school is only 10 minutes, but i am so thankful that its just a fun stroll. no stress. no subways… traffic, etc. definitely one of my days little blessings. xx!

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