In the meantime, I did this...

http://www.altcatholicah.com/altcatol/a/b/rsa/4530/

I'm just sayin'

This week has been a fun one for several reasons but it's alway super fun to be reminded that living in a small place can deliver BIG rewards. Since I've moved to South Bend I have found Prada lip balm, Chloe sunglasses, TONS of Laguiole flatware, Cynthia Rowley handsoap, and Courreges designed Evian water bottles at my local Marshall's. I love luxury brands and I love a bargain. So happy...

Have Baby, Will Travel

And so, I disappeared. Two little yummy nuggets came into my life 18 months ago and I became a mother of 3. Jetsetting came to a screeching halt. My mojo was nowhere to be found. But in came Spring, and a quick trip to Rome with husband and no kids relit the fire. A fabulous days-long birthday extravaganza in DC kept it going. By August I was ready to resume life as I'd come to know it: we took all 3 kids with us to Italy for 11 days. I learned a few things. An "infant in arms" mark on your ticket will keep you from getting upgraded to the front cabin no matter what your status nor how many extra seats there are. However, if you smile a lot and say thank you a lot, you will be rewarded with a sneakily delivered first class amenities kit. There are more nice people who will praise your children than nasty ones who proclaim "NIGHTMARE!!!" at the top of their lungs when they lay eyes upon your adorable moppet. Tonight we're off to Chicago for FNO. Very excited.

Lucky Flops

Two months later and I am finally able to admit it: Lucky Shops was a disappointment. It wasn't that big, the brands (Marc by Marc Jacobs for one) that I was looking for weren't there, the celebs were "meh," and my big fancy VIP-worth-over-$500 goodie bag was pretty much shampoo and coupons for local NYC businesses. I understand they're in transition and some BIG changes have happened at the top. I also understand that the new editor has plans to really focus on the online aspect of Lucky and maybe this has affected advertising and maybe that influences who sells at Lucky Shops? Ugh, totally trying to convince myself it was all worth it. Shopping wise, I hit Helen Ficalora, Lee Angel, and Foley and Corrina and was really happy and satisfied with my purchases. All in all, the weekend was super fun. The Royalton Hotel was AWESOME!! Stay there, get pork belly tacos from room service, and then lock yourself in the bathroom with the amazing soaking tub, rainfall shower head, and Korres bath products. Heaven. I took some great walks, saw some old friends, and recharged the mommy battery which was really the whole point.
So, what's new? I have a new job! For nine years I have either been a graduate student or stay-at-home mom and the transition back to career girl is tough, especially because my whole life is covered in snow. I don't get the laundry done, I don't know what to wear, I'm (still, ugh) not working out, and my Christmas tree is still up. So, stay tuned for Reurbanista's fashion, beauty and fitness adventures in the work place! Fingers crossed for some good biz trip action!
OH!! I almost forgot! Some very good news for a lot of Lucky readers! Andrea Linett has a new amazing blog, "I want to be her." If you miss her last page column you'll be so happy to find her on the web. Though I do have a soft spot for the printed page, there is a silver lining: You don't have to wait a whole month for a page of her genius! She posts a couple times a week.

Raindrops on Roses

So, back from Italy work/play week and here are a few of my favorite things:
1. Missoni designed labels on bottles of San Pellegrino.
2. My kid wearing aviators, lounging poolside on a yummy white chaise, reading Elle UK.
3. I know I'm a little late to the party but I am digging Mediterranean Blue polish on toes.
4. The kid can swim!
5. Hubby with a tan in a Brooks Brothers summer suit and Gucci tie.
6. New Tuesday night yoga class.
7. Easy-Off Oven Cleaner. Who Knew?
8. Clog boots.
9. Early morning spent drinking coffee while watching Rachel Zoe Project and reading British Vogue.

Back to Cool

Yo. It happened. A few days ago I wore the weirdest outfit ever. And not in the good/edgy way, or even the "joke to myself" way that I do to entertain myself on particularly boring outings. Nope. It was basically just a "I give up and I don't care" kind of outfit. I won't go into it, but even my five-year-old kid paused to give me a once over when I picked him up from camp. It was BAD. And I did SO WELL in London. I looked normal for each and every public outing. I'd even go so far as to say I looked cute on most days. My guess is that the simplicity of my pared down wardrobe helped me to establish a uniform of sorts and dressing cute was easy. I need to get back there. Truth is, the past 2 months have not been my best in terms of fitness and a few things are a little tight. But! This past week I worked out 5 times! Thank goodness. I've been mixing up the dvds with some amazing walk/runs along the river--the weather has been AMAZING. In two weeks we go to Italy for a week. When I get back, I've got big plans. Join the gym where one of very favorite friends goes every morning. Zumba, hot tub, sauna? Awesome. Also I am going to do an adult ballet class. Very excited about that since I saw the Nutcracker last year! Last summer I took a Vinyasa 101 6 week course at Dhanwanteri Yoga here in South Bend. I was checking the course schedule and saw that they're offering a 201 starting in a few weeks! Very excited.
Also coming up? Lucky Shops in NYC. Can't WAIT!
So, the plan. Work out. Dress cute. Don't shop. Edit closet. Continue getting the house back to normal (not relative normal, but normal like I imagine everybody else keeping their houses). I've already made great progress and am thrilled every time I see my new Liberty of London (um, for Target) bedding!! I make my bed every day because it's just so pretty! Oh, speaking of London: Unpack London boxes. They've been trickling in from hubby's office and are full of very many random things I would really rather just not talk about but they're starting to stack up in the foyer and my mom is coming for a visit and I really got to get my act together.
So, long story short, get it together and celebrate success at Lucky Shops. Good plan.

Bright Light City Gonna Set My Soul On Fire

My 35th birthday celebration in Vegas was a triumph of glitz, romance, and complete leisure! Thanks to my unwavering loyalty to Delta airlines, I flew in the front cabin all the way from BWI (dropped my kid and the dog with the 'rents on the DE shore) to Las Vegas. We had a significant delay, causing us to miss our reservation at B&B, but 2 movies and free cocktails kept me happy until I crashed onto the luxe cool cotton bedding in our room at Encore. The next morning we woke up and went to mass at the church right next door--we could literally see it from our window. We picked up some lunch at, um, Ping Pong Thai Restaurant, ahem, and headed back to the room to watch the World Cup finals. Then it was down to the pool. Oh, pool, I miss you. The first day we hit the European pool. Initially we were delighted by the ban on noisy, splashy kids (or even quiet ones) and the friendly cocktail waitresses, but we soon grew tired of all the greasy dudes on the prowl and the sort of partial nudity that just did not seem "European" in the traditional sense. I mean, go to Nice, and, well, it's just not quite the same sort of nude. You know?
Anyway, in the days to come we welcomed the normalizing factor that kiddies add to the whole pool scene. And Mojitos were still available at all the pools, so it was all good.
Restaurants. Okay, first night L'Atelier Joel Robuchon. Tasting menu. Really incredible. We sprung for the wine pairings, too. Night two: Thomas Keller's Bouchon. Great cocktails, escargot, frites, spinach, dessert. Disappointing steaks. Night three: Nobu! Wow. Yes! Fun server. Really yummy Matsuhisa cocktails. Sushi to die for. Another amazing birthday dessert (my husband arranged for me to have them each night! LOVE him).
It was the last night, after Nobu in the Hard Rock Hotel, that we finally got around to gambling. Those cocktails at Nobu, plus the ones served up by the ladies in the studded bras in the casino made losing $12 in the slots the most fun thing EVER. And with goofy pop music, hardly anyone around, hubby busy losing money at the tables--I had myself my own little chair dance party.
Who said 35 isn't awesome? Vegas rocked it. I came home refreshed and excited to see my kid. I got a tan. And the whole thing started off on my actual birthday with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot and a bracelet from Tiffany. Hubby kicked it in the ding ding this birthday.
So, back to real life. Still REALLY missing London. Getting a little nuts with home improvements, but that's a good thing. Looking forward to Italy at the end of next month--but I can't start living holiday to holiday. What can I do to spice it up around here? I am thinking it's time to throw a party.