TGIF!

Happy freakin' Friday! Why is it that weeks before long weekends are so long?! Tomorrow, I'm heading down to San Diego to visit my girl Jen for her big badass birthday :) Other than that, I was thinking of taking a run outside, starting up Downton Abbey, and maybe doing some window shopping at the mall. Do you have any fun plans? 

Two fun things from the internets lately:

I'm pretty sure this is what books do when we're not around. 

David Beckham posted this picture of Victoria Beckham, captioned "So proud of my wife taking #NYFW by the balls" The idea of Victoria Beckham being this silly makes me giggle.   

TRUE.

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(Also, I want everything in this etsy shop)

My weekend, and #16

For some reason, the last few weeks have felt really long. Work has been getting busier, and each weekend was flying by, packed with chores and errands. So I made a promise to myself - Saturday I would just rest and relax, guilt free. I spent the day reading and catching up on all the shows I missed during the week. Pretty sure the most strenuous thing I did all day was hit up the starbucks drive-thru. 

Today, I felt so much better and was ready to do something fun and different. I've been wanting to see the dinosaur exhibit at the Natural History Museum for a long time, so we headed over there. It was so cool! I'm kind of a history nerd, and dinosaurs have always boggled my mind, so I loved getting to learn more about them. (And the other exhibits were great too - we saw giant camels, walking whales, and mastodons from our own backyard!)

Also, I'm 99% sure they come to life at night. 

NYC

So I don't know about you, but I'm still recovering from my Super Bowl food coma. Trying to get back in the swing of things. Anyways...something that has been dominating much of my brain space lately is my upcoming trip to NYC! A good friend of mine lives in upstate NY and I finally planned a trip out to see her. We are going to spend a couple of days in the city, then head up to where she lives for a night. I'm over the moon excited. Not only is NYC one of my favorite places ever, but I get to spend a huge chunk of time with one of my besties! I've only been to New York once, right after high school ended (side note - the picture above is from that trip, when our tour bus broke down. On a bridge. I don't need a repeat performance of that mmkay?) Since we won't be there for too long, it's hard to choose exactly what to do, but here are some ideas:

Ice Skating at Rockefeller Center 

This has been on my bucket list forever, and the ice rink will still be up when we go! Plus, they have a ticket where you can go ice skating and then go to the Top of the Rock. Maybe I'll get to see Liz Lemon and Kenneth there?! (Yep, certifiably addicted to 30 Rock. When I have a bad day, I watch this clip of Kenneth. Or really any clip of Kenneth.)

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New York Public Library

Ok, dork alert here, but the first thing I told my friend I wanted to do was see the library. I mean, look at it?! It's ridiculously gorgeous. And I may or may not sit out front and pretend to be like Blair Waldorf. 

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American Museum of Natural History

My cousin went there last year and informed me that the dum dum head, is not, in fact, real. This is a fact I'm still coming to terms with. 

Serendipity

There's a Serendipity in Las Vegas and it's a must-visit for me every time I'm there. It's so crazy delicious. Maybe we can get a frrrozen hot chocolate and pretend to be Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack? (I realize that all the things on this list reference some tv show/movie, but what can I say? I watch a lot of tv. )

And maybe most importantly - eat some pizza. NY pizza is bombdotcom. Yep, I pulled out the bombdotcom for that one. 

So, any recommendations on things to do/see/eat while I'm there?

Best dressed

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Oh Emma, 

How do you always get it right? I bow down to your style-ness. Can we be besties? I promise I'm super fun. 

XOXO, 

Sydney

[PS - Sorry I never seem to be able to think of interesting post titles. There's more important things in life.]

What I'm reading: January

This month, I read Freakonomics. This was on my "to-read" list for a long time, and I finally pulled it off the shelf. This book dives into the reasons behind what motivates people - and the answers might surprise you. Definitely not a typical "economics" book (in that I didn't fall asleep reading it). I love learning more about psychology, and I feel like this book really spoke to that. 

I also read Blink, which discusses how we unconsciously make decisions. Through interesting examples, Gladwell explains how we make snap judgments, and how they can be helpful, particular in life-threatening situations where over thinking may cause you to make the wrong choice. Again, psychology nerd, so I liked it. 

Last but not least, I borrowed Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close from my cousin. It's not your typical book - it contains pictures, sometimes there is only one phrase per page, and at one point all the words blend together and become illegible. Those make the book interesting to read, but the plot keeps you coming back. It's about a young boy whose father dies in 9/11. He finds a key in his father's closet and goes on a long journey to find what it opens. Throughout his journey, you'll learn more about his family and their history, from his grandparents' perspective. Some of the passages in this book were so beautiful, I read and re-read them. When I read about what the key belonged to, my first reaction was a little disappointment - but as my cousin said, the journey is more important, and the ending nicely blended his story with someone else's. A definite recommend. 

Working on my fitness

I've been finding myself in a gym rut lately. I know I should be training for that 5k (in March) but I just ain't feeling it. So I thought I'd tell you a little bit more about my gym-ventures. 

My whole life, I was never the athletic kid. I read books, and drew pictures, and put on spice girl skits...but sports? Not so much. I did the bare minimum in PE class and that was it. When I got to college, people around me were so...active. The gym was always full, people played sports for fun. It was so not me. I walked to class, but that was about it. Once I moved off campus (and started driving to class), all that pizza and beer pong caught up with me. I graduated with the freshman 15 (plus a little extra) - I was no longer comfortable in my own skin. My parents could see I was unhappy, and offered to pay for a gym membership. I initially refused - the closest I came to breaking a sweat was going to get the mail. And that was the problem. Something had to change. I agreed to go. Luckily, I had a friend who belonged to that same gym. She helped make me feel more comfortable going to the gym - I was intimidated! And knowing I had a date set up with someone held me accountable. Soon, I started seeing results and going became a habit. It's been 2 1/2 years since I first started going to the gym, and I can't imagine quitting. I feel so much happier, calmer and self-confident. If I skip exercising for a few days, I can really feel the difference, mentally and physically. Now I'm no expert, but here are a few things that have helped me get healthy and stick with it:

1. Create a gym schedule. I used to just wing it and go whenever I felt like it. Turns out, I feel like sitting down more often that I feel like going to the gym. Now I have a schedule, and I stick to it. It's so much easier this way.

2. Pack my lunch the night before. I used to always pack my lunch in the morning, and I barely had enough time to throw together a sandwich before I ran out the door. Now, I pack the night before and make much healthier choices. I usually pack a salad, fruit, yogurt, veggies, and a treat. I still seem to be racing against the clock every morning though...

3. Don't weigh myself. I know that people have differing opinions on this - some people say that regular weigh-ins help keep them on track. For me, hopping on the scale would keep me too focused on that number, rather than how I feel. 

So even though I get in a rut every now and then, I'm still on a pretty good path and I'm proud of myself :)