Cha-Cha-Cha Changes

I recently had a bit of a feng shui attack in my office and decided to streamline/re-organize it a bit. I work from home 90% of the time so this space must be both functional and comfortable ~ and of course my goal is to make it stylish as well!

Over the years with TIA, I have collected a fare amount toys and games. Lately, I felt as thought they were taking over my desk so I needed to redistribute. A good amount went to the kids on the block which, in turn, has made me a neighborhood favorite. :) Others now live in the new book case that Mom and Dad Q. donated to us (it used to be my Grandpa Basile's which makes it extra special!). Now, my unused corner has a function:


This new space houses many of my little friends including my Mets Lubie, my original Cabbage Patch Kid, my Pound Puppies (big and small) and many others. I'm a kid...I know. But I did manage to sneak in a few books and magazines in there as well.

I also took a tip from this Pottery Barn image.


I wanted to somehow incorporate mason jars into my work space and decided to use them on my desk for pens, pencils, markers, paper clips, and all sorts of small office goodies. I think they look pretty cute next to my Ugly Doll and my Slinky.


Here are a few more views of the new and improved office...


...new phone system allowing me to do my wheeling and dealing with ease...


...a hook on the door for some of the promos I've sold...


...and of course my Toy Story plush dolls. Gotta love them!



The only thing left to do is replace the overhead light with a fun fixture...can anyone say Capiz Chandelier??

Foodie-ville

New York City is a Foodie's paradise. Sure, you have the traditional fare that New York is known for like pizza, bagels and hot dogs from a street vendor. But when you dig a little deeper, there is a treasure chest of delicious cuisine on every corner. Literally!

Whenever I am up in New York I do my best to stay busy after work hours. I mean, who wants to sit in a hotel room and watch bad TV when you are in a city like New York. So I usually book myself up and spend quality time with friends and family. This recent trip was no different.

I rolled into town on Sunday and spent a wonderful evening by my lonesome at the Intercontinental Times Square (read about my stay here). On Monday, I was lucky enough to dine with 2 of my favorite TIA gals ~ Adrienne and Amanda. Adrienne booked us a table at Dell'Anima...a chic little Italian restaurant in the West Village. The food was delicious, (how could bruschette with home made ricotta and orecchiette with pancetta and broccoli rabe NOT be delicious!), but the company was even better. I love that I work with great people. What I love even MORE is that I can truly call these 2 girls (and some others ~ you know who you are) true friends. :)


One of the best things about New York is that the unexpected can pop up at any time, and that is where lunch on Tuesday comes in. My office is in a great part of town ~ 25th and Broadway which is an intersection that houses Madison Square Park and the Flatiron Building.


In recent years, the city has made it their goal to increase public space by creating pedestrian seating areas at major intersections. One such space exists right outside my building's doors and I was happy to see that Madison Square Eats was occupying the space during my stay. Essentially, a bunch of restaurants and artisans set up tents and feed locals for a month.


So despite the rain, I popped down there for lunch and picked me up a kafta arayes wrap from Ilili (a great place serving Mediterranean fare) and a cheddar cheese & truffle oil pretzel from Sigmund Pretzelshop. Words cannot describe the yummy-ness of these 2 items.


I love when street fairs pop up because it gives me a chance to sample different things from restaurants all around the city. It's one stop "stuff you face" shopping!


Dinner on Tuesday night was with Jim and Daniel at their abode in Forest Hills. Daniel whipped up a delicious meal (as per usual - great cook!) using an Anne Burell recipe as a base. Of course he added his own little zip to the Chicken Scarpiello. It was great as was the food coma that induced after we finished. :)

My final day in New York City found me with a lunch date ~ bestie Tulay. We hit up Tappo ~ a new pizza place that opened up around the corner. It is a sister restaurant to Vezzo - another amazing pizza place that Dina (work mom) introduced me to a while back. We shared their Shroomtown pizza which consists of Portobello, Shitake, & Button Mushrooms and White Truffle Oil. Can we say YUM?!


So as they say, that's a wrap. This foodie needs to detox for the next few weeks in preparation for my next trip. I'm sure there will be a whole new slew of hot spots to try out!

We Interrupt This Regularly Scheduled Program...

I need to take a break from "Being Mangiaracina" for a few days while I am in New York City for my monthly office visit. But before I go, I HAD to share some photos of my AMAZING hotel room at the Intercontinental Times Square. I am a very lucky girl that gets to stay at some amazing (and some not so amazing...ahem Holiday Inn Columbus Circle) hotels in New York City while visiting. I've seen everything from full kitchenettes at the Element by Westin, to full breakfasts at the Wingate by Wyndham, to cupcakes upon check-in at Fashion 26. But I got that extra special feeling when I walked into the new Intercontinental Times Square. First of all, there is a Shake Shack at the base of the hotel - hello YUM! The lobby has a very contemporary feel complete with beautiful artwork, a fireplace and views of a gorgeous sculpture garden.



When I headed up to my room, I was pleasantly surprised. More like pleasant thrilled!! I opened the door to a clean, chic room filled with beautiful furnishings, more great artwork and a bathroom to die for! Seriously...the navy glass tiles paired with the linen subway tiles in the spa-like shower were nothing short of a masterpiece.

I took about a thousand photos so that we can one day mimic the feeling that this room and bathroom conveyed. I even love how the bed linens and towels were not stark hotel white. Instead, the comfy bed sported beige sheets while the bathroom offered spa blue hand towels and wash cloths.

It was a great stay made even better by the fact that one of my favorite moves, Lost in Translation, was on HBO. I settled into the comfy bed and had a 5-star snooze and felt 100% refreshed and ready to start my work stint in the office.

I'm sad to say that I will not be enjoying the luxury of the Intercontinental Times Square Hotel for another night as they are sadly sold out for the rest of the week. Instead, I will be crashing with husbands #2 & #3 - Jim and Daniel! I have a sneaking suspicion that the rest of my NY stay will be just as good as the first night. See you all on Thursday!

It's So Hard to Say Goodbye

An important member of the Mangiaracina family is about to find a new home. This guy has been with Ed since 2006. I first met him on our third date when I was living in Forest Hills. He was sleek...sporty...and very sexy ~ especially to a girl who did all her traveling on foot. He had me at hello and now it is time to say goodbye. We have found a buyer for the Scion. What did you think I was talking about?!


This car has been a work horse for us since the day I met Ed namely because it was our only vehicle for two and a half years (which on Long Island is a long time). Ed taught me how to drive stick shift in this baby and made me completely neurotic about curbing the rim (Ed is a little over meticulous about his cars). This puppy has clocked in over 90,000 miles thanks to Ed's job with Sprint and still looks as though it just came off the lot. It has made countless trips to VA and back and has kept us all safe along the way.


But alas, it is time to move on. Since Ed's Ford Fusion Sprint car has joined our family, the Scion has spent more time parked than on the move. Plus it's sporty design and 2-door action is not quite as "family friendly" as we will need it to be in future years. So we made the decision to post it on Craigslist.com and "see what happens." Well, what happens is that an email is received within 5 minutes and a check is in hand within 3 hours. Not too shabby.

So what's in store for us next? Well, we will remain a 2-car household for the moment and add to the car fund so that we can get our dream car when the lease on the Camry is up next year. What, might you ask is our dream car? Well, this is Ed's...



...and this is mine...


...but I think we will go with something a little more practical. Stay tuned!

Bargain Hunter

Today was a day filled with bargains reminiscent of this popular game from the 80's (popular, according to Ed; iffy at best according to me!). The day was rainy, but that didn't stop us from getting an early start at the Little Rocky Run Annual Community Garage Sale. Dad Q. decided to join us for some bargain hunting because as we all know, he loves a bargain. Unfortunately, the pickin's were slim. If we were putting together a game room we would have been in luck ~ mini pool tables, air hockey, dart boards and ping pong tables were in full force. Same goes for kiddie playrooms. I have not seen that many toys in a while...and I work for the Toy Industry Association! Bobby Q., Ed and Lucy came out empty handed, but I found myself this little beauty for my dresser.



I love the design and the white you see is actually Capiz shell. LOVE! Definitely a great addition to the room.

The day continued with a late breakfast at IHop and then some general relaxing at home. I caught up with my Washington Post's from the week while Ed entertained himself by watching Tron (not my cup of tea). Around 5 pm we hit the road for the ultimate in bargain shopping for the home: IKEA. I am all about accessorizing our house and what better place to pick up some chic, fun and CHEAP accessories. Because we were not in the market for furniture we skipped the showroom and headed straight to the Marketplace. After a quick perusal of kitchen ware and curtains, we happened upon a great looking runner for our front entrance hallway and for $24 bucks we were in love!
Next up, lighting. I'm in the market for a fun pendant in my office, but unfortunately was not able to find something that knocked my true love out of first place. What we did find was a slew of eco-friendly light bulbs though and stocked up. Ed is a bit obsessed with light bulbs lately so he was in his glory.

After some useful paper organizers for my office...


...we finally hit the gardening section and this is where I hit the mother load. I have been slowly introducing house plants into our lives and wanted to continue with a few more throughout the house; specifically in my office, the guest bath and the guest bedroom. That's where these babies came in:


Each white planter set me back $1.99 while the plants came in under $10 bucks. Top that Home Depot! And check out how great they look in their respective locations...




Now let's just pray that they stay alive! All in all, it was a successful trip to IKEA that didn't break the bank. We enjoyed a delicious sushi dinner to celebrate our good fortune and then headed back to Lucy to protect her from the evil thunder storm that came through the area. It's nice going to sleep knowing that good style does not have to cost a fortune. :)

Fenced In

As some of you already know, we are putting a fence up in our backyard so that Lucy has a secure place to run around without being on her leash. We already have a "privacy fence" between us and our neighbors so really, we are taking it one step further and finishing it off. This is how the backyard currently looks:


We used to have slate down...


But we recently removed it because we are replacing it with sod. More grass equals a happy puppy. Plus we weren't in love with the way the slate looked. These photos are actually a little old because we have also removed the brick from the little flower bed on the left. It is now a clean slate...no pun intended. :)


Since we really do not have the tools or skills to build a fence, we have hired Mow Cow to help us out with the project. It's been a slow go as we deal with many factors ie. getting on Mow Cow's very busy schedule, the weather, and our Home Owners Association. We live in a community with an HOA that requires approval for pretty much any project that deals with "altering" your property. We had to get their approval to put in our new windows and we need their approval to put in the fence. Not only do we have to provide them with specific plans of the project (complete with material samples and color swatches), but we also have to get 4 of our neighbors to sign off on our project. Luckily we have very nice neighbors!

After about 3 weeks of waiting, we FINALLY got our approval letter today in the mail. YAH!!!!


We let Mow Cow know of the big news so that we can get on the schedule and get this project moving along. In addition to the fence, they are also fixing some of the wonky boards on our deck, staining it and laying the sod. We are so excited that we have the green light to move forward because we are REALLY looking forward to enjoying our backyard now that the weather is getting warmer. We promise to share some construction pics and the end product once it is ready to be revealed. After that, come on over for a BBQ!

Special Delivery

No...not the kind that is in my belly. :) The kind that is in a box ~ or 5 boxes to be exact! And for the record, it wasn't really a special delivery. It was more of a "borrow the neighbor's truck so we can pick it up at the store" delivery.



It looks like we have a project for the weekend...but what is it? We are going to make you wait until the big reveal!