Top Five Favorite Books :: Set in New York City

I recently finished a book called The Object of My Affection by Stephen McCauley, which was the inspiration of the 1998 movie of the same name, starring Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd (in his first big role after Clueless.) The movie was one of my favorites during my high school and college years, but I can’t really tell you why. It wasn’t a movie starring any teens, and it wasn’t written for teens, but my VHS copy was worn down with consistent use; in fact, that VHS has survived half a dozen moves and is still at my house today… and I watched it about six months ago.

[Image 1 source: cinefilles.wordpress.com]  [Image 2 source: amazon.com]

When I realized the movie was actually based on a book written a decade prior, I quickly ordered it without another thought. And while I enjoyed the book as much as the movie (although there are MAJOR plot differences), what really struck me as I read it was just how many novels I’ve finished that are set in New York City. Manhattan is by far one of my favorite places in the world, and while I have decided many times over that I don’t think I could actually live there permanently, I still get a crazy rush anytime I visit. I suppose reading books that are set in New York allows me to mentally pop in and out as I please.

So, without further ado, here are my top five favorite books set in New York City:

[Image source: bn.com]

5) The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

For the Downton Abbey-loving crowd, The Age of Innocence is a great read, although it's set almost 50 years prior. The story centers on a couple about to be married and the delicate unravelling of their relationship once the bride-to-be’s cousin shows up. If subtle satire is your thing, give this book a try. Despite the publish date, I sped through it. 

[Image source: amazon.com]

4) The Ghost of Greenwich Village by Lorna Graham

I bought this paperback at Target a few years ago for very superficial reasons; I liked the cover and the story sounded mildly interesting. In a nutshell, the protagonist (Eve) moves to NYC to follow in the footsteps of her mother, who lived there during the 1960s. Her apartment is haunted by a ghost from the same era, but by no means is this a scary story. This book is not going to win any awards, but I love the way it weaves in and out of present and past. 

[Image Source: amazon.com]

3) An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin

I know virtually nothing about the art world, but this book written by Steve Martin (yes, that Steve Martin) is a love letter to paintings wrapped up in the chronicle of a young woman named Lacey living in Manhattan in the 1990s and early 2000s. What’s most intriguing about the story is that it’s told in first person through the eyes of Lacey’s friend; he teeters back and forth between loving and hating her; and as the reader, I did the same.

[Image source: amazon.com]

2) A Cup of Tea by Amy Ephron

This novel is based on a 1922 short story of the same name by Katherine Mansfield. You can likely read the book in two hours or less, and the term “literary irony” doesn’t do the tale justice. A love triangle set during World War I, A Cup of Tea explores how one small decision can change the course of a person’s life forever. 

[Image source: amazon.com]

1)      The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. by Adelle Waldman

Similar to An Object of Beauty, the lead character in this story is often unlikable. Nate is a writer who has just recently hit his professional stride and finds his love life gaining a boost in the process. Of all the books I’ve listed, this is the only one that takes place solely in present day, and I found Nate and his girlfriend, Hannah, to be written so unbelievably accurate as urban 20-somethings. If I was going to create a time capsule of this decade, I would add this book as a reflection of what dating is often like for young adults.

Any other New York City-based fiction I should check out?

Adventures in HEB Shopping

Last week, Andy left town to run his 55th marathon in Florida. (Why yes, he IS crazy.) When he’s away, I like to take the opportunity to eat a ton of junk food, stay up way too late, and watch bad movies. In other words, I pretend I’m 12 again.

So, in preparation for the weekend alone with the kiddo, I hit up HEB on my way home and had quite a good time in just 10 minutes. Allow me to document the events:

5:28 p.m. – Arrive at HEB, and make a beeline to the frozen foods section, where 99 percent of my bad decisions take place.

5:29 p.m. – Grab a cheese pizza, which was on sale – proof that I am responsible. Shuffle over to the ice cream section on the same aisle (good thinking, HEB!) and grab some salted caramel Greek frozen yogurt, which still baffles me as a concept. Shouldn’t Greek frozen yogurt stick to the core flavors at the risk of ruining the taste of the really yummy ones?

5:31 p.m. – Power-walk to the back of the store (getting my cardio in for the day!) where I grab a FAMILY SIZE container of macaroni and cheese WHICH I WILL EAT ALL BY MYSELF (#goals).

5:32 p.m. – Add some fancy cheese to my basket because I am fancy girl and a bottle of Malbec because I am also cultured. (Again, nice product placement, HEB. Everything is located in a very logical place around here.)

5:34 p.m. – Head to the cereal aisle to get my favorite cereal of all time, Cap’n Crunch’s Peanut Butter Crunch, where the following conversation takes place:

Man: Geez, are there enough sugary cereal options or what!?

Me: Oh, I know! It’s so overwhelming!

Man: In my day, we stuck to the basics and there weren’t so many terrible options! But my kids love all this gross stuff! [grabs a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch]

Me: Yeah… Ha, mine too… [grab my box of Peanut Butter Crunch]

5:36 p.m. – Run out of the aisle quickly, shamefaced, and vowing to never ever let Walter eat like me. I make my way to the medicine aisle to grab Claritin – and by Claritin, I mean the generic HEB kind (because not only do I care about my budget, I CARE DEEPLY ABOUT MY HEALTH).

5:38 p.m. – Realizing I forgot a bag*, I attempt to carry all my goods out of the store using just my hands. I assume I look like a very greedy – but very slow – thief.

[Image source]

In closing, I’d like to wonder aloud why I’m not losing as much weight as I should be on my Weight Watchers plan?

*Stores no longer supply plastic grocery bags within Austin city limits.

Happy New Year!

Hello, 2016! It’s time for my annual new year’s resolution post, which makes up approximately 25 percent of my total blog content each year. I’m so proud.

Last year, I talked about making progress in a few different aspects of my life, and as I reflect back on 2015, I’m comfortable saying I was mildly successful. While there were some areas that I feel lacked major attention (hello, dieting and exercising!), I think focusing on progress allowed me to ease up on the extremity I normally place on myself when it comes to goals. Typically, I follow a “go big or go home” ideology. My goals typically look like, “Wake up every day at 5:00 a.m. for an hour-long intense meditation!” instead of “Develop a morning routine that feels good and encourages productivity.” My focus on progress allowed me to be kinder to myself about the approaches I took toward self-enhancement.

In a similar vein, this year, I’m focusing on balance. The internal, emotional, psychological kind. (Anyone who has seen me exit a car, carry more than two bags of groceries, or walk across a room knows I don’t possess physical balance whatsoever.) I’d like to live this year with a mindful -– yet guilt-free –- approach to my home life, personal life, work life, and health life, embracing the opportunities I get in the moment to improve each one.

Cheers to the new year! And now, for no good reason, here’s a few photos from the holiday season!

[After Walter's holiday show at daycare.

No, he didn't just stuff 100 Christmas cookies in his mouth. That's just natural chub. Jealous?]

[The dudes on Christmas Eve.]

[I found Papa Elf!]

[A rare shot of all three of us.]

Happy Birthday, Chris!

Today is my brother’s 27^th birthday.

[Goofballs in Chicago, 2009]

I have blurry memories of the day Chris was born, visiting him and my mom at the hospital. My understanding was that she had produced a baby purely for my entertainment (a doll in real life!), and I was very excited to meet my new present. Once he was at home and folks started visiting, I told everyone who walked through the door to NOT touch “my baby,” in what I assume was a very sassy 3-year-old voice.

Honestly, his newness wore off quickly, and I spent the next decade teasing Chris and dragging him out of my room when my friends were over; he spent it hitting me on the back of the head with a light-up, plastic sword my parents bought him at the Ringling Brothers circus that came through Houston in 1991. The off-and-on nature of our relationship is one that I’m sure most brother-sister siblings have endured. Luckily, ours evaporated a few years later, and I finally understood I could – gasp! – be friends with my brother.

Chris and I spent one year together in high school, when he was a freshman, and I was a senior. He had joined the cross country team, and I was the editor of our high school yearbook, so we drove into school each morning around 6:00 a.m. for our respective extracurricular time. The soundtrack of those dark, foggy mornings include Norah Jones, O.A.R., John Mayer, Dashboard Confessional, and a bunch of other artists and bands, some of which are still our favorites, some of which are now extremely embarrassing to acknowledge.

Happy birthday to my brother, a guy who is kind, caring, and fiercely intelligent… someone who is so attuned to both current events and cultural references that he’s easily the most interesting person in the room… and a HUGE reason why I was so happy when we found out our child-to-be was a boy. If Baby Naumann is half as awesome as his uncle, we’re in for another great present.       

The March To-Do List

March, you are more than a little scary. You’re a constant reminder that our kid arrives next month, and I feel nowhere near ready. Is this what motherhood is like? Feeling behind and panicked 24/7? If so, I’ve been honing those skills since I started college, so maybe I’ll be a pro. Here’s what I have going on this month…

1) Start working on my summer (aka post-partum) capsule wardrobe.

Have you ever heard of a capsule wardrobe? I hadn’t until I started stalking following this gal on my daily trip around the blogosphere. I’ve been contemplating creating my own for about six months now and kept using my pregnancy as an excuse…. Until I realized I had already created a capsule wardrobe BECAUSE I was pregnant. (It’s really easy to finely edit your wardrobe when you’re gaining a half to full pound every week.)

     2)  Finish decorating the nursery.

We decided on a theme and have finished painting the walls. We also have moved the furniture (sans crib) into the room, purchased the linens, and Andy is actually working on building a small little bookcase to go in there, as well. Our theme is “storybooks” and is specifically centered on Little Golden Books… which means the last steps is to frame some pages from various Little Golden Books all throughout the room. I’m hoping the frames will look as cute in person as they do in my head. Wish us luck!  I’ll post pictures of the finished product when it’s all done.

[Part 1 of painting took place during winter vacation. RIP, Andy's beard.]

[Part 2 included adding the chair rail and painting the bottom wall space grey. 

Then we moved the furniture we're using (purchased years ago from an estate sale) into the room.]

     3) Cook something with our pasta maker.

It would be nice to embrace something I’ll likely not get a chance to do for the foreseeable future. Has anyone made their own pasta? Are some types easier to work with than others?

     4) Find Baby Naumann a great homecoming outfit.

It’s an unsolved mystery why this has become so important to me, but I’ve been trolling the interwebs trying to find something both practical and cute for the baby boy to wear when we leave the hospital. Bonus points if the said outfit can detract focus from his large head (because, let’s be honest – between Andy and me, this kid is going to have a NOGGIN). And if moms are reading this right now and have any ideas, let me know!

     5) Read All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

On April 2, I’ll be attending my last book club as a childless gal, so I’d feel REALLY good about myself if I actually read the darn thing this time. I’m normally the girl who shows up having read less than 25 percent of the book and eats all the cheese and crackers.

[Image source: amazon.com]

What’s on your to-do list this month?

Currently: My Favorite Health and Beauty Products

Historically, I’ve had the “I’ll try anything” mindset when it comes to health and beauty products. If I had a coupon, I would snatch it up. Over the past year, however, I’ve become very loyal to the products that I find to work well. Below are my top five. Some of these are obviously pregnancy related, but others are products I have used or know I will continue to use for years to come…

1) Dr. Teal’s Epsom Salt Soaking Solution in Eucalyptus Spearmint – Honestly, it doesn’t take a lot of convincing to get me into a relaxing bath, but I started using this product years ago while training for half and full marathons – it did wonders for sore muscles. I picked it back up during the second trimester of my pregnancy to relieve an aching back that seemed to spike in the evenings. I really do believe that it not only relived my back pain but it also helped ward off leg cramps during the night. Eucalyptus Spearmint is my preferred scent, although they have a few others to choose from, such as Lavender and Chamomile. (Price: About $5/bag)

2) Nature’s Made Prenatal Multi + DHA Vitamins – Yeah, I tried the vegan, gluten-free, organic prenatal vitamins for a couple weeks, but then my morning sickness kicked in, and I could no longer ingest something that tasted like hot garbage. Thank you, Nature’s Made, for understanding that when you’re pregnant, you sometimes feel like vomiting for no good reason. I appreciate your prenatal vitamin that has virtually no taste or smell. (Price: About $20 for a 90-day supply)

3) First Aid Beauty (FAB) Ultra Repair Cream – You know the dad in “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” who sprays Windex on everything to fix it? This product is my Windex. Not only did I use it on my face – in replacement of a night cream – nearly every night this winter (and continue to do so), I also used it on my knuckles, elbows, and heels. Normally I look like a blotchy-faced teenager by Christmas with the ever-changing winter weather in Austin that creates dry patches on my skin, but this cream kept my face even and hydrated without becoming greasy. (Price: About $12 for a 5 ounce bottle)

4) Clarisonic Mia2 – Um hi, clear skin. Where have you been since I turned 12? Seriously, I don’t know what kind of voodoo witchcraft is going on at the Clarisonic headquarters, but my face has never been as clear as it is after a month and a half of using this device. After doing a lot of research, I decided that the “Mia2” was a better option for my skin, because it has a delicate setting for sensitive skin that the Mia doesn’t come with. To me, that was worth the extra $50. Or rather, it was worth asking for something that cost $50 more at Christmas. I received this gift from my brother-in-law who drew me in the Naumann Family Secret Santa… which really means I should thank my sister-in-law who knew what is was and where to buy it. Thanks, Heather! Where would my skin be without you? (Price: About $150… but you can sometimes get them on sale!)

5) Palmer’s Skin Therapy Oil – I read somewhere that stretch marks are hereditary and not something you can prevent, no matter how many beauty products you use. I have no idea if that’s true or not, but I’ll happily rub something all over my torso if it means I can smell like a chocolate bar all day, amiright? (Seriously, though, I’d love to hear from folks who have had stretch marks and how their body recovered.) (Price: About $10 for a bottle that lasts forever)

What are your favorite health and beauty products?

What’s For Dinner?

One of my January goals was to introduce at least two new “elaborate” dinners to our table. Why I needed to describe those dinners as “elaborate” seems like a really cruel joke to play on myself. And while I did cook up two new meals for us this month, I would hardly describe either of them as “elaborate.” Both are quick to prepare, full of easy-to-find ingredients, and relatively healthy. (And just so we’re clear, my definition of healthy is anything that is not a frozen pizza.)

Lemon-Garlic Shrimp and Grits
I love shrimp and grits and realized I had never made it at home. I grabbed this recipe straight from the Food Network website and made only a few minor alterations, so I’m simply going to include the link, a photo, and a few notes on what I changed.

Recipe found here.

 

[Image source: foodnetwork.com]

Notes

·      I used a bit more garlic, because I think it pairs really well with the lemon juice. Plus, it makes for great breath the next morning.

·      When I revisit this recipe – which I will definitely be doing – I will make sure to use actual parmesan cheese. I had some leftover dry gourmet cheese that I shredded and threw in for the sake of convenience, and I think it did affect the taste. Believe me, though, I still ate. it. all.

·      I couldn’t find fresh parsley at the grocery store the week I prepared this meal, so I used dried parsley. I didn’t lose sleep over the modification, but I bet it would have been a zingier finished meal with fresh parsley.

Breakfast Pizzas (recipe serves 2)
For my second meal, I definitely drew inspiration from Haylie Duff’s Real Girl’s Kitchen, and you can check out the demonstration for her Avocado, Prosciutto, and Radish Tartine recipe here. However, I made so many changes that I actually listed out my process below and gave this meal my own name.

This dinner turned out to be a great option -- we ate it twice in January. Plus, it was typical for us to have all the ingredients in our house without making a special trip to the store.

Ingredients (in order of appearance within the recipe)

·         1 large or 2 small Haas avocado(s)

·         Approximately 1 tbsp of olive oil

·         4 eggs

·         4 whole pieces of whole wheat sandwich rounds (we use Nature’s Own 100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Rounds)

·         ¼ cup of shredded parmesan cheese (or any other preferred shredded cheese)

·         4 slices of prosciutto (this is the only ingredient I skip for myself, due to pregnancy)

·         Dashes of salt and pepper

·         Approximately 1 tbsp of Louisiana hot sauce or your preferred hot sauce

Instructions
Step 1: Slice the avocado(s) down the middle and spoon all the avocado goodness into a small bowl. Mash up the avocado to the consistency of guacamole. Once you’ve finished, set the bowl aside. Discard the avocado pit and skin.
Step 2: Heat a large skillet to med-high, and drizzle the olive oil throughout the surface of the pan. Crack the four eggs and drop them on to the pan. Allow the eggs to cook for about 3 minutes. You can adjust the cook time based on how runny you like the eggs.
Step 3: Flip the eggs over within the skillet and cook for an additional 3 minutes. Meanwhile, pop the sandwich rounds into the toaster using a light-med setting.
Step 4: Remove the skillet from the heat and set aside. Then, take a sandwich round and spread a dollop of mashed avocado in between the two slices, creating a kind of “avocado sandwich”. Also, spread a dollop of mashed avocado on top of the “sandwich.” Repeat this step for the other 3 sandwich rounds.
Step 5: Sprinkle all the shredded cheese among the four avocado-topped sandwich rounds. Then, lay a slice of prosciutto on top of each sandwich round. Finally, using a spatula or similar tool, dish a cooked egg on top of each slide of prosciutto.
Step 6: Sprinkle as much salt and pepper as you like on top of each egg. Shake out the hot sauce on top of each sandwich.

Serve each person two pizzas and enjoy! (We typically have a side salad with this meal, too.)

[The finished product at Casa Naumann]