Beach Babes

Date Night Outfits

I am loving my Mansur Gabriel little grandma bag for going out. It's actually called the "elegant bag", and that's exactly what it is. I'm also loving my H&M black high waisted jeggings. Been practically living in them on my days off the past few weeks. 

I have also been wearing this blue sequined top from Anthropologie a lot. Been wearing it when we go out and for work with a blue suit. It's more sparkly IRL. 

I really have to find a nice dress for going out. Not sure why lately I'm having a hard time wearing dresses... I used to love the ease of a dress. 

Memorial Day Fireworks

Maybe the older you get, the bigger you get on traditions. Or maybe my life is boring and repeats itself. Since I'm a glass half full type of person, I will pick the first explanation. This was our second year at the Hempstead Beach Park Memorial Day fireworks, and I feel that a nice family tradition has started. The weather was iffy, but it did not rain, and we just threw on some sweaters, packed a cooler of drinks for the adults and kids, and off we went. I was tired after the day in the City and was not too eager to go, but my daughter would have been extremely disappointed, since we were going to meet her friend and her family there and watch the fireworks together. So I put on a fake smile and went. It was one of those evenings that started kind of slow, but were really fun in the end, and I was happy that I made myself go. The fireworks were awesome, and so much better than my pictures could capture, and after the fireworks the DJ was playing good old soft rock songs that were so fun to sing along and dance along (shot through the heart, and you're to blame, baby you give loooove a bad name)... :-) 

Coming back from the City it looked like it was going to rain really hard

The beach was not as crowded as last year. Didn't have to fight for the best seats. 

Mother and Daughter Outfits

We were in the City on the Memorial Day weekend Saturday for Finnish School. 

My daughter wore the typical teenager outfit, miniskirt with sneakers. 

And I wore Topshop top, NYDJ jeans, Tory Burch slides, and my Catherine Malandrino tote. I told you I'm getting a lot of use out of it. 

Springtime Traditions

Buying plants in Home Depot is an annual spring time tradition. Going to the St. Boniface fair in Sea Cliff is another one of our springtime traditions. This year I squeezed both in to one day.

The fair is held in the second half of May, usually the week before Memorial Day. The rides are fun and there are no lines - so the kids have fun running from ride to ride.

It's been a rainy spring, so I've got a lot of use out of my metallic gunpowder Zara shoes. 

I've also used my cheapo summer satchel a lot.
I love this perforated Catherine Malandrino tote for my casual weekend outfits.
However, when I bought this white denim jacket, I thought that I'd be wearing it all the time. That didn't really happen. But it's a classic, so maybe I'll warm up to it later. 

Last year we tried fried oreos for the first time. They were good, but this year we opted for Mr. Softee. 

Detox Tea

I'm a big detox tea consumer. I don't know if it does anything, but it makes me feel better about myself, especially if I've been indulging in a lot of wine. This is English Tea Shop "Detox Me" tea has been my go-to tea lately, especially enjoyed out of my mother's day cup present. The detox teas don't always taste all that great, but this one has a nice mildly sweet taste, which is why it's become my new favorite.

The Greatest Show on Earth

A couple of weeks ago we saw one of the very last shows of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus before it closed forever. The circus has been around for 146 years, and it felt like we were part of the history of "the greatest show on earth" witnessing a dying art. I'm glad the kids got to see the historic circus before it shut down.

Social Outings

I can't believe that it's June already. However, I have to document what happened in May before I forget... May was a pretty social month after a long dry spell. One week I had three different evening social outings, which is really unusual for me, because usually I just come home after work, eat dinner and crash. But this particular week, I was out and about and it felt good after a long bout with the flu.

First was a friend's 30th birthday party. Looking really good, my lovely young friend! 

Then came the "Independent Visions" art exhibit with a friend. The exhibit featured four Finnish woman artists.  I really only knew about Helene Schjerfbeck, so it was interesting to see the other works too. Afterwards we had dinner at the Scandinavia house restaurant. I always have the salmon salad there because it's just the best. 

Ellen Thesleff

Olga Sesemann

Sigrid Schauman

Next I had dinner with an old friend. Italian friend, Italian restaurant, in Little Italy.  Ha. I did inject a little Finnish into the evening by first taking he to the Samuji store, which is right around the corner from Little Italy. She said, however, that the shop looked more Japanese than Finnish. And oddly, it did. Or does.