Crisp Fall Air and a Trip Home to New England

So I skipped the strength training portion of my workout today to catch up on Miss Madision in Heels. You know how sometimes you feel like you keep spinning and spinning around and can't stop because life gets so crazy? Yea. That has been me for the past two months. We are on the countdown to closing on our house, I've had a bit of success at work and B and I went home for a mini vaca. We originally had plans to travel down to FL but we are glad we decided to go home, because lets be honest, that is where the heart is. 

When I stepped out of my Fiat 500 (YES. I do have one of those) for the first time in Connecticut, the crisp fall air greeted me like an old friend. And there is nothing better than a New England fall. 

                           

This is outside of the Seasame Seed in Danbury. It is a victorian home turned restaurant in Danbury. The lebanese cuisine is delicious. This day was a huge treat because my cousin Alana (www.alanainkorea.blogspot.com<-- her blog) is finally home from being a world traveller. The girl is the definition of adventurer, having lived in Korea for the past three years, South Africa before that and has visited every single continent on this planet. She is a foodie who always introduces me to new cusines, an avid exerciser and overall badass. She can land anywhere in the world and discover any culture away from five star hotels and tacky tours. 

                                                    Alana, Myself and our Grandma!

                   

Our visit obviously consisted of drinks with friends, family parties and nights by my Dad's pellet stove with plenty of wine but there is one more thing in CT I want to introduce you to. 

       

Right?! Leaves me breatheless. This is Candlewood Lake. Perhaps my favorite spot in the entire state. The lake is 11 miles long nestled in the heart of Fairfield County. I have so many memories here. As a child my dad would launch his boat and I'd jump on the tube to be pulled the whole 11 miles just taking in the beauty of this spot. This picture says it all. An hour outside NYC if you are in CT or NY this should be on the top of your list.

Until next time... 

A Girl's Weekend in the District

My husband's schedule flips flops constantly and every other month he works EVERY weekend. (Bummer, I know.) But this weekend I decided that I would make it count, it was so dismal and rainy the weeks before. And what better way to do that than support a great cause and enjoy Alexandria with my girlfriends? 

Supporting The Tiger Lily Foundation at the EmPOWER Ball. I want to urge all of my readers to look into this organization that supports women battling  breast cancer. Maimah Karmo's story is incredible. The event truly made an impact on me. My grandmother passed from cancer and I left the Hilton McLean saturday night tremendously moved and ready to volunteer my time. A big thank you to The DC Ladies for telling me about the EmPOWER ball.

And then of course, brunching on a Sunday in Old Town. French Toast Brioche... what can I say? Best anywhere. Followed by some strolling the colorful of streets and parks surrounding the area. 

What am I wearing?

Gown- BCBG Max Azria

Jeans- Jcrew 

Sweater- Jcrew 

Coat- London Fog

Shoes- Coach

I'm Going Back to Charleston, Back to where I Belong....Well after DC :)

In 1939 when Rhett Butler (aka Clark Gable) said those infamous words leaving Scarlett crying in her mansion, a crowd of teenagers in a local theater stood up cheering. They cheered for their city, now named one of the best cities in the world, Charleston SC. No, that's not recorded in a history of film book anywhere. I heard it as a little girl, crawled up next to my grandmother listening to stories about her home. 

This past July my Mom, myself and some friends travelled down to Charleston SC. We piled up in a van and drove the eight hours from DC to land in Charleston around six pm. I noticed my mom's face soften and I could tell she was recalling the summers of her childhood spent with her grandparents and cousins. What crossed my mind was... GRANDMA why on earth did you let Papa take you up to the frigid northeast?! You see my grandparents had a very notebookesque story. They met at a USO dance right after the war. They fell in love and started a life together in my native CT. But I still feel a connection to this place. My wonderful aunt lives there. The history is amazing. The southern cuisine is sooo delicious I promise you won't eat for days after you return home from your visit. 

My tips for a visit:

Go to the battery. The history lover will just swoon at the homes that overlook the harbor. You can't help but imagine yourself walking one of the balconys waiting to attend a party. 

Rainbow Row. Quick but worth it. You can end your walk of the battery here. 

The Hominy Grill. Reccomended by my Aunt Honey and to die for! Pumpkin Ginger Bread is a must. 

Avoid the busy beaches and if you want to sun yourself go to one of the islands. 

Mt. Pleasant. Dinner at the Shrimp Boats. 

Charleston Tea Plantation. The only tea planatation in America and free samples. Cheap tour 10$. 

The Angel Oak. Breathtaking.

Walk the Old Village in Mt. Pleasant. If you look closely at some of the shops you can see old signs from the '40s. 

Magnolia Cemetary. No one will be there, but you can learn so much from a cemetary. The old Civil War graves send a chill right through you. 

The Citadel. My grandparents were married here after the war. There is a beautiful Church and a small museum that gives you some interesting facts about students throughout the centuries.

Pineapple Fountain. Just for a neat picture. You can wade in it "at your own risk."

So even though I went on this trip before I started my blog I wanted to share it with you all. Charleston is a place where you can truly experience the beauty of the South and a piece of United States History. 

Some photos from my trip:

Doris and Herbie. The Grandparents. LOVE. 

The McClenaghan Family home.

You cannot visit Charleston and not get Chicken and Waffles. A personal favorite. 

My Mom and I on the Battery.

The shrimp boats in Mt. Pleasant. 

Although I went to Charleston awhile ago I wanted to share this with you all in the hopes you will pack up a car on a long weekend and GO! Experience this wonderful city.

Fall with the Founding Fathers

This weekend was my cousin Karen's last weekend in DC. She was here on assignment for two months and I have been totally spoiled. We've  had a pretty awesome time together meeting for dinner downtown, enjoying wine nights and this weekend we ventured to the western part of VA to the homes of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.

Monticello is absolutely breathtaking. The home is unlike any other historic site I have visited before. Jerfferson is my favorite founding father after all, so of course I'd be partial to his estate. The tour is about forty five minutes and walking the grounds takes you past lush gardens and views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. After we toured the home, gardens and visited the Jefferson gravesite ( his descendants are still buried there HOW COOL) Karen and I were famished. We ate a quick bite at the cafe and she blurted out "So we HAVE to got to Montpelier now!" OK.

We took the wrong turn five times but made the last tour of James' and Dolley Madison's home. What I liked about Montepelier was that it was a work in progress. They aren't just placing period furniture in rooms and saying this is what James and Dolley would have lived like. They are doing lots of research to find Madison original pieces etc.... and it was so serene. Dolley is known for her love of parties and socializing. But here was her refuge. When you go stand on the porch in the front of the house and gaze at the Blue Ridge Mountains you will never want to leave. 

So verdict: if Brent ever wanted to take me away to Charlottesville I'd be on board.  

Here are some shots from the day... but before I go I want to encourage all my readers to support public history. Take the short drive out to Monticello and Montpelier and visit the homes of these remarkable individuals. 

Monticello.org

www.montpelier.org

  

What I am wearing

Shoes: Ann Taylor

Jeans: JCrew

Shirt: JCrew

Scarf: JCrew

Sweater: Banana Republic 

 

In True Echo Boomer Style, Building in the DC Metro Area

Recently the Washington Post has published a few stories about the Echo Boomers flocking to the DC metro area. The "Echo Boomer"- someone aged 25-32...... and apparently we LOVE DC. We just can't afford to settle in a beautiful townhouse in Georgetown quite yet and are taking our first "established" steps in Northern VA, Montgomery County etc etc.

I mean someday I will have the beautiful townhouse in Georgetown in true Jackie O style ;).......but for right now building a townhouse is more than enough for us. We have chosen Gainesville (next to Manassas) to set up camp. It has a southernesque feel but still close to DC so we can easily metro into the city on the weekends. ( Russia House happy hours don't have to disappear!) The process will take about nine months all together and I will be posting updates constantly. B gets the updates from our project manager, who is awesome, and I spend most my time pintresting new ideas. Our move in date will be sometime in March.

This is what the hardworking staff at Ryan Homes has accomplished so far: 

So just a skeleton but we have come a long way since we have decided to build in May. I can't say the process has been completely stressless, but it is a lot easier than I had expected. 

I Can't Think about that Right Now. If I do I'll go Crazy. I'll Think about that Tomorrow.

The favorite saying of the average twenty five year old.... Right?!

Around here there is no sugar coating things, life is crazy! That is exactly what I am going to write about today.

In the Gonska household we are constantly moving in a million different directions. When you walk in our door you are greeted by four cats perched on the counter, our phones ring in the text messages from family wondering how we are and there always seems to be mountains of laundry sitting on top of the dryer. B and I both have 13 hour work days and before I can ever tackle my long to do list the nightly question I face is "What the heck are we going to eat for dinner?!"

Throw in keeping up to date on our new construction townhouse and it is then I find myself uttering the words of Scarlett O'Hara and I push off anything else until "tomorrow." But yesterday when I was in dreamland enjoying my one day of the week I can sleep past seven my text message ding (the minuet of course) went off at 9 am. My thoughts were: gosh it is Sunday! Who could that be?! I am not ready to bust out my four miles. Just one more hour. But then I picked up my phone and there it was: a text message from my sister Kelly. 

Rob, her boyfriend of many years and a member of our family, deployed. I knew he was going and wished him well but that text message was all I needed to be brought back to reality.  B was in the Navy for five years and not even a year after we were married he deployed for a year. This is Robs third deployment. Suddenly I felt the feeling I knew all too well. The pain of knowing it would be long time until you would be together again. Knowing that for that time you would have to be ok with living your separate lives, as a close friend once told me. After texting back and forth with Kelly for an hour I was angry with myself for forgetting not to take any moment for granted.

So I got B out of bed, brewed his fave coffee (Girl Scout Creamer Samoa) and decided that for once I wasn't going to push off a day in DC until "tomorrow." We went to the National Book Festival, the Air and Space Museum and jumped on a bike from the capital bikeshare to pedal around the monuments. There were scores of people in line the get an autograph from their favorite authors, people cheered and waved as the presidential motorcade passed and there were huge lines in front of the ever famous DC food truck. With all the smiling and laughter of a DC Sunday I kept in the back of my mind those who were overseas or preparing to go overseas and their families. I was I their shoes once. Brent hurried us home to make sure we had some relaxation time and back in Bethesda we relaxed and enjoyed a night of just being together.

So please never take a moment for granted. And I am going to be totally annoying and say seize the day. There is no better day than today!

                                            

Short but Sweet

Whenever B and I go home to Connecticut for the weekend it is never for long enough. I have an enormous family and am always glancing at the clock to ensure everyone has equal amounts of time with us. However, this visit was unbelievably great.

To celebrate my 25th birthday ( too old right?!) my family threw me a surprise parity. The catered food was to die for and although I suspected something (my mother told me to look nice in the middle of the day)  I was surprised to see all my closest friends. With big girl jobs and life getting in the way I honestly have not seen everyone together since my wedding.

And my ensemble for the occasion: Issa London Wrap Dress LK Bennett Black Sybila Pump

So although this post and my visit are short but sweet, what I'd like my readers to takeaway: cherish everyone moment you share with your loved ones.