Today we start our journey down to Miami, FL via Amtrak. An experience finally scratched off my bucket list. The expedition will take roughly 31 hours and no, that's no typo. We're currently 3 hours in and just stopped at the Baltimore, Maryland station. So far so good. Kids are entertained with their books, Nintendo Switch and dozens of snacks and I'm very pleased with the leg room. Again, it's only been a few hours so I'll check back later with more updates on this passage.
By now you probably know how much my family loves visiting Korea town and Flushing, NY. It's become a weekly activity for my family for more than 10 years. One of our favorite places to visit is Noona Noodles in Korea town. After indulging in the absolute best noodles, we like to stop by TOUS les JOURS. What we love about TOUS les JOURS is that each good is freshly baked daily. This makes the quality exceptional and each item consistently delicious.
A few days ago TOUS les JOURS reached out to share their limited-time desserts from their Mother's Day collection. I was over the moon!! They treated me to a variety of my favorites baked goods and a gorgeous bouquet of flowers.
If you didn't already know, Mother's Day is May 8th and I'm already feeling so loved by my family and friends. Every year I come around here talking about "everyday should be Mothers Day... blah blah blah" and yes that's partly true. but the whole truth is I LOVE Mother's Day and if it was celebrated everyday it wouldn't be so special! Yes, we should appreciate our Mothers, love and care for them on a daily basis but.. also treat them a little extra special on Mother's Day. We deserve it.
& nothing says I love you like a box of delicious mini-cupcakes in a beautiful floral box from Baked by Melissa.
If you're thinking of purchasing a few mini-cupcake assortments be sure to use code: JOHNNYBELL10 for 10% off your order on BakedbyMelissa.com
expires May 9th
Good morning my wonderful family of friends! Lately, I've been missing you all so dearly.. I just had to hop on here to say hello and share what's been going on in my crazy life. I mean where do I even begin? I've taken on so many new ventures its challenging to keep my head above water these days. Funny enough I've managed to do so seamlessly without trip. I know that's not just me, it's the power of God on my side... Amen.
These past few weeks I've been busy due to one renovation project I've kept secret until now. If you follow me on social then you might remember my at-home gym I did last year and that beautiful mural Mike Stylez did for me. I loved it so much and hesitated on getting rid of it but I didn't get good use out of the space. & you know in New York, space is essential. So, Moe and I decided to transform our entire garage into a guest house. Yes, a guesthouse or more like a guest loft. I absolutely love having my family over and of course my in-laws as well. Unfortunately, even after turning our attic into a shared playroom and bedroom we still don't have enough space. Ugh, the struggle of living in NY I tell you! Nonetheless, I'm always thinking of ways to solve problems. It's my specialty (they say). So that's one project that has kept me very busy lately. I will be sharing before and after photos/videos (on social) and will be creating lots of content in the space so you will see it very soon.
Now that the guesthouse is completed I'm working on something else. As if being a mom of three and editor isn't hard enough haha. I'm currently planning an Iftar dinner party for my extended family of 42! Its the biggest gathering I've ever hosted and I'm so flipping excited! Since it's a pretty big crowd I decided to host them in our backyard. I rented everything from chairs and tables to doing the full decoration on my own. If you know me then you know, I go big or go home! I even created tiny personalized menus to place on each seat. It's going to be so cute :)
There is no specific theme but I do want the traditional Ramadan moon and a few stars here and there. The color scheme is sage because green is my absolute favorite color. I'm doing a beautiful balloon garland (which I've never done before so wish me luck). Initially, I reached out to a party planner/ decorator and she didn't get back to me on time so I decided to save money and just do it myself. You know what they say, "if you want something done right, do it yourself". I live by this quote!
Part of why I am so excited about this event is because one of Moe's dreams has always been to have Iftar with his family on a big long table under a sky full of stars. That's exactly what I'm going to create for them. I will be adding twinkle lights all throughout the backyard to mimic stars. Believe you me, I'm going to make it extra special because he deserves the world.
With so much happening there are bound to be curve balls thrown at me.. nothing I can't manage. To help me duck those balls, I like checking a few boxes. Which I'll be sharing in todays post.
Happy 2022 Friends! What a crazy year 2021 was for most of us. We all went through some crazy things and somehow made it out to welcome another year. Amen to that.
May 2022 bring you all happiness, health, peace and everything else you deserve.
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¡Feliz 2022 amigos! Qué año tan loco fue 2021 para la mayoría de nosotros. Todos fuimos tentados de muchas maneras y de alguna manera logramos dar la bienvenida a otro año. Amen a eso.
Que el 2022 te traiga toda la felicidad, salud, paz y todo lo que te mereces.