Glimpses of an Outfit

Sigh, I never manage to get decent outfit shots these days. I'm always on a rush to go out or do something else. Thought it would be fun though to share bits and pieces of a total outfit, and you can just imagine how everything looked all together, heehee!

Me: Chambray button down shirt from Old Navy, Balenciaga sunnies
Berry: seersucker dress from Ralph Lauren, Saltwater sandals

Black oxfords (London) from Anthology

Tulip "sweatskirt" from American Apparel

Linear Stud Rocker bag from Rebecca Minkoff

Berry: dress from Zara, Baby Gap flipflops

Oh, and must share these photos of Berry! If you're wondering about her outfit change above, you'll see why she had to wear outfit #2 after seeing this series of photos:

By the time she was done playing in the makeshift pond, she was soaked! My friend Pilar, mom of the birthday girl Sophia, was impressed at how Berry had 2 outfit changes in one afternoon, hahaha!

Oh Berry! You are such a star!

Sea of Deals at Neiman Marcus Last Call

Not as fabulous as that of Jane and Judy's Sea of Shoes, but if you're looking for great deals on chaussures, 30% OFF last price marked (plus a $50 coupon to use if you were lucky enough to bring one during the days they were valid, like the time we were there) would allow you to a start a small designer collection nonetheless.

Manolo Blahnik Crocodile Pumps

Azzedine Alaia sandals

Prada metallic sandals

Chloé Raised Leaf Boots

Manolo Blahnik jeweled sandals

Pierre Hardy metallic zipped sandals

YSL gladiator heels

Balenciaga gladiators

Manolo Blahnik metallic sandals

Balenciaga heeled gladiators

Of all these tempting treats, it was still the Marnis that called out to me! Not that I did anything about it, because we all know I walked away. Just saying.

P.S. Sex & The City Tour Blog Giveaway ongoing until May 8 EST! Join -- here!

Our Hudson Valley Tour Part 3: FDR Presidential Library & Museum

The Visitor Center of the FDR Presidential Library and Museum

We also visited the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in Hyde Park, NY.

FDR was born in this home, which is modest compared to that of their neighbors, the Vanderbilts. As you can see, they were quite wealthy. After all, his grandfather was one of the founders of the Bank of New York. The Roosevelts were of Dutch descent, and prominent members of New York society. While they also spent the winter in the city, he grew up here in this estate they called Springwood. He lived here until he was 14, when he was sent to Groton, a boarding school in Massachusetts.

The house as seen from the side

When FDR became president, this home served as the family's retreat and at the same time, his political headquarters. He hosted visiting dignitaries here and at some instances, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and even King George VI stayed in this home! Dear Hubby said, he wonders what the king might have thought when he stayed here ("What a quaint cottage?!"), after all, huge as this house is, it is tiny compared to Buckingham and Windsor!

The estate also houses the remains of FDR and his wife Eleanor. Behind us is the memorial where they lay.

Myself, Berry and Cathy

Ok, I just cannot resist pointing these out!

1. Cathy spotted this! If you look closely here, FDR's famous Declaration of War speech should have included the Philippines! But it was edited out. I suppose this is the historically correct version. I ought to do some research.

2. In this statue created by the students of Pratt Institute, how cool is it that Eleanor is wearing oxfords here?!

See?

Address:
FDR Home & Presidential Library
4097 Albany Post Road
Hyde Park, NY 12538

Fees:
$14.00 - includes guided tour of Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt and admission to the FDR Presidential Library and Museum. Ticket valid for 2 days.
Youths 15 years and under free.

Hours of Operation:
The park is open year-round, seven days a week.
Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Day.
Buildings are open 9:00am to 5:00pm Eastern Time.
Grounds are free and open from sunrise to sunset.

Our Hudson Valley Tour Part 2: Vanderbilt Mansion

Today, Berry and I will show you the Vanderbilt Mansion in Hyde Park, NY which was owned by Frederick William Vanderbilt. Frederick was the grandson of Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt and son of William Henry Vanderbilt, who were the richest men in America in their time. Like his relatives, he spent his time acquiring the best that his money could buy. Check out his vacation home:

The mansion and its interiors were constructed in the 1890s to the tune of $2.25 million. Remember, this was the 1800s, so you can just imagine how much that is in real terms. He and his wife Louise would stay here for only a couple of weeks in the spring and fall. Because they spent summers in Newport, Rhode Island if not cruising on their yacht. During the winter, they lived in their Manhattan townhouse, right in time for the winter social season.

I wish I could have shown you the entrance. It was so grand! From the street, you would go down the road, over a bridge on top of a pond, and up into a loooong driveway heading to the mansion. I could almost feel like I was a Vanderbilt coming home to my country retreat.

Here's the side of the house:

Now check out the back! Can you imagine the Vanderbilts hosting backyard barbecues here? Then again, maybe not!

But unlike his relatives who spent money like water, Frederick was the only one who managed to grow his inheritance. The rest of the family whiled away their days yachting, breeding horses, racing automobiles and gallivanting in Europe. Unfortunately, he and Louise did not have any children. Upon Frederick's death in 1938, rather than leave his money to his relatives who were bound to spend it on trivial pursuits, Frederick named his servants beneficiaries to his will and bequeathed the estate along with $5 million to Louise's niece Margaret Van Alen.

The funny thing was, the mansion was sold by its heiress to the US Government for guess how much? $1. Nope, that wasn't a typo! Just ONE dollar! Basically, she donated the home to the government. She told President Franklin Roosevelt, she wished to "keep my place as it is - a memorial to Uncle Fred and a national monument".

Thanks to Margaret's generosity, all of us mere mortals have been treated to a peek into what life was like during the Gilded Age. Unfortunately, no photos were allowed inside the house, but trust me when I say, that during its heyday, I am positive the interiors pretty much looked like the inside of royal palaces. I could just imagine how women dressed in chiffon and silk enjoyed afternoon tea with their hostess while men in tweed hunting suits spent their afternoon roaming the vast estate on horseback. Then they would retire to a lavish dinner in the evening, the dining room filled with the boisterous chatter of folks dressed in beautiful gowns and sharp tuxes. Sigh!

Address:
Vanderbilt Mansion
U.S. 9, Hyde Park, NY 12538
(2 miles north of FDR Home)

Fees:
Vanderbilt Mansion Guided Tour:
$8 per person
15 and under Free
Grounds are Free

Hours of Operation:
Vanderbilt Mansion is open seven days from 9:00am to 5:00pm by Guided Tour only. The Mansion is closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Day.

November through March the tours of the Vanderbilt Mansion are limited, please call ahead, 845-229-7770.

Tours are at 1 and 3 p.m.

Berry Nice Weather

 

It was such a nice day out two Saturdays ago, I can't believe it's raining again this week! That weekend, we decided to go out for a walk by the river, just to enjoy the sunshine. And yes! This is Berry now! She's like a little girl already! She started cruising a month ago and now, she can push her "Walk and Ride Lion" around the house. She feeds herself and she even feeds me, pushing Animal Crackers to my lips! Hahaha!

She even runs! When she gets excited, she really makes a run for it! I think she forgets that she is only 9 months old!

 

Mommy: Balenciaga sunnies, Saint James Meridien II shirt, J Brand jeans, French Sole flats. Berry wearing Carter's and Baby Levi's

 

I see that this little girl is a diva in the making. See Berry doing a Pilita!? When she wants to do something else, to get her way, she would bend backwards like that ala Pilita Corrales! Now here's Berry wearing my scarf, because even though the sun was out, it was starting to get a bit chilly.

Another milestone! Last week, we went to her pediatric dentist for a cleaning and a fluoride treatment. She has 4 teeth out already, and two more upper teeth coming out! Now she has her own toothbrush and she laughs when I brush her teeth and gums. I think she gets tickled when I do that. So cute!

38 Weeks & Counting The Days...

I've avoided driving in Manhattan for the longest time. Ok, more of since we moved here to the US. I can drive side by side Manila's jeepney and bus drivers and I even give them the bad finger when they really drive me crazy. Yeah, I can be a hustler behind the wheel. But man, driving in Manhattan really intimidates me. So let me come clean, I've never driven in NYC, until last Friday! On my 38th week at that! Talk about Murphy's Law! Hahaha! See, I had to pick up Dear Hubby at work because we had a dinner date with guests (our wedding photographer Nelwin Uy and wife They) from back home. And these days, Dear Hubby insists that we drive around whenever we go out because Berry might come out any day now and he doesn't want to be caught in a situation where we have to take public transportation, hahaha!

So there, here I am in our garage, at 38 weeks. And I can say I survived driving in NYC! Woohoo!



Tuxedo blazer: H&M
Dress: A.P.C.
Necklace: Kenneth Jay Lane
Tights: Topshop Maternity
Flats: Repetto
Bag: Balenciaga

Had a pretty exciting/nerve-wracking evening actually. Dear Hubby was so worried, he kept on calling me every five minutes to check on me. But nothing excites us more than meeting Berry soon!!! Double, no, Triple Woohoo!!!

Sharing My Outfit Day: Snow!

When we left JFK for YVR last December 19, there was a raging snowstorm outside that caused horrendous flight delays. We were supposed to fly out at 9:45 PM but we ended up leaving at about 1:20 AM! Ugh!

I thought we would be escaping a harsh and bitter winter holiday by leaving the East Coast. True, we found ourselves welcomed into DIL and MILs warm embrace, but also a harsher, more bitter Siberian winter in Vancouver! Wah!


Outfit wise, I came prepared for a wind chill of -15°C and 12 inches of snow (this was early in the day, and snow was just starting to fall!)

Hat: H&M, Puffer jacket: James Perse, Scarf: Missoni, Jeans: J Brand, Bag: Balenciaga, Boots: Lanvin (Heehee! Yes! I finally got the black ones I've always wanted!!! Thanks KU-S for your email and MMA for being my partner in crime, although we got busted! Dear Hubby noticed it was a different, brand new pair! Good thing he just laughed at our lame attempt of a covert shopping operation!)

The following day (Heehee, yes same outfit, different tights, undershirts and unmentionables! Hey, I travel light!) I got a hair cut from "The Butcher" (a stocky, manly Taiwanese hair stylist with chubby hands who can do wonders with a razor and scissors hence he was baptized "The Butcher" by MIL and SsIL). With the sun out and shining, and with more than a feet of snow to play with, I couldn't resist packing a mean snowball!

Just when I thought I got a good one, I saw a HUGE chunk...


...that I couldn't resist flinging...


...at hapless, unsuspecting Dear Hubby...

Who only wanted to take a nice picture of me playing in the snow! Sorry Hon! It was just begging to be thrown at you! At least you got a good shot out of it! Hahaha!

Best of all, at the end of a cold cold day out, we got to enjoy dinner at my favorite Korean resto of all time! Jang Mo Jib! Where we feasted on Gahl Bee, Jab Che, Haemool Pah Jun, Gam Ja Tahng and bottomless kimchi! Woohoo!

Little One in my belly seemed to enjoy the meal as well. We did not barf or get nauseated inside the smoky restaurant at all. To us, this is a Happy Meal. Thank you Angkong and Amah for Little One's first taste of Jang Mo Jib!

(Photos courtesy of Harvey Dychiao)