Star Sighting in Battery Park City

bad news.

yesterday I was at the Battery Park City Library taking my math final. 

good news.

on my way home I ran into Tyra Banks leaving her apartment building all dressed up and looking fierce!

here is what happened...

I was walking on the sidewalk in front of a condo building in Battery Park City when Tyra rushed out the front door and was just feet away from running into me.  we made eye contact and smiled at each other....or maybe she "smized" at me...not sure. I probably looked like the biggest idiot because after I smiled back I stood there dumbfounded, 4 feet away from the black SUV she jumped into.  You could tell she was in a rush, because as soon as she was in the car took off. 

all my friends have been asking what she looked like.  she was wearing a gold gown and had her hair back and looked thin and beautiful--AND she was not as tall as I have always thought she was. we were definitely the same height.  what I noticed more than anything was her crazy makeup she had going on. it was definitely over the top.

I ran home to try and figure out what she might have been going to.  my husband laughed at how caught up in this experience I was, but I couldn't help it. TYRA BANKS SMILED AT ME. :)

this morning I decided to look on PEOPLE.COM to see if there were any pictures of her, since I assumed she was headed to some sort of event and bam..there she was!  I have seen a couple other stars in their natural habitat...(a term I use to differenciate stars seen on the street vs. at a scheduled event...haha) like Matthew Broderick on the subway with his son, and Tommy Lee smoking and walking around on Wall Street, but this one was really exciting.  probably because she was leaving her own apartment all glammed up headed for an event.  

anywho, here is the picture I found on people.com this morning of her from last night.  I told you her makeup is over the top!

things like seeing celebrities in your own neighborhood is silly but so fun, and one of the reasons New York City is an amazing place!

My Love Affair

this is the time of year that the city begins to thaw from the long winter.

people start leaving their puffer coats at home.

you can finally feel the sun on your face shining down between the tall buildings.

the sidewalks get a little more crowded.

your favorite restaurants start serving you on little cafe tables outside.

the buzz of the city gets so much louder.

and once again, I fall HARD for the city that has completely won me over.

sad but true

I'm obsessed.

my life has been completely consumed for the last week.

 BESOTTED.

New Years in Times Square

a lifelong dream and bucket list item was fulfilled this New Years Eve.

the Larsens and Doxfords braved the crowd of 1 million people to be apart of the Rockin' New Years Eve bash in Times Square!

I can't even begin to explain the craziness that is
"New Years Eve in Times Square"

we showed up around 3pm to wait for the festivities and headed to Bubby's for breakfast around 1am.

there were performances by Lady Gaga, Drake, and Justin Bieber and my heart was so happy.

Mr. Larsen and the Doxfords were so great to go with the flow and stick it out in the sea of people.

we had a great time and got to see the TINY ball drop at midnight.

all my dreams came true.

Christmas 2011

Christmas this year was lovely.

we were able to soak in the magic of Christmastime in the city and spend time with our families.

we couldn't have asked for more.

 Christmas lights on all the light posts line the city streets.

 Mr. Larsen works here.  these are beautiful lights hanging in the Winter Garden of the World Financial Building.

 

 Our little Christmas tree in our new home.

 

a shot of the Manhattan Bridge early one Saturday in December.

 

the New York Stock Exchange in our neighborhood.

 

peppermint hot chocolate and a ginger bread house.

 the final product!

 in Idaho my mom taught me all her tricks of the trade. we made candy all week!

 loved spending time with all of my grandparents while home.

 me and my mama. she taught me how to make our family favorite Christmas Bread.

 mom and dad's Christmas tree.  I made C.J. stand next to it to show how tall it is.

 while home I got to see two of my favorite people in the whole world. xoxo

we spent Christmas Eve with my parents and Christmas Day with the Mr.'s parents. We are so glad they live fairly close to one another so we can spend time with both of them.  Mr. Larsen snapped photos of our Christmas with his family on his phone, so I will have to get those from him. 

The day after Christmas Mr. Larsen's little brother Logan had his Court of Honor.  we are so proud of him for earning his Eagle Scout award and we were glad we could be there for it. My in-laws have a tradition of having someone bring in a real Golden Eagle!

Logan with the great cake my wonderful mother in-law made for the event.

we had such a magical Christmas season, and hope that you all did too!

MOVING.

don't you worry. we aren't moving. this is a quick post about our move right after Thanksgiving.

tricked you.

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we moved...

3 blocks north of our old apartment.

and went from a studio to a one bedroom.

625 square feet to 675 square feet.

from a new building to an old historical building.

next door to ground zero.

and now have a kitchen island.

it has made all the difference in the world!

we are so happy in our new little home.

our beautiful lobby.

 we live in the building in the center of this picture. (the crane on the far left sits on ground zero)

 our lovely floorplan. I know what you're thinking..."I hope that I can someday live in such a spacious and palatial mansion."....and to that I say...all in good time. we can't all live so extravagantly. :)

this is our furniture wrapped up and waiting to leave in our old building.

p.s. I have vowed to never move again within the city. moving companies cannot be trusted.

I was alone while dealing with the movers and it is quite possibly one of my top 5 worst life experiences to date.

BUT- I am not the silly blonde the movers thought I was.. 

and this lady prevailed. 

that is all.

we love our new home!

brother-in-law to be.

right before Thanksgiving my darling little sister Alexa became engaged to her sweetheart Mr. Stewart.

we could not be more thrilled for them and their future together.

he is so great to Alexa and she is smitten.

wedding plans are in progress and the big day is April 27th.

PARTY!