Favorite Things From November

Dude, it’s been a month. I can’t believe it’s already that time of year when NYC starts to smell like Christmas trees instead of, y’know, urine.

The highlight of November for me was definitely going home for Thanksgiving Break. Jeremy and I grew up in the same town so it was nice to spend a few days together instead of our usual rushed weekends (YAY semi-long distance relationships).

Wednesday night we attended a Friendsgiving Feast and then celebrated Thanksgiving Eve at the local bar. We also promptly left the bar around 11PM because we’re old souls and don’t actually like to party…

Thursday Jeremy and I attended not one but two Thanksgiving dinners. The past two years the timing has worked out and we’ve been able to Thanksgiving-hop and celebrate with both our families. My cousin recently had a baby so the little two month old nugget stole much of the attention at my family’s Thanksgiving.

Friday I hit up the mall with one of my friends and braved the Black Friday crowds. I was a bit disappointed with the selections at different stores but got some great t-shirts and dresses from Anthropologie. I fell in love with this simple but flowy dress… and getting an additional discount didn’t suck!

My family has a tradition that on the Saturday after Thanksgiving any of the cousins that are still around have brunch together at my grandma’s house. And then it was time to go back to the city and real life.

Being back in Westchester for a few days was a friendly reminder of how much I hate driving now– I didn’t mind it so much when I was 17! And I also really missed having Starbucks 1 block away 🙂

ANYWAYS, that was my Thanksgiving! Now on to the favorites…

Fashion I’m Loving…

Alexis Mera T-Shirt Dress

I wore the below outfit to brunch last month and I think it’s my new favorite outfit, ever. Contrary to popular belief, I sometimes wear dresses 🙂 I love this dress because it’s super soft and comfy but still has a little bit of shape to it. Bonus that it looks great with tights but I can also rock it bare-legged in the summer.

Be sure to use my code KAYLA10 for 10% off any purchase from Alexis Mera. I’m obsessed with ALL their prints!

 

Food I’m Loving…

Brunch at Nix

Nix is a relatively new vegetarian restaurant that opened up in my ‘hood. I’ve been dying to go there for dinner but you have to make a reservation ages in advanced.

Luckily they had a last minute brunch reservation open on a Saturday so I got to go with my mama. We both RAVED about our meals.

We started off with their tandoor bread + dip tasting platter. It’s been 3 weeks since we ate there and we still can’t stop talking about it.

I ordered the above tofu scramble with black lentil, vadouvan curry and squash. I’m pretty sure the dish is also vegan but I didn’t end up asking. My my loved her “eggs-in-a-hole” dish.

Two thumbs up from both of us!

 

Pizza Friday at Hu Kitchen

I don’t go to Hu Kitchen nearly as often as I should because it overwhelms the crap out of me. Turns out they have DELICIOUS vegan-friendly, paleo, gluten-free pizza every Friday. Holy moly, how did I not know about this?

The special the day I went was Eggplant Parm pizza and man was it good. You get the above pizza + a side dish as part of the lunch special.

 

Matcha Lattes

Matcha Lattes have been my JAM lately. I usually get a soy vanilla latte as my afternoon caffeinated drink of choice (that is if I get some caffeine in the afternoon…) but lately Matcha lattes from Starbucks have been hitting the spot.

 

What I Watched…

On the theater front I saw Hamilton, Tick Tick Boom and Cats.

Obviously Hamilton was amazeballs. Jeremy and I have been obsessed with the show since we saw a preview concert of a few songs back in 2012. Since then we’ve followed the show’s journey to off-Broadway and now it’s a big freaking deal on Broadway.

Jeremy and I took his sister to see the show. She was legit speechless after which made Jeremy SO happy. Even though much of the original cast has since left, the show is phenomenal, no matter who is in it.

My bestie David was visiting from LA. We’ve always had a strange obsession with the musical Cats so of course we had to see this new revival together. Cats was one of the first Broadway shows I ever saw back in 1995.

I have mixed feelings about the show, in some ways I love it. It’s so cheesy, so likable and the music is so damn catchy. I also kind of hate the show because it’s not very “good”. At one point, I literally looked at David and said “I hate this show.” This all probably sounds confusing, but I secretly love terrible musicals.

Let’s be honest, I’ll probably go see Cats again because Rum Tum Tugger is one of my favorite musical theater songs EVER.

Tick, Tick, Boom has always been a favorite show of mine. It’s an autobiographical piece by Jonathan Larson, the brains behind Rent. I first saw the show when it was off-broadway and I was in middle school — I actually saw it before I saw Rent! Since then it’s been one of my all time favorite musicals.

It’s a really powerful piece about what it’s like to be an artist when your friends around you are giving up on their dreams. As I’ve gotten older and further away from my acting / musical theater roots, it hits a really personal note with me.

I’m excited this production has extended until the end of December and plan on seeing it again.

 

What I read…

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume

I loved loved loved Judy Blume books growing up. Some say her adult books aren’t as good, but I really enjoyed In the Unlikely Event.

While the characters of the novel are fictional, the story is based on the real-life tragedy that hit Elizabeth, New Jersey in the 1950’s when a series of airplane crashes occured.

I got totally sucked into the world and the lives of these characters. I’m now determined to read the rest of Judy Blume’s adult books.

 

What were your favorites from November?