Hi friends and Happy Friday to you!
It’s been an eventful week over here, and a hot one at that. The temperature is supposed to rise up to 94 with a heat index of 100 on Sunday! This Florida girl will be just fine … but man, it feels pretty brutal to experience up here in New York City.
Luckily, it cooled down a bit on Tuesday when I attended an outdoor workout event (more on this below), and the cooler, breezy summer nights are appreciated more than ever when they happen. Also, the city officially feels like it’s coming back, and that’s pretty awesome!
We have a lot to cover in today’s Friday Favorites, so let’s get right to it. Thank you for reading!
FRIDAY FAVORITES: WEEK OF 7/16
- Brooklyn Museum & KAWS Exhibit
Since Scott is preparing for a lot of traveling, we deem Wednesdays as our family adventure days as much as we can. The week we took a walk to the Brooklyn Museum, which is something that has been on our NYC bucket list for five years!
It was very hot out, but it was only a little over a mile out for us, and it was a great experience. We spent most of our time in the KAWS: WHAT PARTY Exhibit, which features the work from a local artist that Scott and I love.
Skyler has been seeing “the balloon man” all over our neighborhood to promote the show, so we figured this was the perfect time to go see the museum. We browsed the museum floors, and while seeing things like original Monet paintings and Ronald Bladen sculptures was really cool, the best part about our trip was the exhibit. Every piece was very bright and unique, with similar signatures (like Xs for eyes) throughout all of the pieces.
Some of the items displayed were collaborations with famous brands like Dior, Nike, Vans, etc. His work is impressive and screams Brooklyn in the best way. (Check out the video I made for more sneak peeks!)
So, if you’ve been thinking about visiting the Brooklyn Museum, I highly recommend going now while this is still here through early-September!
- Life Time Fitness – Alpha Workout
A very notable highlight from the week was a return to in-person fitness events! I received an invite to try out the new Alpha Workout hosted by Life Time Fitness in Battery Park. This gym has only been open for a few weeks, and I was able to do a quick walk through and take advantage of the upscale locker rooms. Man, I miss Life Time!
I was a member in Rochester Hills when we lived in Michigan, and it was an amazing facility that I always looked forward to using with amenities like a steam room, sauna, heated yoga studio, spa, pool, cafe, child care and more.
The Alpha workout is usually indoor, and this event was was an outdoor Boot Camp version that featured a live DJ followed by a reception with cocktails and appetizers. We had four different stations of circuits with two exercises each and repeated a pattern of 45 seconds work, 30 seconds rest in a circle, and we used equipment like kettlebells, dumbbells, slam balls, mats and cardio machines. The instructor led us through three different ab circuits during the last ten minutes of class, and they had me breathing hard with my core on fire! It was a great workout.
I’m hoping to be able to check out more locations soon, but it looks like the closest one to me is Battery Park followed by NoHo in Manhattan until Life Time Dumbo opens in 2022. Let me know if you’re a fan of Life Time too!
- Green Meadows Farm (Brooklyn, NY)
Skyler and I went to a farm on Sunday! I was just as surprised as you probably are reading this to find out that there is, in fact, a farm to visit in New York City.
Green Meadows Farm is located in the very south point of Brooklyn near the Rockway Beaches. I will admit that it wasn’t the easiest place to find using public transit, but it was still worth the trip down and back to see the animals and also celebrate one of Skyler’s friend’s birthdays.
I believe the farm is open year-round, and it has plenty of animals to see and pet including llamas, cows, sheep, goats, horses and more. Sky had a blast seeing all of the animals and especially loved watching the chickens and guinea pigs. The highlight for him was probably the large slide conveniently labeled ages 4 to 10. But, of course I turned my back for one second to get us birthday cake, and the little stunt man got all the way up to slide down on his own. He’s not afraid of anything!
We had a great time at the birthday and enjoyed a hayride before we left. Thanks so much for having us, and Happy Birthday Eleanor!
(By the way, you can currently get discounted tickets to the farm on Groupon.)
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- Ample Hills Creamery – Park Slope
There is a new Ample Hills ice cream shop in our neighborhood, and we couldn’t be more excited about it! We first found and visited this store after hearing neighbors rave about it shortly after moving to NYC. It’s very kid-friendly, and the unique and locally-inspired flavors like “Meet Me on Long Meadow” and “It Came From Gowanus” are awesome and delicious.
Sky and I stopped by the new location my Prospect Park this week, and the seasonal and “Summer of Love” flavor featuring Baked by Melissa cookies was incredible. Go get you some!
- favorite LIL posts
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In case you missed it, I shared this post earlier in the week which is an honest conversation and lessons on juggling toddler mom life with personal goals and adventures in parenthood.
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If you’re not a big fan of cardio, this type of format could be good to add into your fitness routine every now and then. Just don’t get caught up in the “go hard or go home” mindset all the time. Keeping a variety in your routine with low-impact strength is important, too.
Try this twenty-minute HIIT-style workout for a quick cardio & strength challenge. You don’t need any equipment! Get it done, sweat, get stronger, knock it out, shower and you’re done.
Okay, that wraps up this week’s faves!
Skyler and I are off to go see a puppet show in the neighborhood, which is also something that we have been eyeing for years. We are on a mission to check things off of our NYC bucket list now that things are re-opening, and both of us are truly looking forward to it.
What is one thing that you are excited about for today or over the weekend?
Have a great one!
*Disclaimer: Friday Favorites posts may include affiliate links. Also, I am a Beautycounter consultant and love what I do with the company. By using the links provided in this post to order products, you are supporting my business. I truly appreciate you. Always.
![[in our elementary school era] 🚌😭
Skyler did great walking into KINDERGARTEN with a big smile on his face this morning. I, however, was a bit of a mess on our walk home. 🥹
It’s wild how fast these 5 years with him have gone … 7 since we moved to NYC and into our apartment, dreaming of the day our kids would someday go to the *awesome* school right down our block. 🏫
That day is today, and I still don’t believe it — feeling allll of the emotions and thanking God for placing us here and for being able to trust His timing through the journey. 🫶🏼 #hbshinnyc
SO proud of you, SK - you are going to rock your first year at your “big boy school” - WE LOVE YOU !! 🩵👑](https://lifeinleggings.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)
Love it!
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Love this post. I just started blogging again for the second time around and approached things so differently since I learned from my mistakes last time! These are super helpful – especially the editorial calendar tip..