bon voyage!

Tomorrow my family is headed to New York to celebrate my brother Bland's graduation from Parsons with a MFA in Transdisciplinary design (I will so enjoy not having to try and explain what that means, I am sure he feels the same!). Pretty impressed with him. He is on a mission to make those pesky New York sidewalk sheds a more beautiful, artful area. Click here for more info!
From New York my sister Liz, our cousin Hannah and I are headed to London to visit our other cousin William and his bride Paige. Oh, and of course do some William and Kate stalking. naturally.
Last, but certainly not least we will be in Paris for a few days before returning back to the states. Not a bad schedule if I say so myself! I will hopefully be posting photos on my Instagram, so if you feel like checking in, my username is "padgetthoke". Talk soon!
images {  1  -  2  -  3  }

travel essentials

I am so lucky that I get to travel a lot in the next few weeks! I pulled together some of my essential travel items. of course there are so many more, but these seemed important to me right now!
1. Always need a light jacket, as I am perpetually cold. this packs up nice and small. I have had my eye on this particular one & might just have to get it for my trip next week. (a present to myself for passing that test?!)
2. Always need my trusty shades. nuff said.
3. iphone running band. With Ragnar coming up, I will be running wherever I am so this is essential! My favorite app right now? Cyclemeter. I am obsessed.
4. Sneakers. Classic.
5. A good scarf that can serve so many purposes.
6. My kindle - I wouldn't step foot on a plane without it. I love it.

time to relax!

Last week was a big week. a tiring week. an exciting week. sort of a bit of everything week.
Real Estate class Monday through Thursday. 8 - 10  hours a day. No fun.
5:00am morning runs to prepare for the Half Maraton.
Flew to Salt Lake early Friday morning.
Took the Real Estate Brokers Exam and PASSED! Graduated from Salesman to Broker, a Huge relief after studying my buns off!
Celebration dinner for Liz's graduation!
Ran in the Provo Half Marathon with Liz and her friend Marisol, after having slept about 20 minutes the night before. my mind was running it's own Marathon...


Completed the Half Marathon in under 2 hours, yipee!

Inaugural City Creek adventure (we were both a little tired - clearly)
Played "Friends Scene It" for the first time.
Free Yoga class at Lululemon - might be more sore from that than from the run!
Flight home last night & a morning spent sleeping in. phew!

Hopefully I will be back to normal blogging - whatever that may mean! Oh, if you get a chance - I did a little guest post over at The Egg, go on over and check it out. Some tantalizing summer photos will make you happy!

Hot pants!

I was very hesitant about these beauties, they were way beyond my usual black, white, and cream color scheme. But I have to say, I am in love. So in love in fact I ordered a second pair in grey! Comfy, stretchy and a great fit for me. If I had to suggest a colorful pant to try, these would be them!

Sorry for being light on the posts lately, with a licensing exam coming up and other exciting things - the blog has taken a bit of a back seat. I hope to be back to normal soon!

Sette Neckwear & Chester Pink

I have never taken much of an interest in men's neckwear, but with my cousin Peter's new venture "Sette Neckwear" I have suddenly become much more interested. According to his website "A sette is the absolute finest necktie in the world thanks to its exquisite finish and pure silk interior, classically crafted". If you need a special gift for the gentlemen in your life (Father's day will be here before we know it!), consider these beauties as you will never find such a timeless, elegant and thoughtful gift.
Photos from Sette Neckwear
Another acquaintance & brother of my former boss Sarajane, Chet Cannon, who you also may remember from the Real World New York began a company called "Chester Pink". His bow ties and wild rags are fun, playful and have made me seriously consider a need for a wild rag! Check out Chester Pink for your accessorizing needs!
All photos from Chester Pink
Congrats to both Chet and Peter on their respective companies!

Lemon Yogurt Cake

Made this sweet treat for Easter brunch. It was a staple for my best friend Cara and she turned me into a huge fan - it is delicious. So good in fact, yesterday I thought leaving it at the Frisbie's (our gracious hosts) for their enjoyment was the right thing to do  - only to go retrieve it today because I really wanted the rest for myself. Bad party attendee? Yup, that's me. Here is the recipe, good for pretty much any occasion.

Ina Garten's Lemon Yogurt Cake

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
3 extra-large eggs
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
For the glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it's all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.

Home from the city

Sadly, I didn't end up taking many photos. We were too busy eating, relaxing and laughing. I had some really fun runs through Central Park around the lake, and couldn't get enough of the blooming trees! We dined at some amazing places: The Little Owl - so delicious, cozy and cute - I highly recommend the asparagus risotto. Peels - yummy lunch outside with seasoned tasty fries. Stanton Social - food was amazing, the 'corndog' crab cakes were oh so delicious as well as the donuts. Agave - a breakfast quesadilla for brunch and delicious guac. wichcraft - highly recommend for lunch - soup and grilled cheese was delish! We of course also had yummy sushi, pizza and cupcakes... I could go on and on... did some good shopping - got inspired at ABC Home and Fishs Eddy plus many many more!

My lovey Emily has a fabulous apartment and was so generous to let our friend Shannon and I crash there for the weekend - she was the best host and it is always so sad to leave.

The family will be back there in May - so it wasn't too hard to leave knowing our next visit would be sooner rather than later!

New York!

I am off to the big city...
To celebrate my best friend Emily's birthday!
Favorite stops in the city? Leave me some suggestions! See you next week!