MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Here are some highlights of my first five months in the city!

Making new friends.

Eating beet and goat cheese salads.

Reading The New Yorker.

Running on the Hudson River, in Central Park, and Riverside Park.

Yelling (cheering wildly) at the “Straight No Chaser” concert with Claire.

Cooking dinner for friends in my tiny kitchen.

Hearing my 1st graders speak French everyday.

Riding the subway everyday and experiencing the good & bad of that.

Introducing some of my favorite spots to visitors.

Sitting on Carly’s rooftop overlooking the Hudson drinking champagne.

Taking a trip outside the city to go apple picking.

Macy’s Day Parade on Thanksgiving.

Attending the Glamour Women’s Awards and seeing all those celebs.

Seeing fall and the Christmas season in New York.

I am a very lucky girl! Thank you for taking this journey with me. Looking forward to a quick winter and good days ahead. Merry Christmas sweet readers!

Cookies, Cookies, Cookies

Ever since I was negative three years old, my mom and her friend Kathy Vegh have frosted sugar cookies at Christmas. Add it up folks, that’s 28 years! Twenty-eight years of rolling out the dough, making frosting, shaking sprinkles, and adding red hot buttons.

The tradition goes like this: Kathy comes over around four and we mix the frosting, eat snacks, and drink margaritas. I am known as the super froster, speedy but not very attentive to detail. Kathy’s cookies are perfect, always cute and sprinkled to a T. My mom’s are in the middle but she is also the shuttler. She takes the frosted cookies to the trays to dry. Then around 7, Kathy’s husband, Attila, comes over for lasagna dinner. We eat, catch up, and then drink tea and have more cookies. By the time it’s over, you are sugared up for life.

The cookies are made with sour cream which makes them fluffy and gives them a bit of an edge. The frosting is butter, milk, and powdered sugar. My mom has this theory, that as time goes on, the butter in the frosting soaks down into the cookie making them all the more delicious.

As she took a bite Sunday night, she said, “We wouldn’t appreciate these if we had them everyday, right?” I am not sure about that, but I am always glad to see them sitting on a dainty plate during the holiday season. They are so accessible that way. :)

It wouldn't feel like Christmas without this beloved tradition. I hope you’re enjoying your own family’s traditions this holiday season!

The Twins Take Manhattan!

My Mom and Aunt Lisa arrived last weekend for a fun filled adventure in NYC. We had the itinerary down to the second and those gals came rested and raring to go. As I headed off to school on Friday, the girls dragged themselves out of bed after a 1:30 am arrival and headed to the Today Show! (the Afflerbach women's fav morning show) They took a bus tour and came up to my school to meet the French munchkies. From there we headed to Grand Central, Bryant Park, and the Top of the Rock. It was snowing little flakes that night, perfect!
We started with a pot of tea on Saturday at Alice's Tea Cup and then hopped down to Chelsea Market and Soho for shopping. "Promises, Promises" entertained us that evening with Sean Hays and Kristen Chenoweth. Sean stole the show, and if you were a "Will & Grace" fan, it was classic.
We awoke Sunday to rain and Absolute Bagels. Then we went down to Radio City Music Hall to see those famous Rockettes. They were incredible, and we had some excellent commentary from the 3 year olds behind us. Pretty much got Santa's location play by play from those kiddos. The afternoon was spent in Times Square and more shopping in Union Square, and we ate at Prime House for dinner. We dined on luscious steaks, crispy beer battered onion rings, brussel sprouts with apples and bacon, chocolate souffle and banana fosters and then waddled home.
A few family favorite memories were my Aunt Lisa getting slammed by a blind man's cane (he was moving very fast), me having a small meltdown in the masses @ 34th street, and my mom carrying her 53 lb pound bag up the 5 flights of stairs to my apt. Lots of laughter and a great weekend! I am so blessed by these two crazy sisters!

Food Celeb!

I met a food legend this week. You all know and love her, or you should at least. She lives in the Hamptons, uses only the best vanilla, and makes some of the best apple pie in the world. Yes, its Ina Garten or the "Barefoot Contessa."

I have loved Ina since I was 16. I bought her first book my junior year of high school and spent a summer cooking lots of her dishes. I have had lots of favs but the apple pie sticks with me. It's a double crusted, apple filled, hints of orange and lemon, sweet but tart, impressive pie. I made it on several 4th of July holidays.

So, my friend Nick, text me last week and told me she was signing her new book @ Crate and Barrel on Monday. I had to go-life goal! We went in, purchased our books, and waited with baited breath. As the line snaked through the massive Madison Avenue store, Nick and I became more and more nervous. You have to understand that Ina has had big influences in my life. I have her to thank for my love of All Clad, Madagascar vanilla, my periwinkle blue Kitchenaid mixer, and Rugela cookies @ Christmas. I have spent hours gazing at her beautiful cookbooks filled with glossy pictures.

As I stepped up to the table, my heart was pounding. She reached for my book, and here is what came out of my always calm under pressure mouth, "I have loved you for 10 years and you are my most favorite!" Yep. Way to keep your cool Katie. She smiled and half laughed, and although I was a bit embarrassed, I wad glad I told her that!

Great experience, awesome friend to experience it with, and favorite food celebrity met and appreciated. Just another bonus of living in this marvelous city!

getting my book signed!

Nick getting Ina face time. Love her!!

Straight No Chaser

Christmas is starting to heat up in the city. The tree is lit, lights are up, menoras are lit as of yesterday, and the Rockette's are doing the kick line. I am very excited to experience all of these things in the coming few days. I have 15 days left in the city and only 2 nights free from Christmas cheer. My friends from Texas are coming this weekend, then my mom and her twin are hitting the town next weekend, and then its home to the Lone Star State for me.

I had a great kickoff to the holidays this week at The Beacon Theatre seeing "Straight No Chaser" with my friend Claire. They are an acapella group of 10 guys from Indiana University. Their sound is so incredible! I think anytime you can imitate instruments with voices, it is just shocking. Plus, they were just funny guys. They were silly, had great "dance moves," and sang some awesome mash ups. I haven't screamed at a concert like that in a long while! It was a great time and a beautiful venue.

I hope you'll get to experience them both someday!

Here is their website. http://www.sncmusic.com/ Check out some Christmas tunes. I really like the Grinch song and their "12 Days of Christmas."

Hope the month of December is going well for all of you. Remember to take time to stop and enjoy it, get enough rest, and don't forget to hydrate. :)

Joeyeux Noel!!

the ceiling @ the Beacon

Be Thankful

This Thanksgiving, I have lots to be thankful for. Honestly, I have had lots to be thankful for the past 25 turkey days. Even so, this year I am thankful for an amazing family, sweet friends, cute french munchkies, my community group, and getting to live in New York City! I am grateful for an unending string of restaurants, truly experiencing seasons, Broadway plays and museums, runs on the Hudson, walks through the city, fall leaves, new experiences, and feeling at home.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving! Eat a little too much, go for a walk, enjoy your family and rest. I will be blogging about the Macy's Day Parade soon. I petitioned for live reporting for all of you, but my blog didn't meet the press credentials. Crazy, I know. You'll have to catch it on NBC.

One of my first graders thought the same thing about this amazing city.

:)

View from Wave Hill

As snow fell onto Amarillo last weekend, the temperatures soared in NYC. Last weekend was a perfect weather weekend with highs in the 50s and 60s and the sun shining. What a perfect time for a field trip! My friend, John Son, always has these great ideas for places to visit that are sort of off the beaten path. And this past weekend's jaunt didn't disappoint.

On Sunday, we boarded the subway and headed up to 247th street to Riverdale. Then we walked through this quaint, leaf filled neighborhood to Wave Hill, a public garden that overlooks the Hudson River and Palisades. It's a big space with trails, green houses, an art gallery, and lots of green hills to picnic on.

Wave Hill is an estate that was owned by some fancy schmancy publishers back in the 1850s and was later rented out to the likes of Theodore Roosevelt and Mark Twain. In 1960, the owner gave the estate to the city of New York.

We took a walk, gazed at the beautiful view, looked at exotic plants and cacti, and took a long lunch in the sun. I am trying to soak up all the vitamin D I can in preparation for this winter thing they speak about. A warm memory that I will be thinking back on when the temps make their eventual drop.

A Night of Glamour

On Monday, I saw stars, lights, glitter, and my very first awards show, as a "seat filler." What is a seat filler you ask? I didn't know either until my sweet friend, Susan Boatwright, invited me to be one for the "2010 Glamour Women of the Year Show." Basically, a seat filler is someone whose sole purpose is to sit in celebrities seats and "fill up the house."

I arrived at Carnegie Hall at 5:30 on Monday and was escorted to the "Seat Filler Waiting Room." (apparently, these exist) Susan and I waited for about an hour, had a white rose symbolizing our star status pinned on, and walked down the aisle to fill any available seats. As I strolled down the walk of fame, my eyes darted left and right to catch a glimpse of a star. In front of me was Gail Gibbons, to my right was Donatella Versace, and in front of me was Lisa Leslie, very very tall btw. Heart now racing, still scanning for my most favorite award winner, Julia Roberts. Then suddenly, a girl with a quite intimidating microphone ear piece placed me a seat. I sat, the opening musical act played, and then I was quickly popped out of my seat for someone else to sit. I popped into another seat and this time, I got to stay.....on the SECOND ROW!! I was set for the evening.

The Glamour Awards honor stand out women in politics, music, film, and sports. It was a well rounded, worldly group of women, and I left quite inspired. I knew who some of the winners of the award were because I clearly had stalked the website, but the presenters remained a mystery. SO....without further adieu, here were some of my celebrity sightings:

*Kate Hudson-introduced Fergie

*Fergie plus her hot husband

*Hillary Swank

*Katie Couric-grew up with her in the morning

*Diane Sawyer

*Michael Bloomberg

*Janet Jackson

..........and here are some QUICK pics I caught!

Stanley Tucci, loved him since "Beethoven"

Cher

OPRAH!! So stunning in person, you can't help but be star struck. I may have looked something like this :-0

And my favorite, Julia Roberts. She is so lovely and down to earth. Her advice to girls at the end was, "Don't put your hair behind your ears, it just looks better."

It was an unbelievable evening that I was lucky to be a seat filler for. I have never been in such a concentration of celebrities and I have to say, even though some may think it's all just silly, the experience really was quite magical.

7 Years

Oh Fall! How I have missed you, it's been 7 years. Seven long years since I have experienced you in your true brilliance. Yes, I have carved pumpkins, ate turkey, and bought a light scarf, but it's been too long since I have actually seen the seasons change.

I was lucky to grow up in the Panhandle of Texas where fall actually occurs. You can watch leaves turn and fall, feel a crispness in the air, and smell that fireplace sort of scent. It's glorious, it's everything fall should be.

Although I loved College Station and Dallas, fall is quite elusive in those warm cities. Sure, by the end of October, you're out of the horrible heat of summer, but you don't get those beautiful changing leaves until mid-November. Then the leaves fall in December. I don't mean to be talking down on these spots, but if you've ever truly experienced fall, you know something is missing.

Anyway, I was very excited to experience autumn in New York because I have heard such great things, and I have not been disapointed! So, to bring a bit of fall to my fellow Texans that may have missed out, just a little bit, on this glorious season, I have got your back.

This morning I went on a picture run! Yes, I indeed used my actual camera. It was a sacrifice but I feel it was worth it. Check out some of the images below of Riverside Park and the Hudson River Parkway for a taste of autumn. Gorgeous!

Running path in Riverside Park

pathway on the Hudson- I love running by the water!

heart the green bridge in the back

makes you want to go for a drive

Roots

Ahh, the feeling of refreshment after fall break. Last week, I flew home to A-town for a week to visit Mama and Papa Thames. What a treat it was! I got to go shopping, see movies that cost less than $13, shop to my heart's desire at Target and Wal-Mart, and drive! It was suburban heaven. I made several observations when I was home that got me to thinking about roots.

1. People in Amarillo will just smile at you because they are nice. I was quite alarmed when I walked into a restaurant and people just looked up and smiled. It was quite like they were on queue. New Yorkers don't really smile. I was doing that to people in August and kept getting some odd looks. It took me a few weeks, but I discovered that you must just look past people on the sidewalk. There are too many of them for one thing, your cheeks would be aching, plus there are some weirdos out there and I don't feel it would be safe to be grinning at them. Not to say I go around scowling, but I have kept my inner happiness to myself and close friends.

2. Football rules in Texas. Yes, I knew this growing up, but I have never gone one whole fall without seeing a live football game until this year. When I was home, my alma mauter, Amarillo High School, played the rival, Tascosa or Trashcosa, as we call it. It's a huge game in town and there were lots of people there. We won and it was a great game, plus I got a little injection of the pigskin.

3. Finally, space. The Texas panhandle is known for the flatness, lack of trees, and wind. However, what people tend to overlook is the beauty of the space: the open, flat land. You can see for miles. It's like the ocean, but grassland. Since I now live in a city with very little open space, except for the Sheep's Meadow in Central Park, being able to see wide open spaces is quite refreshing. Those "Dixie Chicks" weren't mistaken. Plus, the sunsets you can see in a-town are worth a million dollars. Red, pink, orange, and purple skys.........

I couple weeks ago, my friend, Kathryn Webb, said, “Amarillo is a great place to go home too.” I think she is on the money with that one. It’s always good to get back to your roots.

Great Granola

Oh granola, my best friend. I make granola about twice a month and um, I live alone. I eat it on yogurt, mixed with other cereals, straight from the bowl, and even on a peanut butter sandwich. MMMM....the perfect blend of salty and sweet.

The best thing about my granola is that it’s sweetened with apple juice and honey. No sugar! In my mind, this makes me believe full heartedly that it’s healthy. Ok, it’s probably not as healthy as I would like it to be, but hey it’s oatmeal, fruit. and nuts. How bad can it be?

The recipe is below, and since I lost my original magazine version in the move, I had to make it up again. It may be even better now.

Great Granola

by: Katie Thamer

Ingredients:

• 4 cups old fashioned oats (Quaker)
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 3/4 cup sweetened coconut
• 2 T cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/4 cup pure apple juice
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup raisins

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a big bowl, mix oats, almonds, cinnamon, and salt.
3. In small liquid measuring cup, mix the honey and apple juice together and pour over the oats mix in big bowl. Mix well until coated.
4. Spread onto a parchment lined baking sheet and place in oven.
5. The granola will take 25 minutes to bake. Take out after 10 minutes and mix it around on the sheet to help each piece get toasty. Take out a second time after 20 minutes to mix around.
6. After 25 minutes, take out and let cool. I just slide the parchment paper onto the counter.
7. Mix the cooled oats mixture with raisins and cranberries in a big bowl. Feel free to add any other dried fruits like: blueberries, cherries, banana chips, or apricots.
8. Let the snacking begin!

Why blog?

Why do this? Why spend time typing it? Why do I take tons of photos on my mini-camera phone? Why do I get so much joy out of this? Why, why, why?

I have spent some time in my epic airport adventure today thinking about this, and I think I have come up with some answers. They are as follows, in no particular order:

1. I like for my family and friends to know what I am doing up here in “Yankeeland.” I think some thought I would be up here just freezing and eating Raman Noodles. The second is clearly untrue, I have had some unreal eating experiences, but the first is still likely. It’s only October.
2. To showcase this beautiful city. It has so much to offer, and I want YOU to see it. NYC is like a newborn to me. I take pictures of it, talk about it to anyone and everyone, try and figure out new things to do with it, and want everyone to come visit it.
3. Finally, I blog because I want you to know how genuinely blessed I feel to be here. I am coming up on 3 months, and I still don’t believe I live in New York City. It was a risk to come here, and I left a lot of sweet people and things in Texas, namely my washing machine. However, it’s been fabulous so far. I have so many people to thank for encouraging me, helping me through decisions, listening to my constant back and forth, and giving me the reassurance I needed to move here. THANK YOU to those people! I write this for you, because I want you to know how deeply you have impacted me.

I, Oprah Thamer, want to encourage you to figure out what a goal is for you and just go for it! Strive for it, don’t back down, know at the end of this you’ll have put everything you could into it, and get a great circle of people around you to encourage and help you. It feels so good to achieve it and you won’t regret trying! Then, write a blog about it and I will read it.

Carnegie, Kayaking, & Apple Pickin'

Happy Monday little blog friends! I had a week worthy of three bucket list cross offs. Tuesday, I had the opportunity to go to Carnegie Hall and see the Philadelphia Philharmonic play some beautiful music. They played a piece inspired by "Starry Night" which was quite dark but still lovely. They also presented selections from Romeo and Juliet in the second half and it was fantastic. What I left the famous hall thinking was that even more than the beautiful music I heard, I was struck by the sound. The acoustics are just unbelievable! I sat pretty high up and felt like I could hear each and every instrument. It's hard to explain, but I hope everyone can visit there one day. It's a beautiful piece of history and you will be blown away by that sound. WOW!

Need a cough drop?

On Saturday, I achieved a life long fall dream: apple picking! Ever since 11th grade, my brother Ben, who introduced me to my beloved Food Network, and I would watch Rachel Ray. RR introduced me to the idea of apple picking in upstate NY and the apple cider donuts. This life goal was a long time coming.
So, I tagged along with a sweet group of friends and headed upstate in the Zip car! It was one of the days that the sun is in the perfect position, the air is crispy yet warm in the sun, and it smells like fires burning. Perfect. After an unbelievable drive upstate studded with golden, red, and pale pink trees, we arrived at Wright Farms. We bought apple cider donuts and our apple picking bags and headed out. I picked probably 20 apples (Golden Delish, Granny Smith, and lots of Braeburn) and ate numerous ones off the tree. We frolicked through the trees, took a hayride, and took in the views of the Hudson River Valley. It was a glorious day!

One last fun experience to share, kayaking with Carly! We were running on the Hudson and saw the sign for free kayaking and Carly talked me into it! I am so glad we did it because it was loads of fun! The water was chilly but it was a sunny day and fun to be out on it. We accidentally floated a bit too far and got whistled at, which those who know me, know I hate hate hate being yelled at. I was panicked but the true mortification set in when they sent someone out to reiterate that we were floating too far. Typical. So, we kayaked around a bit more and turned in our paddles for the year.....or forever.

Subway Secrets

After spending about a month commuting to school each day, I have learned some valuable lessons. Each morning, I walk four blocks, walk down the stairs where I am handed the free "AM" paper, hop onto the train, and I leap off at 42nd to take the shuttle to Grand Central. Then I trot three more blocks to arrive at my school. Complicated? You would think so. However, I now feel I could do it in my sleep. It's become an automatic process. I can read the paper, text a friend, change the song on my iPod, and maintain some sense of balance.

However, this pro-subway status didn't happen overnight. I first had to learn some important subway lessons. I would like to take a moment to impart this knowledge onto you.

1. If the train is packed sardine style, just wait. The trains come almost every 2 minutes, it's not worth having your face stuffed into someones armpit.

2. Move IN!! In crowded situations, go to the middle of the car. This again prevents unfortunate armpit situations.

3. When swimming upstream through people, get behind another fish. It's easier than dodging people alone. They have already moved for the person in front of you or you at least know which way to veer.

4. Hold onto the poles no matter what! It takes years of practice to become a subway surfer and an incredible sense of balance if I do say so. I have fell on to too many people to think I have that gift. Find some thing to latch onto. Those drivers love to lurch.

5. Don't talk. I know this sounds quite unfriendly, but just don't do it. A quiet train is the best kind. Put in your iPod, read the newspaper, text, check facebook, but do not try and strike up a convo. The morning silence can be very refreshing. It's as if everyone is mentally preparing for the day.

Side story: Most people I have tried to chat it up with tend to be a bit crazy. I once had a 50+ year old man give me his card and told me to call him for coffee if I was up to it. That pretty much shut down my friendly chatting aspirations for good. :) I know, it's embarrassing, but true and lesson learned for me.

6. Pay attention to uptown and downtown trains. There is nothing worse than realizing you are going the wrong way. Don't be afraid to ask someone, people here are very nice about giving directions.

7. Finally, get off a few stops early and walk. The city streets are much more interesting than the subway.

Birthdays

This week, I have gotten to participate in not one, but two birthdays. The first one was on Friday, October 8th for one Miss Elodie Soret. (Elodie is pronounced like Melody, without the M. So fun to say!) Elodie is my french co-teacher and I couldn't be luckier to get to manage those crazy first graders with her. Elodie is so wise and makes me laugh all the time. She is fabulous! We had professional development on her birthday, so I made her wear a purple crown and eat chocolate pecan pie. It's hard to be the birthday girl. Here she is in all her glory, looking quite royal indeed!

Then on Saturday, I got to be at a birthday party at the Ronald McDonald House in NYC. Timmy, pictured below, was turning one. He was so precious and loving that cake icing. A kid after my own heart!

Once a month, Apostles volunteers to cook dinner for the families there, and I instantly knew I would want to get involved. My mom has served on the Ronald McDonald House board in Amarillo for a number of years, and I got the opportunity to volunteer there in high school. RMH serves families that have children in the hospital for an extended period of time. It's kind of a home away from home where they can live and feel comforted by the community in the house. The NYC house has 84 rooms that are constantly filled. The guy who worked there told us that as soon as someone checks out, someone else checks in. RMH is a great organization, get involved in your area!