Help NYC's Children Get Fit!

I don't normally post contests on my blog, but this one is dear to my heart.

Emil has been running his company, Fit 4 Life NYC for several years now. He has not strayed from his original goal of helping New York's children lead healthy, active lives. F4L just submitted a wish to Intuit’s Small Business Growing Strong campaign.

Help Emil's organization make a wish come true! Fit 4 Life NYC's mission is to help children in New York City's poorest communities to become active and fit, but most of the children in their programs do not have proper shoes or attire to exercise and play in. In addition, due to the high cost of sports/fitness equipment F4L's classes are taught with little to no equipment. 

Click here to vote for Emil and his team: http://bit.ly/11lxQjc [You can vote once a day and you don't have to register for anything!]

F4L would use the prize money to purchase shoes for their neediest kids and new sports equipment for their programs. Thank you for supporting NYC's children.

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March 24

Happy birthday to the most wonderful man in the world.

Love,

the luckiest girl in the world.

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Playing hooky

E and I took a much needed break from the humdrum of the everyday to just catch up with each other this afternoon. We ventured to Koreatown to find some authentic Mexican fare. [Hey, that's where Yelp told us to go!] Lunch at Taco El Asador was ok, not fabulous, but not bad at all. We stopped at Real Fruit for a dessert of bubble tea before E left me to *browse* in Morning Glory, a fantastically cute stationery store stocked to the ceiling with Asian ephemera. [I walked away spending less than $15...impressive, no?]
It was such a treat to escape and just stroll hand-in-hand in the sunshine for a couple of hours. *sigh*

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Technicolour Tuesday: week 35

How did it get to be Tuesday already? And where the heck is August? After another whirlwind trip [this time to Chicago] I'm home for at least a few weeks, maybe months! I've been playing around with Picnik to edit some of my photos. It's fun and more extensive than iPhoto.

[day 242: This is not the first time my car has told me it's 100F outside. Woah.]

[day 243: Cassius is such a trooper and puts up with all of Indy's abuse. I don't think he really has a choice though.]

[day 244: Can you believe this is the only photo I have for day 244? And it's a crappy phone photo of what? I don't know why I took it.]

[day 245: Testing the bed at the Crowne Plaza in Chicago. The Marriott's are still the best in our books.]

[day 246: Pretty horse in Andersonville, Chicago.]

[day 247: Fabulous tootsies before the pain of heels set in. Later, they were in Birks.]

[day 248: Not sure why this was, but Chicago is overrun with beautiful dragonflies. This one was resting on a highway overpass.]

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To My Dear and Loving Husband

If ever two were one, then surely we.
If ever man were lov'd by wife, then thee;
If ever wife was happy in a man,
Compare with me ye women if you can.
I prize thy love more than whole Mines of gold,
Or all the riches that the East doth hold.
My love is such that Rivers cannot quench,
Nor ought but love from thee, give recompence.
Thy love is such I can no way repay,
The heavens reward thee manifold I pray.
Then while we live, in love let's so persever,
That when we live no more, we may live ever.

~ Anne Bradstreet

Happy 4th anniversary, my love.
xo

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Foto Friday: week 29

I'm lucky to have a few moments *between* functions of a 3-day Indian wedding we are attending this week. So far, all the ceremonies have been beautiful and the food has been delicious! Indio has been a trooper, always the first on the dance floor, but also the first to go to bed. This morning was the actual wedding ceremony and I'm hoping to get a short nap in before tonight's reception.

[day 197: E teaching his class at summer camp...Indy helping out in the background.]

[day 198: Bubble mowers work best on green carpet.]

[day 199: Finally sending some long-overdue snail mail on its way.]

[day 200: Summer means dinner on the veranda, chilled rosé in my glass.]

[day 201: First time on the bouncy motorcycle.]

[day 202: Day 1 of the 3-day wedding [see the bride in last week's photos.]--giving the dhol player a hand.]

[day 203: Day 2 of the 3-day wedding--getting ready for the mehndi party.]

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Technicolour Tuesday

Another brief hiatus from blogging, but this time I have a good excuse: E and I went on our very first [and probably very last for a loooong time] baby-free vacation to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic! Of course, while we were away, I turned off all modes of technology except my camera. I'll post a review of the trip later. For now, enjoy a tidbit of the last 11 days.

[day 176: Cheesy bread sticks always make grocery shopping more tolerable.]

[day 177: My baby has moved onto the big slide...on his own! *sniff sniff*]

[day 178: Horrible phone pic of an adorable cat/ferret hotel.]

[day 179: Apple and ginger-infused vodka--a perfect representation the eclectic borough I called home.]

[day 180: This was technically taken on day 181. It's our breakfast as we traveled business class to Punta Cana. You're not allowed to take a razor on the plane, but if you sit in the good seats, they'll give you a fairly sharp knife!]

[day 181: A few hours in the heat of Miami on our way to Punta Cana. Lunch at Gloria Estefan's restaurant, Larios, which was ok at best.]

[day 182: One of three feathered friends outside our hotel room.]

[day 183: It seemed like a storm was brewing, but thankfully, we didn't get a drop of rain.]

[day 184: My favourite travel buddy.]

[day 185: On our way home from the open-air airport in Punta Cana.]

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Happy Father's Day...

...to all the dads, soon-to-be dads, people who act like dads and especially the two special men in my life: my husband and my father.

E and Indy looking sharp.

Nana and Indy before we shaved his head...Indy's not my dad's.

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Secrets from the Chef

Emil has been gracious enough to share his recipe of the scrumptious chicken we had last week. The only thing he forgot to mention is that it's even better with some wine. :) Check out the Fit 4 Life NYC website and blog for more recipes and fitness tips to live a healthier, happier life.

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Fit 4 Life NYC goes live!

I'm giddy with excitement to announce that my wonderful husband, Emil has launched his very new, very shiny, completely fabulous Fit 4 Life NYC website! And what better day to celebrate this than on his birthday? [Happy birthday, my love!]

Just a few years ago, Fit 4 Life NYC was a dream for Emil. He was working a regular 9-5 job but was dismayed by the lack of physical activity and healthy eating not only in the lives of NYC's adults, but also its children. He tried to develop programs within the organizations he worked in to promote healthy living for the children they served. He began email newsletters for his coworkers to help them get a hold of their fitness and nutrition. But he wanted to do more.

That's when Fit 4 Life NYC was born. It began as a program in East New York, Brooklyn for children who weren't receiving any sort of physical activity at school. A few hours every Saturday, Emil and a group of volunteers he had recruited, went out to East New York to mentor these children. Half the time was spent doing fun fitness games and exercises while the other half was used to educate the children and adults on tasty, healthy snacks. It was an act of love on the part of Emil and the volunteers. There was no funding.

Emil's passion for healthy living was quickly transferred to the adults in his life. People wanted to know what they could do to become healthier, lose weight, gain confidence...the list was endless. Emil began training a few friends and eventually began his Boot Camp and SlimDown classes. The success stories of the participants are so motivating...they are what kept me going to classes, even when I was pregnant and oh-so-tired.

Emil and his team have been working around the clock for the last couple of months tweaking every aspect of the site so that it reflects the core values of F4L, which embody balancing a healthy lifestyle into our already busy lives.
He expanded the Fit 4 Life Kids pages with more information on how to get the F4LKids program in your school. [He currently serves several New York City schools with a variety of fitness programs for grades K-9.]

I'm so proud of everything Emil has done. His determination to change the course of our population from becoming bigger and more unhealthy is inspiring enough to make people want to change. We deserve to live long, healthy lives. And Fit 4 Life NYC has the tools to help us do just that!

Check out Emil's blog and Facebook Fan Page: NYC and Kids.

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