Screw you, Jet Lag.

I am writing this sitting in my room on my lap top at 5 am. I wish I could say I just woke up but that would be a lie. It would also be a lie to say I am thrilled to be home. Obvs I love London and missed home but c'mon, Manhattan + Catskills vs. Home? Exactly. It was an incredible holiday and I already can't wait for our next trip :D For the time being, let me cast my mind back to the New York days that went un-blogged, oh so long ago. 3 days to be exact.

Here we go:

On the magical adventure to the Catskills my fam and I stayed in a cabin that was owned by 'Kate's Lazy Meadow'. It was so cool and rustic, but the best part was... the stream right outside the back door! I jumped at the opportunity to jump in for a morning swim (actually, I was just dying to wear my new American Apparel swimsuit!) but I am glad I did, it was super picturesque and VERY refreshing. When I say refreshing I mean F-R-E-E-Z-I-N-G!

The 'reaction shot' after stepping into the stream. Beyond cold, guys!

After the very energizing dip in the stream the family and I took a lil' trip to... WOODSTOCK!

Groovy!

Who is this man, I hear you ask? I haven't got a clue.

But I like to think of him as

The Wizard of Woodstock. Come on guys, he does look like a wizard!

It was mega chilled there, it was a really nice experience, walking around in the sun and just having a good time :) After that lil' experience we ventured to Duffy's friend's house. (Duffy is THE BEST hairdresser and also a good friend of the family) His friend is called Dan, he is an awesome photographer and also ridiculously nice, thanks for being so welcoming, if you are reading this (fingers crossed!) :D His house was so cool and chilled but the atmosphere was epic. All different kinds of people, all ages, having a good time. Lay by the pool and read Vogue+Vanity Fair for like 3 hours. Ahh, what a combo: pool, Vogue, sun, it was almost too good to be true! It turned out to be a little party with a gathering of old and new friends, I had a killer time! I met Alec, who is the Creative Editor of a rad art and fashion magazine called Dossier. It is filled with some incredible photography, some of it is Dan's (it's all about connections, peeps!) and he even said I could send him a portfolio of my photography to him to publish! How sick?! Wow, I excuse my 'trying to be cool' use of the slang 'sick' there. What I meant was: How rocking?! There. That is more Erin/Nerdy of me. Back to my story...

We had all had a BBQ, I met more insanely cool people and then we headed to Duffy + Lucy's Barn. They are currently re building it all and I know it's going to be EPIC when they are finished! Lucy is Duffy's girlfriend, by the way. She has immense style, works at Museum 52 in London and is stunning. They are possibly the coolest couple on this planet! There, we had a camp/bomb fire which was a lovely way to spend the last night in the Catskills. Seriously think I have an obsession with sitting in front of a fire and just watching it. Really, I could just stare at the camp fire all day long and never get bored! Well, I wasn't bored but I fell asleep by the fire. Well, near to the fire, not literally next to it. Oh, what a laugh that would have been. TOTALLY ruined that beautiful moment and picture in my head there. Back to the nicey nice image of dozing off by the campfire, surrounded by new and old friends. Kind of like a kitten. With braces and huuuge glasses. Wow.. cute..? Yeah, not really, more like this -

Haha, yeah this is sorta sweet but imagine it with braces.

I know that smile was wiped off your faces.

OMG THAT RHYMED! Sorry, I love when that happens!!!

With Duffy, chilling (literally) in the COLD pool!

LOVE Y

When we arrived back in Manhattan my Father and Brothers almost immediately got a cab and went on their own little adventure to Brooklyn. There, they got their tattoos done by Thomas Hooper, the most incredible tattoo artist I have seen! Although they tell me the pain was the worse they have felt in their lives, they are breath taking! What were my Mother and I doing, I hear you ask? Walking around New York, shopping and also... we went to Babycakes! Such an adorable little bakery FILLED with Gluten Free, Vegan and mostly sugar free tasty treats! I am not vegan or anything but I think it's pretty cool. Yeah yeah, it's baked goods but I am sticking with the story that it's healthy and from there, it's all good :D I had a Red Velvet Cupcake and a coffee = perfection. I didn't get to take pictures because I let my Dad bring the camera to Brooklyn to take photos of the tattoos with. Here is one from google that is pretty much identical the the one I had:

YUMMAY

Bought this mug...

and one of these awesome tees!

(Not sure who these guys are, but hey, we have matching t-shirts now :P)

Verdict of the Cupycake? HOLY YUM.

The bakery + atmosphere? LURVE.

Two thumbs up on that one.

Now, for the tattoos!

Thomas is covered in killer tattoos, this is the one on his back, how insane?!?! He is such a nice guy and you can find out more about him here: http://meditationsinatrament.com/

Me with my Brother and Thomas :) Did y'all know he is Vegan?

I think he likes Babycakes too!

That is me done for today, it's been nice catching up!