I’ve told myself “I’m never leaving this apartment” countless times yet here we are… moving week. Priorities can shift quickly and, while I believe we are about to be living in my favorite home yet, I will miss certain details about this apartment so dearly… the panoramic sunsets, the skyline views, the proximity to Central Park. We got so lucky finding this place at the right time. It’s a tough goodbye but I already have plenty of future city trips planned so it won’t be too long before I’m back!

Continue reading Paint Colors Used In Our Apartment at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

Over a year ago, I received an email asking if I’d be interested in collaborating with a small business, Willow + Co. (who I had already ordered several baby pajamas from) to create my own small collection of jammies! I thought it would be the most fun experience… and it was! They let me have full say on the colors, prints, concepts, everything and after many samples back and forth, they’re finally here!

Continue reading Pretty in the Pines x Willow + Co. Pajamas at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

Brooks is in the thick of teething right now and we have been trying a lot of different remedies to help soothe his gums and give him a little bit of relief. I wanted to share what we have tried and what seems to work the best for him. I hope it helps some other parents struggling with this with their babies. 

The first time it looked like he was beginning the teething phase was when he started to really put everything in his mouth… his toys, his fingers, our finger, Pearl!

Continue reading Baby Teething Remedies at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

After we arrived back from Italy last month, it wasn’t the beaches I missed most but the FOOD. And then I remembered that, if it’s good food we’re missing, we’re not in a bad place to find it! There are many reasons people love New York City but one big reason is that it is one of the most diverse cities in the world making it a perfect place to find whatever authentic ethnic cuisine you’re looking for.

Continue reading Most Recommended Italian Restaurants in NYC at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

Photography by Deirdre and Jon

We’re SO excited and feeling extremely grateful to share that we are expecting our first BABY in December! We found out back in April and it’s been such an exciting time learning more and more about this little bean that will be joining our family before we know it. We filmed a video to share our thoughts, when we found out, how we found out, and more… so I’ll save the wordy blog post for another day and let you just catch up right here! 

Continue reading We’re Having a Baby! at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

Don’t get me wrong… I’m all for appreciating every moment and making the most of every season but this winter in NY has felt long. I’ve loved all of the snow this year and we’ve made the most of it for sure but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t ready for spring. I’ve now officially lived through every season in New York and I have to say… spring was my absolute favorite so I am SO excited to experience one where more businesses are open and life is a little more normal (last March-May was definitely the furthest from normal).

Continue reading Best of Winter Round-Up at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

This has been an extra snowy winter here in New York which, honestly, I don’t mind! If it’s already going to be freezing and I’m going to be inside a lot, it might as well snow a little, ya know? I thought I’d share a few of my favorite snowy scenes from the past few weeks. I’ve been on a photo-taking spree this month with all of the snow.

VISIT MY PRINT SHOP

Continue reading Snow Days in NYC at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

I think the last time I gave an apartment tour, it was pretty much empty. Since we have less than 10 days in this current apartment, I wanted to film an updated tour that we can look back on years from now and remember our first apartment in New York City… it’s bittersweet and we’ve LOVED this apartment. We’re still staying in the same neighborhood, don’t worry, but this one specific apartment became available in our dream location (with all of the amenities that we don’t currently have) so we kinda last minute decided to make the switch since our lease ends later this month.

Continue reading Full Apartment Tour Before We Move at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

We’ve almost lived in NYC for a whole year (mid-February to be exact) and we recently made a last minute decision to not renew our current lease and, instead, find a new apartment in our favorite location with a washer/dryer in-unit and a dishwasher (these are luxuries that I am very excited to have again). There is much higher inventory available now vs. this time last year (pre-COVID) and most places are offering slightly lower prices than they have in a while.

Continue reading Finding an Apt in NYC Q&A at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.

This post is so overdue but I finally decided to round up a list of my favorite restaurants in our neighborhood, Upper West Side. If you’re unfamiliar with the neighborhoods of Manhattan, the Upper West Side (or UWS) is on the west of Central Park. It’s where we currently live and we love it. Just to give you a quick overview of when we moved here… we moved to NYC back in February of 2020 from Raleigh, North Carolina.

Continue reading Favorite Restaurants We’ve Tried in UWS at Pretty in the Pines, New York City Lifestyle Blog.