I hope you’ll join us at the beautiful Stevens Estate in North Andover for a fun night of shopping, sipping and schmoozing. Only $5 at the door to benefit North Andover Veterans Services and the North Andover Women’s Club Scholarship Fund. Check out the event’s Facebook page and get a sneak peek at some of the great vendors who will be in attendance. I’ll be there and if I’m not busy doling out chocolate candy disguised as martini olives, you’ll find me shopping ’til I drop.

Shop ’til You Drop Details:

Click here for the post from last year’s event and…

STAY COOL!

OK, I know I’ve gone legit crazy, but hear me out. This may not be as insane as it initially sounds.

If you’ve been with me for a while, you know I’m obsessed with my dog. Lately, I’ve been contemplating a doggie stroller. Before you say I’ve lost my mind, let me explain. Oscar is eleven years old, he’s diabetic and, worst of all, he’s lazy. He walks every day, except when he doesn’t feel like it. I don’t push him to go because 1) I worry too much about him and 2) he’s stubborn as all get out. At 30 lbs, the only way to get him to go someplace when he doesn’t want to is to carry him. That’s just not happening.

The thing is, we have a great daily routine. Every morning we meet up with other neighborhood dogs in an area just half a mile from home. The dogs run off-leash, sniff at their leisure and become one with nature. It’s awesome – Oscar loves it and so do I. When he doesn’t want to walk, I either don’t go or, I drive him to meet up with his furry friends.

This has worked out pretty well until recently when I started using a Fitbit. Every time Oscar skipped his walk, I realized I was missing out on precious steps.

Enter my great idea…a doggie stroller. It’s perfect!, I explained to my dog walking pals. I still get my steps and Oscar gets to our doggie park destination without trudging around the neighborhood attached to that dastardly leash.  Once the laughter ceased, my friends surmised that Oscar would either hate it or he’d never walk again.

Truthfully, I’m pretty sure he’d love it (he’s such a prince), but I agree that his motivation to move might wane even more if he knows there’s a chariot awaiting. I know his walks are good for him and I don’t want to risk losing them.

So, what do you think? Is a doggie stroller a bad idea?

One last plug for the doggie stroller – Oscar is as heat resistant as a snowman. He never walks in temperatures above 75 degrees. The stroller would be a nice summer option to get him out and about to meet up with his friends.

Never did I imagine my oldest daughter would want to tour colleges in New York City. She is only a sophomore in high school, but she is already dreaming about life in the big city. I can’t say that I blame her. I too am dreaming of moving to the city, but I’m talking Boston. Boston is exactly where I imagined Julia would end up for college. Just forty-five minutes from home and she’d get the benefit of a beautiful, busy city. But not so far that I couldn’t be there in the blink of an eye if she needed me. Perfect, right?

Colleges in New York City

Apparently, not so perfect for her. Over April break, we agreed to take Julia to her dream place, Manhattan, to tour a few of the colleges in New York City. I’m not going to lie, I had a devious plan all worked out in my mind. The end result of which would be her hating New York City. I imagined subtly pointing out the heaps of garbage on the streets, the stinky smell that hung in the air from said garbage and that strange stench wafting up from the subway. I assumed the horribly congested sidewalks would frustrate her and the outrageously overpriced everything would make her think twice about the fantasy of NYC she’d concocted in her mind. The real NYC isn’t like what you see on television, I told her.

I was sure that once there, she’d be turned off from college life in Manhattan. But she wasn’t – not even a little.

We spent just a few days in NYC, one of which was completely rainy, and had a wonderful time. The city was indeed electric and energizing.

Columbia and New York University (NYU)

We made it to two of our intended college destinations. We shot high and started with Columbia and NYU.

Julia fell in love with NYU. It happened to be accepted student day on the day we made our way through Washington Square Park and into the heart of the NYU campus. The area was abuzz with lively college students.

I can only say that the experience was lovely and not nearly as overwhelming as I imagined it to be. While NYU did not have a traditional campus feel like Columbia, it was very contained and felt connected.

Bleecker Street

We spoke to several NYU students who were friendly and the entire area had a great college vibe. The scene was youthful, exciting and a pleasure to partake. Our stroll down Bleecker St. sealed the deal for Julia. The eclectic and collegey mix of restaurants, coffee shops, bars and boutiques were cool even by my seemingly uncool standards, accordingly to my girls.

I couldn’t deny that I could see Julia living in Greenwich Village and fitting perfectly into the NYU scene.

Yes to New York City

Our quick trip to NYC was eye-opening and made me realize that colleges in New York City aren’t quite as scary and intimidating as I imagined they’d be. For Julia’s sake, I’m glad we took this trip and we both came away with a good feeling about the possibilities of NYC. I don’t want to hold her back, but if she chooses to make her NYC dream a reality, letting her go will be the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.