Happy Friday, my darling readers! I’m off to celebrate my friendiversary with my bestie from Boston, Shannon. It’s a tradition we started three years ago—as our lives grew busier and we moved to different cities, we wanted a guaranteed block of time devoted 100 percent to toasting our relationship. (Remember the pics from our first friendiversary?) This year, we decided to celebrate at the spa. 🙂 I can’t wait! But before I head out of town, a few happy posts from around the web to get your weekend started right:

Love pretty lingerie? Help Ampere launch their next collection!

New York City sunsets.

Sandra Bullock, the rap star.

Keytags for every scenario.

Cocktail attire.

Show some love.

Be Bill Cunningham for Halloween.

Thoughts (and a new book) on quitting New York…

…And a rebuttal.

Seeing stars.

Sweet prints.

Good advice.

(Image via Note to Sarah)

So, I have some big news to share! Matt and I booked a trip to Paris for the spring. I’m so excited! We’ll actually only be in the city of light for two days—we’re squeezing in a weekend en route to Marseille, Nice, Aix-en-Provence, Cinque Terra, and Venice—but I’m so thrilled that we are going back. I loved our trip there last year, and am already feeling overwhelmed at all that I want to do and see that we didn’t see before.

I’m also taking French classes at a lovely little language bookstore in Brooklyn to prepare. Even though I studied French for 10 years in high school and college, I’m amazed at how quickly I’ve forgotten it! It’s been so fun to meet once a week and practice conversation with a teacher, and 15 other students.

More updates to come soon on this trip, but I’m happy to cross two of my goals off the list for 2013. 🙂

PS—A peek back at my trip to Paris last year here and here. 

As we continue to make updates to our Brooklyn apartment, Matt and I recently picked up a rather large frame for the living room wall. Now, the fun part: deciding what to put in it! We’ve been emailing links back and forth to each other with ideas, but it’s a tough decision. Whatever we choose will be so huge, and the focal point of the room. The three options above are a few ideas we’re considering. What do you think? Do we go black and white and keep it New York-y? Or bright and bold?

Would love to hear your opinion on this!

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Today’s the day! The third installment of Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones book series (called Mad About the Boy) is out. Will you read it? The first novel—and the subsequent movie starring Renée Zellweger—has always been my cultural comfort food. I love to watch it in those moments when I need a quick pick-me-up. Or a good laugh. Or when I simply want to gaze adoringly at Colin Firth. 🙂

Yes, I’m devastated at the news that he’s been cut from the third book. But I think I’ll still give it a read to see how things turn out!

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Lately, I’ve been craving lemons. I add it to avocado to put with my eggs at breakfast, I spritz it over broccoli as a snack, and I’ve been seriously thinking about snagging this citron pressé set from Provisions by Food 52. Over the weekend, I decided to kick things up a notch and try a new dish: lemon spaghetti by Giada De Laurentis. It was delicious! With six ingredients (spaghetti, lemon, olive oil, parmesan, basil, and black pepper), it’s cheap and ready in 15 minutes or less. The dish is a new staple I’m adding to my recipe box.

Slowly, but surely, I’m working on my cooking skills!

More of me in the kitchen here, here, here, here and here.

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