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A Preview from our NYC Photo Shoot

A month ago our dear friends Brad and Margaret spent the day snapping photos of us through the city. It was one of the most wonderful days enjoyed with great people and reminding us of all our favorite spots throughout the streets of New York. Some of them we frequent daily and others, such as Grand Central, are parts of our past. Regardless, we spent six hours walking the streets just enjoying everything it had to offer. There were two cameras on us at all times, something we haven’t felt since our wedding day.

While I can’t wait to see the final collection of images, these are the first four they’ve shared with us! Keep in mind that everything they do is for the love of photography and merely a hobby. Judging from these four pictures I can’t wait to choose 10 or so to frame for both our London and Geneva flats. I think it would be so fun to have the same in each flat so we get to look at the pictures during the week while we’re apart.

Bo and Ashley NYC pics nyc pics of bo and ash 3 NYC Pics of Bo and Ash  nyc pics of bo and ash 4

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My Favorite New Gift Boutique

Good morning! Today’s forecast makes it seem like our sunshine may finally go behind the clouds for a bit as this evening scattered thunderstorms are expected. I had to go through the flat closing the windows and vents before I left this morning to ensure I don’t come home to puddles!

IMG_9007The rainy forecast has also made me decide that it’s time to join the gym at our offices. I hear it isn’t luxurious but for $45 per month it includes a few different classes each day, weights, treadmills, lockers, and showers. Those benefits along with the convenience of being one floor above my desk and open from 6am-9pm means it is the right investment for me at this time. I doubt I’ll spend much time on the treadmill as I enjoy running outside far more but knowing that it’s there in case of fowl weather is a welcome comfort. I have a lot of work to get done this evening which means I’ll probably be at the office quite late. Maybe today’s run will be done on the work treadmill as a quick experiment!

In other news, I spent a few hours last night writing thank you notes and picking gifts for many of our friends and family back home. Bo and I both have so much to be thankful for as so many friends helped us over the past few weeks by either hosting our farewell party, spending their Saturday taking photographs of us in our favorite spots, or helping us with the actual move. I like taking the time to send personal gifts whenever possible as I find it provides a warm touch. While I wish I was as craft as my dear friend Erika so I could make each of the gifts, right now I don’t have the talent nor time to do so.

Luckily, I recently found out about the company Lila Mae, an eco-friendly boutique that strives to bring high quality, local USA made gifts to the masses. It reminds me of a small boutique you’d find on a square in Savannah or along the cobblestone streets of Brooklyn. Everything they source is from small companies which adds to the charm! The entire site is a joy to shop due to their easy navigation, fun category titles, large images, and handy account system!

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I have spent the past few evenings shopping on the site and pinning things to my Geneva Flat Pinterest board. Though all our furniture is currently on a slow boat to Europe from the United States, we will need a few pieces in both the Geneva flat and London flat to fill out the space. I have fallen especially in love with the Nest+Nourish section and more specifically, their vase collection as my poor flowers are currently in my plastic measuring cup!

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I love that the Fire & Light vase is made from recycled glass!

When not shopping for the flat, I’ve fallen in love with their candles and jams as perfect thank you gifts. The candles are all organic and have some of the most unique scent combinations! I hope that peony smells as delicious as it sounds as I’ve already ordered a few of these as thank you gifts for girlfriends! The French Lavender will be perfect for our powder room while grapefruit orange will bring a bright, vibrant clean scent to the living room area. How unique that the French Lavender candle comes complete with dried lavender petals?

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The Sqirl Preserve jams come in 8 tasty flavors including June & Rich Lady Yellow Peach, Blenheim Apricot and Blackberry Meyer lemon! We loved these unique flavors so much that we ordered a trio immediately for Blake and JP as a thank you gift for hosting us in the Hamptons! image 

Have you heard of Lila Mae before? If not, I highly recommend checking out the site for your next hostess, thank you, birthday, or a gift for yourself! In addition, give them a follow on Pinterest.

What’s your favorite way to thank someone?

*This post is part of a partnership with Lila Mae USA, though all thoughts and recommendations are my own.

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The Sacred Swiss Lunch Hour

Good morning! Tuesday is here and while my week still doesn’t feel normal yet, it’s feeling a lot better.

My Day

I survived my first day of work and even have an official Geneva office badge to prove it! I would also consider having 4 “coffee meetings” but only 2 small cappuccinos during the 9 hour day a caffeine win as well. Overall my day yesterday went really well as everyone was very friendly and welcoming. This week will be lots of paperwork to ensure all my Swiss work visa processes go smoothly, meeting with many new people for on-boarding sessions, running errands, and ensuring that by next week I’m set up and ready to go with my new Swiss iphone and storage places in the office. One of the most refreshing things about the environment where I’m working is the lunch hour.

The Sacred Lunch Hour

This is a sacred thing and evidently very Swiss but unless there is a special situation, almost everyone enjoys lunch in the work cafeteria from 12-1pm. People either sit with their team or schedule friendly lunch dates with people during this time. But, the fact that the step away from their desk and invest in an hour of recharging while eating lunch is such a refreshing concept. In New York City the vast majority of people in my office dashed out to lunch to grab a salad or sandwich and then ate it during a meeting or at their desk while working. No one schedules work meetings during 12-1pm for the most part in the Geneva office so people can really enjoy this time.

Since there is also a small gym in our office, some people use this time to workout instead or take advantage of the yoga classes offered two days per week onsite. As I do not have a family here in Geneva, I will most likely focus on working out before or after work and enjoy the lunch hour with colleagues. I am most looking forward to eating on the outside terrace which is open during the warm months of the year!

My Evening

I left the office around 6 yesterday and was home by 7pm after taking the tram back and stopping at the grocery store, Migros, for a few essentials. While there I found that salmon was on sale. I was immediately inspired to sauté salmon for last night’s salad which was an incredible decision!

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After a 4.1 mile run along Lake Geneva, I came home to make the salad which I thought about during my entire run! I highly recommend you make this salad this evening as it was one of the most delicious summer salads I’ve made and only took 10 minutes!

Warm Salmon Summer Salad

  • fresh mixed greens
  • 1/4 an avocado thinly sliced a top the greens
  • 4 small tomatoes sliced a top the greens
  • green onions chopped
  • 1 peach sliced a top the greens
  • 1/4 cucumber sliced a top the greens
  • sprinkle of feta cheese
  • fresh dill sprinkled on top
  • sautéed salmon
  • drizzle of olive oil and balsamic on top of the salad
  • salt & pepper for taste

I spent the next hour and a half enjoying some quality time with my friends and family back home!

ashchatting ashley bo chat

It took a while to figure out some kinks with both Google + Chat and Skype but by the end of the evening I enjoyed a 30 minute conversation with Theodora and almost an hour conversation with Bo. Unfortunately, due to internet connection I could see both of them and hear both of them but they could each only hear me. This afternoon Swiss Com is coming to the apartment to set up our phone and wireless so hopefully that will help.

Last but not least, I won’t have my new Iphone until later this week or early next week which means taking pictures will be limited. In addition, I have to buy a new SD card as I lost mine during the move. Hopefully by tomorrow I’ll have this and be able to return to taking pictures.

Hope you all have a great Tuesday and that the heat breaks shortly for those of you suffering! I hear that even some of the banks have deemed this week business casual so no one suffers by wearing suits to work in New York City! Be safe out there if you are running outside! 

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