Tag Archives: holidays

Mother’s Day

Mothers. Living breathing magic.  The women that have devoted so much of themselves to you, and without them, you wouldn’t be where or who you are today. This year, Mother’s Day is Saturday May 14th, just a week away. Here are some ways to show your mother some love.

The Essentials

  • A card that sums up your appreciation for your mother
  • Flowers to add some color to her day and remind her of you

Quality Time

Go to one of your mothers favorites spots, or somewhere she has been bringing up recently!

  • Has she been wanting to see a movie recently
  • Everybody likes to laugh. Take her to a comedy show maybe
  • Whats her favorite restaurant or cafe
  • Is she the kind that loves to go to book stores and read all day
  • Would a day trip to a park be something she would like
  • Animal lovers always enjoy trips to the zoo

Presents with Personality

  • A sure way to see some tears of joy from your mom is to give her some framed photos of your childhood with her
  • Have a nickname for your mom? Now’s the perfect time to get her a little token for that
  • Calling all design students! Create a piece that represents what you feel when you think about your mother
  • Any items your mom has been hinting to? Now is the perfect time to do a little research and find those deals

The MOST Important Piece

Say THANK YOU to your mother for everything she has done for you. This is the day you should smother your mother in love and affection. We take our mothers for granted so often, so make sure you take note of all the things your mother does for you.

First time at a Passover Seder

This last week was Passover and I was gifted with the opportunity to enjoy my first ever Passover Seder with some friends. Having surprisingly never come into contact with any Jewish families before in my life, I knew absolutely nothing about this holiday, but I can sure say I learned a lot.

Passover is a Jewish holiday which commemorates the liberation of the Jews from Egypt and lasts either seven or eight days (depending on your branch of Judaism). Passover Seder is a traditional feast lead by a Jewish text called the Haggadah which divides the night into 15 parts. These 15 sections of the meal include such things as: blessing of the food, retelling of the Exodus, the ceremonial breaking of matzah (unleavened bread), eating maror (bitter herbs), eating the main course, reciting the Hallel, and the conclusion of the meal.

Every part of the meal has symbolic importance behind it. The dipping of karpas (a variety of vegetables) in salt water represents the tears of the Jews during their slavery in Egypt. Exclusively matzah bread (unleavened bread) is allowed at a Passover Seder to honor the fact that the freed Israelites were in such a hurry to leave Egypt that they were unable to wait for bread to rise. It was amazing getting to hear the story of the freed Israelites and even hear my friend and his family sing and read Hebrew script as part of the ceremony of Passover Seder.

I am so thankful that I had the chance to experience a different culture like that for the first time, and I hope I only continue learning about other cultures. Have you ever learned something about a culture you didn’t know anything about?

Spring 2017: Welcome Back!

Hello everyone!

Welcome back to FIT and hopefully the start to a successful and fun new semester. I hope you all had a beautiful winter break and had the opportunity to recharge, refresh and spend time with friends and family. I had an incredible holiday, I went back to Switzerland and it was the first time in 2 years that I’ve skied, and I forgot how lucky I was to live in such an incredible country. This year I really took advantage of the mountains and the snow to really make the most of my holidays and do activities I wouldn’t be able to do once I got back in the city. Although all of this was really nice, I’m very excited to be back in the New York and start school, and a new internship. I have a lot of plans and fun things I want to accomplish this semester, which is giving me an extra boost of motivation to start. I’ll let you know what those are once the semester kicks in. I’m also exited to start my classes, because after a very busy fall semester, I decided to give myself a mini break this semester, to take classes I always wanted to take and have more time to work on my personal blog.

Let me know how your holidays were down in the comments below, and what you’re most exited about for this semester.

xoxo

Zorya

Christmas Shopping at Chelsea Market

christmas-gifts-to-ukraineHey there!

Hope all your finals are going well so far… As we all know we don’t only have to worry about finals, but Christmas shopping too. What gifts to get, who to gift them too etc. Each year I wait last minute to do all my Christmas shopping, and every year I freak out, because I don’t know what to get and I’m under time pressure.

The other day I was close to Chelsea Market and decided to go in. Best decision ever! Literally if you don’t know what to get your friends and family, you’ll definitely find something there. There are tones of small little markets, who sell really unique and one of a kind products. I feel like anything you get there would make a perfect gift, because it’s things you don’t find everywhere. Also if you want to get into the Christmas spirit, walking under all the fairy lights and stands, will put you in the mood!

xoxo

Zorya

Snug Up With A Good Book

Winter means temperatures are dropping and the only thing you want to do is to stay in doors, probably in bed with a good movie. But try switching it up and instead of Netflix, you might want to try snuggling up to a good book. Here are some of the books that are on my Winter to read list:

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles It’s the story about this man who is ordered to spend the rest of his life in the attic of a luxury hotel, as Russian history is unfolding outside his widow. It takes a look at the man’s emotional discovery, throughout the years.

Elizabeth Chadwick’s Eleanor of Aquitaine trilogy Although I’ve read the two first ones, I love the era it’s set in. If like me you love the middle ages, stories about Kings and Queens, power, wealth, and war. You will love this trilogy. It’s based on the real life of Queen Eleanor, and her very tumultuous life in the French and English court.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho It’s the story about this boy who travels from Spain to the Egyptian dessert to find a treasure. Along the way he meets several people who point him to the direction of his quest. It’s ultimately a story about the importance of listening to our hearts.

The Girl You Left Behind by Jojo Moyes Ever since I’ve seen the movie You Before Me, I’ve been wanting to read one of Jojo Moyes stories. This one sounded the most interesting, because it’s the story of how a painting holds memories of lost loves. Although the two main female characters are separated by centuries, they are united because of their determination to fight for the thing they love most.

If you have any book recommendations, feel free to leave them down below!

xoxo

Zorya