Lilly Pulitzer | renaissancerunnergirl

This week I’m linking up for Five Things Friday! Somehow, recent days seemed to revolve around gardens for me. Not actual gardening, mind you – that’s a little tough in Manhattan. But from fashion to food to flowers blooming all around, there was a general garden theme, which made for a colorful and cheerful week!

One of my favorites

1. Lilly Pulitzer clothes: On Thursday, Bryant Park was transformed into a Lilly-palooza for the new capsule collection for Target. I am a major Lilly fan, wearing lots of dresses throughout the spring and summer, so had thought I’d hit this up, but I am an even bigger fan of not standing in line to spend money, which is what I would have had to do. I am looking forward to seeing if I can snatch up this dress online, but otherwise I’ll stick to wearing the Lilly I have because it makes me happy just to put it on! And really, I have so much Lilly already, and the clothes are made so well, that I’ll be able to wear them for years to come.

Flower power

2. Trusty Tretorns: I love Tretorn tennis shoes, and wear them all the time for walking around. Basically, if I’m not in running shoes and I don’t have to be fancy, these are on my feet. They’re also well-made and last a long time, which is saying something, because I easily walk 5-6 miles a day around the city in addition to my morning runs. I’ve worn these for years, but always stuck to the classic navy or white pairs, until I discovered these adorable flowered kicks. And now that spring is officially here and I’ve transitioned out of boots (and also worn out my old pair until the hole near the big toe was too big to tape up!) I have flowered, happy feet.

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The five things I’m really loving this Friday all have to do with the real arrival of spring in NYC this week! From food to fitness to fashion, it was hard to narrow it all down (so keep an eye out for next week’s post when some of them might make the cut!) And without further ado…

Blueberries for brekkie!

1. Fruit: Of course, I’m a little obsessed with all the springtime fruit spreads out on the city streets and in markets and grocery stores. I like to eat apples and bananas (like the song says!) but after a long winter, fresh colors and tastes are a welcome arrival. From plump berries to juicy peaches, I’ll be nibbling fruit by the fistful and using it in springy recipes. This week, I feasted on a Blueberry Muffin Oatmeal Cake AND a PB&J Oatmeal Cake to showcase some blueberries. Also, on a somewhat related note, I was watching Gilmore Girls on Netflix this week, and can’t stop twisting the word ‘fruit’ around in my head because of that episode where Lorelai and Rory come back from Europe without a gift for Luke, and Lorelai tries to pass off that ‘Fruits de la Terre’ jam as French!

Cute store window

2. Foodie Find: There’s a shop called Food Passion on the corner of 88th and Park with a name I love that I hadn’t dropped into until this week. Park Avenue above 61st Street is almost entirely residential, with approximately three retail shops for the next thirty blocks. I really like this because it means walking up Park is much more peaceful and less crowded than on neighboring Lexington and Madison Avenues.

It’s mostly a catering company, but there is a small breakfast and lunch menu – you can get an omelette and a coffee or juice for under $10, which is almost impossible in this area of Manhattan. I rarely buy lunch out, preferring to pack my own, but I forgot to take my lunch out of the fridge yesterday and realized my mistake on the way to school, and had a nice cheesy omelette and cup of coffee to tide me over.

3. Fast(er) Feet: I run for body, mind, and spirit – not for speed. But, my body is a little achy-er than a 23-year-old’s should be, due to various injuries (broken right ankle, tendinitis in the right knee, and strained right hip flexor) that often mean I’m sore on the right side or overcompensating on the left. One way to combat this is trail running instead of pounding the pavement. The bridle path in Central Park was covered in a solid sheet of snow and ice all winter, and while my Due North spikes are great, there was simply too much slip-and-slide action going on. So I’m glad the paths are finally cleared and the packed dirt awaits my happy feet!