my afternoon with prince harry

Last week, I got a blast-from-the-past email from a friend whom I haven't seen or spoken to in years.

She'd been watching TV coverage of Prince Harry's Washington, D.C., visit and thought she saw me in the background, stalking the royal uncle-in-waiting as he roamed the halls of Congress.

"I know that's something Patra from 8 years ago would do," she said, "was it you?"

If the MI6  has a file on me I wouldn't be surprised. I tend to make the paper(s) when the Brothers Wales dominate American headlines. I can't deny it's odd behavior for a lady of my age, but if the ginger prince came to your office wouldn't you try to catch a glimpse?

With just a little shame, I admitted to my friend that it was likely me, as the photos seen on the front page of UK Daily Mail (and also on CNN, HuffPo, WaPo, Gawker, USA Today and People) would confirm.  

In defense of all us curious anglophiles, I will tell you that the welcome we gave Harry was indeed hospitable but hardly the Beatles-crazed mania you read it was.  UK Daily (one of my favorite reads; I was highly amused to make its print) reported that police escorted us all back to our desks. That didn't happen (but should security have tried, I was ready to test the Reese Witherspoon I Am An American Citizen defense). Though mocked globally, our curiosities obstructed no one's justice. 

jenni for the {royal} win

If you've been reading I Do Declare for a while you may recall I had a little royal wager with my friend Jenni on when Kate + William might become Mom + Dad. I was sure it would be within a year of their royal nupts. Jenni knew better; she said later rather than sooner. On the line with this bet was a pricey bottle of bubbly. I paid up back in the summer.

We should have saved the Veuve for yesterday's  big announcement.  Instead, in the spirit of Catherine's pending reign into the mommyhood, I'll announce the winner of my Secrets of The Mommyhood give-away. It's Jessica Mesnick, whose fave TV mom is....Miranda from Sex and the City. Yay!

first birthday gift for little girls

I never have a clue what to give a child on its first birthday.  Moms can be very particular about the types of clothes their kids wear, and what do I know about toys? Nada. 

I think I have found the perfect present for an auntie-type to gift a baby girl that will guide a path that leads towards citizenship of  the world. This gift will inspire dialogue on global issues like the economy....

and international affairs.

Vanity Fair covers and Ferragamo kitten heels, sadly, are not the birth right of every little girl, but if we can instill in the next generation how imperative it is to relate to other women on a very common level of pop culture and fashion...

then we've done our job in outfitting the next generation for the red carpet that is life. Just like the practice of proper sunscreen application, one can never, ever start too soon.

That is why I'm giving Suri's Burn Book to every little girl I know. 

new york never gets old

My parents came to Maryland back in August, and while they were in town we hopped a train in Baltimore to spend a couple days in Manhattan...

Waiting on the train at Penn Station

New York was especially "new" to PR and Danny because this was their first trip, so we hit up lots of token sights!

To maximize our time, we rode around on an open-top bus tour. 

We went with Gray Line and bought a package that included 48-hours on the bus,  a boat ride around the harbor (which, save for a close peak at Lady Liberty, was kind of a waste of tourist time) and tickets to the top of the Empire State Building. The Gray Line buses (which are actually red?!) are everywhere around the city and we never had trouble catching a ride. 

On Day 1 we hopped off the bus at Central Park. As you might imagine, these Beatles fans loved Strawberry Fields....

...and this pop culture fan loved seeing a scene from Gossip Girl being shot.

It was fun to watch the action, but there were no big star sightings. A few days later I did see a photo of Blake (nee Lively) Reynolds on that scooter pictured above in People magazine.  We channeled more Gossip Girl while staying at The Palace Hotel...

A slight hotel obsession with The Palace was born when I was in New York last Christmas, and I've been dying to stay there since. Its Midtown location on Madison Avenue is perfect! Our view of St. Patrick's was amazing - the nicest I've ever had staying in a New York hotel. I actually didn't know the hotel had Gossip Girl ties when I booked it...likely 'cause I don't watch Gossip Girl. But still...I love seeing television and movie shoot locations. Which is why one day we lunched here......

Did you know you can make a reservation at Serendipity 3? I didn't either 'til I decided to just call and ask - I guess it was just fate (wink, wink!)? We walked right in for lunch passing a long line of people, and I was so happy the food actually lived up to Serendipity's hype. Another restaurant that really surprised me was the Rock Center Cafe. We popped in there after our appearance on TODAY. 

HA!!!  We went in search of Hoda and Kathlie Lee, but tragically, they weren't in town; all their shows that week had been pre-taped. (Now, those are some gossip girls I would have loved to see!)  Rock Center Cafe has very reasonable (for New York) prices and the food was special without being too big city. It appeared lots of locals were there too for both breakfast and dinner, and we liked it so much we made a return trip!

We hit up Broadway and saw Rock of Ages!  It was fantastic - if you're into 1980's music and off-color jokes (which I am...). It's not a show for kids or prude grown-ups, for sure. 

We saw the 9/11 memorial, walked through old churches and with ice cream cones often in hand, peaked in different neighborhoods while wishing we had more time.  Though we missed having Dan with us, I think it rates as one of my favorite family vacations!

I don't know why New York is called New York, but I think the city is aptly named. No matter how many times I visit, it never gets old. 

Gone Girl {and cheating on books}

I had a few friends (and the NY Times) tell me the book Gone Girl 
by Gillian Flynn would suck me in by the first chapter, so I bumped it up to the top of my To Read list. In fact, there was so much urgency to read it, this book apologist downloaded* it to her iPad.

And, as predicted, once I started reading Gone Girl, I was a goner: I just couldn't stop. I finished it in one work day! I mean, I was that a--hole that stood in the deli line at lunch, nose in e-book.  It's CRAZY good {pun intended for those of you who know how it ends}. 


At first this story about Amy, a wife gone missing, seems a little too ripped from the headlines (think Scott Peterson) but then there are twists. Readers will hand their loyalty back and forth to Nick, the suspect husband, as the truth about what happened to Amy is revealed. If you like to watch Dateline mysteries...this book is for you! Reese Witherspoon's production company has already bought the movie rights to Gone Girl, and Reese is set to play the wife. So if you read it, you can picture her as Amy.  Humor me this - how fantastic would it be if Reese would cast Ryan Phillippe as Nick? Um, yes. That's who you should picture as the husband when you read it!


Like Nick, in weak moments I have been guilty of indescretions. If the Book Police set me down for questioning I'd have to confess that Gone Girl is not the only book I've read electronically lately. I also read Heartburn by Nora Ephron. 

The library request for all Nora Ephron books have doubled since she died (due in part, I'm sure because of come-lately fangirls like me!) because I couldn't get a single title without a wait. And, I didn't want to wait to read Heartburn (which is very fun and quirky and set partly in Washington) so I bought the iBook and read it while traveling. And it was so easy and light and perfect for when dining solo at an airport restaurant because I could have fork in one hand and easily turn the "page" with the other. Then I instantly wanted Gone Girl so I did it again, another download. I read everywhere I could that day, hands-free: stopped in traffic, sauteing veggies on the stove while cooking dinner, and into the night by the light of just the screen. I could just hear the books on the table beside me saying, How dare you bring that iPad into our bed?!  I have been two-timing on real books. 


It's true what they say about cheating, though. It just gets easier every time you do it. Next up...the new Emily Giffin! 

Magic Mike

When I was in high school, I thought it sooooo tacky that my boyfriend and his buddies were making a night out of seeing Jessie Spano take it off in the movie Showgirls. I stomped my canvas Keds in serious protest at even the thought! I was tied as tight as the grosgrain ribbons I wore {every day!}back then.


Time has helped me chill out a lot, so...

the paperless post invite

Now my friends and I are making a night out of seeing Magic Mike. 


Do I still think a stripper movie tacky? Of course. So is dining at a restaurant before the movie that only serves hot dogs, but please...it's hysterical. 


Are you making a girls' night out of Magic Mike? Or will you stay home in judgement while reading Fifty Shades of Gray? 

Help Needed: Summer Reading

Don't forget to enter HERE my giveaway for a $50 Shabby Apple gift card! 

Tomorrow I will take off for my first summer beach trip. This will be a girls-only weekend with the Wives Club, and I have the custom napkins packed.

What I don't have packed are books to get me through this trip, or even a good library list to get me through the travel and pool months that are now upon us. To prove how unprepared and shameless I am about summer reading, something I usually start planning in February, I'll be buying the third Fifty Shades book at the airport. Now about those books....

I've read the first two. Fifty Shades of Grey is just flat out bad. I don't think it could be marketed at all without that whole, um, dirty factor, because really - that's all it sort of is.  Well, that and the story of a controlling, unhealthy relationship. Who wants to escape into that for pleasure (much less, cough-cough, pain!)? The character development and dialogue is among the worst I've ever, ever read. I don't even feel bad saying this because the author herself said on national TV that she isn't a good writer. I agree with her. I swore in protest of this series and its unexplainable popularity that I wouldn't read the two remaining books, but I found myself in the airport last weekend (I flew to TN to celebrate Mothers Day with PR) and I didn't have a book to read then either. Book two was right there, in paperback, and I'd had a rotten day, so I (rolled my eyes, bit my lip and...) just bought it.


Now, Fifty Shades Darker will never be hailed as a classic, but it's better than Shades of Grey. There's a little mystery. There's a little more than just a red room and Dom jeans, but sadly....there is still that cringe-worthy inner godess!  But I can't pretend I don't want to know how it all ends, so...I'll find out poolside this weekend.


After I put away the mommy porn, I only have two titles on my summer reading list:


1. Where We Belong

I really like Emily Giffin books. This one comes out late July. I follow Giffin on Facebook and know that there will be lots of references to the mid-1990s, when the main character was in high school. I'm ready for the nostalgia, along with the stories Giffin always tells. 


2. Fairytale Interruped

I have always been preoccupied with John F Kennedy, Jr., and after reading Come to the Edge last year, my curiosity remains pretty wet. I've managed to convince my high school friends to take a day trip to Cumberland Island, Georgia (where JFK got married) later this summer when we steal a few days on St Simons Island to mark our 35th birthday (I mean, will I ever stop celebrating???) and our 30+ years of friendship. Before our trip I will read this book written by JFK's former assistant. 


What will you be reading this summer?   Please send some suggestions before I start reading Twlight books....

Love Me Like My Dog Does

If you need a break from Jingle Bells, you have to hear this song.



If Dan was the kind of man who called up radio stations or wrote to Delilah (there are two camps here, people who LOVE or people who HATE Delilah - I'm firmly in the former! You?) to make dedications, I'm certain this is the song that would have him begging, So Casey...could you please play, for me!

This weekend will you be at a Christmas party? Tree trimming? Couched with egg nog and gloriously bad cable holiday films? All the fun is about to start in the 'burbs and beyond, which means...much less blogging about my dog.

Happy Friday!

I'm Still Waiting...

Since Dan + I made our Hollywood acting debut last Spring by {almost!} being extra’s in the George Clooney movie, The Descendants,  I’ve been waiting on my SAG card to arrive in the mail. I’m still waiting.

Since leaving set in Hawaii I’ve been stalking IMDb to find out when The Descendants will be released nationwide in theaters. It’s opened in a few cities already, but for its showing in the ‘burbs this weekend?  I’m still waiting.

photo credit: Access Hollywood

Since I’ve been seeing photos of George and Stacy all over red carpets, I’ve been waiting for my invitation for just one premiere to arrive in the mail.  You guessed it - I’m still waiting.


Since this movie is sure to live up to all the hype, it will likely be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. And for the invitation to be there with the rest of the cast while “our” movie is being celebrated, to walk the carpet, to afterparty with Elton….when Oscar season rolls around, for those tickets…I’ll probably still be waiting.

What I Really Wanted to Ask John Grisham

There was a movie premiere Monday night in Washington. No, not Jen's. But John's......

John Grisham.  Or, as Patrick and I code-named him as we stalked him throughout a cocktail party...Jake Brigance.

 You're one of 'em, Jake...

Jake, er...John Grisham was among panelists discussing Mississippi Innoncence, an indy doc that showcases two wrongly convicted men from the same town in Mississippi, and their fight to eventual freedom.

The movie made its national debut last night at The Newseum, and the work hubs was kind enough to take me as his plus one.

I was excited to go because...well, there would be lobster corn dogs amd other savories served on sticks, thank you WolfGang. And though I am a tad more discerning before giving an RSVP, Yes to a school night event now that I domesticate from the 'burbs, I'm willing to trade a late arrival home for movie premieres with best-selling authors after-hours inside my favorite Washington museum.

I'm ashamed to admit, now having watched the film which was serious and moving, that I went into this night thinking only about things I wanted to beg of Grisham:

Why are you so smug when Matt Lauer interviews you?

What do you think of Justin Timberlake reprising the role of Jake from A Time to Kill on Broadway?

How did you get Matthew McConaughey so perfectly sweaty for your movie?

The thing is, Carl Lee Bailey was right when he called Jake out for only pretending to be a comman man. You knew that didn't you. You've seen A Time To Kill 2,342,423 times on TBS, too. So you aren't surprised that Mr. Grisham quickly took his by-line good-bye. He was no where to be found at the reception with the rest of us passed-app chasers.

It was still a great night, though. As any pap will tell you, be it actor or author, the thrill is in the hunt. What we lost in some face time with Grisham, we surely gained in prosciutto wrapped mascarpone.

Fall Television - What Will You Be Watching?

There is nothing that makes one feel like their life is void of real excitement like the start of Fall television.....but if you're like me, you're sort of stoked about it year after year!

This season, there aren't many new shows that have me making a DVR list and checking it twice, just some old favorites that I've missed during the summer months.

Let me just go ahead and own it - it is with deep bittersweetness that I anticpate the start of the One Tree Hill final season. Yes, I'm 34 and I watch more CW than CNN. Lucas will be back this season, and Deb. And surely some others {Dan Scott!}. Pigging backing off OTH, though, I've a slight anticpation for the new CW series, Hart of Dixie.

Southern cliches. Glamourous people. Empty drama like only the CW can provide. I'm willing to give it a try!

I am so happy that the Bravermans have returned to my world. Parenthood shares some of the Friday Night Lights writers, so if you loved how authentic the charachters were in that series, you'd love Parenthood, too, especially since it's not AT ALL full of forced parenting cliches like you'll find showcased on STFU Parents.

What could be like STFU Parents in 30-minute vignettes is Up All Night. Will it be funny to those of us non-parents? I don't know, but because in a preview I've seen Christina Applegates's character singing Rocky Top (around 3:34 in the video clip above) , I'm willing to give it a try...

On Sundays, I might watch Pan Am, though it could just be a Mad Men knock-off, which frankly, we kind of need, at least til March.

Knowing that my loyalties will likely lie, however, with The Good Wife, which returns on Sunday nights, the odds that I'll fly frequently with Pan Am are probably low.

What are you excited to see? What will you be watching?  

Sooner or Later - A Royal Bet

Don't you just hate it when people speculate if other people are expecting? It's sooo no one's businsess.

I get a tad miffed when someone who isn't among my hierachary of besties inquires about the ambitions of my womb. It's a decision that is emotional, private, personal. People shouldn't go nosing around about it.

Which is why, of course, I'm naturally inclined to wonder when Catherine will become a mummy.

I think it won't be long. She's pushing 30, plus that's just what the royals do - they produce heirs. I say before next May there's an announcement. Maybe not a baby...but a royal bump watch.

My friend Jenni says not a chance - not with the Olympics in London, not with the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

So we have a bet. Seeing as how the next generation of royals is not at all our business, not at all important in the grand scheme of our lives or more generally, the world, we've made a little wager....just to make the anticipation of the inevitable all the more fun.  

There's a bottle of Veuve Clicquot on the line. Loser uncorks for the winner.

If you dare think about trival matters like this (for the record, Vegas already has odds on it) would you bet sooner...or later?

A Bicycle Built For...

 I'm thinking about buying a bicycle this weekend.

When we were down at the beach, cyclists kept catching my eye. And, I keep seeing how cute my friends look pedaling around....

Jenni is extra "Speedy" on two-wheels, isn't she?

Monty was clearly born to ride.

Photo-ops, though the above are pretty presh, arent  the reason I have bikes on the brain. I'm trying {yet again!} to find hobbies {because reading, writing and wine tasting don't produce real calorie burn} that will help in my efforts to slim down. I need fun exercise. I think a bike is the way to go.

If I still lived on Capitol Hill, I wouldn't need my own bike. D.C. has a really great bike share.

But, alas, I live in the 'burbs. Still...all of my town is connected by trails and greenspace, so...biking would be a fun way to squeeze in some exercise without having to slow down traffic the way some DC bikers do morning and night during the middle of rush hour while pulling small children behind in bike trailors WTF! often do. In my head I'll ride on the weekends to my nail place. When Dan's grilling and we realize we need an extra ear of corn, I'll just hope on my cruiser and head to the store. I'm not aiming to Livestrong or anything, so don't think Lance Armstrong. Think...active, happy, stylish lady from a tampon ad.

Minus the socks.

I need a bicycle built for an out-of-shape 30-something that doesn't require any fancy gear changing, but comes, preferably, with a basket.