The new thing in travel? Ditching your kid(s) with your parents or in-laws and heading to Paris for a long weekend. Before Andrew and I went, I solicited addresses from a handful of friends and acquaintances. Since then, a few other traveling parent-friends have requested ideas on where to go and what to do on their own Paris jailbreaks. Et voila.

It’s been seven months since I left my full-time job and jumped into freelance. If you’ve followed this (sporadic) blog or my social channels (what? You’re not! Get on it! @GodILoveParis and/or @amythomas.nyc ) you’ll know that I’ve been thrilled with my decision.

If you’re a woman in the United States these days, you’re probably pretty pissed off. And if you’re not pissed off, you’re not paying close enough attention to the news and what’s going on with our country. 

One of the reasons I left my full-time job last spring was to rebalance my brain power.

I was in a job that was too draining, physically, mentally and emotionally. I wrote down a quote (can’t remember where I saw or heard it) that said:

“We have a finite amount of fuel to sustain/propel us—how do we spend our energy? If this is more important to me, what I can do to make it happen?”

What a bummah when signs of summer’s end are near. The sun is setting earlier. It’s grey and damp instead of bright and blue. You actually need the duvet at night. 

New York enjoys a nice little micro-climate and I like to think that summer easily extends all the way through September. Even so, I’m conscious of every day and the warmth and activities that I associate with my favorite time of the year.

One of my favorite things about book launches is the opportunity to talk to people. That’s when you can share stories, ask questions, and have the chance to really connect. It’s when you discover a new fan with a mutual obsession with sweets, or you find out about someone’s niece who wants to be a writer and you get to share a couple pointers, or you get carried away with a handful of people, gushing about your favorite bakeries in Paris, feeling like you could all jump on a flight right then and there and have the best time together.

It's been a little over four months since Brooklyn In Love came out. Which actually feels twice as long. It's been a busy and fulfilling four months of traveling and writing and reconnecting with friends and the city. I'm feeling so lucky and beyond grateful for this time. If I can continue freelancing like this, I will be a happy girl indeed.

Not a moment too soon. What a long, grueling winter it was. But now the forsythia, dogwoods, cherry blossoms, daffodils and all the other pretty, pastel trees and flowers are in bloom. It's magnificent.

I’m loving my freelance life, with a contract three days a week working in-house at a fashion brand. Which gives me two days to pitch and write articles, meet friends for breakfast or lunch, hit the gym or a matinee. It somehow still manages to be hectic, but by no means stressful.