meghan, August 31st, 2010
 It's official, I'm old. As if turning 30 this year wasn’t bad enough, I just got in the mail the other day my very own AARP card. Eric thought it was hilarious and insisted on putting it on the fridge.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against using this birthday for all it’s worth. And right now I’m trying to convince Eric that this wonderful peacoat by J Crew would be a great consolation prize for someone turning 30. Does it get any more cheery than that fabulous aqua blue? And right now I think I need some cheeriness.
 Fresh basil and heirloom tomatoes
Here is a wonderful little summer recipe for you:
Bruschetta
1 3/4c. tomatoes
1/3c. kalamata olives
1T. capers
1/4c. basil
1T. olive oil
1T. balsamic vinegar
salt to taste
pepper
1/4c. red onion
Chop all ingredients finely and serve on buttered bread broiled in the oven sprinkled with Parmesan cheese.
 Makes a lovely lunch or appetizer.
 "Sympathique" and "Hang on Little Tomato" by Pink Martini. "Hang on Little Tomato" still remains my favorite. I have been on a French music kick. I think it makes for the perfect summer party music but the touch of melancholy that all the songs seem to have would also make it work for the winter.
Here are my favorites. If you don’t have any Pink Martini, it’s a must. I listen to them all the time. In fact, my intense love of Pink Martini is what sent me on my quest for more French genre music. In a similar vein is the soundtrack from “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and anything by Edith Piaf is quintessential French. Simply delightful. While I thought the movie odd (this will have to be a post for another day), I did love the music from “Amelie” and just had to order the CD which should be arriving soon. I’m excited.
I hope this gives you some ideas for some music to add to your collection and should you have any favorites, I would love to hear about them.
 I promised to post the outfits I scored at Jinglebobs and I didn't forget, it just took me awhile. The shirt and belt I already owned but I bought the skirt. I'm into pencil skirts right now. All my A-line skirts have been remade into pencil skirts.  I thought this was a fun little number that I think the owner said was from the '60's.  The blouse is Anthropologie and the skirt is Jinglebob's. I'm pretty sure that it's dupioni silk and I really love the acid yellow color.
 I never really liked the wood color or the handles. Originally I was collecting all different kinds of knobs from Anthropologie and was going to use them. But in the end I decided to spray paint original drawer pulls. I finally got it done. It’s only been on my to do list for about two years. I finally gave my bedroom dresser a coat of paint and I love it. I don’t know why it took so long because it was really a quick job, the actual painting that is. The dry time is something else.
I have the bad habit of bringing into the house furniture that is only mostly dry and then the things I set on the dressers somewhat adhere to them, ruining the lovely glossy finish. So I made myself promise that I would leave it to dry at least two days.
 This is the finished product in Martha Stewart's Toasted Marshmallow.  One of the simple pleasures I enjoy in life is looking in my sock drawer and having it beautifully papered. Silly I know but I like it.
 The recipe called for Emmental and Gruyere but we used Jarlsberg instead of Emmental. We decided to have a back porch fondue party this past Saturday and let me encourage you to have one this summer. It was really a lot of fun. I think it is more typically a winter thing to, but when the weather is nice it is pretty fun to eat it outside.
The food prep is minimal and I found a great recipe on Epicurious. For the dessert, we just had some dark chocolate, strawberries, and Port.
Be sure to have over some great friends who bring an assortment of mixed drinks and let the party begin. I think the best part about fondue is that it is such interactive eating and with a lively bunch of people, wonderful conversation is bound to come.
 This is about all you need for some spectacular fondue. 
 
Every Friday is our pizza night and I usually make it. Over the course of nine years I have pretty well perfected the technique and since I always keep the ingredients on hand it makes for a pretty easy dinner. The one thing that makes the pizza even better is to eat it with a movie. That is our Friday night ritual and the kids love it. And if truth be told Eric and I really look forward to it too. We seldom deviate from it. If we happen to have Friday night guests they too are subject to pizza. Even in the summer when it is really too hot to have the oven on, we grill it.
The dough is really simple but I have discovered that if I make it in the morning, not adding all the flour, and let it rise forgotten in some corner until dinner time, then the dough is not too tough and puffs up very nicely when it hits the oven.
So here is the dough recipe:
1 1/2c. flour (you will add more later)
1 Tbsp. yeast
11/2 t. salt
1c. warm water
Mix all the ingredients together and let stand several hours. When you are ready to make your pizza, you will need to mix in enough flour, about 11/2 more cups, to make a dough. Knead and roll out to fit your pan. I use a pizza stone which works beautifully. I also pour olive oil and cornmeal on the bottom of the stone for added texture, flavor, and to keep the pizza from sticking.
For the sauce I just use a can of tomato sauce and add a bit of sugar, some salt, and garlic and it simmer a bit on the stove top.
The toppings are of course the fun part. Of late we have been loving fresh mozzarella cheese with clipped herbs from the garden, oregano, chives, thyme, and basil. The basil has to be added after baking the pizza or it turns black.
I’m not sure if you’re like me, but I like to see people’s trips documented by the purchases they made along the way. Is it food they love to bring back home, or perhaps clothing and shoes, or maybe postcards or shirts with the names of the most memorable places they saw?
So while in D.C. we got to see the usual sights Ford’s Theater, the Magna Carta, and of course the art museum and they were all very wonderful, but I got to shop. I love to shop. I told Erin I wanted to go to the second hand stores in D.C.. I figured I could find some real treasures there. She warned me, though, that they are all pretty scrubby and I have to admit, they were. I did find some things.
So I could show you some pictures of the Capital, which you have all seen, but I thought it might be more fun to show you all the things I found, stuffed in my suitcase and still managed to come home 5lbs under the limit.
 I found these little vintage cups at the secondhand store and was completely smitten. There are times I wish I was sophisticated and had only white on white, but the truth is I gravitate toward colors. I love them. So I bought these and think they will make lovely children's cups.  I'm particularly taken with this tomato color. Even the writing on the bottom that says "Perma Hue" is in a charming font that I like to look at.  I got this this artist's print at the secondhand store. Originally I thought it would be great in the boys' room but when Eric saw it he wanted it for his new office. So that is where it will be going.  This I found at an antique store while shopping with a friend. She said she had one and loved it, so I thought I had better get one too. It seemed such an odd whimsical piece.  As you can see it is a triptych that opens up to the Virgin Mary with baby Jesus flanked by two angels. It looks Russian Orthodox to me.
 Fox and Valiant. This has been the month for visiting sisters. I just jetted back from DC and hope to have some wonderful photos of our trip to show you soon, but right now I am now in Oregon visiting Caitlin and helping her decorate her new home. We are also planning a trip to a super fun vintage store and hope to let you in on the shopping experience and all the treasures we find. In the mean time here are some photos of the cousins.
Elly!
Congratulations on winning the arrayed et adorned tie! And thanks to everyone who participated!
 The kids' wheat grass pots. I finally did it! I got the wheat grass planted just in time to hopefully be ready for our Easter table. I thought I should post about it sooner rather than later so that should you want some for your festivities, there may yet be enough time.
I was told the ideal time to plant is about fourteen days before it’s needed. Now I have never really grown grass, but assuming it works this is all I did: soil enough to fill desired planters and some wheatberries. I bought mine in the bulk section at our grocery store but I think craft stores sell them too. They need and like a lot of sun. Then just spritz everyday with a spray bottle to keep moist.
Obviously a simple project that my kids have been waiting to do ever since I put it on the calendar. They enjoyed it and it took all of about ten minutes.
 I think we'll set some colored eggs in the grass.
 This is my sweet little juicer that I scored at an antique store. It was so pretty that I just wanted it to sit on my shelf. Happily, though, I also use it. I have been wanting to try out a lemon pound cake ever since I began anticipating spring. The problem being that Eric and I couldn’t possibly finish a whole pound cake between the two of us but we had guests and so I finally got to make one.
Perhaps the real reason for wanting to make a lemon pound cake is that I get to use my zester and my little juicer. The juicer I found at an antique store and thought it was so adorable that I couldn’t resist buying it. It is true that a fork works just as well to juice a lemon, but why use a fork when you could do it so much more beautifully? I think that every kitchen should be equipped with these two tools.
Served with fresh strawberries, whipped cream, and lemon curd, the pound cake was all I had hoped for and more. It was quintessentially spring. (I more than doubled the lemon zest that went into the cake and it was perfect.)
 Perhaps a lovely Easter gift? I think these are positively adorable and since I have four little guys I have a wonderful excuse to get all of them. What little boy wouldn’t want to ride an alligator or tame a zebra or elephant? Anwyn is more into the blue spotted pony.
 I think Fox might just have wavy hair.  He has always had a bit of a cowlick.
 Fox at six months
I was told by someone that I have not posted nearly enough pictures of Fox. So here they are.
 Anwyn kindly modeled my new branch necklace.  I'm thinking this will be perfect with a white tank or t-shirt. This is my bit of spring I can wear now without freezing. I’m excited for my spring wardrobe to come out. Usually what happens is that the weather teases me for about a week, and I think that winter is over so I pull out all my spring things just in time for the temperature to drop about ten degrees and I am left freezing cold and wishing for a thick wool sweater that has now been packed away. But boy I sure look like it should be spring!
So, I am making myself wait and to tide myself over until then I have magazine clippings all over my walls of tanks and cardigans in navy, red or buttery yellow stripes because more than anything I want to add stripes to my closet. The fault is all Coco’s.
This past weekend, my mom, sister and I watched Coco before Chanelwhich I thought was a perfectly delightful movie (though I think Caitlin thought it got to be a bit slow.) In one scene, Coco is dressed in fisherman’s stripes and that was it. I have been seeing and dreaming stripes ever since. Really, who wouldn’t want to be as classy as Coco?
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