Drifting into 2011

 I took an unexpected break last week as we headed down to Ojai, Disney, Santa Barbara and Monterey. It was pretty spectacular and also exhausting and now I've got a little cold. I'm looking forward to sharing a bit from our road trip but it may be slow-going for the next couple of days. Hope you are all well. For now, there's an orange lady chilling with my name on it that I had better be well enough to tackle by Friday.

Dressing me up and a winner

My husband travels a lot. His job takes him all over the world and even though Emerson and I are very often invited to join him we usually opt to stay home and stick with our daily schedules. Last week, just as he boarded a flight to NYC - a trip I painfully declined, he texted the following: "Any more LADY stores you'd like me to visit?" This in response to his last trip to New York when I requested a surprise from Purl Soho. The experience was a little overwhelming for him but he did return with some beautiful cashmere yarn and several scarf patterns. I'm waiting for a playdate with with Melissa so she can teach me how to cast on.

I reminded him of my new favorite store that we discovered on Newbury Street in Boston last month. They only have locations in New York and Boston and I was dying over everything - mind you, I'm not a big shopper so this was a rare experience for me. He returned with the cutest new dress from Pinkyotto. It's a little bit baby doll which brings me right back to the mid-90s, and has box pleats in the front and damn if I'm not a fool for a good pleating. It's my all-time favorite embellishment. It's worth noting that my wedding dress had a box pleat on each hip and that, combined with an asymmetrical neckline sold me and remains my most loved item of clothing.

He also brought home the new Tales of the City novel. And talk about bringing me back to the mid-90s? This series and every novel by Jacqueline Suzann kept me company during some seriously lonely college days.

And speaking of my husband, he's been making his rounds about the blogosphere. Check out Forbes.com for some big thoughts on why America seems to lack the ability to think of and accomplish big things. Then head over to Practically Green for some tips on how to have a green Christmas.

And finally - a winner. Lucky number 8! Michelle from Pretty Mommy will receive my succulent photo. I so appreciated all the very thoughtful comments and I wished I had multiple copies to send to all of my lovely bloggy friends. I'm thinking of investing in a very high-quality printer and in that case, succulents for everyone! Oprah-style. Stay tuned.

Manju for you

Are your taste buds burnt on sugar cookies, yet? I'm officially done with the holiday sweets. My girlfriend, Kimi, introduced me to manju, a Japanese confection, many years ago. On Saturday she met me in Japantown and ordered a few favorites from Shuei-Do Manju Shop to take home.

It was rainy and cold so our trip was quick, but she's promised a walking (and by walking I mean eating) tour of San Jose's Japantown in the spring. You can bet I'll be reporting back on noodles, candies and more manju. Because I cannot get enough of these yummies.

P.S. Don't forget about my little giveaway. Leave a comment today. I'll be picking a winner at random tomorrow morning.

Summer rain and a giveaway

We're in the process of transforming a bedroom into a home office. I need a quiet and inspiring place to work now that I am officially a freelancer. A fresh coat of paint has made a huge difference. I'm looking forward to finally hanging my grandmother's hand-embroidered map of France, once I can figure out how to frame it properly. This week, I was happy to finally frame one of my own favorite photographs. I took this shot in our backyard after a much-needed summer rain a couple of years ago.

I couldn't decide on the size and in the end this 9x14 ended up being the perfect fit for just above my monitor. That leaves me with an 11x17 print that I would love to gift one of my lovely bloggy friends. I don't suppose anyone would like to ring in the new year with a copy of my summer rain succulent? Leave a comment by Midnight on Monday and tell me where you would hang it. I'll pick a winner at random.

Aebelskivers will make you happy

Stay with me, friends. I'm not usually one for kitchen gadgets that only get used once a year. i.e. you will not find a turkey fryer in my house. But a special pan that makes pancake-like balls full of deliciousness? Well, that's just a kitchen essential. I give you the best recipe for Aebelskivers you will ever try. Thanks to Michelle's holiday recipe exchange I made these for dinner this week.

Aebelskiver: A traditional Scandinavian dessert, Aebelskivers are a close relative of both crepes and pancakes. (Recipe via Sur La Table - where I bought my Aebelskiver pan. Best investment of my married life).

Ingredients:
4 eggs, separated
4 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted
Grated lemon peel (to taste)
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cardamom

Fillings:
Cream cheese
Jam (I vote apricot every time)
Nutella

Makes about 25 cakes.

Instructions:

In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar and melted butter. Add lemon peel and buttermilk. Stir well. Add flour, baking soda and cardamom. Stir until smooth.

In a separate bow, beat the egg whites until they are stiff. Fold the egg whites into the batter until they are just incorporated.

Heat up the pan to a medium hot and brush each cup with melted butter. Fill the cups half-full with batter. Cook for a couple minutes, watching for bubbles as you would with pancakes.

Here's the best part. Add a teaspoon of your favorite filling. I cannot recommend a combination of apricot jam and cream cheese enough. You might also want to fill a couple others with straight nutella. Trust me here. These are taste combinations you do not want to miss out on in your lifetime.

Then add another spoonful of batter to cover your filling and flip each little ball over. This will not be pretty, nor will you feel at all graceful. Don't worry. Use a couple spoons to get the job done. Let them cook for another minute and then serve them up with a sprinkling of powdered sugar and some pure maple syrup. Careful not to scorch your taste buds with the molten hot filling.

I recommend you get your group of friends together and invest in one Aebelskiver pan. Collectively, you'll probably only use it a few times a year but those meals will be memorable and they are best shared with people who have little shame in the way of food-freak-outs. Because these are that good.

A daily reminder

"Nothing can bring you peace but yourself."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

I take in this quote at least twice a day. It's usually the first thing I look at in the morning and that last thing before switching off the light. The magnet was a gift from my father to my daughter in honor of her namesake and it's a constant reminder for me of one universal truth.

It's been a healthy lesson for me to learn (again and again) that our children, especially, are not responsible for our happiness. I like that it rests over one of my favorite baby photos of Emerson, a human who has filled me with more joy than I thought possible and has also brought me to my knees with frustration and despair more times than I would like to admit.

Back in those early days, I would catch myself rubbing her little bald head - soothing my own silent panic over the enormity of new parenthood. Last week, we were reading books on the couch and she asked me what I was doing to her belly. I had been rubbing her tummy. Subconsciously comforting myself over the realization that this ridiculous job of watching over another life was something I willingly signed up for. It's amazing how much power a small human can hold.

In other news, I've been a bad blogger. Tomorrow I will wrap up Michelle's holiday recipe exchange and I had good intentions of promoting the heck out of the other ladies who were participating. Clearly, that didn't happen. Do check out the complete list at Pretty Mommy and come back here tomorrow for a recipe that just may change your life.

There: Some deep thoughts and a little hyperbole for your Wednesday.

Alter ego

In my vast imaginary life I'm wearing this chic little number while working at my home office below. Nothing that touches my body comes from Target and I drink my coffee french press style or not at all. How about you? Do you occassionally work out a completely alternative existance for yourself?

I discovered Janet Hill's lovely paintings through Wide Open Spaces. Her shop has me really wishing I could afford more original art in my life. That may need to be a New Year's goal for 2011.

Small pleasures

I pulled up to Emerson's daycare last night and sat frozen in my car for a full five minutes. There was just no turning away from this sky. Nature creates the most amazing things (when we pay attention.) Hope you are sailing through your week with ease and grace.

P.S. Have you been following along with Coco and Kelley's gift guides? I think they are the best around. Personally, I'd love every one of the items on today's post.

Extra sprinkles, please

So, about that whole "Christmas can suck it" thing I mentioned a while back...yeah. Turns out, Christmas with a toddler has the power to turn a coal-shaped heart to a puddle of hot cocoa. Dare I say, the spirit has taken hold?

We baked sugar cookies from scratch and it was fun. Emerson got to use her mini rolling pin. So we can check that off her life list.

We attended my home-town holiday parade, where Emerson got to see her two favorite things up close, in color. A train and a yellow school bus.

I got to drink champagne before lunch.

It was a winning weekend all around.

Light it up

I broke the hell down. There is a tree in my house. And a chocolate advent calendar. And someone had her first candy cane last week. So, as Emerson says at every opportunity "Merry Smissmas!"

However, we've made our holiday escape plan and it involves a visit to Ojai. I've been dying to go for a few years and would love to hear any and all recommendations. We'll be packing up the car "Vacation" style so I'm also open to your must-see stops along Highway 1 from SF to LA.

Happy weekend, friends.

A gift from me to you

Image from MFAMB. The bedroom of my dreams.

You guys know Jenny, right? This post from Monday night is pretty much, single-handidly getting me through my week. It's so worth a read - unless, of course, you are easily offended by creative language. Then I would suggest you just focus on the pretty pictures.

It's Wednesday, friends. We're halfway there.

By the way, are you put off by the swears? I usually avoid them around these parts but in my real life I'm a bit of a drunken sailor. Now, do you still want to be friends with me?