White Christmas

image via welcome back, oldtimer 

The sun is shining, the grass is green/The orange and palm trees sway/There's never been such a day/In Beverly Hills, LA/But it's December the 24th/And I'm longing to be up north/I'm dreaming of a white Christmas...

Immersion Blender

Finally used this to make an asparagus soup (it was a birthday present from September). It's kind of amazing. My new favorite kitchen toy!

Red Quinoa Salad

1 C red quinoa
2 C chicken or vegetable broth
1 can black beans
1 can corn kernels
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 C red onion, finely chopped
3/4 C Cilantro salad dressing
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
avocado
zest of 1 lime

Recipe via Trader Joe's (on the back of their red quinoa box). Thanks for the heads up, LM! It's kind of amazing...even if you can't pronounce "quinoa" hah!

Holiday Windows

images via Vanity Fair

It's after Thanksgiving...which means I'm officially allowed to start decorating for Christmas!  

Giving Thanks

Norman Rockwell's "Freedom from Want"

Heading south of the border, so here is my "thanks" a day early. Gobble gobble! xo
Eleven for 2011...
1. a home by the sea
2. a man that makes me laugh everyday
3. a family I'm proud of
4. lake walks
5. happy hour with coworkers
6. catch phrase
7. j.crew
8. dark chocolate covered acai berries
9. crisp fall days
10. cabernet sauvignon
11. Mitchell Creek, Glenwood Springs, CO

Thanksgiving Choices

OK, folks. I'm in charge of bringing an appetizer and a vegetable side to Thanksgiving dinner. Now I need your help to decide what to make! 


Appetizers:
Goat Cheese and Herb Stuffed Radicchio Leaves
Sundried Tomato Kebabs
Pizzettes with Caramelized Onions, Goat Cheese and Prosciutto 


Vegetable Side:
Pecorino Bean Salad
Roasted Potatoes, Carrots, Parsnips and Brussels Sprouts 
Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta


What do you think? Any other suggestions? 

The Getty

An incredibly (post-rain) clear day at the Getty! Yes, that's the Pacific. 

On Veterans Day

...Finally, that when you go to war, you assume that the lives of people in another country are not as valuable as the lives of your own countrymen. If we really believe, as our most fundamental moral principles demand we believe, that the children in other countries have as much right to live as our children, then we must refuse the call to war. It is time, by public demand, by general outcry, to end "the scourge of war" .

The best thing we can do for Veterans Day is to pledge: "No more war veterans".

Howard Zinn

A War Prayer

O Lord our Father, our young patriots, idols of our hearts, go forth to battle — be Thou near them! With them — in spirit — we also go forth from the sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the foe. O Lord our God, help us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells; help us to cover their smiling fields with the pale forms of their patriot dead; help us to drown the thunder of the guns with the shrieks of their wounded, writhing in pain; help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire; help us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing grief; help us to turn them out roofless with little children to wander unfriended the wastes of their desolated land in rags and hunger and thirst, sports of the sun flames of summer and the icy winds of winter, broken in spirit, worn with travail, imploring Thee for the refuge of the grave and denied it — for our sakes who adore Thee, Lord, blast their hopes, blight their lives, protract their bitter pilgrimage, make heavy their steps, water their way with their tears, stain the white snow with the blood of their wounded feet! We ask it, in the spirit of love, of Him Who is the Source of Love, and Who is the ever-faithful refuge and friend of all that are sore beset and seek His aid with humble and contrite hearts. Amen.


Mark Twain

What I want...

images via TKOW, RaB, MW

"Sexiness wears thin after a while and beauty fades, but to be married to a man who makes you laugh every day, ah, now that's a real treat..."

Joanne Woodward

A View Like This

image via TKOW

These last few weeks have felt incredibly overwhelming.  I would love to just get away for a few days and wake up to a view like this (can't you just feel the calm?).  For the moment, I'll just have to take an extra breath and wait it out. 

An Autumn Dessert

Cinnamon fudge via GDL!

French Women in Autumn

...are infinitely more stylish than I am!

image via Sartorialist

Tall Ships Festival

This was taken a few weeks ago, but I thought it was worth sharing! Moments like these remind me to stop, take a breath and appreciate all that surrounds me.

Happy Second Day of Autumn!

I was twenty-one years when I wrote this song.
I'm twenty-two now but I won't be for long
Time hurries on.
And the leaves that are green turn to brown,
And they wither with the wind,
And they crumble in your hand.

Once my heart was filled with the love of a girl.
I held her close, but she faded in the night
Like a poem I meant to write.
And the leaves that are green turn to brown,
And they wither with the wind,
And they crumble in your hand.

I threw a pebble in a brook
And watched the ripples run away
And they never made a sound.
And the leaves that are green turned to brown,
And they wither with the wind,
And they crumble in your hand.

Hello, Hello, Hello, Hello,
Good-bye, Good-bye, Good-bye, Good-bye,
That's all there is.
And the leaves that are green turned to brown.

Simon & Garfunkel

(This song is very seasonally appropriate...don't you think?)

Tent City

2009

2010

2010

2011

2010

2011

2010

It's become a tradition that every summer we create "tent city" at San Onofre State Beach. Spending all day on the sand and all night under the stars is really the best way to end the summer!

The end of one long summer...

image via thank you brooklyn

Today is Labor Day. It's the final holiday weekend of summer 2011. I would be on the beach soaking up every last ray of sunlight, but it's oddly stormy here in so. California. I kind of love it! I'm so very excited to start a new school year. It's been a very long summer, and I'm ready for my favorite season...fall!

Goat Balls!

These little guys were a hit and super easy! 

recipe via GDL

American Girl in Italy

image via Ruth Orkin

Read more about this image here.

Comfortable With Being Uncomfortable

So I've been marinating with this idea for a while now. I'm a bit embarrassed to admit, but I really started thinking about this after hearing a high school commencement speech in June. The student said, "Start being comfortable with being uncomfortable." Genius! This 17 or 18 year old kid pretty much described what it's like to grow (up). 

I can't tell you how many times I didn't do something because I was uncomfortable with it. Not uncomfortable because it was illegal or immoral, but uncomfortable because it was unfamiliar or its outcome uncertain. What I can tell you is that every major decision or action I've taken that has resulted in some type of growth was taken despite my discomfort. Moving to Europe. Signing up for that first yoga class. Student teaching. All decisions and actions taken despite unfamiliarity and uncertainty.


As I enter into this second quarter of life I find myself whispering, "be comfortable with being uncomfortable." It's the only way to grow!

Everything is Always Greener...

A few clips from a family trip to CO.

"The Dude"

Have you ever seen The Big Lebowski? It really is one of my all time favorites. I mean, you can't really go wrong with Jeff Bridges and John Goodman! For those of you who haven't seen this cult classic, Jeff Bridges plays a character called Jeffrey Lebowski (aka The Dude). Throughout the film, The Dude enjoys a few (or many) White Russian cocktails.

This recipe is actually inspired by a milkshake from Little Bigs in Houston, Texas. It's amazing!

two ounces Vodka

two ounces Kahlua

two scoops Vanilla Ice Cream

Blend and enjoy one-two servings of adults only delicious goodness.

"The Dude abides."

Surfboard Racks

New home improvement project: get the surfboards off the floor! Now the question is, what to put underneath them?

(ugh, these white walls are so blah)

Hand Embroidered

I'm in love with this pillow! I wish they had an Orange County dish towel.

image via catstudio

Thanks for the heads up, A Cup of Joe!

Legit

Patti McGee via Vanda Vintage

Happy Birthday Dodo

There's no one else I'd rather share a happy meal with!

I'm doing laundry and packing...exciting, eh? Well, it is exciting! The man and I are heading up north tomorrow. But, what's really exciting is why we're headed up north: my lifelong friend is getting married! So happy for you, K!

Farfalle Dish

E.V. Olive Oil + Garlic + Sausage + Flat Leaf Parsley + Farfalle + Romano = Yum!

ps: My new favorite kitchen tool is this little guy.

pps: Did you know farfalle is Italian for butterfly?

Summer Sand

image via trendy traveler

Some of my favorite summer moments are spent on the sand. Today is no exception...even if I'm a little sunburnt after an intense bocce match with friends!