Flowers for Friday

With its soft yellow and pink face, this orchid reminds me of the singing flowers in Alice in Wonderland.  When I pass by the lovely blooms in our entryway, I secretly hope I'll catch them humming along.

Nightly Rituals

Now that my sweet baby has been a part of our lives for almost a year, my husband and I find ourselves carving out time for solitude (or "coupletude") in the evening hours. Always one to embrace little rituals, our baby has made me even more devoted those moments throughout the day where I can recharge my proverbial batteries.  When I allow myself time and space to think and dream, I am a more fun and energetic mom, a more devoted wife and a more passionate teacher.  I try not to underestimate the value of an evening doing exactly what I want.

Pink Frenchie's Favorite Things

Every Christmas season, Oprah produces a magazine and an entire show dedicated to her favorite things---the goodies, some grand, some ordinary, that she will be giving during the holidays.

Oprah I am not, but I have gathered a few of my own favorite things to share with you. (spoiler alert: if you are Pink Frenchie's mother or mother-in-law you may want to skip this post...it is kind of like peaking into Santa's bag)

MarieBelle Aztec Hot Chocolate
Decadent chocolate with a touch of chili spice, this hot cocoa mix is made of bits of actual chocolate.  Hardly your average Swiss Mix powder, this blend produces a deeply rich and flavorful beverage befitting a cold winter day by the fire.

Fabulous Collecting: Displaying Treasures

Admit it, we all collect something: rock records or vintage photos, jadeite or jewelry.  What you collect doesn't really matter, that's your prerogative; but it's the art of collecting and cataloging that seems inherently human and completely universal.  That urge to cultivate your distinctive, eccentric "thing" and to look for that "thing" at flea markets and to proudly display those "things" in your home.

But, mention your collection to a designer and she might just cringe.  The mere word "collection" conjures up images of grandma's rows and rows of kewpie dolls or Aunt Verna's penchant for porcelain cats. However, integrating a collection into a room can be done stylishly.   Collections show your personality and tell a fabulous story about you and your many adventures. 

Flowers for Friday

"The violets in the mountains have broken the rocks." Tennessee Williams

Almost every Friday, as many of my faithful readers know by now, I indulge in a bunch of whichever flowers are freshest.  For a mere eight or ten dollars, I enjoy at least a week of delightful blooms.  Today I discovered petite lavender calla lilies and freesia at Trader Joe's. As they sit in a trio of my favorite little vases, I am taking in the sweet floral aroma of this simple weekly pleasure. 

Take a Little Trip: Baja

This weekend, rather than lounging by the pool or celebrating the fourth with fireworks, we spent the holiday in Mexico.  Yes, this was not exactly a patriotic spot, but our visit proved to be a fun-filled getaway nonetheless. 

Destinations like Cozumel or Mexico City or Oaxaca probably top the list of Mexico's tourist sites.  So, when I discovered that our weekend cruise stopped in Ensenada, I wasn't expecting a transformative travel experience---I was wrong. 

How to Survive a Case of the Mondays

Mondays. Bleck. Few words in the English language elicit as much disdain as "Monday." 

So, when you have a big-time case of Office Space-style Mondays, here are some of my go-to survival tips:

Fix your hair.  Mondays + bad hair day = inevitable crankiness.  Take a little extra time to blow-dry and curl and fluff your locks.  I assure you, if your hair looks like a Pantene ad, you'll feel much more eager to greet the day. 

Green Goddess

In honor of Earth Day, I wanted to share some of my favorite "green products." While I'm not a full-on green-freak, I do try to choose products that are friendlier to the sky and the sea and my lungs. You will be surprised to discover that not only do these products clean just as well, but they smell fantastic and most of them are at the same price point as your regular ole' cleaners.

Kitchen Must-haves

Without these superior kitchen implements, I would surely exist on mac and cheese. Each of these goodies makes my culinary adventures far more pleasant and more efficacious:

• Le Creuset Dutch Oven: ideal for simmering chili low and slow or pan searing pork medallions & so easy to clean
  
• Silpat: ensures perfectly baked cookies and pastries that don't stick
• Lemon squeezer: sensational at getting every last drop out of your citrus fruits (lemon drop, anyone?)
  
• Microplane: grate nutmeg, a block of Parmesan, or even garlic with ease
  
• Henckels chef's knife: the perfect knife for almost anything

Design Peeves

I read more interior design magazines than I'd like to admit. Consequently, I have developed a few design pet peeves that just ruffle my feather pillows:

• unburned "display" candles: burn your candles, people---from what I hear, wax is not waning
  
• "karate-chopped" throw pillows: some designers do this thing wherein they give the couch pillows a chop with one hand to make them look more lived-upon...however, the result is not coziness but rather judo-chic
  
• lack of personal touches: who wants to live in an interior design museum? add photographs and memories from your adventures throughout your space to remind yourself and your guests that you live there
  
• collections: if you have 44 Aunt Jemimas, let's keep that little secret to yourself
• impractical furniture: cuteness should rarely trump comfort (exception to this rule: super cute shoes)
• cluttered bookshelves: make your bookcases aesthetically pleasing---group books by size, shape or even color and be sure to add in non-literary elements like vases, sculptures, or picture frames to break up the monotonyimage from Apartment Therapy
  

Spring into Florals

Now that March is going out like a lamb, the quickest way to shift your wardrobe from the black and gray winter blah into springy splendor is to add a touch of floral.

How to wear floral prints without looking like your grandmother's couch:

• choose a print that fits your stature: don't wear gigantic poppies if you're 5'2'' or mini-rosettes if you're 6'
  
• select a print in a modern color palette
• cut and proportion are key: classically cut pencil skirts or structured sweaters look more sophisticated than flowy bohemian pieces
  
• only wear one floral item at a time
  
• if you're apprehensive of floral prints, play with floral-inspired accessories like ballet flats or scarves or jewelryall looks from JCrew
  

Ode to Ina

Oh Ina, the things you've taught me:

• orange tulips always perk up a bland table
• just because the food is homemade doesn't mean your friends have more fun at your party
• make something, fake something, assemble something
• when in doubt, add more butter
• a roasted chicken every Friday night can help your marriage last for 40 years
• no one ever drinks only one cocktail
• surround yourself with creative people
• food looks best on white plates
• learn a handful of classic recipes and then vary the ingredients to expand your culinary repertoire
  
• yes, more butter

Let them eat cake

Confession: I have a bit of an addiction. Cake stands. Yes, I should probably cut back, but cake-stands are oh so useful for making my chaotic collections of this-es and thats look purposeful and organized. While I've always admired those few funky folks who can pull off a minimalist aesthetic in their homes, I am a "more is more" kind of gal. So, cake-stands and trays and platters are my go-to trick for making order out of miscellany.


collage image borrowed from: http://abbyjean.typepad.com/style_me_pretty/images/2008/06/03/cake_stands.jpg

Tips and Tricks: The Cheaper Chic

My go-to relaxation technique is a hot bubble bath (perhaps with a little glass of vino). A few years ago, Oprah, as she tends to do, was raving about Lollia bubble bath. I immediately found a bottle of the luxuriously-scented bathtime treat. The bottle was elegant and chic while the bubble bath itself smelled of a delicate floral vanilla. After filling my tiny tub on a few occasions, I (and my AmEx) grew weary of the price tag and became determined to find a bubbly substitute. The result was part recycling, part re-purposing. After emptying one of my favorite bottles of Bonnie Doon Riesling (a tough job but someone had to do it), I rinsed it out and filled it with an inexpensive bubble bath. Target brand baby nighttime bath will fill the entire wine bottle and smells of subtle lavender. Top the wine bottle with a cork, and voilà, fanciness!

Tips and Tricks: Good Gadget

I make more quesadillas than your average cheese-loving gal. These gooey cheesy concoctions tend to be my "oh, no, I forgot to eat breakfast and now I'm ravenous" go-to lunch. Personally, I keep my quesadillas simple. Good flour tortillas (I love Guerrero), a sprinkling of Monterrey Jack a dollop of medium salsa...cooked with a touch of Pam in my sauté pan. I savor each bite with a nice slice of avocado (so that my lunch isn't entirely green-free).

Enough dreaming about cheese and get to the point already....!!! Well, my must-have gadget is my Zyliss, palm-held pizza slicer. This do-dad comes in handy in all sorts of unexpected ways. A quick panini or a loaf of foccacia, this gadget zips across most anything, making kitchen time oh so quick and oh so fun.

Goodies

I have always been one of those girls who stumbled through the rites of womanhood. I could never figure out how some of my peers in high school or college could just sweep on some eyeshadow and have a glorious smokey eye or dab on lip gloss and appear so dewy and lovely (they must have had older sisters!).

I have had so so so many beauty mishaps. One rainy and oh so humid afternoon in Tennessee, I discovered that the clear mascara I had applied to my eyebrows (to keep them neatly contained) was turning into a gooey gelatinous mess all over my forehead. More times than not, I've purchased the wrong color of foundation and/or concealer....yes, I know, ladies, "quelle horreur!" At these moments, I feel like I'd be better suited having my face done by the makeup artist for an off-Broadway production of Cats. Oy!

Suffice it to say, when I find some new goody that I adore, I want to share it with all my gal pals. So, without further adieu, my fave of the moment: Benefit's boi-oing!

This magic little palette is billed as "industrial strength concealer," and it lives up to this claim. When I look "tired" or "sick" or "the same way I do every morning," this wondrous stuff, with a swipe of my index finger makes me look refreshed (and way less grumpy.)