I’m taking Pea to see The Nutcracker in SLC in a few weeks with one of her best friends from school, along with her mother. They are moving to Switzerland for two years. We are sad and will miss them very much. But this will be a celebration of sorts, and so we are going to get dressed up. But seeing as we don’t have many opportunities for fancy dress around here, I was not looking forward to dropping a wad on a one-time-only dress and shoes. But Pea has been begging me for a pouffy holiday dress. And so let me just give a big shout out of “thanks!” to good old Target for pulling through with quite the sophisticated selection. And machine washable, to boot! In fact, we scored so well for Pea that we threw in some dressy duds for little Coco, too. No red velvet, no white faux fur trim. Phew.

And if you’re into knitting, I’m completely obsessed with these two patterns: the first is a to-die-for sweater that you will put on and never, ever want to take off. The second is the most fabulously chic sleeveless-tunic-sweater-type thing. Only way cooler. So cool that there just aren’t really words to adequately describe how fantastically gorgeous this particular piece of clothing is. Both patterns were purchased on Etsy. Both were a steal.

And as we start to prepare to head up to Vancouver, B.C. for some time with my husband, who will be relocating there for six weeks to cover the Olympic games this winter, I took it as a golden opportunity to finally get my girls their passports. Which I know that I do not technically have to do. But I figured, why not? Just get it done. Pretend that Canada requires a U.S. passport for entry for a minor child and just get this tediously tortuous process of passporting the girls crossed off of my To Do List. And of course, it’s a great excuse to find them the most adorable passport covers ever, right? Which would be vinyl. Holds up well. And pink. Pea would have nothing less. And from Etsy. Support handmade, and all. Too adorable.

And Pea had her Thanksgiving feast with her fellow pre-K classmates this week, and we were assigned ’soup.’ I went out on a limb and made curried pumpkin-apple soup, and I can honestly say it was a decent hit with the four-to-five-year old contingent. I ladled each kid’s serving into an individual glass jar (risky? I wasn’t sure, but it turned out fine in the end…) that you’d use for canning preserves to make the commute from our home down the mountain to Pea’s school effortless. It involves many speed bumps and was bound to be a disaster, but worked out well and was actually pretty charming as an overall vessel for serving the soup. I opted to go without spoons and let the kids sip it out of their little jars. And the parents went nuts over what was remaining, always a good sign. And you have to love it when the room mother takes home five servings for her family. Flattery will get you everywhere with me. I think we’re going to add the soup to our Thanksgiving Day menu this week. We’ve never done soup before. Why not?

Which brings me to this last bit of information: hurry on down to your local grocery and buy up some canned pumpkin if you plan on making anything using canned pumpkin for the holidays this year. My husband heard a story on NPR last week that whatever canned pumpkin you see on the shelves at your local grocery? That’s all you’re going to see this season. There’s something wonky with the pumpkin crops or something, and what you see is what you get. I ran out and bought several huge cans of the good stuff as soon as I heard. No way I’m risking a Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie. It would haunt me for the coming year…

Good luck!

I went with the pink and orange swirl invitations, so at least I knew what my color scheme would be. And when her husband saw the invitation and proclaimed “we love orange and pink together!” I knew that I was on the right track.

And since this is a shower for baby #2, I didn’t feel the need to get into the real baby shower extravaganzas that we’re all familiar with when we’re pregnancy with our first. No diaper cakes, pin the diaper on the baby, etc. I opted to keep it low-key. A brunch. But being that I adore a good project, I had to throw something in there that would get our creative juices flowing. I had a few ideas floating around in my head. In the end, it came down to a tie between picture frames and onesies. I let Pea choose. She went with the clothes. But more on that later…

A quick trip to Target garnered quite a bunch of goodies that fit in perfectly with the overall shower’s look. As the centerpiece, I went with a pink storage bin with a chalkboard front on it. Obviously, something the new parents will find handy in the coming days, once it’s life as a centerpiece has come and gone. It can be used as a portable diaper caddy (loaded up with diapers, wipes and cream), or for toys or books. See? The gift that keeps on giving. And then, I loaded it up with 20 Circo onesies. (I went with the all-white 5-packs, one in each size: 0-3 months, 3-6 months, 6-9 months and 9-12 months.) Centerpiece / project: I rolled the onesies up, one at a time, and tied a pink bow around them. On the chalkboard, I wrote “Design a Onesie.” And then in two little pails, I threw in some fabric markers and glitter fabric pens. I’ve used this activity at all of the showers I’ve hosted, it’s always been a huge hit. It brings people out of their shells, and it garners the new mom an additional however-many onesies (one per guest) that she’s going to need. Don’t you remember those first months? Ten outfit changes a day? (The Circo onesies are far better than the Gerber ones, which I’ve always found to be too tiny to begin with, and then shrink additionally. Bringing me to my next tip – launder the onesies first, then roll ‘em up.)

The menu is simple. Since it’s brunch, I went with two stratas… One vegetarian and the other Italian-style, with bacon. These are brilliant because you can prep them the night before, leave them in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours, and then cook them off the morning of the event – they generally take about one hour, and they can feed an army. Then we’re having individual berry cups with Limoncello yogurt dollops (homemade and so easy, but always sure to impress), assorted breads (as in banana, zucchini, store-bought) and then Izze sodas and bottled waters. For the sodas, I went with the Clementine and the Pomegranate flavors, so that I could stay with the overall pink and orange theme. A minor detail, but so charming, I think. Pea and I spent the morning rolling up orange plastic-ware in orange napkins and tying pink bows around them.

I’m giving the mom a pair of adorable pink and orange polka-dotted pajamas and a frame in pink and orange that Pea made, with a photo of her son in it (he and Pea are classmates and destined for marriage, according to her son).

The whole thing, from grocery store to Target and all points in between, and home again, prepped and loaded into the car, took about 6 hours. And I’m so tickled with how it all turned out. I really think that simple is the way to go. I wish I could post some photos, camera is still M.I.A. But I’m sure to get some shots tomorrow, and will pass them along.

Happy weekend!

But since moving to Utah, I scarcely go. We’re talking maybe every three or so months, I will pop in. The last time we went, as a family, was last Saturday, to load up on supplies for Coco’s birthday party. And as I was whizzing through the aisles, in a rush to get what we needed, get out and get to the airport to pick up my mother-in-law, I ran past a sole pitcher by Orla Kiely. It’s strong, simple, sleek and natural-looking. It’s perfect. Just perfect. And it called my name. But in my rush to get out of the store, I ignored it.

Bad move.

I dreamt about that pitcher all weekend. I looked at pictures of it on Target’s website. It’s out-of-stock at every store within a 50-mile radius of our home. And it’s not for sale on the Target website. And so, I headed back into SLC this morning to pick it up. And it was gone. Gone.

Sigh.

But while I was there, I did come across the last remaining pair of these Mossimo sandals in my size. Sure, they were black and not my preferred brown, but at $14.99, I snagged them. Quickly. These shoes are a near-perfect knock-off of a pair I had years ago, bought at Barney’s in NYC. Only Target’s version costs about twenty times less than the pair from Barney’s. That are long since gone. But not forgotten. And then, for another $12.99, I snatched up this clutch wallet in bright orange. To replace my $250 Commes des Garcons wallet that has turned out, after barely six months, to be an overpriced piece of not-at-all-well-made crap. And lastly, these little pink gladiator sandals for Pea and these little butterfly sandals for Coco. Because even though it is a veritable blizzard out there right now, summer is just around the corner.   

And I learned a lesson: must check Target out monthly. Because otherwise, I am missing out…

(Oh, and in case you’re interested, you can order the Orla Kiely pitcher off of the Target website via Amazon. I have no idea why. But you can. And I’m ordering mine. Now. I’m not missing out on it again.)

Cooking has been the furthest thing from my mind. No appetite, no desire to be around food, hence no cooking.

We keep a pretty well-stocked kitchen, and yet the supplies are starting to dwindle. I just can’t bring myself to meal plan, get to the store, stock up. So creative meal preparation has become key. While trying to figure out what to make with some interesting and varied pantry ingredients, I stumbled across Supercook, and it’s kind of a cool find. It’s a search engine that trawsl the internet searching for the answer to your culinary dilemma. Recipes return via the likes of RecipeZaar, all recipes and, my personal favorite, epicurious.

Plug in as many ingredients as you can, those that you have on hand, and it spits back a comprehensive list of recipes that you actually have all of the ingredients for… and then you can search them according to dish type: entree, side, or dessert. Not bad.

My husband gave our first meal, prepared courtesy of a Supercook’s suggested recipe, a thumbs up, so I’m satisfied. And I was able to use up a couple of ingredients that I was pretty sure would eventually be tossed, past their expiration date, unused.

I guess you’d call that a win-win.

She has a website now, called “Goop (unfortunate name, right?).” I’m not really certain why she has this site. A public service, perhaps? To teach the rest of us how to live a fabulous life? You know I’m all about that, right? And Gwyneth does seem like someone who has it all “together.” So I’m buying.

I periodically receive emails from the site. I guess I’d signed up for them quite a while ago, when there was no content, and then out of the seemingly blue, I started getting some interesting items: recipes, style tips. But my favorite email thus far has been this week’s, on cleansing and detoxing your body.

My friend L is starting the Master Cleanse on Monday. And she wanted me to do it with her (misery loves company, right?). I thought to myself, “hey self, let’s start the new year off with a cleansed and detoxed body.” And then I checked it out. It’s that creepy cleanse that requires you to live for two weeks on something like lemon juice, cayenne pepper and maple syrup. Really? Can you even survive 2 weeks on that liquid diet? There was no way I was going to agree to suffer though that with L. I actually like food. But I thought about the idea of a cleansing of my system, and it started to sound like a pretty good idea to me. I’ve been overindulgent this holiday season. I’ve put on a few. I’ve actually found myself unbuttoning my jeans as I sit down at the dinner table. And the very next day, I checked my email to find the cleansing and detox plan from Gwyneth (originating from her doctor), and it seemed like more than a coincidence. It seemed fortuitous. The actual plan does not seem to be up on her website yet, which I am finding very irritating, but if you sign up for her newsletter, I’m sure you’ll see it in your inbox this week. It’s definitely worth taking a look at, if you’re interested in cleansing your body of 2008 and preparing it 2009.

So, I begin the cleanse on Monday. It looks manageable. Not much cruelty, really. It’s really the way that I should be eating in the first place, you know? If I had a personal chef, and all. Just kidding. It’s doable, for sure. My husband even signed on. I’ll let you know how it goes…

Some thoughts on the topic…

For the reader, particularly of current-day mysteries, all five books in Patricia Highsmith’s “Ripley” series. Campiest read ever. A kind of retro mystery, surrounding a man of much manipulation. Yes, it’s the same series that spawned Matt Damon in the role of Ripley, but don’t let that throw you off. The Ripley of the books is a debonair cad who unapologetically enjoys the finer things in life. And will do anything to get them.

For the writer, Moleskine notebooks. I can never have enough of these. Never, ever, ever. Small ones in my bag, large ones on my desk at home. I use them for everything, and have never crossed paths with someone who either didn’t know what they are, or wasn’t interested in owning one. These are the penultimate books of the likes of Hemingway (Hemingway!) and Picasso (Picasso!).

For the proper lady with the to-die-for manners, I’d always go with monogrammed correspondence cards from iomoi. Preppy. Trendy. Classic Or just plain cool. They’re all here.

For the foodie in your life, just about anything from Zingerman’s is going to delight. I’ve sent many gifts from this Michigan “deli,” and get immediate calls asking where on earth did I find these amazing breads? Because they are the best ever.

For the chef, these adorable Matryoshka measuring cups are perfect. So much fun, perched on the countertop. And functional, as well. Add a shot of color to someone’s life, a bit of whimsy with these.

For someone into home design, or the lives of the young and fabulous, I highly recommend “Bright Young Things,” the American version (there is also an English version). It’s several years old, but still so pertinent in regards to home design (and fashion, as well). I still pull this book out of my own stack of design books to get inspiration from it’s pages. I even gave this book to my own mother a few years ago. She’s a designer who has a library of design books to rival no other. And she adores this book. Finds constant inspiration in it’s pages, as well.

For the beauty addict, a subscription to “New Beauty (my current obsession, and I promise it is not all about plastic surgery, not by a long-shot… an impressive list of ‘judges’ and beauty product recommendations that I’ve found to be quite helpful),” and this little gift pack by Nars, of their best-selling “Orgasm” shade of multiple stick (love these!) and coordinating gloss. This color is incredible for anyone. I’ve seen so many different skins wear the original blush, and it looks different, but natural on all. This has been a staple in my make-up bag, on and off, for years. And I always make my way back to it.

For those who have everything with kids who have everything: a membership to just about anywhere. A local museum. The zoo. The Discovery Center. It doesn’t really matter, as long as it’s a place that they can visit together. As a family.

More thoughts on the subject, as the holiday shopping days are slowly (and quickly) counting down.

Tomorrow? Gifts for kids.

I ordered one last year, and I’m telling you, once you eat a Willie Bird, you will never, ever go back. This turkey was unsurpassed. And I’ve had a lot of turkey in my day. Thanksgiving is my most favorite holiday of the year. I take it very seriously. I won’t let anyone else cook it. I just can’t. Control freak? Perhaps. But trust me, you’d love to eat at our home on Turkey Day. The smell of burning leaves in the air. A roaring fire in the fireplace. The sounds of a football game in the background. It is definitely the best holiday of the year.

You can still order one of these, if you haven’t already placed an order at your local market. You have until noon (PST) of the 21st to place your order, in fact. And if you order through Williams-Sonoma, as I did, they guarantee you will have your very own Willie Bird on your doorstep no later then the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.

A few of my favorite cold weather items, to keep me (and my kids) toasty warm in our home…

Flor tiles at our back doors. It’s the entrance for our dogs from the wet backyard, and I can’t figure out how to keep it clean. Since I’m not one for mopping on a daily basis, I really wanted something that would look good and be easy to clean. I’d always turned up my nose at Flor tiles, but you know what? These things are awesome. They are indestructible. They catch the muddy footprints. And when a square or two get trashed, I just toss them away and replace with new ones. No more ‘disposable’ rugs for us.

Sheepskin rugs for the girls. I bought one of them, custom, from a little shop on Etsy, but then a flabbergasted reader left a comment that they have them at Ikea! For 20 bucks! And while 1) I am fairly new to the joy that is Ikea, and 2) the Ikea sheepskins are smaller than the one that I bought, and 3) while there is a $20 sheepskin, there is also a larger one (go for the white) for just under $50, which is about what I paid for the one I bought from Etsy, so really, it’s a wash. I did go ahead and buy another one the last time I was there. I was so tired of listening to my girls fighting over the sole sheepskin. Now, they both snuggle up on their respective rugs, which brings me to my next favorite…

Classic family movies. Think “The Sound of Music,” and “Mary Poppins.” I couldn’t wait to have kids old enough to watch these, and now that I do, bring them on! With a big bowl of movie-butter flavored popcorn. Individually portioned out, of course.

Ikea’s Unni Virka throw blankets, stacked up on the end of a sofa. Eventually, the snowy weather outside that is so delightful now is going to turn grey and dreary and endless. These colorful blankets will add life to those days.

I am loving Steven’s Gourmet Hot Cocoa in Belgian Dark Chocolate. Delicious. I’m not much for milk chocolate, but I hoard dark chocolate. Chances are, you can find this at your local grocery.

And to keep us warm on the inside, too, Bear Creek Chili mix. I have a wonderfully delicious homemade chili recipe from Canyon Ranch Spa that is incredible. But sometimes, in a pinch, I want something hearty and tasty that doesn’t involve chopping vegetables. All you need for the Bear Creek mix is a can of tomato paste to make this chili mix work. I always throw in one pound of ground turkey meat (already cooked) for extra flavor. You’d never know this wasn’t homemade, and the best thing is? It cooks up in 20 minutes. I find mine at the grocery, I’m sure you can, too.

And lastly, nothing says warm and cozy days inside while it’s blowing blustery winds outside then library books! My newest discovery! I don’t know what took me so long. Well, yes, I do. As a kid, I was tormented with trips to the library, and would always refuse to take a book out. Because sometimes? There were gross things stuck to the pages, and my little mind imagined the worst. Boogers. But now that I’m a mom, I’m not afraid of a little booger.

I prepare whatever noodles we have in the pantry. And after draining them, I toss them back into the pan, where I mix them up with a few small pats of butter. I then add some Pasta Sprinkle (which I think should be a standard in everyone’s kitchen), from The Spice House, and some shredded or grated (fresh) Parmesan-Reggiano cheese. I am not kidding, this tastes like the world’s quickest Pasta Alfredo, and the girls think it’s the world’s best mac ‘n cheese. Even my husband gobbles it up…

Pea is in a new culinary phase, after making us all suffer through a short-lived (thank God!) phase of wanting nothing but the orange mac & cheese. She wants to taste everything. For lunch, since my husband is home for the week, I wanted the entire family to eat together. So I threw some whole grain pasta in a pot and whipped up a turkey red sauce. From scratch. Not the first time I’ve done that, but it’s the first time I’ve done that and really thrown caution to the wind. In addition to the turkey meat and the obvious crushed and diced tomatoes, sauteed onions and garlic, I threw in cannellini beans, for an extra-added health punch. And Pea? Although she adores white beans? Was not all that thrilled to see them in her red sauce. But she tasted it. And her eyes, no kidding, grew wide with surprise. And then, delight. She loved it.

And as she was finishing her meal, she explained, or rather lectured, on the importance of trying new things, because otherwise, “how do you know if you like something if you don’t try it first? And anyway, you need to eat good food to be strong and play at the park with the big kids.”

Pea is also into the ‘manners’ phase. We’ve been working on chewing with our mouths closed, putting a napkin on our lap, and asking to be excused from the table, politely, when we are finished eating. The words, “may I please be excused?” are music to this mother’s ears. And I will not apologize for loving it when kids have good manners. I don’t care how young or how old a kid is. It’s never too early (or too late) to introduce the simple basics: please, thank you, may I? (And let’s add adults to the mix, as well. Really, does anyone write thank you notes any more? Or send a hand-written invitation through the mail, rather than an evite via email? Or am I just that old-fashioned and behind-the-times?) My husband and I are diligently modeling this good behavior with one other, and Pea, a natural observer, is mimicking it, and it’s working. She’s not being forced into doing something she’s not ready for, my husband and I are re-schooling one another in proper manners, and we’re all setting a lovely example for little Coco. So, everyone wins.

Bottom line: trying new things is cool (so check out Epicurious for recipes like roasted winter squash with parsnips and almonds (healthy) and Porcupine Meatballs (the name alone should entice most children to the dinner table!). Good manners? Even cooler. But on top of that is the proverbial icing on the cake, as you can even add being ‘green’ to the mix. One Goodie, my favorite site for practical and stylish products (with those promo codes we all ‘google’ before placing an order on-line already built into the price) that help make parenting (and cooking!) a little more chic, is selling child-sized cloth napkins, called Fabkins. Pea is particularly fond of the Prima Ballerina set, and Coco, currently obsessed with butterflies, is loving the Garden Friends set. Child-sized cloth napkins with gorgeous little designs on them. Washable and reusable.