wish i were there

fake pie

not helping in the bathing suit department:  my love of pie, even the fake kind.  and by fake, i mean this very delicious and super simple jam tart (also seen here).  in lieu of the lavender lemonade and buttermilk cookies i was dreaming of last friday, last weekend i ended up using some gifted homemade apricot jam (made by my talented jam-making sister-in-law) to make this tart.  and yup, my pie-denying husband actually indulged me and had a sliver or two, but left the rest to me.  oops.  but i can firmly say that this tart is delicious, and simple enough for a novice - i have never actually bitten the bullet and made my own pastry crust, so this was a good way to get my feet wet.

i did manage to make it to the hollywood farmer's market last weekend to pick up some lavender, so maybe i can make my lemonade tomorrow... tgif!

i also found some organic apriums at the market, one of my favorite fruit discoveries of late...  it all started with the delicious june taylor aprium conserve i purchased last winter at the sf ferry building, from the fabulous june taylor herself!  man, that jam is so good i wanted to eat it with a spoon.  (i think i actually did a few times, shhh...)  i had never heard of apriums before then, but apparently they are a hybrid of apricot (75%) and plum (25%), the inverse of the more common pluot.   i have been on the lookout ever since, and now they are finally in season!  the friendly farmer told me the uglier they are the sweeter they will be, hence the spotted specimens.

five stars, indeed.

what woman doesn't dread bathing suit shopping?  even the sleekest of us knows that the right suit can be elusive.  i haven't worn a one-piece since i was about 4 years old, i think, but there is no way i am flaunting my post-baby-extra-30 in a bikini, no siree.   but!  i live in southern california - so finding a bathing suit that i can brave the world in is a must.  I was browsing the suits on the anthropologie website, ridiculously hoping against hope to find the magical combination of full coverage + vintage chic + major boob support for the monsters i am currently saddled with when i noticed this suit...  which had TWENTY-TWO five star reviews.  wait, what?  few items on their site have that many reviews to begin with, much less a swim suit... and all positive?  so i began reading.  tales of miracles and magic abounded.  i couldn't believe it, so despite the $148 price tag, i placed an order, winging the size because i simply have no idea anymore...  well, it finally arrived this week (it was backordered for a month) and, after leaving it in the box to taunt me for a few days, i finally mustered up the courage to try it on.  SWEET BABY JESUS, it has all the magic and miracles that the good reviewers professed!  Here is a suit that can make my stretch-marked, post-baby, non-klum body look normal.  nay, decent!  i actually feel more confident in this suit than i did in any of the suits i have had over the last 10 years or so (most of which are from jcrew, which i do appreciate for their selection of d-cup styles), and at a much higher weight than i ever have been, believe it or not.  this is all hard to imagine, i know, but now i can look forward to a summer filled with trips to malibu wherin i actually expose my pale body on the sand before stopping on the way home at the new cafe habana for some delicious grilled corn...   or perhaps i will be taking a dip with cooper in marion davies' glamorous beachside pool- my new suit makes me look like an old-timey beach siren, lounging at coney island (oh, but the coney island of the time before people started wearing their underwear on the beach - a creepy observation i made about east coast beaches when i lived in new york.  blech.)  what a relief!

and in case you're interested, coop already has his beach apparel picked out... something more appropriate than what he wore the first time, though he didn't seem to mind: 

 

when he's ready:  a little tee from mollusk and some cute baggies from target!

 

a new favorite

i took the links on my sidebar down a long time ago, with the intention of updating them.  well, that didn't happen, and probably won't - probably because i've got 1000+ unread messages in my google reader, and i just can't keep track of all of the blogs i adore!  i'd like to share my newest favorite, though - coos and ahhs.  since i found out i was having a boy, i have been dismayed by the terrible options for boy's clothes and toys that are fun and cool, not corny/tacky/ridiculous.  why does every little boy need to be a "little slugger"?  what about the little boys that like art museums and indie rock?  well, coos and ahhs seems to agree, and fills that niche for me while saving me the trouble of hunting down all the good stuff.  i mean, really - sometimes i think i wrote the blog, since i agree with her on nearly everything.  and she lives in my old neighborhood!  bookmark her now, seriously!

when life gives you lemons...

man, do we have lemons.  our tree is abundantly overflowing, and everyday i look out the window and think, gee, i should make some delicious homemade lemonade or something...  you know, instead of being a lazybones and drinking the paul newman stuff we've got in the fridge.  so this weekend, i am determined to make it happen... ever since spring sprung, i've been harboring a fantasy of sitting somewhere shady in the backyard, sipping lemonade and eating some perfectly delicious cookies.  unfortunately, baby's been keeping me too busy to get around to it!

i first tasted lavender lemonade a few summers ago at the adorable cafe chloe in downtown san diego, and it was the most perfect, soothing-to-a-sunny-afternoon beverage i've ever had.  i loved it so much, that last time we drove down to visit my sister in del mar (when i was pregnant), i made my husband (see the oft white-t-shirted chap above) drive 30 minutes+ out of the way, just for a cup to sip on the ride home.  cafe chloe's isn't too floral - just right - so i hope i can find the perfect recipe...  there are a lot out there.  i think i'll give this one a try to start. (not sure why it needs to be pink, though, and do note the recipe comments that mention the difference in quantities for lavender flowers vs. leaves.)  as a backup, oprah's got a recipe, too.  oh, if only martha were here to help...  she would have the perfect recipe, if she had one.  well, i've got lemons for miles, so no worries on that front.

to accompany my perfectly soothing lemonade, a delicious cookie!  i am usually not one for lemon flavored sweets, but these buttermilk lemon zest cookies are so light and gentle and subtle and perfect, they won me over.  orangette's dreamy description inspired me to try this recipe out sometime last summer, and it's been too long since i've made them again.

so that's my dream for the weekend.  we'll see if i can get it together...

totes mcgotes

i searched high and low for a manly tool bag similar to this on hardware websites while i was pregnant, to no avail... nothing was quite right.  but finally, this is nearly exactly what i have been looking for to use in cooper's nursery!  it's the perfect container to store diapers on the changing table.  those side pockets are perfect for all the other miscellany lying around - creams, etc. - and it's only $35!  and made in the good ol' usofa, golly gee!  consider it done.

from the excellent hickoree's hard goods. 

happy mother's day

happy mother's day to all the strong mommas out there! 

i get it now more than ever, mom.  holy moly, this is hard work...

ps loving the life magazine tumblr, which holds this and other archive images up the wazoo.  too fun.

oh, hey there.

well, it sure has been a while.... but i've decided to reclaim this blog and expand my focus.  in the last year i went on a fantastic trip to greece, got pregnant, moved to a new place (which has a yard!) and gave birth to the aforementioned baby.  so, whoa.  my life is definitely in the midst of some major transition right now, and i think i'd like to use this space to cover not just my interest in all things travel related (i still dream of far-off adventures, don't worry), but also my day-to-day activities and family life.  so!  keep an eye out here for some self-indulgent exploration of very important topics, including gardening, cooking, crafting, pop culture, and baby fashion.  'cause that's where i am these days.