Snow Days!

Noting that the weather outside is and was very condusive to such events, I went to hang out with some friends at none other than the baseball stadium downtown. I have never been in a baseball stadium for non-baseball events before. It was slightly surreal, however, a great time for "kids". The tubing chutes were solid ice and quite fast. And I had to relearn, or rather semi-relearn, how to not fall down while attempting to ice skate. Where gravity and frictionless surfaces meet is always great winter fun! -A

Paris At Home Weekend #4

Re-creating Paris at home this past month has been so much fun that I am very tempted to do this again with another city. I already have one in mind. The last book I chose was called "Quiet Corners of Paris" by Jean-Christophe Napias which is a lovely little book with great photographs and descriptions. I thought it was great paired with a bottle of French wine to enjoy while paging through. It was the perfect close to a nice month and the Christmas weekend. - P

Merry Christmas!

Thanks to mom and Auntie Jo for making some of my favorites! Grandma's Potato Salad and her famous Potica (nut roll). Yummy. I hope everyone enjoyed the food, family, friends, and fun of Christmas. -A

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to everyone and hope you have a beautiful day spent with family and friends. - P

Late Christmas Eve

We had a full night of family parties and fabulous food. It is always nice to come home and admire our own holiday decorations while having a bit of dessert. P

Yoga on Christmas Eve

A and I started out our morning by meeting up at the local yoga studio. It was a tough class but a great way to start the morning before all the Christmas festivities. Has anyone else started their weekend off with a workout? - P

Paris At Home Weekend #3

We celebrated Paris at Home with another fun book called "Markets of Paris" by Dixon and Ruthanne Long. I also included a sparkling Eiffel Tower ornament for our Christmas tree. While we didn't actually have time to get to any local markets this past weekend we did get accomplish some Christmas shopping. Markets of Paris is a fun book highlighting all sorts of shopping venues in Paris including food, antiques, crafts, etc. Having visited Paris twice I realize I have missed so many shops and sights. I think I need to plan another trip there at some point soon. -P

Paris At Home Weekend #2

We celebrated Paris at home again this past weekend with a new book, "Patisseries of Paris" by Jamie Cahill. It's a cute little book documenting many of the more notable Patisseries in Paris. I didn't see the one we most frequented but it is a helpful little book with so many more I would like to try. I also bought a French Press which I thought made wonderful coffee. Our local grocery store was out of regular croissants so we settled for croissant rolls. :-) We also had a variety of cookies although none were Parisian treats but still yummy. My husband also surprised me with a bottle of Chambord and made me a a Kir Royal which I love and rarely drink at home. I think I will have it more often this winter. - P

Cooking With Star Wars

I couldn't resist buying these for a Christmas gift. How could you not have fun cooking with these? - P

Dashing Through the Snow...on a Bicycle?

I drove by this about three times before I actually stopped to take a picture of it. Love it! It is one of the Christmas decorations outside of a local pub. Now I am wondering if it is there all year and I just noticed it now that it has lights on it :) -A

Paris At Home Weekend #1

I am a little late posting about my first weekend celebrating Paris at home as it is Thursday. The first snow seemed to put a delay on everything I did this week. What I also thought was really fantastic was that Paris had a newsworthy snowstorm. The first book I gave to my husband that is French inspired was Julia's Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". Although he is already a wonderful cook I knew he would love the book. It also lead in to something he has wanted for ages, which is a Le Creuset's enameled cast iron french oven. I meant to buy this as his anniversary gift several months back but here it is. He used it right away and made Beef Burgundy, french bread, a french red, and of course Perrier. He topped the Beef Burgundy with guacamole and sour cream. It was the first day of snow and it was nice to have a delicious french meal at home. - P

Running in a Winter Wonderland

So the first week of accumulating snow also happens to be the week we registered for a half marathon in the spring. That, obviously involves training. Really? Really. Let's hope the enthusiasm to run through the snow does not wear off through the winter. -A

...and a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

I was just going through my rather small Christmas decoration collection and am very pleased with my discovery. I almost forgot all about these. My sister and I made them, probably when I was about 4 or 5 years old for my grandma. She would hang them on her fireplace mantel every Christmas. They are the twelve days of Christmas made from the plastic melty things. I haven't seen them around since they 80's - do they still exist, I loved that craft? Unfortunately grandma passed a couple years ago, but I am grateful my mom found them when going through her stuff before they sold the house. This is a great time to take a moment and remember those we've lost and the happy memories we've created along the way. Happy Holidays! -A

First Day of Advent

Today marks the first day of Advent. We started our day by opening the first window of the calendar I picked up at Trader Joe's. The best part is that we can begin each day with a yummy piece of chocolate. Happy first day of December! - P

What would it be like to visit Paris at Christmas?

As much as I love Paris in the spring (I have been lucky enough to experience it twice), I think it would be absolutely wonderful to visit during Christmas. I envision walking the streets with a light dusting of snow, admiring the holiday décor and lovely shop windows. After a bit of shopping I would stop in a bakery for a chocolate croissant and then off to a café to relax, drinking café au lait. I have to say one of my most special nights I spent in Paris was a rainy night at St. Sulpice church. Having said all that, I have planned Paris at home every weekend during the month of December for my husband. Shhh, don’t tell. I bought 4 books, giving him one each Saturday and depending on the topic of the book I plan to add a gift along with it. I also hope our lunch or dinner will reflect a French theme. I will post each weekend as I go along. Does anyone plan silly things like this? Has anyone ever spent their Christmas in Paris? - P

Here are a few of my past photos of Paris in the spring.

Season of Giving

I try to give as much as possible throughout the year. I encourage you to as well, whether it is blood, time, money, or even a smile. ~A

Rain, Snow, Come My Way

Although I really did not go out shopping today I did recently purchase a pair of Hunter boots. I've wanted them for ages and also decided to splurge on the striped welly socks. So cute and functional for this time of year. - P

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all! Just a little snapshot of how we started our morning. A -met at my house and we participated in a 4 mile Turkey trot to ensure we deserved all the food we would eat today. Although the weather wasn't the most desired (30's F and raining) we had a great time getting out to join others running. Hope you had a wonderful day too. - P

Early Christmas gifts

As I was trying to get an early start on my husbands Christmas gifts I stumbled upon Orla Kiely's book on Amazon. I love Orla Kiely's designs. I received the early present to myself yesterday. Does anyone else tend to buy gifts for themselves as they are shopping for family and friends? I also had to pleasure of shopping at Orla Kiely's store in Hong Kong before it was closed down. - P

Melbourne Beach Time

I do not prefer the beach, but I always enjoy it. Beautiful. Powerful. Peaceful. And very sandy. I think I took home enough sand to build a castle! -A

Happy Halloween

Hope everyone enjoyed a night of trick or treating or as I did, passing out candy. It was great night as it was cool and dry. Our pumpkins are a mix of cute, scary, and crazy. :-) - P

I Tend to Disagree

I find a ride on my bike so much more appealing. - P

Biltmore the Beautiful

We had a beautiful and relaxing day at Biltmore. Walking around the castle, the grounds, and winery. I did sneak in a picture of the inside of the castle although photos were not permitted. I noticed several people cycling around the grounds although I wasn't able to capture a photo. I think next time I should bring my bike. -P