Summer Day Of Fun 2013

We riffed on Smitten Kitchen's hand pies with peaches instead of rhubarb, our crust instead of hers, and circles instead of squares, with America's #1 Next Door Neighbor. Verdict? Very delicious but very labor intensive. Next time we'll make them bigger.

We went antiquing in our own neck of the woods and found a limited number of gems, but the upside was seeing the antique stores packed with customers on a summer Sunday. 

Then we went to The Annex for oysters, shrimp, and wine. We examined our purchases (JFK cards for my brother's bday) and my dad joined us for more apps and stimulating conversation. He is preaching at his church this Sunday and we were sharing thoughts on his scripture.

... I love that I just wrote that. We grew up "with morals," not religion, but I enjoy everyone in my family on a journey to find their own path to inner peace as we grow.

We couldn't remember what we did last year. I think we may have taken the year off, unadvisedly, in retrospect. But for the record, 2011, 2010.

The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

After a whirlwind fall of European business trips and Hurricane Sandy/Early Snowfall, we packed up the car to the gills and took our yearly Thanksgiving roadtrip to Maine. Thanksgiving came early this year and we felt it. As much as we felt like we hadn't been home as family in our own house for more than a few days at a time, packing up the ole suitcases felt like business as usual so off we went.

And it was great.

First we had Thanksgiving.























Then my birthday!





















And now Christmas is a'coming.
(As signalled by my newly acquired vintage Christmas candles.)
Cheers to you.

The Motivation To Be Festive

I'm taking Christmas to the next level here at Seven Presidents. Some years I'm more gung ho than others, but I think the addition of our little one has me excited about the holiday this year, even if at 5 months old she's too small to really appreciate it. Reminds me of the Christmas episode of "Up All Night," Will Arnett's new show. That show pretty much nails the experience of being a regular person who has a baby and doesn't totally lose their identity. I find myself laughing out loud at least once every episode. But I digress.


My mom keeps offering me holiday decorations that my Grammy made, and I keep accepting. Her handmade decorations hold a ton of sentimental value and precious memories, which is probably why I've always been so hard on new store bought Christmas decorations. Grammy set the bar pretty high. 


I got the extra parts of her ceramic village (except for the church, which seems appropriate). I set it up and meant to take a picture because -- what do you know! -- President Obama stopped by the village to shake hands and drum up votes for 2012. I also acquired a calico gingerbread garland that is hanging over my entryway where I hang our stockings. (Poll: Do you think stockings are just for hanging on Christmas Eve?). 

I stopped by my mom's yesterday and she gave me a stick wreathe to decorate (again, I should have taken a photo) and an idea for the pendants in my kitchen, which I actually managed to photograph. And notice that pot rack in the background? It's been about three years in the making. I finally found one I liked from Crate & Barrel and my dad put it up for me. (It's serious business. Because pots are so heavy you have to make sure it's in a joist.) I couldn't take a picture of the whole room for you to get a better idea of how it looks because there were dishes everywhere. But just trust me that it is an awesome addition to the house. It looks pretty cool and it frees up an entire corner cabinet, which now holds all the extremely tall cereal boxes, bottles of olive oil, cans of formula, and small appliances that were cluttering up the counter. Serenity now! And Merry Christmas, if I don't talk to you before the big day.

The List Is Back

This morning over blueberry pancakes I had a little therapy session with Mr. SevPrez. I have been staying up til 2am every night with the feeling like I'm waiting for Santa. I have always been a night owl and now that I don't have any reason to set my alarm I'm showing my true colors. Waking up in the morning knowing there is nothing on the agenda, really, except birth this baby is a bit emotionally overwhelming, seeing as how I have no control over whether it happens or not. Couple that with the incredible heat wave we had over the last few days that made it really difficult to spend any time outdoors, and the fact that everyday I feel more pregnant and more uncomfortable, and it's physically taxing as well. Let's just say I'm sick of the couch, and we have watched every movie made in the last year.

I have a real need to feel productive, whether it's at work or at home, and I realized this morning that I really miss my lists. I kind of stopped writing them since I have been kidding myself that everyday delivery is imminent. No wonder I've been feeling so lost. So when my session with Dr. SevPrez was over, I made a little list and we set out on an expedition to run some errands and cross some things off.

We went to the Red Bank Antique District to look for a set of vintage drinking glasses, since I keep breaking them and we are a very thirsty family. We were just about to leave empty handed when I noticed an area we missed, and low and behold, we found a set of 8 glasses for $25. They are pretty awesome and harken back to a set I got in Brooklyn many years ago that has since died.

And we stopped at a craft store so I could just bite the bullet and get some embroidery floss to make friendship bracelets. I had a nice set of contractions earlier while making this bracelet and it was the perfect thing to focus on. Of course the contractions since went away or else I would not be writing this, but I finished the bracelet and it's ready to give to a friend as part of her birthday package.

Yellow House*

I've been antiquing up and down the state of Maine for the last week, snatching up everything I can find that's yellow. Apparently I am deep in the throws of a love affair with the color. So far I've racked up two planters (neither of which I plan on using for plants -- one's for my growing bangle collection, the other for cell phones and various trinkets that get dropped off at the back door entrance); a wax candle bust of a fisherman; an elephant planter (which I plan on using as a book end); and an awesome metal stool. I had to slowly back away from a set of four old yellow and white dishes, and a third (yes third!) yellow planter that was a good deal.

What can I say? Yellow is happy, bold, and fun; looks good with white and grey, the overriding colors in my house; and plays well with red and aqua, my two other favorite accent colors. Plus anything I buy that's yellow rationalizes my choice in fabric for my wingback chairs.

I picked up a few other things too. A glass platter that I got for a steal that will look great at a Stolen Goods pop up with Salted Fudge Brownies on top, a candy dish, and two Easter decorations. Love the egg and the bunny and can't wait to bring them out with my Sharpie Easter Eggs.

*This post is named after one of the greatest albums to come out in the last decade.