over the weekend, we celebrated a friend’s birthday with a proper italian dinner- think lady and the tramp, under the tuscan sun, the godfather… courtney told me to leave the candelabra at home. we ordered pasta, pizza and sfincione from felix and baked a cake for our performance of “happy birthday”. it was the best way to celebrate… with food, company and my terrible italian accent. buon compleanno dana!
ollie, checking on the pappardelle.
it’s christmas eve (can you believe it?!) which means santa will be coming soon! if you’re looking for a cookie recipe to wow the man in the red suit, look no further. i found this recipe on creme de la crumb and i’m obsessed! i’ve already made these hot chocolate cookies 3 times this holiday season! they are delicious and addicting so bake at your own risk! you can find the recipe here. happy holidays!
fall is here! and to celebrate i headed to the mountains with some friends to welcome my favorite season (and probably yours too) by taking part in one of fall’s most famous activities…apple picking! this was our first time going to an orchard to pick our very own apples and it was almost exactly how we imagined…almost…nothing says “fall” like 85 degree weather! what i would give to experience a proper changing of the seasons…i guess the grass really is greener on the other side?? despite the warm weather, we picked our apples, got some sun and lived out my l.l. bean catalog fantasy.
i seem to surround myself with tall people and for that i am thankful as i tried to use the fruit rake to pick some ripe apples that were a little out of my reach and nearly dislocated my shoulder… so thank you leo and adriana for making up for what i lack in height.
i snapped more pictures of apple picking than i did of actually picking any apples but i think it was more fun to see how excited everyone got over picking their “perfect” apple. never have i seen someone more proud of their pick than courtney. it’s the little things in life.
 sharing some bits and pieces from our christmas day, which already feels light years away…(decided to keep that despite the cheesy rhyming)
happy holidays to you and your loved ones. xx
it’s that time of year again! where the christmas music is overplayed (guilty), turtlenecks are worn in 70-degree weather and i pretend to be on the great british bake off. the best place to pretend you know everything about baking is at williams sonoma, but it’s a dangerous place to be during the holidays. they have peppermint bark, holiday mixes and lots of festive dining decor… which is how we ended up here with this blog post! i saw this holiday bundt pan and knew it’s rightful place was at home with me. it didn’t matter that i had never made a bundt cake before, i was going to make a bundt cake now. i’ll admit baking does not come naturally for me, i need a recipe and i will follow that recipe to the very last pinch of salt. so, when i saw this gingerbread spice quick bread i was at ease having the reassurance of detailed directions all along the back of the pretty packaging. this recipe was quick and simple and i can’t wait to make more for the holiday season.
apparently, while mixing ingredients i bounce as if i’m trying to put a newborn baby to sleep…it’s a new technique.
i was planning on posting about the rest of my trip to peru much sooner but well…life happened…between work and an unexpected surgery, i’ve only just finished organizing my thoughts and notes that have been left on my phone for too long. so here it is in all it’s glory, part 2 of my trip to peru, “A Day of Ruins”. in case you need a refresher, you can find my first post here.
our day began with the ruins at ollantaytambo which for the record are at the bottom, middle and top of a mountain…just for the record! so, we began our ascent to the top. much like the burning in my thighs, it’s hard to forget about these incredible views. we were up among the clouds, face to face with the mountain- it was definitely worth the climb… you know, just for the record.
after our morning “workout”, we went to see the town of chinchero. as we went deeper into town, the quieter it seemed. the little noise we did hear was only from our own footsteps on the cobbled ground. our guide brought us to a church; it was sunday. it felt like we were standing there waiting for something to happen and then the church doors opened. out poured what seemed to be the entire town of chinchero; talking, eating, playing. this quiet part of town was now filled with color, laughter and food. i felt surrounded and consumed and i loved it!
our guide told us that after church, the women gather to talk about their community and discuss items of “business” while the men play futbol. i think these peruvians might be on to something! just below the plaza was a marketplace with food, trinkets and lots of peruvian goods, so we went to have a look. surprisingly i didn’t buy a thing! rob, however, couldn’t help himself…he just HAD to have it.
we ended our day at pisac with some more ruins on top of another mountain, with more incredible views…are you sick of it yet?? me either. stay tuned for the main event…peru post number 3…MACHU PICCHU!
Pergo, Italy / 9-4-2016 / 35mm Pentax
summer is officially upon us… i know that because 1.) it’s june 2.) i’m sleeping on top of my blankets 3.) WATERMELONS EVERYWHERE… i love watermelon, nothing says summer quite like a sweet watermelon… i’ve put together a playlist with some tunes that have been keeping me company in this summer heat. grab your swimsuit, slather on that spf 100 (skin cancer is no joke) and don’t forget your speakers.
you can listen to the playlist here.
sedona is one of my favorite places to visit, as i’ve mentioned here, here and here. it’s just close enough for a quick weekend trip, yet far enough to escape the city life in los angeles.
{i originally wrote this post a year ago and never got around to actually putting it up on the blog…why? because sometimes life happens and you move on to different things BUT since it’s now a year later, on memorial day weekend, i decided why not post it?? it’s like a weird full circle moment. a lot has changed since the last time we were in sedona, more on that in another post.}
this memorial day weekend i spent most of my time reading and soaking up some vitamin d in santa monica. as i’m typing this, courtney and leo are flying back from england…i’m waiting to pick them up from the airport and trying to distract myself from the excitement that i will soon be reunited with my two favorite people…it’s been a long two weeks. aaannywaaayy, last time we were all in sedona was to visit the newest member of our family; squirt the mini horse. for a long time, leo was the newest member of the family- taking in all the love, attention and glory… not sure how he’s been coping with the fact that squirt has stolen his thunder, but i mean look at this horse! he’s stolen all of our hearts!
on our way back to the house, we stopped by the mcguireville annual tractor and engine show. each year the town hosts this show over memorial day weekend putting all their tractors on display. we didn’t stay long, not that there wasn’t much to see but if we stayed any longer, we would’ve melted into the asphalt… so we went to the creek to cool off.
before our long weekend came to and end, we had to make one last visit to see squirt. we just couldn’t get enough of him! after saying goodbye to the little guy, we headed back to the house for a bonfire, cake and some tunes. god, i love sedona.
Fullerton Arboretum / 8-7-2016 / 35mm Pentax
over the weekend i was combing through my songs on spotify and couldn’t decide on what i wanted to listen to. i gave up and hit shuffle to see what the spotify gods had in store for me… and then a song came on that i hadn’t listened to in a veeerrry long time. so many memories associated with that tune, it made me feel good listening to it again. it got me thinking of all the songs that i used to bump through my speakers day in and day out, some now sadly neglected by myself over the years. so! i put together a little playlist for this throwback thursday in honor of all those tunes that don’t get much play time anymore… you are not forgotten.
you can find my playlist here.
last post of 2017! what better way to end this year than with my ladies. man, lady dates are good for the sooouuul! earlier in the week, i went out with my sister and my museum buddy to spend the day downtown. first up was yayoi kusama’s exhibit at the broad. somehow by the luck of the draw we got tickets to this amazing exhibition… 4 months of anticipation and we finally were able to see yayoi’s amazing work.
after the museum we walked over to the grand central market to eat ALL the yummy food. we ate at the sari sari store where courtney and i reconnected with our filipino side. it was the second best adobo i’ve ever had…first being my grandma’s and nothing can ever top that. dessert was served at valerie’s where dana and i shared a coffee crunch cake with honeycomb all over the icing and we nearly died. it was the best last lady date of 2017!
on our way to the grand central market, we stumbled upon the angels flight railway and hopped on. this is where we cried when we had to walk up all the stairs on our way back to our car. good times…good times.
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