my dearest, darling lucy is THIRTEEN today! she has been full of surprises ever since our doctor called with the news of my very much desired but completely unanticipated pregnancy. she arrived with a bang and has been upending our lives and our thinking and our hearts ever since. lucy - i cannot begin to tell you how proud and GRATEFUL i am to be your mama. wishing you a thirteenth year full of joy, adventure, SLEEP, snuggles, GOOD BOOKS and loads of LOVE! i love you higher than the sky is high and deeper than the ocean is deep! x00xx
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REPOST: easter comfort food x0x
* i am reposting my mother’s easter recipes that are a staple at my brunch each year. they are super comforting and yummy, if maybe not the most elegant! x0x
my whole life there have been two essential easter recipes served at our brunch: my mother’s mushroom crust quiche and her easter buns. they are both a little trashy… the quiche has smashed up saltines in the crust and the buns are made with the dough that comes in a can you bang on the counter to pop open. but they are both delicious. the quiche (or KWEE-CHEE as theo used to call it) LOOKS a little more elegant, but the buns are never pretty. the filling always squirts out and the jam slides around so they are just a mess. i have tried and tried to clean them up to no avail. when new people come for easter, they usually bypass them on the buffet and i have to force them to try one… no one has ever been disappointed. AND they are both still yummy, cold, the next morning as leftovers. happy, happy easter all! x0xx
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REPOST: the order of a seder
* with the approach of passover i am reposting this story about the seder dinner… it is my favorite of the jewish holidays!
seder means “order.” there is an order to every aspect of the passover celebration from the way the seder plate is prepared to which course is served first and second and third to what prayer is said, what song is sung, what question is asked and when. even though i am not jewish, i have been hosting passover dinners for nearly twenty years. inevitably i mix up at least one aspect of the order. sometimes i even schedule the seder for the wrong evening - the jewish calendar is confusing and i am not always sure if “begins at sundown” means the dinner should take place that night or the next. i give myself a pass on this as a shiksa mama raising jewish children. i have enough trouble with simple time telling (my mom thinks that’s because i had the chicken pox the week i was meant to learn it in first grade) and adjusting to different time zones and daylight savings.
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super bowl sunday
hank and i had a rough start on super bowl sunday… i put the garbage in the back hall to take outside and forgot to shut the door to the mudroom. everything was really quiet and i realized hank was missing from his usual position on the sofa. when i raced back there he was in the middle of a DISGUSTING mess - coffee grounds strewn all over, candy wrappers scattered (i finally found the halloween candy i hid in november), brown, gooey banana peels and other gross stuff i couldn’t even identify. this may be the first time i really yelled at hank. he HAS gotten into the garbage before but i gave him a pass and explained that that is not done in my house. this time he KNEW he was crossing a line. i can be pretty forgiving (especially with hank) but messes put me over the edge. i would prefer him to sneak some beers or miss his curfew than create that kind of situation for me to clean.
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HAPPY, HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY 2023! x00xx
HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY rosie! x0x0x
darling miss rosie is FIVE tomorrow! in the six months that she has been with my parents she has stolen all of our hearts and given everyone so much JOY. she is just a tiny peapod of sweetness and is definitely the reigning principessa of the house. we’re sending you loads and loads of BIRTHDAY LOVE miss rosie! x0x
REPOST: pompadour x0x
* whenever friends are planning a trip to amsterdam they always reach out for my favorite spots… i have a list of my favorites but the one place i insist they CANNOT MISS is pompadour… it is the loveliest place in the world! x0x
i moved to amsterdam in august, but you wouldn’t have known it was summer because of all the rain. there is the general misting present most days that you can still walk around in and then there are the serious downpours where you need to go inside. one of my earliest rain-evading discoveries was the chocolate shop, pompadour. this “gezellig” (dutch word for cozy, but meaning so much more) patisserie was located just around the corner from my apartment. it was almost a holy place for me. the interior is beautiful…rich, intricate, rose-colored wallpaper with warm, carved wooden moldings cut for the town hall of mortsel in 1895 and imported and repurposed, striking light fixtures evoking wild flowers or some kind of nature and inviting little marble cafe tables. there was just about no trouble that couldn’t be soothed away by having a cup of mint tea at pompadour. the tea was served in a large, clear glass of hot water with a couple of fresh mint stalks tucked in, accompanied by a delicious almond cake on the side. and i haven’t even gotten to the gorgeous chocolates and little cakes that looked like works of art.
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2022 holidays x0x
for some reason the holidays feel more hectic than usual this year… possibly because after several years of the pandemic and toning down the celebrations i am totally out of practice. and we didn’t even leave town for thanksgiving. we had a nice, quiet one in boulder with all the grandma turkey plates and glassware and recipes from my mother (i didn’t even make a turkey - i picked up a cooked one up from whole foods… i can roast the crap out of a chicken, but turkeys terrify me) and we watched the macy’s day parade (we just LOVE those rockettes!) while we made pies (blackberry, apple and pumpkin - we need to overdo it so we can have pie for breakfast in the days following.) mariah carey was the grand finale and honestly, no one sings about christmas like that gorgeous diva did in her red mermaid dress and CROWN… the BEST! but the highlight of the day was definitely the national dog show, won by none other than winston, THE FRENCHIE!
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weekend with dad and rosie x0xx
(roșie hanging out with me in the bed… my favorite place to be!)
earlier this month i went home to spend a few days with my dad (and ROSIE)… my mom was on her annual trip with her sorority sisters (they have been friends for over FIFTY years - so sweet.) dad and i like our father/daughter time when mom is away… we turn the heat right up, we eat chocolates at breakfast (after our scrambled eggs), we watch the news, we check the weather and we take a lot of naps. it turns out rosie likes to do all of these things too (except the chocolate - we did NOT give her any scotch mallows.)
we had a very relaxing schedule… i took the first walk shift with rosie because i am a rooster and dad is more of a teenager in terms of waking times. mom left me a hat with a light on it (like a minion) so i would be able to see rosie’s “sticks” and pick them up in the early morning dark. (rosie has PINK poop bags by the way - they match her harness and leash.)
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repost of my mother's WILD RICE STUFFING recipe
(hank LOVES dressing up for thanksgiving!)
* i am reposting this delicious rice stuffing recipe from my mother - HAPPY THANKSGIVING! x0x
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my annual repost for RAISIN-FREE cranberry sauce
there are few things in this world as disgusting as raisins. they look like droppings, get stuck in your teeth (marring your smile and causing cavities) and are notorious for popping up in all kinds of baked goods (scones, muffins, cookies) that should only have chocolate chips. and unfortunately, because of their size and color, raisins sometimes appear to be chocolate, which is a terrible surprise for the unsuspecting consumer.
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yom kippur (repost)
(theo at his bar mitzvah)
i am reposting my story about yom kippur on this sacred jewish day… l’shana tov! x0x
this week is yom kippur, the day of atonement in the jewish religion. while i never converted, i am raising my children in the faith of their father (with santa and the bunny thrown in) and i have spent more time in temple than i have in any other religious setting. i have hosted loads of seders, rosh hashana dinners and break fasts (i can cook all of the holiday food, except brisket - my brisket is TERRIBLE - so we have roast chicken instead), i know a fair bit of the prayers, or at least the tunes and i have a general understanding of the fundamentals of the religion.
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happy, happy new year! x0x
(hank contemplating the sweet new year…)
on the jewish calendar, the new year, rosh hashanah, is celebrated in the fall. this timing has always resonated with me as it is the start of the school year and a change of season into fresh, brisk, invigorating weather (although here in boulder the school year now starts in mid AUGUST which is just bananas!) wishing you all a bright, peaceful new year… l'shana tova! x0x
my bay area restaurant tour
(artwork: aaron alvarez)
we are half way through our summer sojourn in california and i am proud to say that we have eaten at (almost) all of our favorite restaurants and even added a couple of new goodies. i try to be super organized about this, like a tactical general, because it just guts me to leave with unfinished business.
here is our gastronomic tour so far:
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my working man
for the last ten years my kids have been attending a jewish summer camp in berkeley called kee tov. it is a day camp but it seems to have the feeling of a sleep away camp in that the same kids return each year and they get SUPER bonded. the result has been that both of my children have a whole gang of friends they look forward to seeing in california every summer. kee tov is pretty amazing… all of the counselors are really energetic and enthusiastic and creative. they do all kinds of crazy things that i would NEVER do with my kids like taking them out into the woods to sleep on the GROUND and get really dirty or “messy day” when they squirt them up with paint and whip cream and chocolate syrup and who knows what else and they get so dirty they come home in GARBAGE BAGS or swimming in lakes (that are inherently dirty!) i am realizing that there is a dirty theme here. they also have all kinds of adventures in the bay area: rafting down the american river, ice skating in oakland, riding roller coasters at six flags, treasure hunting in san francisco’s china town and tromping through all the parks and outdoor spaces within a fifty mile radius (where they also get really dirty.)
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thelma and lucy!
(the OG girls road tripping team)
the last couple of summers we have driven to california for our annual visit… first because of the corona and then because hank is no longer allowed to fly as an “emotional support” dog, which is BANANAS because if i hadn’t had him around during this pandemic and all the crazy things that have happened in the world the last few years i don’t know that i would have held onto my sanity at all. we have journeyed in different configurations… sometimes my first husband has accompanied us, sometimes it’s been me and the kids (and hank, of course!) but this is the first time it’s just been us girls, me and lu (AND hank, of course.)
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the most WONDERFUL ones! x00xx
(half californian…)
for whatever reason it was not easy for me to get pregnant. i used thermometers and ovulation kits and “planned” and “relaxed” and went to the terrifying dr. wu for acupuncture and smelly herbs and ultimately created embryos via IVF with the incredible dr. cedars of U.C.S.F. these two were actually from the same batch but lu was frozen for four years. (only recently did she understand that she was NOT tucked up next to the mint chip ice cream at home but was in a freezer at the doctor’s office.) i think that’s why they look so much alike. lucy considers them twins. theo does not buy into that and feels 100% like an older brother. i am just so GRATEFUL that fertility science was advanced enough sixteen years ago that dr. cedars could help us bring these two into the world. i am GRATEFUL to all of the amazing people who supported us through that super intense process that entailed coordinating drugs and doctors from two countries (they were both born in the netherlands even though they began in san francisco.) and i am GRATEFUL to the legions of people: our kraamy, my dutch baby group, the godparents, the grandparents, the fairy godparents, the aunties and uncles, the babysitters, the teachers and the beloved friends who have helped us nurture and support them. i cannot imagine my life without these two half californian, half new yorker monkeys with a big splash of dutch and even some coloradan (i DID just get a tread and the accompanying attire like a real boulder mom) thrown in. they are everything. HAPPY, HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY! x0x0x
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easter comfort food (REPOST)
this is one of those crazy years where passover and easter fall on the same weekend, which means A LOT of cooking for me! i am reposting my mother’s easter recipes for mushroom crust quiche and easter buns because they are super comforting and yummy and delicious. HAPPY, HAPPY EASTER chckies!*! x0x
my whole life there have been two essential easter recipes served at our brunch: my mother’s mushroom crust quiche and her easter buns. they are both a little trashy… the quiche has smashed up saltines in the crust and the buns are made with the dough that comes in a can you bang on the counter to pop open. but they are both delicious. the quiche (or KWEE-CHEE as theo used to call it) LOOKS a little more elegant, but the buns are never pretty. the filling always squirts out and the jam slides around so they are just a mess. i have tried and tried to clean them up to no avail. when new people come for easter, they usually bypass them on the buffet and i have to force them to try one… no one has ever been disappointed. AND they are both still yummy, cold, the next morning as leftovers. happy, happy easter all! x0xx
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passover moon cake (REPOST)
we were still in amsterdam over passover this year, so we had a belated seder dinner this weekend. seders are a big deal to prepare… there’s all of the components of the seder plate, which depending on where you live, can be difficult to come by. in new york, all of the markets suddenly dedicate at least two aisles to passover related groceries in the week leading up to the holiday. in amsterdam, you would never know passover is happening. i had to roast a drumstick our first year living there because i couldn’t make the butcher understand the lamb shank. also, there is no matzo meal, only matzo crackers. in order to make matzo ball soup, i had to first grind up the crackers myself with a rolling pin. it was like little house on the jewish prairie in my amsterdam apartment. horseradish, also, is not easy to find. for that i would have to go to what we referred to as the "expat black market.” it’s a tiny shop on leidesgracht that caters to homesick american and british expats. the prices are outrageous, but it’s often the only place to get a crucial ingredient… a can of libby’s, libby’s, libby’s pumpkin, for example, is typically about ten euros around thanksgiving! so for a shiksa raising my children jewish (the faith of their father), seders can be a challenge, especially when we were living in the netherlands.
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HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY my sweetie baby lu! x0x
one morning when lucy was about three we had a disagreement as she was leaving for school with her dad. i can’t remember what it was about… possibly me suggesting that she not wear seventeen pairs of underwear all at once because it was hard to get them up and down when going to the bathroom (she started stacking her undies shortly after she stopped wearing diapers… i think she missed the extra booty pop) or maybe i gave her the wrong colored spoon for her yoghurt or maybe i wouldn’t let her have gummy bears for breakfast. i’m not sure, but she was in a SPICY mood. as they finally shuffled out i stood on the porch and called to her, “have a good day lucy!” then i stepped inside and quickly turned the lock (i ALWAYS lock my doors because i’ve seen every episode of law & order SVU so i know what horrible things can happen if a cuckoo gets in your house.) before i could even exhale i hear “BAM, BAM, BAM” on the glass door. there is lucy impatiently pounding with a fierce scowl on her face. i cautiously cracked opened the door and she hollered, “NO mama… YOU have a good day!” she likes to have the last word.
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