A lovely topiary

Tags

postaday2016, presents

So not only did I get a gorgeous bouquet of roses, but my son bought me an azalea topiary, in’t it just absolutely lovely? My daughter got me really cool lounge pants, an adorable blouse and a stunning springtime scarf, I was beyond spoiled because lest I forget, my husband got me an avant garde rain jacket, very forward looking and a Michael Kors hand bag. I made out like a bandit this Mother’s Day.

My favorite part of the day was dinner because we were all together and that’s all I really wanted, talking and reveling in each other’s company, that’s the best present, one that every mother wants, her children close to her on her special day.

Another Christmas tradition all wrapped up in a bow

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caramels, postaday2015, presents

   
   
I made my Christmas time caramels au beurre sale yesterday, as tradition warrants, I make them for my family, my husband’s colleagues and my friends. Today I spent quite a bit of time cutting the caramels into bite size pieces and wrapping them in parchment paper. 

I learned something new this time around, while I was waiting for the caramels to set up in the refrigerator, I was nervous that I had let them cook too long, I had burned my finger accidently when I poured the hot cream into the boiling sugar and so it made stirring and monitoring the caramel difficult. When I tried to unmold the caramel from my glass loaf pan, it wouldn’t budge, it was a pretty hard piece of caramel candy and that is when inspiration burst in my head. I filled a saucepan with water and lowered the loaf pan with the caramel in the simmering water, wouldn’t you know it, the caramel softened right out of the loaf pan. I put the caramel back in the refrigerator so that I could take of it today, getting it ready for present giving during the holiday season.

I grabbed some empty jars, my holiday themed wired ribbon and some tissue paper and tried to create something festive, I think the jars look nice. I really enjoy making goodies as presents instead of buying something from the store.. It feeds my creativity and it keeps me occupied.

   
 

Braving the mall

Tags

Christmas, family, postaday2014, presents

We are back in Boston and I took the opportunity to wander around the Legacy Mall primarily to go shopping at Whole Foods for fruit, things to drink and other food items. However when I saw the names of the other stores at Legacy Mall, I couldn’t resist the call to see what was going on in the Christmas retail scene.

Ann Taylor is one of my favorite stores to browse in, I rarely shop there, but I love looking at their clothes. I like that the pieces are timeless and classic, but with a slight twist to keep the look fresh, modern and relevant. There was a daddy with his son who was about 7 or 8 and they were going through the store looking at blouses and sweaters, searching for the right size and color. The daddy pulled out a cute sweater, cream with large blue horizontal stripes, a little French looking, and he asked his boy what he thought, the son said he liked it and the daddy said that it was the right size and that maybe mommy would really like it and be happy with the sweater. It was so adorable and sweet; they looked so serious and a little nervous about the sweater, I felt my smile get bigger by the second.

The next store that I visited was William & Sonoma, my husband and I LOVE that store. When I walked through the doors, I knew that I didn’t need a single thing, but I love looking at the table linens, all of the gadgets and the copper, the copper is so shiny and beautiful. While I was ogling the copper charger plates, a daddy was pushing his baby boy in his stroller and the baby did not look particularly happy being there. I suppose there wasn’t anything visually appealing or maybe it was getting close to feeding time. I of course couldn’t help but flash the baby a goofy smile and the daddy asked me if his son at least smiled back, I laughed and said no, he didn’t seem too happy being in the store, but I could tell that the daddy was intent on finding a special gift for someone very special.

I love people watching, it is never boring and to see these husbands and fathers taking their little ones with them to get something special for the special women in their lives made me feel a whole bunch of the Christmas Spirit.

Christmas came early for some :)

Tags

Christmas, postaday2014, presents

What a wonderful day. We were at my sister’s house, she has a very lovely home. My mother made a delicious crab quiche, full of lump crabmeat and seasoned with just the right amount of cayenne pepper for a little zing right at the end, it was just the perfect note for an appetizer and then the piece de resistance were my brother-in-law’s ribs, they were wonderfully flavored, almost addictive. My sister got us three racks and after all was said and done, there were only three little rib pieces left. My mother had prepared winter vegetables that my sister threw in the oven until they were roasted tender and caramelized, an excellent companion to the ribs and lastly my Parisian flan was dessert. We really ate well for an early Christmas feast.

Perhaps most important was Santa’s early visit; our nephew came running into the kitchen to tell my sister that he read the tag on the big present and it was from Santa, but his handwriting wasn’t so good. I burst out laughing that that; I haven’t heard the truth out of a babe’s mouth in quite some time. I adore my niece and nephew, they make me smile so easily every single time. I think that it is safe to say that they were very happy with Santa after they unwrapped all of their presents and they had presents for us as well. Our niece spent her own money to get us little gifts, a book for me and a gift card for my husband and our nephew made us pretty cards, one of each of us. They are both so sweet.

Happy Birthday to me

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birthday, postaday2014, presents

Today I am 47 years old. I know that I should not complain, the alternative is so much worse. Cameron Diaz said it extremely well “growing old is a privilege” so I am privileged today.

It is amazing to me what seeing the signs of getting old does to one’s inner dialogue, it raises all sorts of questions. I am often thinking of what does it mean to age and what does wisdom have to do with it, if one gets more open to ideas or more closed off? I hope that I stay open to new ideas and new styles, I don’t want to close myself off from new trends, that wouldn’t be any fun.

I wish that my memories didn’t feel as if they were rapidly fading and that I could remember more things crisply and in color, instead of the sepia toned memories that I am still luckily clinging on to or perhaps my failing memory bank is simply a symptom of menopause, I hope so because that means that as soon as I am done with the menopause, my brain will start to work again. I am keeping my fingers crossed on that one.

Late last night after midnight, I got to open my cards and my presents; I got so spoiled for my birthday. My cards were very funny and also very sweet. I love cards, they show that someone took the time to find something just right to wish you a joyful feeling, just the act of looking means a lot.

I love all of my presents; my gorgeous new handbag, my spiffy M&M lounge pants and my beautiful white shirt. I am incredibly lucky and privileged to add another year under my belt and to have such a wonderful family to celebrate it with, life is truly wonderful.

Happy Father’s Day everyone!

Tags

Father's day, postaday2014, presents

What is a Father’s Day celebration without dessert? While I was working on the Vietnamese spring rolls yesterday, I got the Paris-Brest pastry dessert, one of my husband’s favorites, ready in stages. Cream puff pastry dough is pretty easy to work with and you can make it in advance so that you can make your dessert on your own timetable.

So in between the spring roll filling being made; I made the cream puffs and the big round ring that defines the Paris-Brest; all that was left to make to finish the dessert was to make the vanilla pastry cream, the whipped cream and folding the ground up candied almonds into the vanilla pastry cream and pipe these into the puffs and into the ring.

So even though I did all of the work yesterday; I made so many Vietnamese spring rolls that we have been eating them today and the dessert might last until tomorrow and the emphasis on the might.

I think that my husband had a nice Father’s Day; the children gave him cards and I got him one as well. In terms of presents; my husband doesn’t ask for anything, he is always more than happy with his cards, he appreciates the time that they take to pick out just the right one.

I hope that all of my WordPress friends enjoyed their Father’s Day. 😀

Jack says Thank You Santa!

Tags

Jack, postaday2013, presents, Santa

Merry Christmas to all of my WordPress friends and to everyone out there in our beautiful world! Jack was one lucky little puppy this Christmas. Santa left him two presents under the tree and something in his stocking and boy was Jack happy this morning.

We had a very nice Christmas morning, we watched the Year without a Santa Claus together. I think that we were the most excited for Jack’s presents because he is our baby and Christmas is always the most fun when little ones are involved. Jack is our little one.

Merry Christmas to all!

Happy Mother’s Day to everyone!

Tags

Mother's day, postaday2013, presents, writing

Happy Mother’s Day to everyone. I had a wonderful Mother’s Day and boy was I spoiled! I’ll write about it more tomorrow because I am way too tuckered out. So I am sharing pictures instead.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Tags

cards, celebration, desserts, Love, postaday2013, presents, Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! My hubby spoiled me this Valentine’s Day with not one, but three cards, a bounty of ice cream and a truly beautiful orchid. What amazed me was just how strong my hubby’s ESP actually is; I never think, when I am out and about running errands, that I would like an indoor plant or flowers, yet yesterday, I was in a store and I saw a display of orchids and I thought to myself “I would really like one” and I kept that to myself and went about my day. My hubby comes home not only with ice cream and cards but with an orchid.

I hope that I do better with this one than the other one that I had several years ago; I couldn’t get it to ever bloom again. My cousin Francoise is a gifted orchid care giver and this past summer, she gave me some tips; leave the orchid alone and DO NOT OVERWATER, otherwise enjoy its beauty.

On my end, I prepared a few of my hubby’s favorites; a tomato, roasted red pepper, fresh mozzarella and basil salad, cream puffs filled with vanilla pastry cream and a big bowl of creme Chantilly. I also found a card that expressed exactly what I wanted to say which is fairly rare; I usually go for the humorous card because the other ones are too sweet, this year I found the perfect card.

I was thinking of writing a love letter so I googled the origins of Saint Valentine and what I found took the wind out of my inspiration. The origins are murky but all in all there is the martyrdom of Saint Valentine, killed by the Romans for defying their edicts and the timing of mid February revolves around the Pagan festival of fertility where a goat was sacrificed and its hide was cut up into strips, dipped in its blood and the women of the village were hit with the bloody strips thereby helping their fertility. I prefer the commercialization of today focused on card exchanging, candy and flowers; less blood and guts.

Belated Christmas in New York

Tags

Christmas, family, festivities, food, pets, postaday2012, presents

We arrived at my mommy’s house to celebrate Christmas with her, my sister and her family. My niece and nephew are still of the age that Santa is more real than not and the world of toys is still their oyster. We left early this morning because not only were we coming to New York to celebrate but also to see that dear dentist of ours, so that he can finish the work he had started on my hubby and myself back in November. Late last night Massachusetts got hit by a Nor’easter and this morning the roads were fairly treacherous but my hubby is a very good driver and he got us here safe and sound.

Guess who came with us to New York? Jack did and he is all discombobulated. He doesn’t like to go when there isn’t large expanses of greenery to sniff at and sniff some more. I think that there are way too many cars and people for the poor dear. He is happy on my lap and under the dining room table where, while we were eating there was a guaranteed drizzle of morsels and crumbs coming from the table and onto the floor, perfect for a little snout to ferret out to lick up and swallow.

The kids both big and small were spoiled and the grownups were as well. We were equally spoiled by gifts and food. My mommy made a wonderful gratin of sea scallops with a sauce so good that you couldn’t help but eat two more pieces of bread just to sop the sauce up, it was that delicious. My baby boy who apparently doesn’t like scallops wiped his plate cleaned with his second piece of bread. The main course was an eye opener for me. My mommy asked me if I would pick up a pork roast and to try to get the butt, not the shoulder, the actual backside of the pig as a roast cut. I wasn’t aware of it, but what my mommy wanted was a fresh ham that according to some research I did, is the best cut for a spectacular roast pork and after eating the fantastic pork roast I can attest to that fact. I had never purchased a fresh ham before and on the ticket it said “fresh ham, rump part of the leg”. I got it yesterday and last night, I had cut slits into the meat, all over and at least twenty, to insert half cloves of garlic rubbed in salt and pepper and then I rubbed salt and paper all over it and wrapped it in aluminum foil and put it into the refrigerator until this morning when we left. My husband also brought the lobster bisque that he had made last night so that my mommy could taste his latest culinary creation.

My mommy served string beans and roasted potatoes and we ate like kings and queens. It was that good, we went through two large baguettes of French bread; that is when you know that a meal is fantastic, when the bread is almost all gone.

I am tired now so I am bidding everyone a good night and I’ll see you tomorrow.