Sunday, October 7, 2012

The Princess and The Pea Tea Party

This year, for my daughter's birthday, I decided to get a little creative. I've always loved the story, "The Princess and The Pea" and a tea party seemed the perfect thing so I combined the two into my theme.

The weather cooperated and we were able to have the party outside.



I found mis-matched tea cups and accessories at Goodwill; each child was able to pick their own tea cup to use and take home. The teapot ended up being wildly popular among the kids, they all took turns pouring a "tea" of raspberry lemonade.


Lunch included various cheeses & crackers, a caesar salad, assorted veggies with dip and three types of tea sandwiches (salmon, chicken salad and cucumber). I gave the moms the option of dropping off but there was plenty of food for everyone and champagne for the moms.


A friend gave me a delicious cupcake recipe (below).

Elissa Strauss' Vanilla Cake, Confetti Cakes, New York
2 c cake flour*
1 3/4 c plus 1 1/2 tsp all purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter
3 c granulated sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1 T pure vanilla extract
1 c (8 oz; 7 about 7 eggs) egg whites or 100% pasturized liquid egg whites
1 1/2 c milk
Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a large bowl, sift together the cake flour, all-purpose flour, and baking powder. Set aside.

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy.

Add the salt and vanilla.

Set the mixer to low speed and gradually add the egg whites, scraping often.

Alternately add the flour mixture and milk to the butter mixture in two batches, starting with the flour. Scrape down the bowl between each addition and beat until thoroughly combined. set the mixer to medium-high speed for about 20 seconds then stop and scrape sides of the bowl.

Divide the batter evenly between paper-lined muffin tins and bake 20 to 25 min.

Allow the cake to cool for 20min. once the cake is cool, release it from the pan by running a metal spatula or knife along the sides of the pan.

The recipe makes approximately 26-28 cupcakes. *You can make your own cake flour using all-purpose flour & a bit of corn starch, if you don't want to purchase additional flour to store.


Once the cupcakes are cool, frost with Cream Cheese Frosting and top with a "pea" (in this case, I used green Holland Mints).
1/2 pound cream cheese, at room temperature
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 + 1/8 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/8 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 - 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Double the above if you like heavily frosted cupcakes. The cupcake recipe above is fairly sweet and moist so you don't need a lot of frosting to make them good.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the cream cheese, butter, vanilla and almond extract on low speed. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix until just smooth.

In addition to a tea cup, each child took home a paper crown and bag of Holland mints with stickers.


Thursday, September 20, 2012

Favorite Communication App!

My latest favorite app (available for iPhone, Blackberry, Android and more) is What's App.

A friend from London introduced me to it and now I'm addicted. If you travel or have friends that travel or live out of the country, this is a must-have app.


What's App allows you to text message, leave voice messages, and more, for free, using data. In order to use it, you do have to allow the program to sync with your contact list and those you want to communicate with, will also need to use the program but the money you save avoiding international texting charges and the convenience the app provides make it worth it.

The app costs 99 cents, and while I generally don't use apps that cost anything, this one I'd put on a Best Buy list.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Home Remodeling / Construction

A number of people around me have been remodeling and building homes lately, so I've got construction on the brain.

Here, I'm going to keep a list of things I don't want to forget if the opportunity presents itself in the future; it will pair nicely with my Pinterest account. Not everything on the list will be feasible but I can always scratch something off my list as long as I remember it.

* Electrical outlets in kitchen pantry, bedroom closet(s), bathroom cabinet(s) for various appliances, hand vacs, outside for various things, including holiday lighting. Also in floor of living & family rooms
* Charging station for cell phones, etc, near entry
* Appliance cabinets for certain appliances
* Small refrigerator / coffee station - near MB
* Small closet for cleaning supplies in pantry, laundry room & other as necessary.
* Solar tubes / skylights where options
* Dual-zone a/c & heat
* Pre-wiring for security system
* In-line lint trap, if necessary (for dryer)
* Vac pans for kitchen & bath (central vac) -- discuss with mom since she had a c.v. & hated it / also retractable hose
* Pre-plumb basement even if we don't plan to put a bathroom in immediately
* Plan for future electrical needs from basement to roof via wiring
* Plan for furnace vents / so furniture, curtains & other needs don't conflict, no overhead vents to blow air in face, yuck.
* Wiring for speakers on all floors, outside in various areas of yard so you don't have to turn the music up super loud to hear it if you decide to sit in another area
* Heated tile floors (love ours but avoid the area for a hamper -- no need to the hamper)
* Multiple refrigeration units in kitchen (one for beverages, in addition to wine fridge and food fridge). Love my freezer drawers
* A drawer dishwasher in addition to a regular-style dishwasher; great for entertaining, small loads, etc
* Consider wi-fi needs, technical needs
* An "office space" in the kitchen for bill paying, etc
* Drawers for extra storage in the toe-kick area of cabinetry
* Upstairs laundry closet in addition to laundry room

Exterior Only
* Hot / cold hose bib outside
* Sensors for some outdoor lights.
* Solar panels?
* Gas line for bbq
* Safe place for deliveries without entry to home (dry cleaning, packages, etc when no one is home)
* Car charger for electric / hybrid car?
* A drain in the garage
* Proper drainage in back yard & driveway
* Irrigation system for plants, including those potted & on upper deck areas
* An outdoor storage area for pots and other things that can stay outdoors but should be covered

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Coconut Cake

For the 2nd time in my life, I decided to bake a cake from scratch. The first, was a chocolate cake. This one, for my husband's birthday, was coconut.

It turned out well, moist and coconut-y, albeit a bit dense for my personal taste. The frosting was definitely a keeper; my mother-in-law has mentioned to me, numerous times how much she liked it (yay!).

I made the cake & frosted it on a Friday, refrigerated it overnight and served it Saturday evening and it was not dry at all, although the refrigeration may have contributed to the density. I think the quantity of butter also was a factor; don't get me wrong, it wasn't overwhelmingly dense, just moreso than I was hoping for. Even after cutting into the cake, it wasn't dry, despite refrigeration 2 nights in a row.

I adapted a recipe from Ina Garten, that I found on The Food Network website.



Coconut Cake

3/4 lb (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pans
2 c sugar
5 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp pure almond extract
3 c all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the pans
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 c milk
3/4 c TOTAL sweetened & unsweetened shredded coconut, mixed*

For the frosting:
1 pound (2 blocks) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp pure almond extract
3 - 3 1/2 confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 c TOTAL sweetened & unsweetened shredded coconut, mixed

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two (9-inch) round cake pans.

In a bowl, using the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed for 3 - 5 minutes, until light yellow and fluffy. On medium speed, add the eggs 1 at a time, scraping the bowl while mixing. Add vanilla and almond extracts and mix well. 

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the dry ingredients and the milk to the batter. Mix until just combined and mix in coconut.

Pour batter evenly into the 2 pans and smooth the top with a knife. Bake in the center of the oven for 45 to 55 minutes, until the tops are browned and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a baking rack for 30 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto a baking rack to finish cooling.

Frosting: In a bowl, use an electric mixer to combine cream cheese, butter, vanilla and almond extract on low speed. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix until just smooth.

Assembly: Place 1 layer on a flat serving plate and spread with frosting. Sprinkle frosting with coconut. Add second layer and frost the entire cake. Finish by covering with coconut. Serve room temperature.




* My favorite unsweetened coconut is by Bob's Red Mill; the original recipe called for 100% sweetened coconut but I was afraid that would lead to an overly sweet cake. The combination of unsweetened and sweetened provided the right balance with the cake and frosting.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Misc Memories

Word of the day (courtesy of 5 year old, Q): 
Slooch. 
Also known as move, specifically when referencing a iPhone or iPad, as in, "It's difficult to slooch the icons over to another page."
-July 6, 2012

Q: WE (referring to herself and me) are the boss! 
YOU (referring to Husband) have to do what WE say!
-July 25, 2012

Today's lesson from Q: "Convertibles have fat butts." 
I still haven't figured out what she means by it but she's quite convinced.
-July 26, 2012

Q: I dont have veins
Daddy: do you mean wrinkles?
Q: dad, you're so silly
-July 29. 2012

Me: super heros eat lots of super foods
Q: I dont want to be a boy!
Me: girls are super heros too
Q: woohoo! Give me more super foods!
-July 31, 2012

Milkshake...
Q: you better drink faster or I get all of it
Daddy: it's MY milkshake!
-August 12, 2012

I told my child that Chuck E Cheese is ill so we can't have her birthday party there.
-August 13, 2012

Listening to Q explain to her dad that "in real life, Hello Kitty speaks Spanish".
-August 15, 2012


Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Dresser

Love this dresser from Eco First Start

Friday, July 6, 2012


Lace Up Hooded Jersey Dress


Friday, June 29, 2012

Disneyland Tips for Parents with Little Ones


I know a lot of parents dread going to Disneyland but our family has had a great time. I think there’s a key to having fun – at least for those who aren’t Disneyland fans regardless of parenthood. My husband dreaded our first trip but due to great planning, towards the end of the vacation, he was asking ‘when will we go back?’


We’ve gone twice now and both trips have been fantastic. Our first trip was when our daughter was 4. A great age, although, if you really want to get the most of out Disneyland’s offerings, wait until age 5. Five, allows you to take advantage of Pinocchio’s Workshop, an evening childcare facility, so that you can have a nice dinner out. Five also means your child will be a bit taller and more adventurous. For some kids, a little more adventurous is important. Our daughter loved seeing the characters, even the characters she didn’t recognize (there were lots; we don’t allow a lot of television) but for some kids, life-size mice, dogs and more can be pretty intimidating. Did I mention Pinocchio’s Workshop?

So, here are my tips (please keep in mind, my tips are geared for parents of young children; if you have older children, not all of them will not be useful)…

If you can, stay at the Grand Californian. I didn’t do a tremendous amount of research but from what I can tell, AAA offers some of the better rates and perks.

What are the benefits of staying at the Grand Californian? Besides the fact that it’s a newer hotel, has better restaurants than the other Disney hotels, Pinocchio’s Workshop is located in the hotel complex, and more, the hotel has a direct entrance into California Adventure Park and direct access to Downtown Disney, which is basically an entrance to Disneyland. Why is this important? It gives you flexibility.

I don’t care what people claim, 4 and 5 year olds need naps and if they don’t need naps, they need time away from the constant barrage of stimuli that Disneyland offers. That means, a trip to the hotel room for some down time. I know, I know, Disneyland is expensive and the Grand Californian is the more expensive hotel in the Disneyland chain; still, it’s worth it, IMO.  Our daughter is iffy on naps. Sometimes she needs them, sometimes I need them (some of you moms know what I’m talking about). At Disneyland, she doesn’t think she needs them but she does.
Our Disneyland schedule is like this:   
     - Breakfast
     - Disneyland Park
     - Lunch in Downtown Disney  (better food and they serve alcohol for parents that need it)
     - Hotel for NAP
     - Disneyland or California Adventure Park
     - Dinner
     - Bedtime for Daughter

Don’t let your child(ren) fool you. You will arrive in your hotel room and they will escalate, bounce on the furniture and basically try to prove to you that they do not need a nap. Lay down, pretend to sleep, if you have to. Wait for it, wait for it…. A scream, crying, silence, and they’ve passed out colder than ice. Sometimes I tell our daughter to pretend to sleep and a little while later I look over to see that she is no longer pretending. If you need it, want it, take a nap yourself or go out on your balcony and enjoy a glass of wine, answer your email, or any number of other things you can do without a lot of noise in the hotel room.
We have friends that don’t do naptime but instead do pool time. This works well too, if that works for your child. If you question it, gauge your child’s behavior. If he/she is acting out of control (assuming you aren’t pumping him/her full of sugar), a nap may be the key to his /her, and more importantly, YOUR sanity. If your child seems to be doing fine, maybe the pool is the key to get away from the onslaught of noise, visuals and everything else that Disneyland offers. Maybe one day you nap, the next you pool (yea, I turned it into a verb; what of it?).

If you can’t stay in the Grand Californian, consider other nearby Disney hotels or hotels close to the Park but not affiliated with Disney (we all know they charge extra for the privilege of the Disney name). I know it will be a pain to trek back to the hotel for a nap or pool time but trust me, that time away from the noise, candy, excitement, and more will do you all some good. You bought an all day pass; take a nap and go back later, refreshed. It will be a lot more fun for all of you.

Don’t try to do it all. This, by far, is what my husband considers the most important thing to do, or not do, depending on how you look at it.
Is your child going to hate the experience because you missed a few rides? No. On the other hand, you AND your child may hate the experience if you stand in line from 8 or 9am until nearly midnight, eating crappy food and trying to cram every single Disney experience into a one-day ticket. If you can only afford one day at the park, so be it; but, isn’t it better to have a really great time that one day than it is to torture the entire family because you’re bound and determined to experience every inch of the park despite hunger, exhaustion and over-stimulation? Lots of children never go to Disneyland; if you’re lucky enough to go, make it a good time, even if you have to miss a bunch of stuff.

Alcohol. There is one place in Disneyland where alcohol is served. Club 33. If you aren’t a member, the key is knowing a member or someone who knows one (reservations by a member are required). Otherwise, you need to go to Downtown Disney or California Adventure Park for your alcohol. IMO, Downtown Disney offers a better selection than California Adventure, particularly when we’re talking about margaritas. Barring Club 33, you’ll find better food in Downtown Disney than you will in either park. That’s my opinion, anyway. We usually lunch at the Mexican restaurant in Downtown Disney; it’s on the way back to the hotel (remember, naptime after lunch!) and they have good margaritas and a good food selection that works for all members of our family.

Photopass. This is a terrific program. The discs / downloads aren’t inexpensive but if you take advantage of the PhotoPass photographers as often as you can and opt for all of the pictures, vs individual selections, it can be well worth it. Professional photographers throughout the park, take pictures of you, your kids, and your entire family, sometimes adding special features like putting Tinkerbell in the hands of your little girl. Since I’m the usual family photographer, the PhotoPass pictures are a special treat for me as I finally get to be IN some of our vacation photos! It isn’t necessary to register before you hit the park and if you don’t have a PhotoPass, the photographers can give you one to use. It is my understanding that you can combine various PhotoPasses under the same account for a single disc or download but you’ll want to verify that before you go crazy accumulating PhotoPasses on your trip. Once you log onto your PhotoPass account, you can edit your photos to include various borders and other Disney graphics. The program even allows you to add pictures you’ve taken on your camera so that you can add graphics or put all your Disney photos on one disc to send to Grandma & Grandpa.

Rooms at the Grand Californian. We’ve stayed in a room overlooking the pool and a room overlooking Downtown Disney. Our preference is the pool. The rooms over Downtown Disney are fun for people watching but the music plays on until at least 9 or 10pm and, I think midnight, on weekends. If you’re looking for quiet, you won’t get it in your room if you’re overlooking Downtown. Early mornings can be a bit rough too as the garbage & construction trucks come through Downtown, collecting and whatever else they do. Every time they back up, beep! Beep! Beep! Argh!

The iPhone app called Disneyland Mousewait is terrific and FREE. The app depends on users for information and we found it to be fairly accurate for planning which rides to take when. The program also offers other tips and features that are useful.

Autograph book – A combined photo album / autograph book for your child to get autographs from his or her favorite characters and fill with photos (after the trip). They sell them at most places in the park but there’s no reason you couldn’t make or buy one before hitting the park if you don’t want to pay Disney prices. Our daughter loves to go through her book and talk about each character that she met. 

Sunday, May 20, 2012

My new favorite trick: Two bags of Stash Peppermint Herbal Tea in a pitcher of water gives it a refreshing, sugar-free, taste of mint.

 I like water but occasionally I find it hard to drink enough and adding a little flavor makes it easier to drink more. Things like Crystal Lite and other products designed to add flavor to water contain sugar and chemicals -- none of which I want in my water.
Cucumber slices, lemons, and limes are great but I don't always get to the store and they are perishable so they aren't something I can keep on the shelf for just-in-case occasions. Other types of tea would work too but, I prefer caffeine-free and many herbals don't appeal to me. In the past, I used an herbal vanilla-hazelnut tea but it was a little too sweet for my taste.

No need to boil the water or even place the pitcher in the sun, just throw the tea bags into the pitcher and leave until the water has the flavor you desire. Easy!


Saturday, April 21, 2012

Jason Wu Lace-Detail Shirt

When I saw this online, I adored it; in person, not so much. The fitted look the model portrays is nothing like the reality. The blouse is boxy and hardly figure-flattering. A good deal of tailoring might redeem it.


Here are the details from the Neiman-Marcus site:
- Black poplin with tonal sheer deconstructed lace panels and short sleeves
- Double-layer point collar; lace-taped button front
- Pintucked detail on back
- Slim fit (??? - perhaps the blouse I tried on was an anomaly?)
- cotton / polyamide / spandex made in USA


 ... does anyone else find the model a little scary?

Friday, April 20, 2012

Lanvin Draped Half-Belt Dress

Lanvin Draped Half-Belt Dress at Neiman-Marcus
From the site:
- silk crepe
- Grecian-inspired draped front gathers at right shoulder, ties in bow high
- asymmetric neckline
- relaxed draping forms slight cocoon silhouette
- ruched half belt cinches front waist

Friday, April 13, 2012

Thought for the day

Sometimes the best way to turn the other cheek is to hit the 'unfriend' button.
- April 13, 2012

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Wine in your floor

This is so fantastic; I want one!

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Martinis...

"Thou shall not match martinis with men" was the counsel of Jo Foxworth, one of the few women in the Advertising Hall of Fame. "Some women can drink some men under the table, but a man under the table can still be dangerous."
-Town & Country, March 2012, p. 134

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Favorite Things: Michael Kors iPhone Wristlet

Available at Nordstrom, this Michael Kors iPhone Wristlet is the perfect go to when you aren't interested in carrying a purse. The only thing missing is a space for lipstick. Tuck your iPhone, a credit card and your ID into the pockets, loop the strap around your wrist and go. I frequently clip my keys to it and have everything I need in one handy spot. I also use this in place of my regular wallet when I carry my purse; it's smaller and lighter yet easy to find in my bag. Available in a few colors.

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Memory Lane

My latest iPhone obsession is an app called Warships.

Remember playing Battleship? It's back.