As a new parent, I’ve reached a new part of the holidays I haven’t really had to deal with in the past. And that’s the part where you give a gift to the people who care for your child all day. Yes, the parents at the big girls’ school organize to give gifts to the teachers there, […]
a thing I made
Recipe – How to Use Leftover Puff Pastry
Sometimes there are recipes that create leftovers. I don’t mean leftovers of the finished result, but bits of the ingredients that you wouldn’t necessarily use again because they would go bad before you could use them. When I made the spinach artichoke pull-apart bread, there was a ridiculous amount of leftover puff pastry. Because while the […]
DIY/Recipe – How to Make a Galaxy Cake
Back in the summer when we were planning H’s birthday party, I offered to make her cake like I have done in the past. She said yes, and we talked about what kind she wanted, and the first thing she said was “Galaxy”. Sure, I could do that. So we sat down and watched some […]
Recipe – Hummus
I mostly grew up in the DC area, and so have strong memories of doing a lot of the traditional “summer in DC” things. If you live on the Virginia side of the river, one of the most iconic and fun activities during the summer (at least in my mind) is a trip to Wolf […]
DIY – Distilled Rose Water
I love having fresh flowers in the house – it makes everything feel a little more cheerful and clean, even when things aren’t as tidy as they could be. Never underestimate the power of a posy to distract the eye from a cat-fur dust bunny. So when I was preparing for H’s birthday party a […]
Recipe – Mini Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Loaves
I’m going to be honest here when I say that I have no idea where this recipe comes from. Sort of. I got it from my mom, who sent me a scanned recipe page about 12 years ago. The bottom of the page is cut off, and while there is an author name attached, searching […]
Knitting Project – Garter Squish Blanket
Last year I went to visit my friend H at her new place, and when we got back from lunch, we sat down to chat, and she pulled out the most amazing blanket that she was knitting. It wasn’t a difficult one, and she seemed to be having the easiest time of it. It was […]
Recipe – Poultry Stock + Noodle Soup
I don’t remember the first time I made stock, but I do remember feeling immensely proud of myself afterwards. Making stock always feels to me like the kind of thing that was done in the 40s or 50s by scrimping housewives who wanted to use all their scraps. And as the kind of person who […]
Recipe – Spinach Lasagna
This feels like a recipe wherein I am cheating. It’s the kind of meal you can make for dinner guests and feel fancy, or that makes a lot of lunches and dinners to go in the freezer or fridge. The recipe is not one I came up with myself (despite the tagging system), but from […]
(Semi) DIY – Advent Calendar
I’m not sure what’s gotten into me lately, but I’ve had this deep desire to be crafty and to create things for my home and decor for the holidays that is both unique to our family, and that will last. At least for a while. Things that will be traditions for us and the kids, […]