*

SNICKERDOODLE MUFFINS, AND I'M OUT....

2012-09-05T05:43:00.000-07:00

Well, it's official.

I've lost that loving feeling.

I've lost my bloggin mojo, after over 2 years and 10 trillion posts.

So I'm out...at least until I get my mojo back, or get re-inspired, or something like that.

Wink and I are trying to make some pretty big life changes, so who knows--maybe I'll be back someday with inspiring photos of our dream farmhouse in the country, complete with some chickens and acres and acres of pumpkins, zinnias and sunflowers.

But for now...we're still in our little house (still unsold) in the Adirondacks. Life is still good...kiddo is thriving in college, getting ready to graduate, and Wink still loves his job more than most things. He plans to retire there...that's how much he loves it.

My health is not great...I'm not gonna lie. Being evaluated by a new neurologist for Multiple Sclerosis now...the thinking is that I've been misdiagnosed, after all this time.

Whatever.

But we are lucky. We are blessed. We know that.

I'm just in need of some new scenery and energy--that's all.

****************

You know me....I can't leave you all high and dry......check out this amazing Snickerdoodle Muffin recipe I found, and prepared recently, on Pinterest....it comes from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody, and you can find the recipe, HERE.

I made them for some dear, dear friends who own our local movie theatre, The Strand...

Bob Card and Helen Zyma are just some of the best people you'd ever want to know; they employed our teenage daughter throughout high school (all the popcorn she could eat!), so they must be SAINTS, right?

Anyways, I'm always telling Bob that he's too skinny, so I whipped up a batch of Snickerdoodle Muffins and delivered them to him, still warm, to fatten him up.

If you love Snickerdoodles, you'll adore these muffins, I swear on a stack of.....muffins!.................

Enjoy!

(In case you missed the recipe link above, you can also find it, HERE)

Take care, dear loyal bloggie friends....and you never know where I might pop up again someday!

Love,

Leslie

XXX000

FUN TIMES OUT WEST (and why I should probably never fly again)....

2012-08-27T10:46:00.002-07:00

Did you think I was gone forever?

For some reason, it felt like it, and it's taken me most of the past 3 days to get caught up around here, back in my Upstate NY home.

Not that Wink didn't do an OUTSTANDING job of keeping things running smoothly (which pretty much meant cleaning out the cat box a trillion times, sweeping up cat litter and dog treat crumbs and, oh yea, arranging for the house to be shown 3 times by realtors, which just cracks me up, as I don't think it's been shown more than twice in the past year! That'll teach me to leave town!).

*******************

So, this is how it all went down:

Caught a few Southwest flights to the San Francisco Bay Area with our Little Miss Thing (she's headed back to Berkeley for her senior year)...

Was picked up by my husband's wonderful parents, and shuttled to their gorgeous, hillside home in Mill Valley (Marin Country, north of the Golden Gate Bridge)....check out their morning view from their living room!.........

Abbie's grandparents treated us to a wonderful dinner at Tyler Florence's/Sammy Hagar's new restaurant in downtown Mill Valley, El Paseo. Gorgeous, gorgeous atmosphere AND food!

The next morning, we headed over to Berkeley, where we moved all of Abbie's stuff into her new housing, then had lunch with my favorite Uncle Joe....such a funny guy!...

Next, we headed up to my parent's home in the central Sierra Mountains (almost 4,000 feet elevation), and were greeted by their funny dogs.

One dog, beloved Buck, is a gorgeous Golden Retriever...beautiful, but normal looking, by any dog-lover's standards...

And then there's JAKE...you've probably never seen anything like Jake...he's a Chinese Crested, which means he's almost hairless...super freaky looking, but super sweet...my nickname for him is sometimes "Mosquito", and sometimes "Gnat".......

(My mom has to actually put sunscreen on him, daily, when he's not wearing a t-shirt!)

Just want to show you some photos I took from around my parent's home...my dad is a most excellent gardener.....

amazing flowers on his decks.......

Berries, grapes, pears and tomatoes, everywhere...

My folks live on a small lake, and lucky them...they have Canada Geese there, too!...

The path around the lake...very peaceful and green....

But believe it or not, the real reason we were there was not just to take photos of the flora and fauna....we were there to CELEBRATE my parent's 50th Wedding Anniversary!

So fun to get all dressed up....here's the original Nelson familia....

(yes, I do in fact own shoes, and that's my brother Andrew to my right)

All of the "elders", messing around--those are my husband's parents, Al and Marilyn, on the right....(pretty crappy photo of the four of them, but that's alls I gots, people!)

My baby brother and my baby girl (who borrowed my Old and Everlasting dress for the evening)....

NOTE: I don't know what my problem was on this trip, but I have NO photos from the celebration itself at a very swanky restaurant, NO photos of my visits with my beloved cousin Joe, NONE of my fun breakfast with BFF Lisa, and NO photos of my stay with my Aunt Jan.

BUT, I do have this amazing photo I snapped while driving across the Golden Gate Bridge one morning....please don't tell my husband that I did this!....

Yup, that famed San Francisco summertime fog is for real!

******************

I wish that I could blame my lack of photography on just having TOO good of a time, but instead I fear it was because I just wasn't feeling too well a lot of the time.

And losing my entire bag of medications for 3 days didn't help matters any.

I also acquired a horrid e-mail virus, which basically locked me out of my e-mail account, before I left for California, which added to my off-kilter feeling.

And if you want to know why I should probably never fly again...WELL. I would just suggest you never, ever take a trip with me, because for some reason I am jinxed. The past four cross-country excursions I've taken have ended messily, with cancelled flights upon cancelled flights, the spending of nights in some strange hotel in some strange city, and then being told to be back at some strange airport at 5 a.m.. for a flight that is, surpise!........cancelled!

Did I mention that I'm not a great sleeper, even in my OWN bed? Or a great flier?

Why am I not on Xanax?

Regardless, I really had a great time on this trip...maybe next time Wink can actually come, too! (he had to work...I mean, somebody has to!)......

I think I'll be doing some Pinterest recipe baking over the next few days for some very special, deserving people...and I'll be sure to share!

till then,

Leslie

XXX000

OOPS! One more little thing...please check out my newest Autumn creations in my itsy bitsy little Etsy store, located in the top right hand margin of this blog...sales have been terrific, so thank you, dear customers!

A SILLY CELEBRATION CAKE AND MY BIG HOT MESS....

2012-08-13T09:22:00.000-07:00

Received Abbie's grades from her spring semester in Paris the other day, and then decided to make my girl a cake to celebrate, because that child up and earned herself all A's and maybe one little B+ on her report card. Which is impressive enough....but lest we forget,...her classes were all taught in French!

I would have flunked out, day ONE. Just sayin'............

Our celebration cake, fancifully called the "Parisian Peppermint Cake" was really just a white cake (from a--gasp!--box!) with some peppermint extract, and homemade buttercream frosting. I found these little cupcake decorations while wandering the streets of Paris last spring, just itching to spend my money on souvenirs.....(note: I did not see even one primped Poodle in Paris)....

Most people spend their money on postcards and t-shirts and such when they travel.....not me! I always seem to come home from wherever we've been with something for the kitchen....

By the way, the inside of this cake? Well, I tried a trendy little food coloring technique my daughter calls "Ombre", or something like that....it's just graduated layers of color....really pretty, I think!............

So pretty, I had to eat a huge slab.

You'd best believe that I fell into a deep sugar coma after eating this last night. And then proceeded to punish myself extra hard on the eliptical this a.m......

******************

By the way, I'm feeling pretty darned good in my own skin these days; Finally reached my "goal" healthy weight, and have been maintaining it by religiously binging, then purging.

Not really...just eating VERY healthily (is that even a word?), watching portions and working out as my energy allows.

Because if I've learned one thing in this life, it's that diets NEVER work....and lifestyle changes do. I'm never going to allow myself to fall into that dieting insanity trap again ...just trying to remember to eat when I'm hungry, and to stop when I'm full.

I'll let you know how this all works out, 5 years from now when I'm 350 lbs.

************************

When you pack for a trip, does the floor of your bedroom or office look like this?

Like a bomb blew up in your closet?

I always, always bring waaaayy too many clothes, every time I travel. And this time, I fear, shall be no exception.

I mean HEY...how is a girl supposed to go from the foggy coast, up to the dry and hot mountains, and then back to the coast and NOT bring layers and options, options, options?

We're talking HUGE temperature changes here, folks.

Not to mention the fact that we are doing all of THIS: getting pretty dressed up for my parent's 50th Wedding Anniversary party, and then hopefully doing some hiking in the Sierras with my brother. And maybe going berry picking with my mom, and then moving our daughter into her new senior year digs, and then maybe going wine tasting in Napa and/or shopping for pillows and rugs in Marin with my Aunt Jan, and then getting some Mexican food in Palo Alto with my cousin. And Chinese food in Berkeley with my Uncle Joe. And eating at Tyler Florence's new Mill Valley restaurant with my in-laws.

Like I could do all of that with just a carry on bag.

Did you take note of how much we'll be eating on this trip?

Maybe elastic-waist sweat pants are in order for my trip home.

******************

One more little thing.

Day after tomorrow, August the 15th, is Wink and my 25th Wedding Anniversary. Yup, this is a big year for my fambly...50th for my folks, 25th for us.

We've got the whole happy marriage thing DOWN!

Let's get the champagne a' flowing!

Happy Anniversary, Wink! And remember, we'll always have Paris!....

See you all in a few weeks!

Leslie

XXX000

MY MOST FAVORITE BIRTHDAY, EVER!

2012-08-05T08:42:00.000-07:00

(image from Sodahead.com)

Yes, it was my 49th birthday the other day. My parents cannot believe that they are actually old enough to have a 49 year old daughter, and I cannot believe that I am actually old enough to have a 21 year old! This aging crap really creeps up on us in a rather stealthy way, doesn't it now?

I'm at an age where I really don't care about THINGS anymore; I'd much rather share experiences, like travel and spending time together, with those that I love. Because I really cherish the memories of good times much more than stuff.

After all, we are all born with nothing, and die with nothing. Except maybe a few tattoos.

Abbie has promised me a mother/daughter pedicure at an Albany mall, the evening before we fly west. This pedicure is very much needed, as I am not, ahem, the best about the condition of my feet during the summer. I just love being barefoot in the dirt and grass and even the gravel--what can I say? I'm a country girl at heart.

Abbie also wrote me an amazing, funny and touching poem that made me laugh AND cry, all at the same time.

I've had it framed already, and it sits proudly right beside my "Bestest Mama in the World Forever" award:

Here's what it says (you have to know my daughter to know that this is VERY Abbie)..........

"My mama loves pigs and chickens

Pigs, when they snort their fat pink heads

through the tall grass and mud

Chickens, for their blue, brown and pink eggs

and coppery feathers that soften and cover

their clucking bodies

My mama loves too loud country music

blowing all through the house on a crisp fall

afternoon

with windows open

and something good to smell

and better to taste

in the oven

But even more

than my mama loves all these things,

I love my mama"

Abigail Nelson Willard

August 3, 2012

(yes, it's true: I truly desire to get myself some pigs and chickens and even goats some day soon. But you must also know that I play classical music and the blues, way too loud, ta boot!.....)

**********************

I did get one "thing" for my birthday, because my husband just "gets" me....you may think this gift is a little bit strange, and even a little bit scary...........

Her name is Gullah.........

And I just love her, more than words can say! Gullah (I named her after the Gullah population that still remains on the islands off of South Carolina) is a Still Bank--there's a secret slot to put coins for liquor (I suppose), located on her bank. She was located for my husband by a good friend of ours who is a very well known antiques dealer and local historian. Gullah is metal, and her paint is ORIGINAL...she was made around 1870.

Gullah will sit happily on my kitchen counter, where she will keep a stern eye on my cooking for all the rest of my days!

Thank you for a fabulous, thoughtful birthday, Wink and Little Miss Thing!

Mama loves you MORE!

*******************

See you all soon!

Leslie

XXX000

PEACH UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE, AND A LITTLE LIVING IN THE MOMENT....

2012-07-30T06:58:00.001-07:00

Summertime is just whizzing by, so very fast this year...in a little over two weeks these beauties (above, Allison on the left and my girl, Abbie, on the right) will be back at school, finishing up their senior years of kollidge...didn't they just graduate from HIGH SCHOOL?

Next week the girls hit Montreal, for four days of sightseeing and concert going (Snoop Dawg, amongst others I've never heard of).......a much needed break for them during their hectic summer of multiple jobs....

I'll be flying back to California with Abbie this year, both to help get her settled into her new housing and to throw a little 50th anniversary party for her grandparents.

I'll be sure to take you all along with me!

***************

Our summers are VERRRRY short here in upstate New York...Please don't think I'm crazy when I say that I can already feel a bit of Fall in the air...especially in the mornings.

Pretty soon, we'll be eating stews and lighting candles and building fires, once again...........

But for now....just trying my hardest to keep those pesky deer from gobbling up all of our perennials.........

And just trying to enjoy every single day of this glorious summer...........

*******************

SPEAKING of Fall, y'all, I've been busy busy busy whipping up some new offerings for my Etsy store AND a few little sweet things for my friend Marianne's shop in Cazenovia, NY, called Old and Everlasting.........check out my latest, hand embroidered burlap feed-sack pillows.........

And a few spooky Halloween kitties.......

Words cannot express how much fun I'm having up in my sewing room these days....my whole life, I've lived to create things, and for once I'm really letting myself take the time to actually go nuts with fabric and color and design!

'Bout time, right?

****************

Don't know if you remember my post last summer, Fourth of July and a Georgia Peach Pie? Well, it was my #1 most viewed post, EVER....I think most people like summertime desserts made with sweet peaches!

Yesterday, for Sunday dessert, I made Southern Living's Peach Upside-Down Cake.

I know I've said this before, but you seriously can never, ever go wrong with any dessert (or recipe, for that matter) from Southern Living magazine...it is by far my favorite source for great, fool-proof recipes.....

You make this upside-down cake in a cast iron skillet...and this is what you see once you've inverted the baked cake, still warm from the oven..........just look at those peaches!............

Probably the most moist cake we've ever eaten.

And THIS is what you get when you slice the cake, and serve it with homemade whipped cream, dusted with a little cinnamon....MMMMMM........

You can find the recipe, HERE.

Till next time,

Leslie

XXX000

SOME EASY AND FUN APPETIZERS, AND A SWEET NEW PLACE TO EAT!....

2012-07-23T09:52:00.001-07:00

(Apropos of nuttin', I thought this old spice bottle worked well as a little vase for my freshly cut daisies!)

*****************

Ordered a new pedestal table from Ebay a while back, and it showed up the other day on our front porch. Why, it was just like Christmas morning!

I just love round tables for conversation--don't you? This table is very well made, and was a cinch for my husband to put together......

Gave my old dining room chairs a fresh paint job (gotta love Krylon high gloss spray paint....so much easier than painting by hand!).....

Waddya think?

I'm thinking of lowering the chandelier a tad...........

And please don't worry: we didn't get rid of our big old farm table....the sheer size of it was just bugging me lately, so Wink wrapped it up in about 20 layers of thick, thick plastic. Now it's being stored in the garage, for our next home.

Where hopefully we'll have a nice, big, gracious dining room, like I'm used to.

But for now, I'm loving this little pedestal table...speaking of pedestals, this is the base......

I figure no matter where we end up in this world, we'll always be able to use such a table. Maybe in a cute breakfast nook? Or as a game table....

A good little investment, I do believe!

********************

I did a small catering job at my girlfriend's gallery here in town last week, and I wanted to share with you the delicious, pretty and easy appetizers I prepared.

The first are my Melon, Mozzarella and Prosciutto Skewers........I used both canteloupe and honey dew melon, for lots of color, and seasoned with lots of freshly cracked black pepper....

I first made these for family, the night our daughter graduated from high school. They are the perfect summer appetizer, and everyone loves them, always. I do believe I found the recipe from Southern Living magazine, back in 2009, and I'll reprint it for you, below.

I also made my mama's Veggie Pizza Appetizers recipe....fun to make, and soooo delicious...you will wish you'd doubled the amounts! But if you're having just a few folks over for drinks, one recipe of these beauties will do...................

Take a gander at how colorful these are....so many vegetables.....I know this looks like a HUGE amount, but we were feeding well over 50 people.....

Here are the recipes....enjoy!

Melon, Mozzarella and Prosciutto Skewers

Makes about 20 appetizers

20 (1 inch) cantaloupe or honeydew cubes (I used a melon baller)

20 thin slices prosciutto (about 1/2 lb.)

20 fresh small mozzarella cheese balls

20 4 inch wooden skewers

freshly cracked pepper

thread 1 melon cube, 1 prosciutto slice and 1 mozzarella ball onto each of 20 wooden skewers. Sprinkle with cracked pepper. Refrigerate until serving.

My Mom's Veggie Pizza Appetizers

Serves many

2 cans crescent rolls

topping:

2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese

1 cup mayonnaise

1 tsp. seasoning salt

2 tsp. dill weed

1 cup vegetables, cut into small pieces ( I used the food processor), such as broccoli, olives, green onions, red, green and yellow bell pepper, tomatoes, celery or carrots).

Unroll crescent rolls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Press the seams together. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 375 degrees. Let cool. Mix topping ingredients together and spread on cooled crescent rolls. Top with veggies. Cover and refrigerate. Make at least 3 hours before serving. Cut into serving pieces.

Till we meet again,

Leslie

XXX000

SLEEPLESS IN NEW YORK, AND A FEW NEW ADDITIONS.....

2012-07-18T07:21:00.001-07:00

I haven't been sleeping well lately. Might be my age, might be all the medications I take for my stupid autoimmune disease. Might be stress, even though I don't feel stressed. Might be the 90 plus degree temperatures we've all been experiencing lately, with 10,000% humidity (and no air conditioning!). I dunno.

But what I do know is that I love snapping photos at 5 a.m., when the world feels fresh and new....

(my neighbors probably think I'm a little bit touched, tip-toeing around my yard at 5 a.m. in my nightie and barefoot, snapping photos, but they love me anyways....)

Take a gander at this gorgeous young buck I caught (just in time!) heading for my Clematis vine....

(check out that rack, girls!)

I also spotted this darling spotted fawn, scampering after its mama....sorry about the little bit of blur...she moved!...........

The things that go on while most of us are asleep!

Oh well, since I was already up and awake, I figgered I might as well hit the gym for my 3-times-a-week eliptical torture session.....

Isn't exercise supposed to make us sleep better? I feel ripped off.

*****************

I have a few new additions in my itsy bitsy Etsy Shop (you can see my offerings, located in the top right hand margin of this here blog).....

Starting with my Farmer's Market pillows....just perfect for that "foodie" friend, or for a cheerful addition to your kitchen breakfast nook!.........

And since Fall's a' comin', here are a couple of Autumn-ish patchwork pillows I've been working on..........

(note: the smaller pillow has just been spoken for, but I can always make more!)

Have a great day!

Leslie

XXX000

WINK'S BANANAS FOSTER CREPES, AND A LITTLE PEEK OF WHAT'S NEW!

2012-07-13T10:45:00.001-07:00

Been busy as a little bee up in my loft workshop, whipping up a fresh batch of my Farmer's Market pillows....soon to grace my Etsy store........

Even spent some time this week cleaning up and organizing my work space...so cathartic!...........

(Note the EXTREMELY large television that sits right next to my head whilst I sew ....ridiculous, I know! But I am such a BRAVO addict these days (especially anything and everything having to do with any Housewives series...New Jersey, DC, Altanta...bring them all on!), and listening to mindless conversation is very calming to me, for some strange reason. Don't know why....)

I'm having "sew" much fun stocking my little Etsy shop, I almost can't stand it. In fact, I plan on shopping for some Autumn hued fabrics this upcoming weekend...it'll be Fall before we all know it--sheesh!

******************

In my last post, I promised you Wink's Bananas Foster Crepe recipe, and I'm here to deliver.

We fell head over heels in love with any and all things crepe during our Paris vacation this spring. Especially the Nutella crepes.

In fact, Wink was so inspired that he requested a nice crepe pan from Little Miss Thing for Father's Day this year, and she did not disappoint....

Just LOOK at how perfect and golden brown this one came out.........

Helpful Hint: Wink recommends, if you are making more than just a few crepes, to stack them between layers of parchment paper, to keep them from sticking...works like a charm!

His crepe recipe is from Creperie Chez Suzette...you can find it below....

I love cooking with my husband, even if he IS a bit intense and kinda scary in the kitchen....

Here's what the caramelized banana filling looked like, right before the whole thing was flambed (due to the large amount of rum in this recipe...the filling is from Paula Deen, and you KNOW she has a few things to learn about moderation!).......

Here's something right pitiful....I don't even have a photo of the finished product, because we all were so eager to eat our desserts that I forgot to take any!

I scare M'self sometimes, I swear.

Anyways, you just place a good sized ladle-full of filling inside of each crepe, roll up and serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. And maybe a dusting of powdered sugar, if you're feeling fanciful.

These are so good, you may just weep.

You can find the crepe recipe, HERE.

And you can find Paula's Bananas Foster recipe, HERE.

You're welcome.

See you back soon!

Leslie

XXX000

MY BIG CHILL, AND WINK'S WARM GRILLED POTATO SALAD

2012-07-09T07:53:00.002-07:00

Well hello there! How's your summer going?

I am really enjoying life this year....just focusing on being well, rested and creative. And of course, spending time with those that I love.

I love lying on the lawn, just looking at the gorgeous summer sky....

Taking care of my little garden, and watching things grow........

It always amazes me....the little bit of effort I put into taking care of my plants...comes back to me DOUBLE in the amount of joy I receive from them.............

(Did you know that Yarrow comes in red, and not just bright yellow?)

*********************

No, our house still hasn't sold.............

But I've kind of made peace with that.............

(Willie's new upside-down peace collar)

Because somebody will buy my pretty little house someday soon.........

And until they do, I'm going to quit being so hard on myself about it....it's so very difficult to not take any of this personally, especially when you've put your heart and soul into your home. But nuttin' else in our neighborhood is selling, either....so for now, patience.

Oh, and poems like this one sure help:

May today there be peace within.

May you trust God that

you are exactly where you are

meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite

possibilities that are born of faith.

May you use those gifts that

you have received,

and pass on the love that has

been given to you.

May you be content knowing

you are a child of God.

Let this presence settle into

your bones and allow

your soul the freedom to sing,

dance, praise and love.

It is there for each and every

one of us.

***St. Theresa of Lisieux

*********************

So for now, I'm going to keep on relishing my creative energy (when you have a moment, please check out my new Etsy store, located in the top right hand margin of this here blog!)..........

(I am LOVING this new farmer's market fabric I found on Amazon recently!)......

For the rest of the summer, my big plans include loving up as much as I can on my funny family (why does Abbie gets SO mad when I snap her photo after one of her long runs in the woods, I want to know?)

(Wink loving up on his G & T)

Loving up on my sweet animals, as much as possible........

(Jack is almost 17!)

And enjoying the 3 B's as much as I can, before Labor Day hits.........

Being Barefoot...

Beer (well, not as much as I want to, but one once in a while won't kill me).....

And blessed BBQ!!!!!

*******************

SPEAKING of BBQ....last night Wink grilled some Filet Mignon (he splurged), topped it with Gorgonzola Butter, and served it with grilled asparagus and his amazing Warm Grilled Potato Salad..........best part, the ENTIRE dinner was cooked on the grill...no messy stove cleanup!...........

We were starving by the time dinner was ready...the smells were incredible!.......

Mmmmm Hmmmmm!

If you're looking for an easy and super delicious side dish for your summer BBQ's, you might want to try Egan's recipe....you won't be sorry!

WINK WILLARD'S WARM GRILLED POTATO SALAD

1 lb. Yukon Gold or Fingerling potatoes
2 tblsp. Dijon mustard
4 tblsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and pepper
2 green onions, finely chopped
3 tblsp. chopped parsley

Grill potatoes until fork tender. If your potatoes are large, cut into quarters or halves when cool enough to touch. In a large bowl, whisk together Dijon and red wine vinegar. Slowly whisk in olive oil. Toss in potatoes, green onions and chopped parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Serve warm.

********************

See you soon with Wink's Bananas Foster Crepes for dessert!

XXX000

Leslie

FAVORITE THINGS, AND IT'S OFFICIAL.....I'M ON A BREAK!

2012-06-15T11:05:00.001-07:00

Thought I'd share with you a few of my favorite things lately........

First up, and I know this sounds really strange, but this line of home fragrances just rocks my WORLD....in fact, the whole family loves it.........and have you ever heard of a husband loving a room spray?..........

I found the Orleans Home Fragrances (I swear to you I am not a paid spokesperson) when we were down in New Orleans this spring, and I am totally addicted! Their room sprays and soy votive candle fragrances are highly concentrated and last and last and last....pretty important when your house is for sale and you've got these creatures around............

Southern Magnolia is our very favorite...that scent just transports us to a warm, romantic and flower-filled spring day in the deep South.

If you'd like to try out this company's products, you can find them, HERE.

I tell you what....you won't be sorry!

More favorite things? Well, since you've asked so kindly......there's always my daily walks and weeding sessions in our little perennial garden........

Sunrise Coreopsis is just so darned CHEERFUL, no?......

Love the lime green of this new Sedum I just planted....

This Yarrow comes back year after year....the flowers are just starting to hint at the mustard yellow hue they soon shall become....

Lupine, which does so very well here......

Our Barberry plant is just HUGE all of the sudden...seems like just yesterday that I picked this up at the nursery, in a one gallon size pot! Again, love how the lime green just POPS against our barn red home..........

And last, one of six woodsy little planter baskets, soon to be brimming over with delicate white Petunias and Potato Vine....

I have a few gardening tips that I have relied upon for years and years now....

1. I try to focus on the actual leaves of the perennials I choose, over the flowers. Because the foliage is what you're probably going to be looking at for the longest periods over the growing season, so you'd better pick out colors and shapes that you enjoy!

2. This product is a LIFESAVER (or should I say, plant saver, or better yet...$$ saver!), especially if you live in a wooded area like we do, and have deer and/or rabbits. If sprayed religiously, this really, really works (don't mind the smell..it fades after a few hours).........

(Again, I am not a paid spokesperson....just thought you'd like to know about a few products that are really terrific!)

You can find Liquid Fence these days at most hardware/garden stores.

*****************

So I've decided to take a little summer break.....think I've sort of lost some of my blogging MOJO, for the time being, anyways.

Time to really focus on my health, my family and having as much fun as possible this summer!

Also working on lots of sewing projects, in anticipation of opening up my new Etsy store. Don't worry, I'll be sure to announce it here and on Facebook!

For now, enjoy your glorious summer!

lots of love,

Leslie

XXX000

SWEET PAUL'S CAPRESE TARTS AND A COUPLA MY FAVORITE THINGS.....

2012-06-08T12:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was such a good day for me....first of all, I received these sweet Peonies from my sweet friend, Sarah F....they just make me smile!.........

And if that wasn't enough, my sweet friend Sarah shared her sweet daughter Allison with us last night for supper!

Allison, soon to be a school teacher to some very lucky children, is such a brave, brave girl...she eats all of my experiments! Here's the young woman herself, fresh off of the boat from Amsterdam/Belgium/Paris, just chock full of travel tales....ah, the lives our daughters lead!.........

My ever-willing recipe guinea pigs:

Are you wondering what concoction I "tortured" them with last night?

Well, it was called Sweet Paul's Caprese Tarts (Sweet Paul is another one of those amazing food blogs).......which involved puff pastry, fresh mozzarella, halved grape tomatoes and fresh basil...........let's just say that the four of us around the dinner table INHALED these beauties........

Very summery, very cheesy and very buttery...MMMMM!!!

You can find the recipe, HERE.

My only changes to the original recipe?

Well, next time I think I would bake the puff pastry for 10 minutes or so by itself, THEN add the cheese and other toppings.

Also, I added some freshly grated Parmesan cheese for extra flavor.

You might also score around the edges of your puff pastry with a knife, which will give your end product a nice little "crust"......

Other than that, the recipe was PERFECTO--hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Have a fabulous weekend....

Leslie

XXX000

BI-RITE CREAMERY'S SMOOTH AND MELLOW CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM, AND HOW WE SPENT OUR SUNDAY.....

2012-06-04T11:38:00.002-07:00

A few snippets from a very peaceful Sunday afternoon (quite rainy and cool here in the Northeast)............

I just love the way a cloudy day makes the lime green color of my potato vines just POP!.......

Impatiens love it when it's cool...........

So do our ferns..........

******************

Rainy days make me want to light a candle and bake and be creative and cozy inside our home....I know that my daughter feels the same way........

I don't know if she was channeling the Waltons or Laura Ingalls Wilder yesterday, but she stayed busy, doing a lot of this:...........

And making a little bit o' this: (homemade blueberry jam---maybe one of these days she'll give her ol' Ma her secret recipe!)........

*****************

I've been spending a lot of time up in my sewing loft lately.....I have acquired QUITE a stash of fabric, and just love seeing where going nuts on my Singer will take me.....just finished these pillows for the little sitting area up there.....

This is where ALL the magic happens.....

I just finished stitching up (some by hand, some by machine) some sweet little black and red decorative pillows....kinda into the whole penny rug design lately....

I'm thinking about starting my own Etsy shop, online. Have you ever heard of Etsy? It's an AMAZING resource for handcrafted gifts and just about everything else in the universe that's made by hand....you can check it out, HERE.......so what do you think? Should I go into business? Or just keep sewing for kicks and giggles?......

*******************

So recently my awesome Berkeley-living Uncle Joe sent me a link to a blog that has NOTHING but ice cream recipes....oh, he knows me so well!

If you desire to acquire diabetes just by LOOKING at a website, you should go HERE.

One of the recipes featured was by Bi-Rite Creamery, out of San Francisco. They are famous, FAMOUS I tell you, for their amazing ice cream.

Abbie and I just HAD to whip up a batch for a Sunday evening dessert.....This recipe was a little more involved than my standard ice cream creations, but oh my goodness was it ever worth the extra effort (and really, it wasn't THAT much extra effort...just a little bit of egg tempering and straining was all)....hard to believe that THIS:

Would in a few hours turn into THIS:

But it did! Creamy, rich and homemade chocolate ice cream. If you'd like to whip up a batch for your family this summer, you can check out the recipe, HERE.

Thank you, Uncle Joe!!!

TODAY I'M SO THANKFUL THAT:

***Abbie's best friend Allison is coming home from Amsterdam/Paris tomorrow! Can't wait to hear all about your travels darling girl, and have you over for some BBQ!!

***I'm taking off for a two day wine tasting trip with Wink tomorrow morning, bright and early. We're hitting the Southern Tier of New York state and meeting up with our Club Managers of Central New York Association friends for some much needed wining and dining...can't wait to see the whole gang...

***Grad parties are starting up next weekend--I think we are going to at least 4! So much fun....

SUPER EASY MONDAY NIGHT SUPPER: WHOLE FOODS' GRILLED VEGGIE AND GOAT CHEESE PITAS...

2012-05-30T06:18:00.000-07:00

So, Monday nights are not a good night for me. Because Monday afternoons I have to give myself my Methotrexate injection. Which I am sooooo grateful for, as the injections really seem to be helping me on a daily basis, but ANYWAYS, by early Monday evenings I can really feel like S*#T-on-a-stick. Kinda like I've swallowed a bottle of chemicals, which is essentially what I'm doing, but instead of swallowing I'm sticking a needle in my stomach.....

But I digress--sorry for the visual.....

Sometimes on Mondays Wink picks up dinner on his way home from the office, and sometimes he does the dishes.

And sometimes I feel okay enough to get my butt off of the sofa and cook up a little sumpin' sumpin' simple.

I love pinning and sharing recipes that I've been finding HERE lately (you won't believe how many delicious things I've pinned to try!):

(Have you discovered the wonderful world of Pinterest yet? It really is more fun than a barrel of monkeys...so creative, so inspirational!)

Recently I pinned a recipe from Whole Foods Market, a.k.a. Foodie Nirvana.

I made their Grilled Veggie and Goat Cheese Pitas for Wink and myself a few weeks back, and Wink said that he could seriously eat these for dinner 3 times a week; they're THAT good.

I only deviated from their recipe a LITTLE bit this time (have you noticed that I do that a lot with recipes?)....I roasted the vegetables in my oven, instead of grilling them. Either way should be just fabulous...I just really, really like roasted vegetables!

Get yourself 4 ounces of good goat cheese...I bought the herbed kind.........

Slice up a bunch of vegetables....this recipe calls for portobello mushrooms, zucchini (I added yellow squash), red onion and red bell pepper....drizzle with olive oil, balsamic, salt and pepper...........

I roast my vegetables in a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes, or until really tender....I usually flip them once during cooking.

"Shmear" softened goat cheese all over one side of a pita, add vegies, bake some french fries on the side maybe, and you've got dinner!..........

Oh, so delicious!

You can find Whole Foods' recipe, HERE

See you soon!

Leslie

XXX000

WHAT'S FOR SUPPER: HOW ABOUT MAPLE GRILLED SALMON, ROASTED GREEN BEANS AND COUS COUS?.........

2012-05-26T14:50:00.000-07:00

Welcome back! How have you been?

Me? Well thanks for asking....we've been craaazy busy around here, and tonite I am Tired, Tired, Tired, with a capital "T"......

I'm so exhausted that nothing sounds better to me than curling up on the sofa with a cat or two and watching a sappy Lifetime or Hallmark movie. And I'll fall asleep in the middle of it and miss the ending, fer sure.....

But it's a good tired, because in the midst of all of our busy-ness with our (Little Miss Thing's and my) back breaking planting/gardening job and our Open House/Memorial Day weekend extravaganza (it's over--yay! And it was a huge success, me thinks..yaaaaay!), we've managed to have ourselves a little bit o' fun, too.

Because it's summertime, and the living should be sweet and easy.....with lots of sundress wearing / bike riding.......Abbie says pale is the new tan (OMG I love this child!).........

And lawn mowing (Wink's idea of a GREAT sweaty time, I am not kidding)...

And Weber-ing and dining on the back deck, whenever the weather permits....

Gotta love these darling unscented votives I picked up at the Hob Lob....a pack of 6 runs about $3.....

Big fun for me in the summertime equals working in my yard and eagerly watching all on my precious perennials that faithfully come back to life, year after year. Which is truly a miracle, what with our below zero temperatures AND the deer we get around these parts.....

This Boston ivy never fails to bloom mid-May...I don't think anything could kill it (I like to joke that I could pour gasoline on the roots and set the vine on fire and it would still come back, like a champ)....

Black-eyed Susans, Coneflowers, and the Shasta Daisies are all doing just swell...

Lamb's Ear....truly one of my favorites.....

Clematis, A.K.A. "deer crack"........

Check out these wild ferns that I transplanted to the bed under our Red Leaf Maple a few years back...they will be huge by July.......

Best thing about these ferns (well, besides their beauty)? They're FREE!.......

********************

Not to change the subject or anything, but.......

Need a quick and easy and nutritious dinner idea? How does this look to you?.......

Maple Grilled Salmon.....it is our absolute FAVORITE way to cook salmon these days! The cous cous is just the Far East boxed kind...gotta love how cous cous comes together in about 5 minutes flat. And the green beans? We like to roast them...

To roast your fresh green beans, just trim them, rinse them and lay them flat on a baking sheet. Toss (use your hands) with olive oil, salt, pepper and a little bit of balsamic vinegar. Roast for about 20 minutes in a 425 degree oven, flipping beans over about half-way through the cooking time. Absolutely delicious!

The salmon...super easy, and your kids will love it, because it tastes like candy!

Here's the recipe...enjoy!

MAPLE GRILLED SALMON

Serves 3-4

1 cup REAL maple syrup

3 tblsp. orange juice

2 tblsp. butter

1 tsp. soy sauce

kosher salt

1 lb. skinless salmon fillets

In a small saucepan, bring syrup to a boil over medium heat. Boil until reduced to 2/3 cup, about 5-6 minutes. Stir in orange juice, butter and soy; remove from heat. Pour into a shallow casserole. Let cool for 20 minutes. Place salmon in cooled sauce and let sit for 1/2 hour, tossing in sauce once or twice. Place salmon on stove-top grill pan ; sprinkle with kosher salt and cook for aproximately 4 minutes per side over medium-high heat. Brush salmon with sauce while cooking. Serve immediately.

TODAY I'M SO GRATEFUL THAT......

***Our daughter has been such a huge help to me since she's been home, and never complains about any of the mundane tasks I ask her to do!

***My husband just brought me a nice glass of wine, without my asking!

***All of the feedback on our home today (QUITE a few people came through our little Open House!) was super positive.....

***That my readers are so very forgiving and loyal...I know you will all forgive me for any and all type-o's and grammatical errors in this post, due to my brain-dead state tonite!

SOUTHERN LIVING'S HUMMINGBIRD BUNDT CAKE, AND A VERY HAPPY DAY!!

2012-05-17T06:18:00.000-07:00

Picked up our kiddo at the airport in Syracuse the other night, and because Abbie's my daughter, she's used to being totally embarrassed on a regular basis.

This time was no exception.

Heck, I wanted her arrival to be celebrated in grande style! She's back in the United States for the first time in almost 6 months....

Balloons and a big, obnoxious sign waving at the arrival gate...she wouldn't expect anything less....

Funny thing was, since we live so close to the Army base at Ft. Drum, I think everyone waiting to pick up somebody else at the airport thought that my child must be coming home from Afghanistan or Iraq or somewhere dangerous like that, what with the red, white and blue/Patriotic thing going on in my sign.

She was in peaceful Paris, France...hey, their colors are red, white and blue, also!

Anyways, you will all be happy to know that Abbie made it home safely, is already unpacked and ready to get to work with her mama, planting flowers and scooping up movie theatre popcorn.

SO very happy to have her here in New York, for the time being, at least!

***************

The other day I had a hankerin' to make a special celebratory cake, and the first cake that came to mind was a Hummingbird Cake. Specifically, Southern Living's Hummingbird Cake. I think this is probably my mom's and my favorite cake of ALL time to make.

Why? And what IS a Hummingbird Cake, you might ask?

Here's a photo of the three-layered fabulosity.........

(photo compliments of Southern Living)

The consistency of a Hummingbird Cake is similar to a carrot cake, complete with a decadent cream cheese frosting. Except it's different--just as moist, but you include canned, crushed pineapple and mashed banana and toasted pecans.

I am here to tell you that this is one of the best pieces of cake you will ever have. AND, the traditional Hummingbird Cake recipe (you can find that, HERE) makes a HUGE, HUGE cake--enough to feed a very large crowd.

Well, it's only the three of us Willards around here right now (most of Abbie's friends are still away at school or off traveling), so I didn't want a huge ol' cake hanging around my kitchen for days, going to waste and tempting my sorry self.

Good thing I opened up my latest Southern Living Magazine and found their latest creation...a Hummingbird BUNDT Cake. Same incredible recipe, but much smaller, with a lot less cream cheese frosting.

Oh my.......

Here's my finished product, freshly drizzled with frosting and sprinkled with toasted pecans.....

You can find the recipe for Southern Living's Hummingbird Bundt Cake, HERE.

I hope you love this cake as much as we do.

It's excellent for breakfast, BTW.

Till later,

Leslie

XXX000

*********************

TODAY I'M SO GRATEFUL THAT..........

***I have a subscription to Southern Living Magazine. Which may seem strange, living as close to Canada as we do, but I tell you what.....they have the best, best, best recipes in the whole wide world. My girlfriend Lisa will attest to that!

***My daughter is so eager to learn about gardening this summer....someone else to help pull weeds...yippee!!!

***it's almost the weekend, and we are so very excited to go to our favorite nursery and go nuts, and the decks are finally getting stained! Thank you, Mother Nature, for providing us with a sunny, dry weekend.

A BACON CHEDDAR HASHBROWN QUICHE AND A LITTLE BIT OF FREEDOM.....

2012-05-14T11:16:00.002-07:00

Well hello there, and a very happy Monday to you!

Here's what I started my day with yesterday.... my (and Abbie's, for the summer) new ride.....

Ain't she sweet? I haven't had my very own bike since college, a good 5 or 6 years ago..........

My favorite part? Well, besides the white-walled tires and women's frame, I just adore this little Nantucket basket wired to the front (so great for mail and farmer's market hauls this summer)..........

The best part of my Mother's Day Sunday was taking a lovely ride about the hood with Wink......just lettin' the good times roll! We also had fun going over to nearby Lake Delta for dinner and digging in the dirt most of the morning.....

Digging in the dirt is the best thing in the world to do, ever, in my book...it's all about the simple things, no?.......

I was truly spoiled by my husband this Mother's Day. AND, our Little Miss Thing (home tomorrow night at midnight!) wrote me the sweetest e-mail; it made me cry. She makes it so easy to be a good mama, because she's such a wonderful child. Hey, did I ever show you (I know I have, at least four or five thousand times thus far) this very prestigious award I won a few years back? Finally, finally got it framed so hopefully now it'll last forever.....

Mmmmm Hmmmm. that's right. It's official, so all you other moms out there can just wallow in jealousy, forever.....unless you've received a similar award, that is!

******************

A long time ago I posted a recipe for a Hash Brown Quiche that my family really loves. Well, I changed it up a little bit recently by eliminating the ham and sprinkling the whole pie with crumbled bacon......

This quiche is my reason for living......

We love it for breakfast. We love it for lunch. We love it for brunch. Sometimes, when we're feeling speshally naughty, we even like it for supper, with a crisp green salad on the side! Shhhh...don't tell the neighbors......

Yes, it's cheesy. Yes, it has bacon. Deal with it......do an extra 3 miles on the treadmill tomorrow, and you'll be just fine.......

If you'd like to try this, you can find the original recipe, HERE. I have never been a huge fan of ham, so I really like my new version better: Just eliminate the chopped ham from the filling, and sprinkle the finished pie, just out of the oven, with cooked and crumbled bacon. Maybe 4 or 5 slices.

See you next time!

LESLIE

XXX000

TODAY I'M SO GRATEFUL THAT.......

***I became a mom. Because the joy my child brings me will last a lifetime.

***That I have such a wonderful mom, Carol in California! She taught me all about the finer things in life, including good food, good men and the Clan McGregor.

***That I have such a wonderful Mother In Law, Marilyn in California! Her support and love for our little family is unwavering.

SPINACH, MUSHROOM AND RICOTTA STUFFED SHELLS

2012-05-11T05:28:00.000-07:00

Wanna know my latest obsession?

Here it is:

Finding, then preparing, recipes from Pinterest.

It's sort of like searching for hidden treasures..and the hunt is too much fun! If you'd like to check out the yummy recipes I've pinned recently, just click on the "Pinterest" button in the upper right hand margin, then click on "Recipes to try fer sure"......

Last night, I made these Spinach, Mushroom and Ricotta Stuffed Shells for supper....pinned this recipe from a fun blog called Handle The Heat.........

Can I just tell you that not only were these beauties low fat AND vegetarian (my little vegetarian and always hungry LMT is flying home next week!), they were also DELICIOUS! The recipe made enough that we shall be dining on the leftovers tonite.

If you'd like to make these for your family, you can find the recipe HERE.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Leslie

XXX000

TODAY I'M SO GRATEFUL THAT...............

***My new/vintage looking cruiser bike is waiting for me at the local bike shop...complete with no speeds and a women's frame. Can't wait to find a cute little basket to put on the front!

***I've discovered Pinterest, finally. Because I'm always the last person on the planet to jump on any new trend. Seriously.

***Our daughter finished her last exam at Sciences Po in Paris, and will be flying that ol' red eye home on Tuesday. Cannot wait to start baking lots of treats for her and her friends!

HOMEMADE STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM, AND WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO.....

2012-05-06T12:25:00.000-07:00

First up, I'd like to say THANK YOU, from the very bottom of my cotton pickin' little heart, for all of your thoughtful words via Facebook and e-mail and phone, regarding the passing of our beloved cat Pee Wee......it really means a lot......

Some non-cat-lovers would probably say "Get over it"; that he was just a CAT, for Heaven's sakes, but we love all animals, and shall truly miss our fat Pee and his sweet spirit..........

(doesn't this daffodil look like I stuck a plastic one in the ground? For reals, I didn't--it's the real deal!)

*******************

Spring has finally sprung here in the North Country of America, and with it comes a heck of a lotta work! Wink and I have pretty much spent the whole weekend sand blasting our decks (in preparation for staining), pulling weeds and mulching flower beds (Oy, my aching back!) in happy anticipation of the growing season ahead.

These new buds on our Red-leaf Maple make me so happy, every single year.........

Love potting sweet-faced little Pansies, for a happy touch of yellow on the porch (where the deer won't eat them and the frost won't kill 'em!)...........

Even the pesky Dandilions on the lawn make me smile (but I'll for sure get to you later, my pretties!).......

I love to bring a touch of the garden indoors...check out this centerpiece I created out of an old green serving tray, terra cotta pots (5 for $3.99 at Hob Lob!), gardening tools, a birdhouse and seed packets.....Really hoping I don't set the whole darned thing on fire!...

********************

Have you noticed a lot of these in the grocery stores lately?

I love strawberries, but they don't love me. As I get older (and older!), I've noticed that I've become increasing more allergic (lips swell up, burning mouth rashes, fun stuff like that) to certain fruits, especially citrus fruits and strawberries.

Life is SO not fair sometimes.

Anyways, I've found that I CAN eat strawberries if they're frozen in desserts, or cooked, like in jams and pies. I just happen to LOVE ice cream, so the other day I picked up a jumbo container and decided to make some ice cream for dessert.

First thing I do is puree the de-stemmed, halved strawberries with about a tablespoon of sugar in my food processor (a blender would work fine, too).........

Then I just add this puree to my normal ice cream recipe base of 2 cups 2% milk, 2 cups heavy cream, 1 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. vanilla extract. I also added a squirt of red food coloring to this, just so my strawberry ice cream would be light pink in color...........

Follow your ice cream maker's directions, and in a few hours time, et VOILA!.....

We like ours with a "little bit" of chocolate sauce........YUM!......

HAPPY SPRING TO YOU!

until next time,

Leslie

XXXOOO

*******************

TODAY I'M SO GRATEFUL THAT.....

***My brother Andy's heart surgery went off without a hitch....here's to better health, Android!

***We finally have a date for my parent's 50th Anniversary party--August 18th! Cannot wait to see everyone out there in Kolly-fornia...

***Our wonderful realtor Richard, who is trying his DARNDEST to sell our home!

ODE TO PEE WEE...........

2012-05-04T05:32:00.000-07:00

R.I.P.

Pee Wee Willard

1998-2012

********************

We had to put our beloved 14 year old cat, Pee Wee, to sleep yesterday. His demise came upon us rather suddenly....he was normally the happiest, chubbiest, purr-iest cat you ever done seen.

Kidney failure is a Witch with a B............

Here are a few fun facts I'll bet you didn't know about him:

***Pee Wee Willard was born in Sonora, California, and he drove (well actually, we drove...he didn't have his license yet) all the way across the Unitied States in the back of an SUV, to his final home in upstate New York.

***Pee Wee Willard weighed 19 pounds, and when he jumped off of the bed, the whole house shook. For reals.

(Pee Wee tried to get along with most dogs)

***Pee Wee Willard was bulimic. I am not kidding. He was known to regularly "binge" on his kibble, then "purge" it back up. Thank God for wood floors, paper towels and 409!

***Pee Wee Willard was an agorophobic. The above photo is pretty much the closest he ever got to going outside. The world was just way too scary for sensitive Pee........

***Pee Wee Willard was all about love, and didn't have a mean bone in his chubby body....his bliss was cuddling up next to whoever was on the sofa or in bed.....

Rest in peace, our red headed son.

We love you!

Mom, Dad and Abbie

XXX000

THE WILLARDS TAKE PARIS, PART TROIS!

2012-04-30T12:51:00.000-07:00

(Is she smiling, or frowning? I wish I could have gotten closer for you, but I am telling you now that you should be VERY impressed that I got this photo at all--the crowds were horrific, so this was taken by reaching my arms up waaay over my head, going heavy on the zoom, saying a prayer to Nikon and snapping away!)

*****************

Today I was 23 minutes into my hellish 45 eliptical workout when (horrors!) I realized that I hadn't finished up my very famous THE WILLARDS TAKE PARIS series--so sorry to leave you hanging like that!

I've been a bit hyper-manic lately. Springtime does that to me.

So much to do!

May is going to be busy, busy, busy:

Little Miss Thing will be coming home for summer, mid-month.

We have an Open House tenatively scheduled for Memorial Day weekend, which will hopefully result in an offer on our home (please oh please!).

LMT's and my summer job as the official gardeners to the STARS (for the business my husband runs) starts up again in a few weeks. Which involves a ton of work, but is so much fun I can't stand it.

I know there's more on that list. I just can't remember right now--heck, I can't even remember what I had for lunch, not 2 hours ago.....

********************

There is a lovely blog here on "Cyberspace", you know, the "World Wide Web" (I say that just to irritate my kid) that I stalk on a regular basis, and it's named The Cottage Nest. A darling, darling spot in the Universe. You can get there by clicking HERE. The blogstress, whose name is Jen, is traveling to Paris to celebrate HER anniversary soon, and asked me to give her a few pointers for a smooth trip.

That just cracked me up. Because "smooth" travel is SO not what I'm known for!

Well Jen, we were only there for 8 days, but we did in fact have a pretty smooth trip this time (well, except for the crappy weather towards the end, but hey, waddya gonna do?), probably thanks to some wonderful advice given to us by friends and family. Here's what worked for us:

***Learn the very most basic French. Oui. Non. Merci. Bonjour. Bonsoir. Au Revoir. Parlez Vous Anglais?

***In most restaurants, in my limited experience, the toilettes are located in the basement.

***When entering a business, ALWAYS say Bonjour or Bonsoir. It shows respect and courtesy, and is expected.

***Our daughter taught us this one: when sitting down at a cafe, always ask for a caraffe of water (Un caraffe de eau), which is free. Otherwise, you will end up paying a bundle for bottled.

***Gratuity is always included at restaurants (and taxis, I do believe)--LOVE THIS!

***Do not drink or eat on the Metro--a major faux paus, I'm told (no wonder I got such dirty looks with my Starbucks!)

***On the street, do not attempt to smile at or say "hey" or make eye contact with the locals--I guess this is VERY typical American behavior, and they will think you are a big old geek. (I had a very hard time with this one!)

***On your first day or two in Paris, take one of those touristy double-decker bus tours (you can pick it up at Notre Dame)....these are really the best way to get a good, overall view of the city, and you can jump on and off whenever you want to, all day long. Well worth the money!

***The boat tours on the Seine are also a very convenient and inexpensive way to get around the city.

Hope those few tips help you, Jen!

***************

As I mentioned before, the last few days of our trip were chilly and rainy (totally brought the wrong clothes!), but before the rains really started, we took the Metro to the Montmartre neighborhood. Which is the hilliest area of Paris, complete with incredible views of the whole city............check out the "funicular" that takes lazy-butt girls like me up to the top of the hill.............

And here's what is at the top...the famous Sacre Coeur cathedral.........

Amazing city views.......

The lovely streets of Montmartre..........

The Moulin Rouge!.......................

******************

Of course, we could not leave Paris without visiting some of the museums. Our daughter is so fortunate: included in her tuition is FREE admissions to all of the museums in Paris! One day, she took us to the Musee D'Orsay, which is housed in a grand old train station. I don't have any photos inside this museum, as they weren't allowed, but OH the joy of standing mere inches from Van Gogh's self-portrait! From Monet's Water Lily Pond!

Words cannot express how very VAST and overwhelming the Louvre Museum was...we picked a rotten day to go, as it was rainy outside and every single tourist in Paris had the same idea, but oh well. Here are some shots from when we were waiting in line to get inside...truly breathtaking!............

The famed I.M. Pei pyramids, up close.....

Endless hallways of art, jam-PACKED with art lovers!.............

Here's a little friend of mine, named Venus. Venus De Milo, to be exact....

Egyptian antiquities, galore...........

******************

OOPS!

Hey Jen! There are a few things I forgot to mention earlier......

***Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, in France drives teensy-tiny cars, because gas is seriously about $10 a gallon there. So if you rent one, find the smallest car you can, like one of these.........(I am not kidding when I tell you that we did not see ONE SUV over there, not even one!)............

***Another great way to get around is to "Velibe"-it. Velibes are bicycles that you can find to rent for the day on the streets, and they are cute as can be! Just watch out for those crazy cab drivers!

Well, I do believe I've shared the best of our travel photos...hope you've enjoyed your little virtual trip to Paris with me!

I'll be back soon with some wonderful new recipes to try!

XXX000

Leslie

THE WILLARDS TAKE PARIS, PART DEUX: THE EIFFEL TOWER, PARISIAN CAFES AND VERSAILLES!

2012-04-25T17:57:00.000-07:00

Well now, guess I can check THIS one off of my bucket list, now can't I? Seeing the real Eiffel Tower, that is. Except I'd already been to the Eiffel tower, the REAL REAL one, just last spring, right?.............

Wait, wait...which came first, the faux Eiffel tower in Las Vegas, Nevada, or the faux version, in Paris, France???? Because I took both of these photos, and now I'm kinda confused..........

Bucket List? Check, check, check!

Oh my goody goody gumdrops I love my life sometimes!

Here's what you get when you ask a complete stranger (I secretly suspect she was sort of drunk) to take the Willard family's Christmas card photo....this photo seriously gives me vertigo! And just look at Wink's face! I don't think I'll be using this one, come Christmas, 2012...............

Here's what the underbelly of Le Tour Eiffel looks like, just in case you've never seen it from this perspective....BTW Wink wanted to take me to the top, via elevator, and propose to me, all over again, just like Tom Cruise did with Katie Holmes when he oh-so-famously/romantically proposed to her a few years back, but the line was 3 hours long....SO not worth our precious time, we collectively decided............

Okay so that's enough of THAT tourist trap...now onto the MAGNIFIQUE street cafes of Paris, for which I have a huge crush! LOVE just sitting outside under wonderful space heaters, just watching the world go by. I've always dreamed of such places.......The first two, in one of our two favorite neighborhoods (the other being The Marais), St. Germaine.....

And here's where stuff gets funny: We've all heard about the notorious rudeness of French waiters....well, this guy just LOVED Little Miss Thing...even kindly paused to pose with her..........Hmmmm.....I wonder if he's single?..........

How cute is this?..............Je T'aime France!.........

Wink, ever the American, chooses beer--Me, bring on the French Chablis!......

*******************

On our third day in France, we took the train out to see the Palace at Versailles........I think I must have said something stupid (or embarrassing) on our 30 minute train ride out into the French countryside...what do you think?

The Palace at Versailles....there are just no words. So over the top...so much gilt and gold and glamour and glitz (and the gardens! my favorite part!)...so I'm just going to let the photos do (most of) the talking...........

Here's what happens when we try to catch a jump-shot, mid-air..........just ends up looking silly!.............Cuz that's how we silly Willards ROLL, baby!..........

This is all REAL gold--I swear on a stack!..............

(We interrupt this regularly scheduled programming to introduce the Princess of Versailles, Le Petite Mademoiselle Thing! Isn't she lover-ly?...........)

And the King (we were promptly kicked off property, shortly after this photo was taken at the cheesy Versailles gift-shoppe).........

The Hall of Mirrors, where the Treaty of Versailles was signed--which I do believe ended World War II (or was it WW1?)............

And now to the gardens..........truly mind-bendingly beautiful!.......Check out the tulips...

Here we fooled Abbie into thinking she was kissing the actual BLARNEY STONE--I love tricking our gullible American youth!........

The "backside" of Versailles....

LMT thoughtfully picked us up a picnic lunch of fresh fruits, cheeses and baguettes at her local Farmer's Market, which we thoroughly enjoyed, lakeside...........

*******************

Here's to 25 MORE years of happily wedded bliss...LOVE you MORE, Wink Willard!.......

***************

See you soon for Part 3 of our fantastic Parisian adventure--including the Gardens of Luxembourg, the Montmartre neighborhood and, of course, the Loerve for a little bit o' Mona L.!!!!

XXX

OOO

Leslie

THE WILLARDS TAKE FRANCE, PART 1......OUR HOTEL, THE SEINE AND THE FOOD!

2012-04-22T11:38:00.001-07:00

(Wink seriously believed that he was King of Versailles for the day)

***************

So we're back from our 8-day jaunt across the pond. From that City of Light, Paris, France......

Laundry--done.

House--tidied.

Jet lag--mostly gone.

428 photos downloaded and sorted--check, check, check!!

I hereby promise to try my best not to bore you with our vacation photos. I mean, let's be honest here: does ANYBODY really enjoy scrolling through Aunt Phyllis's 10,945 pictures from her Florida Spring break?

I didn't think so....

So I'm going to share with you JUST the photos I think are the best of the best, the creme de la creme.

Just so you know, Paris was FREAKING AWESOME AMAZING, especially for somebody like me, who views things with asthetic and foodie eyeballs. My mouth was literally hanging open in awe the entire trip...sounds pretty, no? Good thing I had Wink and our very own Little Miss Thing (whose French, by the way, is so fluent that even the locals couldn't tell she was a U.S. citizen), to wipe the drool off of my chin every 2.5 minutes or so......

This might take awhile...and this whole post shall be broken down into 2 or 3 parts, so that you won't want to go and shoot yourself in the head from sitting still for so long. Go ahead, grab that cup of coffee (or shot of Jager) now, because here we go!........................

*****************

First up, our hotel. Absolute perfection. Well, absolute FRENCHIE perfection--the rooms would be considered small by American standards. Our daughter picked this place out for us because of it's central location on the Isle St. Louis, which is an actual island in the middle of the Seine River..............our hotel is named after the island.....(or, is the island named after the hotel?)......

Our cute hotelier, Phillippe, greeted us each day in the lobby...

The cellar dining room where we ate a few breakfasts....so cozy!...

Our wonderful 3rd floor room...check out the exposed original beams from the early 1800's!.......I want these in MY home!......

A few funky things...check out the hairdryer in the bathroom (it actually worked better than you'd think!) and the large room key that had to be turned in every time you left the room. Then, when you returned, you needed to pick the key up again at the front desk and insert it into this port as you enter your hotel room so that the electricity would turn on! Genius!.....

GORGEOUS shower and tile floors throughout....

Needless to say, after flying an 8 hour red-eye flight over, we NEEDED that shower, plus a nap.

But first things first...seeing Little Miss Thing! This photo was taken on a bridge over the Seine right after we met up, and I am here to tell you that I was so very out of it that I could have been in South Dakota, for all that I knew! Please note the yellow scarf I quickly wrapped around my pitiful self before leaving the room, in an desperate attempt to look "fresh" after not sleeping for 30 plus hours...............

Here's the famed Notre Dame Cathedral, which was mere steps from our hotel....

Seriously scary Gargoyles.....

View from the front of the Cathedral....absolutely breathtaking!.....

Here's something really ROMANTIQUE for you....on a couple of the bridges over the Seine, there is a tradition where lovers place LOCKS on the bridge, write each other's names upon the lock, then throw the key into the river, thereby insuring lifelong fidelity and bliss...you BETCHA we did this before we left Paris. Heck, it IS our 25th anniversary year!..........

Isn't that so sweet?

That first day was also the Marathon Du Paris AND a massive political rally for the French Presidential race...you should have heard the roar of the crowds! Here's a bit of the marathon we viewed from up above. I absolutely felt no shame in watching people run 26.2 miles while I happily ate Nutella Crepes from up above.....

SPEAKING of Nutella crepes...just so you know, Nutella Crepes, which are made right on the streets of Paris, are about the bestest, bestest thing you're ever going to eat...to this I swear. Again, no shame.....look at the bliss on LMT's face!.....

Since this is primarily a food blog, thought I'd share a few snaps of the gorgeous, gorgeous foods available on every single block of Paris. First and foremost, the BREAD....it is not a stereotype that the Frenchies adore their bread. Good thing I'm not gluten intolerant in any way.....

Then there's the Coffee Crema...had to have at least 2 of these each and every morning...

(By the way...Parisian culture prefers that you sit down in a cafe and drink your coffee--there is a noticeable lack of coffee-to-go shops. Thank GOODNESS, says this proud caffeine-addicted-American girl, for a Starbucks located within walking distance from our hotel!)

When we were planning our trip, we had at least 72 trillion friends tell us that UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should we miss the famed Berthillon, located a block away from us on Isle St. Louis, for their ice cream. And even though the weather was not in any way summer-like, we had to see what the hype was all about....Well, consider me a believer. Because their Salted Caramel ice cream was pretty much insane, and so was their chocolate ice cream..........

Amazing pastries, EVerywhere....

These French Macaroons come in the most glorious colors and flavors, and can be found in every Patisserie.........

(so sorry about the window glare....most shopkeepers don't like photos taken inside)

Last but not least, I would be remiss if I didn't share Wink's favorite moment of the ENTIRE trip....his own personal Nirvana...a giant pan of hot grilling sausages!...........

That's it for today! Please come back now, ya hear, for some REAL sightseeing.....Bus tour, Boat tour, the Champs Elysee, Eiffel Tower, Moulin Rouge and oh so much more!

So very glad to be home, but oh how we can't wait to return to you someday, beautiful France!

XXX000

Leslie

TODAY I'M SO THANKFUL FOR......

***The two books I read on my tablet during our flights...first, Paris, My Sweet (the author escapes me right now)...which really helped us direct our tastebuds to all the best places, AND Bossy Pants by Tina Fey....I laughed so hard that my seatmate on the plane home thought I was sobbing! Probably the funniest book I've ever read...

***The fact that after 8 days of eating and drinking whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted, I actually LOST 3 pounds! Now I REALLY love France!

***That our daughter was so very helpful in all of the restaurants we went to, never complaining about translating each and every menu item for her old mom and dad! We love you, LMT!

ALL WE ARE SAYING.......AND AU REVOIR!....

2012-04-06T04:51:00.002-07:00

(Thanks for this, Miss Robin!)

It's officially time for my Spring Blogging Break, but before I go, I wanted to wish you a very Happy Easter....hoping your feast looks a little something like THIS.....

We're taking a little hop, skip and jump across the pond, to HERE......

WE'll be staying HERE.....

(Isle St. Louis)

And seeing HER........

(our American Skippy-loving girl...)

I hope to have many wonderful photos and tales of Willard family Hi-jinx to share....

Until then.........

AU REVOIR!

Leslie

XXX000

(Oops--almost forgot! Please check out my latest time-sucking obsession.....

So very addictive! So very inspirational!

You can see my inspiration boards by clicking on the Pinterest logo, located in the upper right margin of this here blog....check it out!)

A TOUR: MY PRETTY LITTLE KITCHEN.........

2012-04-01T12:23:00.000-07:00

Just so you know, I'm seriously having a "Shlumpa-dinka" kinda day today....the kind of day where I don't want to wear anything except this ancient old stained hoodie and comfortable yoga pants.........

Not my best look, I know...but it's a Sunday and I haven't been feeling my best lately, and the weather outside is just BLEEECH...not quite snowing, not quite raining.....

HEY MOTHER NATURE: HERE'S AN IDEA FOR YOU! PICK A WEATHER TYPE, AND GO WITH IT, FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD!

Ahem....here's the view from my front door....it's only 30 degrees outside today. Deceiving, isn't it? I guess I should just be thankful that we're not buried under feet of snow, as we can SO be here in upstate NY this time of year........

So since I'm not going anywhere, and don't plan on cooking much of anything (prolly just a boring chicken and rice casserole for dinner that would make you yawn and vow to never look at my blog ever again), I thought maybe I'd give you a little "tour" of the semi-remodel job we had done on our kitchen last year.

I know, you've seen snippets of my kitchen on this blog for awhile now, but I've never given you the "GRANDE TOUR" of the "palace"...so today's the day, lucky viewer!

Please let me preface all of this by saying that YES, our home is still on the "newish" side, being only 9 years old this summer. So before you go ahead and judge me as crazy or just easily bored (and very spoiled) for redoing a nearly-new perfectly fine kitchen, well, I need to 'splain something.....

Men designed my former kitchen, and I hated it more than words could say. It made me hate cooking, and I'm a girl who loves to cook.

And that's all I'm gonna say, lest I start to sound whiney.

First thing Wink and I did was to decide, along with our builders the fabulous Mike and Roger, to move the existing kitchen sink and counter surrounding it to another wall, thus opening up the space completely. HUGE difference. We also replaced HORRID, HORRID white tile with gorgeous recycled granite countertops. I will never, ever again use white tile, anywhere. Especially when one lives on top of an old swamp and one's house keeps shifting, causing the horrid white tile's grout to crack along the backsplash. Again and again and again.

I almost lost my ever-loving mind over that.

Here's the granite we chose...pretty neutral, and ZERO upkeep....

(yes, it was expensive, but it should last forever...)

So here's a view of the majority of our new kitchen layout, minus the refrigerator wall and door to the back porch....

We saved a lot of money by using our existing cabinets and appliances, which are stainless steel. Our good friend and neighbor Roger is an incredible cabinet maker, and he built us not one, but TWO new pantries to match our old cabinets, thereby substantially increasing our storage. Here's the closed food pantry he designed...

And here it is, open...a little bare right now, as we're getting ready to go out of town...(believe it or not, this cupboard is usually a LOT more cluttery)....

Across the kitchen, there's another pantry to the right of our refrigerator...we use this for cookbooks, pet foods and appliances that I don't want on the countertops...what did I EVER do without this, I want to know??..........

Here's the cabinet we had built around the refrigerator (the door to our back porch is to the left)....LOVE the cookie sheet/muffin tin/cutting board racks Roger built!............

Here's what's next to the stove...funny story about this Boos cutting block that my mom sent for Christmas a few years back. She instructed me (you have to know my mom) to NOT NOT NOT open the cutting board box when the UPS man dropped it off, but instead to wait until Christmas to open it along with her other gifts. I, ever the impatient one, couldn't wait, cut the box open in a hurry and proceeded to drop the 15 pound cutting board right smack on my big toe. I actually BROKE 2 toes and hobbled around for a month, shoeless, because of my foolishness...lesson learned, Mom!........If you look closely, you can still see the blood on the corner of that cutting block...APRIL FOOLS!........

You might notice that we have a lot of fresh fruit lying about....that's to encourage us to actually EAT it!.......

One of the best decisions we made was to under-mount our sink..cost a little bit more, and we had to buy a new sink, but I'm so happy we did, as now it's so easy to sweep crumbs off of the countertops. You might also wonder WHY we didn't have a window knocked in the wall over the sink. That was my decision, as I HATE snow (pitiful, living in the Adirondack mountains, I know..), and really didn't want to stare at it for 6 months of the year while doing dishes. That's my rationale, and I'm sticking to it.....

My mindset is: when somebody buys our house someday, THEY can do whatever they like.

Anyways, I chose to hang this pretty framed picture my mom gave me, 500 years ago....LOVE the woodsy light fixture we picked out to hang above it....

Here's the message center of the kitchen: where I keep my grocery list and any other pieces of paper we have floating about, in a somewhat organized fashion. This is also where our animals are fed, so I have to tidy up this area at least 5 trillion times a day....

Somebody would like a little bowl of cream, me thinks....

Last but not least, we turned our old farm table into an island of sorts, so that I have unlimited workspace when I'm tackling my latest cooking extravaganza (like decorating 75 cupcakes for a party). To do this, we ordered these pretty wood and stainless casters online...these raised the table up to counter height, necessitating new barstools for eating (so funny how expenses snowball when you decide to make a few little changes!)...

Ooops--almost forgot one of my favorite things to show you! Found these new country-french chandelier shades for a song at Lowe's, and added lots of twigs and a bird's nest from the forest outside, just to add a little more woodsy-ness to our home....

So, now you've seen where all the "magic" happens in our home (ha ha ha, besides the master bedroom, that is! Get your mind out of the gutter--sheesh!).

I have to say that I LOVE cooking in our new kitchen now. This is the 4th home Wink and I have owned in our married life...in that time, I've cooked in BIG kitchens, TINY kitchens, but this one here in the Adirondacks, on the medium side, feels just right!

Thank you so much Mike Risley and Roger Parent!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Leslie

(P.S. if you'd like this home for your very own, it IS for sale, you know...you can check out our website, through Coldwell Banker, HERE. If you decide to make an offer, I will gladly throw in a few cats....)

DEBBIE'S LEMON BROWNIES AND THE TOP 10 REASONS WHY I ADORE MY HUSBAND!....

2012-03-28T11:38:00.000-07:00

Before I get all into the business of THESE...........

(I mean really, can you even STAND it? Check out that lemon zest!)

......I would like to take just a brief moment of your time to chat about why I love my Wink!...........

TOP 10 REASONS WHY I ADORE MY HUSBAND....

(Halloween, 2008--gotta love a man who's not afraid to wear black lipstick!)

1. He's a better father than I could have ever dreamed up for our daughter--his support of her is "unwavering", in Abbie's sweet words.

2. He's put up with ME and my crazy schemes for 25 (come August) married years now--he's the Ricky to my Lucy!

3. He's my biggest cheerleader, and never lets me forget my hopes and dreams.

4. He is kind to all animals and children.

5. He loves his chosen career, and has created a very comfortable life for his family, because he's just so GOOD at what he does.

6. He cares about his health more than most men I know, and has even recently started (yikes--can you say KNEE REPLACEMENT?!) running!

7. He keeps me on my toes--who else would encourage me to get out of bed with him at 5 a.m. on a freezing winter morning to go and "kill" myself at the gym? Because he CARES about my butt not getting too huge!

8. He's funny! Wink does funny "jigs" around our home when he's feeling giddy, and he mixes up commonly used expressions all the time: just the other night, he told a friend of ours that he heard a "BONE curdling scream"! (Not laughing AT you, Wink--laughing WITH you!). Do bones even curdle?

9. He's FUN--never afraid to dress up for Halloween (see above), and is the world's BEST travel companion, always up for a wild adventure!

10. He tells me how pretty I am and how thin (did I mention he has terrible eyesight?) I am just about every single day--SHOOT--I think I might just keep him for another 25!

I LOVE MY WINKIE WILLARD!!

(crappy I-phone photo)

************

Well, with a husband like that, you'd better believe I try to be nice to him, as often as I can! Last night, I knew Wink would be tired after 3 days of meetings, plus driving home from Rochester, so I planned to have his favorite dinner waiting for him (he begs me to make this Italian Sausage and Lentil Soup for him, all the time--you can find the recipe, HERE) when he got home. Plus a special, surprise dessert.

(I think that's one of the reasons we have such a happy marriage--we like to do nice things for each other! Wink cooks for me often when he knows that I'm tired, and never grumbles about it. Hey, maybe I should make that number 11 on my list....)

I've mentioned my friend Debbie's blog here before--it's called Mountain Breaths. Debbie lives in nearby Utica, and often features tempting recipes. WELL, when I saw her recent post on Lemon Brownies, I just knew I had to try them out, because there is nothing Wink loves more than a lemon dessert!

But wait--don't brownies need to be BROWN, and include chocolate, you ask? Well, I thought so too, but then my darling Aunt Jan reminded me of "Blondies", which I do believe are white chocolate brownies. Anyways, I think the name "brownie" is apropos here, because the texture is the same as a moist chocolate brownie...and if you love lemon and butter, then these are just for you!.............

(I used salted butter, because the recipe didn't say NOT to, and they came out just fine, FYI)

First thing to do: line the bottom of a baking dish with Parchment, then spray with Pam. In a mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar and salt.....add butter..............

(I used my mixer, because Debbie didn't say NOT to!)

Stir together eggs, lemon juice and lemon zest; stir into batter.........

Spread batter in prepared pan............

Bake as directed...when cool, mix up glaze ingredients (powdered sugar and lemon juice); drizzle over brownies and sprinkle with additoinal lemon zest..........

Mmmm-hmmmmm..........

Oh SISTAHMAMAFRIEND--these are just glorious!

You can find this amazing recipe and Debbie's amazing blog, HERE.

Thank you so much Debbie for sharing this with my loyal readers--you are such an inspiration!

TODAY I'M SO GRATEFUL FOR.....

***the fact that I have 10 reasons to love my husband, plus many more that I won't bore you with!

***that it is supposed to warm up again here soon--it was 12 degrees here yesterday morning!

***My kitchen--since our mini-remodel last year, I just love cooking in it now! I plan on giving you a tour of what we had done, very soon!