Mama Mia!

Valentine's Day is coming up, and I've decided this year we need some good Italian food. Nothing says romance like slurping up a huge bowl of saucy pasta with your guy, right? While I claim almost all types of foods as my favorites, Italian is pure comfort food to me. I never get tired of the flavors or combinations. (As for the calories, that's a different story . . .)
In high school I worked in downtown San Diego, two blocks south of the historic Little Italy district. In Little Italy a meatball sandwich is a regular art form and once you've had one here no other will do.
Growing up, our Italian take-out of choice was Fillipi's Pizza Grotto. It's pure Mom & Pop, red-sauced & garlic Italian food--like homemade Italian food only better because you didn't have to make it. Eggplant Parmigiana is my dish of choice.

In law school we lived by two Italian restaurants, both owned by the same company, that I adored. Alegria in Malibu & Padri in Agoura Hills. This is Italian Bistro food at it's best. I regularly entertain the possibility of driving the 1 1/2 hours in LA traffic just for dinner at Padri's, but then practicality gets the better of me. Padri also still reigns as the best creme brulee I've tasted--a Valentine's special citrus version with candied lime peel so divine I'm still remembering it all these years later.

And so, those of you who live in Orange County, have lived here, have visited here, etc., tell me:

What is your favorite Italian Restaurant?!

Beach Babies

We had a free Saturday for the first time in a long time. This is what we picked to do: RELAX at the beach. Just eat, play and enjoy the sunshine.


We asked Ethan to take this last picture of Will & I--we're just happy our heads made it in the picture at all.

Endorphins Anyone?

Yesterday Kirsten and I jumped into an outdoor pool at 6:30 a.m. in 43 degree weather. We might be completely insane. When we started swimming together in August we kind of laughed about how long we would or wouldn't last into the Winter--by October I was thinking we might have to break until the Spring. But, our association kept upping the pool's water temperature and we just kept plugging along. I think this past December & January have been some of my best workouts for these months since I was in college. Usually exercise falls to the wayside for me in December due to the holiday rush and just continues into a completely unmotivated January. Have I lost any significant amounts of weight? Not really. But here's what I have found: I love the rush of having accomplished something by 7:30 in the morning, I love looking up and seeing the beautiful colors of the rising sun, I love having some time to think or chat with Kirsten while we're using our kickboards, I love that my kids are so excited to see me when I get home (or better yet, are still asleep when I get home, allowing me to check my e-mail in peace!), I love the positive energy my day starts with, and I love that I've been able to maintain my weight without the misery of fad diets. I still don't understand the science behind needing to expend energy to gain energy, but I know it works. So, I will continue to stand at the edge of the pool, shivering in my Speedo, counting to three, and taking the plunge into the water--even in January.

Baby, it's WINDY outside!

1 crazy windstorm + 2 overturned trees =
2 endlessly entertained little boys & 1 happy mama!

Practical Meets Pretty

Here are two Christmas gifts that I must gush about . . .

Notepads that double as mousepads in chic prints from See Jane Work (thank you Cassaundra). No more scrambling for a scrap of paper when a thought pops into your head while web surfing. Genius!








The Vintage Iron Jewelry holder from PBTeen (a surprise anniversary gift from my hubby). Earrings hang from holes around the tray edges for pretty display. And, the divided trays keep your necklaces from getting tangled together. Matches perfectly with my cream-colored iron bed.



(And, if they were still available in stores I'd gush about my new, butter-soft pajamas from Gap Body too. My Mom went to three stores back in October to find my size on sale--ohhh, there is nothing like slipping into the perfect set of pj's in January . . . )

Observations from the Arcade

So Friday nights aren't exactly for hitting the town when you have two toddlers in tow. Regardless, Will & I like to get out of the house so we decided to take the kids to the arcade at Boomers (local mini-golf park). As you probably guessed, this wasn't my pick, but I'm all for the greater family good, so to Boomers we went . . .

• Why does it feel like you need a shower upon leaving an arcade? I mean, the dim lighting doesn't theoretically make it dirtier than any other public place, right? It's the same with bowling alleys. There just appears to be more germs everywhere.

• We learned that the kiddie carousel in the middle of the arcade was the best value for your token (and probably the only truly age-appropriate thing for a toddler)--a full four minutes compared to the 3 nano-seconds most of the other games lasted.

• Luke has a killer arm for skee-ball, but no aim. The plexi-glass guard screens were made for kids like him. Too bad they don't have them between the skee-ball lanes to protect the poor people next to us.
  

• ALL men, no matter how mature/responsible/wonderful, revert to 10 year-olds upon entering an arcade. I watched my husband kick a soccer ball at full-strength into a fake goal, whack some swimming ducks, swing fake bees into a honey pot and drive a Star Wars vehicle all in the name of "showing the boys how to do it."

• For $10 worth of tokens, you will earn enough tickets to purchase: 2 tootsie rolls, 2 plastic frogs, 2 gummi ninjas & 1 plastic parachute army guy. Oh, and the days of carefully counting your folded up ticket wads at the prize counter are gone. They now have counter machines that you feed your tickets into and receive a little white receipt. Where's the fun in that? Apparently it is a lot of fun for Ethan who thought this was the final game of the evening.
  

• There are two types of boys who swarm all over an arcade: the loners who play the same rifle practice shooting game over and over, or the packs who move from thing to thing bragging about their gaming skills and making bets about how many tickets they will score. The realization hit me that someday my baby-faced cuties will morph into these pimply-faced pre-teens who will not want to be caught dead with their MOM following them around the arcade at Boomers. WHAAAA!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Toddler Talk

Ethan: What's wrong with Luke Mom?
Me: I think he might have a fever
Ethan to Luke (several hours later after Luke's nap): Luke, Mom says you're a BEAVER!
Luke: No, no like it beavers!!!!

Will: Ethan, give me that metal hanger, that's not a toy!
Ethan: Fine, Mr. Will Hook!
(Too many viewings of Peter Pan at our house)

Grandma Rose (via phone): Hi Luke, what did you do today?
Luke: Hi Grandma . . . I want Santa Claus
(he's got a long wait . . .)

Ethan (to Grandma Bollard): I need some juice please . . . CHRISTY!
(Ben & Joe, we're holding you responsible for this one)

Ethan: Mom, what are you doing?
Me: Putting away the Christmas cookie cutters.
Ethan: But Mom, "Christmas time is here, happiness & cheer!"
(for those of you who haven't seen the Charlie Brown Christmas special two million times, that's the first line of the opening song. Guess we'll be putting that away now).

I Heart Trader Joe's

Trader Joe's is a small, independent grocery store that I couldn't live without! Unlike most specialty food stores, their prices are reasonable and my kids will eat their food. They carry many healthy options, but also have some of my favorite desserts too. I've had several friends ask me lately just what it is that I like to buy there (they carry very few national food brands), so I decided to make a list for anyone out there who is interested. These are just a few of the things that came to me off of the top of my head. And, if you are a fellow-fan, tell me what some of your favorites are.

Spicy Cider - Good cold or hot and saves you the work of making homemade wassail
Greek Style Yogurt - tasty on it's own or mixed into fresh cut-up fruit for a quick fruit salad (or try it with chopped strawberries, toasted almonds & some chocolate sauce for a dessert). I like the Honey or Strawberry flavors
Brioche Bread - hands down this makes the BEST french toast
Wild Herb & Mushroom Risotto Mix - a fun alternative to a standard rice mix
Perlini - mini-fresh mozzarella balls, awesome in salads, tossed in pasta, melted on a pizza, etc.
White Stilton w/ Apricot or Mango - fun for a fancy cheese tray
Pineapple Salsa - good on shredded pork tacos or quesadillas, super-mild for kids
Garlic & Cheese Croutons - tastes like homemade croutons
Butternut Squash -comes pre-cubed and ready for roasting
Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage - brown in a frying pan for a quick and easy dinner (I like to serve it with the risotto mix on the side and some green beans)
Candy Cane Trader Joe Joe's - these are limited edition at Christmas time, I hate Oreos, but I LOVE these
Tuscan Italian Salad Dressing
Pear Gorgonzola Salad Dressing - fun for salads with fruit, like sliced pears or apples, in it
Chicken Broth - way more flavorful than most store brands
Jasmine Rice
Pork Tenderloin - well-priced and comes in smaller cuts for smaller families
Light String Cheese - as a rule I'm generally against lite dairy products, except for this one which somehow manages to still be yummy
Pomegranate Seeds- the only place I can find fresh pomegranate seeds to put in Salads at Christmas time
Baby-Sized Apples (gala or fuji) - these come in bags and are the perfect size for toddlers who usually throw away half of a regular sized apple
Nuts - the best value on almost all kinds of raw nuts for baking
Candied Pecans - perfect for salads, not sickly sweet like most candied nuts
Sweet & Salty Trail Mix or Sweet, Savory & Tart Trek Mix - my Mom always bought these for family road trips
Pad Thai Mix- gives you the rice noodles and sauce and lets you get creative with the rest of the ingredients. We like to add shredded carrots, scrambled egg, green onion, celery, and some chicken or shrimp to ours
Frozen Green Beans - as far as frozen veggies go, these stand up well in soups and casseroles
Cheesecake - If you're going to buy a plain frozen cheesecake, this one beats all the rest
Potted Mini Roses - the flower section is awesome and cheap! these make a great gift

Happy 2008!

Happy New Year!

Here's what we've been up to during the final days of 2007:

We spent the Saturday & Sunday before Christmas in San Diego keeping the "Family Christmas Day" & Progressive Dinner traditions alive. My boys had a fun time going here:
And here:
On Christmas Eve we returned to Irvine and spent a gorgeous day cruising on Newport Harbor. We also celebrated "Papa" Bollard's birthday. It was SO MUCH fun to experience Christmas morning with Ethan & Luke this year--truly magical to see their joy when they realized that Santa hadn't put them on his naughty list.
After Christmas we headed up to Agoura Hills, our old law school stomping grounds, to visit with extended family. Thanks Wendy & Vince for hosting the annual wrapping-paper-throwing bash!
On the 27th we took the kids to Knott's Berry farm, aka:CAMP SNOOPY! Ethan had his stage debut when he was chosen by Charlie Brown himself as an audience volunteer to come up and sing jingle bells during the Peanuts show. It was pretty much a dream come true for Charlie Brown's #1 fan (oh how I wish I had thought to switch my camera into video mode!). Notice how he had to take his Sippy cup on stage with him (maybe by 2009 they'll be done with those!).
We also celebrated seven happy years of marriage by having a long, leisurely, romantic, uninterrupted by kids dinner at the Chart House. Babysitters are divine.
And finally, we rang in the New Year with some friends, where Will showed off his Rock Band skills most of the night.

Hope your holidays were merry!