Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Rainy Sunday

We had a change of plans this weekend and stayed in the City. We went for a 4-mile run in Central Park, took Vella to the dog park and had dinner at Good. It was a great Saturday.

Matt's off to the office for the day, so Vella and I are going to clean out Summer clothes and pull out what Fall pieces I have in the City (most of my clothes are in one of the guest rooms out at the house). I'm following the, "If you don't love it and haven't worn it in a year, it goes!" rule. I have a few hours of work to get through too.

Giants play at 1pm. We'll DVR it and watch it tonight when Matt gets home. Go Giants!

Friday, September 25, 2009

Show us Your Life - Desserts

It's Friday on Kelly's blog and desserts are on today's agenda.

This one is ridiculously easy and travels well. I am not a baker and I've been known to ruin chocolate chip cookies. Even I can make this one. Happy baking and eating!

Triple Fudge Cake

1 Package Boxed Chocolate Cake Mix (Betty Crocker or Duncan Hines)
1 16 oz. Package Cook and Serve Jello Chocolate Pudding Mix (Use Cook and Serve, NOT that instant stuff)
3/4 to 1 Cup Chopped nuts of your choice, I prefer Walnuts
1 Package Nestle Tollhouse Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Prepare the pudding according to the directions. As it begins to thicken, remove it from the hear and pour in the dry cake mix. Stir well. Spread in greased rectangular cake pan. Top with nuts and chocolate chips. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes, depending on your oven.

Cool and serve with vanilla ice cream!

You could also top this with chopped candy pieces, such as snickers or heath bar.

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Happy Birthday Matt!

Photo: July 3, 2009 at Dockers Restaurant in East Quogue, NY.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Random

I'm still home sick. I'm going nuts. I have major cabin fever even though I feel horrible. I have to go back to work tomorrow.

Matt's birthday is tomorrow. We'll be dining here as long as he can escape work at a reasonable hour. Hope he likes his fish prints (see below).

I cleaned out the pantry and refrigerator in like 5 minutes flat today (it's NYC, we don't have that much stuff!). Almost everything went in the trash. Crackers, cereal, mixes, marinades, jams, you name it, we had it and it expired like two years ago. What can I say, Matt's never home and it's me and the fur child flying solo. I'm researching slow cookers. Any suggestions? I've always wanted one and I think we'd put it to good use out at the house in the Fall/Winter. I keep getting recipes from BHG about the best slow cooker recipes. Yum.

I need to take a nap, but 2nd Avenue subway work started this week and I can hear them tearing up the sidewalk/street 26 floors below. So, I'm watching lots of fun TV...Animal Planet, HGTV, The Food Network and Travel Channel. I also have a new Better Homes and Garden here.

Monday, September 21, 2009

More Etsy

I had to post again today. Look what arrived! I'm almost caught up on gifts for all you Summer babies! And, I'll be coming back for more since these items are so amazing. Love, love, love supporting small business.

Etsy Seller Head Over Heels:

Etsy Seller Baby Darling:

Under the Weather

I thought this was Fall allergies, but knew better on Saturday night when I fell asleep on the couch at 9:30pm! Yesterday was miserable and I was in bed at 9:30pm again last night. I'm taking a sick day today with more Dayquil and napping on the agenda. Vella doesn't mind having me home, although she misses her Auntie Erica who comes by twice a day while we're at work for walks/play time.

I'll leave you with a special order I finished for a friend. This was a birthday gift for her Mom. I love the aquamarine and purple chalcedony with a round pave clasp for Fall.

Friday, September 18, 2009

Rosh Hashanah

What is Rosh Hashanah? The High Holidays begin tonight at Sundown and I thought I'd do a quick post for all of you out there that might not be familiar with Jewish holidays.

Significance: New Year
Observances: Sounding the shofar (ram's horn trumpet)
Length: 2 Days (Some: 1 Day)
Customs: Dipping apples in honey; Casting off "sins" into a river
Greeting: L'shanah tovah! (For a good year!)

We'll be having dinner with my in-laws and then heading to WH for the weekend. Traditional dishes include brisket, kugel, latkes and the list goes on and on. Trust me when I say that no one walks away hungry!

I was raised Catholic and my hubby is Jewish. We're very lucky to have such accepting families and have the benefit of celebrating Christian and Jewish holidays. I know this doesn't work for everyone and there can be challenges galore in inter-faith marriages. I'm reminded this time of year of how wonderful our families are and for that I am thankful!

Up next? A Yom Kippur post on 9/28.

J. Pocker


Matt has a bday coming up and our anniversary is on the 29th. With all of the big stuff purchased, we're at a point where we can start adding personal touches to the house (artwork, accessories etc.). The downstairs is his domain and the has a ton of wall space, so I thought I would get him started on sprucing up the room. I've had my eye on a few prints at J. Pocker for a while and made it there before the 5:30 closing time yesterday. These two guys are hand colored. I love how saturated the colors are in the scales and fins. I hope he likes them! We'll choose frames late next week after his bday.
Check out J. Pocker and Son. Their decorative prints are available online!

Monday, September 14, 2009

What a difference a week makes!


A very empty Rogers Beach this past Sunday. It amazes me how quiet WHB can be after Labor Day. Vella is excited because as of tomorrow, she can make the trip with us any time of day (no dogs allowed 7am-7pm May 15-September 15). I think we'll get plenty of beach time in through October.

For Your Reading Pleasure

Whether you like Tony Bourdain or not (We happen to love him, irreverence goes a long way in our house), you Moms out there will get a kick out of 8/28 blog post. Happy reading. My sister pointed me to this one, great minds think alike.

http://anthony-bourdain-blog.travelchannel.com/read/for-parents-only

And, if you don't watch/DVR No Reservation on the Travel Channel, you're missing out!

Friday, September 11, 2009

Favorite Etsy Sellers

Brooklyn Limestone has a link up where we share our favorite sellers. Here are a few that I've bookmarked and/or shopped with recently:

HumbleCollection

Noodles & Milk

Head to Toe

Plum Cushion

Ode Shop

ThreadSquare

And of course, my little store Molly Rosedale. New Fall items will be up at the end of the month.

Happy searching and shopping on Etsy! So many talented people out there.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Today

I won't say much, we all know the date. The mood in NYC is very somber. The weather is terrible today. My office overlooks Ground Zero, which is now one big construction site. Most of my coworkers chose to work from home today. I'll be saying many prayers today for the families who lost loved ones and those of us who will never forget what we saw that day as we watched from the streets below the Towers.

Labor Day Weekend

I went a different route with the necklace to spice up the black dress. 4 strands of pink and blue chalcedony mixed with coin pearls.

We had a great time at Keith and Lisa's wedding. I'm a terrible photographer, but here's a picture of the dance floor. And, Vella enjoyed some quality time with her Omi while we were in Oceanside.

Speaking of Vella, here's a picture of her running around the deck on Sunday. Don't feel bad for her, that red tether is 30-40feet and she literally has the run of the deck. We just use that to keep her from running UNDER the deck and getting in to all kinds of trouble.

Prep for Fall Swap!

I recently joined Monogram and Manicure's Prep for Fall Swap. Caroline (In His Shade) and I were paired up for the August 28 deadline. I had to laugh when I opened her package - we sent each other some of the same items! Great minds think alike?!? I had so much fun putting her package together and I know she put a lot of thought in to what she sent me.

Here's Caroline's adorable packaging. It's a tote bag! Love, love, love the ribbon too. You better believe that I saved it and it will find a good home on a future package.




A few of my favorites...oh so preppy note cards, coasters, umbrella and scarf. I can't tell you how much I love this umbrella. And, if this Fall is like last year in NYC, I'll need it! Caroline and I gave each other the same madras note cards and I also sent an umbrella for those rainy, chilly WA days...coincidence? I think not!


I feel very lucky to have met some wonderful woman in blogland. Thanks Caroline!

Friday, September 4, 2009

Beachbound!

Today is my last "Summer Friday" at work and I'm taking the day off to catch up on some things around here before heading to WH this afternoon. Other than a wedding on Saturday night, we have no plans. The weather here in NY is gorgeous and we'll be spending as much time as possible at the beach. I have a feeling there will some football in the schedule too. Matt went to Cornell and in my opinion there is no reason to follow the Ivy League. I'm not sure students even go to the games! I can't imagine an undergrad experience without football. Virginia football is an institution and some of my best memories were getting dressed up (a tradition that has sadly changed over the years), tailgating and heading to the game with good friends. Go HOOS!

OK, enough rambling. Better finish laundry and go for a run in Central Park! Pics from the wedding and weekend to follow. Vella is resting up next to me on the couch.