Thanksgiving Feast

Yesterday was spent preparing an Indian Feast. My boyfriend, Aaron, and I elected to spend the holiday together...just the two of us...and it was perfect!  We made samosas with several chutneys (including a cranberry chutney), chana daal patties, curried pumpkin soup and plantain curry with basmati rice. We drank homemade Chai throughout the day and finished our evening with ginger creme brulee. I think we'll do this every year. Its nice to have a day to ourselves before the rush of the Holiday Season. 

New Pieces for Craftacular

New version of my miniature worlds...this time created atop a vintage teacup!  I am making these for the Craftacular show coming up in December hosted by the Petaluma Craft Mafia. The price point is lower so they will be the perfect holiday gift for any budget. I will also be teaching a class on these in March at the^workshop in Berekeley!

We made party crackers today for our house warming tomorrow night. The girls were occupied for an hour and did a great job making them! We used toilet paper rolls, filled them with candy then rolled them in crepe paper. The girls used a sticker to seal the paper, then they tied the ends with baker's twine. It was a fun and easy project and they turned out so well! The rest of the afternoon was spent doing other arts and crafts projects and cooking, but I think this was the success of the day!

les macarons

Les macarons de LaDuree! Aaron's boss brought these back for me from Paris. I haven't had one since I was last there almost 5 years ago. These are my favorite cookies and this is actually how Aaron and I first met... over a conversation about les macarons. It was such a treat to have these with tea. Now I just need to plan a trip back to Paris!

Napa House

Haven't blogged during the move which has stressed me out so badly!!!! I did, however, decorate the girls room in time for their first night. I stayed up until 2am making the bunting. The fabrics are the ones I'm using for their quilts, which will come in a week or two when I get my studio room set up. The Napa House (as we've dubbed it) is beautiful, and I am happy to start this space from scratch with Aaron. Mila woke up this morning and the first thing she said after she opened her eyes was... "This new house is great! Let's never move!" The girls have sung its praises all day, which is a good thing. Another bit of good news is my computer came and I can;t wait to set it up...oh, girls just came down the stairs wearing about 10 of my shirts each and I think its time to go upstairs and survey the damage! Wow! I have an upstairs!!!!

Color Pencil Roll Up For Nadia

Nadia just turned 6 on Sunday. I made her this colored pencil roll for her birthday, although she won't have her party with us until we move into the new house. I saw this on Pink Chalk Studio's blog and thought it was too cute. I hope she likes it!

A Perfect Autumn Day (in the midst of chaos)

Went to Monterey Market to pick out produce for a winter vegetable soup. When I drove up, I spied a mass of giant pumpkins. It was no surprise that the front entrance is surrounded by crates of squash, a variety gourds and pumpkins in all sizes. I immediately wanted to abandon my veggie soup for something more festive (and orange), but instead I also purchased some apples an came home to make spiced apple butter...

The recipe is from epicurious, which never fails to impress. Of all the online recipe sites, I find epicurious to be consistently good. Making preserves was a nice respite to the mess and stress of endless packing. Having a very precise set of steps to follow helped clear my mind this morning. I was tired after a drive to Pt Reyes Station at 6am, but am ready for an afternoon of packing and vegetable soup!