Under The Sea

Living a few hours away from the nearest ocean, my children haven't been exposed much to sea life. While we stayed in Newport, Oregon for Spring Break the weather was rather blustery and wet - in fact if those weren't hurricane force winds, then I definitely wouldn't want to be caught in one of those storms! The perfect solution to keeping the kids busy and dry was to visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium and The Hatfield Marine Science Center.

Jellyfish

Spider Crab

Tufted Puffin

My daughter took well to observing the different marine animals. Her favorite seemed to be the jellyfish and the vibrant sunflower sea stars. She loved to touch the anemones and watch the sharks swim above her in the Passages of the Deep exhibit at The Aquarium.

My son however, wished that he never learned to walk so that he could be pushed around in a stroller or that Daddy would carry him everywhere.


And Mom and Dad enjoyed taking photos of the little darlings, capturing our adventures at the coast ... and we were lucky, we even got a few of them looking happy to be there.

The Aquarium is fairly spendy, but worth it for an occasional visit. The Marine Science Center is perfect for the scientifically-minded or for those who enjoy pushing buttons and looking through microscopes. And while we barely spent any time on the frigid beach like we would have liked, learning about what lives in the ocean went just swimmingly. Pun intended.

Feed The Birds

Spring Break was quite an adventure for us this year. We went to the Oregon Coast where we saw all sorts of marine life and rainy days. One of the most fun activities was feeding the sea gulls on the pier next to the Mo's restaurant in Lincoln City.

Here are a few tips and techniques for achieving the perfect bird feeding experience:

First, note that there a several gulls just waiting around for a good snack (and evidently some have had MANY snacks lately). You cannot choose just one bird, they all want in on the action.

Next, pick your feeding plan:

Hand-feeding is polite and personal ... but watch out for the bird slobber ... oh yes, they do slobber!

Or you can choose the entertaining route and throw the chunk of bread into the air. This makes the birds work for their meal and can often result in mid-air collisions!

Or, to one very lucky gull you can give them the ENTIRE slice of bread. Don't be stingy!

And most importantly, feed the birds with great gusto and enthusiasm. A smile sure can light up a gloomy day.

Cold Feets, Hot Treats

It's surprising that since I live in the high desert, last night was the first significant snow fall this season. And that means the kids were begging to go out sledding. Technically, there wasn't enough snow on the roads for a good morning of sledding, but that didn't stop us from having some fun!

A daddy's job is to pull the sled when there is insufficient snow.

A walk in the woods is perfect for making bootprints.

Even if it is cold outside, one can always avoid those pesky sister cooties!

One good sled down the hill was worth the effort ...

... even if that means you fall down and go BOOM.

Then probably the best part of an hour in the snow is the homemade hot cocoa that the kids helped to make!

Homemade Hot Cocoa (from the Hershey's 100th Anniversary Cookbook)

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup Hershey's Cocoa
dash salt
1/3 cup hot water
4 cups milk
3/4 tsp vanilla extract

In medium saucepan, stir together sugar, cocoa and salt; stir in water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Boil 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Do not boil. Remove from heat; add vanilla. Beat with rotary beater or whisk until foamy. Serve with marshmallows, sweetened whipped cream, or for a minty treat ... candy canes!

Enjoy!

Honeymooniversary - Wine Country

I know, I've been keeping everyone in suspense about the last leg of our trip to California ... or not. Well, I'm going to tell about about it anyway.

There truly is a difference between the big city of San Francisco and the quiet,easy pace of Napa Valley. There are fewer incidences of blasting car horns and police sirens, parking is more abundant, and instead of sewage the smell of fermenting grapes fills the air. Ah Napa, where have you been all my life?

A grape leaf in Autumn.

We stayed at a quaint little place known as the Old World Inn that was within walking distance of many restaurants. We were treated to hors d'oeuvres and wine in the early evening, as well as chocolate desserts to indulge in later on. Our room was cozy with feather-top beds and projector televisions that made watching a movie a comfy experience. And since our room didn't share a wall with any other room, it made the fact the the place was packed to capacity, totally acceptable.

The food? Let's just say that I still haven't weighed myself since our excursion over a week ago. The filet mignon was to die for as was the tri tip BBQ we had after an afternoon of wine tasting. Which brings me to the point of going to Napa Valley ... THE WINE!

It may be shocking to some that we actually only went to one vinyard for a tasting. We did tast six varietals at the Arger-Martucci Winery, and it was a eye opening experience. Concentrating mostly on the reds, I was able to smell, taste and see the differences in each wine we tried. For the first time in my life I truly tasted wine. I detected notes of vanilla, oak, chocolate, cinnamon and fruit. Each wine was unique and inspiring. Plus, sitting in the courtyard by the pool, in the heart of wine country had quite an influence. It's like my senses came alive!


We attempted other places but found the admission to taste mediocre wines at a contrived castle to be too high, and another winery had a fire alarm situation, so a drive in the surrounding hills was perfect for us.

The Tuscan castle at Castello di Amorosa winery in Calistoga.

A view of the valley from a country road. Now that's a lot of grape vines!

Time with my husband away was a dream come true. Of course I enjoyed all of the sights and tastes of our travels, but being with him was the best part. And even though it was my hope to go to Europe or Tahiti for our 10 year anniversary, I still feel that I got the perfect second honeymoon. Besides, I did get to see palm trees, the ocean, a Notre Dame inspired cathedral, a Tuscan castle and walks through breathtaking vinyards. Mmm, life is good!

Grape vines at the Robert Mondavi Winery.

Honeymooniversary - More From The City By The Bay

To say that there is a lot to see in San Francisco would be an understatement. The question is, is there enough time to see everything you want to before it's time to leave? I am happy to say that my husband and I saw pretty much everything we had hoped to.

Day 2

Our hotel was in the Union Square area of town. Honestly, I am not used to city life! It was fascinating to watch the valets park Bentleys and Ferraris across the street from our hotel room window, as the homeless walked the streets asking for change. There is such an energy downtown, a combination of sirens, honking horns, and busy shoppers. Walking along the streets was no leisurely experience, I could just see the headlines "Small town girl trampled to death on Powell Street over big sale at H&M".

Our hotel, the The Warwick Regis Hotel, had a nice European feeling to it. We had a suite just above the overhang (see window with open curtains), that provided a great view of the city streets of the Theatre District.

After breakfast at a nearby diner, we checked out of the hotel and continued our journey. The first stop: Grace Cathedral. This was probably my favorite thing to see. In fact, I was overwhelmed with emotion as we entered into the doors of this massive structure. It is truly beautiful.

It's probably a good thing that the rose window is back behind the congregation, I just know that if I went to that church, I would do nothing but stare at it during the entire Mass.

Can you just imagine what the choir and organ must sound like in this place? And the way the stained glass windows projected a kaleidoscope of colors on the pillars was magnificent.

Next, since we had a rental car we had to go down Lomard Street! Yes, it is the crookedest street in the world, but I wondered what it would be like to actually live there. The homes were quite beautiful and no doubt expensive.

Then it was off to Coit Tower to check out the panoramic views of the city.

The Financial District and the very top of the Coit Tower.

The Palace of Fine Arts in the Marina District was breathtaking. The Roman and Greek inspired architecture provided the perfect backdrop for at least three weddings we saw taking place. And while we saw many ducks and tourists, we did not run into any Russian sailors (don't worry, that will be my only So I Married an Axe Murderer reference today).

And finally, it was time to head over that famous bridge toward wine country, where a totally different experience awaited us.

Honeymooniversary - City By The Bay

Long time, no blog! The thing is, I have been out of town and doing so much that there hasn't been time to even check my e-mail, let alone blog. Celebrating ten glorious years with my husband, we escaped to the Bay Area for some good food, great wine, a taste of city life and quality time together. We called this weekend "Honeymooniversary" since it really was like a second honeymoon.

Day 1

Our first destination was San Francisco. Our flight from Oregon left at 6:00 am, which meant that we actually had an aerial view of the Golden Gate Bridge as the sun was rising. It was beautiful to say the least! From the time we arrived, everything fell into place: our baggage was easy to find, there was a (desperately needed) Starbucks near the baggage claim, there was no hassle getting our rental car, and the weather was gorgeous! Our first plan was to go to the Fisherman's Wharf area to get a little breakfast and wander around Pier 39.

Tourists weren't the only ones hanging around this popular attraction!

We were treated to perfect views of Alcatraz as the weather was cloudless and in the 60s.

My husband really likes boats, and there were ample opportunities to photograph them.

We walked miles that day as we ducked in and out of shops and eateries. And I am not ashamed to say that our lunch was an ice cream sundae at, where else, Ghirardelli Square!

The weather was so sunny and breezy, I decided I needed to buy a hat to wear for our continued journey. I will always remember this day when I wear it.

Our first day ended with a hearty dinner at Johnny Foley's Irish House and a bedtime of 9:15. Hey, we were up at 3:30 that morning so restful sleep was welcomed!

La Mer

It is FINALLY starting to feel like Autumn around here and I love it! I am also grateful that we had a chance to enjoy some truly spectacular weather at the beach earlier this month. Here are some highlights of our weekend:

Our maritime adventure included meeting a mermaid, building sandcastles, Mo's clam chowder, barking sea lions, camel rides (yes, you read that correctly, camel rides ... for free at the beach), cloudless skies, pinky-orange sunsets, the quintessential beach house, and lots of fun and laughter with Meemaw and Boppa!

Spoiled Rotten Weekend Part II

After a long day of eating delicious food and shopping, my mom and I thought it would be fun to see a movie. We chose to see Julia & Julia. This film depicts events in the life of chef Julia Child as she learned how to cook French cuisine in Paris in the 1940s. It's also about a girl, Julie Powell, who aspires to cook all 524 recipes from Child's cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I LOVED this film! What was not to like? France, humor, cooking, blogging, a Nora Ephron film, beautiful scenery and seeing it with my mom = the perfect combination.

What is probably even more special than the experience of seeing the film is that I inherited my own copy of Julia Child's famed cookbook. The 1961 edition was my grandmothers who gave it to my mom, who gave it to me. And some day, I will pass it along to my daughter. I am a sucker for all things sentimental, and I feel honored to have this book in my possession. Thank you Mom!

I have already started to look through it, drooling over the desserts such as "Crêpes Fourrées, Frangipane" or Crêpes with Almond Cream, but quite turned off by some of the more exotic sounding dishes like "Foies de Volaille en Aspic" or Chicken Livers in Aspic (if you don't know what aspic is ... see the movie!) Some of the ingredients are a little foreign to me like "arrowroot" but on the other hand I think it just makes me curious enough to find out what it is. I am not, however, very curious about how to cook brains.

Spoiled Rotten Weekend Part I

This last weekend I escaped to my old stomping grounds to have a mother/daughter weekend. It was a weekend of firsts for me. First weekend away since my kids were born that I got away without them and my husband. First time at IKEA which was a five hour experience and very fun, not to mention hectic. And it was the first time I partook of the most perfect French pastry.

Which brings me to the subject of the day: French pastry

On Saturday morning, before driving up to Portland, my mom and I started the day at Le Patissier, a charming pastry shop with everything from swan shaped puff pastries to les pain au chocolat. My mom and I ordered three things to share, both finding it difficult to choose from the two cases of unspeakably delicious looking treats. We settled on a blueberry cream cheese danish, a fruit tarte and an almond cream croissant.

I managed to snap a photo of the fruit tarte we enjoyed. The berries were perfect and the crust ... made of butter of course!

Can I just say that the almond croissant was eye-rollingly good. I don't think I have ever truly fell in love with a piece of food until that moment. When I first dug into the flaky layers, it made a sound that I am convinced sounds like the word Frreeennnnchchchch (say it out loud slowly and you'll know what I mean). Then with the first bite, I tasted the butter. Ah better, there is nothing better. It was sweet, it was crispy, it was light, it was heaven. The fruit tarte and danish were heavenly as well and I enjoyed every bite.

Then there was the coffee. Not wanting an upset stomach from espresso, I chose a cafe au lait. Coffee and milk. In my past experiences in ordering this drink, I had been handed a cup of coffee and was directed to the carafe of milk where I could serve myself. Le Patissier does things a little different in this department. I was handed a cup of regular coffee, but with a snowy white cap of steamed milk, floating on the top. It was gorgeous!

My coffee, served in a real mug. All I can say is ... perfection!

I don't have to guess that this place is popular among Corvallis residents. A blogging friend even mentioned it on her blog and the place was hopping when we were there. I especially enjoyed listening to a male patron speaking French with the pastry chef. And then there was this woman sitting a couple of tables away. She was probably in her 80s and it was a true pleasure to see a huge grin appear on her face as she cut into her pastry. A simple thing to do, but that provided a pure moment of joy.

It was quite moment of joy for me too.

I Shan't Quit My Day Job

There is a part of me that longs to be a French pastry chef. The idea of mixing, baking and piping little bits of heaven sounds so ... well, heavenly. My latest fascination has been with macarons, not to be confused with macaroons. I have had one from my favorite little pastry shop in Ashland called Mix; and from the first bite of that hazelnut pastry, I was hooked.

Recently I discovered a charming blog called Tartelette that features enchanting recipes and many of them are for macarons. Inspired, I decided that today was the day for trying out these decadent treats.

The first thing I had to do was convert a lot of her measurements (i.e. grams into cups, because she is a real French pastry chef) and make sure I had all that I needed to get started. I mixed, I measured, I finely ground nuts and I piped the meringue into little rounds.

I failed miserably.

My meringues did NOT come out hard on the outside and light and soft on the inside. They were flat and gooey discs that my husband informed me looked like "sequential puddles of cat yack" (this is the reason I did not post a photo of my catastrophe!) Using salted pistachios was not a good idea as my husband informed me provided "a whole lot of flavor going on in one bite" and not in a good way.

I will not give up. I can see that it will take practice and when I successfully make a batch of these dreamy confections, you bet I will post a photo documenting my triumph. In the meantime, I shall not quit my day job. But I will dream of going to Paris and buying a box of these treats from the world famous Ladurée at Champs-Élysées, and this is what they would look like ...

photo from: http://sushtopia.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/macarons-perfect.jpg

It Was Just Beachy

After seeing our new nephew, the second leg of our vacation began ... we went to the Oregon Coast! I had been nearly three years since I had seen the Pacific Ocean so this trip was long overdue. We stayed at Surftides in Lincoln City, which is right on the beach. We chose to be economical on this trip so we opted for the least expensive room, and that meant one king sized bed and a partial ocean view (in other words, a small strip of the ocean was visible over the rooftop in front of us). We also took a cooler packed with sandwich makings and milk and it was a godsend! I don't even want to imagine all of the fast food or expensive food we would have had otherwise.

Here is a list of memorable things that happened on the trip:

- warm chocolate chip cookies in the lobby of the hotel

- the salty air

- sharing a bed with our daughter, who despite her young age, snores like and old man

- flying the kite in perfect beach weather

- microwaving Easy Mac and forgetting to add water (imagine the smell of burnt, dry pasta!)

- drinking "Three Buck Chuck", or the Charles Shaw wine from Trader Joe's that only costs $2.99 a bottle, from the hotel mugs - classy!

- stunning sunsets

- watching our son sort of freak out when introduced to sand

- eating sugared cereal as a special vacation treat. Mmm, those Golden Grahams were as good as ever!

- going to a yarn store that took up the bottom story of a house. The yarn was gorgeous and tempting, yet I didn't buy any.

- eating at Mo's. You can't go to the coast without making a stop there. I even ate clam chowder and a bite of my husband's fish 'n chips despite my aversion to seafood. I am very proud of myself.

- making sand castles

- driving along to coastline and admiring the cute little cottages and not so little vacation homes that over looked the ocean.

- going to the hotel swimming pool. Unfortunately it wasn't very warm.

- the kids took a bath and my daughter made a bubble tiara for her brother and called him a "boy princess".

- my daughter's first tooth came out. The Tooth Fairy managed to find her way to our hotel and left some money.

- wearing earplugs to drown out the sound of my daughter's snoring, only to be thwapped in the face repeatedly - she is a very restless sleeper.

- driving down Highway 101 to Newport in the typical coastal weather - overcast, windy, and drizzling.

- having a massive headache due to the weather; just call me a human barometer.

- going to the Devil's Punchbowl and the Yaquina Head Lighthouse.

- driving along Newport's historical bay front and seeing that things have changed very little over the years.

- getting home safe and with very minimal whining from my son.

The kids, happily getting sand up in their britches.

A wonderful moment: Daddy teaching his girl how to fly a kite.

I think my son enjoyed his first trip to the beach because it was okay to get dirty!

Yeah, I'd say we all had a great time ... especially my daughter to is begging to go on vacation again ... she likes to stay in a hotel ... she likes to sleep with Mommy and Daddy!

I'm glad to be home.