Dish Of The Day

Working my way through the alphabet in this month's A-Z blog challenge...

 Day 4-D is for Dishes 

If a pretty dish enters my home you should know it's probably not coming out. I mean if it's yours I'll return it, but if I've bought it myself or it's been handed down to me I'm keeping it possibly forever. 

Doesn't everyone need an asparagus plate? 

I live on a lake and everything is super casual here. We use melamine and plastic tumblers for the outdoor spaces, but I  think a beautifully set table in the dining room is one of life's little pleasures and I want more of it. 

I feel like people push back when you want to make something a little bit 'fancy'. Guests don't want you going to any trouble, but I say going to a little bit of trouble is part of what makes a dinner gathering special. 

I know everyone is fine with paper plates and easy clean up, but I love the aesthetic of real dishes and I don't even mind hand washing my china whenever we pull it out. Which isn't often, but when we do it feels so civilized. Hubs and I always enjoy having a debrief too, as we wash up dishes after a party. It puts a bookend on the evening.  

I have a lot of dishes, but right now I have room for them and I use them. I have my everyday dishes. I have a very full set of china chosen when I married that I still love a lot.

I have a set of Christmas dishes. I have many many serving pieces I purchased on trips to Italy and the potteries in Stoke-on Trent in the UK. 

Memorable days and memorable trips made with women who became friends as we bonded over pottery and living far from 'home'.  

I have some lovely little glass sherbet style dishes that belonged to my grandmother that I've only used a couple of times but am determined to use again. Plus they were my grandmas. Doesn't the law say you can't give away your grandmas dishes? 

My daughter1 has my grandmother's china and it made my mom so happy when she moved out of her house knowing these dishes went to a granddaughter. 

I'm a believer in using the good dishes. In the end they're just dishes and if one breaks it breaks. What's the point of having nice things if they're always tucked away in a drawer or cabinet? 

When I was visiting my daughter2 a couple of weeks ago we went into a beautiful home store and my eyes instantly landed on a set of gorgeous bar glasses that would be so much fun for summer. I hemmed and hawed and thought about how I might justify the purchase (they were awfully pricey), and when I asked myself aloud where would I put them my daughter said, and I quote, 'just buy them mom, you'll figure it out when you get home.' 

I love her. 

But I didn't purchase because they were somewhat girly and the bar area is kind of hubs domain so he might not appreciate these. Or he might be happy if they make me happy? I can always go back, right? 

An Ultra Violet Hodgepodge

Welcome to the Wednesday Hodgepodge! Christmas is right around the corner and I'm invoking the hurry less, worry less mantra in order to participate today. If you've answered this week's questions add your link at the end of my post, then go say Happy Hodgepodge to the blogger linking before you. Here we go-

1. 'Hurry less, worry less'...what's your strategy for making that happen this holiday season? How's it going so far?

My strategy is one day at a time. I have a mental list of a few Christmas related tasks to tackle every day and I do my best to tackle them. That being said, there have been a lot of interruptions to my daily plans this month, and I probably haven't rolled with them as kindly as I could have. I'm a work in progress. I don't think I feel hurry and worry so much as I feel pressure to accomplish so many things. ALL THE THINGS. 

My survival tips are few and simple-start the day sitting quietly by the light of the Christmas tree. Watch the sun rise and remember the God who made it happen has the day in hand. Have a conversation with Him about my to-dos and my people, my hurries and worries. Have a cup of coffee and take time to ponder. This season is made for pondering. One day at a time. 

2. Do you have a list of to-dos that need accomplishing in order to prepare your home and/or property for the winter season? What are some of the jobs on your list? Are you a do-it-yourselfer or do you hire someone to accomplish these tasks?

Sort of. It's not written in stone, but certainly there are jobs that need doing this time of year and somebody needs to do them. Mostly that somebody is hubs. Hi hubs! We have loads of tall trees and hubs collected all the leaves into piles, but we did pay someone to come in and take care of mulching them. I think they mulched them? They may also have hauled some away. Whatever the job is done. 

The boat needs winterizing and we paid someone to do that job this year. Some thing-a-ma-jig was due for tweaking or replacing so we had the marina guy winterize at the same time. Hubs was on top of things and we managed to get that done right before the cold snap hit so yay hubs! 

It's clear why I'm not in charge of winter prep around here, isn't it? Ha!  

3. According to dietitians surveyed, the most popular health foods for 2018 will be -turmeric, sprouted foods (bean sprouts, breads with sprouted grains, etc), veggies in place of grains, dairy free milk, and pulses (lentils, chickpeas, etc).  What's the first thought that ran through your head when you read this list? Of the foods listed which one might you add to your regular diet? Also, can milk really be dairy free? Is it still milk?

My first thought was blech! That list sounds a little bit too healthy to taste good. I do like turmeric and I love veggies and lentils and chickpeas too so I guess pulses, but ewwww...in my opinion the healthy food industry needs some new terminology. Also, I like milk. I know there are people out there who cannot tolerate lactose, but I'm not one of them. And I read somewhere that non-dairy doesn't necessarily mean milk-free, so it's all pretty confusing. As far as what item from the list will be added to my diet, well I already eat quite a few. I love lentils so will maybe find some new ways to use them. 

4. The Pantone Color of the Year for 2018 is Ultra Violet. According to the Pantone site 'Ultra Violet communicates originality, ingenuity, and visionary thinking pointing us to the future.' What say you? Do you like the color purple? Did you see the movie or read the book-ha!?  Is purple a color you wear often? Describe for us one purple item in your home without using the word purple.  If you were in charge of such things what color would you select for 2018?

I do like the color purple, and wear it on occasion. Something in my home that's this color? One of my most favorite pitchers, purchased in a tiny little town called Nove in the northern part of Italy. The trip there might be one of the reasons I love it so-

It's a fig, and the perfect shade of 'aubergine'. FYI-saw the movie, didn't read the book. If I were in charge of the world I think I'd choose a sunny yellow. Don't we all need a little more sunshine in our lives? 

5. Favorite book you read this year?

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

I'm helping in my daughter's kindergarten classroom today. Her students are working on presents for their parents and she needed some extra hands. Kindergartners are my favorite. 

Kindergarten teachers too. 

Portugal Day Dois

So once upon a time we lived in England. And we made a few friends, and these friends are now quite literally scattered to all corners of the globe, which means getting together requires a bit of planning. It was decided last year, that this year we'd all meet up in or near the medieval town of Obidos Portugal. Let the flight booking and continent hopping begin!

There were seven couples in total-one came from China, one from France, one from the UK, one from Chicago, one from D.C., and of course hubs and I, representing the delightful Garden State. The seventh couple also arrived from D.C., but returned to the UK since they keep a foot in both places. Actually three places, but whatever. Like I said-not simple.  

Everyone made their way over in whatever time frame suited their schedules, but we all agreed to be in the hotel for a Thursday evening dinner. Which was fabulous, but I'll get back to that in a minute because first we had some time to kill.

Four couples headed to the nearby village of Caldas da Rainha on Thursday morning. We chose this town because one couple in our group lived in this area several years ago, and the Mrs. half of that couple happens to speak my love language-ceramica. She knew Portuguese pottery was for sale in the town of Caldas so we had a plan. As you might imagine the guys were not quite as thrilled, but they knew of a go-kart track in this same town, and concocted a plan of their own. 

All's fair in love and pottery.

Be still my heart. I could just walk around this little shop all day long. I saw a pitcher and a great big bowl I really wanted...they looked like a cantaloupe.  I knew we'd see more pottery later so I waited, and ended up buying just the bowl in Obidos. By then we'd made a couple of other purchases and hubs was getting twitchy about how we were carting all this fragile stuff home.

Simple. We buy another carry on bag. He may be a seasoned traveler, but he's an amateur when it comes to matching wits with a team of women determined to get their pottery across an ocean. One friend purchased some inflatable water wings in the US and brought them with her. Just inflate and wrap around wine bottles or fragile souvenirs, and voila! No broken glass. Obviously a bowl this size wouldn't fit into a pair of water wings, but know that shopkeepers the world over are always at the ready with a hefty bit of bubblewrap too.

One of my favorite things about meandering around these little towns is connecting with people who live there. Stumbling across a fabulous place to eat while doing so is a bonus.

We rounded a corner and found just such a place. Our lunch was made better by our delightfully spunky server. She had a great sense of humor, and I think she enjoyed our little visit as much as we did.

Essentially we sat at a table in the middle of a 'street', ate local dishes, and laughed a lot.

That evening the whole big group enjoyed an elegant Vintner Dinner served in a special dining room in the hotel. I don't think anyone was expecting such a lovely event. Everything was absolutely wonderful, beginning with the way the hotel staff made this large dining room feel intimate.

The Vintner was a charming and knowledgeable Englishman who's been living in Portugal for a number of years, with his wife and their seven children. Later we found out the children are all boys, so bless her heart. Anyway James chose the wine, and shared stories of his life as an expat, the Portuguese wine industry, and his own vineyard. The food was not like any hotel food we'd ever sampled, and the cheese course at the end of the meal was just right.

Well the cheese and the macaroons.

In other news I returned to boot camp today. This feels like the right time to insert that piece of information, and wrap up a day of eating and walking and then more eating. In Day 3 we get wet, contemplate buying a vineyard, and try to work out why a replica of the Terracotta Army sits in a Portuguese field. Stay tuned!

Continuing With The Stuff

So, I mentioned last Monday I was going to try to catch up some on my blog and now it's practically Friday, but who's counting?  If you've been here before you know the drill...brace yourselves for some mediocre.

I have a friend who moved here from the UK, and when her sister hopped the pond for a visit recently, she asked her to bring me this-

She knows I have a small obsession with all things England.

This adorable tin is filled with shortbread, and when my mom was here visiting last week we had tea and 'biscuits' every afternoon.  I even pulled out my Polish Pottery teapot and cups.

It's possible pottery is another tiny little obsession. ahem.  

Moving on...I'd purchased concert tickets for hubs birthday, so last Friday night we went to see The Marshall Tucker Band play in a small local venue. Marshall Tucker Band might be hubs all time favorite band, and they definitely rank up there in my top three.

The bands creator sadly passed away several years ago, along with his brother who was also a key member of the group, but the original voice is still singing, still sounding so awesome. They've maintained their original sound which is most important, and the flute/sax player is incredible.

Sometimes these 'old' bands want to play all new stuff, but MT played the old familiar and the audience loved it.

Back when I was in college (in TN) my younger sister, who was in college in Delaware, came for a visit. I remember sitting around talking about music with hubs and a friend of ours who happened to be from Spartanburg SC which is Marshall Tucker Band's hometown. This friend could not believe my sister didn't know any Marshall Tucker. My sister on the other hand, couldn't believe our South Carolina friend didn't know anything by 'the Boss'.

Guess everybody was a nobody once upon a time.
Even Springsteen.

Last Saturday hubs and I spent a fun afternoon at a local rodeo, and the weather could not have been more perfect for an outdoor event. We brought lawn chairs and set up on the hillside overlooking the ring, and we ate bbq and homemade ice cream while we waited on the cowboys.

This was a professional rodeo, the participants competing for points on whatever the big time rodeo circuit is, so really entertaining, and only slightly nerve wracking.

I gained a whole new respect for mamas who let their babies grow up to be cowboys.

Cowboys who need to wrap their arms from wrist to shoulder before jumping onto the back of a bucking bronco from which they will very likely be thrown.

On Sunday a young man who was our across the street neighbor (three houses ago), and who is currently hiking the Appalachian Trail from Maine to Georgia, passed thru the portion that hits our neck of the woods.  We trekked out to meet him, bring a few supplies, and then run him into town for a break from trail food at a lovely little Italian place with outdoor seating.

Pretty sure there's no avocado topped with tuna tartar and caviar out on the trail.  If there is I'm pretty sure you wouldn't want to eat it.

I posted a picture of the boy on my facebook page, and yes he's actually now a man, but I've known him since kindergarten so he'll always be 'a boy' to me...anyway, I had to smile at all the commenters worried about his safety. The danger factor is part of what makes stuff like this fun.

Guess who would love to take six months and hike the A.T.?

I could see the wheels turning in hubs head.  I told him I'd go along for six days, maybe even sixteen days, but six months holds no appeal, mostly because I like showering every.single.day.

Once upon a time I spent eight days on the Appalachian Trail. It might be fun to write about that experience one of these days.  How about I leave you with this little teaser...

The leaders of our group almost sent me home pretty much as soon as we arrived because I hyperventilated, then fainted.  I scared them good, but here I am so I guess it all worked out in the end.  

F Words

Relax.
I've got field trips, falling snow, and Friday Fragments.

Technically there is no snow falling yet, but the weathermen and news teams and snow crews are having a field day talking about it.  In what year did news stations begin assigning people to 'snow crews'?  I understand the need to let viewers in on the forecast so they can plan ahead, but we've gone overboard again.  Is it really necessary to send teams out into various communities in frigid temperatures, three days ahead of time,  to stand on the side of a busy road while no snow falls just to tell us snow is coming?

Everything is an event now which means nothing is really an event.  At least if it is we won't know it, because we've all learned to block the ticker tape running at the top and bottom of our television screens day and night screaming alert alert alert.  I will resist going into a media rant tangent here. You're welcome.

I did my duty and hit the grocery store yesterday.  I went right after my dental appointment, but before I took the dog to the vet.  It was that sort of day.  Let me ask you this... am I the only one who can't seem to get out of the vet's office for less than $300? God definitely knew what he was doing when He made dogs cute.

While I'm being random...I host a weekly meme (The Wednesday Hodgepodge), which really is a whole lot of fun (if you're not playing along you definitely should), and the past two weeks a couple of bloggers have linked up, but not played along. In fact, they didn't even mention the Hodgepodge in their post or link back to my blog in any way. Isn't that bad bloggy etiquette?  Kinda like free advertising for them on my blog? What would their mothers say?

She'd say delete, that's what.
 
Quick topic change.
Hey, it's Friday...you're here for the fragments, aren't you?
  
I had a lovely day on Wednesday touring a glass factory with twenty friends.  Are you familiar with Peggy Karr glass?

Her fused glass pieces are carried mostly in high end gift shops across the country, and I had no idea it was made not far from here.  The factory is in an industrial area I pass now and then, and I like to know there is something so creative happening behind the brick.  

One of the designers acted as tour guide and it was so interesting to see how the glass is cut, enameled, fired, and of course sold.  

At the end of the tour we met the artist herself, and she was lovely.  I didn't snap her photo because I was standing right in front of her, and it felt awkward.  Even for me. ahem.
 

There's an outlet store on the premises too, featuring seconds and retired designs. I think everyone bought something, and we capped off the trip with lunch at a local Irish pub.  In my book, any day where I get to look at pottery and have a long, leisurely lunch out is a good day.

As I've been collecting my fragments snow has started falling. We're expecting something close to a foot and a half with high winds so it's likely I'll mention it a time or a hundred before the weekend is over.  I'm on Twitter (Daleyjoy) and Instagram (Daleyshots), and I'm pretty sure those sites were made for days like today.

Hubs is working from home today, and he likes to set himself up at the kitchen island. I get it, but it does add some challenges to my day. There cannot be any noise while he's on a conference call. (He has two this morning).  And I can't walk by his computer in my pjs because he's on video chat. I'm also in charge of making sure the dog doesn't bark and the doorbell doesn't ring. Those last two go hand in hand.

On the bright side, I can't vacuum either.
I love that there's always a bright side.

To read more Friday Fragments hop on over to Half Past Kissin' Time.  

The Little and the Big

I wish I were one of those bloggers who could sit down and churn out a humorous, heartfelt, and concise summary of an event immediately after said event occurs, but I'm not.  I could probably write four posts about our Thanksgiving weekend, but instead I'll do my usual thing and jam it all into one.  Maybe two.  Welcome to this side of the pond.

My girls were home for five whole complete entire days.  Well four and three quarters, but that's still something.  Daughter1 took Wednesday off from work, which meant we could make one airport-train station run to collect them both on Tuesday evening. Gotta be thankful for the small things, right?

The traffic getting to the airport does not qualify as a small thing. Everyone and their brother must have been heading over the meadow and through the woods on Tuesday night.  Or down the turnpike and across the parkway as it happens in northern NJ.

See, this is why I should write about our weekend as it happens.  I've just written an entire paragraph describing the traffic.

And then I feel the need to tell you that...moving on-

We made our traditional post-airport pickup stop at the diner for dinner at 9 PM because that's what you do when your kids live far from home and have jobs and don't get in until 8:15.  Something else to be thankful for-the diners in NJ are open pretty much 24/7.

The girls and I sent hubs out to run last minute errands on Wednesday morning while we got busy cooking.  It was just the four of us for Thanksgiving dinner, but you still have to make all the traditional sides-mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn pudding, dressing, brussel sprouts with pancetta, cranberries, and squash casserole.  

Normally we do creamed onions too, but daughter1 took a cooking class this fall so she treated us to homemade French Onion soup instead.  It was fab-u-lous.  And extra delicious because we served it in these too cute individual terrines I'd ordered from Williams Sonoma.

Pretty dishes make me happy.

Remember it's the little things people.

Everyone helped with the prep...daughter1 made the soup and the Pioneer Woman's cranberry recipe which I loved.  Daughter2 is my official chopper and she did all the onions and celery for our stuffing, plus she made the squash casserole and a magazine-worthy pumpkin cheesecake for dessert.

We broke with tradition a little and opted for cheesecake instead of pie.  Nobody revolted.  We always have fruit salad as a dessert option too, a very specific fruit salad like my mama made and her mama before her, and maybe her mama before her too. Apples, oranges, and red grapes that must be pitted and halved, and a can of crushed pineapple poured over all. Daughter1 pitted, peeled and chopped-

She also made a cheese ball for snacking on all weekend.

She is very serious about her assignment.

Did I do any of the cooking? Ha-yes...someone has to make the turkey, the dressing, and the sweet potato casserole.  Plus someone has to assign recipes to specific pans and solve the Rubik's Cube that is your oven on Thanksgiving, right?

And thankfully someone else has to polish the silver.  Hubs did such a good job I think this will be forevermore on his to-do list instead of mine.

It's the little things, remember?
Actually I think it's the little things mixed together with the big things.

Like daughters who mash the potatoes...

and sisters so happy to spend time together they must mark the day with a picture.

It's family round the table...

...and daughters whose very presence in your life fill your heart to overflowing.

It's also wordy bloggers who decide maybe they will break their holiday weekend recap into two or three posts.  

Is that a big thing or a little thing?  

Either way, you're welcome.  

Show us Where you Live-The Kitchen

I know.

Two posts on a Friday but nobody actually reads blogs on Fridays anyway do they?

I wanted to link up with Kelly's Korner today for the Show Us Your Life series.

Today people are posting pictures of their kitchens...why not add yours?

I love my kitchen and spend more time there than anywhere else in my house.

I love how open it feels and I love the color.

Its not easy to take great pictures in there though because of the lighting.

We have recessed lighting and over the sink lighting and over the island lighting and over the table lighting.

Plus the kitchen opens up into my family room which has two story ceilings and big windows so the lighting is tricky.

Plus I stink at photography and have a puny camera.

Okay, I think I'm done with excuses now.

One of the things that convinced me this house should be mine was the island...

It's an unusual shape, a pentagon.

I like the angles and I love the granite, both the color and for clean up.

I have not allowed the island to become a dumping ground for mail or anything else.

Yay me!

Well, yay hubs because he's all over that.

I like to keep the island clear with the exception of a centerpiece of some sort.

Right now I have big pumpkin pie scented candles in hurricane jars with a fall berry wreath around the center jar.

The previous owners did not have a back splash behind the stove so I've put a big tray there for now which I love.

We may just leave it like that.

One of our house guests in England bought this tray for me after I took her to Windsor Castle. It's lovely and reminds me of England and good friends both.

I have some of my favorite pottery on top of my cabinets.

These came from a little town in Italy called Nove which is not far from Verona...

Here is a different view looking into our back hallway from my kitchen sink...

I also love the desk and cabinet above it which is filled with guess what?

More pottery.

Seriously, does anyone else feel happy just looking at this Fig pitcher?

We have a digital photo frame on the desk and when my girls are home we play a game where every time you walk by the frame you have to shout out the location of the current picture.

I think it's true that in many ways the kitchen is the heart of the home.

One of the reasons I love fall so much is all the cooking and celebrating and family togetherness it brings... weekend football games, daughters popping home for a few days of break and of course Thanksgiving dinner.

Plus the colors of fall match my house which is just a little icing on the cake.