Friday Night Excursions.

After a long week, Boyfriend and I needed some relaxing time on Friday night.  We began the evening on his back patio unwinding and talking about the mundane and not-so-mundane details of our day.  I really love those moments.  The tension slowly eased out of our shoulders as we leaned back and watched the wind play with the outdoor curtains and rustle through the palm trees.  As he finished a cold drink, I took some time to polish off a chapter in the book we're reading together.  Yes, we read aloud to each other.  I'd tell you what we're reading, but I've already revealed enough nerdiness today.

Once we were a few more pages along and our stomachs started to complain, we headed off to one of our favorite local haunts, Selland's Market-Cafe.  Selland's is run by the same family that owns Ella Dining Room & Bar and The Kitchen Restaurant (which has been the most amazing dining experience I've had in Sacramento; it's definitely a do-at-least-once event!)  Needless to say, Randall Selland & family know how to do amazing food!

Situated on the corner of El Dorado Way and H Street, Selland's is a cafeteria-style, seat-yourself restaurant with a neighborhood atmosphere.  It's always hoppin' and finding a table inside or outside on the patio can sometimes be tricky, but the wait is never long.  Even though Sellands isn't an 'order at the table' style place, I have always found their service to be excellent, and that's something for me to say since I did the whole server gig on and off for ten years. 

Most of their produce comes from local Farmers' Markets and most of their meat is local, organic, additive-, hormone-, and all other kinds of terrible-horrible-evil-to-have-in-your-food-stuff-free.  (How very East Sac of them.)  They home-make all their salad dressings, soups, gravies, and delicious desserts.  And I'm sure they do it with love and devotion.  You can just taste that sort of thing.

The last and best thing about Selland's is their lovely selection of wine.  (They happen to carry one of my favorite labels: Runquist.  If you've never had it, it's a must!)  For all you fellow wine lovers, Selland's has wine tasting every second Wednesday starting at 6 p.m.  They offer wine from around the world as well as a wide selection from local wineries.

The biggest complaint I've heard about Selland's is that some of their menu items are over-priced for what you get, so these are my three budget-friendly suggestions that will fill your belly and not empty your wallet.

The first is their $10 Blue Plate Special.  They offer it after 3 p.m. every day and they change the menu each month.  My second suggestion is their $25 Dinner for Two Special which they change weekly.  It includes, well, dinner for two plus a bottle of wine or pitcher of beer.  That is what I call a fantastic deal!  And last, but not least, I highly suggest you order one of their pizzas.  They are simply fabulous!  Boyfriend and I always split their Prosciutto Pizza (prosciutto, fontina, caramelized onions, parmesan, and fresh sage -- drooling yet?), enjoy a couple of glasses of wine, and all for a very decent price.

After a delectable dinner, Boyfriend and I were well into enjoying our Friday night.  Since we didn't want to hit a wall before 9:30 (you think I'm kidding), we decided to jump over to 16th and Q Street to fill our need for caffeine and something sweet. 

Founded by Andrea Lepore, an Italian-American and Fabrizio Cercatore, an Italian-Italian (ha), Hot Italian offers some of the best, if not the best, California-grown but authentically Italian-tasting pizza you will find in Sacramento (the very names of which make you want to speak with an Italian accent).  Their other strength is their gelato (cannoli, ferrero rocher, pistachio, and tiramisu being among their flavors) and other fabulous desserts, the very reason we were there.

The choice of the evening was the Rocca: scoops of Madagascar vanilla and Mr. Espresso gelato dunked in espresso.  Delicious and gone in the blink of an eye.  Happy and buzzing, we headed back home to watch a movie that we actually stayed awake for.  Imagine that!  Pretty much a great start to a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend.

It's all about First Impressions.

As I previously mentioned, Boyfriend let me have a creative go at decorating his house for entertaining this last weekend.  I not only got to add some flair to the inside of his house, but he let me decorate his porch as well -- isn't he swell?  First impressions are important, are they not?  I had purchased some striped ribbon and it put me in mind of nautical things, so I set out to create a welcoming home front.

What better way to make people feel welcome than by telling them they are?  Here's how I did it.

Burlap has a great rustic look to it.  It also happens to get everywhere when you work with it, so be warned.  I first cut a cardboard triangle and used it to trace and cut bunting from the burlap.

I made sure to leave extra room at the top of each triangle as I was planning to wrap it around twine for the finished product.

I used leftover house paint from Boyfriend's recent move (this is a $3 trial size from Home Depot) to paint letters on each burlap triangle.  (Do you like my art placemat?  A paper bag from Trader Joe's is reusable after all!)

While the letters were drying, I glued ribbon at the top of the triangle, but still left some burlap to curl over the twine.

I knotted the twine between each triangle, then curled the top over the twine, and glued it to the back of the bunting.

All that was left to do was to hang it out front.

But I wasn't done!  Underneath the porch I strung a ribbon garland -- a slightly sticky, but easy project.

I cut the ribbons into roughly 4 inch pieces.

Once I had a nice pile of all my different color ribbons, I cut a triangle from the bottom of each piece (the little details make it prettier).   Then I glued the ribbons over a long piece of twine and it was done!  I'll be honest, the gluing process took me awhile and I was peeling glue off my hands like a kindergartner during art class.  But the effect was worth the loss of my fingerprints.

To secure the twine I used these Command hooks that you can pick up from Target.

The icing on the cake was this find of $9 candle holders.  When I saw these at West Elm, I couldn't resist.  Grabbing my ever useful twine, I hung three lanterns on each side of the porch.  As soon as it was dusk, the candles were lit, creating a warm, friendly glow.  It was practically magic.

I know the picture isn't the best, but you get the jist.  A hand painted welcome sign, a nautical ribbon garland, and charming hanging candle lanterns definitely gave our dinner guests a very warm welcome.

It's in the Details.

Boyfriend and I did some entertaining at his lovely newly purchased house over the weekend.  Though he has done a great job furnishing his home and keeping it constantly spotless (a trait I find rather sexy), he's just not into making things pretty like I am - he is, after all, a man.  I felt his house just needed a little somethin', somethin', and Boyfriend was kind enough to let me do as I wished.  Just because he doesn't spend time making artsy-craftsy things doesn't mean he doesn't appreciate it in me (yet another good trait).  So here's what I came up with.

I'm all about lighting.  A room with a few candles in it can be so welcoming when you have people over to relax, sip wine, and enjoy good conversation.  I took ribbon (I'm all about stripes right now) and twine (one of my most favorite things) and wrapped some candle holders that I picked up at the dollar store.  (The dollar store, by the way, is a great place to get craft supplies!)  After putting some candles (also from the dollar store) and sand (Pier 1 sells different kinds of sand anywhere from $3-$6) in the candle holders, Boyfriend asked, "Sand? You bought sand?"  I told him, "Yes. You don't understand, it's going to be awesome."  After he saw the finished product, he agreed.  However he still thinks we should start a sand business and start raking in the money from suckers like me.

I love flowers.  What girl doesn't?  Flowers can make a room so cheerful!  I don't need fancy-shmancy bouquets with crazy plants climbing out from every angle.  I much rather prefer the market bouquets that you can find at your local grocery store or Trader Joe's that usually go for about $4.  To add a little extra wow factor, I sliced up some oranges, limes, and lemons and placed them around the stems inside the vase.

Bachelor pad?  What bachelor pad?

The mantel needed some greenery as well, so I split a green and white bouquet between two vases.  Guess where I picked the vases up?  That's right, the dollar store.

To finish off the look I added lemons, limes, ribbon, and twine.  And yes, if you noticed, I added twine around the candles in the corner, too.  Little details make a big difference.

The bouquet that we displayed on the dining room table was my favorite because it was just so happy.

Sunflowers, limes, and stripes.

Presto!  Four bouquets, two vases (I already had two), and ambient lighting (not to mention the sand!) all for under $30.  Not too shabby, if you ask me!

The Poppins Perspective: Hearts on a String.

The weather isn't cooperating the way I was hoping it would.  Far from what promised to be the beginning of a run of sunny boat days, this weekend brought thunder, lightning, rain, and hail.  Where am I?  Back in Pennsylvania?  After complaining for a little while, I decided to perk up; after all, one can't be a grumpy-pants forever.  So yesterday, to add a little cheer to the gloom, Gabbie and I made a heart garland.  You can't help but feel happy when you have one of these hanging around.  Here's how to do it.

What you'll need:
* Construction paper
* Glue stick
* Scissors
* Needle & thread


Optional:
* Heart punch (for the artistically-challenged)
* Tape
* An old book

I made one of these for myself a couple of months ago. I wanted to use a variety of materials, so I chose construction paper, scrapbook paper, pages from a book, and those corrugated cardboard hot beverage sleeves that come around latte cups at your favorite coffee joint.  


I specifically wanted an old hard cover book of poems for a couple of reasons.  Older books usually have thicker, and therefore sturdier, paper.  I chose poetry because of the likelihood of getting a lot of lovely words contained in the small shape of a heart.  It's like an instant mini poem!


Yesterday when we started the project, Gabbie looked at me wide-eyed when I pulled out the book and asked if we were really going to cut pages out of it.  I let her know that you NEVER, EVER, EVER hurt a book.  Unless, of course, you bought it expressly for that purpose.


I started by folding sheets of paper and outlining half a heart so that Gabbie could cut them out.  She's not perfect with scissors yet, but this was great practice for her hand-eye coordination.  If you have a tough time drawing, you can always cheat and use a heart punch and presto!  Instant crafty perfection.  But if you do use a punch, you only get one size, so I recommend branching out and challenging yourself.

After cutting hearts of all shapes and sizes, we took the smaller ones and glued them on bigger hearts to add layers and pizzazz.  (Who doesn't love pizzazz?)  I even found a few classic nursery rhymes in my book that we were excited to use for our garland.

Once you have a good sized pile, you have a couple of options.  Taping the hearts to thread or twine will take you a second and a child can easily help with that.  The other option is to sew them together.  I'm not a seamstress; in fact, I never sew.  But I do know how to thread a needle and punch the sharp end through paper, so that's what I did.

Once I was done sewing and we had a nice long string of hearts, the only thing left to do was to display them for some instant happiness!

Spread the love!

Summer Longing.

With this warm weather comes my yearning for the joys of summer: for travel, for the sun coaxing my freckles out of hiding, for the feel of cool water swirling around my feet, and for lazy, balmy nights sipping wine on the patio.

(source: imgfave)

"The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page." ~St. Augustine.

(source: tokyo-bleep)

Before I die, I shall learn how to sail.

(source: Sunday in bed)

Oh for the feel of tipping into the horizon with the smell of the ocean filling my lungs, my being, my very soul.  "I must down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky; And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by, And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking, And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking." ~John Masefield.

(source: newenglandprepster)

There is something so lovely about all things nautical.  "If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea." ~Antoine de Saint-Exupery.

(source: net-a-porter)

Pack all your troubles in your old boat bag and smile, smile, smile.

(source: anthropologie)

If I had money, Anthropologie would be my best friend.  For now, I'll just gaze at their catalogues and perhaps on my weakest days, sneak into their store and sniff their candles.

(source: newenglandprepster)

Sperry Top-Siders are for boat days.  After all, one mustn't be slipping about on deck like a clumsy landlubber.  But if you are a landlubber, be a cute one.

A book for the beach is a must.  This one is a necessity.  The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is one of my all time favorites -- and not just because of its awesome title.  You will laugh.  You will cry.  You will be so sad when it's over.  And then you will read it again.

(source: malpractice)

And most of all, I long for an unmarred view of the endless waves.  "For whatever we lose (like a you or a me) It's always ourselves we find in the sea." ~E.E. Cummings.

Have a glorious, sun-filled weekend and follow the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson: "Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air..."

Bad Language.

A couple years ago, I started noticing a trend spreading like gangrene through the healthy limbs of language.  People were brazenly switching adjectives for adverbs without even blinking an eye.  Did they do it because they didn't know the difference?  Or was it because they simply did not care?  Either way, I found this annoying -- like stepping in a wet spot on the kitchen floor in my socks.  So in my angst, I sat down and poured out my emotions through poetry like any feeling artist would.

Death of the Adverb

How sudden he went.
No one saw how or when
but the thing about it was that no one cared either,
just a few professors weeping soft into their graying beards
and a handful of editors, pens tucked behind ears,
hands shoved in pockets, heads bowed in defeat.

People were too busy texting short acronyms on cell phones
or talking to one another in coded slang
to notice his form lying lifeless in a pool of grammatical blood.
They sidestepped him with detached disinterest
as they went on their ignorant way -- swift and not swiftly --
shrugging at the minuscule difference.

His distant cousin, the Adjective, stepped up to the plate
and tried his best, but he did it rather poor.
At least, it seemed that way for those select few readers
sitting on warm nights who continued to incline their heads to listen
for the Adverb’s signature step and the patter of the “l” and “y”
that usually followed him like small, obedient dogs on a leash.

With a sigh they returned listless to the books opened in their laps
feeling like something was missing -- something important --
when only the sound of crickets replied, a cacophony weighing heavy
on the still air outside their small windows
that framed a night that somehow seemed larger,
a darkness that crept a little closer to their doors.

"Language is wine upon the lips," Virginia Woolf once wrote.  I love wine and I love the wine of language!  I don't want the heady liquid of diction to become a poisonous draught of misused words.  Am I being a little dramatic?  Yes, of course.  But far from the lies of the childhood ditty, Sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me, is the truth that words can cut a man to his innermost being and they can inspire him to be greater than he knew he could ever be.  I do not believe that the English language will collapse in a great avalanche of ten syllable words and forgotten phrases, rather I feel that it will crack little by little if we allow our mediocrity about its usage to turn it into a shadow of what it once was.

So, care!  Learn the difference and teach the difference.  Speak and write with eloquence.  Understand what you speak; know why it is either correct or why it is an oral abomination.  Don't know where to start?  I have a few suggestions that will teach and entertain you.  After all, "With every job that must be done, there is an element of fun!"  (I had to bring a little Mary Poppins into this, didn't I?)

Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation is a brilliant and hilarious book about grammar.  (Yes, I did just use hilarious and grammar in the same sentence.)  This is not a text book, but you will be so caught up in Lynne Truss's piquant wit that you will fly through the book without realizing that you're actually learning something.  For example, the crucial difference between, "Let's eat, Grandpa" and "Let's eat Grandpa" -- a seemingly minor detail to you, but one that Grandpa would be eager to tell you is anything but innocuous.

Have trouble with words?  Try Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words: A Writer's Guide to Getting it Right by Bill Bryson.  Not necessarily a read-cover-to-cover book, but it is very handy as a reference tool.  Bryson outlines the difference between commonly misused words (like adverse and averse or affect and effect) and misapplied words (like adage: "Even the most careful users of English frequently, but unnecessarily, refer to an 'old adage.' An adage is by definition old.") He has the gift of being humorous and informative without boring you to tears.


That should give you a decent start.  Happy reading and long live the adverb!

The Poppins Perspective: Chalk it Up.

It's been a gorgeous (albeit allergen-filled) several days here in Sacramento. It makes me want to break out my shorts and flip-flops and head outside to soak up some Vitamin D. Frequently at work, however, I find myself strapped for time because of a schedule. What to do if I can't wander too far from the house because one of the little ones is napping, or a load of laundry is going, or I just don't have enough time to pop them down to the library?

Well, my answer is simple and easy (which is what I prefer). Sidewalk chalk! Kids of all ages love it - though the younger ones like to eat it, so do beware. The best part for them is their canvas is as big as they want it to be: a square in front of the door, the entire driveway, or the sidewalk all the way down to the corner of the block. The best part for you: the only clean up you have to do at the end of it is to brush off their little chalky hands with a wet wipe or let them run through the sprinklers.

Gabbie and I broke out the chalk yesterday and decided to bedeck the driveway with a myriad of colorful pictures. After a few minutes and a couple pink scribbles, Gabbie seemed to be running out of ideas -- and we all know that if a kid is running out of ideas, the next thing you're going to hear is those two horrible little words, "I'm bored." So I started drawing outlines of shapes -- hearts, flowers, stripes, people -- and she would follow me and fill them in. Then she started naming the different patches and I would write them down: The Great Mermaid Sea, The Twirly, Swirly Woods, The Magical Flower Patch, and the Cutie Crossing. Her imagination went wild and pretty soon we were working on those tank top tans and covering ourselves with a fine dust of rainbow colors.

Get outside, get creative, and soak up that sun!