the peacoat papers

puppy chow

I love this little treat.  I don't care that it looks like dog food.  I actually kind of like that it looks like puppy chow, hence the name.

But man, is it messy!

Worth it, though.

I bought a cute bowl and brought it as a gift to a holiday party last night.  It was a hit with the caterer.  He asked me the secret.

I didn't know there was a soul in the world who didn't make themselves sick on puppy chow in December.  So in case you're like the caterer:

3/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter
8 cups Crispix cereal (Or Rice Chex)
2 cups powdered sugar

Melt the peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butter together. Pour over the cereal in a large kettle or bowl and stir well. Pour the powdered sugar into a large brown paper bag and add the cereal. Fold the bag to seal and shake well to coat evenly.

(instructions from my friend Abi, who reminded me about this snack.)

 

(This was not the bowl I presented it in to the hostess, by the way.)

What are your must-makes for the holiday season?

mom weighs in on housewife stereotypes

At the same time I was labeling myself a stereotype, my friend Megan was over at SortaCrunchy asking the question,

"I wonder in what generation did the stereotype of homemaking mother change from heels and pearls to pajama bottoms and flip flops?"

I wonder, too.  So I asked my mom.  She did, after all, live through the transition.

Mom was on a road trip of sorts with one of her oldest and dearest friends Pru.  They chatted it over and wrote up some thoughts. 

I found it interesting - and obvious, though I'd never thought about it - that the "heals and pearls" housewife was such a brief period in recent history.  Apparently women used to look just as tired and haggard as has become popular now.  Only then they had an excuse.

A little explanation from two women who lived through it:

Many popular sit-coms were made during (or about) the 1950's and early 1960's. The moms wore dresses with full skirts (the 50's) or sheaths (the early 60's) with tight waists, pointy busts, and wore high heels and hose (nylon stockings).

I can confirm, first hand, that that's how most women looked when they were in public, even going to the grocery store. Pru says she has friends who's moms looked like that when they mopped the floor, and the ladies on TV did the same. There was an almost fixation on clean floors and dusted shelves. That wasn't my house, but it was common.

I think the philosophy was that a woman was judged by the way she kept her home. Very few moms worked. It was sort of a sign that the dad couldn't support the family. But although these looked like "common times", they were actually transition times. 

good hostess gifts

Showers thrown in your honor are scary.  Or maybe it's just me.  But the registry, the attention, then the actual event, it all gives me anxiety.

Then there is the matter of hostess gifts.  You want to adequately thank those who are throwing you such a nice party, but you don't want to go overboard either in sentiment or financially, even though it's tempting to do so. 

Circumstance will dictate the type of gift and your budget.  For my shower at the lake, my hostesses all lived out of town, so I wanted to get them something that would be easy to pack.  Another friend told me that her baby shower involved fourteen hostesses!  Even the smallest token adds up when you're buying that many of anything.

For my four friends who threw my Alice In Wonderland-themed baby shower, I was at a complete loss as to how to thank them.  I was too close to all of them to do anything too generic - a candle or picture frame, for example - but didn't have time to do anything too personal, either - monogrammed items are always nice.

The best gifts are those that you would like to have, but probably wouldn't buy for yourself.  For a lot of women, this is something pretty and unique for the home.  My favorites are serving pieces.  I always see (and often need!) serving pieces, but don't want to spend the money on them.  Etsy is a great source for ceramic pieces like this.  I liked this one from Grandma's Linens ($28).  (These kinds of gifts are trickier if you're unsure of the hostesses taste.)  Anthropologie always has pretty kitchen pieces, but can get pricey (though the added bonus is that they could be returned or exchanged).

If you have a creative touch and a bit of time, you can also put together small theme baskets.  Two of my ideas were a "Date Night" basket and a "Cupcake" basket. 

For the cupcake gift, I would use a brightly colored mixing bowl from somewhere like Target or even the dollar store.  Bonus if you can pick up matching spatulas.  Then buy a cake or cupcake mix from somewhere like Williams-Sonoma, cute toppings and maybe a fun-shaped tin or liners.  Use ribbons to tie it all together for a cute presentation.

For the date night gift, I would use a popcorn bucket (you can buy these at party stores, OR you can ask at the theater if they have any extra or if they would let you purchase just a few).  Then fill it with candy and two tickets to a close movie theater.  The tickets will be the most expensive part!  I like this gift because The Gorilla and I always talk ourselves out of going to the movies because tickets have gotten so expensive and we're not sure if the movie is "worth it."  So I would love a gift like this!

What I finally ended up doing for my dear hostesses was going with the theme "2 Things Every L.A. Girl Needs This Fall."  I picked two items that are everywhere this Fall - reusable grocery bags and gauzy scarves - and put it together.  I liked this idea because both items were pretty and functional, and it let me personalize for each girl. 

I bought each a set of three reusable tote bags from Party Paper Life in a cute pattern.  (I saw other cute ones at The Container Store and at Borders.)  I found pretty patterned scarves at Gap, and I also saw them at Old Navy.  They turned out so cute!

These are just a few of the ideas that ran through my head when looking for a nice way to thank the hostesses for my showers. 

I would love to hear your ideas!

 

creative baby shower gifts

I wish I could feature every single gift I've received for Pigtail or myself over the last several months, because there have been some real doozies. 

So many special things have been unwrapped.  Some useful, some super cutesy, some I know I'll use every day, and others I can't wait to use and then pass on because they're so great.

But at the fanciest baby shower of all time, I received a couple of things worth mentioning because of their sheer outside-the-box-ness. 

First was from one of my hostesses, Rachel.  As I posted about here, Rachel makes beautiful jewelry and sells pieces on Etsy.  So I wasn't surprised her present came from that addictive crafty website, but I was thrilled with it's function and presentation.

 

Isn't this creative?  It's a precious growth chart that you hang and then "mark" with the little tags as your child grows.  I mean, I'm a fan of pencil in the doorjam, too, but this practically doubles as a work on art, since it hangs on the wall.  Shop Miss Natalie's store here.

This next idea is from my friend Jill.  She lovingly made lullaby CD's for Pigtail.  This makes me happy because Jill has excellent taste and I know that The Gorilla and I will both enjoy the music, too. 

 

Handmade gifts like this always mean so much because it means the gifter gave so much time and thought into the project. 

Okay, so this next one is clothes, which I understand doesn't usually fall into the "creative" category - no matter how cute - but these got so many squeals and chuckles at the shower that I decided to include them.  This is a onesie and a shirt from Rock Your Baby, and we received them from our friend Lauren.  I am loving this brand!

 

Everyone agreed that these were both very "Laura."  Especially the pearls.  Perfect!

I have received stacks of children's books and I never tire of those.  I love children's books and I know Pigtail will, too.  But this book is going to be particularly useful, I think.

  

Fun Places To Go With Kids In Southern California looks like a great resource.  The card from our friend Shari said something like, "We discovered a whole new LA!" and I believe it.

So if buying off the registry bores you, or if you're just looking for something a little different, here are just a few of the gifts that I was excited to write Thank You's for. 

More to come...there is at least one thing sitting in the nursery still in the box that you're going to need to see. 

the fanciest baby shower

Apparently, there is a lot of fancy going on lately.  And I am not afraid of using superlatives in reference in Pigtail.  Oh well.  I'm excited.  It's an exciting time.

I don't like showers.  (The gifting kind, not the wet, clean kind.)  They make me uncomfortable.  Gifts and registries and fuss, it all stresses me out.  Not for other people, mind you.  I like participating in showers for other people.  But for myself...panic attacks.

And then I attended the fanciest baby shower of all time.  And it was for me!  Every single guest - and especially the Guest of Honor - was blown away by the depth and detail that went into this party.

Four of my dear girlfriends came together to throw such a fete, and it is worth noting that they didn't know each other very well.  All four knew of each other, and had maybe met a few times, but they weren't friends.  What they had in common was ME.  That makes all this even more magical. 

The theme was Alice In Wonderland.  Which is perfect for me in so many ways.  I suspect this was their choice because I love to throw tea parties.  Everyone was asked to bring a tea cup.  This is to be Pigtail's first tea set.  Isn't that clever?

The party was at my friend Cyndi's house.  *sigh* Cyndi's house.  It is one of the most personal houses I've ever been in.  Everything is carefully chosen.  You could spend hours at her coffee table among the stacks of photo books she makes of her family.  Look at them all!  Heaven. 

But back to the shower...the theme was everywhere.

 

my first fancy dinner party

In my little mind, I have always wanted to be one of those Women Who Throw Dinner Parties.  I imagined small and intimate groupings, but glamorous and interesting guests.  Artists and Writers and Painters and intense discussion and raucous laughter.  It sounds like a movie, right?  Not real life.

Then I turned thirty and had the sudden revelation that all those things I dream about, I actually need to start doing them. 

So I made a list.  Thirty things I want to do when I'm Thirty.  (I know I haven't published the list yet.  I will.)  Throw A Fancy Dinner Party was right on up there.  Auntie Mame-style. 

So I did.  Last week.  As if we didn't have anything else going on.

First I had a ten-foot outdoor table built.  I don't mean to toss that out there casually, I know that's not the most normal thing to do.  But I had been looking for a large solid wood table for months, and everything I found either wasn't quite right or was insanely expensive. 

So I turned to the guy who does all the props for The Gorilla's shows.  JP (who also built the tiki bar at the lake house) understood the simplicity of my vision, was able to built it for less than half the price of any other comparable table I'd seen, and he did it in two days.  TWO DAYS.  I just wanted to give him a big smooch.

 

Then I found a caterer.  Are you laughing?  Because when I said "I threw a dinner party," what I really meant was, "I set a nice table and brought in the food."

My main holdup on throwing a dinner party was the food.  I'm not a bad cook.  In the last two years I've become quite a decent cook.  But cooking for a group was too much pressure.  So I farmed it out.  And I'm not ashamed.  Laura of Laura's Comfort Gourmet is in my book club, and she just started a catering business.  I knew it would be good (it was) and things would be taken care of (they absolutely were), so I could focus on important details like flowers.  And candles.

I bought suitable outdoor placemats and dramatic glass candle-holders from Ikea.  I brought out all three patterns of my china (although this was not unusual, I am a believer in Using Your Nice Things), and almost every piece of stemware I own.

We had the bench on one side, but I didn't have time to find outdoor chairs, so we just brought down our regular dining room chairs.  

I went to my favorite local flower shop and in addition to buying flowers for the table, I also bought long green stems (leaves?  I don't know what you call them) to wrap around the cloth napkins.  It was the florists idea to staple them underneath.  I was going to tie them, or cut a slit to slip on end through another, but it didn't work so well.  So out came the stapler. 

 

And then, somehow, interesting people showed up.  And mixed with the pretty table and the candlelight, we had the most wonderful evening.  There were toasts made and stories told.

 

In addition to the yummy comfort food, there were appetizers and desserts and beer and wine and water and bread. 

 

And we were in our own home.  It was less costly than having the same gathering at a restaurant.  And it was infinitely more special.  That was the best part.

At the end of the night, when we were all exhausted of talking and full to the brim of good food, everyone helped carry things upstairs and even helped clean up.  It felt like family. 

 

It was like family.

sunday in the canyon - funfetti

This is my all-time favorite snack.  Now don't get excited or impressed, it's all straight from a box.  Funfetti with Rainbow Chip icing.  It makes me so happy.

I started making this for the drill team bus when I was in high school. (For those of you not from small-town Oklahoma, our drill team was actually just a pom-pon squad.  We didn't drill, not like some of the big city schools.  The name still bugs me.)

We have devoured almost the entire batch already.  With the help of a few friends. 

It's the simple things...

fried fish

Because I'm living in a world where your neighbor drops by to share the 40 lbs. of striper he caught that morning.

I didn't have any flour, so at my mom's suggestion I just dipped the pieces in milk and then crushed saltine crackers.  They fried up so nicely and we had a great, unexpected, lake-y dinner!

Ah, life on the lake.  I can't wait to be back here for the summer!

(we had more than I have pictured here, but it was all half-eaten before I remembered to take a picture.  It also sort of looks more burned in the pic than it was in reality.  that's just my cooking vanity talking.)

cold and rainy and stuck inside - spicy soup

It was cold and rainy and miserable in Los Angeles for several weeks before I left for Utah, where it was snowing.  Now I'm in the Carolinas, and yep, it's cold here.

So I've been craving warm comfort foods.  I discovered this recipe for making your typical Campbells Tomato Soup spicy and original with just a few tweaks and it really hit the spot.  Both The Gorilla and I sucked down our bowls, and I am not a huge soup fan. 

But with a little cheesy and crusty bread, it makes this last few cold weeks of winter more bearable. 

Warning:  this is pretty spicy, so if you prefer something a little more mild, but with the same kick, you might want to take the crushed pepper down a notch. 

INGREDIENTS
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can condensed tomato soup
7 ounces water (half can)
7 ounces milk or 2% low-fat milk or reduced-fat milk or lowfat 1% low-fat milk or skim milk (Just not buttermilk, evaporated or powdered milk.)
2-4 ounces cheddar cheese, grated (or cheese of your choice)
1 teaspoon texas pete hot pepper sauce, to taste
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, to taste
1/4 teaspoon salt, to taste

DIRECTIONS
1. In saucepan, combine tomato soup, water and milk.
2. Stir until reasonably blended.
3. Add grated cheese, hot pepper sauce, crushed red pepper and black pepper.
4. Heat over medium heat, stirring often.
5. Continue heating until cheese has melted into soup.
6. Add salt, stir well.
7. Pour into bowls or cups, and serve with crackers.

yum, yum, yum!

photo by missy and the universe

hotel monaco in salt lake city

Obviously, with our travel schedule, I stay in hotels a lot.  A LOT. 

I love hotels.  My mom has a job that allows her to stay at some of the nicest hotels in the United States, and when I was a teenager I would tag along.  She pointed out to me the differences between good hotels and great hotels.  She told me all about the amenities that were important to her, and I started to figure out those that were important to me. 

I prefer boutique hotels to the larger chains.  There are drawbacks sometimes to the boutiques, but I find the pros almost always outweigh the cons.  I can usually determine if I like a hotel in the first few minutes (it's like dating!). 

Last week we were in Salt Lake City again shooting one of The Gorilla's fabulous new shows.  In the past several months, I have developed quite a love for Salt Lake.  The beauty, the people, and especially the Library.  It's a great place to spend a few days. 

This time around we stayed at the stylish Hotel Monaco in downtown Salt Lake City.  When my cab pulled up, a bell boy greeted me and not less than three people welcomed me to the hotel before I made it to the check-in counter thirty feet away from where I stepped out of the cab. 

The lobby was small and cozy, with a fire and free cocktails every day at 5pm.  There were plush couches and computers that could function as either Macs or PCs.  I loved that. 

The building was obviously old - the hotel must have been a renovation - so the elevators were small and there were imperfections in the walls.  As far as I'm concerned, this added to the charm. 

The guest rooms were boldly decorated and the beds were comfy.  Free wireless internet, which is always, always a bonus for me.  The televisions were old, which was surprising because that's such an inexpensive way to perk up an older room. 

Small touches like this make the difference to me:

A "Guilty-Pleasure Bar" that not only held good snacks (a bonus for late-night or when it's snowing!) but also things you might have left at home: a toothbrush, a razor, etc.  Turns out I left my toothbrush at home, but it wasn't a problem.  I know most hotels have these at the front desk, but how nice to have it already in the room!  (albeit, for sale and not a freebie).

Extra cotton balls and Q-tips!  This is such a little thing, but it drives me crazy when hotels have a little package of 2 cotton balls in the bathroom.  I use more than two cotton balls to take off my eye makeup alone!  I realize this means that I should probably bring my own, but clearly if I'm forgetting my toothbrush, I'm not packing the cotton balls.  It's these kind of things that make me come back to a hotel.  Seriously. 

And these touches made me smile:

The cute organic-looking tie on the extra toilet paper.

Leopard robes for the guest use and fuzzy socks for sale.  Darling!

The restaurant at the bottom of the hotel was called Bambara and we had a lovely dinner there one night.  The food and service were both great.  This was especially beneficial in Salt Lake City, because it was snowing for most of our trip and we didn't want to leave the hotel in the evenings. 

When we return to Utah, I hope we stay at the Hotel Monaco.  It was walking distance to any place I wanted to be downtown, and the style and service were top-notch.  I recommend!