meet the ladies

you'll remember Chick-a-Dee perhaps.

here she is with her two newest roomates "Miss Cavendish" aka "Candy" and "Miss Rafferty" aka "Taffy". (thank you mr. nash.)

they were two scrubby rescues we took in at the end of the summer. the transition was a little bumpy at the beginning, but quickly smoothed out and now they all get along swimmingly. (and looking quite lovely if I do way so myself.)

and we are back in business!

habit(s)

i am looking forward to renewing old habits in october:

more writing; more reading; more sewing (halloween is just around the corner!);

and more picture taking.











thrilled to be able to share the latter over at habit with some good friends.

come visit.

happy {strong and smart}

K wrote a letter to her teacher last week that went as follows:

Dear Mrs. F,
I would like to be in the student consle because I would be strong and smart. I would make sure that no one was being mean. I would take notes on anything importent. I would try my best.
Your Student,
K

her teacher saved it for me and presented it to me on my return this week. it made my heart swell. my goal is always to try and inspire my girls to be strong and smart. and to know that their best is all that is needed, whatever the final results.

on this, my 42 birthday, i am inspired by my youngest daughter. i have resigned from my position with the school district where a change in leadership has greatly minimized the effectiveness of the program we established three years ago. i am strong. and smart. and this is no longer a good fit for me. i tried my best. i am lucky that we have the means (and i have the support) to make this difficult choice.



my partner-in-asphalt-crime and i have plans. but we are in no rush. i am looking forward to a reduced juggling act between my homelife / my artworldlife / and my schoolgreeninglife.

i am happy. {and the girlies - and d - are too.}

berlin random

a memorable {quick} trip. always good to come home.




paintings I'd never met in person


bread. and cheese. and bread.






awesome public playgrounds








cookie of the week

(not really. but a gingerbread octoberfest treat brought home for the girlies. I'll be baking again next week.)

Großer Tiergarten

i could have spent all day here. a huge park covering the centre of Berlin. history's story rich here too.







Landscape and Memory would have been another good book to have brought along. next trip.

(and berlin's school yards reflect this aesthetic so well.)


*****

I am on my way home sweet home! (I can't wait to see my peeps!)

Berlin

this city has impressed me (in 48 hrs!) in ways i did not imagine.

i walked for 4 hours today. just meandering through the heart of the city. following, for a while, where the wall used to be. visiting landmarks i had heard of but never visualized. seeking out a story. discovering a history lesson.

my hotel is deep in east berlin. each taxi driver keeps telling me this.

you can feel something in the air here. it is a city with multiple histories layered onto each other. there is this push pull between wanting to forget and needing to remember. and such resonance with crisis happening now, in other parts of the world.

(i keep wishing i had my copy of the past is a foreign country with me.)















"Two thousand years ago the proudest boast was civis Romanus sum ["I am a Roman citizen"]. Today, in the world of freedom, the proudest boast is "Ich bin ein Berliner!"... All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin, and, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words "Ich bin ein Berliner!""
- JFK, 1963

*****

I tried out this app as my guide today - and was very pleased with the results. I had a paper map to tell me which direction to head in, but this provided some background on all the stops I made. (without being connected to the internet!)

a day {and a night} at the museum

today was full, with press preview this morning, tour and reception this afternoon, and opening and another reception this evening.

the exhibition is gorgeous. the designer included many quirky details that were quite meaningful. the striped wall treatment was developed by analysis of Kitaj's palette from the paintings in the show - and the photos of the yellow studio exterior and interior were collaged onto the walls and incorporated into architectural elements of the museum.

the opening event was beautiful. a large crowd - and much enthusiasm. i am sorry i didn't get any pictures.

i love how familiar it feels seeing these pictures up on the walls.

*****

tomorrow is a bit quieter - and i hope to take in a little site-seeing. berlin is different than the other european cities i am familiar with (london, paris, venice...) it's architecture is so new. it's more recent history evident in that. and it feels a lot like los angeles to me. a sense of space and sprawl. i wish i had more time to explore (and d and the girls to do it with me!).

guten morgen sonnenschein

I woke up this a.m. in Berlin. I am here for a very special exhibition. I'm not good at being away from my family - but I am excited to walk the galleries and see the realization of many years work.

this trip is a whirlwind one. only 2 days here! but i will return in October for a symposium and some time to enjoy this city. (which from the quick peek I've had looks amazing.)

::11::

52 cookies :: week 35 :: peanut butter cup cookies

hello 180! i actually ended up really liking last week's cookie. it was a perfect mid-morning treat. oh well. the kids didn't get there. so i asked them what i should make next. they pointed to the dark chocolate peanut butter cups from trader joe's. we'd been here before. but these are a little different.

by the way: i cut the recipe in half as 5 dozen just seemed like an overwhelming number of unhealthy cookies. and i only made half of the half with peanut butter cups. the other half are plain old peanut butter cookies. and finally - i substituted whole wheat flour, which made me feel a little less guilty and gave them a nice nutty flavour.



Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
via coconut and lime

1 c butter
1 c peanut butter
1 c sugar
1 c brown sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 c of flour
1 1/2 tsp of baking soda
1 package TJ's dark chocolate peanut butter cups

In a large bowl, cream together both sugars, the peanut butter, eggs and butter. Add the flour and baking soda and mix thoroughly. Shape in to one inch balls and drop into an ungreased mini-muffin pan, one to a section. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 minutes. Remove pans from oven and immediately press one miniature into each warm cookie. The candy should be fairly level with the top of the cookie. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes then remove to a wire rack.

Yield: approximately 5 dozen cookies.



K: This cookie is good plain or a peanut butter cup. It is tall with a peanut butter cup, and it is flat without. This might be in "my top 5 favourites"!!!!!!!!!!!!

E: Yum! These cookies are amazing! 200% flavor put into a cookie. Mmmmmm,mmmmm,mmmm!

D: Age old classic. It is what it is. Also, cookie sans peanut butter Cup is a nice milk and cookie dunker.

right now

we are getting used to

early wake-up calls
ice skating
tweens and social media
an almost 11 year old
new friendships
old friendships rekindled
summer temps remaining into fall
the idea of traveling alone again
weekend homework

longest short week

quick for me. apparently long for others.

hooray for fridays :)

52 cookies :: week 34 :: healthy peanut butter banana oatmeal cookies

this past week just sped by. the long weekend filled itself with chores around the house - and lots of time in the pool. and now its Friday again. not sure how that happened.

i decided to veer off in another unexplored direction. our chewy granola bars have been one of my favourites - and while I have passed them off as "healthy", they really aren't. just a bit healthier, perhaps. the recipe below included healthy in its title - and no dairy, eggs of sugar in its ingredient list. oh, and its vegan (if vegan chocolate chips are employed). this usually sends off multiple red flags for me. i love butter. and sugar. and the magic they create together. but i thought we would give this a go. i am curious to see the results...



Healthy Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Cookies
via lux hippie

3 ripe bananas, mashed
1 tbsp vanilla
1 c natural chunky peanut butter
4 tbsp maple syrup
2 c rolled oats
1/2 c whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt (note: if you are using salted peanut butter, you may not need any salt, do a taste test with the batter)
1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In a large bowl, mix bananas, vanilla, peanut butter and maple syrup into a creamy consistency with a hand mixer.

In another bowl, combine oats, flour, baking powder and salt

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until they are well combined, the batter should be slightly sticky. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Place heaping tablespoon-sized balls of the batter onto a silpat lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.

Makes around 2 dozen cookies

K: those cookies aren't so nice. they taste like blah. those cookies are un-delightful.

E: blech! i dont like these cookies one bit. these cookies do not appeal to me at all. :P

D: So you say, here is a healthy alternative cookie. So I say, tastes more like a cotton ball rolled in wood chips. Now, I gotta say that it really wasn't that bad at all. Just not what one would expect from a cookie. Unless of course there are some über mom hippie folk that have detoxed their palette from the white stuff. Well I'm riding that white pony, and this plop could really use a taste of the crystallized cooking product or something that's sooo bad that it makes it taste good. It's missing its sweet/crunchy chromosome. (Charlatan that I am, I am still mowing them down)

::

they say rain is on the way. i am hopeful for a break from the heat.