merry merry!

*that was just the break I needed. xo  we're home from our island - and I'm busy sorting through all the photos of the past four weeks and uploading posts gathered while we were away.  I realize that makes the timeline on these kind of quirky, but I like keeping it chronological.  for me - this blog is a journal of our days, my thoughts, and various other bits that are important to me to document. 


this was only our 2nd christmas with just the 4 of us waking up together christmas morning. (and only my 3rd without my mom.) we switched up our holidays this year to take advantage of the girls' later break and to give them the opportunity to enjoy a california christmas. (we will head up to the cottage on boxing day.)



we spent christmas eve having a traditional mexican feast - ceviche, tamales, and all sort of goodies prepared with love by one of the best cooks I know. then home to open the traditional gift of christmas pjs (horse and unicorn onesies!), compose a quick note to accompany santa's snack, and off to bed.

christmas morning d and i prepared a big breakfast - like that of my childhood (my dad loved to cook breakfast christmas morning) with eggs, bacon, panattone and lots of coffee.

and while I hesitated to cook a formal christmas meal, knowing we were leaving town the next day, I was so very glad I did. I managed to order a free-range young turkey which we had along with riced potatoes with gravy, roasted root vegetables, a black and wild rice with butternut squash and pomegranate salad (so good) and my favorite cranberry recipe and with a rustic pear tart with whipping cream for dessert. the girls set the table with our china and silver (which I promised myself we will use more in 2015), tall beeswax tapers in silver candlesticks, a floral arrangement, and the sweetest christmas crackers (these, that I'd found months back locally). it was beautiful.



all in all, it was a quiet day. mainly spent reviewing the goodies brought by santa - then going for a walk. the big news - two quarter-leases. a horse and a pony. it is a great big baby step and we are all very excited. (more on the logistics of this - and photos - soon!)

oh! and we closed the day with e conducting us in a family horn ensemble. (horns courtesy of the aforementioned christmas crackers!)

my wish for 2015, more days like this. we don't need much more. xo

signing off here until the new year. (though you'll find me checking in on instagram.)

Merry Christmas and all our love for 2015!
xo xo xo xo

hanukah (7&8)

the seventh night was loud and crazy and wonderful. i am so lucky to have married into this big loud crazy wonderful family.




the eighth was quiet and peaceful and wonderful. our little family. so much love.



light. xo

weekend to do

*

something they want (check)
something they need (check)
something to wear (check)
and something to read (check)

seems our work is done. looking forward to a weekend full of friends and celebrations.
and of course to the week ahead!

happy holidays! xo



*three generations and 21 glickmans in all celebrating the fourth night of Hanukkah

hanukkah!

basking in the light and love
happy first night xo

weekend to do

*

celebrate 1!
celebrate 40!
violin recital
finish holiday cards!
review gift list
post packages to mid-west
bake cookies
order turkey

around the house
dust, sweep and mop shed
plant irises
weed











*this is what your holiday family portrait looks like when you ask the teenager to take it ;)

my neighbor dede brought me this treasure last week. she knows my soft-spot for all things community building. how fun it would be to revive this - but i fear not very practical. perhaps as a e-blast?

this is just a taste. it is full of reports from the different neighborhood committees, including the "tender-agers" (1-5), teenagers, game club and so on. two pages are dedicated to all the neighborhood birthdays (listing by name) in july, august, and september. there are a couple of profiles on neighbors "The People Among Us" and a "Party Line" column that seems to be keeping up with the "gossip" of the 'hood:

Pat Humber went to Hawaii after two years of saving and planning. I understand it was well worth the effort. The Sullivans and Laskers "spent" some time in Las Vegas the early part of summer...


its is also a great document of the times. 1960 in the SFV. Stay-at-home moms. Busy fathers. Teens gathering at swimming pools and planning trips to Zuma and Pacific Ocean Park:

...the whole bunch of us went to P.O.P. (Pacific Ocean Park. It was a real blast and I really hope we plan another outing to P.O.P. real soon. There were just millions - well, maybe not millions - but there were a whole bunch of rides and every one of them was kicks. We all dreaded going home..."

love the ads.  all small, local.  sigh.

would love to find more of these, and start an archive at the school.

mon chop

as this photo attests, i chopped my hair off a week ago. (or rather, my dear and trusted friend alice chopped it off a week ago!) reactions have been many and varied. what made me do it? had i been thinking about it for a long time, or was it done on impulse? did I mean to do it? aren't I worried about the cold weather?

i had been thinking about it for a long time - and over the summer went from middle of my back to a short(ish) bob. (well it felt short at the time, but not compared to now!) i had run it by the girls and d to concerned looks and statements such as "but you'll look like a boy." to be honest, the girls trepidations played a part in the carry-through. people! it is just hair! well, actually, a woman's hair isn't really just hair. it is mired in social conventions going back to ancient times. i'm not big on social conventions. especially that are restrictive.

so i cut it off.

as for the reactions, well, most have been extremely positive. a few have been skeptical. and a couple of 7 year old girls in my running club were very confused ("did you overcut your hair?" has been my favorite question. and then the look when i told her "no, i did it on purpose!")

our girls are inundated at every waking moment with ideals of feminine beauty that shape their thoughts, preferences, and feelings about themselves. i feel very strongly, as their mom, that i need to be a loud voice in that messaging. their worth is not in their outward appearance, and it certainly isn't in their hairstyle. i've reminded them that some of their heroes had/have short hair. (emma watson on short hair) that being beautiful really does come from within. being comfortable with who you are and what you look like makes you glow. and that personal style, and the confidence that comes with it, can turn heads as well. that they are strong, and they are smart, and they can do anything. and of course, it is only hair. and it grows.

my biggest fear, not looking like a boy, but rather looking too old. honestly, in hindsight, i think the long hair was dragging me down. not too say i won't grow it long again. the idea of white haired old lady - a la beatrice wood with her hair up in a bun - has always appealed to me :)

but, i gotta say, i love it. it has more versatility than i expected. (cute bobby pins can dress it up, or a little product for an 80s, punkier version.) it is super easy. no more helmet head after riding! it is a perfect foil to the wintery rainy weather (no more big hair!). it shows off my color (and white!) in a way i'm happier with. (surprising amount of people have asked if i colored it as well - which i didn't.) it feels good. and a little bold, which feels good as well.


who inspired me: garance dore.

where it happened: lucas salon, echo park

favorite short hair product: night.rider

......

not too much I can say that hasn't been said before. this evening of good food, good friends and good fun unites our community and allows us the opportunity to share our love for mid-century modern and our palmer & krises homes. and I love learning new things about my neighbors! (we have not one, but two emmy winners in the 'hood!)

after 8 years, the kids are bigger - but there are new littles that make me smile. out of the four hosts, three were "first-timers" and then there was us, "old-timers". the homes were all amazing. (this year I believe was the first where all homes were the same floor-plan, save one (that has the BEST new owners) rebuilt after a fire many years ago.)














I love this event. I love these people. such a great way to ring in the holidays.

once and again...

and off we go! (we are the third door down...)





this year's invite includes drawings by d, and design by dear friend "joe mo".

weekend to do

prepare for our 8th annual progressive dinner
recoup from our 8th annual progressive dinner

old habits

you know what they say...





this is the last month of habit. over the last six years it has been such a gift to visit and peek inside lives of women all over the world. the sparse words and images have always inspired me, as a woman, wife, mom, and photographer. it has been an honor to be part of this community, a guest there over the years, and i am thrilled to be participating in this, the final month.

hope you can stop by. xo

weekend to do

around the house
holiday decorations
backyard set-up

make advent calendar
calendar holiday activities (school, ranch, violin, family...)
science fair project supplies
make teeth cleaning appt for moxie :)

hope you had a lovely thanksgiving! ours was full of laughter and good conversation with our good friends and neighbours. i love the traditions we have created - and watching these kids grow up together. (5 years ago) xo

Happy Thanksgiving!

Gavin: sweetest turkey ever.

Field Trip :: Japanese American National Museum

we took advantage of an appointment downtown to meet up with some friends and visit the Hello! Exploring the Supercute World of Hello Kitty exhibition at the Japanese American National Museum











we also took in the permanent collection, with its images, model of Manzanar and an actual Heart Mountain concentration camp barrack. with the recent news events i found it especially moving. and another jumping off point for talking to the kids about racism and privilege.

thoughts i hope we will carry forward as we think about all that we are thankful for.

what not to plant & when

we are ramping up to add some low-voltage lighting and plants to our front yard. unfortunately we are a few years ahead of the curve, having turned off our sprinklers and killed our lawn back in 2007 (or earlier?). i can't remember. if you live in los angeles - the dwp has just increased the rebate offered to remove your turf. i'm helping an older neighbor get this done, and its exciting to see so many homes on our street taking advantage of this opportunity.


when we bought the house, it looked like this:



then we redid the driveway, built new fences, painted, let the hedge grow,... and let some years slip by to come to this:



(love the contrast from film to digital - also captured here!)

a good decade in and we are rethinking some spots. to be honest, i hand watered for the first half dozen summers, then settled on complete neglect. i realize it isn't everyone's cup of tea - but with a good layer of mulch in place i like the natural ramble of it all. not to mention all the wonderful insects and wildlife it attracts. and most of all it is low maintenance! (when we turned off the sprinklers, we also turned off the gardener who came with our home. and amazing man - but just wasn't an expense we thought a priority at the time. i still see him tending to the amazing back garden of our neighbor june. he is one of the last in los angeles.

my friend john picked up some plants for me at matilija nursery this week. (located in moorpark, it is a favorite along with theodore payne in sun valley and the grow native nursery at the va in westwood.) now is the best time of the year to plant here. the rains (we hope!) are on their way and the days are are getting cooler.

there are so many great native plants to chose from. and great books on the subject. we chose a selection that i know will do will in our yard - having them in place already - including California fuchsia and manzanita varieties.

i think if you are looking at drought tolerant, the more important consideration is what not to plant.

here is a great resource of plant that are pests in southern california. (i also love that it offers alternatives.)

the ones i see planted most often in the sfv the ubiquitous fountain and pampas grasses and broom varieties. (broom has invade the entire west coast - from canada down to mexico. it is so sad to see how it is wiped-out natives along the way. we actually spend a good amount of time every summer working to eradicate it from galiano, but it often feels like a lost cause.)

naively, we planted a peruvian pepper in our front yard soon after we moved in. it was early in my california-native education and sold under the deceptive name "california pepper". if we had to do it again, we would plant a native california sycamore in its place. (the sycamore is a high allergen tree - but still remains a favorite of mine.)

off to get those plants in the ground!


favorite books for the socal gardener (a mix of the inspirational and the practical)
Landscape for Living
California Native Plants for the Garden
Designing California Native Gardens
Gardens are for People
The California Native Landscape
The Sunset Western Garden Book
Gardens are for Living

weekend to do (and into the holiday week!)

prep old statements for shredding
assess holiday lights and find replacement bulbs
progressive dinner invitations
menu plan
pastry!

around the house
fix-it inventory
fridge clean-out (prepare for leftovers;) )


good to be home xo

new york, new york

lots and lots of walking. satisfying work completed. productive meetings. visits with california friends who were conveniently in NY at the same time. time to visit two favorite institutions.

and two exhibitions that were perfection:

Henri Matisse: the cut-outs (moma)
madame cezanne (met)



***
i stayed at the warwick. i think my favorite place to stay. the location is great for access to the park (which i love) as well as the trains and moma is across the street! (and work is just around the corner.) coupled with its size and history. perfect.

the trifecta

and then on sunday night, part III of e's 13th birthday gift (3 favorite bands at 3 L.A. venues in 3 months) came to a close.



it ended big. 5 SOS were awesome. the forum is a great venue. and the two 13 olds by my side danced and screamed and danced the night away. (and there were covers of Green Day and The Romantics that I could sing along to too!)

no regrets. xo

part I here
part II was the janoskians at the wiltern. though my favorite L.A. venue, she wasn't accompanied by her mom to this one - one of the perks of having cool older cousins!

horsin' around

I'm working in NY all week - but had to pop in and post these photos from the weekend's visit to Pierce College and The Parade of Breeds...














this has become an annual event for us. (this memory from our first visit still makes me smile!)

aside from viewing over 40 breeds, there were crafts for the girls, and great demos: dressage, barrel racing, sidesaddle and jumping. we are very lucky to have this program, and its amazing equestrian center within walking distance of our home!

can't wait 'til next year!