Sometimes I think to myself, "Good God, woman. Don't you have other, more pressing and practical things to do??" And the answer is yes, I do. However, I've never claimed to be practical and when my child is waiting with bated breath for this now annual tradition, I rise up and deliver. Admittedly, I did scale back quite a bit from my original "vision". I wanted to add garlands and branches and berries -- basically, a massive wonderland-on-a-wall. It started with curiosity: what would ... Read more
Monday Outfit: The Gilded Recital Dress
Good morning! We had a much needed mellow break last week - a few play dates, an utterly stress-free Thanksgiving (This movie was unexpectedly moving and the food at Din Tai Fung was excellent. So excellent that the place was packed on T-day). I participated in a fun author event at Queen Anne Book Company, and K rocked her piano/voice recital. Oh yes. Look at her, owning that gold dress. Work it, girl. Since I had quite a few projects in progress (one of which is the annual Advent ... Read more
Happy Thanksgiving
Just a little note to wish you and all your loved ones a spectacular Thanksgiving! We'll have our usual unconventional movie + Chinese food Thanksgiving of ultra low stress. Since I won't need to slave over the stove, I'll be using the extra time to sew a recital dress for K, work on the annual Advent calendar (see previous ones here and here and here) and finish up the next Furoku (it might be a day or two late...). I have so many thanks to give. Too many, really, and I think I'll leave it ... Read more
Happy Friday + Randomness
You know, it's been a pretty tough couple of months for me. I have a built-in Pollyanna functionality, so I do find the silver lining in most situations, but these last two months nearly did me in. With illnesses and financial/career issues and things falling apart one after another, October and November may very well rank up there in the top 2 worst months of 2015. Two days ago, as I administered Benadryl to alleviate the humongous hives that mysteriously appeared all over K's body (and her ... Read more
Things That Make You Go Calmmmmm
It's not even Thanksgiving yet and I'm already beset by the holiday fatigue. Retailers are streaming jolly tunes about Santa and snow everywhere I turn, and I find myself scouring online sources for gift ideas and feeling overwhelmed by the choices. Luckily, I've been reading all of your comments from the giveaway to amp up my mindfulness cultivation toolbox. Knitting kept cropping up so I took up my needles for the first time in years even though I'm a self-proclaimed non-knitter. It's ... Read more