The Privilege of Helping My name is Emily and I am a chronic helper. Anyone who has been the recipient of my gestures can attest – I am well intentioned, but I am an eager, enthusiastic helper who though genuine, can run the risk of over-helping. Back in grade school, it was a minor holiday […]
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The Kind of Eyes My son stopped me the other day and asked me why my eyes didn’t look happy. It was a moment where I was caught in the middle of kid homework, work email, neighbor kids in the backyard fighting over the football, and no ideas of what to make for dinner. My […]
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I purposely don’t spend much time scouring the internet for recipes. I feel like they hinder my creativity by planting preconceived ideas in my head. That’s kind of the way I feel about toys for my kids – we don’t have many because I’d prefer that they figure out how to play with something by […]
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The Wallpaper Factor I saw an article recently about a woman who wore a hidden camera to show how many times she received harassment from men in a day. The article brought back a memory of some advice I received from an elderly woman not too long ago. Before I go any further, let me […]
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I don’t regard myself as an entertainer. I lack the skill or the energy to plan parties with thematic decor, parchment wrapped mini sandwiches, and coordinating signs on chalk boards. In fact, I get very overwhelmed when I see blog posts or magazine articles telling me how easy it is to create the perfect summer […]
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From This Mom To Her Village: Mother’s Day feels like a very linear holiday for a role that is so dynamic. I celebrate my mom, my kids celebrate me, and so on. We go to brunch and plant flowers in a domino effect of celebration and admiration for our respective mothers and mothers’ mothers. To […]
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And she learned to make pie and lived happily ever after. The end. That’s is exactly how I expected this blog to go. It was going to be about my year of pie, how I learned to make it and offer tips and tricks for others aspiring to become competent pie makers. What I didn’t […]
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These cookies are hearty and spicy and make you think of gingerbread houses and small German villages. I’m obsessed with them and have added them to the mandatory rotation of family Christmas cookies. Like all recipes, I followed Eva’s notes and then made some of my own adjustments like adding some salt and vanilla and […]
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My husband and I had our chicken epiphany about 5 or 6 years ago. The epiphany was the moment we tasted chicken that had been raised humanely, free range and was as local as we could get. The eggs were a richer color and there was just no comparison to the taste of the meat. […]
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I’m on lock-down. A one year lock-down from initiating any change that adversely affects our family financially. This lock-down, imposed by my husband, feels a bit like being grounded from hanging out with my friends. I feel restrained and am trying my best to infuse some interest and energy into my life within the boundaries […]
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Peaches and dreams. That about sums up my experience making this pie. What was intended to be a simple summer pie ended up being a catalyst for summoning some of the best summer memories. As I was preparing my peaches, my mind wandered to the summer I spent working at a local road side fruit […]
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I’m being forced to get a manicure. Nail care is not my forte – it never has been. Other than trimming my nails on a regular basis, I rarely, if ever, think about them. My friend has embarked on a personal mission to drag me to a nail salon by espousing promises of wine and […]
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