This morning I woke up to rain and went outside to drag in all my patio cushions, and the air smelled salty, like the sea, and I thought, “I really don’t want to be spending my time doing this. I want to be writing, baking, exercising, packing for our upcoming move…” But the sea air softly landed on my cheeks, and I smiled as I had a fleeting childhood memory of being with my grandparents in San Diego, with their…
This morning I woke up to the scent of baking bread and literally floated down the stairs on a cloud of cinnamon. My house guest, Alma Luce is a stress-baker, meaning this morning, she made three loaves of braided cinnamon-sugar challah bread, black beans and rice and molasses cookies. Alma Luce is a blue-eyed eighteen-year-old girl who is 6-feet tall with waist-length blonde hair that is currently dyed red and a smattering of new piercings and tattoos, all appearing in…
Last summer I turned 50 and took my teenagers and my niece on my dream trip to Europe. So far, I have blogged about Venice, the Orient Express, and our road trip from Paris to Chateau Des Milandes in the Dordogne Region. At the end of our trip, we drove to Burgundy for two glorious days to see the land that produces my favorite wine. Ahhh Burgundy, how I love thee–it’s light taste, gorgeous colors, and magical qualities. I visited…
I woke up feeling blue. I stumbled through my usual routine: grateful list, brush teeth, comb hair, put on mascara, fold laundry from last night and start the next load, toddle downstairs for a cappuccino, water my flowers… As I was watering, I listened to the birds chirping and watched the fog laying heavy over my yard like a thick gray blanket. I love fog, I have always loved fog. It seems to mystical to me, like something magical might…
So my new mystery novel comes out on Saturday on Amazon and I could not be more thrilled! I say this because I’m also feeling quite trepidatious about it, and I just read a very interesting study that you can reduce anxiety by embracing it as excitement. This sounds a little too simple to be effective, but many studies have been done that show that people who replace the words “I am so nervous” with “I’m so excited” can actually…
Right now, tonight, on this moonlit night, I am dreaming of trains, and specifically the luxury train to end all trains: the Orient Express. I took my teens last summer and we aspired to create our own Golden Age of Travel…
This is my Workout Wear.
I just finished reading Sue Monk Kidd’s new novel, The Book of Longings, and there were so many parts that struck me and inspired me. Her writing is beautiful and vivid, I want to swim in it. The way she writes enters my dreams and I carry her book with me to read in every spare moment. It’s the kind of book you want to slow down because you don’t really want it to end. Also, because the book is…
My sister, Marlise and I love getting the Robin Report every day. What is the Robin Report? A few weeks ago, my other sister, Maria, called us, breathless with excitement. “A Robin is building a nest on the wreath on my front door!” “Really? On your front door?” “YES!” And she texted us photos. Now, normally, Maria’s front door would have been too busy for a nest, opening and shutting nonstop with her children and grandchildren and deliveries, but right…