Now that's a pancake.

My boyfriend and I have developed a bit of a weekend tradition - pancakes. Somehow neither of us ever get tired of them. Our morning tends to consist of him going for a long walk while I sleep in late and get up just time to time to whip up something delicious for when he comes home. This weekend I decided to mix it up a bit - and I fell in love! Start with a multi-grain pancake....once you plop the batter into the pan, press raspberries and chopped fresh rosemary into your gewy pile of deliciousness. When you flip the pancake, the herbs and berries will burn a bit, but that's half of the charm. Serve it with a dollup of ricotta cheese and drizzle it with real maple. ....now that's what a Sunday morning should taste (and smell!) like.

 

 

My Ruby Begonia

My blog has sat empty for over a month now. On March 9 of this year at 1:45pm, my grandmother Mary Ruby slipped away. I said to myself that my next entry would be about her, that I would take a break from loving all other things and spotlight that wonderful woman. The problem is that I had no place to start and no way to direct all of the amazing thoughts and feelings I have about her. I have literally looked at this draft of a blog called "My Ruby Begonia" everyday since I came home from Louisiana.

I finally realized this morning that there was nothing I could type that could come close to encapsulating her. Honestly that was more of a release of pressure then a disappointment.

At 83 years old, she lead a more full life then I could only hope to experience; even though she never left her parish until two years ago. She became a young wife and instant mother to two boys that my grandfather Tate's first wife had widowed. She went on to have 12 children of her own: seven boys, five girls. My mother is the second daughter - somewhere around the half way point of the children. Always with a baby on her hip and one growing in her belly, she still managed to run the house and the farm. One of my earliest memories is watching Mawmaw walk from the barn with a chicken in each hand and a cigarette hanging out of her mouth.

What amazes me most were her endless supplies of love, calmness and ingenuity. There was not a single person to walk through that door who didn't feel her love and her warmth. It didn't matter if you were one of her 76 descendants, an in law, a neighbor or just a friend of a friend who knew somebody who was related to an in law. Until the moment she died, that house was bustling with running children, screaming adults (only because you have to be loud to be heard), blaring TVs and barking dogs. When we asked her if she wanted us to close her door for some quiet she'd just smile and say "no sha". She would be more disturbed by the quiet, then by noise. Although my aunts and uncles may tell a different story, my memories of my little Mawmaw Ruby were always of a quiet woman. She may not have had many words, but when she did - it was worth listening, and not just because of the bent index finger waving at your face. That gesture alone meant a number of things - usually that she was trying to conjure your name without calling you by your mom's name, or she's about to forget what she had to say. Either way, it was in your best interest to listen. My favorite, which was not a laughing matter at the time, was when she was really angry, you would always start to hear "Hail Mary, full of grace!!!" come from her little lips. If she made it all the way through the prayer, you knew you were in big trouble.

Ruby was a very passionate woman - not only for her family but for all living things. She had a knack for growing anything, and I do mean anything. It was her love of flowers that she passed onto my mother and then onto me. It was flowers that first gave me a real outlet for creativity, my first job, my own business, and caught the eye of the one who would help me along on my career. If you asked her, she wouldn't consider herself an artistic woman, but she was creative. It really was amazing to see the things she could do with old rags, used paper plates or clothes pins. All of us Tates seem to have inherited a bit of that ingenuity.

Although it brings me to tears to think that she never lived to see me in a wedding gown or to hold my children, I am so grateful for every moment of the last 25 years with her. She has truly influenced every avenue of my life and who I am more then she could have ever known. I miss her constantly but am so thankful to know that her little body is finally at rest.

 

It's official - spring is here

We took a trip to the Huntington Gardens in Pasadena yesterday to catch the glory of the blooming branches. I wish that we had made it there about two weeks earlier to catch the Japanese magnolia in their prime. I think we say that every year, and still end up right at the same point. Anyway, when these little bare branches show their colors it always pulls me out of whatever funk I may have been experiencing. They're telling me that a new season it on it's way - just wait and see. The 80* sunny weather yesterday, didn't hurt either

I think what I love about this tree so much is how similar they look to the waterlily, my all time favorite. It's kinda odd and magical - like, what are you doing in that tree little waterlily? Don't you know you're not supposed to be up there?

 

Once we arrived home, Sean went off to work; I stopped for some fresh sweet peas and pulled out his mom's recipes. I'll tell you the way to your boyfriend's heart is through his childhood favorite cookies. Mmmmmm.....

 

That's my boy!

I love that while I was reading this blog:
coco + kelly
my boyfriend saw this photo and said:

"That Dior!! He's such a smarty pants."

I couldn't agree more. Now it's off to a day at the Huntington to catch the last glimpse of the Japenese Magnolia in bloom. Stay tuned...

Mmmmmmmm

Thanks to my favorite little pizza joint in Silverlake, (www.tomatopiepizzajoint.com), I've recently come across this delicousness:



Seriously. My newest obsession - it's a yummy and refreshing soda that's just lightly sweet. It's like a spa's cumcumber water, but on steriods. I suspect it will be amazing with vodka as well, but have yet to try.

I've done some research and tracked down this great little store where one can find all kinds of odd sodas:

Soda Pop Stop, Inc.
5702 York Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90042
www.sodapopstop.com

Virginal blogger

Okay! ...here we go.

I have been staring at my blog account for months now. Becoming a follower of my favorite other blogs and collecting little inspirations; I just didn't know where to start. Well, I guess the solution is just to start. I'm working on comandering one of my honey photographer's extra cameras to document my inspirations and life along the way.

So what will this blog become? I imagine it will be a virtual collage much like the ones that I tack to my office walls and spread across my living room floor: a place to share things that make me cock my head to the side like a puppy dog.

Let the blogging begin!