taking a peek....

My weekend consisted of alot of reading, talking, watching

and listening to people in various places:

At the assisted living I had a nice conversation

with my friend, Bob - who is trying to get a yoga

class going for all of the seniors.

Talking to my friend, Homa who works at the front desk

of assisted living about the joys and heartbreaks

of working with and giving your heart to the seniors.

Listened to a very interesting man at my fave cafe

talking about all the things he has done in his life,

and it was quite the colorful one to say the least.

He has sat in the same spot (more or less) at this cafe

for the past 19 years and knows EVERYONE that walks by.

It's a cool place that alot of writers, directors,

producers and actors hang out at.  His bantering

with everyone was wonderful to watch and listen to.

It was also refreshing to see a tv/movie actress out

to lunch with her young daughter and listening to her

daughter talking to the same man about what she was reading.

We were all sitting inside the cafe that has a cool bookstore,

and her and her mom had bought some books and gifts there.

  She was a very articulate young lady (probably around 12.) 

At another little cafe - a new french one a few miles from

my home, I was sitting having a crepe and cappuccino yesterday

and there were three men with a four year old little girl.

All of a sudden the little girl wanted to dance to the french

music - so her dad brought her to the front of the cafe and got on his knees and twirled her around until the song was over.  Very sweet and reminded me of my dad.  She then got a cute teapot and tea cups (that were there for kids to play with) and had a little tea party with the men - so adorable!

All in all, a nice weekend with a mix of work, relaxing and taking a peek into other peoples lives whether it be in person or in the wonderful world of books!

Have a beautiful day, everyone!

xxoo




UPDATE: My Shabby Apple Giveaway winner is Christy!(please send me your details). Congrats Christy and thank you to everyone who entered!  

(photo via here)

love.this.quote...

"A truly good book teaches me better than to read it. 

I must soon lay it down, and commence living on its hint. 

What I began by reading, I must finish by acting."

xxoo

(photo via here)

lucky girl....

Imagine my surprise a few weeks ago when I received a sweet email from Lynn at Paris Hotel Boutique Journal informing me that I was the winner in the book giveaway she was having! I have been reading Lynn's blog for at least 3 years now, I found her when I was looking for a silver creamer from a historic San Francisco hotel and I have been hooked on her blog ever since!

           

The book is called Hers: Design with a Feminine Touch by Jacqueline DeMontravel, the editorial director of Romantic Homes, Victorian Homes and Cottage & Bungalows Magazines.

I received it just a few short days later and it has been by my side ever since.  If there is one thing you don't know about me, I love my coffee table books especially home interiors.  Years ago I worked at Barnes and Noble bookstore and let's just say my paycheck never quite made it out the door, it was spent all on books...haha...

If you get a chance, check out this book - every page is absolutely gorgeous!



Merci, Lynn - what a wonderful gift to start off the new year with! Check out Lynn's blog today - she has some delicious Tiffany mini cakes and other eye candy from Tiffany's too!

Make today the best day ever!

xxoo

(photos via lynn's place)

a fabulous read...

Last week, I won this fabulous read from Simone's blog (thank you so much, Simone!) and it couldn't have come at a better time as I was home with the dreaded cough & cold that just won't go away, so I had ALOT of time on my hands.  This book has been on my wish list for a long time, and I have to say, it is absolutely amazing and such a beautiful book.  If you have ever wanted to change your life and move to France, this is an inspiring story.  It truly made me want to hop on the next plane to France!  If you haven't read this yet, definitely get yourself a copy, it's an awesome book to have on your coffee table. Vicki also has a new book out called French Essence that I can't wait to read! 

Have a great day, be kind to everyone (and that includes yourself!)

xxoo

inspiring people...

I don't even know how to begin to describe how blessed I have been in my life to have had such wonderful, loving and amazing friends. Today I am very honored to tell you a little about my friend Yukiko, who has been one of my very best friends since high school. For the last 30 years or so, we have drifted in and out of each others lives by mere geography but have remained very close in our hearts. Those shared experiences of our younger years - happy, sad, crazy times have cemented the love and respect we had and still have for each other and it's a wonderful feeling when we talk or are able to get together...it's like we haven't even skipped a beat. Yukiko was very blessed to have had two amazing parents who put up with alot of wild energy from their teenage daughter and her crazy friends. We understand now, as we are parents and are grateful to them for how wonderful they were to all of us during those years. We had a lot of fun, and it seemed never a dull moment. Yukiko has lost both her parents, they've been gone for awhile physically, but they live on thru their daughter and her children and all the lives they touched over the years. They wrote a book many years ago, that has just been translated from Japanese to English and it's a wonderfully inspiring love story, that I hope if you ever are able to come across this book, you take the time to enjoy it. I know I definitely will. They also were the Founders of the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society. Their purpose was to nourish and foster the art of writing haiku in English using the traditional guidelines developed by haiku poets in Japan, where haiku originated. I know how proud Yukiko is of her parents and how much love and respect she has for them and the life they led. I, too share the same sentiment!

"Autumn Loneliness: The Letters of Kiyoshi and Kiyoko Tokutomi, July-December, 1967, translated by Tei Scott Matsushita and Patricia J. Machmiller, was published in September. The Tokutomis were the founders of the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society. The book contains 300 letters of those exchanged between Kiyoshi and Kiyoko during a very difficult period in their lives. In 1967 Kiyoshi had just lost his hearing due to medication he was taking for tuberculosis. He traveled to Japan for a long hospital stay to undergo treatment that would attempt to recover his hearing. Kiyoko remained in the U.S. in San Jose’s Japantown with their 10-year-old daughter, Yukiko. The letters reveal their deeply respectful and loving relationship, how they dealt with grief and disappointment—individually and together—and the empathetic and steadfast way they supported each other during difficult times. The reader will gain insight into the character and thinking of the couple who would become leaders in the English haiku world. The 360 page book has a selection of pictures of the Tokutomis in their early years. "

(photo via hardscratch press)

tag, i'm it....

Nicolette of Simply Colette has tagged me with this honor of revealing more of myself to you all.....so i'll give it a try...:)

1. What books are on your favorite shelf?

Maeve Binchy - Night of Rain & Stars, Tara Road, Scarlet Feather, to name a few...Sharon Owens - Tea House on Mulberry Street, A Tavern of Maple Street, The Ballroom on Magnolia Street, are my faves. C.A.Belmond - A Rather Lovely Inheritance & A Rather Curious Engagement. My Nancy Drew collection (that I am starting to read again), and my prized Victoria Moran books - Creating a Charmed Life, Younger by the Day & Living a Charmed Life.

2. What DVD's are on your favorite shelf?

I am a definite romantic comedy girl! No apologizing for that one. I DO NOT watch any sort of scary movie at all, so don't try to get me to. haha... I have so many - but my go to movies to cheer me up are: You've Got Mail, Under the Tuscan Sun, Shall We Dance (reminds me of my dad), The Holiday, Amelie, Serendipity, The Philadelphia Story and White Christmas to name a few. I am also a big fan of old movies and musicals. After I finish this, I am going to watch Holiday with Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn and You Can't Take It With You with Jimmy Stewart (this last one, my daughter just watched in her History of Cinema class and loved it...I haven't watched it in years, so am enjoying a Saturday Matinee with myself).

3. What are your two favorite cookbooks?

I'm not a big cookbook person. I have always clipped recipes out of magazines, or from my sister as she has some really great basic dishes and easy to make food. I have my handy Betty Crocker that I have had for nearly 30 years and a wonderful book called Food for Friends with alot of really cool recipes....(my son and his wife gave this to me a few years ago.) Now, I get alot of recipes online from the Food Network - Giada and The Barefoot Contessa are my faves!

4. Select 1-3 recipes you would cook for guests.

1. Salmon sauteed in a lemon garlic sauce, broccoli, or mushrooms and spinach sauteed and brown rice.

2. Baked Rosemary Chicken

3. Some sort of chocolate dessert - either pudding or souffle. This time of year - Pumpkin Pie, chocolate chip cookies or snickerdoodles!

5. What will we be drinking that's available.

I would have some white and red wines, San Pelligrino, Sparkling Cranberry Juice, Baileys & Coffee and Espresso Martini's or Cosmos....:)

Ok I'll give you 10 more facts about me:

1. I am my happiest when I am in a bookstore that has a coffee shop, my home away from home.

2. My favorite flowers are Daisy's

3. I am not a pack rat at all - but I live with one.

4. My two favorite jobs ever besides my nonprofit were at Barnes & Noble and a Landscaping Nursery.

5. Iused to rock climb, but am very afraid of heights, so I cried alot! haha

6. I have 52 first cousins on my dad's side. He was the youngest boy of 12 kids - 6 boys and 6 girls. On my mom's side, I have 6 cousins. They live all over the country.

7. I like to sing and dance, but no one really wants to hear me or see me, so it's usually when I'm alone.

8.I love to go places by myself....to the movies or out to breakfast, lunch, dinner or shopping...I just enjoy it so much!

9. I am the baby of the family and my sister says that I got away with everything.

10. I do my best thinking in a tub filled with bubbles and candles all around...

I am not going to tag anyone in particular, but I would really like to know more about blog friends that stop by here, so feel free to give it a shot and please let me know! Thanks Nicolette!

(photo via here)

My Favorite Childhood Book..

This was my absolute fave book as a child - I read it everywhere, even in the bathtub and I still have the book and rumpled pages to prove it. I always told my mom that when i grew up, I wanted to be a cowboy and live on a ranch (small problem, since I'm a girl...haha...) anyways, I had all the cowboy gear as a kid - hat, boots, chaps, even the now not politically correct guns and holsters. When I was about 10 years old I decided that I wanted to be called Cowboy Sam - so that year for my birthday on my cake - it said HAPPY BIRTHDAY COWBOY SAM. Well, I never became a cowboy or cowgirl for that matter, I never have lived on a ranch, but I have alot of happy memories of my childhood and this book is one of the best!

what was your favorite childhood book?