dinner on the deck

Evening dinners on the deck in the months before it gets swelteringly hot is the one of the best things we all love in our family. This dinner, inspired by the kebab recipe I shared here, just came together effortlessly. We have gotten so good at pulling this kind of a thing out of nowhere! Our dinner was a relaxed and quiet al fresco garden dinner for mother's day - featuring our mediterranean kebabs, pesto rotini, wild grain rice, roasted red potatoes and of course some of my favorite pecorino cheese. To top it off? My one and only favorite wine, chianti.

Barefoot evenings on the deck like this make summer feel like it is really here - it's easy to completely slip away and forget that there is work and responsibilities and an early rise coming in the morning. I love these lazy nights, where the dinner slowly carries on into the darker twilight hours, and no one needs to know the time or check their phones because everyone is there. Once the sun goes down, the lights lining the deck make everything look so magical. Dinner is usually followed by everyone unhurriedly roaming to the fire pit, where more wine is drunk and s'mores are made...

These kinds of moments make me so excited to have my own dinners and gatherings...with lots of wines, lots of cheeses and olives, dishes inspired by Tuscany - simpler and lighter and better - alla griglia. I'll have a big annual festa, where everyone wears light linens and sits at a huge, long wooden table filled with all sorts of pasta piatti and small dishes. Dinner will drawl on to the latest midnight hours, there'll be fairy lights strung about, and the great white moon and the stars will be the grand finale at the end of the night.

ciao! xo

birthday!

Today is my birthday! 25, ahh so old! It has been a great weekend! I have been blogging all about California (and even more to come) but I actually spent my Bday on the East Coast, in Washington DC! It was awesome :)

In California, with S, we celebrated my birthday a little early (above) with Susie Cakes. S raaaaaaved about these and after taking my first bite, I could see what the hype was about. There is something quite hypnotic about a deliciously sugary and moist cupcake. In our box: mocha, vanilla, chocolate, and a chocolate. Haha, we like the classics :) I cannot wait for my next Susie Cake!!

I love you S! And I'm so looking forward to this year!
ciao! xo

summer party {festa dell'estate}

The summer family party is a legendary tradition that goes WAY back into my early years of living in this house. We have so many boxes of old photos in what I call the "archives," - photos of parties from the past, the famous 'family portrait,' lists of food and things that "went" and didn't "go." Ah, the rush that precedes the family party. I always looked forward to it - but this year it was my sister's college graduation (see here for that) and it was the perfect opportunity to tie an occasion to the party (as if we needed one)!

The family party, now the family/graduation party, actually took a hiatus for a year or so and became an every-other-year kind of event. It was busy because we were all either in college, or graduating, or going on a different vacation (I have three siblings - it gets busy around here). People thought that we dis-invited them at some times, I think - noo! we just weren't having the party.

Anyway, this year, as expected, was very fun. It was stunning outside - low humidity and 85 degrees. Guests trickled in starting at about 4pm, and thanks to the methodical planning of my mother, things were ready to go for about an hour before the party. We actually had time to get ready ourselves! It was great. It was nice to catch up with everyone and indulge a little in the food. I made cupcakes, and the dish that I couldn't get enough of was an orrichete and pesto pasta...swoon. I think I am addicted to pasta. It's a problem.

The most fun part of the night, in my opinion, was when the sun went down and we hit the bonfire. We experimented with sparklers and long-exposure photography in the dark. We had glowsticks out and the deck was illuminated with fairy-lights. The majority of the guests camped out around the lights on the deck and regaled each other with their own tales and stories. Plenty of food, beer, sangria (made by yours truly!), and snacks to go around. Another perfect summer party for the books.

ciao, xo

a tea party

A few weeks ago my mother threw a delightful English tea party - a perfect dreary afternoon with friends. We pulled out the china and had everything from scones to tea sandwiches to truffles. We went for a shabby-chic style, with mismatched plates and dishes...just over-the-top girliness. My favorite happened to be the biscotti ;)

I blow up my twitter feed on Sundays with updates and thoughts about downton abbey - ugh. I won't regale  you here with my downton musings, but I do wish so badly that we could have tea like they do on a daily basis. sigh!

check out the video that goes with this post here! 

halloweenie party

 this year I was lady mary from downton abbey! :)

I type this with a bowl of Halloween candy in front of me, and it's the most tempting thing ever.  I already took a little bag of peanut M&Ms, but that is absolutely it. I had enough sugary treats and halloween-themed goodies over the weekend at our annual halloween party - and it was a blast. I was Lady Mary Crawley from Downton Abbey, and I do have to say, the costume was a hit! $12 on gloves, and that was it. the rest, I owned!

It was a festive weekend, with lots of oranges and yellow hues in the leaves outside; weather that actually required some sort of coat, and plenty of pumpkin-everything to be had. Georgia and Scout even dressed up to add to the mood :)

Highlights from the weekend...
+ a crisp morning walk in the park along a hidden creek
+ eating rice krispies for breakfast on sunday morning (oops)
+ both S and I working late into  friday yet meeting for a quick, much needed dinner date
+ starbucks hot chocolate
+ wearing my grey wool cape (!!!) for cooler weather
+ having a bonfire, sharing spooky classics like Poe and Doyle, our tradition

have a happy week! can you BELIEVE that this week, it will be november?
ciao, xo