rhode island 2011

 the stone house

 my boy sanded

 the book I am reading

 called 

A Load of Bull

(loving it)

 strawberry roadside stand

 the most amazing bakery where Piper and I

went every morning at 6 am for coffee

and hot blueberry muffins

early morning walk

 the fire pit where Everett and I made smores

every bed at The Stone House wore a

Denise Schmidt quilt

see ya!

chopped salad

Alice Waters loves chopped salad.  

She has lots of chopped salad ideas in her book,

The Art of Simple Food.

I love chopped salads especially

in the summer when all is fresh.

I have made this Chopped Tomato Feta Salad

(not an Alice Waters recipe but I think she would approve)

two times this week.  

SO GOOD.

Chopped Cucumber Tomato Feta Salad

INGREDIENTS
        about a pint of halved or quartered cherry tomatoes
        1 medium field cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded, and diced to about 1/2-inch
        1/2 of a medium red onion, diced
        1/2 cup crumbled feta
        1/4 cup shredded fresh basil leaves
        1 tbsp  red wine vinegar
        1/2 tsp turbinado sugar
        2 tbsp olive oil
        1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
        1/2 tsp sea salt, or to taste

METHODS
    .    Combine cucumbers, tomatoes, onion, basil and feta cheese.  Toss to mix.
    .    Whisk olive oil, vinegar, sugar, pepper and salt in  small bowl.  Taste dressing and adjust seasonings if necessary.
    .    Drizzle dressing over salad, whisking as you go.  Toss salad to coat evenly with dressing. Taste and adjust seasonings.  Serve immediately, or allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes for the cucumbers to soften and the flavors to blend.
Serves 4 as a healthy side portion.

I did not make dressing separately.  I just added dressing ingredients straight into salad.

recipe + photo found here.

changing table

Found this on First Dibs.  It's a potter's/gardener's table.

I see it as a changing table for baby.

see scout sleep

Best dog beds I've ever seen from

See Scout Sleep via design*sponge.

outside in

Outside

In.

Hope you have a relaxing weekend.

tumbler

lost & found

 

tee for baby boy

 tee for baby girl

 dress for me

 

shirt for you

 stoneware

 dishtowels

Found this great shop in 

California

called 

Lost & Found.

What an amazing selection of things for all.

Rarely do I love everything.

 I love everything!

our black bathroom

e

Found these two black bath photos 

a while back.

Tickled my fancy.

photos found here and here.

 Inspired me to go black in

 our downstairs bathroom.

We had the old (gross) white tile 

removed and put up

good old wainscotting.

Time for the blue to go.

Here it is in the end.

Black floor, black ceiling,

black shelf,

and black trim.

oh and shell light.

What do you think?

freecycle

Someone told me about

freecycle

last summer.

It's a site where one can

post something you 

would like to get rid of for free.

Something you no longer need.

Something that is in good shape

and working or perhaps not.

Something that someone out there 

may be able to fix.

Or you can request a certain something.

SO

I would like to tell you about my recent

very successful

freecycle

experiences.

OFFER:
Last summer we dug up

a bunch of old bricks that were once 

a terrace in our back yard.

The bricks were completely 

covered with grass.  Most in perfect shape.

We did not want to bring them to 

the dump knowing 

someone might put them all to good use.

I posted the lot of bricks on 

freecycle

I quickly got several inquiries.

The person that ended up taking them

was the nicest man who

was building...

a terrace.

He was so grateful

so hence I then felt good

giving someone something for free and not

filling up our local landfill.

 WANTED:
I was looking into

buying Piper a baby swing.

Not an inexpensive purchase I found.

SO 

I thought..hey 

I will post a 

wanted ad

to see if anyone has a swing 

hanging around in their garage.

WAa LAH.

Almost instantly I got a response from 

a nice someone that lives

five minutes away!

SO great!

Look how happy Piper is swinging in her

new OLD FREE swing.

Priceless and perfect.

There is a 

freecycle 

near you.

It's nationwide.

Check it out 

if you have

something to give 

or something you want or need!

white bath

Love this bathroom though I would do one mirror.

Love the marble, tub, sink faucet and floor.

ham x 2

Meighan and I had a funny text exchange yesterday. 

I must share:

 

Meighan:  "This is our cat Larry blowing birthday kiss.  Isn't he a ham?"
Susanna:  "So funny."

Susanna:  "This is Piper sticking both fingers up her nose.  She and Larry should take it on the road.  Ham x 2.
Meighan:  "Yes. So much raw talent!"

piper + boys at the beach

Piper chatting up some boys at the beach yesterday.

peony farm

Peonies are my favorite flower.  

On my birthday we found 

the most gorgeous 

peony farm in 

Little Compton, Rhode Island.

Truly a visual treat and 

best birthday present!

off to the beach

We are off to the beach!

Back next week...

Bye!

Photo found here

mohawk general store

What cute things I found at

Mohawk General Store.

All on sale to boot.

ukelele songs

Eddie Vedder has a brand new album just out called

Ukelele Songs.  

That's exactly what this album is.

Straight up Eddie Vedder and his trusty ukelele.

I can't stop listening to it.

This video is of a song that is

not my fave on the album
(though it is growing on me)

 Man is he ever nice to look at.

NPR did a little ditty

about the album.

You can hear all the songs here on

 NPR

 and then

order it on itunes.

hazel

I have ALWAYS adored the name Hazel.

I wanted to name Piper, Hazel but my 

other half said not.

So Piper she is.

Or Peepity, or the Peepster

to me.

She is a PIP, my Piper.

She is a Piper that

Piper Jayne.

But I will always adore the name

Hazel.

How about this birth announcement.

Nice huh?

Found here.

the spanglish sandwich

I am a huge BLT fan.

With summer upon us and 

warm tomatoes fresh from the 

vine almost at our fingertips, I say

YES to this sandwich.

A Thomas Keller creation:

The Spanglish Sandwich

 What you need: 

 3-4 slices of bacon 

 2 slices of Monterey Jack cheese 

 2 slices of toasted rustic country loaf (pain de campagne) 

 1 tbsp of mayo 

 4 tomato slices 

 2 leaves of butter lettuce 

1 teaspoon butter 

 1 egg 

 What you do: 

Cook the bacon until crisp, drain on paper towels 

Place slices of cheese on one side of toasted bread. 

Place in toaster oven or under broiler to melt. 

Spread mayo on other slice of bread top with bacon, sliced tomato, and lettuce 

On non-stick skillet, melt butter over medium heat. 

Fry egg, turning over briefly when the bottom is set (keep yolk runny) 

Slide finished egg on top of lettuce, top with other slice of bread (cheese-side down genius) 

Place sandwich on plate and slice in half, letting yolk run down sandwich.

I can hardly wait.