Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas, I know I did :) This year was my first Christmas with my B (we've been together 7 years) but have never spent a Christmas together, until now as three month newlyweds! This Christmas has been nothing short of magical as I share in traditions with him, spend time with the family and on this day after Christmas and am enjoying the blizzard that has swept across Connecticut. I am perfectly fine nestled in my parents lovely home, enjoying a mug of apricot tea, cuddling up to my husband and stretching out Christmas a few days longer. This Christmas has showed me all that I have to be thankful for and how blessed I truly am.

Holiday Decorating & Gifties

a card display I came up with...

love anything candles...

in love with the sweet snow globe my dad gave me last Christmas

wrapping gifts to send to CA for B's grandparents and parents (my new in-laws) :-)

the gorgeous McKenzie Childs box a great friend gave me! love it

Happy 91st Birthday, Garcy!

Happy Birthday to one of the classiest woman I have ever met! It has been such an honor and privilege having you in my life, Garcy (B's one-0f-a-kind grandmother) Garcy has been like a grandmother to me from the very start of my 7 year relationship to her grandson and from the very beginning she treated me lovingly and filled my life with care, generosity and has taught me how to appreciate all those little moments and how important family truly is.

She is an inspiration to all and all of our lives are that much more richer and special for having her in it. I struggle to put into words what this woman represents and how loved she is by her family, friends and those who only have met her recently or for a few seconds but the impression she leaves on your heart is forever.

pre-Shaw's wedding

a Thanksgiving 2009 shot

laughing with grandson at Shaw's wedding

Cuddle Weather

Today the district found itself covered by a few inches of snow which made everything quite lovely and picture-perfect. I was very much in love and can't wait to get home as I feel the holidays approaching and can't wait to hopefully have a white Christmas with my parents, grandmother, brother and husband :-) I couldn't help but think how today's snowfall brought cuddle weather with it and I just wanted to spend the whole day in my favorite pjs, sipping on B's homemade drinking chocolate, watching re-run Seinfeld episodes and other must-have's...instead I got to enjoy the evening while taking in this cuddle weather :-)

Tonight my hubby and I watched one of our all-time favorite shows, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and I cooked up a cozy meal to enjoy on the couch (I know, breaking our 'dining room table dinner only' routine) and I have to say it was quite nice to eat a meal I cooked all on my own.. and snuggle up to my love over a great show.

Recipe: Ellie Krieger's Fried Rice with Scallions, Edamame and Tofu

Reviews: Very good, next time-- would cook the tofu to get it nice and brown and crispy and add in some Sriracha for more kick (which is a hot chili sauce, if you don't own some already I say you grab some, it really enhances the flavor of some many dishes. it truly is a must-have product).

This was in its 'still cooking state' but trust me it was quite tasty

I have to say the colors are nice and bold, especially to cheer you up on a Winter's night

National Cupcake Day

Lemon curd cupcakes my mom made, just because!

here I am enjoying a cupcake-Chocolate ganache at Hello Cupcake in Dupont

I don't know how I would have missed this, especially since I am such a cupcake worshipper, lover, enthusiast but yesterday was National Cupcake Day so I want everyone to take a few minutes out of their day today to give thanks for the wonderful thing, that is the cupcake.. and ask yourself why they are so important in your life (okay maybe a dramatic statement) because I know they have brought great joy and fun memories to my life :)

enjoying a Magnolia Bakery cupcake during my Bachelorette weekend in NYC

with my lovely friends outside Magnolia's

Georgetown cupcakes, pretty but not very good...people don't know what good cupcakes are these days :P I think that everyone thinks they are so wonderful bc of their great marketing and tv show but try heading down to Baked and Wired before you go over to Gtown cupcake to wait in that long line for a cupcake that doesn't leave you very satisfied...

Merry Christmas from the Lindemann's!

Momma C (aka as Martha Stewart as I like to call her) hinted that I should do "Married Christmas" and I loved the idea so here you go. I am so happy to start my own Christmas card tradition with my one and only hubs

I am excited to report that today our Christmas cards went out! My first holiday card as a married woman and I feel like such an adult that after all of these years of watching my mom do hers I am not doing a card with the husband to send out to family and friends :-) I've always admired how my mom has created a rhyming poem inside her Christmas cards and have always found her so creative (she and my father compliment one another in their rhyming ways around the holidays :) ) The Christmas cards, Halloween and other festive cards my mom has come up with over the years now hang in our hallway for all to see and I smile every time I pass by and a picture catches my eye..I can't help but think about that point in time and all the ways, the many ways our parents tried to make us laugh and catch the sparkle in our eye for a perfect holiday picture. Oh traditions, I love you.

A Couple All About Class

I think that Prince William and Kate Middleton are going to make such a fabulous royal couple. I have always thought she exemplifies true class, beauty, sophistication and taste. With all the celebrities and "famous" people trashing themselves up and showing little respect for themselves and others, Kate comes as a breath of fresh air. She also is a fabulous dresser... But in all honesty I think that Diana will look down from heaven and be proud of the young lady following in her footsteps as a princess-in-training and the woman to marry her son, and be quite proud.

Some engagement pictures were leaked recently to the public and I just love them.

An interesting comparison of Diana to Kate-then and now, both women full of grace and style.

Effortless lady-like look

I know the whole world is waiting to see what gown she will pick for her wedding day and millions will be glued to the television as their wedding occurs on April 29th. I can't help but think about the diamonds Kate plays with, the gowns she has at her disposal, and servants she has helping her every day-but then to think about her freedom and privacy being stripped, I can only imagine. Oh to be a princess :)

The Ultimate Guide to being the Hostest with the Mostest!

Recently saw this book featured on a blog and think it looks quite marvelous! It also combines some of my absolute favorite things--- food, fashion, friends, pretty things, evening planning, entertaining oh my! :) The description on the Fleur Wood website already has me hooked, "...in her debut book, food fashion friends, Fleur shows us how to create the kind of event that delights the eyes and ignites the imagination, from a wild-child birthday party to a winter solstice fondue dinner and afternoon tea in the greenhouse with the girls."

Cosmopolitan raves, "A stylish fairytale volume with luxe allure for grown-up girls with parties to plan."

Purchase your copy now!

My father, SC or better yet, Santa Claus

My parents are down visiting for a few days while my dad has a few business meetings and last night in the car I heard the cutest story.

My mom does monogramming and embroidery for the sweetest woman who owns her own preppy store a few towns over from ours. My mom and Christine have become good friends and the other day Christine was in need of a babysitter for her daughters, Nicolette (the youngest, whose about 7) and Caroline (whose about 11). Nicolette does Irish dancing and the few times I have been around her she has flashed her mischievous smile at me and mangaged to melt my heart and remind me how much I love children. Caroline is into singing and has curly redish hair. I was told that Nicolette brought over her a trophy she won for first place that is almost bigger than her little body so I was already cracking up at this picture and also at my parents practicing for grand children, in a sense.

Anyway, before I get too side tracked...my parents had the kids over and my mom made her famous chocolate chip cookies (they truly are the best cookies I've ever had and yes I do have VERY high standards so coming from me that says something) while my dad had Caroline next to him on the couch stringing cranberries and popcorn for the Christmas tree while watching Miracle on 34th Street.. and little Nicolette bopping around and chatting to my dad. My dad is very big into Christmas, well that is the understatement of the year-I'll explain more later but I am not surprised to find out what Nicolette thought at the end of this small story. Nicolette took notice of one of the many wooden Santa Claus' that decorate our home and noticed how it held a list with children's names on it, not finding her unique name on there, Nicolette said directed at my father, "that's okay, yours isn't on here either!" As the night progressed not only did Nicolette discover that my father's initials are S.C....or to most kids--SANTA CLAUS, hahaha. I was told that she later wiggled her way between Caroline and my dad and cuddled up to my father and began to tell him what she reallllyy wanted for Christmas. At this point, I broke out in laughter thinking about this cutie telling my dad what she wanted for Christmas. For some reason they went down in our basement later in the night and saw a sleigh my dad had downstairs--Christine told my mom that now Nicolette really will believe that my dad is Mr. SC :)

I loved hearing this story because it simply is so precious and I love children's innocence and good-naturedness. But also because for a few other reasons-when I was small, I did not think my dad was Santa but he did a wonderful job convincing me SC did in fact exist. He did this by sticking a santa hat very far up our chimney, tracking chimney dust in interesting places, rattling bells/sounds on top of our roof-I mean how would my dad have climbed up there or gotten the effect he did if Santa didn't exist :P

My dad has also instilled a love for Christmas in me at an early age and I've always admired the great lengths he goes to to celebrate this special holiday--ever year he gets a huge, and quite marvelous Christmas tree to which he strings popcorn and cranberry garlin from scratch, and helps my mom bring out wooden Santa antiques and tasteful decor that just takes over our house in the warm and loving way. When I was a small girl, my dad would take me to the local hand crafts center in town and buy beautiful glass bulbs in stunning colors and he's always had a sharp and discriminating eye that has landed us on so many rare ornaments. He would let me decorate the tree but I'd always place light ornaments on the bottom and heavier ones on top so he told me later that he would love to see how happy I would be placing the ornaments on the tree and then he would later go back and move the ornament to balance the tree out better. I appreciated his sense to let my brother and I have that initial satisfaction that we were doing the most important job and helping my dad out. To this day, the handmade ornaments we made in kindergarten and elementary school-such as my angel with my chubby face smiling through, continue to reappear and I know my dad wouldn't have it any other way.

He puts his personal touch on the holiday in a very genuine and fun way--every year he makes a family cookie recipe and had my brother and I sprinkle them when we were small tots. He still enjoys our help to this day. My mom will get gifts for my brother and I signed from both of them but every year my dad will go out and find very unique gifts like an ornament from years way back, a stamp seal necklace in the shape of a heart (my gift last year) or something you didn't ask for..for Christmas but once you open it, you knew all this time you needed it all along! With these special and very methotically thought-out gifts he will attach a card that he will rhyme every phrase and make it into a guessing game as you try to link the phrases and figure out what treasure you have captured this year.

He is a wonderful father who brings magic & love to the hearts of his own children, and also touches the hearts of others, such as little Nicolette. Looking forward to being home with him in our North Pole-esque home soon xo

Happy December!

Last year, D.C. was hit with a big snow storm. Then a few months later in February, the nation's capital was hit even harder with a snowstorm that broke records with its intensity. I remember feeling very blessed I could experience such a storm while living here in the district and was even more fortunate to have a week off from work to explore the streets with my man where people were cross-country skiing down Connecticut Avenue, throwing snowballs and babies bundled up in so many layers they could barely move their tiny little limbs.


Here are a few shots from that magical time...