Suicide or Homicide? We decided to finish the dining room chairs instead.

This was a real toss up. I know I've mentioned this already, but-- at the risk of sounding redundant-- recovering those dining chairs was really a bummer of a job. The last couple of weeks have been especially nuts for us... we've both been working minimum 10-hour-days and I've been trying to squeeze in an awful lot after each work day... some time at the gym (so that I don't become the size of a house), the occasional french class, the odd dinner with friends, and then-- god forbid-- some actual relaxation with John... (Plus I had to devote at least 15 minutes a night to the guilt I was feeling about not having time to blog.) With all that was going on, these chairs had become the albatross in our apartment. What did they want??? Why were they here??? Why weren't they finished??? So terrible was the prospect of finishing them that we seriously discussed admitting defeat and hiring Lekhram (the master upholsterer) to do them instead, but they were really such a wretched task to recover, I didn't want to risk losing Lekhram as both a friend and reliable upholsterer in order to avoid doing them myself. 

We were stuck. Those chairs were our responsibility, and every day that they weren't finished brought us one day closer to the arrival of this baby. And the only thing less appealing than working on the chairs now would be working on the chairs then, sleep deprived and shell-shocked, with a new born attempting to sleep in the next room. Nope. It had to be done. So John and I stayed in the city this past weekend, and along with a long list of other to-do projects, tackled the remaining two chairs that needed to be recovered. And by god-- at long last-- we have prevailed. I confess that after we finished I did actually say that the last two seemed considerably easier than the first two, and maybe we'd procrastinated a little longer than necessary in anticipation of something more horrible than it really was. What can I say? Sometimes I have a knack for the dramatic. Especially when it involves whining, moaning, and postponing... 


I've got a gift. : ) 

Nursery Photos: Round One!

Taking these photos, I have come to realize that our nursery is only slightly larger than the average New Yorker's bathroom, which means it's almost as easy to photograph... Luckily, this small room is intended for a very small person, so I'm not too worried that he'll be unimpressed by his digs. : )

Keep in mind that we're still missing a couple of keys components that will officially make this nursery "complete". Still to come: 

• A boatload of baby-centric art work
• The ottoman cushion cover and a contrasting bolster pillow for the glider
• Additional accent lighting (I think we might actually spring for that oh-so-coveted egg night light that we talked about months ago... It's just SO CUTE. I can't fight it.)
• A small baby

I'm pretty sure that once the baby arrives, it will really solidify the room as a nursery, but so far, it's putting on a pretty good show. You might recognize a lot of the odds and ends I've mentioned over the last couple of months... You can spot the fabulous Serena & Lily Indigo Charing Cross rug in the photos above and below; as well as the Navy & White Polka Dot Black-Out Curtains that I tracked down on Ebay... You can also see the baby's Bam-Bam Crib in Phase 1: the bassinet stage, which should roll easily into our bedroom when he first arrives. 

Both the changing table and bookcase were hand-me-downs from friends, which I had professionally sprayed by my friends at WONK furniture. The changing table includes a bright changing pad cover from Land of Nod, adding another fun splash of orange to the room. I should mention that this nursery has truly been a collaborative effort-- I have called in favors from everyone under the sun. WONK sprayed the bookcase and changing table; Fernando (the contractor) built us the entire room, including those incredible recessed wall shelves you can see in the photo above; my mom made the cushion covers for the glider; my stellar upholsterer Lekhram, from Panache Upholstery, provided custom-sized inserts to fit inside the covers; friends & family provided so much of the wonderful decorations, like the Charing Cross rug and the Bam-Bam crib... This is a serious act of team work, people, and it merits a serious amount of THANKS! 

This room really couldn't have been done without the incredible contributions of so many different people, and we're beyond lucky to have such a remarkable squadron of friends and family to help us along. 

Now I just have to wait patiently for the barrage of art work to arrive, and we'll really be in business... I'll be sure to include more photos once the other bits & bobs trickle in, and of course, check back soon to see the finished dining room chairs in place. Yes, it's true. We've finally finished reupholstering the chairs too. I told you, come hell or high water, we were getting those chairs finished this weekend. Well-- it's been a smokin' hot flood up in here, folks, because those buggers are done! Halle-f-ing-lujah. 

(If you were the one reupholstering them, you'd swear-praise too.) 

Lying to you is like lying to myself...

I wasn't going to even mention these, because I've only just admitted to the major glut of artwork that has already been purchased for the baby's room, but then I realized that there's really nothing to be gained from lying to my audience. Full disclosure here, people! There's actually more...

I know. I'm hopeless.

But seriously. That first one is a fox in a party hat. The second is a fox and a monkey, seemingly making magic... 

And the third is clearly a fox, with some kind of flying squirrel or sugar glider, hanging party decorations.   These are actually hand-stitched little greeting cards made by Coral & Tusk, but I'm probably going to frame them and lean them on the shelves in his room. Maybe they don't officially count as "art work" since they're only 3" X 5" in size, but they're HUGE on charm! (I should mention that visiting the Coral & Tusk website is a dangerous act -- there is A LOT of cute embroidered stuff on there-- so don't dabble lightly. You will get caught in their snare.) 

You may or may not know this about me, but I'm a major fox-enthusiast, so I couldn't resist incorporating foxes into the nursery in a couple of different ways... Needless to say, these cards simply couldn't be left behind! You might remember seeing the orange fox blanket that John's mom gave me for my birthday last year, which was an early addition to the baby's room...

...or the fox that is a part of the nifty djeco mobile that will be circling above the baby's crib... 

Now there will also be three unbelievably cute embroidered fox-y cards sitting in there too... All pretty darn cute if you ask me. Plus, every time I look at that fox in the party hat, it actually makes me giggle out loud, which should be a real mood brightener at two in the morning when we can't get the baby to fall asleep. : ) 

This kid is going to be up to his eyeballs in art! 

Worst things have happened, right? : ) 

Sunday Lunch? Sunday Brunch?

I found this recipe in House Beautiful magazine last week, and decided to take it for a test drive last night for dinner. It was terrific and delicious, but at the end of the meal, John and I both agreed that while filling, it was really more appropriate for "lunch" than "dinner". To each their own: If you want to eat it for dinner too, I won't judge. I confess, I was initially attracted to the recipe as much by the food photography as I was by the ingredients, but having now made this tasty "zesty summer sandwich" , it tastes as good as it looks. (Though admittedly, ours did not look as perfectly picturesque as the version depicted by the people at House Beautiful. How do they do that???) 


Enjoy... Easy as pie, virtually no cooking (we toasted the bread) and it takes about 10 minutes to prepare. What's not to like? 

Ingredients

Serves 4

1 pound (scant 2 cups) fresh ricotta

Zest of 2 lemons

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 4 teaspoons for drizzling

2 pinches coarse kosher salt

1 pinch ground black pepper

4 long, even slices of very good bread

2 large, perfectly ripe avocados (approximately 18 ounces), at room temperature

1 pint mixed-color grape tomatoes, cut in half horizontally (you won't use quite the entire pint)

8 red pearl onions equaling 2-3 ounces, thinly sliced into rounds (or equivalent in thinly sliced red onion)

4 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

Skin of 1 preserved lemon, flesh removed, finely diced

½ teaspoon toasted poppy seeds

Directions

1. Mix the ricotta with the lemon zest, ¼ cup olive oil, and salt and pepper, and set aside.

2. Arrange slices of bread on a cutting board and divide the ricotta mixture evenly among the four slices. Spread into a generous even layer.

3. Split the avocados, remove the pits, and slice each half into even slices without cutting all the way through the leathery skin. Then, with a soup spoon or a flexible rubber spatula, release the flesh and arrange the slices neatly and evenly among the bread slices.

4. Artfully and attractively arrange the tomatoes by nesting them into the soft avocado. Then arrange the red onion slices over the tomatoes.

5. Garnish each sandwich with the sesame seeds, the preserved lemon skin, and finally, the poppy seeds. Transfer to plates and drizzle with olive oil.

NOTE: We didn't have "preserved lemon", or its skin, on hand, so we skipped that step, but otherwise we made this pretty much verbatim. A resounding success and a delicious meal, even if it was a little "caj" for dinnertime. I'm thinking this could be everybody's lunch for today!

Incredibly cute art for kids...

We'll do our BIG REVEAL of the baby's room tomorrow, but I thought I'd give you the gallery tour of his art-work-to-be tonight, since you've all been so wonderfully patient over the past week.

I hunted high and low, and have put together quite the eclectic menagerie of art for his room. I confess, I may have over-bought slightly, but I've also been searching for new pieces for one of the living room walls (which was left empty after we moved everything around...) so I'm thinking some of the over-flow may happily end up there.

First piece on display: A small french-y numbers print. Though shown above in blue, ours will arrive in tangerine. Très exotique!

Second one up: Another number print! Just as colorful, this one, made by the artists at Bold & Noble, will arrive in azure blue. I found this guy on this terrific site, which has a bounty of fun screen prints. I found this print on the same site, a snazzy signed print no less, which I think should be a particularly joyous addition to his room.

Also from the folks at Bold & Noble, we bought one of the New York City prints shown below. This is one that I'm pretty much certain will end up in the living room, but I was on such a spree, I just couldn't hit the brakes... C'est la vie, non?

I've also bought one of these guys... which may very well end up in the living room too, though the colors are so perfect for his room. This one is on backorder for another couple of weeks, so we'll all have to exercise a bit of patience there. Boo... At that rate, the baby will likely be here before the art is. : ( 

What did I say before? Patience is a virtue. However, planning ahead is also considered to be a virtue, which sadly I did not possess in this instance. 

Believe it or not, this is not the end of the list... One more-- cheap and cheerful-- which may end up in the baby's room in Fox Ridge, or in the hallway in the city. Both locations would work terrifically for this poster, so even though I'm feeling a little bit of buyer's remorse due to obvious excessive amount of art work, it isn't all that remorseful. 

Now, I just have to bide my time until everything shows up and zip it off to the framer before this baby rolls in. The race is on! Who will arrive first, the baby or the art??? Fingers crossed... 

Patience is a virtue...

I know-- I've really lapsed this time, but we've been really busy. Before when I said we were really busy, we were actually not and I was just mistaking that feeling for "busy", but now that I've experienced really busy, I've realized that everything we were doing before we actually very leisurely. My mistake.

However, you'll be relieved to hear that we've been really busy working on our apartment and making everything "baby ready". First things first, we can now proudly say that we've FINALLY FINISHED PAINTING THE LIVING ROOM AND DINING ROOM FLOORS! This may not seem like an apparent necessity in terms of preparing for the arrival of a new baby, but my thinking was that if this didn't get finished before he showed up, it probably wouldn't be finished for...what? Optimistically 5 years? How old is a kid when he goes to overnight summer camp? Seven? Eight? I can't imagine the state of things if we had to wait that long.

Needless to say, it was as tedious as we'd expected, but I'm beyond happy with the end results. And now we won't have to worry about doing this astonishingly dull task again until our son has entered preschool. Hurray! 


We've also put the finishing touches on the nursery, so check back tomorrow to see photos of that too... However, you'll have to keep practicing your incredible patience, because while the nursery is essentially finished, it lacks the icing on the cake: the art work! I've found and ordered all sorts of neat things to decorate his walls, but as they say, "They're in the post" so you'll have to just imagine how terrific it will be once everything's framed and hanging. 

D-I-Y Updates...

I just realized after looking back on the blog for the last couple of weeks that there is a ton of stuff that has happened in the Brooklyn apartment that I haven't even covered yet... We've been so busy doing everything that I've neglected to blog about so much that's already been accomplished!

This coming week, I promise I'll get photos up! Just the tip of the iceberg: John painted the living room and dining room, I finished reorganizing the closets (truly a work of art at this point), and even the nursery is almost completely assembled... Come hell or high water, I'll have those dining chairs finished too, so there should really be a lot to show you this coming week. 

Bear with us a little while longer, and I promise you'll get to see the fruits of our labor! : )

Finding Cute Things @ The NYTimes...

Julia pointed me in the direction of this piece featured in the New York Times today... Apparently the ladies who helped create Caldrea (if you remember rightly, Julia and I are die-hard devotees of the Caldrea soap products), have opened a second company called Vestige, where they're selling charming vintage-style dish towels that are right up my alley.

I'm particularly taken with the NYC towel, shown at left, though I have a real love affair with kitzchy state-related things of all shapes and sizes. Just ask anyone who has visited Fox Ridge, and they can tell you about the vast collection of tacky "state plates" I own and love. But why stop with dish-ware when you can also bring state dish towels into the kitchen???

Opportunity knocks! 

Julia's Lovely Broccoli & Goat Cheese Week Night Pasta Dinner

One word: YUM

This dish, my friends, was one of those lovely-food-for-your-taste-buds'-soul type of meals. So light, so creamy, so tasty!

I ate the whole pot. : )

Such a simple dish and healthy all at the same time (probably healthier if you share it...)

I got the idea from a Serious Eats recipe, but ended up just making my own version... Although the recipe below sounds just as wonderful.

What I read:

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2010/10/dinner-tonight-pasta-with-broccoli-goat-chees.html

What I did: 

2 cups Campenelle Pasta 

2 cups of broccoli

1 cup of frozen peas

2 cloves of garlic, minced

4 T. Olive oil

Thyme

Salt & Pepper to taste

4-5 big T. of soft goat cheese (more if you prefer a creamier finish...

A couple tablespoons of pasta water

• Start this endeavor by boiling your pasta. Once it is cooked (al denté according to the packaging instructions), remove the pasta from the water, but KEEP THE WATER BOILING. Rinse your pasta under luke warm water and toss with 2 T. of olive oil to keep it from fusing permanently together while you finish cooking. 
• Now throw your broccoli heads into the boiling water and cook, approx. 5-6 minutes, until nice and bright, but also al denté. (Al denté basically means "ever so slightly under-cooked" for those who aren't familiar with the term...) Now remove your broccoli, and throw in your frozen peas for a heartbeat. And overcooked pea is a mushy mess, so really just cook these for about a minute and then remove. 
• Now that you've got cooked pasta, cooked broccoli, and cooked peas, set aside. In a large skillet, add 2 T. olive oil, and heat over medium heat. Toss in minced garlic, and cook lightly. You never want to burn garlic, so keep a close eye on it. After about 2 minutes of regular stirring, add your pasta and the 4-5 generous tablespoons of goat cheese to the skillet, as well as a couple of tablespoons of the pasta water from the pot. Let this melt together over the heat as you gently toss the pasta in this mixture, then throw in the broccoli and peas, and bring everything back up to a consistent temperature. (This can be most easily and quickly achieved by putting the pid on your skillet if you've got one...) 
• Once everything is stirred nicely together, season with salt, pepper, and a little chopped thyme to taste, and you're ready to go. You could also throw some grated parmesan over the whole thing if you wanted... 

Delicious! 

A Major Delay... In Blogging.

You wouldn't believe how busy we are right now, but it isn't that we aren't getting our home-improvement projects accomplished. It's just that we're so busy doing them that I haven't had time to write about them. I know, I know. The whole idea behind a blog is to chronicle our progress, but we've got a serious deadline here people, 4 weeks and counting, and I just can't keep mincing around when there are TWO nurseries to be assembled, a living room floor to be painted, closets that require some tweaking, baby shower thank you cards to be written, ACTUAL PAYING JOBS to do, and god only knows what awaits us once this baby arrives!! I've got so many balls to JUGGLE, people, there's no time to WRITE!! (Can you hear the panic in my voice???)

Luckily, my dear and beloved friend Julia has chimed in just in the nick of time, and is going to be "guest posting" for the next couple of days, bestowing upon us all some tried and true recipes she has recently whipped up.

The first incorporates the bacon jam Mummy made right before she left, described in detail in last Thursday's posting. I surprised Julia with a jar of the delectable condiment and this is what she conjured up to go along with it. Here goes... and a big thank you to Julia for saving my bacon with these guest posts! (And I promise I'll be back later this week with lots of updates...) Thanks for everybody's patience...

Bacon Jam, Goat Cheese, and Arugula Omelette Dinner:

Lately the egg has become a staple of my evening meal; its fast, filling and versatile nature has entranced me; particularly because I'm cooking for only myself, meat can seem like a chore but a vegetarian meal often leaves me unfulfilled.  So when Christina nicely surprised me with a jar of her mother's homemade bacon jam, I knew an omelet was in my future. 

I took Christina's suggestion to add a dollop of goat cheese to the omelette, and after tasting the delicious bacon jam, I sought out a cheese that had an earthy tone to help balance out the sweetness of the jam.

Here is a quick and easy meal that takes less than 20 minutes to prepare, assuming you... 

A. Have an amazing friend that leaves bacon jam in your fridge 

B. Can buy bacon jam or substitute dried Spanish Chorizo in place of the jam... 

I'm going to say either way you win.

For this dish, you'll want: 

A hand full of arugula

¼ of tomato chopped

2 eggs, the more fresh, the better

Bacon jam

3-4 tablespoons of soft goat cheese

1 knob of butter for cooking

Salt, pepper, thyme – season to taste

Cooking Instructions: 

• Furiously whisk two eggs in a bowl. While whisking, heat butter in a pan over medium heat. 
• Once the butter is melted, pour eggs into the pan, and gently "swirl" the pan to evenly coat the bottom of the pan with the egg mixture. Try not to let the eggs brown as they cook. 
• As the bottom begins to solidify, gently lift the edge of the cooked egg and allow the runny, un-cooked portion of the egg mixture to flow underneath the cooked area. 
• Once the egg is almost completely cooked, add the filling of your choice in a line down the center of your pan (in my case, a couple of big tablespoons of soft, spreadable goat cheese and a nice drizzling of bacon jam-- delish!) 
• Gently fold each side of the cooked egg over, so that you are creating a "burrito" shape. This will take some practice and will likely result in many unattractive but equally delicious omelettes. Don't worry about aesthetics-- nobody's first omelette is a masterpiece! 
• Slide out of the pan, and top with a little arugula, the chopped tomato, season with salt, pepper, and a little fresh thyme if you're so inclined, and maybe add a little garnish of goat cheese and bacon jam to impress yourself or your friends. : ) 

Now eat and enjoy! It's that EASY! 

I'm sorry, did someone say "Bacon Jam"?

You know Mummy is in town when we start eating things like bacon jam. Not just any amateur cook dares to mix sweet and savory, but Mummy is just one such daring lady! When she first mentioned it, I wasn't sure just when one eats bacon jam, but she made a couple of compelling suggestions that swayed me in a flash. Apparently there's a lady who serves the stuff on a crepe, filled with a lightly scrambled egg and a little bit of cheddar cheese at a farmer's market near Mummy's house. The prospect of that made me want to do three things: 1.) Make bacon jam. 2.) Learn how to make crepes! 3.) Get on the first plane to that farmer's market!! 


However, the other serving suggestion requires neither a plane trip nor a new skill (or skillet), so it also appealed to me. The idea is to spread a cracker with a soft goat cheese and a dollop of bacon jam and call it a gorgeous appetizer. Yes please! So, now that we know how we're going to eat this mythical savory jam, let me tell you how we're going to make it! 

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds sliced bacon, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
• 2 medium yellow onions, diced small
• 3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 3/4 cup brewed coffee

Directions

1. In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high, stirring occasionally, until fat is rendered and bacon is lightly browned, about 20 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels to drain. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from skillet (reserve for another use); add onions and garlic, and cook until onions are translucent, about 6 minutes. Add vinegar, brown sugar, maple syrup, and coffee and bring to a boil, stirring and scraping up browned bits from skillet with a wooden spoon, about 2 minutes. Add bacon and stir to combine.
2. Transfer mixture to a 6-quart slow cooker and cook on high, uncovered, until liquid is syrupy, 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Transfer to a food processor; pulse until coarsely chopped. Let cool, then refrigerate in airtight containers, up to 4 weeks.

The whole process was pretty painless, especially since it's just simmering away in the slow-cooker, requiring nothing of you except occasionally walking past it and commenting on how good the whole house smells now that it's filled with the aroma of cooking bacon... Once the jam was finished reducing, Mummy sent it into the food processor to be chopped, and then I divided it up into a bunch of little jars so I could give the gift of bacon to my most beloved friends and family.

I happen to be a really big dork and cut some fabric to make the jars look a little more festive, and then stuck those "From The Kitchen Of" stickers on too, because I'd just discovered them in a drawer while Irene and I were organizing the city apartment. This is especially Martha-Stewart-insane of me, but I assure you, the jam is just as good out of a regular tupperware as it is from my crazy-happy-home-maker jars. : )

Give it a shot! You won't regret it... 

Wow, wow, wow! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! !

John and I just wanted to give a special shout-out to everyone who attended, helped with, planned, and cooked for our incredible baby shower last night. It was really a roaring success, and we had such a splendidly good time. My wonderful best friend Julia and my genius assistant Emily organized this terrific craft-y table where everybody was able to use custom-made/ custom-cut iron-on fabric to make their own personalized onesie for the baby, and we were just blown away by the creativity and skill that our friends and family possessed. This is going to be one seriously well-dressed kid! What makes this such a perfect baby shower project is that the onesies are all different sizes, so this baby is going to be sporting these awesome one-of-a-kind onesies until he's applying for college. It's also not too cute-sy-woot-sy-girl-y-whirl-y, so all of our party guests got totally into the project, not just the female contingent... 

Shown above is just a tiny portion of the collection we brought home last night... A particular favorite is featured below, made by our particularly talented and artistic friend, Justin Sanz. 

Yes, that does say "Wide Load" on the bum... So much to look forward to! : ) 

Thanks again to everyone who attended, traveling far and wide to see us in NYC; to everyone who helped prepare everything for such a wonderful night; to everyone who cut short their 4th of July festivities to make it to the party; and to everyone who sent such beautiful presents for the baby. We can't believe that we're down to just 5 more weeks until he arrives. This last tri-mester has seriously flown by... 

Yikes! And we still have to get this apartment finished!!! 

Seriously Famous Flourless Chocolate Cake!

Mummy has become known all along the eastern seaboard for her fabulous flourless chocolate cake. It first made its debut at our wedding three + years ago, when she made more than a dozen of them to serve as our wedding cake. It was such a hit that I've given the recipe out to heaps of people since (you know who you are!) With another festive family occasion upon us (our baby shower is tomorrow!) Mummy has whipped up another batch of flourless chocolate cakes to bring along as dessert. I thought I'd take this opportunity to share the recipe with the masses-- it's well-worth the effort to make this cake (or many of them), and aside from a little advanced planning, it's a cinch to make, especially if you own a standing mixer. 
*Be sure to note the most important part of Step # 6: The cake must chill overnight in its pan before you flip it out and serve it. That's where the "planning ahead" comes in... 


Here's the Flourless Chocolate Cake recipe in all its splendor: 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 18 (1 ounce) squares bittersweet chocolate
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 6 eggs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Grease one 10 inch round cake pan and set aside.
2. In a small saucepan over medium heat combine the water, salt and sugar. Stir until completely dissolved and set aside.
3. Either in the top half of a double boiler or in a microwave oven melt the bittersweet chocolate. Pour the chocolate into the bowl of an electric mixer.
4. Cut the butter into pieces and beat the butter into the chocolate, 1 piece at a time. Beat in the hot sugar-water. Slowly beat in the eggs, one at a time.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Have a pan larger than the cake pan ready, put the cake pan in the larger pan and fill the pan with boiling water halfway up the sides of the cake pan.
6. Bake cake in the water bath at 300 degrees F (150 degrees C) for 45 minutes. The center will still look wet. Chill cake overnight in the pan. To unmold, dip the bottom of the cake pan in hot water for 10 seconds and invert onto a serving plate

There are all sorts of fun (and tasty) options for decorating or garnishing this cake... A simple sifting of confectioner's sugar make it look snow-kissed and delicious; drizzling raspberry syrup or melted caramel over the top add that fancy-restaurant appeal; or just serve each slice with a handful of fresh raspberries to add a yummy contrast to the incredibly rich chocolate-y flavor. 

Once you master the preparation of this cake, you'll be asked to make it for every special occasion, so proceed with caution. Just ask Mummy! : ) 

Closets! Closets! Closets!

Yow-zah! I'm pretty sure closets like this have never been seen before in Brooklyn. Maybe in some fancy apartment in Manhattan, or somewhere in a spacious and sprawling suburb, but in hip-and-happenin'-tenement-re-enactin'-Brooklyn? I don't think so... You should see these babies! John and I feel like fancier people than we are every time we open the closet for another roll of toilet paper... : )

Irene whipped us right into shape, but you should have seen it when we first got started... We pulled everything out, and man-- was there a lot of everything! I think we can officially crown me "The Queen Hoarder"-- and now that my dirty laundry has been aired in front of Irene, there are no secrets left between us... Or at least not on my end.

 We started by deciding the ideal end-function for each closet (two closets in the dining room, two new IKEA closets in the hallway, and the big cedar closet in the baby's room.) The plan was that John and I would each claim an IKEA closet, the right dining room closet would remain for tools and household supplies (though hopefully better organized that it originally was...) the left dining room closet would be for seasonal clothes and winter coats, and the baby's closet would be for the baby's clothes, toys, etc... 

However, it quickly became apparent that our plans for the left dining room closet were a little unrealistic, to say the least. We also wanted to keep the printer and rolling filing cabinet in that space since it's an easy-to-reach-easy-to-hide place for the printer when I'm working from home, but there was no way that was going to fit in with all the winter clothes in addition to the coats. No freaking dice people. (John has SEVEN winter coats. And I have TEN. Good grief. This number is AFTER we purged another 5 between us. GOOD GRIEF! I'm married to "The King Hoarder"...) 

Once we came to terms with that realization, Irene came up with a new and better plan. We really weren't making the most of the closet in the baby's room, mainly it's suburban depth and palatial height (4'0" deep X 40" wide X 10'0" tall) Irene realized that with the addition of two more hanging rods, we could triple the amount of clothes storage in his closet! Now, the majority of the coats, winter clothes, and baby clothes could all be stored in the baby closet (coats in the back, winter clothes up above, baby clothes in the front); the linens, art supplies, and printer could be stored in the left-side dining room closet; the hardware and household supplies would be stored in the right-side dining room closet; and our active "in-use" clothes would be kept in the two IKEA closets. John took a couple "rush-job" photos of the left and right side dining closets, in their almost finished state, so you'll have to excuse the quality of our photos... I promise we'll follow up with more at the beginning of the week, so you can see them in all their suburban glory! 

Woo--ee. We are in business!

The best firework ever!

It seems only fitting that I'd be writing about this latest improvement on the 4th of July, because there is the most beautiful light-explosion occurring in my living room, as we speak!

You might remember that John's wonderful aunt Irene picked up a gorgeous vintage sputnik chandelier in Fairfield, Connecticut a few weekends ago, and you might also remember that she was slated to return to NYC this past weekend to drop off the chandelier and organize my whole apartment... Well-- she did just that! But before we even delve into the miracles that now are my incredibly well organized clothes closets, linen closet, tool & household closet, and seasonal clothes closet (yes-- now we have 5 defined, militantly tidy closets!) I think we HAVE TO TALK ABOUT THE SPUTNIK LIGHT!

Oh My God! Illuminated Miracle! You are all that I hoped you would be and more! : )

John put the light up on Monday night, and it's an absolutely perfect fit. Before he put it up, I was a smidgeon nervous that it might be a little small, but after my eye adjusted to the removal of the GIANT LAMP SHADE light, I have come to think it is really the perfect size for room, more like a ceiling fixture than a chandelier. It really pulls your eye upward too, which is wonderful for emphasizing the height of the ceilings... All in all, a major success!

I keep walking into our apartment and letting out a cry of unspeakable joy! It's really so gorgeous. I kind of think everybody should come out to Brooklyn to see it in person-- these photos just don't do it justice! (Try not to look too closely at the photo on the left, or you'll notice the tape is still on the hallway floor, waiting for another coat of paint, and the living room is all a skew. Just squint, okay?) What's even more neat is that you can see it through the window in the baby's room, and also through the window in our bedroom. It has this wonderful ethereal quality to it when it's dimmed that's almost enchanting... I told John our baby is going to lay in his little crib, look up at that light, and think he's an astronaut... So great!

*Can I tell you a totally weird coincidence? The sputnik light was supposed to come with light bulbs, but the very nice lady in Fairfield removed them so they wouldn't break in transit and then forgot to send them off with Irene. She called me afterward, and even offered to mail them to me, but I said, "Not to worry!" and planned to buy new ones once the light arrived. Unfortunately, I wasn't totally clear on what size the bulbs were meant to be, so I couldn't buy them in advance, and once we got started, Irene and I got so caught up in closet reorganization that we didn't even think about the light bulbs until well after the local hardware store was closed. Initially, "Oh no!" Except-- at that very moment-- Irene barked militantly from the kitchen "Come in here and organize this box of light bulbs!" (Okay-- not really. Irene is actually ridiculously nice and was a pleasure to organize my horrifying closets with, but it would have been more funny if she had a mega-phone and/or a whistle.) So, I sulked into the kitchen, thinking my sputnik light was sunk for the evening, only to discover that I ALREADY HAD 16 PERFECT GLOBE BULBS waiting to be organized in my light bulb box! What? Why? It's a long, dumb story that only makes me look like a crazy hoarder, so we'll skip that, but the main point is that we ALREADY HAD 16 PERFECT GLOBE BULBS (illuminating miracle!) so up went the light, and there she glows!

Hurray! Hurray! Hurray! 


Happy 4th of July folks! 


Hope you're doing something fun and festive on this joyous Wednesday afternoon!