My Latest Obsessions

GMC sporting a PFC inspired bow tie

Happy Friday! We had a great visit w/ my Dad last weekend. The weather was AMAZING. Peter even got in some tennis w/ my Dad. There was lots of football watching on Saturday. The oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that I made were indeed very good - so good that I had to give away half the batch (or I would have eaten them ALL).

C + M started swimming this week and they seem to be in full swing w/ school. Even Georgie is enjoying his little Mom/Tot class that we go to twice a week. Last PM I went and saw Tavi Gevinson speak in Oak Park. She is fashion blogger that rose to fame at 13 (yes, 13!). I've been following her for a few years and was curious to see her in person (note that she is only 16). She was just on Jimmy Fallon the other night. Honestly, she is the cutest and most poised 16 year old I have seen. I expect great things from her. Stay tuned.

Some of my latest faves:

• Parenthood is going to pull at our heart strings this season. For sure. Some fashion from the show! 
• Love the pic of Georgie above. He has rocked his bow tie quite a bit. And he recently got a super great haircut at our friend's place = Lemonmade. The place is adorable. 
• What a cute gift bag stamp. Love it. And how cute is this acorn stamp?! Adorable. 
• We have a similar throw like this on our couch. Love it. 
• Pretty heart sweater from Crewcuts. Very cute. 
• Snow & Graham has a new pattern = Meadow. 
• Fun back to school party. 
• A simple french cake - looks so YUMMY! 
• Check out this simple gold and black porcelain ring. Pretty. 
• A little candy corn hat for your little one. Bring on fall! 
• I was just recommending the restaurant avec to a friend of mine and I started dreaming about their chorizo-stuffed, bacon wrapped dates. They are AMAZING. So good. I honestly dream about them. Whenever I mention avec someone always mentions the dates. They go hand in hand. SO AMAZING. Dreaming...
• Time to bring out the fall decorations. How about a vintage paper leaf wreath?! 
• I'm all about investment pieces. I'm willing to pay more when you get a lot for your money = good cost per wear. Ones I would like to add to my wardrobe = schoolboy blazer in navy and some frye boots (maybe these paige tall riding boots or the melissa button boot). 
• The gals are leaving Saturday w/ PFC for an Indian Princess camp out. I think I might make this Black Bean Quinoa Salad to have on hand for the weekend. 
• GMC seems to LOVE guitars. When he sees one on TV he starts jumping up and down and he has been playing w/ PFC's guitar. PFC found this guitar and I've made a note for Christmas. Sounds like someone might be taking after his Daddy! 
• Indian Summer tabletop inspiration - love these colors! 
• Ummm, chocolate hazelnut banana bread - can we say YUMMY! 

My Latest Obsessions

First Day of School (C = 3rd grade and M = 1st Grade) 

The gals are away so GMC is chilling w/ Daddy's guitar 

The party ain't over until someone gets naked in the bouncy house.
Oh, Prince Georgie!
Love this PIC! Cracks me up.

Our official first week of school went off without a hitch! We are slowly but surely getting back on schedule. I cannot believe Miss Cate is in 3rd grade and Margaret is in 1st grade. GMC's usual morning buddy is now in school full day. Luckily GMC and I head to a Mom/Tot class twice a week so he doesn't feel left out. He loves telling the girls he goes to "school" too! And the weather this past week has been amazing - blue skies and sunshine. Love it. Great way to start off the school year and fall.

My Dad is coming in to town for the weekend. We are excited to be hanging w/ Big George! He has even offered to give PFC some tennis lessons. Tonight I'm making one of my favorite meals = green chile chicken casserole. I LOVE it. It is always a crowd pleaser. And the best part is that you can make it the night before or the morning of and then just pop it into the oven when need be. AND I also want to make these yummy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies as a surprise little treat for my Dad (as he LOVES LOVES LOVES oatmeal chocolate chip cookies). I also bought a bunch of raspberries and blackberries to make this yummy looking Raspberry + Blackberry Crostata.

Some of my latest faves:

• Love this french hen sweater. Adorable. 
• These No Sew favor bags are so cute. They would be fun for a little party for C +  M. Love them! 
• Pretty scoopback maxi dress for fall. Looks comfy and CUTE! 
• We cannot wait to check out the Blurb book we made w/ all of our instagram pics from summer. 
• Aren't these TOMS Mary Janes adorable?! Love them. Might have to get M a pair. 
• I LOVE calligraphy. I even took some classes awhile back. Some calligraphy inspiration.
• Cute owl frame. 
• Gretchen Rubin's new book Happier at Home has hit shelves. Some tips from Gretchen via Anthropologie. 
• And I thought I was a strict mom! Some of Michelle Obama's parenting rules. 
• I have been trying to drink more water. Maybe I need one of these = a reusable water bottle. 
• LOVE LOVE LOVE these MacAlister boots from crewcuts. ADORABLE. LOVE them. 
• Odin did one of those Shops for Target. What a great looking coat for the guy in your life. And the Curiosity Shoppe has a few items for Target too. Cute serving bowl. And look - here is a DIY for a tote using one of the Curiosity Shoppe's tea towels. Fun. 
• This week I had the pleasure of seeing Barbara Rinella do a program on Jackie Kennedy. She inspired me to pick up some books about the topic. One I would like to read is Mrs. Kennedy and Me by Clint Hill. She also has a great list of reads on her website too. I picked up one of her recommendations - Where We Belong by Emily Giffin - and finished it in one evening (was up until 1 am reading). It was a really good book.
• So, we'll see how the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies turn out but yesterday I saw these AMAZING looking cookies = Nutella-stuffed sea-salt chocolate-chip cookies. OMG. They look HEAVENLY. 
• A friend passed along this good looking pork tenderloin recipe (and a slow cooker one at that). 
• I so heart the show Parenthood. LOVE it. I was VERY excited to watch the season 4 opener this week. Not only are the story lines FAB but the ladies on the show have an envy worthy wardrobe. And PS - Crosby totally needed a haircut. Bravo. 

My Latest Obsessions

Our tent at Kinnikinnick Farm

MMC - hanging w/ the pigs

Sunset and view from our Tent

Farmer Dave showing the kids how to milk a goat

Happy Friday! It was the first day of school for both C + M (about time)! We had an extended summer break this year due to some construction at our middle school. It made for a long (and very fun) summer (BUT one that needed to come to an end)! I'm am SO happy that we strategically planned our trip to Kinnikinnick Farm for when we did. It was the PERFECT end to summer. We had the BEST time ever!

We arrived at the farm (just 90 miles from Chicago) on a Sunday evening. (Even Martha approves). We were greeted by the lovely owners of the farmer - David and Susan. Susan showed us to our tent and later she stopped by with our arrival dinner (roasted chicken, vegetables, homemade sourdough bread, and some yummy mini pies). The kids LOVED the tent. And C + M were SUPER excited about where they were sleeping (the little cupboard - a little hideaway bed area). We put GMC in the bottom bunk of the bunk beds.

The next morning Farmer Dave stopped by to pick up the girls for morning chores on the farm (= collecting chicken eggs, watering the pigs, and milking the goat). The girls LOVED it all. Before the girls left that morning Peter woke up early (and left me to sleep in = heavenly) and started the dutch oven outside (made some coffee, fried up some eggs and bacon). There is really nothing like fresh eggs. And the girls anxiously waited until early evening for round 2 of chores. Our day was SUPER relaxing. We were outdoors most of the day - relaxing, walking around the farm, biking, and just enjoying being outside. I breezed through one of Gillian Flynn's books (Sharp Objects) during our stay. Great book, btw. That evening we decided to grill out some burgers (fresh ground beef from down the street), ears of corn, and I made a caprese salad (w/ fresh tomatoes and basil that I picked from the farm). Everything was SUPER yummy.

On Day 2 the girls started w/ their usual chores in the morning with other kids that were staying on the farm. That evening we all gathered around the wood fired oven for a communal make your own pizza party. The pizzas were super yummy. LOVED using fresh mozzarella and tomatoes. So good! And then all the kids gathered around the fire pit for s'mores (always a crowd pleaser). All in all we had a wonderful time and are already making plans to head there again next summer (this time filling the 4 other tents w/ friends of ours). FUN. Highly recommend the place. Here are some reviews (have yet to do one myself).

We are having a chill night tonight and then we have lots going on this weekend. Crazy September has hit and our calendar is fully booked.

Some of my latest faves:

• We've been watching the DNC speeches the last couple of nights. Michelle Obama was great. And she looked FAB too = her gray nail polish and a gorgeous Tracy Reese frock and J.Crew pumps. She looked quite lovely. 
• I love corn and raspberries in the summer. I would love to try this ice cream from Jeni's. Looks yummy. 
• Fall weather will soon be upon us. Layered tees and jeans are coming our way. LOVING this cuffed coat by LA Made. LOVE it. Fabulous color too. 
• Next time I make a cake and need a little sign I want to try these DIY Cake Toppers = CUTE! 
• I'm thrilled for Giuliana and Bill Rancic (one of my couple crushes!) about their latest news = baby boy Edward Duke. They will make great parents. So happy for them! 
• Our farm visit has inspired me. Check out this awesome farm. Wouldn't you love to be a guest for one of their communal greenhouse farm dinners? Sign me up! Speaking of farms - here are some tips for shopping a farmers market (we still have a few good weeks left for shopping local goods). 
• I've been taking lots of pics via instragram and I was thrilled to learn that I can make an instagram book via Blurb. Hooray! I'm going to make one from all of our summer pics! 
• We had the BEST burgers on the farm. They were AWESOME (great job PFC at the grill)! How amazing do these burgers w/ brie and figs look?! Yummy! 
• We made some lemon cake for our neighbors yesterday. YUM YUM YUMMY! This recipe is a keeper (and very easy at that). 
• I LOVE kilim rugs. Aren't these kilim rug pouches fun?!
• Sad = Amy Poehler and Will Arnett are separating. Bummer. Love them. 
• Gotta love this = a grandmother who dances like usher. 
• I use Moleskin notebooks all the time. LOVE THEM. How fun are these gilded ones?! 
• Halloween is upon us. Cute Halloween-esque bakers twine. 
• Brilliant and quite clever = Parents give passengers candy to apologize in advance for their crying twins. Nice move. 

Have a FABULOUS weekend! 

My Latest Obsessions

Enjoying some ice cream at Green City Market in LP

The Lovely Miss Catherine McLinden Carr

Happy Friday! We are in countdown to school mode. This year we don't go back until the Friday after Labor Day (yes that means we had 98 days of summer). While fun, we are all getting a LITTLE antsy. Swim team is over and we are running out of steam. Well, okay, maybe I'm running out of steam (and ideas to keep us all occupied)! So, thankfully we have one last family outing planned. We are heading to Kinnikinnick Farm this Sunday for 3 nights. We are all SUPER excited. A friend passed along the farm and I have been reading about it here and here. This past Wednesday we went to Green City Market in Lincoln Park as I wanted the kids to meet the farmers and see how they sell their produce. Very fun!

This week I was able to catch up w/ a dear friend who I had not seen in a very long time. We went to one of my favorite spots in Lincoln Park = Athenian Room. Love that place. I get the SAME thing EVERY time. Love it. And then last night we went to dinner w/ one of our favorite (see couple crush below!) couples and had a FABULOUS meal at Gaetano's. The meal was AWESOME!

We are having a chill evening tonight and then tomorrow Peter/I are stopping by a cocktail party and then heading to dinner by ourselves for a date night. We have reservations at West Town Tavern but I may change it up. We have not been there in a long time. Last time we were there my Mom/Travis met Peter for the first time.

Some of my latest faves...

• Love this = a DIY popsicle chandelier. 
• Tiny Triangle rings = LOVE these. Super cute. 
• Best Berry Cobbler - want to try this ASAP before berries are out of season! 
• I've talked about girl crushes before. Here is an article about couple crushes. Mine are mostly celebrity couples (like Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson = most normal hollywood couple out there) but I do have a few "real" couple crushes too! Whose your couple crush?! 
• The fabulous Bethany Meyer of the blog 4 Gods Sakes Boys wrote this article/post - 50 Shades of Grey 10 years later! HILARIOUS. 
• Oh Harry! You definitely are the fun one my dear. Your bro William was unimpressed though - he does indeed need to be the responsible one! 
• GMC tried this yummy ice cream at the Green City Market this week = Snookel Fitz Ice Cream. It was YUMMY. 
• These brownies look AMAZING. Must make soon!
• We had some guests last Sunday morning w/ us. I made this YUMMY and DELICIOUS Baked French Toast. It was devoured very quickly. SUPER easy as I made it the evening before and just popped in the oven the morning of. Perfection. 
• Five beautiful Movie Kitchens. Love them. 
• 10 Ways to Carve more time in to your day. The one that works best for me = consolidating errands (works even better sans kiddos!). 
• My sister and I RELIGIOUSLY watched 90210 from day 1. I went back and forth crushing on Brandon Walsh (the good guy) and Dylan McKay (the bad boy). LOVE these Old Navy commercials w/ the old gang. 
• I stumbled upon this amazing looking quaint hotel in Vermont. I'm adding it to my list. It looks FABULOUS. 
• I'm not sure how I feel about this ad w/ Michael Phelps and soviet gymnast Latynina for Louis Vuitton. Michael has beat her medal record. 
• Love it = Method + Orla Kiely. 

My Latest Obsessions

Sister LOVE = C + M

Family Trip in Saugatuck (Summer 2012)

Happy Friday! It is GORGEOUS out and a bit cooler (kind of San Diego-esque if you ask me) today. LOVE IT! We had a BLAST last weekend at our dear friend T's place in Saugatuck. It was the perfect setting for 7 adults and 6 kids. We enjoyed awesome dinners after the kiddos went to bed and just CHILLED. Much needed. PFC/I always feel like we are on the GO. ALL. THE. TIME. Fun but it can get exhausting. We are delighted to be doing NOTHING tonight. PFC always breathes a sigh of relief the evenings I tell him we have NOTHING going on. After the kids are in bed maybe we'll rent a movie. 

Tomorrow we are having 3 of our nephews and 1 niece over for the day/overnight. The kids are SUPER excited to hang w/ their cousins. We are making these chocolate chip cookies and going to see if they are the only ones we'll make from this point on. We started the process yesterday as they highly suggest refrigerating the dough for 36 hours (meaning that tonight we'll actually bake the cookies). We shall see! Excited to see (and taste) the results. 

Have an awesome weekend! Summer is slowly but surely (and unfortunately) coming to an end...

Some of my latest faves...

• The girls LOVED watching the FAB (or Fierce) Five during the Summer Olympics this summer. Every night at 7 pm they would run to the couch (pjs on and showered) and wait for PFC to get home to watch the Olympics. They LOVED it. So we bought tix to the Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics - they are going to flip! We are keeping it a surprise! 
• I was on a hunt to find a FAB chocolate chip cookie recipe yesterday. I stumbled upon quite a few = Jacques Torres' recipe in Martha Stewart / healthy chocolate chip cookies (might try these) /  Cook's Illustrated's Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie (involves browning the butter). We ended up w/ the one above - we shall see! 
• Joanna's Goddard's post on scheduling sex. Interesting topic! 
• LOVE this dotty blazer. Would be great for fall! 
• Bon Appetit's Best New Restaurants. This old fashioned blueberry coffee cake from Cakes & Ales looks DIVINE! This is a must try in my book. 
• I've been thinking about fall lately - as soon the girls will be back at school. So, when I stumbled upon this recipe for Butternut Squash Ravioli w/ Saged Brown Butter I took notice. Come fall, I'm going to try this one out for sure! 
• The legendary editor of Cosmo passed away this week. Here are some great quotes from Helen Gurley Brown. My fave = "Good girls go to heaven, bad girls go everywhere."  
• I haven't gotten tired of all the Call Me Maybe spoofs and you tube videos. Those Harvard boys really had something going. Totally digging this one here. Great voices. LOVE this! 
• Totally heart this fabric by Liberty of London. I think it would make such a pretty bed skirt or duvet cover. 
• Pretty lace dress w/ flared skirt. 
• This post on Sisterly Love reminded me of the pic of C + M above. 
• And lastly, maybe we'll make these Spiced Peach Pancakes SUN am for our guests! 

Enjoy your weekend! XO

My Latest Obsessions

GMC's first official haircut

Happy Friday! Happy August. I cannot believe that we have hit August already. Crazy. Summer is flying by. The summer has been great. I honestly thought that GMC would be much harder to handle at this crazy 2 year old stage in terms of the summer and the girls but all has been well. He (along w/ his sisters) LOVE the pool which has been great.

We are off to Saugatuck this weekend and staying with some of our dear friends. Very excited to get away and chill with all the kids. Last time I was in Saugatuck it was for a night en route to T's amazing wedding. We are in charge of dinner for the crew Friday PM. Menu = Barefoot Contessa's yummy Corn Salad, Mozarella Salad (fresh basil and tomatoes courtesy of my friend's garden), pub burgers, sliced watermelon, and yummy Almond Florentine and Black Raspberry Chip Ice Cream sandwiches for dessert (sinful but divine!). And of course I'm using my fave = Graeter's Black Raspberry chip ice cream (SO amazing) - and best part is that you can now find Graeter's ice cream at your local grocery store.

Some of my latest faves...

• Cute heart earrings. 
• Gorgeous gown - would make a lovely wedding dress. 
• How amazing is this treehouse?! I would LOVE it. It could be my secret hide away where I would read and drink flavored coffee. Speaking of reading, I'm totally into my latest book = Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. I just finished! I read that Gillian lives in Chicago - didn't realize that. And Gone Girl is going to become a movie produced by Reese Witherspoon. Cannot wait. Any good book recommendations? I need another one ASAP! 
• Kind of random = bikinis and books. 
• Some Olympic inspired pillows. Fave = Tennis Player Flapper Girl. 
• Interesting headboards. Design* Sponge did a little sneak peak into her place. Lovely.
• This photo just exudes COOLNESS. Love it. 
• Yummy looking pink lemonade cookies. 
• Pretty wood painted necklace! 
• Wow - lots going on in Olympic Village. What happens in Olympic Village stays in Olympic Village. Oh, to be one of the best athletes in the world!!!  
• Everyone loves Peter Pan. Aren't these bedazzled peter pan collars cute?! 
• Looking for some different hippie chic shoes to take you through the rest of summer = Painted Bird shoes. FUN! 
• So, we tried to hold out on GMC's haircut so that we could go to our friend John Haagenson's new Lemonmade Style & Snips. The above pic is from there. We had a blast there. The place is ADORABLE. So great to have a place as such close by. The logo/design work was done by the talented Nicole of Design Womb. 

My Latest Obsessions

GMC - 2 years old (love that little smile!)

GMC's Elmo Cupcakes for his bday - he LOVED them!

Happy Friday and Happy Birthday week to our favorite Georgie! He turned 2 on Monday. The other day I heard C + M discussing life in general and how "so NOT fun it would be w/o their little brother George." Such a fun conversation to eaves drop on! We had a very low key (compared to last year's big bday bash) birthday party for George = just the 5 of us and my mother in law stopped by to say hello. We had dinner together as a family (which doesn't happen too often so that was really great) and we sang Happy Birthday over fun Elmo cupcakes. George's fave present from JuJu = Green Monster backpack (now he can be just like the GALS)! And one of my favorite gifts for him = New Balance 990 shoes (the same exact model that my Dad - BIG GEORGE - has worn for years and years).

We had a great time at PFC's 20 year Marquette reunion this past weekend. I LOVE Milwaukee! We did get to the Milwaukee Art Museum and saw the Paris Poster exhibit. Very cool. And we ended up at Cafe Benelux for brunch on Sunday before we departed. YUMMY! Perfect end to our great weekend.

Every night this week we have been watching the Olympics. It has been super fun seeing the girls get excited about it and pick out their favorite athletes. They LOVE the swimming (boys swimming = my fave!) and the gymnastics. And how amazing to see Gabby Douglas win the gold as the all around individual in gymnastics.

This weekend we are heading to Chicago q (yummy) for dinner on Saturday with some other couples on and  then on Sunday we are heading to a BBQ to see a friend and her family that are in town for the wknd. FUN! I get to play some more tennis this weekend! Tonight PFC/I are making some yummy fish tacos and I want to watch one of Rob Lowe's old movies = About Last Night. Speaking of Rob Lowe, I enjoyed reading the article about the "Brat Pack" that was in New York Magazine in the 80s.

Some of my latest faves...

• How cozy are some of these screened sleeping porches?! Which one is your favorite? I admit that when GMC goes down for a nap some afternoons I take a little snooze as well. I HEART naps. They ROCK! 
• I so HEART this pic of Kate Middleton and the Prince at the Olympics. They look so in love. And they honestly look like they have fun with one another. So cute! 
• I did NOT watch the latest Bachelorette w/ Emily but I did see the adorable "Glam Camping" party she put together for her daughter Ricki. Speaking of "glamping." We are heading to Kinnikinnick Farm in a few weeks for several nights (just the 5 of us). The blogger Yolanda of Travels w/ Clara did a little post on the farm. 
• Cute way to wear your heart on your sleeve. 
•  Hermes now does wallpaper = how lovely! 
• Fall = cozy sweaters, jeans, boots. LOVE these boots. Pricey = yes. Love them = YES! 
• Pretty clutch that would add a little pizazz to jeans and a t-shirt. 
• Loving this striped coral necklace. Unique for sure. 
• Simple brass hoops. Everyday fun. 
• Yesterday was National Ice Cream Sandwich day - who knew! So, we were inspired to make these yummy (and easy) Strawberry Shortcut Cake sandwiches. 
• Interesting article about the gymnastic leotards from the Olympics. 
• An easy braided updo. Another way to stay cool! 
• Doesn't this ROOM look SUPER cozy?! Love it.