My Latest Obsessions

Cubs Game for GMC's 3rd Birthday

GMC's 1st Banana Split Sundae at Margie's Candies
Happy 3rd Birthday GMC! 

Wilmette Beach

Happy Thursday! We are officially in August and in the back of all of our minds is that the first day of school is fast approaching. We are trying to take advantage of the final days of summer vacation. Last week we headed to Wrigley Field for GMC's 1st Cubs game. It also happened to be his 3rd birthday! Is our little George really 3?! We had a blast. The kids all loved just tossing the peanut shells on the ground. They thought that was so much fun! And on the way home we stopped by Margie's Candies for a sweet treat. I had never been there before and it has been on my list for ages. We all had some version of either a sundae or banana split in one of their white clamshells. YUMMY! And it was kind of fun knowing that the Beatles and the Rolling Stones had been there years ago enjoying sweet treats. Take a look at Margie's favorites!

I caught up w/ a dear friend last evening over dinner. We hit up our usual spot which happens to be one of my all time favorite casual restaurants in Chicago (= the Athenian Room). I love it. It reminds me of my years spent living in Lincoln Park. I order the same thing every time. And even Tina Fey agrees that one must visit the Athenian Room! And tomorrow evening PFC and I are meeting up w/ my sister and her husband and heading to another one of my other Chicago faves = Twin Anchors. I haven't been there in ages and I'm looking forward to some yummy ribs!

Fave quote of the week (from C and M) = "Life would be so boring without our Georgie."

Have a great weekend! XO - D2

Some of my latest faves:

• I forgot how much I love the movie When Harry Met Sally. We planned a Chick Flick night on the lawn at the tennis club last Friday evening and we chose the late 80's flick. I enjoyed reading some fun facts about the movie. And I TOTALLY forgot that Carrie Fisher plays Sally's good friend in the movie. I only associate her w/ Star Wars as Princess Leia. Speaking of great movies I see that the Ferris Bueller house is back on the market. 
• I love Robin Thicke's song Blurred Lines. It is catchy and fun. Yes, it's a bit overplayed but I love it none the less. And I LOVE the little ditty with Jimmy Fallon, Robin Thicke and The Roots using classroom instruments. So fun! It reminds me of last summer's "it" song, Call Me Maybe. I loved the ditty that Carly Rae did w/ Jimmy Fallon and The Roots - so fun! Speaking of Call Me Maybe here is the link to last year's little ditty that PFC and I did along w/ a few of our buds. 
• I've seen a few teasers about Season 5 of Parenthood. I'm excited! Sonya Walger and Tyson Ritter are joining the cast this season. Looks like the two of them will be spicing things up a bit! And I'm glad to hear that Ray Romano will be back this season. Love him! 
• I kind of dig these Heller Rainbow Mugs. Totally 70's vibe for sure. 
• I haven't had a chance yet to check out the new Fashion Outlets of Chicago that opened last week in Rosemont. I've heard great things. Cannot wait! Here is a post w/ an overview of the outlets and some great pics to boot. 
• We are super excited for our Labor Day camping trip to Kinnikinnick Farm. We had a little taste of camping (beach style!) this past Saturday evening in Wilmette. We met some of our friends up north and camped on the beach (well, George and I headed back home but next year we're in!). 
• George is officially in his "big" (toddler) bed and he LOVES it. We told him when he turned 3 he would get a big boy bed and he remembered us saying it for sure. It was one of those bittersweet moments of realizing that your little baby is not a baby anymore. Speaking of babies I love this yellow/gray Not a Peep crib bedding. 
• Next weekend we are driving to Cincinnati to show the kids where I grew up. We won't be seeing any family members as all of us are spread across the country (Prescott, AZ; Santa Barbara, CA; Bozeman, MT; Brooklyn; and Williamsburg, VA) yet I want to show the girls and GMC where I spent the majority of my time growing up. We'll also get to catch up w/ some of my dear college gal pals who now live in Cinci w/ their own families. I'm for sure going to print out some of these maps for C + M - as the two of them can come up w/ some games for our several hour drive. Someone recommended that we stop at Fair Oaks Farm (halfway between Chicago and Indianapolis) for a little break. We are thinking of stopping there for an early morning breakfast. The kids will get a chance to see some cheese-making in action! 
• I LOVE all the things that Lonny's Market Editor wants in her home. The modernist bowls are fun and my cousin (who lives in SF) totally turned me on to Heath Ceramics. We used Pratt & Larson ceramics for our backsplash in our kitchen and couldn't be happier. 
• Kind of fun to take a peek at Orla Kiely's home. I love all the patterns and colors that she uses. 
• I don't even want to think about cooler temps (just yet) but everywhere you turn you are seeing sweaters and boots in the storefronts. This little hedgehog sweater caught my eye the other day when I was at Target. My two sisters love short boots (especially Rachel Comey's short boots) and this year I would like to rock a pair of them (w/o feeling like I cannot pull them off). I'm gonna try! Um, and how cute is this gray cloak wool coat?! Love. 
• George Saunders's Advice to graduates is excellent. This is a speech that I hope to refer back to one day when talking to our kids about kindness. His biggest regret in life are failures of kindness. 
• There is something about L.L. Bean backpacks that totally takes me back to my days in grade school. I still remember my first L.L. Bean backpack (monogrammed of course w/ my initials DWN). I just ordered both C + M a new one for the coming years. One of them personalized their backpack w/ her name and one just went w/ the first letter of her name. 
• Okay, I think I figured out another ice cream sandwich fave of mine = green sherbet and triple ginger cookies (from Trader Joe's). Divine! Totally different flavor than the Graeter's Black Raspberry Chip ice cream and Almond Florentine Cookie sandwiches (inspired from this Bon Appetit version) that I make but tasty. And I stumbled upon this Ginger Cookie and Lemon Sherbet Cookie Sandwich. I might need to try this version out too!