New Tailgate Apparel

With football season right around the corner, Brooks Brothers is moving into the collegiate clothing arena.  If you're an alum of one of these schools, you're in luck:

Harvard
Princeton
Stanford
Cornell
Georgetown
Vanderbilt
Boston College
Notre Dame
The U.S. Naval Academy
Auburn
University of Virginia (!!)
New York University
Ohio State University
Universities of Alabama
University of Georgia

Keep your eyes peeled to see what BB comes out with....

More Things to Love Right Now

My Patagonia shorts.  The ones below are from about 1997 and still going strong.  (I wore them stand up paddle boarding over Memorial Day- very fun, by the way.)  I finally bought a new pair in gorgeous blue butterfly.  And I really like the updated cut- I had to go up a size but they are still a bit more streamlined and flattering.

My Eileen Fisher tank dress and Bernardo Madonna sandals.  Both are so comfy.

Johnson's No More Tangles Detangling Spray.  For days at the beach or pool.

Creamy Avocado Pasta.  SO DELICIOUS.  I didn't even use a blender- just chopped everything up very finely and then used a hand held mixer.  Oh, and I added a bit of parm.  Of course.

Million Dollar Decorators (Lauren) and Top Chef (Farrell) on Bravo.  Please note that Nathan Turner has a dog named Nacho.

Reader Request: Summer Entertaining

One of our readers is wondering...

With all the 4th of July cookouts coming up, I was wondering:  Do people prefer to see their hosts serving up traditional fare (burgers, hot dogs, potato salad, etc) or getting a little more creative with some more "upscale" items?

Thoughts from the crowd?

Sunday Night Ribs

Last night was a very successful meal at home, thanks to My Mama Made That from the Junior League of Hampton Roads.  This is far and away my favorite cookbook of the moment.  Everything is delicious, easy, and recognizable.  Some of the recipes may be things that you ate growing up but don't quite know how to make yourself.  Something I have noticed is that while Junior League cookbooks from the 80's have things I want to make, the ingredients are often outdated or unavailable in New York (Old English Cheese Spread?).  On the other hand, newer cookbooks often call for a loooong list of ingredients that I may not have in the kitchen and am unlikely to use again anytime soon.  My Mama Made That is the perfect solution- classic southern family recipes, slightly updated for the modern cook.



Half eaten ribs, roasted potatoes, baked vidalia onion.


Oven Baked Ribs (a summary)

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Put boneless beef short ribs in a shallow dish.  Cover with tin foil and bake for an hour.
• Cover with barbecue sauce of your choice (I used bottled, but the cookbook has a recipe that I'll try next time).  Bake for another hour, still covered.
• Remove tin foil.  Bake for 30 minutes, turning ribs and basting with sauce occasionally.

I can't wait to make these during football season.  Delicious!

NYT Guide to Porch Drinks

Check out the New York Times' recent feature on Summer Drinks.  It covers everything from frozen drinks to pale ales to bitters to wheat beers and beyond.

This is the perfect guide for the upcoming holiday weekend, complete with the requisite parties.

Shirts

Farrell and I were talking about shirts yesterday.  Both of our mothers patiently washed and ironed our fathers shirts when we were growing up, yet this is not something either of us have done thus far in our own marriages.  One of our friends told me that her mother is outraged that she (my friend) sends her husband's shirts out to the cleaner.  Now that I have some time on my hands I'm going to see if I can perfect the ironing of a dress shirt in the hopes of saving a bit of money.  In the end the $2 it costs to have a shirt done professionally may be worth it (ironing has never been a strong point for me), but I'm going to give it a try.

Do you send shirts out to the cleaner?

Summer Read: Bossypants

I just finished Tina Fey's Bossypants, and it's a great, quick memoir/comedic interlude/how-to guide.

Fey touches on everything from her childhood to her time at UVA to SNL to child-rearing to playing Sarah Palin.  She even glosses over her much-discussed facial scar.

I'm not a huge SNL fan, but really enjoyed this one.

Do You Goop?

Do you follow Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop?  One of our friends recently mentioned Goop's latest post on cheese boards, and after *finally* visiting the awesome cheese section at the new Whole Foods last night, I am feeling inspired.  Check out Gwyneth's tips on The Cheese Board before your next party or porch drinks gathering....

More Curtains

I'm pretty sure that this room

would benefit tremedously from these curtains.  The checks wouldn't clash with the stripes on the couch and they would pull together the tan/blue color scheme, since it appears the La-Z-Boy is going to be part of my life longer than anticipated...

10 Most Intriguing Blogs We Read Daily*

Brooklyn Limestone
Dooce
Perry's Plate
Pioneer Woman
Scout Charlottesville
Noble Pig
Summer is a Verb
Reggie Darling
The Daily Prep
The Sartorialist

We only overlap on one...

*excluding ones written by friends and family

Whole Paycheck

On Tuesday, a brand spanking new Whole Foods opened in my town, and a frenzy ensued.  As much as I would love to check it out, I'll wait at least a week to head over there, in the name of self-preservation. 

Admittedly, I've been stalking it on Facebook, and can't wait to check out the new features that our antiquated, 20+ year old Whole Foods just didn't offer:  a "pub" boasting 8 taps, mobile coffee bar, wood burning pizza oven, food trucks, etc.  It is so tempting to do all of our shopping there (and now go for dinner and drinks?), but it just isn't economical. 

Are there any staples that you insist on getting from stores like Whole Foods, Fresh Market, etc vs. the normal market?

the new store has part of the floor from the old UHall

amazing bulk foods area, including oils,spices, etc.

Holy Cuteness

Lauren was in Cville (again!) this past weekend for her husband's reunion, and we found time for a quick pedicure and Starbucks outing.  If you heard a sigh around 4:30 on Friday afternoon, that was our feet.  Let's just say the pedis were MUCH needed.

Imagine our mutual delight when our afternoon treat came in such cute packaging.  We're totally suckers for great wrapping, and this did not disappoint. 

Wahoowa

A sophisticated take on orange and blue found, appropriately enough, at Caspari in Charlottesville, VA:

Summer Lovin

The temps are seriously rising on the East Coast, and summer is rolling in.  Our lives are a flurry of travel, houseguests, work, and generally trying to stay on top of things.

Admist all that, some things I am loving lately.....

Barboursville Cabernet Blanc.  Especially very chilled and consumed on the porch.

Bobbi Brown SPF 50 Face Base.  My go-to everyday, under make-up sun protection.  You really can't mess around with the sun, people.

Words With Friends on my iPad.  There's something refreshing (nerdy?) about being up at 5am to get a headstart on work, and mindlessly scoring 100+ points on the word ZAP.

My black Rainbows.  Summer staple.

To be continued.....