Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Since getting cable we have gotten hooked on Food network, tlc, usa, cartoon network etc.
I always thought it would be cool to visit one of the places Guy Fieri goes to on his show Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. When Jack saw the steamed clams and clams casino on this episode with the Black Duck, I googled it and saw it was in Westport,CT.

Last Sunday I finally kept my promise to Annie and the kids and I went on one of our adventures. We drove the hour to the ferry and were in the first group on and the first ones off! (when does that ever happen?) We went to the youth mass at her church. We are so very conservative in PA. This mass had people clapping, waving their arms, cheering and applauding for the music when church is over. We are just not used to that. I was so proud of my sister. She was up there on the alter leading the congregation, talking, playing guitar and singing, leading the young people. Talk about multi-tasking. She is incredible and inspiring.

Afterwards we had dinner with her and her boyfriend and really enjoyed ourselves. Later we skyped with Kathy and the kids and enjoyed getting to know James. He lives close to Westport and had been to the Black Duck before. He joined us for lunch the next day and we ate till we almost burst. Jack had not eaten breakfast because he was so excited to fill up on seafood. We had a huge bowl of steamed clams and clams casino as an appetizer. Lots of melted butter and lemon wedges. I was so full I just got soup and salad for lunch. Of course it was new england clam chowder! Jack liked mine so much he got his own, plus crabs cakes and sweet potato fries. Kate had the same. They both have hollow legs!

It really was a dive, the floor was slanted and it had maybe a dozen tables. It is actually a barge that sits on top of a sunken barge. It looked like it was about to collapse into the water. What a cool experience though. After lunch James gave us a tour of Westport. What a beautiful town. It smells like money. The homes were fabulous, lots of old stone, and the view of the Sound, breathtaking! James is an architect and showed us a couple of projects he had worked on. One was and old red barn he helped design into a home. Really neat.

Julie/Julia

I have been reading a variety of books this summer. I got my mom hooked on the Mitford series by Jan Karon and now she is ahead of me in the series. Then she plowed through the quilting series by Jennifer Chiaverini. They are set in PA and a nice read. Meanwhile, I got hooked on finding out more about this movie with Julia Child. I have her book "The Way to Cook" which was 25plus years after Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I remember in early 90's a week of no school because of snow and making french bread as she described and it came out great! (BK-Before Kids!)

When we were in DC they had her kitchen on display and it was really neat to see. Kate asked, "Who is Julia Child?" and I groaned. "The first foodnetwork star??? before there was a foodnetwork" How could I let her watch all that food network and TLC crap and never introduce her to Julia!! I felt as if I had failed as a parent. So of course my teaching mode started. (I think my kids secretly hate this) I had to educate myself first before departing my "wisdom" but I signed up for Netflix that have the PBS series of the French Chef and bought her book, "My life in France" and the book based on the movie. I just finished Julia's book, which is good and am half way through Julie's. If you can get past the sailor language, you will like it. I even found her blog which she started in 2002 and ended it around the time Julie Child died in 2004. I've only read parts of it but it is kind of a cool story, definitely ambitious. I mean really ALL the recipes in that book. when I read her book I want to try some of them though. I get stuck in a rut with my cooking and try to mix it up a bit. oeuf in aspic is way off my mark though. If you don't know what that is.....READ the books. They are a lot of fun, inspiring and will make you hungry for good food.


This is the link to Julie Powell's blog or just google.... julie/julia project
http://blogs.salon.com/0001399/2002/08/25.html

Buttahcremezzzzzz!!!!

"NO WAY, NO HOW!"


While in NYC visiting my sibs, the kids and I visited the Cake Boss. Yeah, I probably should have taken them to the Met but that will always be there, right? Buddy will let this TV show get to his head, the bakery will go out of business and be old news next year. Not educational but very fun, fattening and adventurous! Carlo's City Hall Bake Shop is in Hoboken, NJ. Just a 10 minutes train ride from the World Trade Center site. We took the subway from Chris' place in Brooklyn to WTC and then a few blocks walk to the PATH train to NJ. Hoboken is a nice town with views of the city and the shop is located on 95 Washington St (google earth it!)

We were wondering if we would see anyone from the show and all the sisters were working, a niece and MOMMA! She is a riot. Asking people if they liked the show, where they were from, getting her picture taken with customers and tying up pastry boxes. We tried the cannoli, cream puffs, lobster tails (a triangular shaped pastry filled with sweet buttah creme that when baked it curls looking like a lobster tail) and another $17.50 worth of fattening pastries, cupcakes and tarts. The shop has 3 tiny tables and plenty of airconditioning (they can't let the buttahcreme go bad) so we sat down and ate some, hangin around to see if Buddy showed up. (He didn't) Then we went for a nice walk to the river and walked along Frank Sinatra Drive and sat in the park there, looking at NYC and ate some more! Thank goodness I carry wetones with me, still!

It was a fun day.

View from Frank Sinatra Drive, Hoboken, NJ

View of NYC skyline from NJ

OK, we are stalkers and took this picture of the back of the shop. Someone drives an Escalade!!

Jack wants this cake for his Sweet 16! Superhero Cake

Outside the shop!

Kate ordering a pastry.

Da "moron" who dropped da cake down da stairz.

Momma and Mary

Niece and anothah sistah

Kate, Momma and Jack.

VACATION

We have been having a great time visiting family. Here are some photos from the beach with Chris and Krissy. More photos to come.

Something to Think About

This is an essay my college roommate sent to me. It was written by an 18 year old friend of her daughters who dies unexpectedly. It was her college essay. It was read at her funeral and people were so moved by it, that Kelly got a copy and sent it to us (Immaculata 3rd floor). I wanted to share it with "my readers". It is amazing that an 18 year old would be so...grounded and deep. It gives me a lot to think about as I remember my brother Steven, who died in July 8, 1980. Take care of us Steven and keep me grounded & positive and help me appreciate each and every day I have as the gift that it is.

Elizabeth R Miller 10/05/1990 Our Lady of Lourdes High School


I am not sure I have a favorite day of the week, as every day has its own unique characteristics. Mondays start a new school week, reuniting me with friends and their stories of weekend adventures. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays are surprises waiting to happen, and everyone looks forward to Fridays. Saturday is my day to get things done, starting with early morning swim practice and ending with a movie or other fun diversion. But Sunday is a very special day. Well-rested after a good night’s sleep, and with few of the pressures of the school week, I am relaxed. It is on Sunday morning when some of my most in-depth thinking is done…

I have heard many sermons in my seventeen years of going to mass, but on one August Sunday morning, Father Joseph LaMorte’s sermon gave my whole life a different outlook. Father LaMorte’s sermons usually have a very personal perspective, relating everyday events to the lessons of the bible. In this particular sermon, he told a story about his “lasts”; the last time an event would occur in his life, such as his last baseball catch with his dad. He explained that if he had known that it would be his last he would have put more effort and appreciation into it. I could not think of a more fitting sermon to be told to me as a high school student going into my senior year. I have always known that I am supposed to live life to its fullest, but this made me think of it with a greater meaning. As he spoke, thoughts ran through my head about how over the next year I will be swimming in my last meet with the team I have been with for almost a decade, going to my last high school football game with all my friends close, and having my last simple daily conversations with friends, teachers, and family as I have become accustomed. It has helped me value my everyday events so much more. I find myself failing to realize these moments, looking forward to the “bigger” things in life, because my everyday events seem so routine, but in reality these are the things that I am going to have the hardest time leaving behind.

The sermon has stayed with me, and has helped me give each and every person I meet and each event I experience a greater value and appreciation. This thought has helped me to see more of the good in people and helped me focus on their positive attributes. I have learned that optimism is the greatest tool to living a great life. I have noticed that some of the most memorable moments in life occur at ordinary times. Life is too short to look forward to another day even though that day may bring a trip to Florida or a Christmas vacation. The day that I am living in right now can be just as special if I give it a chance. I have learned from my experiences and try to look for ways to take something positive out of everything I do and treat it as an opportunity to make myself a better person.

I am excited and curious about where my life will lead me, but I am going to make sure I meet each day with a positive outlook, appreciate the people I love, and take time to try to make everyday memorable. I will go into every challenge being open-minded and hoping for the best. Every race that I swim and test that I take will be treated as an opportunity to display what I have worked so hard to achieve. God gives us every moment and we owe it to Him to make it special, because only he knows when it will be our last.

…And I still cannot give an answer to my favorite day of the week, but Sunday is definitely a necessity. It gives me guidance for the rest of the week. It lets me realize the great things I am fortunate to have in my life and just how much they mean to me. Sunday teaches me to always follow God’s example and be the best Christian I can be. Sunday sets up each and every week with optimism and excitement for the events that are to come.

need a tissue. I don't know you personally Lizzie, but I know you are watching me read this and I thank you for your words of wisdom.

Patriotic Cake

Patriotic Cake

Kate's friend was over with the little sis and we made this patriotic cake. Celebrate our freedoms this weekend as you partake of picnics, ice cream and fireworks!

Arranging the stars and stripes!

Kate and her friend Autumn and little sister

Yummy strawberries

Blueberries

Jack's favorite....raspberries

Happy 4th!!

Bradford Dollhouse-Kate wrote the following comments on the Bradford Dollhouse at the Smithsonian

this photo is from the Smithsonian website

Kate took these photos of the Bradford Dollhouse. It was magnificent. A time when little girls used their imaginations and played with toys.

"This miniature house was designed, decorated, and furnished by Faith Bradford. It is five stories tall with 23 rooms and is built on a scale of one inch to one foot. There are 1,354 miniature specimens in the model. The house contains furniture, linens, toys and other household items. Calling this small house home are Mr. and Mrs. Peter Doll, their 10 children, two visiting grandparents, five servants and 20 pets. Also featured is Bradford’s scrapbook, which illustrates her methods in creating the house."

from the Smithsonian Website.

non-identical twins in the playroom

Alice the oldest girl is looking out the window in her room

one of the toddlers in the playroom

this is a close up of one of the twins, I thought it was cool about how the dolls had dolls and they are all so detailed

a miniature barn with cows in it that are in the playroom

this is the kid's bathroom in it is one of the maids and there is a rack to hold towels for when the kids are taking baths

the nanny is getting baby Christopher and Sally ready for bed in the nursery

Mrs. Doll comes into the master bedroom to check on the twins in their crib