First Day in Kindergarten

Today was Kaila's first day in kindergaten! She is very happy in her new class. She even had homework.

Tangle Tamer

Long hair does not have to come with tears for detangling anymore! Kaila got a cordless Remington Tangle Tamer as a gift from her teacher. And it works!!! The comb has large teeth that vibrate and glide through the hair making detangling a breeze.

The model we have is the DT-800.

My First Ballet Class

Kaila is going to her first ballet and tap class today. She has been waiting for it for months. I sure hope it's somewhat close to what she is dreaming about.

Everytime I take her to a ballet performance she asks if she can go dance on stage, too!

- The ballet class was a success. As we were leaving the school Kaila asked, "Is my class going to be longer next time?" The 45 minutes did go by pretty quickly! She was too cute out there. I got to watch it from the mirrored window in the next-door room.

O'Keeffe

For the past few weeks, I've been reading A Biography of Georgia O'Keeffe - Portrait of an Artist by Laurie Lisle. I've always loved O'Keeffe's bold yet sensitive art. It's been interesting to get a glimpse of her personal life albeit through the story of others.

She was definitely an artist I would've liked to have met.



I visited the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe about 10 years ago. Seeing her original paintings and Stieglitz's photographs were quite an experience.

I love her 1917 Nude Series watercolors and her 1926/27 large flowers oils. Two of my favorites, the White Rose and the Oriental Poppies.

In 2010, Santa Fe will be celebrating 400 years - great place to visit. Plan ahead!

Back on track

The sun took a break at lunch time today. The cloud cover made for a pleasant day outside (Houston standards, mind you). I went for a run along the reservoir in the opposite direction I normally track. To my surprise, after I left the groomed part of the trail, the butterflies were there in numbers! My favorite, the swallowtail, followed me for a good quarter of a mile, then came the gulf fritillaries with their silvery adorned wings, the variegated fritillaries, the sulfurs, and a buckeye. They made my day so much happier...

Damon Mound

The Houston Geological Society hosted a field trip to Damon Mound this Sunday - a salt dome with a Miocene reef draped over it.

Lots of dragonflies were flying around the pond that sits over the dome.

Spinach souffle'

The Barefoot Condessa swears by her souffle' - perfect every time! I plan to try it this week.

SPINACH AND CHEDDAR SOUFFLÉ by Ina Garten
Serves 2 to 3

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing the dish
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for sprinkling
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup scalded milk
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
1/2 cup grated aged Cheddar cheese, lightly packed
1 package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
5 extra-large egg whites, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter the inside of one 6-to-8-cup soufflé dish (6 1/2 to 7 1/2 inches in diameter x 3 1/2 inches deep) and sprinkle evenly with Parmesan.

2. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. With a wooden spoon, stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Off the heat, whisk in the hot milk, nutmeg, cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, for one minute, until smooth and thick.

3. Off the heat, but while still hot, mix in the egg yolks. Stir in the Cheddar, the Parmesan, and the spinach, and transfer to a large mixing bowl.

4. Put the egg whites, cream of tartar, and a pinch of salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on low speed for one minute, on medium speed for one minute, then finally on high speed until firm, glossy peaks are formed.

5. Whisk one-quarter of the egg whites into the cheese sauce to lighten, and then fold in the rest. Pour into the prepared soufflé dish, then smooth the top. Draw a large circle on top with the spatula (it helps the souffle rise evenly) and place in the middle of the oven. Turn the temperature down to 375 degrees. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes (don't peek!) until puffed and brown. Serve immediately.

NOTE: To make in advance, prepare the recipe through Step 3 (adding the cheeses). You can do this up to 2 hours ahead. Keep mixture covered at room temperature, and then proceed with the recipe just before baking.

Published in House Beautiful, August 2009.

Botanicals

A fun-filled Saturday

Pool party at 8am... yes, 8am on a Saturday...OK here we go. Bagels at 10am. Art class at 11am. Shopping for ballet at 12:30pm. A stop at home for Daniel's afternoon nap at 2pm. Making a pink head-band and a dress while Daniel napped - the sewing machine came out of the closet after years collecting dust. Daniel's up at 4pm and we're on to hanging out at home - crayons, computer games, magnets, Kid K'nex blocks. Dinner with Daddy at 7:30pm - Vietnamese? No! McDonald's... and now we're going to start our going-to-bed routine - settle down, milk, brush teeth, floss, read book, lights off.

Highlights of the day

- Kaila spent the day in her new ballet leotard. She tried it on at the store and fell in love with it. She didn't even take it off for the register. The salesperson just cut the tag and rang it up. Her tap shoes were on and off her feet several times this afternoon, too.

- Daniel made several K'nex figures, or as I call them, little monsters, all by himself! As Kaila says, "zero help". He was mighty proud of his monsters, too.

- Daddy: "Kaila, did you have fun at the party this morning?"
. Kaila: "More fun than I've had ever!"
I guess the water slides were more of a hit than I thought...

Hydrangeas everywhere

I've been seeing hydrangeas everywhere these past months. They were growing wild in Kauai and the Big Island.

The August House Beautiful had several of their spreads with hydrangeas. Every spread in July-August Veranda had hydrangeas in it.

I love them. My Mom loves to have them around the house, too. A little taste of home.

Den10Studio has a beautiful hydrangea print in her etsy shop.

Snap Snap

Since last week Kaila has had one thing in her mind, being able to snap her fingers. She has been practicing it non-stop. Yesterday, she finally got some sound to come out of her snap. She was the happiest kid on the block.

"Mommy, can you hear it? I don't even have to put it near your ear anymore!!"

2009 High Winds - it's starting...

A satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration at 3:15 a.m. EDT shows Tropical Storm Claudette as it comes ashore in the Florida Panhandle Monday Aug. 17, 2009. It is the first named storm to hit the U.S. mainland this year.(AP Photo/NOAA)

Over the Atlantic, Hurricane Bill formed early Monday. The storm had maximum sustained winds near 75 mph that were expected to gain speed and top 110 mph, the threshold for a major hurricane.

"We do believe (Bill) could become a major hurricane during the next couple of days," said Daniel Brown, a hurricane specialist for the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Bill was centered about 1,160 miles east of the Lesser Antilles and moving west-northwest at 22 mph. The five-day forecast shows the storm passing northeast of Puerto Rico and heading toward Bermuda.

By MELISSA NELSON, AP

Kaila's Lion

In keeping with the big cats theme for the week, Kaila chose to draw a lion on Wednesday evening.

Summer cleaning

Today Kaila and I succeeded in cleaning out her closet. Our next task is to find a new home for all the things we no longer need...

Are we there yet?

Sunday Daniel was running around the house asking

"Are we there yet? Are we there yet?"

I never quite figured out where he was going!

When Is My Birthday?

July is a "popular" birthday month in Kaila's class. She is a few months off from the cluster, so her party seems to be always very far away from everyone else... this is her drawing a week before Catherine's party.

Missing the Beach

The sun, the clouds, the rainbow; the beach in yellow, brown & green, the ocean, the wave and the birds in the sky.

Kaila's free drawing at home.

Kaila made me this beautiful tiger drawing tonight before going to bed. Her "model" was a picture of a tiger from the Animal Encyclopedia.

"It's for you, Mommy!"

Hawaii

Specks in the middle of the Pacific, that's the feeling you get when you fly over the archipelago of Hawaii. As you land and explore you quickly realize the uniqueness of each one of islands.

We spent 2 weeks enjoying all the sites, sights and sounds of this incredible place. The kids were delighted to have the beach just minutes away, Mommy, Daddy & GrandPa's undivided attention, and many airplanes rides. Our adventures took us to Oahu for 3 days, to Maui for another 3, to the Big Island for 4 and to Kauai for the last 5 days.