See you in 2011

I'm off the Red Sea tomorrow morning for a week of relaxing, sightseeing and fun. I hope you all have a wonderful and safe New Year's Eve!

Colored Canyon, Egypt
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Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt
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Merry (belated) Christmas!

The mister and I had a fabulous Christmas in London. We ate so much food I'm not sure I need to eat for another couple of days. (Of course that didn't stop me from making White Chocolate-Gingerbread Blondies tonight)




sister in law's Christmas tree



our (huge) amazing turkey

Christmas crackers
cool windup reindeers that came complete with a racetrack

my Christmas present!



We played the game Logos for a few hours. It was so fun!



Engagement Presents

Two of my very dear friends got engaged last weekend. Tears streamed down my face as she told me the story of the proposal (I am such a sap). As I mentioned previously, I seemed to have reached that point in my life where everyone I know is celebrating a great milestone in their lives. I love celebrating (mostly because it involves champagne which is hands down one of my favorite drinks on the planet) and I also love giving gifts.

I have given this ring bowl several times as an engagement present (as well as purchased it for my own wedding) and I absolutely adore it. It is such a personal gift without being over the top or cheesy. I especially like that it can be included in the ceremony or simply used as a wall ornament or a ring holder (which is what I use it for).

Personalize ring bowls
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our ring bowl that I now use to hold my rings at night.
ordered off etsy from Paloma's Nest

Snowy Days in London

The weather has turned quite cold in London and after several days of snow dumping outside, all I want to do is stay inside and stay warm.



 



 

As the snow came down the other night the mister and I curled up to our HD fireplace. Since our flat lacks a real fireplace we decided to hook my laptop up to the TV and enjoy some fire-like ambiance.

 

While I've spent a good amount of time inside during December's "arctic blast", I am still longing for a winter get-away to somewhere warm. I've been searching for deals to North Africa and have come across quite a few great ones (here and here to name two). Here's hoping we can squeeze in one last trip away this year!

Individual Meatloaves

Meatloaf is one of those all-American meals that most other cultures look at in bewilderment. I know when I first introduced the mister to meatloaf at my parents house, he was nervous; didn't know what to expect.

I have never made a meatloaf mainly because of their size. I never want to eat that much meatloaf (and I've never seen a meatloaf recipe that feeds less than 4). After a fairly successful phone interview for a potential job late Friday evening, I decided to make Pink Parsley's individual meatloaves for the mister and I. We spent Friday night in, eating delicious meatloaf, having a few drinks, watching NCIS and waiting for the last of our Wedding presents to be delivered.

The mister also cooked up some of The Pioneer Woman's crash hot potatoes. I had to half Pink Parsley's recipe in order to make meatloaf for just two, but it worked out really well.

Whoopie Pies for an early Christmas lunch

Last Sunday the mister and I attended a Christmas Lunch. After spending almost all of Saturday nursing a hangover, it was good to get out of the house and eat lots of great food. My fellow Balham dweller did an unbelievable job preparing the turkey, veg and my favorite, sausage wrapped in bacon. What was even more impressive was that she had stayed out with me until the wee hours on Friday night, did it again on Saturday night (while my elderly body failed me at home) and was still able to cook an amazing lunch for 10 people! What a gal!

My contribution to the party was an east coast delicacy known as whoopie pies. As far as I know, we didn't have these in California when I was growing up. I saw a recipe for pumpkin whoopie pies over on Jamie of All Trades and they did not disappoint.

While my whoppi pies were not nearly as symmetrical or pretty, they tasted great. I didn't have any cream cheese frosting so I substituted it with vanilla frosting by Rachel Ray.

homemade whoppi pies

Mini Cupcakes

While I could easily bake mini cupcakes in my oven, I love this mini cupcake maker!

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At £24 (from John Lewis) it's not a bad price, considering a mini cupcake tin would cost about £10 and the mini cupcake maker is slightly more convenient. But alas, my kitchen is still running on full after the arrival of our wedding presents. Speaking of wedding presents, I still need to put my Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery cookbook to use.

Friends who have everything under £40

I think we all have them, the friend who owns everything they could possibly want or need under £40. I'm sure they'd love us to get them a Chanel 2.55 or some stunning Stella McCartney intimates but unless you're also the type that rejoiced and yelled 'finally!' when they installed gold bar vending machines in a Dubai hotel, then those types of gifts are out of the question. We, as friends, are stuck every year (twice a year if you exchange birthday presents as well - ah!) trying to think of creative and inventive gifts that aren't totally lame. A few years ago I gave a pizza stone and a silicon baking mat to a girl who loves her crock pot and doesn't really bake (read: big strike out).

I have a few people on my list this year who until a few days ago have completely stumped me. That is until I saw these adorable finger puppets by abbeychristine on Etsy.

I have a few fanatical 'This American Life' friends who would go bonkers over this Ira Glass finger puppet. I was also thinking you could probably easily string him up on your tree as well. Something only a fellow fanatic would think of. 

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You can also buy Joan Holloway, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and even dear old Martha (ankle tracking device not included). There really is a character for everyone!

Rolling Pin Longing

As we all know, you don't actually need a rolling pin to roll out dough. But, that doesn't mean that I haven't found an over priced and oh so pretty rolling pin that I want.

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This weekend I baked sugar cookies for the White Elephant Christmas Party I threw at my flat. I had used a cup as a makeshift rolling pin to make gingerbread men for my previous weeks party and here I found myself again with my glass cup, dough stuck all the way around, yearning for this cute 'made it england' rolling pin. 

rolling out some sugar cookies

Since I so rarely roll out dough, I'll probably just stick with my ghetto pin, but might look for something in my house that is slightly longer.

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree...

...you're definitely leaning slightly to the right. This last weekend the mister hauled our Christmas tree up the hill and while he watched rugby, I decorated it with a few things I picked up from John Lewis and the ornaments we had from last year. I love the crackled glass ball lights; they make the tree so bright.


Even though Christmas trees don't smell of pine over here, there still is something so magical about having a real tree at Christmas time. I can't wait until we have a place big enough for a legit 9-footer.

john lewis crackled glass lights

'out first christmas'
gifted ornament in the center of the tree

Junior Mints

"Who's gonna turn down a Junior Mint? It's chocolate, it's peppermint -- it's delicious!" Kramer, Seinfeld.

It's so true! And what's sounds even more delicious? Peppermint Crunch edition of Junior Mints. I haven't tried them yet and unfortunately it doesn't look like CyberCandy has any, but I'm still looking.

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While I'm not as excited about this other Junior Mint find, I did feel like I had to share it because well, it's a little bizarre. Junior Mint Cologne Spray (or as the mister so fondly referred to it: a sure way to repel women - he hates peppermint).

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A holiday party dress

The holiday parties I'm attending this year are quite casual. It's really a shame because I've found a fabulous party dress. I love the draping that seems to be so popular this season and I love it even more paired with a well fitted blazer.

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Functional vs Beautiful

I tend to err on the side of function and inexpensive when it comes to accessories, case in point, my current laptop case. But every now and again something crosses my computer screen or catches my eye in a store and I can't help but lust over it. No, I don't need this £100 laptop case, but I sure do want it. Liberty is marketing it for Mac users but my pretty gold Vaio would certainly fit.

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A holiday drink

The most popular holiday drinks are of course mulled wine and egg nog, but after seeing this granita-like refreshment in the New York Times dining section, I am definitely adding it to my holiday drink rotation. I think the fact that it has a splash of prosecco means I could be drinking this year round.

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Baby shower gift

It seems that I have come to that age where everyone I know is celebrating an engagement, a wedding or a baby. While at home in California last month I decided to buy a few baby shower presents, mostly because the selection and the pricing in the states is so much better than the UK. Land of Nod has an absolutely adorable selection and if you shop around you can find some really decently priced items. I bought 3 of these baby print kits, which I think are a great keepsake as well as reasonably priced and easy to ship.

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Christmas list potentials

I am starting to put together a Christmas list for my family and one of the things sitting right at the top is the Bobble water bottle. The filter is inside the bottle, which makes this absolutely perfect for the eco-conscience person on the go. The filter only needs to be replaced every 2 months or so making it even more attractive.

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I have also been eyeing up the Reebok EasyTone shoes. I need some new sneakers and honestly I am willing to try anything that claims to tone your backside by just going about your regular day.

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And finally on to a few things that aren't related to fitness and health. I am finally going to jump on the bandwagon and give Touche Eclat a go. I have heard good things and Christmas is the perfect time to ask for things that you wouldn't normally splurge on.

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And finally, a few new nail polish colors to keep the winter interesting. I am loving the new colors that are part of the burlesque line at OPI. It's hard to choose with so many cool colors and sparkles!

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I'm hoping to put together a gift guide for others as well. Stay tuned!