Et moi je suis allee me coucher

If you feel a bit down, listen to your favorite song. If not feeling better, mark the rythm. If it doesn't work, danse. If it still doesn't work, sing. 

If not doing better, go to bed. 

I'm off.

Multitasking

The post is actually the French translation of the picture . Click it to see a bigger version.

Je ne me souviens pas du tout, mais pas du tout avoir dessiné cette voitu' de course  sur la page ou je peignais ma botte de radis.  Par contre, je me souviens très bien du petit machin haut comme 4 pommes* qui est passé derrière moi pendant que je peignais, avec l'air très concentré et un arrosoir plein. 

Je crois que j'ai dessine la voiture de la main gauche pendant que je finissais la peinture de la droite. Et que c'est comme ça que j'ai sauve le plancher, le chat, ma santé mentale, et la journée.

Yo.

* Il est grand pour son âge.

The cutest cookbook ever written

I'm delighted to share with you the best news in cookbook publishing for a very long time indeed! Random house is re-publishing the odiously forgotten Mud Pies & Other Recipes, from Marjorie Winslow, with original illustrations from Erik Blegvad. I myself own the first 1961 edition (on the picture), and it's one of my favorite books ever.

The author details no less than 42 recipes to cook in and from the garden, with staples like mud pies a la mud, and the never to be forgotten dandelion soufflé, a recipe which needs the most light hand for the utmost delicate results.

The recipes are always clear and easy to follow, with hardly more than ten lines per recipe, a simplicity only met in the best French cookbooks like la Cuisine de Mapie or the Ginette Mathiot. You can tell by reading them that the author really knows her subject, and has a long and full experience of cooking for dolls. Everybody knows how such a public is difficult to content, but believe me, it is impossible to do better.

My favorite recipe is the fried water. It's a bit on the heavy side, but with such a dish you can feed the dollies AND the flowers. As a mom and a gardener, I can't but appreciate a double duty that will save me a lot of work.

Join us in celebrating forgotten times when cooking was a game, with this delightful vintage book with exquisite illustrations. You can pre order here. I sincerely hope that it will be a great success. Unfortunately it was never translated in French, and I do regret it, because I would make the gift of this chef d'oeuvre to every little girl I know, as a very necessary complement to their culinary education. Please Random House, do translate!

Sample from the book:

Fried water

Melt one ice cube in a skillet by placing it in the sun. When melted, add 1 cup water and sauté slowly — until water is transparent. Serve small portions, because this dish is rich as well as mouth-watering.

Brilliant!

Mud Pies and Other Recipes, Marjorie Winslow and Erik Blegvad, published by Random House, ISBN: 978-1-59017-368-8 (1-59017-368-6) On Sale: October 5, 2010 Price: $15.95

Chez moi-Home

Dans la brise de mer, la voix d'un enfant qui joue, l'ombre de la treille, et mon the a la menthe qui refroidit.

 In the cool sea breeze, the voice of a child playing, the shade of the apple tree, sipping mint tea.

Art store, toy store

I can't believe it took me 20 years to get the courage to actually test the art material on the paper I use, instead of buying it and hating it at home.

J'aime bien dessiner des formes et puis faire des persos autour, c'est un peu rigide comme technique, mais ça délie l'imagination. 

Quant au masking tape, c'est du faux archi faux, j'en veux avec mes motifs à moi maintenant. Peut-être qu'en imprimant sur washi. Il faut que je tente!

A bitter lemonade

The Bu was rather sick this past few days, poor child, with a high fever in a very warm weather. He's doing much better now, so I can find a few minutes to post.  As soon as he was asleep, I rushed to finish his long forgotten quilt. It took me only 3 hours, I wish I had the time to do it before. He loves to bundle and his security blankies were far too warm to be comfy. 

He's very happy of the result and hasn't left the quilt since I gave him two days ago. He's doing a bit better now : "it's a good blankie Maman made for me". I think it's the best comment I will ever get on my poor sewing skills.  

I needed that after 2 sleepless nights!

 Le Bu a chopé une angine du tonnerre, et je me suis retrouvée avec un petit garçon qui adore s'emmitoufler, avec une grosse fièvre et pas une seule couverture potable pour le temps estival que nous avons ces derniers jours.

J'ai attendu qu'il s'endorme, alors j'ai vite réglé ma machine, sauté sur la pédale, et j'ai fini mon quilt en seulement 3 heures. C'est ni fait ni à faire, mais ça ira comme ça.

"C'est bon couverture que Maman a fait pour moi" Ça , et le fait qu'il aille beaucoup mieux, me console des deux dernières nuits sans sommeil .

Anything can happen in California

The weather is so warm today, I saw a frog coming from the Farmer's Market on a bike. 
I wonder if there's special fare for the frogs on the ferry . 

Come on. Anything can happen in Cali.

Il fait super chaud aujourd'hui. J'ai vu une grenouille faire son marche a velo. Plus rien ne m'etonne en Californie.

Poor little bunnies

No bunnies today. Photoshop keeps crashing. This is the report I sent to Adobe. I wonder if they read them?

Pas de lapin aujourd'hui, photoshop n'arrête pas de planter...Ceci est le "crash report" que j'ai envoyé à Adobe, pour aidera réparer ce qui ne va pas. Enfin aider heu on verra (si vous ne lisez pas l'anglais j'explique que Photoshop perd mes lapins et qu'on ne les retrouvera jamais et qu'ils vont mourir de tristesse) . Je n'ai aucune preuve qu'ils les reçoivent, et flute, j'ai mal écrit l'adresse pour qu'ils me répondent.