Give me Liberty or give me DEATH!

That reminds me of Eddie Izzards bit about "Cake or Death". Check it out. It's funny, and the rest of this post isn't, so laugh now, because I'm about to steal your soul... just kidding. Not really...

Ok, but sadly that has nothing to do with the last few days which have been scarier than Mr. Toads Wild Ride. As some of you know I threw my back out last week. It was awful, and I feel pretty crummy still. Although much better than Tuesday when moving one millimeter caused me to cry buckets of salty tears.  The whole thing has been a wake up call for me in a sense. I have the good fortune of an efficient metabolism and an almost adolescent sense of immortality. So I've survived thus far, chugging soy lattes, while eating handfuls of dark chocolate m&ms, as dessert for the twice  weekly(sometimes more) pizza, or on most days, in&out burgers that have become the main stays of my diet.


My diet in the last few years, has deteriorated to the point where, I no longer recognize meals as something I want, but rather a method of supplying calories in a hurry. I used to LOVE food. I still love food. I MISS food. I used to eat things like cucumbers, and you know lettuce. I ate sushi, and tons of fruit. I'm not blaming Nipper Knapp, because it takes two, and god knows I loves me some pizza, but I had never had an in&out burger before I met him. In fairness, I was eating $20 chopped broccoli green apple and blackened chicken salads from café midi every day when I met him, so that wasn't really a great plan either. But in the last few years, I've found less and less time to eat the foods I like. I've also made lots and lots of excuses for why I can't/won't/don't work out. "I don't need to", "I don't want to", "you can't make me"...


SO this is the second time in the last year my back has seized up like this. My md gave me flexeril and 800mg advil. The drugs made me sleep but did not ease the pain at all. After 5 days of suffering I went to my acupuncturist. She is a miracle worker! She advised me to take magnesium for my muscles, and you know, exercise, and stop stressing. Genius. I felt better immediately after seeing her. I'm still super stiff, I'm walking like the hobbit, but I can walk. So...

you can't hide from me pussycat...

You know you can't tell me anything. I can't even tell me anything. I try sometimes, but then I'm all "shut up! You're not the boss of me!" But I'm going to pretend like this is some kind of incentive program. Like, you eat a salad, and you get to wear pants without shame. You get up earlier, and make oatmeal, you don't have a heart attack at 50. You go to the gym, you get to think about how you aren't going to be crawling the bathroom at the age of 35 because your core muscles are weak, and your blood is made up of 2 parts starbucks, 2 parts Chanel No5. Who do I think I am?!


I would also like say that Nipper did something for me that is in my opinion the sexiest thing he's ever done in nearly 6 years of marriage. NO! Not THAT! Ladies! What kind of blog do you think this is? He saw that I was unable to make my morning latte of Francis, dear Francis. This thing has all kinds of switches, and levers, and unexplained knobs. It's not like an American machine with a little coffee cup icon and a little steam icon, so that you can send your kid in there to make it. It's Italian. It's temperamental. It's a mystery! But Nipper Knapp figured it out. He did it without the little online tutorial, which I had to watch like seven times before I made my first cup. He made my latte every morning this week, and brought it to me on the couch. Swoon.


For this I will forgive him for getting better looking than me every day, and for introducing me to double double animal style. Look it up you dirty birds...


Oh, wait, I never got to the Liberty part of this post! I'll be back tomorrow with a full accounting of my adventures at EVERY Target in La Quinta, Palm Springs, and Palm Desert on the hunt for Liberty of London stuff. Let's just say it involved, late night reconnaissance, a walker, and an escape vehicle. Just kidding. Not really.  Ok here's one little sneak peak from ONE of the Target's:

These are a few of my favorite things

I've had a headache for two days straight which is probably related to the massive amount of sludge that is coming out of my nose. I'm pretending it's not happening. I do not have a cold. To help pretend I'm not sick I thought I'd share a few things that are making me happy this week. 

First things first. The weather. While the rest of the country suffers through winter, we are enjoying 78 and sunny. And not just any kind of sunny. That crystal blue dreamy sunny that makes you happy to be alive kind of sunny. Sunday morning Jack and I got up early and drove to the beach, where we played in a monster, went for a stroll, watched helicopters zoom up and down the coast, tried to figure out how to build a sand castle with no buckets (thus the giant nipply breast made of sand in the foreground) and had an all around great valentines morning.

Next up: Cherry Pop! Sadie and I found this new color nail polish by Essie at Larchmont Beauty. It's just a tiny hint of blush on your nails. I'm kind of over my usual finger polish color which is "Sugar Daddy". As much as I like asking for it by name, I've decided it's boring, and makes me look like a mom. Ssshhh. 

How unbelievably cute is this little tray?! It's from IKEA, and it was $6. I know! I hate going to places like Ikea and Target with Nipper because he makes me feel so rushed, and is always asking stupid questions like "What do we need that for?". Ugh! I went to both places with him yesterday and it was like torture. 

I did manage to squeeze one more cute thing out of that visit. I found this perfect strawberry milkshake colored tumbler that I'm going to use for my morning latte. I think she and Francis are in love... Oh, and it was $2. 

Doesn't this look like Wes Anderson designed it?

I'm signed up for all these online sample sale websites. Hautelook, and DailyCandy, and TheMiniSocial. But my favorite one because it has an iphone app is Gilt Groupe. It's also my favorite because sometimes they have $18,000 Valentino gowns, and $7000 pearl necklaces that SELL OUT. It fills me with wonder that there are women out there who would buy something that expensive sight unseen from a "no returns" website. Who are these people? Why are they on this site? Do they brag to their friends the same way I do about my $2 ikea cup? "Oh yeah, well I saved $12,000 on a this season Alexander McQueen". Or do they hide it and pretend like they bought it at the showroom. Do they ever think or talk about money? The world may never know. Long story short, I bought this pretty tin of MarieBelle iced aztec hot chocolate for $12. It's usually $20. Maybe I'll lie to myself and pretend I paid full price for it. What a bargain. When I'm done with the cocoa, I'll use the tin to hold something pretty in my new office. 

I know it's kind of cheating, but I bought these for myself on February 13th at Trader Joe's. They smell SO good, and it feels like spring around here. The place was mobbed and I was trying to do our grocery shopping. Nipper and I don't really do anything for Valentines day. I don't think either one of us thinks of it as a real holiday. So this guy was behind me in line with some flowers that I wanted to tell him were NOT the ones his wife was hoping for, said he wished his wife would get her own flowers on Valentines day. I thought "after she sees those, she's going to wish the same." For the record, Nipper Knapp knows what kind of flowers I like, and has NEVER brought me a mixed bouquet with babies breath or other forbidden fillers. 

yes those ARE naked Barbie feet sticking out of my sewing box. 

This is making me VERY happy. At our sewing class a few weeks ago, Betty suggested these scissors. I had an old pair of sewing scissors, but I had used them to cut everything from paper to, wait for it, my lilac bush. So I figured it was time to invest in a pair that would be dedicated to only fabric. They are made by Gingher and they are dreamy, and have already made sewing so much easier! Before when I would cut the fabric out for a pattern it would be all jagged and messy. Now it's like I know what I'm doing. I also got this handy thread holder. Which brings me to the last thing that is making me happy this week. It's a combo dealie.

Some of my favorite fabrics finally all in one place where I can see them all

Candy jars from our wedding filled with all my buttons

The beginning stages of my first project in the pink man cave! Check out the vintage Heather Ross "Pool Party" fabric I unearthed when I got all my fabric together in one place! Treasure! In tiny letters in some of the pools it says "SHARK!". 

The pink man cave/my office is almost finished. I'm not posting pics yet, because I'm waiting for the rug to come from overstock.com (did you know they ship ANYTHING FOR $2.95?), the skylight to go in, my box of papers to be put away, oh and for Roberto to remove the second story WINDOW, and pull the 300lb sleeper sofa, (that we promised we'd sell with the house) through it, lower it down from the roof and bring it in here. No big deal. But it's done enough for me work on things, and I'm LOVING it. Finally, I have a place to put everything. All of my fabric is in one place. All of my thread, and yarn, and beads, and buttons, and embroidery floss, and patterns, and glue sticks. I kind of feel like the luckiest girl in the world.

ok, one teeny tiny sneaky peaky.... This is one part of the very unfinished room. Don't worry, that water heater is getting hidden behind something very very pretty...

Also the front loading washer that I always wanted before we owned a house is in here. I find it soothing to start a load of laundry before I start sewing, just to watch it wash, and listen to it suds. I call it the sin eater. What's that sound? Oh it's fine, you just heard my bra burning, war protesting, supreme court ruling mother, vomit, and then shake me like a baby. Love you!

Jack's new bed with curtains that I sewed with my own two hands, on the window behind

I MADE THOSE!!!!!!

I was actually able to make the curtains for Jack's new room (our old office) in ONE day. This is progress. As you know, it usually takes me 3-6 months to do anything. Oh, and Nipper put Jack's bed, that's been in a box in the garage for two months together. He's been sleeping in it for two nights just like a big boy. I thought the transition from crib to bed was going to be this big momentous thing. He just crawled right in and crashed. Even waited until his monkey alarm "Boo" woke up at 7, to shout for us. I'm not sure he understands that he can walk right out of his room yet. I'm sure that day is coming.

So there it is. My nose is still running, and I ran into the rain barrel pulling into the driveway this afternoon, and knocked the spigot off, sending a weeks worth of bath water gushing down the drive. Not my finest moment. Did I mention I need to make a 7 layer Minnie Mouse cake by Saturday? 

Sigh... swoon... glug, glug, glug...

It's like Steve Jobs and Lorca had a baby, and that baby is this company. From the Francis Francis manual:

It should be pronunced the way a mother, lovely disturbed by finding her little child hands and mouth black of stolen chocolate, would say: “Fraaaanicis Fraaaancis!” her right hand straight moving like a saw, an expression she would like to be serious but is defenitely unable to hold the overwhelming smile that will turn this little tragedy into a kiss. Because this, is Francis Francis!. It’s the child within ourselves that we constantly love, the child that make us smile, laugh, enjoy. So, if someone asked himself what’s that child in the brand name, it’s just the best part of all of us. And Francis Francis! - with all his products - just wants to express this little childish sympathy, able to let you smile even when you think you are not in the mood.

Or maybe it means that this freaky old fashioned euro machine is going to try your patience like only a naughty toddler can. Either way, I love it. 

Francis Francis... almost.

My good friend Allie embroidered this tea towel for me Christmas. She knew I wanted the Francis Francis espresso machine and I'm prolly never going to find it. It's perfect and I love it! Also, when we were talking to Jack about the cookie party the day after, and asking him which of his friends he liked playing with the most, he said "Josh and Allie". They are 26. Perfect.

Oh and our friend Kathy, mother of the adorable Bea, brought me the flowers in the picture. If I was a bouquet that might be me. And all those clementines are from the Smacksy lady, who turns out to be a neighbor of mine (sort of, in an LA kind of way).

Feeling kind of loved this Christmas. Just sayin...

je suis desolé...

Years ago, before I met Nipper I saw this Francis Francis espresso machine at sur la table. It was jadite green and it matched the rest of my kitchen appliances. But it was $450, way out of my price range, and so I would just visit it whenever I was at the store. They discontinued the color, and over the years I've thought about it. Those same machines now sell for $900 and they don't have the pretty green one anymore. 

My old krups machine croaked earlier this year, and I've been doing a sort of make-shift latte with my french press. I've switched to decaf so I told myself that it didn't really have to taste good or anything. Every morning the same sad watery cup of coffee. So on a whim, I started looking around for a jadite green Francis Francis machine. I thought maybe I could fine a used one. I couldn't even find a picture of it. It's like it never existed.

I've been looking on ebay, and googling it. Nothing. Then last night I went on craigslist and typed in Francis Francis espresso. Guess what came up? YES! I couldn't believe it. After all these years of looking, and there it was. Someone in Thousand Oaks was selling theirs and it was only $150!!!!! It was also sold. Probably the minute it went online. Damn damn damn! Why hadn't I checked craigslist sooner? I am filled with self loathing. 

If anyone sees one of these laying around in a resale shop, or I don't know, a friends kitchen, buy it, steal it, do what you have to do. You will be rewarded generously. Not really. But now that I've come this close to having it, I'm obsessed. Sorry Nipper.