Date Night

Last Friday night, Matt and I went out to eat! I even brought my camera to document the experience. We had dinner at this cozy little French place in Palo Alto: Cafe Brioche. My favorite part was the dessert - a chocolate souffle topped with vanilla ice cream. It was perfectly molten and gooey on the inside, but not too heavy. Yum.

Summer is Here!

Look at those edible toes touching the cool blue water for the first time this summer - here's to good times ahead.

Grandma Jo-Jo Comes to Town

We have had the wonderful privilege of having Grandma Jo-Jo visit us these last couple weeks. She loves to throw parties and she and Emmy threw a delightful tea party for Emmy and a few friends. They made tiny cupcakes, tiny fruit tarts, and tiny sandwiches. The girls dressed up in their finery, made jewelry, and enjoyed eating as many cupcakes and sipping as much "tea" (raspberry lemonade) as they wanted - all with their very best manners, of course.

We also went to Gilroy Gardens. Not only was it nice to enjoy the beautiful flowers and landscaping, but we loved living vicariously through Emmy and Sophie's excitement. Emmy is getting old enough to be concerned about rides being too fast, so she would say, "That ride was the fastest ride in all the land," or "This ride is the slowest one in all the land." I guess she's been reading a lot of fairy tales lately . . .

Anyway, we'll miss Jo-Jo, who is always so thoughtful and fun. Emmy and Sophie definitely delight in all of the extra attention and love she gives them.

29 Years - What to do before the big 3-0

I figured that since I'm now 29 years and two months old, I better write this list, otherwise the months will fly by and 29 will be gone. I admit that this is a blog-entry because I have a request for all of my fans. (You know who you are, and I appreciate you!) I want to know what YOU think I should do before I turn 30. I'm open to your suggestions.

Here is my list for now:

Take a photography class
Go on a trip with my husband sans children
Find a good chiropractor
Run the Moonlight Run in October
Watch the sunset
Go to an art museum in San Francisco (Moma or De Young)
Make music

And that is all I can think of for now. It is past ten o'clock and my brain has turned to jello. This is a condition that I've suffered from since I was a child. My dad gave me this diagnosis during one late night of studying when I was a young girl. And you know, I've found throughout the years, he's right. Jello-brain after ten.

Good-night.



Happy Birthday to me in my new headband - what a cute gift from a dear friend.

The de Jong Curse

What is the de Jong curse, you ask? Well, let me tell you. The de Jong curse is not to be confused with the "Dickson Curse" - which is the curse of losing important objects (such as keys) a little too frequently. (Dickson is my mother's maiden name, and yes, I suffer from this terrible curse).

The de Jong curse is the curse of being out of sync with the weather, especially during vacations. I live in Palo Alto. We have wonderful weather almost all of the time. This is why people live in tiny, old, dumpy two-bedroom apartments. But, I digress. That is another blog post entirely. My point is, that whenever my parents come to visit, the weather does not cooperate. This past April, my parents, aka, Nannie and Opa, came to visit us. The weeks prior to their visit, we had been enjoying warm weather. We were wearing our summer clothes. We were reveling in it all. In fact, the day they arrived on the airplane, it was balmy, beautiful, and blue outside. But the very next day, the weather changed. The temperature dropped from the 80s to the upper 50s-low 60s. The sky was gray, the wind blew hard, and the rain came down for the whole week. The whole week, that is, until the morning that they went back to Cincinnati. On that morning, we woke up to sunshine, and after dropping them off at the airport, went to an Easter Egg hunt at the park where we enjoyed warmer temperatures again.

Does that not seem a little bit strange?

I will happily report, though, that despite the uncooperative weather, we had a wonderful time and we mourned the day when Nannie and Opa went home.

The happy day of arrival


A day we decided to brave the beach at Capitola - that is my mom laying down, huddled in a blanket, trying to stay warm.

Sisterly Love

If Emmy had her way, she and Sophie would hug like this every day. But Emmy's love is usually just a little too physical for Sophie and their hugs usually end up in tears. This afternoon, Sophie was in a lovey kind of mood and the two of them were just hugging and laughing and having the time of their life. Sometimes, its just so sweet to be a mom.

Giving Up Chocolate for Lent: A Chocolate Lover's Journey

It all began a few years ago. My friend, C, asked me if I want to join her and her friend in a challenge to not consume chocolate for the 40 days before Easter. I laughed at her. I think I said something like this: "Why would I do something like that? I'm not even addicted to chocolate. To deny myself of chocolate would be pointless. I don't have a problem, so why remove an occasional pleasure from my life?"

Fast forward through two kids and many evenings of rewarding myself with TV shows and chocolate treats and you have a person who is developing a hard and fast addiction to chocolate. So this year, when C asked me if I'd join her in her goal, I hesitatingly agreed. After all, I've never been one to deny myself of any food. "Everything in moderation" has been my creed. But, I thought it might be interesting to experiment and I agreed with two conditions: that we would still attend and indulge in the "chocolate salon" in San Francisco and that I be allowed chocolate on my birthday - both events that would be occurring before Easter. She agreed and we began.

Giving up chocolate was more difficult than I thought it would be. I never realized how many opportunities there are to enjoy it! I turned down chocolate cake at two different birthday parties. I ate around the chocolate chips in a chocolate chip cookie. I grabbed a handful of M&Ms and right before popping them in my mouth, remembered my goal and put them back in the bowl. I accidentally ate a free piece of See's chocolate - yum. I accidentally tasted a sample-size portion of a chocolate milkshake at a food storage party. And I yearned and ached for chocolate. No other dessert seemed quite as satisfying.

So there I was, struggling, craving, and trying not to think about chocolate, all with the mindset that I couldn't fail C. I kept imagining her disappointment if I were to fail her. My swearing-off-chocolate was a symbol of our friendship in a way. Each time I'd leave an event chocolate-free I'd feel proud of my self-denial. I even felt a little bit skinnier at the thought of the calories I hadn't consumed. (Not to worry though, what I didn't eat in chocolate, I made up for in freshly-ground peanut butter and vanilla ice cream!). I felt in control of my appetites, and it was a good feeling. But, not as good as the way chocolate melts on the tongue and the taste stays with you, even after you've swallowed.

Anyway, to make a long story short, one evening I was invited to C's house for a birthday party for her husband. I was really excited because I knew I'd be able to enjoy the dessert since she was sure to make one that was chocolate-free. Sure enough, she presented a beautiful fruit tart. I was ecstatic - until I learned that there was a chocolate layer. "C," I exclaimed, "What are we going to do? There is chocolate in this fruit tart!" She laughed, "Katie! Are you kidding? I gave up long ago!" I couldn't believe it! All of this time I'd been saying "no" to prove my worth to her! And she had been eating chocolate for at least a week or two. So at this point, I had a choice: do I continue to not eat chocolate until Easter's arrival to prove to myself that I could do it? Or do I cave?

For those of you who know me, it will be no surprise that I caved. Happily. The chocolate layer on that fruit tart was particularly delicious that night and I've been eating chocolate ever since.

And, I might add, I love my friend C more than ever.