This recipe for orange cake was inspired by a favorite poem of mine by Cathy Song called “The White Porch.” ~Orange Cake~ 1 (18 oz) box yellow cake mix 1 (3 oz) package instant lemon pudding mix 3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice 1/2 cup canola oil 4 eggs 1 teaspoon lemon zest 1 teaspoon…
~ ~ ~ The Spirit of Scent~The Proust Effect ~ ~ ~ From the book “Welcome Home” by Melissa Placzek ~page 96~ “But when from a long-distant past nothing subsists, after the people are dead, after the things are broken and scattered, taste and smell alone, more fragile but more enduring, more immaterial, more persistent,…
My favorite steampunk artist. Daniel Dociu. I have yet to see another artist with such an amazing vision for the steampunk aesthetic. more Daniel Dociu art interview with Daniel Can’t wait to see what he creates next! ~Melissa
“Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.” ~Etty Hillesum Last night, after everyone else was in bed, I lit a candle and played an Edith Piaf CD while I read my new “Food & Wine” magazine and sipped my favorite chamomile lavender tea. (Have…
“During the last quarter of the nineteenth century, decorative surface embroidery on practical household linens came into vogue in America.” From the book Red & White American Redwork Quilts by Deborah Harding My hubby gave me a boxed set of redwork books for Valentine’s Day a few years back. I’ve been interested in embroidery and…
“The dearest spot on Earth to me is home, sweet home.” ~W.T. Wrighton Today we… had jelly doughnuts and rosepetal tea for breakfast went for a walk with Andie and Madeline May did some reading and writing and I watched Husband make barbecue magic happen in our kitchen and listened to the bees buzz and…
“Reading makes immigrants of us all. It takes us away from home, but more important, it finds homes for us everywhere.” Hazel Rochman I love to travel to new places. It’s one of my favorite things to do. But, sometimes we just take a vacation at home, which is lovely in it’s own way. When…
I should say…this is my favorite steampunk movie because of how it looks. I am not a fan of Phil Pullman, or his philosophy. There are so many beautiful steampunk details in the movie based on his book, The Golden Compass, that I do have to watch it every now and then. And OH MY…the…
“Plants cry their gratitude for the sun in green joy.” ~Astrid Alauda For my birthday, my dear friend Nancy surprised me with a day trip to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum for formal afternoon tea! We arrived a couple hours prior to tea time so we could tour the many, many beautiful gardens. It was such…
“I was thrilled to sit at one of the tables where the master had eaten his lunch and dinner. I was aware that he had been everywhere in this room.” ~Alexandra Stoddard Gracious Living in a New World This is one of my favorite cookbooks. I love using recipes from books that add meaning to…