Cheap Ambiance

I love having dinner parties and inviting people over.  I enjoy making it special by decorating the table and creating ambiance.  With very little storage in our home and living on a tight budget, I don't have a lot of resources for this type of thing.

The jars on the table are upcycled sauce jars and yogurt containers washed out and soaked in bleach.  The blue vase was found in our apartment upon move-in (it used to hold sparkling water).

I really like the look of the tea lights flickering in glass on the table and it helps with the lighting as well.    (And saves money on my electric bill).

We served Mexican-style food recently for a party and had the condiments in glass jars.  The jar holding the cheese used to be an ikea candle and the jars in the background holding the onions, cilantro, and limes used to hold sauce.

I started saving my jars and using them for other useful things around the house.  They store my spices, sugar, rice, bullion cubes, popcorn kernels...etc.  If I am not sure if I will recognize what's inside, I write on the jar with a dry-erase marker.  I am also hoping this prevents bugs from entering my kitchen!


I'm off to decorate a friends table for New Years Eve dinner!

Soup and Bread

I love winter.  I love the foods that go along with the season and all the festiveness that comes between Thanksgiving and Valentine's Day.  I especially love the soup and the bread.  

I tried this lentil, leek, potato soup recently and it was delicious.  (And accidentally vegan). 

So I made these popovers to go with it (they weren't vegan).

And Jeff's favorite, Spicy Italian Sausage Soup! 

With Spain's traditional: pan con tomate.

And a picture of my Christmas Tree for added festiveness.  :)

One way to warm up on a crisp fall night.

A little of this

A couple of peppers, onion and garlic

Finally, sprinkle on some cheese and add a little avocado.

The twin chefs

The twins came to cook a few weeks ago and to be honest, I was a little anxious about sharing my kitchen.  Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of not having to work to prepare a meal...but I was wondering...

'what will I do?'

'Do I offer to help?'

'Do I sit back, relax, and actually let myself enjoy their generosity?'

Jeff's advice to me was: 'Stay out of the kitchen, let them just do their thing'.

...and so I did...and oh was I glad.

The results were amazing...

...and the company was even better.

To transform eating into a spiritual exercise is to cultivate the practical conditions and habits - attention, conversation, reflection, gratitude, honest accounting - in which food and the world can be perceived to have a face.

-Norman Wirzba

Autumn

Same as last year...missing the Fall.

It's a hot and muggy day in Barcelona and no smells of apples and cinnamon or pumpkin wafting into our windows.  No brightly colored leaves outside, just concrete.  No crisp air that kisses your cheeks and turns them pink, just thick, balmy air and the occasional sewer breeze.

Last year, on October 17th, I had the same musings and nigglings when I wrote this.  I got creative; I put a fan in the window (it was a cooler day outside), put on a sweatshirt and socks, lit a pumpkin scented candle, and made some of my own Fall decorations.  I knew last October, that I would be heading back to California for part of Fall and would get the tail end of delicious smells, and crispy leaves and air.

Not this year.

I did, however, get a taste of crisp mountain air and the smells of nature in October.  For my birthday last weekend, we went to the mountains.  The leaves were just starting to change and the fresh air was magical.

I got to touch a pinecone!

I am thankful to have had a relaxing and quiet weekend with my cute husband!  I am thankful for nature and creation and cold air and babbling brooks and pinecones and trees and stars in the sky.  And now that I am back home, I realize I am thankful for the hustle and bustle of city life and for getaways that help me to appreciate each world.


I do think it's time to bake an apple pie...and light that pumpkin candle.

just some random fun

...because we have been desperate for fun since losing our pup.

our first (semi-impromptu) movie night

my cheap popcorn 'bowls'

the spread

Manuela chowing down on a teeny gummy burger

Robin, me, and Manuela out for a late night stroll

All photos courtesy of Jeff.

a new season?

Okay, well it is still Summer, hot and everything, but we are brewing up new plans for the next season (both literally and figuratively).  This city changes so much with each season and with the exception of a couple months back in the states during the winter, we are coming up on a year of watching these seasons change. 

I love the Fall and will definitely miss things from California like Apple Hill and pumpkin scented candles and having a fireplace. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to what the next few months and year have in store for us.

I'm ready to make some soups and cuddle on the couch under a blanket.  Soon enough.  But for now, we are planning some fun and exciting new gatherings and are about to head off to Portugal to connect with other co-workers and get refreshed.  After we return, we'll be hosting our first in home cinema night.  What should we call it?  'Barcelona Film Society'? 'Barcelona Cinema Club'? 'BCN Movie Nights'?  Other ideas?  We are hoping to host monthly gatherings surrounding films and art.  Can't wait!