Friday Things
1. A seasonal photo of Duke… with pumpkins! He turned 3 months old this past Monday and is getting big! … and ornery… and too smart for his own good. He’s also extremely sweet and beyond excited to see you if it’s been more than 30 minutes since you’ve been in the same room as him. Yin and yang ;-)
2. We had our wedding reception party on Saturday and it was fabulous! Our dining room table is still flooded with leftover cookies, and of course I’m craving chocolate chip cookies… which we don’t have. Looks like I’m going to be doing some baking today!
3. Yesterday marked two years that my grandma has been gone. I miss her every single day, and even more on days that I spend in the kitchen. I shared this photo of her on Facebook yesterday – it’s an old picture of her sitting in her kitchen making gnocchi, and it’s just the perfect photo of her:
4. Before my grandma passed away, she passed along her beloved dough board (pictured above) to me. My mom and I spent some time refinishing it (I documented the process here), and I cherish it so much.
5. I have been loving our new treadmill. It was such a great investment; it’s so easy to just hop downstairs and get a workout in. I’ve been playing around with some different walking workouts to keep from getting bored; if you know of any, feel free to send them my way! I’ve found that a fairly high incline at a slower-than-normal pace has been the hardest so far!
6. Is anyone still doing monthly photo challenges? If so, here is an October version from Fat Mum Slim:
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7. Last night, my Chief Culinary Consultant and I went to the Pittsburgh Penguins’ home opener. It was awesome to feel the chill of the arena and the sound of the goal horn again. If you’re a hockey fan, you’ll appreciate this op-ed that appeared in a local newspaper a few years ago (don’t worry, it’s not about a specific team, just hockey in general): There’s Still Something About Hockey.
8. I mentioned last week that I was going to be getting some new appliances installed this week. They are here and I am in love! I’ll be giving you a proper tour of the kitchen soon, but here is a sneak peek of my new goodies:
9. I went to Target this week and was overcome by the Halloween candy. I made impromptu purchases of Reese’s Pieces, Halloween-colored peanut butter M&M’s, candy corn, and some new hot chocolate. I’m officially ready for October.
10. TGIF! Here’s to cozy nights in front of the fireplace!
It’s so hard missing grandparents. I’m sure your grandma was a great lady. My granny has been gone six years now and I still miss her everyday.
Aww…your baby puppy is getting so BIG, Michelle! So glad you were able to get some good snaps when he was smaller. He’s going to grow into such a gorgeous dog! (Going to pin his photo to my Autumn Splendor board at Pinterest.) What a wonderful post about your Grandma and her pastry board. And, whoa! Gorg side-by-side ovens there! I. DIE. And, yes…there’s IS still something about hockey! Happy Fall baking, m’lady! xo
The pic of your gramma totally reminds me of my gramma. Same apron, dress etc…Great memories! I’m a trainer and for a great treadmill work out, I have my clients do high intensity drills. You can do these on an eliptical or bike, too. Stick with a steady pace then up the resistance and speed as high as you can take it for 20 seconds then recover for a few minutes and repeat. These are great drills and help you build endurance and torch calories. You should be working so hard that you feel you can’t have a conversation. Studies show that high intensity interval training for 20 minutes burns more fat and calories than a steady 45 minute workout. Enjoy!! By the way, I’m making cinnamon babka today :)
How wonderful, to inherit your grandma’s dough board. I used to have a bunch of my grandma’s kitchen things, but couldn’t bring them with me when I moved to Australia. I did keep her bottle opener, though, which has little pictures of a waffle iron, toaster, etc. I wish I still had her rolling pin and milk glass bowl, which was perfect for pancake batter.
I’m super jealous of your gorgeous stove and dual ovens! How awesome! Happy for you. :)
I cannot wait to see a peek into your kitchen! Looking swoon worthy already! Also the photo of your grandma is beautiful. :)
Wow! Duke is adorable with that fat pumpkin! And I’m sorry about your grandma…I love mine so much too <3
Duke has gotten so big!! And i just checked out your dough board renovation post – what a transformation!
Grandmas are so universal… my Jewish grandmother looked nothing like yours, but somehow that picture of your grandmother working her craft in the kitchen brought back so many good memories… I miss mine too! Thanks for reminding me about the good times
Looks like Duke is thinking, “What the hell. I’ll stand next to this pumpkin.” LOL I love your dogs! They’re beautiful! Thank you for making me smile! You and the dogs are blessing! It seems like you know when we’re in need of a smile.
Your puppies are adorable! I’m new to your blog, so I was just wondering if they are both Golden Retrievers? So sweet and innocent looking, but I’m sure they rock your house! ;-)
Your new ovens and stovetop are amazing too! Going to be a lot of baking going on there!!
Hi Nancy, Yes, they are both Golden Retrievers :) You’re right – they have such sweet faces, but they DO rock our house, it’s like a circus here ;-)
Not sure what I love more – the puppy picture or the new appliances! :)
Michelle,
Love the puppy pics – keep ’em coming. The appliances look terrific. I have a few things my Grandmother had and I cherish them too. Although I don’t have such a lovely and large dough board.
Annamaria
That photo tease of your kitchen is already making me jealous. I am looking forward to a full post.