Lilacs from the farmer's market

Lucky draw

Coming up on the two-week mark in the new pad, I just took a look around my living room and thought, "Wow. I live here."

The floors are crooked and there are a few little quirks but man, do we love this new place!

Lalala. New job good but busy. Moving apartments this weekend--maybe for the last time for a long time! There's a little backyard; we're so excited to garden and grill. That's all the news I can think of. Oh, I disabled comments because I was getting a lot of spam. But those of you who are real can email me if you think of something for me to write about!

xo

I'm still here

New job is good but a whirlwind of activity. I find myself working much later and reading much more in my spare time. I am, however, really enjoying it. And my favorite perk of all is that Chris's office is a mere block away. Today I felt too busy to eat and, get this, he brought me a sandwich! His special invention from a nearby deli: chicken with hummus, avocado, and jalapenos on whole grain roll. Have you ever heard of anyone more thoughtful?

Pensive, peaceful

December whirlwind. Behind on everything but on the verge of catching up. Tuesday is my last day at my job, after five and a half years. Rollercoaster of emotions: bittersweet, excited, nervous, ready. I start a new job the first Monday in the new year. Learning, growing. Much to do.

I'm looking forward to a holiday filled with family; little children waking up early on Christmas morning. People are what make the world go round.

Merry merry merry!

Turret book of the month club

Well, I had this long post written that devolved into a discussion of the book jackets, and I decided to delete it in case the author has a Google alert set up, because I don't want to hurt her feelings after I enjoyed her books so much. The jackets aren't her fault. They're very beautiful jackets, aesthetically speaking, I just think they're not very teen-friendly. What was I talking about? Oh, right. Let me come in again.

So I've been on this castle kick lately. One of my favorite books of all time is I Capture the Castle. I recently enjoyed the Australian imports A Brief History of Montmaray and its sequel, The FitzOsbornes in Exile (it isn't out in the US yet, I read an advance copy). And now the book that's at the top of my Christmas wishlist is this one:

"Starred Review. A letter posted in 1941 finally reaches its destination in 1992 with powerful repercussions for Edie Burchill, a London book editor, in this enthralling romantic thriller from Australian author Morton (The Forgotten Garden). At crumbling Milderhurst Castle live elderly twins Persephone and Seraphina and their younger half-sister, Juniper, the three eccentric spinster daughters of the late Raymond Blythe, author of The True History of the Mud Man, a children's classic Edie adores. Juniper addressed the letter to Meredith, Edie's mother, then a young teen evacuated to Milderhurst during the Blitz. Edie, who's later invited to write an introduction to a reprint of Raymond's masterpiece, visits the seedily alluring castle in search of answers. Why was her mother so shattered by the contents of a letter sent 51 years earlier? And what happened to soldier Thomas Cavill, Juniper's long-missing fiancé and Meredith's former teacher? Despite the many competing narratives, the answers will stun readers."

Congrats, Prince William

I hiked around the West Village last night in my gray heeled Oxfords that were my Parisian souvenir. I always get lots of compliments when I wear them. But I had to come to the reluctant conclusion that now that I am approaching the upper upper end of my twenties, I'm not allowed to buy shoes that aren't comfortable. I feel hobbled today. Like, I'm daydreaming about my Danskos.

In other news, I'm really excited for the holidays...Thanksgiving, three weeks of holiday sociable events, and then a week off for Christmas. Things around me may feel up in the air, but as long as you've got family, that's all that matters.

P.S. I'm sure soon-to-be Princess Kate doesn't need help with her wedding planning, but for my friends who are navigating the checklists, may I recommend East Side Bride? She tells it like it is.