A little bit from life around here

i know that everyone says it and it's not any breaking news - time really flies, and i am rather bitter sweet about it.  

this winter has been a challenge ( ask anyone who lives around here - i mean, we had more snow days then sun days, more cold then ever , and blah-blah-blah, i won't bore you. but it IS a sore spot for me ( it's probably the winter blues! ha!)  we moved here for WARM winters with SOME snow) , but there is always a bright side to any dark ( or snowy ) spot. the weather + the pregnancy sickness forced me to cut down on my busy dancing schedule , and made us stay in on many days. while on one hand, lack of my usual "x" hours in a studio is killing me sometimes ( can i just say that saying "no" to performing over christmas was one of the most difficult things for me... first time in nearly 20 years i was not on stage in december. talk about nearly depressed)  but it would be so wrong to say i didn't love discovering the other side of it.  i love those moments where i just sat and marveled at my little baby girl-turn-toddler person, and all the kids, and life in general.

 i can't say that i have that "absolute favorite" age that many talk about ( i am sure when we hit teen stage i may change my mind )  every day and every age has something in it that every time i think "oh, it's my favorite time" ( like this one)  and then the next day/month/year i think the same. i can't wait to have another newborn in my arms, but at the same time i can't wait to have more adult-like conversations and do more science experiments and spend more sleepless nights looking at the moon through the mega-telescope with my, to-be-TEN this year, son. and then i get the privilege of having to re-dress a certain doll 100 times a day, and do those first grader reading practices with the mentioned first grader in my lap. i can't say i wish for the time to stop, because i really don't - there is so much to look forward to, but i do wish to keep these moments in my heart forever.

  

well, enough of deep talking. look at these two little faces. i can't help it but smile every time - how can you not? 

 

^^ i get regular help in the kitchen. that towel is 'hers" and travels e-v-e-r-y-where ^^

 

^^ the answer to the question "what are you doing?" is always : " nah-siin" ( translation : most likely trouble) ^^

 

^^ this is a new way for "babies" to be carried. and see what i mean about the towel? ^^

 

wishing you all great wednesday!

 

What is your Signature?

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Let's talk some fragrance.

I have always been a devotee of Carla Fracci, not so widely known but something that 
I resonated well with. You know, that "my scent". Except over the years the pruduction
 of the fragrance minimized, and it had
become more and more difficult to find the TRUE perfume, not the knock offs.

So , I have been on search for that "it" for quite a while. 

Being pregnant ( read : EXTRA fragrance sensitivity  ) puts a fun twist on it all. The moment I find  something I think I love, it takes the grand total of a 3-4 hours for me to 
start smelling those "after notes" that - unless absolutely PURE parfume -
send me into a "happy nausea land", and yet having no scent at all is 
also a no-go. I have since discovered a few versions and/or possibilities but none of them has REALLY felt like "mine" - you know what I mean? 

I think Chanel #19 may be my current favorite. And after many years of wondering why #5 was such a big deal, I gave it a try 2 years ago and understood the magic. It smells different on everyone, crazy as it may sound, it is true.  Both are beautiful scents, but I am 
craving something fresh and spring like at the moment. 

DO YOU HAVE A SIGNATURE SCENT? 
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FRAGRANCE? 
any suggestions?  

 

Saturday Morning: chocolate flourless cake

Flour-less chocolate heaven is just what the doctor ordered on a bright or gloomy Saturday morning. 

Crab your cup of tea or coffee and you are set for a weekend of happiness ( or so I think so) 

You'll need : 

 6 eggs

2/3 cup of sugar ( more if you like it sweeter. we don't)

1 cup of heavy whipping cream

2 TBSP cocoa powder ( hot chocolate will work just fine, if you don't have the other one on hand) 

1 chocolate bar , 60% or higher

1 TBSP butter

 Done easily in a few steps:

1: separate egg whites from egg yolks. 

whip the eggs gradually adding 1/2 of sugar

2: whip egg yolks with remaining sugar and add cocoa powder. 

mix well 

3. gently combine egg whites and yolks,

place in buttered baking tin

bake at 375 for about 30 min

CREAM:

bring the whipping cream to boil ( but do not boil!) 

add broken chocolate pieces

mix well until chocolate dissolves 

let cool

Slightly cool the cake, cut in two layers, thoroughly spread the cream between the layers 

and on top of the cake. Let the cake set in the fridge for at least 30 min. 

Grab some milk , tea or coffee and enjoy! 

I hope your weekend was grand and wishing you a happy Monday!

Life as my IPhone sees it

 

this week was an eventful one. feels like from friday to friday it's been a MONTH , not a week. 

when Vasilisa got sick, i thought to myself that there is nothing worse then a sick baby ( and there isn't really), until i got sick on top of it. i think nothing is worse then a sick mom AND a sick baby, because it's misery galore : neither i nor any of my girls "do" the sickness well. but at least on the bright side, it was only me and the littlest one ( i counted my lucky starts about 100 times each day. because that is NOT a typical occurrence when you have kids close in age), and once we got better the world started to look multicolored again.

which is exactly how we like it.

here are a few snaps to document our happenings throughout the week: 

 

^^ we moved here because of DRY climate and WARM winters. you can laugh now. 

(though all locals keep telling me it's not typical. i hope so) ^^

 

^^ best entertainment i had in a while. they are dancing to my "midsummer" recording.

my heart melted 100 times ^^ 

 

^^ and then i was treated to this on the day i surely thought i'd die ( fever is not my friend)

they did not plan it, but seriously for a minute or so were extremely synchronized in 

rolling around. cute bums in the air that followed made me laugh ^^

 

^^ the little belly is growing ^^

 

^^ latest craving. i decided that pregnancy is the most treacherous thing. i have ALWAYS craved

mandarins in first trimester. but never had them ready available to me in summer time. 

i was SO HAPPY that NOW i'd get to have as much as my heart desires.

except i crave STRAWBERRIES instead of mandarins. 

go figure. ^^ 

 

^^ sick little kitten on my bed. luckily, just for one day ^^

 

^^ this is what happens when mama doesn't notice that someone snatched a cookie 

from a sample table ^^

 

^^ but she balances it out well. never leaves the house without a nice stash of apples^^

 

^^ i was sewing ribbons on. she came to do the "inventory", and then spent an hour in her

happy place. i'm sensing a little dancer here ^^

 

^^ bundled up and ready to run some urgent errands. during nap time. 

counted my lucky stars again for kids that agree to nap on the go^^

WISHING YOU A WONDERFUL WEEKEND! 

Hatch Collection

 

Let's talk some "growing belly" style. 

In my previous pregnancies I somehow managed to get away without actual maternity clothing. Partially, because of extra low and stretchy pants with extra long and flow-y tops ( thanks to fashion being on my side),  partially because some of my babies came much earlier then expected, and partially because it was somewhat unreasonable for me to justify a purchase of clothing that I liked ( which was on a price-y side) that I would realistically only TRULY wear for 2, maybe 3 months.

 I was so glad to stumble over the HATCH collection some time ago. 

While simple and currently consisting of 21 pieces, it is very modern and chic. 

The best part of all - it is not made JUST for your belly : it's for before, during and after the pregnancy. Very cool in my book.

The price point is definitely of an investment one, but considering the luxurious materials ( that will wear faithfully), flattering cut and contemporary design, I can see these pieces taking a long residence in a modern woman's closet, if not permanent.  I really love flattering cuts and beautiful designs. Be funds unlimited, I'd probably get every single piece, because I could absolutely see using them all day in and day out, pregnant or not. 

 

 

WHAT DO YOU THINK? 

do you have favorite maternity wear? 

 *ps: please, note this is not a sponsored post. i am sharing my thoughts and findings as i would love to have known about things like this myself earlier on. i hope you find this helpful?

Somewhere in pre-christmas time...

 

somewhere in pre-christmas eve time i took these pictures and completely forgot about them. the weather was still so kind to us with lots and lots of snow with warm enough air around us. i think this was 2 days before christmas, and it was an absolutely beautiful evening with huge, fluffy snowflakes coming down. just magical. 

 

^^ getting acquainted with the snow. they like each other ^^ 

 

^^ nothing like a nice outside fire ^^

 

^^ yeva without a snowfight would not be yeva. but then what child doesn't love it, right?^^

 

^^ she had a blast just "being a cat". go figure...^^ 

 

^^ that clock in the middle of a little square always reminds me of old time tales somehow ^^ 

 

^^ happy and snug as a bug ^^ 

 

^^ and when we had enough of the outside, we headed for some hot cider, hot chocolate and cinnamon bark. i loved that as a child, and looks like this crew is of the same opinion ^^ 

Snow fun unlimited

 

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Fun time with Papa is always great. Snow day fun with Papa is 10 times better. 

 

Because Dads know how to rock it best.

( and give mommy some very needed time to herself) 

WISHING YOU A GREAT WEDNESDAY!