this natural shampoo smells like orange creamsicles (and it's made in Vermont!)

Like many people, I try to be eco-conscious when I can. In a place like Burlington, it's pretty easy to eat local, to find "green" cleaning products, to recycle—even compost—almost everything. Some things are still a challenge. Like finding a natural deodorant that actually works (any suggestions?). I mean, even though I want to use natural products, I still want to feel and smell pretty. (That's my vanity showing through right there.)

My latest obsession has been finding the perfect sulfate-free shampoo that doesn't make my hair feel like straw or, worse, look like a grease slick. I've tried a lot of "natural" shampoos, but not with much luck. Recently, however, a Vermont-based body care company Flourish has popped up and their products are becoming more available around town—at Healthy Living, at The Green Life. My sister Hannah gave me a bottle of their honey blossom shampoo and I'm totally obsessed and so is Col. It smells like orange creamsicle!

Tonight, they had a little sample party at the Green Life, another Burlington store obsession of mine filled to the brim with lots of tasteful, design-ey, eco-cool stuff. I went and stocked up on shampoo samples, sugar scrubs and little guest hand soaps. I am a product junky, and I would probably buy it for the nice packaging alone (yes, I know, that's very Consumer of me) but this stuff is really great! I just had to spread the word.

And have you been to the Green Life yet? If not, you should go. If not for all the crazy cute baby clothes and accessories, then for the yummy candles and wool felted Christmas tree ornaments shaped like mushrooms and gnomes.

Photo: flourishbodycare.com

two new favorite coffee spots

There are quite a few great places to get a good cuppa coffee in Burlington: the good ol stand-bys are Uncommon Grounds, Speeder & Earls, Muddy Waters, Radio Bean, even Lake Champlain Chocolates serves some really good espresso. They're all worth a try and deserving of our patronage. I love coffee so much and I love all of our coffee shops so much, I like to share the wealth and give them all some love every now and then.

If you really want some special coffee, it's worth it to go a little off the beaten path to find it. There is a wonderful little tea and coffee shop on Center Street right around the corner from Church where the army navy stored used to be called Sapa Tea & Coffee. I'm pretty sure is the only place downtown where you can get Vietnamese-style coffee: a strong brew in a demi-tasse traditionally served with sweetened condensed milk (I like it with half & half). The flavor is nutty, chocolately and smooth. They also serve madeleines (French tea cakes) which are pretty good. And the atmosphere is a welcome low-key get-away from the crazy Saturday bustle of Church Street. I went there for Mother's Day last week when my parents surprised us for tea time. I enjoyed the coffee so much, I brought Colin back today after the farmers' market. Here's my picture of the coffee and then Colin's artsy pics below.

Oh, and our second new favorite place to get coffee? Village Wine and Coffee in Shelburne. They have this cup called the Ultimo, which is a strong brew of espresso with half & half and maple syrup. It's pretty much speed in a cup and it's amazing.

girly nonsense

With our wedding now less than two months away, it's the only thing on my mind. I'm totally obsessed. Which means that if I write anything at all, it's most likely going to be wedding-related. (Sorry!) So here's an indulgent girly post:

I was never the kind of girl who fantasized about her wedding. But I did love to dress up. I used to sneak into my mother's closet and put on her wedding dress and attached the pretty opal costume brooch that her Gramsy gave her to wear on her wedding day. I didn't dream about ballgowns or white roses or limousines, but I did covet that brooch. So one day, I snagged it from my Mum's jewelry box—and I've been keeping watch over it ever since: I too will wear it on my wedding day. (Mum, I promise I'll return it afterwards!)


So now I've been searching for some earrings to match. Hannah and I were going to make some, but when we figured out that it would be cheaper to just buy them, I went straight to Etsy (of course!) and found the perfect pair of earrings from Marie Wu designs. Here they are, aren't they lovely?? At first I felt guilty about buying them, but then Hannah reasoned that I can pass these down to my daughter on her wedding day (or at least to Sapphie if I don't have a daughter). She said: It's your wedding day, afterall! And I said, You're right! And I'm so excited about these babies:

charlie's boat house

I think it's fair to say that the longer you live in a place, the more you take it for granted. The less you take advantage of all of the wonderful things that attracted you there in the first place.

So sometimes it's fun to play the tourist and do things that out-of-towners like to do.

Burlington sits on a stunning lake and there is so much to do on the waterfront, but Col and I can count on just one hand the number of times we made it down there this summer. Shame on us!

A couple of Sundays ago, we had one of those brilliant fall afternoons when the sun is still warm, but the air sits a little lighter in the atmosphere. And just about anything seems possible. Miracles can happen on those days. And miracles did happen on this one day in question, because Colin and I decided to drag our bikes out of the basement and go for a bike ride on the waterfront bike path.

I say this is a miracle, because in the 4 years that we've been together, this is the first time we've ever gone on a bike ride together. Double shame on us! (says Col)

Any-who, we set a pretty big goal, which was to ride out to the Causeway in Colchester. The Causeway is an extension of the bike path that used to be a railway track across the bay and is now just a path for bikers and runners. There's water on either side and I've always heard it's stunning, but I have never been there. Never. It's pretty far out for people who never bike. Maybe 8 or 10 miles or so out. Then 8 or 10 back.

But we did it. We rode all the way out. We took some pretty snap shots. We took lots of breaks. And we finally got to see the Causeway. My friends were right: it's absolutely stunning. And we definitely saw it in all its grandeur on that pretty September day.

Unfortunately, the novice bikers did not eat lunch and did not pack a snack and so we had to turn around as soon as we got there.

I'm not sure if we would've made it back in one piece if it weren't for Charlie's boat house that sits about half way between here and there. Charlie's is one of those places that's stuck in time. There's a loud scratchy speaker blasting old war-time melodies. A little old man (must be Charlie) and his wife sell candy bars, ice cream and soda pop out of their campy boat house shed. They ring you up on one of those old fashioned registers that dings when you push the buttons.

It's very charming and quaint. Their ramshackle boat house sits on a very special piece of property, right on the water with a westerly view. The sun was just in the right spot when we got there...

We walked in to the little shop and immediately smelled a waft of American Chop Suey from their home kitchen upstairs. Growling stomachs.

"Suppers on!" Charlie's wife yelled out, to no one in particular.

We had just enough quarters for 2 Snickers, 1 ginger ale and 1 Twizzler. Charlie's wife threw in another Twizzler.

"I don't want you guys to have to fight over it," she explained with a glimmer in her eye.

We thanked her profusely. She obviously sensed our desperation.

We sat down outside at one of the picnic tables by the water and devoured the sweets in no time. It was just enough to sustain us for the rest of the ride home.

Many days later, I'm still a little sore. But I guess what I'm saying is that if I were writing a tourist guide for Burlington, yes I would mention the bike path and the Causeway. But more than that I would mention Charlie's boat house.

But then again, would I? Some treasures are better kept a secret.

Taking a brake along the bike path:

Finally made it to the causeway, but not across it. Maybe next time:

The causeway is a dirt path; Colin practiced his skids:

The entrance at Charlie's boat house:

Eating our snacks at the picnic table:

This was on the picnic table:

from Russia with love

So, I'm getting married in the winter. In Vermont. What to wear?? I'll have my dress, of course, but bridal fabrics only go so far to keep a girl warm. So I've been searching high and low for a pretty winter wedding cover up—one that's not furry—that's not cheesy. Do you realize how difficult it is to find wedding garb that is not cheesy?

Originally I thought velvet. Some gorgeous mossy green capelet to cover my shoulders. But I say it again: Do you realize how difficult it is to find wedding garb that is not cheesy?

But by some stroke of luck yesterday I happened upon a wonderful designer on Etsy, who makes hand-felted wedding shrugs out of wool and silk. I know that might sound a little frumpy; a little country bumpkin. But let me tell you, these things are gorgeous and refined and not at all cheesy.

The designer's name is Tiana Agapcheva (Here's her wedding shop on Etsy). She's Russian and has studied architecture, which makes sense when you look at her beautiful designs.

Anywho, last night I was going gaga over this one particular design (you'll have to wait and see). And finally this morning I just had to splurge and order it. So now it's done and a package will be coming to my doorstep from Russia with love. All for me. A wonderful one-of-a-kind piece of art to wear on my wedding day. (Let's pray for snow!) And now I can just stop trawling those terrible cheesy wedding websites.

day 2 & still running

So, apparently Kev doesn't think I'm a runner anymore. I'll show you! Got home from work tonight and it was so nice out. Still, I was armed with a gazillion reasons why I should not go running: I'm tired, shouldn't overdo it on the first week, better let my legs rest, I'm hungry, I have to make dinner, go grocery shopping, vacuum the house... Yet, despite all these murmurings in my head, I decided to hit the pavement. Same hill, different street. It was hard, but I feel like my lungs and legs are already getting stronger.

After my run, I really was hungry. But I still had to go to the grocery store and get some food. So I decided to go in my running clothes (gasp!). I had a sweatshirt on, so I put the hood up so no one would recognize me. But as I was walking down the block, I saw Mary, our old landlord drive by and pull up at stop light a few yards away. I ran over and waved and yelled hello.

She was with her two awesome kids, Peter and Sarah. They were all in a bit of a fright, because their pet ferret had just been electrocuted. But they brought him to the vet and he's going to be okay. Before I could ask how on earth he was electrocuted, the light turned green and they were off.

I took my sweet time at the grocery store. I just love wandering through the aisles when I'm by myself and buy all of the things that I don't get to buy when I'm with Col: pickled kimchi, tomatoes, avocados and lots of other fruits and vegetables, expensive skin products, curry cashews, fair trade vanilla, half & half in the glass jar... woah, wait, is that how I spent so much money??

Ran into some more friends at the store, hopped on home and then made these yummy chickpea burgers that I've been meaning to try for a long time. Sooo good! And quick too. When Col got home (he was hanging out with some friends) he had one for dinner too and requested that we have them at least once a week from now on. Okay!

weekend in peru

On Friday after work, we drove down to Peru, Vermont to stay with our Auntie Lucy and Uncle John. Southern Vermont is our old stomping grounds, where we grew up as small children and later, when we had moved away, where we went to visit Mama Sonia and Papa Roger every summer.

We got there late. Mummy and Papa were there too. Had a lovely picnic dinner and some yummy rum punch. (Some of us had Dubonnet.) Then it was off to bed for one of the best night's sleep in a long time.

The next day, Col, Kevin and I went to Stratton for an awesome day of spring riding/skiing. The sun was shining bright, it was warm, the snow was soft. It was my best day of riding all season. Yay!

We got home just in time for the Dubie Club (Lucy & I had rum punch) and a lovely Spanish dinner that Lucy made. While we were at the mountain, Sapphie (or should I say Emi) had suffered a MAJOR blow-out at one of the nicest restaurants in Manchester Village. She was in high spirits, but everyone else seemed tired out bump from such an eventful day.

We woke up this morning and were like, "What? Sunday already?" Isn't that just the way? It was gray and drizzling out, so we decided to go shopping. First to the Vermont Country Store (where Colin had the time of his life in the candy section), then on to Manchester. A little more shopping, a lovely lunch where little Sapphire did some irresistible posing for the camera. What a little pistachio button! (She also started sucking her thumb and I couldn't help including a photo of her caught wet-fisted.)

All in all, it was a fabulous weekend. Enjoy the pics!

P.S. We never made it to Mother Myricks, but I hear you can mail-order the Lulu Lemon cakes, so maybe we'll do that instead.

xoxo

state of things

It's been an interesting week so far in the Wall/Alger household.

Burton had budget cuts yesterday. That means that some people—some friends—were let go. And other people—the ones who survived—were given pay cuts, including Col. We were reading the story last night on Transworld. Burton made a lot of smaller cuts to save jobs. Jake and Donna even gave up their salaries for the rest of the year to drive home that point.

Despite the fact that Col still has a job, we felt sad and sick to our stomach at the news. You escape something like that, while others don't, and you can't help but feel a sense of guilt. You feel like it's your job to do something, to try and make things better. But you can't. It's no sense thinking, "What if it had have been me?" but that's where your mind goes and then it's a downward spiral.

Still, we're so thankful right now.

Today, Transworld ran another story on Burton. This time, it was a little more uplifting. Guess who the article's about? That's right, my boy Col. Check it out: BEHIND THE LINES: Burton Men’s Outerwear. They had interviewed him about the upcoming collections a while back and just released the story. Weird timing, huh?

Any-who. I hope the weekend's more mellow. We're going down to Peru, Vermont to visit our Auntie Lucy and Uncle John. Maybe take a few last runs of the season at Stratton. Maybe visit old stomping grounds like the Vermont Country Store and Mother Myricks. Mmm. Sounds nice.

xoxo

sunday, sunday

I always thought that song by The Mamas & The Papas should be "Sunday, Sunday" instead. I've never had problems with Mondays. But Sunday... can't trust that day...

Forgive me if I'm feeling a little blue. I'm missing my boy today. Just 6 more days till he's back and I'm back in his arms...

I actually have had a very nice morning thus far. I went to breakfast at Magnolia with Emi, Kev and baby Sapphie. I got delicious lemon ricotta pancakes. Mmmmm...

I recounted to them all about Amanda & Ryan's fabulous wedding the night before. Yes, it was fun! Mandy looked stunning (of course). I cried all off my make-up off as she walked down the aisle with her mom and dad on either side. I needn't have worried that I was alone; I hung out with some old high school friends the whole night. It was very lovely. Then I met up with Lauren for a drink at Leunig's—our new favorite bar on a Saturday night!

After breakfast, the Kouri clan and I hung out for a while on Church Street. Did a little shopping. I got a new spring outfit for work (work's been trying lately, so I need a little inspiration). Emi got some awesome new shoes at Stella that are totally hot, but still functional enough that she can be a mother in them too. What an amazing gal.

It was just what I needed. A little family time to snap out of it.

Now I'm home with the kitties and I'm feeling like a home-body. And what shall I do to snap out of it even more? I'm going to light a gazillion candles, put on Bon Iver and organize my closet (clothing swap anyone??).

Lots of love to you all.
xxx

the first day: snowboarding, winter market, panang

We went snowboarding at Stowe yesterday for the first day of the season. It was snowing like crazy up there! There was a split second when I forgot which foot to strap in first, but once my board hit the snow, it was like we never even stopped for the summer.

When we got back into town, we hit up the first winter farmers' market of the season. They're happening the third Saturday of each month until April. There was lots there! We stocked up on root veggies, Brussels sprouts, herb mixes from Arcana, mixed nuts... there were vendors selling wine, cheese, bread, wild flowers, honey, maple syrup, produce, and lots of crafts and pottery.

Then Lauren cooked me a Thai panang curry dinner with some mad cooking skills she picked up in Thalaid. We drank mango martinis alongside. Yum!

winter farmers' market

Today was the last Farmers' Market. Kinda sad. I went down there with Emi and Kev. There weren't as many vendors as usual and the seasonal produce offerings were not as varied as they are at the height of the season in August and September. Still, I stocked up on root vegetables, onions, potatoes and squash. I can't wait to try some of the root vegetable recipes that my friend Carolyn developed at EatingWell for the November issue, like this root vegetable gratin. It was so good when we tried it in the test kitchen. The first time I ever tried rutabaga! It's so good. Well, I bought a bag of rutabaga and I tried to find parsnips, but the guy at the Lewis Creek stand said they only just started harvesting them and they wouldn't have them till the winter market.

Winter market! That's right, how could I forget? The Burlington Farmers' Market is going through the winter this year. Yippee! Now I can get my parnsip soup on.

The market will be held in Memorial Auditorium, 10am-2pm on the third Saturday of each month from December through April:

November 22 (just in time for Thanksgiving!)
December 20 (get your last-minute Christmas prezzies!)
January 17
February 21
March 21
April 18

Here's more info on what kind of food and art will be available.

shallots and garlic:


rutabaga:

d.i.y. dining room chairs

We finally took the plunge and reupholstered our dining room chairs, which were Emi's before they were ours, and I think big Kevin's before that. We splurged on some beautiful tweed fabric from Rags & Riches, but were able to save money and time by reusing the old cushions underneath. (Who knew? At $29 a yard, foam cushioning is more expensive than the fabric itself. Ick.) So instead of buying new foam, we just padded the old ones with a new layer of batting for a little more bounce. Then we stapled on the new fabric—it's just like stretching a canvas really—while listening to This American Life's episode about the financial crisis.

To be honest, reuphostering chairs was a lot easier to maneuver than the report we were listening to (I had to listen to it twice to really understand it). But at least we feel a little smarter, more enabled, and we have a beautiful dining room set to show for it! So here are the pics.

And if you want to hear more about the moving parts behind the financial crisis, listen to This American Life's first collaborative report with NPR: The Giant Pool of Money. It's eye-opening.

Before:

After:

piles, piles--everywhere

That's what it's like in our house right now. Piles of annoying crap everywhere--crap we've no place to put. Or haven't figured out where to put yet. Still, the move is coming along. We finally moved out of the old place and cleaned it from top to bottom. We both got a little teary-eyed when we closed and locked the door for the last time. AB is now moving in there with her boy. I'm glad it's staying in the fam.

Now we can focus on unpacking. Decorating. Relaxing. I decided to pass on our annual Labor Day weekend trip to the Cape with friends so that I can stay... home... and... do... nothing...

By nothing, I mean drink some wine, sleep in, drink coffee, take naps on the new sofa, go to the farmer's market. (Has it really been over a month since I've done a shop there?) Make some peach ice cream with some Shelburne Orchard peaches (they're ready and ripe!). Cook. Hang out with some gals. Hang out with the cats. Hang out by the pool. Is it really Labor Day weekend?

By nothing, I mean doing everything--for me and me alone. I hope that doesn't sound too selfish. I love you all.

xoxo

the beginning, and a sofa

Some of the first things I moved into the new place were my two Simon Pearce goblets from Hannah and my collection of wine from the basement. Kind of random, but also very sophisticated, don't you think? It's all part of the new me: homeowner, grown up, and loving it. There. Now the place feels a little more homey and elegant—we can start tackling the gritty stuff.

We started moving on Monday after a fabulous long weekend in Nantucket. (I'll have to write more on that later.) Monday was somewhat hopeless. We moved two chairs and a picture of a cucumber. We were exhausted.

Last night was better. We managed to get through and pack up almost our entire attic of sporting goods, which included 10 snowboards, 7 large boxes filled with winter jackets and gear, 2 golf bags, 2 pairs of skis, 1 bin of Christmas ornaments, a skateboard, helmet, and other various items... Now it's all sitting in our living room ready to be transported. That's the un-fun part.

Oh, and we finally agreed on a sofa, which we ordered along with a matching chair from the Burlington Furniture Company, and which will arrive—God willing—in 3 to 4 weeks. Yay!

holy crap we did it

Holy crap we did it!

what other presents?

By the way, I'm still doing the present a day thing for Col's birthday. Tuesday, I gave him a subscription to Dwell magazine. Yesterday, some DVDs. Today, I did him a favor. Not quite sure what's in store for tomorrow. We're driving down to New York after work. Maybe I'll give him this: a good attitude for the entire 6 hours in the car :-)

a present a day

It's Colin's birthday week. He turns 32 on Friday. We've got lots of activities planned for the weekend: NYC, friend time, surfing on Long Island, karaoke in the city...

This year, I had a really hard time figuring out what to get him. So I got him a bunch of little things and decided to give him one a day till Friday. Here's the first:


2 red-eye robot mugs made by a Burlington artist, Dan Siegel. (Found him at the Burlington Farmers' Market.)

Oh, and what did Colin buy for himself? Two tickets for the both of us to see Sigur Ros in Montreal in September. YES!!!

xoxo

garage sale today!

Cheese Trader's annual garage sale, that is. If you already know what I'm talking about, then you don't need to read any more, just get there before Saturday! (And if you can't make it, then I'm very, very sorry.)

If you don't know what I'm talking about, then you should. This is a once a year event when the store marks down hundreds of bottles of wine (for as little as $2.99 a bottle), cheese, crackers and other fun nibbles so that bargain hunters like you and me can go in and have their hey day.

Em, Kev and I made the trip today after work and really went a little nuts. Still, I'm tempted to go back later in the week when they put out more (different) stock. It's addicting!

serviced

There used to be something gratifying about talking to customer service. You had this feeling that everything would be okay. The woman on the other end would call you by first name and you would call her "Mary" back. You'd talk about the weather in Phoenix and she'd say, "I've always wanted to visit Vermont. Now let's get your problem taken care of."

These days, Mary has changed. She's still warm and friendly. She still says she wants to help. But she's powerless. She doesn't know how to help. She asks you to do the same thing over and over. She says things are fixed, but you have to call her back the next day to report, "No, it's still the same problem. What do I do now?" Only this time, it's not Mary anymore. It's Bob. And he has no record of your phone call with Mary. Service is a time suck.

Or is it me? Are my expectations too high?

I just want everything to be fixed. Right now. I don't want any more 20-minute holds with the bill payment department. I don't want to be shoved from one customer representative to the next. I want my packages to arrive on time and in good condition. And I want this to be my last game of musical cars, as I try to get to the repair shop for the third time this month.

Please and thank you.

I'll stop whining now.

first market & mother's day

The first farmer's market in Burlington is always abuzz with energy. And who could blame us? We've been stifled in our winter roosts for far too long. The fresh flowers, plants and spring veggies have us dreaming of Sunday brunches and garden parties.

Burlington's farmer's market always opens Mother's Day weekend and it couldn't be better that way. I've made it a tradition to buy my Mum a new plant every year for her herb garden. Usually, it's still a bit too early in the growing season to buy her a big bag of local produce.

This year, however, it seems the first market was abundant in full force. I went early this morning to get the best selection and found lovely fresh asparagus, spinach, rhubarb, scallions, and local shitake mushrooms. No sign of fiddleheads or ramps or scapes. I guess they've gone by already, which seems early to me.

I also found a little purple sage plant for my Mum. I think I'll take my plant and my big bag of veggies up to Newport and make her the best spring quiche ever!