{love} five years

five years ago today, i married my beloved kevwrex.

a few lovely moments from the event live here.

this is my make*believe*hollywood version of us...

{joanne woodward + paul newman}

sexiness wears thin after a while and beauty fades,

but to be married to a man who makes you laugh every day,

ah, now that's a real treat.

joanne woodward

this is my sweet*and*silly illustrated version of us...

{frog + toad}

this is my real*deal*love version of us...

{k + d}

i am profoundly grateful to have connected with a human as amazing as kevwrex.

he is a kind person, a peaceful bodhisattva, a sweet soul, a funny showboat, a quick wit, a sharp mind, a fascinating flâneur, a brilliant musician, a devoted friend, an unwavering supporter, a proud pup papa, a handsome hunk, and a true love.

happy anniversary, my darling!

music crush: tUnE-yArDs

the unique sounds of the new tUnE-yArDs album 'w h o k i l l' have been floating around in the treehouse lately.

tUnE-yArDs is described as "the lo-fi experimental folk project of merrill garbus."

'bizness' is the song which first introduced us to her music...

the music on this album has a cool sound that kevwrex and i agree is difficult to define. it's a mixture of jazzy-world-pop-modern-folk, and we both find it refreshingly original.

download the song 'bizness' for free via the website or check out the NPR interview if you are interested in hearing more tUnE-yArDs.

guardians of being

on a recent evening, i found myself navigating an intense conversation with my beloved kevwrex.

we got tangled up in a talk about the future, the kind of discussion where frustration, worry, and fear of the unknown creep in and cause stress.

in the midst of our swirly chat, our dog daria entered the room and subtly stationed herself betwixt us.

at the height of our emotions, we paused for a moment of silent contemplation.

in this quiet space, daria looked calmly at both of us and released the loudest, most fantastically hilarious dog belch we have ever heard...

we both immediately started howling with laughter and nearly fell on the floor with pure delight.

our moods promptly lifted, our conversation shifted, and our smiles returned.

daria jean beauty queen brought us back into the moment with the grace of a burp.

eckhart tolle refers to pets as "guardians of being" because they help us stay in the now...



millions of peoplewho otherwise would becompletely lost in their mindsand in endless past and future concernsare taken back by their dog or cat
into the present moment,again and again, 
and reminded of the joy of being.

{book}

i am deeply grateful that my darling dog reminds me to stay grounded in the present.

mindfulness + technology

the treehouse was filled with the sounds of this event all weekend:

exploring living with

awareness, wisdom, and compassion

in the technology age.

kevwrex hooked us up with live streaming video to hear some world renowned speakers exploring the intersection of mindfulness and technology.

as described on their website:

"The Wisdom 2.0 Conference is a one-of-a-kind event that launched in Silicon Valley at the end of April, 2010, and brought together people from a variety of disciplines, including technology leaders, Zen teachers, neuroscientists, and academics to explore how we can live with deeper meaning and wisdom in our technology-rich age."

here is a video with some highlights:


many amazing minds contributed to this conversation. check out the list of people -> such a wide array of wonderful + inspiring thinkers!

as a result, i have spent the last few days in deep contemplation of mindfulness.  i've been pondering my role as a teacher in these issues, social media and the ego, the awesome potential for connection or disconnection, and the new era of global consciousness.

if you are interested in reading more about this event, you can check out the website or the twitter feed.  you can also take a look at this post by my friend glen lubbert, ceo of mojo interactive, this post by mei mei fox, or this list of penguinasana's top ten mindfulness tips from the conference.

{fun} animal beatbox

a silly short film that makes me giggle + dance...

{via my sweet kevwrex}

have a fantastic weekend!

xo

{comforts} viral spiral

a terrible horrible no good very bad flu descended upon me on saturday evening.

i shall spare you the details of suffering and angst and instead share with you the simple things that have made a huge difference in my last few days...

{izze sparkling soda}

delicious flavors + extra vitamins + small cans

{stainless steel straws}

i adore drinking from straws + these eliminate the waste

{rose salve}

my favorite lip stuff ever

sinks in + moisturizes deeply

{vicks vaporub}

old school ointment + so mentholicious

{green tea}

antioxidants + warmth

{netflix}

instant streaming for continuous movie watching

favorite choice this week: the young victoria

sweet kevwrex has been my knight in shimmering armor. he has taken incredible care of this sick innkeeper. and my dear pup daria has been right by my side giving me lots of love.

ok, friends. fanfare please...i officially declare that i am henceforth moving on from this malady.

on wednesday, i look forward to sharing my very first guest post ever!

{moments} harmonizing

in my corner of the universe, life has been gloomy this week.

when the bigger picture is challenging, i put extra effort into consciously zooming in on the little moments of sheer joy that are always present.

one such moment in my world...

{source}

...singing with my love.

kevwrex teaches choral music and often brings home new songs to practice in his studio.

sometimes he invites me to be a part of the process, asking me to sing either melody or harmony so he can work out musically how to teach the song to his students.

this is a dream for me. i love to sing. and to have the chance to sing with the person i absolutely adore? pure heaven.

we sang a few songs together on wednesday evening. this was a tiny moment in our week (fifteen minutes, perhaps?) but it has made me so incredibly happy in the midst of a tough time.

have you had any small moments of delight or happiness this week? please share with me...i love to read about those moments.

foodstuff: butternut squash soup

the first fall food i crave every year is butternut squash soup made from scratch by my beloved kevwrex.

a few days ago, i purchased a large butternut squash and propped it up on the kitchen counter to stare at him longingly.

subtle, no?

he is a talented cook and transformed that gourd into a fabulous meal last night.

i asked if i could document the process and share his recipe here at the dew drop inn.

he said yes to the photos but admitted that he doesn't use a recipe. apparently, he has made this soup so often that it has been committed to memory.

*swoon*

however, when first learning his soup techniques, he says that he referred to alton, emeril, and ina for guidance.

therefore, the following is not a recipe.

it is a visual journey through the elements of our fall feast...

{roast: butternut squash}

{sauté: mirepoix + apples}

{puree: all of the above with stock}

{garnish: sage leaves}

{combine: mixed greens + balsamic vinegar + olive oil}

{add: herbed goat cheese +  candied pecans}

{toast: slices of bread + olive oil + sea salt}

i bless the rains down in africa

i am sharing the following video with you for several reasons.

one: i am married to a choral music dude. we love to completely geek out on fun vocal stuff like this.

two: this reminds me of creating rainstorms in my elementary school music class by clapping + snapping + stomping. i really loved doing that.

three: it's by the band toto! it's a classic from the eighties! and it's a great song!

without further ado, i present to you 'africa' as performed by perpetuum jazzile...

four years ago today: our wadee

june 17, 2006

i thank you God for most this amazing
day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes

e.e.cummings

it was on this very day four years ago that i married my heart's true companion and love, kevin...

the day of celebration was at the home of our dear family friends.  it is the most lovely spot, a vintage farmhouse on a terraced hillside surrounded by vineyards...

it was an incredibly beautiful june day in napa.  plenty of blue skies, rolling hills, vineyards, flowers, and sunshine.

did i mention sunshine?  oh, we had sunshine.  so much sunshine that it was crazy super roasty toasty hot, above ninety degrees until dusk.

it was so hot my hair flower wilted and had to be replaced thrice...

i spent the morning getting ready...

my best friends in the universe were there to help me...

kevwrex and his brother had time to hang out before the ceremony...

the ceremony was simple and full of poetry, beautiful music, and love...

after the ceremony, my beau-pere used eloquent and heartfelt words to toast us...

and then there were a gazillion sparkling moments!

three special glimpses:

spontaneous singing...

a fairy fort built with parasols...

a poignant and unforgettable dance with my father...

and of course, there was so much marvelous merrymaking into the magical summer night.

at the end, we looked down over all of it and felt more love than ever before...

and it just keeps growing.

i love you kevwrex!

{photos by lauren cohn-frankel}

foodstuff: baking with peter reinhart

last week, i told the beginning of my adventures in baking with yeast through my honey olive oil pizza dough recipe post.

this week, the adventure continues as i share what's going on in my baking evolution.

my sweet kevwrex got me this book as a gift earlier this year...

...i was delighted! thrilled! excited! and i immediately started reading it.

that's when the ol' baking with yeast fear came back.

the first part of the book is all about starters and fermentation and scary scientific yeasty things.  i got overwhelmed and something in my brain shut down.

sadly, it has been sitting on my kitchen shelf looking beautiful but lonely since that moment.

then i saw this ted talk given by peter reinhart himself...

...and i really enjoyed it.

this lecture inspired me to once again work on overcoming my baking with yeast issues!

so this week i picked up the book again.

this time, i made it past chapter one and realized that most of the recipes do not require the super intense practically need to be a microbiologist yeast methods that initially scared me.

thus, i am now trying to decide what to bake first. my top choices are:

1. challah

2. cinnamon buns

3. focaccia

i'd love some votes, if you have a moment to weigh in on this important decision.

what baking project out of peter reinhart's artisan breads every day do you think i should try first?

music crush: two door cinema club

my hunky resident dj kevwrex introduced me to two door cinema club recently and now i am totally hooked...

ch-ch-changes

well, things are evolving by the moment around here.

i took the leap this morning and purchased my domain.

you are now visiting my dot com, lovely readers!

so now i am...

...eeeeep!  i am so so so excited about this.

it was a technically arduous process for a novice tech brain like myself, but with the help of my darling kevwrex (who has the patience and compassion of a bodhisattva) i got it worked out.

sadly, in the transition i lost ALL of my previous comments.

i have read that they may or may not return.

i am a sentimental gal, so if they do not come back i will be a little heartbroken.

but it's official!  

i am queen of my domain and that is that.

double rainbow + music inspiration

it has been a rainy spring week here on the hill.

we are in the midst of a relaxing cozy art*filled staycation in the treehouse.

yesterday i saw a technicolor super charged double rainbow which didn't last long enough for a photo but was so spectacular!

last night we watched half of this beautiful movie...

...it is especially poignant, since my beloved kevwrex is a choral director and brilliant musician.

speaking of music, kevwrex sent me this fun combo of music and iphone awesomeness last night...

wings

earlier this week, i spent an afternoon at the antique society in sebastopol.

i found many beautiful treasures during my wandering that day, but the one i loved most dearly was an illustration from a children's book printed in 1902.  it was an image of a flying child.  i love almost anything with wings, and this particular picture had colors i adore, an odd feeling, and a turn-of-the-century vision of how people would be able to fly by the year 2000.

i stared and stared at this illustration, enamored with its mystery and beauty.

although it wasn't expensive, i am committed to my budget and decided not to purchase it.  

instead, i took a picture with my diphone and sadly put it back on the shelf. 

that night, i told my beloved kevwrex about my antiquing adventure and showed him the many photos i had snapped.

the next day, i went into my studio loft and waiting on my desk was the illustration...

...i was thrilled to the point of tears.

on the way home from work, he had searched the entire warehouse to find me the picture i loved. 

just. so. flabbergasted. 

and flying.

happy valentine's day

pictured below are two creatures who have stolen my heart away...

daria + kevwrex