What Ana Does

September is my least favorite month of the year. Oh, wait. Second least favorite -- my loathing of February runs deep and true. But September always feels crazy, unorganized and rushed. For everyone this is a month of transitions, from summer to fall. And into the school season. But it takes weeks for us to settle into a routine and that always makes for stressful situations for all of us. And the weather yo-yos between hot and chilly. I never get the right clothes into place, so we're walking out the door in a mishmash of sweaters and summer sandals. This year, a majority of Leah's sweaters have magically disappeared. And I've not had the time to check in all my usual spots. Plus, through in travel. We always seem to be going somewhere in September. Europe, this year. And this kicks off Dave's busy travel schedule. And his annual guys' sports weekend. Then there are all the birthdays, including Alice's and the party I pull together. That eats up time...

This weekend I dipped into my collection of Everyday Foods  from Martha Stewart mini-magazines, which I've been hoarding since the early 2000s, looking for some simple veggie recipes. (I don't think we're eating enough veg lately.) Anyway, it got me thinking about how much I loved this now-defunct recipe magazine and how it's odd to have recipes that feel are in "my style." Do recipes or cookbooks go after a certain style? I'm not aware if they do. Sure, there's a theme and focus, but food doesn't traditionally follow a style, right? But I'm starting to think it does. Similar to how J.Crew is my clothing style and Express or Loft is not. Everyday Foods is my food style, as Ina Garten and Jaime Oliver (oh how I love them both) are not my style of food. I try to make their recipes, but I don't generally love the taste, or some of the ingredients or how they prepare things. Does that even make sense? My Treasure of Everyday Foods ...

In Progress I've been resisting adding hooks on the long hallway off the garage entrance ( as posted here ). But OMG if I have to STEP on another bag or sweater thrown on the floor I'm going to LOSE IT. (!!) We have hooks all over this house for a reason, people! In a fit of rage, I bought a piece of trim and ordered a bunch of hooks in a variety of colors for that wall. But then decided ... maybe if I improve this wall -- which sits directly opposite from the garage entrance -- I might solve the problem without adding yet another wall with hooks. So, I got these little pine boards and some neato steal hooks and used Saturday night while the girls were away to install the whole system. Replacing the dinky row of pegs that just wasn't doing the job. It went up very quickly, finishing it up while the girls watched Frozen on Sunday morning after their sleepover. I included a sign that says "Hey You! Hang Up Your Stuff" on the magnet board just above it. J...

Taking advantage of one of the last good weekends before the cold weather blows in, I finally got down and dirty with the front garden. I've been feeling bad about our low curb appeal. There's a house for sale just two doors down and if prospective buyers are looking for this sort of thing, they're definitely not thinking too highly of the neighborhood. My goal is to make this garden smaller by adding these paving stones from Home Depot. As it is, it's too much upkeep for me right now. So, for about $30, I loaded the trunk with pavers and dedicated about an hour to cleaning it up. Before: A Hot Mess and Stanley the Scarecrow It's a good start. I want to add more pavers -- maybe even a third layer. And I'm definitely going to need more mums and choose a few perennials along the back. Plus, Stanley needs a scarf or maybe some clothes.  After: All Cleaned Up The dirt along the front is getting seeded on Monday. I took about a quarter off the gar...

I'm not the world's biggest fan of Nigella Lawson, but I do have one of her cookbooks ( this one ) and a few weeks ago I was flipping through it and noticed she had a Spanish omelet recipe. Yum Spanish Omelets!  Now, as a little Spanish girl, I've been making Spanish omelets since forever. I watched my Mom and Dad both make tons of them, several different ways. And when I was last visiting relatives in Spain, I watched my godmother Rosie make one, too. And I love making them for my family and pestering my kids to eat them. (At first, they didn't like them, but they're growing on them. How eggs and potatoes are an "acquired taste" is beyond me, but...) Back to Nigella. She had a few differences in her omelet recipe, such as adding cheese to the eggs, not separating the eggs out for fluffiness and finishing under the broiler instead of flipping it on a plate. She also prefers boiling the potatoes as opposed to frying them -- which has been my prefere...

Being a soccer coach for two teams each Spring and Fall takes a toll on our family and schedule, for sure. It disrupts dinner plans three days a week, dictates our weekend plans and discourages good homework practices. Seriously, it's a whole lot of disruption. But it's ALLLLL worth it when that shy girl on my first-grade team -- the one who never played soccer before and doesn't even say her own name loud enough the first week, and barely says a word at all for a month -- when she finally scores that hard-won goal in practice and she lights up, pumps her fist and says "YES!!!!!" and high-fives you!! OH that feeling!! The gift of her little friendship and trust. HUGE. It's just awesome. Oh, and getting to spend quality time each week with my own daughters, playing around on a field I basically grew up on and seems more like home than any other place I could share with them. But... you know ... both things. Feeling the glory of all that today.

Having a fan girl moment here .. Laini Taylor, a favorite author, is in Paris posting some beautiful pics on Twitter. Stephanie Perkins, another favorite author, also follows her and is loving the pictures. Anna and Etienne, mentioned here, are characters from Anna and the French Kiss , her best book set in a Paris school. Paris + favorite authors + favorite character references = me freaking out a little.