It’s been a whirlwind week, and it’s only Wednesday! I spent all of last week in New York for business (at the awesome Better Homes and Gardens Stylemaker Conference!) and for play (celebrating my sister’s engagement, yay!). I’ve been going a million miles a minute since, because on Monday my cookbook officially launched! It’s been absolutely surreal to see people sharing pictures of it online, hearing from friends and family that they’re flipping through it in their homes, and seeing it in a bookstore. All I can say is, WOW. While I catch my breath, I have a few new recipes, links, and updates to share!
The Book. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who pre-ordered the book and has been sharing it on social media! Writing a book is a huge undertaking but it turns out that selling and marketing a book is an equally giant project. I so appreciate everyone’s support in lifting it up in this swell of excitement as it launched earlier this week. If you’ve gotten a book in the mail and enjoy it, it would mean so much to me if you’d leave a review on Amazon!
And if you’re local, please join me at one of the many events happening around Boston the next few weeks where I’ll be signing books, sharing samples, and hopefully meeting lots of you! The full list of tour dates is in this post. If you’re not local, but still want a signed copy, please send me an email! I’ve gotten a few requests to send out signed copies for gifts and am shipping them out regularly.
New Recipes. After traveling for a full week, and being sick for most of my time away, I came home last weekend and was ready to get in the kitchen and cure my exhaustion with some home cooking. I tested a bunch of new recipes that I can’t wait to share with you soon, and shared a few already! We made a big batch of Banana Pumpkin Muffins that taste like pumpkin-spiced banana bread; Jane and I have been eating them for every meal. I also shared a pulled pork slider recipe with an Asian-inspired Sweet Chili Hoisin sauce and slaw – they were perfect for snacking on during Sunday football. And to round out the week, I shared some of my favorite tips and tricks for building a beautiful cheese board – and the one rule I always break when I serve it!
Toddler Things. The change in the weather, some battles with teething, and a newfound love of the word “NO!” have all contributed to a rather interesting few weeks with Jane. Life with a toddler, man, it’s not for the weak! I find that the best way to deal with Jane’s toddler mood-swings is to keep her busy (and tire her out enough so that she takes solid naps!). We’ve been doing lots of “arts and crafts” thanks to a panicked Amazon order when the forecast was full of rain. She has been loving using her tabletop easel, and I got a set of shape stamps and dot markers that keep her engaged. PlayDoh kits have been another fun activity recently (and honestly I love playing with it too!). I need some more ideas though, because it’s going to be a loooong winter. Share ideas with me in the comments if you have them (pretty please!!).
Reading List. I have slowed down a bit on my reading after I hit my goal a few weeks ago (24 books in 2018!), but enjoyed a guilty-pleasure read as my last book: Origin by Dan Brown. I loved his previous books and like that I know in my head that the main character looks like Tom Hanks thanks to all of the movies. Speaking of movies, I saw A Simple Favor in theaters last week – it was a fun book if you’re interested in comparing it to the big-screen version. Up next I’m starting The Best American Food Writing 2018; I need something I can take my time with right now, and I love essay compilations for that reason!
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