look who's stylin'

"jcp" formerly known as J.C.Penney must have gotten a new stylist and photographer. Did you get their catalog over the weekend? Great photos and fun articles are sprinkled in here and there among the crazy low prices...did you know sephora make-up is at jcp?

move it or lose it

Have you read this book? I heard about it and ordered a couple of copies for family and friends that are going through changes in their lives and (obviously) had to read it before I handed a copy over!

The book is super easy to read and basically about how we deal with change in our lives, in our careers, and in general. If you read my last post I mentioned about visiting other schools to observe their cafeterias and see how they handled the  day to day lunchtime discipline...and so glad I did! Such great ideas and ones that I hope our school embraces.

That being said when the subject of "change" in the lunchroom was brought up to our custodian (who's been at the school 20+ years) I could totally see who he was in this book. He wanted to "stay in the same room- cheese or no cheese"- because that's what we do. That's how it is.

Maybe I should give him a copy to read?

mind your manners

Source: Uploaded by user via Tiffany on Pinterest

Source: tumbledownsouth.tumblr.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Lesley on Pinterest

This year has been one of the worst for cafeteria and playground behavior at the elementary school where I work. Kids are rude, table manners are atrocious, and having to remind a fifth grader to say "thank you" to an adult after said adult had just done something above and beyond for the child had me scratching my head today (or maybe it was the first grade lice epidemic that is also going on but that's another story.)
It makes me wonder if it's the socio-economic level of children that attend our school...parents not being able to spend quality time with their children and missing the boat about teaching them basic "please and thank you" and table manners or what does go on in homes of families anymore?
Or is it that kids are used to seeing rude behavior practiced on TV shows or on video games (or the lack of common courtesy) and they copy what they see?
And so not to put the blame on others (although as a mother I would have been appalled if any of my children had ever been disrespectful to teachers or left their school lunch tray, leftover food scattered on the table) maybe we as a staff haven't filled in the blanks enough for good social skills and behavior towards others at school or in the lunchroom? We do have an incentive behavior program that promotes kind, caring, attitudes...but obviously; that's not enough.
For the next few weeks a colleague of mine and I will be visiting other schools during lunch/recess time to see if it's an epidemic or if there might be a "magic" potion that we can use to teach manners and social skills 101. What was it like when you were in school?

what's your sign?

Do you follow your horoscope? I usually never have the opportunity to see what my horoscope is on any given day but I happened to pick up a British magazine on the way home from Paris and was intrigued when they gave me not one month but the whole year to look forward to.
I'm a Gemini and it looks like there will be many changes this year for me...and May 20th seems to be a day that I won't forget.

see you

"See Food" is one of our newest shirts at DOTS and like most of our shirts, we're playing with words on this one.
Remember when your ten year old brother asked if you wanted "sea food for dinner?" and then opened his mouth to show you partially consumed food particles?! Or when that certain cafe has their menu items in picture form on the menu and you just have to ask the other people if they want "see food" for lunch? Is it just me or does every brain think like this?
Hope you see a good weekend ahead of you...enjoy!

then and now

When we first visited Saint Remy de Provence ten years ago there was a tiny little restaurant, L'Assiette de Marie, that  we stumbled upon after I had read about it in Victoria magazine. I was heartbroken that it was closed but I peered inside the windows and was smitten with the collections and displays. I knew that one day we would be back to see if it was still there.

Fast forward to 2011 and voila! She is still there but has grown up to Le Bistrot de Marie and still holds the original spot along with a patio and canopy that holds more tables on the side of the building. Did we get the chance to eat there? Unfortunately no. Reservations were being taken for New Years Eve and we would be on a plane home. Another year perhaps?

bits of the weekend

We traveled to Scottsdale to celebrate Peter's 25th birthday. That cake was a "do-over" upon realizing that the original recipe was not meant for high altitude...not the best frosting job (although it was delicious--Magnolia Bakery recipe) but it was finished about midnight the night before. The rest of the weekend was spent in bed with Lola nursing a cold and cough (ugh). Hope your weekend was happy and healthy.

ps. thanks to Peter and Nicole for modeling the latest DOTS tees!

soup's on

A beyond easy soup recipe and so very good for you. Found it in Martha Stewart LIVING magazine from chef/blogger Amy Chaplin of Coconut&Quinoa. Here's the quick version of the recipe but you can read more about it and find other recipes here.

Creamy Cauliflower Soup with Greens and Dill

1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil


1 medium onion, chopped


4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped


sea salt


1 medium head cauliflower, cut into small florets (use stem too)


filtered water


5 large kale or collard leaves, stems removed and sliced (I added a few handfuls of spinach leaves and a few kale leaves...same gorgeous color)


2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or to taste


fresh black pepper






Warm oil in a large pot over medium heat, add onions and saute for 4 or 5 minutes. Add garlic and salt and continue cooking for a couple more minutes. Add cauliflower and pour in filtered water until it reaches just below the surface of the cauliflower, don’t add too much, you can always add more later when blending the soup. Turn up the heat and bring to a boil. Cover pot, reduce heat to low and simmer for 1o minutes or until cauliflower is tender. Add greens, stir and simmer a few minutes longer. Remove from heat, stir in dill and let sit 5 minutes to cool slightly. Using an upright blender, blend soup in batches until smooth, adding more water it’s too thick. Return to pot and season with extra salt and pepper.
(I sprinkled on some toasted sunflower seeds for a bit of crunch...I love that in smooth foods)

cliffhanger

Have you seen this and wondered if it was for real?

ps. sorry for the commercial...ugh.

back in the groove

Source: Uploaded by user via Meg on Pinterest

It's been a crazy week around here but it's Friday and I feel like I'm getting back in the groove.
With the why-can't-it-always-be-this-good weather we've been having I've walked to school three times this week. Such a treat because...well...we have to go back to school and it's no fun after a two week holiday (or in my case; a three week holiday in France).
Squeezing in hair, nails, and a Friday massage (it takes a village, peeps) after the 3:00 bell was maintenance this week and restocking and ordering for DOTS kept me busy in the PM hours. The weekend sounds good for more catch-up but (hopefully) some down time as well. Hope you have a good one...keep dancing!

romantic rendezvous

 This little pathway in the center of St. Remy that leads to this

sweet courtyard...

  that will soon bring you to another secret spot where husband and I hid a little lock with our initials and date we were married. A secret treasure for us to return and hopefully find one day.

 It was difficult to find a spot where we wouldn't interfere with St. Remy's charm and to also find a metal object that our lock would fit around as well! If you happen to go one day...it's in the corridor by Hotel Sade and Musee des Alpilles..out of the way and enjoying the scenery.