Last week, we celebrated my birthday down at the lake. The theme was, essentially, “All of my favorite things.”

Company: Our neighbors who are conveniently our Soul Mates, and our combined eighty-seven children.
Wine: one dry rosé, one inky red
Dinner: Bread. Olives. An obscene amount of cheese (this one was my favorite.) Slow Roasted Tomatoes (I’m pretty sure Denise thinks that is the only thing I know how to cook.) Peppered Salame.
Dessert: Dorie Greenspan’s World Famous World Peace Cookies. I can tell you, as a cookie connoisseur and fairly expert baker, these are the best cookies ever invented. They are not fancy or particularly difficult to make, but they are intensely chocolate and not too sweet, with a slightly sandy texture.
Presents: My people know me very well. They gave me a badass t-shirt, big necklaces (this one and this one and this one.) And weirdly goofy-but-elegant stemless champagne flutes. Honestly, if you ever feel like buying me a gift, just grab anything from World Market. Anything.
We finished up the night with an outdoor screening of Pixar’s “Inside Out” which is the third best Pixar movie, and great to watch with children and other mothers who need a giggle followed by an Ugly Cry.
Which Pixar movie is your favorite? I have very strong opinions about this…
OXO
Emma

photo via Unsplash