simplepretty

Good morning! My task today is to take care of things that are broken. I have to send back my coffee maker for a replacement (Starbucks will be quite familiar with me in the interim), and just finished my Comcast technician call – when you don’t have audio on ESPN classic, it’s a sad day for the men in your house. All fixed! Cross off that task.

Have you seen:

1. Today’s NYTimes Science Times story “Do You Believe in Magic?” Why do we believe that touching the plan when boarding will prevent a crash? (That should read why do I believe that!) Why do children start learning about faith at age 8? Read it.
2. The blog 10 Things is focused on gratitude. I particularly enjoyed Stephanie’s January 21 entry – the opening paragraph is soooo my opinion of January as well. Check it out here: the accompanying photos are beautiful, too.
3. A new food blog, Whipped, recommended by Maria at Port2Port (so you know it’s going to be good)!  The recipes for limoncello and apple crunch cake look pretty good to me. Thanks Maria: I’m adding this to my daily blog reading.

And now, off to the UPS store. Have a warm Tuesday!

Welcome back! I am launching a brand new feature today. As many of you know, in addition to my stationery addiction, I also suffer from a bakery “problem” – cupcakes, scones, and cookies are among my favorite foods, and it is hard for me to pass up a charming bakery. I love to read about new bake shops that open at Daily Candy, Food&Wine, you name it. And then, if the website looks promising, I add it to my list-of-places-to-go-if/when-I-visit-insert city here.

Today’s feature? Dozen Cupcakes in Pittsburgh. Let me start by saying that I have never been to Pittsburgh, but if I go, I’m heading to Dozen Cupakes in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood. The shop is run by two Chicago natives, James Gray and David Wojtonik (great interview with James at cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com) and opened in December 2006. The website features beautiful photographs of their cupcakes – above is “the emily”, which is what I would order if I were there … or maybe the snowball …. or perhaps the mint meltaway …. it all looks good. Judging from the gallery photos, Dozen has been quite busy. Don’t you wish cupcakes were easy to ship? If you’re in Pittsburgh, check Dozen out.

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My new Zyrtec prescription is making me very sleepy …. and thus I have not seen the Colbert Report yet. I caught a brief segment of The O’Reilly Factor; however, as it ran during The Office, it lost the battle for the remote control. So, it’s 9:30 reruns for me. The Office was great, though! On to the Five:

1. Crosscreek anniversary love this house! Full of charm.
2. when i grow up
3. Solitariness* II gorgeous, what my bench photo from Tuesday aspires to ….
4. Cake Fetish original idea, and fun for cupcakes
5. Raspberry Buttercream another cupcake photo, but I was inspired by the handwritten sign here – great penmanship!

I’m off for the birthday weekend. My older self will be back on Monday with a new feature. Until then ….

I know where I’m headed on Saturday! After a scrumptious breakfast at Southport Grocery, I’m going to Barneys. Poppy King is debuting her Lipstick Queen lipsticks between 10:30 and 1:30. I’ve been eyeing them online, but I’m better at picking colors in person. Two lines; saint and sinner. Saint is sheer; sinner is matte. Of course, I will be getting a saint _ but which one? Saint Natural is the leading choice, but Saint Berry could be nice … I realize this is strictly against my bottle reduction plan, but it’s also my birthday weekend, so what the hey!

Thanks to Daily Candy for the tip!

And don’t forget, tonight is Stephen Colbert and Bill O’Reilly’s reciprocal guesting night. Should be good. I’ll have to remember to watch The O’Reilly Factor.

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Looking for something fun to do with the kids? Check out Kiddley – chock full of projects, like today’s feature, Aunt Sarah Dolls. My personal favorite is the paper doll templates: check them out here. Kiddley updates almost daily – I’m looking forward to the Valentine’s Day posts!

Sorry for the late post – I had Comcast issues this morning, which have now been resolved ….