It's Done!

I started this blog with the best of intentions but life simply the got in the way.  I can't believe 11 months have passed since my daughter graciously helped me get it all set up and here I am almost a year later with my second post. How pathetic is that???  So much has happened since then too. The Loggia is finished! We are loving it and our new wood fired oven is awesome. We have done some additional things to the house like new windows and some brick work out front. Does it ever really end? Next is a bathroom remodel but I don't want to talk about that. We haven't even started and it's already stressing me out. I am a person who like order and peace none of which is possible when you are in the middle of a "project".

I am going to try to be more consistent and faithful to this blog. I think it might just be the solution to another little project of mine that is not moving along as quickly as I would like. As some of you may know, I have been working on a cookbook for a couple of years now.  Notice I didn't say "writing a cookbook" which seems a bit pretentious to me.  I started with the idea of writing down best loved family recipes, so I could pass them on to my daughter Christina someday. Somewhere along the way I also began writing down childhood events and recollections. A sort of window into the past that Christina might find interesting. Of course my story, as an immigrant child coming to a new country and trying to assimilate, is the story of so many, and hardly unique. But I figure it's MY story, and a story is always more interesting when you know the characters!

As I went along I soon discovered two things. First - I hate writing recipes. I find it tedious and boring. Second, unlike the recipes, the memories and stories flowed from my head and onto the page like water. This process has made me realize that it's not just about writing down a bunch of recipes for my daughter, It's also about giving her a glimpse of who her mother was, where she came from, and how all of those life events have shaped who I am today. So I'm thinking that instead of putting all that into a "book" why not just start posting it all here? I have quite a bit already so I'm going to go for it! Stay tuned, pictures and a few videos coming soon!

The Loggia Project

For the last 14 years or so I have been trying to transform our typical California ranch home into a Tuscan Villa.  A girl can dream can't she? My poor husband braces himself every time I start a sentence with "honey, I was just thinking..." While it is true that a sow's ear will never be a silk purse, I think we have managed to incorporate a little bit of La Bella Italia to our happy home.  The funny thing is that I never connected the dots that all of my decorating choices seemed to lean towards tumbled marble, terra cotta, warm earthy colors, glazed walls, and Deruta pottery.  Duh!  I say my decorating choices because my husband does not usually have an opinion on such matters. His opinions are usually expressed early on in the project such as "we can't afford it, or what's wrong with the one we already have? Silly man...

Our current project is an outdoor loggia with arched open windows, a dining area, beautiful soft lighting and are you ready for this - a wood fired pizza oven! I could not be more excited.  My family was in the restaurant and pizza business so I know my pizza. plus I was born in Naples -the birthplace of the pizza!  A truly authentic pizza must be cooked in a wood fired oven at a blistering 800 degrees. That's just all there is to it.  Our friends keep asking "is it done yet?"

As I am sitting here typing I am still wearing my "painting clothes" and picking little bits of dried paint out of my hair.  This weekend we will be tiling.  Well Rome wasn't built in a day either...