The Hamptons Post

Christian Wolffer Killed in a Boating Accident on New Years Eve!

  Truly sad news! Christian Wolffer died on New Years Eve. 

Recession Got You Down? Head to the Hamptons!

I grew up in a family of lifeguards - we have salt water running through our veins!!  Whenever something happens, whether it's the croup cough or some mild depression, my family heads to the ocean to breathe in the salt water and "get better"!  No surprise that I ended up living in the Hamptons and no surprise that this family recipe is what I use with my own children.  Whenever someone starts sniffling in this house, off to the beach we go - no matter how cold it is (the colder, the better for destroying those winter germs).  

It's also no surprise that Holidays are kicked off with a long walk on the beach.  This Thanksgiving the entire clan (19 this year) packed into our cars and headed down to the beach in Bridgehampton to jump start our Holiday - we weren't alone! 

 Happy Holiday Season! 

Another Montauk Monster Lurking in the Hamptons?

 

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water.........

News that the Montauk Monster washed up on shore this summer made me think twice about going into the water.  Imagine enjoying an afternoon at the beach, slipping into the water to cool down, floating peacefully in the water and running into that corpse.....how do you recover from that?! I'm still damaged from the memory of JAWS!!

Now we have reports that Sea Otters are making a comeback out East.  Next time you feel something brush against your leg while your in the water, don't be shocked to see a cute, fuzzy creature pop up from beneath the surface.

I'll be investing in a pool this summer!

Vote!!

What's the Buzz - The NY Gift Show

  New York on a Sunday afternoon - CROWDED and HOT!  What would make me leave our glorious beaches on the East End on a 90 degree day?  The New York Gift Show!  I go as a buyer for A Taste of The North Fork to find great ideas for their gift baskets - every year they choose a theme for their baskets and this year they are using "Embark 2009" and focusing on the earthy colors, green products and a "woodland" feel.  The theme mimics a trend we saw emerging this year at the show.  Many companies are focusing on the environment and doing their part to support the "green movement". Scarfs will be big this season.  In past years a few colors emerge as front runners in the upcoming trends...this year however, there are no favorites - every color, every pattern and everything goes seems to be the trend! 

These are dog biscuits!!!  Can you believe it?  They looked yummy enough to eat!  I was shocked by how many dog companies were showing their products this year.  Organic dog biscuits, holiday-theme dog biscuits, dog collars, leashes, rain gear and clothing nicer than some of the items in my closet!

Jewelry was big and loopy.  Mixed metals (gold & silver), mixed textures (smooth & brushed) and feminine beads were all the rage! My favorite company selling jewelry (I wear their stuff all the time) is Baroni Designs.

More Dog treats!

 Only in NY do you have to leave the sidewalk to avoid a horse taking a shower!

I Love NY!

 Pretty Brownstone!

Traffic was bad - whatever happened to the theory that "everyone leaves the city" in August???  I think the traffic (both pedestrian and car) was thicker than I've ever seen it in the summer.  We stood still in traffic trying to leave the city only to arrive out East and get stuck around the corner from home while a family of deer  (mommy, daddy and baby) stood in the middle of the road staring us down - surreal!!

Party Time!

I am taking the next 2 days off to celebrate the launch of hubby's new venture - www.zoosse.com - Join us online :)

Years of hard work and development = yeee hah!!!!!

Goodbye Randy Pausch!

The memory of a good person
is a blessing.
Proverb 10:7

The Last Lecture author Randy Pausch, has died.

He was truly an inspiration!

High Fructose Corn Syrup - Bad on so Many Levels!

Wow!  Now I'm convinced....there is indeed a blog for any and everything these days!!

As a follow-up to yesterday's healthy eating post, here is a link to a blog dedicated to High-Fructose Corn Syrup and its so-many-levels-of-badness : High Fructose Makes You Fat (and I thought we had to have catchy titles to attract readers).

Unfortunately, HFCS is being used in most products today - even when we think we are feeding our children a healthy meal (english muffins always seemed harmless to me) turns out it's loaded with HFCS.  Reading labels is a shocking new experience!

Feeding The Children....

The last time we visited Legoland and SeaWorld I was shocked by the amount of families that were overweight....parents and children trudging through the parks overloading with all the fried dough, sugary treats, candy and any other junk food they could find.  Tantrums, tears and chaos!  I couldn't stop staring - suddenly all the data about the rising rate of obese children made sense to me.

My friends and family are very health conscious.  We all eat our veggies, fruits and fish and avoid the sugary junk foods that are so tempting (for the most part).  "Morning meetings" usually end up in a conversation about the recent health food must-have or ying-yang doctor we have discovered.  Recently my BFF and I hit up the local health food store for all the right ingredients and spent the entire day creating some of the meals/snacks that Jessica Seinfeld's book promised would make our children healthier (note to other mommies: skip the book - way too much prep work for very little health benefits - better to bribe child to eat the steamed greens). 

We are fortunate to live in a community that supports local farms and seasonal eating.  The woman who started the cafe at the private school our children attend, Ann Cooper, is now revamping the Berkley California lunch program and has written a great book about making a healthy lunch, Lunch Lessons.  (I confess - I was more swayed to go to this school by its wellness program than by its academic record).

As a family, we are about to embark on a 60 day "cleansing diet"....we are centering it on regional, organic, seasonal and sustainable meals and removing all High-Fructose Corn Syrup for our meals (HFCS is bad on so many levels).  My first step in this program was to stop buying fruit juices and offer water to my boys who claim they "are about to die from thirst"....after a 1 day boycott of liquids (and lots of drama about their impending dehydration), they are now drinking water happily and regularly (Wow!!  Hope it all goes that smoothly).  Fortunately none of my children are obese and they are very athletic and active, but the high energy levels are off the charts, so I'm hoping the new plan helps restore some peace and sanity (is it crazy for me to dream of calm, relaxed moments as the mommy of 3 boys?!?)  I'll post our progress.....

Naked Ladies!!

There is a tiny town in Northern California that is magical....Ojai.  It is a breeding ground for artists, lovers & writers!  There are tons of stories of the burial grounds, the spirtual energies, the reasons why it is so special, but all I know is that when I went for a visit, I never wanted to leave!

Alice Matzkin is an artist living in Ojai who has released a series of paintings, "Naked Old Ladies."  Her works are portraits of woman ranging in age from 58 to 87 in all their lined and sagging glory.  I totally love the opening page of her website and how she describes her online studio.

So great!