Day Trip: USS Hornet Museum

A few weeks ago we randomly decided to go to the USS Hornet Museum in Alameda after Lucas' swim class. The huge aircraft carrier is moored at the former Naval Air Station Alameda (currently known as Alameda Point) on San Francisco Bay. Registered as a State and National Historic Landmark, it is not funded by any governmental agency and relies on its volunteers.

We had such a fantastic tour and were in awe of the giant carrier and the history and stories behind it. Our tour guide, Bert, even told us stories of apparitions on the ship. Totally freaked me out.

That's Bert, our personal tour guide. He was so knowledgeable and had many stories to share.

Those are the bunks people slept in. Apparently, you could schedule sleepovers! And look how giant those chains are!

This lady was literally typing dog tags sold at the store on site -- pretty cool.

Oh, silly Theo.

We loved it here and highly recommend it for a little day trip. We can't wait to go back and bring Nana and Grandad who we know will love it as much as we did.

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Recipe: Easy Swedish Chocolate Cake

I recently went to a craft night at my good friend Lisa's beautiful house where my other good friend Lisa taught us how to make simple beaded necklaces. I offered to make a dessert but realized I didn't have a lot of time to get too fancy. But if you know me, I love baking, but it had to be something simple. I went straight to my new cookbook Top with Cinnamon by Izy Hossack, a rad 19-year old who bakes amazing things and takes gorgeous photos of it all.

I love chocolate cake and this Swedish Chocolate Cake could not have been easier to whip up. With only six ingredients plus some powdered sugar for dusting, I was able to bake this amazing cake in under 30 minutes. Done and done. I loved this cake and the girls at craft night did too. Think brownie but with a molten chocolate center. No frosting necessary! Yum!

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Recipe: The Yummiest Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

When Nick and I first met over 12 years ago, he told me his all time favorite cookie was oatmeal raisin. Cute, right? Well, since then I've tested out several different recipes (I even burned my arm pretty badly trying to make these for him), but none have quite been my hands down favorite. Until now. While perusing through my friend Sarah's blog Snixy Kitchen (amazing photos and recipes by the way), I did a search on oatmeal raisin cookies and found one to try. With only two minor modifications -- adding more raisins and adding nutmeg (a little America's Test Kitchen tip) -- I literally ate five cookies once they were cool enough to touch. They were SO good. I made them again several times after that just to be sure my stomach wasn't lying to me. Yep. they were that good again and again -- crispy on the outside and not too thick or chewy.

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Favorites: Public Mini Kids Balance Bike

One of my favorite childhood memories was riding a bike around our neighborhood. My brother, who taught me how to ride my one and only Sears Spyder Bike with rad banana seat, and I would ride around the street in the late afternoon until my mom called out that it was dinner time. Those were the days.

Needless to say, learning to ride a bike is something I really want my kids to know how to do early on. This past Christmas we decided to get Lucas a new balance bike. The previous one he had was pretty cool but didn't fit him quite right and admittedly, we didn't take him out riding enough. This time around we chose the Public Mini V Kids Balance Bike in green. How cute is it with its retro styling, bell, and leather handles and seat? After quickly adjusting it for the proper height, Lucas gave his new bike a whirl around his Nana and Grandad's flat driveway. Note: Lucas always wears a helmet when he rides, but we forgot it at home that day and figured it would be okay for him to try out his new bike in the driveway without one. I'm a staunch advocate for wearing a helmet and we love our Nutcase 8 Ball helmet.

Initially a tad too high for Lucas, Nick was easily able to adjust it to the proper height.

Of course, Theo wants to do everything Lucas does so we let him have a spin. :) Get that paci out, Theo!

Love the cotton candy sky here.

Not a fall, but Lucas saying, "I'm SO tired, mama!"

Public is offering an extra $50 off bikes with promo code SWEETHEART until February 17th and 10% off all non-sale accessories with promo code 10OFFGEAR. The Mini Kids Bikes are on sale for $99.

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Recipe: Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup

When it comes to comfort food, my go-to is a big bowl of soupy noodles. Whether it's ramen, soba, pho, or chow fun noodles in chicken broth, I will never turn down a giant bowl of noodles swimming in hot broth. It's kind of crazy, but I have been making this super simple Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup since 2001. I found it in one of my Cooking Light magazines years ago and it's been a staple in our house ever since. It's so simple (throw everything into a big pot, boil the noodles, put the two together), yet surprisingly complex in flavor. I don't always have every topping on hand, so I love that you could doctor it up however you like and it's always yummy -- add spinach and fried shallots, or baby kale and bean sprouts, or jalapenos and thai basil . My whole family loves this dish, especially if it's cold outside (hello, east coast friends!) or if someone is sick. As Theo would say, "More Thoop Peas!"

This would be perfect for this much needed rainy weekend. What's your go-to comfort food?

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Warby Parker Opening Party in San Francisco

Here are some pics I snapped at the Warby Parker opening party in San Francisco. The edited down version, along with a funny story about perfect vision by Anthology magazine's creative director, Meg, is on the Anthology magazine blog. Aside from the neat stacks of color coded books on display and the rad glasses available for trying on, my favorite part of the store is the artwork on the walls by one of my faves, Lab Partners (Theo's room houses two of our favorite prints from them).

Love the new store and everything Warby Parker, especially my Laurel glasses in Tea Rose Fade and Nick's Roosevelt frames - both Lucas approved!

Favorites: New Tea Collection

I've been a longtime fan of Tea Collection even before I had kids. Their globally inspired collections are unique, well made, great for layering, locally designed (yay for San Francisco!), made from soft cotton, and just all-around awesome and versatile. Lucas and Theo's wardrobe consists of many Tea Collection hand-me-downs from the neighbors' kids, who are now 7 and 9 -- a testament to their quality as well as timeless designs.

When Tea Collection asked me to choose two outfits for Lucas and Theo from their new collection inspired by their expeditions in India, it was so hard to narrow down my choices. For Lucas, I chose the Jagathi Reversible Tee to pair with the French Terry Moto Pants in Coal (he already has the French Terry Playwear Pants which he loves). For Theo, I also chose the French Terry Moto Pants but in Bedford Blue along with the Patchwork Skateboard Graphic Tee. I ordered the pants in size 5 for Lucas and size 3 for Theo, both of which were a bit large on my skinny minnie boys, but they still loved them and will be able to grow into them.

+ All photos by me / product shots above by Tea Collection
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My Cheese Platter and a Giveaway with 34 Degrees Crisps

Is it weird that putting together a really nice cheese platter was on my list of things to do in life? Yes, I know. Well, I had the perfect opportunity to make that happen when I had my good friend Lisa and her lovely family over for dinner. They are a foodie family so I wanted to make something a little extra special -- I didn't want to just whip up my weekly tofu-dipped-in-egg-and-pan-fried-over-rice entree (though I know they would love that too!).

Anyway, I went to the new Whole Foods on Gilman Street and headed straight to the cheese counter. When I went on the preview tour of the store, one of the highlights was the cut-to-order cheese section. Mental note! Luckily, the cheese lady Julia was there to help me answer questions and provide samples of all kinds of tasty cheeses and olives. After making my final cheese selections, she also recommended 34 Degrees Crisps. Oh man, I thought the fancy cheeses would be the stars on the platter, but turns out I also fell in love with these thin and delicate crisps. They each had their own flavors that really complemented the different cheeses. I'm pretty proud at how my platter turned out.

In case you're wondering what was on my platter, here's a list:

• Cheeses: Brillat Savarin Delin (soft cheese, 6-year old Zoya's fave), Abbaye de Bel'loc (hard sheep's milk), Bay Blue Point Reyes (the perfect blue cheese) and Murcia Curado - Naked Goat (mild tasting, firm goat cheese)
• 34 Degrees Crisps: Toasted Onion, Rosemary, Cracked Pepper, Poppy Seed and Natural
• Olives: Whole Foods mixed olives with Parmesan rind that I baked in the oven, as well as Castleveltrano, my favorite olives ever
• Nuts: Rosemary Marcona Almonds from Trader Joe's
• Fruit: Organic D'Anjou Pears
• Next time I think I'll include these Spanish Olive Oil Tortas and maybe a fig spread
• Gold cheese knives from West Elm, Rustic oak pie slab from Food 52

I even dotted some creme fraiche on the cracked pepper crisps and topped it with smoked salmon and capers. Delicious! Look, I'm all fancy now!

The awesome crew over at 34 Degree Crisps is giving away a set of their limited edition flavors, Toasted Onion (my personal fave!) and Poppy Seed, along with their Natural and Rosemary flavors, including pairing and recipe cards.

Here's how to enter:

• Follow @good_on_paper and @34Degrees_ on Instagram, comment with your favorite cheese and cracker pairing, and tag a cheese loving friend

• Please comment by Friday, January 23rd, 12pm PST

• This giveaway is for U.S. residents only

• I will announce a winner selected by random number generator by Monday, January 26th

Best of luck!

Recipe: Massaged Kale with Pomegranate, Persimmon and Pistachio

I am a huge fan of kale. In fact, my whole family loves kale (yes, even the kids -- Theo says, "More K-O Peeese!") anyway you cook it. Or in this case, not cook it. I'm also a huge fan of Erin Scott's blog and book, Yummy Supper. So when I saw this recipe on her blog, I immediately made it as a side for dinner that night as I had all the ingredients on hand. Hearty lacinato kale, creamy persimmon, bright pops of pomegranate seeds, and pistachios for texture with a kick of salty goodness, marry so nicely together with a simple dressing (the sweet maple syrup is key here) to make this one of my favorite salads. It's also so versatile -- the other day I added roasted carrots and avocado.

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Favorites: Iddy Biddy

When I found out I was pregnant with my first boy, I heard stuff like, "Oh, get ready for lots of climbing, running, chasing after him" and "you'll definitely have your hands full." Well, guess what? Now I have TWO of those! Lucas is definitely more active than Theo, but there have been times when they've run in opposite directions when I needed them to stay put. Can't say I wasn't warned!

Needless to say, when it comes to dressing my boys, their clothes need to be comfortable and able to withstand a bit of wear and tear. Enter Iddy Biddy, a small company that creates cool & comfy knits for the modern day babe/kiddo, created by two hard working mamas in the fashion industry. When they sent Lucas and Theo these cute leggings, I couldn't have been more excited to test drive them out.

Made of cotton jersey with quality sewing, the prints are fun and modern (stripes and camo!) and have held up to Lucas and Theo's active lifestyles, even after several washes. Most of Iddy Biddy's current fabric offering is made from thicker weight cotton, with a few patterns in  lighter weight (such as the camo print). All of the samples I received had plenty of stretch for comfort while providing a slimmer/skinnier look. Currently all of their fabric is locally sourced and hand made in San Francisco.

Getting them to sit still for this photo shoot was a challenge. But I think all the movement made for some interesting angles (had no idea Lucas could do a hand stand) and really showed how well the leggings fit and moved with their bodies. And thanks to my husband Nick who kept the tickles and giggles going for our shoot.

We decided to take the boys and their new pants to "the forest" (aka Christmas tree shopping). What better way to test the quality of the pants than to have the boys weave through needles of giant noble firs.

Iddy Biddy is currently working on their Etsy shop that will go live in January. They will carry skinny leggings, harem/drop crotch leggings, slouchy beanies/infant knotted beanies, and knotted and turban headbands. They will be diversifying their assortment in mid 2015 to include graphic tees and more. For sizing they offer 2T, 3T, & 4T (just for reference, Lucas wore a 4T and Theo wore a 3T) and run a bit slimmer than brands like Gap and Old Navy which is awesome for my skinny minnies! For updates on what's new and to see other cute kiddos sporting Iddy Biddy, check out their Instagram feed @iddy_biddy_baby.

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