happy birthday mom!

Today marks the birthday of my fabulous mother.

While she's my biggest blog fan, she isn't so into the sappy ones around these parts so I won't write much.  

opening the ceremony at our wedding

showing everyone how it's done at rancho la puerta

dinner out in san francisco on one of her many visits to 

come hang and help out with little samantha

I'll only wish a happiest of birthdays to the best mom a girl could ask for.  

xoxo

KK

birthday boy

Monday was Stefan's birthday and as you already know, all he wanted to do to celebrate was hang out at home with Samantha.  But to make things just a tad bit more exciting, Samantha and I came to pick him up from his office for a late afternoon glass of wine.

Stefan works right on the water next to the famed Ferry Building - home to many-a-fabulous little shops, including Cowgirl Creamery: one of SF's many great cheesemongers.  We obviously had to make a pit-stop there pre-cocktail-hour to sample some of their finest and pick up a few new varieties.

After our cheese snack, we found a spot along the water for some wine.

We then headed home for dinner, presents, and cake!

While I gave Stefan his choice of any dish imaginable, he opted for a menu of simple and fresh end-of-summer favorites:

Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta

Roasted Asparagus Soup

Pan-Seared Alaskan Halibut with an Heirloom Tomato Relish

The Bruschetta is so delicious and so, so easy:

1. chop really, really good tomatoes (worth splurging for the $6/lb organic heirlooms!)

2. toss with your best olive oil, freshly chopped garlic and salt & pepper to taste

3. set aside and let flavors meld (perfect to make a few hours beforehand)
4. when you're ready to serve, toast up a crunchy sliced baguette and top with generous portions of the tomato mixture

The Asparagus Soup is equally easy and simple:

1. roast asparagus with olive oil and salt & pepper in oven at 350-400ish

2. toss it in a Vitamix with chicken broth and your choice of cream (half & half, 2%, or almond milk - any works!)

3. blend and add in additional broth, cream, and salt & pepper to taste

It was so quick that I didn't even have time to snap a shot!

The Halibut also was done in no time at all:

1. rub fish with olive oil and salt & pepper and let sit at room temp for 30ish minutes

2. pan-sear each side on medium high heat for 4ish minutes depending on thickness

3. remove fish from pan and set aside covered to keep warm

4. toss extra tomato mixture from Bruschetta into hot pan and fry until warm

5. plate fish and top with tomatoes

Then it was time for dessert:

1. buy really decadent, rich dessert (i.e., cream-filled Neapolitan) from your local bakery or gourmet grocer

2. throw away the box so no one is the wiser

3. serve on pretty platter with candles 

All in all, a fabulous (and very easy, which I am ALL about these days) dinner!

Stefan's dad and stepmom come to visit today and we're cooking them dinner tonight.  We're planning to do an equally-easy meal inspired by Stefan's b-day dinner: 

a cheese plate and fresh Bruschetta to start, 

juicy steaks on the grill, 

roasted asparagus,

and a big salad with super sweet white nectarines.

What's your go-to favorite fancy yet no-fuss dinner?

xoxo

KK

happy happy

Today marks a particularly serendipitous day for me.  
Not only is it Stefan's birthday, but it is also my parent's 30th wedding anniversary.  
Two rather important events for me. :)

My parents have celebrated anniversaries in all sorts of glorious fashion.  One year, my dad surprised my mom with a mystery trip to Hawaii that came with one of her favorite things: A Plan with Activities.  Every second of every day was planned out.  (We don't like downtime in our family.)  While they could have gone anywhere or done anything to celebrate this pretty big marriage milestone, they decided to go to - wait for it - Indiana.

Don't get me wrong, I like all good Midwestern states, but their choice seemed a little anti-climatic for the couple that has ridden camels in Egypt, hiked the Inca Trail, and climbed the Great Wall of China.  Still, they decided that all they really needed to celebrate was each other (and some champagne and good golf courses, which apparently Indiana has).

Similarly, I offered Stefan all sorts of exciting options for his b-day celebration including getting a sitter and going out for a fancy dinner with decadent wine, but he couldn't imagine celebrating his day without his new favorite little lady.  All he wanted was to stay in for a home-cooked meal where he could have Samantha by his side.

One of the things that has been most surprising to me about parenthood is how incredible it is to watch the person you love fill their new role as a parent.  Per usual, Stefan took the job very seriously and has exceeded all expectations of what it means to be a father.  Watching him light up as he holds Samantha or calms her down (or changes her diaper!) and watching her as she settles into his comforting arms, makes me fall even more in love with him and this new stage of life for us as a family.

While I could go on and on about how wonderful he is as a father, a husband, and a friend, I'll stop here.  Stefan calls these types of posts my "thank-you" posts and claims they are not nearly as interesting as those where I share my latest mishaps and misfortunes (coming right at ya tomorrow!), but alas - I couldn't help myself in pushing the sappy-meter to shout into the blogosphere how happy I am for my wonderful parents and how much I love that child-at-heart husband of mine.

Happy anniversary Mom and Dad!  Thank you for teaching us kids what it looks like to be an incredible husband/wife, parent and grandparent (!!).

with Samantha

And happy birthday Stefan!  We can't wait to celebrate with you tonight! 

xoxo

KK

honesty

So this past Tuesday was my mom's birthday.

Since she has everything she could possibly want (and my dad always manages to take the cake in terms of presents - this year, he surprised her with a new BMW), us kids usually opt to send her a bottle of good champagne (her fav) to wherever she is dining that night or a nice bunch of flowers (who doesn't love fresh blooms?) to brighten up her desk.

from here

 

from here

This year, however, she happened to be down at their place in Florida, and unfortunately 
1. their go-to restaurant for dinner out (the Pink!) was closed (so they'd be dining at home), and
2. our go-to Gasparilla Island florist wasn't open until the end of the month.

Not wanting to stray from our original idea, we decided to just try out another florist.  The woman assured me they had a beautiful arrangement of Gerber Daisies (my mom's fav) in a lovely basket that would do the trick.  How bad could it be?

The answer to that question is:
very, very bad.

As soon as the flowers were delivered, she sent us kids a text:
"Thanks so much for the flowers! xxoo"

Curious as to whether our trial florist fit the bill, I responded:
"You're so welcome!  Are they cute?"

To which she replied:
"No not cute sorry!! I will send you a picture.  They are awful!!!!"

Gotta love her honesty.
Live and learn: don't use a florist you don't know.

Perhaps, we'll get our act together to pull this off for next year:

from here

Happy weekend!

xoxo

KK

happy birthday mom!

Apologies for the radio silence of late - I just started a very exciting new job (which I am absolutely LOVING) and it's been a busy month getting into the swing of things and learning the ropes.

BUT today was worthy of reappearance because TODAY marks the grand old day of birth for my fabulous mother:

There aren't too many moms you want to be twins with.
It just so happens that MY mom is extremely twin-worthy.
(And often her, Gretch, and I pull the whole triplet thing, and we LOVE it.  Pretty awesome.)

To celebrate her special day, I figured I'd share some of my fav mom posts to date:

favs from mom - 
this post has been THE MOST popular post on this site since the day I started posting a list of the most popular posts (see right-hand side) - guess everybody knows Mom's got good taste

more thanksgiving goodness -
did you know this power woman is so beloved, she has a field hockey field named after her?  pretty awesome.  the Krieg-Gallun clan had some serious competition on that baby last Thanksgiving...

a belated birthday -
her lovely birthday celebration in Maine with Nana and Pops last year

the morning of -
the unbelievably sweet women-only brunch she planned for me the morning of Stefan and my wedding

getting ready -
and all the work she did for the wedding in the few days prior

words and writers -
this super sweet game + book she put together when Stefan and I got engaged

an extra special engagement -
the story of how SHE got engaged just two Christmases ago :)

She's not only my fabulous, knock-em-dead mother, 
she's my fashion consultant, crisis-solver, cheerer-upper, and - most of all - friend.  

Mom - thanks for being the best.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

xoxo
KK

charlotte

Gosh, it's been awhile hasn't it?
I didn't mean to take such a big blog break, but stuff just kept - well - getting in the way.  And the longer I waited, the bigger the bar became for what I should post about when I finally emerged from my blogging burial ground.  

But today is a day worth reemerging for.
Because today marks the birthday of my very best friend: Miss. Charlotte VanWagenen.

char at range

While I couldn't be with her to celebrate the big day today, I was lucky enough to have her come visit for an entire weekend a few weeks ago.  If you know her, you know she is the absolute easiest guest in the entire world.  She is game for anything (any activity, any restaurant, any schedule), she is totally fine sleeping on the couch (which she had to do because our air mattress has gotten in the habit of deflating over the course of a night leaving its inhabitant waking on the ground), and she's the definition of easy going.  

So easy going in fact, that when our bathroom tub decided to clog while she was here (and by clog - I mean, to the brim, not draining one little bit), and we had to spend 2 hours on Saturday waiting while a heavy-duty plumber snacked out our drain, she pretended as though the event was the most exciting and fascinating thing that had happened to her all year.  (She leads a very adventurous, travel-filled life, so I know it most certainly wasn't.)

Thankfully, the plumber sorted it out and we were able to take showers and get on with the rest of our weekend.  Stefan managed to finagle an appointment at A. Rafanelli - one of our absolute favorite wineries that is close to impossible to get into.  While their wines are out of this world and could easily go for $150+ a pop, they refuse to raise their prices, leaving their amazing Zinfandel at the absolute bargain price of $30.  While that's awesome if you can get them, their wine club has a multi-year wait list and requires you to hand write them a letter requesting to be put on it.  Luckily, our time had come so they were willing to let us new wine club members come show "our extra special guest" what they were all about.

After some decadent tastes, we opted for a European-style picnic overlooking the nearby Sonoma Lake.  

Char carried the essentials:

wine and water that is

We sat and chatted and ate and drank and before we knew it, it was late and time to head home.  The weekend was over before it felt like it had even started - a common occurrence with Charlotte.  Even though she lives in New York while I'm in SF, she's the type of friend who I can not see (or even talk to) for weeks, and then when we get together, it feels like not a single second has passed.  You know: the type of friend whose presence alone rejuvenates you.

Happy Birthday Char! Hope you're being spoiled rotten.

xoxo
KK

feb 19

Yesterday was my birthday.

I've had a history of some pretty sensational celebrations,
(last year my sister, two best friends, and all of their SOs came out to visit for a weekend of wine-tasting, 
the year before that Stefan whisked me off to Verbier for a weekend of sensational Swiss skiing)
so Stefan had quite some work cut out for him to out-do himself this time around.

To add to his pressure, I have parents who completely spoil me (in the BEST possible way) with a plethora of perfect presents (think: 3-months unlimited yoga, a new KKF Tiffany's key chain, and 6-months laundry service - just to name a few).   

Yesterday, however, Stefan totally hit the ball out of the park.

I was instructed to be home in our apartment at 7pm, "elegantly dressed" and ready for the night.  There, Stefan was waiting with an apero - one of my most favorite Swiss traditions that has become a special event for the two of us whenever we can fit it in.

He had picked up the most delicious fresh bread along with some perfectly sliced prosciutto and two right-up-my-alley cheeses.

  
He popped some champagne...

We made cheers...

And then I opened some sensational presents from my fam...

 

Some stylish travel supplies from 

my adorable little brother Sam

(who clearly has impeccable taste)

We then headed out to our mystery dinner locale - Stefan not sharing a peep.  As he drove us in all sorts of misleading directions, he asked me what type of cuisine I was hoping for.
"French!"
Not only do the French prepare the most decadent dishes, their restaurants tend to be the most romantic and cozy - perfect for a chilly, February birthday.

As luck would have it, Stefan had booked us a table at chapeau! - a little French secret in the Richmond, a neighborhood we had yet to explore.  The place was packed (especially for a Tuesday night at 8:30pm) and they led us to a lovely table tucked between two other couples.

But Stefan knew we could do better.
He made fast friends with the French owner and head chef (who was charmed by Stefan's superior French skills - oh the joys of having a husband who speaks every language) who escorted us to the restaurant's best table.

The intimate round beauty where we could sit next to each other 

in a luscious leather booth and spy on the rest of the restaurant 

while we sipped our wine and ate our butter-laden bread

They had an option for a 3-course or 4-course meal so we opted for both (Stefan with the 3, me with the 4) and ordered a variety of different tantalizing options to share.

The meal started with a creamy cauliflower soup amuse-bouche.

Then moved onto veal sweetbreads and a trio of salmon to start.

A pan seared scallop with pesto risotto as a second. 

Then a maple leaf farms duck breast and bouillabaisse for mains.

And then french toast with hazelnut ice cream and nuage de noix for dessert.

 

with a candle of course!

But that wasn't all Stefan had planned.  He then whipped out my present:

 

An unassuming jar apparently used for making confit...

 

Filled with vouchers for all the weeks of a 12-week intensive cooking course!

For us to do TOGETHER!

Not only does the course teach you all the basics for getting around in the kitchen (knife skills, braising, roasting, sauces, etc), Week 12 is an Iron Chef Mystery Basket competition where you compete against your fellow classmates to see who has mastered the skills the most.  I could not be more pumped.  

Best. birthday. ever.

xoxo

KK

 

happy birthday gretters!

Today is the big 2-5 for my little sister Gretchen!

 

I may be older, but Gretchen is definitely wiser:

 

She's always got some good advice when times are tough 

and I need an unbiased, rational opinion. 

 (Getting some of her many words 

of wisdom in Sonoma last spring.)

And more hilarious:

 

There isn't a person in the world 

this girl can't make laugh.

And more patient:

 

She had to put up with a whole lot of this growing up.

And more athletic:

She kills me on the golf course, tennis court, race track - 

you name it.

 

And sillier:

Need I say more?

 

 And more stylish:

 

(I've been trying to up the ante in terms of fashion lately and Stefan keeps telling me:

"Oh - you look so stylish!  You look like Gretchen!")

Happy birthday Gretters!

with her man - the fabulous Al

We all love you!

xoxo
KK

a belated birthday

Did you know that a week and a day ago was my mom’s birthday?  While I wasn’t able to celebrate with her on the day-of like last year, I was lucky enough to spend this past weekend celebrating with her and my dad and my sister and my two fabulous grandparents – Nana and Pops. 

On Friday, we all made our way up to Kennebunkport, Maine: the charming little beach town where Nana and Pops have an adorable riverside bungalow.  Because they’re re-doing the entire place (it’s going to be awesome), we stayed down the street at the lovely Breakwater Inn & Spa.

 

The rooms were lovely,

 

as was the view.

Friday night we went out to the fancy schmancy EARTH restaurant where we dined on melt-in-your-mouth swordfish, grown-up-fried-string-cheese and what I called Russian roulette peppers (1 in 10 was deathly spicy – I like spice, but when I say deathly, I mean you’re not able to think straight for the next 20 minutes and there isn't anything you can do to fix it.  Trust me - I tried.)   

 

1

 

For dessert, we went Liz-Krieg-style: just a prosecco and some more good conversation before we headed home for a Diet Coke before bed.

But the thing with Mom is that even though we were celebrating her, per usual, she made it all about us – asking us the questions, treating us to the meal (with a gift certificate Nana & Pops had given them to treat themselves), and making us feel like we were the ones getting spoiled (which we most certainly were).  She has an incredible way of making all those around her feel comfortable and just so at home. 

Did you know that for the two work conferences I’ve had over the past month (one in Washington DC and one in Boston right before this past weekend), she’s flown out to see me and keep me company?  She'd do her own thing while I had to work but was always available whenever I had a moment free.  It was so, so nice to catch up with her while working out or grabbing a drink or munching on dinner or doing just a little shopping.  And it’s not like she doesn’t have enough travel on her plate this fall – her and my dad fly from Wisconsin to the East Coast to watch my brother play football Every. Single. Weekend.

 

Pretty awesome parents if you ask me.

xoxo
KK