…apostates who crawl out of the woodwork on Facebook. Just because time has passed doesn’t make you a decent person.

Thanks for this Arleen!

Got problems with your best friend? The ASPCA now has a virtual pet behaviorist at your service!

…we’ve been very busy, and it’s not likely to stop! We had a great vacation and are getting ready for fall and a new home. I will be keeping you informed mostly through my tweets, or the Alexandra Out and About section you see there in the right sidebar.

Thanks for keeping up with me – I’ll have lots of news and photos soon!
xoxo

Urban moms with too much stuff and no place to put it take heart! Now a stylish collapsible playpen to contain and protect your critter from newborn to twenty four months. Bloombaby presents Alma, which is:

• patented, no-tools-required rapid assembly

• compact-fold construction for easy storage and transport

• 2 position adjustable mattress platform for growing baby

• contemporary design sized for urban living spaces

• 4 lockable castors

• durable and strong solid wood construction

It’s been wicked hot here in the hood lately. And don’t say “you don’t know hot, living in LA”, because I DO know hot. I have lived in NEW ORLEANS and TUCSON for pete’s sake, so I know hot, and it has been hot. The thing about hot here is that no one has adequate air conditioning (unlike my Deep Southern homies), so one has to get creative about what to do so one doesn’t explode. Said activity must wear out the Critter, and not wear out Mommy, so I’m always thrilled to find something that occupies his interest for a long period of time.

When I lived in that hellhole Tucson, I met Jolie. We worked in the trenches of some of the most successful retail establishments cutting our teeth in merchandising and styling and have remained friends through bad boyfriends, bad jobs, and now have the best of both. Jolie now is a hotshot creative for REI, which impresses my Perfect skiing and hiking nut Husband immensely, and comes to town occasionally to check on their Santa Monica store. We are very lucky to get to play with her when she does.

The Critter and I headed over to see her yesterday, and we all climbed out of the car at Palisades Park in Santa Monica. It was truly idyllic, cool, colorful, and we had a lot of fun with “Gestation” by Baile Oakes. The outdoor installation is a large wooden structure resembling (depending on your perspective) a large ball, a Christmas ornament, or a snail’s shell, and has cool acoustics so your voice sounds really BIG when you stand inside it. The cool breezes blew, the critter laughed and played; we sighed and were happy.

Then I’ve had the addiction my entire life. I have always loved bubbles, and now that I have The Critter, I have carte blanche in investigating the best bubble blowing tools. Our latest is a battery powered hand held I found at Rite Aid, and it’s awesome! The Critter can operate it by pushing a button, which is great, because he doesn’t exactly have the lip technique down yet for blowing them himself. We spend a lot of the summer afternoons after naptime blowing bubbles in the courtyard and running through the sprinkler.

Want to be a bubble expert? Patricia Jensen, owner of Kids Party Paradise tells you how:

Bubble Recipe Secrets – Ten Tips and Techniques to Making Super Bubbles

Making and blowing bubbles with your kids is one of the most carefree pastimes imaginable – giggles guaranteed! And yet, blowing bubbles without knowing these simple bubble recipe secrets can turn your bubble fun into a “bust”! With these simple bubble recipe secrets, making super-sized long-lasting bubbles is a cinch.

1. Adding glycerin to your bubble mix makes bubbles stronger. Glycerin can be found in your local pharmacy.

2. Use distilled water instead of tap water. Tap water tends to be “hard” and is not good for making bubbles. If yours is “soft”, you have the perfect water for good “bubbleology”.

3. Prepare your bubble solution in advance and store it overnight in the refrigerator before using it.

4. Dry surfaces pop bubbles, so make sure your bubble wand, your hands, and anything your bubble may touch is wet.

5. Let the bubble maker soak in the bubble solution a few minutes prior to using.

6. Clear any suds or foam from surface of mixture before making bubbles. Don’t slosh the wand around in the solution. Suds and foam are “bubble-busters”.

7. Overcast, cool and humid days are the best weather conditions for blowing bubbles. Avoid hot, dry or windy days, or at least find a shady spot out of the wind.

8. “Throw” bubbles, don’t blow bubbles. Move your wand in a slow fluid motion.

9. Many small bubbles instead of one big one means you are probably blowing too hard.

10. Finish your bubble with a quick twist of the wrist to seal it before if flies away.

Adults and kids alike can learn these simple techniques to become expert “bubbleologists”.

Note: Exercise care when children are using bubble mix. It can be very slippery on the ground, and will sting if it gets in the eyes.

Also make sure to check out Bubble Town for great bubble recipes and tricks!

…I used to live in New Orleans and frequently I am asked about my recommendations. I recently compiled this list for a friend, and for those of you who may visit the Crescent City, please tell them I sent you!

Alexandra’s Do’s and Dont’s for New Orleans

DO – General

Good Neighborhood over view Map – you probably barely have time to explore the French Quarter (aka Vieux Carre’), The Central Business District (aka CBD or Warehouse District). the Garden District and Uptown. I have lists for other areas but no one ever has the time to do everything I want them to. You may find that you love one particular area and you can spend your whole vacation exploring it!

Great map of restaurants in French Quarter( see list of favorites below):

List of the best antique stores on Royal Street – my favorites are M.S. Rau and Ida Manheim – if antiques aren’t your thing, it’s fun to window shop them at night, too

Great map for walking in Garden District – try commander’s palace for lunch or Casamento’s before or after your walk – get off the streetcar at Washington Ave, and follow the map~if you see anybody coming or going from Colonel Short’s Villa – say hello – my friend owns that house now and it’s FABULOUS!

Good Listing and map for the Magazine Street galleries and shops, the most unique gifts, art and antiques will be here. A couple of my faves on the list are Cole Pratt Gallery, Mignon Faget, Blue Frog Chocolates, and Williamson Designs – links are on the list!

List of Cemeteries

Museums at Jackson Square with terrific exhibits including Mardi Gras

Listen to radio station 90.3 in your room and check listings for music around town.

Off the hook fabulous hats and perfumes way up at the end of the streetcar stop – the best milliner in the USA!

The Audubon Zoo and Park are wonderful too – you can see some ancient oak trees with Spanish moss

Best taxi – seriously, this matters – I took a ride down the freeway one night with a drunk and blind idiot from the airport – I should’ve taken a United

Best place to get a funky New Orleans costume or wig – well, I need them frequently whether or not you do:
Fifi Mahony my very favorite – for real girls and wanna be girls!
Little Shop of Fantasy – best masks you’ll ever see
The most counterculture clothing and shoes will be found at the end of Decatur Street near Esplanade –usually buy at least one thing around there each trip to treat my inner Goth

French Quarter Food:

Acme Oyster Bar great po boys, seafood baskets and shucked oysters

Bayona best gourmet cuisine -tell Regina and Susan I said hi : )

Galatoires – Best creole seafood – go for Friday lunch – they don’t take reservations; just get there as early as you can and wait for a table – try to get table downstairs

Cafe du Monde is the ONLY place to get a beignet, the creole donut, with café au lait – great site for people watching too.

Johnny’s Po Boy will deliver if you’re hung over

Central Grocery – have the original muffeletta sandwich and a Barq’s root beer; in fact, make sure you drink Barq’s with everything 🙂

Southern Candymaker Best pralines in town!

French Quarter Cocktails ( keep in mind you can get them in a “go cup” and walk around or stay and soak up some atmosphere):

The Carousel Lounge at the Hotel Monteleone – fun to sit and spin at the bar, or people watch from the windows

I always stop by Napoleon House for a Pimm’s cup cocktail which is very refreshing on a hot summer day

Pat O’ Brien’s Don’t have the hurricane – you might throw up, but it’s fun to sit in the courtyard by the flaming fountain and have a party pic made – they also have a great piano bar

Stop at any daiquiri joint you might pass – they help beat the heat – just keep in mind they are much more powerful than you think – It’s like Jamba Juice with 151 proof!

Central Business District Food:

Emeril’s Great restaurant from Emeril LaGasse eclectic –

The BonTon Cafe – definitely the best creole food in town with the best seafood – odd hours, but don’t miss it!

Mother’s Killer po boys and best gumbo in town (the ONLY gumbo in town, really)

Uptown / Garden District Food:

Casamento’s best po boys, fried crab claws and shucked oysters uptown

Commander’s Palace -a Nola institution – great brunch; try the turtle soup – great cemetery across the street

Franky and Johnny’s great juke joint WAY uptown – awesome poboys, onion rings, daily specials and alligator pie!

DON’T

DO NOT EAT/SHOP HERE (tourist traps):
 Court of the Two Sisters
 Anywhere on Jackson Square or in the French Market, except for Café du Monde and Central Grocery
 Anywhere on Bourbon but Galatoire’s or Desire Oyster Bar
 Your hotel ;), unless you’re staying at the Windsor Court or The Omni Royal Orleans
 The Riverwalk
 Do not go off the beaten path in uptown – stay on or close to the mapped area above and on the main streets
 Do not engage in conversation with anyone who wants to guess where you got your shoes, who wants to show you a timeshare, or wants to tap dance for you.
 As a pedestrian stay on streets that are more crowded

Laissez les Bontemps Roulez!

…rarely falls far from the tree!

When I was in high school I sang with the choir and competed in a few vocal competitions. Did you know that the National Anthem is often assigned as the audition piece for this type competition? I can tell you that it takes A LOT of talent, heart, and spirit to sing it like you mean it.

Today – sing it like you mean it people – America is still the greatest!

Abbey Hood of Beverly Hills Design and Life reports:

“Shoppers on Rodeo Drive are usually preoccupied with the Chanel purse they eye in the elegant window as they wind their way down one of the world’s premier shopping Streets. What’s ALmost always overlooked is one of the Beverly Hills’ greatest treasures — Anderton Court designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

While Beverly Hills may be the formost destination for retail, it is also a mecca for architects to show-off some of their greatest innovations, including Wright’s.

“The Beverly Hills Architectural Design Awards are presented to designers and architects for completed building renovations or new projects reviewed by the Architectural Commission,” said Donna Jerex, Beverly Hills Senior Planner.

Annually, the seven members of the Architectural Commission recognize outstanding examples of commercial design.

Since 1972, Beverly Hills has honored 100 notable new, remodeled and restored buildings, including Chanel, Fendi, Coach and Harry Winston.”

As a lover of all practices of art and design, it’s no wonder I love living here! For more on each building, click here.