Author: Carrie Spritzer

The German Connection


Our dear friends from Germany (who we met in Boulder) Thorsten and Stefan visited us this past week! We had a blast hitting Chinatown (near the hotel they were staying at in San Francisco for a conference–the “real” reason they were here!), touring and tasting at wineries in Sonoma, watching movies, and hiking around some giant redwoods near our house. We had a whirlwind trip and great time together. Come visit us again soon, guys! And, yes, we will make it to your neck of the woods and visit you in Germany one of these days!

Relaxing Thanksgiving


We had a wonderfully relaxing and fun long weekend! Once again, we hosted Thanksgiving this year. Christana and Richard came over to celebrate with us on Thursday. The menu included: salmon stuffed with crab, garlic mashed potatoes, creamed spinach, salad, and cornbread stuffing with pecans and wild mushrooms. The meal was phenomenal. We even served a local wine from Chateau St Jean and David cooked up Bananas Foster for dessert. It was a great day.

On Friday, we celebrated the anniversary of the day we met with an incredibly tasty and extravagant meal at Mustard’s Grill in the nearby Napa Valley. Other weekend activities included lots of holiday gift making, runs in the park, swims in our pool, jewelry making and website design at the Woodward-Browns, wine tasting at Grgich Hills, movie watching, tasty Thai food, and lots of great down time together. David and I had a blast. (We are so easy to please: just give us time together!)

East Coast Trip


I had a fantastic time back east visiting family & friends and enjoyed a jam-packed trip! Here’s a sampling in semi-chronological order of my trip: attended a PFS benefit event in Princeton; saw the Puccini opera Turandot with Charlotte, Carol, and my parents; ate at Blue Point Grill (always a favorite) with my folks; met Oliver and Jackie for dinner and pool; met up with cousin Rachel and her boyfriend Ed for dinner; visited with Jan at the Princeton Public Library; lunched with my mom at Mediterra; hosted Lorry and then Nancy for tea; visited Aunt Sherry and Uncle Mike at their shore house with my Dad, finally met cousin Aaron and his fiance Melissa, walked down to Atlantic City and then cruised along the beach (see pictures), grabbed a delicious crab dinner with the fam; cooked for an intimate Fremon-Scutt/Bassett-Wilson dinner party; headed into New York City; toured the Whitney Museum with Aida and Mogan, then met up with Dan and friends for dinner (and margaritas) and some bar hoping; breakfasted and hit Macy’s with Imani (who I hadn’t seen since fifth grade!); took the train to Long Island to visit with my grandmother and see her new place (absolutely fabulous!); met up with my uncle for dinner; grabbed sushi lunch and coffee with Rachel (who I also hadn’t seen in a decade!); spent quality time with Grandma; headed back to NJ; walked the canals with my dad; ate some Candela’s and more sushi and then hopped on the plane back to California. I literally didn’t have an afternoon off and the whole trip was out of this world!

If only I had taken more pictures!

Autumn days

I love fall and the days leading up to Halloween. I love watching the trees change color and the crisp fall days. Here in California the transformation to autumn seems to be taking weeks and I am just soaking it in. I’ve made lots of hearty soups and corn dishes; we’ve been eating lots of apples, persimmons, and roasted squash (locally grown, of course); and have started pulling long-sleeved shirts and sweaters out of boxes. I have been in a knitting frenzy, trying to finish gifts as well as warm socks and scarves for us. We’ve been watching a bunch of Halloween movies and celebrating the season with friends. I still enjoy my early morning tea ritual and go for my daily runs in the early afternoons. It is so nice having the time to enjoy the every day things. Truly, I have never been so entirely content in my life. We both feel so relaxed and happy. Life is good.