Posh Plums on Cuteable!

My mom's Etsy site, Posh Plums, is on Cuteable today!

You can also check her out today in the Etsy Children's Showcase.

The house is done at last! Or done enough for now, at least. Check out the final photos here.

Last night we had a housewarming party to christen the new place. Now it's time to turn our attention to the garage - more photos on that soon.

Check out one of my photos from Scotland in an online guide to Edinburgh. The photo is of Holyrood Park.

Preliminary Photos of the New House

By familial request, we present some photos of our new house.

Remember it's still very much a work in progress, but we expect to have it done by the end of the summer, for sure.

Introducing Posh Plums

Everyone check out my mom's new Etsy site - a great place to buy unique, hand-embroidered baby clothes. She is selling embroidered long- and short-sleeved onesies from American Apparel as well as dresses made by hand from 100% soft kona cotton, so check it out! You can mix and match what you see on the site - choose the garment type, color, and embroidery pattern, each outfit is made to order.

Meanwhile I'm working on her own site off Etsy - stay tuned.

AND - thanks to the beautiful Rosemary Spindler for modeling the baby clothes on the Etsy site.

Settled in Glendale

Hello all, and apologies for the dirth of posts lately, we've been spending every moment shopping, cleaning, unpacking, and generally negotiating our return. But now we're settled in Glendale, California (in the northeast part of Los Angeles, near Griffith Park) and almost back to the usual routine.

Our new address is
1830 Glenwood Road
Glendale, CA 91201

L.A. residents should look forward to a housewarming party to be coming soon. We'll also post some photos of the house when it's all clean and set up properly - stay tuned!

Also, thank you to Mina and James for hosting us until we found a place, and to Lucas for shuttling me all over the city every day until I get my own car.

Goodbye, Shanghai!

Tonight is our last night in the city and I'm feeling sentimental. So, so long, Shanghai, I'll miss you. I spent more than two years in China, including my first year and a half of married life. I made a lot of great friends, had a lot of harrowing adventures, learned a lot of new things, and most importantly, became a little more good-natured, patient, and fearless.

Some things I'll miss about Shanghai:

1. Massages.
Plentiful and cheap, massages are perfect whenever I want to think calmly and deeply about work. They're responsible for many of my very best ideas.
2. Taxis.
Wherever, whenever, $3 will get you anywhere worth going. And no need for designated drivers.
3. Traveling.
It may not be logical, but somehow when you already live in a foreign country, the idea of going to other foreign countries just seems so much easier (even when it isn't!)
4. Street vendors selling yams in the winter.
There is no better way to spend a winter day than walking down the street with a warm yam wrapped up in your coat pocket.
5. Not having a car.
See #3. No parking, no tickets, no fill-ups or oil changes, no fender benders.

And, so I don't feel too sad, some things I won't miss about Shanghai:

1. No books.
Soon I'll be back in a place where anything - Bede, Baudrillard, or Bulgakov - is available immediately for the price of a cheap lunch. Shanghai is only the place to read if you're exclusively interested in 19th-century novels, business books, and travel guides. For $30 or more each.
2. The heat, the humidity, the pollution.
You know it's bad when you are eagerly awaiting living in Los Angeles because the air is so cool and clean.
3. Mexican food.
I can't repeat that enough. I've gone too long without a lot of foods, from In n' Out and donuts to fresh artichokes and decent strawberries, but two years without tamales is torture.
4. Missing everything.
People at home are getting married, graduating, having babies, buying houses, and I don't want to miss the fun.
5. Having a car.
Urban parking and driving might be a nightmare, but nothing beats a road trip. An open highway with the company of the radio and a cup of gas station coffee is all I need to be happy.

So goodbye, Shanghai, and hello Los Angeles!