This is the Dash and Albert Neapolitan rug I must have for my floor. The colors will glow next to my gray walls. Reminds me of a Wayne Thiebaud palette. Sweet, but not sickly.

In Paris, I visited the galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume, a museum of contemporary art in the Tuileries. This might be where I became obsessed with marble, but anyway...

Hanging at the time was an exhibition of Wayne Thiebaud's paintings. I had only seen a few reproductions of his work in my 2oth Century Art Book, and I was unprepared for the rapture I found in the canvases full of dense cakes and perky plates of pie. The repetition speaks to me.

Just look at this rug! Dash was Albert's dog, and these Dash and Albert rugs are dog tested, boasting durability to boot. I think I'll get a pooch to match the rug.

(My) Meyer Lemon Tree

We adopted a Meyer lemon tree to mark our first year in our first house. This was one of the first plants I wanted to raise in our new space. I hardly remember how I stumbled on the idea of raising a citrus tree, but it was likely while calculating the chance of cultivating olives, based on my plant hardiness zone. Unlike olive trees, citrus trees can grow and produce fruit in the mid-Atlantic. You just have to treat the plant like a tropical, bringing it indoors during the winter and providing additional light if the sun doesn't pour through the window.

What! Move a tree indoors? Citrus trees can be pruned, like bonsai in a way, to encourage bushy, shorter growth. The Meyer lemon tree can grow 6 to 8 feet high, but it will stay small if kept in a giant pot. Apparently, these trees produce fruit willingly indoors. The thought of walking past lemons ripening on the branch in February makes me squeal.

Homestead Gardens, currently my favorite garden center in the world, sells several varieties of citrus for $40. They have Kaffir lime and Washington Navel orange in addition to Meyer lemon. If your local garden supplier does not carry citrus, go online! Plenty of nurseries will ship you a tree. You can even find Meyer lemon trees here at Amazon. Don't forget to buy Citrus Tone, an essential plant food for your little lollipop, and have the nursery give you a tutorial on caring for your tree.

Meyer lemons are so versatile. Their juice is sweeter and less acidic than a true lemon and the skin is much thinner. Last winter I bought Meyers nearly every week at the grocery, using them in pastas, salads, and desserts. They really brightened my winter. This tree and I are going to be fast friends.

This Was Our Porch

We wanted it to feel like these bottles.

We painted the floor Seafoam Green and the framing Cottonballs, both by Benjamin Moore.

It's a little more inviting.

The Devil's Soup

I've been going really crazy over tomatoes, and not just those luscious summer heirloom varieties. Salsa - particularly on scrambled or fried eggs - has been my crave. I have never been a real salsa eating fool, so I was alarmed when I found myself eating it by the spoonful one morning. No, I'm not having puppies.

Gazpacho is cousin to salsa. I always liked the idea of cold soup, but rarely ate gazpacho. Early in the summer when a guest on the Splendid Table described the gazpacho soup in Spain as velvety, I wanted some. He said the secret to a velvet gazpacho is good olive oil and sherry vinegar, stale bread, and a high performing blender. Like most, I don't own a $500 Vitamix, so I used my pedestrian but effective food processor. The gazpacho was triumphant and crisp, perfectly balanced.

I had been meaning to make this Splendid Table recipe again when I saw Chef José Andrés' gazpacho recipe in the September Bon Appetit. Andrés' Spanish tapas restaurant Jaleo serves a fresh, raw gazpacho that pairs beautifully with gambas al ajillo - sauteed shrimp with garlic. At Jaleo, the gazpacho is made with bread, just like the Splendid Table guest suggested. Andrés' version in Bon Appetit left out the bread. It would be a departure, but less steps. Once I got going, I was grateful to see the tomato puree froth and thicken like a pink lemonade gelato. I sip it like morning coffee.

Questions and Answers

Koi @ the National Arboretum

I think a lot about doing things. On my mind especially: planting, sewing, painting, cooking. I have to have a soundtrack for these things. Once, my friend Jay made a mixtape for me called "I'm doing stuff" because, well, it was my mantra one raucous evening. I love when old favorites re-emerge like this Apples In Stereo song...

Apples In Stereo - Questions And Answers.mp3