• Cart
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Videos
  • Chronicles
    • The Lovely Archives
    • Family
    • Ina
    • Journals
    • Hurley House
  • Nav Social Icons

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Cart
  • Events
  • Hospitality
    • Cooking
    • Hosting
    • Household Management
    • Celebrate
    • Basics
  • Lovely Living
    • Beauty
    • Fashion
    • Favorites
    • Hobbies
    • Parenting
    • Personal Care
    • Reflections
  • Recipes
    • Appetizer
    • Main Dish
    • Sides
    • Dessert
    • Breakfast
    • Beverage
  • Chronicles
    • The Lovely Archives
    • Family
    • Hurley House
    • Ina
    • Journals
  • Shop
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • Closet
    • Cookbooks
    • Gifts
    • Home
    • Kitchen
    • Library
    • Needlepoint
    • Organization
    • Party
    • Table
  • Learn
  • Blog
  • About
  • Events
  • Mobile Menu Widgets

    Connect

    Search

  • Hospitality
    • Hosting
    • Household Management
    • Cooking
    • Basics
    • Celebrate
  • Lovely Living
    • Fashion
    • Favorites
    • Hobbies
    • Parenting
    • Beauty
    • Personal Care
    • Reflections
  • Recipes
    • Appetizer
    • Main Dish
    • Sides
    • Dessert
    • Breakfast
    • Beverage
  • Events
  • Learn
  • Shop
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • Closet
    • Cookbooks
    • Gifts
    • Home
    • Kitchen
    • Library
    • Needlepoint
    • Organization
    • Party
    • Table
  • About

Journal No. 3

September 12, 2020 · In: Chronicles, Journals

The major marker for me this week was the beginning of virtual learning for my children. Last spring the experience of learning online was a nightmare, mostly because teachers were thrown in without a plan, and students were confused too. This time around things are much more organized, but it is still an enormous amount of information to manage.

I set up four work stations at Hurley House for my children, doing my best to make sure everyone had a power cord for their device, plenty of supplies (including Jolly Ranchers and Play-Doh), and space to keep their books and notebooks.

For the most part it worked, although my two high schoolers decided by then end of the week they didn’t want to do school at Hurley House and moved their learning environment home. I can’t say I blame them, but I was a little sad that we didn’t get to pretend to be in a one-room school house like Laura Ingles Wilder.

The funniest part about online learning is that a couple of my children haven’t learned how to control the volume of their voice while wearing headphones. There was a lot of shouting answers (β€œI LIKE DOGS TOO!” β€œI HAVE TWO SISTERS AND A BROTHER!”) and sudden outbursts of loud laughing, which made us all giggle.

The most difficult part about this week wasn’t tactical, it was emotional. Everyone is having big feelings, including me, and big feelings take a toll to process. I am emotional about having a senior coupled with our youngest starting her last day of elementary school. My kids are emotional about not being able to connect with their friends. My middle schooler is in tears about not physically being at school. It’s a mess, but we are trudging through, doing our best.

On that note, my husband surprised me with my own β€œfirst week of school” gift, and I felt loved and known. He gave me a small bottle of French vodka and a bag of tiny Tate’s cookies. I love all things tiny and/or French, and the bonus of booze and cookies was well-played. Like I said, we are all doing the best we can around here.

This week on the blog I wrote a post about the Breville Smart Oven and how much I love it. Lately I am a complete Breville brand convert. Everything I own by them is killer. I have switched to a Breville food processor after years of using Cuisinart, and I also own the Breville Coffee Grinder and Bambino Espresso Maker. All of the appliances are built well and out perform other brands. Go Breville!

How do you eat ice cream? My favorite way is in a frozen coffee mug (the tinier, the better), with a splash of milk, and a tiny spoon. I also usually wrap the cup in a dish towel to insulate it and protect my hands. It’s fussy, but ice cream is my favorite dessert, and I love the ritual of all the steps and getting it just right. At a minimum, if you haven’t tried freezing your bowl before scooping ice cream into it, give it a shot. It keeps the ice cream colder longer, and that’s a win in my book.

Last, but not least, I purchased some of the fixtures from the Sur La Table closing sale. Look at these beautiful prep tables!! They were in the cooking classroom at Sur La Table, and I love them so much. It’s also a tiny bit comforting to know that I own a small piece of the store I loved so much. I will remember it fondly each time I prep ingredients on my new tables.

Have a lovely weekend!

By: Katherine Sasser Β· In: Chronicles, Journals

you’ll also love

Ina In A Year: Week 48
Ina Update: Launch Day!!!!
Table Talk, 09.15.18

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Next Post >

Breville Smart Oven

Primary Sidebar

Search

Featured Posts

Winter Cookbook Club: Week Four

Winter Cookbook Club Week 3: Winter Squash Soup

Winter Cookbook Club: Week 2

Latest on Instagram

katherinesasser

katherinesasser


What if you just showed up in the world?
What if you just showed up in the world?

I took a spring break field trip to Dallas with my
I took a spring break field trip to Dallas with my friend Nicole, and our sole purpose was to eat lunch at Loro.

Did we order half the menu for only the two of us? We did. 

Was every bite totally worth it? Absolutely. 

A true friend will order way too much food with you simply for the experience of sharing it together. πŸ’—

My sports fantasy? Playing tennis, but only becaus
My sports fantasy? Playing tennis, but only because the outfits are the absolute cutest! I call it aspirational tennis, and a round up my favorites is on the blog today. 🎾

In an effort to get inspired to add a touch of spr
In an effort to get inspired to add a touch of spring to my home, I did an internet deep-dive to create what I think is a beautiful collection of inspiring images designed to spark my inner home-decor maven.​​​​​​​​
​​​​​​​​
The result is a game-plan for small ways I am planning on fluffing my home for spring without redecorating every room.​​​​​​​​
​​​​​​​​
Too good to be true?  Hardly!  All the details are on the blog...

Embracing all the spring!!
Embracing all the spring!!

No, we didn’t travel with the dog. Yes, we did t
No, we didn’t travel with the dog. Yes, we did travel halfway with toddlers. Yes, we broke down on the side of the highway and rode in a tow truck. Apart from that drama, it was lots of food, coffee, band, shopping, hanging, filling out Oscar ballots, and watching Lillian master the hoverboard.


Load More...



Follow on Instagram


Browse by Category

Hi, I'm Katherine

Hi, I'm Katherine
hello!

I share lifestyle content through the lens of hospitality. If you are interested in learning about the beauty that creating space can bring, you've come to the right place!

Read More

Connect

Recent Posts

Elevated Ranch Dip

Springing The Home

Archives

Follow Along

@katherinesasser

What if you just showed up in the world? What if you just showed up in the world?
I took a spring break field trip to Dallas with my I took a spring break field trip to Dallas with my friend Nicole, and our sole purpose was to eat lunch at Loro.

Did we order half the menu for only the two of us? We did. 

Was every bite totally worth it? Absolutely. 

A true friend will order way too much food with you simply for the experience of sharing it together. πŸ’—
My sports fantasy? Playing tennis, but only becaus My sports fantasy? Playing tennis, but only because the outfits are the absolute cutest! I call it aspirational tennis, and a round up my favorites is on the blog today. 🎾
In an effort to get inspired to add a touch of spr In an effort to get inspired to add a touch of spring to my home, I did an internet deep-dive to create what I think is a beautiful collection of inspiring images designed to spark my inner home-decor maven.​​​​​​​​
​​​​​​​​
The result is a game-plan for small ways I am planning on fluffing my home for spring without redecorating every room.​​​​​​​​
​​​​​​​​
Too good to be true?  Hardly!  All the details are on the blog...
Embracing all the spring!! Embracing all the spring!!
No, we didn’t travel with the dog. Yes, we did t No, we didn’t travel with the dog. Yes, we did travel halfway with toddlers. Yes, we broke down on the side of the highway and rode in a tow truck. Apart from that drama, it was lots of food, coffee, band, shopping, hanging, filling out Oscar ballots, and watching Lillian master the hoverboard.
Let’s layer some patterns, shall we? (Are you te Let’s layer some patterns, shall we? (Are you team cross body or team tote? Not sure I made the right choice.)
Pistachio Bundt Cake is my new favorite spring des Pistachio Bundt Cake is my new favorite spring dessert, and I’ve been making it on repeat. It couldn’t be any easier, and the full recipe is on my blog!

Copyright © 2023 Β·