1 // The Palace Papers meets the pod. You guys! We had Tina Brown on the Royally Obsessed podcast this week. It was incredible to listen to her perspective on the monarchy, past, present and future. Give the episode a listen here. (I also wrote a think piece about Harry & Meghan’s Jubilee attendance—check it out.)

2 // The effort to document our cooking. The pandemic certainly increased the volume of times we cook at home and while my husband has always taken on the lion’s share, I made the effort to learn one recipe a week while we were hunkered down. Now, the problem: I can’t remember what I made! I dropped a few links in a Gmail draft in a rush, but that’s about it, so now I’ve challenged myself—and my spouse—to chronicle our favorite recipe discoveries by hand in this gorgeous recipe journal from Papier. First up: Potato leek soup, five ingredients total and my forever go-to.

3 // Bluebells at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Don’t get me wrong: Cherry Blossoms are my seasonal high. But pro tip: The bloom that immediately follows at the Brooklyn Botanic is equally breathtaking. We’re talking peonies, bluebells and more. Pro tip: Get there at 8 a.m., right when it opens and you’ll have the place almost to yourself, a rarity. I’ll definitely be back.

Happy Mother’s Day! I spent the day napping and reading The Palace Papers by Tina Brown. Honestly, it was a total treat. Now, a few things on my radar this week…

1 // Motherhood and time. I wrote a piece for PureWow that I’m super proud of about how I’ve always blamed a lack of time as the reason I am overwhelmed. But really it’s the length of my to-do list and the guilt trips we—mothers especially—regularly apply when we fall behind. Would love for you to read it and let me know if you agree.

2 // The Flight Attendant. So, I had all but written off a second season of this HBO show, which I was addicted to last year, but positive reviews piqued my interest and I don’t regret it. In fact, I’m binging it as fast as I can. Parts of the plot are a bit, let’s say, convoluted, but I am so happy Zosia Mamet is back. (Ditto her boyfriend Max, who is played by Deniz Akdeniz.) Overall, it’s fun and thrilling—although I often need a palette cleanser (like Starstruck, also on HBO) between episodes to take the edge of. (I’m such a wuss with scarier shows.)

3 // Fondue for dinner. I grabbed food out with a friend this week in Prospect Heights and in lieu of a main course, we ordered fondue. And not just any fondue, it was fancy fondue—with bread and roasted Brussels sprouts and potatoes and apple slices, all available for submerging in a combo of warm melted cheeses. Is it just me or is fondue a dish that’s not often seen on a menu? Unless you’re at a ski chalet? It didn’t hurt that it was rainy and cozy; I got home and ever since can’t stop Googling fondue pots and recipes to rival what I ordered out.

Hi, it’s been a minute! Since I last posted I’ve had a baby, there’s been a global pandemic and I’ve written a book. (It’s called Royal Trivia: Your Guide to the Modern British Royal Family — grab your copy now!) But I miss updating this blog, so I’m going to make every effort to get back into it. Still, as a working mom, simplicity rules, so we’ll keep things succinct with a handful of cool things that I’m thinking about each week. Let’s go!

1 // Kate and William’s 11-Year Wedding Anniversary. Of course, Roberta and I reminisce all about the occasion on this week’s episode of the pod. Of all the images from the day, this one with Grace van Cutsem is forever a stand-out. It’s incredible to me that she was just three! No wonder her expression — the noise and hoopla was likely a lot. I’m also really digging this round-up from an IG (and Tik Tok) account I love that celebrates a few of the quieter moments from Kate & William’s big day ELEVEN years ago.

2 // Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Adventure. A delight of a movie! I wasn’t sure what to expect when my husband recommended we watch this Richard Linklater film about the historic era—and optimism—of 1969, specifically the summer when Apollo 11 landed on the moon. It’s equal parts autobiography and fantasy, but also delivers a blitz of nostalgia that will leave you reflecting on the aimless days of childhood and marveling at our (small) place in the larger world. Bonus: You can watch it on Netflix.

3 // Farmers’ Market Flowers & A Cute Market Tote. Life hack: Buying $7 bouquets at my local farmers’ market every Sunday morning. My recent score was an arm-full of peach blossoms. The experience was made all the better this week with the addition of this French-feeling tote. (I love it in green!)

Remember all those resolutions I mentioned just about two months back? Well, I’m working on them, but whoa, 2017 has been off to a pretty all-over-the-place start. I also realized that I forgot to mention a pretty important part of my “Photography” resolution: To *finally* get all the digital photos I have stored in a zillion different places under control.

Here’s why: Right now, I have close to 50,000 digital pics on my laptop. That’s not counting the — wait for it — 9,456 that I have on my iPhone. (Yikes, right?) I do think that a lot of my pics have been unintentionally duplicated somehow during transfers from one outdated computer (like my beloved college MacBook) to the next. Still, it’s a non-physical clutter problem that I really need to fix.

The solution: Gretchen Rubin says in her book The Happiness Project that you should do one thing that thing that makes you unhappy for 15 minutes a day. (She’s referring to a daunting task—aka overwhelming amounts of digital photos that need to be organized, ugh.) Every day, you’ll get a bit more of it done until, eventually, you can completely cross it off your list.

So, this is what I’ve been doing: Setting a timer and combing through a chunk of photos on my laptop a few times a week as I watch TV. The task still feels daunting, but it’s getting…less daunting by the day.

What’s an annoying project on your list? And do you have any digital photo organization tricks?

(Image via Career Girl Daily)

Guys: Are you watching this new HBO show? I’m kind of obsessed — and we’re only three episodes in. It’s based on the 2015 book by Liane Moriarty and it stars Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman and Shailene Woodley (among a few very famous others).

Three things that I love about it:

1. Reese Witherspoon. The lady does TV well. She also nails the part of the do-gooder yet totally fierce and gossipy mom. I’m so excited to see how her character’s story unfolds.

2. The Monterey, California homes. Um, every time I see Nicole Kidman’s by-the-beach estate, all I can think is: When can I move in? (Ditto Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern.

3. The writing. Did you know David E. Kelley (of Boston Legal and Ally McBeal fame) is the genius creator behind the show? The story-telling is so detailed and intricate, which totally makes sense given that he’s at the helm.

So, if you haven’t started watching, the series is only three episodes in. (There are six episodes total, so it’s a super small commitment, too.) If you are watching, let me know what you think!

(Image 1, 2, 3, 4)