Collectibles Issue 6

Cheers with wine, cold caverns to explore, closing of chapters

It is later in June than I even realized. Time has been blending together like thick banana milkshake and I have been sipping it slowly on the shady porch on these hot summery days. I have wanted to write to you for weeks but in order to write, I must divert all my creative energy and attention to the page. I have been guiding my creativity down many paths lately. One path lead to a wedding at a winery in Afton. Another path was down deep into chilly caverns. Another was within my own inner forest that has been barren and foggy for longer than I hoped for. But now I am where I am supposed to be. I’ve had so much to share but something told me to just keep living for now. I’ve been exhausted by big transitions in a way that sleep cannot fix. The rest of the summer seems like fertile ground to tend to some new seeds tenderly. I hope to continue dissecting and curating lives that feel as good as they look with you despite our physical distance apart. Thankfully, we come together through these letters, comments, messages, phone calls, and voice memos whenever we need to. What a gift that is. What a gift you are.

Fine Wines

Cab Sauv paired with Herb Formage by Rebel Cheese and crackers

I’ve always been enamored by the elegance and joy that wine and food bring to gatherings. I grew up respecting and appreciating all types of alcohol but wine has always captivated my spirit. The perusing the aisles for a good bottle, the skill of opening the cork, the gentle pour into a thin glass, is all so exciting. To take it further by sharing this with loved ones is even more special.

However, I’m not interested in the negative impacts that alcohol has on our bodies. There’s so many reasons for someone to abstain; just don’t like the taste of alcohol, could react poorly to prescriptions, breastfeeding, religious reasons, need to drive, safety, etc. It’s not just trendy to not drink, it’s mostly someone making an informed decision.

Anyways, I have invested time and energy into sourcing good quality and tasting wines that are free of alcohol. Not fruit juice in a curvy, glass bottle. Like true wine that has simply been dealcoholized. The kind of NA wine that makes you grab the bottle to re-read the label to make sure it’s non-alcoholic.

Here are some of my must haves:

Saint Viviana Cabernet Sauvignon

Oddbird Low Intervention Sparking Orange Sparkling No 1

Leitz’s Eins Zwei Zero Non-Alcoholic Riesling

If you are interested in exploring more NA options, you can forage around The Zero Proof and use my code WITHCARRINGTON for 10% off.

Stationary for Mother’s Day

There’s a local stationary store here in Charlottesville, Virginia called Rock, Paper, Scissors. I like to browse in there for unique cards for special occasions because they’re typically made by real artists and are quirkier than Hallmark cards. I was awe-struck by a set of cards with gold foil and the daintiest art of a hummingbird with flowers. I decided those would be Mother’s Day cards I’d lovingly give this year. I also invested in two pens to stroke the messages in different colors. It was such a great time thinking of the women who I admire so much and write them each a unique testament to their motherhood and womanhood. I sealed each pink envelope with a wax seal and mailed them in person at the post office desk. There’s no email or text message that could feel like writing cards like that. I highly recommend you try it!

Luray Caverns

Are bucket lists still a thing? I still have one! I have been yearning to traverse the Luray Caverns for years. They were grander than I imagined. The photos and videos do not accurately depict the vast scale that they are. It was cool and moist down there which is refreshing on warmer days. In terms of history traveling, I am not big on monuments or architecture in general but the history of nature excites me. These caverns are 400 million years old. Insane. I highly recommend visiting a cavern near you soon!

If you are looking for someone to help plan your next trip, big or small, solo or family, I can help you as your trusted travel advisor. I love designing with my clients everything from a staycation to a cruise to their first trip overseas. Let’s connect soon to plan for the holidays :)

Farmer’s Markets and Weddings

Designing delicious and stunning desserts can take months of planning or just a couple days because I have a burst of creative energy. First, I co-created an assortment of dessert displays for a wedding hosted at Veritas Winery. This was my first time offering this service and dessert type. I have been making dessert cups for over a year for cake scraps or puddings. I took a leap of faith in believing I could pull off making small shooters for a wedding look classy and inviting to indulge in. This was especially challenging because they wanted all of the cake to be gluten free. With all honesty, I do make a lot of gluten free desserts but gluten free flour is far more finicky than gluten flour. I do love a good challenge to sparks something new inside and out. The flavors I offered were double chocolate, chocolate espresso, lemon vanilla and lemon strawberry, all vegan and gluten free. Thankfully, the desserts came out perfectly and everyone was satisfied with the taste. Special thanks to Chris from Florosa who allowed me to get some edible flowers from her garden same hours before the wedding! Forever grateful for all the love and support I am able to receive for my bakery.

Pesto Rolls

Speaking of community support, I decided on a whim to do the Farmer’s Market at IX at the end of May. The stars were aligned just for me that Saturday. I had perfect baking the day before and had everything packed early. The weather was just warm enough to bring people out to the market but not so warm that my icings would melt. I do enjoy the socializing aspect of the markets because I get to talk to adults about anything and everything. My heart is always overfilled with love from every hug, smile, and ‘thank you!’ I will be taking a break from outdoor events until the Cville Veg Fest in September. The heat is not my friend for baking indoors or standing outdoors honestly. Plus, my business is evolving to providing custom desserts just for special events instead of pop-ups. No worries my love, you can still order your beloved cookies and cinnamon rolls, the bakery is always open for you!

Rain or Shine: Lake Days

Each year, my husband’s family hosts an annual family vacation by a body of water. We typically only stay for a night because of schedule conflicts (this year being that I had a wedding to cater). No matter how long the stay is, being fully present and lighthearted allows us to make beautiful memories together. The best part for me is to watch the cousins grow up and play together. Seeing kids be silly and curious and maybe a little too amped up from sweets is the joy of being a parent in a fun family. Another highlight was watching everyone collaborate on making pizzas from scratch in the new pizza oven. I must admit, it was useful in recreating the stone-fire pizza crust effect. You can always order 10 pizzas from up the road or you can argue with your cousin about the perfect ratio of cheese to sauce instead. Always choose the inconvenient route, it’s more fun. Although the rain was persistent on the trip, I found it restorative. Watching the drops on the lake’s face ripple into another is like free therapy. If you are thinking you need a refresh mentally, I encourage you to go to the beach or lake on a light rainy day and see how much more at ease you feel after.

“I have worn the honor of honors” - UVA Graduation

My husband and I attended the University of Virginia for our undergraduate degrees. I studied Philosophy and African American and African Studies. He studied Physics. As you can imagine, we have different perspectives on the inter-workings of the world, of the universe. After taking some time away from school, he decided to return to receive his Masters in Data Science from UVA. This is a part-time remote program if anyone is interested in doing it. He was able to do it around a full-time job and family with my support and a whole lot of late nights for 2 years. It worked out because he graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA and landed a new job in his field within a month of graduating. I hope this inspires someone who has been considering pivoting by going back to school and moving up in their career to do so.

Graduation day for him was extra special because the first time he graduated, he couldn’t walk The Lawn due to the pandemic. This time he was able to come from the Rotunda, down the Lawn and listen to his degree be conferred knowing his parents, mother in law, wife and son were cheering him on. I created a large lunch for us to avoid the complicated and limiting nature of restaurant reservations in Charlottesville. We enjoyed ham and cheese sliders, mushroom spinach pasta, potato salad, fresh green salad, strawberries, red velvet cupcakes, Zeroe caviar, a delicious sparkling orange wine & sweet tea; all vegan and non-alcoholic of course. Savoring another’s presence and all the things we’ve accomplished over the years was special and intimate. We were especially grateful for all the supportive staff that day who transported us to and from the campus, took pictures for us and ensured we didn’t suffer in the heat too long. Now, we are just waiting the diploma to arrive to hang in our house. Go Hoos!

Inspiration:

With love and wishing you all a Happy Juneteenth, Father’s Day & Summer Solstice,

As always, if you felt inspired by this piece, you can Buy Me a Coffee, order a dessert , book a vacation with me, consider upgrading your subscription to paid or simply share with someone special :)