We all need to build personal team of professionals and champions. When the time comes, and you can bet that it will, you have got to have a good lawyer, accountant, doctor, and a guy-who-can-fix-stuff-around-the-house at your disposal. And of course, a BFF has to be part of that team too.

I like to stay on top of trends, but the world of nail art and nail polish has gone insane. I mean really, “suede” nails? That’s right, nail polish infused with suede texturizer to make your nails look and feel fuzzy, like suede or velvet. I want to know just who is behind this so-called craze. Is the need for The Next Big Thing so strong that we’re going to pretend hideous is actually halfway appealing? If something is so extremely UNappealing, does it eventually start to look good in the same way hate isn’t so far from love?

Going through some boxes this week I came across some old photos of a trip I took many years ago to Israel. It made me recall some great times traveling the globe, before the task of traveling itself became onerous. (Like when airlines served meals on china to people at the back. Can you remember those days?) It also reminds me of some of the absolute dives where I have stayed. Whether it be a seedy hostel or roadside motel while driving across the country, I have laid my head at some dodgy establishments. That’s part of traveling in your twenties and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

It’s true what they say about Paris in the springtime: there’s something magical about it. This was my third trip to the City of Light and this time I saw it in a whole new, well, light. In the five years since my last visit, the place seems to have developed a new attitude.

If you find yourself anywhere near Marrakesh, Morocco, be sure to visit Atika Shoes!

I’m off to Hawaii. The Island of Kauai to be precise. After several visits to Maui over the years, I am pumped by the prospect of exploring new Hawaiian horizons. Maui has endless resorts, world-class shopping, and A LOT of places to eat. It’s also where most people go. I’m told Kauai is decidedly relaxed, low key, less commercialized, lush, and still has enough choice of places to stay and play for even the most discerning traveler (me). It sounds perfect.

Up winding stone stairs off Vancouver’s main drag, Robson Street, lies a classic Italian institution: CinCin. Slinging wood-fired pizzas since 1991, this restaurant feels like it has been around forever, which unfortunately means it slips our minds from time to time. But there’s a reason CinCin is a stronghold in the ever-changing Vancouver restaurant scene, and after last night’s epic meal, it’s back at the top of our list.

Kristina and I took a break from the Vancouver rain recently and turned a meeting in LA into an excuse for a full weekend in the sun, complete with other gal pals, shopping, chardonnay and pool time. Fun!

Driving in my car this week, the song Hold Me Now
by the Thompson Twins came on the radio. I turned up the volume, sang along and was transported back to grade 9, when I spent some time outside of Bristol, England, and kissed a boy named Tim. Music transcends time. The Dixie Chicks` The Long Way Around
is my life’s theme song, and David Gray’s entire White Ladder album
will forever depress me. No need to get into why. It was a nasty couple of years…

Many of you have asked us this question over the years since we started filming Anna & Kristina’s Grocery Bag. Here are our recommendations for cookbooks that’ll never let you down!