Archive for the ‘Family’ Category

8/23/16, Whirlwind

Posted on August 23, 2016

Hi Everyone,

I hope all is well with you, and that you’re enjoying these last days of summer. School starts for a lot of kids this week, and college shortly, so parents getting kids back to school are already racing, and so am I. My vacation a month ago seems like a distant memory from another lifetime!!

While making plans for this summer, other than my one week vacation with my children, in France, I had nothing special planned, so I said yes to a lot of things. And I no sooner did that, than the summer became full of surprises. One of my daughters got engaged three days before our vacation, to a man we all love, so we’re happy for her. And wedding plans got underway, for a small wedding, but even a small wedding has a million details and is a lot of work to organize—-as anyone can tell you who have planned one. I had a huge amount of writing work to do before our vacation, and after the vacation, I hit the ground running. I had houseguests two days after I got back from France, which was really fun, then a week to catch up on work, and then my kids came home for a week, for our second round of time together. The new fiancé came with them, and my week with them sped by, always much too quickly. I love it when they’re home, and the house is full again. And I’m always grateful when they spend time with me.

We celebrated my birthday while they were here, as I told you in last week’s blog. And three days after they left, I had a big photo shoot, for the photos on the back of my books. We did the photos for at least 10 book covers and possibly more, depending on which photos I love and seem right for the books. A big photo shoot like that is a big production, with a mountain of equipment that arrives, all very high tech, and a ‘studio’ they can set up anywhere with tall poles, and fabric in various colors, elaborate lights, computer equipment. It looks almost like a movie set. The photographer is a very famous French photographer, Brigitte Lacombe, who is incredibly talented, shoots mostly portraits, and works all over the world, although she is New York based. (She is the favorite photographer of Meryl Streep, and a number of very famous people—much more famous than I am!!) There is so much equipment and so much to do setting up lights and sets in various locations, that she brings three assistants with her. My assistant was really busy with the shoot too. A hairdresser, a make up artist, and suddenly there are people running around everywhere. We took photos for two very full days, starting with hair and make up at 7 am, and we start shooting at 9 am, and shoot til 6 or 7 pm at night, with a brief break for lunch. It sounds silly, but it’s actually hard work even for the subjects of a shoot like that. You have to concentrate, look alert, stay focused, be responsive, and keep moving at different angles, stand or sit up straight and pay attention, and follow directions. I changed clothes about 10 times a day, and had chosen the outfits before. I was really tired of changing clothes by the end of every day. And after we shot all day, I caught up on my work every night. And I learned a great new trick if your eyes are tired or puffy. The make up artist put two spoons in a bowl of ice til they were very cold, and placed one over each of my eyes…..and presto magic, your eyes aren’t puffy anymore!! I’m going to try that again, in real life!! I hope we got some great shots out of it, in two days of shooting intensely. I always love Brigitte’s photographs, she captures the soul of her subjects. She is a lovely woman, gentle, talented, super intelligent, and it’s a pleasure to spend 2 days with her, despite the work we have to do.

An hour before the last crew member left my house, 3 days after we started, the 12 year old daughter of my best friend arrived to spend a week with me, and that was great fun!! It’s fun to have a twelve year old in the house, her perspective, her points of view, her innocence, everything is easy at that age, and we got busy the minute she arrived. Some shopping, a manicure with my youngest daughter, —it’s all girly stuff with a 12 year old. The next day we went to one of the tourist spots in SF, saw the sea lions and bought a LOT of candy, and souvenirs for her to take back to Paris. We made dinner at home (delicious pasta with pesto), and watched a movie “The Parent Trap” with Lindsay Lohan when she was about 12, it’s a really cute movie. Yesterday, I had to work, and then we went to a mall, ran some errands, and we’ve done homework every day, so she’ll be ready for school, and she went swimming last night. We plan to go to a museum, do more homework, and maybe out to a movie. And the day she leaves, I have to go back to writing.

And when I wasn’t racing around with a 12 year old, or getting my picture taken for book covers, I was working on planning the wedding for my daughter, which will happen in 8 weeks in New York, and there are a million details to take care of (flowers, music, location, ceremony, reception, dinner, and all the component parts of a wedding, even a small one.
So it has turned out to be a crazy busy summer after all. I thought I’d have nothing to do this summer!! Whew!!! It was the busiest summer I’ve had in a long time. I’ll be travelling again soon, celebrating one daughter’s birthday, and writing wherever I go!!!

I can’t say it was a restful summer, but some of it has really been a lot of fun, especially spending time with my children, the houseguests I had, and I’m excited about the writing I’m doing, and the books I’ll be writing in the coming months.

And a week from now (a week from today—on August 30th), I have a new hardcover book coming out, “Rushing Waters”, about what happens when a monster hurricane hits New York, and how it affects people and their lives. It was an exciting book to write!!!

I hope your summer was a little less hectic and more restful than mine. And with luck, I hope you even have a little vacation left before we race into Fall. Take good care, and have a great week,

love, Danielle

8/16/16, Happy Day

Posted on August 16, 2016

Hi Everyone,

I’ve had a busy week as the last of the summer flies by. My birthday was last weekend, a day that I’ve disliked (and sometimes hated) all my life. Mid-summer birthdays aren’t much fun for a child, when everyone is away, and I can only remember celebrating my birthday once as a child. So by the time I grew up, I had decided that birthdays were definitely not fun. But my children, and their father have worked hard to turn that around. (I am the original birthday Grinch, although I LOVE Christmas!!!). I usually growl a lot beforehand, say I don’t want to celebrate it, and adding years never seemed like fun to me. When I was married to my children’s father, he gave me some wonderful birthday parties, and my children go all out to make the day fun. We usually go away together for a long weekend, and enjoy the time together. They spoil me with presents (used to make me macaroni necklaces, and decorated tissue boxes, and I loved all of it, and still have it all). And now, they really give me incredibly thoughtful gifts, funny things, and serious ones, a piece of jewelry, and fun shoes and pretty sweaters, books, framed photographs and fun pieces of art, and there are always things that make me laugh—my fetish for sayings and words!!!

We had four days together in the Napa Valley, everyone hung out in the pool in hundred degree weather, we ate at home, a Mexican lunch, a barbecue one night, an Italian dinner, a big brunch. I love being with them, and spending the whole day with them, which is the best gift of all. And this year was especially nice. We all relaxed, played Scrabble, and told funny stories and teased each other as big families do. Every year, I am convinced that THIS was the best birthday of all. I was with 6 of my children, (2 of them were away), the very best friend of one of my sons who is very special to all of us and dear to me, and one of my daughter’s fiancé. Meals were noisy and fun, we danced in the kitchen one night. And they are definitely making a convert of me year by year. They had a cake again this year that was a work of art, and an exact replica of my Chihuahuas, and I wouldn’t let anyone eat it, again!!! (I didn’t last year either, the cake was too beautiful to cut into!!) So we had a second cake for everyone to enjoy. The day and the weekend couldn’t have been more wonderful, more thoughtful, generous, or loving….I had a great birthday, thanks to them, and all the thoughtful things they did to make it fun for me!!!

For me, the summer is pretty much over after my birthday. By the next day, I’m back at my desk, working, getting ready for the fall. I won’t see my kids all together again for a while. So work will keep me busy. And the birthday I just had will make me smile whenever I think of it, for a long, long time to come!!! Have a great week!!!

love, Danielle

7/25/16, The heart of summer

Posted on July 25, 2016

Hi Everyone,

I hope the summer is rolling out well, and you’re having fun, taking some time off, and enjoying family and friends. Hot weather, good times, maybe some swimming and sunning, fishing, whatever seems like fun to you. I love reading in the summer, when I take time off from writing for a few weeks.

I’ve just had my annual one week vacation with my 5 younger kids (the older 3 are married and have their own plans, the younger 5 are single and still join me for their vacations. And I’m well aware that I’m very lucky that they do, it’s generous of them to give up vacation time to be with me!!), and the time is always infinitely precious to me. For a brief week, I get to wake up every morning and know I will see them, we can have breakfast together, lunch, and dinner, laugh at old stories, share what’s going on, we can slouch around, be lazy, sleep in the sun, share gossip, or hopes and dreams, or admit to disappointments or mistakes, and for that one week, we have the luxury of time, we don’t need to rush or go anywhere, we just hang out. It’s especially precious to me, and reminds me of when they were younger and were at home. Precious days, which fly by too fast. While we’re busy driving car pool, doing school pick ups, and mountains of laundry, getting them to soccer practice, the orthodontist, or ballet class, we don’t realize how fast it will go, and be precious memories one day. I cherish each moment that they’re around. And then suddenly, the week is over and they’re gone, back to their busy lives, and I go back to the typewriter, to fill the silence in the house. I don’t think our kids ever realize how much we miss them when they’re not around. And living in separate cities now, makes the time together that much more meaningful, since we can’t just drop in on each other, or go to the hardware store or a movie together. We plan it months ahead. I’ll get a second round later this summer, and get to spend a long weekend together for my birthday, but the annual summer vacation together is very sweet and a real gift for me.

We spent our week together in France, and there is no denying that it is very tense there now after another recent attack. My kids were even more aware of it than I am, since I live here and am getting used to the changes we live with now. It was sobering to be at the airport, with soldiers every 3 or 4 feet, each one holding a machine gun with their finger on the trigger, ready to shoot into the crowd at the first sign of an attack, their captains watchful, each one holding a pistol, also at the ready. The ease of the most recent attack, with a rented truck used as a weapon to drive into a crowd and ruin more than 300 lives, has made people nervous and wary. We stayed at our hotel, didn’t wander around nearby towns as we always do, and we always go to a nightclub and go dancing once during the trip, and we didn’t this year. It just didn’t seem smart in the circumstances. The country will recover, but for now people are justifiably worried and frightened. For us, and for me, it’s home for part of the year, so it made sense to be here, but I worried about my kids flying in and out, and they were brave to come, and concerned.

But in spite of that, they swam, and we lay in the sun, we ate too much, laughed and kidded each other, played Scrabble and cards, ate dinner late and talked for many hours, and shared news about our lives, and of course I always give unwanted advice, and forget at times that they’re not kids anymore, a failing that most parents are guilty of. We’re a big family so there’s always a lot to talk about.

Now it’s back to work for me, and for them. But even a week together puts new life into all of us, and brings us closer, and reminds us of how much we enjoy each other……the house is much too quiet today……I’d better get back to work and start typing again!!

Take good care, have some fun….we all need it, and you deserve it!!!

much love, Danielle

6/20/16, Dreams

Posted on June 20, 2016

Hi Everyone,

I hope you’ve had a great week, and that some really nice things happened to you this week. We can all use that, to give us a boost, even something small, a nice moment, something that makes us smile, or some piece of really good news.

I’ve been somewhat pensive, and quiet, in the almost two weeks since the passing of my ex-husband Tom. It’s a sad event for those of us who knew and loved and admired him, but he had an extraordinary life, a truly great life, and I think he got to do everything he wanted to do, and more. He lived to be a great age, and had opportunities and experiences few people have. He once went to Antarctica for several months on one of his boats—-(I stayed home!!! I would pay money, serious money, NOT to be on a sailboat, dodging icebergs in the dead of winter. He loved it, I would have hated it, so I didn’t go. But what an amazing experience for him, and the photos he brought back were fabulous!!). For those of us left behind when someone we love passes on, we are left with memories, the loose ends to tie up in our minds, and some introspection about their impact on our lives. So I have been quiet and reflective.

I’ve seen some close friends for lunch, and really enjoyed their company. And I had dinner at the home of good friends a few days ago. The wife is Japanese, so there were a number of Japanese people there, which was interesting, and nice to meet them. One of the couples had brought their nephew to dinner. He looked to be somewhere in his late twenties, was a biologist, and was leaving soon for a 6 month research project in Finland, so it was interesting talking to him. And at some point in the conversation, despite his youth, he said something that really caught my attention. He said that “You’re not old until your dreams become regrets”. Wow!! That is a very deep, and very true thought. No matter how old we are, we still have dreams, we ALL have dreams, or we should. Things we’ve always wanted to do, haven’t gotten to yet, and hope to get to one day. Some of it may not be realistic: Winning Miss Universe or Miss America at 55 or 65 or 70 is not likely to happen, you may have missed the boat on that. Or climbing Mount Everest. That could be sketchy too. But going somewhere that is actually feasible, traveling somewhere, building something, learning a language—-taking classes of some kind, or even writing a book. There’s no limit to what we can do—there may be some limits, but in many cases, we can fulfill at least some of our dreams. Some people even find their soul mate late in life. And bitterness and regret is not unique to old age. Some people give up on their dreams early, and shouldn’t. One of my favorite role models is an 88 year old friend of mine in New York. She is still working as an interior designer, takes classes to learn something new, goes to a book club, the theater, and sees nearly every movie and reads every book that comes out. She is still learning things at 88. She is a knock out, and so much fun. She is a living example to me of how I want to be when I’m her age, full of life, and busy, and still growing and doing, and fully alive. And obviously, good health helps.

I try to keep track of what my goals are every few years, and what I want to do. I try to keep track of it so those dreams don’t slip away. It’s easy to put our dreams away, and get bogged down in the every day. And sometimes I achieve those goals better than others. But I thought that what that young man said was so true….that you’re not old until your dreams turn into regrets (about what you didn’t do). It was a good wake up call for me, and I wanted to share it with you.

What are YOUR dreams? What do you want to do, that you haven’t gotten around to yet? It’s good to think about it from time to time. I have a rock on my desk with a saying carved on it, “It’s Never too late”. And another one that says “Follow your dreams”. It’s not too late for you to meet the right person, to take a class you’ve always wanted to take, to learn a language, learn to cook, take a writing class, a dancing class, to get in shape, to make new friends. I think that’s how people do stay young, interested and interesting, by opening new doors and windows, learning new things, even small things, and hanging onto those dreams.

It was a good reminder hearing that, and maybe for you too. Take good care, and have some fun! We all need it, a good belly laugh from time to time, and even just a warm moment with a friend. Have a terrific week!!

love, Danielle

6/6/16, Spring Cleaning

Posted on June 3, 2016

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is well with you, and that things are going well. I have had a bussssyyyyyy month, jam packed with projects, things on my ‘to do’ list, and writing. I feel like I haven’t stopped.

As I shared with you recently, I ‘attacked’ a big storage unit we had filled with years of old stuff, right down to my children’s art projects and baby clothes from years ago, one of my daughters saved every homework assignment from first grade through college. I kept all of that. But we also had A LOT of ‘stuff’, furniture of my mother’s that no one wanted, some REALLY ugly chairs of my grandmother’s, and some pretty things too, mostly furniture. For years anytime someone had something they didn’t know what to do with, the battle cry was ‘send it to storage’. They did, and for years I have wanted to weed it down, and get rid of what no one wanted, and never will again. I managed to reduce it to about half, and it was a HUGE job. I felt very virtuous for finally doing it. I set a date, and stuck to it, and did it. And I set a trend for the month: cleaning house and spring cleaning. I’ve been on a roll all month!!

Every year, I help one of my daughters get the family vacation home that they share, ready for summer. I don’t know how, but things just gather all year, and that turns into a huge cleanup project too before every summer, hosing things down, setting out cushions, repainting patio furniture. The place is very old, but has a lot of charm and they love it. They spent their childhood summers there, so they really love it. And having just cleared out a lot of the storage unit, I was much ‘tougher’ this year. If it was broken, we fixed it, if it couldn’t be fixed, we replaced it (at Ikea—–one of my favorite stores at very reasonable prices, and you can find everything for the home!!), if it was ugly, we finally faced that and dumped it, if no one wanted it and it was decent we sold it, and if it was less terrific, we donated it. We cleared the decks, and worked like dogs!!! With great results. They’re starting the summer free of cobwebs, and the junk that collected all year.

They also have a really small house they rent out, and that needed spring cleaning too for a new tenant, and we did the same thing there. I feel like I have spent the month moving furniture, cleaning everything, buying clean potholders, throwing out old ones. I have definitely done my spring cleaning for the year. Let me loose in your house right now, and I can strip it in an hour, dump all that stuff you don’t want, and convince you to go to Ikea to buy something (cheaper) and new!!! I’m a menace right now. After three major cleaning sessions—by the end of it, my battle cry was ‘get rid of it!! And we got some really cute stuff at Ikea, some new plates, pots and pans, some rugs, 2 benches. We had a ball!!! I love shopping there!!

So the illusion that I have a glamourous life is dispelled. I wore combat boots for most of the month, hauling a lot of broken old stuff to the trash. I love projects where you start out with a mess, and can see real results in a short time. It takes a long time to finish a book, and to solve most problems. Spring Cleaning has fast results, and you’re all proud of yourself when it’s done.

And after all that, I got to work on a new book. So it has been a busy month, now we can enjoy the summer—-and spend the rest of the year making a mess again!!! And as summer begins now, I hope you have some wonderful plans, to relax and take some time off (and read of course!!) Have a wonderful week!!

love, Danielle

5/16/16, Memories

Posted on May 16, 2016

Hi Everyone,

I hope you had a good week, and that good things are happening for you.

I had a letter from a friend this week, which brought back memories I’ll share with you. I don’t usually dwell on the past, I’m busy living life every day, meeting deadlines, talking to or visiting my children. We all have enough to think about with our jobs, our work, our families, and I realize now, when I do look back, that I have had some golden moments in my life. The friend who wrote to me was reminiscing about the parties I used to give, which seemed ‘normal’ to me at the time, and I realize now how special they were, and the memories they provided for the people we shared those moments with.

I was married to my husband John then, (the father of 8 of my 9 children), he was the most dashing man I’ve ever met, dazzling, elegant, incredibly handsome, movie star handsome. I led a very quiet life when I met him, writing my books, working hard. I didn’t go out much, and my life was certainly not glamourous. I met him, and he swept me off my feet. He was 20 years older than I, but dashing and youthful. blog.picMay16.2He loved parties, life, entertaining, going to grand events, and married to him, my life became very exciting. It was a different time, when entertaining lavishly wasn’t shocking. I’m not sure that people had more fun, but they were more daring about it. We lived in a Victorian house built in 1895, and restored it. And as our family kept growing—-every year!!—-until we had 9 children, he had his eye on a wonderful old house still owned by the original family, but no one had lived in it for about 40 years. The house was like a beautiful grande dame, that needed to be dusted off and brought into the light again. It was built in 1910, and once again we restored it and returned it to what it once had been. We filled it with our 9 children, their friends, and our friends, John loved to entertain, and I enjoyed it with him. He was the original Prince Charming, and at his side I always felt like Cinderella. He lifted me from my more mundane life to a more glamourous, sophisticated one. It took me by surprise at first, and I eventually came to enjoy it, and we gave some wonderful parties together, with music and dancing, and a band, 100 people for dinner, and afterwards people would stay until the wee hours dancing. It was very romantic!!! At the beginning of the evening, our children would come to say hello to the guests, and then they disappeared when we sat down to dinner. It sounds silly now, but for our Christmas dance, we had a snow machine on the roof, so it would look like it was snowing, as the snowflakes drifted past the windows. We had some wonderful times, and I’ve never danced as much since. People don’t give parties like that anymore, and I don’t either. It wouldn’t feel right today, but it was acceptable then.
blog.pic.May16 blog.pic.May16.4 blog.pic.May16.3

We were married for 18 years, but even fairytales end. Mylife changed, more importantly the world has changed. These are troubled times of poverty and anguish and danger in the world, of people struggling to survive, and economies shaky worldwide. Our marriage ended, my son Nick died as you know. I spent 11 years on the streets working with the homeless, and you see homeless people on the streets everywhere now, we live in a troubled world. My children grew up, and the world is such a different place. The kind of glamour we indulged in then is rarely, if ever, seen today. We all live in jeans. I have the beautiful gowns I used to wear at our parties, and haven’t worn them in years, and have nowhere to wear them, but I’ve saved them for my daughters as a piece of history. Even if I were still married, I can’t imagine giving parties like that today, with 100 people and a band, dancing the night away, with a snow machine on the roof. But what fun it was then. The friend who wrote to me, was reminiscing about how beautiful those parties were, with the snow falling past the windows. I never realized then how magical those nights were. But I do now, as cherished memories. My children remember them too, as part of their childhood. It’s a time that will never come again, and we were fortunate to enjoy those days. The world is a more serious place now, and so am I. We’ve all grown up…..but how pretty it was, how lucky we were to live it and share it with friends, who remember it too. If I go out for an evening now, I wear black slacks and a sweater, not a ballgown. There is no snow machine on the roof. We have family dinners, in the same house, on holidays, and I cherish these times too. But the memories, and the echoes of the music are very sweet. I just wanted to share that with you, and these old photographs of John, and me, and the children……sweet memories of a fairytale time…Now back to real life today!! Have a great week!!!

love, Danielle

PS. In response to a comment to last week’s blog, someone had heard that I passed away recently, and wanted confirmation that I didn’t. I’m happy to confirm that I am alive and kicking (in cute shoes, see the blog above). I think the confusion stems from the passing of the writer Jackie Collins a few months ago, and right afterwards a number of people got confused and thought it was me. She was a wonderful person and a good friend. People often confused us with restaurant reservations. We didn’t look anything alike, but maybe people just thought ‘writer’ and her name popped into their heads. I once got stood up by an airline VIP greeter who told me she couldn’t help me, because she was waiting to help Jackie Collins….she was really waiting for me, but was confused. Jackie wasn’t there, and I wound up having to drag my bags off the luggage belt myself!!! They apologized later. So we all miss Jackie…but I’m alive and well. Thanks for checking it out, love, Danielle

Filed Under Family, Parties | 11 Comments

5/9/16, Not Perfect But Wonderful!

Posted on May 9, 2016

Hi Everyone,

I hope that where appropriate, you had a lovely Mother’s Day. I realize every year, that after Christmas, it’s my favorite holiday!!! I really enjoy it with my kids. I spent it between two cities, and two countries, in my “double life”. For many, many years, with 9 children, I was rooted and planted in one spot, we went away in the summer for vacation, but the rest of the time, I was solidly planted in one place, driving kids to school, ballet classes, baseball, lacrosse and soccer games, organizing birthday parties, sleep overs, play dates, buying school supplies, and dropping off forgotten lunches. My life revolved totally around my kids, their school vacations, school plays, dance recitals, track meets, etc. multiplied by 9. It was a super busy life, beyond busy, I was always running to pick someone up, drop someone off, get their sick dogs to the vet, get baseball uniforms, all the things that fill and rule one’s life when you have kids, and I have a lot of them!!! I hardly traveled at all, never in fact, except in the summer with the kids And then one day the kids grew up, several moved to other cities to pursue their careers (for my 3 in fashion, they had to be in the cities where fashion is made, one went to LA to produce movies,) the chicks flew away, the husband left, and I found myself in an almost empty house, looking into empty bedrooms, and waiting for them to come home for holidays. I still have one child at home, fortunately, but she’s always busy, work, gym, concerts, friends. They all have their own lives now. So I flew away too, and began living in 2 cities, in 2 countries, flying back and forth between the 2, every few weeks, to my two home bases, and to visit my kids along the way in their cities. It has evolved into a nomadic life of constant travel, I see new movies on planes, work in both places, I have a typewriter in both houses, and fly away, land, unpack that night, and start work the next day (sometimes I wake up in the morning, and in the first few minutes, wonder which city I’m in). It’s a very different life than I used to lead when my kids were little, but with grown kids busy with their own lives, and unmarried myself now, it’s a wonderful way to live life, and not feel the absence of my old life quite so much!!! And on special days, like holidays, I realize what a gypsy I’ve become. I’m always packing and unpacking, flying, visiting kids, or working/writing in my 2 cities. It’s a crazy life, but I love it. » read more »

Filed Under Family, Holidays, Kids | 14 Comments

4/4/16, “Compassion”

Posted on April 4, 2016

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is well with you. I’m having a serious moment. When very serious or bad things happen, it sometimes takes me a while to talk about them. I have to digest them first. And some things take longer than others. I am feeling rocked to the core by the act of terrorism that occurred in Brussels on March 22nd. Destruction of that nature is so huge, as an act, a message, and in its results, that it’s hard to get one’s mind around it. The recent acts of terrorism in Paris last November were like that, so shocking, such a wake up call (but to what?) that it sombered the city, the country, and the world, as we witnessed the events and the results on TV. There is something mesmerizing as well as heart breaking about events of that nature. You can’t tear yourself away from it once you start watching, as again and again you ask yourself why. And now it has happened again in Brussels, in Pakistan, in other countries, a steady stream of attacks on innocent people. And I have discovered now that as we read the statistics, we don’t fully understand what they mean. We read the death toll with horror and grief for the families and loved ones of those who died, and sadness and relief about the numbers of injured, thinking that at least they survived. But survival is no longer so simple with the kind of bombs and weapons that are used. And sometimes the event comes tragically close to home. This time it did for me and my family.

Among those wounded at the airport that was blown up in Brussels was a 16 year old member of my family, a young girl left in devastating condition, still alive, in a coma and hanging by a thread. Her body riddled with shrapnel and metal from the explosion, her internal organs damaged, limbs injured, her face and body burned. Suddenly this is not just news or a statistic or a video, or a political act that makes no sense. Suddenly it is a child, a loved one, family, and for some a friend. It becomes an act that is all too real and makes no sense. Women, children, babies, young people, men, their lives destroyed or forever affected by those who wish to deliver a message, an angry statement and hurt us by killing or injuring the people we love. It is shattering to think about, and not what we expect of our fellow humans, this wanton destruction of young lives, and even old ones. It truly makes no sense.

My heart aches as I share this with you. I have no message, no conclusion, no answers, no solutions. No idea how the world can turn back to something more civilized and humane again. I have never focused on politics personally or professionally. I care about people, families, children, the human race. I try to live and write about a message of hope, that transcends the hard things that happen to us. Losing someone we love is always hard to understand. But losing loved ones, or seeing them so devastatingly injured so needlessly, so wrongly, so cruelly and wastefully shocks us to our core. Not knowing what else to do, I turn to prayer at times like this, and I turn to you, baffled, saddened, crying, confused. How can this happen? How can something so wrong take place again and again, all over the world? As Mother Theresa said, “We cannot do great things, only small ones, with a great deal of love”. I pray for you, for your families and your loved ones, for your safety and well-being. I pray for wisdom in those who would hurt us, for compassion among all of us, for lives to be saved not lost. And I pray for the child of our family, that she may live and be whole again. I pray for your protection, for all our protection from acts of terrorism and hate. May there be more light and love and hope in the world.
With all my love, Danielle

3/7/16, Paris Fashion

Posted on March 7, 2016

Hi Everyone,

Thank you for your patience with me, after weeks of writing, (and a few days off for a bad cold), I’ve surfaced and am back in the human race, although not for long. I’m just taking a short break, and then will go back to writing again. But in the meantime, I’ve had some time to enjoy some of my children visiting me. I always feel lucky to share time with them!!!

I got my nose out of my typewriter just in time for Paris Fashion Week: the big ready to wear shows in Paris that highlight fashions for next fall/winter. And the fashion world is buzzing with gossip these days, after a number of recent changes. The House of Dior parted company with their designer recently, and is looking for a new one to design ready to wear and haute couture, that’s a mammoth job, doing both, with several collections a year. Lanvin parted company with their designer too and are also looking for a new one. The designer at Saint Laurent is also leaving. There are rumors that Karl Lagerfeld might retire from Chanel next summer, which will be major fashion news if that happens (I hope it doesn’t!! I want Karl to stay where he is forever. He’s too good to lose!!). And there are always rumors about the other houses and designers, trying to guess who might be leaving. So fashion is a game of musical chairs these days. So this is a slightly unsettled season. It was also the first fashion week since the attacks in Paris last November, and I think many Americans were afraid to come to Paris, because the crowds were a little thinner than usual. But the city put their best foot forward, and there is a great deal of security everywhere in Paris now, at every fashion show, and in every store, bags are opened and the contents checked, wands to check for metal or weapons are in use, and there are a lot of security guards in evidence, which is all a good thing and reassuring.

I began my fashion week at the Celine fashion show in a tennis club in the park, at lunchtime on Sunday. Their show is always held there, and we sat in bleacher rows as all the notables of fashion walked in. The Queen herself: Anna Wintour, the Editor in Chief of Vogue, with her signature bobbed hair, and dark glasses—-looking glamourous and beautifully put together on Sunday morning with sparkles on what she was wearing., Grace Coddington, also an editor of Vogue with her signature mane of flaming red hair, sat down in the same row as Anna Wintour and the American Ambassador to Paris, Jane Hartley, sat a few seats down, with Wendy Murdoch between them. People are there to see what’s coming up in fashion for next season—-the stores then order the clothes in advance and we’ll see them in stores next fall. But first, all the fanfare of the fashion show. The show began with the usual beautiful models (mostly in their late teens) pounding down the runway in flowing but clinging dresses, cocoon shaped jackets and coats, comfortable looking sandals and footwear, some belted coats, some very fluid looking dresses, everything beautifully made, and exciting to see coming down the runway. I will admit that I felt most of it would look great on my daughters, but less so on me. It really wasn’t my look, and was a little more fashion forward than what I can get away with. I tend to wear more classic clothes, and less avant garde. But Phoebe Philo the designer at Celine has a fantastic eye and sense of fashion, and it’s exciting to see what she produces. My daughters went to the show with me and loved it. Lots of whites and earth tones, some gold, and some striking pieces in black. And everyone was talking about how great the collection was when they left. We really enjoyed it, and it’s always an honor to be there, since the event is invitation only, and mostly attended by buyers and the fashion press. With a smattering of celebrities and movie stars thrown in for good measure.

It was all very fun to see, and fashion week isn’t over yet. There will be lots more shows to see and comments to make, and guesses about which designers will be going to work where, and which designer had the best show. The hubbub was tremendous as always, and we all left having gotten a bird’s eye view of what lay ahead. Stay tuned…..more shows to come!!!

love, Danielle

12/28/15, Goodbye 2015, New Vistas up ahead

Posted on December 28, 2015

Hi Everyone,

I hope your Christmas, or Chanukah, holidays were wonderful. I had a really terrific time with all my kids, and got wonderful gifts I REALLY loved from them. But the best gift of all was being with them, and sharing family time. We were all so grateful to be together. And our holiday time is almost over. They leave tomorrow, and on Tuesday, I’ll be at my desk, back at work, working on books for the months ahead. So my holidays are drawing to a close. Each one of my kids gave me special gifts, but their presence at home was what I cherished most. One of my daughters gave me gorgeous evening shoes, with “I love you, Mommy” written in sequins in French, and a gold bracelet that says I love you, and a bunch of other lovely presents too. Two of my daughters gave me a beautiful little table from the l950’s, by a furniture designer whose work I love, it has an Asian scene on it, and I put it in the living room. Knowing how I love shoes, several of my daughters gave me shoes I’m crazy about. And another of my daughters gave me two great jade bracelets and a necklace. One of my older sons gave me a fantastic giant poster (about 5 feet high and 5 feet wide) with photographs of 9 antique typewriters, and the words “Mom” and “Love” and other words typed out. And my youngest son gave me a little journal I will cherish forever, where he wrote down his favorite memories with me, of things we’ve done together, and a ski trip we took together about 5 years ago, he wrote down all the things he loves about our relationship, what he admires in me, what he feels I’ve taught him, and the advice I’ve shared. it is an incredible gift of love, and said things any mother would give just about anything to hear. They were all incredibly generous and thoughtful, and we shared some wonderful meals and fun times together. We are all sad to see the holidays end as they pack to leave.
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