How Refreshing

A few weeks ago I was faced with the challenge of getting a gift for my mom's birthday. I swear this gets harder every year! It's really only me that sets such high standards for the occasion--my mom's a sentimental one, anything thoughtful means the world to her. But I love to be creative, and of course, beat last year's gift. However, as a student, I don't really have the means to get my mom something I'd really like to get her--like a house by the ocean or jewelry--so I have to improvise.
When I first spotted this recipe, I immediately bookmarked it with the intention of making it for my mom's birthday. She prefers "refreshing" desserts--fruity and light--to heavy, cake-y, chocolatey ones. So, a watermelon sorbet with vanilla and pistachio ice cream couldn't be a better combination. Go Martha Stewart!

What I learned:
-If you have an ice-cream maker, use it. I didn't have one and my watermelon sorbet was a little bit icier than I would have liked.
-Don't be afraid to use a little less sugar than the recipe calls for--I found the watermelon sorbet to be extremely sweet. It was still delicious, though, and complemented the pistachio ice-cream well.
-Give yourself ample time. I tried to pull this off the night before her birthday and couldn't present my masterpiece until a few days later!

When she took the first bite, her instant reaction was, "This is so refreshing!" Definitely a win.

*Note: I forgot to put the watermelon "seeds" into the sorbet.

Attention to Detail

The other day, my friend Chiara and I were talking about having how important details really are. I've tended to view my own close attention to detail as more of a curse than anything--staying up until one or two in the morning to finish a project, retaking a photo until it's perfect, changing my whole outfit because clearly this bag will not work with those shoes, etc. But Chiara had a more refreshing view--while focusing on the most minute information might seem excessive, sometimes remembering the name of an acquaintance whom you've only met once or noticing a stone pattern on a pair of sunglasses can make a person or an average day feel special.