December 1, 2017

I LOVE LISTS

Welcome to I Love Lists. It’s Friday! Let’s surf the internet together:

How to help a grieving loved one this holiday season.
Apparently, I belong in Austin.
This dad went viral on Instagram for his carpet love.
My cat is bread.
Some interesting psychology experiments
Hidden signs in the surf above.
That’s a lot of paper.
This show is gonna be good!! (I hope!)
Liquid sand fascinates me.
What luxury items & ingredients are worth the price?
Drinks + Books
Money would probably motivate me to lose weight too.
Depression is real.
Things that look like food.
Maybe we should go back to food trucks?
There are some real gems in here.
This makes me want to finger paint.
California has all the most expensive zip codes in the US
Parents gotta sneak in “microdates” every now and then!
Makes a great gift: Instant Pot Heidi did the most amazing roundup of info!
I love Tim’s gift guides.
How chef’s food ends up in grocery stores.
Andrea nails what November feels like.

Christmas Wishlist:

my everyday life, Photography

November 26, 2017

My Everyday Life: Week 47

Here’s what this past week looked like- My Everyday Life: Week 47

When my dad and I came home after being at the hospital with my Mom in the ICU, I walked into my parent’s house and saw these flowers waiting there in the front entry.

They were for me.

My Mom was going to be giving them to me when she came over the next day for Thanksgiving.

All I could think of was how these could be the last flowers I ever received from my Mom.

They are the last flowers I will ever receive from my Mom.

Inspiration, LISTS

November 20, 2017

Intentions for the Week

It’s the Monday before Thanksgiving and my life right now is one big TO DO LIST. Here’s the game plan for Thursday.

Cooper has only two days of school this week so I have to cram in as much as I can in those two daaaaaaaaaaays and then he’s with me and I’m putting him to work!

Last week was super social. This week will be social towards the end, so I am going to focus on getting as much done as I can so I can hang out with my family and be PRESENT for our big feast. I still need to figure out if I’m gonna make a pie or not…. If you weren’t around last week, and you’re looking for inspiration for your Thanksgiving feast, I wrote up a whole post about that here!

INTENTIONS FOR THE WEEK:

enjoy time with my family
give thanks!
try not to stress out that much because it’s supposed to be about FAMILY this week
go grocery shopping
shoot a recipe for One Potato
exercise- dance/hike with family/possibly go to yoga
eat healthy up until Thanksgiving/go crazy
make sure bathrooms are spotless
clean house for company
ship prints (my etsy shop is open btw! Check out thehandwritingclub)
get guest bedroom ready/Cooper’s room ready for company
clean out fridge
make cranberry sauce
cut up turkey for recipe
finalize recipe for Nugget
make a pie?
make rolls? or buy them?
set the table for Thanksgiving/make place cards
cleanup garage area
straighten up deck
catch up on social media

Last Week’s Intentions:

~~take dance class & yoga class~~ (took two dance classes)
~~LAUNDRY- get it done and don’t leave anything sitting in a basket!~~
~~play date/coloring club~~
~~make kombucha~~
make new cookie recipe
test recipe for Nugget
~~get house in order~~
~~clean out car~~
straighten up inside of garage
~~build some time in to do leisure reading~~
~~start going over holiday card address list~~
~~catch up on social media~~
do some meal prep
~~clean out fridge (need to do this)~~
~~keep the kitchen clean~~
~~send out letters~~
~~return library books~~
~~bring donation into thrift store~~
~~sew curtains for office/studio~~
bank appt?
~~map out Thanksgiving~~
~~bookkeeping~~
eat better/~~move body!~~

Mantra for this week:

What about you? Got any Intentions for the Week? Leave a list in the comments below & get your head in the game.

I hope you have a productive week!

my everyday life, Photography

November 19, 2017

My Everyday Life: Week 46

Here’s what this past week looked like: My Everyday Life Week 46

FRESH AIR IS AMAZING.

Family adventure into the city for lunch at Zuni.

We took Cooper. We had a blast.

An older couple came over to tell us they used to take their kids there (their kids are in their 20s now and they moved into the city as empty nesters!).

It was a sweet moment.

Casey took our picture.

He did good!

I look at floral arrangements more closely now that I paint them.

LISTS

November 17, 2017

I LOVE LISTS

Welcome to I love lists. It’s FRIDAAAAAY. Here’s a list for you:

Redefining better.
Cooper has done this to us before…. lol
More people are buying Christmas gifts on credit card than ever.
To be a writer, you have to be obsessed.
This would be a fun photo series to do. College friends then/now
Spaghetti Burrito is a thing.
I got 6/8. It was hard!
The hoodie of my dreams.
DIY Beautiful Paper Pointsettias Heart eyes!
The more you want, the poorer you’ll feel.
Oprah’s Favorite Things list for 2017!
Dad + baseball
What a beautiful kitchen! I love the cabinet colors.
An amazing photographer
My new favorite pen!
Omg a miniature pony on an airplane.
I found this video to be quite relaxing.
2017 is all about constant anxiety.
The big money behind naming the color of the year
Inspired by: Liz / Tiffany / Nicole
Eataly IN Italy looks awesome
The rule of thirds for photographers.
Lifecycles of planes. These pictures please me.
Weekend reading: The Sun & Her Flowers + Tartine All Day

Inspiration

November 16, 2017

Thanksgiving Menu Ideas

After 10 years of blogging, I have compiled all the recipes I need for a good Thanksgiving!

Actually- there’s only one recipe I haven’t blogged. It’s the Mark Bittman’s braised turkey recipe that I’ve been making for the past three years now. IT IS AMAZINGLY moist and flavorful and it makes sooooo much gravy (which my family LOVES). If you are looking to shake up your turkey game this year, try it! It is less daunting than roasting a whole bird in the oven.

One week away from the big day!!!!

This is the start of my list:

Here are a bunch of Thanksgiving Menu Ideas to help inspire your meal planning:

recipes

November 15, 2017

Persimmon Bars with Lemon Glaze

So, your super cute neighbor who reminds you of your late grandfather gives you over 5 lbs. of persimmons… WHAT DO YOU DO???

You look up PERSIMMONS in the back of all of your cookbooks and find a recipe that looks intriguing and doesn’t require a trip to the store because you don’t feel like putting a bra on and your pantry is stocked. That’s when you make these super moist (sorry) and delicious Persimmon Bars with Lemon Glaze.

They taste like carrot cake but there’s no carrot in them…just persimmons. So, there ya go! A recipe to help you dip into that persimmon hoard given to you by a generous neighbor. And OF COURSE, you share the cake (or two!) with said neighbor. This IS the season of giving thanks, after all!