And So It Begins.

I know, I know, Thanksgiving isn't even over yet.  But we love Christmas around here, so this is what you get, I'm afraid.  Yesterday I was lacking a bit of enthusiasm, wondering what in the world to do with my Sunday.  So I decided that I didn't care if it was too early for Christmas festivities to begin. It's never too early for me! So we lugged our super heavy Christmas tree up from the basement and put it together in our front room.  We bought it after Christmas last year, in the sales (75% off!), so it was our first year putting it up and I am in love.  

Sustenance Sunday: A Very Vegetarian Thanksgiving

Chris and I have been vegetarian for a few years now, and to be honest I don't miss meat a single bit. Though we do eat fish on occasion, so technically, we are pescetarian.  Which just makes us sound like snobs.  So we stick with vegetarian.  However, as the holidays approach, the first thing I think of is turkey.  Not that I necessarily miss eating it myself, but turkey = Thanksgiving, right?  

Well, we are visiting friends for Thanksgiving, so we might have to save some of these recipes for Christmas (hope my family is open to trying some of them!), but here is a roundup of mouth-watering vegetarian recipes for my veggie-loving friends out there.

Sweet Potato, Onion & Fontina Tart

Festive Chickpea Tart

Maple Tempeh (with or without the quinoa)

Roasted Vegetable Galette

Pumpkin & Black Bean Casserole

Butternut Squash Baked Risotto

Pumpkin Hummus

Stuffed Curry Sweet Potato

Sauteed Brussel Sprouts

Mashed Root Veggies

Are you vegetarian?  Do you like to experiment with Thanksgiving recipes or stick with the tried and true ones you grew up eating?  

Let me know if you try any of the recipes above, and I will try to remember to do the same!

What Month Is It?!

Between both the greeting card timescale and that of a part-time freelance writer, I find it especially difficult to keep track of what month we are actually living in!  Greeting cards need creating at least two seasons before they are due to hit the shelves (often even sooner!), and freelance writing can often require planning for a particular season.

While this certainly keeps things interesting, it can also be hard to stop, take a step back, and appreciate this moment.  Once upon a time, I was a planner through and through.  Now, I am much more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kinda gal.  The only conclusion I can think of is that the ways of my free-spirited husband have slowly rubbed off on me.  And if not, well, I'm blaming him anyway.  

I have, however, been trying to focus on living in the moment a bit more lately.  Moments where I am not thinking about what in the world I am doing with my life, the direction I want to take in my career, or whether I am saving enough for retirement.  So basically all of the boring adult responsibility type things.

This reflection may have been inspired by the life gurus we have seen speak over the past few months (including Sonia Choquette, Wayne Dyer, & Deepak Chopra), so I can't exactly take all the credit for this burst of inspiration.  

Here are some ways I am doing my best to live in the moment as of late.

The addition of this antique wooden crate/night stand, because it's just what my bright corner of the room needed!

DIY, because it soothes my soul... (big reveal coming soon - eek!)

A little picture frame makeover, because our bedroom walls are still bare... (this is the before)

These mirrors because craigslist finds make me happy!

This little reminder of Thailand, because I left a piece of my heart there, and because we finally put something (anything!) on our bedroom walls! (side stage right: another craigslist find from a few months ago, painted with my trusty chalk paint, of course!)

Cross country skiing, because we were excited about the arrival of snow! (though the same cannot be said for the freezing temperatures that followed!)

The beautiful Fall sunsets we get here in Colorado, because they really know how to brighten up a tough rush hour commute.

I love to sit and think about all of the little things I am appreciating at the moment.  It always brightens my mood.  Looking forward to holiday travels, seeing friends and loved ones (not mutually exclusive), and getting out of our daily routines at home.  Because you know we love to shake things up around here!

As I teased above, I should be posting a big DIY project (along with a mini one!) sometime after Thanksgiving.  So basically whenever I can physically finish everything!  I can't wait to show you!

And last but not least... who has decorated for Christmas already?  Am I crazy because I want to do it this weekend?!  Prepare for Christmas overload here on the blog in the weeks ahead.  The music has already begun!

Different Priorities

Yesterday afternoon, as Chris and I raked the leaves in our front yard with precision accuracy (not), we somehow got on the topic of my Dad.  He has always been a really hard worker, both at "work" and at home, and out of nowhere Chris asked, "Do you think your Dad knows how lazy I am?"  Ha!  I let out a very surprised laugh, followed by, "probably not."  And with the very next sentence, he unintentionally changed my perspective. "It's actually not that I am lazy, I just have different priorities."

{ photo from last Fall. }

At first, I thought, yeah that's what you say to yourself so you don't feel guilty about your laziness. But almost immediately following that thought, I realized he was right.  About both of us.  We value getting out and exploring, and making the most out of our lives, way more than we value a perfectly clean and organized house.  Who cares that we are three weeks late with raking up the mounds of leaves in our front yard (ahem, not to mention our overflowing laundry basket)?  In those three weeks, we have escaped to the tallest incorporated city in the states to see the changing of the leaves, we have had friends over for dinner, gone for long walks, traveled to a dear cousin's wedding out of state, explored Seattle, and snuggled up to watch movies together on the sofa.  And if I had it to do all over again?  I would leave those leaves sitting on our front lawn.  Because those three weeks sound perfect to me.

Different priorities.  I'm going to hang on to that one.