little things i've learned

i've been a little cooped up here lately, with the snow and the kid-wrangling. just looking through my pictures from the last couple of weeks, pondering the little things. here are some peeks into some of the things i've learned::

...i like to make dinners in big pots. mainly because it's easy. and most likely because you can throw anything in there and it usually comes out tasting delicious...

...this is a very steamy, crappy photo, but one thing about me is that i make veggie chili, entirely too much. if you've eaten at my house, you know this...

...eight year olds are wicked moody...

...i spend lots of hours a day at my kitchen window. which is a good, good thing...

...lulu likes to dress herself. which often means that you will find her wearing stripes, tie-dye, and a tutu, all at the same time...

...when i know that someone is taking my photo, i act very very awkward...

...my family produces a lot of dirty dishes, which have to be cleaned...

...seaweed is my new favorite condiment, especially on avocados!...

...bright colored couscous brightens up even the gloomiest of days...

...watching little people doing their work is a very beautiful thing...

..tea equals therapy...

...some lemons have nipples...


...and when my children tell me that they are "so sick!" and i keep them home from school and go as far as taking them to the doctor and i find out that they are in fact not really that sick at all, they are actually pretty healthy, i take them on random homeschool field trips (like here where we went to the stonyfield organic yogurt factory) and make them watch movies about good bacteria and learn stuff. yeah.

so that's it! hope you're staying toasty warm, doing something you love. xx

like this...except the exact opposite

ok, i have a little secret.

for the past three weeks...i've been feeling like absolute, complete crap. kind of like the above picture, except exactly the opposite of that.

i've tried very hard to push through and do mind-over-matter and just suck it up and not complain. but finally today i hit my wall and had enough.

the fact that i am so so sick is kind of ironic, considering that approximately three weeks ago, i completely changed the way that i relate to food. i started juicing, lost a bunch of weight, started eating amazing superfoods, finally fit in my clothes, and have had moments of brightness and vigor.

except for all the moments in between when i've felt like p.o.o.! i've been achey like i've never experienced. i feel like i have whiplash! my glands are swollen, my legs hurt, i have no energy, i've had headaches every day (numerous times a day), all i want to do is sleep! the list of symptoms go on and on.

on sunday night the fevers started. and then the sore throat, so sore i really couldn't even move my head. it hasn't been pretty. i haven't been able to be a good mom. there have been ugly moments. and today, for the first time in like 20 years, i broke down and went into the doctor for a sick visit!

i actually had to wear a face mask because of my symptoms, which really freaked the kids out (yes, the kids were in tow!). but when all was said and done, i just have some mysterious nasty virus that is ruining my happiness and there's nothing to do about it.

except get over it and be happy?

well, today i am channeling the happy vibes of my husband, who is on a secret tropical island (i wish i was joking) enjoying life! i am choosing to think about the sunny days ahead, where i am enjoying an icy drink beside a pool somewhere warm.



what do you do to snap yourself out of the sickies?

the bright spots

sometimes i wonder if maybe i'm going a little crazy with the day-to-day grind of motherhood----oftentimes the same things, just different days. today was one of those days...all the kids home because of the snow, grumpiness and cooped-upedness and angst. luckily i got out of my own way and decided to save the afternoon----hot chocolate for the kiddos, a big fire in the fireplace, a huge pot of chili simmering, and a big bowl of popcorn to snack on. i always have to remind myself that there will be a day, somewhere off in the future, when i will look back on these days and wish that i could have them back. my littles wont be little forever. life is too short and too sweet to be mean.

so in the honor of this, here are some of the bright spots (all food related?!?) of the past couple of weeks...

:: green smoothies in front of the fireplace

:: nori wraps with avocado and carrots

:: i like to kiss my produce. especially my avocados! and i finally have collarbones again, thank goodness.
:: a new sweet treat

:: veggies sauteed in turmeric, my new favorite spice.



hope today is filled with bright spots for you. xx

soul shakedown party

this has been my favorite song forever, but it's really coming alive for me lately. i feel like i'm smack-dab in the middle of a soul shakedown party. right now we're lounging around on the rug, in front of the fire, working on a project for gray, and listening to this song on repeat. after the illness that i experienced these past two days (part of the shakedown?), i feel so good today. friends coming for dinner---we'll see how they react when i try to serve them green juice in wine glasses instead of the usual booze. ;)

xx

happy

i found this picture on my camera. gray took it a couple of days ago. i love it because it really captures how i'm feeling lately...happy, present, in the moment. really soaking it all in, and living the way i want. i like that my kids are seeing me like this. i like that i'm gifting myself with this feeling. like like like, love love love. happy. xx

eye candy

:: hands down, one of the best weeks of my life. and here's some eye candy...snapshots of some of the goodness.

...green goodness...

...chia with bananas...

...green with an orange swirly goodness...

...there's a first time for everything...

...green lemonade...
...sprouting on the windowsill...

...chia in the fridge... (ch ch ch CHIA!)

...daily meditation...

...abundant salads...

...green...



changing the way i think about food, about treats, about breaking bread, and about nutrition.

cheers to veggies!

i don't care how cliche it is, but with the new year, i'm choosing my health. for the past week or so, johnny and i have been doing a modified juice cleanse, with lots of whole foods, superfoods, and completely plant-based foods. there has also been no alcohol, and daily walks. i feel energized and amazing, and six pounds lighter.

while john was away for five months, i got into some bad habits. i went from eating a mostly plant-based diet to a free for all. i rewarded myself to getting through a day alone with pretty much whatever i wanted! i ate whatever was quick and easy, and usually ate alone. there was no joy in food. i started having a glass of wine most nights, and sometimes that turned into two. i got into a bad routine that i imagined was helping me get through a lonely and trying time. and honestly, it served a purpose. i got through parenting three children alone for months on end and i didn't have a nervous breakdown! i didn't even have a mini breakdown.

once john came home we were in celebration mode, which was also a big free for all. don't get me wrong, we did buy mostly healthy foods, some organic, but we knew our way around a box of cheeze-its and liked ourselves some desserts. once we were together, we went out on dates again, ordered steaks with gorgonzola, and enjoyed cocktails many nights during the week. it was fun, we were happy, but we were both packing on some extra pounds.

after the holidays (starting with the halloween candy, ending with the christmas butter cookies) we just hit our wall. all the food we were shoveling into our bodies was completely joyless. we invested in a fancy-pants juicer and made the commitment to juice together. i'm a lucky girl because johnny hands me beautiful glasses of green juice throughout the day! (today he's back to work so we'll see how it goes----but i opened the fridge this morning to a big mason jar filled with green goodness courtesy of his early morning juicing!).

i've always been excited about whole foods and healthy eating but dabbled here and there and haven't made a sustained commitment. now is the time (my sagging neck will thank me, i hope!). the kids are into it, too! and they dig the green juice. we're all eating chia seeds and singing "ch ch ch chia!". i'm sure they'll be bumps in the road, and cheats and splurges, but for the most part i'm excited about our new family adventure. goodbye cheeze-its and nachos, hello fresh veggies and fruits! i'm waiting with baited (veggie-licious) breath for my new blender to arrive so i can start experimenting with smoothie recipes.

these websites have been inspirational to me during this past week:

meghan telpner

the vegan stoner

crazy sexy life

the kind life


here's to happiness, new beginnings, and commitments to health! <3



(i promise that i'm not going to get all evangelical on you about this...this is just my two cents, and the end.)

words to live by

always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else. ~judy garland

off to celebrate my boy turning six, my niece's birthday, and christmas with the family! not letting this stomach bug get me down. i'll party in the bathroom if i have to.

the holidays, in a nutshell

to me, nothing says the holidays like my soft vintage apron, my comfy ripped jeans, christmas music playing in the kitchen, and all of us baking cookies together. the end.

needless to say

needless to say...lulu didn't get a photo-op with the christmas tree saw.


maybe next year. but most definitely probably not.

santa claws

:: "i'm just really afraid of santa claus because i really do believe that he has claws." -joey 2011

handless mice

:: lulu just chucked her lollipop down the basement stairs...and i said "lu, go pick that up and throw it away, because a mouse will get it!" (we have a new no-food rule in the basement because the mice are coming in from the cold and want our food) and she looks at me like i'm the dumbest person in the world and says "mom, a mouse don't have hands!" ::

happiness is...

...letting the kids drink welch's sparkling grape juice directly from the bottle. why not? life is short. drink from the bottle.

find love everywhere

christmas tree farm edition, 2011 (miracle tree farms/milford, NH)

creating

there's been lots of creating going on in this neck of the woods----holiday creating, keep-the-kids-busy creating, creating with friends, creating time to connect with the ones that i love. all the things that add fuel to my fire. here are some snapshots of a few of those moments...

creating a beautiful memory with nana...

creating with the RAW night girls in newburyport...

creating food using new recipes to feed my family (and finding a little red pepper bum in the process...)

creating a vintage necktie wreath to hang (using this tutorial from a beautiful mess...and an extra big thank you to my friend quee who hunted down a big bag of vintage ties for me!)


are you cooking up anything special where you are? i'd love to know about it. xx

grateful for a milllion jillion things but here are ten

:: uncle tingy as mr. t...

:: a little pippi longstocking...

:: a sleepy little dragon...

:: swinging with daddy at the park...

:: our fireplace...
:: sitting on my front steps...
:: wine and cheese nights!...

:: firewood at the ready, and our red back door...

:: the beautiful patterns in our stacked wood...

:: family puzzles galore with all our power outages lately!. ..

enjoying our home, each other, good food, our friends and family. we are so blessed to live the life we live. xx