comfort.

egg noodles. butter. poppy seeds.

a childhood favorite
randomly remembered
quickly prepared
deliciousness devoured

 comfort, in a bowl.

snow day hat

being snowed in this weekend

didn't make me feel quite so guilty

for (full)days spent laying on the couch

fire blazing, warm tea, fingers lost in merino

my parents (have i mentioned how much they ROCK!?!?)

came to town 

mum cleaned and did probably 10 loads of laundry

dad cooked and waited on me

(boy,  did we eat. like. kings.)

to keep from feeling totally useless 

i knitted daddio a thank-you-hat

now i've got to figure out how to sew left-footed

some mum can get some hand-made love too...

...

it's really amazing how 

fur-free floors

clean countertops

and freshly folded laundry

can truly make you feel 

human, again.

...

m+d: lova ya. WICKED.

false start

i was just saying that 2012 was gonna be a good one
...

then

i broke my foot.

as in,
snapped off a chunk of the 5th Metatarsal.
sound fun?
NO.

so now

it's ah gonna be a looooong 6-8 weeks

(and possibily up to 12 until i can lace up sneaks and comfortably go for a run)

so that's like... spring, right?

%!$#^#(@)?!

so, that's where i've been
not driving, cooking, sewing, exploring, traveling, cleaning, exercising, standing
good times, kids.
good times.

hoping this + an extended doggie ER visit + car drama = our "they come in 3's" bad-luck streak

ye-ummmm!

dark chocolate

caramel

black sea salt

...

thank you, trader joes.

green goodness

i almost gave up

on the avocado

...

i try to always find the nearly ripe ones

but then

by the time i remember to use them

they've turned

(and those buggers get expensive- especially to keep throwing away!)

...

but today

i caught a glimpse peeking out from the corner of the fruit bowl

sliced in

and, ahhhhh....

glorious green perfection

diced with tofu, cherry tomatoes, a drizzle of olive oil, s+p and a dusting of grated cheese

insta-lunch

fresh start

not gonna lie...

2011 kicked my heiny.

loss. illness. drama.

(i know, i didn't get into it here. i try and keep this my "happy place.")

left me floundering.

but

it's done.

i've learned. i'm loved. i'm letting go. i'm oh-so-lucky.

already,

i am so in love with 2012.

bring it.

here's to: a blog face-lift, house projects galore, travel, tutorials, singing in the shower...

xoxo

...

*hang a few sprigs of fresh eucalyptus in your shower- the steam + their menthol-y scent are a perfect mid-winter wake up!

oh christmas tree...

one last christmas post-

tay came for a visit the week between christmas and new year's...

we love decorating cupcakes together

and she wanted to bring something festive home for her family to enjoy

so, we decided on:

christmas trees!

we had a blast and they were ADORABLE!

christmas 2011

a little late-december catch up before officially moving into 2012

...

we hosted christmas here

in providence-

the official christening of our sweet home

and though i didn't manage to snap too many pictures to prove it

the weekend was lovely

our mantle

decorated with handmade gingerbread houses

and fresh cut greens

christmas morning, stocking excitement!

daddio, looking dapper in his new scarf

evening light

and dinner (beef wellington, which i don't have one picture of- boo!)

was topped off with

baked alaska:

(thin flourless chocolate cake, topped with a boule of alternating layers of strawberry and pistachio ice cream, covered in piped swiss meringue and just scorched in a broiling oven)

yumm.o.

family. friends. food.

christmas perfection

...