scenes from (a new) home

i need

to do something creative or I think I may burst... or die of boredom.


can a mom of two little people die of boredom?






yes. i think it's possible.

laundry

When we decided to move, we knew there were big changes we were going to experience in going to an apartment again after owning a house. Some of these changes were welcome.


Like letting go of yard work and putting an end to all the mental energy that goes into a mortgage and insurance and home improvements and on and on and on. We were more than happy to make those changes. We also knew some things were going to be more of an adjustment.


Like laundry.


Does $4 to wash and dry a load of laundry not seem a bit excessive? Or maybe I just think that because the amount of laundry a family of four goes through is staggering, and at that price, is enough to blow our whole monthly budget. I've been out of the rental game for awhile now, so maybe that's the going rate, but still... it hurts a little bit every time I unlock the laundry room door.


So, this is the scene around here these days.

Lots of hang drying. Lots of crinkly, crunchy clothes. 

But it does feel simpler... more like the me I want to be. 

So I guess,  for all the inconvenience, that makes it worthwhile. 

fingers

i love these grubby little fingers...

...and those grubby little fingers love these little plastic scoops of ice cream. And it's because of those sweet, chubby, grubby fingers that we spend our days pretending to lick plastic and enthusiastically commenting on how delicious the current plate is. I don't think we were anticipating the girly-ness that has come about lately, but it is the sweetest of sweet to watch. 

And thankfully there is always her brother to temper all that pink-loving, doll-playing, dress-wearing, ice-cream scoop wielding loveliness with a good dose of boy. 
And he's doing a beautiful job.
I mean, do you see how grubby those fingers are?

sunday afternoon

ludo + daddy = the best sunday afternoon

the orange.

the bread is rising

... and it is starting to feel like home here.

salad night

so one of our goals in moving here and starting over, was to eat better. 

Like we did before there was stress and drama and a second baby. 

More like we did when we looked more like ourselves. 

More like we believe we should. 

As we move back to those ideals we believe in, like more local produce, less meat, more home cooked, less processed and packaged,  more thoughtful planning, less fried and fatty take out... we present salad night.

Far and away the sweet potatoes make this salad. It's best to make these as a side dish the night before and prepare enough for the leftovers to go into the salad. We took the concept from the recipe for Lemon and Cinnamon Sweet Potatoes in the Eat Clean cookbook. But since we didn't have over half of the ingredients we made up our own. So remember, make these as a side dish the night before then cut up the cold leftovers into the salad.

Orange and Nutmeg Sweet Potatoes

3 sweet potatoes (scrubbed and trimmed of fibres)

1.5 cups orange juice

⅓ cup agave nectar

1.5 teaspoons ground nutmeg

1 tsp orange zest

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

.5 teaspoon sea salt

• Preheat oven to 375° F
• Prepare a large baking dish by rubbing with oil
• Place sweet potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. bring to a boil. reduce heat and let simmer until just tender. Don't overcook! You want them firm enough to cut.
• Drain sweet potatoes and set aside. Let cool and cut into rounds ¼ inch thick. Lay in prepared baking dish in a single layer.
• In saucepan, place orange juice, agave, nutmeg, and orange zest and salt. Simmer for several minutes before adding olive oil. Continue simmering until liquid is a syrup. Pour warm syrup over the sweet potatoes.
• Bake for 20 minutes.

So now, for the salad. 

Use any kind of lettuce you like best. We used a mix of romaine and green leaf lettuce. We added goats milk feta, onions, carrots, celery, chickpeas (canned) and chicken (which was steamed and panfried in a bit of coconut oil and seasoned with just salt and pepper). Cut up the sweet potatoes and throw them in. 

We used the simplest of dressings... just mix 3T of apple cider vingear (raw and unfiltered is best) with 3T of extra virgin olive oil, 2 cloves of garlic (minced) and ¹⁄₈t of dijon mustard. salt and pepper to taste. You can toss the whole thing in the dressing now if you like, or serve without dressing and let everyone dish their own. This is best if you know there will be leftovers. 

Simple, easy, fresh and super healthy. Definitely a headliner in our new, good-for-you weekly menu. 

movie night

a sweet little memory from the last nights in our sorely missed little home.

we have landed

...and slowly are setting things up here.


Getting used to smaller everything and ugly apartment paint, and countertops... and carpets (only in the bedrooms, thankfully!)


It feels surprisingly normal to be here. Besides the ache we feel to be closer to family, friends, and our favorite thrift stores and restaurants.


As soon as the empty boxes make their way into blue bins we'll go on a little tour.

an empty shell

I am in my last days in our home.


Only it doesn't really feel like home anymore. It feels like empty rooms stacked with boxes. Because that's all it is anymore. It feels like even our memories are packed away.


And I suppose that's good. Because then they come with us and don't depend on the space we made them in at all.


But it makes for some incredibly sad and hollow days here.


I am going to dearly miss this place.

best gift ever

I have a mad crush on David Gray.
I have since... argh, this is going to kill me to say... Rob introduced him to me, 10... 11(?) years ago. (Happy now?!)


And now I can say I've sat in the same room as him. THE SAME ROOM!


All of it was so worth it. Being stuck in the elevator. Getting sick, throwing up, and going to bed at 7:30 our first night away. Early flights and even earlier train rides. No room service. Stale chocolate bars from the vending machines. Swiss Chalet. All the worries of flying standby.


So, so worth it.


Because it was the same room.




so to my husband, who lets me fawn over another man like this... it was the best gift ever.  thank you.

dear david,

you did not disappoint.







This is likely my last correspondence with you. I'm going to miss you.


until the next surprise,
Sarah