Happy Weekend:

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Happy Weekend, everyone! We have an extra day off because of Veteran's Day! What are you planning to do with your long weekend? I'm taking today off as well so I have a four day weekend and I am so excited! We're going to the annual library sale today and I've got plans to make the most delicious chocolate cake that ever existed. And then there's that early morning run on Saturday and a Mexican Coke to celebrate.

Be sure to do something sweet for the veterans in your life. I am thinking of baking a little something extra for my dad to enjoy. He deserves it.

Have a great one! I hope it's magical. XO.

I Love:

The new lookbook for Ruche is out and oh man, is it beautiful:

Keep Reading

New Reads:

My November book club selection is The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. It's been on my to-read list for a few years now. I've been wanting to read it but apparently, it takes my book club kind of forcing me to actually sit down and get through it. Get through it makes it sound like it isn't good, and that's misleading, because it is. I really like this book. It's a memoir. And it's dark. And I love dark.

It's been out for a while now so you've probably read it. But in case you haven't and you were wondering what it's about, here it is:

"Jeannette Wells grew up with parents whose ideals and stubborn nonconformity were both their curse and their salvation. Rex and Rose Mary Walls had four children. In the beginning, they lived like nomads, moving among Southwest desert towns, camping in the mountains. Rex was a charismatic, brilliant man who, when sober, captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and above all, how to embrace life fearlessly. Rose Mary, who painted and wrote couldn't stand the responsibility of providing for her family, called herself an "excitement addict." Cooking a meal that would be consumed in fifteen minutes had no appeal when she could make a painting that would last forever.

Later, when money ran out, or the romance of the wandering life faded, the Walls retreated to the dismal West Virginia mining town -- and the family -- Rex Walls had done everything he could to escape. He drank. He stole the grocery money and disappeared for days. As the dysfunction of the family escalated, Jeannette and her brother and sisters had to fend for themselves, supporting one another as they weathered their parents' betrayals and, finally, found the resources and will to leave home. 

What is so astonishing about Jeannette Walls is not just that she had the guts and tenacity and intelligence to get out, but that she describes her parents with such deep affection and generosity. Hers is a story of triumph against all odds, but also a tender, moving tale of unconditional love in a family that despite all its profound flaws gave her the fiery determination to carve out a successful life on her own terms."

Making soup:

As the weather gets colder, my mind (and taste buds) turn to soup. During the winter months, all I ever seem to want to eat is soup. Oh, soup. Let's talk about how much I love you, just for a second:

1. You fill the entire house with your delicious scent as you simmer on the stove for hours
2. You make dinner easy: just throw random vegetables (sometimes ones that are a little questionable) into a pot and bam! Done.
3. You warm me up like no other food can
4. You keep me filled up with tasty and nutritious things like beans, carrots, potatoes, and celery, while keeping things light and low on calories
5. You reheat better than almost any other food and therefore encourage leftovers for a week
6. You are easy to bring along to work for a weekday lunch. Just pour into a jar and go

Needless to say, we eat a lot of soup. We like to make a big pot of soup on Sunday and some homemade rolls and eat on them all week long. So on a busy weekday evening, all we have to do is warm everything up and we've got an insanely delicious and filling meal. The soups we've been rocking lately are: split pea, potato, and black bean. But we're not partial. We are equal opportunity soup eaters.

P.S. It's election day! Go vote! It's your duty as an American citizen. And if you don't exercise your right to vote, you can't exercise your right to complain later (and we all know you will).

Podcasts:

So, ever since we started listening to the Moby Dick podcasts, I've gotten really into the world of podcasts. I'm not really sure how I avoided them up to this point. But I've found some pretty good ones. And here they are:

1. The JV Club with Janet Varney: This one is awesome because it's just a bunch of celebrities sitting around talking about what they were like in high school and their experiences with being normal teenagers. A nice listen.
2. Joy the Baker: I really like this one from the woman who writes this blog. It's mostly about cooking/baking but there's a whole lot of other great stuff thrown in. They talk about nothing a lot of the time. And strangely their voices remind me of those ladies from that SNL Schweddy Balls sketch. Pretty entertaining, right? They are my fave. I am going back in the archive and listening to every single episode. Sidenote: the ladies are particularly funny in the Red Flags Part Deux episode (I think it's number 66 and it's dated 9/27/12). They start out talking about red flags but eventually it just becomes them venting about everything that drives them crazy. Hilarious. And EXACTLY. HOW. I. FEEL. That's all I can say without offending some people. Because I know some of you reading this have done the things they're talking about. But I love it. Definitely listen to this one.
3. WTF with Marc Maron: This one's pretty funny. Lots of pop culture and funny interviews with celebrities. It makes me smile.

Happy Weekend:

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Happy weekend, everyone! I've been so exhausted this week and I'm not even really sure why. Sure a lot's been going on but when is there not? I'm just thankful I made it to Friday and I'm really ready to sit back and relax with some good food, books, and some knitting.

Here are a few things that have been happening in our world:

1. I got my flu shot. It kind of made me feel weird. 
2. One of my running partners broke her ankle. Now I'm super paranoid
3. Our grocery store has been out of Mexican Coke for two weeks. Two. Entire. Weeks. Ugh!
4. Andrew's gone on a guys' camping weekend until Sunday so Tillie and I will be celebrating girls' night every night by eating cheese dip for dinner, watching girly movies, and going to bed at 8:30.
5. We've been attempting to recreate the tomato basil bread from Panera. I think we've just about got it. 

Have a great weekend, everyone! 

I love:

I bought these cute beatle booties last week during the Piperlime birthday sale. I actually got rid of a few pairs of shoes when I cleaned out my closet for fall and it's looking a little bare. Definitely room for some new friends. And these will make a lovely addition to my fall lineup.