Happy Halloween!

happy halloween from thing 1 and thing 2! molly and i had a last minute brainstorm last night and chose to costume ourselves as the cat in the hat's sidekicks. we had a complete BLAST crafting the costumes, painting our faces, and going out on the town! we actually managed to win 2nd place in the Mambo costume contest. so fun!

Some days just suck. And that's okay. Because the day will end, and another day will begin. And it will most certainly be better.

And it's okay, because it has plenty of room for improvement. I'm going to do my best to improve it with turbo kickboxing, leftover chicken parm from last night's girls dinner, and an episode of Modern Family. And maybe that will turn things around. And if it doesn't, tomorrow is a new day.

happy happy birthday to miss jenna,

from all the ones who love you the most. 

i'm channeling my inner jenna this evening by baking pumpkin bread, reading & listening to mumford & sons. all things jen loves. wish you were here with me. 

happy day... love ya!

Pumpkin Goodness.

I started today off with pumpkin pancakes and bacon. Yum. Yum. Yum. I can tell these will be a staple this fall. I'm thinking of making pumpkin bread/muffins later with the rest of the pumpkin. Do you have a good recipe?

Now I'm over at Amante doing some internetting/blogging/photo-ing before grabbing tea or walking with a friend who's in town. Then yoga before dance rehearsal. It's been such a quiet weekend and I'm really enjoying it. My only social time has been happy hour and movie watching/cake eating with my boys on Friday night. And that's okay. Me-time is always good.

First Snow

I awoke yesterday to the first real snowfall of the year. We had snow on top of the mountains a couple weeks ago during a rainy spell, but yesterday was the first morning there was snow out my windows. It melted by late afternoon, but still-- winter is coming! Skiing is coming! (excuse the screens.)

I had a cozy, delightful day filled with zumba, lifting, biking, catching up on tv episodes, doing laundry, reading, and just generally being quiet and content. I had Willy Wonka dance rehearsal and enjoyed it a lot more than the other rehearsal I attended for the piece. Dinner was leftover kale with zucchini ribbons. I went to bed early and slept like a rock.

"I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next. Delicious Ambiguity." --Gilda Radner

I am loving the indian summer while it lasts, which may only be one more day. After work today I road my bike downtown on the Core Trail, enjoying the warm sunshine. I went to a relaxing and refreshing yoga class at the Yoga Center overlooking the river, and then I rode home beneath a heavenly nearly full moon. Dinner was leftover fancy mac & kale, and now I'm enjoying a little taste of dark chocolate with sea salt & almonds and watching a silly movie. Yum.  Purposeful gratitude for a lovely evening.

"Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn."

- Elizabeth Lawrence

The sky is blue, the sun is shining. I got in an hour of cardio this morning, I planned ahead to make a cake last night for today's birthday boy. My workday is booked with  meetings, so it's cruising by. I can't complain about a thing.

I love this song, and hadn't seen the video until today. Enjoy.

feast.

dinner tonight:

sauteed garlicky kale.

mac & cheese made with cabot cheddar,
sweet onion, honeycrisp apple and bacon. holy heaven. 

pumpkin beer.

"What if we all got along & people loved each other & sang songs about peace? he said. Would that be a good world? & I said I didn't know about that, but it would be a good summer camp & he looked at me & shook his head & said, It's no wonder you're leaving us with such a mess." -storypeople

friday.

Happy Friday! It's a gorgeous bluebird day here in Colorado and I can't wait to go play in it. I have a few errands to run after work and then I'm off to the ski swap (found amazing skis for $40 there last year!) and then a snowboard movie/reggae show. I can smell ski season in the air! It's supposed to stay gorgeous this weekend so I'm looking forward to a bit of outdoor play unlike last weekend, and catching up with a dear friend who I haven't seen substantially in about seven years!

I'll leave you with a few things I'm loving right now... click the links!

I'm digging on these guys.
And this song too-- also by them. 

I want this shirt but I won't pay $46 for it.
I might want this one more.

This is the song for one of my two dance pieces for Steamboat Dance Theatre. It's going to be SO FUN. (we're not doing the same dance as they are here).

And I like these too.

Yesterday was long and tiring. I finished the evening feasting on chili and cornbread with my boys and watching Superbad. Laughter and good friends make the world go round.

"I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes."
-e. e. cummings 

Today's Tuesday feels like the longest Monday. Spreadsheet work all day. Now entering a two hour conference call with representatives from five counties. Late lunch equals cheesecake and an apple. Phewph.

a lovely day off today spent hiking hahn's peak with my coworkers. it was chilly, snowy & damp but it was beautiful. great to get out hiking once more before we switch to snow sports. after sandwiches at the clark store, i spent the afternoon grocery shopping, cleaning, making chicken soup & biscuits, and reading. delightful. 

A long weekend with one of my dearest friends. I've known Kate since preschool, and she has remained one of my favorites for the past twenty years. She was kind enough to come up from Boulder for the weekend, and we had a marvelous time being cozy on my couch for almost 36 hours straight. Movies, endless conversation, pizza, guac, two speaker-phone conversations with our other dearests, some strolling around town. The weather was chilly and wet and it was perfect for cozy conversation! It was the perfect transition weekend coming back from Vermont. There are few things more comforting than an old friend. Thanks, Kate. I love you.

family.

Other things may change us, but we start and end with a family.

-Anthony Brandt