I am: ready

pinned

i am: ready which is

a rare state of mind

where things are ok

even as they be

open for anything

whatever that brings

because I feel peace

throughout my soul

all is quiet in me

being guided from above

which is not very far
if you stop to think

and not out of reach

even for me

i'd like to remember

this day tomorrow

and the next

and the next still

that for once i am:

not freaking out

:-) Happy Friday!

A good indicator that spring is coming wherein I seek elastic-waisted pants

Cadbury Mini Egg Season

...also known as a busta...

Trolley Square, SLC

At lunch LP and I attempted our monthly catch up/chow down at the schmancy new Whole Foods at Trolley Square. It's gorgeous, as all the hype suggests. But I say 'attempted' because the crowds were a bit too chaotic to really sink your teeth into someone's life or their yummy Thai beef dish. I'll wait to go back after everyone in the valley has been there done that and I can peacefully get on with {what BD calls} lallygagging at the grocery store. He only means that it takes me 90 minutes to buy milk and cheese; he could have milked his own cow by now, woman.
When I got back to the car my eyes caught the landmark water-tower which appeared particularly graceful against the sea of gray clouds shrouded behind it. I jumped out with iPhone in hand to snap a picture, then turned around to jump back in. The doors had locked. The key laughed at me from the passenger seat. Just then LP, who should have been half way home by now, pulled up behind me, saw the look of panic on my face and said "get in." She's wizardly like that. In one swoosh of her wand I was back at my car with valet key in tow ready to move on with the rest of my day as if the whole thing never happened.
My mind has been heavy this week. Lots to think about. Lots to stress about. Lots of decisions ahead. Yet, lots to look forward to. I was thankful a friend was there to rescue me from myself at a time when something as silly as locking my keys in the car could have put me right over edge. A tender mercy.
Happy Friday! BD is halfway up a mountain by now on his way to build snow caves with the Scouts. I'm really hoping to not be a widow in the morning. To get my mind off it, I've been playing this rad mash-up (via Dooce) of TLC's No Scrubs v. The Cure's Close To Me on repeat, on repeat, on repeat. It's working too. I've been practicing that head-jerk-flirty-shut-eye thing Left Eye does right at about :30 all afternoon. How does she do that? She's seriously so cool.

Grand Finales

This video my brother made contributed to the most peaceful and awe-inspiring 7 minutes of my day. I thought I'd share it here. Not only is the footage absolutely gorgeous, but it reminds me that we are so fortunate nothing worse happened to our Toddy. 'Cause we like 'im.

Grande Finales from T - N - T on Vimeo.

Oh, and while I was on T's Vimeo page I was reminded of the video he made from our Grand Canyon 2010 trip.

You guys.

I don't think I posted it here because at the time I was far too embarrassed of how hilarious I was. The word "hilarious" being the nicest thing I could say. I am so embarrassing. I don't know why my family even speaks to me. But 7 months later, I don't care. Time heals all. The part at the end where I twirl my hat and give a very pathetic "whooo" has me and BD cracking up hysterically. I really almost died that day. You can also watch me being guided to my almost death across a ledge, slipping down natural water slides on my bum, and generally being my awkward self.  Awesome. You can laugh with me here.
P.S. you'll notice that Jody looks perfect the WHOLE time and RUNS to the top. She is officially out of my will.

100% chance of Sunday afternoon sprinkles

One thing I especially love about traveling abroad is grocery shopping. I found these sprinkles at the Hiper Bompreço (= Super Good Price) while in Brazil. The bright colors remind me of Salvador streets. They are the happiest sprinkles I've ever seen.

Blooming, again

Been loving how the $13 spent on this orchid was possibly the best money I've ever spent. She's blooming again for the third time! It's been just what I needed lately.
Been smiling about my 3.5 year old nephew and his love crush on Ariel. His mom fixed pasta shells for dinner one evening. Later, when being tucked into bed he told her with a big frown that the worst part of his day was eating all of Ariel's shells.   ...    :-)
Been praying for a family member who has just survived something unimaginably horrific. 
Been pinning away over at Pinterest. It's addicting, I'm loving it, I can't stop and I don't care to. A genius way for me to organize everything I find on the web. Virtual collages? Brilliant. I'll be pinning all weekend, no doubt, and creating new idea boards.
Been thinking about that half piece of coconut cream cheesecake in my fridge that I'm going to eat for dinner tonight.
Been counting down the minutes until the weekend so I can sleep for 2 straight days.
Been craving old-timey homemade popcorn made with real coconut oil. If I wake up, it will be for that.

Happy Friday! It really is the best day of the week. Besides Tuesday, of course.

Breaking Her In

Or more appropriately, she's breaking me in. Isn't it funny how inanimate objects can adopt a gender role? My new oven is definitely female. Can't really explain it, but she is, and I'm hoping that we'll become BFF while keeping the drama to a minimum. Nothing worse than your oven going all Mariah Carey in Glitter all over your whoopie pies. I should know. On Sunday I made Rachel Manley's Almond Yogurt Cake as featured on Design Sponge last week. Now, I could fill a dump truck with all the recipes I've printed off the web with every intention of making, but never do. Perhaps this is why I feel obligated to blog this one. That, and because BD took this beautiful shot of the cake right before I stuck out my tongue and licked up that lemon curd. What? Wouldn't you?

I'm guessing my self-rising flour had passed it's prime because the cakes did not self-rise. Sigh. The recipe actually called for blood orange curd, but my first attempt failed big time. I must have had two very bloody blood oranges because my curd never turned to custard. Or is it that my custard never turned to curd? Either way, the recipe doesn't specify the amount of juice. That's a bad dog recipe. No biggie, I defaulted to a trusty Martha Stewart lemon curd recipe that has never failed me and used the Meyer lemons I couldn't pass up from Whole Foods. Whole Foods did not pay me to say that.

Fact: Meyer lemons are a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange. In other words they are lemons with a little less pucker factor. Which makes them perfect.

I made this cake in part for my sister's birthday and I knew she would appreciate that it contained ingredients such as Greek yogurt, sunflower oil, and ground almonds. She's healthy like that. Maybe that's why she looks 22 and has 3 grand kids. Jody did pay me to say that. Happy Birthday sis! Lastly, I got to use some of my favorite kitchen gadgets like a food processor, sieve, and citrus reamer. Sometimes, it just feels soooo good to dirty an apron.

I am: Gaining Perspective

...on my way home...