Marolsha Giveaway!

     I'm pretty obsessed with Maddy's unique, nature inspired, vintage jewelry from her shop Marolsha, so it makes me really stoked to give some away to one of you. What's up for grabs? These stunning ocean inspired glass framed drop french hook earrings. This color is one of my favorites. It reminds me of the ocean here at home when it's really calm and the afternoon sun shines right on the shallows. 

Here's how to enter:

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Her Very Own

    When our airplane took off for home, I muttered "bye Syracuse," to Scott, who was across the isle from me. I knew the chances of us returning were small. The ending of chapters in life always get me. The emotions associated with the graduation of my baby sister crept into my throat and almost made it to my eyes on that plane ride, but I swallowed them back down. I loved Syracuse, and not because it had such a significant meaning for me, but because I knew it did for Maddie. It was her place, her special fort in the middle of the trees on the other side of the country to learn her own lessons and grow into her own person. It was another home for her for a time. It was a place that was her own. 

     

     I reflected on this as I waited for our final flight home out of Chicago. The flight attendants bustled through the isles shutting the over-head bins and making sure seat belts and tray tables were where they were supposed to be, as they do. I'm the oldest of the three girls in my family. When I was born, everything was mine and only mine. By the time Maddie came home from the hospital and into our family, most material possessions were already spoken for. Clothes were passed down, beds scooted over, rooms shared, toys recycled. Even most of the hiding places were already uncovered, forts had been claimed. 

     Perhaps some of the emotional roles were already claimed, too. We all became sassy, sensitive, silly and feisty, but as the first born I was, in the realm of our playroom, in charge. Danielle, as the middle kid was opinionated, but big-hearted and Maddie, as the baby, would grow into her role as the altruist and rebel. 

     I'm not saying I feel bad for Maddie for her birth order. Each position in the family has its benefits, setbacks and lessons. I'm just saying I think I know more about her position in the family now. I'm so happy to see the path that belongs to her, the one she's carved for herself and the friends, school and major that are so uniquely her own; her very own. I'm so proud of the person she is and the person she has become.

Where are you in the birth order in your family?

How has it shaped you?

_

+Read more about Maddie in an interview I did with her

+Jewelry: Marolsha // etc. Roxy/Quiksilver

Polaroids of Vegetarian Food (and drinks?)

  
  "Oooh, Polaroids make my food look so hipstery," I said to Scott, with a laugh, as I put this together. But that's not the reason I made it. I need inspiration in the kitchen constantly, not to mention the fact that the term "vegetarian" tends to make people's minds go straight to boooring. I made this to share a few favorite things we've been eating lately that are exciting. Promise. 


1. quinoa, kale, sweet potatoes, red bell pepper; napkin c/o Dot & Army
2. green beens with toasted almonds and parmesan cheese
3. sauteed lentils and kale with sea salt and olive oil
4. cous cous, red quinoa stir fry with peas, bell peppers, tofu, onion, garlic, chick peas, and a ginger soy sauce inspired by ohdeadrea
5. Daphne's salad with falafel and jalapeños 
6. Moscow mules. What? Those are vegetarian. Have you ever had one? It's vodka, ginger beer and lime served in a cool copper cup. I had my first one a month ago. They're so refreshing. 

p.s. why I'm a vegetarian

Little Things: Syracuse, More Thoughts on Being Present

1. east coast spring flowers

2. colorful wine opener found on the floor

3. Maddie's graduation tassel

4. party aftermath 

5. Otto, the school mascot. Mine has 3 legs, he's the luckiest, I think. 

6. ceremony program

     Over the weekend we flew to Syracuse, New York to celebrate my sister Maddie's college graduation. After two flight cancelations that left us stranded in Chicago for five hours, Scott and I landed in the rain and joined my family at Maddie's old and charming house with a narrow staircase that creaked and dark wood floors, sticky from spilled drinks, for a party (it should be noted that my mom and dad were the only parents still there partying it up).

      I thought a lot about being present this weekend and what that meant. It was an especially important time to be in the moment and keep the experiences-- the sounds, the smells, the smiles, the jokes, in a permanent place in my mind. 

     More than worrying about texts to respond to or getting through my twitter feed, I worry about accomplishments. This keeps me from being present more than anything else. There is an urgency I allow to follow me around and an anxiety that tags along with it. 

     I want everything to be a certain way and I want it now. "Forget about the process", some part of my brain says. I should be publishing a book, getting barreled in Indonesia, reaching my goals because I might have a family soon and my attention to those goals will be divided. I could die. And even more trivial than all of this are the worries like that bookcase needs to be painted white, those cabinets replaced. Now, now, now! so I can breathe a sigh of relief and sit and read a book, waste away a Wednesday doing jack-crap-nothing.  

     Here's the thing, self (I wrote in my journal one morning in Syracuse): You will never check everything off your to-do list and you need to be ok with that. You should be glad about it. If there was ever a day when everything was done, your goals all met, your house completely in order and finished, no trinkets to be added, no walls to be repainted, it would be a sad one. It is good and important to always be working towards something, to have things you need and want to do. So don't freak out about the amount of things on your list that aren't crossed off. Read that book, take off a random Wednesday. Get lost in conversation with someone when your sink is full of dishes and your inbox overflowing. There will always be time for chores. Dreams won't run off without you, either. There's time for dreams if you're willing to chase them, a story to tell if you're willing to tell it. So stop, see what's in front of you. Taste those breaths you're breathing in. This is your life, your only one, and there will always be "dishes in the sink, cabinets to be painted, emails to respond to, books to be written", God willing. 

{Part 1? Friday's post on the present}

What "Friends" Taught Me About the Present

     

    I've had this odd day dream in my mind lately of Ross and Rachel and all the Friends crew talking and sitting around Central Perk, the coffee shop they always hung out at. I've been asking myself: How did they just sit there so relaxed? Aren't they thinking: I have to go get some work done! I need to clean the house! Go to the bank!... ? It never seems like it. They took time for that stuff and then they made time away from it. They are always so present in those moments, enjoying each other's company, passing the time with stories. I guess it helps that they have fictitious jobs and that Joey barely ever has one, but there are aspects of those scenes that I want for myself; moments in the day when I feel totally unconcerned with anything but what's happening in front of me: my life, my only one. 

     When I'm on a wave I feel like this, so long as I'm not too occupied by some grudge against a chauvinistic dude. I can even feel the way the wax moves under each one of my toes. How often, outside of the ocean, do I ever think about what my toes are feeling? Never, really. Some waves, the really good ones, even seem to move slower than the rest of life. I notice the way they change colors as I ride them. I'm happy to realize I'm so present in my surfing experiences, but I want to transfer this to the land, as well.

     I want to say I'm good at being present, being satisfied with what I have and who I am and not letting my mind wander to what I should be doing or what I want to accomplish, but I'm not sure that's true; at least not as much as I would like it to be.  

     Let's just say, I'm trying and I'm going to try harder and during all of this, I am going to think of those moments the Friends crew had sitting around Central Perk waiting for Gunther to bring them their drinks and how unconcerned they seemed with anything else. How they were making the meaningful memories then (and not worrying about Instagramming them). And picturing this is going to help me visualize what I want, at least some of the day, even if it's just a story.

Are you good at being present? How do you manage to stay in the moment?

Farro Stir Fry

     

     I've had something like this farro stir fry at a local restaurant and I wanted take the idea home with me and re-create it. So, here you go- a picture of my breakfast this morning and a recipe. It's perfect if you'd like a heartier, healthy meal to start your day. It's also great for weekend brunch and we've had it for dinner once, too. 

     If you're sitting there going "what the heck is farro?", well, it's a healthy grain rich in fiber and vitamins like a, b, c and e that can be used as a substitute for rice or pasta. Have you had it?

Servings: 4-5

Ingredients:

Bag of 10 minute Farro (found at Trader Joe's) or *regular farro, if instant isn't available 

asparagus, chopped

1 quart of vegetable broth

1/2 red bell, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped

1-2 cloves of garlic, minced 

4 eggs, scrambled

1-2 tablespoons of toasted sesame seeds

1-2 tablespoons of soy sauce

olive oil

optional toppings:

parmesan cheese

hot pepper flakes

Instructions

Bring vegetable broth to a boil in a large pot. Add the farro and set it over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, preferably on a back burner so you have room for the other two pans. While the farro is cooking, get out a large pan for the asparagus, bell peppers and a small pan for the scrambled eggs. Put a dash of olive oil in each pan. First, begin cooking the chopped asparagus and bell peppers in the large pan. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and cook with a dash (or two) or soy sauce. Cover and let simmer for approximately 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Begin cooking the scrambled eggs in a separate pan. Once the farro is done, drain it and put it back in the pot. Add in all the cooked ingredients in with the farro in the large pot and mix them together. 

I like to serve it with a little parmesan cheese and a few shakes of hot pepper flakes.

**If you're not cooking with the Trader Joe's 10 minute farro, put the farro in a medium saucepan, add cold water to cover, and set it aside to soak for 30 minutes. Drain the farro, put it back into the saucepan, and add 3 cups of cold water and a dash of salt and bring it to a boil. Simmer and cook until tender for about 45 minutes.

Thankful Things

I usually like to post these at the end of the week, but what the heck, let's start the week off with some gratitude. 

This week I'm thankful for...

warm nights, cold drinks

self-sufficency
Scott taught me how to use a hatchet a few years ago to cut kindling for camp fires. I had to climb up in the rafters of our garage to retrieve it on this day, although that's half as badass as climbing up a coconut tree to retrieve a coconut

lunches in the backyard with the birds

and butterflies 

one of my favorite maneuvers, the tailslide, and the fact that this bird is totally unimpressed

slow afternoons

sunset sessions after work with this guy,  my favorite guy

lazy Sundays

     I'm thankful for the American spirit this week, too. When we were driving across the country last summer I kept trying to identify what that was, what it meant, but I never really came to any conclusions. The other day when we were sitting around my parent's house in the evening talking about the Boston tragedy, my mom said "I love how America never gives up. The Boston Marathon will be back next year and probably bigger than ever, runners are already running marathons all across the country, we built the Freedom Towers after 9/11, we remember, but we get back up and we keep going." The human spirit is a pretty neat thing.

Sambazon Juice Giveaway!

     
     So I'm not so much of a sweets person, have I told you that? Oh yes, yes, I did. Back when I shared potentially the weirdest recipe to ever reach blogland ever--the microwaved rice cakes with soy sauce and cheese. Remember? Anyways, I'm into salt and, although I don't naturally gravitate towards sweeter foods, I love healthy food. Anything to make me live longer and prosper, ya know? Plus, I love the earth and any company with an environmental mentality is a-ok in my book. So when Sambazon e-mailed me a few weeks back about trying some of their products and doing a giveaway, I responded with a resounding Yes! Please! 
     Sambazon is a socially and environmentally conscious company that uses organic food and beverages as vehicles for positive change (yay!). They have pioneered Amazon Superfoods such as açaí, acerola and guarana through a product range that includes fresh juices, smoothies, sorbet, and frozen smoothie packs . All Sambazon products are USDA Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified, Ecocert Fair Trade, vegan, and gluten free. Again, yay! Plus they're really tasty. Even the Supergreens juice that you kind of look at and go, "This will be good for me, but not good." False, it's both! I can attest to that. It has a really delicious taste with a lot more fruit flavor than grass, which, personally, I really like. And it gives you all the nutritional value of kale and wheat grass such as lowering your blood pressure, increasing your red blood cell count and protecting your liver.

Enter below to win vouchers for Sambazon juices!
(u.s. residents only)

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Take the Long Road, Roxy, Dreams

     
     I'm over on the Roxy blog with a new post called Take the Long Road for their fitness line. Scott and I shot these photos on a bike ride down to Andrew Molera State Beach in Big Sur a few weeks ago. It's one of our favorite beach hikes/rides. And the Central Coast? I'm not sure you can beat it. I love how nature is everywhere there. Something about that makes me feel more real; immediately present in each moment, more involved in the experience of living. Anyways, I won't go on. 
     If you've already seen this post somewhere, sorry for repeating myself. I just figure, when I take small steps while following my dream, I should share them with you. Not so much in a "Look! Look what I did!" kind of way, but more to point to the idea that dreams are possible. And this path I've chosen, however bumpy it can be, has helped me do what I need to do.

p.s...

via

My Birthday Wish for Myself

     My birthday turned out to be a great success despite an initial bump in the road. On Wednesday night, before the big day, I had a nearly one hour long crying spell over...well, basically everything. The Boston tragedy! The world today! Missing Nonnie! Time moves too quickly! I don't volunteer enough! Everything. 

     I was making all the tragedies in life mine and wearing them around like some sort of shawl. Not having made any plans for my birthday didn't help, either. Sometimes birthday plans are the perfect distraction for people like yours truly who experience disillusionment at the slightest bit of change in their lives (I wonder how old I'll be when this passes...?). Talking to Scott, talking to my mom on the phone and reading blog posts from around the internet (distraction!) finally helped me get it together, although I never made a firm decision about what we were going to do on my birthday. 

     The day of, I had a great time nannying my little buddy who claimed that it was his birthday and proceeded to sing happy birthday to himself repeatedly which of course made me laugh and sort of took the pressure off this day being all about me. After work, I arrived at my parent's house to find my sister and mom serving one of my favorite pasta salads for lunch (I'll try to post the recipe sometime soon). I went for a surf, meeting some friends out in the water who gave me special birthday waves. Afterwards, my mom, Danielle and I did a beach clean-up inspired by my new commitment to live more outside of myself. Danielle got an unfortunate call that her rent was doubling in NYC, causing her quite a bit of stress that she somehow managed to stuff away for the majority of my birthday and I went for another surf in the evening while Scott swam around snapping some photos. After the sun went down, we went in to town for Thai food, had cake at the house and finished the day watching home movies. 

    Friday and Saturday passed in similar ways: working, surfing, eating, drinking, watching home movies, until it was time to take Danielle to the airport on Saturday night. Her living situation now sorted out, we felt less apprehensive about sending her east, even though it was still tough. On Sunday, Scott and I went to the church from my childhood in Laguna Beach and wandered some of my favorite beaches where I first fell in love with the ocean. Throughout the day, Scott had to listen to me start all of my stories with "At Junior Lifeguards..." I love a good trip down memory lane. It makes me feel like, even though time has passed, those times can still come to life again. This was an important incorporation to my birthday festivities.

     We settled at Shaw's Cove in north Laguna where we both fell asleep face down on our towels almost immediately. When I woke, I had some time to read. It was a mostly quiet day filled with the still moments I was craving following the eventful week. After all the celebrations and conversations I needed some time to sort through my mind. The memories from the past week had gathered like tiny spider webs in my head-stuck, but tangled. I relied on this slow Sunday to sort through them and put them in their rightful place-on an imaginary shelf in my mind where I could see those moments and pull them out again when the time was right, just like I had today with my recollections from Jr. Guards. 

     

     We finished the day at a cozy restaurant just south of the hub of town after paying the meter again even on a Sunday (rude). I pulled out my journal while Scott took in the warm, but dim surroundings that made me call this place a tavern in my journal, even though it wasn't.

     What's the lesson here? I found myself asking of the past few days. I love when I experience something and come through it with some kind of new understanding, but what is that this time? Finally, as my tea arrived with a bit of honey in it, I thought of one of my favorite lines from one of my favorite books, The Secret Life of Bees. It goes like this:

August: "You know some things don't matter that much, Lily. Like the color of a house. How big is that in the overall scheme of life? But lifting a person's heart, now that matters. The whole problem with people is--"

Lily: "They don't know what matters and what doesn't"

August: "I was gonna say, the problem is they know what matters, but they don't choose it. I love May, but it was so hard to choose Caribbean Pink for the house [a color she hated that made her sister happy]....The hardest thing on earth is choosing what matters".  

    I want to focus more on choosing what matters from here on out. Have I failed at this in the past? I mean, I am one of those wackos that quit their job to follow their heart, potentially making it seem like I choose to live it up instead of having a reliable career, but I think the character in this book means more than that (ya think?). I want to do more to make other people happy, to put other's first more often. I'm not the worst, but I could do better. Of everything I've experienced since I was born, from the good memories to the deaths to the world tragedies, right up until my recent birthday meltdown, I think that's what matters most of all.

Where we went in Laguna:

+ Food The Stand-Lots of healthy vegetarian choices, reasonable prices, good atmosphere, but we have a place like this by our house in SD that we both think has better food.

+Beach Shaw's Cove, one of my favorites. Great tide pools, relaxing mostly local atmosphere.

+Drinks The Beach House- I ordered the "Pure Joy" and let me tell you, it was! I've never eaten here, however, so I'm not sure how the food is.