Be Thankful.

Lately I've been feeling like time is flying by so quickly and so much is happening it's all just a whirlwind spinning around between my ears! As of this week we've been in Kansas for four months already, and watched the seasons change from a blazing, humid summer to mild, colorful fall and just the last few days a noticeable drop to frigid, icy winter with first snow ready to drift in any time. Looking back at those four months it is easy to become overwhelmed with how much has happened in that time, how much we've missed back in California, but also how much we've been blessed to be a part of here in Kansas. I can't help but be oh so thankful for everything that is happening in our lives right now, and in our family- both sides! 

My mantra this year has been "Choose Happiness," and with the exception of a few meltdowns along the way, I'd say I've managed to do just that. The amount of fruit it has produced has easily transitioned me into "Choose Thankfulness." I am so grateful for the love and support that my friends and family have shown through my big life changes this year, and for all of the opportunity that God has dropped in our laps the last few months! It is impossible to know exactly how things will shape up for us as we continue to get settled into our new life in Kansas, but what I do know for sure is that as long as we continue to choose happiness and express thanks for this incredible journey we're on, everything will fall into place exactly the way it is meant to.

And on that note, my sister-in-law and I are headed to the airport to pick up my mother-in-law, which officially kicks off our holiday fun! I hope you enjoy your holiday week as well, and take some time to really dwell on all of the blessings, even if they at times feel outweighed or overshadowed by that whirlwind between your ears. 

Life is as good as you allow it to be.

And so it begins!

Don't get me wrong, I'm a Halloween lover. But I can't deny that half my excitement for Halloween is knowing the next day we'll wake up to full blown fall, when I can shamelessly obsess over florescent orange leaves on the trees and bundle up in cozy scarves and bake as many loaves of banana bread as my holiday loving little heart desires! 

The hubs is not a fan of winter. He's dreading the first snow. For him, November 1st marks a steady decline into miserably cold weather and sundown at 5pm. I've been warned not to even think about putting up the Christmas tree until the day after Thanksgiving, but I've been sneaking out bits of holiday decor when he's not home and trying to draw some festive spirit out of him a few weeks early. For example, the adorable ceramic Santa cookie jar from my grandparents... How can he say no to such a thing... when it's full of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies? He simply can't, and he didn't, thusly, Santa is already prominently on display in our kitchen and should safely remain so long as he never runs empty.

HALLOWEEN

 THANKSGIVING

CHRISTMAS

 IN THE KITCHEN

Pumpkin Seeds from our carving pumpkins - Salted, spicy, cinnamon & sugar

 

 Baked stuffed apple / GF banana pancake with berry topping

 Pumpkin beer bread / GF pumpkin chocolate chip mini muffins

 Chicken & veggie quiche

Fall Crafts

I realize we're now nearly a week into December and the weather is fully winter outside, but better late than never, right? Here are some fun fall crafts I did for Thanksgiving, and since I'm so late posting those, a Christmas one too. 

A few years ago I got this idea out of Safeway's quarterly magazine, which featured recipes and craft ideas for each season. These are a bit messy to make, but if you're already carving up jack-o-lanterns it's no biggie to do these at the same time. You'll need a medium sized pumpkin with a stable bottom. Cut out a circle at the top of the pumpkin and gut it as clean as possible. Arrange flowers of your choice in the pumpkin and display! It won't last more than a few days to a week because of the raw pumpkin, but you'll get more time out of it if there's no water inside and it is displayed a cool place.

 The week before Thanksgiving I attended a friend's Friendsgiving dinner. She had a "Thankful Tree" and I thought it was the cutest idea so I made one to take up to my grandparents' house for our family Thanksgiving. You'll need a tall slender flower vase, reeds or branches, ribbon, and scrapbook paper. Look for reeds or branches with small knots in the texture so that the leaves will catch at various heights. Tie ribbon around the vase. Use scissors or a dye cut to cut leaf shapes out of scrapbook paper, making a small hole on one end. Allow guests to write on the leaves what they are thankful for and hang on the branches. 

I had a hard time finding initial ornaments that I liked, so I decided to make my own. You'll need holiday ribbon, wooden letters, and gold leaf paint (can also use gold spray paint but I went with a jar because of the size of the project). Paint the letters, allow to dry, and hot glue the ribbon in a loop to the back of the letter. So easy! I ended up hanging these on our stockings instead of the tree.

Gilt Warehouse Sale

A girlfriend and I went to the Gilt Warehouse Sale at Fort Mason on Saturday. Any serious online discount savvy fashionista is familiar with Gilt, so naturally the thought of a Gilt warehouse sale was thrilling! I have been to a zillion trunk shows and fashion events in the city, but this was my first real warehouse sale. I expected it would be some cross between other events I've attended and a day-after-Thanksgiving Nordstrom Rack rush.

We scored free curbside parking a few blocks down and eagerly paced over to the Fort Mason Fleet Room. Our wave was 12-2pm, and at ten till noon there was a line of fifty or so shoppers leading up to the door. Around a quarter past we got to the entrance where we were asked to check our coats and purses, and then were let loose on a relatively small and heavily packed room full of racks of clothing; women's on the right, men's on the left, and an assortment of other items on tables down the center. Just inside the entrance was a complimentary Veev cocktail bar, a display of Vita Coco waters and a Benefit table. At the far end of the room was a table pouring La Marca Prosecco and a tented off "dressing room." The promised KIND bars, Popchips and Fiji Water were nowhere to be found, but everyone was too busy rabidly thrashing their way through piles and racks to even notice.

We started with the clothes racks, which, to our grave disappointment, were filled mostly with damaged dresses. I found three to try on while my friend, still empty handed, moved on to the shoes. I headed toward the dressing room. The attendant brushed aside one corner of the large heavy curtain and I stepped inside. There were two dozen half naked women guarding mounds of clothes on the floor while fighting for space in front of two large mirrors propped up against the wall. I made my way to the back of the dressing room and used my foot to clear away some space. Unable to squeeze into the mirror, I abandoned one dress and carried out two others, hoping they looked as good as they felt. If I'd been able to think more strategically at the time, I should have rummaged through the layers of clothing covering the entire dressing room floor, as no doubt that's where the most desirable items were tucked away.

My friend and I reunited at the La Marca table and rejuvenated ourselves with two glasses of sparkling wine before diving back into the chaos. Our second sweep of the clothing racks was more fruitful for her, but I stuck with my previous finds. Perhaps some of those hidden gems from the dressing room floor had made their way back to the racks by then. We picked through the accessories table before getting in the checkout line, but considering it was a mound of mismatched oddly sized bikinis, underwear and broken jewelry, we came up empty handed. 

I suppose I can't complain, having scored over $300 worth of dress for $95, but the event certainly didn't meet my expectations. I mean, come on, it's Gilt! Too bad the selection was more like along the lines of a Beverly Hills Goodwill. I think I'll stick to my trunk shows filled with high quality local designer's wares.

Happy Holidays!

Every year I try to have all of my Christmas gifts purchased and wrapped by Thanksgiving so that during the long weekend I can buy a tree and decorate the house. This year was no exception! While everyone else was braving the black Friday madness, I was cozy on my couch sipping cocoa and watching old movies. Okay well, I'm not going to lie, I did venture over to Cost Plus World Market for the 50% off sale on the below faux fur throw I've been eying. Can you blame me?