Random ramblings

Wow. It's been a hot minute since I've been on this here thing and I am so sure that you are curious as to what I've been up to. So here it goes. Silas was sick for the first time which was kind of funny and sad at the same time. Funny because the poor youngin' just had no clue as to why he couldn't breathe out of his nose and not being able to breathe out of one's nose is very difficult when breastfeeding. It was also sad because he was just so sickly looking. Runny nose, puffy red eyes, sniffle's galore. But seriously, he looked so cute. I snuggled up with him for a few days and all he wanted was some lovin' from his mama. Remember my "great purge" that I wrote about here? Well, it's going very well! We have managed to sell off a lot of things (we still have a ways to go) and have also replaced the couch and dining room table. Next up on the list are new dining room chairs (i'm eyeing these pretty things, but what I wouldn't give for the real deal!), a new bookcase, and some decor. I can't wait to move and get settled into our new place. The next couple of weeks are going to be crazy. Traveling to Ashland this Thursday and I can't even begin to imagine how the car ride is going to go. Silas is really digging the car seat these days (hi, sarcasm) and it's making me nervous. We have a plan in place though so let's hope it's a success! As soon as we get back it's packing and cleaning and moving. Let's just go ahead and do a little iPhone photo dump here since this post really has no particular theme and every blog post needs some picture's, am I right?

Luc Lac Vietnamese in Portland will pretty much blow your mind.

Baby sickness essentials: Thermometer, Baby Carrot Chest Rub, NoseFrida

Chanterelles all over the place. It's mushroom foraging season peeps.

More exciting posts coming soon. Promise. xo

Juice junkie

If you follow me on instagram then you know that I am pretty obsessed with my vitamix and all the goodness it produces. I enjoy eating clean and healthy. Don't get me wrong, I indulge quite often, but one of my favorite ways to get all of my veggies and fruits is through smoothies or juices. You can pack a ton of "stuff" into one glass and I find that appealing. Since becoming a momma I find that I hardly ever have the time to sit down and eat a full meal, so throwing all of my veggies and fruit into a blender allows me to get in all of the nutrients I need in a way that I can actually manage to consume (all while carrying a screaming 6month old). Here are a couple of my favorite recipes for smoothies:

KALE KALE KALE. I love Kale. So many nutrients packed into this green gem. I throw it in all of my smoothies. My go-to recipe is: 5 stalks of kale (I use lacinato kale, it's a super dark green and tender), 1/2 of a frozen banana, handful of frozen strawberries, a small piece of ginger, coconut water. Blend until smooth.

Hemp seeds are my all time favorite to smoothie "topping". They are chewy and earthy and are filled with protein and lots of other goodness. I also love the texture they give my smoothies. Here is a recipe for all you non-kale people. Handful of strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries, 1/2 frozen banana, splash of organic orange juice, coconut water.  Blend until smooth and then put 2tablespoons of hemp seeds on top.

My new favorite addiction are these fresh juices from Portland Juice Press. They are delicious and SO healthy. They have a stand down the street from me so it makes it super easy to grab some on the go. They also deliver and offer 3 or 6 day juice cleanses! I love that they have seasonal juices as well.

To get the most out of your juicing journey I highly suggest investing in a good blender or juicer. i definitely prefer a blender (I have a vitamix) over a juicer because you keep in more nutrients, but it also works to get a slow juicer which tends to retain more of the good stuff. Blenders and juicers are definitely pretty pricey, but you can find them used or ask stores for older models which they'll usually have marked down for a deal. It's definitely an investment, but a lot of them have great warranties and I swear you will use it for everything. Some other things I use my vitamix for:

Homemade vanilla almond milk

dressings (caesar!)

soups (tomato, potato-leek, butternut squash)

Juicers/ Blenders that I love

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 

The great purge.

Soooo I'm literally getting rid of everything. And I mean everrryythaanng. Couches, TV's, dining room table, etc. I feel this serious need to start over and i think it has to do with all of the weird energy my "stuff" gives off. The couch and coffee table were an ex-boyfriends, the dining room table and TV were bought with said ex-boyfriend. It just feels a little odd, yah know? We are moving in a month to a new place and we just want to start fresh. We are kind of in the middle of doing this in all aspects of our life. Nothing is off limits. I just can't get rid of this desire to clear out all of the bullshit. I want simple and clean and that needs to be applied to both my physical space as well as my emotional. My best friend and I have this weird analogy and it goes a little something like this...we all have a bucket of shit that we carry around with us. Everyone has their own. Do not put your shit in my bucket. It's filled with my shit. And I have more than enough. Can you feel me? I hope that made some sense. I feel like I've allowed too many people to put their "shit" in my bucket this past year. And I'm tired of it. Am I just rambling now? Anyways, what I am trying to say is that I need to do a little cleansing and I figure what better way to start than with my living space. Here are some inspiration pics for what I feel will make a warm, clean, and stimulating space. I can't wait to make it happen.

This space feels cool. I love the mixing of texture & color.

This couch is one of my inspirations. I am looking for a victorian style couch that I can upholster myself in some thick, white muslin fabric. Wish me luck!

My goal is to actually get some pictures up. I love this unconventional way of display.

A gallery wall is another something I'd love to incorporate into our new space.

Bar. Antlers. Need I say more?

I can't wait to show off our new little habitat once we get settled in!

xo

*Follow me on pinterest to see more of what is inspiring me at the moment.

Trip down memory lane

the other day, Nick and I finally got around to developing some film that we had used on the day Silas was born. I love taking pictures with film because it's like opening a present when you get it back. I couldn't wait to see what came out and what memories we caught. We chose a grainy black and white to shoot in and while some of the pictures are a little too dark, there are some that are so special!

Oh you know, just watching my contractions come on about every 20 seconds...

Seriously?! So tiny. Melts my heart.

 That day will forever go down as one of the best days of my life so I am really grateful we snapped these. I seriously need to break out the old school cannon more often and use some film.

photos were developed at Blue Moon Camera. They were amazing.

xo.

Farmer's market and other shenanigan's

This weekend was kind of nice and kind of awful all rolled up into one little bite. Silas has been horrific at night. This kid never cries to wake up and yet, there I was at 4am with a crying baby. I am a zombie. On a good note though we went to the farmer's market that takes place on the Portland State campus. I used to live in the building literally right at its steps and I forgot how unreal it is. The produce was gorgeous and the flowers were to die for. We grabbed some goodies there and then met up with a friend of mine who is in town from Montana (Hi Heather :) for coffee at the Ace Hotel. Soooo relaxing...until...I realized I didn't grab house keys so we were locked out. Yup. Locked out of the house with a baby. My amazing hubby drove all the way home from work to let us in so it's not like we were going to die, but still. My sister constantly refers to my mishaps as "mom brain". She's right. Lack of sleep will make these kind of things happen on the regular people. Alrighty, here are some photo's from our lovely/not-so-lovely weekend!

I really couldn't get over these flowers. Such a welcoming sight in November!

It's mushroom hunting season around these parts and the chanterelle's are popping up everywhere.

My seester and the most amazing wheat berry salad with squash and tahini dressing. So YUM.

Me and my little bebe.

Portland is mighty fine in the Fall. Hope your weekend was fabulous and you managed to not lock yourself out of your house! :) xo

Happy -day after- Halloween!

Silas is too young to participate in the Halloween festivities this year (he was in bed by 6pm!), but us adults decided to have a little fun with a porch stoop party. We drank some festive beers and had some snacks all while waiting for the trick-or-treaters that NEVER showed up. Seriously. I think we had about 10? What's wrong with kids these days?! I spent an arm and a leg on candy too. So that means I just popped a mini twix while drinking my earl grey tea...i'm disgusting people. Here are a few photos from last night!

My sisters pumpkin is obviously the good one...I was not blessed with the artistic gene. She did it free hand!

 Beer and snacks are a must while waiting for trick-or-treaters. Nick felt the beer was inappropriate. I told him to relax...it's required.

Felt mask for the win. We look insane, but seriously we were having so much fun acting like idiots.

Just to prove that I can actually dress in a good costume for Halloween, this is me and Nick about 2 yrs ago at a Halloween party.

Left over candy and Earl Grey tea. Breakfast of champions!

Happy Nov. 1st! Now who's ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas?! xo