here we go again...

We are moving next week.

Yup. We have decided that the early retirement/ski bum lifestyle is not for us.

Actually, we were just starting to get hungry.

So it's time to say goodbye to our little yellow house.

I'm going to miss this little nook. I'd never had a nook before. And I loved it. It was cozy.

Goodbye giant window. The plants will really miss your photo-synthesizing generosity.

And the fireplace. Even though we never actually used you, just knowing you were there made me warm inside.

Little bud. I will miss seeing you turn into a pretty daffodil. Goodbye.

a story about cake

Once upon a time we were going to have dinner with the neighbors. I was in charge of bringing the dessert, and I knew just the perfect little number. I had swiped the recipe from one of my mother-in-law's magazines not too long ago, and had just been dying to make it.

Emphasis on dying.

I am not big on having reasons to do things. Or bake things. If I want a cookie for breakfast, well, I have one. Same goes with any type of food at any time. Ask Evan. He just loves it.

But this cake.

It felt like it needed a special occasion. So I gathered all the ingredients, bought some cream, checked the level of my deep dark cocoa powder (just enough!) and waited for Sunday to come. Long (and actually rather boring) story short, the dinner plans were canceled. And because I am not the type of girl who lets a pint of heavy cream go to waste, I made the cake anyway. It was just the way I was brought up.

And the cake? Oh my. Picture: dark chocolate truffle meets the best cake you've ever had. And then times that by 867 and it ends up equaling this exact cake. Seriously.

But be warned: It is very addicting. Evan was out doing some manly-man errands and I was left all alone. With the cake. Every time I would pass the kitchen, I would sliver off a tiny bite. It was just the way I was raised.

Well, I noticed that my tiny slivers were equaling a rather large portion. And so I did the most responsible thing I could think of. I texted Evan.

Me: When are you going to be home? I can't stop eating cake.

His response: I'm on my way. Save some cake for me, fatty! (we'll talk about my personal image issues later)

And with a mouth full of cake, I replied back: I'm not a fatty! You da fatty!

And then he came home. And he saw the truth. Almost gone.

It's that good.

You want the recipe? Here ya go. Just be careful.

home again

What a great week in the desert! I brought ya'll back a little video of quick sand in action (I know, I know, you're welcome). I think quick sand is my favorite thing. If you watch carefully, you can see the sand sort of get watery after I throw the rock in, and then it smooths itself right out again. Freaky.

For a more comprehensive look at our adventure, visit Evan's gallery.

Okay. Now to the laundry.

a haircut for Evan...

And we're off again!

34 cranes

I am an anxiety folder. It's like being an anxiety eater, except that I fold things. I guess I also eat things...soooo...maybe I'm both? Anyway. We went on a loooooong road trip this week to try to find a place to live (more on that at a later date), and since I am approximately 3 years old when it comes to riding in the car, I have to bring activities. Otherwise I get fussy. Usually the activity of choice is folding cranes. I am fast. Really fast.

I quickly filled up the dashboard of our car with cranes. We got some looks. But hey, we're used to that. So I kept on folding. And folding.

At one point, when the dash was pretty full, Evan did a big turn, and the cranes went flying onto our laps. He yelled out "bird migration!" and it was funny.

This was our migration through the state of Idaho.

On our way, Evan dared me to secretly leave behind a crane in each house that we looked at. I accepted the dare. I am not scared of the leave-behind. I am actually quite famous for leaving little families of cranes on the bench at church.

But, I totally forgot about the cranes once we got to our hotel, and the dare. So it didn't happen. Bummer.

And now I have 34 cranes. So, if anyone has an ideas for them, or wants them, you just let me know. I can arrange a crane adoption if needs be.

King me!

Evan and I aren't really big "gamers". We like playing games...we just don't really have any. And usually we aren't that mad about it. But sometimes when we are in a situation where there isn't really that much else to do (i.e. car camping when it gets dark at 5 pm, backpacking when we are done eating dinner and all set up by 6 pm, and there are no books to read, or maps to study...), a game would be nice.

Last Spring before a romp in the Desert, I thought ahead and bought a deck of cards. It turned out that between the two of us, we knew exactly 2.5 card games (Speed, War, and some of the rules to Speed2), and they got old kind of fast. So in preparation for another trip, I wanted to bring along something else besides a deck of cards. Checkers? I was pretty sure we knew how to play those.

I made a tiny quilt consisting of linen scraps cut into 1.5" squares. 64 of them, to be precise.

I confiscated a mini Altoids tin. Filled it with buttons. 12 of each color. I am teal, Evan is green. Obviously.

And to make it "travel friendly", you can fold it up like a sleeping bag,

And then roll it with the tin of buttons snug inside,

And now we are ready to rock. Checkers. Heck yes.

Hello Pumpkin!

MMMMmmmmmmm... look at this cookie. I think I will take a bite.

Wait. Ah. Ah.

Ahhhhhhhhh.

Choooooooooo!!!

Please excuse me! This is so embarrassing. I meant to tell you about these delicious cookies. They are pumpkin. And chocolate. Of course.

I really love pumpkin things. Most especially in autumn. Pumpkin soup, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cookies, and pumpkin-shaped candy. But it seems like, come Christmas, with it's dazzling candy canes, sugar cookies and wassail, I plum forget about pumpkin. Ya know? Well I'm bringing pumpkin back into our lives this winter season. With these cookies. Also, next time you see Evan, would you thank him for the flattering photos up above? Skiing makes me feel pretty.

Pumpkin Chocolate-Chip Cookies:

2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. ground cloves

1/2 t. nutmeg

1/4 t. salt

1/2 c. unsalted butter, room temperature

1 c. sugar

1 large egg

1 15 0z. can pumpkin puree (or 1 3/4 c. of the real stuff)

chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk together all dry ingredients.

Using an electric mixer, beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg, beat until smooth. With mixer on low speed, alternately add flour mixture and pumpkin puree. Mix until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips with a spoon (or if your feeling daring, use the mixer).

Drop dough onto cookie sheets and bake for 15-20 minutes, until puffed and edges are golden.

mmmm.

How's it reading?

It has been a good winter. There have been lots of books. Some have been thrifted, others gifted, and some borrowed. Have I mentioned I like to read? Okay. Love to read?

I love it so much, in fact, that I make things for my books. I had some leftover scraps of felt from Reece's pillow, and they were quite handy for the making of bookmarks. I simply cut out different shapes and embroidered them on. They were so simple that I felt silly just explaining that. A bookmark made of felt is nothing new. Just new to me.

Some of my favorites of the winter:

*My Life in France by: Julia Child (I love you Julia! You are so great)

*Goose Girl by: Shannon Hale (this was actually a re-read. I first read it when I worked at a health food store that hardly ever got business. I would sit in the bag dispenser at the cash register and read it. The herb man always called me 'goose girl' after that. His name was Craig.)

*Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by: Dai Sijie and Ina Rilke (I really do love a good book about books)

* The Help by: Kathryn Stockett (alright. So I am not actually finished with this one yet. My mom lent it to me two days ago and I am halfway there. But. I like it a lot. Thanks mom.)

*Tisha: the story of a young teacher in the Alaska Wilderness by: Robert Specht and Anne Purdy (it's true. And so crazy interesting. Thanks Colette.)

What have you been reading?

A Fair Trade

So, I painted a big tree on Evan's brother's wall. Have you ever painted on someone else's wall? Oh my.

So now I am a muralist. Officially. I declare it. The owners of this tree are going to hang picture frames of many shapes and sizes filled with family photos on the tree branches. A "Family Tree" of sorts. And if you wanted to make fun of my painting outfit, you could. But I must point out that I did accidentally match the wall. And my apron matches the tree. Sooooo.....who's laughing now?

And the best part of all? They paid me in chocolate.

Lots and lots of deep dark chocolate. I am a very high-brow starving artist. A very fair trade indeed.

A Wedding gift

My good friend Reece is gettin' hitched. Since she is so super cool, she required a gift much more original than a toaster or crock pot (we received 5 crock pots at our wedding!). I also remember being a newlywed and not having much in the way of cool pillows to throw on our hand-me-down sofa. So.... I made her a pillow! I followed a tutorial over at The Purl Bee, and it was really exciting to watch the pillow "bloom".

Once I was finished with it, I walked out into the living room with a big, prideful grin on my face, hugging the pillow to show to Evan. He took one look at it (and my rather obvious love for the pillow) and said: "Oh no, now you are going to make one for us, aren't you?" (I should probably point out here that I have a bit of a pillow problem). I didn't make him any promises. Smart.

Social Butterfly

We had two cupcake parties at our house this weekend. To be fair, the second party consisted of leftover cupcakes from the first party. But still. Two parties! Also, I talked to someone besides Evan on the ski shuttle last week. Can anyone say social butterfly?

To cater to our guests' specific dietary needs (chocolate and non-chocolate), there were two types of cupcakes presented. A Holly interpretation of a Hostess cupcake. Topped with Ganache. I love Ganache.

And a vanilla cupcake with vanilla frosting. And sprinkles. I love those too.

I found the recipe for these darling little cakes here.

For the Holly-Hostess cupcakes, I turned to my favorite chocolate cake recipe.

Chocolate Cake

from Better Homes and Gardens

3/4 c. butter

3 eggs

2 c. all-purpose flour

3/4 c. unsweetened dark cocoa powder

1 t. baking soda

3/4 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

2 c. sugar

2 t. vanilla

1 1/2 c. milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin with paper cups. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, beating on medium speed until well combined. Scrape sides of bowl; beat two minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Beat on medium speed for 20 seconds. Spoon into muffin tins. Bake for 30-ish minutes until a wooden toothpick inserted into middle comes out clean. Let cool before ganache application.

Chocolate Ganache

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1/2 c. heavy cream

Put the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat, swirling the pan occasionally, until hot and steaming. Do not allow it to boil. Remove the pan from the heat, and pour the cream over the chocolate. Let sit for 1 minutes, then stir until smooth. Spoon the warm ganache over cupcakes.

Share with someone you love.

And if anyone is still reading this post, here is a little reward. Our friends brought their tiny little puppy to the party. His name is Bosco. Bonus points to anyone who can tell me what he is named after.

Advent adventure

I'm making an advent calender. I expect to have it ready by next Christmas, so that is why I am starting in February. I really wanted to make this one, and put candy in the pockets, but Evan didn't think it looked very fun. Also, he doesn't love candy as much as I do.

He remembered one from his younger days where you got to put an ornament on a Christmas tree each day. He convinced me it was waaaayyy funner than eating candy. So now I am making an advent calender with little embroidered ornaments, and then eventually I will make or sew or buy a tree to hang them on. Does this sound vague? It is. I'm really not into planning things out before hand. Evan was a sport and helped me brainstorm 25 Christmas-y things to embroider.

Holly and Evan List:

1. Tree

2. Cup of Cocoa

3. Stocking

4. Santa Hat

5. Poinsettia flower

6. Candle

7. Gingerbread man

8. Candy Cane

9. Star

10. Ski

11. Snowflake

12. Sprig of holly

13. Wreath

14. Present

15. Sleigh

16. Bell

17. Snowman

18. Dove (peace)

19. Mitten

20. Reindeer

21. Angel

22. Mistletoe

23. Gingerbread house

24. Orange

25. Baby Jesus

Evan only List:

1. Beard

2. Wal-Mart

3. Mashed potatoes

4. Angry shopper

5. ipod

6. Straw (from the manger...)

7. G.I. Joe

And I can still eat candy. For all 25 days. It was part of the compromise :)

What we do now

Did I mention that we are being ski bums?

Probably I haven't. But we are.

Some might think it's a little crazy to be spending savings that could have been put towards our first house. But personally, I think it's a really good investment. Pretty soon we'll have a mini-van full of little ones, a membership to a price club and a mortgage. Things are only going to get crazier. We'll be able to look back and remember this time when we did absolutely nothing but fun things together. We are investing in our future sanity.

Sometimes we eat fries. Evan likes his with a side of BBQ sauce. It is quite seriously his second favorite food.

Also ladies, if you can possibly help it, try to marry a handsome man with a beard. Totally worth it. Click here for more skiing photos, ya know, if you're into that kind of thing.

An early Valentine

I'm not really obsessed with Valentine's Day. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love speciality chocolate and people showering me with love notes, but that's only human. I guess I don't like holidays that put a lot of pressure on your loved ones to make you feel extra loved, when it's pretty obvious they love you everyday anyway. So I was a little hesitant to make my first Valentine's Day decoration. But I like to make things. And winter is hard. There is a lot of time spent indoors, twiddling thumbs, waiting for snow. And when it doesn't snow...I have no choice but to get crafty. So here we have a Valentine Garland. Don't judge me.

It all started with red felt. I couldn't help it. I cut out some different shapes of hearts and then traced them onto the red felt. And snip-snip they were cut out.

A cozy blanket stitch bound two hearts together (am I a poet?).

And here we have a heart.

I strung the hearts onto a piece of embroidery floss and hung them on the mantle. For everyone to see.

I like it. I'm looking forward to how it will bring some cheer into cold, dark February. Happy early Valentine's Day. And if you make one too, I won't judge.