Autumn Portraits

So, there is this really great pair of our friends that happen to rent our spare bedroom. Thomas and I have known Ryan since our years in Santa Barbara and he happened to meet and marry Heather, a pharmacy student out here in Boston. After living with us earlier this year they spent the summer out west so Ryan could finish school. They came back at the start of Heather's school year and we've had so much fun having them as housemates again.

They asked me to take a few pictures for their first anniversary and I obliged. I am in no way a professional (obviously) and it proved to be a rather laugh-filled evening of me awkwardly coaching them with phrases like, "stop looking so creepy" and "make your face more normal".

Fun things we do with the Shapiro's include:

Watching cat/baby/Andy Samberg/Julian Smith videos on YouTube
Finding hilarious memes
Ryan and Thomas sharing poop/fart/burp stories
Watching hour after hour of The Big Bang Theory, Scrubs, Spongeobob Squarepants and Raising Hope
Mac & Cheese every Sunday after church
Sunday dinners followed by giant sugar cookies

Fall 2014

I've had a hard time enjoying Autumn this year. I know winter is coming and I am a little scared of that. But when you smell the crunchy leaves, taste fresh apple cider and see pumpkins growing on a tree you can't help but get into this whole cooler weather thing.

We still haven't carved our Halloween pumpkins. There just hasn't been time or energy. I can't complain really, we've been burning both ends of the candle with a lot of great things lately. It's actually the relative calm before the storm.

The holidays are looking like they will be completely insane this year- Thanksgiving in NYC, the in-laws will be here in Boston for a few days, my old mission companion is visiting from Australia for a week, my office is being renovated, I am in charge of my work and ward Christmas parties. Whew, I need a nap already!

Miner's Vest

This Miner's Vest is my first attempt at making an article of clothing. I usually stick to baby blankets because they're small and square- easy peasy. When I came across this pattern on Etsy I thought it looked simple and modern. I rarely seen crocheted clothing that I actually want to make. Normally crocheted clothes look like something an old granny would wear. Well, not my grandma- she's way too cool for that- but you know what I mean.

This vest has the best of a lot of things. It's thick and chunky which makes it nice and warm but it doesn't have sleeves so when you slip it on under a coat it doesn't make you feel like Randy from the movie A Christmas Story (I can't put my arms down!). It's basically a giant cowl-neck, full-body scarf. I love it!

I love the way it looks under some leather, it's a good texture combination and it makes everything a little cozier.

And now a closer look at the vest itself. I used Lion Brand Wool-Ease extra bulky yarn. It was about $7-8 per skein but if you look for it on sale or use a coupon you can get it for half that price. The pattern called for the biggest crochet hook I've ever seen- size Q! That, combined with the size of the yarn actually made this a really quick project.

Miners Vest Stats

Yarn: Lion Brand Wool-Ease Super Bulky
Number of Skeins: 4
Color: Charcoal
Hook: Q 15.75 mm & P 11.5 mm for edging
Pattern: Here

I have to give a big shout out to the Dr. for taking these pictures for me, I am an awkward model and he was very patient with me.

Thanksgiving 2013 {the food}

Did you know that the Dr. and I love food? If not then I will inform you- we love food. A lot. We love to cook at home and we love to eat out. There's just something special about cooking a meal for someone else or sitting down to share a meal- it brings people together.

Good heavens, we probably ate a Thanksgiving size meal every night we were in AZ. We really wanted to stock up on some great Mexican food while we were there since you can't even buy refried beans here in Boston. We stopped at the Mesa Temple for a session on Saturday morning after arriving in Phoenix the night before. Lunch was in order after that as we had a 2+ hour drive to Flagstaff ahead of us. We popped into a little place called Mango's in downtown Mesa and it didn't disappoint. The chimichanga, the tacos, the beans and the rice! Ole!

Monday we made a trip to Phoenix to pick up the parental unit coming in from Seattle. What do they have in the Phoenix area? That's right, In-N-Out!

How could we not stop?? Their special sauce runs in my veins! Just look at those burgers and animal fries:

Is your mouth watering yet?

While the Dr., his brother and dad were all out on the reservation hunting, Shelley and I baked up a storm at the house. She made bread, I rolled pie crusts and the kids pulled apart the bread for stuffing. I made the turkey brine and the Dr. roasted it up the next day with some amazing gravy, potatoes by Trevor, green beans and asparagus. Everyone helped and it turned out great!

Caramel Apple Pie

Pumpkin

Banana Cream

French Silk (to die for!)

Stuffing helpers

The Turkey carving the turkey

The result of all our hard work

 Other foods of interest we had while in Flagstaff: Cafe Rio, Downtown Diner (Harlan's favorite greasy spoon for breakfast) and the Olive Garden (not that cool).

When My Melly Came to Visit

Melanie and I have been friends for a long, long time. We have seen each other through a whole lot of ups and quite a few downs in the past decade or so. We have laughed so hard our tummies hurt and our faces cramp up. We've cried because we didn't know what else to do. We have worked together at "the Crack" and Sunglass Pros, we have been roommates, island mates and concert mates. I have watched her belly grow three times and seen her develop into such a wonderful mother to her boys. And we have eaten. Oh man, have we ever eaten more than our fair share of food together. I may have even flown her a few orders of our favorite Tiny-Spicy Chicken all the way from Logan, Utah to Maui while she was pregnant and craving nothing else. That is true friendship.

This year I have been able to see Mel 3 times! I surprised her in May by showing up at her house unannounced, we went to see Fun. in concert in September and this fall she came to Boston with Mama Rosa (her mom) and her youngest babe, Jaylen.

They arrived late on a Friday night, flying standby with a 18 month old through 3 airports. Bless their hearts!

Saturday we drove up to New Hampshire and enjoyed a little leaf peeping. We found the most amazing country lane lined with tall, tall trees in the most beautiful colors!

Can we just build two houses at the end of this lane and be neighbors forever, please?

Me and the Dr.

Mel, Mama Rosa and Jay-bird

Sunday was church day of course and that means driving through some of my favorite neighborhoods with the most drool-worthy houses. We pass this house on our way to the church every week and I want to have trees just like these in my yard someday.

I can haz?

After a quick lunch we headed for the beach. I think Mel and I would agree that the beach just soothes the soul. There is something so comforting and relaxing about being there. Even if it is freeing cold, windy and there was a pack of dogs running wild.

Melanie and I shared many deep conversations on the beaches of Maui. The ocean is like an old friend to us, holding all of our worries, our hopes for ourselves and each other, it remembers our laughter and the sunburns we've sustained from long chats at it's shore. It remembers eating ice cream on the sea wall in Lahaina for Mel's birthday and breaking into the ocean-side pool at Papakea. It remembers me laying on the cool sand at Wahikuli beach late one night, gazing at the stars and wondering what in the world I was doing in Maui. As I lay there trying to grasp the gravity of a situation I hadn't expected, the ocean became my friend and has remained ever since. Although this is not the Pacific, I still feel the same reassurance as I always have when I see the sea.

I suppose that is enough cheesy reminiscing for one post. 

Jay ate lots of sand and ended up plopping right down in the water, soaking himself to the bone. 

Monday was spent walking all over the city. We went to Harvard, Boston Common, the Public Gardens (Jay loved the "Make Way for Ducklings" ducks), Cheers and the carousel all before we even started on the Freedom Trail.

He was trying so hard to get these ducks to come to life

Make way for Jay!

I can't get enough of the old graveyards here.

The Declaration of Independence was first read to the citizens of Boston from this balcony.

We ended our day in the North End of Boston where the greatest Italian food outside of Italy can be found. Giaccomo's is our staple in this quaint neighborhood. We once waited in line for nearly two hours in the freezing cold for their food but luckily we only had to wait a few minutes this time. We ate ourselves silly and Jaylen made friends with our waiter. He just couldn't figure out this man who spoke so loudly and with such a strong accent, Jay was fascinated. I wish I would have snapped a picture of them together. We stopped at Mike's Pastry for some sweet treats although we had to take them home with us and eat them once our stomachs had processed dinner a bit.

Paul Revere's house in the North End

Tuesday was a little slower day, we went for a drive to see where Mama Rosa grew up near Bedford. We saw the house she lived in and she pointed out the places in the neighborhood where she used to play with her siblings and friends. With all the major historic sites we saw this weekend it may seem like this was just another boring neighborhood but you could tell it was a sacred and special place for her. 

We toured the Concord area including:

Walden Pond with a picnic lunch

Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House where she wrote the novel Little Women.

And Sleepy Hollow Cemetery where Louisa May Alcott, Henry David Thorough and Ralph Waldo Emerson are buried, among others. Have I mentioned that I like cemeteries? 

Old North Bridge and the sight of the shot heard around the world. Jaylen was very into the ranger's presentation. Just kidding. He was eating rocks and throwing leaves the whole time.

Our last stop of the day was the Boston Temple. We tagged along with a youth group for some baptisms and confirmations. I can't believe that this is the first time we've been in the Temple together.  It was such a sweet feeling to sit next to this sister of mine, all dressed in white. My heart swelled with happiness to participate in such sacred work with such a dear friend. It truly was the cherry on top of a wondrous long weekend.