Tulips and love

I guess it's a good thing I didn't swear off the whole flowers-for-Valentine's-Day thing

because Jason gave me the most beautiful tulips -

One bouquet of light pink, and one bouquet of dark pink.

I love the way fresh flowers add so much cheer and color to a home.

Each time I walk through the front door, I smile with delight

As I am reminded what a lucky girl I am.

Thank you Jason. I love you (even more than I love tulips, which is a lot).

Five (almost) free ways to say "I love you"

Let me just preface this post by saying: I'm not one of those "anti" Valentine's Day people. I mean, it's a day dedicated to celebrating love. What's better than that? I'm all for it. What I'm not big on is the commercialization that seems to be so relentlessly intertwined with it. Now don't get me wrong. I love chocolate and flowers (tulips, please) as much as the next gal. And it's fun to have an excuse to get dolled up and go out for a nice dinner. But it seems that it's all too easy easy to become fixated on the material elements of the holiday. We get caught up in creating "the perfect day" and lose sight of what it is we're celebrating in the first place. (It's a phenomenon I've realized is rampant in the wedding industry as well, but that's a topic for a different post...)

So, in that spirit, I offer five (almost) free ways to say "I love you" on Valentine's Day or any day. These can be applied to anyone you care about: significant others, parents, siblings, friends, etc. Am I ready to swear off the chocolate and flowers? Let's not get carried away. But you know what? That stuff only means as much as the way we act toward each other the other 364 days of the year. (But still...the chocolate doesn't hurt.)

1. Have a conversation with someone with no agenda other than to really, truly actively listen to what they're saying. Instead of just awaiting your turn to speak, genuinely focus on the other person's words. Ask supportive questions and respond in a compassionate way, but most of all just listen. I'm always amazed by what an incredible effect this can have, even when talking about something seemingly mundane like what to have for dinner.

2. Ask someone in your life to tell you about their goals and dreams, and then (and this is the important part), ask what you can do to help.

3. Prepare a wholesome, nourishing meal to share with someone you care about. (Ok...so this might not technically be free, but it definitely needn't be anything fancy to be effective. Think simple.) Lovingly choose a recipe that you think the other person would enjoy (some ideas: wild mushroom risotto, veggie lasagna, or baked wild-caught salmon + braised greens). Use fresh and organic ingredients. If you'd like, you can invite the other person to help you in the kitchen, or you can hand them a glass of wine and share some good conversation while you cook. Put on some jazz tunes, light a couple soy candles and savor the experience of sharing a delicious meal.

4. Do a kind deed...just because. Offer to watch a frazzled co-worker's kids for an evening. Do the dishes when it's not "your turn." Pick out a pretty card to send to a friend. Again, this doesn't need to be extravagant at all. I've found that doing a simple, unexpected act of kindness not only makes the recipient feel good, but also makes me feel great.

5. Tell someone how much you appreciate them. It seems to me that we often take for granted that the people in our lives know how we feel about them. Yet it's so important to actually acknowledge it (i.e. say it out loud). This doesn't have to be a big production. It's as simple as saying, "Thank you for making coffee this morning. That was really nice of you."

Image via Bella Dia.

Wise words

I'm loving this quote by Audrey Hepburn. What a clever lady she was.

Images found here and here.

What's making me happy right now

Today, I'm feeling really inspired by one of my favorite bloggers, the lovely Lexi of Ellecubed and her delightful Happy List. (By the way, do you all know Lexi? If not, please stop by her blog and say hello. She is such a sweetheart and a fabulous source of inspiration.) Just reading her list brought such a smile to my face, so I decided to start off this week with my own gratitude infusion. Here are the things that are making me happy right now:

• No work today! Due to this past weekend's snowpocalypse, most of the DC area is still shut down. I love my job, but it's always nice to have an unexpected day off, isn't it? I plan to use today to do a bit of organizing around the house, get in an extra-long gym workout, browse at Anthropologie, and see Avatar in 3D.

• Losing nearly 15 pounds since the holidays and, more importantly, feeling really great. As I've mentioned a couple times, I've recently made some serious changes to the way I eat and I'm amazed by how dramatically my body has reacted. When I wake up in the morning, instead of feeling tired and foggy, I'm energized and clear-headed. I've been getting compliments on how shiny and healthy my hair looks, and my skin has never been happier. Working out feels easier. I'm wearing my skinny jeans with ease. And I swear, I have been laughing more. It's like my body is giddy. Oddly enough, the hardest part about this whole thing has been admitting that I really want it. Acknowledging that yes, my health and well-being really are that important to me. Putting it on my Mondo Beyondo list and saying it out loud. Once I was able to get to that point, taking steps to implement a healthier lifestyle felt like the only logical way to proceed.

• Other stuff making me happy: Having a super clean house (we did a major cleaning this weekend), pouring over recipes in The Kind Diet and Super Natural Cooking, doing Google image searches of the beautiful places we'll be visiting in Italy, miso soup for breakfast, signing up to run a local 5K later this spring, submitting my volunteer application to the animal shelter, finally springing for a subscription to Body & Soul, doing yoga almost every day, this dress (wouldn't it be lovely for a rehearsal dinner?), fiancé digging our car out from under the snow yesterday and generally being a super rad and helpful kind of guy, home-cooked meals with friends, watching Biggest Loser on my iPod while I work out (super motivating), receiving our wedding invitations from evapaul (love, love, love), anticipating my mom's visit a couple weeks from now (so that we can do wedding-related stuff together! yippee!), finding kindred spirits via blogs, ordering The Happiness Project and Babycakes (vegan, gluten-free and sugar-free baked goods recipes!), drinking lots of tea, watching the neighborhood dogs frolicking in the snow, Epsom salt baths, feeling super sore from working out (but in a good way), this list (brilliant), vegetarian chili in the slow cooker, getting closer to discovering my Style Statement (stole that one from Ellecubed, but it's true), and making progress on some Mondo Beyondo dreams!

What's making you happy right now? If you post your own list in your blog, please share a link below - I'd love to read it!

Image via Anthropologie.

Snow daze

Guess what? We're supposed to get up to 2 feet of snow this weekend, and the local government has issued a warning that we should be prepared "to shelter in place for 3-5 days"! Crazy, huh?

I actually sort of love being snowed in. It's such a cozy feeling, isn't it? I'm planning to use the extra time around the house to catch up on chores and wedding-related stuff, as well as do some cooking, baking, reading, and relaxing. And did I mention relaxing? We recently bought the first season of LOST on DVD (both Jason and I used to watch, but it's been ages so we're starting from the beginning). So tonight we'll be making mushroom barley risotto (recipe forthcoming), drinking wine, delving into LOST, and watching as the snow blankets everything for miles around.

What's everyone else up to this weekend? I hope whatever you do, you have a lovely time. And if you're in an area that's due for snow - enjoy!

Image via Impressionenmeer.

Garlic Sesame Kale

When it comes to leafy greens, kale has always fallen into the "should" category for me. By this I mean, I eat kale because I should eat it, but I never really find myself saying, "Gee, I could sure go for a big bowl of kale tonight."

However, as part of my quest to eat healthier and get into great shape, I've redoubled my efforts to eat a wide array of nutritious veggies and recently I've developed a greater appreciation for this powerhouse green (which is actually a type of wild cabbage). In addition to discovering some great kale recipes in my new cookbooks, I've been experimenting with a few of my own.

My favorite of these recipes came into being the other night, when we realized that we'd forgotten to take some fish out of the freezer to thaw for that night's dinner and were forced to get a little creative. After a bit of rummaging around, it was determined that we were in possession of a large amount of kale and some leftover soba noodles. Thus, Garlic Sesame Kale (sautéed and served over soba noodles) was born.

I really like how kale holds up to heat. Other cooked greens (I'm looking at you spinach) can be a little bit too mushy for my taste, but kale proudly holds its ground and retains a satisfying crunch even when cooked for a long time (in soups or slow cookers, for example).

Happily, this recipe doesn't require a long cooking time. In fact, the whole operation took about ten minutes from prep to service. (Do you like my super official cooking lingo? I learned it from Top Chef.) It's healthy, delicious and super versatile. You could use it in any kind of pasta dish, layer it into a veggie lasagna, or even use it to top off a cheese pizza.

As I mentioned, we put it over soba noodles, along with some cubed tofu. We also had a little extra Otsu sauce on hand, which I drizzled over the top. Check out that garlic action...mmm.

Garlic Sesame Kale (serves 2, with leftovers)

Ingredients

2 bunches kale, trimmed and chopped

3 tsp. toasted sesame oil

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tsp. brown rice miso paste (Westbrae makes a good one)

1 tsp. lemon juice

2 tsp. sesame seeds (optional)

Sea salt to taste

Preparation

Heat toasted sesame oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for a couple minutes. Add kale and cook until just slightly wilted, stirring gently. Reduce heat to low and stir in lemon juice, salt, and miso paste. (You don't want to get miso paste too hot because it will destroy its beneficial enzymes.) Remove from heat and toss with sesame seeds.

How do you eat your kale? I would love if you would share your recipes!

Photos by moi.

Mondo Beyondo List

As I've mentioned, I'm currently taking the Mondo Beyondo course, an online class about uncovering your dreams. A couple weeks ago, we created our Mondo Beyondo lists, which is a list of all the creative, wild, and totally juicy dreams tucked away in the back of your mind. Things that may be unlikely to happen in 5 or even 10 years. The point is to just write down whatever comes to mind without questioning it. As Mondo Beyondo instructor Andrea writes:

"If we can loosen ourselves up and stretch ourselves just enough to get our rational mind out of the driver's seat, really interesting things will float to the surface. You might not know why you are writing something down, but I encourage you to trust everything that shows up. Don't censor yourself. Your dreams are living below the surface and I want you to surprise yourself."

Now, we've been asked to release our Mondo Beyondo into the universe however we want, so I decided to (gulp) share mine with you. (It's always kind of scary sharing "dreams" and stuff like that, isn't it? Taking a deep breath...here goes...)

My Mondo Beyondo list:

-have a family

-backpack through india and thailand

-adopt a dog

-become certified to teach yoga

-take a culinary tour of italy (we'll sort of be doing this on our honeymoon!)

-learn to speak italian

-write a cookbook centered on principles of holistic health + wellness

-volunteer with animals (just completed my application to volunteer at local animal shelter)

-travel the world as a food writer

-buy a little bungalow (with a snazzy kitchen) in a college town (preferably near mountains)

-design and create my own line of wellness teas

-make my own jewelry

-make time for and honor my art daily

-get my master's in creativity studies/art therapy and become a creativity coach (more of a long-term aspiration as i'm very happy in my current job)

-start my own non-profit using yoga+meditation to help survivors of trauma (also long-term)

-become my healthiest self (working on making some serious changes to my lifestyle and diet and have lost 13 pounds since the holidays...woohoo!)

-run a half-marathon (going to sign up to run a local 5K at the end of march...hoping to work my way up to half-marathon)

-play the piano again

-grow an organic herb and vegetable garden

-go to culinary school

-improve my photography skills and become a food photographer

-spend a year traveling throughout europe

-meet at least a couple of the folks i most admire

-become an advocate for a more sustainable food system (à la my idol alice waters)

-take dance and drawing classes

-give a TED talk

-go white-water rafting

-learn to knit

-go on a yoga and/or meditation retreat in costa rica

-perform stand-up comedy

-become an outward bound instructor

I'm looking back over this list, and the phrase that keeps coming to mind is: jeez, I'd better get started! I'm kidding...sort of.

Image via Mondo Beyondo.