The Winds of Change

Do you ever feel the winds of change approaching? Just light breezes at first, but then stronger and stronger until you can't ignore it anymore. I'm not big on change. Well, that's not true, but it takes me a long time to decide that I really want to do something and then go do it. I think this might be why I'm prone to huge changes spontaneously. I get to a point where I'm like, "JUST DO IT" and then in one day, or 3 hours, or 30 minutes I make the change. That was what it was like when I dyed my hair teal and pink, when I rearranged my living room and bedroom this week, when I cut bangs into my hair, oh three years ago. I get a bug in my brain and I can't stop it from burrowing further and further into my mind until I usually give in and do whatever the little bug has been saying. I think mostly this happens when my resistance to the change is at a weak point (aka, I'm PMSing). I say all this because, well, I've been thinking of cutting my hair for a long time. Years. Well, not actively thinking about it for years, but always wondering what it'd be like to have shorter hair. I always wanted it to be long for my wedding, and now that that's out of the way, the cut-your-hair bug has been more and more persistent. Which makes me think that one of these days I'll probably have a weak moment and the "JUST DO IT" voice will take over and you'll find me in my bathroom with scissors in hand and a pile of hair in the sink. Just saying. It could happen. So, you know... be prepared?

coat/tulle :: dress/nanette lepore :: skirt + scarf + hat/thrifted :: shoes/keds

Speaking of change, I've been doing a lot of staring at my closet. And flipping through it. And pulling things out, and putting them back. I'm realizing that my old way of "keeping a closet" doesn't really lend itself well to allowing for growth and change in terms of style. Most of the things in my closet I've had for at least a year and while I'm a huge fan of remixing and styling one item many ways, I think I need at least a mini closet makeover. It's hard for me to part with clothes because I always think, "well, what if in a few months I think of an outfit that this would be perfect for?" But... at the same time, if I get rid of that item and I infuse new pieces into my wardrobe, I'll be allowing for growth in my styling, rather than recycling the same old things over and over again. That being said, pending my ability to part with things, you might be seeing more stuff in my shop!

Snowshoeing in the Mountains

This past weekend, after Thanksgiving, we visited Dan's parents in Packwood and went snowshoeing! We bundled up in his parents' gear and drove up to White Pass for some snowy adventures. About 10 minutes into it though we had worked up a sweat and had to start stripping off layers! It was such a beautiful sunny day. The forecast had called for rain, so I think a lot of people stayed away from the mountain that day thinking the conditions would be bad, but we went up anyway and it was grand!

Shop My Closet Update

Hey guys! I wanted to pop in and let you know that I've updated the shop! I've upgraded to a "real" shop now, and it's much easier to list things so I'll be posting more than 3 items at a time! I've also started listing shoes, so I might put some more of those up in the near future. Right now I just have one pair listed. I've also got a few home goods that I'll be listing soon–some cute things from the wedding that I don't need 30 of, but are too cute to just give to goodwill. So those will also be available soon!

Our Cozy Honeymoon

Our honeymoon was so relaxing and perfect. We stayed in a little log cabin near Mount Rainier built in 1955, it was so incredibly cozy! We spent most of our time just laying around being lazy in the cabin, playing card games, hot tubbing, reading books and eating. The cabin had it's own private deck with a two person hot tub that we soaked in every night. It was nice that the cabin had its own kitchen, so I got to make dinner every night. Lasagna, Salmon, Pizza, yum!

On the second day there were beautiful clear skies, so we went up to Mount Rainier to walk around and look a the majestic peak while it wasn't shrouded in cloud cover. So fun! We drove up to Paradise, which is as high up as you can go, and then walked up the trail a bit. We saw two little foxes on our trip up to Paradise, so on our last day we decided to get a fox christmas tree ornament from the gift shop so we can remember our honeymoon each Christmas.

On the last day, we checked out of our cabin and went back up into Mt. Rainier park for a little walk on a trail near Longmire. It was a nice walk and those kinds of places are always so interesting to me, seeing the remnants of people making their home in the high wilderness a century ago. Sometimes I wish I could go out into the wilderness, make a log cabin and live in the woods. So peaceful.

We'd heard that the restaurant that owned the little cabin we stayed in was really good, so on our way back down the mountain we stopped there one last time for lunch before heading home. It was a short honeymoon, but we were excited to get home and start settling into our little house together!

The Married Life

The other night I was laying in bed next to Dan as he slept, pondering marriage and what it all means. After the wedding people kept asking me if I felt different... but I didn't. It's kind of like when people ask you on your birthday how it feels to be "X" years old now, and you're always like... "it feels exactly like yesterday..." I suspect, like birthdays, marriage is similar in that the changes are gradual and you don't notice them until you wake up one day and there are aches and wrinkles where there didn't used to be. I never expected to "feel different" right after I got married, but I do wonder in what ways we'll change and grow in the next few years. How we'll get closer to each other, what conflicts we'll have to resolve, what challenges we'll be faced with.

I think about my parents and the experiences, challenges and changes they've been through in the past 31 years they've been together. And my grandparents as well, in their 60 years together, that's 21,900 days they've been married. That's more than twice the time I've even been alive! It's nice having strong models for committed marriages, though. I'm very thankful for such a positive family community that will be there to support our marriage throughout our life together.

Christmas Cheer: Peppermint

It's now "officially" Christmastime, and I'm really excited that all things related to Christmas are nigh! I'm one of those people that just doesn't feel right doing anything Christmas related until after Thanksgiving. I figured that since I've already shared a peppermint treat with you guys today, I'd continue the trend and share some more pepperminty goodies!

Peppermint Red Velvet Cupcakes

Icing On The Coat in Red Velvet // Woodland Holiday Apron

Peppermint Snickerdoodles

Homemade Peppermint Marshmallows

Peppermint Bark // Peppermint Candy Sticks

Homemade Peppermint Liqueur

Peppermint Coated Marshmallows & Hot Cocoa

Rachel Antonoff Crimson & Collars Dress // Scent of Strawberries Dress

Peppermint Bark Lip Balm

Peppermint Red Minnetonka Moccasins

From the Bar: Homemade Peppermint Liqueur

I have a fun holiday DIY to share with you all today! I've wanted to do this for a couple years, so I'm pretty excited about it... homemade peppermint vodka! I'm not a huge fan of vodka, but it's really useful in all sorts of cocktails, and especially as we're approaching christmas there are a ton of fun peppermint drinks to be made! I think I always thought it would be complicated to make infused vodka, but it's actually not! I found this recipe online and it's really simple. Let's get to it!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon peppermint oil OR 2 teaspoons peppermint extract (For stronger mint taste, add 3/4 teaspoon of peppermint oil or 3 teaspoons of peppermint extract)
3 cups Vodka
4-6 drops red or green food coloring (optional)

A sterile 1 quart container for the vodka to sit in while it infuses.

The first thing you have to do is make the sugar syrup. In a small saucepan, combine water and sugar. Over medium heat, cook until the sugar is dissolved and liquid is clear, about 5 min. Let the sugar syrup cool completely.

Now, into a sterile quart jar with tight fitting lid, pour the vodka, sugar syrup, and peppermint oil or extract and stir well (For a sweeter, thicker liqueur, add more sugar syrup). There you go! That's all there is to it. Store your delicious creation in a cool, dark place, allowing it to steep for 2 weeks. Turn the jar upside down every 2-3 days to mix, or remove lid and stir.

Once your peppermint vodka is done, you can pour it into smaller containers if you'd like. I think it'd be a perfect holiday gift, and I might just make up another batch for just such a purpose. I've got about 70 mason jars leftover from the wedding, and I think it'd be super cute to give people little mason jars full of peppermint vodka (and maybe even attach a mini candy cane!).