Aurora Borealis

It's no secret that I love my birthday, but I have embraced
the husband's birthday with a similar love and enthusiasm.
So naturally I think about it months before it is even
a light in the distance. I know he questions my sanity when
I bring up birthdays this early- but I love the idea of
doing extravagant things for the man that I love.

The other day I found a deal that was too good to pass up.
4 days and 3 nights in Iceland. The price included flight,
hotel, boat trip to see the Northern Lights, and an upgrade at
the Blue Lagoon.  This for the price of what I saw as 2 normal
flights to Iceland just a few weeks before.  Can't pass these things up.














Credit

My original idea was to keep this as a surprise, but if you know me at
all you will know that I cannot keep secrets.  Especially if they are fun.
So I told the husband that I had a surprise for his birthday planned already,
and that began the guessing game that we usually play with surprises.
Yesterday he managed to guess Iceland as one of the destinations
so, as our rule goes, I had to tell him.
I made it 4 whole days of secret keeping haha- somewhat impressive for me.













Credit

 It might not be as dreamy as a beach in Mexico would be in January
but to (hopefully) see the Northern Lights is an experience that will be just as amazing.
I'm looking forward to eating fermented shark,  drinking whatever is local, and
immersing myself in Icelandic culture for 4 days.
It'll be our own Icelandic Saga.

Greenmarket Finds

This is my 100th post on this little blog!
Time sure does fly.  We're a little over a month away
from our 1st Wedding Anniversary, and I've got my
best friend/life partner's wedding next weekend.
This year surely flew by.

What better way to celebrate 100 posts than to have
the summer harvest colliding with fall!
This is that magical time of year when you can
get cantaloupe and spaghetti squash, concord grapes
and peaches, and cauliflower and tomatoes. Much like Gem,
this is truly, truly outrageous.
















*Pint of fresh pressed cider
*onion
*garlic
*eggplant
*celery
*okra
*spaghetti squash
* 2 cantaloupe
*lettuce
*kale
*cauliflower
*milk (not pictured)
*2 small pieces of tuna (not pictured)
*2 zucchini

Can't wait to make:
Cantaloupe Gazpacho
Turkey Meatballs with Spaghetti Squash
Zucchini Fritters
Grilled Eggplant with Herbed Quinoa
Cauliflower Soup

Latest Obsessions

*Concord Grape Cornmeal Cake
This cake is a quick and easy way to use those great concord grapes
that just showed up at the market. The most time consuming part is seeding them.
But the end result is well worth the trouble.

*Filling my Halloween Pinterest board
I cannot wait to decorate the house and watch scary movies,
while drinking hot cider. I heart Halloween.

*GMO OMG
A documentary about GMO's, which judging by the trailer many
people seem to be totally unaware of what they are. It's so important
to know what we're eating.  Looking forward to watching it.

*The candle light yoga class I took last night
At the time I wanted to walk out after feeling like the class
was not only above my abilities but moving way too fast.
I managed to leave class feeling more peaceful and with a clearer mind
 than I had in awhile,  took a long walk down Houston, up Lafayette and
all the way to the Strand. Finally found the books I had been looking for,
headed home, and laid in bed reading.  It was also the most restful sleep
I've had in awhile. I don't  really want to go back to the class
-but I kinda do...

*Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler, MPH
This is the book I've been looking all over for.  Now don't get
all crazy- we're not trying to have a baby right now.  But this book
is so much more than that-it's about getting to know your body
and your cycle.  Which, after being on the birth control pill for
about a decade is something I am sadly unfamiliar with.
So I'm reading about it,  and it's extremely interesting.

*Andre Heimann's Hungarian Cabbage Strudel
This photo makes my mouth water. Apparently Andre's shop
is in Forest Hills-which isn't too far from Sunnyside!  I feel a
trip is in order. I'll have the real thing then I'll try to replicate it.
German/Austrian/Hungarian food is the BEST in the fall.

*This song from this movie
The husband and I watched the end of Empire Records a few nights
ago and that movie is one big nostalgia trip. It reminds me of being 15,
in all good ways. Now I can't stop listening to this song.  I also added
other favorite songs from other favorite teenage movies.  And even if
no one else cares about the songs I know that Zach Mack and I always will.

Beams

I didn't live here when the towers fell, but each year I see
the beams that rise up into the sky from lower Manhattan.
Both beautiful and haunting, they serve as a reminder to me
(and hopefully others) that each day is a gift and should be
treated as such.

















photo credit

A Year in Books: August

I felt like I did  a lot of reading in August, but apparently
I just started a bunch of books but didn't finish any!
So I have nothing to show for the month of August.

I've also been doing a lot of studying for my new job
so that is taking up a lot of treasured subway reading time.
I'm sure that for September I'll have finished the 3
books that I'm currently working on :)

Latest Obsessions

*Seckel Pears
Spotted some at the market yesterday and had to have them.
These tiny fruits are so decadent with their flavor. Their season
is from September-February.

*The anticipation of a season change.
The return of scarves and long sleeves, the autumn
harvest at the market, and our backyard becomes accessible
again after the mosquitos disappear.

*I've got a mean travel itch right now.
 This post by David Lebovitz has me desperately wanting to
travel to Chablis. London, Piedmont, Vienna, and Hawaii are also
on the list.

*Focusing on a semi-detox
By detox I really mean more veggies and less cheese.

*Yuck: A 4th Grader's Short Documentary about school lunch
This looks interesting, it's impressive that a 4th grader is taking this
kind of initiative. When I was in 4th grade all I was concerned with was
reading Babysitter's Club and Goosebumps books.

*Morning Hot Chocolate
large scoop of raw cacao powder, sprinkle of cinnamon,
dash of cayenne pepper. whisk into warmed milk and enjoy.
*for an energy boost add a small scoop of maca powder.
(it's kind of expensive so I haven't bought it in awhile)

*Cat and Bunny Cookies