Detox

To be completely honest I don't know why I'm writing about this, because to be completely honest I'm not really sure why you would care.

Buuuuut just in case you are, in fact, interested in the miniscule and unimportant details of our day to day lives here it is:

We are doing a detox.

This is by no means a big deal in our great state of California.  I'm pretty sure I could find someone doing some fad detox/ cleanse/ expurgation on any given day of the year.  But for us this is a pretty big deal. Why?

1. We love food
2. We hate commitment. (Okay, not ALL commitment, obviously.)

I can't tell you how many times I've rolled my eyes as some girl person told me about the amazing program they were on and how they felt like they were about to faint but it was just a side effect of their body getting rid of toxins and OMG they lost six pounds in three days.

I'm not into starving myself, and neither is my six-foot-nine athlete of a husband.  But we came across this detox by Dr. Oz and were intrigued.  Some friends of ours from church were planning on doing the detox this week and so we took a look at what it entailed: no starving? no juicing? no maple syrup? It's basically eating vegan smoothies for three days and so Ty suggested we join in on the fad fun.  Our reasoning is:

10% for health benefits
90% for curiosity's sake

I've heard all sorts of benefits that supposedly accompany detoxes: improved focus, higher energy, better sleep, less bloating.  I'm also a mega skeptic about pretty much anything I hear and tend to dismiss most claims like this as hogwash.  But it's only three days, and I don't have to go hungry.  Plus, it helps out my New Year's Resolution to eat more veggies. 

So we began today.  We started the morning off with some green tea and lemon, which my body promptly puked up in the car rejected.  Apparently that can happen. We're off to a roaring start.

I'll be sure to update once the three days are up, if we haven't strangled each other by then.

Updates

Ho boy! I definitely fell off the blogging train for awhile. Truth is, after our little February getaway life has been moving at 110 miles per hour. Many days we come home and it seems to take an exorbitant amount of energy just to brush our teeth and collapse into bed. Things are finally winding down now, though, and we are looking forward to the new chapter of life that's on the horizon. Here are just a few of the things that have kept us busy (and away from the blogging world) the past two months:

 

 

I got to perform in a play! We had a wonderful cast and our production ran for 2.5 weeks in Venice.  It was a lot of work (and driving) but the end result was totally worth it.

 

 

We celebrated Easter with my family which included lots of food and lots of dart playing

 

 

 

We spent some much needed time out in the sunshine

 

 

 

 

We celebrated Ty's 24th birthday with friends and the Dodgers

 

 

This cute girl had a shower....

 

 

...then got hitched to this cute boy! 

 

 

 

 

We got to spend some wonderful time with both of our families

 

 

And I got to celebrate the birth of my best friend of over 13 years!

 

 

 

We are now entering into a time of waiting.  We aren't entirely sure where we will be or what we will be doing once the summer is over, but we are trusting God with our futures as we anticipate the next season of our lives.  In the meantime, rather than fretting, we will be spending our time relaxing, hanging out with family and friends, and vacationing just a bit.  Next week we head to the East Coast to visit some dear friends and I can't wait! 

 

Thanks for reading!

 

 

Wines, Pines & Coastlines

A couple weekends ago we headed up the central coast for some much needed R&R.

For Christmas Tyler's parents got us a little getaway up to Cambria.  It is one of the sweetest and most charming towns I've ever stayed in.  The jagged coastal cliffs and rolling green hills make you feel like you're sitting on the happy side of a Steinbeck novel.

We started the trip early on Thursday morning and made it to Santa Barbara in time to stop for a lovely breakfast at Crushcakes.  I was soooo tempted by their red velvet pancakes!

We walked around SB for a bit and then got back on the road.  We stopped again in San Luis Obispo for some wine tasting and lunch.

Edna Valley Winery

Firestone's Infamous Tri-Tip Sandwich

We loved Saucelito's tasting setup!

With full bellies we headed out for the last leg of the trip and around 5 we nestled into our cozy lodge in Cambria.  We explored the sweet little town (which mostly shuts down at 5 pm!) ate a fabulous dinner at the lodge, got some famous Olallieberry pie at Linn's, and sang Karaoke!

Downtown Cambria

Tyler is in shock that I somehow got him on stage

The crowd was all senior citizens who cheered us on for an encore.  For the good of everyone involved, we didn't oblige.

The next morning we headed north a bit to see some elephant seals.  It was mating season and oh my! What a sight they were.

Sweet, sweet lovin'

We then drove south to Los Olivos where Ty surprised me with a tour of Rideau Vineyard followed by a wine tasting class.  Rideau's tasting room is in an old adobe ranch house that was redecorated in an elegant New Orleans French style.  They are known for their Rhone varietals and have a beautiful picnic area that is available for sipping and snacking.

Next we hit up Lincourt, where I tasted one of the best Chardonnays I've ever had... unfortunately it was $55 a bottle!

The last place we tasted was Firestone, where we took another (free) tour.  What a contrast this was from Rideau!  Firestone is such a large winery and thus their operation is much more expansive (and less personal, in my opinion.)  They do have a great free club membership, however, which gets you discounts at all of their sister wineries.

We ate dinner that night at Root 246 which uses all local ingredients and is a great farm-to-table option for novice foodies like us.  We passed on the wine in favor of fun cocktails.

We stayed at the Hamlet Inn which was a great, cheap option in the heart of downtown Solvang.  I would recommend earplugs if you stay there though, as it is right on the main drag.  My favorite part about this place is that they let you take their cute little beach cruisers out for free!  We took advantage of this on Saturday morning when we explored the cute little town of Solvang.  Though touristy and a bit kitschy, I love Solvang because it seems so genuine and honest.  It's not trying to be something it's not. We loved chowing down on Danish pancakes and ebelskivers and browsing the numerous quirky gift shops.

When Tyler's really happy trees sprout out of his back

Ebelskivers!

The cutest cow I ever did see

It was a fabulous weekend and such a necessary dose of relaxation.  I highly recommend visiting the central coast if you like wine.  One of the best parts about Los Olivos is that most of their tasting rooms have 2 for 1 coupons.

Thanks for reading!

Recap, Reflect, & Resolve

I know this is probably a post most people did about three weeks ago, so I apologize for being late to the 2013 game.  In all honesty it has taken a lot of energy for us to reflect back on 2012.  It was a wild, difficult, satisfying, cold, hot, whiny, cheerful kind of year.  Honestly, I don't know that I've ever experienced a year with highs quite so high or lows quite so low.  Here's a recap on just a few of the things that went down last year:

January

We rang in the new year with good friends in what might as well have been Canada.  We didn't know what time zone we were in, we didn't have TV, and the mercury dipped so low that you couldn't stand to be outside for more than a couple minutes.  But despite the cold outside, the warmth of good friendship made the trip a complete and utter success.

I also made my first trip to New York where I reconnected with old friends, made new friends, and strengthened an already-established bond.

February

We lost the family that had come to be our safe haven to Rockford, Illinois.  However, we learned that distance is a small obstacle to overcome when your ties run deep, and we made new friends with Tyler's next hosts.  We continued to endure the chilly weather, but began to see a light at the end of the tunnel.  Our close friend Matt graced the city with his presence.

We mourned the loss of a loved one, and grieved alongside a dear friend.

March

We enjoyed the first hints of warmth and for the first time ever we appreciated Spring and all the newness that comes with it.  I took Tyler to the ER for vertigo symptoms and felt the first real pangs of worry and panic for the man that would be my husband.  We experienced St. Patrick's day in Chicago which I think is pretty much equivalent to Spring Break in Cabo. 

April

My sweet former-roommates, Kaylani and Hayley, visited Chicago.  I watched Star Wars for the first time.

We watched hockey.  Kira said stuff like this:

We celebrated Tyler's birthday with new friends and I baked a plastic fork prong into a cake.  It was never found.

May

We celebrated my birthday like, four times.  I felt loved and special and way spoiled.  We snuck booze into the park.

NATO happened and it was great because I felt like a part of history.  Also because I got to go to work "dressed like a protester."

I quit my job which was a little bittersweet. (but mostly sweet)

June

We packed up and left Chicago, which was extremely bittersweet.  We spent a few days in Colorado with family, got stuck on top of the rockies, and were finally greeted in Los Angeles with dawn and palm trees.

We witnessed two of our closest friends get married.

I was showered and again felt special, loved, and way spoiled.

July

We journeyed up to Sacramento. We wedding planned. And planned. And planned. And re-did grout.

We got showered and spoiled together.

We got hitched.

We went on a fabulous vacation.

August

We watched more sweet friends tie the knot.

We moved into our new home and unpacked and stressed and celebrated small victories- like my car hitting 100,000 miles.

We started new jobs and went back and forth between rejecting and welcoming the normalcy of our new life.

September

We got a cat! I posted nothing else on instagram for weeks.

I got sick and we learned what it meant to rely fully on God for support and peace.

 October

We got to watch even more friends promise their lives to each other.

We retreated to the woods, learned about how God comforts us through community, and danced like hipsters.

November

We adopted the best dog in the whole wide world

We celebrated and ate and were thankful with close friends.
We celebrated and ate and were thankful with family.

December

We were festive all month long, and I had the best holiday season I've had since I was a little kid.

We snowboarded and ate tons of food and warmed ourselves with fireplaces and close friends and family.  I still get warm in my belly thinking of what a blessed and joyous month December was.

...What a year.

This year we resolve to eat more veggies, take more pictures with Ty's fancy camera, and read more books. What are your resolutions for 2013?