Where have I been? I've been missing this space. But what a wonderful holiday break it was! I have been so rejuvenated over this past month. Time with family, girls nights with friends that had me laughing my head off, a full night's sleep or two, exercise. I even took (almost) an entire week off from looking at my laptop - how refreshing! And now it's officially 2017. But before this blog moves into the New Year, I have to quickly recap Rowen's first Christmas with a quick photo dump, because ohhhh it was so special. These photos are blurry and dark and quite imperfect, but they capture the love and joy (and cuteness) of Rowen's holiday in Massachusetts! 

Last minute gift ideas for the stay-at-home shopper

Okay, this month has been crazy. I'm sure I'm not alone right now in my last-minute gift buying flurry. Right? For those of you who have all of your gifts purchased and wrapped up all pretty under the tree, I bow to you!

For those of you who are with me in the last minute scramble to get something thoughtful and meaningful, I'll let you in on my three tips for last minute gift buying:

1. Gift certificates. These can be meaningful and personal, if you do it right. I'm all about experiences over things (especially now that we're in a tiny house!) so I know that I for one would be pumped to receive a gift certificate to a good restaurant, a favorite coffeehouse, a spa or yoga studio nearby, or any fun local experience. If you don't have time to grab it before you gift it, spruce up a card with a picture/description of what you're gifting and tell them "it's in the mail!" - everyone's happy.

2. A subscription of some sort. This was my method last year! These days you can get a monthly subscription to just about anything - meals, beauty products, stationery, bacon, beer, music - you name it.

3. And finally, hello Amazon 2-day shipping! Now, I'm a strong advocate of buying local and enjoying the shopping experience and I think/hope that most of us try that first, but if you're getting down to the wire here and have a few things to do over the next couple of days besides stand in lines and hunt for parking spaces, here are some ideas of what you can buy from the comfort of your home.

(by the way, this post is not sponsored by Amazon in any way, I just love Amazon Prime that much.)

1. corkcicle hot and cold canteen 2. Winston Churchill coffee table book 3. leatherman multitool 4. classy shoes 5. fun party game 6. moscow mule mugs 7. outback hat 8. humans of new york stories 9. assorted gourmet chocolate bars 10. camp hammock 11. handsome valet and charging station

1. le creuset dutch oven 2. sugar lip treatment 3. Scotch and Soda Sweatshirt 4. diptyque candle 5. concert ukulele 6. big magic 7. fancy shampoo 8. grown-up coloring book 9. prismacolor art markers 10. a house plant 11. aroma diffuser

By the way, every time you shop on Amazon you can support a nonprofit of your choice. Just go to smile.amazon.com and select which school or charity of your choice will receive a percentage of your purchase.

Now, 2-day shipping will only get you so far.... we better get shopping!

Gift Guide :: Last Minute!

1. Plated // 2. Birchbox // 3. Popsugar Must Have // 4. Kiwi Crate // 

5. Citrus Lane // 6. Love With Food  // 7. Bark Box  // 8. Spice Panda //

9. Mantry // 10. ABM Happy Mail // 11. Bespoke Post

TGIF my friends! I'm feeling very merry today. Feeling ready for the weekend. Ready to jam out to some Christmas tunes, wrap some gifts, pack some bags and head on over to chilly New England. I hope you're feeling merry, too!

If last minute gift shopping is the last thing stressing you out, before an enjoyable holiday, well then rest easy - I have your solution. The answer to a last minute gifting dilemma is.....subscriptions!

Why?

a) it's the gift that keeps on giving
b) it's ready almost instantaneously (no strip mall shopping or 3 day shipping required)
c) you can make it fit your price range (gift a month, or 6, or 12)
d) there is something for everyone!

Food, books, beauty products, stationery, puppy snacks, baby toys, exotic spices, tea, crafts - you can have literally anything delivered monthly to your (or your lucky giftee's) doorstep. I already mentioned a couple of subscriptions in my manly gift guide (the monthly coffee seems amazing to me), but I've provided some of my other favorites for you here.

I also think these are good for that person you know who already seems to have everything - they need an experience.

My favorite? ABM's new Happy Mail service - wouldn't you just love to have a collection of adorable cards and notepads at your disposal? And Mantry is supposedly for men but those snack boxes look verrrry shareable :). Which one would you gift?

Have a jolly weekend everyone!

Gift Guide :: My Man

1. Filson shirt // 2. Mantry subscription // 3. USA made duffel // 4. cocktail guidebook // 

5. GoPro // 6. Hippy Tree t-shirt // 7. box drum // 8. Bushcraft tactical knife // 9. inflatable camp pillows // 10. book about the future of humanity // 11. good coffee, monthly // 

12. sushi and more sushi // 13. whiskey soaked jerky ('cause why not)

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I've been MIA, I know. And it's been kind of nice! But let's see... what is there to report... I've been working, traveling, and watching The Walking Dead. Thanksgiving was delightful. I ate my way through Portland last weekend and have fantastic plans for the holidays. My 'hood is expecting crazy rain today, so much so that the school I work at was canceled, to which the New Englander in me says "pshawwww, you silly gooses, it's just a little WATER", but to which the rational part of me says "Sweet, I'll take it!".  I haven't felt up for working on the 'log lately, partly because I already spend so much time on the computer screen at work, and partly because I have so many things I want to blog about that sometimes it's kind of overwhelming and I just don't know where to start. But I'm feeling a rekindling of blog-love over here. It must be the holidays or something - it brings it out of me! Hopefully we'll see more of each other soon.

So now down to business. Jimmy and I are keeping it light on the gifting this year, mostly because we're putting our dollars towards some 2015 travel, but also because we have birthdays this year that we're saving our energy for (it's a big one for both of us...that rhymes with hurty...eek!). But I couldn't help but pull together a bunch of gifts that I know that he and any other adventure/flavor/music/USA-made loving men would enjoy. Would the man in your life like this stuff?

Happy rain-day everyone! 

Thankful

Today I'm thankful for so many things. For everything, really. But a few things come especially to mind:

+ a family that let me grow up feeling oh so loved and supported

+ holiday traditions

+ a home away from home in beautiful Tahoe and the amazing friends that host us here

+ California, and all of the adventure that's constantly at my fingertips

+ friends that are like a second family to me

+ New England and all it's beauty

+ an inspiring and supportive job that has given me incredible growth opportunities

+ Jim, Jim, and Jim again. His values, his hardworking and adventurous spirit, and the way he makes me crack up constantly

+ a beautiful ski season on the horizon (**snow dance**)

+ an upcoming New Year already filled with exciting travel plans

+ the mountains, trees, oceans and stars

+ Champagne, stuffing, cheese and pie 

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend, friends! Check out my Thanksgiving playlist if you're in the mood for some nostalgic, grateful, happy jams :).

Getaway Weekend :: Truckee for the 4th

It's hard to come back from a weekend like this. I already miss the life of lazy coffee mornings and exercise that feels like play and wearing the same outfit for 3 days straight and sunshine and beach games and fresh air and big laughter.

We visited our bests up in Truckee for the long weekend, spending time on all sorts of lakes. We stayed away from the big lake (Tahoe) in favor of lakes Donner, Serene, and Independence. We paddled, boated, swam and soaked in the sun. I realized that I love beach volleyball and can manage to stay on a paddle board.  We made fancy cocktails and not-fancy (but yummy) BBQ fare. I finished my book. We found secret spots with free boat rentals and rope swings. I bought a cute dress for Kauai and the comfiest shirt ever. Jim and I celebrated an anniversary.  It was the summeriest of summer weekends. 

Hope you're all recovering better than I am from your long weekends - cheers to July! 

Getaway Weekend :: Lost Coast Backpacking

We had an amazing Memorial Day weekend up on the Lost Coast with Steph & Tyler and the pup. We started at Usal Beach (Sinkyone Wilderness Park) and hiked in about 5 miles to the most adorable little campsite in the world (called Dark Gulch).  There was a clear, cold stream running through it, so with the help of our trusty purifier we had endless fresh water. There were separate little areas for tents, fire and sitting (everything having it's place feels so darn homey). We skipped over a "bridge" of rocks to cross back and forth across the stream, hung our food from a tree (though that's not the recommended mode of bear protection!), and cooked over a tiny flame.

We spent our second night camping right on Usal Beach. There's nothing better than waking up in the middle of the night to let the dog do some business, and hearing the dark ocean crashing beside you and seeing the Milky Way in full force above. Our neighbors on the beach invited us to share their (larger) fire, and we discussed the glory of Route 1 and the happy ability Sinkyone offers to pop up camp without much planning or forethought whatsoever. We fell asleep to puppy snuggles and a crackling fire dying down outside the tent. 

Monday was about taking the long way home (per usual), stopping in Mendocino for brunch and our favorite wineries for "dinner", and rolling into the bed with the exhaustion of a thousand lives. Thanks, Lost Coast - each time is better than the last.