really really pumpkin soup weather

it's currently 28 degrees outside. the high is 46.

i packed myself a [hopefully] leak proof tupperware full of pumkin soup in my little brown bag lunch.

today definitely calls for a scarf and jacket. unfortunately, all my scarves and jackets are buried in boxes underneath our stairs. i've got to choose between hoodies and my long wool coat...

pumpkin soup weather

today has been the first truly restful and relaxing sunday andy and i have had in weeks. it's been great.

i don't know if the (freezing) weather has anything to do with it, but all we've wanted to do all day is just stay in our pj's and hang out in our warm little apartment.

here's what we did:

-sleep in until 11 or so
-i chatted it up with my dad, who's coming tuesday for our annual fall climbing trip (maple canyon this time if the weather holds out!)
-talked to my grandma in france, who just had knee surgery that will hopefully allow her to keep hiking all over the place
-got ready for church
-got to church 20 minutes late, nothing out of the ordinary there
-enjoyed all three hours of it (a big step after bordering on inactivity for months*)
-came home
-laundry
-nap for andy
-made pumpkin soup (recipe coming soon)
-baked wheat bread (recipe coming as soon as i find a good one)
-currently sitting around reading, listening to ray lamontagne, looking at other people's photographs, and being perfectly content

you just need days like this.


*we haven't really been inactive, just traveling or being sick or only going to sacrament meeting.

tragedy

i broke another glass today.

st. george weekend

andy and i went down to st. george this weekend for general conference. we got to meet our niece arvilla for the first time, and of course i took some pictures.

another baby!

congratulations to dan and emma, who had their baby yesterday around 11 am. since i don't have any pictures of sophia, some photos of the parents will have to do (because really, who wants to see a post with no pictures).

sophia was born 9 pounds 2 ounces.

good job emma!
the niece count has now reached eight.

ps: my speedy posting of sophia's birth does not mean that i love her more than arvilla! speaking of which, i have some photos of arvilla to post today. hurrah for babies!

new shoes

i bought these shoes for a shoot yesterday. we had to do a white on white for my still life class, and this is what i came up with.

i had every intention of returning them once the shoot was completed.

i didn't need new shoes, but i decided to get them in my size, just in case.

this morning i put on a white shirt. i looked for shoes to wear and nothing seemed quite right.

until i spotted the vans bag in the corner of the room and thought to myself: hm, well, i'm sure just wearing them once would be fine, and then maybe i could still return them.

after a full day of walking campus in these babies, which resulted in some lovely scuffs and scratches, i realized

you cant return white shoes once you've worn them...

or if you really like them

summer vegetable tian

not just for the summer


so, this was my attempt at replicating an amazing dish i enjoyed in provence at my great aunt and uncle's fiftieth wedding anniversary party.
i like that it looks more like the ratatouille in the movie ratatouille than real ratatouille does (real ratatouille=mush, delicious mush)

summer vegetable tian:

-butter enough to cover the bottom of your baking dish when it melts
-garlic (1 clove-ish)
-1 zucchini
-1 yellow zucchini
-at least 4 or 5 roma tomatoes
-salt
-herbes de provence*
-olive oil

+preheat the oven to 400
+place the chopped garlic and butter in a ceramic baking dish. put them in the oven (it doesn't matter if it's done preheating yet) uncovered for about 10 minutes, or until the butter starts to bubble and the garlic cooks a litle
+meanwhile, slice the zucchini and tomatoes fairly thinly
+after removing the dish, place the veggie slices vertically in the dish, alternating colors (see photo)
+sprinkle with salt and plenty of herbs
+pour some olive oil over the tops of the veggies
+place covered in oven for 45 minutes to an hour
+uncover and cook for another 30 minutes
+serve and enjoy! it goes well with creamy pasta or rice


*if you can't find herbes de provence, a pre-made italian herb mix will work fine, or your own concoction of rosemary, marjoram, basil, bay leaf, and thyme. go heaviest on the thyme.