Iceland?

Do you remember 5 years ago, when New Zealand was the destination in which everyone wanted to go. You know, right after the move Lord of the Rings had been released. Well, I am beginning to think that Iceland is the new New Zealand. Everywhere I turn I am seeing pictures of Iceland, hearing music from Iceland. And I can see why everyone is infatuated by it. Here are a few of the amazing things that I have found that have come from that Northern Country.

I just got the new October issue of Antropologie.
The whole issue was photoed in Iceland and has a very magical feel.

This is an album I recently found.
Their name is Parachutes.
They are from Iceland.
They sound amazing.
And they are touring with Sigur Ros.
You can check out their song "Your Stories" here,
and even download it for free.


Speaking of Sigur Ros, if you have not heard their song Fljótavík,
you must listen to it.
They are Icelandic too.

Breakfast at dawn

Micah and I woke up yesterday and had breakfast together, something that we are trying to do more and more. There is just something so calming about watching the sun rise while quietly eating breakfast.



Banana Crunch Muffins

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 extra-large eggs
3/4 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 bananas)
1 cup medium-diced ripe bananas (1 banana)
1 cup small-diced walnuts
1 cup granola
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line 18 large muffin cups with paper liners. Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the melted butter and blend. Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas, and add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Scrape the bowl and blend well. Don't overmix.

Fold the diced bananas, walnuts, granola, and coconut into the batter. Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling each 1 to the top. Top each muffin with dried banana chips, granola, or coconut, if desired. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly, remove from the pan, and serve.

Unexpected Gifts

I love unexpected gifts. The kind where you go to get your daily mail and find a surprise package waiting for you. This is what I found today....


A few weeks ago I found the website: boygirlparty.com and fell in love with just about everything. I mentioned it to Micah and said: "If you ever want to buy me something you can buy me anything from this store....especially these!" Three weeks later they are now displayed proudly on my refrigerator.


Thank you Micah.....I love you.

I should be working...

but I am too busy looking at these.

They are from Su Blackwell and if you have never seen her work before
you can check it out here.


After looking at Su, I got lost in the blog Porter Polaroid Project.

I can't believe that this tub was just sitting in an alley in NY when it should be in my home.

Lavender Fields!

From the garden

When Micah and I moved into our new home we decided to plant a garden. We planted tomatoes, corn, string beans, onions, broccoli, shallots, spinach, zucchini. Finally, five months later and countless run-ins with hungry deer who unashamedly ate anything and everything they came across, I now can show you the "fruit of our labor". I am very proud of ourselves.



And here is a side dish recipe that I cook tonight using these two items (shallot & tomato).



Hearty Rice Pilaf

What you need:
4 Tbsp butter
1 lb small red potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 shallot, cut into pieces
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 cup diced mushrooms
3 c chicken stalk
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1-1/2 c brown rice
1/4 c grated Parmesan, optional

What you do:
1. In large skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter. Cook potato slices, shallots, mushrooms, celery and carrots, stirring frequently until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
2. Add water, salt, pepper, and bouillon. Heat to boiling. Add rice. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 35 minutes or until rice and vegetables are tender and all liquid is absorbed. Stir once, midway through cooking.
**I added sliced tomatoes at the end to eat with it.

Toast

I just received the new Toast catalog!

Here are a few images that I absolutely love.

I can't tell you how badly I need this robe.


I have a rod-iron bed.
But the sheets and comforter are getting pretty old.
I love the mixing and matching between the stripes and the floral .

A ceramic tub. Need I say more.



But I have not received the catalog with these favorite things? I wonder why?


This picture gets me excited for the fall.
I love to bundle as many layers of clothing as I can.


And this outfit is pretty much amazing.


This one too.


Right now my favorite thing of this falls fashion is thick colored tights. I already have one in cream and one in gray.

Photography

I can't tell you how much I love Polaroid photography.
I only wish I had a Polaroid camera.

Until then, you can view these beautiful pictures from the blog:
Nectar and Light.

On Repeat

I blogged about Sigur Rós before and how amazing their song "Saeglopur" is. But I now own their new album......

"Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust"

And I absolutely love it. Go check out their song "Gobbledigook".
It will put a smile on your face and brighten your day.

Since we are on the subject...

here is some vintage jewelry that is so beautiful. I found it on Etsy and the sellers name is serendipity2wenty2.

Fall Anthropologie

If you have not already been exposed to the new
fall line from Anthropologie,
you must go view it right now online.
It is pretty much a wonderland of beauty.
And sometimes I think it is best for me to live
in a place where the closest store is
8 hours away.

Saeglopur

This is the type of song that make me want to lay on the grass and watch the clouds go by.....and I can't get enough of it. You can listen to it here.

Dining like Human Beings

It has been just over 2 years that Micah and I have been eating our meals on a small pub table that barley held one dinner plate. So on our drive back from Seattle this weekend we decided to stop in one of our favorite stores, Cost Plus. We were not really looking for a dining table specifically, we were more browsing down the aisles. But only after being in the store 5 minutes we found this table...and it was 50% off! How could be beat that deal and price.


So here is our new addition to our home. And finally we get to eat comfortably.















These are one of my favorite things in my home. I had my eye on them for months. And finally stopped wishing for them and spent the $4.50 to make them my own.

Part 3

On Saturday Micah and I spent the morning in downtown Seattle.
There are so many reason why I love this place.

1. I love the open market. Yes, it is very crowded. Yes, it is full of tourists (including me). But there is just something about it. Something that make me think "I could go here everyday".

2. I could go there every day to buy fresh veggies and fruit to cook with.

3. And have a bouquet of flowers daily. Dahlias are one of my recent favorites.

4. Pasta for sale. And about any flavor pasta you could think of. I bought roasted garlic pasta.

5. And the freshest seafood.

Part 2

A sunset Sail in the San Juan Islands.

Thanks to Jon and the Johnson's.

Part 1

Day one...

A trip to Bellingham, WA to visit Jon.

We could not go there without visiting the boat dock. There were so many beautiful Sailboats in the harbor.




Barnacles and shells lived everywhere. They looked like jewels decorating the harbor. I remember being a kid and hating when you had to step on them when you visited the tide pools. Listing and feeling them crunch under your feet. Luckily these were living on the posts and not the ground.





Then we hiked to a beach where we found this neat train tunnel. Which proved to be a wonderful spot to picture.





The beach was quite unwalkable though. I am guessing not too many people visit this beach because the sand it so mushy that once you put your weight down on it your feet sink about a foot deep into mud and sand. I unfortunately had to find out the hard way...





... and I have the stains to prove it



















There was a beautiful view of the San Juan Islands.







The only way to get back to our car was to climb the steep pictured here, making our own trail as we went.






It was such a fun day.