Just a nice relaxing evening on the beach.

Hellooooo!! My goodness, my goodness. You know guys, I really intended to have a post up earlier in the week, and it was going to be so pretty. But alas, it still sits in queue, unfinished and unpublished. So you’ll just have to wait for my autumnal musings, and a ferment-y apple recipe . . . coming soon!

For now, a wee collection of the things that have been happening, and making me smile, and filling my life with little bursts of light and love. This is a really, really crazy time for me, between grad school and business ventures, Waits starting kindergarten and all my many projects I’ve got my fingers and toes in these days. Sometimes I look around and I wonder “What am I doing?? This is madness!”

But the truth is, I like it that way. My mind is restless and I’m never content to sit idly by and watch life move on without me. I was talking with a friend last night, about this latest little business I’ve started with Jeremy (I’ll finally be posting about it next week — it’s the thing that’s been keeping me so busy these days!), and my friend and I agreed that we’re both the kind of people who take on “too much”, who tend to jump first and think later. Not in the reckless sort of way, but in the adventuresome way.

And being that kind of person means you spend a lot of time in panic mode. And it comes with a lot of lost sleep, and a lot of worry, and oh my goodness, so much juggling. But also . . . I know that I will never look back on my life and feel like I wasted my time here. Ya know? I think I’ll get to the end of my life and think “Damn, that was fun!”

At least I hope so. And I hope that for you, as well.

So cheers to the dreamers and the DOERS, the movers and the makers. And now, here’s what life has been looking like lately, in our little corner of the world:

We took Waits to Knott’s Berry Farm, a small amusement park down near Anaheim. It’s basically like Disneyland’s dejected little sibling, but we had so much fun there! It’s less crowded and less overwhelming, sweeter and weirder and easier to maneuver. Also, they just so happen to offer vegan “fair food” options at many of their restaurants and walk-ups (think chik’n fingers and pizza and veggie burgers and french fries). It was such a fun day! Some more pics from our Knott’s adventure, below:

Burgers and tenders and fries, oh my!


Gifts from the garden (they’re meant to be green – perfectly ripe and tender “Emerald Apple” tomatoes).


Home-baked healthy(er) desserts.


Beachy days . . .


. . . and date nights. (And also that blackberry margarita, mmmm)


Summer evenings in the back yard with a beautiful vegan cheese plate, featuring Miyoko’s Creamery artisan cheeses.

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And now, it’s time for the one, the only, Le Love List!

Hosting wine tastings around our coffee table. // Castelvetrano olives. // The small business owner community here in Santa Barbara. Jeremy and I have developed a whole new network of friends, and it’s so beautiful the way we all support each other. // Waking up next to Waits and seeing his smiling face. // Packing school lunches. // Beach life. // My back yard full of butterflies. // Baking with Waits. // Ethiopian popcorn. // Earthy, leathery, old world reds. // Playing chef. // Being so busy you can barely breathe, and that feeling of working so hard, just so hard – do you guys know the feeling I mean? That mixture of ache, exhaustion, and satisfaction. The kind of bone tired that brings pride, and in turn that pride brings another wave of energy so you can keep pushing. That’s where I’ve been this week, and it’s one of my very favorite places . . . to visit. ;-) //

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Alright guys, now it’s your turn! Please leave your own Le Love Lists in the comments below, so all of us can read what’s been making you happy, peek into your life, and share the joy!

And as always, I hope you have a spectacular weekend!

♥