Ava's Rule

 

Winter may be approaching here in the states, but summer is on its way in Australia, which has prompted Ava's mom, Sheye, to create a postcard called "Ava's Rule"--a reminder to be vigilant of your children and teach them not to enter a car alone.  Please share this with anyone you know who has small children.  Click on the postcard to view it larger.  And you can read Sheye's blog post about Ava's Rule here. 

My Favorite Soup

I'm not sure that this is my tippy-top favorite soup, but it's easily in the top 5.  I love, love, LOVE this soup!  I'm not totally sure where the recipe is from.  Andrew thinks it's one of Deborah Madison's recipes, but I couldn't find it in the one Deborah Madison cookbook we have.  Andrew's been making this soup for years now and no longer needs to look at the recipe.  Every time I make it, though, I have to ask him to go over it again just to be sure I don't leave anything out.  Even though we started dating in the summer, for some reason this soup sticks in my mind as one of the first things he cooked for me, but I think that has more to do with how much I love the soup than when he actually first made it because I know he wouldn't have made hot soup during an Atlanta summer.  In any case, it's perfect for fall.  And it is . . . butternut squash lentil stew.  This recipe is Andrew's rough version of it, so keep that in mind and feel to tweak it.

Everything you'll need:
3 tbsp olive oil
2 jalapenos
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder or paprika
1 medium butternut squash
1 can diced tomatoes (15 oz can)
1 cup lentils
2 cups kale
4 cups chicken stock
Crème fraîche or sour cream
(This makes a pretty big pot of soup.)

Heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add diced onion, garlic, and jalapenos (seed the jalapenos first).  Gently sweat those together for about 7 minutes.  Add the cumin and chili powder.  Stir and let those cook together for about another minute.  While that's cooking a bit, peel the butternut squash and chop off the bulbous end where the seeds are and compost it (or save it for something else).  Cut the butternut squash into bite size cubes (this requires a pretty good, big knife).  Add 4 cups of chicken stock to the onion mix in the pot (we use Better Than Boullion and really like it).  Add the can of tomatoes.  Add the one cup of rinsed and drained lentils (we usually buy the little green ones).  Stir that up and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.  When the lentils are just a bit tender, add the butternut squash cubes.  Cook for about another 20 minutes.  Once the squash is tender, add the chopped kale towards the end and just let it cook for another few minutes.  We like the kale tender but not mushy.  Along the way if you feel like it's too thick, just add more chicken stock or water, depending on the flavor--if it needs more salt, add chicken stock; if it has enough salty flavor, add some water. Add a dollop of crème fraîche, or sour cream, and that's it!  It is sooooo good.  The jalapenos and the chili powder give it a great kick. 

Behida's Hats

This may be reason number bazillion that I love etsy: Behida's hats.  Handmade.  One of a kind.  Beautiful.

Meow!

Wishing you a spooky, fun, and safe Halloween!

Come On In

Welcome to our little bedroom. Warm colors; late afternoon light. It's cozy in here. Right now it is anyway, thanks in large part to this wool blanket I bought recently at a local antique shop. I love the colors--yellow, orange, red, dark green, and navy blue. It warms our room right up and looks perfect for fall.


And this is a bedspread I've had for years that also looks nice and fall-ish. I use it all year, but it looks especially fitting now. I think my mom gave it to me.


There's Mr. Hoots peeking up from the bed (another great repurposed sweater treasure from Lorigami). And here's the shutter headboard that I'm, well, bored with. But it actually looks good with the other things in our room right now. And hanging on the shutters is this very interesting, worn out, folk art kitty. I found it at the flea market the weekend before last and loved it. When I saw the heart in its chest and the fish in its belly, I laughed and thought it was so cute. There's also a bird on its back. It was $8. At first I sort of thought I was crazy for buying it. It doesn't have the same look or feel that I'm normally drawn to, but I love it. I asked myself if John Derian would buy it. I love his flea market style. I thought maybe he would like it. Oh, yes, and Andrew likes it too. $8 well spent. Maybe. Mr. Kitty is quite worn out.

I love the embroidered pillowcases on our bed. Lisa gave them to me when she found out I was preggers. They have three little lambs jumping over a fence. Momma, daddy, and baby.

And this is the little corner of our room that I see from the bed. A few of my favorite things: a very sweet framed note, an "L" that Lauren gave me, a silhouette of a little girl that I bought in a thrift store in Zurich, a very small family photo, and a black and white photo that I've always liked.

Our lady head vase holding my wedding bouquet, which is quite dry and crisp after 6 years.

My favorite plant stand. I had to avoid the top or else you would have seen the saddest half-dead plant ever. I keep trying to revive it, but I think it's just time for a new plant. Looks like that glass could use some windex!

One of my favorite pictures of Lois, her 3 month birthday picture, beside the bed.

More family pictures. That's my mom there in the little picture (a very old picture, one that she thinks is silly that I have framed), and a picture of my nephew, Cash. Andrew's side of the bed still looks a little bit like this (except now he has a collection of glass telephone insulators along with his other things).

An old box for holding jewelry.

Mr. Hoots on the orange velvet chair. I wanted to have this chair reupholstered, and still do, but right now, it looks good in its burnt orange glow.

This wire card display is next to my bed. I keep all of my cards and like to read them every now and then.

This soldier stands guard and protects me while I sleep. I had to take his sword away though because it was dangerous. (Really, though, it just fell out and I was afraid Lois will get a hold of it, so I put it away.) I love this lamp. I've had it for a long time, at least 10 years or so, and it's always been in my room. I don't remember buying it, so that likely means my mom gave it to me. The lampshade is painted black, which is why it looks streaked.

A pedestal bowl of seashells under the window. I should probably switch them out for something more fall-ish, but they still look pretty.

And one of my recent little pillows. This one I'm keeping. I think I'll add a door and some smoke (buttons) to the chimney like I did with the other one. Home sweet home.

Hope you enjoyed the tiny tour. Our room looks better to me in pieces than it does as a whole, so it's still not quite where I want it to be, but at least I like being in there right now. Maybe one day it will feel just right.