to make a long story short...

  

  

...a lot has happened in the past 3 months. now there's an outrageous understatement, here are the highlights. on august 28th jake's dad was offered a job in eugene, oregon and by the end of september they had moved away and we had moved to their farm. which is not in portland, but it is just outside of portland so my heart/sanity is still in tact. that was an awful lot of moving and major life changes crammed into 30 days. we spent the bulk of october and november recovering, getting settled in to our new lives and visiting eugene a lot. halloween and thanksgiving fit in there somewhere, they were both fun and good. that didn't sound very convincing, they were i promise! very fun and good. i suppose that catches you up, more or less.

how about a few extra photographic details? ok, let's!

(1) we packed up all of our things (2) and traded our sweet little antique apartment in the city for a sweet little farmhouse in the country with this enormous and beautiful backyard. (3&4) i've found that there's a pretty clear difference between what i wear in the city vs the farm (5&6) and now i bake. a lot. (7) in this kitchen that is too cute to be a kitchen.  

consider yourself sufficiently-ish up to date.

breakfast date with squirrels

we went to slappy cakes on belmont. it's one of our most favorite places.

each table has a built-in griddle for a make-your-own-pancake experience.

this makes us very smiley.

mimosa?? don't mind if i do!

more happy pancake smiles.

tiny pancakes are our favorite to make and to eat!

this is me, so full of zucchini pecan pancakes that i just might burst!

mmmmmmm, can't. stop. eating.

if you haven't been to slappy cakes, you must go! it's fun and delicious!!

there are loads of batter/mix-ins/toppings/syrup options (both savory & sweet) on the menu.

any fresh produce that can be is grown organically, on site in the slappy cakes garden.

they use local and regional vendors whenever possible.

and they compost all of the food waste from the kitchen.

i love this place!

Let's get fresh...

... {wink}

tonight i was treated to a screening of the film FRESH at the hollywood theater here in portland. it was wonderful. informative. inspiring. important. made me wish i had a farm of my own. 

the film is about the importance, do-ability and economic sustainability of making our food system work better for humans, animals and the planet. it focuses on solutions and possibilities, highlights farmers, innovators and thinkers across the country who are bringing positive change to the table {a little pun for ya}. it was empowering. i could be doing more, and it matters. every little bit makes a difference.

the film will be showing tomorrow evening at the hollywood theater, 7:15 and 9:30 pm, tickets are $8 and if you can go, GO! the director of the film, Ana Sofia Joanes, is attending the screenings here which is very exciting. she stuck around and answered questions after the show tonight, and i imagine she'll do the same tomorrow.

if you're not in portland {click here} to view possible screenings near you.

visit www.freshthemovie.com for loads of great information.

the girl with the red shoes...

... that's me.

i wouldn't say red is one of my staple colors, but i would say that red is a delicious way to express a wee punch of color/surprise/interest/character in unexpected places. 

all of my most favorite shoes are red. including these darlings...

they've seen better days. i bought these ruby slippers something like 5 years ago for $7.

seven. dollars.

they've kept my trotters sort of warm and kinda dry-ish but entirely happy more days than any other shoes and i don't think i could ever let them go...

... but i'd sure like a pair of the hole-less variety.

like these lovelies from smartfish handmade footwear:

oh how i want to have them (in a size 7) for my very own.

you couldn't possibly find a shoe that would suit me better than these. they are handmade using local, sustainable materials, without the use of any adhesive and they're 100% vegan. even the soles are handmade, using natural latex and sawdust hand-poured into handmade molds. and get this, the lining is made from organic bamboo which is naturally breathable, odor-absorbing and anti-bacterial.

brilliant.