making bagels.

I've made bagels once before, so I kind of knew what I was doing this round. I can't remember which recipe I used the first time I made them, so I consulted my "How to Cook Everything" cookbook by Mark Bittman and sure enough, he had a recipe. I'm not super in love with how they turned out, but they are still good! I think I should have let them rise 12 hours instead of only 2. I'm sure they would have been more flavorful. Also, this time I made a cinnamon, sugar topping (1/4 c. brown sugar, 1/4 c. white and 2 tsp. cinnamon), which is probably quite bad for you and also a bit messy! But they were really yummy with the added sugar. Next time I'm going to try making cinnamon raisin bagels. I also don't have a food processor, so I just mixed and kneaded the dough by hand. Hope some of you give bagel making a try! It's quite a bit of fun, especially forming the bagels (which I obviously haven't quite mastered yet)!

More pictures from this set found on my flickr.

By the way, if you don't have Mark Bittman's cookbook, I found his bagel recipe here.

corners of my home.

We aren't completely situated here yet, but we are working on it! A few little corners of the house, though not perfect by any means. It's good for now. Hope you all are enjoying this autumn day. xo

october days

This weekend went by much too fast! My mom and sister's visit was so much fun! We celebrated birthdays, ate apple pie, went to a fancy restaurant and had too much good food, went shopping, watched old movies, played with makeup and hair... We always have a good time when we get together. Now it is a new month and the leaves around here are slowly starting to change color. Speaking of a new month, Shanna Murray contacted me about doing another photo collaboration and I jumped at the chance! The photograph I took was on a recent trip to the apple orchard. We found this lovely bit of land with a field of yellow flowers and a road leading into the wood. I think I could sit there for hours eating the apples I just picked and reading a good book. Thank you Shanna for this opportunity to work with you again!

baking cookies

Sometimes all you need is a good batch of cookies. Recipe from Donna Hay's "Off The Shelf: Cooking From the Pantry."

This weekend my mom and sister are coming up to celebrate their birthdays! I cannot wait for them to get here! Think I'll go bake an apple pie. Hope everyone has a wonderful fall weekend!

saying goodbye to south amana

Summer went by in a breeze it seems. I feel like I crammed a whole year in three months! Autumn is already upon us and we are busy getting settled in our new home. Saying goodbye to South Amana was bittersweet. I was ready to move on, but it was hard leaving the few friends I made there. I used to walk to the post office almost every day and there I met the post "mistress" Jan who would chat with me about wedding prep (her daughter was getting married too) and all sorts of things. She was the best! I also later met Dorothy, who is in her nineties. She and Jan went on walks together every day on Jan's break. I would see them pass by my church while they were on their walks. I didn't get to know Dorothy until a few months before moving, but she is the sweetest lady I've ever met! She said she would cry every time she walked by our empty house. Dorothy is one of those people I wish I could be around all the time. I bet she has a lot of wonderful stories to tell. When I told her about our moving to Chicago she looked a bit worried and said, "Oh be careful! That's a dangerous place!" I think she lived and grew up in Amana her whole life so I can understand her feeling that way. And she gave me good marriage advice as well. She said "Never fight! There are times when I was about ready to hit him, but thank goodness he left the room before I could!" When she said goodbye for the last time she had tears in her eyes, as if she had known me for a long time. It made me feel special and I wished I had gotten to know her better. Those are memories I will keep with me throughout my life.

california wedding.

I know this one is past overdue, but better late than never right? Back in August Jed and I took a flight out to L.A. for my brother's wedding. At first I was a little hesitant about California, never have been there myself before. But it turned out to be beautiful and really a lovely place! Jed and I really liked it. And as cliché as this sounds, the weather was fantastic!! If you live in the Midwest, you know what a big difference there is, especially where humidity is concerned!

The actual wedding took place at Pepperdine University in Malibu. Wow. What a gorgeous place! The wedding ceremony was small, really sweet and lovely. And after the wedding we all went down the the reception area in the park. Beautiful view! The sun was shining and the weather was just right. Only one problem... I forgot to put on sunscreen and it didn't even occur to me how detrimental that would be! Little did I know I'd get fried that afternoon and come down with a mild fever that evening. Oh, well. You live and learn! I'm hoping I've learned my lesson.

The next day Jed and I decided to drive out to Santa Barbara. I was still feeling a little under the weather, but I was determined to enjoy the rest of the trip! We loved it there! Everything was more peaceful and beautiful. We spent the day walking around and sitting under palm trees in the park. On our way back we stopped by a small, almost deserted beach. I really wanted to swim, but with that sunburn it was not happening! The water was a bit too cold anyway, so we just splashed around. The sea air is so different from what I'm used to! I loved it!

Since visiting California, I've changed my mind and decided I really do like it there. Only I think our next trip will have to include some redwoods.

The fifth picture from the top (my brother and the bride) by John Allen. Take a look at more of his photos here.

our honeymoon.

Everything got so busy this summer that I barely had time to write about our honeymoon in PEI! It was absolutely a dream! We both adored Prince Edward Island. It was not your typical beach honeymoon. The weather was a bit chilly, like the first of spring when we arrived, so no cute little summer dresses or swimsuits. But that turned out to be just fine. Except that I always pack the wrong things because silly me never checks the weather before packing. That's alright! We found a department store with cute clothes called Joe Fresh, similar to Target and cheap. I was able to buy a few things to keep me a little warmer and it's always fun to have an excuse to buy more clothes!

We stayed in two lovely little cottages while we were there. The first one was in Chelton on the south side of the island. We could see the ocean from our backyard! It was so cozy and perfect there. The first couple of days were rainy and cold, but it didn't last long and the sun came out soon enough. The next week we moved to North Rustico, which was closer to Green Gables. We found a great little coffee shop in Charlottetown with internet access! We didn't realize most places wouldn't have internet (duh!) but that was OK by us! It's nice to take a break from the internet, especially on your honeymoon! We loved driving around the coast and stopping at interesting places. We found the most gorgeous church at one stop. The doors were open so we walked right in. Breathtakingly beautiful. You could walk down by the water and sit on the rocks. It was so peaceful. An ideal spot for a church!

By far our favorite place was Green Gables. It was quaint and everything I had imagined. Jed especially loved the little haunted forest. We can see why L.M. Montgomery would go into the forest often. The house was perfect and we went around picking out our favorite rooms. My favorite was a little bedroom with pretty flowered wallpaper. It was bright and cozy. I think I would have loved to have this room growing up. We also loved the little garden. Someday I'm planting one just like the one at Green Gables. It was the perfect day. I could live that day over and over.

Someday I hope we can return to our little honeymoon spot in Prince Edward Island. Perhaps even stay in the same little cottages. If you ever get the opportunity, do go and visit! And don't forget to see Anne's Green Gables!