Whenever I watch You've Got Mail, I find myself swooning at Kathleen's life (Meg Ryan's character) - walking the quaint city streets in every season, working at a bookstore, shopping at a farmer's market, and looking so adorable in skirts and cardigans. There are scenes from other movies too where I think, "wow, what a picturesque life". But I do realize they are just that - movies.
The everyday reality is that life just isn't as picturesque as we'd all prefer. Through good photography (or maybe just selective photography) we get good at making our lives look like movies but if we're honest, we know the reality is a far cry.
But on very certain occasions, I stop and think how my life is resembling the most perfect movie...
Saturday late afternoon we headed to Fresh Market (and we all know Fresh Market is a great way to make any foodie happy). We leisurely strolled around the store while sipping hot beverage samples - Devin with Peppermint coffee and I with hot apple cider. We held hands, we talked about food preferences, we drank in the rich smells that floated around us, and mused over various ideas for the dinner we would make later. We stood at the meat counter for several minutes before opting for stuffed garlic and herb chicken. We cringed at the price of the smoked gouda cheese, but consoled ourselves with the fact we were mostly using a gift card (thanks Tami!).
We drove home through the heart of the city just as the day light was leaving and chatted about the breakfast restaurant our town desperately needs and if we could ever pull something like that off. We pulled into our neighborhood just as the street lamps were turning on and made our way through the maze of leaves piled on the various curbs.
Our house with it's rich wood floors was cozy and inviting. I chopped up salad ingredients while the chicken in the oven filled the house with a delicious warmth. Devin sat in the other room playing classic love songs on the piano and I smiled to myself as I thought about how much I loved our life and how on this chilly Fall eve, my life felt like the best movie I'd ever seen.
And then my pessimistic nature kicked in wondering when the other shoe would drop... :)
I must share this salad recipe. It's simply THE BEST salad I've eaten all year...no exaggeration.
I adapted it from this recipe...
Cook roughly one half to one cup of quinoa (depending on how you want your spinach to quinoa ratio - I used a little over a half cup). Finely chop 4 cups of spinach. Chop up one medium apple (I used a Fuji) and half a cucumber. Combine all these things and toss in a handful of dried cherries or craisins.
Dressing:
- 2 Tbsp tahini
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp red wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice (or half that amount if you're not using fresh)
Mix dressing ingredients well and toss in salad until coated evening. I would only make what you'll eat in one setting because it would not be good leftover.
Hope you all had as good of a weekend as we did!
The everyday reality is that life just isn't as picturesque as we'd all prefer. Through good photography (or maybe just selective photography) we get good at making our lives look like movies but if we're honest, we know the reality is a far cry.
But on very certain occasions, I stop and think how my life is resembling the most perfect movie...
Saturday late afternoon we headed to Fresh Market (and we all know Fresh Market is a great way to make any foodie happy). We leisurely strolled around the store while sipping hot beverage samples - Devin with Peppermint coffee and I with hot apple cider. We held hands, we talked about food preferences, we drank in the rich smells that floated around us, and mused over various ideas for the dinner we would make later. We stood at the meat counter for several minutes before opting for stuffed garlic and herb chicken. We cringed at the price of the smoked gouda cheese, but consoled ourselves with the fact we were mostly using a gift card (thanks Tami!).
We drove home through the heart of the city just as the day light was leaving and chatted about the breakfast restaurant our town desperately needs and if we could ever pull something like that off. We pulled into our neighborhood just as the street lamps were turning on and made our way through the maze of leaves piled on the various curbs.
Our house with it's rich wood floors was cozy and inviting. I chopped up salad ingredients while the chicken in the oven filled the house with a delicious warmth. Devin sat in the other room playing classic love songs on the piano and I smiled to myself as I thought about how much I loved our life and how on this chilly Fall eve, my life felt like the best movie I'd ever seen.
And then my pessimistic nature kicked in wondering when the other shoe would drop... :)
 |
| Crusty french baguette with smoked gouda that was totally worth the price. :) |
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| Fall spinach/quinoa salad and garlic herb chicken |
I adapted it from this recipe...
Cook roughly one half to one cup of quinoa (depending on how you want your spinach to quinoa ratio - I used a little over a half cup). Finely chop 4 cups of spinach. Chop up one medium apple (I used a Fuji) and half a cucumber. Combine all these things and toss in a handful of dried cherries or craisins.
Dressing:
- 2 Tbsp tahini
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp red wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice (or half that amount if you're not using fresh)
Mix dressing ingredients well and toss in salad until coated evening. I would only make what you'll eat in one setting because it would not be good leftover.
Hope you all had as good of a weekend as we did!
10 comments:
Yay! I was hoping for a Monday morning post! :) And it does sound/read like a movie, especially the descriptive part about you chopping the salad and smiling listening to the music...I can totally see that scene. Sometimes I imagine my life in a movie scene too...I don't think the shoe has to drop; the less-than-picturesque parts make the plot good and juicy, and bring about resolution in the end.
Wow, I need to stop and look at life the way you do. Sounds like a wonderful time with the hubby!
aw, that's really sweet. love your descriptions. :)
Pulled me right in...I could smell the leaves and cheese. ;) LOVE Fresh Market...only been a few times but it's so pretty to walk around in there.
An
Love the post, and Betsy's comment :) I'm gonna use this recipe! I'm sick of trying out hummus recipes, but I have 1/2 a jar of tahini left- can't wait to try the salad!
so fun.
and i spent years in the beginning of our marraige thinking the other shoe was going to drop. (really kind of mourning the thought half the time. isn't that ridiculous?!) but here we are 14 years in and it's still wonderful. :)
Adorable. That smoked gouda sounds amazing right now for some reason.
SO cute Em! I loved the way you story told this post! Fun! You guys are way too cute! :) I love the street lights on your street too!
So fun, Em! You've Got Mail is one of my all-time favorites :)
Aw I loved this post!! :)
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