And so I begin again…

The last real blog post I wrote was September 28, almost two months ago.  So why haven’t I written?  What stopped me?  I’ve been pondering this for a few days, realizing that I’ve had the urge to write and it’s time to begin again. 

I took a lot of photos over the past couple of months, always saying that I couldn’t wait to blog about whatever it was that was happening, like the Avocado festival and my trip to Colorado to see my family.  And it’s true that I’ve had the best intentions of blogging.  I just didn’t.  What really made me stop was when I realized I had double-booked myself on two things that were very important to me.

One thing was attending this year’s Foodbuzz Blogger Festival.  I wrote it on my calendar and was excited to make the drive up to San Francisco to meet all my fellow food bloggers, including many people I admire and including the people who inspired me to run…people who have changed my life and I have never even met them.

However, I then bought a ticket for my mom to come out and visit me, something that I was also really looking forward to, the same weekend of the festival.  I guess I just didn’t look at the calendar.  I assumed nothing was going on.

When I realized it, I was somewhat heartbroken, but I shrugged it off my shoulders and told myself it wasn’t meant to be.

With that shrug I guess I also shrugged off my inspiration to blog. 

I think for awhile I compared my blog to other blogs.  On days when my blog was my focus, I fixated on getting my own domain name, making my blog look more appealing, getting more readers, etc.  When I realized I wasn’t going to the festival, I guess I kind of felt like – and I know this sounds silly – but I felt like I wasn’t a real food blogger. 

Despite my lack of inspiration to write again, my passion for creative writing has crept up on me again.  More than “being a food blogger”, I want to write again.  I want my blog to be a true reflection of who I am.  I want to get back to the real reasons I started Delicious Wellness…to blogging about WELLNESS…physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.  To cultivate happiness and share it with the world.

Right now, I am wiping the slate clean of all expectations that I have for this blog.  Unless I choose to, I don’t have to blog three times a day, actively try to get readers, or change anything about the blog.  There are no requirements.  The only requirement is for me to be true to myself. 

Are you ready?  I am.

With that being said,

Where the heck have I been?

Well, my friends, I have been great places.  I have eaten many a delicious food. I’ve gone on many a run, including running 7, 8, 9 miles for the first time in my LIFE!!! Here are some of the snapshots of my life…

For our game night party, I made Jenna’s Buttermilk Chocolate Cupcakes, which are pretty darn gourmet and also amazingly delicious.  I don’t think I’ve ever had frosting that was so light.  It was so light and fluffy it was almost as if you weren’t eating it at all.  But you were, yes you were.

 

And because we had buttermilk left, Kevin felt the urge to make buttermilk biscuits (we also had buttermilk pancakes at some point – gotta use up the fridge!)…

I made Angela’s Gingerbread Pumpkin Vegan Overnight Oat Parfait, and yes, it was amazingly delicious.  Dessert for breakfast?  Yes please.

Homemade pizza was had, with an egg on top.  Yummylish!

BLUEberry pancakes…

Lots of egg sandwiches, upon discovering the fantastic taste of eggs from the Farmer’s Market.  Will never buy eggs at the store again.

And then, one of my favorite events of the year, The Avocado Festival!!!

We perused all the little shops, and I bought a flattened wine bottle called “The Middle Sister”.  I had to because I AM THE MIDDLE SISTER!! 

 

We also bought a few of the famous Calibowls!  They work SO well for salsa and dips, and even oatmeal!

 

Despite an overcast day, the Avocado Festival was swimming with people. 

I was happy to see this…

 

We ate award-winning guacamole…

Posed cheesily with the giant avocado…

And wrapped our hands around the biggest avocado of the year!  It was heavy…

There was kids’ artwork of avocados…

And a display of every type of avocado grown in California…all delightfully delicious…

And to top it all off, avocado ice cream.  Can you taste the avocado?  Yes!  In a good way. 

Over the last two months, I went on many long runs, including running nine miles for the first time EVER!  Here I am pre-run, decked out and pumped up.

 

With my beloved Camelbak, which I could NOT do without.  I usually drink the whole thing on a long run!  I also have been eating Cliff Shot Bloks, which are so tasty, and work so well.  I usually eat one square every 2 miles (3 squares have 200 calories).  That works out to be the perfect amount of fuel!

As you can see, the Big Girl Camera and I are still getting to know each other.  She has now seen my goofy side, and, well, so have you.

If you think those are goofy, you haven’t seen the video of my sister doing a cowboy in slow motion.  You want to see it?  We’ll see.

I love the season of fall.  Yes, I suppose it could be partly because fall features my favorite colors (deep reds, oranges, and golds!), but it’s also just a snuggly time of year.  I love lighting candles and setting our table in the fall theme…

Whipping out the box of Halloween and Thanksgiving decorations…

 

(quilted by my wonderful mother-in-law!)

I also absolutely love fall foods.  I dusted off the crockpot to make a butternut squash soup, which turned out lovely.  I need to get a vegetarian slowcooker cookbook!  I love using the slow cooker.

Kev and I have spent many nights making dinner and playing our favorite game, Dominion.  Yes, we are nerds. 

I’ve fallen in love with Justin’s Chocolate Peanut Butter (Vegan, too!) and Artisana’s Coconut Butter (also vegan)…both on top of a delicious bowl of (vegan) banana oats.  YUM.

The last week in October, I visited my family in Colorado.

I was delighted that Colorado had not yet frosted, so I could really enjoy fall colors!!  That is definitely something I miss (though I don’t miss it when I’m running on the beach in 70 degree weather in the middle of November, though!!!).  It was a fantastic trip!!

 

I spent a lot of time cracking up with my hilarious sisters, particularly ABBEY.  While preparing dinner, we were all crying with laughter at her dancing around like this:

Yeah, that’s kale.  No, that did not go on the pan with the rest of the kale.   

I love my family.  We are all such goofballs and whenever there’s a family dinner, I know I’m going to end up crying tears of laughter.  I love it. 

Here’s my mom, making vegan walnut apple salad.

My little sister Audrey, doing….something…

First round of “ohhhhhh yeeaahhhh.”  My sister does this thing…it’s hard to describe…it’s like a slow motion cowboy.  When I go home for Thanksgiving, I will get a video.  You will die laughing.  For sure.  For now you can gaze at these pictures and wish you were there.

Laughter ensued.

OH what a night!

I spent a lot of time at my sister and her husband’s cute little cottage.  I got a few shots of Abbey’s new Fall Collection.  If you didn’t know already, Abbey is a very talented artist and creates all sorts of unique and precious things in her shop, Love’s Garden.  Right now she has a whole line of fall hair accessories that are SO CUTE!!  I bought this one, and I LOVE IT!  I have gotten so many compliments!  I snapped some photos of her little studio in their cottage.

Flower hair accessories…

Gorgeous headbands…

 

My photos don’t even compare, however, to the artistic stylings of my brother-in-law, Preston, who takes all of Abbey’s photos for her shop and also has a website of his own.

If you looked at Abbey’s shop, you know she’s creative.  Not only is she creative in her shop, but she has the sweetest cozy cottage full of little “vignettes” as she calls them.  I had to snap a few photos…

 

Vegan cookbooks (Ab and Pres are vegan-tacular)…

And, let’s not forget their little bitchy sassy cat Spoofer.  Just kidding, she can be super sweet, but that cat also has some ‘tude!  Yes, tude. 

Abbey and Preston live in Cheyenne Canon, one of the most (if not THE most) beautiful places to live in Colorado Springs.  We took a couple hikes in the open space there – a protected area filled with hiking trails.  I love hiking!

 

Hand-written on one of the trail signs was “Ute Tree”.  Abbey explained what a Ute Tree is.  It is a sacred tree used for prayer by the Ute Indians.  I found this quote on this website.

“These are Prayer Trees used for ceremony.  On the way from Crystal Peak to Pikes Peak, the people had to stop and pray four times.  A young sapling was selected at this point and bent parallel to the ground where it was tied with a yucca rope.  Then everyone circled the tree and prayed, for they knew the tree would live and hold their prayers for 800 years and each breeze would give their prayers new breath.”

How beautiful to have such an old, sacred tree in our presence.  And the tree is holding the prayers of many Indians, and now our prayers of love as well.

What an incredible day…

The night before I left, we had another family dinner, and EVERYONE came!  From the left, Nancy, my dad Bill, my sister Abbey, my sister Audrey, my bro-in-law Preston, my mom Cathy, and her partner Scott.  YAY! 

And one with me. 

We had delicious chili, cornbread, and a blueberry crisp with ice cream (all vegan of course).

After dinner, the laughing ensued with Abbey’s complete hilarity doing the slow-motion cowboy.  It’s official.  I will be posting a video after Thanksgiving week.  It’s too funny not to share. 

Then, we all carved pumpkins!  Mine is the one with the giant phallic shape nose and round things eyes attached.  Thanks to Preston for the nice photo!  He used his shweet tripod.

I was sad to leave, but luckily, I’m going back after Thanksgiving (I get to spend Thanksgiving day with Kev’s fam)!  And then three weeks after that, Christmas!  I’m so thrilled to able to spend so much time with family this holiday season.

Kev and I have since made some delicious treats, like pumpkin muffins…

We had a quiet Halloween, deciding not to dress up, mostly because of time and lack of parties to attend.  We got a handful or two of trick-or-treaters, and enjoyed a nice meal while watching my FAVORITE scary movie, “The Shining”. 

Check out our cute Frankenstein, quilted by my cute mother-in-law, Marcia.

Yummy squatternut bosh butternut squash with onions…

and tofu with a tasty sweet and spicy sauce…

 

So there you have it, if you’ve made it this far.  Some joyful moments in my life over the past couple of months.  And what comes next, you ask? 

Well, hm…

I want this blog to really reflect who I am.  So that means…

Things might get a lil silly…

There will definitely be cooking and baking involved…

and of course I will document my training and accomplishing my goals (running 10 miles is next).

I know that my journey to discover Delicious Wellness will not always be easy, as nothing hugely important is.  Sometimes I might get a little angry,

or a tad confused,

or even sometimes scared…

…but in the end, I’ll remember my truth.

I’ll jump for joy,

and do a lil dance,

…and remember My Truth.  That nothing can take Love away from me.  That loving myself is the most powerful step.

As I said on January 20, 2010 when I first started this blog,

The sun is setting on the shame that I’ve felt when I feel that I’m not good enough.  I know that is not in any way true.  The sun is setting on my lack of self-confidence.  I know I can do this.   The rain is washing away all the parts of me that want to criticize myself, that doubt my abilities, and the sun is breaking through and shining on my Highest Self.

And so I begin again.  I am so excited to share this journey with you.  Will you join me? 

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