Dinner Spinner

i absolutely love this idea.  

what a fun and helpful way to deal with indecisiveness! 

a brilliant DIY from dionne of the blog city of dionne.

Meet Maisy

about a year ago, we rescued the cutest puppy in the whole wide world!  she was a teeny tiny total of 4 pounds, 8 weeks old and in dreadful shape.  the night we brought her home we plucked 38 ticks from her belly.  she also had a broken tail and several intestinal parasites.  poor baby!  

we loved watching her figure out the world around her - mustering the courage to jump off the 2 inch door frame, scaring herself with her own bark, and discovering the joys of eating paper products {maisy is a firm believer that all paper products are a valid food source}.

{her ears grew twice as fast as the rest of her - so cute!}

there's a lot she still doesn't understand though, like why her two people aren't ALWAYS physically connected to her.  Or why she gets all drooly and anxious in the car, which always seems to end with being poked and prodded at the vet's.  Or why, OH WHY!, her big sister kitty won't play with her. 

now that she's bigger, we are regularly asked if she's a coyote.  for the first year we said no, but since we can't actually be sure {we were told she's a sable german shepherd}, we now just say "why yes, yes she is half coyote."  

most people we meet are afraid of her.  mothers grasp their children, men cross to the other side of the street.  i don't quite get it because... well look at that adorable face!  

having a dog has made life so much better in so many ways.  the incredible love of an adorable furry friend does so much for easing anxiety.  plus, because she's a big dog, i now go on long, daily hikes in nature {yes, LA does have nature}.  i don't know how i ever got along without her.

{sleeping on my shoulder - bah!}

i highly recommend adopting if you haven't already done so.  it's probably the best thing we can all do for our health and well-being.

Eating Seasonably

these charts were found on chasing delicious, a fantastic site chock full of 

recipes and helpful information for the kitchen.

Friday

{^}

have a fabulous weekend.

Explore

{by wesley bird}

Idaho

 family

snow

country life

baby goat

miniature pony {with whom maisy fell madly in love}

the grand tetons

wild moose, big-horned sheep, coyotes, bald eagles

late night movies and popcorn in bed

escape from the stresses of life

 {why yes, that IS a hunting camo bikini}

a couple months ago we took a road trip up to see my dad and step-mom in idaho falls.  

it was exactly what we needed. 

a quick message from my family to yours...

this blog is on hiatus

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thanks everyone for being such fantastic readers and a truly beautiful community of people. 

i may be back someday, but i have no idea if that will be next week or in five years.  i'm really not a planner, so we'll see.  i hope everyone has a fantastic holiday and please take care to fill your wells each and every day.  

hey everyone...

happy thanksgiving!!

a holiday devoted to being grateful, eating really good food, and hanging out with loved ones?  god bless the u.s. for inventing this one.  i hope you are all having a delightful holiday, and if you're not from the u.s., well, i hope you too will be inspired to embrace a sense of gratitude today.  

ps - if you leave the house after midnight tonight, don't forget your helmet and elbow pads.  safety first, even when shopping.

holiday survival guide

let's be practical. as much as you may love your family and friends, the holidays are some stressful times.  it's hard to escape the craziness for self-care, but it's precisely these situations when you need to do self-care the most.  here are some tips for taking care of yourself during the holidays.


the best way to get some alone time during the holidays:
be honest - tell your friends and family you need alone time, ask them to respect your needs even if they don't understand it, and encourage them to do their own self-care during these stressful times.

but let's face it, there are people out there who won't respect your boundaries, so if being honest won't work with certain individuals in your life, feel free to set boundaries in more creative ways.

for immediate privacy:
 go to the bathroom - "i have to pee," or "i think i have something in my eye," or simply shout "bathroom!" and you can be sure no one will follow you.
fake a very important phone call - "this is my friend over seas! excuse me," or "uh-oh, i think this is my boss, better go see what she needs," or "my friend is having a really tough time right now,
i better give him a call to check in." then go practice some deep breathing.

for longer-term privacy:
get sick without really getting sick - "i'm starting to feel run down, i'd better lie down so it doesn't turn into a full-blown cold," or "my lady times is really bad today, better skip going to
the mall with you," or simply come down with a migraine which requires quiet solitude.
spend the rest of the day in your room with magazines, good food, and your laptop.

make up very important appointments - "i have this thing on my... you know what? it's not something i want to talk about, but i'll be back in an hour." then go to a favorite spot in your city.
run such a horrible errand that no one will want to join you - "sigh...i'm going to have to go to
wal-mart." but please, don't actually go to wal-mart. go somewhere wonderful and fun.

if you're traveling to a different city:
 make up a friend to visit - "i've got this friend two towns over i want to visit.  i'll be back later tonight." then look up all the fun things to do in that area and go nuts exploring for a day.
...unless of course you actually do have a friend two towns over, in which case you won't be lying.

for therapists, our busiest time of year is around the holidays.  while we like to describe the holidays as the most wonderful time of the year, the reality is that for most of us it's the most overwhelming.  people feel pressured to spend large amounts of money on gifts, make elaborate dinners, schmooze with acquaintances at various holiday parties, and spend large amounts of time with family.  now as much as you may love your friends and family, the truth is that spending time with them brings back a whole lot of complicated dynamics.  stress-ful!  so when you can be honest with family and friends about your needs, do so.  but if you can't, well, it's okay to lie.  it's good for you.

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psst!

i'm over on unstitched today sharing my philosophy on gift-giving.

head on over to check it out, and while you're there, 

have a look around lillian's fantastic design/travel blog {one of my favs!}.

gratitude

experimental baking

having a head full of new ideas

becoming a meat-eater again and feeling so much healthier

my education {dear U of San Francisco: you were wicked expensive, but you prepared me better than most other people i've met in my field. thanks for being more than worth it.}

working for a clinic that required us to dress up in costume for our meeting {fun!}

winning several prizes at said work meeting {double fun!}

taking one very giant huge step forward

watching my to-do list shrink to nothing
this video {for all the dog lovers}

my morning pages

quiet times

that's what i'm thankful for this week. how about you?

{you can buy this beautiful print from yelena bryksenkova}