the first annual gobble wobble.

danny, tricia & i did our first annual day-after-thanksgiving gobble wobble, an 8-mile hike through Tucson's Sabino Canyon. look at that picture - it was an absolutely gorgeous day in the canyon. beyond the scenery, it was so great to spend three uninterrupted hours together chatting about life, love and family. it's a tradition i hope we keep.

off into the canyon we go.

saguaros everywhere

it's not nice to point, mr. cactus.

danny the desert kid. him & tricia are full of desert knowledge. animals. plants. all the 411.

 we made it to the top! 

proof i made it - had to touch the palo verde plant at the top.

arizona's version of fall colors in the desert canyon.

do you see the brother & sister ants marching along? 

very extreme signage.

me and the thousands of cacti.

totally strange and awesome - we saw a deer and her baby crossing the trail!

i was on a quest for the biggest saguaro i could find... this one is pretty good.

desert beauty.

the self-pay was full when we pulled up. so after our hike, we searched for someone to give our $5 parking fee to. we ended up in the visitor's center and they were so grateful and surprised that we went out of our way to pay post hike, they gave us a parking pass for a future trip! it pays to be honest.

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and to all you phi's out there - how random is this? during our hike, the three of us were trying to get a photo together for danny's Instagram (@dancendan), but it was not working so i finally asked a woman who was approaching if she'd mind taking our photo. as she got closer and i wasn't being blinded by the sun, we did a "teri?" "cindy?" -- it was cindy nock and her adorable little family walking through the canyon. she happily took our picture. (cindy and i were in the same sorority at the University of Arizona). super small world. 

eatin' turkey in tucson.

we spent this thanksgiving holiday doing exactly what you should be doing... eating, lounging and chilling out with family. we spent lots of time with miss makaela (danny was on baby duty) and lots of time yelling at the dogs to stop begging and bickering -- yup, pretty typical family stuff.

makaela could not be any sweeter. do i dare say she's a perfect baby -- eh, toddler? not sure when that's official (she's 20 months). her most favorite word is "side" which means let's go outside. we hear "side? side? side?" over and over. the little girl loves the fresh air, but you really can't blame her when it's an 80-degree thanksgiving. we were happy to oblige.

she absolutely loves "dog dog" and put all kinds of necklaces on hunter, told him to "shhhh" when he was crying and yelled "no" when he'd bark. the sweetest was her consoling him when he was whining under the table begging for scraps. she's such a joy to be around for everyone. here's a look at our turkey day.

vick-dogg and me whipping up some stuffing. slippers and all.

hunter and danny watching henry totally spaz out like a psycho. "um, what's this guy's problem?" - hunter

tricia and her little one sporting a necklace from great meme.

brotherly, sisterly love. 

yup... there's hunter. right under your feet and lookin' up for some scraps.

grandma peggy & her b-joe. two peas in a pod. 

little miss with her great meme.

boy oh boy was danny proud of his ham. he pulled it out thinking the rest of us were ready. we still had a few things to cook. he'd already sliced and arranged his ham on a non-oven safe platter. i really thought there may have been tears when we told him he couldn't throw his masterpiece platter in the oven to warm. we made it work so the man didn't serve cold ham. crisis adverted. phew.

me, makaela and her "oooce" aka juice. 

the aforementioned ham platter masterpiece (before the meltdown).

not surprising, the placecard was a baby favorite to play with.

marybeth monitoring the carve. 

who needs ham when you've got this little one?

can i offer you a GIANT glass of riesling? 

the feast goers. marybeth & paul joined this year, which was a super fun addition. and marybeth brought cream cheese pumpkin loaf. so. damn. good. i had to fight to actually take some leftovers.

my other hot date.

danny and his ladies... minus one (the photographer). 

high-five for a successful thanksgiving! 

hunter always manages to get a seat at the table. holy spoiled. 

me & the dogg.

....and, that's a wrap. this is how we all felt at the end of the night.  

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the every-other-holiday family schedule is tough, but such is life with family in separate states. 

but luckily danny and i have amazing families and in-laws, which makes it much easier. 

this year, my parents spent thanksgiving at their home in oregon for the first time and hosted for 19 people! 

the menu was insane... a literal feast followed by a full dessert spread and friendly competition over mexican train.

thanksgiving '12.

after all of yesterday's food was put away, the candles were blown out and everyone was tucked in to bed, i got emotional. as we stood brushing our teeth, i welled up and told danny how incredibly thankful i am for him... for us... for our everyday life we live together. he's more of a man than i could have ever asked for and it all just keeps getting better. i almost feel guilty for how happy i am right now. at this moment, i couldn't ask for anything more. life is good. it's a feeling i wish i could bottle up and keep forever. 

i hope your hearts and bellies are as full as ours this holiday season. xo

eating local, an intimate boho farm dinner in arcadia.

a couple of weeks ago i was invited to a super unique dinner party. a local couple, caroline + david, have an amazing farmhouse in arcadia (right down the street from our old home) and have an actual farm in their backyard - tons of fruits, veggies plus a chicken coup complete with a chandelier. we've been to their home's backyard once before when they opened it up to local vendors to sell their goodies to the in a community market style format.

alicia has got to know caroline through her hot chick aprons business - they're both very active in the local indie business community - and invited me to attend the annual sunday night "boho evening at the coop." everything caroline + david served was grown on their property (minus the steak from local singh farms) and everything from the butter and chutney to the french fries and ice cream were homemade. it was decadent and delicious.

isn't that such an awesome way to bring people together to encourage supporting local enterprise? it's a really cool and intimate idea to promote shopping and buying local produce, meats and products.

cozy farm style dining

miss alicia crackin' open the vino

 

THE MENU

Homemade BOHO chevre with our spicy apple chutney, maple pumpkin butter served with crostini

Poached egg salad, Eddie's bacon and farm greens

Chicken consomme

Meat Shoppe hanger steak with pomme frites, and céleri rémoulade

Oaxacan chocolate pear tart with homemade cardamon vanilla ice cream and fresh tea tisane

rachel came along, too! 

how great is their home? and how sweet of them to open it up to the community! 

the spacious arcadia backyard

great setting for a cozy fall night with girlfriends

fancy chicks

stripes were also on the menu.

our starter. to die for.

caroline, our gracious hostess, explaining the courses and wearing her hot chick apron, of course!







next course: unreal good.

chicken consomme made using the home's chicken feet. eek! so good, tasted like french onion soup.

one of the best steaks ever + homemade to-die-for fries. 

dessert, if you dare. un-snap your pants and dive in. 

full bellies & happy hearts. 

 

learn more about the boho farm, it's offerings & events here.