in which i am a flowery field for an easter bunny frolic

This is what I wore for Easter Sunday.  I bought the dress a while ago, knowing that it would be perfect for the spring holiday, and it was! (Even though the weather was not-so-warm.)

(dress: marshall's; shoes: soda)

K wanted to show me this abandoned old house on our way through Montpelier, so we stopped in on our way to my parents' house.  I thought it made a pretty great photo location, especially when we discovered there were rabbits everywhere!  How funny!

We had a really lovely Easter with my family, eating and eating (and walking) and eating.

in which november has begun...

... and it's cold. Too cold for sheer&sleeveless in the open air.

(dress: vintage; slip: uo; skirt/belt: thrifted; shoes: seychelles)

Halloween was wonderful! K and I didn't try to do anything too fancy, which I think is key. We carved our funny pumpkin...

... and then ordered a pizza and cuddled on the couch watching scary movies and drinking wine (and playing with matches). It was the absolute perfect way to spend the scariest night of the year, especially after such a busy weekend!

over the weekend: apple picking!

I had a great weekend. Ever since K and I moved (back) to Vermont in 2008, we have been vigilant about sticking to a few fall traditions: apple picking and pumpkin carving. There is just something about autumn that begs us to take advantage--maybe it's because autumn is the last hurrah before we hibernate all winter, maybe it's some biological need to celebrate the harvest season, maybe it's because I was born in October and apple cider just runs in my blood ;) Whatever the reason, it's great fun (here we are in 2009 and 2010). After a scrumptious brunch at Libby's Diner in Colchester (yummmmmmm vegetarian benedict), we headed over to Shelburne Orchards, where we picked a bushel (40 lbs!) of McIntosh apples in under an hour (there were so many!). It was a gloriously sunny 75 degrees, and we had a wonderful time wandering through the rows, comparing best picks, and marveling at the beautiful scenery. We wrapped up the afternoon with hot cider on the hillside, and brought our apples home for lunches and pies and the like :)

That night I headed over to my parents' house, where they were having a big going-away gala for a neighborhood friend. It was a wild night, complete with a bonfire, mad dancing, fabulous people and lots and lots of wine. (Woodbury is where it's at.) No photographic evidence, but it's probably better that way. The next morning I got up feeling a little bit worse for wear, played a round of Bananagrams with my mom to give my muddled brain a bit of a workout, and went for a leisurely stroll in the forest before driving home on the back roads with the windows down and Charles Bradley and the Menahan Street Band playing bluesy music into the open air.

Good times :)

making life baking life: christmas cookies

I'm not the sort of person who bakes on a regular basis, mostly because I can't have sweets around the house or I will go on an absolute rampage. When the holidays roll around, however, I embrace the spirit of overindulgence with open arms. These are the Christmas cookies my mother made when we were growing up (the way our family devoured cookies, she easily made a batch a day), and it just wouldn't be Christmas without her special recipes.

PEANUT BUTTER KISSES

Ingredients:

1/2 c shortening

1/2 c peanut butter

1/2 c sugar

1/2 c brown sugar

1 egg

1 T milk

1 t vanilla

1 3/4 c flour

1 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

hershey's kisses

Directions:

Cream: shortening, peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar

(use a mixer if you have one--I don't).

Stir in egg, milk, vanilla; beat ferociously until smooth.

Sift: flour, baking soda, salt.

Add to mixture.

Shape dough into 1/2 in balls and roll in sugar until coated.

Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 8 min.

While the cookies are baking, de-foil the Hershey's kisses.

Take cookies out of the oven, place a kiss in the center of each, and bake for 2 additional minutes.

GINGER COOKIES

**removed**

**secret family recipe which i unknowingly revealed!!**

Directions:

Voilà! Tasty holiday treats to share :)