acting,
all of the above,
all things culinary,
art,
baby baby,
baby things,
beauty,
books,
care packages,
cloth diapering,
cooking videos,
crafts,
entertaining,
family,
family nutrition,
fashion,
films,
food for thought,
friends,
garden,
gifts,
gigi,
giveaway,
guest post,
health and fitness,
holidays,
house and home,
inspiration,
interviews,
in the details,
just for fun,
little things,
maternity series,
menu planning,
monthly menus,
my sous chef,
on my mind,
parenting,
paris,
paris list,
photography,
poppy,
portland,
pregnancy,
recipes,
square pegs,
style file,
sweden & scotland,
the whole point,
travel,
videos,
wonderful weekend
I hope you all had a fun and safe Halloween! I don't know if I've ever laughed so much on any previous Halloween. Dressing Gigi up was one of the silliest things ever!!!
(We were farmers with our little garden gnome.)
Now, Gigi and I up are up bright and early packing up to head to Seattle for the whole week! Today is my Grandpa's 90th birthday and we are going to celebrate with him, visit with our friends and family, and have lots of fun!!!
We are having a wonderful time in Seattle. Grandpa's 90th birthday party was a success. It was so much fun to see all of our family and have everyone meet Gigi. The rest of this week we've been moving from place to place visiting family and friends. We've been really busy but having lots of fun. We've spent each night in a new place but Gigi seems to be having blast. I'll have lots of photos and stories on Monday. Hope you all have a great weekend.
We are so happy to be home from our busy week in Seattle. Gigi is taking a great morning nap and I'm catching up on unpacking, laundry and everything else that's got to be done after a week away. We had so much fun in Seattle this past week. It was a little hectic being on my own with the babe for five days but we make a pretty good team. We had a truly wonderful week.
Tuesday...
We headed out early on Tuesday morning and stopped for lunch halfway to Seattle to visit with my Uncle Mike, Aunt Cindy and my cousins Chris, Kari and Janet. They hadn't met Gigi yet so it was really fun.
Once we arrived in Seattle we got quickly settled in at Meghan and Rob's house before picking up Ryan and heading to Grandpa's birthday celebration.
Wednesday...
Gigi woke up pretty early on Wednesday and we spent part of the day playing and running errands with Meghan.
Meghan tried to show Gigi how to walk...
...she didn't quite get it.
We shot a couple of quick headshots with the new hair color...
...we didn't get too many taken.
We went and had lunch at Thai Tom. After we got home Gigi took a nap while I loaded up the car to head over to Mom's house where we had dinner, a sink bath and went to bed.
Thursday...
Thursday was probably our busiest day. Gigi put leaves in Mom's shoes (she may have eaten some too) while I loaded the car up and headed over to Ashley's house to meet her and Meghan for a photo project day! Ashley is a great photographer and we've known each other for years. We've recently been spending a bit of time together again.
We were planning to make Polaroid transfers (although the film ended up not working because it expired in 2008) and we did encaustic a.k.a covering photos in wax. The wax mounting worked great!
After our project morning Gigi and I had to jet to say a quick hi to our friend Lori and then we headed over to Michelle's house! I nannied for Michelle and her three boys when I lived in Seattle. We had a great evening. She treated me to a great sushi dinner and then we watched Crazy, Stupid Love while eating the boys' Halloween candy.
Michelle got to cuddle with Gigi and I got to cuddle with my boys.
Friday...
Friday morning I got up and headed to Dave and Erika's house to wash Gigi's diapers and let her have a good morning nap. Then we loaded up (yet again) and headed over to spend the afternoon and evening with Marion, Alfonso, Alexandra and Nina. We ordered pizza, sipped wine and had a great time. Gigi cut her two upper teeth on Friday so she (and I) didn't sleep so great. Poor baby.
Checking out baby Malcolm.
Saturday...
On Saturday morning I packed up our stuff and we headed to go for a nice walk around Greenlake with Nancy. The weather was gorgeous and it was perfect for a stroll around the lake. Then we got lunch and a latte. It was a perfect Seattle afternoon. 
Gigi and I were both pretty sleepy so we headed back to Dave and Erika's. She took a nap and I took a much needed bath. Dayne, Amber, Bailey and Chloe were also down to visit for a little birthday dinner for Dayne. 
Grandpa Dave and his girls.
Kyle arrived around 5:30 after completing his beer conferences he'd been attending all weekend. We were very happy to see Dad. After a nice bath with lots of help from Chloe it was time for bed.
Sunday...
We got up, visited with Kyle's Nana for a bit, packed up the car and headed to go see my Grandpa. After a little visit with him we decided it was time to head home because we had a very sleepy baby on our hands.
We grabbed a burger and fries at Dick's (I haven't eaten there in a loooong time). The french fries gave Gigi a second wind and we swung into Fremont to meet up with Ryan for a quick hug. 
Then it was really time to go. Gigi fell asleep quickly in the car and slept for over half of the way to Portland. Eventually she woke up and looked like this...
Man, I love this kid.
We stopped in Portland for the soft opening of a new Fire on the Mountain location. We met up with Greg, Sondi and Ella (and a few other friends) for dinner and drink before we drove home and went quickly to bed. 
Phew! That was a really busy week. Now it's time to settle back in, do laundry, catch up on photo editing and sleep.
I thought I would try something a little different this month. We were able to keep our food budget really low last month and I wanted to do it again this month (aiming to spend about $50 each week or $200 for the whole month). Most of the responses I've gotten to my Monthly Menus has been, "How do you only spend $50 a week?". I love putting together menus from my cookbooks but, especially lately, it's just not affordable to do all of my recipes out of my favorite cookbooks or from my favorite foodie blogs. On the other hand, I got pretty bored last month only eating potatoes and beans! Today I decided to go to the store with no list. I decided just to buy veggies that are fresh and organic and in season (and local when possible) and only buy protein that was on sale. I tried to let the food inspire the meals. I took my time and walked around slowly thinking over what I could use each ingredient for. I'm sure I will use some of my cookbooks for a special dinner here or there but this is for basic, healthy meals. I hope this is somewhat instructive or inspiring...
Bread: I usually buy Dave's Killer Sprouted Grain Bread but at $5 a loaf it's too much for us right now. These whole grain loaves were on sale. I froze one.
Eggs: Our farm egg connection is hit and miss these days so I bought two dozen Organic, Free-Range eggs on sale.
Split Chicken Breasts: Buying your chicken breasts with bone in and skin on is a great way to save money. They are way less expensive and I actually prefer them too the boneless skinless kind. You can roast them, peel the skin off and cut them from the bone and they are moist and great for shredding for salads or pureeing into baby food, making chicken salad, enchiladas etc. These packages of four large breasts were about $6 each. They were on sale for $1.29/lb so I bought two and froze one.
Tofu: Organic tofu for Gigi. Not on sale.
Local, Grass Fed Ribeye Steak: I bought one for us to share. It was on sale.
Vanilla Yogurt: Kyle uses this with granola that I make. Not on sale.
Ben and Jerry's: Okay, so I splurged a little. I've been waiting for weeks for this to go on sale so I could but the Red Velvet flavor and they were finally on sale. Really, I saved money by not buying them before!
Organic, Local Beets: Not sure what I'm going to do with them yet. Maybe something like this, or maybe just roasted up with honey?
Organic, Local Kale: I'll use this in egg scrambles, make Kale Chips and indoor Kale Ceasar Salad.
Organic Yellow and Red Onions: For scrambles, soups and everything else
Organic Zucchini: For Gigi and for egg scrambles
Organic Broccoli: For Gigi and for egg scrambles and snacking
Organic, Local Mushrooms: For Portobello Sandwiches
Organic, Local Celery Root: I'm going to make soup from this. Never done it before!
Organic, Local Leek: For making soup with the celery root.
Organic Sweet Potatoes: I'm going to bake these up for us and Gigi.
Organic Bell Peppers: For Portobello Sandwiches
Frozen Organic Corn and Edamame: For Gigi
Organic Lettuce, Organic Potatoes, Organic Garlic
With all these things I bought I will be able to make the following: Baked Potatoes (my recipe coming soon), sauteed veggie egg scrambles, Celery Root and Leek Soup, Enchiladas, Portobello Sandwiches (my recipe coming soon), Grilled Kale Ceasar Salad (with chicken), black bean quesadillas, steak and salad, roasted beets or a Fall version of this, Kale Chips, Potatoes Au Gratin (my recipe coming soon), Veggie Pasta, Baked Sweet Potates, Chicken Salad Sandwiches (my recipe coming soon), and hopefully more! We obvisouly have some things already at the house, pasta, beans, tortillas, broths and other pantry items that will supplement this weeks shopping. All the veggies I bought should last us through the next couple of weeks, and the protein should last for a few. I only spent $105! $33 was spent on protein and $61 was spent on Organic veggies and $11 on other stuff (bread and icecream). I'll obviously have to add a few things throughout the month to get us through, milk, fresh veggies, fruit, etc. but this solid grocery trip is a great start to a month of healthy eating.
I'd love your thoughts on this style of menu making!! Is it helpful to see what I bought and how I plan to use it? I know that for a lot of people the idea of going to the grocery store with no list is not doable. I'm hoping that with my menu ideas above you may be able to make a list while also seeing how I do it on such a tight budget. What are your favorite meals to prepare when you're on a budget? I'd really love feedback about this! Happy cooking!
Today I've got lots of little things to do... I need to clean the house, run errands, edit photos, prepare some promotional materials for my photo business, backup my computer, go to the bank, answer emails, get organized and hang with Gigi. One thing I love about fall is throwing on a pair of jeans and a sweater, putting my hair in an easy ponytail and being cozy and comfortable. It's not so cold out that you need full on winter-wear yet and I love just having on minimal layers. I've had these jeans forever... like, for six years. The zipper isn't a sure thing and they are still a tiny bit snug post pregnancy but thank the Lord they have a lot of stretch to them! I decided that G and I needed a jeans and sweaters day. Here is what we are wearing...
On me:
Cashmere tank top: Michelle DeCourcy (from Plenty)
Sweater: Forever 21
Jeans: Free People
Boots: Hunter (from Zella)
Necklace: Jewelry by Cari
On G:
Long Sleeve Skull Onsie: The Gap
Cardigan: Carter
Jeggings: Carter
Kyle and I just finished watching The Pacific, a ten part HBO mini-series from the same creators that made Band of Brothers. Kyle watched Band of Brothers a couple of years ago and loved it. I have never really been able to stomach "war films"... I've never seen Saving Private Ryan, The Thin Red Line, The Hurt Locker, Letters from Iwo Jima or Platoon. I think I watched The Green Beret when I was younger (my brother loved John Wayne) but the only war movies I've seen are Braveheart ("I know you can fight."), Good Morning Vietnam (Robin Williams takes the edge off), The Patriot and maybe a few other character dramas (does Gone with the Wind count?). Kyle, on the other hand, has willingly sat through all six seasons of Sex and the City (and two mediocre movies), nine seasons of Project Runway, a few ridiculous episodes of America's Next Top Model. I figured, the least I could do, was try watching The Pacific with him. I was expecting the violence and the intensity that comes along with movies about war. I thought, I'll give it a try and if I can't handle it, I'll go take a bath and read some very important Pulitzer prize winning book Vogue. I can't express how surprised I was. The intro alone is stunning and, in my opinion, brilliant...
The Intro...
The Trailer...
...it was a complete preview of things to come. The Pacific was beautifully acted and directed. The stories and the characters were so captivating. We watched it with the historical introductions to each episode which gave a little background to the part you were about to watch. I highly recommend watching these clips. The interviews with the veterans were incredible. Even seventy years later, seeing the tears in their eyes and the intensity of their memories, it was impossible not to feel their terror, elation, confusion, and loss. I laughed at their antics, cried at their losses, and fell in love when they fell in love. I wish I'd known in the beginning that it was their stories, and the stories of their fallen brothers, that were being told. That the stories were not fabricated or enhanced but written with the help of the Marines who were there. I can honestly say that this series impacted me deeply. It made my curiosity and appreciation and understanding for our veterans so much greater. I figured Veteran's Day was the perfect time to tell you all that you should go out and rent The Pacific. I am as surprised as anyone at what I'm about to type... I can't wait to watch Band of Brothers.
I also offer my sincere thanks and gratitude to all of our veterans. Happy Veteran's Day.
After my beautiful drive a couple weeks ago, I couldn't wait to take Kyle along for the drive to show him how beautiful it was! I was also missing my Pop-Tart so I called up her parents and we picked her up and she came along too! First we visited Draper Girls Country Farm and picked up some amazingly crisp apples and sweet pears.
Then we headed to Packer's for some coooooooookies!!!!
Finally, we headed to the pumpkin patch. The pumpkin selection was a bit sad since we are on the very late end of the pumpkin pickin' season but it was still really fun to see everything and to walk through the corn maze.
I had such a fun time with my honey and my girls. According to the weatherman, the cold, rainy weather is heading our way so we are enjoying the last sunny fall days before winter sets in.
On me:
Glasses: Christian Dior
Wool Dress: Icebreaker
Leggings: LA Made (from Parts+Labour)
Boots: Hunter (from Zella)
Earrings: made by me
On Gigi:
Sweatsuit: Carter
Socks: Trumpette
Bucksville is a dark, intruiging film directed by Chel White. It tells the story of Presley who has spent his young adulthood involved in a secret militia called The Lodge, which was started by his father. The Lodge is a small, self-appointed, secret society whose mission is to provide for their community by following through where the justice system has failed. Presley and his friends are commited to this group for life. When Presley's father dies, he begins to question the new direction the new leadership is taking, and he starts to dream for himself of a life free of judgement, violence and fear.
Chel White and his wife, Laura McGie, wrote Bucksville together. The result of their hard work and dedication is a well balanced, captivating, poised and eerie tale of self discovery and bravery under very high stakes. I was lucky enough to have the oppurtunity to play a small role in this artistic, powerful drama. There is nothing more fun than working on a independent film with a cast and crew who are dedicated to telling a great story, and who love what they are doing. I know how much work went into this film, and I'm so proud to be a part of it.
Photos by Tatiana Wills.
Photos by David Hume Kennerly.
Movie stills.
Bucksville has played at some great festivals this year, including New Hampshire Film Festival, The Bend Film Festival and will be showing at the Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival.
Bucksville is showing this next Sunday, November 20th, at The Northwest Film Fest at 6:00pm in Portland, Oregon. I will be attending with my friend, Lauren, and I can't wait to see the movie again. The last time I saw it, we snuck G into the theater and she was only one month old! If you are in Portland, you should buy your tickets and come support this fabulous film.
For updates on screenings and more inforation you can follow Bucksville on Facebook.
You can view the complete cast and crew info on the IMDB page for Bucksville.
You can also view the trailer and more info here on the Official Bucksville Website.
It's 1:30 and it's been snowing here since early this morning. Gigi and I are having a pajama day. I am cleaning up and putting our art back on the walls. We finally have all of our furniture back in the house and I'm spending the day getting ready for our friends to come over for an early Thanksgiving dinner this weekend. I'm so excited to put our kitchen to good use with a house ful of people! G took a long morning nap and when she woke up I showed her the snow outside. She kept saying, "Yeahayayaya!" and holding her arms up to catch it. She has so many expressions and so much to say. We have full conversations and we laugh and tell each other silly stories. There's a lot to talk about. These days are pretty sweet. We have a few inches on the ground so we are staying cozy and warm in the house. We are having a perfect day listening to Christmas music and watching the snow fall.
I don't know about where you live, but here it has jumped straight into winter. It's about forty degrees every day and it's rainy, cloudy, grey and stormy. Our snow from Wednesday melted overnight, and with it, all excuses for pajama days. We needed to get out of the house so we decided to go for a rainy afternoon wine tasting. We bundled up and headed for the hils. The drive was nice and queit and we listened to Audrey Hepburn's biography on cd while we drove. Luckily, it wasn't dumping rain so we snapped a few outfit photos along the Columbia River. Kyle happened to be looking rather dapper so I made him play along...
On me:
Sweater: Shae (from Parts+Labour)
Glasses: Christian Dior
Camisole: Odd Molly (from Parts+Labour)
Jeans: Free People
Boots: Frye Engineer (from Plenty)
On Kyle:
Shirt: Vintage Cowboy shirt
Jacket: The Gap
Jeans: Nautica
Boots: Frye Rogan Engineer (yes, we have matching Frye boots)
On Gigi:
Sweater Suit: Hanna Andersson
And with that... I'm off to spend the whole day cleaning and prepping for our early Thanksgiving. We are working on a new nap schedule with Gigi so we'll see how much I'm actually able to accomplish! I hope you all have a great weekend!
We had such a nice weekend! On Saturday we got up early and spent the day cleaning and cooking and getting ready for our friends to come over for a potluck-style early Thanksgiving! We were in charge of cooking the turkey and we also made green beans with garlic. Everyone brought amazing food including, home baked bread, mashed potatoes and Chanterelle gravy, delicious stuffing, cranberry sauce, salad and pumpkin pies made from scratch!
We shared good wine and beer and had a lovely evening. I feel so grateful to have such wonderful friends. For so long it was just me and Kyle. We moved around so much that we have never really had a core group of friends. It was such a blessing to have them all over together enjoying great food and our new kitchen!
On Sunday we went for a nice walk, got eggnog lattes and picked up the house. I headed to Portland for a fun dinner/movie date with my friend Lauren. I picked her up and we went to Park Kitchen for dinner, which was really yummy, then we hopped across the street to the Portland Art Museum for the NW Film Fest screening of Bucksville.
I got home pretty late last night and I'm a bit tired today but this weekend was so fun! I'm spending the day picking up ingredients for real Thanksgiving (we are making stuffing and cheesecake), doing laundry and cuddling with Gwyn. Hope you all have a great Monday!
Sponsorship spots are open for the month of December! If you have a little shop, business or blog that you'd like to advertise for on A Collection of Passions email me at kacie@acollectionofpassions.com or click here for info and rates.
We had such a nice Thanksgiving with our friends this past weekend. It was so much fun to get Gigi a little dressed up (is there anything cuter than a baby tush in tights?) for the festivities. As for myself, I dressed in this outfit out of desperation. In other words, we really needed to do laundy. I've had this little camisole for a long time and have only worn it once or twice because it's totally sheer. I think it's supposed be a sexy nighty... hmmm. I pulled a cozy sweater of it and here it is... a highly experimental and (possibly) successful ensemble...
On me:
Scarf: a gift from Paris
Sweater: The Gap
Camisole: Free People, from Parts+Labour
Leggings: LA Made
Boots: Frye Engineer, from Plenty
On G:
Sweater: Roots
Corduroy Dress: Osh Kosh
Shoes: Robeez (These were a gift from my cousin and I'm so excited they finally fit her little feet!)
p.s. Could that little gap between her two front teeth be any more adorable! It fits her personality so perfectly!
Now I'm off to make this Salted Caramel Cheesecake for tomorrow! Have a great day!
I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It's early on Friday and I think I'm still full. I'll post all of my Thanksgiving photos Monday. In the meantime, head over and check out my guest post for Gaby at This Little Port. Gaby is a lovely blogger who lives in Australia. She has a lovely life and I always look forward to her blog posts. Head over to her site to check out my post and take some time to explore her blog. Thanks, Gaby, for having me! 
Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
For the past four years we have spent Thanksgiving at my Dad and Stepmom's house. Our friends, Kurt and Scott, who just happen to be fantastic chef's at the Chateau Ste. Michele in Woodinville, WA come down and cook up the most fantastic Thanksgiving meals you can imagine! Our good friend Bill always brings wonderful cheeses and wines and champagne! This year there were sixteen of us, including my awesome brother and his roommate, Kevin.
These two wines were amazing! The Columbia Crest Reserve 2008 was so delicious, well balanced and flavorful. I'm a huge fan of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. This particular bottle was from 2000 and was really peppery and rich. It's such a treat to get to share these incredible wines with people who know about wine! Educational and delicious!
My Stepmom, Nance, is the most amazing hostess. She always sets the table with uniquely made name tags and personalized gifts for each person who attends. My Dad likes to put in his "teeth" whenever people are coming over. G was not quite sure about Pops. Later in the evening she took me aside and asked me if she was related to him.
Ham and blue cheese.
Triple Cream Brie.
My Dad. All dressed up for Thanksgiving dinner.
Lots of beer brought by Kyle from Double Mountain Brewery. My special place setting made by Nance.
Kurt and Scott wearing their place settings. Nance's bug collection.
Stuffing made by me and Kyle. It's so good. It has fresh herbs, pine nuts and craisins.
Butter and silky mashed potatoes. Technically they are riced potatoes since Bill used a ricer when preparing them.
Our heritage Turkey. Kurt gets this bird from his friends that have a farm. It was killed on Monday, picked up on Tuesday, brined on Wednesday and enjoyed on Thursday. Doesn't get much fresher or more organic than this!
The chefs.
Scott's amazing caramelized carrots and the expertly carved turkey.
I made this Salted Caramel Cheesecake for dessert. These are Nance's beautiful teacups for after dinner coffee.
Once we were finished eating we played games. Charades was... interesting. There was a very explicit acting out of the book/film The Firm as well as some other odd interpretations of things. We were in stitches throughout the game playing. Most people headed home around 10:30 but we were persuaded into gambling with Kurt, Nance, Scott, Ryan and Kevin. I've never gambled before and let me tell ya... I had way too much fun (even when I was losing). We finally threw in the dice and headed for home. We didn't get to bed until 1 in the morning!
We spent the rest of the weekend digging up the yard for raised beds (Kyle) and sewing (me) and sleeping (Gigi).
I hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving and a wonderful weekend!
A few things that happened this month...
You still like to eat paper...
You like to cruise around in the buff and you love my shoes... You better hope you're an 8 1/2!
You love to say "uh oh"...
You love to cuddle...
You have made good friends with your reflection. You find your cute self all over the house...
Your favorite version of yourself is in the sliding glass door...
You love bath time...
You helped Dad do some plumbing...
You are very silly and love to play...
You got to lick whipped cream off egg beaters for the first time...
You really enjoy licking lemons...
You smile bigger than ever...
You have excellent taste in movies...
You love watching football with Daddy...
You like to look at books by yourself in your room...
You grew hair!!! It looks a lot like Great Grandpa's...
You talk... a lot...
You somehow managed to get stuck behind the table...
You stole a cane from an older gentleman...
You love your "kee kee"...
