Precious

Good morning, readers!

Boy, is it nice to be back home in Seattle. Time is flying and I can’t believe Stef and I are halfway through our trip! It has been such a pleasure to spend time with friends and family and I’m not ready to go back to real life when I could do this:

or this:

I have been forgoing my usual diet and exercise routine in favor of family time and scrumptious meals like this:

and this:

and plenty of these:

I figure I’ve got plenty of time to hit the gym when I’m back in DC. For now, it’s all about the precious time with loved ones.

Food For Thought: Does your diet/exercise routine change when you travel?

What’s On Your Menu?

To my fellow Americans, Thanksgiving week has finally arrived! For those of you living internationally, I apologize in advance for the barrage of Thanksgiving related posts over the next few days.

I took a vacation from technology this weekend and mostly enjoyed being around my roommates and Stefano. I went on a hike in Rock Creek park, watch the Huskies beat Colorado, and celebrated my roommate and his fiance’s engagement with ice cream, Oreos, and Jurassic Park (her request!).

I also watched the Sounders lose to the Galaxy in the semi-finals of the MLS tournament, but we won’t talk about that as I’m still in mourning.

Since it is T-minus three days until Thanksgiving, I thought I would tell you what my Thanksgiving plans are. Stef and I decided not to fly back to Seattle, as plane tickets are expensive and we couldn’t justify the trip for only a couple of days. Luckily, there are some other West coast stragglers who are sticking around for the holiday, so we are going to have an orphan Thanksgiving at my house on Thursday and watched Thanksgiving-themed episodes of Friends (yes!). Can’t wait to see a repeat Monica’s turkey dance.

Here’s what we’ve got planned.

Turkey Day Menu for Orphan Thanksgiving:

• Turkey (Duhhh! Though we are having a difficult time finding an appropriately sized one, as there won’t be many of us!)
• Stuffing (both in an out of the turkey – Stef and I can’t get enough)
• Gravy
• Mashed potatoes
• Brussels sprouts
• Cranberry sauce
• Bread rolls
• Pumpkin pie

Last year, I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for 15 of my ex-pat friends living in Rome and I made a ridiculous amount of food. I am having a hard time scaling it down this year, but we just don’t have enough people to eat all of the food I am inspired by! As it stands, I am responsible for everything but the pie and rolls, which will be managed by my one of my roommates, who is a much more proficient baker than I.

I am so looking forward to the meal, even though it will be my second Thanksgiving in a row away from my family. On the bright side, Stef and I are going back to Seattle to visit exactly one month after Thanksgiving and will be there until New Year’s Day, so we will both get plenty of family time in.

Food For Thought: What’s on YOUR Thanksgiving menu? Is there any dish that is absolutely necessary at your table for it to feel like Thanksgiving?