the sweet season :: broken down v.5

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making :: the effort to put my phone down more in the mornings and evenings.
cooking :: this curry spaghetti squash dish tonight and I'm so excited to see if it turns out as good as the photo looks! { update; i made the curry spaghetti squash dish for dinner last night and it was.to.die.for!!!  i will most certainly make it again and strongly encourage all you spaghetti squash + curry lovers out there to make it as well! }

drinking :: tea.  you guys - so.much.tea.  chamomile tea, yerba mate tea, licorice tea, white grapefruit tea, and most recent favorite pangaea tea!  i start drinking tea after my 1 cup of coffee each morning and truly don't quit until i pour myself my last cup of tea at bedtime.  quick funny/pathetic/annoying story:  my mom buys me a bag or two of loose leaf tea every year as a stalking stuffer.  last week i brought it into the break room at work with me to pour into my tea infuser and some pothead guy who was also in the break room commended me on bring my pot to work to roll a joint.  I MEAN, REALLY?!  A) do you not know me? B) at work?  and C) just because we live in colorado does not mean we all smoke the pot, people.

reading :: waiting for snow in havana for mary and my book club - it was recommended to me from hunter and was recommended to hunter from his mom!  super excited about this one.  I'm also reading rushed on the side and i'm not totally sure how i feel about this one quite yet.

wanting :: a weekend off that could be spent in steamboat with no plans.  one would think this wouldn't be too hard to achieve, right?!

looking :: through photos from an emotionally charged yet painfully perfectly fulfilling weekend.

wasting :: time daydreaming with my head in the clouds.

learning :: to better manage my expectations with myself, my relationships and my friendships.

wishing ::  i had more snacks at work.

enjoying :: working it out with my steamboat friends!  i recently created a "sisterhood of the traveling gym shorts" facebook group for all of us to post weekly class and workout schedule so we can all work out together.  it has been great motivation for everyone and there has been a really fantastic response.  i've loved working out with everyone these past few weeks - mornings, noon and nights!

waiting :: for this week long headache/migrane to fade.

liking :: the chilly days/evenings.  our house gets awfully cold in the evenings but honestly it's just how we like it.  cup of hot tea bundled up by the fire and crawling into bed with our quilts/wool blankets is what this winter is made of!
playing :: the have a great day! playlist on spotify.

wondering :: what life will look like in 6 months, 10 months and 12 months.

loving :: frozen banana, almond milk and cacao powder smoothies.  i've been having one of these for breakfast or lunch daily and i can not get over how delicious it is.  it tastes exactly like a frosty from wendy's!
hoping :: to remember little details throughout these first few days and weeks of 2015 that in my opinion is moving by too.darn.fast.

marveling :: at my christmas present from hunter.  i was completely awed and floored when i opened it.  it's been living on our stovetop because it's just too pretty to store out of sight.  i've made one batch of soup in it and have a few other recipes up my sleeve.  name pending and suggestions welcome.

smelling :: my rose geranium lotion from ranch organics here in steamboat.  this was gifted to me for my birthday and is one of my favorite scents that i own.

wearing :: a leopard scarf that i bought in california!
noticing :: when i sit down to meal plan, all i want to make { and consume } are soups!  i love soup.  i want to make my very veggie chili and thai coconut curry soup again soon and am eyeing this little number for dinner tonight while hunt is at work.

knowing :: that i've now written about three curry dishes in this point.  yes, i realize we have a curry obsession/problem.

thinking :: of a new blog series { i use that term loosely as we all know i'm not that great at keeping up with writing blog series } where i post some fruits and veggies i've been eating throughout the week with their corresponding health benefits.  i think writing about it would be it would be a good way for me to fully absorb their nutrients { pun intended }.  i want to use this little blurb from my girl crush laura miller as inspiration.

feeling :: energized!  we bought some green superfood powder in bulk and i mixed some in with my lemon water this morning.  i am feeling that green boost for sure!

bookmarking :: steamboat pilates and fitness workout schedule.  hunter gifted me a month unlimited and i've been sneaking in every pilates and yoga class that my schedule { and sore body! } allows.

opening :: my eyes to options both big and small.

giggling :: at friends.  i've checked out seasons 1-8 { hunter was thrilled } from our library over the past 6 months and i've now turned to watching season 9 and 10 on netflix.  i've loved watching it from start to finish.  it had been years since i've seen a full episode and the entire show is so much more silly and entertaining than i had remembered.
needing :: to get back to work.  zoikes!
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sweet season post volume one and two and three and four

book > movie

I have always been a pretty shotty movie watcher.  In my defense, it began in my childhood.  We never really watched movies growing up { save for Steel Magnolias, Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken, While You Were Sleeping and all Disney movies } or listened to a lot of music { save for Michael Bolton }.  I didn't really realize this was unusual until my adult years when my old coworkers took to regularly quizzing me on some of the classic and timeless music { think as simple as The Beetles } and I would fail at their questions every.single.time.  I will never forget the visual of my coworker and diehard music lover + musician Clay racing out of his editing suite over to my desk to ask me a music question.  Right when he would see the bewildered and completely lost look on my face he would walk away shaking  his head in his hands muttering "SERIOUSLY, BETH.  You haven't heard of ______!?!?!?!!!  My 5 year old daughter even knows their music!"  The same goes for movies; Sixteen Candles, Beetlejuice, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Goonies are all movies I hadn't seen until up to the past 24 months. A few of those and many others I still haven't seen.

Beth sitting down to watch a movie poses many issues.  If I'm watching the movies at home I have to have something nearby to keep myself busy.  Painting my nails, painting my toenails, wrapping Christmas gifts, working on some crocheting, cooking…the list goes on.  I just get a little bored sitting down for 2 hours staring at a TV.  To be perfectly honest, 8 out of every 10 movies I watch ends with me falling asleep.  If I go to the theatre to watch a movie not only does my ADD go into overdrive, but I often times feel incredibly claustrophobic and squirmy while cursing at the movie theaters for not designing their theatre to be tall person friendly.  The chairs are SO close together with such little leg room!  Needless to say….I don't watch movies all too often.  In fact, when Hunter and I went to see Mockingjay a few months ago I realized it was the first time I'd been to a theatre to see a movie since the last Hunger Games movie came out the winter of 2013.

Man - I'm doing a really great job painting myself to be the perfect movie watcher companion, aren't I?!

Hunter and I had a totally relaxing evening last night and watched Gravity and Gone Girl.  { I have been more than exhausted lately with an aggressive workout schedule + working during the week at the newspaper and all weekends at my part time job which is why I had no problem with laying on the couch and zoning out to the tv for a few hours.  I will say that this is quite the rare circumstance. }  When we had decided on Gone Girl for our 2nd movie, it dawned all the movies I've watched lately have one common denominator; I've read the book.

Mockingjay, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Wild, The Fault in Our Stars, and Gone Girl.  These are all { plus Gravity } the movies I have watched in the past 2 months or so.  When I would go to work and talk to my coworkers about the movies, it would always start with "Well I read the book, and…."  It cracks me up.  There is one way to get me to sit still long enough to watch a movie!  Most of the movies I've enjoyed while a few of them I really hated.  Ha!

Mockingjay / hated.
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day / cute movie but, eh.
Wild / loved, loved, loved.
The Fault in Our Stars / hated.
Gone Girl / ehhhhh, meh.

I have Divergent lined up as the next book to movie that I want to see and am I'm thinking of watching it tonight or tomorrow night.  Wee!  With perfect timing too because my nails need a good fresh coat of polish.  Last night, after we finished Gone Girl , Hunter says "Well now you need to hurry up and read 50 Shades of Grey so you can jump on that movie bandwagon, too!"  Yeahhhhhh, that is one book and movie I'm confident I won't ever read or watch.

Come at me, 2015.

I'm feeling rather conflicted on New Years Resolutions this year.  I still stand by the belief that a person can change behaviors and habits any of the 12 months out of the year and really shouldn't wait for 1 specific day to change their routines.  But.  I have been taking a few minutes to reflect on 2014 and taking note of a few things that I let fall to the wayside that I want to improve upon.

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I'm going to work on creating more.  Creating more food, memories, cards, friendships, income, crafts, designs, fitness goals.  Creating of all forms is a huge release for me and it's something I want to continue to grow.

I want to become more knowledgable of what I'm putting in my body.  We eat copious amounts of fruits and vegetables but sadly I don't know that much about the specific nutrients and benefits of them all!  I would love to really read up on what it is we are eating on a daily basis.

I hope to be more kind to myself and practice several forms of self care…both big and small.  

I want to grow my friendships.  I want to do more than shoot a "Hi,howareya?" text with several emojis to my long distance friends.  I want to spend more time talking on the phone and writing letters.  I have a girlfriend in Washington ( my best friend Julia! ) and we've slowly started the habit of sending each other letters once a week or once every two weeks.  Actual letters!  I can't even express how much it warms my heart.  It feels like a much more sincere form of friendship and it's something I want to work on for all my girlfriends.

I want to take less shitty pictures and far more intentional photos.  When I look through my iPhoto I notice a trend of dozens of half assed blurry photos because I was too shy or lazy to work on getting just the right photo that I was hoping for.  

I will be more nurturing to myself and those around me.  I will be intentional + present with my actions and my words.  

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Happy 2015, friends!  I hope you started your year spoiled in love and laughter.

::via::

dreamboat anniversary.

This past Saturday, December 27th, marked my one year anniversary of living in Steamboat!  Anyone who is anyone (aka anyone who has read this blog for longer than a month) knows I love me a reason to celebrate a milestone while dissecting and reflecting the shit out of it!  Readyyyyyyyyandgo!

::steamboat was looking insanely beautiful this past sunday while we were out cross country skiing!::

When we moved to Steamboat I truly had no expectations of what things would be like here.  This can be attributed to my job interview + job offer + accepting the job + moving to Steamboat all happening within a week's time.  After not working for 13 months (freedom....yay!  empty bank account....booooo!) I was thrilled at the chance of having a steady job + income again.  I didn't give myself time to fret (read: obsess) over moving to a new city without knowing anyone.  We had just wrapped up 7 months of doing that exact thing in Bremerton, so it was the mindset of "Oh, whatever - we did this once, we can do this again."  It was intimidating moving to a brand new new city twice within a year's time but it was also empowering.

I moved to Steamboat a few days before I started work to begin the process of getting to know the city as a newbie local.  I had the weekend all to myself which I remember being so relaxing and nourishing (that is until I got food poisoning Sunday night and spent the entire evening before my first day of work in the bathroom sicker than a damn dog.)  As all things do, it took some time to get into a good routine.  Hunter was still working in Denver and Bob was spending a lot of time up at Snowy so the first few weeks, I spent a lot of time by myself.  I paid a lot of attention to the free events around town that I found listed in the newspaper and attended as many as I could.  I would snowshoe solo every weekend and spent my evenings watching Breaking Bad with a homemade meal for 1, a hot cup of tea or a glass of wine.  It was tough knowing I was 3 hours away from our "old life" and our best friends in Denver…it was almost more painful being 3 hours away from them in Steamboat than it was being 15 hours away in Washington.  It was an adjustment for me for sure.  After about 3 weeks of work and spending a lot of time by myself, I was invited to my first happy hour with work girlfriends and after 4 weeks of work I got promoted to a different department with a brand new job title.  Ever since then - I'll admit it's been prettttty smooth sailing.

My first few months in Steamboat, I remember soaking up it's beauty and walking around starry eyed at how stunning the area was.  I really couldn't believe  that we actually lived here!  I remember witnessing the Alpine Glow for the first time, watching a plethora of wildlife meandering through town, and of course, enjoying the 5 minute or less commute to really any destination in town.

This move has given Hunter and I  so many chances to grow as a couple and to grow individually.  I do still struggle with being 3 hours away from my closest friends and family living in Denver.  I am still learning to go with the flow, embrace each friendship and most importantly to live in the moment.  I never want to lose sight of how lucky we are to have best friends where we live now and everywhere we've lived in the past.

And here we are - one year later.  Enjoying life cozied up in our little cabin just big enough for our possessions but no where near big enough for the love and laughter it holds.  We have a routine and a life that I could have never dreamed up 3 years ago when I met Hunter for the first time.  I'm proud of the simple and meaningful life we've created for ourselves.  I'm proud to do each day with Hunter at my side.

Happy Year Anniversary, Steamboat!  Thank you for being really damn good to us.  

adjusting.

I'm in the middle of adjusting from life pictured on the left { sunny CA life filled with wineries, great food and the best company a girl could ask for } to life pictured on the right { non-stop cuddles, snowy adventures and bottomless hot tea } in less than 48 hours.  

It feels so good to be back in our cozy cabin that is slowly getting buried by snow day by day. 

Happy almost 2015, er'body!

.ribbit.ribbit.

I have a sweet girlfriend that I work with who not too long ago was going through some relationship turmoil.  She's young, beautiful and is dating in a new-to-her town.  She has met some boys she liked, some she thought she liked, and some she most certainly didn't like.  Every few mornings she'd be at my desk with an update looking for some advice and help off the dating ledge.  One morning after dishing out my advice she sighs a big sigh of relief, exclaims how much better she felt after our chat and then said "How do you always know what to say?!"  I smiled, took a little pause and the only thing I could come up with is:

I've had to kiss a few frogs.

While it's such a corny and overused phrase, referring to kissing a few frogs to find your prince, it's so true.  After my girlfriend walked away from my desk that morning I couldn't help but thinking of those  boyfriend frogs that I once had.

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The boyfriend who was receiving Match.com notifications and emails while we were together.
The boyfriend who would never go on a coffee date with me because, and I quote: "I just smoke weed every morning to wake up instead of drink coffee."
The boyfriend who only expressed his emotions in songs.
The boyfriend who lived in Iraq/Japan/HI while I lived in ND.
The boyfriend who lived in WA while I lived in CO.
The boyfriend who lived in NM while I lived in CO.
{ what can I say, I was a serial long-distance-dater there for a good 5 years }
The boyfriend who during our breakup alluded to having used the mindset that we had "just been friends" for the past 3 months.  Oh, great.  What a fun 3 months that had to have been for him.
The boyfriend who had a secret folder of 100+ photos on his computer that 8 years later I still wish I could un-see.  Yes.  Those kind of photos.
The boyfriend who would have rather smoked weed with his lesbian roommate than hang out with me.
The boyfriend who was a little too close with his mom.
The boyfriend who was a little too mean to his sister.
The boyfriend who wanted to eat Fast Food morning, noon and night.
The boyfriend who cried more than I did.
The boyfriend whose glass of vodka I mistakenly took for a glass of water and took a big swig.
…consequently; The boyfriend who drank way too much.
The boyfriend who would get so caught up in playing video games in his dark apartment all.day.long. and would forget your 6pm dinner date.  ON A TUESDAY.
…consequently; The boyfriend who didn't have a job.
The boyfriend who talked in baby talk to his sister.
The boyfriend who had a crush on my roommate at the time and would never set foot in our apartment.
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At the time that many of the above happened, it truly felt like the end of the world.  In hindsight, none of them were that big of a deal { except for the computer folder with massive amounts of porn on it.  That one really was a big deal. } rather they all just helped my journey along.  They helped me gain confidence and perspective in the really ridiculous world of dating.  They helped shined light on this handsome man who walked up to me at a Broncos tailgate some 3+ years ago.  They helped me realize that Hunter was so very different than any man I had ever dated.  They help me appreciate every dinner Hunter cooks for me, every surprise he plans and every way, big or small, that he proves how much he really knows me.  They help me cherish every thing he says that sends laughter piercing through my body.  They help me relish our many moments of adventure that we share.

So this one is to you, ex-boyfriend frogs.  Thank you all for being painfully wrong men so I could find my painfully right man!




It should be noted that each isn't example isn't different person - it's all really just 3'ish men total.

the weekend.

It doesn't surprise me in the slightest that I have only 3 photos I have to show from the weekend.  It was one of those weekends that was over in a BLINK of the eye while cramming in tons of work + play.

After I got off work on Friday, Hunter and I geared up and had an after hours cross country ski up Emerald Mountain!  There were 1,000 reasons it was the most fun but the top ones being: The entire trail was illuminated perfectly by the full moon which was more romantic than you ever want to hear about, we passed at least a dozen other after dark adventurers and knowing that I live in a city where multiple people want to exercise in the snow + cold + dark on a Friday night makes me stupid happy, I got to mentally check off side trails and markers along the main trail where we had spent mountain biking all summer long and finally: we knew there was beer at the end of the tunnel as we met up with Hunter's dad for brews and dinner when we were done.  The Boat needs fresh snow something fierce, so it really was more like ice skating than cross country skiing but it was so crazy fun and I can't wait for a good dump of snow to head back up again!  

The rest of the weekend consisted of working both Sat + Sun, a fun girls night in on Saturday, few hours skiing up the big mountain Sunday morning and ending our weekend with my company holiday party.  I was wiped out come Monday morning { noon and night }, but feel a little more back in the groove today.  Bring it, week!

p.s. 16 days until Christmas.  Ahhhhh freakout!

p.p.s. I finally got on Twitter!  Got a Twitter account?  Am doing Twitter now?  I don't even know the cool kid lingo much less how the heck to navigate my way through the darn thing, but come say hi if you are a tweettweet regular!