To love oneself is the beginning of a life-long romance

– Oscar Wilde

Ladies and gentlemen step right up! Wait a minute. This isn’t a circus! But you are more than welcome to come and read.

Hmm… where did we leave off? A-ha! After my breakfast fit for a king princess I got ready to venture over to the Farmer’s Market. I packed Matilda some treats since it was going to be a long walk.

I wore a skirt I found at a vintage punk store in St. Marks.

And some red shoes for a POP of color.

Then we were off!

Looking for the goods.

I had a couple things I was looking for: kale, persimmons, and winter squashes. They only had kale so I whipped out a quarter and paid. It was funny because the lady just held the bag in her hand and she mentally weighed it. Then I just went browsing around the other booths. On Sundays the Farmer’s Market has mostly artisan and vintage items.

I love those shopping bags that say "Thank You" all over them. Thank you thank you thank you!

On the way home I decided to walk a different way and I saw some pretty neat things.

There were plants in each segment.

A sushi restaurant - I think they're trying to be a best-kept secret.

My little nugget.

Pumpkin kale soup + toast + cashew toffee

I mixed in some coconut oil and my leftover sweet & sour lentils in the soup to make it heartier. On the toast is the delicious medley jam Holly sent me, and I had some plain slices with butter. Sometimes I just want simplicity. Maybe I’m coo-coo but often times I’ll eat things plain because I don’t want to forget what it tastes like. I feel like if I forgot what something essentially tasted like then that would interfere with my knack for thinking of flavor combinations. Anyway, I also munched on the cashew toffee, and I realized that it’s read “Christine’s” and not “Christmas” (what I previously thought).

Afterwards lunch I felt like shopping. I got something so I can be a Russian snow-bunny. I got a lot of painting done as well, and went to the grocery store to get some more things.

Faux fur can be chic too!

Lazy Sundays call for lazy dinners.

I roasted some kabocha (finally found one again) and carrot slices. I put coconut oil on half of the kabocha chunks and sunflower seed butter on the other half, but I drizzled all of them with maple syrup. The roasted carrot slices were delicious and I just put sea salt on them! I also baked a Barbeque Sunshine burger. I really enjoyed the distinct flavor this one had! I definitely tasted the smoke flavoring, and it’s really interesting to see the combination of ingredients they use to get that barbeque flavor. I topped it with my favorite BBQ-sauce.

Well, right now it’s a rainy Monday morning and I’m about to head off to finally get a rain jacket! I always say I will, then don’t and then it rains. But before I go I’ll leave you all with this morning’s breakfast.

Woke up to a little love.

I tried the Apple Heart Thrive this time around. I had it with vanilla Greek yogurt (ridiculous sale price=me stocking up), apple sauce + cinnamon, Newman’s Own Organic dried apples, and crunchy peanut butter. So far the one quip about these Heart Thrive bars is that they are drier than I prefer. There’s  nothing wrong with the flavor, just the dryness factor. Atleast I’ve got things like coconut oil and nut butters to moisten them. I also have to make a note about Newman’s Own Organic dried fruit. They are awesome! They’re not overly dry how some dried fruits can be. There’s still a chewiness and plumpness to them.

Okay so I hope you all have a wonderful beginning to a fabulous week! I know everyone must be excited about Thanksgiving break and getting to enjoy all the seasonal eats. My mom is flying into town on Thursday and I can’t wait for some mother + daughter + Matilda time! Not to mention, it really helps turn away any winter blues when I hang out with someone (my mom) that thinks I’m the coolest girl on this side of the galaxy. My mom is like a ray of energy and can make anyone feel special and cared about. She also loves herself and what’s not to love? It’s only natural that as her daughter she’s given me plenty of her infectious injections of self-love and acceptance.

What do you all have planned for Thanksgiving Day? Any recipes you’re trying out or recommend?