Monday Revelations

Dried strawberries are WAY better than any
fruit snack you've ever had. 

Hummus is a superfood. Like, it should have a cape.
This is my go-to recipe.

Aside from my brother's homemade brew,
Cosmic Cranberry is the only acceptable Kombucha. 

I know, profound, right? Regardless - Happy Monday everyone! And if you haven't entered our Valentine's Day giveaway - be sure to check it out!

200th Post and Giveaway!

Hello friends! Today Roy Joy celebrates our 200th post - and to celebrate we're giving away an original Roy Joy Design creation. Just in time for Valentine's Day, a lucky winner will receive 

an 8 x 10  "Under the Stars" print!

TO ENTER:

1. Become a follower! 

See that little box to the right? 

Just click "follow", enter your info, and you're set.

Just leave me a comment telling me that you've joined the 

Roy Joy bandwagon, and you're sitting pretty.

2. If you really want another shot at winning
(and/or already follow us), you can blog or 

Facebook about our little giveaway. 

(Be sure to tell me that you did so in your comment too!)

The giveaway will be closed on February 5th 
and a winner will be announced!

Weekend Adventures!

Hello, weekend! So glad you are here. 

Morning meeting at Atticus coffee.

Thrifting with Megan!

Vintage dress perusing for our upcoming collaboration shoot.

Truffles with Alisa - yum. :)

And perhaps trying out Beef Bourguignon a la Chow Life?

And as always I will gladly accept cups of steaming tea, roaring fireplaces

and snuggling on the couch. 

What are you doing this weekend? 

with love, j

Kiss Me and Carry On

 

Aren't these adorable? Well happy Thursday - they're available over here for free download! 

Wednesday's Mantra!

 

with love, j

Oat Soda Bread & Garlicy White Bean and Kale Soup

The perfect pair for a drizzly foggy day. I've been meaning to make this bread for about a week now, and after seeing Alisa's blog post - I knew today was the day. Pair that with the classic white bean and kale soup we made awhile ago, and YUM! Recipe for the bread can be found over at 101 Cookbooks and the soup recipe is over at Alisa's Garden. Make these - you'll love them!

The Gloomies

I've officially got the gloomies. Right now Spokane is in between snow blasts and this week the theme is FOG. Lots of FOG. Everything is gray and misty, cold and rainy. I remember the days of living in CA, when I would yearn for fall and winter-like weather. I would  say "oh I can hardly wait until it starts raining!" And my friends and co-workers would laugh and generally disagree. Well I think Spokane has turned me into a reformed lover of the sun. Mr. Sun, please, please, please come back. Just for a few days, so I can replenish my Vitamin D stores without choking down a handful of vitamins.

This is what I believe

Pizza Night & Friends

Last night we had our new friends Megan and Kent over for a homemade pizza night. Fabulous conversation, deeeeelicious food, and fun all around.

It's true - she's Rashida Jones' twin.

Today MR and I used the rest of the pizza dough to create a yummy hot lunch on this very, very cold day.

Because Megan is Gluten-sensitive, we used Bob's Red Barn Gluten Free Pizza Dough mix - and it was so good! Topped with tomatoes, herbs de Provence, feta, red onion, artichoke hearts, colby jack and spinach - this baby was amazing. Homemade pizza is easy, delicious and the perfect meal to be shared with good friends. :)

Your Song

 

I love this quote, and just wanted to share! I hope you have someone in your life that sings you your song when you have forgotten.

Pantone + Cookies = Pantone Cookies!

In the graphic design world Pantone colors are king. In my world cookies are king. Combine the two and it's Helllllllllooooo fabulousness: 

People, it's Happening!

Right now I am giving three cheers, huzzah-ing, and shouting out Hoorays to anyone that will listen. MR and I have just finished (finally!) solidifying our trip across the Pond come March! We're taking full advantage of MR's ample Spring Break and escaping this frozen winter wonderland. (Although the weather abroad may be just as frosty, I figure European frost is infinitely better than Spokane frost.)

We fly from Seattle to Frankfurt and then on to Leipzig, Dresden, Prague (YAY!) and we'll end in Vienna. We're utilizing the fantastic deal that is the Euro Rail Pass, so we'll get to check out lots of little places along our way. We are so excited! As people who have a real-live-desire to actually LIVE abroad, we consider these smaller trips as research for narrowing down the search. 

So now I'm on to planning out our day-to-day fun stuff....and figuring out what to pack!

Any suggestions / places you love / etc.? Please share!

It's True:

There are two camps regarding facial hair - compatriots for the clean shaven, and the rest of us. Although I would draw the line at Handlebar-like curly ques...

Thai Peanut Cabbage Salad with Marinated Tofu

Do me a favor - believe me when I say that this is one of the most delicious recipes I've ever come across/retooled to my own taste.

This one was inspired by Heidi's Yin & Yang Salad - I first made this salad following her recipe exactly, but then I decided to add a bit of my own flair. Broccoli! Brussel sprouts! Brown Rice!

I used this very good recipe for gingered tofu, but for those of you who are anti-tofu you can substitute shredded chicken. Regardless, if you plan to use the ginger marinade note that it takes overnight to fully marinate - so allow for the extra time.

Thai Peanut Cabbage Salad with Marinated Tofu

3 Cups Purple Cabbage, shredded

2 Cup Brussel Sprouts, sliced

2 Carrots, julienned

1 head Broccoli, cut into florets/small pieces

Half a cucumber, sliced in half with the seeds removed

5 Green Onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal

1 Cup Brown rice, cooked 

1 Cup  Peanut Sesame Dressing (recipe here)

Gingered Tofu / Shredded Chicken / Other Protein

Blanch the broccoli and brussel sprouts for a couple minutes - just to soften them a bit. 

Combine all ingredients in large bowl, add dressing, toss to coat. Serve to husband - who actually loves the gingered tofu! Hallelujah.

TGIF

Martha's done it again!

Thanks Martha - it's just what I needed! 

The Renter's Dilemma

Yikes, I'm a pretty restless renter. 

I want my house to look like this:

And yet...we're renting. No major changes right now. 

My solace is that I can tackle some small projects now, 

and inevitably look forward to real house fabulousness.

Thanks a lot Country Living for putting me in this conundrum.

To Veg or Not To Veg: Thoughts on Going Meatless

This past week as I was sitting down to plot out meals and groceries, I came across one of my new favorite cooking sites: 101 Cookbooks. 

Have you heard of it?

I love it. 

Vegetarian recipes that don't feel like vegetarian recipes. 

Beautiful photographs. Travel stories. Earth friendly happiness. 

"We're going vegetarian this week, " I advised Matthew. 

As the resident eater-of-all-things, there were no complaints from the husband.

Win!

Long story short: it was fabulous. 

Amazing, delicious, and not once did I miss the meat. 

So it got me thinking: while I'm not prepared to go whole hog and 

renounce all meat - hello, sushi?! - it's really not hard in the least 

to forgo it in our daily lives. 

I figure it's cheaper, healthier, and friendlier.

I'm not getting preachy here - I'm not against people eating meat, I promise. 

But for us, right now, eating a primarily vegetarian diet seems to work.

Check out some of our favorite 101 recipes:

marinated tofu, broccoli soup & split pea soup.

If you have a favorite vegetarian recipe, I'd love to hear it!

Sunday Salutation

Happy Weekend!

 

Christmas Photo Recap!

A Blessing In Disguise

A few days ago: 

I was patting myself on the back for making it through the entire holiday season untouched by sickness, despite spending lots of quality time with sick little kiddos. 

Hooray for a strong immune system!

Yesterday: 

Oh no. Oh dear no. Holy Toledo, say it isn't so.

Aches. Pains. Stuffy Head. 

6:30 p.m. bedtime

This Morning: 

While I'm definitely sick - I've discovered the silver lining. 

I have 100% finished my very first knitted scarf! 

I have knit numerous projects...but never completely finished them. 

This yarn was given to me by my dear friend Amanda, 

and it's knobbly weave is really quite forgiving for novice knitters. 

While zonked on the couch I finally figured out the art of casting off and tadaa - completed scarf.

So while being sick is preventing me from starting most of my New Year's projects, 

completing this scarf felt like a mini miracle - and I was 

able to cross off another thing on my 30 Before Thirty! 

I'm so grateful for blessings in disguise. 

Hello Twenty Eleven

 Greetings friends! 

I am back from vacation and things are a-happening. 

Matthew and I ushered in the new year with a crash course in frozen pipes and their de-thawing, which while not our favorite activity, was just the thing to kick off our New Year.

 For what better to focus on then improvement - self, house, and otherwise? 

I enter 2011 with such a sense of gratitude. This past year was so full. New house, new town, new places, adventures, misadventures, graduate school, new business, and so much more. I am so thankful and our blessings are plentiful. 

Now, on to my New Year's Goals! 

(Anna helped me to see that goals are infinitely better then resolutions.)

1. Cross off more items from my 30 Before Thirty list. 

2.  Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

3.  Be faithful to our financial goals

4. Plant a vegetable garden

5.  Be ACTIVE!

I raise my glass to another year filled with love, joy and plenty of adventure! 

What are some of your New Year's goals??