at home

 Today's the only day all week that I have completely at home.* And wouldn't you know it - I have a bad headache! Woke me up in the wee hours. I'm wondering if it's the weather...it's bleak. Cold, rainy, and very windy. No editing of the photo below - it really has been that gloomy all day.

 I love to make a big pot of soup in the colder months and then have plenty of leftovers to keep in the fridge. So easy to heat up for lunches or a quick dinner. Today I made a pot of veggie soup - with bacon. ;-) I added a little quinoa elbow pasta to make it more hearty and keep it gluten-free.

Speaking of healthy and gluten-free, I whip up these peanut butter cookies every so often when Brian and I have a hankering for something sweet. As I've mentioned, we gave up white sugar back in April. But, once in awhile, we still want something sweet. These are my go-to cookies because they're tasty, healthy, and amazingly simple to make. They're from the web site, My Whole Food Life. Believe it or not, they only have three ingredients: peanut butter (natural...please don't use/eat the cheap, unhealthy stuff with hydrogenated oil in it), pure maple syrup (again, use the real stuff - not the fake stuff that is nothing but water, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, and chemicals) and salt. You can find the recipe here. The only downfall? If you use a standard cookie scoop, this recipe only makes seven cookies. You can tell which ones are mine...I stuck some dark chocolate chips on top of mine when I pulled them out of the oven. Yes, those do have sugar in them, but it's minimal because of the dark chocolate and I rarely eat chocolate chips. Once in a blue moon isn't going to kill me. ;-)

 

I know this photo doesn't have anything to do with my home - I wish it did! I was at a local coffee shop yesterday and was absolutely enamored with the decor. I tried that leather chair in the corner before I left and it was heavenly. I could've taken a nap in it. Now... you see the peek of the amazing blue sofa to your right?

This is it. I'm in love with it AND the coffee table. And the wall art and the lighting. I would've taken photos of the other side of the shop, but there were too many people sitting there. The windows in front of the shop are flanked with blue curtain panels that exactly match the color of the sofa. (Later edit: Brenda from Cozy Little House commented, "add books and I'd be in heaven!" Well, guess what? This place does indeed have books! There is a small bookshelf filled with books near the back of the shop. I don't know if they're just to read while there, or if people can borrow them. I'll have to find out next time I go - and take more pictures.)

Back to home. Think my kitties felt the bleakness of today, too? I threw this quilt on the couch and next thing I knew, they were all curled up and fast asleep in it. Except for Mr. Monkey. He knows when I'm taking his picture and has to look extra cute.

*Well, so much for staying at home all day today. My plans have been thwarted. We had to order some photography equipment for Tim and it was delivered to our house today. We didn't want it delivered to Tim's place at school because it was very expensive and we were afraid it'd get stolen. He needs the equipment ASAP, so we're going to meet up with him for dinner. Guess I'd better go and put on a little makeup and change out of my pajama pants. Happy Thursday, everyone.