April | 2014 | food & foto

Archive | April, 2014

{lately…}

hey gang, how are things? i hope you are enjoying the season, wherever you may be…

lately, i’ve decided to cut back on blogging a little… no particular reason; it just sometimes feels like a job to blog every day, and i’m trying to find other avenues in my life to expel creative energy… but i also am focusing more on blogging about the tiny home. it’s pretty amazing how this movement has taken off and how much i feel like a part of something pretty special and cool! my landlord recently started a new construction project – a tiny home! so, stay tuned as i document the adventure! also – i haven’t forgotten about the giveaway i promised back in march… i just need a little more time to gather my favourite images, so – stay tuned for more information on that, as well!

the last few weeks have gone by at what feels like lightning speed… and i have just been sitting here kind of spaced out, wondering what and how anything happened…

luckily, i have fotos to prove it 😉

lately…

… i am very happy to see the winter season come to a close…

… i’ve been throwing my polarizer sunglass lenses over my iPhone to snap cool fotos…

… and, i’ve been looking UP a lot more!…

… insect energy keeps making itself known to me…

… i’ve been receiving gentle reminders…

… things like this have been making me giggle and appreciate the little things…

… i’ve been getting more involved with farming/farmers/farm fresh food…

… the earth seems to be bubbling from below…? {maybe it’s the GRAND CROSS}

… mini frittatas and roasted fingerling potatoes have been the start of my day...

… i’ve been cleaning out old files and giggling more over stuff like this…

… i’ve enjoyed having many many delicious snuggle moments with this adorable furball…

Tags: blogging, colorado, eating, food, food and foto, fun, iphone, iphoneography, life, messages, photography, pics, seasons, silly, snapshots, universe, updates, whatever

Comments 6 Comments
Categories food, life, photography, the food, the foodie, the foto

Image

{happy earth day!}

22 Apr

and celebrate ALL WEEK! ❤

Tags: april 22, art, audrey michelle, cool, creativity, earth day, graffiti, love, mother earth, murals, new york, new york city, nyc, painting, photography, save the planet, save the world, snapshots, street photography, whatever

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Categories life, new york, photography

{pause}

16 Apr

…

and don’t forget to look UP!

Comments 4 Comments
Categories life

{tiny tuesday : a tour inside my tiny home}

15 Apr

it’s been far too long since i posted an update on my tiny home… like, four months too long! 😉

it really amazes me how much this “movement” has taken off!

i’ve made quite a few changes around the tiny home, and i’m rather happy with the way things look, now… i feel like it’s finally coming together. my next project is working on the upstairs bedroom/loft area… i need to maximize space and upgrade the whole “college dorm room” feel currently happening… 😉

upon entering my tiny home, you first see my personalized dresser from the target closetmaid collection… it’s actually two pieces stacked on top of each other, and i’ve managed to fit most of my clothing inside! just to the left of the dresser, i keep the ladder to my loft propped against the wall. as you may recall, this attaches to that black beam for easy access to the loft, and quick removal when not in use!

on the right is the kitchen table, which is where my desk used to be. i just felt like it opened up the house more with the setup this way… Continue reading →

Tags: audrey michelle, colorado, food and foto, lifestyle, minimalist life, minimalist living, mountains, simple, small house, small houses, tiny home, tiny house, tiny house movement, viking, viking range

Comments 43 Comments
Categories the food

{happy full moon!}

14 Apr

Tags: full moon, photography

Comments 3 Comments
Categories photography, the foto

{meatless mondays : a simple spring recipe – creamy bok choy with sauteed garlic scapes}

14 Apr

have you ever used garlic scapes?! they are also referred to as “green garlic”…

first of all – how fun and wild-looking are they?! …reminds me of my hair in the mornings 😛

you can start to find them popping up in some specialty stores, organic grocers, and maybe even at a farmer’s market…if you’re lucky to live where you can shop at one now!

i just love garlic scapes! they are not nearly as strong as garlic itself, and provide a fun texture to a dish. the “scapes” are the “flower stalks” of the plant, and are typically pruned or discarded in gardening practices. however, this foodie knows better and has learned that they can be an amazing substitute for garlic itself. Continue reading →

Tags: bok choy, cooking, eating, food, food photography, gardening, garlic scapes, meatless mondays, photography, produce, recipes, seasonal, simple, specialty produce, spring, vegan, vegetarian

Comments 9 Comments
Categories food, photography, the foodie, the foto

{a personal post : something about a rainbow}

14 Apr

thinkin’ about my mama today… can’t believe it’s been 21 years! ❤

something about a rainbow gives me so much comfort… maybe they make me think of my mom, or maybe they remind me of that bible verse i liked when i was a kid, or maybe the scientist in me finds them truly fascinating… and maybe, they just provide a sense of peace somehow – a beautiful reminder that everything is going to be okay… a reminder that after the storm and after the rain, there’s always a

rainbow…

Tags: anniversaries, comfort, judi, life, love, mama, moms, personal, rainbows

Comments 11 Comments
Categories life, photography, thoughts, writing

{things i’m loving right now – bath sand}

12 Apr

this was a christmas gift from my awesome landlord/neighbour and i’ve been super enjoying it during this ~~winter and spring~~ longest season ever.

it’s been so relentlessly cold here… dark, cold, snowy, damp… did i mention cold?

nothing warms my bones like a hot salt bath. we all know how much i luuuurrve himalayan pink salt, and i do sometimes throw it in my warm bath water. but since i have had these wonderful {hand-made} bath sand satchels, i have been using them to soak in lots of healing from the powerful dead sea salts and essential oils these adorable packages are filled with.

i just love salt; it has amazing healing properties in so many ways.

sometimes nothing will comfort me like a hot salt bath. to detox the skin, the body, the pores, the aches and pains… and what i love about these great little packages is how my skin feels when i leave the water… so super soft and smooth, and smelly-good, too! 😉 ❤

Tags: artisan, bath salts, bath sand, colorado, gifts, homemade, life, lifestyle, local, photography, product photography, products, relaxing, whatever, whatever wednesday

Comments 12 Comments
Categories the food

{foto friday : those noisy neighbours, again!}

11 Apr

i love waking up and seeing this…

sometimes i feel like i have more conversations with wildlife lately than i do with humans. i’m not complaining; i talk to anything that has life or energy – so, i pretty much talk to everything 😉

this family of elk live in my ‘hood and they have recently been grazing the grasses by where i walk home every day… sometimes i see them, sometimes i just see their poop.

but i do believe they are starting to recognize me!

sometimes they just stare back at me… i inch closer, snap another foto, and they just stare. i do believe they know who i am now, and they know who my camera is, as well. the little fawns i’ve been seeing are just heart-melting, too!

let’s all take time this weekend to unplug – connect with your true source, with nature. hug a tree, smell the roses, look for bumble bees, stare at the clouds. get lost in the beauty that is around all around you… ❤

Tags: animal energy, audrey michelle, colorado, deer, elk, energy, life, mountain life, mountains, nature, nature photography, photography, photos, source, weekends, western slope, wildlife

Comments 8 Comments
Categories photography, the foto, thoughts

{thirsty thursday : “plumango” vitamix smoothie}

10 Apr

“plumango” vitamix smoothie :

– 1 fresh plum

– 1/4 cup dried mango

– 1/4 organic banana

– 1/4 cup frozen cherries

– 1/4 cup fresh spinach

– 1 teaspoon flax seeds

– 1 cup almond milk

Tags: audrey michelle, blenders, blending, colourful, drink the rainbow, drinks, easy, eating, food, food and foto, health, healthy, juice, juicing, simple, smoothies, thirsty thursday, vitamix

Comments 10 Comments
Categories photography, the foodie, the foto

{whatever wednesday : crazy clouds}

9 Apr

Tags: clouds, colorado, crazy clouds, monochrome, photography, photos, pictures, sky, snapshots, weird, whatever wednesday, wild

Comments 5 Comments
Categories photography, the foto

{travel tuesday : manhattan bokeh}

8 Apr

will i alway miss new york this much?!?!

…

Tags: art, audrey michelle, bokeh, fun, lights, manhattan, new york, new york city, nyc, photography, photos, pictures, travel, travel tuesday, twinkles, whatever

Comments 8 Comments
Categories new york, photography, the foto

{meatless mondays : my first millet experience}

7 Apr

i’ve been wanting to try to play with millet for a while now. i have had a package of it on the shelves for a good bit now and i thought it was high time to give it a whirl.

i like to store things in glass jars… packaging just annoys me! 😛

millet is a tiny grain that reminds me of something from my youth… when cooked, it is almost like a pilaf. i read online that it also can turn into more of a mashed-potato like consistency, if cooked the right way. Continue reading →

Tags: cooking, easy, eating, food, food and foto, food photography, grains, meatless mondays, millet, organics, photography, recipes, simple, vegetarian

Comments 6 Comments
Categories photography, the food, the foodie, the foto

{a personal post – HSP}

5 Apr

hey gang. hope you’re enjoying the weekend.

i unfortunately have not been sleeping very well at all this week and am extremely tired and worn out. i look forward to resting this weekend, and doing not much of anything else…

my brain has been on overdrive, due to this lack of sleep and i’m sure a hundred other physiological aspects that come along with it… and i’ve just been in a lousy headspace today. when i don’t sleep well for several days, i can’t function. as i’ve mentioned in the past, i’ve battled with insomnia for most of my adult life. i’ve found ways to “cope” but ultimately it’s an ongoing process. sometimes things keep me awake, sometimes i just don’t sleep well. it just depends. point is, today my brain is so tired and yet it’s trying so desperately to think, that it’s focusing on stupid crap.

however – it did get me thinking and researching more about a term i’ve been familiar with but hadn’t thought about much until a friend mentioned it the other day.

HSP – Highly Sensitive Person.

google it, it’s a very real thing. even oprah talked about it on her show once, so the mainstream is accepting it, as well. and, wouldn’t you know – i, myself, am an HSP. Continue reading →

Tags: about me, audrey michelle, blogging, differences, highly sensitive people, HSP, learning, life, people, personal, self-help, sensitivity, thoughts, weekends, words, writing

Comments 14 Comments
Categories thoughts, writing

{animal messengers : the centipede}

5 Apr

i found this little guy {or gal? … are they asexual?!} in my tiny house the other day… and i think it’s so cool i was able to kind of capture the little legs!!!

i may have been a little freaked out at first, but that’s what you get when you live in the mountains – you have to learn to share your space with all of nature, as you are on her turf. when i looked up what this creature “represented” {according to some}, i read terms like psychic revelations, ability to survive stress, and this : “it is a wonder that something so small can humble even the largest and most threatening of creatures and people.” which clearly made me feel so good and comforted – cuz i am small, myself – but only physically 😉

i happily scooped him up onto a piece of paper and released him outside… but not before snapping a couple quick fotos. little bugger is FAST, too! i could only fire off two shots before he creeped down into a crevasse and scurried away…

apparently some centipedes are poisonous?! {yikes!} but not here in colorado, from what i’ve been told and read. i am thankful for my little gift of a centipede messenger. at the time i didn’t think much of it, but after reading about the energy this creature carries, i feel super blessed to have had it cross my path…

Tags: animal energy, animal spirits, animals, awareness, colorado, energy, gifts, insects, intuition, messages, messengers, nature, outdoors, photography, psychic abilities, spirituality, stop and smell the roses, thoughts, totems, universe, weekends

Comments 5 Comments
Categories photography, the foto

{foto friday : living vicariously through my camera phone – including like, three selfies!}

4 Apr

hey gang. hope you are all doing well.

this week was a rollercoaster as far as emotions and happenings go. and the only rollercoasters i like are the ones i build on rollercoaster tycoon and pretend ride. and i’m actually serious about that, just ask my former roommate and still one of my best friends… he’ll tell you about my non-love of rollercoasters or things that go fast, in general… like waterslides.

nevertheless, here are a few happy highlights from my week via the shake-it app… {still my fav.}

i went pixie, again! i love it; brings out the new-yorker in me – and i just feel more like myself this way…

i happily spent a ridiculous 75 cents for this little cute bottle of club soda. i saved and reused the bottle for my liquid vitamins… i just love glass and i just love tiny things! 😉

it “sunny snowed” this week – and i am amazed my iPhone was able to capture the little flakes.

on that same day, my boss let me borrow his sunglasses ‘coz i forgot mine and he insisted they would make me cooler… i insisted that wasn’t possible. 😉

and despite the friggin mercurical weather, i planted my seeds…

and i hope to god they do not end up looking like this {clearly} genetically modified apple. i mean seriously, have you looked at conventional produce in the last couple years? it’s like that movie “cloudy with a chance of meatballs.” — the food is getting abnormally large! am i crazy or should an apple NOT be the size of two of my fists!??!?! i digress…

i had several very intense and wonderfully silent moments with my “neighbours”…

then there’s mount sopris… which just makes me happy for existing. and – i applied for a job with this view. uhm, yes please!

this is where i currently work – it’s kind of like going to heaven every day – only with more people 😉

and sometimes snow doesn’t piss me off… cuz it’s pretty…

but it’s also annoying… especially in april.

the end.. for now.

have a great weekend, ya’ll! ❤ 😉

Tags: audrey michelle, blogging, colorado, enjoy life, food and foto, foto friday, funny, goofy, iphone, iphoneography, keep it real, laugh, life, moments, mountains, photography, photos, pictures, self-portraits, selfies, shake-it app, silly, week in fotos, weekends, whatever

Comments 11 Comments
Categories photography, the food, the foodie, the foto

{thirsty thursday – session lager}

3 Apr

i’ve definitely been throwing back a few of these in the last few weeks…

just your good ol’ basic lager. clean, smooth taste, easy finish. compliments a frozen pizza after a long day at work just perfectly! 😉

Tags: beer, drinking, drinks, food, food photography, lagers, libations, photography, session lager, thirsty thursday

Comments 8 Comments
Categories photography, the food, the foodie, the foto

{himalayan pink salt}

2 Apr

i love himalayan pink salt.

i love to cook with it, eat with it…

bathe with it, pray with it…

it’s one versatile salt! {and i happen to be somewhat of a connoisseur.} 😉

what makes himalayan pink salt extra special other than the awesome flavour, is its extremely high mineral content. this stuff is very high in… well, practically everything!

Tags: condiments, cooking, eating, food and foto, food is cool, food photography, healthy, himalayan pink salt, minerals, photography, pink salt, specialty foods, specialty salt, versatile, whatever wednesday

Comments 10 Comments
Categories photography, the food, the foodie, the foto

{fresh and crumbly parmigiano reggiano – it’s that time again!}

1 Apr

whole foods cracks a brand new fresh wheel of this crumbly gold every year around this time… and i always try to nab some up.

i look forward to it every year. there just isn’t anything like freshly cracked parmigiano reggiano. did you know in order for it to have that “stamp” or seal that says it’s the real deal, the cows can only graze on certain pastures in certain parts of italy. and that those cows are the only cows used to milk and create this wonderful cheese with?!

ain’t no fake stuff here! 🙂

nom nom…