ENJOYING | my morning workouts. I am on day #111 of my Peloton Streak and I am enjoying all the different workouts I can choose from each day. It does not get boring. 

ADJUSTING | to warmer temperatures outside. The “early morning run” it has to be again – very soon. 

TRYING OUT | these new Pro Hair Ties. I fell victim to Instagram advertising (I bought these with my own money), but I am already convinced that this is a really awesome product. You can adjust the circumference (depending on hair thickness) and they have an”easy release clasp” so you are not ripping out hair when you pull them out. Since I go between hair down and ponytail a lot, these might be real life hair savers! LOL

WEARING | my Birkenstocks. Hooray, it’s sandals season.  

READING |  Sold on a Monday by Kristina McMorris.

EATING | homemade vegetable Thai Red Curry (with quick-cooking brown basmati rice). It’s been on regular rotation on our meal plan recently, because it’s so easy and just so delicious.

DRINKING | mostly coffee, tea +water these days.

WORKING ON | a more regular blogging schedule.  Blogging is – and will forever be – my favorite social media platform and I want to spend some more time here. Anything you’d like to read about?

FEELING | relief over the guilty verdict (x3) in the Derek Chauvin trial. It’s not really justice, because this shouldn’t have happened in the first place (and George Floyd – and countless others! – should be alive today), but it sure does feel like a step in the right direction and a warning to every police officer to not abuse their power, because it does come with consequences.

HOPING | that this conviction will lead to more meaningful police reform. Police is supposed to be our “friend and helper”. Police is supposed to serve, not “rule” over citizens. 

GIDDY | to watch my plants grow. It’s the little things, people.

LOOKING FORWARD TO | getting my second Pfizer shot next week. Jon got his second vaccine dose this week and I am just so thankful for science and excited that vaccinations are moving at such a good pace in this country now. Everybody 16+ is eligible now, so go get your shots!!

What is currently going on with you?

CELEBRATING | my birthday and many other March babies this month. So many wonderful people have birthdays in March.

EATING | marble cake. I always bake a marble cake for my birthday (from my Mom’s recipe). What’s your favorite birthday cake?

(so) THANKFUL | that I got to see my dear friend Tanja and for everyone else who reached out for my birthday.

SLACKING | a bit in my running routine this month, but making up for it by doing more strength and yoga sessions. It’s all good!

(kindly) ASKING | for some really positive vibes for a friend. She could really use them.

REMINISCING ABOUT | the epic skiing vacation that my whole family (my parents and sister + family) spent in the Italian Alps/Dolomites exactly 5 years ago (I’ve been getting these pop-up reminders on social media). I hope we get the chance to do that again sometime! 

MAKING | Kaiserschmarrn — a fancy name for a shredded German pancake. Well, the original recipe for a Kaiserschmarrn calls for whipped egg whites and raisins and is usually served with a side of fruit compote, but I think you can call any shredded pancake with a dusting of powdered sugar Kaiserschmarrn. The one pictured above has just mixed berries (mixed into the batter).

DRINKING | coffee from my new favorite coffee mug.

LOVING | the camera on my new phone. Holy smokes, it’s impressive.

FEELING | a little stressed out by work right now. I don’t want to go into details, but let’s just say delegating, distributing work, and communication is an issue in our office sometimes.

EXCITED | about the new laptop that I picked up from IT at my office this week. I always seem to get the hand-me-dows, but at least the (new-to-me) laptop I got is a serious upgrade from the clunky Dell latitude that was already 8 years old.

ELATED | that Jon’s first vaccine appointment is scheduled for next week. Finally! 

HOPING | that I will also be getting an appointment soon. Governor Newsom just released a statement that everybody over the age of 16 will be eligible after April, 15 here in California.

What is currently going on with you?

RELIEVED | to be hearing positive, ‘boring’ news out of the White House right now. I feel like I can finally let up on paying attention to the news 24 hours a day. Well, I mean, I am still paying attention to the news, but I don’t have to be outraged at every single instant. Joe Biden has a rough road ahead of him (I am currently reading the chapter in Obamas book, where he talks about how hard the Republicans were making it to actually govern), but I am hopeful that this administration will move us in the right direction.

RELISHING | the morning sun that shines into my window in the kitchen. 

USED | some of my sourdough discard to make these delicious sourdough discard apple-cinnamon waffles. ICYMI, here is the recipe.

SWITCHING | back to baking bread in the Dutch oven again. It makes these beautiful, perfectly round loaves with a beautiful crust, and I am in love.

LOVING | the coffee sock* that we bought for our Chemex coffeemaker. I originally got it as a backup in case we run out of filters (which almost happened a few weeks ago), but we might just switch to the coffee sock permanently once we’ve used up our filters, because it’s a pretty awesome green alternative to single-use filters. 

DRINKING | coffee + tea. 

SHARED | my 2021 Fringe planner last week, in case you’re curious which planner I am using this year. It’s a simple, no frills planner, but that’s just the way I like it.

(still) READING |  A promised land by Barack Obama. It’s really good, but it’s slow going (and admittedly, I haven’t spend a whole lot of time reading this month), but you definitely need to read this book. Put it on your list. So many insights.

LISTENING | to the constant hum of my work laptop’s cooling fan. I know, I am pushing this old laptop to its limits and I am hoping to get an upgrade soon. 

EATING | mashed potatoes with sauerkraut, and I recommend you give this a try. Trust me, it just goes so well together. 

UPDATED | the blog post for my barley soup recipe with this better photo, after someone recently asked me if the recipe was on the blog. It is, and you should make it sometime!

SMILING | because my outdoor runs make me happy. We had a few fairly warm days (as per usual in February in California) and I’ve been taking advantage.

WEARING | my favorite running/yoga pants from Old Navy (which I get so many comments on). Yes, I love them, too :)

LOOKING FORWARD TO | my birthday week in March. I am planning to take a couple of days off, just because I can!

What is currently going on with you?

 

FEELING | cautiously hopeful for the future of this country. Watching the inauguration last week and seeing sane tweets from our new president (and his press secretary) in the last few days make my heart so calm and happy.

LISTENING TO | the rain storm that finally came through the valley last night (thankfully, no damage around here and not power outages in our neighborhood, but more rain to come the next few days!).

ENJOYING | our beautiful California January skies. (We desperately need more rain, but of course, I’ll take a blue sky when I can.)

LOVING | our fake TV-fireplace a little bit too much.

WATCHING | Schitt’s Creek. You guys, we finally started watching this show. I know we’re way late (as we are with most shows, if we get around to watching any shows at all), but so far, we’re enjoying it. I mean, it’s funny. I am not sure I am getting the hype yet, but I am willing to give it a little more time.

READING | A promised land by Barack Obama. Man, he’s a good writer (which doesn’t surprise me). But this book is dense. I am not getting through it as fast as I was expecting, but it’s utterly fascinating.

EATING | a warm, steaming bowl of steel-cut oatmeal for breakfast (most days).

DRINKING | (pots of) camomile-lavender tea. 

LEARNING | to appreciate some of the Peloton yoga and (sleep) meditation content. I am usually not someone who can relax and “do nothing” easily, but these shorter classes have given me an appreciation for just being “still” for a little while.

(super) EXCITED | about my Peloton Century Club t-shirt that I received in the mail this month. I’ve been using the Peloton app since August of 2020 and everyone, even the app users, get a Century Club shirt when they reach 100 workouts in any one category (it was “rides” for me, closely followed by strength classes).

MISSING | a more regular running routine. I currently only run once (sometimes twice) a week outdoors and I am looking forward to early morning runs again when the sun rises earlier and it is light out before I start work.

BUYING | coffee filters for $20. Ugh. Who’s been hogging all the Chemex coffee filters? I’ve been trying to get them for a few weeks now and finally had to order them online for a steep price because they were out of stock everywhere. What’s up with that?

WEARING | sweatpants and hoodies. Don’t tell me you are actually getting dressed these days.

What is up with currently?