Small Things

I shared a little something about my approach to the new year over on my essay site and it reminded me that small, simple every day pleasures go a really long way sometimes. So I am here to share some of my recents with you. May it lighten up your day in some way, big or small. Small is often enough.

Cooking from scratch. This weekend, I fell back in love with cooking. I don’t know what prompted it, really. Probably weeks of holiday indulgence and too much take out and a lazy approach to food that I finally wanted to shake off. So I spent a good part of the weekend sifting through cookbooks new and old and made a few things that I loved. First was the ethereally smooth hummus from Smitten Kitchen. So simple and so worth it. I have never been a huge fan of store-bought hummus which led me to believe that I just don’t like hummus but I was so wrong. I like this hummus. A lot. I also made Chrissy Teigen’s roasted jalapeño and chorizo queso the other night. First, this is the funniest cookbook ever written. Second, this queso was insanely good. A little too hot for my taste buds so I will make some adjustments next time but we basically had a bowl of queso and some grapefruit margaritas for dinner on Saturday and I don’t regret a thing. Not a damn thing. I also tried my luck in recreating the Zuni Café roast chicken that I had in San Francisco over Thanksgiving and that I have been dreaming of every day since. This one is a labor of labor. But you will love the results. I promise.

Reading. I have been trying REALLY hard to break my phone addiction (again) lately. And diving into books has proven to be the easiest/most successful way. I read this book about dogs because I now love all books about dogs…and it was very sweet. I read this page-turner which kept me thoroughly entertained the entire way. And I am now reading this thoughtful memoir which has kept me (somewhat) captivated and if nothing else, grateful beyond measure for my health. This is up next and will undoubtedly influence more time in the kitchen. A good thing.

Unfollowing. This is a small step towards a lot of progress. Every time I log onto Instagram now, I make myself unfollow 10 accounts. Because somehow, somewhere along the way, I started following more than 1300 of them. And clearly they are not all sources of daily inspiration. The first ones to go? Fashion bloggers who are clearly just hawking out product after product link to get commissions. It’s exhausting, most of the clothes aren’t even my style, and while I 100% respect their right/need to make an income, if it’s going to be from me, I need to see more substance with the style. Moms who are using their kids for likes. This has been a long-time pet peeve of mine and while there are absolutely some beautiful and inspiring families on there who are fun to follow, I personally believe there are too many moms shoving their phones into their kids’ faces all days just to get “content.” Again, if there is substance behind it, great. If it’s gratuitous, I pass. People who I met one time at work or through a friend or at a dinner party and we exchanged social media handles in the moment because it felt like the right thing to do. It wasn’t. So who’s staying in my feed? People who share beautiful, inspiring, curated and not-so-curated images, ideas and thoughts that leave me feeling happy, dreamy, energetic or just plain moved. Some of my faves right now are @eyeswoon, @latonyayvette, @quince_ (that’s me after her wreath making workshop pre holidays in the picture above), @shutthekaleup, @masonprendergast and @theplaceiwastellingyouabout. Each one offers a little something that I take away with each post. Sometimes it’s something big, sometimes it’s something small. Right now, I appreciate the small things the most. And it feels really nice.