thankful for the normal

welcome november.

 These last few days have been almost completely normal.....and they have been nothing short of completely fantastically amazingly amazing.

No hustle, no bustle, no plans at all. The kids had Friday off for end of term, and my Friday schedule was unusually clear, so we took full advantage. 

And by full advantage I mean we

-slept in. way in.

-stayed in our pajamas until 5:00.

day. well. spent.

We were lazy all day--I slopped together some Halloween costumes and the kiddos carved pumpkins (while wearing pajamas, obviously), and then we headed into the city for more Pho because I just couldn't stop thinking about the hot steamy goodness from last weekend. We got home and I roasted pumpkin seeds and Robby and I stayed up way too late watching stupid tv, and it felt so normal I could hardly stand how much I loved it.

The next morning Robby and I quickly ran up up up up the mountain, and I'm so thankful for my sore legs that carried me to the top--they have gotten used to sitting all day--I doubted their abilities.....thankfully, they proved me wrong. 

oh hey, little towns.

 

We came home and got some chores done around the house, and then tricked and treated until these crazy kiddos ran their little legs off.

my bandits.

RUN!

We topped off the night feasting on Nachos, which in my opinion is the best way to end a day.

Sunday was church, followed by a long drive on unexplored roads, taking in the quiet eeriness that only early November can offer.

 

We wrapped in blankets while Robby read bedtime stories, and I did my best to soak it all in as we geared up for another week. 

I'm so thankful for these normal little moments with my family--slow weekends spent soaking up nothing but time together.

...and thankful for slow evenings with soup on the stove while the wind blows outside....

Roasted Cauliflower and White Bean Soup

1 head cauliflower, cut into small pieces

1 onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 TBS fresh rosemary, finely chopped

4 cups prepared cannellini beans 

4-6 cups chicken stock (depending how "soupy" you want it)

2 bay leaves

pinch of nutmeg

pinch of cayenne pepper

few dashes of white wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

bacon for topping (when you take your cauliflower out of the oven, lower the temp to 400°, spread out the bacon on a lined cookie sheet, and bake for 15-20 minutes until crispy.)

Preheat oven to 425°. Toss cauliflower pieces in olive oil, a little salt, and cracked pepper and spread on baking sheet. Roast until fork tender and golden brown. While cauliflower is roasting, heat olive oil in your soup pot. Sauté onion until tender. Add in garlic and rosemary and cook a few minutes more, stirring constantly. Add chicken stock, beans, bay leaves, vinegar, nutmeg and cayenne. When your cauliflower is roasted, add it to the pot.  Simmer for 30-40 minutes so all the flavors have time to party. Ladle soup into your blender and give it a few pulses (I don't like it to turn into a puree). Return it to the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste, (I like LOTS of cracked pepper in this soup) and add more broth if needed.

Top with bacon and broil some crusty bread for dunking.

enjoy!

Remember when I used to blog like crazy and all November I'd post almost DAILY about what I was thankful for? (find all those posts HERE). While I won't be posting daily on the blog--I'll try my best to really open up my eyes and look around to see all the little normal things that I'm thankful for--and hopefully post a few times a week on IG for the month of November. I invite you to join me--share your photos #thankfulforthenormal on IG so we can all see!

What are you thankful for today?

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