the little red house: freebie

Showing posts with label freebie. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

dear october

dear October,

welcome old friend!

boy you are pretty. the reds have crept down the mountain, and the yellows are slowly making their way in. fiery hillsides in every direction.....the best.

dear fall running and hiking,

you are my favorite! the cooler air, the earthy smells, the crunchy leaves underfoot.

dear snow,

noooooo. not yet snow. stay in the mountains for a little bit longer......please?

dear foods with pumpkin,

I'm excited to be reunited.

baked goods, pastas, soups.

What are your favorite pumpkiny foods?? tell me.

dear desert,

eeeeeeeek!!! now that the hot summer temperatures are gone, it's officially desert season! I cannot wait to sink my feet in your sand soon.

so excited to get to my place.

dear everyone who bought the cookbook last month,

THANK YOU! thank you thank you.

such an exciting first month.

dear everyone who hasn't bought the book yet,

get your copy now!

It's $15.64 on Amazon....hard to beat

(here)

dear locals,

Whitney and I are having a book signing next week--Oct 8th at 7:00-8:30 at Cubby's in Provo.

Come grab some dinner and bring your books for us to sign, and invite all your friends!

dear yoga,

oh it feels so good to be back.

I missed you so much this summer--I hardly ever saw you.

But twice last week! It hurt terribly..... and felt so good at the same time.

dear peaches,

I am panicking. I am not ready to say goodbye to you yet.

I might have to gorge myself these next few days as a proper goodbye to peach season.

dear charly and luna,

you are killing me with your adorableness.

sharing your bed at night? cuteness explosion.

dear this little red house,

I canNOT believe we have lived in you for 7 months. Where has the time gone?

you are quirky and old and awkward and I love you so much. I'm thankful every day we are here.

Dear YOU,

it's been awhile since I put desktop calendars together......but here you go!

Happy October.

from THIS post last year

photo from THIS fall drive

1280x800

1440x900

1680x1050

1920x1200

not a fall picture.....just one of my favorite sunsets ever. taken in Washington, see more HERE

sincerely/all my love,

sheena

blogged 1 year ago: dear October

Monday, February 4, 2013

dear february (take two)

Dear February,

I'm sorry I was so rude in last week's post....let's try it again, shall we?

You're not.....that bad. You do have some good qualities going for you.....like the fact that you are only 28 days long.

Way to go February! You have finally done something right.

Dear My Voice,

Where did you go????! I woke up Friday morning and you were nowhere to be found. NOWHERE. Saturday you stayed away. Sunday I had to yell with all my might just to get a squeak out.

Monday I sounded like a man. Please come back. please.

Dear Tubing,

oh so many stories to tell!

You are so much fun. Especially when two moms (one of them.....me....) go barreling down the hill so fast (like, breaking the sound barrier, fast) and are UNABLE TO STOP AND CRASH THROUGH THE FENCE. That happened. Oh, and remember how I had no voice to warn the children I was crashing into??!!!

nice.

little tubers waiting to head up the hill

Dear anyone who has asked about

The Cookbook in the last few months.

We. Are. Almost. Done. Just a few more shoots and then off it goes to The Man, who will turn it into a pretty book (The Family Flavor) for your hands to behold.

(if you are just joining us, I am photographing a cookbook for one of the coolest gals around, Whitney Ingram. You will most definitely want this book.....this girl can cook)

Follow us on instagram for weekly updates of what we are shooting (I'm now @_sheenarae on IG and whitney is @whitneyingram)....see you there!

Dear anything above 30°,

YOU FEEL LIKE SUMMER!

Oh how I love when the sun warms me all the way through. After all our single digit temperatures we are basking in this warm weather. Windows open! Bike riding! Wishing our legs weren't so pasty!

Dear Chacos,

hello old friends. It's been a long few months without you. If it's over 30° you'll be on my feet as I head to yoga. Glad we are back together.

Dear Rock Wall.

You are fun. Thanks for entertaining us through the winter.

Dear Cyber World,

Ok, I am putting this out there....

I figure it can't hurt.

We are looking for a home to rent in the Heber/Midway/Charleston Utah area--

sometime within the next few months (ish).

If you know of someone who has a rental property up there, could you email me at sheenajibson at gmail.

We are on the hunt!

(and I will let you know when we put our house up for rent (again, hopefully within the next few months(ish) (fingers crossed)) and you can tell all your friends to come and rent The Little Red House!

Dear Readers,

Here is your February desktop calendar! Sorry there is only one.....I really don't have any snowy February pictures because if we are out playing in the snow I usually don't have my big camera.

But besides.....by February we are usually tired of snow (right?!) so here is a nice, bright, non-wintry desert for your desktop.

(I spy a tiny moon)

Dear Soup,

we always like you.

Lentil and Coconut Curry Stew

I love the warm flavor of curry in the winter (posted a curry recipe last February too) and this soup did not disappoint. I found the recipe on the Scaling Back blog and just tweaked it a little bit....I added some carrots, and a few more spices, used full fat coconut milk and yellow lentils instead of red.
This soup is hearty and filling,

and warms you up on a dreary February day.

2 cups lentils

1 onion, finely chopped

1 red bell pepper, diced

2 large carrots, sliced

1 fresh jalapeno, seeded and diced small

2 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 heaping tablespoon red curry paste

1 teaspoon garam masala

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/3 cup tomato paste

7 cups water

1 can coconut milk

1 15-ounce can of chickpeas

2 tsp salt (or salt to taste)

juice of two limes

fresh cilantro and lime wedges for serving

Heat 1-2 tablespoons of coconut oil and add the onions, bell pepper, carrot and jalapeno. Cook until veggies begin to get tender. Add the garlic, ginger, curry, spices, salt and tomato paste and continue to cook for 2-3 more minutes. Add the water, coconut milk, lentils and chickpeas, bring to a low boil, and cook uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes, until lentils are tender. Stir in the lime juice, and give it a taste to see if you need any more lime or salt. Serve with cilantro, lime, and fresh naan.

enjoy!

Sincerely yours/all my love/thank goodness for sunny days/23 more days to go,

sheena

How do YOU feel about February?

Thursday, November 29, 2012

here comes december!

This post contains so much that it might explode.

I just want to make sure you are ready for December.... I am about to burst with happiness I am so excited that this month is almost here! Here are some of my favorite December posts from the past

(no surprise that they are almost ALL treats)....

First up.....

The easiest advent calendar you will ever make....just a little string of envelopes counting down the days until Christmas. All you need is festive paper, mini clothespins, string, and a brain full of Christmasy ideas. Each day your Littles choose a note from inside the envelope to see what they will do today to count down to Christmas. We do simple things like read a Christmas book, sing Christmas songs, have a Christmas treat, watch a Christmas movie......or bigger things like go on our annual Christmas date, decorate cookies, or make our annual gingerbread house.

Full calendar instructions HERE

Brussels Sprouts-one of our favorites!

If you wrinkle up your nose when you think about brussels then you are making them wrong.

Lots of ways to eat them, including sauteed with bacon, avocado and lime, HERE.

Pomegranates are pretty and festive, and we love them in everything.

How to prepare and eat them HERE.

Let's move on to the treats....I need to go run 30 miles up a mountain just looking at these.

Homemade Toffee!

I was always so intimidated when it came to candy making.....and then we tried toffee and it will now be a yearly tradition for Robby and I to make. Recipe HERE.

Black and White Popcorn.

Easy and quick and perfect for gift giving. Recipe HERE.

My very favorite Christmas cookie everrrrrr. Snowballs. Recipe HERE.

Don't hesitate to make them....right NOW.

Candy Cane Ice Cream.

Ice cream isn't just for summer--this serves up nicely with warm brownies.

Recipe HERE.

We had this cake last year with our Christmas feast.

Chocolate and Orange Layer Cake--recipe HERE.

December Desktop Calendars

Snow in Wyoming

Big Sky

Sugar Cookies

Happy Weekend....and Happy December!

Monday, October 1, 2012

dear october

dear october,

.........OCTOBER!!??? WHAT??!!! HOW??!!

anyway, however you got here, welcome.

dear fall,

you are so nice. the colors, the breeze, the reaching for the covers at night.

the smells, the soups, the baking, all of it.

dear utah,

well done on fall, friend.

well done.

dear fallen leaves,

I love how you smell.

I love how you look as you flutter flutter flutter so slowly to the ground.

I love how you crunch beneath my feet as I run down my favorite trails.

dear people who live in places where you don't really get to experience real fall,

I am so so

so so sorry.

very sorry.

I will try to take as many pictures as I can, so I can share real fall with you.

dear Halloween,

well.......

you know how I feel. I really like you on Halloween day--we have so much fun each year.

but all this build up for Halloween 6.....5......4......weeks before you are even here?? nonsense. Let's take it slow, Halloween. I don't need to be with you all month.

Am I the only one who feels this way? Don't hate me.

dear oven,

hello again old friend.

So nice to be spending time with you again.

dear Les Miserables ,

well you have nothing to do with October, but boy am I excited to watch you.

aaaaamazingness.

just thought I should throw that out there.

dear crockpot,

I'm sorry you have the worst reputation.

When I hear your name, I think of you bubbling over with cream-of-something-fake soup.

But you really make my life easier on busy days. We just ate one of our favorites--

chicken slow cooked all day to make

homemade naan stuffed with chicken and veggies,

and it's so easy and tasty and fresh....and contains nothing fake.

I pull out some frozen naan dough (I always double or triple the batch so I have extra in the freezer), let the chicken cook all day and chop a few veggies. So easy and fast!

Do you have any favorite slowcooker meals that make your life easier, and aren't full of fake stuff?

dear fall camping,

I really hope you happen this year......let's make it work.

dear squash,

of all kinds,

I love to eat you roasted, in soups, in pastas, in every single way.

so happy you are here.

Dear you, yes you.

Here are some free very fallish desktop calendars just for you.

tell your friends.

star valley wyoming

star valley wyoming

penryn, california (post from last year, here)

sincerely yours/love/with all my heart,

me.

Monday, September 3, 2012

september desktop calendars

It's September!!

.....already...?

It's true.

Here are some free desktop calendars for you to enjoy--just select your picture and size...

Bryce Canyon National Park

(more on that blogged soon, see a few shots on my instagram)

Rainbow Beehives

Montana Field

Also. Question:

I have asked this before (probably more than once),

but week after week I am asked to sell my prints.

What are you interested in?

Food? Scenery?

What sizes?

If you have a specific photo you are interested in, please let me know.

I will have a little bit of time to myself with my Littles in school, and although I should probably clean my house (who wants to do that?), maybe I'll look into setting up some kind of print shop....

maybe.

let me know what you think.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

blog news

(lots!) more photo vomit coming soon

Back by request......my where-to-eat page!

Updated with all our favorite places to go--most in Utah, a few in California, and some places we will HAVE to drive all the way back to Canada for.

Check it out HERE, and watch for updates!

Happy August! Where did July go?
I'm excited to announce two new desktop calendars for the month--both can be downloaded for free! Just click on the size you need below.

Canadian Canola Field

1280x800
1440x900
1680x1050
1920x1200

Lake Louise

1280x800
1440x900
1680x1050
1920x1200

And lastly:
I am often asked if I have a blog button you can place on your sidebar that will easily link you to
The House.......I do!
It looks like this:

Grab the code over on the right sidebar--------------------->
and paste it into your own sidebar HTML
easy.
Thank you!

happy day!