Tis the season, I suppose

Once December 1st hits this weekend, my head will be in the clouds, brainstorming all the fun things I'm going to make as gifts this year since my goal is to make as many gifts as possible. There's just something extra special about putting the extra love and time into presents for everyone! (Plus I'll have all day, almost everyday to fill with DIY fun once I get back from school.) I had to hop on the Pinterest bandwagon and have since found some fun things that I'll share since my days aren't worth talking about when they're spent prepping for finals.

(These are too damn cute. I love tea cups)

(These would look cute on a mantle)

(Definitely plan on doing some hand embroidering again)

(This is cute and simple; I may make one for myself and a friend)

In addition to all these, me and my best friend will be doing plenty of baking and hope to make up some cute little Christmas cookie trays for the families that are close to our hearts. I also want to learn how to crochet beanies for some of my male buds. Hope everyone else is equally excited to get in a holiday spirit (regardless of which holiday you celebrate, and how little you may connect it to religion). 

Smiles, Morgen

Thanksgiving Bake

As soon as classes finished up on Monday, I practically sprinted off campus to get to the train station. My beautiful best friend's face was there to welcome me back home & we caught up all afternoon - plus we baked Pinterest-style oreo brownies. I ended my first day home with a trip to a diner with an old friend who seemed better than ever as far as mental states go, which made me so happy.

I got up early and went to my high school for the all of the next morning. The vibe was different, but mostly the same. There were so many faces I wanted to see, but only so much time to see them. This ended up being my motto of sorts for all of breaks - I wanted to reconnect with lots of people but there are only so many days in a week. That good old Catholic guilt washed over me about not being able to see everyone. Spending time with my very close friends and my family were high priorities for the break, but I also wanted to work and bake and relax. Maybe winter break will give me enough time to get everything done and see everyone.

I made these two-ingredient pumpkin cookies, to which I added a from-scratch Nutella frosting with chopped hazelnuts. I brought them to Sam's house for the first of our two Thanksgiving dinners and I think they were a decent success. We started off the day of eating by participating in the Turkey Trot, a 5K race that runs through downtown York. 

Probably a good call on our part.

We also ventured out to the outlets at midnight, mostly to observe the crazy people rather than search for deals ourselves. We went with Erin and Ian - our favorite couple and the only people willing to do this sort of thing with us. Being the boring people we are, Erin and I were tired by about 1:30 and everyone went home, though the boys insisted on stopping for fast food.The next day was beautiful, and unseasonably warm, so we went for an afternoon walk and playground date in the park across the street which holds mixed memories for him and I.

I caught up with my work family at work on Friday and at our holiday party, which was fun because the whole dynamic feels a little different now that I've been at school. Not in a bad way, but not completely in a good way, just a new way. Sam and I also went with Sam's parents, his brother and brother's girlfriend, to get a Christmas tree. As soon as they started pulling out the decorations, I started to re-fall in love with the Christmas season. This much happiness is going to make it hard to be at school for three more weeks. Smiles, Morgen.

(look how cute our new favorite ornament is!)

Italian Goodies & Little Brother Time

I've just finished up all of my assignments that are due before Thanksgiving break, and have even gotten a head start on things due by the end of the semester. The next five days will be full of anticipation because I'm ready to be home with my dogs and family, plus I haven't seen Sam in more than a month! I had the lovely opportunity to have my little brother come spend the day with me again, while my parents were elsewhere in the city.

We explored Italian Market, which is in the southern part of Philly. Our family is mostly German by blood relation, but a significant portion of our family is Italian through marriage, so I like to think of us as socialized Italians. So many funny things happened to us that were soooo Italian; we stopped to help an old lady with her garden, dealt with a blunt but dear cashier woman, and had a man in the pastry shop tell us the best place to get cheese and to "tell them Dave sent you and they'll take care of you." It's charming areas like this that force me to fall in love with the city all over again.  

If you're in the area, I recommend you stop by Isgro's on 10th and Christian and buy any pastry (I love the chocolate chip canolis, but that's just me). Also, Sarcone's Deli on 9th and Fitzwater makes some great sandwiches (I did the Sinatra - proscuitto, spinach, fresh mozz), with the hard ass but affectionate Philly attitude and a real homey feeling. After you've filled up, take a walk through the Italian Market area with all the chocolate, cheese, and produce shops. Just please don't go to Pat's or Geno's. There's a perfect South Philly Saturday for you!

Rockabilly, Rittenhouse and Ritz Theatres

After a very college weekend last weekend for Halloween, I had a very city weekend to make up for it. There are certain things about living in Philadelphia that I would hate to leave.

Free music and good food are two of those things. I went to my first Free at Noon, which is a concert put on by WXPN, our local radio station. I invited Rachel to come with me and she agreed without even asking what kind of music it would be. Its good she didn't know ahead of time, because she probably would have said no if she'd known JD McPherson did throwback rockabilly R&B type music. It was an amazing show - he sounded exactly like he does in recording and the stage presence was to die for! Then it was off to Center City for the entire afternoon. We all know I love Underdogs, and as much as I hate to go without Sam since he loves it too, I went anyway before we sat and watched birds and shopped. 

I drank a lot of tea and almost finished two papers that are do in the next few weeks on Saturday, so I rewarded myself by taking me out on a date. If you ever forget about yourself, it's a great move because you'll always be grateful to yourself for taking you out. I went through all the works, did my makeup and dressed up. It's a great self-care step.

My date of choice was a panini at the Noshery and a movie in Old City. I had been waiting to see Perks of Being a Wallflower but I couldn't wait anymore! The movie was beautiful. It broke my heart about three times over, but I was okay with it. Some of the cool parts about going to a movie alone include getting to sit wherever you want and crying without any shame. I walked through the lit up streets of Old City in a romantic haze when I left the theater.

After a fulfilling weekend, it's back to the grind. Except the grind includes ABC Family movies and coffee since I got ahead yesterday. Hope everyone else had a nice weekend, if not, do something for you today, because you deserve it.

Smiles, Morgen.