Despite my silence on the blog, this summer has been anything but quiet. Perusing my planner, I look back over the weeks since we moved and see that we have traveled or had guests more weekends than not. That’s a good thing! And it has meant that we have been kept busy and occupied during a time of transition. But it also means that we haven’t had the chance to really dig in here yet. Last Saturday was our first real day at home in who knows how long. It was such a treat. We slept in and then took an hour to make Norwegian pancakes (think crepes), and watched cartoons while stuffing our faces. We lounged around watching more cartoons. When the itch to do something struck, I finally deep cleaned the house while Chris addressed those sneaky little corners that still had junk in them from the move. Time—we had time! Time allowed us to talk through our budget and post-moving expenses and get on the same page with our church search. Real conversation and connection were able to happen when we let the dust settle a little and stopped doing things. In fact, I intentionally didn’t set any “goals” for the day. I didn’t sit down the night before with my Post Its and write that I wanted to 1) talk about the budget 2) clean the house 3) exercise. Those things just happened anyway because they were all good things that we not only needed to do but wanted to when we didn’t feel “forced” to by the to-do list. My goal-setting, accomplisher self needed a chill pill. And when I took it, we had the most relaxing, happy Saturday—not because we didn’t do anything and lazed around but because my attitude toward accomplishing things shifted (at least for this one day…face palming myself this weekend because it’s been much more of a struggle!). So, to continue the good vibes, we spontaneously decided yesterday morning to run to a craft store and buy canvases and paint supplies. We were going to have an Art Day at home, complete with sweet tea and oatmeal coconut cookies (which we also spontaneously decided to make after watching our ALL TIME favorite show Friday night, The Great British Bake Off. Seriously, do yourself a favor and go watch it). Michael's Crafts is having a Labor Day sale on a lot of their painting supplies so we got two value packs of canvases (16 total!), 12 large tubes of acrylic paint, and various brushes for just over $50. It was a great buy, and we have tons of canvas left over, so I would highly encourage this as a date that keeps on giving. Now, let me be perfectly clear: neither of us are artists by any stretch of the imagination. Appreciate, study, and enjoy, all yes, but execute—not so much. As Chris likes to say, we each have “delusions of grandeur” when it comes to painting. Like, I think I may just be the next Rothko or Van Gough. But then I look at my canvas and realize I don’t even know how to properly blend one color into the next. This became abundantly apparent in my first piece, which I have entitled “Choppy Blue.” To be sure, I like the choppy look. But also be sure that it is there because Chris had not yet looked up a YouTube video on “How to Paint With Acrylics,” in which a kindly professor showed us that we ought to brush the canvas with water before we applied the paint. Such an “ah-ha!” moment. “Yellow Feather Sunset” was my second piece. I have such mixed feelings here. I was concentrating on blending yellow into orange, which I think I did quite well. Then some insane idea popped into my head and told me to swish gold stripes down the middle, something I regretted almost immediately. All my grand delusions of hidden genius went right out the door, and I became very despondent. I decided to mope on the bed checking Instagram and then cleaned my brushes and called it a day. Well, the paint dried and then looked decidedly less gross. So I decided I didn’t completely hate it, and that together with Choppy Blue and Chris’s “White Square” it may just look all right on the wall. At the end of the day, here’s what we turned up with. Not so bad, right? Thankful for okay art, good music and great tea while making it, and the left overs: blue splatters on our dinning room wall which remind me of a fun afternoon.
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If I had to describe my ideals for a home in three words (or phrases) I would say cozy, eclectic, and tells a story. Home should be a safe-haven, the one place in the world where you can be you fully. I love that our new home is just that. It tells our story: the silk painting from China that we bought at the Great Wall, the water-color maps from Paris, New York, and Oxford, dozens and dozens of political philosophy or theology books from college, the red Persian rug that was in my family's living room in Kenya, seashells from our favorite beaches. I also love that in this home we don't have a coffee table in the living room; instead we just have a large open space with a sheepskin rug, perfect for plopping down at the end of the day for a few cartoons and chocolate chips.
Most of our stuff is hand-me-down or antique, and what isn't Chris and I saved up all last year to buy when we made the move down to North Carolina. We bought our couch and the orange chairs on Craigslist and they were GREAT deals. In fact, we even found our house on Craigslist. Sure, there is a lot of sketchy stuff, but if you do your research and keep an eye on the market you can uncover some amazing gems. Okay, so the stunning desk and credenza (which, I should add, isn't finished yet. It needs to be painted and have the doors attached). Those were handmade by my niffy, talented hubby. He is such a great artist and builder! I really wanted a slim, simple writing desk to put in front of the window to take advantage of all our gorgeous afternoon light. He took my idea and ran with it, desinging the entire piece from scratch. The hairpin legs and leather drawer pulls were even his idea. The sheepskin rug and the leather poof were bought from a wholesale auction. Lamps are all from Target or Homegoods for less than $30 each. The wooden stumps were also made by Chris, and were from a tree in his aunt's yard. We bought our vintage bird and vegetable posters for $5 each at the Natural History Museum in New York, and then made simple hangers for them with thin pieces of wood from Lowes. Curtains: West Elm Bookcases: Ikea Leaning ladder shelf: Ethan Allen: this model is from years ago, so I doubt it's on the website. We snagged this piece when my college neighbor was moving out of the building. $80 for this shelf, a side table, and a large dresser! Dining room table: Ikea: We bought a slab of wood from the as-is clearance section and then got the legs separately. Best of both worlds: customized and cheap! Dining room chairs: Overstock,com White side table: Ikea: we have three of these and love them! Desk chair: second hand from Restore So without further ado, here's the living room! Other rooms are still works in progress, to come to Honeybutter and Blue at some point in the future. :) So much has happened in the past month that the actual move seems light years in the past. Between then and now we have:
And that’s just scratching the surface. Depending on the day all this transition is either really fun and exciting or really overwhelming and not fun at all. On the not-fun days I find myself missing New York and New Jersey. Missing not exactly our circumstances from this period of life but the concept of comfortable. The past week had me in a particular funk: disgruntled, easily annoyed, irritable, and despondent. Flipping through my phone (the worst possible solution to these problems, I might add), I realized that I hadn’t looked at a single picture I had taken from the moving weekend. I had been avoiding looking back on those high-stress, crazy-out-of-the normal few days, full of so much hard work and change that you collapse in an exhausted puddle of dusty clothes in the middle of the barren, finally cleaned out kitchen and simply refuse to go on. The thing is: moving is just so hard. It doesn’t matter if you have the absolute best friends and family helping (like we did!), plenty of time to get everything done (like we did!), money to be able to afford the necessary vans and boxes and food for crowds, etc. (like we did!)—it’s just a difficult thing to do. Now, I held it together really well. We had fun. Music was blaring. Pizza was consumed. All boxes ended up fitting into the UHUAL. Holes in the wall were spackled and tubs were cleaned. Cats were not lost. It all got done. But it only got done because of our amazing families. I kid you not, Chris and I regularly stop in the middle of cooking dinner or driving to church to remark that we have such cool families. Both sides so selflessly served us this month, as they always do, and we think they are just the best. The week before the move was mainly full of me packing boxes, the turtle in the race to the finish line. One. Box. At. A. Time. Later in the week my mother-in-law and the youngest Svendsen siblings came to the house to help deep clean. I remember this being one of the token panic days, so close to the end (we move in two days!) and yet not looking anywhere near to being done, junk oozing from every nook and cranny. Thankfully, Bethany and Aiden’s cool composure under pressure helped calm my nerves (below: keeping calm and carrying on). The last few days before the move also included a run to Ikea for our new kitchen island and a few bookshelves as well as a very relaxing, fancy dinner with the in-laws at an amazing steak house (where I promptly forgot to take a single picture). Day 1 Chris and I take the Intentionally Relaxed Approach when it comes to moving day. Morning of, we walked to our favorite diner for one last Nutella and strawberry waffle and then visited the local florist on our way home to get flowers for our landlady who lives downstairs. After this slow start our helpers began to trickle in, and long story short, our whole life was crammed into the UHUAL and trailer by 10pm that night. Day 2 North Carolina and New Jersey being so far apart, there was simply no way we could load the truck, drive south, and unload all in one day. So, we spent the night at Chris’s parents’ house after everything was loaded and again decided to take the next morning slow, sleeping in and enjoying a yummy breakfast before honking our way down the road. The morning was filled with coffee and tears. Highlights of our driving day include Eloise being a boss navigator, Chick-fil-a for lunch, only being able to travel 60 miles an hour the entire trip because of UHUAL limitations, the never-ending drive because of said speed restrictions, singing along to the full Hamilton soundtrack a total of three times, and a late night Mickey Dees stop for breakfast sandwiches and yogurt parfaits in the middle of no-where North Carolina. Arriving at the new home at around 11 p.m., we grabbed the keys and then headed to a nearby hotel to partake in such simple luxuries as mattresses and running air conditioning. Day 3 LAST DAY OF THE ORDEAL. By this point we were exhausted but also ready to be done with the whole thing. The need to be done outweighed being tiered, and we dutifully rose for the 7:30 alarm, meeting my excited and more-refreshed family who had driven from Virginia the night before to meet us. While the boys and some new friends from church unloaded the truck, my mom and me grabbed biscuits from a local favorite—Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen—and coffee from Starbucks for everyone. Coming home an hour later, piping hot beverages in hand, we were shocked that most of the truck was already unloaded. The process is so much quicker on the unloading side of the equation! Amy and Kate went to fish in the pond behind our house while the adults put together furniture, cleaned the kitchen, and unpacked boxes. We took lots of breaks and even went to a second hand sporting goods store in the afternoon. This kind of casual is good for me. There is no way I could ever get close to being done—catching up to “perfect”—on a day like this. Best to just let go and enjoy being with the people you love. We ended the day with a Mexican dinner at a festive restaurant and an early to bed—the first night in our new home! As I said above, moving is totally exhausting. It drains your physical, mental, and emotional strength. It makes the normally little things—like missing an exit or not getting quite enough sleep—seem like life-shattering events. I woke up Sunday morning, the day after we had officially unloaded in North Carolina, having a complete meltdown. I kept saying over and over, “I just can’t find the thing. I just can’t find it.” “It” being literally anything I could think of. Brush, a pot, tissues, my jeans—everything was haphazard and I had absolutely no clue where anything was. Moping around in sweatpants, I dragged myself from room to room, sprawling out on the floor and crying if I was unable to locate something immediately. It sounds really funny to me now. I’m more rested and things are in order again. But for these couple of weeks they weren’t, and that’s okay. I put on my big girl panties and just kept swimmin through the boxes. And I’m thankful to report that I now know where all my pots, tissues, jeans, and brushes are. ~SNEAK PEEK OF HOME!~ I must be a true pessimist—I always assume the worst. The great thing about being a pessimist is that you are often pleasantly surprised. The world isn’t always awful! How wonderful! This first week in North Carolina has taught me just that. Because I hate “CHANGE” (I always blow it up in my head like that), I assumed that a big move like this would most likely be de facto bad. My instinct is to think that because something changes it inherently overwhelms any good that might come along with that change. Certainly, our whole daily rhythm has been torn apart, exacerbated by the fact that we aren’t actually living our new “normal” yet. Chris has a FULL schedule with his MCAT prep course and won’t be slowing down until after the test. In the meantime, I won’t begin working full time (more on that in an upcoming post!) until the end of July, so I’m just here hanging out, enjoying some non-stress time, and managing all the “life stuff.” Things are very different, but it’s all new and exciting. We love being in a wide-open space with trees, woods, and biking trails. We love our new home and how it perfectly remedies some of those super annoying things about our old place (we now have a washer and dryer and lots of closets!). We love this location and the opportunities and friends to be made here. Don’t get me wrong—I know we are still in the honeymoon stage. I’m sure there will be days of culture shock or sadness. But they haven’t hit yet, and I shouldn’t even assume, come to think of it, that they will. See, in the midst of what is turning out to be a happy transition, I’ve found myself feeling guilty for being happy and carefree. I’ve felt as if I’m not being authentic with my friends when relaying primarily happy news; the pessimistic worrier in me starts telling lies: “Life is too good—something awful must be around the corner.” “Why is God giving us these blessings?! Something’s up.” “Oh well: it will all fall apart soon enough.” It’s as if I am actively seeking out something to worry about in the absence of more difficult life circumstances and “legitimate” worries. But when you get down to it, all these worries boil down to unbelief, to a stiff hand of control that won’t let go. If I don’t get too happy, life won’t disappointment too much. The past two years have been really tough, and yet through it the Lord has been so close, teaching me more and more about joy that transcends circumstances. Now, when our circumstances are happier, I still need to be taught about joy. About how to have joy free of doubt, free of fear. My prayer is that the Lord can use the refreshed and joyful me for purposeful ministry, and that I would be able to see the good of good times. Because this week has been a good time. Our moving weekend (also in an upcoming post!) went so smoothly. My family was able to come help, and we were also blessed to have some new friends from a local church meet us at the house as well. They made us feel so welcomed right from the get-go. My wonderful mom stayed with us for a few extra days, and together we unpacked, ran errands, did loads and loads of laundry, shopped for lights and nails and spackling putty and all those moving necessities, ironed curtains, and ate chocolate pastries at Panera. She’s pretty cool. My new job has already been such a blessing and has enabled us to step right into a community. From welcome gifts of homemade jam and tulips to after-church conversations and lots and lots of restaurants recommendations, Chapel Hill has been treating us well. And to top it all off, I’ve had a burst of energy which has enabled me to do tons of little things like researching the DMV and NC license requirements, scouting out new grocery stores, joining a gym, and learning to drive on the highway by myself (ya’ll, 5 years in the city with public transportation, no hating). From the little things to the big things, I’m thankful for and in awe of a week of provision. I think we've all had an experience of walking into a true home. The kind where you step over the threshold and feel instantly at ease; where books and papers are scattered on desks, a bowl of fruit rests in the kitchen, and a tall umbrella props in the corner of the porch. You get the feeling that this place has a life of it's own, that the house is somehow alive with a story to tell. I remember a home like this. It is on the Upper West Side, on the very edge of Central Park. Through various college and church acquaintances, some friends and I were able to visit a very old lady who was friends with Corrie ten Boom in World War II. Little notes and old photographs stuck out of the edges of a large oval mirror hung above the fireplace; a dog leash shared the bar cart with the champagne glasses; bright floral arm chairs cozied up to the stately leather chesterfield couch; newspapers crowded the dinning room table where snacks and tea cups were set out for us. It was as if I had stepped into Narnia and was having tea with Mr. Tumnus. And that's how I want my home to be: lived in, joyful, full of stories, warmth, and the many little details that take the place you live in from house to home. It's these little things--from tulips to teacups--that help cultivate a rich home life that makes people want to come on over, prop up their feet, and stay a while. But what are these little "details"? For this week's Nesting Series post I thought it would be fun to collect some of my favorite "tiny" home tips to share with everyone, courtesy of a life-long observation of my most amazing mother (and some other tremendous ladies). Thus in no particular order.... It's all in the details
Of all the daily rhythms I've come to love about our married life, meal planning and grocery-shopping top the list. It's quite the phenomenon because this certainly wasn't the case for me a few years ago. I staunchly believe that cooking is only really good or worthwhile or fun when it's done for other people, because what used to be a chore has turned into one of our favorite dates. A typical Sunday night will find us meandering around the local Shop Rite, smelling tomatoes and trying to decide if ground turkey will suffice as a cheap substitute for beef. I am the determined shopper, the knowledgeable one you might say, in charge of The List, and willing to sacrifice a few extra pennies in order to choose more quickly between Generic Can of Black Beans and Brand Name Can of Black Beans. My husband, to put it lightly, is the slowest, least decisive, most endearingly annoying grocery shopper there ever was. I accomplish about 98% of the list, leaving Chris to get 1) cheese from the deli 2) Kaiser rolls for sandwiches 3) seltzer and 4) *insert whichever exotic ingredient has struck his fancy this week* (in the past this has included anchovies, canned sardines, and strange fruit cocktails from South America). I progress through the store in a calm, rational, organized manner, weaving in and out of aisles in order; Chris darts around picking up things and happily running errands around the store for things I forgot. "Toothpaste coming up!" "Pickles and Cheerios: got it." "Did you want mixed berry or strawberry yogurt?" Without fail the entire trip takes an hour on the dot, usually involves at least one Stop in the Middle of the Store for a Debrief about our Differences in Shopping, and ends with us feeling thirsty (shopping is hard) but proud of ourselves for providing food for ourselves like adults. I don't know about you, but succeeding at the "chores" in life is very satisfying to me. It's the icing on the cake of adulthood. I like being able to say: I ate well today; I have clean clothes; I washed the dishes; my bathroom isn't a disaster; the garbage is not stinking up the kitchen because I took it out; my bed is made; I read some words that weren't work related; I went on a walk on lunch break; I read my Bible; I thought. I believe that these types of simple acts are the basis of a life well lived. A full, meaningful, purpose-driven, and others-focused life. The trash isn't just trash: it's an opportunity not to inwardly (or outwardly!) grumble at your roommate/husband/family member! I have to remind myself of this all the time. And part of the purpose of this blog is to help me--and you--remember why these little things matter so much. So, then, meal planning. What is meal planning, even, you might ask? Good question. Meal planning is the way to make cooking not awful. It makes weekdays less stressful by saving time and ultimately money. It means taking stock of your pantry and picking out meals to make ahead of time, before it's the end of the day and you JUST CAN'T. Timing I typically meal plan about once every two weeks, on a Thursday or Friday so that I can have my list ready for the weekend, when I have time to actually shop. I make a list of meals on one sheet of paper and then use these adorable free printouts (go check it out!) from Emily Ley of the Simplified Planner to make my grocery list. I use one quadrant for each major category of the store: produce, meat, pantry (anything from paper towels to bread to BBQ sauce), and dairy. How many meals to plan? I like to plan 5 to 6 meals at a time. Between left overs, the obligatory pizza delivery night, a toast and omelets night, and one or two meals out, these 6 meals will last us about two weeks. I try to mix it up with a few produce based meals and some meat heavy meals. Meals that use a lot of fresh veggies or fruit will get eaten towards the beginning of the week so that the produce doesn't go bad. Meat, noddle, or potatoes dishes get eaten later. Balance When planning meals I try to balance several factors: health, flavor, cost, and variety. I'm all for healthy meals, but also don't want to sink $10 into 3 organic apples. As mentioned above, ground turkey is a money saver, but I so much more prefer the flavor of beef. And while it's easy to get stuck in rut with what you know, switch it up! I'm always trying to find new recipes. Variety is the spice of life, right? Resources So where to look for meal ideas? A few posts back I highlighted the Mad Hungry cookbooks, which are a staple in this house. If you are looking for simple, basic, delicious, fail-proof recipes, this is your book. When I don't have quite as much time my favorite go-to websites are Allrecipes and DamnDelicious. On both sites you can search for healthy, quick, easy options. There are also lots of crock pot and one-dish recipes. Be realistic Because honestly, there just isn't time sometimes. Be realistic about the types of meals you pick! Don't over do it or be too ambitious. If you choose 5 out of 5 gourmet, out of your comfort zone meals chances are you won't end of cooking many nights. Here's an example of a typical Svendsen menu: 1-2 large soup or noddle based dishes (spaghetti) with lots of left overs 1 nice meat-oriented meal (like steak or meatballs with a vegetable side) 1 hearty salad with bread 1-2 easy, quick meals: examples: chicken tacos, homemade pizza, chili, stir fry, etc. Shopping and Eating Smart Generally good advice that I try to follow: 1. Pick meals with leftovers! Yay for happy work-day lunches! 2. Shop the sales and change the plan if necessary to accommodate a great deal. 3. Buy basics in large quantities: regardless of the meals I have planned for the week I stock up on things like butter, bread, chicken and ground beef (which I freeze), eggs, spices, and, of course, chocolate chips. The In-Between Trip While my typical 5-6 meals shopping trip usually lasts two weeks, that's just counting dinners. In between these "major" shopping trips we always have a the basic run for bread, eggs, milk, etc. So what? When all is said and done, meal planning is meant to help take stress out of your life, allowing you to eat better meals more regularly for so much cheaper than going out. If I don't have ingredients I know will make a meal I'm probably going to shrug my shoulders and buy a burger out. With just a little time, you can make a real difference in your weekly routine. And who knows? Maybe you'll end up loving it. So here's to happier and more effective nesting! If you know me at all, you know that one of my favorite things to do is eat. Thankfully, I've also learned to love cooking over the past few years. What started as a chore has become a great creative outlet and fun thing to do with my hubby after long days at work. After not eating yummy things in college because I didn't know how to make them, I decided one day that I would just learn. There is such a freedom in being confident in the kitchen! I am no where near as accomplished as I could be or hope to become, but at least feeling confident substituting ingredients or having intuition about how long something should cook, simmer, or bake for is a place to start. I'm always looking around for new recipes and inspiration and thought I'd share some of our tried and true favorites witih you. I have made these dozens of times and love the flavor, consistent great results, and ability to create my own take on each recipe. Plus, they are easy as can be and completely delicious. 1. Spanish Rice. If you haven't bought the Mad Hungry cookbook, go do it right now. I'm serious. Most of our meals come from this amazing, easy to read guide by Martha Stewart's Food Director, Lucinda Scala Quinn. Spanish Rice is the perfect one dish meal: hearty and homey. 2. Chili. Another favorite from Mad Hungry, we love the kick of this chili. I usually skip the first step (making your own chili paste) to save time and instead dice up extra pickled jalapeños to add spice. 3. BLT Chopped Salad. This is a new discovery and it has changed our view of salad forever. With bacon, feta, avacado, and cherry tomotos, this salad will not leave you feeling hungry. Plus, a homemade lime vinegrete takes it the extra mile. 4. Sloppy Joes. A little juvenile, but supper quick and supper yummy. I usually pair with mashed or candied sweet potatoes, or baby red roasted potatoes. The Joy of Cooking is a great resource for simple how-to's like, well, how to make the perfect mashed potatos. I use it as my kitchen goggle. It has a great index which you can use to look up questions from how to cut a pineapple to how to cook a duck. 5. Quiche Lorraine. This is a total indulgence recipe for those ever-special Saturday morning brunches. Thanks to my darling friend, Carol Anne, for finding and sharing! It's truely one of the best quiches I've ever had. 6. Black Bean and Corn Quesadillas. Easy Mexican: does it get any better? These are a great week-day dinner. Pair with fresh guacamole or chips and salsa. 7. Tikki Masala. Do you love Indian food? I've got you covered. This recipe from Mad Hungry: Cravings (Quinn's second cookbook, a guide to how to make the things you crave most) gives you a perfect resturant style tikki masala that you can make at home. Prep is minimal and the cook time isn't too long--you just have to buy a lot of spices before hand! I might add that Mad Hungry has a blog with a full recipe index! I couldn't find the recipes mentioned above--as they are part of the print edition books--but there are so many others to check out. Let me know your favorite recipes, week-day cooking tips, or more in the comments. Happy Tuesday cooking! |
Authorwife to a med student and mama to three under three, seeking the joyful and learning to live by faith. Find me on Instagram and Pinterest or shoot me an email. I'd love to hear from you!
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