Author: Sarah

Doing it all

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

but first coffee quote

I realized this week I can’t do it all.

Realistically speaking, I’m fully aware I won’t get to everything on my lists (that’s right, plural) each day. But I still approach them with the idea that if I just keep working, if I just wake up earlier, every single item will finally have nice big line through it. One day, my list will be no more. Surprisingly, this has yet to ever happen, which can be quite a stress-inducing reality.

I recently had lunch with a married friend who confided about the possibility of kids, “I don’t know how people do it. I can barely manage my life, how are you supposed to add someone else’s too?”

Later, my roommate randomly turned to me and said, “Don’t ever let me become one of those moms that gets all wound up about things that don’t really matter.”

Not one of is anywhere even close to having kids, but it got me thinking. How do people do it?

My new theory is, they don’t. Maybe the secret to growing older successfully isn’t getting everything done, it’s being okay with not having everything done. It’s recognizing some things just don’t matter.

I stumbled upon this quote from What Not To Wear’s Clinton Kelley, and all I could say was, YES.

clinton kelley quote

And some weeks I’m just going to forget when it’s my blog day, miss a long-awaited appointment and overbook myself with a whopping three activities for the same date and time. Whoops.

Crossing the line

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

plate spinning

I refer to my life in terms of spinning plates.

At any point in time I have multiple plates spinning. It is a fine but blurry line between too many plates and not near enough, but “luckily” testing lines with a dangerous combination of curiosity, ambition and pride has been a historic specialty of mine.

I get a masochistic kick out of challenging myself to see just how many plates I can keep going, and this week definitely set a record that put a significant dent in my office’s keurig supply, my sleep and liver health (good thing those things regenerate, right?).

Between insane work expectations, wedding planning, marriage planning, doctor appointments and just plain life, all the plates went airborne this week and left me scrambling at the bottom, hoping nothing would break.

how I felt this week, minus Natalie Portman’s “time to go” ear tug

I wish I had some wise words or a witty experience to share with you all today. All I can say is sometimes slow starts with coffee and a travel magazine, 3-mile weekend walks with your roommate and a lazy afternoon with your fiance and the latest Sherlock episode can’t come at a better time.

Perks of trying something new

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

On sunny days in Dallas all I want to do is go to Ascension. Their patio is a frequent host to my and Lydia’s blogging, drinking, caffeination and story swapping.

It’s slightly sunny and barely above 60 degrees today, so naturally I set out to make another such afternoon happen. I was mid-Google mapping when one of my new year’s goals came to mind, reminding me to try new things and places.

So I swapped my Google activity to search and began looking up a new coffee shop instead. Drip Coffee caught my eye, and after reading Yelp reviews criticizing the shop’s environment as too industrial (this Yelper would hate my wedding) and praising their fresh-roasted coffee, I was sold.

drip coffee dallas

And I’m in love.

I’m no expert when it comes to coffee terminology, but I can be a bit of a snob when it comes to taste. Their iced coffee is 100% my favorite in Dallas now. It is dark, rich flavor, slightly nutty and chocolatey, and – my favorite – has a smooth but thick texture. I don’t quite know how to describe it, but I can actually taste the coffee, you know? I hate when it’s a thin, almost syrupy-textured liquid.

inside drip coffee dallas

Music can make or break a place, and their’s is just the right style (good) and volume level (subtly audible). Nothing like the true aural hideousness that is Mudsmith. Don’t ever go there.

The baristas also actually know or want to know every customer and ask real questions about their lives, which is just awesome.

Regardless of whether my coffee description made any sense, you should definitely try Drip Coffee. Bonus, it is surrounded by a lot of shops with serious cute-potential. Apparently I should make it to the Park Cities side of town more often.

52 weeks and counting

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

20140113-225748.jpg

At the beginning of the year my roommate breezed by me in the living room, talking about how she already “failed” at one of her New Year’s resolutions.

Then she smiled and said, “Well, at least I have 52 weeks to get better at it!”

For some reason this really struck me. Suddenly, 52 weeks felt like no time at all. It’s so easy to let an entire week fly by after busy work days, and hearing the year condensed into such a comprehensible, easily squandered timeframe confronted me again with just how important living intentionally is to make the most of every moment.

Technically, tomorrow marks the end of week 2. What are you going to do with your 50?

A good day for donuts

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

gluten free vegan donuts

My ultimate zen is a Songza playlist of the “sunshine indie” variety and a mid-morning baking session, which is also when the natural light is best for capturing photographs along the way.

Luckily, I never face a shortage of baked goods I want to try for the first or fortieth time. Ever since I tried Babycakes’ unbelievable gluten-free, soy-free, vegan donuts in New York, I have had a major craving. And is it just me or is there an unusually high number of donut recipes floating around Pinterest lately?

So this Saturday I took a short, relaxing break from what is shaping up to be a jam-packed January to try out this recipe I found from Bubble Girl Bakes.

The perfect playlist blasted, the sunlight hit just right and these guys turned out delicious. It’s been a good day.

gingerbread cake donut holes - gf vegan

Here’s her recipe, with my notes in parentheses.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons flaxseed, finely ground
½ cup warm water
¼ cup light extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup maple syrup (All I had on hand was the corn syrup variety…)
¼ cup molasses (I happened to have some gingerbread flavored syrup I used in its place)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup + 2 tablespoons bg bakes gluten free all-purpose flour mix (I used a store-bought GF flour mix)
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon cloves
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda

1. Whisk the flaxseed and water well; let sit for minimum of 5 minutes.
2. Mix all liquids including flaxseed mixture on high.
3. Sift dry ingredients in until just combined, each in order of how listed above.
4. Pour into a greased donut pan, roll on a pan for donut holes, whatever! I put the gingerbread ones in a cupcake pan I had, then finally had the bright idea to put the chocolate batter into an icing piping bag to shape into the traditional donut shape on a pan.
5. Bake at 375 F for ten minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
6. Enjoy!

chocolate donuts - gf and vegan

I also tried her chocolate donut recipe, which was good (although the gingerbread ones win my vote). It was actually my first flaxseed baking experience, and I have to say, it went well! The donuts came out moist and not crumbly at all, which can sometimes be a problem with gluten-free baking.

Next up, jelly donuts!

Finding creativity

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

inspiring photographs

Creativity is like luck.

It’s always a bit of a gamble when – or you fear, if – inspiration will strike. You hope. You have your go-to tactics to encourage it, not unlike a superstitious tick…a certain playlist, position or activities.

And just like actually saying you’re lucky seems like a bad idea (wouldn’t want to jinx it!), it seems rather presumptuous to call oneself creative.

But here I sorta go.

I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t call myself an exceptionally creative person. I constantly see seemingly effortless but flawless and original writing and Instagram photos and think, “Why didn’t I think of that?” 

I do think and hope I lean more that way on the scale than anywhere else, though, and I try to feed my creativity as much as possible through browsing design pins, trying my own hand at photography and reading about others’ inspired ideas, blogs and entrepreneurial spirit.

Receiving anonymous “snaps” from all my colleagues (an agency annual tradition) citing my creativity came just in time. I’ve been feeling less than inspired so far in 2014, and it has helped to have the external reinforcement. After a week of brainstorms and ideas I’m truly excited about, though, I feel like I’m emerging from the professional portion of my creativity slump.

The personal side, on the other hand, could use some of your help. What sources do you turn to for inspiration?

 

P.S. I highly recommend the Stars Pandora station for your next writing playlist. It’s inspired.

Photos (clockwise from left): 1 / 2 / 3 / 4

Next up, 2014

~ Sarah ~ 1 Comment

cheers banner

live life quote

Last year I decided on themes from 2012 and set ones for 2013, and it turned out to be one of my favorite posts. From time to time, I would look back to see how I was doing at my resolutions or if, most likely as I feared, I had forgotten about them entirely. I’m probably way too proud to say I really did accomplish last year’s goals, so I decided I would do the same style this year.

2013 was the year of…

Creativity. I made great strides as a budding amateur photographer and even won the Innovator Award at my agency’s annual peer-voted awards ceremony for the most creative strategies, ideas and campaigns (and tights, due to my daily variation of colors and patterns).

Relationships. Last year I was excited to announce the return of one of my best friends (now roommate). This year I had another lifelong friend move to the DFW area and managed to make some pretty huge strides in my romantic relationship. November 2012 I was sure I was on the brink of a break-up, yet somehow we grew together in a way I didn’t see coming, leading up to our engagement November 2013. Crazy! No offense meant to the rest of you guys, but I’m pretty sure I’ve locked down the most caring, intelligent, witty, handsome guy out there.

Travel. My real goal, if you haven’t caught on yet, is to make every year the year of travel. In 2013 I visited El Paso, Washington D.C., Austin, Chicago, Wisconsin, Tulsa, New York (twice!), Istanbul and Atlanta. What a great year!

Health. After battling what appears to be food allergies in the form of super swollen eyes and lips, I finally have the uncomfortable issues and itchiness under semi-control. I reached a pretty low place when my physical issues were leaving me ugly and sleep deprived, but I have been so blessed with a loving boyfriend, compassionate boss, tireless parents, understanding friends and the BEST DOCTOR EVER (aka Dr. Crawford). I also got to experiment with new recipes and restaurants in line with my new gluten, dairy, soy, egg, nut, bean – free diet.

2014 will focus on…

Engaging. Recently I realized that my natural inclinations to keep my head down in the grocery store and zone out to the tune of my to do list at work are just not what’s important. Life is not at all about me, and I want the way I live to reflect that. Some ways I plan on doing that include smiling more, asking questions, complimenting others, inviting people to coffee and lunches (heck, actually taking lunches) and dedicating one night a week to catching up on message replies, texts, maybe even a “hey, how’s life” phone call or snail mail note. I’ve let far too many close friendships grow distant and opportunities to connect with strangers fall by the wayside. No more.

Using time intentionally. This looks like lining up podcasts for my daily commutes to hear from Ben Stewart, the Bible app, TED talks or Italian lessons. This also looks like using my nights and weekends to pursue others and my interests, rather than pick up dinner at Whole Foods only to waste away on Netflix (no matter how good Sherlock, Parks & Rec and White Collar are). For instance, I have been promised a trip to Italy once I become fluent. Motivation, secured. I came across this quote the other day by H. Jackson Brown Jr.:

Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.

Rediscovering reading. When I was younger I read multiple books a week. Now, the same length book takes me at least a month. This year I want to read more, in turn increasing my appetite for even more books. Reading also has the side effects of inspiring creative juices and providing much needed rest, both of which I can always stand more of. I also really, really want to start a book club. I’ve been talking about this for at least a year, and enough is enough. If you’re in the Dallas area and love books and brunch, you should probably think about joining. More info coming soon as I figure out just what this looks like, but I’m très‎ excited.

Traveling. Up next is a road trip to Marfa, a leisurely beachfront long weekend in Maine, Austin for SXSW (and most likely my bachelorette party), another trip (or two, or three) to New York City and of course, our honeymoon. Right now, Italy’s Amalfi coast and Naples or Spain’s islands and Barcelona are in the lead.

That’s it! I could go on and on when it comes to goals and to do lists, but hopefully these themes give you a good idea of where I’ve been, where I’m at and where I’m going.

What have you got planned for 2014?

Moving forward successfully

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

20140103-004055.jpg

They say how you spend New Year’s Eve is how you’re going to spend the rest of the year. Okay, “they” might be The OC, but I’m not ashamed to admit that the show has impacted my life beyond its awesome soundtracks, Seth Cohen’s wit and Misha Barton’s great hair. I could go on about my love for all things OC (range rovers, bunnies and bagels to name a few), but this post is supposed to be about looking forward not back.

While I don’t go in for the superstitious side of this theory, I do think there is something to be said about starting the year with intentionality and resetting priorities to continue becoming a better friend, employee and self.

And I have to say, I happen to be entering 2014 the most organized, driven and ready I’ve ever been. It all started with a workbook my Bible study picked out called Moving Forward Successfully. Now, things like this typically strike me as pretty cheesy and forced. But with a good Songza playlist, some coffee and a little time, I really got into it and feel like I got a lot out, too. It was really fun and helpful to actually stop and think about everything that has happened this past year and my passions, plans and dreams for the future.

20140103-004134.jpg

But wait, there’s more! (Infomercial reference, intended.) The workbook is only part one of a full month reading plan to get my head and heart ready for the year.

Next up, The Happiness Project. I read this book every year. It is chock full of information and inspiration for goal setting. My hope in starting with this book is to reawaken my interests and ideas for self improvement during the year. If you haven’t yet, this is really a must-read.

Book 2 is called TrueFaced. It is all about embracing and sharing your true self for authentic community. While these are always good things, I know especially with an upcoming wedding and marriage that both knowing and sharing my emotions are going to become necessities. My current emotional response consists mainly of sarcasm, so I’m hoping this book helps me broach my uncomfortableness to better connect with others and at least try to have some fun with the whole wedding thing.

Lastly is Torches of Joy. This book is about international missionaries. While not necessarily a personal interest, this book has a key reason for being on this list – life is not all about me! I’m reading this book to widen my perspective, try to be less selfish and serve others more.

That’s it! I’m excited to get going. Not to brag, but I also have a completely clean and organized bedroom, not one but two planners purchased and all my annual doctor appointments booked.

Hello new year and happy 2014!

20140103-004204.jpg

A series of unfortunate events

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

Let’s go back to last Friday. A coworker was just telling me that Klyde Warren, a personal favorite and very cool downtown Dallas park, opened an ice skating rink. As any big city-starved and New York-obsessed girl, visions of sliding through crisp air surrounded by twinkly lights and the beautiful juxtaposition of trees and tall buildings swarmed my head. As not good as the movie Serendipity was (sorry Lydia), I’ve also never been able to lose the mental image of the Central Park ice skating scene and hope that I too might find my own adorable, quick-witted John Cusack to enjoy it with.

So with fiancé and high expectations in tow, I made my way downtown.

All seemed good as we walked up and laced up old fashioned-looking skates. People of all ages were lacing up their own skates, and the twinkly lights were ready for my movie moment. I was even wearing my favorite winter coat (even though I’m pretty sure it was 60 degrees today). And then we stepped on the…not ice.

Not sure how they got away with all the media placements touting the arrival of downtown “ice skating” (gotta love the power of a good publicist), but there was no ice to be found. Instead, our skates came to a screeching halt on plastic, yes, plastic, that required footwork not unlike an elderly penguin post-hip replacement surgery. Definitely no skating, sliding or speed of any kind here. Upon further inspection, our skates actually had just a flat metal strip where the blade would be.

Now, I’m a huge fan of the Klyde Warren. We even threw it out as a potential wedding location due to our support of and excitement for the space from Day 1. So this hurts me to say more than it hurts you, dear park: this “ice skating” is a waste of money, both for participants and the park itself.

After a few attempts at waddling we needed a change of scene, stat. It seemed like a nice night to finally check out Hoffman Hots, a fifties-inspired hot dog restaurant in Trinity Groves. Sadly, this was a severe disappointment both in food quality and atmosphere. And that’s saying something because I LOVE hot dogs. We also figured out we could buy 8 10-packs of hot dogs from a grocery store with what we paid for our 4 “gourmet” hot dogs, which really instilled confidence in our ability to make financially sound decisions for our future.

While this blog might sound like one long complaint, I have to be honest: We actually had a lot of fun tonight lamenting how “Dallas” aka “shiny on the outside/not so hot on the execution” the whole thing was….But if someone asks you to go ice skating in Klyde Warren you might want to tell them you prefer the Galleria.

Head first

~ Sarah ~ Leave a comment

felt hat inspiration

I noticed an unusual amount of my ‘Looks I Like’ pins as of late share a mutual characteristic, a felt hat. I’ve never really considered myself a hat person before. Don’t get me wrong, I think they’re beyond stylish, but they all seem to transform me into Indiana Jones’ sidekick or worse…

How I think I look wearing hats:

felt hat

How I actually look:

curious george man hat

Regardless of the very large margin of error that exists with this trend, I’m on the quest (Indiana Jones pun not intended) to find a felt, fedora-ish hat that actually fits. The problem is, they’re all over Pinterest, but no one seems to be selling them. One felt hat that isn’t too tall or too flat, too wide-brimmed or too pointy, too floppy or too stiff..is that too much to ask?