Earlier this week I met up with some friends over at Stem Ciders for a cider and cheese pairing. It was my first time going there and it was super fun! They also have tapas, macaron, and pie pairings. Needless to say, I’ll be going back there for more.

And now here are some other things I came across this week:

• Get all the dips ready for the Super Bowl on Sunday: homemade french onion dip, chunky guacamole, margherita pizza dip, roasted corn dip, and warm cuban sandwich dip.
• Homemade frosting is one of the best things ever.
• Let’s work on living a more creative life.
• Having a mantra can be a powerful thing. Set intentions.
• Come over some time and we’ll pair Girl Scout Cookies with wine.

In other news, I’m headed back to Minneapolis/Hutchinson/Sioux Falls tomorrow for a super fun weekend that will be spent helping my sister find a wedding dress, celebrating her birthday, and convincing her to have her bachelorette party in Denver. It’ll be pretty great.

And also, GO BRONCOS! Cheer them on for me, because I’ll be flying back to Denver during the game.

xoxjd

Last Saturday my friends and I went to the Denver Brew Fest. We made pretzel necklaces, sampled beer, wore plaid, and had a really, really, really good time.

Reading these things is a pretty decent time too.

• Let’s eat all the cakes: lemon olive oil cake, zuccotto, biscoff cake with cookie butter frosting, paleo chocolate mug cake, buttermilk chocolate chip and passion fruit naked layer cake, gluten free olive oil chocolate cake, marble cake with fruity orange twist, and fresh blood orange cake.
• A quick guide to Maui. I want to go.
• #girlboss radio is full of empowering women giving great advice. One of my new favorites!
• Call Me In The Afternoon. It’s quite catchy.
• What does it mean to be sexy, really?

Btw, I’m a chronic over-dresser when it comes to running and I was able to easily run in a tank top last week and in shorts yesterday. I don’t want to brag, but… 2 points for Denver winters!

Happy Thursday xoxooxojd

My little sister, Jaci, got engaged just before the new year. When she called to tell me I freaked out a little bit and maybe cried a few tears of joy. Jaci and Seth (her future husband) are perfect for each other, so it makes me super happy that they are getting married (this May!!!).

Earlier this week she sent me a little package containing delicious macarons from CH Patisserie and a card asking if I’d be her Maid of Honor. I already assumed that I was going to be MOH, so I wasn’t really surprised, but I was super excited about being formally asked and about having a bunch of macarons in my possession. They are so good!

Annndddd now that I’m officially her MOH, I get to start planning the bachelorette party. It’ll be the best, because she’s the best.

These things aren’t necessarily the best, but they are still pretty neat:

• Smoothies are great, but it’s ok to eat baked goods in January too, like these bars: unicorn bars, dark chocolate fig oatmeal bars, frosted graham cracker bars, nutty blondies, and oatmeal raisin cookie bars.
• Michael Pollan’s new documentary “Cooked” is coming to Netflix and it sounds pretty interesting.
• Would you put Apple Cider Vinegar in your hair? I take a watered down shot of it every morning and I think I might try this too.
• This finger knit fabric statement necklace is adorable! Looks like it’s time to find an old t-shirt to cut up.
• These 5 styling tricks are kind of fun. I plan on trying the jacket one for sure.

Have a great Thursday!

-JD

A cast iron full of colorful, roasted veggies is a beautiful, delicious thing.

And these things are great too.

• Curry sounds really good right about now, especially coconut quinoa and lentil curry with lime mango, curried vegetarian meatballs, creamy thai sweet potato curry, and lemongrass turmeric curry paste.
• These 12 sweatshirts. I want.
• How amazing are all of these embroidery Instagrams?!
• The lowdown on beauty oils. Have you tried any?
• Check out these underrated cities to visit in the USA. New Orleans and Austin are definitely on my list and obviously Minneapolis is amazing.

In other news, I’m super antsy for the weekend! My bestie is coming into town and we have a packed agenda of super fun things documented in a Powerpoint (because that’s how we do).

xoxojd

Last Saturday I treated myself to a lot of “me time” with the most relaxing and productive day. I started by checking out The Freya Project Run Club. It’s been something I’ve been wanting to do for a while, but just haven’t yet. With the start of a new year I figured there was no better time to start. It was great to actually run with people again (I have been going solo for so long!) and to run in a new part of town. It reinvigorated me a little bit.

Later I went to hang out at Cafe Europa all afternoon. I love coffee shop afternoons and haven’t had one in a while. It was pretty amazing. I sat there for at least 4 hours sipping on coffee, working on various things and getting lost in the internet. It was my first time there and I will definitely be back.

The rest of the evening was spent with a delicious, healthy dinner, In Defense of Food, and lots of blog reading.

It might be a difficult Saturday to top, but Katie and I are going into the mountains this Saturday, soooo… you know, that’ll be cool.

Cool like these things:

• It’s time for all the salads: crunchy taco kale salad, chickpea shawarma salad, quinoa and kale protein power salad, killer kale salad, the mean green detox salad, and citrus avocado salad.
• But also: salted tahini chocolate chip cookies.
• I rarely get glam (um, hi, I work in a gym), but these 5 reasons make me kind of want to.
• 14 Drake lyrics to inspire you in business and Drake on cake to inspire you in the kitchen.
• The insider’s guide to Nashville. It really is an awesome city.

Okkkkk. Enjoy your first official Thursday of 2016!!!

xoxjd