a veg life

(posted by Emily) For those who follow me on Facebook, you've heard this story before. Indulge me for a second as I recap for the very small portion of our readership who may not have heard the tale from beginning to end :)  Rick and I have worn our wedding rings all around the world and on many different adventures-- driving the boat and opening lock gates , snorkeling in Thailand and Mexico , swimming in Nice . For the most part, we haven't thought anything of it. Looking back, the only time we were cautious and left them behind was while snorkeling in Maui .  On Saturday, our first full day in Cancun, we decided to go on a snorkeling trip to see different, unique parts of the area. We stopped in three different spots--an open cenote, an cave cenote, and an open water inlet where the sea and freshwater me.  As we were swimming around a sandbar, Rick popped up out of the water and exclaimed, "Emily!" while holding up his left hand--no wedding ring to be ...

(posted by Emily) For the past month or so, Rick and I have been making a point to have "date night" more often. Yes, it sounds silly, because we got out to eat together all the time, but there's something different about setting aside time to enjoy each other's company. We've been making an effort to try new restaurants on said date nights, and this weekend, we visited Mohawk Bend in Echo Park.  We've been to Mohawk Bend before with friends, after eating at Sage . Mohawk Bend has a fun drink menu , with cocktails like the Thai Town Mule ( kaffir lime vodka, fresh limes, lime juice, ginger beer, and lemongrass ) and the Garden Salad ( vodka, lemon juice, lime juice, fennel, cilantro, cucumber, thyme, and ginger beer ), but this was the first time we were really focused on the food.  Mohawk Bend's menu is comprised of all vegan items, unless otherwise noted, Many of the items can be made vegan or non-vegan, which is a great option, too! W...

(posted by Emily)  **Disclaimer: I am in no way an expert wine and spirits writer. The information we are sharing today is solely based on our new-found appreciation for a good drink, following a month spent in Europe last summer!** If you want to check out my favorite expert on the subject, visit Kelly's gorgeous website --an amazing woman, and so incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about all things wine, spirits, and gourmet! So, there are many things to love about a European vacation. The sights, the smells, the food. Our particular favorite? The embrace of a good cocktail as a part of the daily routine.  To share our love of the cocktail with you, we're rounding up ten of our favorites with this latest top ten list. Salud!  Top Ten: Cocktails we love! 1) Pimms - Most of you know our time in London has firmly cemented Pimms into our regular repertoire of most-enjoyed drinks. However, if you are new around here, you should definitely try some yours...

(posted by Emily)  This is a fun little project I've been waiting to share. My good friend Angela is having a baby boy in March, and I wanted to put together a fun, homemade gift for her baby shower. I started in on these bad boys in January, but had to wait to gift them before I shared on the blog--didn't want to spoil the surprise!  I started by picking up materials--fabric from Joann's (about an eighth of a yard of each color I wanted) and onesies and socks from WalMart in a variety of sizes.  I chose boy-friendly designs, and started by figuring out which onesie would get which fabric applique. A very special helper was determined to participate in the process: "How does this look, Mom?" I printed each of the designs, to serve as pattern pieces and visuals for each applique, and laid those on top of the onesies along with the fabrics I had picked for the design. The process would have been much easier if I had ...

(posted by Emily) One of our favorite parts of our trips is the the opportunity to read. Rick and I both love to read, but aren't very good about making time to do so in our day to day routine. Luckily, most of our vacations involve time to relax and lots of public transportation--aka, lots of time for new books! After reading this article by Anthony Bourdain (yes, we are obsessed with his shows), we decided to adopt one of his suggestions during our travels--read a work of fiction set in the place you are visiting. We tried it out on our SE Asia trip and really enjoyed it! via While on the trip, we read books about Thailand, since we were spending the most time there: The Beach by Alex Garland Both Rick and I read this one before we got to Koh Samui--it only took me about two days to finish! It's a bit older, and has inspired a lot of young people to visit Thailand. Very engaging, and reminded me a lot of Lord of the Flies. It's been made into a film a...