We’ve got our store stocked with yummy fall sweaters & cozy fleece jackets — and we’d love to see you if you’re planning a trip UP NORTH to look at all of the lovely colors. Here are some pics from our store. Call us if something tickles your fancy — we’re happy to ship anything to you….
My mom and dad bought a little cabin in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan about 32 years ago. It’s not huge, but it sits on this gorgeous wooded lot with a stunning view of Whitefish Bay.
At the pinnacle of our family’s use of the place, we all drove 5 to 6 hours every Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day weekends to make beach fires, shoot off illegal fireworks, drink Bloody Caesar’s, and play a ridiculous amount of euchre. But, people get married, have families, move away, start businesses, you know how that goes. Anyway, Steve and I and Coco spent this past weekend there breathing fresh air, listening to the sound of the waves, and drinking Bloody Caesar’s. And I must say: Miss Coco seemed to enjoy a most excellent time. Here she is guarding the sandbar from pesky seagulls.
And this picture shows her engaging in one of her favorite activities: building sand castles! She is the blur at the top of the page.
Always ready to assist in the kitchen, here she puts her two cents worth into Steve’s world-famous chili.
And, a trip to the cottage just isn’t worth it if part of the time isn’t spent catching a nap on the couch.
Okay, so I admit it. I’m the quintessential midwest girl when it comes to food: I adore comfort food. When the leaves start to turn and the temperatures begin to drop, I find myself turning to my cookbook for my favorite soups & stews. Just made this one last night and it was delicious. Here’s the recipe:
Ground Turkey and Black-Bean Chili
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups finely chopped red bell pepper
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
2 large garlic cloves, minced
4 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 pound ground turkey breast
1 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
Heat oil in heavy large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add bell pepper, onion, carrot and garlic; saute until tender, about 12 minutes. Add chili powder and cumin; stir to blend. Increase heat to medium-high and add turkey; break up with spoon and saute until turkey is no longer pink, about 3 minutes. Add beans, broth and tomato paste and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer chili until liquid thickens, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour. Season with salt and pepper.
It’s getting a little nippy around these parts lately (high 40’s last night, can you believe it?), so I’ve been spending a little downtime in my, as my friend calls it, “The Princess Tub”. It’s a 5 foot long soaking tub. I’m not really into jets, just lots of hot water and a place to calm my nerves for a bit. I’m also into a glass of wine, an open window for breezes and bird sounds, and some really good smelling tub stuff. And, guess what? We just happen to have some for sale on our site (imagine that!). These bath salt packages also make great gifts for frazzled friends! Click here to see all of them!
Check out our sale page! EVERYTHING IS 40% OFF!
Our Product of the Moment is The Courage Code, a book coauthored by two Traverse City women!
I’ve had the great pleasure of meeting Megan Raphael, one of the authors, in person (that’s us in the picture above). She’s smart, funny, and a great writer. I promise that you will enjoy this book! All of the books that we have in stock are signed by her. Read more about it right here.
Here’s a picture of Megan and her beautiful daughter at The Happy Woman store!
No, your eyes are not deceiving you. This is the mermaid, the one who hadn’t a speck of snow on her last week. We are under siege up here! Somebody save us from all of this snow!
When we moved to Traverse City, we started to shop at a nice little organic food coop called Oryana Natural Foods. It was there that I stumbled upon Imagine Foods’ Chicken Stock. Can I just say ‘love at first opening of the box’? First of all, it smells like chicken (dare I say Imagine that?) and it looks like stock that you might have made yourself (does anybody really do that?) and it makes everything that you add it to taste better. Check it out!
So, last Sunday, my husband and I went for a walk, which turned out to be serendipitous for two reasons: 1) it started out cloudy & cold & turned into sunny & warm (always a happy event) & 2) we found this in a parking lot:
No, it’s not an asteroid on acid, it’s a superball. Remember them? Those little round objects that bounce a mile when you throw them against the ground? Finding the superball itself isn’t the reason for writing this. The reason is this: when I spotted the superball in the parking lot, I picked it up and showed it to my husband. And when I did, there appeared on his face, a look that I’m sure he used a lot when he was about 9 years old. Pure, unADULTerated joy. I wish I’d had a camera with me to record it, because it was really something worth seeing again.
It made me think about how being silly just goes by the way side when we ‘grow up’. After I found the superball, we acted like semi-idiotic adults and bounced it back and forth to each other for awhile. And, you know what? It was freeing and fun.
