It was an uneventful weekend here in Charlotte, but the first one where I really started to feel like I live here. As temperatures have refused to go down (except for a gloriously cool Sunday), I've found myself really homesick for Minneapolis, but I think a weekend to ourselves here in our new city was exactly what we needed. No trips, no friends, no plans, just the two of us.

Rob had to work from home all day Saturday, so I kept myself busy by going to the gym and the grocery store and doing some Paleo baking in our kitchen. On Sunday we hiked with his family, followed by lunch out before we headed home together to lounge, drink coffee on the couch, and walk to dinner in our neighborhood.

I've been trying to make an effort to pick up my camera more often and document life here a little bit better, which at first I felt good about, but I only have these three photos to show for it. So, while a peaceful weekend may be good for the soul, it doesn't really make for a very exciting blog post. 

My brother is visiting for a few days this week so until then I'll be cleaning up, planning, and excitedly awaiting his arrival. I can't wait to see him, and I still can't believe that we can all drive just a few hours to be together again!

I hope this weekend gave you exactly what you needed. Happy Monday! Here's to another week.

Guacamole is a snack I've always loved--my mom used to make it and my friends and I would all gather around the kitchen island, scooping it up and chatting for hours. That's something I remember really vividly from my high school days, and it was always so fun. Now I make a ton of it at a time and eat it with sweet potato chips or sliced cucumbers, in my lettuce wraps with turkey, and even on my scrambled eggs.

When preparing a batch, my mom and I always just kind of make it up as we go, but as I was getting ready to have friends over last night, I thought I'd write down the ingredients so you can make it, too! (I served this with these sweet potato tortilla chips and it was delicious! Our guests loved it.) I'd say my guacamole is pretty standard, so if you make it with different ingredients, I want to know--I'm always up for a little variety!

Ingredients (makes a large bowl):

• 4-5 avocados
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic
• 1/2 chopped onion
• 1 diced jalapeño (remove seeds first)
• 3 tablespoons of your favorite salsa
• The juice of 1 1/2-2 fresh limes
• One bunch of chopped cilantro (or more/less, depending on how you feel about cilantro)

Instructions:

1. Place all ingredients in a large bowl (I like to use one with a lid so any leftovers are already stored for later).
2. Use a spoon or a mixer to combine ingredients until it's the consistency you like--I prefer mine on the creamier side but don't mind a few chunks.
3. Sprinkle with extra cilantro and serve with chips or sliced veggies. Enjoy!

This post is brought to you in partnership with Food Should Taste Good. Don't forget to enter the giveaway they're hosting this week!

Last "spring" (April in Minnesota), I scrolled through my Instagram feed with frustration and jealousy. Flowers, patios, iced coffees! People on the east coast were baring their shoulders and eating salads outside while I sat under a blanket, watching the snow fall outside.

And now "autumn" is upon Minneapolis (I use quotations again because those two in-between seasons are a little iffy up there), and friends are wrapping themselves in scarves and sipping on warm, pumpkin-flavored beverages. And once again I'm jealous, this time as I force a pair of jeans into the mid-80 degree North Carolina afternoon.

I lived in Minnesota for one winter--not long enough for it to become my new normal, but I let it in and felt it down deep and somehow it became a part of me, like I was supposed to be there; or like perhaps that winter had been within me all along.

I may not know what it's like to be there year after year as the snow piles up, feeling it in your bones and wearing on you. I have never hunted down the best patios all spring and summer or, in late August, exchanged groans and anxious faces, greeting people on the street like Game of Thrones characters--"winter is coming."

But I loved it there and felt at home-- loved the way the snow seemed to fall more often than not, loved the way you just dig in and deal with it, bringing your gloves with you everywhere and driving a little bit more slowly across icy roads. And yet here I am, settling in down south on a warm September day, daydreaming about fall and winter and sweaters and hot tea; laughing as I unpack our heavy winter coats and hoping to soon wake up to a hazy chill and that smell of leaves. Wondering where I belong, and already missing that impending northern snow.