thinking warm thoughts!

Okay people, it is FAreeezing here (again) and as I stood waiting for my bus this morning, I decided that I am over this winter season. My brother pointed out that we really haven't had that long of a winter, but with wind chills of -21, winter could have only been one week long and I would have been ready for spring time.
SO what to do with the winter blues? Daydream of warmer places of course!

Lucky for me, I was able to spend a few weeks last winter in Guatemala and Belize with my sister and I thought with the chilling temperatures outside I would take a few minutes to reminisce AND give you a few highlights of the trip...should you ever find yourself in that part of the world :)

One of our favorites spots in Guatemala was definitely the city of Antigua...we (to the chagrin of our parents) stayed at a local hostel, Jungle Party, which was cheap and surprisingly tame. The city is, to put it simply, charming. Cobblestone roads throughout the city center, dozens of cafes, and the most gorgeous view of the surrounding mountains (and volcanoes-we hiked up Pacaya!).

We also took a coffee tour through a non-profit called, As Green as it Gets, which was highly educational and really gave you some perception of how hard the local coffee farmers work to create their product. 

The last highlight I will leave you with, because it is exactly where I would looove to be right at this very moment, was the day trip we took to Monterrico to spend some time on the beach! Monterrico is about three hours away from Antigua and even apparently is a "hot spot" on the weekends. We happened to get there during the week, so it all seemed pretty quiet (and peaceful). We also didn't mind having the beach to ourselves :) 

Ah yes, already feeling warmer....hope you are too! 

winter time blues

First of all, yes. It is still winter in Duluth, though it has been quickly melting these past few days.

Living in the midwest for a majority of my life, winter is just a given and 75% of the time, I really don't mind it. There really is nothing better than throwing on a big comfy sweater and my smart wool socks...but man, once it's supposed to be the start of spring and you still have 2 feet of snow on the ground, eesh.

What do you do ease those winter time blues? I go back and forth from wanting to cook tasty soups, to snuggling up with a great book, and sometimes just embracing the winter and taking the dog for a walk-snow pants on and all!

curried carrot soup-click for recipe!