Pursuing your passion, has been a hot topic around here lately.  You know that thing that gets you excited…so excited your brain won’t shut off at night, because there are so many ideas about that passion?!  You are constantly talking about it, or thinking about it.  Your heart even starts beating quicker when you talk about it!  Chris Ann and I believe wholeheartedly that everyone should pursue their passion.  We shared with the ladies (and man) at BlogLove Minnesota our belief.   We even teach our kids this life motto!

For sixteen years, Chris Ann and I have been stay at home moms.  We have cooked countless meals, potty trained too many people, folded enough clothes to cover China and used enough cleaning supplies to start our own landfill.  Anyone who is raising kids knows there’s very little time in the day for “pursuing your passion”.  In fact, most mamas fall into serious crisis identity.  Who am I?  Who will I be when my kids are grown?  Do I even have time to take care of myself?  For fourteen years we road that roller coaster.  There were times we’d peek through the cloud of motherhood to make a homemade card for someone, or cut some fresh flowers from the garden and take care to arrange them.  Every now and then, there would be time and inspiration to re-paint a room and decorate!  Honestly, those were the little creative moments we held onto that kept us in touch with our passions.

(Quick disclaimer…I fully believe that raising children can be creative in and of itself!  That it is also part of pursuing passion…but, for just a moment, I’m speaking from a very internal, personal place.)

So, two years ago, we found ourselves at a place of total inspiration…and with reality bearing down on us that we were only a few years from putting 9 kids into college!  Chris Ann and I set out on pursuing our passions…the passion to create, make things beautiful and gather people.

I would like to be able to end here and say it’s all been a bowl of bliss and we are like dancing fairies in a colorful meadow, but that would not be honest.

We found ourselves on the first night at BlogHer ’10, feeling like utter failures.  Why?  We’re not really sure.  But, somehow we both landed there at the same time (which usually never happens!)

You see, this “pursuing your passion” gig comes with hard work and sacrifice.  We are still raising our kids, making meals, doing laundry and playing taxi driver to all of them…but, there is a new strain and it’s called “mommy’s working”.  There was already no time in a day and now we are borrowing time from them.  So, there is a constant tension of trying to find that balance of  “pursuing our passion” and not missing a moment of our kids growing up.  Pressure!

Ok, so we found ourselves that night saying we could throw the towel in…go back to just keeping house and raising kids.  We could steal many moments snuggled up on the couch reading books.  We could.  We’re good at it!  We did it for 14 years.  But, then wouldn’t we be hypocrites?  We tell our kids to pursue their passions!  Heck, we even drive them countless hours a week to and from their pursuits!

This past couple of years have stretched us and our families.  It has been uncomfortable at times.  We’ve wanted to give up.  But, the thought of turning off the flow we’ve started, would be devastating.  There are years of creativity and ideas that we’ve unleashed.  Even our husbands say, “You two are too creative and motivated to just be stay at home moms.”

So, as we enter a new school year, with new schedules…we are trying to implement a few guidelines for ourselves to create balance.  The honest truth…we want it all!  Really it’s what a LoveFeast Lifestyle is all about.  Enjoying the precious moments with our kids, while devouring all that life has to offer.  It doesn’t come without sacrifice…be it investing in family or pursuing passions.  But we think  it’s worth it.

Time at the beach with my family.

Summer laughter and games.

Thirteen year old gets his wish for a new dog…Lexy.

End of old chapters…

Awards for a job well done!

Summer love.

Delicious summer love!

Five summer birthdays!

Time with my favorite people!

Brother love.

BFFFL’s.

New friends.

Old friends.

Inner city camp for kids.

One long car ride to Minnesota!

Lunch with friends in NYC.

Creative time with my BFF.

Lotsa BlogLove!

And one goodbye.

Sorry for such a long run of pictures.  It was hard to choose…like I said, it was jam packed!  Thanks for joining me on remembering the best of summer!

While Kristin was in town for our Minnesota BlogLove event we decided to take a trip to the Southdale Mall to visit and thank Rachael & Patty at Aveda for bringing wonderful hand massages to our BlogLove event.  Aveda added some gifts to our BlogLove swag bags that included a Caribbean Therapy body creme and an empty pure-fume bottle to bring in to be filled at the Aveda store at Southdale.  So, of course we brought our empty bottles with us!!

We had to choose from a tray of different scents to custom blend our perfume.  And, think about this.

We went on a “sensory journey” and smelled all sorts of little bottles with different scents.  Kristin and I both landed on #4.  #4 is a floral scents with jasmine and rose.  It’s not a big shock that we picked the same signature scent.  We’ve been known to pick the same style and color of laundry hamper from half the United States away.  We kinda get along like that.

So, while you’re playing perfume-ologist someone at Aveda will ask you if you’d like a sip of this…

It’s the lovely tea from Aveda that is a caffeine and sugar free, licorice and peppermint blend.  It’s part of what’s called a “Moment of Wellness”-which also includes this…

Now, there is something you should know about the “Moment of Wellness”.   Any guest can have one.  Even if you are not carrying an empty perfume bottle from a BlogLove swag bag!!  You can take your worn-out, shopped-out, kidd-ed out stressed-out self and have a “moment”.  For free.  For reals.

Isn’t that awesome?  We think so.

If you’re not near an Aveda store for a “Moment of Wellness”…where do you find your break in the day?

and I got this relaxed and cozy shirt.

We also spent some time chatting with Amber, the owner of Houndstooth, about fall fashion.

And, got a sneak peak at her new website!

Houndstooth Boutique is a chic little shop in Savage, Minnesota.

BlogLove Minnesota attendees received a Houndstooth gift to spend in the store in their BlogLove swag bag.  You can see what’s fabulous for fall fashion and our interview with Amber, here.

And, here’s a look at this fall’s fabulous fashion:

What trends do you like this fall?

This Fancy Friday was inspired by this lady.

She was waiting at the train station in Baltimore.  She was a vision of years gone by, where ladies would “dress” for their travel.  She was accompanied by a fancy gentleman as well.

Chris Ann and I began to think about what was most fancy about her, we agreed it was her hat…her hair covering.  Over the week we found a few other hair coverings we thought were pretty fancy.  We hope you enjoy our visual art gallery!

There is no right or wrong way to participate in Fancy Friday…we will post a theme…we will try and do it early in the week.  We want to see your spin on that theme!  We want to see what pictures,  poems,  song lyrics or a combo of all the above that reflects that theme!  Don’t be afraid to participate!  ‘Cause we know, there’s a little fancy in everyone of us!!

There was more than enough action packed into this week!  Kristin’s tribe drove across the states from Maryland like they did a couple of summers ago to join our gang for a week of eating, playing and a LoveFeast Table hosted a bloggers’ networking event called BlogLove.

While the event took a bit of our time and attention.  We still made a way to enjoy our growing families.  We managed to have family time around our event that included time at the skate park and a visit to a bakery.  We trooped our troops to play laser tag at Triple Play and to visit Cascade Bay, Valley Fair and the Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America.

They’ve grown a lot in the last couple of years.

But, it took no time at all for our kids to fall into rank.

Our favorite time is still in the kitchen and around the table!

Our boys get along just great!

However, it still takes some management to get cooperation for a picture.

The youngest ones still make the drama….

And make us laugh…

You could say our gang knows how to roll!!

How to be ourselves together.

We hang out comfortably.

And, we know that is a gift.  A part of our experience.  A part of our story.  A part of our memories.  And, that made for a very good week.

Devon didn’t want to share it…it’s kind of a “Chef’s Secret” thang, a “for THE Cookbook” kinda thing….but, with a little coaxing, an ice cold beer and space to play x-box with Chris Ann’s husband, Todd, for a few hours, I got it out of him!  So, please treasure it. Please make it and share it and send the love back Devon’s way. This is a gift from our Table to yours!

LoveFeast’s Spanish Caesar Salad Recipe

Dressing:
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 Tbls. whole grain Dijon mustard
1 tsp. anchovy paste
3 limes, juice of
1/2 C. Greek plain yogurt
1 Tbls. Italian seasoning
3 C. extra virgin olive oil
3 Tbls. shredded Manchego cheese

Salad:
3 heads of chopped romaine
1 C. sun-dried tomatoes (re-hydrated, meaning…pour hot water over tomatoes to cover and let sit for at least 15 min. to soften.)
1 C. cashew halves
1 C. pumpernickel croutons…or any homemade croutons
1/2 C shredded Manchego cheese

Chicken:
4 boneless chicken breast
1-2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. cracked pepper
1 Tbls. Italian seasoning
3 Tbls. white wine vinegar

(Fire up your grill!)
1. Put the garlic in a Kitchen Aid food processor and pulse.
2. Add Dijon and anchovy paste and pulse until combined.
3. Add in juice of three limes and pulse again to combine.
4. Add yogurt and herbs and pulse.
5. Turn food processor on and ever so gently, stream in olive oil, starting off with a very thin stream. Once ingredients begin to emulsify, you can increase the flow. (This part is a bit tricky and may take time to perfect. You want all the ingredients to come together without breaking. There is a way to fix it, should it happen. If so, feel free to tweet us @LoveFeast for a quick walk through!)
6. Add cheese in and pulse to combine.

7. Grill chicken breasts until no longer pink in center. (The trick to tender chicken, is not to over cook it!)
8. Let cool so you can cut the breasts. Slice the chicken into thin strips.
9. Toss chicken with salt, pepper, herbs and vinegar. Place to the side while you toss rest of the salad.

7. Toss chopped romaine, sun-dried tomatoes, cashews, croutons and cheese together. Add dressing to coat (but not soak) salad.
8. Either toss chicken into salad or serve on top of individual salads.

Serves 4-6 people

Fancy Friday is here!!  And, this Friday we are feeling very fancy about all the bloggers that showed up to the first Minnesota BlogLove™ event!!  BlogLove events are meant to be inspiring and experiential networking events.  In June, LoveFeast hosted a BlogLove in Kristin’s stomping ground at Zeke’s Coffee Shop in Baltimore, Maryland.  We had a coffee tasting and learned about roasting beans and picked our LoveFeast Brew.  Here in Minnesota the theme was European Market Place and was held at Camille en Rouge in Prior Lake.

Janelle, created a beautifully designed apron for a giveaway.

Kelli, custom designed BlogLove swag bags.  They were reversible and each on was unique!

Rachael and Patty from the Aveda, Southdale Mall in Edina, MN came out and treated us all to hand massages!  Word at the party was that our husbands were tucked under a tent receiving hand massages!!  We think it was on the down low cause we don’t have any pictures to prove it!!  If anyone does…please share the love!!

Why were our husbands at BlogLove?  They are not bloggers!  They were there cleaning up dishes, swapping out platters, and serving food!!  They put the love in the feast!!

Edelweiss Bakery in Prior Lake provided French croissants that went with the amazing Spanish Caesar Salad made by Devon, Kristin’s husband.   Many of you have asked for the recipe and with a little cajoling Devon’s agreed to share it!  It is one for the LoveFeast Cookbook though!!

Camille, of Camille en Rouge shared her store and her passion for picking out beautiful treasures with us all.  She said, “If you love it buy it!”  She also shared…”You can never have too much passion!”

That is something we believe in too!!  So, thank you to all those who showed up for BlogLove Minnesota & to Amanda who made us these signature cookies!!  We heart you!!

We had an amazing time this past Tuesday night!  We were so excited to meet so many local bloggers we had never met before!  We are working on a recap post for tomorrow, but for now, we wanted to share a list of all of those that attended!  So, for those of you who attended, get your posts ready to link up here tomorrow for FancyFriday BlogLove and for those of you who weren’t able to attend, we hope you enjoy reading all about it!  We hope you are inspired just by the stories!

At the Table,

Chris Ann and Kristin

Erin Purland www.foodalyst.com
Cat Usher www.zipbagofbones.com
Kristina Stiffler www.ktinajoy.blogspot.com
Amanda Rettke www.iammommy.net www.iambaker.net
Carrie Pauly www.Thisfamilyof4.blogspot.com
Janelle Miller www.queenofthehouseofboys.blogspot.com/ jandjinspirations.com
Sallisha Armour www.sallishamarie@gmail.com
Kara Zitnick www.JensenhausDesigns.com
Dawn Thibodeaux thibco@yahoo.com
Anna Bererd @motherlylaw motherlylaw@yahoo.com
Jen Olson www.coconutbelly.blogspot.com/ coconutbelly@live.com
Crystal Grobe www.cafecyan.com
Micaela Preston www.mindfulmomma.com
Anna Rendell girlwithblog.blogspot.com
Susie Shubert @findingborneo
Kelly Abrahamian www.Ihadadelicioustime.com
Shaina Olmanson @foodformyfamily
Moriah Sunde www.JosiahsNest.com
Allison Olfelt www.omyfamilyblog.com
Molly Snyder www.thesnyder5.com
Trish VanPilsum www.offcamerwithtrish.com
Maggie Whitley (Gussy) www.maggiewhitley.com
Erin Olson www.houseofturquoise.com
Jen Westpfahl www.growwithgraces.com
Kellyn Fritz www.fritzfacts.wordpress.com
Kelli Liesener kellileadesigns.com
Johanna Price www.theseprices.net
Suzanne Thompson www.suzannejean.blogspot.com
Mela Kamin www.melaKamin.com
Tracy Morrison www.sellabitmum.com
Kristi Pohl www.ohfercute.blogspot.com/ maybabykp.etsy.com
Jennifer Samuel www.unplannedcooking.com
Rob Barrett PR@cookingfordads.net
Kristen Thompson www.highheelsandahammer.com
Heather King www.extraordinary-ordinary.com