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I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving! I made a cake for our Thanksgiving!

Best of Thanksgiving leftovers

 This post won't have any beautiful fall foods in it, sorry. This is my leftovers memories from Thanksgiving I guess. Ben and I didn't cook at home this year, we went to Dawn's and feasted potluck style. It was delicious and fun, but we are up after a nap now and lamenting the loss of leftovers. So no food leftovers in this post, as there are no food leftovers in our kitchen. It probably helps us not to be overly thankful, turned glutinous.

So here is the best of my Thanksgiving sans food pictures...

Made and Found: Foraged Thanksgiving Centerpiece

Happy Thanksgiving, friends! Now that I've said that, I'm probably going to completely negate the sentiment with the following statement: I've never been much of a Thanksgiving person. I always considered it one of those holidays manufactured to celebrate the subjugation of Native Americans as well as our rampant consumer culture. Oh yeah, I'm that type. Plus, for the longest time, I hated turkey. So you can imagine how fun I was at Thanksgiving dinner!

Peanut and Purls and rambling mistakes...

I ate too much sushi tonight.
That's where I'm at right now. Sushi hell. If there were such a thing as the sushi sweats, I would have them. One time, my friend Jesse coined the term "meat sweats" after making a valiant attempt to eat a Claim Jumper's plate of "half-rack ribs" (shudder). It was gross, but I did enjoy that when he ordered, he said, "I'm going to go ahead and have your half-rack ribs with a biscuit." I guess you have to know Jesse but it was funny and endearing. Sometimes the Nicolai sisters quote that (I actually think it's just me and Christine).
Anyway, I'm rambling. That's what this post is about. Absolutely nothing...

Handmade Home: Goodbye Fall...

I'm sure it's no surprise to anyone that we sisters always love to change our inside spaces with the seasons to embrace the and reflect the colors and feelings outside. I have enjoyed my fall spread above my fireplace these past few months, but it's soon coming to an end, and I have to say 'Goodbye fall, hello Winter'...

Book Report: "Amundsen"

I've been hard at work on my autumn reading list, but since I'm in the middle of Doctor Sleep, I decided to dedicate today's post to a short story by my literary spirit guide, Alice Munro. I've mentioned her a couple times on the blog, but haven't professed my love for her nearly as much as I ought. Such a failure on my part because Alice Munro truly is a wonder. After reading her elegant and deceptively simple stories, I'm always quiet, humbled, and grateful. It's like she's laying a strong, wise hand on my soul. And I don't say stuff like that about just any old author...

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It's party time all the time at Disneyland, however we went recently and it was actually party time. They were filming on Main Street and a confetti bomb went off!

Check out these other confetti bombs... (there's really no more confetti in these pictures, but still you should read on)

Best of: Wintery Wreath Making

This week I gathered some materials from the woods and fashioned an autumn wreath. I prefer my wreaths a bit wild, so I incorporated some foraged wolf lichen and a couple other lichens that I can't identify off the top of my head. I also allowed the branch tips to stretch out as they saw fit: wreath trends! Monika termed this technique witchy. Fine by me...

Made & Found Cardboard Cat Houses!

It's no secret that the Nicolai sisters like cats. More specifically, you probably already know that we like a creative and inexpensive alternative to store-bought creations. I've made cat toys, beds, etc...

Peanut & Purls and Song of the Sea

Naturally when I hear "Song of the Sea" I can't help but think of Little Mermaid. This isn't really a bad thing, except that this cowl doesn't resemble the Little Mermaid in any way. It's still nice and textured...

Handmade Home: November Banner

I love to celebrate the seasons, and bring a little life in to my environment every couple months. especially here when sometimes the weather doesn't lend itself to reinforcing that it's fall or winter. So this weekend I made a 'November' banner. 

I figured that monograms are so popular, and they make days of the week underwear, so why shouldn't I have months of the year banners...?

Book Report: Night Film

Finished Night Film and loved it. It's one of those labyrinthine novels that seems to reveal, seems to offer a way out, but is actually adding another layer of intrigue and peril. There were a couple times when I forced myself to put the book down after midnight and before falling into a troubled sleep, thought about the plausible insanity I had just read...

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I was in Mom's car this week and happened to notice this curse word cd title. I was thrown for a second...until, that is, I recalled making her a Rufus Wainwright mixtape titled Rufus, Bitches. No surprise it's one of Mom's faves and mine too...

Best of: Fall Covets

When you've got the fall chill in your bones, it's oh so nice to be able to climb in to a nice oversized jacket or poncho. It's also oh so nice to wrap in a blanket or go out and take a bike ride in the fall air. So with that being said, here are my best fall covets...

Made and found: Knit Wish List

If you ever read the blog, you'll know that I'm a knitter. I enjoy knitting (mostly)--it's relaxing, productive, and I really love to be able to say, "yeah...what?...I made this....ugh!" That being said, I sometimes get serious knitter envy. I look around online and see all these amazing knits and my inner monologue starts up, "ummmmm self, why don't you ever knit things like this?!?" This post is dedicated to my knit wish list. Check it!

Peanut & Purls & Autumn Wreaths

This post is about how you should make a fall wreath and then put it on your cat...well it's sort of about that. You should make a fall leaf wreath and hang it on your door, but first put it on your cat, seriously, they'll love it.

Handmade Home: Fall Decor OMH style

It's time to put away your spooky spider and black cats (not black and whites, they can stay I guess), because spooky October has been buried. It's time to get straight in to fall, welcome to November!

Here are some of our sisters (well these three posts are all from Catherine, way to embrace the season!) crafts that can make you a little more thankful...

Book Report Inspiration: Fall Reading List

Image via Local Milk

Willow Springs, the literary journal operated by EWU's MFA program, posted a link on Facebook today from The Daily Beast: "What Sebastian Junger, Susan Orlean, and Others Are Reading This Fall." It got me thinking about my own fall reading list and reading lists in general. As a reader (and a very nosey person), I'm quite interested in what others are reading. And I especially love reading lists from authors I admire. Authors, make more public lists of what you're reading! 

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Halloween was last Thursday, and the Halloween party I attended was a full week before that, but I can't stop thinking about my Ariel costume. Why is Halloween only once a year?!?! My mom's 1988 JAG Corps ball gown (that she sewed herself, thank you very much) was the PERFECT Ariel dress.

Top 5: Knitted Projects from The Purl Bee

Catherine's seed and moss stitch cowls. 

Truly, Catherine is the knitting-est of the sisters. I mean, Monika and I are adept knitters, but Catherine is the one who puts in the most time and has the greatest ambitions. She's made actual clothes! Like if the apocalypse came tomorrow and the internet disappeared, she would still know how to make socks and sweaters. Inconceivable! So, even though I realize her knowledge is far greater than mine (a fact made quite clear to me through Catherine's eye-rolls every time I admit to forgetting how to SSK), once autumn arrives all bets are off. I'm overtaken by the feeling that I should have a knitting project in my lap every time I sit down, and I start hunting around for yarn and potential knitted projects...

Made & Found: Fall Footsteps

At the end of October I went home to Washington to visit the fam. Having lived in Southern California for the past three autumns I have not been able to enjoy a colorful wonderland in a while. So many of the pictures I took while I was home ended up being of fallen leaves on the ground, so here is my visit in groundscapes...

Peanut & Purls & Herringbone Knits!

I've been a knitter for a number of years now, however, I've never attempted the herringbone stitch. Not because it seemed too daunting or anything, but I never really thought about there being a herringbone stitch. I mean really, who knew!?!

Handmade Home: Halloween Costume!

I hope everyone had a fantastic Halloween this year, and got to proudly strut around in your handmade costumes...and repeatedly explain who or what you are. It's one of the pitfalls of having a higher bar for your costume than the oh so popular, dead ____ , sexy ____ or zombie. 

Last year I was the Fantastic Mrs. Fox, the year prior I dressed up as a mountain, so what did I do this year...

Book Report: 'Salem's Lot

There's a slight Halloween holdover in "Book Report" land, and that holdover is all about 'Salem's Lot by Mr. Stephen King. This book has popped up several places on the blog this month, and I couldn't let the spookiest season pass without dedicating a post to the small town overtaken by a big darkness. I loved Stephen King as a young reader and would borrow my dad's paperback copies of Cujo and The Stand and Carrie on the sly, but other than reading The Shining last year, I hadn't really dedicated much time to Stephen King as an adult. Well, after adding 'Salem's Lot to my list, I've officially rekindled my author crush on King. Big time. 

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View from my bedroom window.

This edition of Monika's instagram wrap up is set in the Great Pacific Northwest. Where I got the chance to escape and hide out at Mom's house and get in some sister time...

Best of mom...

Most people think their mom is pretty darn special, and the Nicolai sisters are no different. Today's "Best of" post is dedicated to our mom who's 14-year cancer-free anniversary is tomorrow.