Apples and Tureens and Scrubs {Oh My!}

As the Christmas markets opened in town yesterday I found myself perusing the shops looking for ... well, nothing in particular. Who cares! Christmas has come early to Asiago.

Now, I'm not spoiling Thanksgiving or anything. Decorations for the Ho-Ho-Holiday will not be put up in our house until after November 24th; so Turkey Day can have it's ... day. Okay, enough with the dot, dot, dots.

I did grab myself an amazing brulé alla mela (it's just hot apple cider, folks) and that reminds me more of Fall, pumpkins, hayrides, and Thanksgiving than it does of Christmas. It was also really nice to walk around town with my husband and some friends. There's nothing quite like it when the weather is nice and there are fun things to do in town.

I've also been on a huge apple kick lately. Hence the brulé alla mela. I can have myself a Fuji, Pink Lady, Golden Delicious, and (my all-time favorite) a Granny Smith any day of the week. They're all over the place! They're delicious. Grab an apple, add some whole-grain toast and a teaspoon of honey and there's breakfast.


They're not only tasty. Apples are so good for you:

• They're a great source of Vitamin C. You know what that's good for? Your immune system. "An apple a day keeps the doctor away!" You're mom wasn't yanking your chain.
• Apple eaters have lower levels of C-reactive protein. C-reactin protein causes inflammation which has suggested an increased risk for heart disease and diabetes.
• For you athletes out there, an apple before a workout has proven to increase exercise endurance. Apples deliver an antioxidant called quercetin which makes oxygen more available to your lungs. Thus allowing you to work those glutes longer!

Yes, this could totally be a post for A Recipe for Fitness at this point, but it's really just this amazing little food that I've been loving lately and I wanted to share it with you. So go eat an apple. Do it.

Since Thanksgiving is coming up super soon I thought you hostesses might enjoy a little treat. Anthropologie has ridiculously adorable things for your wardrobe and your home and now they have this adorable little tureen. Tureen is new to my vocabulary and I feel very Susie Homemaker using it in a sentence.

I discovered something awesome a little bit ago: Homemade Exfoliants. I know, I know, it's not exactly brand new, or life-saving, but it works and I loved the way it made my skin feel! So here's the recipe I used: {notice how make-shift it truly is}

• 2 packets of Turbinado sugar (coarse brown sugar) that I stole (term used lightly) from a café here in town
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 drops of eucalyptus oil

     Mix together all the ingredients in a little bowl and there you have it! A homemade exfoliant.

Easy enough right? SUPER EASY! Here's a list of a few more types of at-home exfoliants you can use if you're just not that into mine. But you should be into mine. It worked you know.

During out trip to Barcelona I kept saying that I wanted to bring back something to always remind me of our time there. Matt wanted to get me a new watch (he's seriously awesome - and knows me oh-so-well), I was looking for a shirt of some sort (no, not an I ❤ Barcelona shirt), but I ended up with something totally different, unrepresentative and exactly what I've been wanting for awhile.

I don't care what they're supposed to be called, I call it my Russian Hat. I've been searching for just the right one for a few years now and I found it. This isn't mine specifically, but it's close. I discovered yesterday that I should really only wear it when my hair is curled, but that's okay. Looks like I'm going to start curling my hair more often this winter!