No Stress Here

"There are thousands of causes for stress, and one antidote to stress is self-expression."
-Garson Kanin

Instead of stressing about finals week and wrapping up my first year of grad school ...I expressed myself in alternative ways: cooked/baked, adventures outside, social extravaganzas etc.

My version of koláče before they were baked.

In honor of my heritage and my love of baked goods... this week I prepared koláče, a Czechoslovakian  pastry/cookie. I decided to put my own twist on it and use a nut filling as opposed to the more traditional fruit filling. They are scrumptious a la mode (I recommend pumpkin ice cream) or for breakfast with coffee!

Beautiful brisk morning for a hike on the ridge in Rothrock

Warming our buns on some warm rocks atop a mountain

Therapy Session

So the madre and I tend to butt heads a lot these days. Perhaps because I'm a sassy 23 year old who is akin to my independence and she is a stage 5 clinger with empty nest syndrome (those don't always mix well). Tina made the road trip to SC this weekend so we could have some mother/daughter therapy. For us that consisted of wine, chocolates and lots of cookie making. Lesson learned: Don't fight being over loved, even if you think it cramps your style...parents should be treasured. 

 My mom (Tina) making magic in the kitchen.

We kept it local with Mountain Rose- Mount Nittany Winery

It's also uncommonly warm for this time of year...I took advantage and got some base miles in with friends.

 Paul was at home with the llamas (he's from Wisconsin....mmmm cheese!)

It is December...so my roommates and I got our Christmas tree this weekend too.

Sergio- man of our house, typically in costume!

Zenos with a Puda

My first blog post, as promised, is about my most recent trip to Zenos after work with Kate for beer, belly dancing and waffles. I decided to try a new beer, Harpoon Winter Warmer. Our server wasn't sure how to describe the taste of this seasonal beer. After a thorough taste testing of multiple glasses Kate and I came to the conclusion "it's like drinking Christmas". Tis' the season, start indulging!

Officially a Blogger

So I thought it would be fun to start a blog about anything and everything. Bikes, beer, food, friends, adventures etc. Enjoy!