Picking apples in November

This morning I was awake before the 6am alarm.  It is a gym morning and usually I really don’t want to get out of the warm cozy bed but today I was ready to be up before the alarm went off.  I headed off to the gym in the dark and was motivated to work harder than I usually do.  After my ‘what’s the hurry’ attitude yesterday I felt rejuvenated.  I left for the gym knowing I could work as much or as little as I wanted.  With that freedom of thought and permission to do what felt right, rather than having a preconceived notion of what I should do based on what I was able to do a couple of years ago, came a little extra motivation.

I felt great after my gym workout and was greeted with a steamy cup of coffee on the porch with my partner.  He had ventured out into the dark morning for a run and was back before me.  We sat and listened and looked at what was happening in the yard.  Within a few short minutes we observed the Juncos and Towhees in the rhodos and on the ground under the winter vegetation.  Next, I noticed a familiar sound and looked way up to see two bald eagles soaring and chirping at each other.  As I returned my gaze to the ground something moving quickly along the fence caught my eye and there was the grey squirrel running along the fence and over to a neighbouring tree.  All this activity caused my senses to be heightened and immediately I was aware of the sounds of loons and ducks coming from the ocean below the cliffs at the other end of the property.  Accompanying that was the sound of the sea bell ringing, warning ships of shallow waters.  Such activity early in the morning.

A little observation of how the natural world is up and busy first thing in the morning causes me to rethink wanting to linger in bed.   I guess the early bird really does get the worm.

Cardamom Cookies

So, now it is time to get on with my day.  I am visiting my parents later today and so I thought it would be nice to bring a treat along.  Yesterday I made some apple crisp to share with them but I really want to bring something that they can have for a few days.  Lately, I have been feeling particularly drawn to my Scandinavian roots.  Last night I made Finnish Meatballs from Tessa Kiros’ book Falling Cloudberries and so today following that same urge I remembered how much my Dad loves Cardamom Cookies.  I don’t have the recipe my Mom used to use which was a recipe of my Dad’s aunt so I looked one up on the internet.  I came across the recipe for Swedish Cardamom Cookies that looked similar to the ones Mom made.  They are rolled and in the fridge chilling and I will bake them just before I leave so that I can arrive with a just out of the oven batch.

Mom and I are going to make Shepherd’s Pie together when I get there, another one of my Dad’s favourites and so I am looking forward to an afternoon with my parents.

The recipes for the cookies and the meatballs are on my recipe page or can be found by clicking on the link in the blog.