Surprises are my Favorite.

Hey guys! I apologize for my absence this week, but I have a good reason.

You see, last Wednesday the guy I sorta kinda REALLY like surprised me and flew up here to visit from Austin! I was at work and I looked up to see him standing there with a sunflower in his hand (Awwww...). And when I got home these were waiting for me.

...Along with red wine, chips, pineapple salsa and all the fixings to make guacamole. This guy knows the way to my heart.

He even thought ahead to call my boss to arrange my schedule so I would have time off while he was here. The weather Thursday was a little bleak so we decided to have a relaxing day of food-making, movie-watching and plant-buying. 

Beginning with some Vegan Blueberry Pancakes. So good!

We also made Lemon Chia Seed Muffins, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Banana Bread, and Chocolate Chip Chia Pudding (all vegan). Needless to say, we kinda like food. After all the baked goods we were craving some vegetables so Sam went out and bought us some Chinese food for dinner. 

Friday the weather was perfect so we decided to go for a hike. We headed up to Catamount Falls and Reservoir. This was my first hike since moving to Colorado so I was super psyched! It was a beautiful hike full of ever-changing terrain. I'll be posting more pictures later this week.

After 7+ hours of hiking we were starving. Black bean burgers and sweet potato fries sounded perfect so that's what we made, along with some juicy, fresh watermelon! I wanted to use up the ingredients I had on hand so I made up a burger recipe and apparently it worked! I've made the recipe three times in the last 5 days. People seem to really like them. I'll be posting the recipe soon!

Saturday I had to work in the morning, but after that we headed to Tabor Mountain Bakehouse where we joined others in the March Against Monsanto. Unfortunately, by the time we got there the march had already taken place, but we were able to lend our support and write a few postcards to our senators about our concerns.

*photos courtesy of Sam*

I don't like to get into politics on the blog, but if you have a moment, please take some time to read up on Monsanto and GMOs and get educated on these major issues that have crippling effects on our food supply, land and well-being. If you're already aware of the problem, be vocal! Spread the word! When you can buy local and organic- the earth, your health and future generations will thank you for it.

After walking around downtown and another grocery store run, we made more of the Black Bean Burgers and fries per Sam's request. We watched Promised Land and waited for the release of the new season of Arrested Development (which I fell asleep for, whoops!).

Yes, Sam did eat all three of those burgers.

It was a great, fun, relaxing weekend and best of all I was able to spend time with my best friend who I hadn't seen in far too long. 

*Photo courtesy of Sam*

Can't wait 'til my trip to Austin next month! 

Be sure to check back tomorrow since I'll be sharing some of the recipes from this week's experimenting!

What have all of you been up to?

Have you watched any of the new Arrested Development yet?

Do you like surprises or do you like being prepared?