Chelsea Harrison1 Comment

Travel: Joshua Tree

Chelsea Harrison1 Comment
Travel: Joshua Tree

For our honeymoon we knew three things: We wanted to go somewhere warm and sunny. We wanted it to be somewhere completely different from home.  And we wanted to keep it affordable.

We decided on Joshua Tree after finding TONS of great Airbnb's at reasonable prices close to the entrance of the National Park. I couldn't make up my mind so we actually booked two different Airbnb's and split our time. We flew into Los Angeles, rented a car, and drove the 2.5 hours to the high desert. 

Joshua Tree is a small town and the main appeal is the scenery, so we spent most of our time in the National Park or taking in the views from home. Our first stay was at a Buckminster Fuller inspired geodesic dome.

The best part of the trip was drinking coffee and watching the sunrise and drinking champagne at sunset. We actually had lots of rain including some incredible desert thunderstorms.

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The National Park was an incredible place to hike and drive through. 

This is the face of someone who did not bring the appropriate gear for an 8 mile desert mountain hike. And definitely not enough water.

After driving from Joshua Tree to the southern entrance to the park, we stopped in Palm Springs to go to my favorite Vintage Store, The Fine Art of Design. We also stopped by Moorten Botanical Garden, an incredible cactus and succulent garden that was almost unreal. This photo is not even edited and it looks like a painting.

We ate most of our meals at home - that is one of the reasons we love to get an airbnb with a kitchen - but we had an unbelievable meal at La Copine. If you go to Joshua Tree, this restaurant is a must.

Our second Airbnb was created by the same couple as the dome and was equally lovely.  The dome had better views, but the charming vintage appliances and the outdoor bathtub made the cabin just as good.

Time to plan our next trip. Where should we go? If you know of any beautiful Airbnb's, let me know in the comments below. 

And for more information about these ones check out: http://www.weareinourelement.com/

Chelsea Harrison14 Comments

Coconut Rosewater Floral Popsicles

Nothing says spring quite like flowers.  I have been flower crazed lately.  So when I saw edible flowers at the market I couldn't resist.  I brought them home, not sure what I'd do with them, but knowing that I had to have them.  Then at Yoga Teacher Training we volunteered our time at Crack in the Sidewalk Farmlet, and we ended up harvesting edible flowers ourselves.  So by the end of the weekend I had more edible flowers than I knew what to do with.  Knowing they wouldn't last long, I decided to make floral popsicles to preserve their beauty.

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Coconut Rosewater Floral Popsicles
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Banana Birthday Cake with Cream Cheese and Chocolate Frosting

My best friend Emily of Whisk and Whittle makes this amazing cake with caramelized bananas and Nutella.  If you are in the mood for all the butter, flour, and sugar (which sometimes I am!), her cake is definitely the winner.  But last week I was in the mood for that cake, but I wanted a healthier version. I decided to adapt the recipe from my Maple Pecan Banana Muffins to make a healthy gluten-free/refined sugar-free version. And while it is a different cake experience completely, it turned out great!

Chelsea Harrison3 Comments
Banana Birthday Cake with Cream Cheese and Chocolate Frosting
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Strawberry Coconut Lemongrass Fruit Leather

For so long I've wanted to make homemade fruit leather but thought I couldn't because I don't have a dehydrator.  And sure, I could buy one...but I live in a 480 sq. ft. apartment and I'm just not willing to devote space to an ugly appliance.  So I decided to make fruit leather in the oven.  I should warn that it is no longer raw this way and it is not a method for perfectionists, but it is a heck of a lot better than buying corn syrup and food dye fruit snacks.  

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Strawberry Coconut Lemongrass Fruit Leather
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Solstice Dinner

I wanted to elope and Sam wanted a big wedding.  I conceded but asked that in lieu of a "rehearsal dinner" (we didn't have anything to rehearse anyway) we have an intimate dinner with our family and a handful of close friends.  

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Solstice Dinner
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6 Tips for Planning a Wedding on a $5K Budget

When Sam and I decided to get married, one thing was clear: We were not going to splurge on a wedding. I wanted to elope, but Sam wanted a wedding, so we began planning. The average cost of a wedding is about $30,000. We are incredibly practical people, so spending enough money to put a down payment on a house for one party was out of the question. We set a goal of spending $5,000 knowing that we would probably go over and spend closer to $10,000. But the more we planned, the more we realized how little we really needed and the more we got excited about proving that we could actually make a wedding with more than 150 guests (we have HUGE families) happen on a shoestring budget.  Here is how we did it...

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6 Tips for Planning a Wedding on a $5K Budget