Deva by Definition

Pictures and Memories

I was inspired to write this post after reading this post at Then Heather Said. I loved the pictures and memories within the post, and it led me to start thinking about pictures of me from the past several years.

When I entered college, I didn’t have a digital camera. I was a photojournalism student and I shot using film only. Looking through the stacks of the many photos I took at that time, I noticed one thing: because I was the one behind the camera, I have almost no photographs of myself prior to my junior year.

Now, that was only one year of college for me, but it seems odd when I am looking through friends’ facebook feeds and see that their photos go all the way back to their first year of college, whereas mine? Start at junior year. That year, I got a digital camera, which made uploading pictures a lot easier. I also made an effort to spend a little more time in front of the camera. Here are just a few pictures to share, both from college as well as more recently.

The end of Junior year. I was up early that morning to get coffee before starting my shift in the office of my residence hall. I was a Resident Assistant and we were checking students out at the end of the year.

Spending time with my BFF. It was a chilly and rainy night, which made my hair frizzy and curly by the end of the evening.  .

My graduation day. You can’t see them, but I was wearing pointed-toe kitten-heeled shoes. I loved them, but was ready to put on sandals!

Ballpark with The Boy! This was our last game of the regular season last year –after the Reds had clinched the division title.

There are so many more photos on my hard drive and flash drive, as well as memories not captured on film (or digitally). I cherish each and every one of them every time I look back on time with friends and family, and each time I scroll through my photos on my computer. I am amazed at the changes I see in myself since graduation, and will continue to be surprised in the years to come.

What are some of your memories from recent years?

Forty-Five Degrees

I had trouble sleeping last night. It was chillier than I thought it would be and the cats all wanted to snuggle with me somewhere around four this morning. I think they were playing, because when I finally stumbled out of bed this morning, I found toys strewn all over, and some VERY sleepy kitties in our office.

Waking up cold, combined with the tossing and turning last night had me craving caffeine this morning, but instead of coffee, I wanted tea. Why? Because last night I decided to take some of the leftover pumpkin from muffin making and make some of Savvy Julie's Pumpkin Syrup. I ended up enjoying both a muffin and the syrup with breakfast this morning, stirring a sweet spoonful of the syrup into my tea.

Plain Greek yogurt mixed with some chias rounded out my breakfast, and I enjoyed every sweet-spicy sip of tea, which nicely complimented the yummy, dense muffin. I love the cinnamon-nutmeg-clove combination year-round – it makes the apartment smell so homey!

Of course the chilly night gave way to a blustery day. It was brisk and windy all day, and the air definitely smelled like fall – crisp and like drying leaves. I was happy for layers and long sleeves, and had the heat on in the car. Tonight is supposed to be even chillier than last night: the low is only forty-five degrees. It may be time to dig out an extra blanket to layer on the bed – next week it’s supposed to be much warmer, and I don’t want to turn the heat on if I don’t have to.

BUT – it is late, and I am tired and ready to bundle up in bed. I think tomorrow will be another day for tea, especially if it is going to be chilly like today.

What signifies fall to you? Is it the weather? Pumpkin? or something else?

And We’re Live!

If you are just visiting, you may have noticed a few changes. If you are following me in a Reader, click on over and check it out! I have decided to change the name of this blog to “Deva by Definition.” Why? Vorilee was a holdover from college days, a nickname conjured up on the fly by a friend of mine, and I felt like I had outgrown it and needed to start blogging the me of today. I needed to blog my definition of my life as it is and as it will be, hence “Deva by Definition.”

You can now access my blog by visiting http://www.devabydefinition.com. http://www.voraciousvorilee.com should forward you to this site, but I am still working out the kinks in the forwarding. 

Please note that while the blog name has changed, the content will always be one hundred percent me – as always – food, healthy living, and life, in general. If there is anything you want to see on Deva by Definition, please let me know in the comments.

Welcome to this new chapter. Thank you SO much for sticking by me through this change. I promise I’ll be back tomorrow with a fun new post.

For now though, I am off to bed.

Ready for Bed

I am ready for bed, so this is going to be a quickish post. I was up pretty early this morning and keep thinking it is later than it is. It’s been a fun day, and I got to visit the library on my way home from work this evening to browse and check out some fun books. Once I’d gotten my books, I headed home.

My eyes were feeling dry and my stomach when I walked in the door, and I was ready to take my contacts out and fix something to eat. We have some leftovers in the fridge that need to be used up, so I opted to have a leftover night, diving into fajitas I had leftover from Sunday.

It’s a little blurry and messy, but was delicious. I had my fajita with some tortilla chips and a bit of chocolate cake before settling in to watch the Reds game and participate in the #fitblog chat.

Of course, the cats had other ideas, and instead of staying the whole chat, I ended up logging off about halfway through to play with them – they were feeling super playful tonight!

By the time we finished playing, the ballgame was over and the Reds had won. The cats were worn out and I was bitten by the baking bug, so I decided to bake a batch of Julie's pumpkin-oat muffins!

They JUST came out of the oven and are still too hot to eat, but they smell incredible. My house smells like pumpkin pie. I cannot wait to crack into these in the morning for a wholesome, pumpkinny breakfast!

I’m going to do just a little more blog reorganizing before climbing into bed. It looks like the renaming project might be finished by the weekend! As soon as everything is good to go, I’ll let you all know.

Have a great night!

Pardon the Dust

Good morning! I wanted to let you know that I am in the process of changing the name and appearance of this blog. Please note that if you are unable to access the blog using VoraciousVorilee.com, that you can still access it by going to http://vorilee.typepad.com. As soon as my changes are complete, you will receive an update. Please stick with me through this - you'll see the changes within two weeks, I promise!

This post IS a sticky post, so please scroll for any new blog content!

End of Summer?

This weekend was a bit crazy! I kicked it off with a mini girls’ night on Friday, going out with my friend Jessie for some bowling!

Oh yes, it was blacklight bowling! We caught up over a four-hour timespan, playing four games. Jessie and I were always close in score, but she beat me in every game. I came home Friday night wiped out and ready to crawl into bed!

Saturday, the fun continued, and we went to a friend’s house for an end-of-summer cookout of sorts. We were there early, so I was able to chat with my friend E and her fiancé while they got everything ready for us to eat. There was so much yummy food and good beer there, and I enjoyed a beer I’d never had before while we waited for the burgers to cook.

It was light and crisp – one I would enjoy again. I was thrilled when it got dark enough for us to start the firepit – so we could make some s’mores!

The fire kept the bugs away while the group of us sat and talked about everything under the sun – from our pets, to sports, to food, and anything in between. It was a fun night – I loved getting to enjoy one good cookout before the summer officially ends.

Sunday morning got off to an early start – I was meeting Jessie to go to church for a 9/11 memorial service, so I climbed out of bed earlier than I might otherwise, happy that I had the foresight to prepare my breakfast before going to bed last night.

I decided to try my hand at some chia pudding, whisking together chia seeds, milk, honey, and cocoa powder before bed last night, allowing it to sit covered in the fridge until I was ready to eat. It was too thick – almost like gelatin – when I pulled it out of the fridge this morning, so I added a little more milk, topped it with cacao nibs, and dug in, not knowing what to expect.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that I liked it – it was like tapioca pudding, almost, but lighter in flavor and with a little more crunch. I loved the chocolatey flavor and the bittersweetness that the cacao nibs added to the whole mix. This was a surprisingly filling breakfast, albeit light, and it definitely held me over until after church and lunch.

The service at church today was both somber and uplifting – it was a 9/11 memorial service that really made me think. I remember that morning as though it were yesterday, and how shocked I was that something so horrible could be happening in a city here. At first, I thought it was a bad movie, but when I realized it wasn’t, I spent the rest of my morning watching the news unfold in shock and awe. It was a day I will never forget.

This weekend was, I think, the start of the end of summer. It was warm enough to spend time outside, but cool enough to have the windows in the house open for most of the day. While I had a busy weekend, it was fun, thoughtful, and good. We got to spend time with friends and to remember. I am eager to see what the rest of this week will bring.

What did you do this weekend?

Misty, Gray, and Chilly

I am currently perched on my sofa watching a movie. This week has been misty, gray, and chilly – like fall. I broke down this morning and bought a pumpkin latte at Caribou. I don’t typically buy flavored coffee drinks, but I really wanted the sweet-spicy latte this morning, and it was delicious. It tasted like fall. I’m not ready for fall, but I will admit, I loved the latte!

Work kept me pretty busy today, and I had a lot on my mind when I left to come home. There are a couple changes coming to the blog here in the next few weeks, and I’m excited and anxious to share them with you! I’ve been thinking about what changes I am going to be making, and trying new things – like templates – out.

I was hungry when I got home, but wanted to take my time on dinner tonight. I had a can of black beans in our pantry that needed to be used, so I made an attempt at some black bean burgers – simple ones. I tried to blend the beans together with bread crumbs in my blender, but that didn’t work so well, so I ended up mashing them up with a few added spices, before popping them into the oven to bake for about forty-five minutes.

When they were ready, it was time to eat. I enjoyed my burger with cheese and ketchup, alongside some tortilla chips. The burger recipe needs some work, they were a bit mushy, but I enjoyed them – light, filling, and yummy!

Once finished with dinner, we settled in to watch a movie and play with the cats. They were feeling exceptionally playful tonight, and it was fun to watch them chase their toys all over the living room and kitchen.

Now, I think we’re going to get back to the movie, and I’m going to go dig up a book to read before bed. Have a great night!

What are some things you want to see on the blog?

Chilly and Gray

I was up early this morning. The color of the light outside my window said “fall” to me, and the weather forecast confirmed it. Three days ago temperatures here were nearly one-hundred degrees, and today I don’t think we got above sixty-five. The sky was gray and overcast, and for the first time since last year, it felt like fall.

A fall-like morning called for a fall-like breakfast, and after picking up a bag of chia seeds yesterday, I decided to make a batch of oatmeal that incorporated them into the mix.

This was my first time trying chia seeds, and to be honest, I didn’t really notice them in my breakfast – not at first. As I ate, however, I noticed that my oatmeal was creamier, and the seeds added just a bit of crunch to each bite. I’m eager to see what other foods I can incorporate the chia seeds into.

The hot breakfast was the perfect meal to get my chilly day off to a great start, and I found that as I went through my day I was gravitating toward the items I associate with fall: hot tea, long sleeves, and this evening, some of my favorite novels. I’m not embarrassed to say that I reached for my copy of “Twilight” late this evening, and even dug out my copy of “The Mists of Avalon.” Both are novels I associate with early-to-mid fall, and are ones I reach for when the temperatures start to fall.

I am still not ready for the temperatures to drop and for the leaves to crunch beneath my feet, but it seems that whether I like it or not, fall is going to start creeping in – pumpkin lattes, chilly temperatures and all. For now, though, I think I am going to sip some tea, curl up with a good book, and hope the warm weather lasts just a little bit longer.

What are some things you associate with fall?

September? Already?

I know, I am a little late! I thank you ALL for your well-wishes. I am feeling about 80% better – still stuffy and headachey, but much better than before!

Where did this summer go? I cannot believe that we are already in Labor Day weekend! WOW. I guess that is how I can tell that this was an awesome summer – it just flew by! It seems like just yesterday The Boy and I were at Opening Day, and now baseball season is nearly over!

This summer has been so full of so many fun things – we’ve been to more ballgames than I can count (and more than I have blogged about), we’ve gone mini-golfing, made new friends, and even had my brother come for a visit.

Part of me isn’t ready for it to be fall, even though the angle of the light in the morning and at sunset has me longing to be back in college, walking on the green beneath the trees. Our last winter was brutally cold and I just want to enjoy the warmth a little longer – pumpkin recipes notwithstanding! I know that once it gets here, though, I will enjoy roasting marshmallows in the backyard and crunching leaves underfoot. For now, though, I think I am going to enjoy my warm weather – humidity and all!

What was your favorite part of the summer?