gluten – The Good Stuff

So There’s That Vol. 22

June 26, 2017June 26, 2017 Amanda

{Sort of like a “Friday Five” or a “Life Lately” except it’s probably not Friday, and I gave up on the idea of a catchy alliteration. These are some bits and pieces of my glam #postgradlife. See past posts HERE}

Colorado

During the last week of May, I was in Estes Park, Colorado for a work trip. My mom tagged along and we tacked on a few days for a mini-vacay, which included a great hike to Gem Lake.

Girl Time

Lately the girls from my young adults bible study have been making lots of plans together. Earlier in June, a few of us did the Billy Goat Trail near Great Falls, which was a bit more challenging than I expected… but such a beautiful day to be outside and chat with these girls who have added such a positive light to my life lately.

This last weekend we had a laid back girls night hosted at my place and then spent another afternoon at Quattro Goombas Winery for wine slushies (insert all of the heart eye emoji’s here) and awesome pizza. The location also has a brewery and a great outdoor space.

Kansas – National Festival of Breads

Earlier in June, I made a quick work trip to Kansas for the National Festival of Breads. Yes, it was a awesome as its name sounds. The festival is hosted each year by Kansas Wheat, and brings together eight finalists (that competed against hundreds!) to compete for the title. The festival also features a small trade show, a demonstration stage, a kid’s interactive section, a BBQ, live music and more. I spent the day of the festival taking pictures and enjoy a “few” samples! This event is a great way to showcase the diversity of bread and the quality of U.S. wheat.

Obviously since I was in Kansas, I made the most of my down time by catching up with friends that I don’t get to see nearly enough.

So many of my favorite things wrapped up in one. If you visit Manhattan and appreciate a good wheat beer, you NEED to try 1863 Wheat at Tallgrass Brewery!

College friends turned commodity colleagues.

Considering I just saw Leah, Ryan and Robin a month ago in Colorado, I was so happy that they made the drive from Topeka (on Father’s Day nonetheless) to see me again. It doesn’t look like it but I swear Miss Robin was happy to see me…

Kansas Wheat Harvest

During my trip to Kansas in I spent a day out on a farm in central Kansas that was in the middle of wheat harvest. In my mind there are few things more beautiful than a wheat harvest. I took lots of great pictures and shared them in a separate blog post.

Ed Sheeran Carpool Karoke

To know me is to know my obsession with all things Ed Sheeran. So really when you combine that with my obsession with James Corden (Craig!!) then basically you know that dreams really do come true.

I have probably watched this at least 6 times now.

Happy Birthday Jancz

My sister Janci turned 23 last week!

True Friendship

Out and About

A few snippets (and Snapchats) of life lately.

Pictures from home make me happy, especially when they include my sister and my favorite little guy Wesley. (Also, super jealous she got to hang with him for the day.)

Sugarloaf Mountain Winery is so picturesque, and their wine is pretty good! Enjoyed a lazy Saturday afternoon there.

Eastern Market finds.

Missed out on getting a group picture, but my work took an afternoon for an outing and enjoyed a Nationals game together.

These adult coloring postcards are my new favorite stress reliever.

My Life in Memes

Memes that are speaking to me right now… both thought provoking and just plain funny.

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So, There’s That.

Cheers!

So There's That Series

So There’s That: Vol. 10

August 8, 2015August 8, 2015 Amanda

1. Hermiston Watermelons

When my friend Julia sent me this picture I seriously did a little happy dance. PEOPLE, you can now get Hermiston Watermelons in Great Bend, Kansas! My hometown in Oregon is known as the “Watermelon Capitol,” and we are sure proud of it. They are used everywhere as our city’s logo, and up until recently were featured on our water tower, painted by my own grandma. So essentially, if this had happened while I was at K-State, I would have driven across the state just to have a little piece of my hometown.

2. If it is good enough for Harrison Ford…

I said in my last So There’s That, I shared an article on gluten, mentioning my thoughts on sharing things online. Well on a MUCH lighter note, a co-worker sent me this quiz…

Should You Go Gluten Free?

And my friend Jordan who works for wheat in Kansas sent me this SnapChat that made my week…

3. Commuting in D.C.

Because these are the conversations that my co-workers and I have on Thursday mornings.
#thestruggleisreal

4. West Coast, Best Coast

On Tuesday I recapped my July travel and shared a few pictures I took up at my family’s cabin with my new camera.

5. Memes

I just love a good, relatable meme. These were recently added to my collection on my bulletin board at work.

6. Bachelor Nation

So I am a shameless Bachelor Nation fan. It is the perfect mix of crazy, funny and watching a chick flick. I have watched it off and on over the years since its beginning but my friend Brandi and I have been faithful since Sean Lowe’s season (K-State love!), and even though I moved out to D.C. we still have a standing FaceTime date each week for it. We also may or may not fill out brackets…
Now that this summer’s season has wrapped up, they have moved on to the second installment of Bachelor in Paradise.
Guys, it’s terrible and I can’t stop watching.
Honestly, I spent the entire premiere earlier this week cringing and hiding behind my wine glass. What made it worth it was the “After Paradise” live after show that follows it featuring the host Chris Harrison, cast from the show and guest celebrity (superfan) commentators. The premiere featured Scandal’s Katie Lowes and Joshua Malina!
It’s like the perfect cherry on top of a bowl of ice cream that you don’t actually want to finish.

Still not convinced? Then check out this gal’s weekly blog post recaps. They are HILARIOUS regardless if you watch the show or not.

7. Office Wars

Basically every lady can relate, the warmer it is outside, the colder your office tends to be, resulting in cardigans in August and a never-ending war over the thermostat. Well my office is no different, so when one of my co-workers sent this article around I thought, Yes! I can get behind this argument!

Chilly at Work? Office Formula Was Devised for Men

8. #RunHappy

I’ve been overdue for new running shoes and ripping a hole in my old ones while hiking kind of sealed the deal. I LOVE my new Brooks GTS. I haven’t had a pair for Brooks since I was in high school and I had forgotten how light they are, not to mention how they fit my wide feet so much better. Happy running is in my future!

9. The Bodester

My cousin Bodie (who was recently in front of my camera A LOT) is adorable. WordPress doesn’t allow me to upload a video directly, so I am linking to my Facebook page. While we were up at the cabin in July he really want to tell me what the fox says…

Watch HERE.
So. Stinking. Cute.

*****

So, There’s That.
Cheers!

*****

Linking up with:
Momfessionals
Life In Leggings
Meet @ The Barre
Running 4 Cupcakes
Fitting It All In

So There's That Series

So There’s That: Vol.9

July 8, 2015July 10, 2015 Amanda

1. Furious Dancing

No, I do not really have a reason to be that mad. But I am cracking up.
I saw this on Pinterest last week, and well, it spoke to me, so I printed it and hung it up at work.
I am pretty sure that dancing solves most problems.

2. My New Camera!

I had always thought someday I would get a nice camera when I had a family, but recently with my move and lots of upcoming work travel, I decided why wait? I live an adventurous life in a beautiful and historical place right now, and I want to document it. I have a teeny tiny bit of photography experience being an agricultural communicator, but I am excited to learn more. I had an idea of what I wanted, but I am lucky to know a few talented photographers who also gave me some advice. I should also give a shout out to my parents and grandparents, who were pretty easy to convince that my birthday and Christmas should come early this year

3. Best Friend’s Visit and Independence Day

We are already part way through summer…umm, what?! The past two weeks have been so full that it has taken every bit of discipline I have to not take a nap every day after work just to keep up. This past weekend was my first Independence Day in D.C. and the weekend before that, my best friend Richole (from Oregon) was my first official visitor here in my new home.

4. Food for Thought

The Myth of Big, Bad Gluten – New York Times Article

Even though I am in communications, I personally do not post or share a lot of opinionated content. Social media is a powerful and great tool for networking and sharing information, but too often it is abused. I think it becomes too crowded with people who have a false sense of confidence and a platform for rants — usually about things that they actually know very little truth about. So usually I do not like to add fuel to the conversations that just go in circles. With that said, I do want to share this article because I think it tackles the topic from a bit of a different perspective than I have seen lately. Listen, yes I work in agriculture and represent the U.S. wheat industry, but choice is choice. I choose to eat gluten for a various number of reasons, and I respect your decision not to. My argument only comes out when people do not think for themselves, and instead let fear-mongering, trends and false information dictate their decisions. Always be hungry for the truth and choose what is right for your own body and values, not just because you saw a colorful infographic or read something on a mommy blog.

And that goes for the article for me and I shared. One article is not the end all and I am not a dietician or a food scientist. I work for farmers, and as such, I want people to want to know more about their food without tossing their common sense and reasoning aside.

5. Inside Out

Everyone. Should. See. This. Movie.
And do not roll your eyes because you “don’t like animated movies.”
It is seriously cute and will make you ~~cry~~ think more than you ever thought a simple cartoon could.
Plus it is voiced by people like Amy Poehler, Mindy Kaling and Bill Hader. How could you go wrong?

6. Typorama

This is one of my new favorite apps! I use Canva.com (something I could go on and on and on about) almost everyday for projects at work but I wanted something that was similar for my phone. The images below are the only things I have created so far, so I have not used any of my own imagery yet or used it for work, but the possibilities are endless. If I remember correctly it did cost $0.99, but definitely worth it.

7. Upcoming Travel

This upcoming weekend kicks off two months of lots of travel for me! Just looking at the calendar makes my head spin just a bit. There are both work trips and vacation, to be honest the work trip destinations are not too shabby. Here is a quick look…

July
San Diego (work national board meetings)
Eastern Oregon (visiting home)
Phoenix (work – Ag Media Summit)

August
Las Vegas (taking my sister for her 21st!)
Guatemala (work – world staff conference)

Yeah, I would say my camera is going to get a lot of use! Stay tuned.

8. A Steal

So I think I am in a bit of a transition with my wardrobe.
Since moving to D.C. my work attire has changed to business casual, and on some days, professional. But it is not just at work. I have never lived in the city before, so everything from going out for drink or even to the grocery store is a bit of a change for this small town Oregon/Kansas girl #imissmybluejeans. On top of that I turn 25 this year and I am starting to feel that some of my clothes are not really my style anymore. For the most part I fully embrace the change but overhauling a wardrobe does not happen over night #thankyoustudentloans, and well, I hate shopping.

So it is a slow process, but finding skirts like this at 40% off for $15 is what I like to call a steal.

And it is purple, obviously. #GoKState.

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So, There’s That.

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Joining these Linkups this week.

Friday Favorites
Thinking Out Loud

So There's That Series

So There’s That: Vol. 7

May 23, 2015July 8, 2015 Amanda

{Sort of like a “Friday Five” except it’s probably not Friday, and I gave up on the idea of a catchy alliteration. These are some bits and pieces of my glam #postgradlife.}

1. My vacuum cleaner ate my phone charger…

(Reference.)

2. Sisterhood Forever

Let’s talk about a few things here…
— The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants books and movies were me and my besties Kayla and Richole FAVORITE when we were growing up. So the fact that one of its stars, Blake Lively, made the other three actresses the godmothers of her newborn just makes my forever-teenage heart so happy.

— Blake named her daughter James. I have this strange affection for using boy names for girls, so I think it’s fabulous.

— While I’m having an extreme fangirl moment I might as well also mention what I would give to have Blake Lively’s hair circa her “Gossip Girl” days…Is it possible to have a hair-spirit animal?

3. #PorkTips Video’s

This video was part of the last project I worked on during my time at the Kansas Pork Association. Although my role was extremely small in comparison, I am SO PROUD of the final product, especially after all the long talks and day dreaming we did about them. And I had so much fun working with 502 Media Group! Be sure to check the others out on the Kansas Pork Facebook page!

*Even my own personal baking stone makes a cameo in this one.

4. #Wheatie Humor

What art would look like with out wheat…
http://glutenimage.tumblr.com/

5. Mat Kearney – Coming Home (Oregon)

Alright friends, we’re going to play pretend. We’re going to pretend that this video was not basically written for the University of Oregon, and that the music video does not feature Oregon football clips and Autzen stadium. And we’re going to forgive Mat Kearney for being an obsessed Ducks fan, because his music is too good to miss out on. And because once I got past all of that nonsense, I fell in LOVE with this song.

6. I live here…

Seriously though, I can’t get over it.
Last Friday night I visited the USDA farmer’s market where I bought some (amazing) bread for later and a pizza (who knew) and wondered down to the Washington Monument where my lap became my dinner table.

So, there’s that.