We had the most incredible trip to New Zealand, and if you’ve been following along on Instagram, you know April was the very weirdest month for us.

We spent half of it getting our eyeballs blown by the magnificent scenery of New Zealand, then came home to a health scare (all okay now), a trillion work projects, and all that stuff that we try to ignore when we’re on vacation.

But to quote my wise author, Francine Jay, (who was in turning quoting John Heywood),

 

In space cometh grace.

 

I felt that in New Zealand, and it came into crystal clear focus when we came back to our crowded, endlessly busy lives. And now Jarrett and I are making a new commitment to keeping more space in our lives—more unplanned time, more long walks, less overcommitting. (Not easy for a people-pleaser like me!)

So in case you need 5 minutes in your day to do nothing but look at pretty pictures, here are the 20 most beautiful shots from New Zealand. Even if you’re deep inside an office building, I hope they remind you there’s a big, beautiful, wild world out there.

And I’d love to hear: what are you most looking forward to now that the weather’s turning?

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From The Library

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Quick Reads of the Week

1. She’s on a mission to make home cooking less guilt-inducing, and she’s bringing along my author, Nik Sharma.
2. Do you do this?
3. On MSG and the high church of umami.
4. It’s here!!
5. What self-help really means.

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What We’re Eating This Week

I ate nearly every piece of lamb on the island of New Zealand, and now I must make reparations. That, and the good cookbooks keep coming, so I’m packing us tight with new recipes to try this week:

Sunday: Lemon Garlic Salmon and Cauliflower from Virginia’s cookbook. That sauce! I licked the bowl after dinner, because drinking butter is still healthier than dessert?

Monday: This white chicken chili, which is the chicken chili to rule them all. #modest

Tuesday: Roasted brussels sprouts. With a side of spaghetti and this Instant Pot bolognese sauce. (Health tip: if you tell people the veggie is the main, everyone will feel better about themselves.)

Wednesday: Out! Or if I’m feeling mean: LEFTOVERS.

Thursday: Thai Crunch Salad from the gorgeous Once Upon a Chef cookbook, which never fails to make me feel sophisticated without actually requiring any extra work from me.

Friday: Pizza night, and we’re experimenting with this crust. Currently it looks like a blob of yellow in my refrigerator, so just in case, there’s always this. (Heh.)

Cheers!