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lunch at the local Mexican restaurant//love sign on icy lake

Ben in the local newspaper//looking at the moon through a telescope

mushroom cookies//our "new-to-us" furniture

coffee date with Ben//little furry guest

big furry guest//beautiful Idaho

I haven't posted any instagrams here for a long time! If we're insta-friends you have probably seen these: a moose on our street, mushroom cookies that my parents sent us from Russia, Ben's happy face in the newspaper, and some local shots. If we're not friends on Instagram yet, let's connect -- find us @chestnutmocha!

the moon on my iphone

Last night we had dinner with Ben's parents and they offered us to go out look at Jupiter through a telescope. It was very cold but fun! We saw Jupiter with 2 dark lines on it and 4 satellites around. And then we decided to look at the Moon. WOW! It was so close and we saw lots of beautiful craters and mountains... and then I said I wished I could have taken a photo of it.. and Ben said: "Why not?" Genius! I pulled my iPhone out and pointed it into the telescope. This is how it turned out! I hope you love the results just as much as I do.

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a pretty field next to our house//a package from Whimsy Whimsical

Ben's new backpack from Valentich bags// an awesome view from the trail

we're still eating carrots from my garden// a coffee date

my new juice box camera// today's nails

my hiking shoes arrived!//a new favorite - shrimp with parmesan cheese

winter is here

sushi lunch// the morning view from my window

first snow

This is what I woke up to: white and fresh. 

My first snow here.

Good morning!

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find us on instagram @chestnutmocha

I haven't posted instagrams here since last month. Here are a few that I took in Sandpoint in the last week or so.

1. Our first lunch together after I got back. It was a sunny and warm day, we ordered our favorite Thai food and went to a park. 

2. Colorful leaves are everywhere! We went on a little hike and it became more of a photo walk as I stopped every second to pick a new awesome leaf from the ground and take a picture of it.

3. One of my dreams came true when we went to a corn maze! Well, the dream itself was to spend autumn holidays in the States because it's so much fun here. In Russia we don't have any autumn holidays, so this season is just all about school and work. And now I have a chance to really enjoy fall. A corn maze adventure was one of the fall wish list things. :-)

4. It's not a secret for my readers that I love mail and packages. I got this beautifully packed tote bag from Jessica - I'm so excited to show you more of it later!

5. Pumpkins, more pumpkins! I told you I love autumn here :-)

6. And I love autumn hikes around our town, too. Note to myself - we should go on a little hike/walk tonight.

7. We celebrated our 6 months anniversary! And we had a really nice dinner in a restaurant on the beach facing the lake and the mountains covered in snow. So romantic! Thank you, Benjamin!

8. My new nail polish from Feenix Polish. This one is Candy Corn - getting in the Halloween mood! 

9. My outfit from the other day. And a pumpkin again :-) I bought some gold spray paint and covered the pumpkin stem with it. Looks magical.

10. Colorful Sandpoint streets. I do like it here.

11. Lately I spend more and more time in the kitchen. Soups, muffins, stews, cookies... If only it weren't so dark in the house now! I need to take more pictures of what and how I cook.

How was your week? Did you instagram it? Let's be insta-friends - find us on instagram @chestnutmocha. 

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via instagram @chestnutmocha

This week was so busy! I didn't instagram any packing/driving/airplane waiting and flying but believe me there was so much of it. I'm finally in Russia and Ben is in Idaho. We're so far away again! It's so weird. This morning we had a super cool foggy sunrise and I wish Ben could see it. Also today it's International Tourism Day and I ordered tons of sushi for lunch to celebrate it (because I just didn't feel like going anywhere further than our kitchen to dine today) - Ben would so much love it! Boo, I wish you were here.

Other events from the past week include visiting a horse show in Sandpoint; baking a huge turkey and eating it every day for brealfast, lunch and dinner; playing frisbee golf with Ben's co-workers in a beautiful acorn forest; visiting my friends in NYC. Really nice week actually, I just hate saying "good-bye". I'm looking forward to my next 3 weeks here, it'll be fun!

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I can't believe it's already end of September! I can't even remember when I wore shorts and summer dresses in autumn last time. It's so amazing that I have to remind myself that it's not summer anymore. And this makes me appreciate these sunny days even more. This is what our life looks like recently, according to my iphone:

- we go hiking! It's so much better than in summer actually. No mosquitoes, bright blue sky, trees are so colorful! Love it.

- we surround ourselves with flowers. I know for many people it's time to decorate for Halloween but we try to make this summer feeling last a little bit more. In our front yard we have many-many lilac crocuses. I always thought crocuses were spring flowers but Idaho proves me wrong. It's magical! In our bedroom we have a big summer flower bouquet that Ben gave me for our 5 months anniversary. It has sunflowers in it! Awww..

- our garden slows down a little in its growth but we still manage to add fresh dill to our dinners and have sweet peas almost every day. I'm excited for the beets and carrots. I'll let them grow till it gets cold, hopefully it'll make them big and sweet enough :-) 

- talking about food, we tend to eat more of autumn dishes. Yesterday we had sweet corn chowder (thanks to Katherine and her recipe!) - it was so delicious! This week we also made a huge pizza and some yummy buckwheat stew. 

- our weekends usually go within the same plan: after a quick stop at the coffee shop we drive from one garage sale to another, from one thrift shop to another looking for all the possible treasures like old books, music boxes and polaroids. It reminds me that it's Thursday and our local newspaper already has the list of garage sales for the weekend! It's time to mark them on a map! :-)

What was your week like? Did you instagram it? Let's be insta-friends! 

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via instagram @chestnutmocha

Our week in instagrams: food, autumn, pets. A little bit more in detail:

- noticing more and more leaves turning yellow and red;
- still harvesting yummy little treats from our garden;
- my new favorite shoes. Now I either need to go on vacation down south or wait and hope it gets warmer here;
- following our recent obsession with Polaroid we got Instant Love - a great book covering such questions as light, tips and tricks when shooting with an old instant camera. Love it!
- that spider on our porch.. it's still growing! I can't believe how big it is and I'm wondering where will it go when it gets cold;
- while it's not too cold yet we try to have as many meals on the fresh air as possible;
- although we really enjoy our evenings cuddling on a couch with Starbucks hot cocoa;
- sometimes we go out to watch a pretty sunset. We prefer to go to a park and walk while enjoying the view because it's almost impossible to sit and not get frozen :-)

What was your week like? Did you instagram it? Share with us! Let's be insta-friends!

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Find us on instagram @chestnutmocha

Last week we:

- discovered a new Thai cafe in Sandpoint;
- fed a squirrel in our backyard;
- shot more Polaroid film;
- reorganized one of the rooms into our office, now Ben and I have desks facing each other <3;
- learnt how to make Italian soda and drank it way too much;
- checked out DVDs from a library and had movie nights with ice cream;
- Ben made watercolor paintings;
- we finally found reese's peanut butter pumpkins and i keep talking about it all the time;
- went thrift shopping in Spokane;
- enjoyed a sunny day at the city beach.

What was your week like? Did you instagram it? Share with us!