It’s that time of year again – cranberries are back! Well, technically, I had been hoarding these cranberries in the freezer since last Christmas. I made the bread, we ate it, and we all lived to tell the tale. So that means this year I’m hoarding ten bags for next year, thank you very much! 

My friend Sebastian came over a few weeks ago and brought a few camera toys to play with from his job at Nikon. He brought a 40 mm lens and a remote flash and both have now been added to my Christmas list. I thought I was opposed to flash, but then the sun started setting at 4pm and I reconsidered.

So we’d have something festive to play with, I made whole wheat cranberry bread, adapted from this recipe. It’s a very simple recipe and has just the right amount of orange flavor and no oil, which is my usual gripe with quick bread recipes. I used only 3/4 cup of sugar, and replaced half of the flour with coarse ground whole wheat flour (because I ran out of regular flour but I liked how nutty the whole wheat tasted!).  Are you feeling festive yet? The Christmas lights have been on in Dublin since mid-November, so I feel like we’ve been on the verge of festive for weeks. With Thanksgiving over, now it can really begin!

This is a sponsored post from Marks & Spencer, and all thoughts remain my own. Share your own Christmas inspiration over on their Facebook page. Thank you for supporting the companies that make From China Village possible!

Now that Thanksgiving is over, Christmas preparation is fully allowed! Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? I’ve gotten a huge head start while I’ve been here in Maine (mostly online, I am NOT on board with Black Friday), so I’m feeling pretty prepared. The next few weeks will be about working on the creative gifts I have up my sleeve, which is always the fun part, and picking up the last few bits – at a leisurely pace.

I’m not a fan of the last minute scramble at all, but to Michael that was always his holiday tradition. Each year, his father would take the five kids out on Christmas Eve so that his mother could finish up last minute preparations with everyone out of her hair. So while I can’t think of anything worse than braving the crowds on Christmas Eve, I think it’s quite sweet that Michael and his siblings have such a fondness for doing ALL of their Christmas shopping the day before Christmas.

Today I’m sharing a little Christmas inspiration video from Marks & Spencer. I, of course, didn’t know about Marks & Spencer until I moved to Dublin, and some of my first memories of the first Christmas here in Ireland involve shopping on Grafton Street and browsing the basement Food Hall at M&S. Grafton Street was just about the only street I could find when I first moved here, and M&S was just so festive. They’re ready this year with lots of Christmas gift inspiration to save you from that last minute gift scramble. For more Christmas gift inspiration, visit them online or in store.

I can say completely and unequivocally, Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday. And November is my favorite month. It’s not an obvious choice, but the muted light and the turning leaves and the crispness in November can’t be beaten by any steamy day in July, at least in my book.

Did you know I was born on Thanksgiving? I think I probably mention that every year, sorry about that, but I really do feel like Thanksgiving is my holiday. It makes me practically burst with happiness to have a whole bunch of people I love sitting around a table, talking and eating cranberry sauce (the star of the feast, at least in my book). I’m tearing up just thinking about it now.

For the day that’s in it, this is the cliff notes version of my thankfulness list today. My cup runneth over, and this is only the tip of the iceberg.

• Two supportive, loving families in two different countries
• Two warm, welcoming homes 3,000 miles apart
• This blog, with the sweetest of readers, some of whom have turned into wonderful friends
• A job that I love, that stretches me and introduces me to interesting, creative, passionate people
• My health and the health of my family. The older I get, the more aware I am that it’s a giant blessing to be able to run and move and see, and to have at least one set of my grandparents who are as sharp as ever
• A tremendously kind husband who gives awesome pep talks, and who manages to crack me up and challenge me nearly every day
• Hope for growing our family in the future, after a season of hopelessness that gave me priceless empathy and compassion for friends and strangers who run into road blocks on their journey
• The freedom and the resources (and a built in planner!) to travel and see the world
• Cranberries and pumpkin bread and apple cider on repeat, and lattes and avocado toast and sushi and wine all the other times
• Friends who pick up where we left off six months ago and who will do it again in another six months, and who continue to hold out hope that I’ll one day stop leaving altogether
• And friends and family who want to be in our adventure with us, and that none of the journey is a burden to share

We have adopted a toast in our family, stolen from dear, dear friends, and it goes like this: To friends who are family, and family who are friends and it always makes us teary because who could really ask for much more than that. I hope tomorrow you are surrounded by friends who are family or family who are friends. I hope you are safe and warm and have an overwhelming feeling of peace in the holiday season to come. Giant grateful hugs from my corner of the universe to yours.

Unexpected Thanksgiving table from Coco + Kelley

After a long hiatus, Styled in Ireland is back! I’m hoping to bring it back in full swing in the new year, but it’s temporarily back with a whole feature on how to wear Aran jumpers, one of Ireland’s most popular souvenir!

I’ve shared four looks for women, and one look for men (thanks, Michael, for modeling!) on Conde Nast Traveler. Julie happened to be in town so she snapped a few photos while we chatted and caught up. It was an altogether lovely afternoon and I think the looks came out really modern and fresh, considering just how long Aran jumpers have been around!

Have a peek over on Conde Nast Traveler for the full looks and a little shopping guide!