Cooking and baking are two sure fire ways I can relieve stress. Growing up my mom let me experiment starting avocados and apples from seeds. My paternal grandmother let me harvest ripe cherry tomatoes from the planters on her deck. And my maternal grandmother let me pick strawberries from her yard.   Growing food is in my blood. So it was only natural that I'd want Gates to experience it for herself this Fall before the San Francisco growing season ended.     Will you be starting (or maintaining) a Fall garden this year?  

SPONSORED POST: This is a paid post. The Road to The Good Life chose to work with Farm Fresh to You because of their commitment to encouraging strong roots for a better food and agriculture system for all. I am part of the Mom It Forward Blogger Network . All opinions presented are my own.   For the past couple of weeks I've been enjoying Black Plums in my Farm Fresh to You Organic Snack Pack, Mini Box subscription.   Does this mean I'm tired of plums yet? No way! I love plums. (And if I was tired of plums, Farm Fresh to You makes it super easy for me to substitute them with something else or add them to a don't ever send me this list.)     What it has meant is that I've had the opportunity to play with serving plums different ways: freshly washed straight out of the fridge, sauteed, and baked. I've also been having fun coming up with creative recipes that showcase the bright flavors.   What's your favorite way to prepare plums?  

I didn't always name things or places. Names give a sense of permanence. They imply attachment and commitment. And in my twenties and my thirties, I didn't want to be attached.     Instead, I spent those years running. Restless. I tried on places, abandoning them when they didn't fit just quite right. Wanting to believe it was the place that was somehow wrong and not me. I enjoyed not taking responsibility for my life. It was reassuring to believe everything that happened was outside my control--a destiny.     Then I woke up. I realized I wasn't ever arriving. I was constantly restarting. Wasting effort. So I stopped. And I started naming, beginning with my first new car.   How do you use names? Do names chronicle chapters of your journey?