(almost) Wordless Wednesday: Pearls, Baubles, Knit

This is just gorgeous. I simply must re-create this look. 

via pinterest

LOVE IT.

OBSESSED. 

too many books?

No way!!!

I walked to the library on Saturday (it's just a few blocks from my house!) and had about 20 books waiting for me.

I had returned several books just then, so I had a tote with me, but needed a second to carry them home. Luckily, there were a few extras that people had left behind, so I borrowed one, after this happened-






My tote bag tore!

Oooops.


Oh well.

I'm still not getting a kindle ;)





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Stella & Dot party!

 

 

I held a Stella and Dot party over the weekend! I kept hearing about their jewelry all over twitter/facebook/blogs, and I decided that I wanted to see for myself what it was all about! I looked at the site, fell in love with almost everything on it, and promptly requested that a nearby stylist contact me, so that we could arrange a party!

 

 

When Kelly arrived, she had so many gorgeous pieces with her. I want about everything, really. Really! She set everything up and I arranged a few snacks. Nothing crazy- she said to keep it simple. I set out some cheese and crackers, and then I made the pumpkin dip that is all over pinterest. Also, Perrier in lemon and lime (Heidi is pregnant!), and then some wine.

 

 

 

 

 

Perfect!

 

 

Stella and Dot has some really lovely jewelry. Look at these charms!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bracelet stacking! I've been so into bracelets lately, and had so much fun playing with them all. Here, I am wearing (from left to right), the Clover Double Wrap Leather bracelet, the Chimera bangle, the Renegade Cluster bracelet in gold, and then the Lindsay Bangle in turquoise.  I know that the Lindsay bangle doesn't really "go" with the others, but I just love that one so much, so added it for the photo!

That one also comes in white, though I didn't see that one.

 

This is my most favorite necklace, the Isadora Pearl Bib necklace.

 

 

I LOVE IT!!! It's just so gorgeous.

I also really want this bracelet, the Lakra Bangle. 

 

 

These are all self-taken, hence the odd angles on the photo! Ha!

 

The Medina Bib Necklace. So pretty.

 

 

The Indira Necklace. Not something I'd normally go for it, but I felt fierce wearing it  ;)

 

The Geneve Lace Pendant necklace. 

 

Close up of the pumpkin dip! So easy. Mix together a can of pumpkin pie filling, a block of cream cheese, 1/2 cup sour cream, two cups of confectioners sugar. Mix well, sprinkle with cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. I also added in a few swirls of caramel! I served mine with 'Nilla Wafers, which I love, but so rarely buy. They bring me back to childhood!

 

 

Everyone loved it. 



 

 

 

Stella and Dot has some really marvelous pieces. I wish I could buy it all...but of course, cannot just yet ;)  Maybe I should become a consultant, so that I can have one of each piece, and wear them whenever I want to?! That might be fun! Ha!

 

 

They have several new items for the holidays, along with items for breast cancer awareness month, where the proceeds go to research. Love that. If you're interested, and want to buy anything, feel free to shop my party- it's open for another week, and I'd love it!

 

 

Have you ever had a Stella and Dot party? What are your favorite pieces?

 

 

 

 

 

 

on the debates, and the election in general...

Yes, this about sums it up for me...

(found on facebook, and cannot find the original link on the site! if you know it, please let me know so that I can give proper credit!)

Oh and yes, I was indeed a political science major in college....

filed in, so ready for November 7 to get here. 

charity quilting

The DC Modern Quilt Guild is hosting another charity drive, 100 Quilts for Kids, begun by Katie, who I am lucky enough to have in my DC group! We are donating them to the Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center, where my friend Sarah volunteers. I'm excited about bringing the quilts over to her, for the center- she is thrilled to have them!

 

 

Here are the basics, for 100 Quilts for Kids:

(taken from Katie's blog!)

 

• Make a quilt or 2. Donate it to a child in need, locally if you can.
• Spread the word to family and friends! Enjoy a blog hop with inspiration and mini prizes.
• Join us in a 100 Quilts for Kids Quilt Along (announced July 15)
• Link up HERE throughout the summer to share your quilts and win one of a few great prizes! Link up will be open October 15, so you can easily add a quilt as you finish and donate it.

 

 

This is the quilt that I made. I actually finished it several months ago, but hadn't donated it yet. I have another one that I am nearly finished with, so when it is done, I will post a photo of it! I was hoping to have a few made, but I am still slow at this. 

 

 

 

 

I hope it keeps someone warm and cozy!

 

 

 

new recipe, taco pasta bake

 

 

So! The other day, I posted about menu planning for the week, and so far, I am ahead of my game! I made the taco pasta bake, and it came out really well! I'm even posting it in the same week that I made it!

 

 

Steve really enjoyed it, and we had some leftovers for the next night, which was really nice. I will admit, I'm not always very good about eating leftovers...but, this time, we did!

 

 

I found the Taco Pasta Bake from a foodie blog called Iowa Girl Eats. She has some great recipes- this wasn't the first I tried, but the first I am sharing, I think. Kristin's photos are much nicer than mine are, and far more colorful, but mine still tastes quite good!

As always, I didn't follow the directions to the letter- I rarely do that when it comes to recipes. I like to mix them up a bit, to make them my own. Of course, there are sometimes items in some recipes that I don't like (example, mushrooms. blech!), so I omit things like that. Steve is also pretty picky, so I will remove things that I know that he won't like either, such as peppers. He's a bit weird  ;)

I didn't take step by step photos this time, but this is the finished dish.

Taco Pasta Bake

Ingredients:

1lb ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

1/2 cup water

1 recipe homemade taco seasoning + 1/2 teaspoon salt

14.5oz can tomato sauce

14.5oz can petite diced tomatoes

few dashes hot sauce

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided

1 1/2 cups corn kernels (frozen, fresh, or canned)

4oz can chopped green chilies

8oz macaroni shells, cooked and drained

2 cups crushed tortilla chips

Toppings: chopped tomatoes, salsa, sliced olives, green onions, sour cream

Directions:

1. Cook ground beef and onion in a large skillet over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Drain, then return to the skillet. Add water, homemade taco seasoning, salt, tomato sauce, petite diced tomatoes, and hot sauce then stir to combine. Turn heat down to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile cook macaroni shells in salted, boiling water until just under al dente, then drain and set aside. Preheat oven to 350*

2. Turn stove off then add 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese to the tomato mixture and stir until smooth. Add corn, chilies, and cooked shells, then stir to combine. Pour mixture into a non-stick sprayed 8×8 baking dish and bake for 10 minutes. Top with crushed tortilla chips and remaining cheese then bake for 10 more minutes. Serve with toppings, if desired.

My notes/edits:

I did not use an onion. Another thing I dislike!

I used whole stewed tomatos in Mexican spices.

I didn't make my own taco seasoning, but used a package of pre-made. Someday, I will try making my own- I keep hearing how much better for you it is!

I didn't use the green chilies.

I baked in a 9x13 pan.

I forgot to buy sour cream, so didn't have that as a topping. So sad. I did buy salsa, but forgot to use it. Ooops. Next time, I'll try with both, along with black olives. YUM!

I did top with tortilla chips and cheese for the final ten minutes of baking. So good!

It tastes better than it looks, I promise!



We loved it! Such a great dinner.

What are you cooking up this week?  Anything amazing that I should try?

<almost> Wordless Wednesday: Card Catalog Heaven

With Monday being Columbus Day, and a day off from work, Steve and I decided to take advantage of the Library of Congress holding an Open House- they opened the doors to the Main Reading Room and other parts of the building normally closed to the public.


Including this, card catalog heaven.







I really should be a librarian....



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menu planning

With this many cookbooks, you'd think that I'd never run out of dinner ideas.....

 

 Though perhaps I have too many, and feel intimidated? Yes, that must be it. Of course, now with the development of pinterest, I find myself constantly pinning recipes to try, and I have tried a good number of them too, which is encouraging  ;)

 

 

I really need to be better about planning meals for the week. I admit, that I think about it, but then not much comes of it. Occasionally, I plan ahead, but most of the time, I wing it, and when I get home around 6:30 or 7pm, I look through the fridge and decide at that moment what to make.

 

 

This week, I am attempting to plan ahead for the week. I have three pins that I will attempt. By attempt, I mean that I will try to keep to my "schedule" and make them, rather than leave it to the last minute like most of the time! Wish me luck!

 

 

 Taco pasta bake

Applesauce glazed chicken

 

Cilantro chicken lime bake

 

 

 

I'm just planning for three recipes for the moment....as Friday night we may go out, and with having Monday off, I will likely throw something in the crockpot in the morning (maybe a pork tenderloin?), and go from there! I'll have to report back next week on how they all turn out for me, and if I stick to these plans  :)

 

 

 

What about you? Do you plan your meals each week? Do you have any tips for me on how I can plan better and then stick to my plans?!

 

 

 



a monogram for Majlinda!

Every little girl should know about monograms, right?

Of course!

So, it made sense to send something to Majlinda, 

the little girl I sponsor in Albania with World Vision!

I found a little wooden M (from Anthro, no less!) that was in the clearance bin for $4.99, and the chain was $2.99, I think. Perfect!

Hope she loves it!

Do you like to wear monograms?

authors and book signings!

 

 

One of the things I like so much about DC is book tours. Of course, book tours happen all over the country, but authors often make a stop here, and I often get to meet them and have a copy of their newest book signed for me! So much fun. When I write a book, I'm totally going on a 50 state tour.

 

 

Here is me and Heidi with Jennifer Weiner! She spoke at the Historic Sixth and I Synagogue and was seriously hilarious. Also? She had cupcakes during the signing for people to munch on while waiting in line! She and I chatted about Bachelor/Bachelorette and she was impressed when I told her that Chris Harrison once replied to one of my tweets (true story!). This book, The Next Best Thing, was my favorite of hers, I really think. This was the first time I'd seen her, and I hope she returns to DC with the next book!

 

 

Also earlier this year (in May, I think!), Jen Lancaster was here! She is usually here on her tours- I think this was the third time I met her! Also super hilarious. Her most recent book, Jeneration X, is as funny as her others. Love her. 

Most recently, Emily Giffin was here, just last month! Like Jen Lancaster, she spoke at a local Barnes and Noble. Also like with Jen, I went to the event alone, as Heidi wasn't available (boooo!), but it was still a lot of fun. It was funny, because at her talk, there was a real-life Kirby in the audience, which, if you've read the book, you know is a character in her new book, Where We Belong.

So! Those are a few of my recent author meetings, which I just think are so much fun. I will admit, that I tend to get a bit tongue-tied when meeting "famous" people, so sometimes, I have to prepare what to say before I get to the table! I'm not the only one who does this, right???


Have you met any authors? Have you read any of these three books? What did you think???

 

strawberry infused vodka- finished!

Remember a few weeks ago when I posted about making strawberry infused vodka??? Well, it is finished, and we finally tried it!

Yes!!! Strawberry infused vodka!

I saw it on the blog for Washington Green Grocer, a produce delivery service here in DC, and thought the idea was too good not to try.

I was at TJMaxx and saw this giant canning jar for just $5.99, and thought it was too good a deal not to buy. So buy I did, and then stopped at the liquor store around the corner from my house. I knew I had strawberries at home.

Since the jar was a bit larger than I had anticipated using, I didn't fill it all the way up. I used one container of strawberries, hulled and cleaned, which filled the jar about a third of the way.  When I poured in the vodka (Polish, of course!), it filled about halfway up. Then I closed up the lid, made sure it was sealed tight, and tucked the jar away for safe-keeping!



The jar snoozed in our liquor cabinet (which is under this table!) for three weeks before we cracked it open. I will admit, that I never peeked at it at all during that time- apparently we drank wine those weeks  ;)  The blog post indicates that you should shake the jar a few times a week. Ooops, forgot about that! Oh well!

As you can see, the strawberries lost their color, and we had pink vodka!

(I think I need a nicer looking pitcher...)

As suggested, we drank it with lemonade, and it was delicious! We really enjoyed it. 

This was such a simple thing to do, with great results. Vodka is such an easy thing to infuse, and we are debating what to try next! I'm thinking seasonal, so perhaps cranberries and limes?  What sort of vodka would you like to infuse? What do you think we should try next??



{almost} Wordless Wdenesday: lobstah dinnah!

I was in NH this weekend for my sister's bridal shower and bachelorette (more on that later!).

A good time was had by all, especially because lobstah was involved!

Here's me and my dinnah!




He was delish ;)




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a peacock obsession?

I seem to have developed a bit of a peacock obsession, and I'm blaming pinterest for it. For some reason, they seem to be all over the place, and I found myself pinning peacock images, and then, finally created an entire board dedicated to peacocks. I want everything there. 

Oy. What has come over me? 

Or, maybe, instead of pinterest, it began when Steve painted this lovely peacock painting???

He went to a living social event that had them painting with cocktails.

The result? This gorgeous peacock painting, and Steve's new obsession with mimosas. 

Wordless Wednesday: On September

One of the best things about fall, in my opinion...






I do love cornbread!


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oh yes!

I know I'm not the only one who feels this way  ;)  

source 

Come pin with me! 

Are you on pinterest?