The Question

(here)

Elwood

The Woo after his morning walk ... ready to go back to bed!

Handmade Tea

My sister is a mega fan of hot, brewed tea.  

I love tea too, but she totally takes the teapot in the love for tea department.  

She always has the coolest blends and flavors and I recently found out why ...

She's friends with the creator of Handmade Tea... a website offering original tea blends that are super delicious and packaged beautifully.

I'm slightly obsessed with the idea of having a tea party this spring... 

must get a plan together!

Sip / Snack

Gorgeous Sip / Snack photos spotted on Anthology Magazine...

Original images from Note to Self.

Awesome ideas.

 

Moroccan Mint Roasted Veggies

I really like Moroccan flavors.  

A few weeks ago my mom made Moroccan food for a dinner party and

 I was the lucky recipient of lunch leftovers at the shop.

I just read this post about Moroccan Mint Roasted Veggies 

and they are definitely on the 'to-make' list.

 (Moroccan Mint Roasted Veggies)

 (Mom's Moroccan stew with chickpeas, chicken, olives, potatoes, tomato, lemon and tons of yummy spices)

Paper Flowers

I can make some pretty darn cute paper flowers,

But clearly I need to up my game... These are amazing!

(here)

Cinnamon Roll Pancakes

I never did mention the Valentine's Day celebration that happened around here...

Of course I danced on the 14th (so the day was kind of a bust), but we exchanged cards that day.

Then before dance on Saturday morning I made a special breakfast of  

cinnamon roll pancakes following this recipe.  

Yuuuuuum.  

They are sticky sweet and the perfect treat for a special occasion 

(like celebrating Valentine's Day 4 days late!)

Note: If I make these again, I'd 1/2 the icing recipe.  

It's so decadent already that we only used a smidgen drizzled on top!

She Believed

(here ... plus an awesome post on teaching confidence to dancers)

To The Moon

(here)

Wednesday Dinners - Mexican Rice

Wednesday's are usually my day for 'one-pot-wonder' dinners.

It needs to be something I can throw together quickly...

Something that is ready for me to take to dance for my sister...

Something that will still be delicious when Eric gets home and reheats it for dinner...

And something that I will want for lunch the next day.

Sometimes I use the crock pot, sometimes I make salads, 

but at least one Wednesday a month

I make Mexican Rice.

I prepare one package of Spanish Rice from the box (any brand)

It usually calls for 1 can of diced tomatoes before popping the lid on to let it cook.

(I do this even if the directions do not call for it)

When the rice is cooked, I add 1 can of drained black beans, 1 cup of frozen corn 

and 2 chicken breast that have been cooked and sliced.

Stir everything together.

I divvy up the rice into 4 Tupperware containers, sprinkle with a little cheese 

and it's ready for reheating.

Could not be easier!

'This & That' by Oh Joy!

I love the 'This & That' posts by Oh Joy!

Such a creative way to look at great items.

DIY Embellished Collar

Cute tutorial for an embellished shirt collar 

 (here)

Chicken and Dumplings

Friday I had the whole day off (what?!)

 Nowhere to be, nothing on the schedule and no one counting on me for anything at all. 

My big plans included attacking the laundry and making something delicious for dinner.

I've made The Pioneer Woman's Chicken and Dumplings before...

It's so homey and warm and it's the kind of dish that makes the house smell amazing.

I follow her basic recipe, changing just a few things:

I only used half and half, not heavy cream.

I totally used a cheater chicken (it's still delicious!), so I just start with the veggies in the pot.

And I really like turmeric, so I add a smidge more.

Lastly, don't skip the apple cider... it's beyond yummy.

 (This pic is from PW, we were too busy gobbling and I forgot to take a picture!)

Hooray for days off and winter comfort food!

Winter Salad

We eat tons of salads.  Most of them are pretty boring, so I don't bother posting them. 

This one, however, knocked my socks off ... 

it has all of the flavors of winter a salad could ask for.  Yum.

Baby spinach, washed/dryed

Navel orange, segmented

Fennel bulb, thinly sliced

Cracked Black Pepper Sugar Almonds (recipe here - I halved the sugar to keep it really spicy!)

Grilled chicken (optional)

Ginger orange vinaigrette (basic recipe to follow)

Add as much of each ingredient to your bed of spinach as you like.

Toss with dressing and serve!

For the dressing I combined extra virgin olive oil and apple cider vinegar.  Splashed in some of the juice from my orange, added lots of salt and pepper, a tiny bit of sugar (Truvia) and then I added a few slices of fresh ginger.  With a wooden spoon, I slightly broke up the ginger pieces while they were in the dressing.  I let the mixture sit while I was at dance (6 hours-ish), removed the slices of ginger and tossed it with my salad.

Happy Valentine's Day!

(here)

Sweetheart Hair

Love this hairdo for Valentine's Day ... 

too bad I'll be spending tomorrow with dancers instead of my fella

...though I love the dancers too :)

Maybe I'll give it a whirl over the weekend.

(full tutorial here)

YSL

(here)

Cat Eye

I go through eyeliner phases.  Sometimes I love it, sometimes I leave it.

I could really get into this retro cat eye look though!

(here)

Confetti Business Cards

If I had a need for business cards these days, I would totally fill them with confetti!

Great idea for event planners, designers and super cool party people.

(here)

Crumpet for your Crumpet

I've made crumpets once in my life.  They just seemed too sweet not to try them at home.

They are over the top decadent and would be the perfect Valentine's Day treat... 

especially heart shaped with raspberry butter!

Nook Eatery

The Pioneer Woman

Talk about blogs I can't get enough of ... The Pioneer Woman aka Ree Drummond is one of 3 blogs that started me on my blog-kick about 6 years ago.  I mainly follow her for her amazing recipes (she's even on Food Network now!) but I also love her thoughtful writing, sneak-peeks into Oklahoma ranch life and aaamazing giveaways.  

We love her cookbook at The Penn Ave and are highly anticipating her 2nd book.

There isn't a week that goes by that I don't email something from her blog to friends or family.

She is also the master mind behind Tasty Kitchen... My go-to recipe inspiration site.  It's like a concentrated Pinterest for all things food related.  Amazing. 

Another 'must read' for me.

(Did I mention that she home schools her 4 kids, used to be a vegetarian ((who married a cattle rancher)) and is a former ballerina who loves all things Broadway?)  She's basically my hero.

Joy The Baker

I read a TON of blogs... over 150 in my Google Reader 

with more than 1000+ plus posts on a regular day.

There are some I skim, some I peruse and some I read religiously. 

Joy The Baker is in the last category.  Her pictures are beautiful, her posts are detailed and the blog is full of eye candy... and her book, don't even get me started... so excited!

A 'must read' in my book.

M&M Pretzels

Eric's mom is the queen of these M&M Pretzels... 

To make them she uses a big microwave-safe tray lined with a single layer of pretzels, tops each pretzel with a candy melt and nukes them for 30 seconds - 1 minute... just until the chocolate is slightly melted.  She then presses 3 M&M's into the melted chocolate and allows them to cool before packing into cute bags.

Super yummy!

(this batch was made by me)

Valentine's Day ... Around The House

My bestie got me these Christmas ornaments from Ikea 

and they couldn't be more perfect for Valentine's Day.  

They look extra festive hanging in my kitchen.

Inspiration stairs from Kate Spade ... spotted here.

I'm dying to do statement steps.  

... someday!

Happy Valentines Day! Love, Elwood

Elwood had to get his cousin this poodle shirt for Valentine's Day ... 

A poodle from the woodle

XOXO

(shirt from Carter's)

Homemade Dog Food

Elwood eats when we eat... or at least when I'm standing around in the kitchen.  

He always has dry food in his bowl (so grateful don't have to monitor this!) and he gets a tablespoon of wet dog food when we sit down for dinner.  

I buy a lot of his food, but I love to make it myself when I have the time.

Today I had a surprise afternoon off so it was time to make some dog food!

I did 2 different combinations:

Peas, carrots, brown rice & chicken with pureed peas

and

Green beans, sweet potatoes, star pasta and chicken with pureed pumpkin

It costs so much less to make it myself and I know it's better for him :)

One container lasts him 4 dinners... I was able to make 8 containers today for $10.

We freeze the containers and pull them out as needed.

Flowers

Home from the first competition with a slew of awards... including my first platinum!  Yay!

I came home to hugs and congratulations flowers.  A great start to the season.

Paris Vs New York

I've seen these prints before (love them!), but it just came to my attention that it is now a book.

I think it would make an awesome coffee table book... too cute.

 (here)