Candace's Calling

Valentine's Day... Instagramed.

2012-02-17T00:00:00.000-08:00

I know I'm a little late with the recap, but hey- that's what happens when life gets busy, and to make it even easier... let's just admit that iPhone pics are the ONLY kind I take these days...

My Valentine's actually started the Saturday before, when my super sweet Husband & my best friend's Husband suprised us with a Spa Day... it was so very lovely. Fluffy white robes with slippers, being waiting on and massaged, and pampered... I hope there's a spa in heaven.

I was really super excited for Valentine's day this year, and although I always enjoy dark chocolate and sweet gifties from the Hubby, I was especially excited to share this day with our little family. The night before, I ran to Hobby Lobby and grabbed some supplies to make some quick garland, inspired by THIS Pleated Poppy Post.

The next morning, I made us Red Velvet Pancakes from THIS recipe... they were soo rich, but good, but soo bad for us! The best kind of breakfast I think.

Brian went a little crazy on gifts for Lovebug... we decided that since the "real meaning" of Valentine's Day is LOVE, there would be no harm in spoiling her to death. The best part? He bought a whole box of Winnie the Pooh valentines, just to fill one out and give it to her. He's such an amazing Daddy, and an example of exactly the kind of man I want for her one day.

I got a little cheesy this year and used THIS idea from 30days. I gave Bri a simple, inexpensive gift with sentimental meaning on the :14 of each hour all morning/afternoon. It was a fun way to keep the day filled with celebration!

At 12:14, he opened a box of Mac n Cheese (what he made for me on our 1st Valentine's day when we were 18.) While we ate our oh-so-gourmet lunch, he opened his "big" gift... Aluminum Instagram prints from Postalpix. I'm super excited to show you the display I've got planned for these beauties in his future office! Here's the large 8 x 10 (so mushy, i know)

My gift this year was a beautiful necklace from Lisa Leonard that I will treasure forever! He's seriously the best at giving gifts and ALWAYS outdoes mine... I have to say I love that about him.

After gifts, we got all dressed up headed off to watch his Auntie get married on the Plaza... such a lovely way to spend a day all about LOVE! It was a gorgeous wedding and we had lots of time spent with family and the people we love most!

Have a great weekend y'all!

Insta-Friday!

2012-02-10T07:38:00.000-08:00

Is it really Friday again?! Here's our week (acutally the last two) in Instagrams...

Sweet, sweet moment...

14lb 7mo... acting like such a big girl!

Make THESE cookies... you'll thank me.

Sewing pretty pennants for a Women's Conference

Watching Mizzou basketball... that's our girl!

Avacados for dinner... she wasn't too sure.

Peanut Butter Mocha + new Hunter boots = a GOOD day!

Have a great weekend y'all!

More OREO Chocolate Chip Goodness!

2012-02-06T20:16:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all... it's sure been a while since I posted a decadent treat on the blog, and this one sure is a doosy! Remember THIS ridiculous cookie? Well these are their cousin.... and they are so yummy! I'd been staring at the recipe for months on my Pinterest board, and I FINALLY got around to making them. I should have doubled the recipe because they were gobbled up fast! They taste a bit like cookies and cream, but still have that classic chocolate chip cookie goodness... here's what ya need:

Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookies Lovin' From the Oven
1 stick butter (room temperature)
1 egg
6 Tbsp brown sugar
6 Tbsp sugar
1 Tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 Tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
11 Oreos (crushed up in a ziplock)
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Grab your mixer and beat the butter & sugar. Add the egg & vanilla and mix well.

In a small bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients and then add slowly to the mixer.

Stir in the oreos & chocolate chips... it'll be pretty dry & thick!

Now get out a mini ice cream scooper and scoop the dough onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes and cool on a wire rack.

You'll need a BIG glass of milk and handful of these beauties! Enjoy!

So here's where we're at...

2012-02-01T20:41:00.000-08:00

So I've been feeling super blessed recently by all the amazing encouragement that has been all over the blogosphere... seriously everywhere! I posted THIS post, and then it was like every Mommy Blogger I follow posted that they sometimes feel that way too... and it really made me feel good. Some days will be rough... but it's always been WAY worth it all in the end. I also recieved a message from another Mom friend that gave me such peace and encouragement... she COMPLETELY got it, and it was so refreshing.

I feel like I spend a lot of time worrying about what to blog, and writing perfect posts with pretty pictures, etc. Lately I've been feeling like the whole "write down your life" movement is the way to go... so along with yummy food, craftyness, and ooodles of Baby cuteness, I'm also gonna start a bit more talking about the everyday around here. Is that okay with y'all? Because after all... "the path to homemaker extraordinaire" is anything but perfect and I feel like there are a whole lot of Mamas out there who can relate to the journey I'm currently taking.

So here's what's new in the Edwards household...

1. We're sleep-training our little Lovebug. This is the HARDest thing I've had to do as a Mama so far. I've talked to soo many people and read EVERY. SINGLE. article/book/website about the subject. I honestly NEVER want to speak of it again. We're doing it OUR way, and we prayed long and hard about how to get the little chickie some sleep (and us too) and it's WORKING. ThankyouLordJesus.

2. Since I've had a bit of rest... I need to get busy! I've worked out once a week for 3 weeks and I'm pretty sure that's not really going to help me lose the baby weight. So unless I would like to spend approx 1 day at my healthy weight before getting pregnant again... it's time to make it happen!

3. Now that my child actually sleeps, I had a moment (the first in 7 months) where I actually thought "What should I do right now?" It was ground breaking I tell ya! I'm pretty sure the ol' sewing machine is finally going to get some much needed attention and there will be happy projects finally moving from by Pinterest board to getting DONE!

4. We are FINALLY going to start the HOUSE HUNT! It's been 8 months in this "temporary" apartment and I'm sooo very ready to have some space! I've been tripping over toys and baby contraptions and tip-toeing around keeping baby quiet for Bri (while he works from home) and us quiet for Lovebug (while she sleeps) and climbing 3 sets of stairs up to 3 times a day! Although I'll be a bit sad to leave Hannah's first Nursery behind, this Mama is getting EXCITED to find our first house! With 4 moves in 2 years, I DREAD the actual process of moving, but this will hopefully be our LAST move for a very long time.

So that's that. What do y'all wanna hear about next? Any burning questions?

Insta-Friday...

2012-01-27T08:10:00.000-08:00

Our Week in Instagrams...

A much needed date at home with The Hubby...

Pizza, PJ's and Friday Night Lights Season 1.... Perfect.

Pretty girl in Allora Handmade.

Morning Coffee while baby plays... It's how I start my day.

Finally back to normal after a bad reaction to her shots this week.

Picture Project Weeks 25-28!

2012-01-23T00:00:00.000-08:00

Time is just flyyyying by with our Sweet Girl! I feel like I've said that before, but seriously... I can't believe that she's SIX months old! She's still the tinyest little thing, but acts like such a big girl! She was scooting faster and faster and flat out crawled Friday across the floor! She can even get herself sitting up again after we put her on her tummy! She babbles all the time and squeals and laughs... such sweet sounds! She's started saying "Da-da Da-da" over and over... we know she doesn't know what she's saying yet, but it sure is adorable! Her new discovery is that she can open and close her right hand and she does it over and over, accidently making the sign for "milk." It cracks us up! She had a baaad little spell of keeping Mama and Daddy up all night for a few weeks, but seems to be getting back to her old self. She gobbles up every new food she tries... Parsnips, Rutabegas, Spinach, Brocolli... crazy girl! I'm just glad we won't have a picky eater on our hands! She now falls asleep on my shoulder and needs lots of cuddles in the morning and before she goes to bed at night... LOVE this. We're just soaking up every moment of this adorable stage of baby... so fun and will be gone so quickly! We ADORE our little girl.

Insta-Friday

2012-01-20T00:00:00.000-08:00

Here's a peek at our week in pictures...

A Childhood Dresser turned Entertainment Cabinet!

2012-01-19T12:28:00.000-08:00

It's been SEVEN months since Bri and I landed back home in Missouri... Since Lovebug came shortly after settling into our apartment, the decorating (aside from the NURSERY) has been severely lacking. The worst offense being the bench to our dining room table as a make-shift TV stand until right before the Holidays. Seriously... It was hideous. Cords everywhere and a sad table that only seated two, making a dinner party real classy...ha.

I'd been looking for an an old buffet or dresser to transform at local antique markets, when I remembered the old furniture in my parents basement from my childhood. A seriously outdated dresser from Ethan Allen... Solid wood, great shape.... Sold. Well actually it was free... Which made this one cheap project! Here's the before:

Bri and I quickly headed to the hardware store to snag the following:

Piece of pine hardwood 3/4in
3M Sand block
Medium grit sand paper (100)
Paint (we used Behr premium plus)
Min Wax Polyurethane
Micro foam roller
Fine paint brush
Drop cloth
New hardware (ordered HERE)

The color we chose was a country blue... pretty dark with a grey tone to it. We color-matched a rustic shelf from my parents house that I loved.

My wonderful parents blessed Bri and I with a date night to tackle most of this project and we gladly took it!

We borrowed a palm sander from Bri's parents and went to town on that dresser. We used the sand blocks for the detailed parts. Here it is after....

After a really good wipe down, we hauled it up the 3 flights of steps to our apartment and got to work painting. It took 2 coats to get the even look we wanted and then we let it dry 24 hours.

Then I spend about 30 minutes sanding off the edges and making it look nice and worn on all sides,
before applying the polyurathane. FYI... that stuff smells. We did this in December in Missouri, so naturally we had to freeze ourselves out with the doors and windows open... ha. We really liked the look of the low-shine sealer over the flat paint. Here's the final product after putting on the new hardware...

We're really happy with how it turned out! Have a great weekend y'all!

Insta-Friday...

2012-01-13T19:48:00.000-08:00

So I recently got an iPhone. I LOVE my iPhone. It makes it super easy to blog, Pin, Tweet, Facebook, take amazing pics, and surf the web, read books...all while rocking my sweet girl for hours or while waiting in the long line at Trader Joes. I can also edit my pics. Y'all KNOW I don't have oodles of time for that right now (see previous post) So it's such a handy little thing. I could go on, but y'all would much rather flip through pics of this crazy-cute little Lovebug instead!

I'm linking up!

What I Want for 2012

2012-01-11T11:25:00.000-08:00

I know I'm really late on the whole "Here are my goals and resolutions for 2012" post, but folks, I'm just plain WIPED. When I sat down and started thinking about all that I want to accomplish this year, and what I want to change, etc, I started to feel very , very overwhelmed. Am I expecting too much of myself? Do I have too many goals? I honestly wanted to run to bed and hide under the covers...which is where I suppose it all starts. Our little Lovebug has been going through an "I don't want to sleep at ALL" phase for the last month. I've talked to several people... I know that it will pass, that babies do this. We'll survive. Her phase just came at a very bad time for this Mama. I was just starting to feel like myself... I wanted to start sewing again, blogging more, trying new recipes, decorating, etc. Well, this tired Mama is barely making it through the daily stuff like dinner, cleaning, laundry, errands... before crawling to my bed bone-tired at the end of the day, only to be up with our girl most of the night.

WIDE awake... laughing (at Mama's exhaustion) 1am.

Every morning, while I drink my coffee and Lovebug plays, I read blog after blog of Stay at Home Mamas with 4+ kiddos, who craft, and sew, and make sweet memories, all while recording it on their beautiful blogs almost EVERY day. They also take time to do daily photos of their kids, pin a few things, tweet, and run an Etsy shop. HOW do they do it? Seriously HOW? Does is somehow get easier with more than one kiddo?

Passed out... sitting up... NO paci... exhausted.

I KNOW that "Comparison is the theif of JOY", but folks, this is what I want for OUR family, for MY life... to have the time and energy to do MORE than what's getting done.

This is what I want for 2012...
1. Be in constant communication with God... He's listening, so I'm gonna get talking and ABIDING!
2. Eat Healthier-LESS SUGAR. (Totally addicted + my body type = BAD)
3. Get walkin' girl! (The baby weight ain't gonna fall off on it's own)
4. Get out that sewing maching at least once a week... I've got the crafting/sewing bug BAAAD!

5. Catch up on Hannah's Digital Scrapbooks and keep current on them!

6. Blog more... it's been a drought since Lovebug was born!

7. Stop Pinning and MAKE something! It seriously stresses me out having a zillion pins and nothing made.

So LET'S CHAT! Anyone else feel overwhelmed by all you want to accomplish? Any advice from other Mamas? I wanna hear from y'all! For real.

I'm still IN LOVE with this beautiful girl, tired or not.

A Quick and Easy Sew: Paci Clips

2012-01-05T22:16:00.000-08:00

Our sweet little Lovebug needed some stocking stuffers in time for Christmas so I finally broke out the sewing machine for the first time since she was born! She's just recently become attached to her pacifier and the fact that it gets dropped 5 times at lunch on the dirty restaurant floor, had me heading to the craft store quick!

Here's what I used...

Grosgrain ribbon
Clips (I found mine HERE)
Snaps (and a hammer)
Thread (and a sewing machine)

I cut 10in strips of ribbon, and looped the clip through one end. I sewed a straight stitch at 1/2 in and then serged over the straight line. I hemmed the other end of the ribbon at a 1/2 I'm an then made a one inch loop where I had my Hubby hammer in the snaps. Stick a paci on one and you've got a pretty cute way to keep baby happily within reach of dear paci.

I have to admit, she looks pretty cute!

Have a great weekend!

P.S. I'm linking up to the parties over there --->

Picture Project Weeks 21-24!

2012-01-02T21:38:00.000-08:00

Whew... what a wonderful year 2011 was! We were blessed to move home from San Diego, just in time for the arrival of our sweet Lovebug... and all the fun we've had with her since! She is really growing up so very fast! In the last few weeks, she sits up for a bit before laying back down and reaches for everything! She's doing her own little version of crawling... more like scooting and is soo fast! I'll turn my head for a second, and she's licking our floor lamp or entertainment center! Hilarious child. Spending the holidays here with all our friends and family and our baby girl was so special! She brings so much joy to our lives and it made each tradition and each moment that much richer. Her sweet giggles while Daddy's tickling her and her sad noises that mean she wants Mama... they bless me. She reaches out for us now when she's tired of being social, and her face lights up when Daddy walks into a room! On New Years Eve we added some fruit to her cereal... prunes and then peaches. Apparently it made the cereal even more delicious, since she willingly dove for the spoon each time! She blows bubbles when she's playing and makes lots of happy noises. She got a pink and purple jeep for Christmas from Grandma and Grandpa and loves to honk the horn. We're just loving this active, playful stage and looking forward to what's next with this sweet little girl!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T00:00:00.000-08:00

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to their own town to register.

So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Lovebug's Christmas Craft!

2011-12-21T14:08:00.000-08:00

I saw THIS adorable, simple ornament on Pinterest a while back, and I thought is was so sweet! How hard can that be? Well, it turns out that crafting with a 5 month old isn't exactly as easy as I previously thought.... it was pretty hilarious actually. I bought a four pack of ornaments with intentions on using one as a "practice" run and boy was I glad I did! She squished up her hand and got ink everywhere. So, with a little help from my hubby and a sleeping baby... we made this sweet ornament (and one for each set of Grandparents too.)

Here's what ya need...

White or clear ink (non-toxic, acid free, and washable!)
Glass ball ornaments
Embossing powder (I used the blue glittery kind)
A paint pen (I used white)
Ribbon

We rubbed ink on baby girl's hand while she slept and then carefully pressed it to the ornament. Then cover the print in embossing powder and blow off the excess (outside!) I used an embossing heat tool to set the ink and powder, but a hair dryer on high will work too! Just make sure you get it nice and hot so that the glitter will stick! When it was dry and cool, I wrote her name and the year under her print. Attach some ribbon, and you've got a sweet little gift and a special memory for your tree!

A Simple Christmas: decor & gifting...

2011-12-14T22:22:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all! Are you enjoying the holiday season as much as I am? Well, a certain adorable baby is making it a whole lot more fun around here. Even though she's still tiny, somehow the holiday has so much more meaning to me... I can't wait to make memories and start new traditions with our little family! I'm also super excited to be back in the Midwest this time of year! It was so very odd to be celebrating the holidays in flip-flops the last two years.

I'm not sure if it's an "I have a 5mo old" thing or not, but time is flyyyyying by! I can't even believe that Christmas is only 10 days away! I finally got a few bits of decor up around here. Since most of our stuff is in storage in my parent's basement since the move back from Cali, we're keeping it low-key this year. I also got a few gifts wrapped last night and a craft or two done... whew.

The biggest thing on my mind as I plan our new little family's Christmas this year, is the meaning we really want to give it for Lovebug and for our future children. I don't want it to be this big materialistic, comercialized holiday, void of the REAL reasons we celebrate. I also don't want to ignore the fun that can be had with 'ol St. Nick and what goes along with that. So, finding a balance early on in our traditions is really important to me. Bri and I have decided that since baby Jesus recieved 3 gifts, that's a good place to start for our kiddos too. There's plenty of Grandparents, Aunts & Uncles to spoil our kids, and in this house we really want it to be simple and special.

In keeping with that theme, I strived to do mostly homemade gifts for our family this year too. They were either made by me, a small shop owner, or had significant meaning to the person receiving the gift. We even ordered our Christmas card from a Mom-blogger's shop, who sent the proceeds to a family adopting a sweet little boy. It feels good to keep it simple, and I'm praying that it will continue this way.

Take some time and enjoy the season y'all!

Photo Project Weeks 17-20

2011-12-08T12:05:00.000-08:00

This Child is hilarious. She's a whole FIVE months old and is up on all fours wanting to crawl across the room! She reaches for my Starbucks cups and trys to text while I'm holding my phone. I try to lay her down and she tries to sit back up! I'm seriously floored by how fast time is flyin'! It seems like she does something new everyday! She had her four month check-up and the Dr. gave her the go ahead for cereal... she loved it, and started gobbling it up each time we offered it after that. She's easily distracted while eating though, and likes to look all around the room.... trying to get the food in her mouth after that is ridiculous. She's such a tiny, tiny little girl. Only 12lbs! She laughs all the time... especially when her Daddy tickles her! Her auntie bought her a jumpy and she loves to spin and talk to her toys in it. We just LOVE our little daredevil Lovebug.... her favorite thing is when she's tossed in the air, or swinging really fast. She even dove off the bed a few weeks ago... she was perfectly fine (although her Mama was a total basket case... calling the hospital, crying, feeling like a horrible parent) The nurse basically told me to chill out, and that it happens to EVERY child. So our little girl is keeping us on our toes and we're enjoying new adventures each and every day! Here's the latest pics...

Babies Don't Keep...

2011-11-08T20:22:00.000-08:00

Each night as I get in the shower, I start to pray... I thank God for my precious baby girl, my wonderful Husband, and our truly blessed life, and yet somehow each night, my mind wanders to the lists of things that I "need" to accomplish the next day, or didn't accomplish today, who I need to call, who I've failed to see lately, what I haven't finished, or started or done well enough...

I need to work on Hannah's baby book, her photo book, call, visit or have lunch with several people since it's been months, work on all the unfinished crafting and sewing projects, start the Christmas gifts, Christmas cards, blog about recipes, or blog in general, keep up with the house work, cooking, baking, my bible study, my emails, thank you notes, weekly dinner menus, bills, errands... It goes on and on, and then it starts to feel so very overwhelming.

While I was driving home from an impromtu few hours of "Mommy Time" that involved a trip to Starbucks and Anthropologie, (LOVE my dear Husband) I started to realize how big and out of control this self-imposed fear of not getting it all done really is! Why do I feel like I need to get all the things that I, myself, put on the "to-do" list in the first place. Talk about pressure. It's pretty darn exhausting y'all.... and it needs to stop.

I was reading THIS post from Ashley Ann, and it really reaffirmed for me that my most important item on my "to-do" list is to be a GOOD MOM. To hold my sweet baby girl and love on her and enjoy her while she's still tiny. I've been loving this poem for a while now, and I thought I'd share it...

Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing, make up the bed,
Sew on a button and butter the bread.

Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She's up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I've grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue,
Lullabye, rockabye, lullabye loo.
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo

The shopping's not done and there's nothing for stew
And out in the yard there's a hullabaloo
But I'm playing Kanga and this is my Roo
Look! Aren't his eyes the most wonderful hue?
Lullabye, rockaby lullabye loo.

The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow
But children grow up as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!

I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.

-Ruth Hulburt Hamilton

So I'm going to work really hard in the next few weeks, with God's help of course, to put down all the things I need to do and just enjoy my sweet girl. Life's just too short to make myself miserable trying to do it all, and missing the good stuff in the mean time. Can I get an "Amen" from all you Mamas out there?

Of course, I can't leave without showing y'all some photos of my "Chickie" on her first Halloween!

Picture Project Weeks 13-16 and an Update!

2011-11-06T20:08:00.000-08:00

My Lovebug is growing up so very fast! You never really believe people when they tell you that the first year will fly by, until you look over at your baby and she's rolled off her play mat and is inching across the carpet. Crazy! She is just the sweetest little thing! Still rockin' her 0-3 month clothes at 18 Weeks (over 4 months) She's teething all the time and will put anything and everything into her mouth to chew on. She sleeps soo much better now that she rolls all around her crib and can get all comfy. She'll pull herself into a sitting position when she's at a bit of an incline, and I swear this child wants to get up and walk across the room! She definitely jumped out of her bumbo today... seriously. She yells at her toys when they don't do what she wants them to do, and she keeps Bri and I laughing all the time... especially when she giggles at something. I'm so very very in love with my baby girl... I love to hold her during her afternoon nap and cuddle. I just don't want to miss a second of this sweet, sweet time! Here's the latest pics...

Pumpkin-y Deliciousness!

2011-10-19T09:00:00.000-07:00

I don't know about y'all, but I am just so stinkin' excited about fall this year! Probably because I'm back home home in the midwest and the leaves are turning gorgeous colors, the weather's cooling off, and we're headed to the Pumpkin Patch this weekend and then to a small town to celebrate Halloween the weekend after that! Have I mentioned I LOVE Fall? Well I do. Last Sunday, Bri was cuddling with my sweet baby on the couch and I had a hankerin' for baking something pumpkin-y and delicous! While perusing the web, I came accross a recipe for Pumpkin Bread with Streusel Topping and Maple Glaze over at Tasty Kitchen. My mouth was watering. I decided to simplify the recipe by using my Great-Grandma's pumpkin bread recipe, found HERE, modifying it by adding Pumpkin Pie Spice instead of cinnamon, and then adding a Pecan Streusel Recipe by modifying a few I found online. Thus, this doosy of a recipe was born...

Here's what you'll need...

Pumpkin Spice Bread with Pecan Streusel Topping Your's Truly

Batter:

4 eggs

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 Tsp baking soda
3/4 cup canola oil
2 Tsp cinnamon (This time I used Pumpkin Pie Spice)
15oz pumpkin
Streusel:
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup roughly chopped pecans
1/3 Tsp cinnamon
4 tbsp cold butter
Pinch of salt

Grab a small bowl and beat your eggs. Then add sugar and oil and mix well.
Mix the dry ingredients and add to previous mixture. Add pumpkin, mixing well.
Pour batter into greased and floured aluminum pans. (I used 2 medium non-stick pans)
Bake the batter at 375 for about 30 minutes...

Meanwhile beat together all the ingredients for the streusel until pea-sized crumbs appear.
Add over the bread after the 30 minutes and then bake for an additional 15 min or so until a toothpick comes out clean.

Now grab a hot cup of coffee, or a Pumpkin Spice Latte (YUM!) and enjoy!

Happy Fall!

Picture Project: weeks 9-12!

2011-10-16T13:03:00.000-07:00

Our Sweet Lovebug is doing great! She talks all the time now... in her own little language. She loves to grab her toys and puts everything in her mouth now! She's still such a tiny little thing. At 15 Weeks, we tried to switch her up to size 1 diapers from the newborn ones.... yeah, she's swimming in them. When I'm out in public with her, people often mistake her for a baby whos a few weeks old, not over 3 months. She has great neck control, and we got her a Bumbo to sit in now! She's working on rolling over and likes to sleep on her side now (of her own free will.) She's been eating every three hours for the past 2 months, and nurses like a champ! It's so nice that she'll take a bottle if need be, but she definitely prefers the other... making life so much easier for Mommy! She's a very cuddly baby and doesn't like to be left alone. She giggles when you kiss her feet, and smiles all the time! We love her so very much and are enjoying every minute of this precious time with our little girl!

Here are her 9-12 week pictures!

Getting this SAHM organized!

2011-09-22T16:52:00.000-07:00

A while back, (Sorry about the total lack of blogging from this lady!) I posted a bit of encouragement HERE. Even with a pretty easy baby, there are days where I feel like I get NOTHING done. Between changing my clothes that have been spit-up on, trying to keep up with laundry, cleaning, cooking, feeding lovebug, and having somewhat of a social life, it was starting to feel overwhelming. Now, I totally understand that I am VERY blessed to stay home with my beautiful little girl everyday... so this in no way negates the fact that I am one HAPPY Mama! I just need a little help getting back on track and having some order in this house.

I had seen a few ideas on Pinterest for Household Management Binders... even though I am a total orgainization freak, I wasn't sure I wanted to go that far. So instead of a whole binder, I thought I'd start with a daily/weekly schedule to keep me on task and to break up the menial tasks that can pile up and feel like TOO much. I found a template online and personalized it according to what works around here. I've already tweaked it according to what worked the first few weeks.

The template is from moneysavingmom.com

It may seem like some of the things I put on there are very menial, but with a newborn, sometimes if I don't remind myself to do things, they just don't happen. It also feels so much less overwhelming to break it all up. There are a lot more daily outings that I haven't added to the daily schedule, but I feel like that leaves room for flexibility. Money-saving Mom is a wonderful resource as well as THIS one.

So how are y'all staying organized? How to you keep your household running smoothly? Until I can get a few more hours of blog-post writing, I'll be doing this...

Have a great weekend!

Picture Project: Weeks 4-8!

2011-09-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

Our little lovebug just loves to wiggle... making her weekly picture a bit difficult to get without a very blurry hand or foot! We just love her sweet little face and those cheeks are finally filling out! She had her 2 month appointment yesterday... she's 9 weeks and weighs 9lbs! She smiles and laughs and talks to us now! If she gets any cuter... I may never get anything done (which is fine by me for a little while.) Here's her most recent pictures...

Have a great weekend y'all!

Finding Encouragement...

2011-09-04T12:48:00.000-07:00

Just stopping in to tell y'all that we're doing okay! Lovebug is 9 weeks old.... boy time flies! We're getting plenty of rest... up to 8 hours most nights! She's really a dream baby. So sweet and happy. Her little smiles melt my heart! I was really encouraged by two blog posts recently and thought I'd share. They definitely brightened my day and helped me to realize that soon, very soon I'll be feeling a little more like myself and that things will start to come together. Maybe I'll even have a few weekly posts on the ol' blog! For now, I'm rereading THIS post from AllisonO and reminding myself of this...

Thank you Julie! (From Joy's Hope)

The Best Cookie EVER.

2011-08-25T20:22:00.000-07:00

Well folks, there is certainly no dieting going on around here yet. In between cuddling my sweet Lovebug, cooking, cleaning and shopping for teeny tiny clothes, I've found time to keep the baked goodies coming out of the oven!

I don't know about y'all, but Pinterest is definitely where any freetime I find is spent, and if you aren't following me yet... there's a button on my sidebar. I have an entire board devoted to baked goodies... oh goodness is it causing trouble! I'd seen this little doosy floating around the web for a while and I finally decided to whip it up... dun dun duuuuhhh...

Double Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies By Picky Palate

2 sticks of butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
10 oz bag of chocolate chips
about 24 Double Stuf Oreos (eat the rest while you bake)

First you'll grab your mixer and cream the sugars and butter. Add the eggs one at a time and then mix in the vanilla.

Then grab a bowl and whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Slowly add to the wet ingredients in your mixer. Add the bag of chocolate chips and give it a good stir. The dough will be nice and thick!

Now grab your cookie scooper (tiny ice cream scoop) and grab two balls of dough. Sandwich your oreo in between and then gently seal it up inside and give it a little roll... they will be the largest dough balls on a cookie sheet you've EVER seen.

I like to use parchment paper on my cookie sheet... my cookies come out so much better that way! Bake them for about 9 minutes or so and then let them cool completely before diving into that deliciousness!

Grab a large glass of milk and a cookie and then die of happiness. Enjoy!

Our Picture Project!

2011-08-10T09:00:00.000-07:00

I'm sure many of ya'll have seen the amazing weekly picture project that Young House Love has done? Well if not, HERE ya go. There are a whole lot of copied versions all over the blogosphere, and weekly number stickers you can buy to stick on onesies too. I wanted ours to look a little different, and since I get to dress my little girl up (total dream come true!) I thought I'd put her in different outfits and use something handmade by Mommy. (Notice how I seem to speak in 3rd person lately? It's a lovely new habit) We've decided to take a picture of our sweet Lovebug on her quilt each Saturday, and then put the pictures all together in a beautiful coffee table book for us to treasure forever!

Here's Lovebug's first FOUR weeks!

I'm so in LOVE!

Back to the hospital... an emergency trip.

2011-08-06T21:06:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the looong time between posts y'all... little Miss Lovebug is just too stinkin' cute to ignore while I blog. I'm sure once she gets on a more of a schedule we'll figure out some time for Mommy's morning coffee & blogging. But for now... I'll be cuddling my baby and spending oodles of time adoring her.

So about that lovely little trip to Children's Mercy Hospital...

We had only been home for about a day and a half, and although our sweet girl had only been in our lives for four days, we just knew that something was wrong. She had been such a happy, chill baby... didn't even cry when she came out! We had to wake her to eat, and then she was content. But that night, after we'd fed, changed, rocked, rocked some more, paced the house, put her in the swing, and generally were exhausted, she was STILL upset. Bri finally went to kiss her little forehead and noticed that it seemed a little warm. We quickly grabbed the thermometer and found out that her temperature was 101. Thinking that we were just being paranoid parents, we called the pediatrician, who sent us to Children's Mercy at 6am. The whole way there, I kept thinking that she was fine... I just knew nothing could be wrong with my precious baby.

When we got there, however, things got a whole lot more serious and traumatic for Bri & I. They quickly told us that protocol for a newborn with a temp that high was to take blood, urine, and a SPINAL TAP. I immediately burst into tears. I was sleep deprived, still in pain from giving birth, and now being told that my sweet girl was going to be poked and prodded, and admitted for 48 hours to a hospital. NOT what I wanted to hear. Brian stayed with Lovebug while I stepped outside the room to try and regain some composure (I do NOT usually cry in public.) When they were done with the IV, blood and catheter, I stepped back in to kiss my baby and see the strong, rock of a man I married... which of course would give me peace and calm me down. WRONG. I walked in to see Brian not only crying (I've only seen that once), but tears were dripping onto my sweet baby as he held her. I totally lost it. We were TOLD to go get something to eat and leave our sweet girl while she was given the spinal tap. Hardest thing EVER to walk away from my baby. I think I asked the nurse twelve times if she'd hold her tiny hand while she got the spinal tap. Bri and I ate something at the cafeteria in silence, trying not to choke-up and hurried back up to Lovebug.

Her Crib at the Hospital

I was so happy to hold her, and yet so traumatized already. I tried to nurse her, and she wouldn't, and then we were being wisked away to be admitted and shown our room. It seemed like there were nurses EVERYWHERE all asking me questions and talking to me. I felt like a total zombie. I just held my baby, and pushed her IV cart wherever they told me to go.

This picture breaks Mommy's heart.

Her 101 temp was back down to normal, and the doctor said that any virus was probably gone quickly, due in part to the colostrum that she was recieving from Mommy. We soon found out that Lovebug was pretty dehydrated, which caused a multitude of other symptoms. She had also dropped to far below her already small birth weight of 5lbs 15 oz to 5lb 5oz. The main issue became her eating... I REALLY didn't want to bottle feed, so we tried everything... even syringe feeding her pumped milk... nothing was working. I was forced to start pumping bottles so we could see exactly how many ounces she was getting and making sure that she received a certain amount. We were watched by a feeding specialist, lactation specialist, nurses and doctors, all who had their own opinions on what she was doing wrong, and why she wasn't eating correctly or enough... it was VERY overwhelming. We were told we had to stay another day to observe her eating, extending our stay to over three days.

Meanwhile, Bri and I were getting ZERO sleep, I was in a lot of pain, and my feet and legs swelled bigger than I've ever seen them. During all the drama, our family and friends were absolutely amazing. They came bringing clothes, food, snacks, magazines, and so much love and support. I'm not sure that we would have survived without their love and prayers.

Finally, after all the test results returned, and Lovebug had been pumped full of fluid by IV and forced to eat far too many ounces for her tiny tummy, we were allowed to go HOME! What sweet relief it was. I immediately felt so much more at peace... our little family started the recovery process all over again and began bonding and resting together.

Now we're home and Lovebug is healthy and happy... and we're loving every minute of it!

Lovebug's One Month Birthday!

Our Birth Story...

2011-07-26T07:38:00.000-07:00

Well folks, our little Lovebug has officially stolen our hearts forever. Her Daddy has already offered to buy her not one, but TWO cars, and she is the Princess of our household. We fall asleep each night thanking God for the miracle that she is.

I suppose now ya'll wanna hear how she made her grand entrance into this world? (If not, you should definitely skip this post) Well it didn't go as I thought it would... but I'm really thankful that I had a healthy outlook before labor, and knew that things don't always go as "planned." Bri & I woke up on Friday, July 1st at 3:40am because I had started to have contractions. We got out of bed, packed our bags, made PB and Honey sandwiches and thought we might be able to go back to sleep. By 4am, the contractions were too strong to sleep through and were now 6 min apart. Our plan was to labor at home until the contractions were 3-4 min apart or my water broke. Since I didn't want an epideral, I wanted to avoid the hospital as long as possible.

Cuddling with Mommy!

ALL DAY LONG the contractions stayed a steady 5-6 min apart and grew stronger and stronger. I had breakfast thinking surely this is my last meal, then lunch, then dinner and FINALLY by 8pm they were 3 min apart and we headed to the hospital. I got checked in by 9pm, was dialated to only a 3. We called the family to tell them to come on up, even though it could be a while.

I labored naturally and quietly, "blowing the contractions away" with Bri in our private room. The lights were off, we used Bradley positions to ease the pain, and Bri fed me popsicles. Our family popped in to see how things were going every once in a while.

Tummy Time!

By 10:30 I was dialated to 6cm and by 12:30 I was at 7cm! I thought that my water would break any moment and we'd get this party started!

No such luck... by 3:00am I was stalled at 7cm and the Dr decided to manually break my water. I thought this would surely get things started!

Cuddling with Daddy's Hand!

At 4:30am, 24hours after I'd started laboring, I was EXHAUSTED. My body was worn out, shakey, and I was pretty out of it. I was ready to get my sweet baby out! The nurse came in, checked me, and with a very sad face told me there was no change... I was still stalled at 7cm. The contractions were very painful and right on top of eachother with no break in between. Brian and I began to get a little worried. There was an increasing chance that if I kept going with no medication, I'd be too exhausted to push when the time came and the possibility of C-section would be hanging over us. So... I asked for the epidural. I just needed a bit of rest so that I could have the energy to finish. Little did I know that the decision to do so would be pretty important in a bit.

I slept for an hour after the epidural kicked in. I could still feel the contractions but they were much more tolerable, and I could feel my legs and move them normally which surprised me! When I woke up, I was at 8cm... finally some progress! By 8am I was at 9cm and at 8:30 I was ready to push!

She Loves her Wubba Nub!

Here's where that epidural and rest became very important... just as the Nurse & Doctor were getting me ready to bring our little girl into the world, her heart rate suddenly started to drop. They told me we needed to get her out quick, and so with the restored energy, I was able to push her out in 15 minutes after only 4 sets of pushing! I felt immediate joy and started to cry when they laid my tiny little baby on my stomach! The doctor was surprised at how tiny she was, since she had estimated Lovebug to be about 7 1/2 lbs! She cried only for a second, and then just looked around with her big beautiful eyes, and started rooting right away! They checked her over and cleaned her up before giving us our blessed bonding time as a little family of 3!

We got all packed up after 2 wonderful days in the hospital recovering... headed home... and spent only 1 1/2 days there before an emergency trip to Children's Mercy Hospital... I'll tell you all about that suprising turn of events in my next post!

Lovebug is Here!

2011-07-08T16:41:00.000-07:00

After 28 hours of labor, our precious tiny girl is here! Hannah Renee Edwards was born on Saturday, July 2nd at 8:47am! She was 5lbs 15oz and 18 3/4 in long! We love her soo much it almost hurts! I'll post more about her Birth Story and the eventful days following after we get all settled in at home. Here are some pictures of our Lovebug... although we can't seem to capture just how beautiful she is in person!

Came out bright eyed and beautiful!

Mommy loves her so very much!

She's a Daddy's girl... looks like him too!

Heading home! Our little family of three.

Precious.

The NURSERY Reveal!

2011-07-01T16:10:00.000-07:00

It's FINALLY finished! It's actually been finished for a little while, I just needed to borrow my brother-in-law's super sweet camera so that I could get some better pictures than my lil' point and shoot would take! It feels so good to have all the elements that I worked so hard on all put together! A whole lot of love went into this room and I can NOT wait to have our little Lovebug in her Woodland-themed nursery!

First of all, I need to say a big THANK YOU to my wonderful husband and his brother for painting the room the beautiful Milk Chocolate by Valspar (saw on Nate Berkus... and knew it was the one!) They also installed the chair rail, which makes the room look so amazing!

The changing table is an Ikea dresser from our bedroom at our condo in California. The post about the fabric basket is HERE, and although I planned to make my own changing pad cover, I decided that something used for diaper changing would be better bought for $10 and made by Carters- right?

The beautiful artwork was bought on Etsy at these shops: Trafalgar's Square & Loxly Hollow.

For now, her toybox is a simple canvas cube bought at Target... I'm sure she'll need more of those soon!

The bedding is was all handmade by this little Mama! I used Amy Butler's Little Stitches as the patterns for the bumpers, crib skirt, and fitted sheet, and made my own pattern for the quilt. Wee Woodland by Moda is the fabric line. The quilt was quilted by a dear friend, Lisa.

I used fabric scraps in embroidery hoops as wall art.

I used an old bookshelf from Target and primed and painted it Jade by Laura Ashley.

The adorable woodland flashcards are from Ink Tree Press on Etsy.

The Chair is from Pottery Barn Baby and is so incredibly comfortable! The post about the side table is HERE, the Happy Stacker post is HERE, and the Scalloped Bunting are HERE. The curtains and curtain rod, I already had from Ikea.

Well folks, I hope you enjoyed the tour! We're hoping to have our sweet girl here really soon!

A Baked Goodie too Good not to Share!

2011-06-27T21:12:00.000-07:00

Worried that my poor hubby has been wasting away while we prepare for Lovebug's arrival? Never fear... There have been home-cooked meals, just not a lot of time to blog about them. And baked goods... how could I survive the last few months without a few (or a lot) of indulgences?

So this little doozy is something that I used to eat everyday after highschool along with a delicious mocha at the local coffee shop in our town. I would grab my journal and have my Bible study there before going to my after school job, and it was the perfect way to spend the afternoon. I'm not sure how I managed to stay so skinny back then... ah youth.

These Carmelitas are buttery, carmelly, chocolatey goodness. You will not be able to stop eating them. Seriously. They're also super easy to make! Here's what you need...

Carmelitas

2 cups flour + 3 tbsp

2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
2 1/2 sticks butter (chopped up)
1 cup caramel syrup
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans

First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the caramel sauce & 3 tbsp of flour together in a small bowl and set aside. Try not to lick it all off the spoon in the process.

Grab your mixer and add the butter, flour, brown sugar & oats. Mix on slow until you've got a even crumbly mixture.

Grease a 9x13in pan and press half the crumb mixture into the bottom of the pan (about 3 rounded cups.) Bake for 10 minutes and then let it cool for 10.

Now pour your caramel all over the crust, and sprinkle on the chocolate chips & pecans. Take the rest of the crumb mixture and crumble it evenly over the toppings.

Bake for another 18-20 minutes. Let it cool for an hour and then if you need to you can refridgerate it for another hour to set the filling.

Cut it up into bars and watch how fast they get gobbled up!

Enjoy ya'll!

Lovebug Update... Still Waiting!

2011-06-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

Well... this little Mama is 39 weeks and so ready to meet our Baby Girl! I'm pretty sure I said that 2 weeks ago... so now I REALLY mean it! I went to the doctor yesterday and she said I'm still where I was last week... NOT dialated. Lovebug is running out of room in there, which means that when she moves she's either pushing on my ribs or squashing some organs. It's not neccesarily pleasant. I've been going up and down our stairs and keeping busy, hoping something will get this party started!
Until I have more exciting news, here's my latest Bump Pics...

A Quick and Easy Fabric Basket!

2011-06-24T14:40:00.000-07:00

Hey folks! No baby yet... although I'm VERY ready for her to be here! This is just a last minute project I whipped up while we're waiting for our Lovebug to arrive! I wanted to make a fabric basket to hold diapers, wipes, etc on our changing table & I had PLENTY of scraps left from the bedding and all the other sewing projects for the nursery. It wasn't hard to find a few tutorials on Pinterest/the Blog world... I love how easy the Web makes crafting! Sorry about not having "before" or "what you need pictures" ... I just used the patterns I found and made up my own as I went. Feel free to check out these lovely ladies' tutorials HERE & HERE. When it comes to cooking and crafting, I usually take other's suggestions and then do my own thing. Here's how it turned out...

Happy Friday! I'll post the latest bump pics and hopefully some exciting news soon!

Lovebug Update & Getting Ready!

2011-06-14T21:15:00.000-07:00

Whew... 37 weeks! I am READY for this little girl to come out and make her entrance into the world! She's definitely runnin' out of room in there and this little Mama isn't sleeping at ALL. Lovebug thinks it's real funny to headbutt me down there... making my nightly bathroom visits about every 45 minutes at this point. Last week the Dr. said that she was head down and in position... so it's just a waiting game now! I have another appointment this Friday, and I'm crossing my fingers that she's gonna tell me some good news!

It's such a funny thing, I was so worried about getting all the "stuff"... now that the time is drawing closer, I'm just ready to figure it all out with her in my arms! I've got one more nursery project, maybe two... I'm just keeping busy though now. The stroller is all put together, the swing is ready, and Bri tells her every night before bed that she can come out anytime now! We're both so excited to see what she looks like and kiss her sweet face!

As far as the labor part goes... I've sure had my anxious moments. I really want to do this as natural as possible... no medical intervention, no drugs. Bri and I have been reading the Bradley Book (Husband Coached Childbirth) and the more we read the more calm and comfortable we feel. I just keep reminding myself that women have been doing this for thousands of years... and God made our bodies to do this. I will trust him to know what our birth story will be, and I definitely understand that if an emergency happens... the doctors will take care of me and Lovebug. Until then...

Here's the latest bump pics! You can definitely see my face getting rounder. Oh well... three more weeks of ice cream- right?

Pretty Scalloped Bunting!

2011-06-10T21:08:00.000-07:00

Hello folks! This little Mama is writing from a VERY warm Missouri... trying to keep my feet up and stay out of the lovely heat! Just 3ish weeks left before Lovebug should be here, and I'm finishing up some last minute sewing projects as final touches on the nursery!

Since I'm not sleeping too much these days, I've been passing the time spending hours on Pinterest. If you haven't discovered the amazing way to catalog your ideas, diy projects, decor, clothing style, etc... you must stop everything and CHECK IT OUT! I'm in love. No more overflowing "Favorites" bar for this girl! Just beautiful pictures to daydream about all day long!

One of the adorable ideas I found on Pinterest are these Scalloped Bunting. I knew I wanted some sort of pennants (I'm obsessed) to add a little color to the white curtains in the nursery... but these are just over-the-top cute! I grabbed my scraps of Wee Woodland from the bedding and got sewing!

Here's what you need...

-Scraps of fabric in various colors/patterns
-Premade bias tape (I made a LOT of bunting so I used 3 packages of 3 yds each)
-The pattern (found HERE)
-Scissors &/or rotary cutter & board, pins, sewing maching... you get the picture.
-Coordinating thread ( I've used a pretty jade color for everything in the nursery... I like the contrast)

I doubled up scraps of fabric, and pinned the pattern to them, then I cut away! I sewed the two pieces right sides facing on the rounded edge, using a 1/4 in seam allowance. Then I trimmed the seam allowance to 1/8 in and cut several snips in it so that when I turned each scallop out, it was nice and round. I ironed them all flat and pinned them, sandwiched into the bias tape. Then I sewed along the edge closest to the opening in the bias tape in one continuous line. Voila! Lots of pretty scalloped bunting!

Here they are hanging in Lovebug's nursery! I can NOT wait to reveal the nursery soon! It's almost done... just finishing up those last little details! Are you getting excited? I sure am!

Have a great weekend!

A Sweet Soiree for Lovebug!

2011-06-01T19:06:00.000-07:00

Goodness gracious time is just flying by! I can't believe I haven't told ya'll about the lovely shower that dear Casey & Renee threw Lovebug & I! I had only been in town for a week at that point and it was such a special treat to spend the day with all my girlfriends getting adorable baby things, and eating delicious sweets!

Casey, Me & my sister, Renee

The Ladies did an absolutely amazing job on the decorations! My heart leaped at the sugar-rimmed mason jars & vintage hankie pennants! My sweet friend Sara made a yummy array of cupcakes, fruit kabobs, candies, dark chocolate truffles, and dipped strawberries! Lovebug and I really enjoy sugar... it's our favorite food group at the moment.

I felt so incredibly blessed by all the gifts that were given! My wonderful friend Jen and her sweet Mama drove from over 3 hours away to be with me and her Mama made the most beautiful Minnie Mouse diaper cake! (We LOVE Disney and I was just giddy over it!) I received so many adorable outfits and tiny dresses... Lovebug will be so well dressed! My Mama bought me my designer diaper bag, that I'm itchin' to fill! I was also given all of my Etsy prints that I picked out and some super cute woodland flashcards! I can't wait to put them up in the nursery!

Games involving the not-so-tasty baby food and a blindfold were played... and a few with diapers. We ladies laughed, caught up, and nibbled on sweets. It was a wonderful afternoon and I will forever appreciate the thoughtfulness of my friends and family!

Me, Lovebug, Marmie, and Gramma...Four Generations!

My First Thrift Store Find & a Makeover!

2011-05-27T08:30:00.000-07:00

Well hello again ya'll! Sorry about the long time between posts lately! Bri is FINALLY here in Missouri with me! My little heart is so very happy! Monday we (Bri, and our amazing friends and family) unloaded the U-Haul up 3 flights of steps into our new apartment! Hopefully we'll be all settled in within the next few days.

I told you I'd been keepin' busy while I waited for my hubby. My dear friend Kelsey took me thrifting for a little sidetable to go next to the upholstered glider in the nursery. I was optomistic, since my girlfriends have found some pretty amazing finds here and transformed them into beautiful furniture. I was shocked, however, at the $7 pricetag on the adorable table that I found in the FIRST store we stopped at! Thanks Kels for the help finding this little beauty!

Next up was to add a little paint and then distress it to give it the look I wanted. I took my fabric up to Lowes and found the perfect color... Jade by Laura Ashley. Then the lovely Casey, master furniture transformer, and I grabbed a quart of low VOC paint, a brush and some sandpaper and got to work!

Here's the BEFORE:

I gave the table two coats of paint using a brush and a small high density foam roller. Then I used medium sandpaper to distress it and give it that well-loved look. Casey suggested using a polyurethane to coat the table tops so that I can easily wipe them off... since I'm pretty sure that bottles will be knocked over and stickiness always follows babies wherever they go. I added 2 coats using the same high density roller and let it dry.

Here's the AFTER:

I'm so happy with this little makeover. I fell more and more in love with the little table each time I saw it. I hope it'll spend many happy years in our nursery!

Have a good week folks and I'll be back soon with more nursery projects!

Bump Pics & Transitioning Home...

2011-05-16T21:14:00.000-07:00

Well folks, I'm settling back into life here in Missouri... it's been an interesting transition so far! Don't get me wrong... I'm so very happy to be HOME! Home is just a little different than where I've been living for the last 2 years. The fact that I have to drive a pretty little distance to Starbucks, a trip to get any organic grocery store involves crossing the state line, and my parents called six cars at a four way stop on a country road, "traffic"... different. Staying with your parents after having run your own household for the last 2 years and the weather going from 90 degrees and 100% humidity last Saturday to 50 degrees this Saturday... different. It's just been a lot of change for this little Mama and at 33 weeks, change is very hard. I honestly believe that "home" is where ever I am with Bri. Cheesy, but true. When he gets here and we we're cuddled up on our couch... I'll feel "home" again.

I know life's new "normal" is going to continue to look differnt for a while especially in 7 weeks when our baby girl arrives! At least Lovebug will have a nursery! (I'm jumping up and down with excitement at the thought of this) I signed a lease on an apartment this week and my wonderful hubby will be here in 7 days with all of our stuff to move in and get settled! We'll be house hunting eventually, but we figure... baby steps is best right now. We just need to breathe for a bit.

I've just been trying to keep myself busy while Bri finishes up things in San Diego. Three weeks apart and and I miss him soo much... I'll be so relieved when he gets here! Then we'll be putting together all the pieces of the nursery! I can NOT wait to post pictures!

Until then... here's the Bump Update!

A Bittersweet Farewell to SoCal...

2011-05-02T20:26:00.000-07:00

This little Mama is currently sitting in Missouri writing this post. Surprised? I'm still a little shocked myself. It seems insane--all of what has happened during these last few months.... I know I've been vague with ya'll, but I just wasn't sure where to start!

Brian carrying me over the threashold in our first apartment in SD

Last December we were just planning our usual Christmas visit home... but when we got there, we heard about a possible opening for a virtual position within his company. When we found about about Baby Lovebug, we were perfectly content to be in SoCal, but the farther along I got... the more I wanted to be surrounded by family! So Bri quickly put in for the position when we got back to San Diego in January and then the waiting and praying began... I was getting more and more pregnant and time was flying by!

La Jolla Cove... one of my favorite spots in San Diego

Finally in March, we heard that they had filled that position, but that there was another, better position opening. I was disappointed, but trying very hard to remain optimistic. He applied for that position and within a few weeks had an interview. Then... MORE waiting!

At the beach with my Love!

After another few weeks, as I was hitting my 31st week of pregnancy... and feeling like a ticking time bomb, we got good news! He got the new position! I already had a one way ticket home, mostly on faith. Bri was very certain that this would work out, and that we'd be home before Lovebug's arrival. So we'd been packing up all the breakables, and saying our goodbyes to friends. Another one-way ticket back to San Diego could always be bought. So the DAY BEFORE my flight, we were out to dinner celebrating the new job, and saying goodbye to each other for a few weeks until he can drive cross country with all of our stuff!

Sunset over Torrey Pines Beach!

So there you have it ya'll. We've got 9 weeks left till Lovebug's arrival and I'm now searching for apartments here in Missouri! I'm spending lots of time with my family and friends, trying to process the fact that I'm not going back to Cali, and missing my Hubby dearly! It's a bit of an emotional roller coaster, but I thank God for the blessing to be here with family when our little one arrives and soon we'll be looking for a house and settling in as a Midwest family of three!

Our "family" in San Diego... such sweet friends that we'll miss dearly!

So if you could offer up a little prayer to get this pregnant lady's husband home soon, and for peace of mind and calmness while we get settled in during these last weeks of pregnancy!

Enjoying a romantic walk along the cove!

I'll keep you folks updated!

A Delicious Spring Recipe!

2011-04-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

Need an amazing dessert recipe for a Spring get together? This recipe is so delicious. A classic taken to a whole different level thanks to the lovely Pioneer Woman! I whipped it up for our Easter brunch and then quickly gobbled up the left overs! Here's what you need...

Carrot Cake

with Pecan Cream Cheese Icing! Ree Drummond via Sigrid

For the Cake:

2 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs
2 cups flour
Pinch of salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
2 cups grated carrots

For the Icing:
Stick of butter (at room temp)

1 8oz package of cream cheese (at room temp)

1 lb powdered sugar

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup pecans (chopped)

First you'll wanna preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Then grab your box grater and GRATE THOSE CARROTS!

Now grab your mixer and beat the sugar, oil & eggs together.

In a seperate bowl, whisk together your flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda & cinnamon. Slowly add the the mixer.

Add carrots & mix it well!

Pour into a greased & floured bundt pan... because it looks so pretty that way! (PW made hers a sheet cake) and bake for 45-50 minutes!

Meanwhile... beat the butter & cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add the powdered sugar and the vanilla. Stir in the pecans. Try not to eat the entire bowl with a spoon while the cake is baking!

Cool completely in the bundt pan before turning out. Then grab your icing and pour/spread it all over that cake!

Enjoy!

Bump Pics & an Update!

2011-04-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

30 WEEKS! That's how far along I am! I can NOT believe how fast time is flying! Although our future whereabouts are still in a bit of limbo... this girl is heading home to Missouri to spend some MUCH needed time with family & friends to celebrate Lovebug & get all excited about her quickly approaching due date! I can't wait to blog all about the amazing shower that Case & Nae are working on!

I had a wonderful time with two hilarious ladies this week who flew out to enjoy San Diego with me! It was a lovely distraction from the fact that I'd soon be leaving without any real news about Bri's job situation. I loved eating ice cream almost every night & all the girl-talk. FYI... going to the beach while pregnant = feeling like a beached whale.

So far, I'm still feeling pretty good... I've had some swelling issues when the weather gets hot, or I spend too much time on my feet, but that's to be expected. Sleeping is a sad situation. I either get up to pee ten times a night or I can't get comfortable, or I'm wide awake at ungodly hours. Oh well... preparation for long nights with a newborn! One thing's for sure, Lovebug is one active little baby! She particularly likes to have dance parties at night, which keeps Bri & I entertained!

I'll try to blog as much as possible during all the craziness, but for now...here's the latest bump pics!

Happy Monday!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #16... Oh Goodness!

2011-04-20T00:00:00.000-07:00

Sweets, Sweets and more Sweets... that's what this pregnant lady is craving! I've been bookmarking ridiculous recipes all over the blogosphere this past week and instead of baking EVERY SINGLE ONE, and gaining an ungodly amount of pregnancy weight (although I'm sure Lovebug would enjoy it), I'm going to share them all with YOU! Try not to drool too much!

Salted Carmel Cupcakes @ Joy's Hope

Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies @ My Sweet Savanah

Cake Cookies with Sprinkles @ V and Co

Cookie Dough Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies @ Lovin' From the Oven

Cinnamon Bubble Buns @ Sprinkled with Flour

Maple Pecan Bars @ City Baked

Cookie Dough Stuffed Cupcakes @ The Girl who Ate Everything

Triple Layer Cookies and Cream Crunch Bars @ How Sweet It Is

Happy Wednesday!

A Sweet Toy for our Baby Girl!

2011-04-15T00:00:00.000-07:00

Remember a while back when I said that I wanted to make THIS adorable pattern for Lovebug? Well I'm FINALLY finished! Let me tell y'all now... it's not an easy pattern, but I think the result was worth all the hard work! Here's what you need...

I used more of the Wee Woodland fabric by Moda, since I wanted it to match the nursery. You just need the pattern, 5 colors of fabric, muslin, heavy weight interfacing, thread, poly-fil (not pictured,) and a chopstick for stuffing.

The only advice I have for completing this project is to take it SLOW & follow the pattern exactly. You might wanna brush up on your hand stitching skills too! I ended up doing a few steps each night and taking my time with all the hand stitching. I really love how it turned out!

I'm so excited to see it in the nursery! I'm sure it will just be a decoration for quite a while, but it's still fun to handmake things for our little Lovebug!

Have a great weekend!

P.S. I'm linking up to the parties on my sidebar!

A Favorite Family Recipe... Two Ways!

2011-04-12T22:36:00.000-07:00

Mmm Mm do I love my Great Grandma Hale's Banana Bread! This is one of the very first recipes I learned how to bake with my Mama, and I've been using up brown bananas to whip some up ever since! I've been keeping plenty of fresh fruit in the house for me to snack on when I've go the pregnancy munchies... but the fact that the last 2 bananas always brown too fast... that means I've been baking wayyy to much. I made this recipe 2 ways in the last few weeks. Let me know which way y'all like it best!

The Cast...

Banana Bread Great Grandma Hale
2 ripe bananas
2 eggs
1 stick butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 heaping tsp baking soda

This is seriously simple folks. First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grab a large bowl (or your handy mixer) and add the bananas, butter, sugar and eggs. Beat until well mixed. Then add the flour, baking powder & baking soda. Beat again for a few minutes. Butter & flour two small bread pans and pour the batter evenly into them. Bake for 25-35 minutes depending on your oven. They're done when they spring back a bit when touched.

Here's the secret... take them straight out of the pans and wrap them up in plastic wrap. It keeps the bread nice and moist! You should also spread each slice with some butter... it's goooood.

Well we couldn't run poor Grandma's Banana Bread into the ground could we? (Not that it's really possible to do that.) But being me, I decided to change it up a bit...

Banana Nut Muffins
ADD:
1 cup chopped pecans (YUM!)
1 tsp cinnamon

Pour batter into 24 muffins cups and bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Pioneer Woman's done it again!

2011-04-08T16:49:00.000-07:00

Well folks, this dish is just ridiculous. It's super easy, cheap, quick, and boy does it satisfy! PW posted it a few weeks ago, and well, we've had it twice since then. I feel like it needs a different name though... it reminds Bri and I of a midwest "Speghetti Pie." Whatever it's called... you MUST give this a try! Here's the line up...

Sour Cream Noodle Bake Ree Drummond (Pioneer Woman)
1lb Ground Beef
1 15oz can Tomato Sauce
S&P
8 oz Egg Noodles
½ cup Sour Cream
1¼ cup Cottage Cheese
1-2 cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

First you'll wanna preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Get a big pot of water boiling and cook your noodles to package directions. Drain and set a side.

Grab a skillet and brown up your ground beef. Add the tomato sauce, and some S&P and let it simmer.

Meanwhile, mix the sour cream, cottage cheese & some Pepper in a large bowl. Add your egg noodles and give it a stir.

Now we're ready to assemble! Get out a small casserole dish and put in half the noodle mixture. Pour over half the meat mixture and a couple big handfuls of cheese. Add the other half of the noodles, the other half of the meat, and then put plenty of cheese on top!

Bake for about 20 minutes, and serve! How easy was that?!

Enjoy!

Chocolate Bread... Mmmm!

2011-04-04T13:12:00.000-07:00

Well ya'll, I have been craving chocolate like there is no tomorrow. Since there's two of us girls craving that dark chocolate now... watch out! Ooooh I'm just gonna LOVE trying to get this baby-weight off! But for now... here's somethin' I made last week that we (and a few friends) gobbled up. Here's what you need...

Chocolate Bread Paula Deen
2 1/4 cups flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 Tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups pecans (roughly chopped)

First, go ahead and preheat your oven to 350. Then butter and flour your loaf pans (2).

Now grab your mixer and get the flour, sugar cocoa, salt & baking powder stirred together. Then beat in the milk, oil, eggs & vanilla on low speed. Toss in the chocolate chips & pecans and give it a good stir. How easy was that?

Divide the batter evenly in your loaf pans and bake for about 1 hr 15 min, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the bread cool in the pans for 10 minutes and then wrap 'em up in plastic wrap so they stay moist!

This bread is delicious any way you serve it, but it's amazing served warm with butter! Trust me.

Enjoy!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #15... B-e-a-utiful Blogs!

2011-03-30T00:00:00.000-07:00

Whew... it's sure been a while since I posted a WGW huh? Well, this pregnant lady is gonna get back into the blogging routine for as long as I can before our little lovebug arrives! So this week's features are blogs that I've recently stumbled upon that really inspired me! They are beautifully written by such creative Mamas... I hope you'll be inspired too!

Shauna @ The Reed Life

A gorgeous house, adorable kiddos, and all written beautifully... I could peruse this blog for hours!

Jessica @ Such Pretty Things

Full of all things pretty & cheerful... this blog will certainly brighten your day!

Rebekah @ A Bit of Sunshine

This crafty Mama features adorable projects on Mondays & even sells some pretties in her shop @ Orange Poppy!

Danielle @ Take Heart

Danielle is such a sweet Christian Mama and her handmade goodies are for sale @ Sugar Money!

Anneliese @ Aesthetic Nest

Talk about talented... the gorgeous tutorials and patterns of this Mama made her blog one of Babble's top 50 Craft Blogs!

Easy Bibs & Burpies!

2011-03-25T10:29:00.000-07:00

First off, I want to say a great big THANK YOU for all the sweet comments and words of encouragement I got after my last post! Ya'll are soo sweet!

Sooo, after getting all that bedding knocked out... I'm onto my list of other little projects for Lovebug. I wanted to make some matching bibs & burpies that I've seen all over the blogosphere & Etsy, and after searching endlessly for the perfect bib pattern, I decided to do as the ladies at Prudent Baby suggested, and just trace my favorite bib. Guess what? It worked like a charm and I'm very pleased! Here's what you need...

Quick & Easy Bibs & Burpies!
3-5 fat quarters in corresponding patterns & colors
Matching thread
Snaps (I used the hammer on kind)
1/2 yard of Minky (the super soft stuff)
Your favorite bib to trace

I won the fabric I used from the lovely Lindsay @ Cottage Mama a while back. She's super talented, and makes adorable baby clothes. Check her out!

Step 1: Trace the bib (folded in half) on a piece of paper to make your pattern
Step 2: Pin the pattern to both your fabric & minky (folded in half) and cut out both pieces of the bib.
Step 3: Pin your pieces right sides together and stitch, leaving a 1/4 in seam allowance... Don't forget to leave a 1 1/2 in opening at the bottom for turning out your bib!
Step 4: Turn your bib out (I used a chopstick to help me)
Step 5: Iron your bib nice and flat
Step 6: Top stitch around the edge ( I left a 1/8 in) and close the gap at the bottom as you go.
Step 7: Nail in those snaps (I had the hubby do that for me)

For the Burpies, I used THIS easy tutorial on Prudent Baby. It's basically the same process as the bibs, only easier... just using 18 1/2 by 8 1/2 rectangles of fabric!

I think these would make adorable baby shower gifts! It's a quick and easy project, and it feels so good to make sweet little things for a baby you love!

Have a great weekend!

P.S. I'm linking up to the parties on my side bar!

Bedding, Bump Pics & a Prayer Request...

2011-03-22T12:53:00.000-07:00

I know the ol' blog has been lacking in posts... it seems like time is FLYING by and I can't believe that another week has come and gone. Lovebug's bedding is ALL DONE! It took a while to get those crib bumpers knocked out, but it feels SO good to have it all ready for her arrival. Now we just need the crib to put it all in... and maybe a few more things for the nursery too!

Here's the latest bump pics... as requested! I'm FINALLY wearing a pair of maternity jeans... after 25 weeks... I found a pair that fit like my old ones and are super comfy! God Bless the Gap... Skinny jeans in the size I was wearing before... YES please!

I'm getting a little nervous about how fast the time is flying by! I feel like I blink and another week is gone! I get caught between wanting her to be here tomorrow so I can see her pretty little face, and then being panicked that I only have 13 weeks left to prepare for her! Goodness.

I really want to be settled before she makes her big arrival... but there are some things that are up in the air about where we'll be in the future... causing this pregnant lady to be slightly stressed out... and when I say slightly, I mean MAJORLY. I've been dreaming of being a Mommy since as long as I can remember... and in those dreams I had my baby's nursery all filled with handmade things, painted, with pictures hung and diapers stocked... at this point it's killing me that her things are piled on the guest bed. So any prayers are much appreciated ya'll. Thank you!

Craving Seafood... Thai food anyone?

2011-03-11T00:00:00.000-08:00

So I know all the books say to limit my seafood intake... the whole too-much mercury thing... but I've been off Sushi for 5 months people, and I'm just dying for some seafood! So I whipped out an old recipe... one of the first ones I ever made Bri back when we were teenagers and dating and I wanted to impress him. It's my version of a recipe from a Thai food book I bought at B&N on a whim, and it is DELICIOUS! I never knew that curry could be so good! It may sound like a complicated dish, but no worries... you can do it!

Thai Curried Seafood with Coconut Milk
1/2 lb shrimp (peeled & deviened)
8oz lobster or crab meat (give it a rough chop)
1 lb firm white fish (cut into cubes) (I used Tilapia)
14oz can of coconut milk
2 tbsp Thai fish sauce/oil
1 small can of diced green chilies
Small bunch of Cilantro (finely chopped)
1-2 limes
Jasmine Rice to serve over

Curry Paste:
6 scallions (finely chopped)
small bunch of cilantro (finely chopped)
21/2 tbsp green chilies (from the can above)
1in piece of ginger root (peeled and finely chopped)
1tbsp Canola oil

First, we'll make that curry! Grab your kitchen aid food processor or any other gadget that will pulverize herbs and get all the ingredients pulsing. When it's as fine of a paste as you can get it, set it aside.

Now you'll wanna grab your electric wok.... or if you aren't crazy like me and own every kitchen gadget possible... a large skillet will work just fine. Toss in your shrimp for just 3 minutes until they start to curl up and turn pink. Remove them and set aside.

Pour in the coconut milk and bring to a boil over medium heat. Keep stirring so it won't scortch! Add 2 heaping tbsp of the curry paste and the fish sauce. Turn the heat to low and let it simmer for about 10 minutes.

Add the Fish, shrimp, and lobster meat and cook for only 2 minutes! It doesn't take much and you don't want dry seafood! Then stir in the remaining chillies, a bunch of cilantro, and a big squeeze of lime juice.

Serve over a bed of delicious jasmine rice, with a slice of lime. Mmm... enjoy!

Getting excited...

2011-03-08T21:23:00.000-08:00

Well folks, the blog posts have been a little sparse these days, huh? I've been busy busy getting our sweet little Lovebug's bedding sewn and boy is that "nesting" stage in full swing! I want to clean, organize, and sew everything in sight! I've got the quilt top all done, and the fitted crib sheet sewn. I'm almost done with the crib skirt, but I'm a little nervous about starting those bumpers!

This past weekend we went up to Downtown Disney to see some dear friends, and it was a perfect day! Bri & I honeymooned at Walt Disney World, so all things Disney hold a special place in our hearts. We bought Lovebug her first little Minnie Mouse ears & her first Pooh! We also received a sweet package from Miss Raylene full of Royals & Mizzou onesies! And another package from her Aunt Nae & Grandma & Grandpa Gregg with her first Disney movie, Bambi, a blanket with her nickname, Lovebug, and some adorable clothes! Our guest room is filling up with tiny clothes & pink things and we're getting very excited to hold our little girl in our arms!

I'll try to get some new WGW's up soon and also some new recipes! Until then... I'm just growing by the day and nesting, nesting, nesting!

Need a warm-you-up kind of meal?

2011-02-25T16:13:00.000-08:00

Is it still a bit chilly in your part of the country? Although it's still typically sunny & 70 here, they're calling for rain this weekend. On one of our rare colder evenings, I came across this homey, comforting Ground Beef Stew recipe over at Southernplate.com and boy was it just what we needed! Easy, delicious and hearty, it'll have you warmed up in no time! It was suprisingly similar to a soup recipe my Gramma used to make for me as a child when I was home sick from school... ah memories. Here's what you need...

Ground Beef Stew Christy Jordan

11/2 lb ground beef
1lb carrots (roughly chopped)
1 large onion (finely chopped)
2 or 3 large russet potatoes (diced)
21/2 cups frozen green beans
28oz can diced tomatoes
28oz Spicy Hot V-8 juice
2 cups water
4 beef boullion cubes
1 tsp salt

This is seriously the easiest form of cooking, other than using the ol' Crock Pot... and frankly you could just as easily throw all the ingredients in there and let it cook on low all day if you wanted!

First you'll grab you're big soup pot and put everything MINUS the ground beef, and the salt. Bring it to a boil over high heat and then turn it down to medium-low and let it simmer for an hour or so, until the veggies are nice and tender. Meanwhile, brown your beef in a seperate skillet, drain the fat, and set it aside. Add the ground beef to the stew and let it simmer for a few minutes to heat it up if needed. Serve yourself up a big bowl, grab a comfy quilt and head for a seat by the fireplace!

Enjoy!

Time is flying by!

2011-02-20T23:08:00.000-08:00

I can't BELIEVE that 21 weeks have gone by! Bri & I are getting VERY excited, and also a little nervous too! We have so much to do before little Love Bug (my sister's name for her) arrives! The fabric is finally bought for the Crib Bedding... and I've got a lot to do! The pattern I'm using for the Crib Sheet, Bumpers, and Skirt is in Amy Butler's Little Stitches for Little Ones. I want a basic block quilt, so I'm making up the pattern myself... I'll show you more as I make progress. I also want to whip up Heather Bailey's Happy Stacker Ring Toy with the same fabric.

So far, Baby Edwards is pretty proportional to Bri & I's small size! I'm gaining slowly, and not minding too much :) It's funny how uncomfortable a person can be with such a tiny baby inside, but I find it really hard to sit for long periods of time, and without my BELOVED Boppy Pregnancy Pillow, I don't think I'd sleep at all! ALSO... I'm starting to think her sweet little disposition is coming out in the way she moves... it's always at night when I'm laying in bed, or cuddling with Bri on the couch. She just "taps" on the sides of my stomach, like she's stretching or just making sure I know she's there... it's so sweet!

So without further ado... here's the latest bump pics!

Definitely pregnant now, huh?!

Happy Monday!

A Sweet Treat for Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T16:09:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you're enjoying some time with the one's you love! Bri's taking me out for a suprise dinner... he's so good at romancing! Here's a little something sweet that we'll be enjoying today! It's one of Bri & I's very favorite desserts! This is what you'll need...

Red Velvet Cupcakes
with Creamcheese Frosting! Hummingbird Bakery & PW
1 stick of butter (at room temperature)
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp red food coloring
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup & 2 tbsp flour
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp white vinegar

For the Frosting:
1 lb powdered sugar
1 stick butter (at room temperature)
1 8oz package of cream cheese (at room temperature)
2 tsp vanilla

First, preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

Put your butter and sugar in your mixer and beat until fluffy. Add the egg and beat on high until it's well incorporated.

In a small bowl, mix the cocoa, vanilla and red food coloring to make a paste. Add the paste to the mixer and beat well. Slowly add half the buttermilk while beating. Then add the flour and remaining buttermilk in alternate batches until it's all well mixed. Now add the salt, baking soda and vinegar and beat for a couple minutes until everything is smooth and evenly colored.

Spoon your batter into paper cups in a muffin tin until they're 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. While they're cooling on a wire rack...

Beat the butter and creamcheese until it's smooth and creamy! Add the vanilla. Then add the sugar slowly until it's nice and smooth! Stick your finger in and give it a lick! Good huh?!

Ice your cupcakes and make sure to share a few with someone you love!

Have a sweet day!

Look what I found!

2011-02-11T00:00:00.000-08:00

I was looking through the ol' recipe folder on my desktop and came accross this delicious little dish, found in PW's Cookbook. Notice that these pics were taken back at our old place... laminate counter tops and all! It looked so good, that we're definitely going to be whipping up this for dinner soon! Enjoy y'all!

Perfect Enchiladas Ree Drummond (Pioneer Woman)

Sauce:
1 Tbsp Canola Oil
1 Tbsp Flour
1 can or bottle of Enchilada Sauce
2 cups of Beef Stock

Meat:
1lb Ground Beef
1 Medium Onion (finely chopped)
2 4oz cans Diced Green Chilies
S&P
Small bunch of Cilantro (finely chopped)

Plus:
10 Corn Tortillas (or 8 flour)
3 cups Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
More Chopped Cilantro

First you'll wanna get your sauce ready. Grab a sauce pan and get the oil hot. Then whisk in the flour to make it nice and thick. Add the Enchilada sauce, stock, S&P. Bring it to a boil and then simmer for 20-30 min.
While that sauce is thickening, grab a skillet and get your onions in a bit of oil over medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes, then add the beef and get it browned. Then toss in the green chilies and season with S&P. When it's done, stir in the Cilantro.

Now, PW fries up her Tortillas in a little Canola Oil before assembling these babies... but for the sake of our waistlines, I just wrap 'em in foil and put 'em in the oven at 350 while I'm cooking the sauce and meat mixture.

When you're ready to assemble, make sure your oven's at 350. Grab your casserole dish and pour about a 1/2 cup of the sauce in the bottom. Dip each tortilla in sauce and then add some meat, and a whole lot of cheese. Roll it up and put it seam side down in the casserole. When you're finished with all the enchiladas, pour the remaining sauce over them and sprinkle plenty of cheese and cilantro on top. Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Happy Eating!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #14... Nursery Decor from Etsy!

2011-02-09T11:06:00.000-08:00

It's been only days since we found out that Baby Edwards is a girl... but I was planning our nursery long before that! : ) Our Theme? Wee Woodland! I'm dreaming of sweet little deer, foxes, squirrels & owls, etc! I want to fill her room with lots of warm colors, and soft bedding...handmade by yours truly! I was inspired by this fabric line from Moda...

I love the whimsical patterns with tiny toadstools, squirrels and acorns! So what to do once we had our theme? Head on over to Etsy of course! This week's WGW is full of the beautiful things we want for our nursery!

Amy @ Scrap Your Story ...Woodland Party Set! Adorable Invites, Thank You's & Cupcake toppers that would be perfect for a baby shower!

Loxly Hollow ... Amazing Whimsy Nursery Prints! We're in love with these sweet friends and can't wait to hang a few on Baby Girl's walls! The artist is truly talented!

Erin @ Ink Tree Press ... Woodland Alphabet Wall Cards! Aren't these just precious? I love the vintage look & think they'll look great in the nursery!

Kit @ Trafalgar's Square ... More Nursery Prints! I'm just so amazed at the talent over on Etsy! I can't wait to have all the beautiful art we've found hanging in the nursery!

I'm so excited to start sewing and crafting and getting things ready! Happy Wednesday!

It's a . . .

2011-02-06T14:16:00.000-08:00

Baby Edwards is a precious baby GIRL! We're so very excited! I've been dreaming of all the adorable things I could sew for her... bows & tutu's, dresses & dolls... I'm just giddy! Bri has always wanted little girls... he's ready to spoil her, and protect her! Seeing his eyes light up after we found out makes me so anxious to see him be the wonderful Daddy I know he'll be! She's already got him wrapped around her little tiny finger!

Her pretty little profile

The whole ultrasound experience was so amazing! The technician measured each of her little bones, and we could even see some of her personality emerging! She kept putting her hands over her face while we were trying to get a profile picture...she'll have to get over that soon! Being the first Grandbaby on both sides... photos are going to be a big part of her life! She also sucks her thumb... which was just about the cutest thing I've ever seen! We left the doctor's office with big smiles!

We immediately headed to get some breakfast (our appt was at 8am) and then to do a little shopping!!
We could have bought the entire store... but we were able to hold back and Bri picked out her first tiny dress... so sweet! I also couldn't resist the little pooh onesie! The pink & blue striped set is what we hope to bring her home from the hospital in. It's Splendid (which is one of my favorite brands from Anthropologie)... but with Bri & I's height... she might be a little too small for even 0-3 months... we'll just have to wait and see!

I'm getting so excited to be a Mommy! Bri and I can't wait for our little miracle to be in our arms! We've started registering, and planning the nursery! I'll post our theme & all my ideas soon! We're feeling so very blessed right now!

Mac n' Cheese on a Monday...

2011-01-31T21:19:00.000-08:00

One of my random pregnancy cravings lately (other than jars and jars of salsa & tortilla chips), has been the Twisted Mac Chicken &Cheese from Hard Rock Cafe. I've had it several times when traveling... and since we definitely didn't want to go pay outrageous prices at a local tourist spot... I just made my own version. The chicken's got the perfect little kick, and the mac n' cheese is creamy & comforting! I've made it twice in 2 weeks... it's just so darn good! Here's what you need...

Twisted Chicken Mac n' Cheese Your's Truly

EVOO
2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups white cheddar cheese (shredded- plus more for on top)
1 1/2 cups mild yellow cheddar cheese (shredded- plus more for on top)
1 lb chicken tenders
1 lb cavatappi pasta
1/4 tsp ground caynne pepper (plus more for the chicken)
1/4 tsp chili powder (plus more for the chicken)
S&P

First, preheat your broiler. Then do a little prep work... shred your cheese into a large bowl, measure out your flour & milk, and get your chicken on a large plate to season it.

Now grab a large pot and get the water boiling for the pasta. Make sure you add plenty of salt to the water before adding the cavatappi & then cook it to package directions.

Next you'll go ahead and cook the chicken. Season both sides liberally with S&P, cayenne pepper, and chili powder. Put a skillet with a few tbsp of EVOO over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken for about 4 minutes on each side and then wrap up your tenders in foil to keep 'em hot and let 'em rest.

Grab another skillet (or you can rinse out the one you just used, like I do!) and add a tbsp of EVOO & 2 tbsp of butter. When they're combined, whisk in your flour. Cook it for about 3 minutes, continuing to whisk. Then slowly whisk in the milk. Let the sauce thicken for a few minutes and then add some S&P, and the cayenne & chili powder. Turn off the heat and stir in the cheese, one cup at a time.

Dump your pasta into a large casserole dish and pour the cheesy goodness all over the top. Give it a good stir to coat all the pasta and then cover it with the remaining shredded cheese. Pop it under the broiler for about 5 minutes till it's golden on top.

While it's getting all bubbly under the broiler, cut up the chicken to serve on top of the mac n' cheese.

Serve up a big bowl of cheesy deliciousness & Enjoy y'all!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #13... Valentine's Day Lovelies...

2011-01-26T00:00:00.000-08:00

In honor of the upcoming holiday... I thought I'd do a round of adorable ways to decorate for Valentine's Day! I myself have yet to do any crafting or nesting for the 14th... but maybe this will inspire us all!

Nikki @ Grand Design Co... A beautiful mantle! I'm seriously in love with this!

Ashley Ann @ Under the Sycamore... I'm a little obsessed with her blog. Did you notice she keeps popping up in WGW's? This window is just darling!

Anna @ Noodlehead... These vintage hankie pillows are so sweet! I love all things fabric and these would definitely add some love to my couch!

Rachelle @ Fingerprints on the Fridge... This faux mantle is so sweet! I'm in love with mason jars, and this combination of blue & pink is lovely!

Erin @ Lemon Tree Creations... You know I'm lovin' that burlap pennant right now! And the chalkboard background is just perfect too!

Cheri @ I Am Momma - Hear Me Roar... This Momma is talented, that's for sure! This pillow is so stinkin' cute!

These ladies have got me wantin' to go buy chocolate & conversation hearts! Are you ready for Valentine's Day?

The Long Awaited Bump Pics!

2011-01-24T00:00:00.000-08:00

Well folks, as you can tell by the recent recipe posts... I'm feeling MUCH better! At week 13 I was getting my appitite back and it hasn't slowed down yet! We're going through jars of pickles and a whole lot of chips & salsa! I'm getting so excited now! The "Quickening" movements have started & all I can think about is buying teeny tiny clothes & if it's a boy or a girl! I'm even starting to show... except for the fact that when I'm in public, I often wonder if people just think I'm a little fat? Ha.

At first I thought I'd skip posting the ol' "bump pics," but since my family is far away, and I want to document this exciting experience... here's the first round!

Happy Monday!

I heart Trader Joe's... A quick & easy snack!

2011-01-22T00:00:00.000-08:00

I LOVE Trader Joe's. Have I mentioned that before? Their food is amazing, which makes cooking more fun... and definitely makes my life a whole lot easier. I was in grabbing some groceries a while back, and saw the new Crisp Rice Cereal... as I threw a box in the cart for Bri & I, I noticed the quick and easy recipe for Peanut Butter Crispy Treats on the back of the box. I was sold. I went and grabbed a tub of TJ Peanut Butter, Brown Sugar, and Agave Syrup. It took me about 5 minutes to whip up a tasty treat... and they were devoured in about 2 days. If you have a Trader Joe's, please go there. Also... make these. Thank you.

Peanut Butter Rice Crispy Treats
7 cups TJ Crisp Rice Cereal
1 cup TJ Creamy Peanut Butter
1 cup TJ Organic Blue Agave Sweetener
1 cup TJ Organic Brown Sugar

First grab a sauce pan and heat sugar &syrup till it bubbles. Then add the peanut butter. Grab a large bowl and pour the mixture over crisp cereal and stir. Press into a 9x11 casserole dish and refridgerate for several hours to harden and cool.

Cut into squares and enjoy!

A Childhood Dresser turned Entertainment Cabinet!

2011-01-19T06:00:00.000-08:00

Bri and I quickly headed to the hardware store to snag the following:

Piece of pine hardwood 3/4in
3M Sand block
Medium grit sand paper (100)
Paint (we used Behr premium plus)
Min Wax Polyurethane
Micro foam roller
Fine paint brush
Drop cloth
New hardware (ordered HERE)

The color we chose was a country blue... pretty dark with a grey tone to it. We color-matched a rustic shelf from my parents house that I loved.

My wonderful parents blessed Bri and I with a date night to tackle most of this project and we gladly took it!

We borrowed a palm sander from Bri's parents and went to town on that dresser. We used the sand blocks for the detailed parts. Here it is after....

We're really happy with how it turned out! Have a great weekend y'all!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #12 ... MORE Recipe Resources!

2011-01-19T00:00:00.000-08:00

I hope you enjoyed last week's round-up of great recipe resources! Here's part II... Enjoy!

7. A Cozy Kitchen... These ladies have recipes that are sure to impress! Want to make homemade Mozzarella in 30 min? Adrianna and Caroline will show you how!

8. Annie's Eats... From breakfast to homemade babyfood, Annie's got you covered! She has a great list of yummy recipes and a beautiful site too!

9. Aggie's Kitchen... I've mentioned Aggie before... remember those Bruschetta Patty Melts? YUM. She's always posting something that looks amazing!

10. The Girl who Ate Everything... I just recently found Christy's blog... and boy am I glad! She has plenty of tempting treats, plus hearty main dishes too!

11. Deliciously Organic... Carrie Vitt is an amazing resource for those of you who like to keep things organic. Since Bri & I try our best to keep things fresh in our home, I really appreciate her passion for good food that's delicious too!

12. How Sweet It Is... Found on PW's Tasty Kitchen, Jessica's blog is such a treat! A girl who's spent time as a personal trainer, but loves food and even better... sweets? That's my kinda girl!

Now... what are you gonna do with all these recipes? Get cookin'!

Now that the gifts have been given…

2011-01-14T00:00:00.000-08:00

I’m been so excited to show ya’ll the little trinkets I whipped up for my little sister’s apartment! She’s a reader of the ol’ blog… so I wanted to wait to show you until after I’d surprised her on Christmas. She’d asked for a little color to brighten up her space, so I started with THIS tutorial for a throw pillow @ Cluck Cluck Sew. Nae’s a huge fan of owls & modern patterns so I bought a great charm pack… It’s a Hoot by Moda @ Fat Quarter Shop.

For the other throw pillow I used the rest of the charm pack and simply sewed the squares together for a “quilted look” without the quilting. I used Pleated Poppy’s Pillow Tutorial… it’s so simple!

Next I knocked off some adorable canvases from my dear friend Casey! I used scraps of fabric from the pillows, Modge Podge & a little brown paint… easy peasy!

Did anyone else make some handmade gifts this year? I had grand hopes of making a whole lot more… but with the morning sickness… maybe next year… when I have a 6 month old? Ha.

Happy Friday!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #11 & Some Great Recipe Resources!

2011-01-12T00:00:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you, but I use a whole lot of recipes, trying to get dinner on the table every night! I thought it would be great to showcase some of the amazing places in the blogosphere where you can find recipes that are SURE to please! So here we go...

1. Pioneer Woman... Need I say more? The fabulous Ree Drummond has the ultimate website for all things fabulous & delicious. Check out her Recipe Community Tasty Kitchen too! The folks there have great recipes!

2. Southern Plate ... Christy Jordan is a Southern Lady with a WHOLE lot of fail-proof, comforting recipes that are super yummy! I was introduced to her site by a good friend a while back... you'll soon be seeing some of the good eats from Southern Plate around here!

3. Bakerella... The Queen of baking herself. If you need cake pops, cupcakes or sweets in general... this is your girl.

4. Lovin from the Oven... Kim has an amazing blog full of all things sweet and scrumptious! I've got a sweet tooth the size of Texas, and this girl's got me drooling several times a week!

5. 17 & Baking... This is not only a resource for amazing baked goods... but Elissa has a definite knack for writing! She started baking as a hobby when she was 14 and now she's got a beautiful little space in the blogosphere!

6. A Sweet Pea Chef... Lacey is one talented Mama! She has turned her love of cooking into a business & still finds time to post great recipes on her blog! Check out her delicious tips & tricks!

Happy Cooking!

A Step by Step Recipe from Yours Truly!

2011-01-10T00:00:00.000-08:00

When you try to cook a homemade dinner 6 days a week… sometimes you just run out of energy to search though the piles of magazines and blogs and come up with something original. Well, I was feeling a little uninspired one night and was rummaging through my pantry. I gathered what I thought I’d be able to whip something up with… AND… surprisingly enough, a delicious little recipe was born! Here’s what I used…

Chipotle Bean Burritos by Yours Truly

EVOO
S&P
1lb ground sirloin
8 large flour tortillas
1 package of Mexican blend shredded cheese
1 large onion
1 Jalapeño
15oz can refried beans
15oz can fire roasted tomatoes with chilies

First you'll wanna give your onion & jalepeno a fine chop.

Put a couple tbsp of EVOO in your skillet over medium-high heat & let 'em cook for about 6 minutes. Season with plenty of S&P.

Throw in the ground beef...

and cook until it's nice and brown.

Next you'll add the tomatoes & give it a stir.

... and the beans. Give it another good stir and bring the mixture to a bubble.

Now it's time to assemble those burritos!

Put a good scoop of the beef and bean mixture & PLENTY of cheese!

Roll 'em up and put them seam side down in a large casserole dish.

Pour any left over filling and cheese on top and pop it under the broiler for a few minutes.

Dig in & enjoy ya'll!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #10... Some amazing reads!

2011-01-05T00:00:00.000-08:00

With the holidays over & feeling a bit "normal," I'm excited to bring back WGW's & showcase some of the amazing blogs I read while I drink my ~~3 cups of coffee~~ decaf tea every morning...

Ashley @ Under the Sycamore...

This blog is full of beautiful pictures of Ashley's adorable kiddos & life as a Mama of 4! She's a crafty diva and it's a delight to wake up and read her blog each day!

Emily @ The Anderson Family Crew...

Emily's also has 4 adorable kiddos & another on the way from Ethiopia! She's a fun Mama with such great style! Her blog always brightens my day!

Allison @ O My Family...

This is one of new favorite blogs! Allison writes about motherhood with such honesty and as I'm heading into that role, it's great to read her journey as Mama of a little one & one on the way!

There are so many more that I frequent each day, but here's a great start! You must check out these ladies out as you're sitting down with your morning cup! They won't disappoint!

I'm still here & with a recipe too!

2010-12-30T09:58:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm back from chilly Missouri, where I had a lovely Christmas spent with family and friends. Luckily, my morning sickness started subsiding as soon as we landed in the midwest! This newfound energy & the fact that food sounded GOOD for once made the trip so much more enjoyable! I certainly used that to my advantage and ate more than any 5' 2" girl should, but it was so refreshing to enjoy eating again! I'm 14 weeks today and hoping that this new energy level sticks! I'm ready to start on the many baby sewing projects I've been stock piling and maybe even cooking up some new recipes!

Landing in San Diego was quite a shocker... the weather has been unusually cool and it rained ALL day yesterday! So in honor of the weather, I thought I'd give you a good comforting, cold day recipe. I just love soup this time of year and when I say soup, I usually mean Stoup. Stoup is RR word for a cross between stew & soup, and in my book… it’s perfect. This one usually sounds pretty good to me… but after one spoonful, I have to sigh of contentment and submit fully to the goodness. Here’s what you need…

Sausage Stoup Rachael Ray (tweaked a bit)
EVOO
S&P
2 small heads of Brocollini (looks like baby broccoli) (cut into bite sized pieces)
1lb bulk mild Italian sausage
1 large onion (finely chopped)
Pinch of nutmeg
32oz chicken stock
28oz diced tomatoes
15oz can white beans (drained and rinsed)
1 1/2 cups of any short cut pasta (I use rigatoni)
Grated romano or parm (to top it off right)

First grab a pot and get some water boiling! Add the brocollini, salt & cook for 3 minutes. Drain it and set aside.

Next grab your big soup pot and cook the sausage for about 5 minutes. Make sure you give it a good crumble. Add the onion and cook for another 5 minutes or so. Season with S&P and Nutmeg. Add the chicken stock, tomatoes, and about 2 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Stir in the brocollini, white beans and get it boiling again.

Now you’ll add your pasta and cook to package directions. When the bubbly stoup is all done, serve it up in a big bowl with plenty of cheese on top.

Mmm Mm!

Breaking out the Cooky Book!

2010-12-13T06:12:00.000-08:00

Since it's that time of year... and I just went to a cookie exchange last night, I thought I'd share one of my very favorite Christmas Cookies that my Mama and I have been baking together since I was a little girl! She taught me all I know about the world of cookies, and every year we spend a day making about 5 different kinds and, of course, dipping pretzels in white chocolate too! It's one of my favorite things about the Christmas Season... time spent together in the kitchen.

First off... THIS is THE COOKY BOOK.

In our family, it's sacred. When I got married, my dear Mama tracked down a reprinted copy of the 1963 original Betty Crocker Cooky Book that we used when I was growing up. In my opinion... there are no better cookie recipes out there... and in this book live very special recipes, like this one...

Chocolate Crinkles Betty Crocker

1/2 cup veg oil
4 squares of unsweetened chocolate (melted)
2 cups of sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup powdered sugar

Grab a large bowl and beat the oil, melted chocolate, and sugar. Then add one egg at a time until it's well mixed. Add the vanilla. Sift together your flour, baking powder and salt in a seperate bowl. Then slowly add the flour mixture to the chocolate mixture. Cover the dough and chill for several hours or overnight.

When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into the powdered sugar. Roll into balls and place on a greased or non-stick baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

Makes 6 dozen of the best little chocolate cookies you'll ever have! Enjoy!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2010-12-07T19:09:00.000-08:00

It is my very favorite time of year! This year, it was a bit of a challenge to get up and at the whole decorating thing. Between the nausea, headaches, sleepless nights and general fatigue, I wasn't sure I'd get much put up... but with the help of my wonderful hubby, it's finally starting to look like Christmas around here! I'm so glad too, because it always does my heart good to sit and admire our tree and see the stockings hung by the fire!

We bought our first tree together last year. I'm a pretty sentimental person, so other than the pinecones and berries on our tree, it's mostly ornaments we've collected the last few years together and a few from my childhood tree.

We got this one on our honeymoon at Walt Disney World... I smile everytime I look at it... such happy memories!

We just love our little country cabinet used to hide the cable box and Playstation. The snowman is from my Grandma Alice. I'm loving my signs that I bought at the Queen Bee Market too!

I was in a pinecone kind of mood this year. Maybe because I miss seeing them out here in Cali... or because they remind me of winter... which we're missing out here too.

We think our stockings are pretty funny... they definitely fit our personality.

We bought them at Pottery Barn Kids... I like how sassy they are.

They rest of our cozy living room already feels pretty Christmas-y since it's red...

This is the coveted spot during cool nights! I love to curl up on the chaise!

I've been spending a whole lot of time on that couch lately... I have to say it was worth every penny.

This is Bri's chair... he claims it now lines up perfectly with the TV since we moved it for the tree... boys.

I love that I always have a bunch of candlesticks laying around... they make a quick and easy centerpiece.
Are ya'll having fun putting up all those Christmas decorations? Does it make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside or are you feeling a bit like the grinch this year? I'm linking up to Lindsey's party HERE today!

P.S. There's an awesome Giveaway Week going on over at one of my favorite blogs... Yesterday on Tuesday! Make sure you stop by!

Big News!

2010-11-30T21:38:00.000-08:00

Well folks... I told you I'd be back, and with some very exciting news too! Bri and I are so happy to announce that there will be a little Baby Edwards here by the end of next June!

Baby Edwards' first picture!

We are more than excited about this wonderful news! It's been so hard keeping it a secret until our first sonogram! All I've ever wanted was to be a wife and mommy, and I am feeling so very very blessed right now! I wake up every morning and wonder if it was all a very good dream!

I'm a little over 9 weeks along, and have had some pretty major ~~morning~~ all day sickness. I'm tired a lot, and definitely haven't felt like cooking. Most food smells & pictures make me nauseated... thus the lack of posts on recipes! Bri has been so stinkin' wonderful! He graciously stepped in to help get groceries, and clean up the house. He's been so understanding with my crazy cravings, food aversions, and general lack of energy.

These pesky first-trimester symptoms will be more than worth it when we get to hold our sweet little baby in the spring!

So until further notice ... it's saltines and Sprite for me... and a big ol' smile that won't go away! :)

Happy Thankgiving!

2010-11-24T21:21:00.000-08:00

I'm sure some of you have noticed the sudden lack of blogging from this girl here... but never fear! I'll be back at it real soon. Things have just been a little crazy around here... that ever happen to you?

In honor of the wonderful holiday we're about to celebrate tomorrow, I thought I'd take the time to reflect on what I'm thankful for. After all, God gives us so many blessings throughout the year... both big and small! So before I start getting the bird ready or whipping up those ol' casseroles...

I'm Thankful For...

My savior, Jesus Christ... who died for my sins.
My amazing husband... he's so good to me. I'm truly blessed.
My wonderful family... we're super close and I'm so blessed in that way.
My friends back home... who are there for long phone chats & when I need a quick word or prayer.
My new friends out here... we have such a great community... our family away from home.
The way God has provided for Bri & I... he's always faithful. Always.
The answered prayers recently... he's always listening. He loves me and wants good things for me.

I hope you all have a very special Thanksgiving! God bless you and yours!

P.S. Don't forget to eat some pe-can pie! It's my favorite!

While the Hubby was away...

2010-11-16T21:23:00.000-08:00

Bri went away to a Men's Retreat with our church this weekend, and while he was gone I decided I'd better keep myself busy to avoid the crazy quiet and tidyness that was our condo all weekend.
Friday night I headed to Queen Bee Market. It was AWESOME! There were so many more boothes than last year! I came away with a ton of business cards so I can start my online Christmas shopping soon!
Of course I left with a few things for myself.

Adorable signs by Julie @ Joy's Hope:

This Darling Necklace from Allora Handmade:
I bought one last year too! She's so talented.

Here's a few more shops I discovered and fell in love with...

The Paisley Mill... ADORABLE Wood & Paper gifts & Wall Hooks!
Stacey Winters... I just LOVE her Christmas Cards... and her beautiful photography!
The Lovely Letter... Beautiful handmade jewelry!
Pumpkin Pie Originals... The cutest little onesies I've ever seen... and they're organic!
Crystal B... I lover her gorgeous vintage jewelry!
All things for Baby... Teeny tiny little baby shoes... so stinkin' cute!

After my trip to QB, I headed to Whole Foods (where Bri hates going b/c it's too crowded) to get some delicious Mushroom Pizza (which Bri also hates). I also picked up a few non-nessescities that were calling my name... Belgian Chocolate Waffles & an organic version of Lucky Charms... YUM! I'm such a kid... with a huge sweet tooth.

Saturday I spent some quality time at Anthropologie with my birthday money... yay! I love that place.

How was your weekend?

My favorite place to be... My Kitchen!

2010-11-13T00:00:00.000-08:00

It’s taken this girl for-ever to get some pictures of our new condo up the ol’ blog… but slowly but surely, I’ll post’ em. Now that you’ve seen the place where all the food is gobbled up, let’s peek inside the space I spend a WHOLE lot of time… My Kitchen!

Here's what it looked like before we moved in...

And here it is full of all my kitchen things... lots of red, which I just LOVE!

It's not big... but it's cozy and it works.

The chalkboard Bri & I made... still needs something above it.

Notice my beloved red Kitchen Aid Mixer...

This is the sign above the sink (purchased HERE) We love it!

The adorable Anthro kitchen towel my sister got me for my birthday...

So there it is folks. Next up... the cozy living room. Have a great weekend!

Burger Friday #13!

2010-11-12T00:00:00.000-08:00

Have there really been THIRTEEN @ home burger nights here at our little abode? Kinda crazy how quickly time flies by. Well these little sliders I'm showin you today are just delicious. Rach's mag (which I have almost every issue of) has a great little burger spot... which lately has been my go-to for new burger ideas. At first I was a bit hesitant about combining all these ingredients... but boy oh boy do they come together beautifully!

Here's the cast...

Poblano Popper Sliders Rachael Ray

2 large Poblano chilies
Juice of a lime
S&P
EVOO
1 avocado
1/2 cup sour cream
A small bunch of cilantro (finely chopped)
1 jalapeño (seeded & finely chopped)
1lb ground sirloin
1/2 palmful cumin
1/2 palmful ground coriander
1/3 cup beer (optional)
4 slices sharp cheddar cheese (1/2 slice per slider)
1 vine riped tomato (thinly sliced)
8 slider rolls

First you'll wanna char those poblanos. You can either hold them over an open flame, using tongs for about 5 minutes, or you can turn your broiler on high, leaving the door slightly ajar and rotate them every few minutes till they've got color on all sides.When they're charred, stick 'em in a bowl with a lid and let them cool for a while.

Meanwhile, you'll mix up the yummy topping! Mash together your avacado, sour cream, cilantro, lime juice, jalepeno, and a little salt with a fork. Then set it aside.

Now grab those poblanos and use a paper towel to rub the skin off. Then seed them and throw 'em into your food processor and give it a whirl.

You'll also wanna toast up your slider rolls under the broiler!

Grab a large bowl and mix the ground sirloin, pureed poblano, cumin, coriander, S&P, and beer if you're using it. Divide the mixture into 8 even patties. Using a large skillet cook the burgers in a tbsp of EVOO for about 3-4 minutes on each side. Add the cheese on top in the last minute or so to get it melty!

To assemble, put a slice of tomato on the roll bottom, top with a patty, plenty of the avacado sauce & a roll top. They'll be gobbled up in no time!

Happy Friday Ya'll!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #9... Just Shopping Around!

2010-11-10T00:00:00.000-08:00

With birthday money in hand, and Christmas around the corner... this girl is spending a lot of time surfing the web for all kinds of goodies! Here are a few of my favorite places to browse!

Lindsey @ The Pleated Poppy Shop... How will I choose?!

Handmade petal drop necklaces, pouches, petal pushers and posy pins... some of the cutest accessories on the web!

Vanessa @ The V&Co Shop... Patterns Galore!

I just LOVE all of the patterns in Vanessa's shop! Most of them are on my sewing "to-do" list!

Jessica @ Allora Handmade... Gorgeous Rosette Accessories!

I bought an awesome grey rosette necklace last year @ Queen Bee Market, and EVERYTIME I wear it I get tons of compliments!

Lisa @ Lisa Leonard Designs... Beautiful Handmade Jewelry!

Lisa's jewelry is so incredibly stunning! Each piece is detailed and personal... and just lovely.

Speaking of shopping... this is where I'll be heading this weekend...

It'll be fabulous... and I'll spill all the juicy details later! Happy Wednesday!

Tequila-less Lime Chicken & all the Fixin’s!

2010-11-05T00:00:00.000-07:00

Being out here in Cali… Bri & I have had our fair share of DE-LICIOUS Mexican food! (It’s probably more like Tex-Mex if you get right down to it) Since we try to keep to eating out to once a week… I needed a way to get our fix on the cheap! THEN… Pioneer Woman posted the most amazing chicken recipe I’ve EVER had! It’s got a fantastic, easy marinade that keeps the chicken moist and FULL of flavor! It calls for tequila, but we don’t keep that around here, so I just omitted it… can’t imagine it tasting any better anywho! I serve it up with melted cheese, homemade pico de gallo with avocado, Mexican rice & refried black beans with jalapeños! It’s a plate full of restaurant quality food for a whole lot less!

Here’s what you need…

Tequila-less Lime Chicken Marinade:
4 chicken breasts
2 limes
A bunch of cilantro
S&P
2 jalepenos
5 Tbsp EVOO

You’ll want to let your chicken soak in the marinade for at least 24 hours, so make sure you mix it up ahead of time! Just put all the ingredients in your food processor and give it a whirl! I put my chicken in a gallon sized zip-lock bag and pour the marinade in and stick it in the fridge till I’m ready for it.

When you’re ready to grill up the chicken, here’s the rest of the cast…

AND my favorite fixin’s! (I know I cheat, but I LOVE Trader Joes!)

Tequila-less Lime Chicken Ree Drummond
with Avacado Pico de Gallo
1 lime
2 jalepenos
S&P
Small bunch of cilantro
Avocado
2 Roma tomatoes
4 marinated chicken breasts
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
Refried black beans
Mexican rice

First you’ll wanna whip up your pico. Grab a small bowl and chop up your tomatoes, jalepenos, cilantro & avocado. Squeeze the juice of one lime over it and season with S&P. Then set it aside and heat up your rice & beans. If you wanna go all the way, HERE’s Ree’s recipe for homemade Mexican rice.

Next you’ll throw your chicken on a foil-lined grill over medium-high for about 8 minutes on each side or until the juices run clear. Then put some cheese on top each breast and stick it under the broiler for a minute.

To serve it up, put a generous spoonful of the pico on the chicken (and beans too… trust me!) and a hearty helping of rice!

Happy restaurant meal at home ya’ll!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #8: How do you Decorate?

2010-11-03T00:00:00.000-07:00

This week I'm highlighting some of my favorite places to get a little inspiration when it comes to making our home nice and cozy! Now these ladies, they have got some talent... that's for sure! I'm always humbled when I stop by their beautiful blogs...

Dee @ Farmhouse Country Style: Her Beautiful Home!

You simply MUST check out her Farmhouse! Every picture's got me droolin'! Her kitchen is exactly what I want mine to look like someday!

Liz @ Hoosier Handmade: Fall Mantle & Hoosier Cabinet!

Hoosier Handmade isn't just full of adorable ways to decorate for every season, Liz is THE Cupcake Lady... when you need a sugar fix, head on over there... you won't be dissapointed!

Jolie @ Shopping Candy: Amazing Room Transformations!

This girl has done a fantastic job with her first house! Her style is beautiful... every picture looks like something out of a Pottery Barn catalog!

Jessica @ Jessica Leigh: Beautiful Mantle & Patio area!

This blog is just plain pretty! Wonderful pictures, colorful and inviting decor, and a heart for the Lord! You'll love what you find!

Elizabeth @ Blue Clear Sky: Dining & Family Rooms!

Elizabeth's home looks so warm and inviting! I'd love to sit in that gorgeous dining room for a meal, or in her beautiful family room! She has a knack for decorating that's for SURE!

Rhoda @ Southern Hospitality: Cozy Den & Porch!

Southern Hospitality is the perfect name for Rhoda's blog! Every room in her home is decorated perfectly right down to the last detail! You're sure to feel a nice warm welcome if you stop by!

I love a home with Pottery Barn furniture, a mix of old and found items, and lots of warm colors, giving it a cozy feel. Now that we've peeked into these ladies' homes, how do you make your's cozy? Where do you get your inspiration?

Stoup for a Cool Fall Day!

2010-11-01T00:00:00.000-07:00

You know those days where you just wanna curl up with a good book, or crawl under a cozy quilt, put on a good movie and drink hot chocolate? Well, since the grey, wet and gloomy days here in So Cal are few and far between… I’ve been soakin’ up the crazy weather we’ve had the last few weeks! When I was a kiddo, on those cold dreary days, my Mama always made tomato soup & grilled cheese sandwiches. This little meal is Bri and I’s version of that combination. Here’s what you need…

Oops... forgot the Chicken Stock...Sneaky stock in a box!

Salsa Stoup & Cheese Quesadillas Rachael Ray

Canola Oil

S&P

2 or 3 jalapenos (seeded & finely chopped)
1 green bell pepper (seeded and chopped)
1 large onion (finely chopped)
3 ribs celery (finely chopped… getting the picture?)
28oz stewed tomatoes (diced works fine if you have ‘em)
14oz can crushed tomatoes (or tomato sauce)
2 cups chicken stock (a little less if you like your stoup more stewish)
Small bunch of cilantro (finely chopped)
Dash of hot sauce

For the Quesadillas:
2 tbsp canola oil
4 flour/whole wheat tortillas (or one per person)
1 cup shredded Cheddar
1 cup shredded Pepper Jack

First grab your big ol’ soup pot. Add a couple tbsp of canola oil over medium-high heat. Cook the jalapenos, bell pepper, onions, and celery for about 10 minutes until their nice and soft. Then add the crushed & stewed tomatoes and stock and bring it to a bubble. I usually let it cook for about 10-15 minutes to let the flavors come together. Season it with S&P & a dash of hot sauce. Stir in the cilantro right before stirring.

To make the easy peasy quesadillas, Paint one side of a tortilla with canola oil and put it oil side down on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle both Cheddar & Pepper Jack cheese liberally and then put another tortilla on top and brush it with oil as well. Repeat this process until you’ve made enough quesadillas for everyone! Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. A little tip…I usually flip ‘em with a pancake spatula half way through, and then cut them with a pizza cutter when their done.

Serve up the stoup with a couple wedges of cheesy quesadilla and Enjoy!

Just Doin’ Some Fall Baking…

2010-10-30T00:00:00.000-07:00

I just love how our house smells this time of year… like pumpkins and nutmeg, apples and cinnamon… Mmm. Bri and I hosted our Life Group the other night and I was just thrilled to get any excuse to whip up some yummy baked goodness. These are some special family recipes that make me feel all warm inside. I hope you’ll enjoy ‘em too!

First up is my great grandma’s recipe for the classic fall treat, Pumpkin Bread. It’s moist and pumpkiny with a hint of cinnamon! Here’s what you need…

Sorry ... I love to bake at night which makes for not so pretty pictures.

Great Grandma Hale’s Pumpkin Bread
4 eggs
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 Tsp baking soda
3/4 cup canola oil
2 Tsp cinnamon
15oz pumpkin

Grab a small bowl and beat your eggs. Then add sugar and oil and mix well.
Mix the dry ingredients and add to previous mixture. Add pumpkin, mixing well.
Pour batter into greased and floured aluminum pans. (4 small or 3 regular size)
Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes until centers seem to bounce back when touched.

HINT: to keep loaves moist -- wrap in saran wrap when hot. (As soon as you take them out of the aluminum pans.)

This next recipe came from a lady named Katy Clay. She owned an incredible little tea room called "Katy's Corner" in a Victorian Cottage near the famous Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. My Mama & Daddy bought her recipe book in 1982 on a weekend trip together. My Mama still raves about how good the food was and she's been makin' this Apple Cake ever since! Here's the yummy ingredients...

Marmie's Apple Cake Katy Clay
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. vanilla
4 cups peeled, finely chopped apples (about 4 average size apples)

First, cream the shortening and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time and beat well. Grab another bowl and mix dry ingredients, then add them slowly to the creamed mixture. The batter will be very stiff at this point! Add the apples & vanilla and mix it well!

Pour your batter into greased and floured 9" x 12" cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes.

After the cake cools completely, sprinkle powedered sugar on top and serve!

Happy Fall! Have a great weekend!

Burger Friday and a Burrito?

2010-10-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

Rach has done it again... this one shocked me with how stinkin' good it is! Who would have thought that a beef and bean burrito with rice and cheese could be just as good... if not better on a bun?! You must try this! Here's what you need...

Beef 'n' Bean Burrito Burger Rachael Ray
with Guacamole
1 pound ground beef sirloin
15oz can black beans (drained & rinsed)
1/2 cup leftover white rice
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 1/2 Tsp cumin
1 1/2 Tsp coriander
EVOO
S&P
4 hamburger buns
4 leaves lettuce
1 large tomato, sliced
4 slices cheddar cheese
For the Guacamole:
1 Roma tomato
1 jalepeno
juice of a lime
small bunch of cilantro
2 ripe avacados
oregano
garlic powder
S&P

First up...HERE's my recipe for the Guacamole. You won't need a very big batch (unless you've got some extra chips laying around!)

If you don't have some leftover rice laying around, you'll need to whip some up.

Now, grab a large bowl and mix the beef, rice, beans, cumin, chili powder, coriander, S&P. This will make four large patties!

Get a couple Tbsp of EVOO in a large skillet over medium-high heat. You'll cook the burgers for about 6 minutes on each side, adding the sliced cheddar in the last minute or so.

Meanwhile, throw the buns under the broiler to get 'em toasty.

To assemble these bad boys, put some lettuce and tomato on the bottom bun, then the cheesy burrito burger, and a hearty helping of guacamole.

Enjoy!

Whatcha Got Wednesday #7 & More Fall Goodies…

2010-10-27T00:00:00.000-07:00

I don’t know about ya’ll, but I’ve been baking up a fall frenzy over here! It’s been nice and cool and little bit grey here in So Cal and I’m ready for hot chocolate every night and some sort of pumpkin baked goodie! I definitely went to Starbucks the other day for a non-fat, sugar free latte… and ended up with a rather large Pumpkin Spice Latte AND a Pumpkin Cream-Cheese Muffin too! Oh geez.

So in order to help you all blow your diets too….

Mary @ Delightful Bitefuls: S’more Cookie Bars!

Nothin' says fall like S'mores around a bon fire... and these can be made inside where it's nice and cozy... but with all the gooey marshmellowey goodness!

Annie @ Annie’s Eats: Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins!

My Starbucks weakness now has a recipe to go along with it! THANK YOU Annie!

Abby @ Confabulation in the Kitchen: Homemade Fall Oreos!

My Daddy just LOVES Oreos... and how fun are these Fall cuties?! I bet they're a whole lot better than the store bought ones!

Amy @ The Idea Room: Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes!

I have such a sweet tooth in the morning (well all day really) but Bri and I are definitely fans of big Saturday morning breakfast! We're sure excited to try out these pancakes!

Tracy @ Sugarcrafter: Apple Cider Doughnut Holes!

Mmm mm! Homemade doughnut holes with fallish twist?! Count this girl IN!

Happy Eating!

Country Music & Good Friends…

2010-10-23T19:14:00.000-07:00

This was the Summer of Country Music out here in Cali and boy oh boy was this girl HAPPY! You’ll have to excuse the blurry pictures… Who loves cheap seats like we do? Amen?!

On our way to see Brad Paisley & Justin Moore!

Besides getting to go to THREE concerts with some of my FAVORITE artists, I got to spend some time with the amazing girl up there … Jes. God definitely put her in my life at a point when I was ready to tuck tail and RUN back to Missouri! She has been not only a friend when I needed one, but an amazing, encouraging, Godly woman! Boy did I strike gold when Brian and I signed up for Life Group at Our Church out here in Cali! He knew just what I needed (always does) and Jes has been just that!

Brad. Amazing. Guitar skills = WOW.

Our personal Country Concert Series started with Brad… I’d seen him before, but he never fails to amaze me with his guitar playing! Justin Moore opened for him and he blew our socks off too! We brought the hubbies along for this one… but when it came time for Carrie and Rascal Flatts… they were OUT.

Carrie. That girl's got style! Rockin' a tux, a GORGEOUS skirt, & flyin' over the audience in a truck!

I have loved Carrie Underwood since her days on American Idol! (Yes… don’t judge me. I sometimes watch that show.) I brought a picture of her to the salon the day I got married so my hair would look Carrie-fabulous! Well…her concert was nothing short of breathtaking! From coming up and out of the middle of the stage with fabulous outfits, swinging on a big tree swing, flying over the audience on her truck, and her crystal clear voice, I was in heaven. That girl can SING! Jes & I had a great time! We especially liked Billy Currington opening for her! Any other ladies a fan of his?

Joe Don, Gary, & Jay Rockin' Out!

The very next day, us crazy girls headed for the Rascal Flatts tour! Those boys never let me down! I’ve seen ‘em before… but I always forget just how many hits they’ve had! Every song is a blast to sing along with!

What a great way to have some fun out here in Cali! I feel so blessed to get to get to step back into my Midwest shoes and enjoy some good ol’ Country Music!