Toot Toot!

Guess I was just ahead of the curve. Look what was posted today on Style Me Pretty:

http://www.stylemepretty.com/2009/05/28/dessert-buffet-by-amy-atlas/


How awesome!! Style Me Pretty is amazing website for all those that are in the midst of planning of wedding or party for that matter. I used to read this blog every day when I was planning mine and totally drool over all the amazing pictures, ideas, and wedding related things.

That reminds me, my wedding was suppossed to be featured in a wedding magazine, but this stupid bride was too lazy to fill out the questionnaire and send the editor the pictures. So dumb!! I still don't even have my wedding albumn completed. What is wrong with me?! I think after planning for 1.5 years, I'm just wedding-out. Unless that is until Anne get's engaged. Then it's on! :) No pressure. hehehe

T-minus 2 days now. Something special arrived today at work and I can't wait to unveil it on Saturday.

Shout Out!

Just wanted to give a little shout out to my friend Anne and the amazing blog she's putting together for Amy Atlas events (http://www.amyatlas.blogspot.com/).

If it were 8 months ago and I was in the midst of planning my wedding, I certainly would be trying to hire Amy Atlas. Or if not hire her, certainly trying to imitate her designs and ideas (sorry, I know that's plagiarism, but I didn't get married in NYC or anywhere near NYC). If you live in the NYC Metro area and are planning a wedding, party, baptism, bar mitzvah, or anything of the like, you must check out her website. One look at these goodies and you're sure to swoon.

Big shout out to the Cotton Candy Girl! :)

The Weekend Roundup

The weekend was awesome! Why the heck don't we have 3-day weekends more often? I would be a much more productive, happy person if only I could have more 3 day weekend. Mr. President, are you hearing me? You really need to sign this into law. I imagine there would be a whole lot less crime if people didn't have to work so much.

Anyway, I won't totally bore you with everything we did this past weekend, so I'll just give you a brief synopsis:

1. Had dinner Friday night in Shirlington at Aladins. Love, Love, Love their hummos chicken plate. Came home to another Mabel chewing disaster. Will explain later.
2. Slept in A LOT. I've been fighting some kind of something since last weekend and I definitely think the combination of vitamins, sleep, and water this weekend has helped immensely.
3. Went to Westwood to the pool. Twice. But B only lasted 10 minutes the second time. I didn't bring enough "toys"with me to keep him occupied. Yes, I know he sounds like a 5 year old. I assure you, he will be 34 this year.
4. Had dinner and drinks in DC with K&S (our friends/neighbors) and their house guests. Amazingly surprised by the food at Fados! Will definitely be returning soon for more corn beef and cabbage. And had a great time hanging out at Rocket Bar. Unfortunately, unable to snag the skee ball or a shuffle board table. Next time.
5. Slept some more. B golfed while I slept.
6. Puppy play date!! More below. CUTENESS ALERT! DO NOT MISS THE PICTURES BELOW!
7. Re-organized our bedroom by getting rid of a dresser. Looks fantastic now and a whole lot less cluttered. Although I did have to give up 7 whole dresser drawers. it was tragic. but i'm getting over it. And returned a whole bunch of crap to Pottery Barn and Home Goods we didn't need. Felt good about that.
8. More hanging out with our neighbors and our new friend/other neighbor, the Cop. This time outside on the sidewalk between our condos. It was such a beautiful night. B claims, he's back into red wine now. Mabel and Taurie played the entire time with us outside. Also adorable.
9. Italian Store. pizza. subs. tiramisu. Need I say more?
10. Afternoon margaritas and Mexican at Guapos. What could be better than a margarita at 2 PM on your day off?! Nothing.
11. And managed to bake some banana strusell muffins.

All-in-all a pretty freakin' fantastic weekend. Couldn't have asked for a better weekend. And next weekend should prove to be much of the same. T minus 5 days until the big anniversary surprise! :)

Without further ado, here is the cuteness I promised earlier. The dog that looks like Mabel is her Mom, Phoebe. Mabe; and Phoebe were adopted the same day from A Forever Home (we exchange email info. with her parents) and her Mom, Margaret put together the puppy play date. We got together at her flower shop, Gathered Stems, in McLean. She has a fantastic grassy area behind her shop for the pups to play.

Phoebe is about 1.5 to 2 years old and it's thought that this is her second liter. She was rescued out of a West Virginia kill shelter when she was pregnant with Mabel and her six other pups. The pups were born in a foster home and than separated from Phoebe after a few weeks. The black and white dog is one of Mabel's sisters, Midge. Midge was adopted first and was the runt of the liter. She has such a different coat than Mabel, but has a similar body shape and the same eyes. All three of them instantly bonded on Sunday and spent 2 hours running, rolling, and frolicking around. With some humping threw in between (phoebe really took to mabel!). We can't wait until the next puppy play date and to hopefully meet more of Mabel's brothers and sisters.

Mabel's in front and Phoebe's sitting in back.

Midge's Mom and Dad gave Mabel a new toy. She LOVES it and has been playing with it constantly ever since!

Midge came to say hi to me! She's super sweet and super friendly. Mabel didn't get this particular trait. She's still afraid of strangers.

Hope you all had a happy Memorial Day and took some time to reflect on and remember all the service men and women who have put and are currently putting their lives on the line to protect the freedom's that we as Americans enjoy every single day. Can't thank you all enough for what you have and continue to sacrifice for us.

RueLaLa I Heart You

I'm a slave to my computer between the hours of 11AM and 12:15ish. Why? Well, it's because RueLaLa and Hautelook opens it's boutiques at 11AM EST and Gilt starts at noon EST. Duh.

All three of those sites are invitation only fashion and luxury brand sales at prices up to 70% off retail. AMAZING! I originally heard about RueLaLa on DC101 and Elliot in the Morning. Elliot was complaining about his wife constantly buying things on RueLaLa. As soon as I got into the office that morning, I immediately had to find out what the big deal was. A few days later, I had my invitation and I was off to the races. Soon, I had invited all the girls in the office and it became an obsession.

Soon after, I also joined Gilt and Hautelook. I also belong to Ideeli, but don't frequent that one as much.

A few weeks ago, RueLaLa had a Lilly Pulitzer sale. I don't normally like Lilly's stuff. It's just a little too loud for me I guess. But they had this super adorable navy, nautical-themed tunic dress that I knew would be perfect for work, shopping, and wearing out to dinner. And I have the perfect straw wedges to go with it. So I quickly snagged one up! You have to be quick on all these sites, because stuff goes really really fast. I still haven't been able to snag anything quick enough on Gilt!

It arrived on Monday night and lucky me, it fits like a glove! :) Here are some pictures of my newest and most favorite purchase thus far on RueLaLa (it even has little pockets on the front!)

Unfortunately, I wasn't so lucky with my aforementioned straw wedges. Mabel got into the closet and felt that Mom didn't need those shoes anymore. Here's evidence of the closet break-in (this wasn't the only pair she ruined that day mind you)
This one actually isn't that bad compared to the other shoes she's eaten, but I'm still not sure if it's fixable. Hopefully it's nothing a little super glue can't fix! :)

If you're interested in receiving an invitation to either RueLaLa, Hautelook, Gilt, or Ideeli, email me @ lschwartz531@gmail.com and I'll email you back an invitaiton with an access code. Each one sells men's, women's, and children's clothes, accessories, and jewelry, and also has home goods every once in awhile.


Happy Shopping!

Puppies Behind Bars

It's no secret, I L-O-V-E Oprah. I would give my left arm to go to Chicago to see her show. B thinks she's brainwashed me. But he clearly just doesn't understand her show. He thinks it's all about "women's topics" like bras and clothes and losing weight and yada yada yada. But what he doesn't understand is that she does have really interesting and eye opening topics on her show that I otherwise would have known nothing about had I not watched her show!

I actually TiVo Oprah everyday so I'm able to see every single episode. YEAH! But I have to watch them when B's not at home. Usually on a weekend morning when he's at work. But occasionally, he'll watch an episode with me. Especially if I see one that I think he'll be interested in then I make him sit down and watch it. Like last week's episode about Amazing Animals.

I was sitting on the couch Saturday morning with Mabel still in my pj's eating breakfast when I turned it on. The first story of the episode was with Glen Close sharing her experience with Puppies Behind Bars, an organization that I had never heard about before. In a nutshell, prisoners in an up-state New York prison are given 8-week old puppies to take care of and train so that the puppies can be service dogs for injured soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. The puppies not only provide an amazing service to the wounded soldiers, but they help the prisoners by providing unconditional love and support and give them a purpose for leading a better life.

It truly was a remarkable story. And as I was sitting with Mabel on the couch watching this, I couldn't help but cry thinking about the emotional bond that my puppy has provided me. The love I have her and the unconditional love she's provided me is something I can't even describe. And watching the interaction between the prisoners and puppies makes you realize that they're humans too. Even though they've done horrible things in their past, they're just like you and me. They want to feel loved and needed. And the puppies provide that love; unconditionally!

It's amazing the healing power that animals provide. And in this case the healing power is two-fold. Not only are the prisoner's healed in a way, but so are the soldiers.

You can read more about Puppies Behind Bars and donate to this amazing cause @ http://www.puppiesbehindbars.org/

And $2 from every sale of the Chewy Shoe goes to help fund the training for these amazing pups. Log on to http://www.fetchdog.com/ and purchase one now! I bought mine before the episode was even over! :) Better get your chew toy before they're gone!

Things I Did This Weekend

1. Made a new dinner recipe on Friday night courtesy of Pioneer Woman; Baked Lemon Pasta. Such a simple, delicious recipe and B loved it. Next time, I think I'll add some grilled shrimp for a little extra kick. *photo courtesy of pioneer woman

2. Went to Home Goods looking for a rug and pictures for the guest bath. Found three beach-themed shadow boxes that I thought would be perfect. Not so much. All three will be going back. Along with the runner I bought for our entryway.

3. Dinner and a movie Saturday night. B&I went back to Astor for dinner (B had the souvlaki and i had the gyro. Both amazing!) and saw Angels & Demons. B slept through the first half. I enjoyed it but it was super predictable. Especially if you've read both of Dan Brown's books.

While we were sitting in the theater waiting for the movie to start, we checked out Rotten Tomatoes' review (on my new super cool toy). The movie has a 39% Tomotometer. Out of 193 total reviews, 118 are rotten and only 75 fresh. Not good. Should have snuck out at that point and saw this instead.

At least Chris Pine would have provided some eye candy :)

4. Baked a new recipe I got from King Arthur Flour's Baker's Banter; Cheese and Sausage Biscuits.

It was a total flop. I don't think was enough liquid in the dough, so my biscuits fell apart and then burned in the oven. Such a disappointment. I think I might call their Bakers' Hotline and find out what happened and try again next weekend. BTW, how cool is it that they have a baking helpline?!

My friend AC gave me a King Arthur Flour cookbook a few years ago and I've been hooked on them ever since. Do yourself a favor and read their blog and sign up for their catalog. They have the most amazing things in it!!

5. Went out to Leesburg to the outlets. B needed new polo shirts and dress shoes. We definitely accomplished task #1 at Lacoste, but failed on #2. Although the highlight of the trip was finally getting a living room rug. Crate and Barrel was the only store to carry rugs in 4'x6' and we found the perfect one! YEAH!

Rain, Rain Go Away

All I want to do this weekend is sit at the pool (even though this bod is not beach bod ready in the least bit). That's all I'm asking for. Just some face time with good ol' Mister Sun.

But it looks like, Mister Sun is going to disappoint me again. :( The Arlington weather forecast for Saturday:

Clouds and sun with a thundershower, mainly later; humid.

And Sunday.

Rainy times in the morning; otherwise, mostly cloudy, breezy and not as warm.

Come on! These pasty-white limbs need some sun before the Prom on June 6th!!

Yes, you heard me right. I'm going to the Prom. This time I'll have a better date, a better dress, and I won't be sober. hehe. Westwood is throwing an "adult" prom on the 6th and it sounds like an awesome time. They're closing the restaurant that night and turning it into an all night adult party including food, booze, a DJ (hopefully a good one), and even late-night karaoke!

B of course will wear his tux, but the verdict is still out on what I'm going to wear. I have a new, long black dress I purchased on super sale this winter knowing we have a black tie wedding this summer that I might wear, but I might also wear a short, cocktail dress. I love the idea of wearing a long dress since I rarely get to wear one, but I just don't think they're very flattering on me. Maybe I'll have to have B take some pics for me so I can see how it really looks.

Because I've got to good in that Prom picture! Maybe if I'm lucky, I'll be crowned Prom Queen this time around. Oh, that reminds me, I better order a boutonniere for my date!! :)

Couldn't Help But Over Hear

Depending on your flight path coming into and out of Washington National airport, you can see some really spectacular views of Washington, DC. Here's some of what you can see when taking off from National.

*photo courtesy of stevesheriw via flickr

While landing today at National, I couldn't help but overhear a woman behind me say to the rest of her family traveling with her, "Look, there's the State Capital!"

I did a sort of double-take, looking over at the older gentleman across the aisle from me, both of us saying to each other (without actually saying anything at all), "Did she just really say that?!"

I was so close to turning around and saying to her, "ma'am, that's our Nation's Capital. And by the way, D.C. isn't a State."

But I thought better of it, and just kept my mouth shut.

Down in the Bayou

I've been down in Louisiana for the past two days on business. And believe it or not, I haven't been to Louisiana before! In total, I'll only get to spend about 48 hours here in LA (and none of that in New Orleans unfortunately), but here's what I've learned about Louisiana in that short time:

1. It's really humid


2. They have crazy, scary thunderstorms that come out of no where


3. There's some great outlet shopping in Gonzales (sorry hunny)


4. It's really hot


5. There's a whole Creole culture and language


6. Shrimp po-boys rock


7. It's really frickin' HUMID!! I can't image what it felt like here when Katrina hit in August with no air conditioning. It must have been absolutely brutal.

I have been staying and working in Gonzales, LA, which is about half-way between Baton Rouge and New Orleans (ok, maybe a little closer to Baton Rouge). Gonazales is known for their jambalaya..."The Jambalaya Capital of the World" actually. And of course with my luck, I missed their jambalaya festival by a week (happened in paris as well); May 21st - May 23rd.

Hopefully next time I get back down to the LA Gulf region, I'll not only get to experience New Orleans but also get some kickin' jambalaya!!

Sunday Funday

The weather on Sunday (Mother’s Day) turned out to be even better than Saturday. It was that perfect weather where you find yourself saying, “I wish it was like this everyday!” We spent the morning with B’s Mom and Dad at brunch for Mother’s Day. We took them to Chef Geoff’s Downtown at Pennsylvania and 13th. They put on a great brunch and the food was great. I don’t know how they did it, but my eggs (with spinach, mushrooms, and roasted tomatoes…sounds the pizza on Friday night, huh?) were so flavorful, they didn’t need salt or pepper. I’m cooking-challenged when it comes to eggs for some reason, but I love eggs, so I’m a huge fan of brunch. Oh and they also make a killer bloody marry if you’re a bloody marry fan!

After brunch we took Mabel down to the dog park on Shirlington with our neighbors K&S and their cute beagle-mix, Tori. Tori and Mabel have become thick as thieves the past couple of weeks! Mabel wines and wines when she hears Tori outside until we cave and let her out to play. These two could literally pounce and play with each other for hours (I know because yesterday they did!).

So we all headed down to the dog park and spent a good hour in the stream with the pups playing with sticks and watching them frolic in the water. After the dogs had their fun, us adults headed to Capital City Brewery (with dogs in tow) for some fun of our own. We had a couple of beers (B some white wine like the dork that he is) and some more food (a definite theme for our day) and generally just had a great time chatting and enjoying the sun. And I have to say, the pups did great. It took them a little bit to settle in under the table, and with a few pieces of soft pretzel and some licks of hummus and melted cheese, they did great!

After a few drinks in Shirlington, we decided to move “the party” back to the lawn between our condos. There we continued to soak up the sun, chatting, and having another beer (or two) while the pups ran and chased each other all over the place. It was while we were sitting outside here that we decided, let’s have Mexican and margaritas for dinner! So around 7PM we headed back down to Shirlington (sans Mabel and Tori).

As we were walking back down to Shirlington we noticed some police activity in the dog park. And part of the dog park where there’s access down into the stream was all cordoned off with yellow police tape. Plus we counted four (or five...I can’t remember) cops in the park, one with a camera, and a black case which looked like some kind of crime scene investigation “pack.” And one guy was down at the water, without any shoes on and no dog, talking to one of the cops. It was so bizarre! What the heck could have happened that would have prompted all that police activity?

Immediately we thought that maybe someone’s dog was killed by another dog. Or maybe there was a fight between two dog owners. Or maybe someone fell or was pushed down the rocks towards the water and either died or was really hurt. Who knew?!

So K called the non-emergency police number to see if we could get any additional information. He used the disguise that we had taken our dogs to the park earlier in the day and they were in the water, and we were concerned that maybe whatever happened (in the water) could affect our dogs. All K got from the police department was that the police were called to assist the fire department and that she didn’t have any other information. More like she couldn’t share the information with us “concerned citizens.”

So at this moment I have no idea what happened yesterday at the Shirlington dog park. But let me tell you, it didn’t look good. K’s on the trail to track down the info., so when I know more, I’ll definitely let you know!

Oh and in case you’re wondering, the Mexican was awesome. As it is every time we eat at Guapo’s. The best Mexican restaurant this side of Mexico! Hhhmmmm….tacos el paso, margaritas, chips and salsa, tacos al carbon, margaritas, more chips and salsa (just had to wipe drool off my key board). I heart you Guapo’s!

All in all we had a fantastic weekend filled with good food (and lots of it), good friends, good drinks, family, and adorable pups!

p.s. If you're interested in learning more about Shirlington, check out the Village's website at www.villageatshirlington.com or the blog at http://shirlingtonv.blogspot.com/.

Best Day of the Week

Saturday was the kind of weather that makes you want to sit outside all day and night and chow down on foods like hot dogs, hamburgers, crabs and beer. B&I had our hearts set all day on enjoying corn on the cob, crabs, peel-and-eat shrimp, and beer. But when it came time for dinner the sky wasn’t looking so good (again) and crabs are definitely outside activity! So we decided to save that idea for another day and go to Plan B.

We drive by this little Mediterranean café (Astor) all the time on our way into Clarendon and always want to stop. So Saturday we finally went. They have a menu packed full of all our favorite Mediterranean foods; baba ghanooj, fava, hummus, tabouli, gyros, lamb kabobs, etc. Every since we got back from Greece, B&I can’t get enough of this cuisine!! You order at the counter and then take a seat either in the cute café or outside on the covered patio. We ordered two glasses of white wine (an essential for any “greek” meal) and the baba ghanooj to start. And for our “main course” we each got the mixed kabob consisting of Greek salad or rice and a kabob of lamb, beef, chicken, and kufta.

Our kabobs were amazing as was the Greek salad. The salad had beets in it and although I don’t normally like or eat beets, they were tasty. And the different kabob meats were so tender and delicious. I even enjoyed the chicken which I don’t normally like. I would say though that the baba ghanooj definitely wasn’t the best I’ve ever had. Next time we’ll go with the fava or hummus.

Everything in glass enclosed cases inside the café looked amazing as did everything that came out of the kitchen. Especially the lamb shank! But the guy behind the counter said the pizza is the way to go.

Astor Café is definitely at the top off my list for a great place to go for good, fairly inexpensive food with a great atmosphere. The outside patio was the perfect place to spend an evening chatting with my hubby and reminiscing about our Mediterranean adventures!

Check out Astor's review on Yelp and a recent article in the Washington Post.

TV Scam

Also had to replace our bedroom TV Friday night. We purchased a 27” TV/DVD Combo Insignia TV (Best Buy’s “generic” TV brand) for our bedroom during the after-Christmas-sales in 2007. The TV was a great price and was the perfect size for our bedroom (not the 52” inch one we previously had). The TV was working great until last month when the picture spontaneously went black. There was sound, but no picture.

I called Insignia and they told me that if you unplug it from the wall, it will reset to the TV’s factory settings and it should fix itself. I did that and it worked (after leaving it unplugged for a good 15 minutes), but it wasn’t a long-term fix as it still would spontaneously go black while we were watching TV in bed at night.

So I called Geek Squad to make an appointment to see if they could fix it. But when Geek Squad came a calling we learned that it would $150 just for them to show up and diagnose the issue and then an additional $50 for every half hour they were there (something crazy like that!!). The Geek Squad guy advised us that since the TV didn’t cost that much to begin with, we’d be better off just buying a new one.

While looking for someone online to repair the TV, I also found some web chatter about these Insignia TVs. Turns out we’re not the only one who has had this issue. Seems like these TV’s are made to last about a year and then once it’s out of warranty, the TV dies.

So not only did we buy a TV that only lasted about a year, we had to buy a new one to replace it, and after what happened with the Insignia TV, we got suckered into buying the extended warranty for our new TV. What a frickin’ scam!!

T.G.I.F.

DISCLAIMER: I have a multiple blog postings from the weekend, but didn’t get a chance to post anything during the actual weekend, so I’m going to post a few times today instead. I’m actually writing this post en route to New Orleans for work. Writing these posts is a good way to take my mind of the sub-zero temps on my flight.

Friday night B&I wanted to go out to dinner and tossed around a few different ideas, but I was in the mood for pizza; good pizza. Not Dominos or Papa Johns, but something really good. So we decided to go to Rustico.

Rustico is in Alexandria, but not Old Town. It’s sort of an odd locale, but every time we’ve been there, it’s been slammed! I called ahead on our way, and we got there we had the options of sitting outside, inside, or the chef’s table. Outside would have been really nice, but the sky was looking pretty grey and with our luck, it would pour and there wouldn’t be anywhere for us to sit inside. So we chose the chef’s table instead. The chef’s table at Rustico is actually a bar area (with 5 seats) that overlooks the kitchen. During certain nights of the week you can reserve a seat at this area and learn about all the ingredients that go into their foods and beers. It’s a really cool idea and definitely something I’d like to do one night.

One of the great things about Rustico aside from their great food is the beer menu. I don’t how many beers they have on the menu, but I’d day it’s at least 100. I got a German pilsner and B had a Peroni. Next time though, I really want to the Pennsylvania-themed bucket of beers!!

We ordered the tuna tartare as an appetizer (which had the most amazing homemade rustic potato chips on top) and each had the hearts of romaine and roasted tomato salad. I had ordered this the last time we were there but it was during the “tomato scare” last summer so didn’t get to experience how great it was. Then we split a pizza.

We ordered the wild mushroom pizza. It has mushrooms, spinach, mozzarella, and goat cheese. And it was FANTASTIC! But sitting there watching everything come out of the kitchen that night, I can definitely say that everything looked fantastic. What I think is so great about the food, is that it’s simple food with simple ingredients, but put together in way that’s “gourmet” but not pretentious. It’s definitely a winner of a place and I can see why it’s packed every night we’ve been there. Because who doesn’t like good beer and good pizza?!!

Leaving On a Jet Plane...

Just booked a little vacation down to West Palm Beach for September. So excited!! I know, I know, we're a little crazy booking a trip down to Florida during the heart of hurricane season, but flights were cheap and it's really the only time we can get away between now and October. And you know, once football (err, college football) season starts, there's no traveling unless it's to State College (or Columbia, I guess. hehe). Our good friends C&T, who moved away sadly in December, are going to join us and we couldn't be more excited.

The best part about the whole thing...my flight was free (finally cashed in some of my precious frequent flyer miles...one big perk of this job) and of course accommodations are free thanks to my in-laws! They have a great little condo in PGA National. It's a 1-minute walk to the pool and a 10-minute walk to PGA National Resort. And oh how I've missed Delray Beach. Can't wait to dine along Atlantic Avenue!!

Sounds like heaven. Maybe we can trade them our condo for their's? :)

Teamwork!

Just got off a conference call with my hubby. We've been trying to decide on whether or not to go with my company's health insurance or whether to switch to his and had a conference call with someone from his HR department to kind of describe all our different options.

We weren't on the phone very long, maybe 15 minutes tops, but we were able to come to a unanonymous decision. It feels so good when we make decisions together and when we both completely agree on something 100%. There was no, "well I think we should do this one," "but I like this one." We BOTH agreed on the same thing at the same time.

It's not a miracle, because it's definitely happened before, but I can't help but smile when it does. Ah, family bonding over the phone is magical! :) hehe

Unlikely Find

One of my favorite cook books right now is Donna Hay's Modern Classics, Book 1. I say it's an unlikely find because I picked this cookbook up years ago on the super clearance shelf at my local book conglomerate (aka Barnes & Noble) when I didn't really cook anything except casseroles. I schlepped this book with me from State College to York to my apartment in Tysons to Arlington then to Annandale (during the flood period) and then back again to Arlington. All the while not even cracking open the book until last summer when I was looking for a good ribs recipe.

But after making the American-style Ribs, I fell in love with this cookbook. The ribs are my definite go-to recipe when we're at the beach with B's family or anytime during the Summer. The marinade is so easy (approx. 8 pantry staple ingredients) and so yummy. Honestly, I make ribs anytime I see them at the grocery store on sale. I've made them with beef and pork ribs, and pork ribs are definitely the way to go. I even tried them last night with country style pork ribs. But wouldn't really recommend it. They're very fatty! And I think there's just something weird about eating ribs with no bone.

The other thing I love about her cookbook are the pictures. There's practically a picture for every recipe. I don't know why, but I feel much more confident using a recipe for the first time if there's a picture involved! I also like that there are some instructional guides within the book. Like how to clean, stuff, and tie a turkey or chicken. And her recipes are simple yet gourmet and all have been very tasty.

Some other recipes I've tried from this book include babaganoush, french onion soup, potato rossette's, garlic prawns, and some others that I can't think of right now. But I'm dying to try her souffle's and quiche recipes. But B's not really a quiche kind of guy :)

p.s. Saw that Amazon now has a newer version of the Kindle...the Kindle DX. I've been dying to get a Kindle and secretly hoping B will get it for me for our anniversary...the new modern paper gift!! So if you could, drop a couple of hints to him for me! :)

Semi-Homemade with Blondie

I usually try to cook a homemade meal Monday through Thursday each week. Usually by the time Thursday rolls around, I'm ready for a break from the kitchen and dishes and we either go out, order take-out, or have sandwiches for dinner. But I have now found my favorite 10-minute meal! I was so excited by the ease and taste I almost called my sister immediately to tell her she needs to make this for her kids.

So here's my newest "concoction:"

1 bag of Contessa Shrimp Stir Fry

Flour tortillas

Brown Rice (preferably the microwave cups)

Fresh salsa (not the canned or jar kind, I mean the real stuff)

Cheddar Cheese

Prepare the shrimp stir-fry according to the back of the package. When it's almost finished, microwave the rice and warm the tortillas. When it's all ready fill your "burrito" with the rice and shrimp stir-fry topping it with some salsa and freshly graded cheddar cheese. And voila' a super tasty (low-cal) 10-minute meal! This would also be super easy to pack for lunch and reheat in the office microwave.

Sandra Lee would be so proud! :)

Chocolatey-chip Goodness

I LOVE to bake. I try to bake something at least once a week. Usually I find myself baking on a Sunday afternoon when I have nothing to do or on a weeknight if B's working late. I usually try to make something really difficult or something that has tons of ingredients. I don't know why, it just usually happens that way (i get a little too ambitious sometimes for my skills). And a lot times whatever I'm baking turns out just okay. Although I have to give a shout-out to B, because he eats EVERYTHING i bake even if looks and feels like cardboard.

But over the weekend when I was picking up some things at the grocery store, I picked up a bag of chocolate chips to make chocolate chip cookies. I literally don't think I've made these since I was living under my parent's roof...like as in 9th grade. So last night, I whipped out my Kitchen Aid stand mixer aka the best kitchen tool ever and made some cookies. Chocolate chip cookies bring up so many good memories. Home. Summer. Childhood. Christmas. and my friend Anne (we made a batch when we were kids just to eat the dough. i know it sounds gross, but cookie dough it AMAZING, right?!).

Halfway through my mixing process I realized I was completely out of vanilla extract. I couldn't believe it? How could I be out of vanilla? I always have vanilla. My only thought is that it must have been stolen by the baking thieves during condo construction. Anyway. I made due with what I had; almond extract. So I substituted 3/4 tsp. almond extract for 1 tsp. vanilla extract. And much to my surprise, it worked!

I used a tablespoon cookie scoop and baked them on a parchment-lined sheet for 9 minutes at 325 degrees and they came out perfect! They're super moist and are just the perfect balance between cooked and uncooked, if you know what i mean.

B&I ate so many cookies last night (well he ate lots of cookies and I ate a combo of cookie dough and cookies) that we both felt sick when we went to bed. But I packed a few cookies in my lunch today and they were even better the second time around.

Chocolate chips are my new pantry staple!

3rd Time Is Not the Charm

What's a weekend without three trips to Pottery Barn? Friday night I went to PB to purchase the lamps I have been eyeing for months. I really didn't want to spend a lot of money on lamps, but I finally decided that at 27, it's time to start buying some nice things for the condo that will last years and that we can take with us when we move to our next home. So I set out to purchase the Chelsea lamps in bronze (one table and one floor). But when I got the store, I decided I think I'd rather have the these instead in brushed nickel. I like them because the have a really nice square base and are a bit more substantial than the Chelsea lamps. Plus I really like double pull chains.

While I was there I also decided I needed these for the newly remodeled guest bath! :) The look red in the picture from PB's website, but they are more of a burnt-orange/red color. I think they add a great "pop" of color to the cream walls, silver fixtures, and dark brown framed mirror. Plus now I have a purpose for all those sea shells that I drug back from Sanibel!!

But one trip to PB was not enough. We decided to go back yesterday to look for a wall clock, but instead ended up with the aforementioned floral rug and some new pillows. I felt so bad for the PB store people, because B and I tore up the place trying to figure out what pillows were going to match the new rug and our existing furniture. I'm telling you, we are the worst decision makers and when we're together, it's exponentially worse!!

But we left happy as clams thinking we just bought an awesome addition to our house. We were quickly defeated as we unrolled in in the living room. not only was it too big, but it didn't match our new chair AT ALL. And on top of the disappointment in our new purchase, Mabel ate 4 shoes while we were gone.

So back to PB we went (for the 3rd time) to return our new purchase. We kept the pillows, but now we're back to square one trying to find a rug for the living room. We realized we need 4' x 6' for the living room. Do they even make that size?! Ugh.

Newest Purchase

I'm so excited, I purchased something last night, I've never bought before....a real rug! Now that we have brand new spanking hardwood floors in our condo, I really need to buy some area rugs. Poor Mabel slips and falls all the time on the floors and every morning when she does her Devil Dog routine, she gets stuck running in place because she can't get her footing. I literally peed my pants the first time I saw her do it!!

I've been looking online the past couple of weeks on Target.com, Pottery Barn, and Ballard Designs for just the right rugs and have found a few I like, but really nervous to buy anything since it's all online! And of course all the ones I like aren't available in the store to see and feel.

So last night at my hubby's request, I finally broke down and purchased one. A runner for the hallway. I really love these rugs and think that the seagrass/sisal material will be great for inside the front door and withstanding doggie paws. B likes it with a black border to match our dining room furniture, but I like the chino the best and figured it blend better with the floors. I'm a little nervous that maybe he was right and I picked the wrong one! But I guess we won't know until it shows up next week.

I've also been looking for a rug for our living room. Because we're on the ground floor and the living room side of the condo is sunken, it gets pretty chilly in there, even in the summer (we don't get a lot of sunlight). I originally thought I wanted something really plain and simple in a neutral color, since we have a red accent wall and red couch and now a cream, monochromatic, patterned recliner. My options were these:

I really like the middle one and so did B, but it's made out of wool and I'm worried it might be really itchy. When I showed him all the different choices, you'll never believe which one he liked best!!

I couldn't believe it! I really like it too and think that I'll be able to pull some of the blues and greens out of the rug and use as accent colors in the room for new throw pillows and such. I did the smart thing though (I think). Instead of ordering the whole rug and paying their crazy shipping fees, I ordered a swatch so we can make sure we like it first before shelling out the big bucks.

Hopefully next week at this time, our condo won't look as barren as it is now! :)