November 30, 2011

the wishlist

To appease my highly organized and early Christmas shopping mother-in-love (we don't use the word 'law'), I was forced to create this masterpiece known as my Christmas wishlist. It is kind of a funny thing if you think about it. Making a list of things we want and giving them to people who may want to buy them for us.....can it be Christmas every day please? 
I know everybody says this but I honestly like giving gifts rather than getting them. It is fun to go shopping for someone other than myself for a change. And it is SO awkward opening a gift in front of the person who got it for you, especially if you don't like it. I just try to avoid this if at all possible because I'm a really bad liar and my fake smile is full of so much cheese, its ridiculous. 
But I am totally looking forward to this weekend because I have some serious plans with my Michael Buble Christmas mix, my KitchenAid, and some bomb cookie recipes--wish me luck!

November 29, 2011

the after party







I'm still trying to re-coop from the indulgent holiday that is Thanksgiving. Does anyone else feel like they gained 5 pounds? My family made SUCH great food, no one could stop eating! We washed it down with a dozen games of  very competitive Spades, a soccer game that resulted in many sore muscles, and joke after joke referencing the Occupy Wall Street movement. They are an odd bunch, my family, but it was great to see all of them. Too bad I forgot my camera or I would have had some interesting pictures for you.
I actually wore this outfit last week before my trip up north. I am really loving the dress and boots look for the winter. I couldn't get away with being warm enough in this without tights in Washington, but here in LA, anything is possible. 
Please forgive me if my posts this week aren't as frequent as normal....I am still trying to get back in the swing of things and haven't had the time to prepare posts like I normally do. But I'm working on it and glad to be back :)





November 23, 2011

in a scurry







I'm getting ready for the cold, blustery weather of Washington State! See my warm clothes? Apparently there are chances of snow so that should be fun. Last time my husband was visiting up there with me, he wore a gator around his face and neck so that all I saw for 5 days was his eyes. San Diego boys are not made for cold weather.
This post is coming to you straight from the airport. As it is the day before Thanksgiving, we thought that we would get here early and we did...about 2 1/2 hours early! But better early than late. And I brought my laptop to save me from people-watching (which can be entertaining but a little creepy too) and spending my hard-earned cash on an $8.00 coffee that tastes like poo.
I wish you all a WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING! I will try to get some pics up of my crazy family this weekend :)

November 22, 2011

playing it safe







Hey guys sorry I haven't posted in a few days. My husband and I had an early Thanksgiving with his family over the weekend and we are leaving to be with my family tomorrow for a few days. We have been on the run since last Friday---dishes are piling up in the sink, my clothes are littering our bedroom floor, I even tripped over one of my heels this morning and smacked my face on the door.....being "busy" is definitely an understatement.
When I have weeks like this, I also feel like I am getting dressed in the dark. I didn't do any planning as far as outfits go. And when that happens, I often end up wearing "safe" outfits like the one you see above. I do like it--that purple H&M shirt is one of my favs, but I definitely don't experiment as much when I am rushed for time. So I promise after this Thanksgiving weekend, I will have more experimental outfits, ones that I have time to plan out. Deal?

November 18, 2011

go casual or go home







I was reading one of my favorite blogs the other day, Jen Loves Kev, and Jen was talking about how challenging it is for her to style pants because she just loves wearing skirts. I have a similar problem--it is so easy for me to throw on a cute skirt, shirt and heels for work without thinking, but when I actually have the freedom to wear whatever I want on the weekends, I get stage fright and bomb big time.
 I don't have that many options as far as pants go in my wardrobe which is something that I am trying to work on expanding. 
In the meantime, I am working with what I got and this is one of the outfit experiments that I rocked last weekend. 
What do you think? Its pretty casual which is what I was going for. The whole heels and jeans thing is new to me but I do really like the look. 
What clothes in your closet do you have a hard time styling? 

November 16, 2011

souper savings





The December issue of Better Homes and Gardens came in the mail yesterday and what do you know? One of their recipes inspired me once again...partly because the pictures make the food look so good and partly because I already had all the ingredients and my lazy butt was not going to get up off the couch to go grocery shopping. 
Also, this recipe only costs $0.64 per serving and lets face it--a lowly grad student and his wife who works in education don't really have money growing out of their ears so every penny counts!

Rosemary Potato Soup with Crispy Carrots:

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp. butter
1 medium white or yellow onion, chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
4 medium russet or white potatoes (1 to 1 1/2 lbs.), peeled and cut in 2-inch chunks
4 cups water
1 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 medium carrots, peeled, then cut in ribbons with a vegetable peeler

Directions:

1. In a 4 or 5 qt. pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent but not brown. Add potatoes, 2 cups of water, and rosemary. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove from heat.

2. With a potato masher, mash potatoes until no lumps remain. Or, for a smoother soup, transfer soup, in portions, to a food processor. Cover and blend until nearly smooth. Return all back to pan. Add remaining 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, about 10 minutes or until thickened and desired consistency, stirring frequently to prevent soup from sticking to pan.

3. While soup is simmering, in a 10-inch skillet heat oil over medium heat. Add carrot ribbons, a few at a time, to hot oil. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until crisp. Transfer to a cooling rack or paper towels; immediately sprinkle with salt. 

4. Spoon soup into serving bowls; top with crispy carrots and sprinkle with pepper.

*My husband and I have recently become obsessed with this olive rosemary bread from Costco and it compliments this potato soup perfectly if you broil it for 1 minute topped with butter and garlic salt. 

**This recipe is perfect for a cold winter night supper! ENJOY :)








safe









Cool.....so I was up half the night last night because there was a helicopter circling our block for HOURS! Every 2 seconds it would come back around and shine its lights in our windows and keep me awake. I'm pretty sure at one point there was some yelling in a mega phone going on, but that may have just been me yelling at my husband for stealing all the blankets (happens often). Anyhoo....found out this morning that someone in another apartment complex on our block was making a BOMB! The police went to confront him last night and he fled the scene. My husband had to be escorted by a policeman just to get to his car to go to work. I am so glad that we pay so much money to live in a safe neighborhood. 

November 15, 2011

happy tuesday







Happy Tuesday! I really don't have too much to say today (for once!) Had an interesting day at work and am totally wiped. Be back tomorrow with more opinions and stories as always....don't get too excited :)

November 13, 2011

kendi copykat







You caught me......I am a Kendi copykat with today's outfit. I absolutely fell in love with this skirt when I saw Kendi wear it here last winter. I hopped on over to Loft to see if it was still available and I looked around the store for about 15 minutes only to come up empty handed. But then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw the beloved skirt from across the store. There was only one lonely skirt hanging on the clearance rack but it was meant to be because it was my exact size! And guess how much it was?? $8.00......I repeat....$8.00! When God has a plan, nothing can stand in His way. 

November 11, 2011

$47.00 post








This post cost me $47.00---at the very moment we were shooting these photos, the parking policeman was putting a ticket on our car....we were there for all of 5 minutes....I was trying to save my quarters for the pile of laundry on our bedroom floor!
Also ironic because we found a way to cheat the system and park every night for free when you are supposed to have a permit. If I told you how, I'd have to kill you, and then no one would be reading my blog. So out of the kindness of my heart, I will spare you. You can thank me in compliments and blog views.
And while we are thanking people, I would like to thank all of the war veterans who have risked their lives to save ours, and their families for sacrificing time with their loved ones for the good of our country. I don't know where we would be without them. 

November 10, 2011

cultured








Photography rule #1: Don't take outfit photos at one in the afternoon on a ridiculously sunny day. This will result in crazy shadows with giant noses and cankles......at least I hope its only the shadows with these characteristics. 
Isn't this wall a weird color? You don't normally see businesses with walls like this. So of course I just had to take my photos in front of it. One of my favorite things about taking outfit photos is finding cool walls and buildings to stand in front of. Now when I am driving, I find myself constantly on the lookout for my next victim. I definitely pay more attention to the details of the architecture now than ever before. See? Blogging is so good for me. I'm learning about photography, architecture, fashion, writing, photo editing, maxing out my credit card *cough........I'm becoming so cultured :)