Forever The Hostess

Every Day is Valentine's Day....

2012-02-14T12:06:00.002-05:00

photo from Etsy

Happy Valentine's Day!

My love letter:

For me, Valentine's Day was always a Hallmark holiday that I dreaded, even when I was with someone. I never understood why people waited until this one day to tell someone that they love them, or to shower them with roses and cards and candy. Any other day of the year is just as perfect as this one to say what you think, and mean what you say to those you love.

This past year has been filled with lots of ups and downs for me, which consumes the time I am not blogging... new loves, friends lost, change in location, cancer, job opportunities, and a sea of new adventures. Every day that I wake up, I am thankful and grateful for the life God has given me, and the love he has allowed me to experience and appreciate. So much that EVERY DAY is as special and filled with love as today.

I am very appreciative for all of you readers who continue to inspire me and keep up this little blog with my creative and culinary endeavors. It certainly is one of the little things I cherish and look forward to, no matter how crazy or busy life is.

My Valentine's wish for you is to celebrate those friends and family members you love EVERY DAY, not just today. Make every day Valentine's Day!

How To: Wally the Whale Cake

2012-02-10T17:11:00.001-05:00

The invitations that Michelle, a co-host and sister- in-law, designed for the baby shower had a really cute whale on them. When discussing the theme one day, I suddenly got the idea for a 3-D whale cake, and how I thought I could execute it.
I searched online for what I had in mind, but alas, all the whale shaped cakes were 2 dimensional, as in a decorated sheet cake. Our mom to be deserved a delicious cake and one that was really cute too! So I took photos as I went along in the event that it turned out close to what I had envisioned, and I am happy to say, I now have a bit of a tutorial for you! Its a long one, so maybe just glance through it unless you are really determined to make it in the future! It takes a good amount of time and patience, but the end result is so worth it!

I first started with two boxes of Funfetti cake mix, vegetable oil, water, and eggs. Mix ingredients per the directions on the box. Confession: I actually bought 3 boxes in the event I screwed up the cake that took 2 boxes and needed to make simple cupcakes for the party!

Bake the cake to the instructions on the box. I actually cooked mine for the maximum time it stated, as I did not want the cakes too soft, since I would be stacking them. For this cake you will need one rectangular 9" x 13" pan (box #1) and two 9" round cake pans (box #2 divided evenly), and be sure that the pans are greased well, as it will help to get the cakes out later in one piece.

We will skip ahead, as you all should know how to mix cake batter! Here are the cakes when fully cooked:

Make sure the cakes are cooled completely. I actually stuck the pans in the fridge for about 20-30 minutes to cool them down faster.

Next, get a large sturdy platter out that you will serve the cake on. It is easiest to use this from the beginning, because once you start stacking the cakes, it will be nearly impossible to move otherwise. Since I was a little unprepared for this, I ended up using a disposable foil pan that I couldn't really dress up in the end. I would recommend getting a clear or blue platter that will hold a 9"x13" cake without spilling over the edges.

Carefully cut around the edges of the 9"x13" cake, and invert the cake pan on top of platter. The cake should come out smoothly.

Next, I could have freehanded the fish shape cut, but I decided to be extra careful, since this was the base and foundation of the whole cake. I took a large piece of paper I had in my craft drawer, and cut a circle for the head and a tail. The circle size was actually traced from the bottom of one of the round cake pans, so that when you stack them, the cakes making up the head will all be about the same size. I drew in the black lines on the photo where I would cut around the paper so you can envision it:

And here is after the cuts:

Be sure to try to keep the left over pieces whole, as we will be using some of these later. No eating cake bits until the end!!!

Here is how the base looks without the template.

Next, get out one can of frosting. I don't really care for icing unless it is Cream Cheese flavored. I bought 3 cans of the whipped cream cheese, as I knew I would be doing multiple layers of frosting and wanted things thin and creamy. You will need at least 3 cans. One is used to "glue" the cake pieces together, and two more for the decorative frosting once the cake is molded.

Using a flat spatula or knife, spread a thin layer of frosting on the "head" of the whale. Don't worry about it being perfect, as you won't see it later! It should look like this:

Next, take one of the round cake pans and cut around the edges before turning it upside down on top of the frosting.

Repeat the frosting again on this layer in order to prep for the third layer of the "head".

With your last round cake pan, cut the cake in half, and place one half on the front part of the "head" and frosting. I realize that this photo does not look like it is half of the pan because I took it at an angle, but trust me on this one! You will see below that it is half of layer #2.

With the remaining half, cut about 2/3 of it for the back part of the "head". The long sliver from the middle will be used for the tail later.

Add the smaller half circle to the back of the "head". I have also photoshopped a line where I trimmed off the back edge of layer #2 to stack to finish layer #3.

You will see below that the small edge has been "glued" to layer #3 with some more frosting. This is to help round out the shape of the head later.

I also cut a triangle from the back portion of the "tail" and inverted it onto the now straight-edge of layer #2, and "glued" with frosting.

Now, remember those leftover pieces we still have? We are going to use them to shape the tail. I have labeled them for your convenience.

And here is where they go on the back of the tail. Be sure to frost the bottom layer first, then place frosting between each piece as you "glue" them together.

Here is another view after I have fit them all together:

You have now finished the cake portion of the project! I popped him into the fridge to cool down, so that the pieces wouldn't slide around when they were frosted later. I would say a good hour is perfect.

Next, put the remaining frosting in a bowl, and using blue food coloring, add drops until you reach your desired color. I believe for both cans of frosting, I used about 30 drops for each.

Stir well to make sure there are no swirls!

Before you frost the cake, trim the layers vertically so that they are all even. These trimmings you can eat! You just want to shape the cake into a smooth shape.

Finally, using a smooth knife or spatula, spread a thin layer of frosting on the entire body. Don't worry if some cake pieces flake into the frosting, or you don't cover all the little spots. You will be using a thin layer of frosting 1-2 more times after the base coat.

Put the cake back into the fridge for about an hour so that the frosting can set. Repeat this step until you have a fairly smooth finish, and all spots are covered well. Remember to refrigerate in between layers. I actually left the initial frosting layer in overnight, and did the other two the next morning.

Then, I used black tubed icing to add some detail work. I added some lines to give the tail shape, and a smile to make him look cheery. The eyes are candied eyeballs that I used at Halloween here.

Lastly, add some blue twizzlers. I actually found these blue raspberry ones at Fresh Market. Just stick a few into the center of the head, and you now have yourself a whale! How cute is he?!

He also made a great centerpiece for our Under the Sea table. Good luck to anyone who tries to replicate this, and please let me know if you have any questions!!! You can e-mail me at foreverthehostess@gmail.com.

I hated to cut into him, but he was the most delicious Funfetti cake I have ever had! Remember, there are a few layers of frosting in between layers, so he was nice and moist, sweet and delicious!!! Thanks, Wally, for sprucing up our party!

Print Work

2012-02-09T09:20:00.000-05:00

A few people asked about the place cards and favor tags that I had at the baby shower. I like to do all of my print work (Invitations, cards, etc) on Microsoft Publisher. I kept these pretty simple by finding some cute water drop printed paper at Michaels for $0.59/sheet. I then created the place cards and favor tags in Publisher using the business card blank template for a good size. I used a free font that I got a year or so ago from DaFont, a great online source for free fonts. Appropriate with our theme, I used this font called Big Fish Ensemble.

After you print on a color printer, I just cut and glued them to a rectangle of the printed paper. I try to make the paper double the size that you want the card, so that you fold it in half to stand up. So simple and so cute!

I do occasionally do some print work for others, so if you are interested in invitations, favor tags, etc for an event, please contact me at foreverthehostess@gmail.com for more info and rates!

Jellyfish Chandelier

2012-02-07T13:05:00.000-05:00

I saw this chandelier on Pinterest and knew it would be perfect for our Under The Sea baby shower, I just had to figure out how to make it myself.

After a trip to Michaels, I found a bunch of wire ribbon in their $1 ribbon bins that were pretty colors of the ocean. I picked greens, light blues, a few lavender, and some deep ocean blue glittery spools.

Since each spool was 3 yards, I cut them to lengths of 1 yard long (3 ribbons per spool), 9 inches (4 per spool), and 6 inches (6 per spool). I liked the varied lengths, and tried to alternate colors and lengths to keep things more interesting.

You can see in this photo, I just tied each piece of ribbon in different places along the chandelier arms with a simple knot.

After tying your ribbons on, simply scrunch up the ribbon in your hand. I did a messy accordion fold all the way up to the knot. Hold for a few seconds, so that the warmth from your hand can set the ribbon.

Release. With the wire in the ribbon, it should stay and look like this:

Next, grab the bottom of the ribbon, and gently pull downward, until you get the ribbon to the length and kinks you desire. You can always adjust a little bit.

And here is how it looks with all the ribbons completed. Forgive the dark photo, it was late at night when I was decorating! One last step left... the jellyfish body.

I hunted around for rice paper, as they originally used for this chandelier, but there was just no way to make it work around my ancient fixture. So I thought of the next best thing... tulle. I bought 2 spools of 12" x 25 foot long tulle, also at Michaels, found in the wedding supply aisle for $2.99/spool. I actually ended up only using one spool for the whole light, because I liked the translucency of it.

I just took the spool and tied the first end to the top of the chandelier. Then I wrapped the whole chandelier a few times, being sure to get even coverage. Then I tucked the other end into the top of the chandelier, so that I would know where it would be when I wanted to remove it.

Here is how it looked with the lights on:

I actually was fearful that the tulle would melt or burn by leaving the lights on, so since we have a ton of natural light in our dining room, it worked out perfect as just a cool centerpiece with the lights off. In the original chandelier inspiration photo., they actually have shades over the bulbs, all of which were covered with the rice paper. This allows them to keep the lights on without becoming flammable! But mine was pretty enough without being lit.

I was really happy with how it turned out and how easy it was to create! Stay tuned for one of my longest posts on how to make the other star, Wally the Whale cake, later in the week!

Warm Crab Dip

2012-02-02T10:41:00.000-05:00

At the Under The Sea baby shower, the warm crab dip was a huge hit! It is so easy, and would make a great dip for this weekend's Super Bowl parties too.

Here's the recipe:

-1 can fancy lump crab meat
-1 package (1.5 cups) shredded Swiss cheese
-1 8oz package of cream cheese (I used reduced fat)
-1/3 cup mayonnaise (I used reduced fat)

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl, saving about 1/4- 1/2 cup of Swiss cheese for the top . Preheat the oven for 350 degrees. Spoon ingredients into a heat save dish, and then spread the remaining Swiss cheese on top. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until top of cheese starts to brown. Serve warm with your favorite crackers.

For an extra little twist, you can add 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning or creole seasoning for a little kick. Even a sprinkle of paprika will liven it up a bit. Just watch you don't put too much or it might turn out a little salty.

Under The Sea Baby Shower

2012-01-31T15:26:00.000-05:00

This past Saturday, I hosted a baby shower for my good friend Nikki. She is expecting a boy in April, and since her nursery is an aquatic theme, the other hostesses and I had a lot of fun coming up with cute decor and food for her Under-the-Sea baby shower!

First, I decorated the living room coffee table with netting (last used here) and my 2012 New Year's decor, with some new white daisies.

On the fireplace mantle, I used my vintage lettering, some ocean colored ribbon, and two crab trap floats ($2.29 each from here). What I found ironic was that the floats ended up looking more like baby rattles than actual sea-themed decor.

The dining room was magically transformed with the jellyfish chandelier. The how-to coming later this week!

I used a few more floats, netting, and pops of color from things I already had around the house, like the teal candlesticks. The plates and napkins were found on clearance at iParty, and the cute basket and cutlery is from the dollar store. I simply tied the napkins around a set of silverware and tied with a coordinating ribbon.

I made the same punch as I did for another baby shower, except this time, I froze the fruit ahead of time to keep it extra cold. It was served with Barefoot Bubbly, and some crazy straws I picked up months ago at Pier 1 on clearance for $1.50/pack of 6. They certainly made the Ocean Punch more fun, especially for the preggo mama and me, who couldn't enjoy the bubbly!

Since the shower was being held from 1PM to 4PM, we decided to keep the food light, as some people may have had an early lunch. In keeping with the theme, we made small tuna salad and chicken salad sandwiches, and put them on Pepperidge Farm's Goldfish bread!

I also made a warm crab dip (recipe later this week) and added low fat Ritz crackers and Wheat Thins.

As if the Goldfish bread wasn't enough, we had to have actual Goldfish!

And for the sweet tooth, I had mini fish bowls (from the dollar store) filled with Swedish Fish and Gummy Worms.

As recently found on Pinterest, I decided to stuff sugar ice cream cones with fresh fruit. Next time I would use the larger waffle cones, but I thought these held a good amount of fruit -blueberries and grapes filled the bottom, and we topped with strawberries, peaches, pineapple, and raspberries.

And then there is Wally the Whale. He is a cake I made with Funfetti cake mix and cream cheese icing, topped with raspberry blue straws. He was so cute and so fun to make, I kind of didn't want to cut him up! But he was delicious, and served as the perfect centerpiece too!

As if there was not enough sugar in the cake, we sent guests home with little fish baggies filled with kettle corn drizzled with chocolate.

So there is our baby under-the-sea themed shower! I was pretty happy with how things turned out, and would definitely use the decor and theme again. Check back later this week and next for all the details on how to make the jellyfish chandelier, Wally the Whale cake, and warm crab dip!

Preview For Next Week...

2012-01-28T14:24:00.000-05:00

I am hosting a baby shower for my friend Nikki this weekend. There is a lot cooking (literally), so I will be back next week with lots of cute ideas and how-to's. Until then, here is a preview:

Wait until you see what these turn out to be! Happy weekend!

Use What You've Got: Fried Rice

2012-01-25T14:15:00.000-05:00

Being pregnant changes the way you cook. I don't have any cravings, but sometimes when something sounds good, I feel the need to cook it asap. The only problem being that I have really hated going to the grocery store on a regular basis, so I am in a Use-What-You've Got mentality of cooking.

I was really in the mood for some fried rice, but didn't want to order it from the local Chinese takeout place for fear of too much sodium/MSG/unknown ingredients. So I made my own (maybe it is more of a stir fry - you decide!), and it was even more delicious than what I could have ordered to go. Here it is:

First, get a wok or large deep skillet and a non-stick spatula. For some reason, my family has always had a wok, and it comes in quite handy for good stir fry, or the occasional Sunday brunch when I want to make Cafe du Monde beignets. I feel a craving coming on....

Anyway, heat your wok or skillet to medium heat.

Next, gather your ingredients. I had the following:
-Basmati Ready Rice (makes dinner done faster, and the perfect portion size for 2 people)
-Low sodium soy sauce
-Sesame oil
-Yellow onion
-Garlic (I used Korean black garlic for a truly Asian flavor)
-Sliced chicken breasts
-Green Beans

I typically like broccoli and sugar snap peas in my fried rice, but like I said, its a use-what-you-have dinner, so all I had were onions and green beans. You could also substitute frozen shrimp for the chicken, or any beef or pork you may have on hand. You can also add the typical fried egg, but I chose to skip that ingredient this time. While the pan is warming up, go ahead and prepare your chicken breasts if you have not done so already. I cut mine into bite sized pieces.

Special Note: As mentioned above, if you wanted to add the typical egg, go ahead and fry it up in the wok or skillet before cooking anything else. Simply break it into the pan, and as it starts to cook, break it apart into small pieces with the spatula. Once it is cooked, remove from pan and set aside. You will add it back in later.

If you prefer no egg, then go ahead and add about 2 Tbsp of sesame oil to the pan, and using the spatula, swirl it around a bit to help coat the edges.

Next add your chicken, and cook thoroughly. Toss occasionally.

Since I was using fresh green beans, they take a little longer to cook than other vegetables. When the chicken was almost cooked through, I added the beans so that they could get a nice coating of oil and cook while I was prepping the other ingredients.

While the beans were cooking, I chopped the onion, and put two cloves of the black garlic into a garlic press. If you have never tasted black garlic, you really should try it. I get mine from the Savory Spice Shop, but most Asian markets have it as well. Its is not bitter like regular garlic. It is a little more sweet and is very soft. I have eaten mine just spread on a piece of toast right out of the skin. Delicious! No need to roast these garlic heads! Anyway, they have a fragrant aroma and give a little punch of flavor to the fried rice.

Once the green beans (or other vegetables) are about half way done cooking, add in the garlic and onion.

Toss those around to get a little coating of any leftover sesame oil, and then add about 2 Tbsp of low sodium soy sauce.

Continue cooking until onions are soft, chicken is nicely browned, and all the flavors have been infused.

Next, I cooked two packages of the basmati rice in the microwave (you can't beat 90 seconds!) and added it to the pan.

Be sure to toss well with the chicken and veggies, and cook for another 5 minutes or so until the sesame oil and soy sauce have soaked into the rice. If you need a bit more juice, just add a little splash of soy sauce, or even some lime juice for a kick.

Turn off the wok or skillet, serve and enjoy!

BEST OF: Salad Dressings

2012-01-20T13:44:00.000-05:00

My last post shared the simplicity of making a good salad. Here I share some of my go-to dressings, some of which are from local chefs who make simply the best, and some that my family has used for generations!

Columbia Restaurant - 1905 Salad
1/8 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Mix and serve over iceberg lettuce, Swiss cheese, fresh tomato slices, baked ham slices, green olives, and Romano cheese for this Columbia favorite!

Habana Cafe - Spanish Salad
From The Habana Cafe Cookbook
1 cup olive oil
4 Tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp basil
1 Tbsp oregano
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Mix and serve over iceberg lettuce, fresh sliced tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, feta cheese, and Parmesan cheese for this Cuban delight!

Louis Pappas Famous Greek Salad
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup distilled wine vinegar
Juice from 1/2 lemon
Oregano

Mix over a heaping bed of iceberg lettuce, fresh tomatoes, cucumber, green bell pepper, fresh feta cheese slices, beet slices, peeled and steamed shrimp, anchovy filets, Greek Kalamata olives, Greek Salonika peppers, radishes, green onions, and topped with scoops of homemade potato salad.

And now for some family recipes that never fail:

Simple Greek Salad Dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
3/4 tsp oregano
1/8 tsp salt
pepper to taste

Whisk together in a small bowl and serve with your favorite mix of vegetables and lettuce.

Ron's Cesar Salad Dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 to 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 1/4 tsp dry mustard
1 egg yolk (or egg beaters)
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 can anchovies
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
splash of Tabasco to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Blend ingredients in food processor or blender until creamy smooth. Toss with romaine lettuce, large croutons, and fresh shavings of Parmesan cheese.

Let me know which ones are your favorites! PS - Thanks to Amy for asking for some of these recipes! I have been meaning to write this post for a while!

Hostess Tip #9 - Making A Good Salad

2012-01-19T13:15:00.000-05:00

Often when friends get together, I offer to bring a dish. I consider myself a pretty decent cook, so for a long time, I would oblige (but not be flattered) when someone asked me to bring a salad instead of some fabulous side item. However, after many years I have come to realize that I am a pretty darn good salad maker, and people ask me to bring a salad so that they don't just have lettuce and a bottle of pre-made dressing for guests. Hostess Tip #9 - Learn to make your own amazing salad.

Making good salads are pretty simple with these two steps. First: Use fresh ingredients, and stick with the ones you love. My go to ingredients are:

Romaine lettuce/bagged spring mix
Fresh sliced tomatoes
Black olives
Red or green or yellow peppers, sliced
Red onions
Reduced fat/fat free feta cheese(could also swap for shredded Parmesan cheese)

And the second step is this: make your own salad dressing. Even if you are in a pinch and can't use fresh ingredients, and just buy a bag of mixed greens with carrots and veggies in it, a homemade salad dressing makes it a better salad. And there are only four ingredients you need for any salad dressing:

Olive oil
Vinegar (red wine, white wine, or balsamic are my staples)
Salt (I usually use garlic salt)
Pepper

The key to a good salad dressing is proportion between the ingredients. The salt and pepper is used to enhance the natural flavors of the fresh vegetables. The ratio of oil and vinegar is really more of a personal preference.... start with 1/2 cup of olive oil and 1/8-1/4 cup of vinegar. If you like your salad to have a bite, use 1/4 cup of vinegar. If you want it more mild, only use 1/8 cup. I make salads so often now that I just swirl them both over the lettuce in the bowl and don't measure. It just takes practice in knowing the ratio you like best.

Need a little more flavor in your dressing? A bonus step: Add herbs and spices from your kitchen. Basil is standard in Italian dressings, oregano is standard in Greek dressings. If you are doing a southwest salad, add a little cilantro and cayenne pepper (just a dash) for some good flavor. I also love earthy spices like rosemary and sage when using the heavier balsamic vinegar. Simply add a sprinkle or two of your favorite herbs to the top of your salad before tossing. Their flavors will be enhanced with the blending of oil and vinegar.

Have any good salad dressing recipes or tips to share? Email me at foreverthehostess@gmail.com to submit, or check out my next post on the Best Of: Salad Dressings - all my favorite go-to recipes for that special occasion!

Happy Anniversary!

2012-01-17T16:42:00.004-05:00

Today is our third wedding anniversary. I am married to the nicest, funniest, most humbling and forgiving man I have ever met. We have been through seven years of adventures together, and this year may be the most exciting with our first baby on the way. I could not imagine being on this journey with anyone but him.

Happy Anniversary Logan!

**muchos besos**

2012 Decor

2012-01-05T10:51:00.000-05:00

There is something about Christmas decor that makes me really warm and cheery. Having to take it down is really depressing for me every year, so when I do get to it New Years Day, I also try to substitute some sparkly decor for the New Year and our January wedding anniversary, just to liven my spirits.

Using items I had around the house, I came up with these small but happy additions:

This one is not really an addition, but rather a subtraction. I just took off the red table cloth, but left the Candlewick and dollar store gold and silver ornaments. See the Christmas theme here.

Next, in our living room, I pulled out the teal vases, as well as some dollar store ornaments, and glittery garland to make a festive centerpiece in my vintage brass tray on the coffee table.

I added two bouquets of fresh flowers for $10 from the grocery store. I wanted all white flowers, but they mostly had Christmas bouquets left, so I will get white flowers when these die in a week.

Outside, I put up our Happy New Year flag that I bought last year at a garage sale for $3. I actually bought a couple of flags for different occasions, all around $2-$3 each. Normally in stores, giant flags are around $20-$25, which is why I look at garage sales for good ones on the cheap.

I also put back up my all-occasion wreath, that we also got at a church flea market for $1. I decorate it throughout the year with different bows, or props for certain party decor (remember the hatch?). With some glittery wire ribbon and a leftover ornament from a Christmas gift, I created a giant bow with a little finesse. I actually really loves how it sparkles, and color coordinates with both the flag and indoor table decorations!

Do you decorate for the New Year?

Florida Kids Free Admission!

2012-01-04T10:37:00.000-05:00

image courtesy of Sea World & Busch Gardens

For all you Florida residents, I wanted to pass along an AMAZING deal for your kids. It is the Preschool Pass from Busch Gardens and Sea World. Simply go to this website, register your children under the age of 5 (they can be turning 6 in 2012, but must be 5 at the time of registration), and bring the e-Ticket printed from the website with a copy of their birth certificate to the front gate. They will get free admission to both parks all year through December 31, 2012! Just be sure you register online, as this offer is not valid at the front gates.

And for the Florida resident adults, buy a Fun Card for $80 for one park, or both Busch Gardens and Sea World for $136, and go unlimited through December 31, 2012 with your kids!

Let me know how your family adventures turn out!

Busch Gardens/Sea World and their affiliates did not contact or compensate me for this post. I think it is just a deal too good to pass up and wanted to share with all my friends and bloggers!

Grammy's Sour Cream Pound Cake

2012-01-03T10:55:00.000-05:00

The beginning of every year, people around the world make it their resolution to lose a few pounds they gained over the holidays. Here, we are doing a few other things with the pounds.... making cakes, and gaining a few (thanks to Baby D)!

I have been meaning to make this recipe for a few months, as it was one of my most favorite things my grandmother would make for us, but just haven't gotten around to it until now. But beware, this recipe is best with its original ingredients (no substitution of fat free sour cream or light butter), so if you are trying to lose a few pounds, this pound cake is not for you.

Ingredients:
3 Sticks Butter, softened
3 cups All Purpose Flour, sifted
3 cups sugar
2 cups Sour Cream
6 eggs, separated
1/4 tsp Baking soda
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 tsp Rum extract

Makes 1 loaf pan, 3 small disposable loaf pans, or 5 mini loaf pans

First, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. I prefer to separate the eggs first, since it seems to take the most time. I did not mean to color coordinate the separated eggs with their bowls, but it worked out perfect!

Next, beat the egg whites in your mixer until stiff.

Set aside egg whites in a small bowl to be added in later.

Next, combine butter and sugar. Then add egg yolk one by one as the mixer is churning.

Next, add the baking soda and sour cream, and mix well.

Gradually add in the flour, vanilla extract and run extract, and mix well.

The final step is to fold in the egg whites into the mixture. I set my mixture to the Stir setting as I dumped the egg whites in, and then after about 10-15 seconds, I stopped the mixer and used a spatula to help fold them into the batter.

Next grease your loaf pan(s). I decided to make mini loaves, since I had to take some to my Grandmother, since it is her recipe.

Bake in your oven at 375 degrees for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. I cooked mine for 1 hour and 20 minutes. The top rack was done, but the bottom took another 20 minutes. The time range all depends on your oven and the size pan you are using.

When they are done, they should have a crispy golden top and if you stick a toothpick in the middle, it should come out clean.

Serve with some vanilla ice cream, or strawberries with whipped cream. I also just ate mine plain for breakfast, it is so yummy! Enjoy!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T14:45:00.000-05:00

We are in for some big changes in 2012! With a house on the market, and a baby on the way, things have certainly gotten interesting around here! There will be some baby talk around here, but I promise no bump pictures or gross details. I have not had any morning sickness or weird cravings, but I am starting to cook a little more with recipes that sound really good to a preggo hostess, so I will be sharing all those goodies here in the months to come!

We did start the New Year off right with a hearty breakfast before we got to work taking down all of the Christmas decorations and tree (sob, sob!). I used the Easy Poached Eggs recipe and made a little Eggs Benedict:

Ingredients:
Eggs
Proscuitto or Pancetta (I used this time around)
Pepper
Parsley flakes
Hollandaise sauce (ready mix)
Multi-grain English Muffins

Cook the pancetta and eggs according to this recipe, and while those are cooking, make the Hollandaise sauce according to the package directions (usually you just need milk and butter). Toast some English muffins, and top with the egg cups and drizzle with the Hollandaise sauce. Sprinkle on the black pepper and some parsley, and you have an easy breakfast to start the new year off right!

Best wishes to you in 2012!

More Reindeer...

2011-12-29T15:20:00.000-05:00

My mom and I certainly think alike! For Christmas eve dinner, my mom decorated her dining room table with a Reindeer theme! And at each seat, she had some of these for us to wear, along with this take-home sweet surprise:

Materials:
Reindeer Peeps
Bob's Mini Candy Canes (Bob's are the BEST!)
Plastic treat bags
Ribbon
Clear Tape
Mini Silver disks (optional)

My mom wanted to give them more pronounced antlers, since their given ones look like ears (and reindeer have both). So she placed the two candy canes on the mini silver disks and used tape to secure them. You can see the tape in these photos due to the flash, but in person, it was hard to see. Then simply place the reindeer Peep on top and place in the bag. Tie with a festive ribbon, and pass out to family and friends!

My mom didn't want the candy canes to get gooey, so she left them in the wrappers. However, if you are going to give to guests right away, I would take the candy canes out of the wrappers and stick them into the back of the Peep, no tape necessary! Too cute!

Cinnamon Ice Cream

2011-12-26T11:29:00.000-05:00

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Ours was a busy two days, but we made it through and had a wonderful time with our families.

Last week, before Christmas, my mom and I always bake Christmas cookies. We have about 6 standard recipes, which I have listed below and provided links to recipes similar to the ones we use. Then, every year, we throw in 1-2 "new" cookies... sometimes they are ones we have made years ago, some we try to make for the first time. Regardless, we have a large smorgasbord of sweets for our Christmas celebrations.

The regulars:
Traditional Swedish Spritz
Cinnamon Swirls
Reindeer Chow
Sugar Cookies
Mexican Wedding Cookies
Peanut Butter Kisses

The newbies:
Peppermint bark
Gingerbread cookies

It has been quite warm in Florida for this Christmas, so I also had a recipe to make cinnamon ice cream in the Kitchenaid attachment I had yet to use since we got it as a wedding gift. I wanted to make the gingerbread to go with the cinnamon ice cream, reminiscent of a retired Ben & Jerry's flavor called Festivus.

Here is the recipe I used (can't remember the source!) for the Cinnamon Ice Cream:

**Special Note: The ice cream attachment must be frozen for 15 hours prior to making the recipe.

1 cup white sugar
1 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cups half & half
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp ground cinnamon

In a saucepan over medium-low heat, stir together sugar and half-and-half. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and set aside. When the sugar mixture begins to bubble, remove from heat, and carefully pour half of the mixture while whisking into the eggs. Pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan, continuing to simmer over medium-low heat, and whisk in the heavy cream. Stir constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a metal spoon. Remove from heat, whisk in vanilla and cinnamon, and set aside to cool.

Once mixture has cooled, pour into the frozen ice cream maker , and using the directions on the attachment, stir the mixture for 20-30 minutes until it reaches your desired thickness. Place ice cream in sealed container and freeze 2-3 hours before serving. Serve with freshly baked gingerbread cookies for maximum enjoyment!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T14:16:00.000-05:00

Our Christmas Card - 2011

Merry Christmas

From our family to yours!!

PS- We will be discussing the surprise "project" in the new year. :)

Some Last Minute Christmas Fun

2011-12-22T14:05:00.000-05:00

Maybe a little glimpse into the world of Santa's reindeer will be all the help you need getting the kids ready for bed Christmas Eve.

Be sure to check out the Reindeer Cam, where you can see some of Santa's best eating, sleeping, and getting ready for their journey. And if you go to the site before 10am or 5pm, you can even catch Santa feeding them! So cute for all believers.

http://reindeercam.com/

Annual Christmas Walk

2011-12-20T10:57:00.000-05:00

For a few years now, we have been taking an annual walk from a friend's house to downtown St. Petersburg to see all the Christmas lights and cards. Our city actually has one of the largest waterfront park system in the country, third only to Seattle and Chicago, and they do a great job of decorating it for Christmas.

One unique thing they have every year (since I was a child, maybe even before I was born) are larger than life painted greeting cards. There is a contest every year through The St. Petersburg Times newspaper where anyone can submit an idea or drawing for a holiday card. Then after about 12-15 are chosen, they are drawn and painted by local school children and adult artists, and displayed along the waterfront with lighting.

The cards often have Florida related themes, and some are even reflective of world events from the year. They are always my favorite decorations in the park.

In the main section of the park system, Straub Park, they have a place where kids can come and visit with Santa every night.

They also have an ice skating rink, and a mailbox where children can send letters to Santa. The rest of the park is filled with beautiful displays of lights.

And a manger that is older than I am. When I was younger, they used to swap out the fiberglass animals for real ones in the week before Christmas, and it became a petting zoo around the baby Jesus.

More lights:

And along our walk, depend on the weather, we either get Starbucks if it is really cold, or like last night, gelato at a local shop if the temperatures are balmy.

We missed Santa on the way back, but decided to still hop in his sleigh and wish for health and happiness through the season! If you are in the area this week, be sure to stop by the parks downtown and check out all the lights and activities!

Update to Holiday Decor

2011-12-16T10:46:00.000-05:00

Just a quick update to our mantel decor. This past weekend, my husband's grandmother was giving all of her Christmas decor and ornaments to her grandkids, since it is to laboring to put it up every year. Among the boxes, I found four Danish-looking wood reindeer in all different sizes that would compliment my reindeer fireplace and mantle. Check them out:

Aren't they cute? I just love them, and their size is perfect. Here you can see them with the whole setup:

And since we finally got the lights and wreaths up on the outside, here is a glowing shot of the house:

Wrapping up my shopping and wrapping this weekend. Are you ready for Christmas?

Pretty Presents

2011-12-13T07:42:00.000-05:00

As I finished wrapping most of our gifts (a few last minute additions are being shipped) last night, I kept thinking about how simple but pretty my gifts looked under our tree this year.

I love getting a deal on cute wrapping paper, and have been known to buy those little rolls from the Target dollar section, or buy rolls of large wrapping paper after Christmas at 50% or 75% off. However, most of the time, the paper is thin, and not as cute the following year as you originally thought when you bought it at discount. This year, I was so pleased with my wrapping paper find, that I just had to share!

I ended up getting the brown paper with gold stars and red gingham at... the dollar store!! At $1 a roll, I think I bought 4 of each for all of the gifts! And I love how the brown paper is thick and creases nicely. I also buy my Scotch tape in 2-packs from the dollar store.

The green fabric bows are made from giant spools of ribbon that I bought at Michaels on Black Friday. Seriously, I stock up every year on Black Friday at Michaels.... they have great sales, and this year, they had a coupon for an additional 30% off your entire purchase if you went before 9am. I bought four giant spools of ribbon, and total I paid $6. The gift tags I found at Target for $2 for a pack of 60, and the colors go perfect with the muted tones of the paper and ribbon.

So basically, for ALL my wrapping paper, bows, tags, and tape, I spent less than $20. And the best part is, I can use the left over wrapping paper for different events throughout the year! Can anyone beat that?!

Homemade Gifts To Warm The Heart

2011-12-12T08:56:00.000-05:00

Every year, I hand make some gifts for a few girlfriends that I have known for many, may years. I wish every year I could buy them awesome, individual gifts, but it is just easier to make them something with some of my time and love.

As you may remember, last year I made these sequin earrings and in 2009, I made this rosemary sea salt. This year, I decided to try a recipe that I have eyed for a few years from Martha Stewart: Peppermint Marshmallows, paired with some Swiss Miss hot chocolate.

Here's what I started with for the hot chocolate:

- 3 boxes of Swiss Miss Classic Milk Chocolate Hot Chocolate (it is the best, so why try to make your own?!)
- Glass jars - I bought 3 Four packs (12 total) of the Rajtan from Ikea for $12. I love that they have screw tops too!
- Raffia to tie on the gift tags (already owned)
- Gift Tags (business card sized) I made on Microsoft Publisher

Here are the gift tags up close:

I used 3 packets of Swiss Miss per jar, although I could have probably fit 4 packets... I just ran out of mix!

And here are the jars after a little embellishment:

Next came time to make the marshmallows, which I had never done before. A word of warning.... read all the comments under Martha's recipe, because I ended up needing some of these tips. I didn't take any in-the-making pictures because I was too worried about making them right, but they came out just as they said they would, so I was happy. So I cut them up and got them ready for packaging.

But here is the finished product, placed in little bags made by, who else? Martha Stewart.

Quite a sweet gift... I just love them! What is left to check off on your holiday to-do list?

More Holiday Decor

2011-12-09T07:00:00.000-05:00

Once my Christmas decor is up around the house, I feel like a new, happier person. Of course, the Christmas tunes that blast through our house and the balsam scented candles I light every night may have something to do with it. Like I mentioned in this post, I am trying to keep decor simple this year, so I only put out about half of the stuff I own, just my favorites made an appearance. Here they are, in no particular order (don't want Baby Jesus to be jealous of the reindeer!):

This is an over-sized wood nativity I inherited from my mother. I love its scale, as each figure is about 9"-12" tall, and they are very rustic. The angel's wings and star are actually oxidized metal.

The other nativity we love is also wood, but a bit more primitive. I love that both sets are handmade. Good nativities are hard to find!

I love to keep the mantle decor simple and red. It seems to pop with all the red, and our stockings hung with care.

The red and clear pillar holders I bought years ago at HomeGoods for under $10 each. I bought them in 3 sizes, just to change up the monotony, and got inexpensive red pillar candles to go inside. I love the subtle glow they emit when the candles are lit.

The reindeer came in to play a few years ago when I found these cute iron reindeer pillar holders at a local boutique called Marion's, which I love! If you are in St. Petersburg, you must go here for unique and fun gifts! They have fabulous stuff you can't find anywhere else! The red berry garland I bought at Joanns with a coupon.

A few years ago, since we got married in January, we had a Christmas bridal shower in which all my guests bought us ornaments and Christmas themed gifts. Since one of my registry sites was Pottery Barn, I included the three sizes of the twig reindeer in bronze to match my pillar holders. They no longer sell these, but you can find some in silver here and here.

And also on our registry, we had our Pottery Barn velvet tree skirt, seen nestled under our tree, and the natural lit star tree topper. The skirt is very plain and traditional, but it is not trendy, and I don't get tired of it. And after all the gifts are wrapped this weekend, you won't see it anyway! The star topper is rustic and if I could, I would leave the tree naked with just lights and the star. So beautiful on its own!

So those are my little Christmas decor pieces for this year. This weekend I plan to decorate the outside with wreaths and lights, and finish my holiday shopping. Wish me luck!

Easy Table Decor

2011-12-07T10:57:00.001-05:00

I had a really hard time this year decorating my dining room table for Christmas. I have done really cute things in the past. The truth of it is, I was a little tired of my decorations, and I am trying to keep things simple, since our house is on the market.

Rather than spending a fortune on new decorations that I didn't love, I decided to use gold and silver ornaments and garland from the dollar store to add a shimmery touch to the table. I bought about 8 sets of 7-12 ornaments in silver and gold, including some with glitter to give a little sparkle.

First, I draped one length of garland around the chandelier. Before:

After, with a little more shimmer:

Then, I used some ornament hooks to add ornaments to hang from the bottom of the garland.

Next, I pulled out several vintage brass and silver pieces for the table centerpiece to hold the rest of the ornaments, but decided on my antique Candlewick glassware, since I love how the round ornaments mimic the glass beading on the edges of the Candlewick.

I first set the table using a red herringbone Ralph Lauren table cloth from HomeGoods (I think it was $10 when I bought it two years ago), and a gold-ish geometric table runner that I believe is Thomas O'Brien for Target, purchased many many years ago. I like that it is a little muted, and I actually use this runner throughout the year.

I pulled out the Candlewick cake stand, 4 footed fluted bowl, and small bowl to use for the ornaments. I just kind of piled the larger ones on the cake stand, the medium and small ones in the two bowls, and tried to keep an even mix of silver and gold ornaments.

I also added red taper candles to my Candlewick candlesticks, just to complete the table.

Here's how it all looks together:

I love how it is simple but festive, and I love using my Candlewick this time of the year, since my grandmother always used the set for our entire family for Christmas dinner. After they stopped hosting Christmas, all three of the granddaughters got to split up the set, so I now have place settings, glasses, and serving ware for 8+. What a lucky girl I am!

What are some of your favorite decorations?

Zucchini Bread

2011-12-06T08:32:00.000-05:00

This zucchini bread, as seen yesterday, was a recipe that my college roommate's mom used to make for us, and although I don't like zucchini on a regular basis, I am in love with this bread. It also makes a great recipe to give in mini loaf pans to neighbors and friends for the holidays. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

3 eggs, beaten
2 cups sugar
2 cups grated zucchini (usually 2 medium sized zucchinis)
1 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla
3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking poweder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grate the two medium sized zucchini. I used the larger side of my grater this time to make things easier, but if you are hesitant about the flavor, use a smaller grater.

Here is about 2 cups of grated zucchini. In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, sugar, zucchini, oil, and vanilla. After mixed well, add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Pour mixture into two regular loaf pans, or 5-6 mini loaf pans. Since I only have one loaf pan, I used a small cake pan for the second half of the mixture. Be sure to grease the pans well.

Bake for 1 hour at 325 degrees. Use a toothpick to check the doneness, and remove from oven when toothpick comes out clean.

Here is the golden round bread loaf. My husband ate a piece out of the loaf pan before I could take a picture of that.

I took this plate of yummy treats over to a dinner party. I actually love how the zucchini bread looks in pie shaped slices on the plate. I may just make it in the round pans from now on! The other treats are the No Bake Chocolate Oat Bars from yesterday;s post.

If you are really feeling fancy, you could top the zucchini bread with a cream cheese frosting, or serve it warm with a side of vanilla bean ice cream. I prefer it for breakfast warmed in the microwave with a little butter. Enjoy!

No Bake Chocolate Oat Bars

2011-12-05T10:37:00.001-05:00

I don't know if it is the holiday spirit, or something else, but nowadays, when I hear about something yummy, I just get a craving for it until I make it or buy it! My friend Janet mentioned the special Peppermint Oreos the other day, and I have to confess that I searched Target for 30 minutes on Saturday looking for them. I finally found them, and as I had remembered them from years past, they were totally worth the hunt!

Last week, via Urban Grace Interiors blog, I found the No Bake Chocolate Oat Bars from Left On Amelia's blog, and decided to try them this past weekend. I had most of the ingredients on hand, with the exception of the Coconut Oil, which was expensive at $14.99 a jar, but totally worth it for the recipe! Here is the recipe and the step by step how to:

Ingredients:
1 cup Almond Butter (I had the MaraNatha crunchy on hand - my favorite!)
2/3 cup honey (I used some local honey given to us by a co-worker)
1/2 cup Coconut Butter (I used Coconut Oil since my store was out of butter)
2 cups Toasted Oats (I had John McCann Stone Ground Oatmeal on hand, but the original recipe calls for whole oats)
1 bag Dark Chocolate Chips
1 cup dried cranberries (I had Craisins on hand, but sugar-free dried cranberries from a health food store would make this a healthier recipe)

First, in a 9" x 13" baking sheet, spread out the oats and toast until golden (not burned). I turned the oven to 350 degrees and toasted for about 10-15 minutes.

In a medium or large saucepan, combine the honey, almond butter, and coconut oil over medium heat. Stir frequently as it heats up.

Once it is blended, reduce heat to low or simmer and add the dark chocolate chips and cranberries. The original recipe said to remove from heat, but since I had the larger chocolate chips, I found them easier to melt over a little heat. Stir frequently.

Once all is melted and stirred together, turn off the stove. Make sure the only lumps are the cranberries.

Once the oats are nice and toasted, dump them into the chocolate mixture.

Stir in the oats until evenly blended.

In the same baking sheet you used to toast the oats, cover it with parchment or wax paper (I used wax paper since I was out of parchment). Pour in the chocolate oat mixture and spread with a spatula so that it is evenly distributed throughout the pan.

Refrigerate for a few hours. I left mine in for an entire day. The pan will be warm from the mixture, so be sure to use some potholders underneath.

Here is the finished product, still in the pan:

And here is the result after cutting into squares. So delicious and easy, I may have to make these more often! Thanks again to Left on Amelia for this recipe!

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post for the recipe for Zucchini bread (pictured in wedges above). Enjoy!

Hard To Buy For? Be WANTFUL

2011-12-02T10:31:00.001-05:00

I received an e-mail today with a great new site/idea. It is WANTFUL... a site that lets you customize a gift selection for that hard-to-buy-for person in your life.

You give them a little general information about your boss, friend or loved one, and they select 16 gifts in the price range of your choice. Don't like all 16 items they chose? Simply swap out the ones you don't think your recipient will like with some other choices they have selected for you. Once you are happy with your 16 items, simply pay for the gift, plus shipping and handling, and the WANTFUL people publish a book with the gift selection to be sent to you (to wrap yourself) or to your recipient directly. Once they receive their book, they flip through the book and choose which gift they want, and WANTFUL ships it to them free of charge. It is the surefire way to get them something they will truly love and appreciate!

I think it's genius, and not only is it perfect for bosses or hard-to-buy-for friends this Christmas, but you can send them for any occasion throughout the year as well! This may just be my go-to gift giving spot!

This post was not paid for or sponsored by WANTFUL. I just think it is genius and wanted to share.

Elfster

2011-12-01T09:38:00.001-05:00

It is December 1, which means there are only 24 more days until Christmas. It also means that there are only 3 more weekends of errands and shopping, since Christmas kind of screws everything up this year on a weekend.

This year, our family is deciding to pick names for a Secret Santa gift exchange, instead of buying each person (12 in all) a gift. There are a couple of great sites out there, like Boogspace, that have been around for a while that are easy to use for randomly selecting names. I came across a new one the other day, Elfster, that also is super easy to use, and certainly helps you get into the Christmas spirit.

You can set spending limits, dates of gift exchange, and set your wishlist, all in one spot! How easy is that?! One less thing on my Christmas to do list...

And just for fun, I love to "Elf Myself" every year, courtesy of JibJab and OfficeMax. Check out my video here for a good laugh. To elf yourself or your friends, go to www.elfyourself.com.

This post was not sponsored by or promoted by Elfster, Boogspace, JibJab, or OfficeMax. I just really like these sites and wanted to share!

Is Christmas TOMORROW?!

2011-11-30T14:49:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is December. Can you believe it? It has been a couple of super busy months, and I have been completely behind on the blog and posting the projects I have been working on. Life sometimes gets complicated. I do have a few really exciting projects that I am just putting the final touches on, so I will share them soon. I will also be sharing some holiday projects, sites, bargains, and decor, both old and new, in the next 25 days until Christmas.

So that you don't miss out on any fun holiday posts, be sure to subscribe to the blog via the menu on the right hand side. Simply type in your e-mail, and all my posts will be delivered directly to your e-mail. Easy Peasy!

Impromptu Dinner Party

2011-11-21T07:34:00.000-05:00

Last night we had our families over for dinner, and for the first time in the 4 years we have been in our house, we decided to do dinner outside. I have always wanted to have a beautiful dinner party on our patio, but in Florida, 90% of the time, the nights are humid and buggy. But last night was a perfect night and we had many reasons to be thankful to all be together.

With an hour to set up, I first brought out our two 6' folding tables, that we got at a Black Friday deal last year for $29 each, and our 8 folding chairs that we use ALL THE TIME for various get togethers. To round out the seating for our 11 guests, we used our wicker bench (found for free in an alley behind our house) and our desk chair with pillow.

Next, I covered the tables with two green Ralph Lauren tablecloths that I bought at HomeGoods 6 years ago for $7 each. They are used pretty much every Christmas (I now have red ones too!) and every holiday in between. Green is actually a neutral color, so they go with everything and every occasion! Don't judge me, the hostess did not have time to iron them. But in an hours time, most of the wrinkles had fallen out, and because it got dark before guests arrived, I didn't worry about it. Typically, I would iron them, or wash them and take them straight out of the dryer. Quick Tip: If in a pinch, use some Downy Wrinkle Releaser on them as they lay on the table and smooth some of the wrinkles out with your hand.

The napkins I bought on super clearance years ago too at Bed Bath and Beyond. They are a brown polished cotton, and I got all 12 for $6 (thats 50 cents each!). The flatware is a special fun set that I bring out occasionally from Neiman Marcus. I purchased it on sale, but even at regular price it is a good deal for 12 placesettings ($105!).

The stick table runner is a few years old from Plum Party, but you can find a similar one here or here. Sicne it gets dark right around 6pm when we were having people over, I decided to light up the table with lots of candles. My husband thought it was a little too romantic for what we needed, as we were only cooking hamburgers and hot dogs, but I still loved it. I gathered all the glass Waterford and antique bowls that I never used, and several little glass candle holders and filled them with water and floating candles from IKEA, and citronella tea lights from Pier 1. The 'D' pewter napkin rings were from our wedding registry at Williams Sonoma, and match our everyday flatware, also from our registry.

As the sun was setting, we turned on the globe twinkle lights around our yard (which are up all year), and started a lovely dinner. I think it came out pretty perfect for being thrown together in an hour.

Check back this week for a few last minute tips for Thanksgiving! Happy Turkey Week!

Free Clothing

2011-11-09T08:05:00.000-05:00

You did not read the headline wrong! Sears Outlet is offering one piece of FREE clothing, including items from their LLBean line, to its Shop Your Way Rewards members every TUESDAY from now until the end of the year- no purchase necessary! To become a member, just click here, enter your e-mail address, and go shop! Or, just sign up at the Sears Outlet store near you.

Be sure that the Sears Outlet near you has clothing... for all you readers in Tampa Bay, Florida, the store at 5251 110th Avenue North (off US Highway 19) in Pinellas Park is the place to go! The offer does not apply to outerwear (like coats) or leather (belts/shoes), but to everything else. Some savvy shoppers found L.L.Bean cashmere sweaters for $99 that they got for free!

I went in yesterday (Tuesday) with my Rewards card, and walked out with a pretty jersey dress that would look super cute with boots or leggings.

The original price:

Receipt after my Rewards card was scanned:

I know this is CRAZY to be giving away a free article of clothing, but if you look around at all the deals they have, most clothing is $4, $5, and $7 anyway, so you really should be buying more than one item! If you find two shirts for $5 each, with one free from your Rewards card, it really comes out to $2.50 a shirt, or Buy One Get One Free. I just had about 2 minutes and was testing out the program, so I didn't have time to look for anything else. But I am going back every week to get something else and look for more Christmas presents too! My husband said that he is going to do it with some co-workers who are adopting a family for the holidays, because their money will go further to buy clothing for all the family. Be sure to check out the selection in your area every TUESDAY... maybe I will see you there!

Sears and Sears Outlet did not pay me or compensate me for this review. I guess they did give me free clothes, but it is available to everyone, and I am just spreading the word!

Holiday Deals and Steals Links

2011-11-04T09:44:00.000-04:00

It is November 4, which means that the holiday season is rapidly approaching, and so are the ideas about what to buy for all my relatives and friends for the holidays.

shopping list from Jones Design Company (click image to download)

I am a pretty thrifty person... I buy party supplies at the Dollar Store, and groceries from WalMart (with coupons!). But, when it comes to this time of year, my bank account feels the pinch... My husband is one of 5 kids, and between his siblings and their significant others, parents, grandmothers, work colleagues, best friends, and my own family, we have a ton of people to buy for. Even if the gifts were $20 each (which they are not!), we are still looking at a couple hundred bucks of gifts. Which is also why we usually never get each other anything big.

Since most people are feeling the pinch this year more than ever, I have put together a list of websites for Deals and Steals. I can say that just in the last week, I have crossed off 5 people from my Christmas list because I got them gifts on sale or by some fabulous one-day deal. I am already feeling a little less pressured this year!

Here are some of my favorite sites for daily deals, coupons, and more!

Daily Deals and Coupons:

Hip2Save www.hip2save.com
DealSea www.dealsea.com
SlickDeals www.slickdeals.net
DealNews www.dealnews.com
DealSucker www.dealsucker.com

For One Day, One Item Steals:

Daily Deals www.dailydeals.com
Daily Seals www.dailysteals.com
Woot www.woot.com
Deal Genius www.dealgenius.com

Deals Sent To Your Email Inbox:

Groupon http://www.groupon.com/r/uu525222
Daily Deals http://dailydeals.com
Half Off Depot https://halfoffdepot.com/tampabay/referafriend/?bl=bmF0YWxpZWJhdW1hbkBhb2wuY29t
Ever Save http://eversave.com/share/zXWI
Zulily http://www.zulily.com/invite/nataliebauman905
Mamasource by Mamapedia www.deals.mamapedia.com
Schwaggle www.schwaggle.active.com
Living Social https://livingsocial.com/redeem_invite/7075920-natali?ref=lnk

Every Tuesday:

Today Show's Jill's Steals & Deals - most of these sell out, so check them in the morning on Tuesdays. http://hip2save.com/category/jills-steals-deals

For a List of Black Friday Ads:

A Full Cup (click here)

For Travel Sites:

SniqueAway http://www.sniqueaway.com/invite/ForeverTheHostess Tablet Hotels http://www.tablethotels.com/invite/dslIGj969Do Groupon Getaways http://www.groupon.com/r/uu525222 For Site Specific Gifts (Wine, Fashion, Home, Etc):Invino http://www.invino.com/signup/?invite=72132e5765b08803508e3b57eb3d1cdebfb15d78Lot18 http://www.lot18.com/i/ForeverTheHostessHauteLook http://www.hautelook.com/short/29gxkGilt Groupe http://www.gilt.com/invite/nbaumanIdeeli www.ideeli.com/invite/ForeverTheHostessRueLaLa http://www.ruelala.com/invite/4evrthehostess The OutNet www.theoutnet.comSwirl by Daily Candy http://www.swirl.com/invite/ForeverTheHostessBeyond The Rack http://www.beyondtherack.com/member/invite/NNB3C08695CMy Habit http://www.myhabit.com/ref=qd_ie_accept_gJoss & Main http://www.jossandmain.com/invite/foreverthehostessOne Kings Lane https://www.onekingslane.com/invite/NatalieDevicente And another great email subscription is to the Jones Design Company, who is providing free and adorable downloads through the Holiday Season, like the shopping list pictured above. Emily designs her own cards, invitations, and so much more. I even bought her font to use on future invitations! I encourage you to check her out! Disclosure: I was not paid to promote any of these websites. I just wanted to give them as reference to other thrifty shoppers like me!

I Can't Believe Its November....

2011-11-01T09:33:00.004-04:00

...but at least I ended October like a Lady.

Lady Gaga, that is.

I am sooooo not a blonde.

So it is November 1, and my mother is already asking me for my Christmas list. Here are a few things that I have lusted after for a while.

I am in love with this bag from Zara:

I have always wanted this Pet's Eye View Camera for the dog, just to see what she gets into when we are not looking, but its just a little pricey:

And this gift just seems like a no brainer for me... the Baker's Edge Brownie Pan:

This Emerald horn bracelet from Furbish:

And this Orange Chevron Throw, also from Furbish:

And if you haven't seen Furbish Studio or Jamie's funny and awesome bog, check it out here.

I'm sure there will be plenty more things on my list this year... I just have to sit down and really think about what I want. What is on your list this year???

Happy November!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T15:25:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to wish you all a very Happy Halloween! Hope you have a fun night with a few Tricks and lots of Treats too!

PS- It is our dog Maybee's least favorite day of the year. I wonder why....

As Snoopy (she is a beagle after all!) in 2009

As a farmer - probably her least favorite- in 2007

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

2011-10-30T14:23:00.000-04:00

One of my most favorite things to do after carving a pumpkin is roasting the seeds. And boy, did we have a lot of seeds from four pumpkins! While this colander does not seem like it is that full, it is the biggest one I have, and it took me almost a hour to get all the seeds clean and free of goop.

First, wash the seed thoroughly under warm water, and get rid of any orange pumpkin goop. Dry the seeds off as best you can on paper towels, before placing on a non-stick baking sheet.

Once you transfer them onto a baking sheet, shake the baking sheet until all the seeds are evenly distributed.

Next, let the seeds dry out even more. Sometimes I leave them overnight on top of the oven, but for sake of time, I put them out in the warm October sun for about 2 hours.

First, preheat your oven for 350 degrees.

Next, decide what you want to top them with. In the past, I have used Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning, which gives a nice salty flavor with a hit of heat. Yum! But this year, I decided to keep things simple, and sweet, especially since I have two pans full. The first pan I used Savory's Himalayan Pink Sea Salt, which gives a good salt, but not overpowering, flavor.

The second pan was the sweet stuff, using Savory's Pure Maple Sugar and Cassia Ground Cinnamon.

I sprayed both sets of seeds with a little butter flavored PAM and then sprinkled the toppings on.

Place in the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Then, using a spatula, move the seeds around, so that the toppings can get on both sides, and you aren't browning just one side of the seed. Bake for another 10 minutes, and remove from oven. Let cool for 10-15 minutes before eating, if you like them warm, or place them in baggies like I did to give to guests or save for later. Or serve them on Halloween night for a tasty and good for you treat!

Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-29T13:57:00.000-04:00

This morning, I invited my goddaughter Kinsley and her mom Amy over, as well as our friends Katie and her daughter Bree, and Janet and her baby Max for some good old-fashioned pumpkin carving! In Florida, with the humidity, pumpkins tend to rot quickly, so I always wait until a few days before Halloween to cave them.

Since it was raining outside, I decided to use my kitchen floor as our workspace (which is where I usually carve a pumpkin by myself anyway). I first laid down some newspapers to protect the floor, and then some dollar store Halloween plastic tablecloths. I put out two bowls, one for the guts without seeds, and one for the guts with seeds that we can separate, as well as my tools.

This year, I found some tools at Michaels that worked amazingly well. The 4 in 1 knife (far left) and the pumpkin scooper (second from left). Then I had an apple corer and spoon and knife. Both tools were on sale, and were less flimsy than I has originally thought. This pumpkin scooper actually allowed me to get all the guts out of my pumpkin in 5 minutes flat - AMAZING! The spoon and knife are my usual go to tools, since I have used them for years to carve pumpkins. Use whatever works best for you.

For snacks, since I was catering to 3 year olds, I made peanut butter and blackberry jam sandwiches and cut them into pumpkin shapes with a cookie cutter. Raisins too, of course, since all 3 year olds love raisins.

And something my mom used to make for us every Halloween: Blood and Bones. Its really healthy microwave popcorn with Smart Balance butter, melted and colored with red food coloring poured over it.

I found the cutest things at Target... spider shaped silicone cupcake molds. You simply make the cake mix, pour in the mold, and bake as usual. Then top with icing and googly eye sugar candies and black glitter gel icing, and you have yourself some spider cupcakes. I also made ghosts from an old Halloween silicone baking pan I had with the leftover cake mix. They came out pretty darn cute, and yummy too!

Here is my dining room, where the girls had Halloween crafts to work on while the moms used the sharp knives, as previously seen here.

Since we had to keep them occupied, I went to Michaels and found some really cute foam pumpkins and a whole box of peel and stick Halloween shapes and letters for them to decorate.

My mother, the old kindergarten teacher, also gave me a box of big crayons and some black and white photocopies of pumpkins that they could draw on as well.

The girls got right to work on their decorations, as Janet and baby Max supervised. How cute is he in his Curious George Halloween onesie?!

Here's Bree after checking in on mom Katie carving their pumpkin.

Katie used one of the templates from the pumpkin carving book that comes with the set of mini tools. Their ghostly pumpkin came out amazing!!!

Kinsley and mom Amy had two large pumpkins to carve (I actually carved the one on the left, per Miss Kinsley's instructions), and they turned out great! One is a happy pumpkin and the other is a bit scary... a perfect combination!

And here are Amy and Kinsley with all their pumpkins. You can see Kinsley got to work and put lots of sticky foam shapes on the smaller two. I think we're all now ready for Halloween!

Hours after they left, I finally go around to carving my own pumpkin. I made her a witch (notice the mole on her nose, and spaced out gagly teeth?!). She will have a hat tonight too.

Here she glows:

Notice the ears. I give all my pumpkins ears every year. I just like that something on the sides of the pumpkins glow too!

Now I'm ready for Halloween! Did you carve your pumpkin yet?

Obsession: Pinterest

2011-10-24T15:24:00.000-04:00

Do you Pinterest? Even though I received an invitation months and months ago, I have not really spent a lot of time on there until recently, for fear that I would become obsessed. Well, its official. I'm obsessed.

If you would like to join in on the fun, here are ways you can:

Want an invite? E-mail me at foreverthehostess.gmail.com and I will send you one!

Want to follow me? Click here.

Subcribe To FTH

2011-10-21T15:40:00.000-04:00

Did you know you can receive the Forever The Hostess posts directly to your e-mail inbox? Become a subscriber to get the latest posts as soon as they are completed!

Just scroll down on the right hand side and find the SUBSCRIBE button just under my photo and information. Simply type in your e-mail address and hit submit, and the latest posts will begin to appear in your e-mail inbox. Its as easy as pie!

Subscribe today!

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Fresh Towels

2011-10-19T11:43:00.000-04:00

As the nights get cooler, I love snuggling up in a blanket or in our bed and going to sleep. However, when I wake up in the morning and have to take a shower, the chill that hits me just doesn't go away.

photo from here

Recently, I was asked by Blogher to sample the Bounce Dryer Bar, and I have to tell you, as much as I hate to do laundry, this certainly makes it all the more worthwhile. And, my new found love is washing and drying towels at night and leaving them in there, and just turning the dryer on for a few minutes before I jump in the shower, so the towels are nice and warm. A warm towel after a shower on a cool morning is one great way to start the day! And the subtle but fresh scent of the dryer bar is just heavenly!

It certainly saves you from buying all those dryer sheets, or doing laundry and forgetting to throw one in to the dryer like I often do! So easy to install and replace too... it is just so easy! Thanks to Blogher and Bounce for the opportunity to try this out. I think I may like doing laundry a little bit more now!

Greek Lemon Chicken Soup

2011-10-14T14:55:00.000-04:00

As you may remember, we visited Tarpon Springs back in September. When we ate lunch at Mykonos restaurant, we tried their Lemon Chicken Soup, which in Greek is called Avgolemono. I could not stop thinking about how good this soup would be for the early, crisp days of fall. Lemony goodness from the end of summer, mixed with a thick hearty broth that reminds you of the good fall soups. I just had to make it. And since my sister-in-law and I bought some orzo at the Greek market, it was just the thing to get me going.

After searching many recipes online and in my vintage Greek cookbook, I kind of blended recipes to make what I wanted. Here it is:

Ingredients:
8 cups Chicken Broth
1/2 cup Fresh Lemon juice, plus two lemons sliced
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 can of chicken soup base (I actually used the broth from a can of chicken noodle soup I had in my pantry)
1/4 cup of butter or margarine (I used Smart Balance)
1/4 cup all purpose flour (or Wondra)
2 cups Orzo*, cooked (you can also use rice, but it is MUCH better with orzo)
8 egg yolks
1 tsp white pepper
4 chicken breasts, boiled and shredded**
Optional: 1/2 cup carrots and celery - I just don't like these in my soup!

*Bring a pot of water to a boil and add two cups of Orzo, and cook per the instructions on the package. Do not overcook the orzo, as it may cook a little once you add it back into the soup base. Drain, as instructed, and set aside until the soup base is complete.

**If you haven't made it yet, bring a pot of water to a boil and add your pieces of chicken breast. Boil on high for 10-15 minutes, or until fully cooked. On a cutting board, remove the chicken pieces and shred. Set aside until the soup base is complete.

First, combine the chicken broth, lemon juice, onions (and carrots & celery if you choose), chicken soup base, and pepper in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Once it is boiling, reduce the heat to low or simmer for about 20 minutes.

Next, blend the butter and flour together and gradually add the paste mixture to the soup, and stir in with a whisk. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

While that is cooking, beat the egg yolks in a bowl until they get lighter in color. With a ladle, remove some of the soup mixture, and whisk it into the egg yolks. Once you get it fully mixed, combine the egg yolks into the soup base, and cook for another 5-10 minutes. Be sure to whisk in the yolks so that they are fully combined and cooked.

Once you have done that, add in the orzo and chicken that you cooked earlier, and let simmer for 3-5 minutes, or until the chicken is warm again. Ladle into bowls and top with fresh chopped Greek parsley, and serve.

This was so good that it may just become my staple for Chicken Soup when I am sick! A great way to combine the summer and fall flavors, all in one dish. Hope you enjoy!

Halloween Decor

2011-10-10T13:02:00.000-04:00

Halloween is one of my most favorite holidays. Don't get me wrong, I cry after Christmas decorations are taken down, but Halloween decor is just a little more fun. I had to scale it back since our home is on the market, but I still put out some of my favorites. Take a look:

In the dining room, I used the orange material from our UF Football parties as the tablecloth. I then added the spider runners to both the table and buffet. They are from Pier 1 and I bought them last year on clearance for $5 each.The spider candle holder in the middle I found at Ross for $5 this year, and the orange glitter candles I found at Michael's, and bought with a 40% off coupon.

The back BOO wooden sign, black wrought iron candlesticks, and the spooky candle tree were all hand me downs from my mother's vast Halloween decor collection.

In my front living room, I have more of a harvest feel, since I leave most of these decorations up through Thanksgiving in November.

My favorite decorations are the light up pumpkin and gourd I bought years ago at Pier 1. You can sometimes find them around Halloween, but each store usually only gets one or two. My mother loved mine so much, she bought the same two for her house! They are just cheery and whimsical, and get me ready for Christmas lights!

This sign is a little country for me, but I found it at HomeGoods and it pretty sums up how I feel about Halloween. It should be fun and a little spooky at the same time. I think I paid about $7 for the sign, and I bought the garland for the mantle there as well, for about $10 or less.

Halloween decor does not have to cost a fortune! Just check out the mummy project from last year. Simple elements cane keep things cheap and cute! What are some of your favorite decorations for Halloween?

Obsession: Pumpkin Quick Bread

2011-10-08T12:00:00.000-04:00

This time of year, I make something every two weeks that literally only lasts us about 2 days: Williams Sonoma's Spiced Pecan Pumpkin Spice Quick Bread mix. I seriously stockpile these so I can make them throughout the entire fall, and the aroma that fills your house when you bake it is just heavenly!

I sometimes add cream cheese frosting to the top if I am going to serve it to guests, but my husband and I actually prefer it plain or with a little melted butter. So yummy!

I would have taken a photo of our bread, but like I said, it didn't last long! And this post is not sponsored, nor was I paid anything by WS to talk about their bread. I just seriously am obsessed!

Use What You've Got: Rustic Pasta

2011-10-05T17:04:00.000-04:00

There are some weeks when I am scrappy in the kitchen. I look at what ingredients we have, and come up with something delicious to eat. Some days, the food is an epic failure, and usually I know it was not good when my husband has dessert or some cottage cheese after dinner. Last night, though, I really loved the flavor of what I made and will be altering this in the future, depending on what ingredients we have in the house.

Ingredients:
Pasta (I used Whole wheat angel hair)
Garlic, miced
Fresh Tomatoes, diced
Lemon Juice
Olive Oil
Meat, diced (I used bacon, but any salami or sausage will do)
Italian spices
Optional: Splash of White Wine, Porcini mushrooms, grated Parmesan

I first heated about 1 Tbsp of olive oil and garlic in a deep skillet over medium heat. Next, I drained a little of the oil, and added diced bacon. I tried to keep the really fatty pieces out, so in total what you see is about four or five pieces of bacon. Turn the bacon pieces until they are browned.

While the bacon is cooking, dice two medium sized tomatoes. I also left out some of the seeds, as I wanted the tomatoes to stay chunky and not watery.

Once the bacon is browned, add the tomatoes and toss.

Next, add whatever other ingredients you have lying around. I had dried Porcini mushrooms, so I added those, as well as some Italian seasoning.

Next add about 4-5 Tbsp of lemon juice and a splash of white wine, and be sure to stir so that all the ingredients blend together. Simmer on medium-low so that the flavors can infuse into the lemon juice and wine.

While it is simmering, boil a pot of water and add your pasta. I like whole wheat angel hair, but again, whatever you have in your house. Forgive the little floating green pieces in the water... I got excited with the parsley!

Here's a little trick... undercook the pasta by a minute or two. I love al dente pasta, but I even undercooked this by two minutes, so that I could add it to the sauce mixture to cook for additional time.

Once your sauce cooks down into a thicker sauce, turn the burner off or on low.

Drain your undercooked pasta, and add it to the skillet.

Toss well and allow the pasta to sit in the sauce for another couple of minutes to soak up the juices and flavors.

Serve with a little grated Parmesan cheese and enjoy! I really loved this disk because the bacon (or any kind of meat) with the lemon juice, wine, and tomatoes really gave it that rustic Italian flavoring. The Porcini mushrooms also added a hint of richness to the dish. Definitely a great, easy dish for a cool fall night, and I can't wait to try other variations with different ingredients!

Pulled Pork Flautas

2011-10-03T16:06:00.000-04:00

Over the weekend, we had people over for the Gator Football Game, and I made pulled pork, similar to this recipe here, using the Backyard BBQ Spice Blend from Savory Spice Shop. Since I had guests add the BBQ sauce to the pork as they made their sandwiches, the leftover pork could be altered for other recipes. I decided to make Pulled Pork Flautas, and while I order them regularly at a local restaurant, I have actually never made them until now. Here's what you need:

Ingredients:
Pulled Pork (it doesn't have to be leftovers!)
Spices
White/Mexican cheese, grated
Tortillas (I prefer whole wheat)
Toothpicks
Couple Tbsp of oil, olive or vegetable
Optional: Sour Cream, Guacamole, Fruit preserves

First, I microwaved the pork so that it would be warm.

Next, I grated some Mexican cheese. Cojita or any kind of white soft cheese works best.

In order to make it have a little more Mexican flare, I added a bit of the Peruvian Chile Lime Seasoning from Savory for a little heat. Mix the spice well into the pork so that you cover every piece.

In a deep skillet, heat a little oil (I used olive oil, but vegetable oil works too), enough to cover the bottom, over medium heat.

Next, take a flour tortilla and place it on a plate. Toward one side of the tortilla, place about two spoonfuls of pork and a little cheese on top. You don't want to make the tortilla too full, because you have to make sure you can roll it up all the way.

Fold your tortilla on two sides, and then roll. Use one toothpick, broken in half, to secure the flap.

It is difficult to cook with oil while holding a camera, so I have no photos of what to do next. Place your flautas into the oil and continue to turn them until all sides are brown. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel before serving.

I served our pork flautas with guacamole, sour cream, and blackberry preserves. I have to tell you that while I love pork and guacamole together, the blackberry adds a little sweetness to the salty and spicy pork, and it was AMAZING! I dare you to try!

These were so good, that I may just make pulled pork for flautas instead of sandwiches! Even my husband gave me kudos for turning leftovers into something so yummy and new! Hope you enjoy!

Apple Chips

2011-09-30T08:46:00.000-04:00

As I mentioned here, I needed to use up the apples from our Back To School event. And I did not use them all in the apple pie, so I had to make one more thing with the three apples I had left! Being someone who loves to snack, I decided to make apple chips, and now that I know how easy they are, I may be doing this with more fruits and veggies in the future!

Ingredients:
Apples, thinly sliced
Sugar
Lemon Juice
Water
Toppings ( I used cinnamon and maple sugar)

Set oven to 200 degrees, and grease a large baking sheet. Next, slice your apples thinly. Don't worry if parts of your apple have gone bad... some of my favorite chips were 1/2 slices. If you are making this recipe for kids, I would recommend slicing them into bite sized pieces.

Next, put all your slices in a bowl, and gently toss with about 1 Tbsp of Lemon juice. I did not measure, just poured in enough to cover them. This helps them not turn brown while you are doing the next steps.

In a small saucepan, make a simple syrup with sugar and water. I think I used 1 cup white sugar and 2 cups of water. I would half that if doing it again. I had a lot leftover. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar as you go.

Next, dip each apple slice into the simple syrup and place on the baking sheet. The simple syrup gives the apples a bit of moisture without too much sugar. I think you could really opt out of this step if you are trying to limit your sugar intake.

Here comes the fun part! Add whatever toppings you want to the apples. I chose Maple sugar from Savory Spice Shop and cinnamon (I usually use the cinnamon fro Savory too, but I ran out so I had to borrow this from a neighbor!). Other combinations could be ginger, brown sugar, nutmeg, coco powder, etc. Whatever your heart desires! Just sprinkle them on!

Bake at 200 degrees for 1 hour, and then open the oven slightly and bake for another hour to hour and a half. This allows the moisture to escape and the apples to dry out. Take a spatula and loosen them from the pan and eat! Delicious!

Muriel's Apple Pie

2011-09-29T11:35:00.000-04:00

I am not a pie maker, although I did make my grandmother Muriel's pecan pies last year that were amazing!!! My brother loves her apple pie, and since I had all these apples left over, I decided to make him one as a special treat.

Ingredients:
6-7 Apples (I used 6 and probably should have used 7)
1 cup Sugar
Cinnamon
Pre-made Pie Crusts (2)
2 Tbsp Butter

First, peel your apples and cut into slices.

Next, in a bowl, add 1/2 cup of sugar, a couple Tbsp of Cinnamon, and stir. Once you get the mixture stirred, add another 1/2 cup of sugar and mix well.

Next, open up your pre-made pie crusts and put into a greased pie plate.

Preheat your oven for 400 degrees. The pie will take 50 minutes.

Pour the apples into the pie crust.

And on top, take 2 Tbsp of butter and cut it into thin slices, and place on top before adding the top pie crust.

I decided to try a fancy, old fashioned way to place the top crust on. I rolled out the pie crust and cut it into strips, and then wove the strips on top. I think next time I will just place the whole crust on top, cutting in a few holes for ventilation.

Make sure to pinch the edges to stick the crusts together, and make it look pretty!

My grandmother does not cover the pie with foil, but I did cover just the edges with foil, as my crust was starting to get really brown. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes, check the pie and remove the foil, and let bake for an additional 5 minutes to really brown the crust. Take out of the oven and let it cool down enough to where it has set and is warm but not hot. Serve with vanilla ice cream for the ultimate indulgence!

So simple and easy - I guess that's why they say "It's as easy as pie!" My grandmother would love for me to tell you that this is also how you make cherry pie. Just substitute 1 can of cherries for the apples. Hope you enjoy!

Vintage Finds 9.28.2011

2011-09-28T11:49:00.000-04:00

This past weekend, on our usual garage sale outing, I came across this beverage jar at a church sale. Since I broke the lid to the one I have (and now it looks a little ghetto), I have been looking for a new one. I originally liked this one with the stand, but I couldn't stomach the price. Well, when I saw this one, I thought it was expensive (anything over $5 at a garage sale is expensive to me) and it is really large. Where would I put it? Luckily, I came to my senses after a few minutes, after remembering how much the other one was, and thought $10 was actually a deal. Plus, when I went back to look at it, I really noticed how beautiful it is with its thick green glass, that it has little handles on the side, and was made in Italy (or so it says on the bottom). And it had a lid. The only gamble was that I didn't know if the spigot worked, and had to test when I got home - which it does!!!

And here is what I love most about it- on the back side, it has levels for how many gallons it holds, and would you believe this beauty hold 5 gallons!!! That is a LOT of punch, and I am looking forward to breaking it out at our next party!

Have you found any good vintage finds lately?

Breast Cancer Awareness Month - October

2011-09-26T11:31:00.000-04:00

As October approaches, Breast Cancer Awareness has become a new mission for me. Having someone close to me be affected by the disease has really put things in perspective, and shows you that early detection and awareness can really change the outcome.

One in eight women will have breast cancer. That is a HUGE, shocking statistic. And recently, high profile women like NBC's Andrea Mitchell and comedienne Wanda Sykes have admitted that they have been treated for breast cancer. Unfortunately, this disease is different in every woman, and there is no definitive cause or cure. So with that, I ask of you two things:

Schedule a Mammogram: It is so important to get your first mammogram at a young age, so that you can have a baseline for every mammogram in the future. Make October the month you schedule yours.

Raise Awareness: Educate yourself on breast cancer, what to look for, what to ask your doctor. Pass the word to your mother, aunts, sisters, girlfriends, and make them do the same. And, donate to breast cancer research so that they find cures and we do not become part of the statistics. Here are some great sites to go to and pass along:

BreastCancer.org
Pink Ribbon
Susan G. Komen For the Cure
Mayo Clinic - Breast Cancer
Moffitt Cancer Center - Breast Center

Also, I am walking in the Susan G. Komen Race For the Cure 5K this Saturday in honor of those close to me who have had to battle this terrible disease. If you would like to show your support, please click here to donate.

First Day of Fall

2011-09-23T07:53:00.002-04:00

Since today is the first day of fall, I thought this would be the perfect time to share this recipe for Apple Honey bread. I had about a dozen apples leftover from our Back To School event, so I needed to make something with them quick! My friend and event chair for the event sent me an amazing recipe that she used for the apples she took home. Here is the adapted recipe from AllRecipes.com.

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

3/4 cup honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp allspice

3 apples, peeled and shredded

3/4 cup pecans (the original recipe called for walnuts)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. The original recipe calls for a bundt pan, but I don't own a bundt pan, so I used a loaf pan and a mini muffin tin. Make sure your pans are greased, but I own these, so no greasing necessary!

Before mixing all the ingredients, you want to prep the apples. First, peel the apples:

Since I was working late at night (sorry for the dark photos!), I decided to use a knife to peel the apples quickly, but a good peeler will also work. I did not core the apples, because it actually made the next step easier- shredding the apples:

Holding onto the apple at the core by the top and bottom, run the apple along a cheese grater. I actually used the larger hole side, turning the apple as I grated, so that the whole apple is grated in about a minute. Repeat with the other 2 apples. As you can see from the shredding, the apples start to turn brown quickly, so you know they are ripe and ready to bake!

In a large bowl or mixer, combine the sugar and oil. Beat in the eggs, and then vanilla and honey. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and allspice in a separate bowl, and stir mixture into the batter. Once all the ingredients are mixed, with a spoon, stir in the apples and pecans as to not crush them. Fill the loaf pan first, it should be about 1/3 of the total mixture. The fill the mini muffin tin. You should be able to get about 30 mini muffins and one bread loaf from the entire mixture.

When using the mini muffin pan, I found that about 15-20 minutes is the perfect baking time. For the loaf pan, I found that 45-50 minutes was the perfect baking time. To check, place a toothpick into the center and if it comes out clean, the bread is done!

This recipe is so delicious that the bread is already gone - we took it to a family dinner and served it with vanilla ice cream. The mini muffins are perfect for breakfast, and those will be finished up this weekend!I think next time, I will put a cream cheese frosting on the bread and maybe drizzle with a little caramel or honey. Definitely a quick and easy recipe to welcome fall!

Check back next week for my Grandmother's apple pie recipe, in which I hope to use up the remaining apples!

Happy Fall!

New Obsession - Less is More

2011-09-21T15:41:00.014-04:00

About a month ago, I was at a garage sale and came across a vintage lamp for $0.50. If you ask my husband, I am like a moth to a flame when it comes to lamps. We currently have 6 lamps in 3 rooms, but I actually had 5 more in the house before the home and condo renovations. So I purchased this vintage arm lamp for two whole quarters, and brought it home to live in our sun room.

It is the perfect reading lamp, but I felt like it needed a shade. After several failed trips to local hardware and lighting stores to find a shade that looks vintage and fits, I had just about given up on making it look less tacky with just a bulb. Enter the 700+ page of Restoration Hardware's newest catalog. I sat down for a whole hour scouring the pages, when what comes along? This:

These bulbs are so beautiful, and I thought, why not buy a vintage style bulb for a vintage lamp, and leave it exposed?! I had to wait a whole two weeks with this idea until I could get to our local Restoration Hardware with my husband. I made the sales associate pull out all the bulbs she had from the back so that we could plug them all into a lamp and check them out. I think my husband was a little skeptical at first, but once we saw them in person, he was on board! They really are amazing and beautiful, and one of our favorites was the Radio bulb (fourth from left above). The color of the glass is almost amber, and the filament is so cool when it is on. However, it only comes in a 30 watt bulb, and it just wasn't enough light to make ours a reading lamp.

We ended up deciding on the 40 watt Edison 1910 squirrel cage bulb, and since they are having a lighting sale, we got it for $13. Of course, that seems like a lot for one light bulb, but I have to say that it definitely adds the bit of drama to the light without making it look fussy or too modern. And considering the pieces I had previously found to retrofit a shade on the lamp, it would have cost me twice that much. I still think that a lamp for a total of $13.50 is a great deal!

When it comes to vintage pieces, sometimes less is more.

PS- This weekend, once my camera battery is charged, I will take a photo of the lamp and the new light bulb, just to prove how they were meant to be together. Update, here are some photos:

Going Back To School...

2011-09-19T15:53:00.002-04:00

This past Saturday was the St. Petersburg Museum of History's Back To School event. We invited history teachers from around the county to show them the great exhibits, archives, and initiatives that can be used for and in their classrooms.

I had a ton of fun working on this event, and coming up with some cute school-themed tablescapes and details. Lets have a look:

Here is the Flight Gallery, in which we have a model of Tony Jannus's plane the Benoist, is where we hosted the event. Forgive the standard chairs, we were going for a casual look!

For the tablescapes, we used the caterer's black linens as the base, and I purchased the brown paper in a giant roll at Lowes for $10. I made bowls out of black yarn and glue. We filled them with real red apples, tied on some red gingham ribbons, and then used the red chiffon squares from my wedding underneath. My event chair added her own creative touch with the foam alphabet letters she bought at Michaels. The chalkboards I purchased at Joanns for $1.50 each and we reused some small vases I had at home (originally from the dollar store) to hold the crayons that guests could use to draw on the tables.

Here is a closer look at the apples and baskets I made:

And just to get guests thinking and drawing, we added a few little drawings of our own to the tables. I love how the white crayon looks on the brown paper!

The Museum is always in need of research materials for the Archivists, as well as volunteers. I used some more of the chalkboards to let guests know how they can help!

We created pledge cards, on which guests could pledge an item or a dollar figure towards an item. I found a photo of a yellow index card online, and used it for the background of my pledge cards. I popped it into a quarter page postcard layout on Microsoft Publisher, and used the Typewriterhand font to create the cards. I think they turned out so cute!

The guests can then drop them into boxes that we had at a few locations around the museum. I took a USPS box and covered it with red gingham fabric from Joanns. I then glued a school themed name plaque to the front of each one to let people know they can use them for donations and pledge cards.

We presented our Museum In A Box project, which allows teachers in 4th and 5th grades to borrow a box of artifacts, interactive media, lesson plans, and more from the museum to teach in their classrooms. The areas of history are Native Americas, Transportation, and Sports & Recreation.

Our Native American Museum in a Box was presented by the very lively expert Hermann Trappman. Our guests raved about him!

Our Transportation Museum in a Box was presented by Jeff Danner, a local transportation expert and City Council Member.

And our last Museum In A Box was presented by Dennis Schrader, who has an obsession for baseball history, and owns the largest collection of signed baseballs on the planet. Luckily for us, an article in the newspaper about him came out that morning, and he brought the case of signed balls featured in the article!

The evening was not complete without the delicious food from Delectables,
and our guests seemed to like eating on styrofoam lunch trays we provided to go with our school theme.

And last but not least, the AMAZING performance from the Nate Najar Trio.

Overall, I think it turned out to be a great event! Stay tuned to see what I do with all the apples we used at the tables.... apple recipes coming up!

Back To School Event - St. Petersburg Museum of History

2011-09-16T11:00:00.001-04:00

This Saturday is the Back To School event I have been working hard on at the St. Petersburg Museum of History. For all you teachers out there, this is going to be a great event to show you all the wonderful teaching opportunities the museum has for you and your classroom. And don't forget about the fabulous food, wine, and entertainment we have too! RSVP here! Stay tuned next week for all the details!

Nate Najar Trio

2011-09-13T14:47:00.001-04:00

This Saturday night, at the St. Petersburg Museum of History, I am helping put together our Back To School event. More to come about that later in the week.... but just wanted to share with you my very talented and accomplished friend, Nate Najar, who will be adding his jazz music to our evening. Nate and I went to high school together, and I have followed him and his music for years since then. Be sure to check out his talents, and come to our event this weekend to see him in person!

Destination: Tarpon Springs

2011-09-12T15:05:00.123-04:00

This past Saturday, we had a family adventure planned... a trip 30 minutes north to a little Greek town called Tarpon Springs, Florida. Tarpon Springs has the highest population of Greeks of any city in the United States, and between their traditional restaurants, annual Epiphany celebration, local shops, and remnants of the old sponging industry, this little town is a must-see.

When we arrived to the docks, we were greeted by this little sponge diver, and a sign that Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs had already been there. Be sure to check out his experience here harvesting sponges from the waters of the Gulf of Mexico.We walked through an old museum that told about the sponging industry, and how the Greek population came to Tarpon Springs. Then we headed down to the docks!

The St. Nicholas III, a typical sponge boat at the docks that can be rented for day tours and simulations of what it would be like to go "sponging" on the Gulf of Mexico. We were a little more interested in the food, which brought us to the famous Hellas Bakery.

While it looks a little like a nightclub on the outside, this bakery and restaurant actually make some of the best Greek pastries and treats you may ever have in your life.

Since we arrived mid-morning, we grabbed a quick bite of one of my favorite Greek dishes, Tiropita, a feta cheese pie made with layers of buttered phyllo dough. Here is my brother-in-law and sister-in-law with their tiropita and Greek coffee.

Since I am not much of a morning person, I also grabbed a Greek coffee. It was the smallest cup (especially for $2.25), but it was like a triple espresso from Starbucks. It certainly got me through the rest of my day!

As we walked a little off the beaten path, we found a grocery store where my sister-in-law and I bought Orzo to make some traditional Greek dishes at home. We also saw this nightclub, Zorbas, which instantly reminded me of the restaurant, "Dancing Zorbas", in the film My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

The city makes a lot of its money from tourists and their demand for sponges. Sponges are sold at every shop, and in a million different sizes and shapes, and prices! Most were too expensive, and none of us bought any while we were there, but I did take some pictures of some beautiful ones.

To wrap up our half day excursion, we ate lunch at the famous Mykonos restaurant. Most of us ordered the Gyro, but we also tried the Horiatiki salad, and traditional lemon soup.

We were all so obsessed with the Horiatiki salad (it is basically what we know as a Greek Salad, but without the lettuce and potato salad), that I stopped on my way home at the local produce market to get all the ingredients. We also purchased Andrico's Greek dressing from the restaurant to use on the salad. Here's my recipe:

Traditional Horiatiki
Red ripe tomatoes
Green tomatoes
Cucumber
White/Yellow onion
Green pepper
Pepperoncini (I left this out of mine, since I don't really like them)
Kalamata olives
Fresh Feta Cheese
1 Tbsp Andrico's Greek Dressing
Pita Bread (optional)

Chop up all the veggies and olives into bite sized pieces and combine in a bowl. Drizzle on the Greek dressing, and then toss the veggies in it until all are well covered. In a separate bowl, place a large hunk of feta on the bottom, and add the veggies and olives on top. Serve with pita bread to sop up the remaining dressing at the bottom of the bowl when you finish the salad.

After lunch, we stopped back by the Hellas Bakery to get a few confections to go. I bought some tiropita, baklava, and almond cookies. They only lasted a day in my house!

So that was our little excursion to Tarpon Springs. Stay tuned, as I now have a serious craving for more Greek food, and will share my own recipe for tiropita, as well as a few new things to try. If you are ever in the area, be sure to check out this little gem and all it has to offer!

Easy Poached Eggs

2011-09-09T15:55:00.001-04:00

While browsing through my Everyday with Rachel Ray Magazine, I found the fastest and easiest way to make poached eggs. I simplified Rachel's recipe (no basil or cheese)and tried it this past weekend, and have made it three times since. Now why didn't I think of this?

Ingredients:
Eggs (I use the organic Egglands Best, for health reasons)
Thin sliced Prosciutto
Cracked Black Pepper
Non-stick Muffin Tin

Set oven to bake at 375 degrees. In a non-stick muffin tin, place thin slices of prosciutto in each cup, and be sure to cover all of the inside of the cup. I actually cut each slice in half, and then used two halves to cover the whole cup. Repeat for each number of cups you want to make. Next, crack one egg into each cup, and add a little cracked pepper to the top. No salt is needed, due to the saltiness of the prosciutto. Bake entire pan for 15 minutes, and let rest for a few minutes before serving.

Each cup should easily come out with a spoon and onto your plate, and the prosciutto will be perfectly crispy and the eggs perfectly poached.

Next time, I will use this recipe for bridal/baby showers, and will simply put this cup onto an english muffin and top with hollandaise sauce and fresh parsley for a quick Eggs Benedict!

Hostess Tips #7 & #8

2011-09-06T15:08:00.000-04:00

Every year when my family goes down to Captiva Island for Labor Day, I end up making a red velvet cake to take down there with us. We always have more than enough food and desserts, so I don't feel too bad if it is not perfect, or if it tips over in the car. The homemade ones are the best, but we can always buy one down the road for a pretty penny if it really gets ruined. This year, we came close to having to do just that....

Hostess Tip #7: Don't trust an oven you've never used before. And...

Hostess Tip #8: Don't go lay out by the pool while you are making a red velvet cake in an oven you have never used before.

This year, I decided to bring all the ingredients and make it fresh at the house where we were staying. I prepared the cake as normal, and was excited to use an oven that easily held all three pans on the same rack. I set my cell phone alarm for 10 minutes before the 3 cake rounds were supposed to be done, but as I stepped foot into the house to check on them, I smelled burning cake. Frankly, I am amazed the smoke alarm didn't go off! They had baked unevenly, and overflowed onto the elements on the bottom of the oven, which may or may not have been the reason the breaker tripped and it took us a few hours the next day to determine why the oven and stove weren't working. Needless to say, it took me 20 minutes to clean the hot oven, and a few hours to air out the house. I ended up using the three cakes, by shaving them down to even layers, and icing them, however, it ended up being the UGLIEST cake I have ever made in my life. I didn't even take a picture, it was so bad. However, I'm pretty sure it was one of the best red velvet cakes I have ever made, and it was gone by the second night of our long weekend.

Note to self: Make it ahead of time in your own oven, when you know it cooks perfectly every time.

13 More Days...

2011-09-01T08:56:00.000-04:00

Until the Missoni for Target line is in stores. FINALLY, there is a collaboration that is swoon worthy, between the women's wear and the home decor, I am loving all Missoni brought to the table... literally! Check out some of my favorites:

All images are courtesy of the Fashionista. For the entire lookbook, check out their website, or the Target preview here.

Friday Fun

2011-08-26T16:09:00.000-04:00

From one of my favorite designer clothing companies, Lanvin:

Happy Weekend!

Salvador Dali

2011-08-23T11:34:00.003-04:00

If you have not yet been to the new, world-class Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, this Saturday's event would be a perfect opportunity for you to check it out! A great night of tapas from Ceviche, music, silent art auction, museum tours, and Spanish wine & beer tastings. Don't miss it!

Thrifty Finds 8.17.2011

2011-08-17T14:48:00.000-04:00

Since not all my great finds are vintage, I am adding to the Wednesday Vintage Finds and adding some Thifty Finds as well. This week, I made a killer score at the Salvation Army.... brand new marigold cords from Gap and in MY size!

Note their original price of $54.50. Their previous owner must have bought them on super clearance for $15.99, and then didn't wear them, and donated them to Salvation Army. Notice the $6.99 price tag? I didn't pay that either... it was half-off clothing Wednesdays, so I snagged these for $3.50!

A little thrown off by the color? It's one of the hottest new colors for fall. Check out photo three... I spy marigold cords:


Photo from SimplyStudded

Have you found any hot fall trends for a steal lately?

It's Finally Free

2011-08-08T08:27:00.001-04:00

Once of my FAVORITE online invitation and card sites is finally FREE to use! Cocodot , like eVite, emerged months ago as a new, trendy way to send e-mail invites and cards. I love their graphics and ways to personalize, and after months of using their service "free" with lots of coupon codes, they are finally offering their services to everyone truly for FREE! Check out some of my favorite new designs, and head to Cocodot to send your invites today!

I was not paid by Cocodot for this glowing review, even though I should be! I just love their stuff and wanted to share!

Vintage Finds 8.3.2011 - SALE

2011-08-03T07:30:00.001-04:00

Today is the BIG SALE! I have cleaned out my closet of some of my favorite vintage pieces, and they are all for sale here! I will also be adding new pieces through the weekend, so check back for some more great clothes and jewelry!

All items are $5, $10, $15, or $20, and have $5 shipping to anywhere in the United States. I also combine shipping on multiple items. Hope you find a piece you can't live without!

Sale Tomorrow!

2011-08-02T11:28:00.000-04:00

Check in tomorrow for the Vintage Sale. You won't want to miss some of these great items at a steal, from my closet to yours!

A Case of The Mondays

2011-08-01T07:55:00.000-04:00

Today, I have a case of the Mondays. I wish I were sleeping like my puppy, Maybee. I am feeling groggy from lack of sleep, achy from 8 hours of painting yesterday, and mentally exhausted from many projects going on all at once. I am taking a mini break from major blog updates until the end of the week, but there still will be the BIG SALE on Wednesday's Vintage Finds. Don't miss it!

Do Nothing For 2 Minutes

2011-07-29T13:15:00.007-04:00

This week has been a busy and stressful one. In checking my e-mails at lunch, I came across one from one of my favorite publications, Real Simple. It was titled "Six Ways To Simplify Your Life", and one of them was exactly what I needed.

It is a website called Do Nothing For 2 Minutes. You seriously go and stare at a beautiful sunset picture and hear waves crashing for a whole 2 minutes. If you hit a button or move your mouse, it starts over for another 2 minutes. It forces you clear your mind and just relax, and I have to tell you that it works....

I almost fell asleep.

Kudos to whomever created this great site. Two minutes was all it took me to mentally recharge to get through the rest of my day.

Photo from DoNothingFor2Minutes, first seen at Real Simple

Lots of blog updating will be done this weekend. Check back for some new projects!

Vintage Finds 7.27.2011

2011-07-27T13:26:00.001-04:00

Just another reminder about the VINTAGE SALE next Wednesday, August 3, as part of the Vintage Finds series. You won't want to miss all the goodies I have in store!

Weekend Rehab

2011-07-24T23:02:00.113-04:00

This weekend we celebrated my brother's 21st Birthday. When I asked him what he wanted, he said he needs stuff for his house. There is honestly so much that he needs, I was trying to keep things simple and get some real necessities, instead of fun decor stuff. You can always add the details later, but staples, like chairs and rugs, are what he needed most.

A few weeks ago, while my husband was working outside, our neighbors across the alley put out a bunch of furniture they wanted to get rid of with a large FREE sign. So I went over there to check out the ~~goods~~ crap. I did come upon an old swivel chair that had brown vinyl upholstery, wood armrests, and chrome frame. While it was in pretty poor condition, it had good bones that I thought I could clean up. I rolled it across the alley and put it in my garage until true inspiration kicked in.

My brother needed a desk chair for his new kitchen, one that had wheels so that it could move easily on the new wood floor. At a trip to Joann's one Saturday, I found some great blue woven fabric on clearance for $3 a yard (I bought 1.5 yards), and decided to make over the old office chair. The photo on the left shows the true color, but the one on the right shows the weave of the material.

Next, I stripped off the old vinyl off the cushions, and surprisingly, the foam underneath was in great condition. No smells or major stains, and I think this is because of the stain resistance of the vinyl covering. I liked the brown armrests, but due to some scrapes and damage to them, sanding them way down and staining was not really an option to get them to look good. And I was limited on time, so I gave them a quick sanding and wipe down, and primed them with Kilz Latex Primer.

While the primer was drying, I took the back cushion inside and began to recover it. I used a staple gun to secure the fabric around the old foam, as the staples would be disguised by the mounting of the cushion back on the frame. No need to sew when you don't see the seams anyway! I had plenty of material to cover both cushions.

Next, I took the frame out into the grass to spray paint the arms (we my husband had a little issue with spray paint overdraft on ~~our~~ his patio pavers last time, so I have been banished to the grass for all spray painting projects) with a glossy white Rustoleum paint I already had in my garage. I used some Frog Tape, also already owned, to take off the chrome as to prevent any residual spray on that too.

And just to show you the condition of the chrome, it was not in terrible shape, but definitely had some pitting and rust spots. So, after the arm rests were really dry, as to not screw them up like I do my nail polish, I proceeded to clean up the chrome frame.

For this, I used one of my most favorite products that I already had on hand, Brasso. I use it to clean up my vintage brass pieces, anything chrome, and sometimes even silver. It can be found at most major home improvement stores. I dab it on with steel wool, let sit for a few minutes, and then rub in circles with the steel wool. Then get a clean rag or paper towel and wipe off the excess. It took off about 98% of the rust, with the exception of two small amounts in the corners, and made the chrome look shiny and new! It gleamed almost as bright as the new white arm rests!

The bottom cushion was originally covered with the vinyl stapled directly to the bottom of the frame, so I used the same technique with the new blue fabric. I just stretched the fabric over the foam, and stapled the fabric tightly to the underneath. I them trimmed any excess fabric off of the bottom.

And here it is!!! The finished chair, looking bright, shiny, and new! When we first got it to his house, the chair was a little too tall for the new desk, but thanks to it being a vintage chair, it could be swiveled down to the right height. Who knew?! Here it is as the perfect fit in his new desk, and the entire project cost me a whopping $4.50 in material, since all other items were already owned! And check out the new rugs we got for the kitchen from HomeGoods for $20 a piece. I love them because they are sisal, but have the rubber backing on the back for a no-slip grip!

We also got my brother some plants for his house, to warm up the space a bit. He still needs a few more, but we need to start small to see if he can keep them alive. The one in the gray pot (also from HomeGoods $3) is an air purifying plant from Home Depot, that I thought would be not only good for the desk/kitchen, but also his allergies. The other plant is a tropical plant that loves sun and requires little water. The pot was also from HomeGoods for $5, and both plants were under $10 each. And finally, his last gift was a large sisal rug for the living room. While it is not my favorite rug, he needed something in there to break up all the brown from the wood floor and leather couches, until we can find a larger rug with more color.

So there's the rundown of the weekend rehab project! I guess it was really two projects in one, since I not only rehabed a chair, but brought some more life to my brother's house. Check back soon for a few more rehab projects this summer!

Vintage Finds 7.20.2011 - SALE!

2011-07-20T07:39:00.001-04:00

In an attempt to streamline my house (and closet), I have decided to get rid of some vintage treasures, jewelry and clothing that I have collected for a long time. These will all be for sale through my shop in Etsy in two weeks during my Wednesday Vintage Finds, August 3.

ALL items will be $5-15, with $5 shipping anywhere in the US, and I will combine shipping on multiple items. Save the date!

Image from here

Dali Muesum Event

2011-07-18T09:26:00.000-04:00

My husband is on the Dali Museum's Zodiac Committee and they are having an open call to artists for this year's Dali Museum Zodiac event "The Birth of Liquid Desires"! Submit work for consideration for the silent art auction, set for August 27th, 2011 at the Dali Museum. Submission deadline: Friday, July 29, 2011. Please check out their website for more information about this awesome event!

Friday Fun - Pick Your Battles

2011-07-15T14:10:00.001-04:00

Coming next week will be more relevant posts, but I leave this week with one of the funniest blogs/posts on the internet for this crazy Friday. This photo should be enough to get you to go read the story for yourself:

Found here, and first seen here.

And what is more funny than the first story about the giant metal chicken is the second story about another giant metal chicken. Happy Friday!

DIY Photo Booth

2011-07-14T23:40:00.048-04:00

At the party, I wanted a little more than just shuffleboard. After seeing the adorable props on Oh Happy Day, I just couldn't resist a little photo booth! I purchased some blue background fabric on clearance at Joanns, and simply hung it over some items in the clubhouse. I printed out the props from Oh Happy Day (below) and used spray adhesive, outside in a well ventilated area, to attach them to white foam board. Using an Exact-o knife and a sharp pair of scissors, I cut them out and attached them to sticks (i.e. pencils in packs of 10 from the Dollar Store = $2). I then added a few more props, like giant sunglasses, dollar bills (to make it rain), and cute sayings, to complete the photo booth.

Check out the photos below.... even though we had to wrangle a few guests to try it out, many loved it and took multiple pictures. I think it was a success!

Thanks again to the very talented Jordan at Oh Happy Day for providing the fun props and idea!

Party Pics

2011-07-13T23:31:00.015-04:00

Just a few random party shots and action shots from our shuffleboard night. Check out my cousin Chris in action.... he loved the courts! And my college roommate Nikki was in town to help me celebrate, as her 30th birthday was the next day! I think it was a good time had by all!

Dessert, Drinks, and Details

2011-07-12T23:25:00.084-04:00

For my 30th, as you may remember from the invite on this post, I kept things simple by serving dessert and drinks only. So I made a list of some of my favorite desserts, and here's what I came up with:

Mini Red Velvet Cupcakes (recipe here)

Bauman Brownies:

For those of you who don't know what these are, my maiden name is Bauman and this family "secret" recipe is really a box brownie that we doctor up with different and added ingredients. Legal ingredients.

Classic Cookies, both sugar with thick icing and chocolate chip, both from Publix. They really make some of the best cookies:

I know since the first picture that you were wondering... those are, in fact, Krispy Kreme doughnuts:

And yes, they were delicious! I has one of each dessert on the table. It was, after all, MY birthday.

And for the setup, I used a table provided by the St. Pete Shuffleboard Club and my green table cloth that I purchased years ago at TJMaxx for about $10. The food flags I found at Joann Fabrics by Martha Stewart for $3.99 (plus 40% off coupon!), and I covered the stands with colored scrapbooking paper, also from Joann's. The (former) accessory/shoe stands were freebies from an Ann Taylor that was closing next door to where my husband works. He snagged them before they made it to the dumpster. Other than being extremely heavy, they have so many uses!! I can't wait to use them at upcoming events!

As for drinks, we had a keg of beer, since nothing seems to be more refreshing on a HOT night than a cold cup of beer. I found the most PERFECT cups at one of my favorite shops Swoozies (no longer brick and mortar stores, but a great online shop here). While I'm pretty sure that they were supposed to be for tennis, they work for the shuffle courts too! For other beverages, we did have some wine, sodas, and bottled water. I also picked up some Archer Farms Italian Soda, in both the Peach Mango and Blood Orange flavors, from Target. I just love their large glass bottles and tangy flavors. I will definitely be using these again for other events, maybe spiked with a little champagne!

I picked up some cute napkins and plates from One Kings Lane. If you do not get their daily e-mails, you are missing out! Click here to subscribe. I ordered 48 paper plates (many to be used at a future event) and 2 sets of napkins for $12.00. They would have been double this from the party store, and the quality and cuteness of these was so much better than anything I found in town.

So that's the run down for the food and drinks and details. Sometimes, it is best to keep things simple, especially when you are hosting your own birthday party. Check back tomorrow for more party details!

Scenes From The Big Event

2011-07-11T23:18:00.013-04:00

Just a few photos from the Birthday Bash this past weekend. Updates about the event coming this week! For more information on this awesome venue, please visit St. Pete Shuffle.

The BIG 3-0

2011-07-08T08:53:00.001-04:00

Today, I turned 30. While it may be a milestone and a shock for some, for me it is more of a relief.... I am finally here. My 20's were ten long years, in which I lost love, friends, and some of myself. I also found the love of my life (plus his wonderful family), a great job, a charming home, and some creative outlets (this blog!). In my 20's, I did some of my best "growing up", and most importantly, figured out who I AM and who I hope to become through the rest of my life. There are still many unknowns, and many more lessons to be learned, but I am comfortable in my own skin, and for any woman, that is a feat in itself. As thirty comes today, and is celebrated tomorrow, I am now only looking forward to the adventures to come!

Vintage Finds 7.6.2011

2011-07-06T07:33:00.000-04:00

Today's vintage find is long overdue, since it is not something from my house, but rather one of my favorite places and people: MISRED Outfitters, owned by my dear friend and fabulous fashion inspiration, Sara Stonecipher. Her shop has some of the most amazing vintage pieces of clothing I have ever seen. Just check out her website or their Facebook page for their daily outfit posts and you will see what I am talking about. Sara has an incredible eye for fashion and decor, and when we get together, there is little else that we ever discuss, since we are each so passionate about both. Plus, she loves blogs just as much as I do, and even hosted the Bloggers Night Out for her local favorites!

Below is a great video that she recently put together for promotion for her shop that could easily be from this past holiday weekend, or a few decades ago.... all testament to her abilities to style both for vintage and now. Be sure to check out MISRED Outfitters and the fabulous Sara too!

I was not compensated for this post... I just love her and her clothes!!

Happy 4th Of July!

2011-07-04T10:32:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to wish you all a...

HAPPY 4th of July!

The Freedoms we are given in this country are priceless. Today we should all honor and be thankful for them and the military who fight every day to uphold these freedoms.

Hope you have a fun and safe Fourth of July!

One Week From Today...

2011-07-01T07:27:00.000-04:00

I will turn the big 3-0. It is a little bittersweet, and when thinking about the date months ago, I really wanted something low key, maybe a nice dinner party with family or close friends. I had thrown a rather large and elaborate party for my husband on his 30th, and had vowed to not repeat it for mine. It was just too much work, although he had a blast and so did all our friends.

It was not until about a month ago that we went to an event at the local and historic shuffleboard courts that I pictured this as the place for my 30th birthday bash. It will still be a small affair, with family and a handful of great friends, but with some very special, Hostess touches, of course! And just to give you a little preview, here is the invitation, made by me:

My wonderful husband is working on some other details, so after the party, I will post all the details! Until next week, hope you all have a wonderful 4th of July Weekend!

Lift Spirits

2011-06-30T17:30:00.007-04:00

It is a pretty hot and rainy day here in Florida, and I was swamped with work that made my head spin. At lunch, I ran out to grab some lunch at Fresh Market, and after picking up my new favorite sesame soba noodle salad, I browsed the drink case for some flavored water. On the third shelf down, sitting all by itself, was a drink that caught my eye: Carolina Honey sweet tea by Argo Tea. It was in the cutest glass bottle, although I almost had a heart attack when I saw it was $2.50! But it was too late... after reading the label of black tea, wildflower honey, and hit of lemon, I was suddenly craving sweet tea. Not to mention, the cute honeybee and bright green top had me at hello.

As soon as I opened the bottle, the beautiful smell of the wildflower honey hit me, and I was in heaven. And the tea was perfectly sweet and strong, and gone in no time. After my satisfying lunch, I quickly searched the internet for Argo Teas, and was surprised to find out that they have tea shops in Chicago and New York, aside from selling their loose teas and bottled beverages online and in markets across the country. They are also very passionate about creating a sustainable and earth friendly product and business. What a cool company!

My favorite part was their bottle. I am going to recycle it in my kitchen for something... it is a great shape, and has a large, wide mouth. And you can't beat the lid that reads: TWIST CAP - LIFT SPIRIT.

No more dreary day for me. Spirits lifted, indeed!

I was not compensated or asked to write this post. Just sharing something that I love!

Last Chance: Win a Walgreens $100 Gift Certificate

2011-06-28T11:52:00.002-04:00

Walgreens and BlogHer have teamed up to give away a $100 gift card. Enter by visiting and commenting on Carmen's Blog today, featuring Walgreens sunscreen. Or check out Forever The Hostess on Facebook for the link too!

This post sponsored by Walgreens and BlogHer. Photo from here.