Tuesday, June 7, 2022
Memories
32 years old and stumbled upon old blog posts I wrote when I was a wee 22 year old. I can’t believe how silly and carefree I was. I sooo wanted to be a lifestyle blogger, inspired by the fabulous life of specifically Emily Schuman. Silly recipes, questionable fashion choices (oh my god those wedges) were going to be the tickets to becoming a blogger.
Again, I’m 32. A mother now to Theo. Married to Gary. Living in my 2nd home we built from the ground up and a veteran teacher pursuing more certifications to make a potential career change. I’d like to think my 22 year old self would be proud, relieved, and excited for the life I have built- even if it didn’t involve making it as a blogger.
Labels: I love..., Looking back
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Ode to Brunch
My eyes are squinty and numb from studying the tiny print on my hundreds of history certification flash cards and my legs has fallen asleep from being cross-legged on the bed for far too long. Its kinda been a sucky day since I've dedicated it solely to studying (time to crack down!). But I did have a fabulous brunch today which has kept me going all the way from Hamilton to FDR (still on the American history pile, sigh).Me and the room-mate headed over to Etienne Brasserie
In the heart of Downtown, this restaurant has been open for about a year and half now and its warm and sophisticated interior has been beckoning. Finally I got to experience this quaint restaurant.
They have a fabulous brunch menu thats compact, but with plenty of variety. Everything from French egg breakfast sandwiches to Biscuits with mushroom gravy.
I decided on their eggs benedict. So so so good. There's had the traditional english muffin and poached egg, but instead of canadian bacon there's avocado, tomato, and smoked bacon. Of course topped hollandaise sauce. It came with a heaping side of the best home fries I've ever had. Super crunchy and flavorful with bites of red pepper and sweet onion.
All of this was $11, which isn't bad considering the quality and the fact that brunch felt all the more luxurious due to the upscale interior.
This was the best meal I've had in Athens in awhile. I can't wait to go back. I've heard the have a pretty awesome lunch menu as well!
Peas and Blezzins
Labels: Athens Restaurant Review, Classic City Living
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Baking Adventures..Pinterest Addition
I have something to admit...I'm a Pinterest Addict. It's the first website I open when my computers up when I'm doing some casual browsing and I check it right along with my email. But seriously Pinterest is amazing...I love all the neatly arranged images of crafts, clothing, food...and everything in between. So many ideas and not enough time!I've managed to do a few Pinterest projects and I thought I would document the results.
After my delicious splurging in Charleston I have cut back and really tried to get in the mindset of some healthy weightloss. One of the things I miss the most is dessert, because low-calorie chocolatey desserts are hard to come by but then I stumbled across the Diet Coke Brownie pin awhile ago and it sounded to good to be true. 100 calorie delicious brownies.
Well I tried it today and here's the scoop
This recipe couldn't be easier. One can of diet soda and a box of brownie mix. I used Betty Crocker's fudge brownie mix and Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper. I used about 2/3 of the soda because my mix was looking a little too watery. I hit it with the hand mixer till the lumps disappeared. As you can see I baked these in a pretty deep dish so I had to add about 20 minutes to the cook time.
Honestly, they were better than I expected. There was definitely a slight after-taste of diet soda, but the brownie still had all the chocolateyness on any brownie I've ever had. The only major downside to this recipe, other than the diet soda after-taste, was the texture on the edges. It was super chewy and really unappetizing, but the center pieces were nice and cakey.
For the calories and how easy this recipe is to throw together it was definitely worth it. I wouldn't make this for a party or for other people (besides fellow calorie-conscious folk).
Peas and Blezzins
Labels: Desserts, Labels, Pinterest
Monday, June 25, 2012
Charleston
This past week I visited one of my favorite cities, Charleston. I spent my freshman year at College of Charleston and not only fell in love with the city but also met my two best friends.Anyway I specifically went for my friends surprise birthday party. I wish I had taken pictures to share. I was preoccupied with laughing and catching up with everyone. The party ended up being really cute! We did a color scheme of yellow and white, served white sangria, boiled peanuts, fruit, and plenty of beer.
Besides my fabulous friends living there, Charleston is a wonderful city. Has the food culture of New York with more accessible but wonderful fashion community. Its small enough to not feel overwhelmed, but big enough to always find something new to do: all in a beautiful and historic city!
The food is definitely one of my favorite aspects of Charleston after the company
I had two delicious meals at Early Bird Dinner (chicken and waffles for brunch and then steak and eggs for lunch one day). Best part is nothing is over $10 there and its unbelievably good with a friendly staff, plus its open late!
The Tattooed Moose was a new one for me, but I quickly fell in love with this 'hipster' joint. Really good sandwiches that are all really unique and delicious. And get this ...they have fries fried in duck fat. SO GOOD. It also has some really good healthy choices, my friend got the gazpacho and it looked amazing. Also they do a really good happy hour 5-7 with deals on food and beer.
Barsa, Spanish tapas bar, was probably one of the fanciest places I went while I was there. Me and one of my friends went for happy hour which had an amazing deal with half-price paella. I got the seafood and it had plenty of calamari, shrimp, mussels, and clams with authentic crunchy rice. It was definitely a good deal for the amount of food and beer we.
Finally, my favorite meal ever is found at the Charleston Farmers Market. You haven't been to a farmers market till you've been to the Charleston one. Fabulous food, everything from Indian to French Crepes. Lots of vendors selling delicious looking veggies, fruits, honey, jams, nuts, everything. Plus plenty of non-food related vendors with really unique items. All of this smack dab in the middle of Downtown Charleston.
Anyway there's a food vendor called Roti Rolls and he sells these delicious sandwiches using an Indian flat bread which is fried and various fillings. My favorite is the Thurman Merman. I am not kidding when I say this is one of the best foods I've ever eaten. It has that delicious bread which is crunchy and chewy and salty. Its filled with braised beef that super tender and tasty. Topped with homemade mac and cheese and the best kimchi I've ever eaten.
I know it sounds weird but look at this...how can you deny yourself?
P.S. How adorably is this little owl I got, it doesn't hurt that it also has amazing smelling lipgloss inside! I also picked up the tastiest whipped honey I ever had at the Savannah Bee Company. I just put it on some strawberries. ALMOST died from deliciousness.
Labels: Chucktown, Restuarant Reviews, Vacation
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Make-Up Bag and Medicine Cabinet Favorites
I like talking about stuff...does that make me vapid? Maybe. Don't get me wrong I love discussing and debating events, people, books, and other more engaging topics, but I'm a visual person and I like shopping and finding quality things...I don't like crap and I don't want to waste my time or money buying crap so I love finding products that are really great and telling people all about them. Especially make-up and beauty products. I went through a very rough stage, physically, when I was younger. I had atrocious hair and unmanageable skin. I was just a disaster as a pre-teen into early teens. But thats okay it made me develop a personality! Being pretty is over-rated (my 13 year old self would disagree). But part of that experience led me to develop a deep fascination with make-up and other products that made me feel comfortable in my own skin and learn to work with what I got.Any-whoo here are some products I love, that live up to their claims, and are worth every single penny
Thats all for now...Peace and Blessins
Labels: I love..., Product Reviews
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Seeing Green
Dip Hemline Skirt...I've admired them for awhile. I love hoy floaty and feminine they look. First I saw it on Cupcakes and Cashmere .I immediately put it on my spring shopping list. Only problem, I don't look at all like Emily from C and C. I'm pretty short and graciously blessed thanks to my Italian heritage with wide hips which makes it near impossible to find jeans. I thought to myself, 'I bet I could pull this off if I lose ten pounds and buy super high strappy black heels!...yes it can be done." Fast forward to now, while I have the super high heels...the ten pounds didn't come off. Well one night while I was late night browsing (because thats always good to do) I found this skirt on Dorothy Perkins. Recently they just discounted shipping to the United States. They're a British based company, very similar to Forever 21 but with slightly higher quality and more on trend. I found this...for $25.
I had to buy it. It came relatively quickly however, two sizes bigger than the size I ordered which I didn't complain about because apparently I needed the room...
I heard this has been a common complaint with U.S. so they may have some more kinks to work out. I love this skirt. Its so comfortable and moves beautifully. To be honest its not super flattering but I've come to a point where thats not my main concern if I'm in love with a piece. I plan on wearing this to my best friends birthday party with these guys...on sale at Nordstrom for $50!
I'm kinda stuck what to wear on type. I was thinking sleeveless button down in cream, black, or maybe in a faded floral pattern.
*Disclaimer: Dorothy Perkins and Nordstrom have no idea who I am, I am not paid by either of them obviously or I would have more shoes to show!
Labels: Fashion, What to Wear
Saturday, June 9, 2012
What am I Doing
It is nearly 12:00 on a Saturday and I find myself drawn to not only researching fashion internships but creating a blog. However, the only problem with both of these is that they are incredibly self-indulgent. I'm enrolled in History Education graduate classes in Fall 2012 and after four years of waffling between law school and teaching...I chose teaching. Under the surface I've always wanted to be a teacher. Partly because I love History and want to share that love with other people. What's that you say, I may be in for a let down when I find myself with unwilling participants of my knowledge. I'm fully aware. But thats part of the draw. I want to make History palatable for the kids who have no interest and try, without pretentiousness, to show that history is important. Although some have tried to point me in the direction of a P.h.D, I know would be more enraged at some snotty 20 year old who has watched too much history channel trying to correct me than a 15 year old texting her boyfriend during a lecture. Also, I want to have fun in my class. And doing game show style review sessions with candy sounds so much fun than causing terror with a 20 page research paper due the Monday after Spring Break (That has happened to me. TWICE). Yet...I've always been drawn to fashion and it hasn't been recently that I've realized how entrenched fashion is in my life. Finally, I've come to a point of self-confidence in which I've really started experimenting with fashion. I love the hunt of finding new pieces, of putting together a subtly flashy outfit, the thrill of finding the perfect piece. I follow tons of fashion blogs, research trends, and like to day dream about working at Kate Spade or J. Crew or Jill Sander. But I realize I'm not cut out for that. I know I'm meant to be a teacher. I can't count the number of times people have told me I would be a good teacher. And while its terrifying to think I might be missing out on something that would make me happy, I have to trust my instincts. Long-windily, I come to my conclusion of why I started this blog. To share my passions. To be part of the fashion world, even though its a tiny bleep, and have an outlet for my inspirations.
Among fashion, I'm a beginner gardener, a decent baker, lazy crafter, and avid reader.