gratitude: week 2

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Another fun week of giving thanks and another five photos to prove it! I hope everyone has a fabulous Turkey Day with family and friends! I, for one, am so excited to be heading home to Wisconsin. It’s an expensive little plane ticket but worth it, at least once during the season!

Here are my entries for this week (6-10): (You can see week one photos here.)

  1. Favorite food – Yellow Curry Chicken
  2. Smile – Funny/Semi-drunk smile. A great unexpected day with the husband I won’t soon forget.
  3. Happiness – My first love, Boston “Bones”, and the hubs.
  4. Leaves – Frosted Sugar Cookie Leaves! My most favorite cookies ever.
  5. Morning Sky – Dallas Sky
  6. Books – Tina Fey’s Bossypants is one of my favorites!
  7. Something Funny – Pugs are always funny!
  8. Favorite Color – Benjamin Moore Rockport Gray
  9. Inspiring Person/People – Young House Love Bloggers!! So cool to meet them!
  10. Nature – Dog Park trail
  11. Something Old
  12. Hands
  13. Written Words
  14. Movement
  15. Technology
  16. Animals
  17. Memories
  18. Something New
  19. Best Friend
  20. Seasonal
  21. Where You Sleep
  22. Clothing
  23. In Your Closet
  24. Gratitude
  25. Artwork
  26. Transportation
  27. Daily Routine
  28. Nighttime
  29. Light
  30. Self Portrait

laundry love

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Laundry. Someone has to do it. I for one do a lot of laundry. My husband is convinced that I enjoy doing laundry, but I don’t. I just prefer clean clothes over dirty ones. That being said, when doing something I don’t really enjoy, I try to have a positive spin on things. I’ve been looking at a drab old laundry nook for a while that need something. Some sort of an improvement to the space. Some love. The cabinets were stained and filled with extra cleaning supplies and odds-and-ends. Gross.

I decided to make it a little better. What I really want is new cabinetry. Closed cabinets for the space. But considering I wasn’t into demolition this weekend, I decided to paint the current cabinet with paint I already had on hand. Benjamin Moore Halo OC-46 in semi-gloss. The laundry closet was already painted Benjamin Moore Rockport Gray HC-105.

It was a vast improvement from the original. I then assembled the needed laundry items with some fun display items and towels to make a medley of clean but lived-in, well-utilized space. It’s a fabulous site to have some organization in the space. Maybe this will make laundry a little more bearable. Or better yet, maybe this will be more inviting for the husband to do more of it! Then again, would organizing the shed in our backyard entice me to do more yard work? Probably not!

crispy chicken with citrus teriyaki sauce

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I made this recipe last week. I found it online on Annie’s Eats when I was searching for different chicken recipes. It was a great alternative to grilled chicken and paired well with yellow squash and zucchini. As you can tell, I don’t have a lot to say about this, but it made for a great food photo op! Ha! Happy eating!

Recipe

Ingredients

For the sauce:

  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 3 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 3 tbsp sake
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 3 tbsp mirin

For the chicken:

  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 2-3)
  • Nonstick cooking spray

To make the sauce combine the soy sauce, orange juice, sake, sugar and mirin in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, and reduce the heat to low, letting it simmer for six minutes, until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 475°F. In a shallow bowl or pie plate, whisk together the flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper. In a second bowl, lightly beat the eggs together. Place the panko in a third shallow bowl or a pie plate. Place a wire rack over a baking sheet and spray lightly with nonstick cooking spray.

Butterfly the chicken breast into halves so that you have 4 to 6 pieces total. Lightly season both sides of the chicken piece with salt and pepper. Using tongs and working with one piece of chicken at a time, dredge the chicken in the flour mixture to coat both sides.

Shake lightly to remove any excess flour. Then dip it into the eggs and shake gently to remove any excess. Finally place in the panko, turning to coat well.

Transfer to the prepared wired rack. Repeat with remaining chicken pieces. Once all the chicken pieces are in place, spray lightly with cooking spray.

Bake for 15 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and the bread crumbs are golden. Let rest for a few minutes before slicing and serving. Serve with teriyaki dipping sauce. Enjoy!

gratitude: week 1

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This holiday season is filled with fun activities to get everyone into the holiday spirit. I for one am taking part (with a good friend and cousin) in giving thanks to the many things we overlook and take for granted in our lives. We found this list on Positively Present; it was meant to be a thirty day challenge for Thanksgiving but I wanted to extend it a bit to go through the entire holiday season. We are doing five instagram photos each week and submitting them to each other, either as we go or in a lump weekly sum.

I’m loving every minute of this task. It makes you look at your world in a different light. Appreciating the little things. Like this week when I was taking the ‘morning sky’ photo on my way to an appointment. I was thankful to be awake so early, wishing that I was a morning person but grateful I was able to get out of bed, shower, kiss my husband, have coffee already brewing (husband’s doing), eat oatmeal goodness, drive to an appointment, and then drive to a job I love for a full day of active patients and activity. I hope you too stop and give thanks. What a fun season to do so.

Here are my entries for this week:

  1. Favorite Food – Yellow Curry Chicken
  2. Smile – Funny/Semi-drunk smile. A great unexpected day with the husband I won’t forget.
  3. Happiness – My first love, Boston “Bones”, and the hubs.
  4. Leaves – Frosted Sugar Cookie Leaves! My favorite cookies ever.
  5. Morning Sky – Dallas Sky
  6. Books
  7. Something Funny
  8. Favorite Color
  9. Inspiring Person
  10. Nature
  11. Something Old
  12. Hands
  13. Written Words
  14. Movement
  15. Technology
  16. Animals
  17. Memories
  18. Something New
  19. Best Friend
  20. Seasonal
  21. Where You Sleep
  22. Clothing
  23. In Your Closet
  24. Gratitude
  25. Artwork
  26. Transportation
  27. Daily Routine
  28. Nighttime
  29. Light
  30. Self Portrait

bedskirts

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Hi Friends! I don’t know about you, but I didn’t realize what an impact one little piece of fabric could make to a space. A simple piece of fabric called a bedskirt! Serious, I really had no idea.

A while back we sold our cookie-cutter bedroom set, and I’ve been going back and forth on which headboard to buy (tufted, fabric, wood, etc.) and haven’t been able to pull the trigger. I was sick of looking at our frumpy bed frame this weekend and set out to get a bedskirt to make it look (what I first thought) just a little better. I didn’t think it would make that big of a difference, but for a couple bucks I was willing to try. Below is our bedroom before. I really wish I would have taken a photo with the bed in the same location as it is now, so you could see the difference, but I couldn’t summon my husband to help me lift the mattress. He tweaked his back and asking him to lift something just to take another picture, was out of the question. Maybe I’ll just do it when he’s feeling better?I chose a darker grey bedskirt from Target that coordinated with the walls and contrasted with my light blue duvet. After ironing out all the wrinkles, it looked great!

Cheap and easy! I strongly suggest a bedskirt for anyone that can’t commit to a heavy investment such as a headboard or just can’t budget for one. This makes for a wonderful finished look, and a cheap and easy way to change your current look even if you have a headboard! I wish I would’ve done this months ago!

Happy Week Friends!

pumpkin oats

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I absolutely love my apple pie oatmeal in the morning but have been trying to mix up my routine a bit and find alternatives. Considering the season of all things pumpkin is upon us, I figured trying that in my oatmeal would be a great idea. And it was. I found this recipe from Minimalist Baker and tweaked it just a bit for my taste. I hope you enjoy the fall/winter goodness-of-the-oatmeal as much as my cousin Amy and I did.

Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • 1/3 cup water
  • Pinch of each salt & cinnamon & flaxseed meal
  • 2 Tbsp pumpkin purée
  • 1/2 tbsp brown sugar (less than original, I don’t like my oats too, too sweet.)
  • 1/3 cup blueberries
  • 1 tbsp almonds

Start by bringing almond milk and water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add oats and salt and reduce heat to medium.

Stir occasionally, cook 2 minutes and then add pumpkin. Cook for 3-4 minutes more or until creamy. Stir often!

Toast almonds in a skillet over medium-high heat until dark brown on all sides. I toasted more than I needed so I can skip this step next time.

When ready, remove oats from heat and add flaxseed, cinnamon, brown sugar and stir.

Top oats with blueberries and almonds! Enjoy!!

tomato basil soup

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I’ve always loved tomato basil soup. It started when I got my first waitressing job at Vine Park Brewery in St. Paul, MN. The head chef Anthony made amazing dishes that we all loved to try. It was there that I realized there was more to meals then meat and potatoes or mac n’ cheese. Food was another art form and it was delicious. Anthony made a mean tomato basil soup, which unforetunely I can’t get anymore but have been trying ever since to make it the way he did.

This recipe I found at everyday occasions, though it’s not Anthony’s (I’ll keep looking and reinventing recipes) is a pretty good substitute. Enjoy!

Recipe

Ingredients

  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 2 – 14 oz. cans of crushed tomatoes
  • 1 – 14 oz. can of whole tomatoes
  • 2 cups of stock (chicken or vegetable)
  • 1 tsp of sea salt
  • 1 tsp of sugar
  • 1/2 tsp of fresh ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup of heavy cream
  • 3 tablespoons of fresh basil, julienned
  • parmesan cheese

In a saucepan, saute garlic in olive oil on medium heat for 1 minute – being careful not to burn the garlic.

Add the crushed tomatoes. Add the whole tomatoes one at a time, squeezing them into the pan to break them up. Add the juice from the whole tomatoes, as well. Add chicken stock, salt, pepper and sugar. Cook the soup on medium at a simmer for 10 minutes.

To finish, reduce the heat to low and stir in heavy cream and basil.

Serve topped with parmesan cheese and enjoy!

I elected to make grilled cheese panini’s as our side. I used a whole grain bread and palmetto original cheddar cheese spread. This stuff is good!

Butter the outside slices of bread and place onto “griddler” until golden brown. Serve while warm!!

Enjoy!!

kringla

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The in-laws made another journey down to help us with some household projects, enjoy some fun Halloween activities, and to teach me the Norwegian art of making kringla. My mother-in-law is Norwegian and has come from a long line of kringla-making family members. It was my turn. This fabulous floury cookie is wonderful with coffee and milk!

Recipe

Ingredients

  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 2 sticks margarine (I used butter)
  • 2 beaten eggs
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tsp soda
  • 5 tsp baking powder
  • 6 cups flour

Start by creaming sugar, butter, eggs, and salt.


Add buttermilk, vanilla, baking soda, baking powder, and flour.


Mix well. Don’t be afraid of over mixing! Make sure to mix everything well, especially the butter.


Put mix in refrigerator overnight or until cold.


Once the dough has chilled, roll dough on floured cloth. We used a Bethany Pastry Cloth.


Start by spooning out about 1 cup of dough and rolling it into a ball with floured hands. Then roll the ball into a log roll that is about 1″ thick. Place the rest of the dough back into the refrigerator.


Cut log roll into 1/2 inch sections.


Roll sections into about 8 inch lengths or the size of a pencil.


Then fold the “pencil” dough in half.


Twist and form a circle!


The wreath or infinity are the most common shapes in our household.


Bake on greased cookie sheet at 450 degrees until they puff up (about 2-3 minutes).


Then put them under the broiler until they are light brown on top! Watch very very closely on this process; you can burn them in seconds! Trust me!

This is one of those floury, semi-sweet gems that taste so good as a snack, or for breakfast or dessert. My mother-in-law even suggested giving them as Christmas gifts! What a fun idea. Thank you to Julie for sharing her skills; I think all the photos above were of her cookies. Ha. But don’t worry if they don’t look perfect, they still taste great!

Enjoy and Happy Week!

guest post: cranky pants

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You are all in for a special treat today. On occasion, I like to have a guest write a post, to keep things fresh here! So, without further ado – A gem of an eatery from a gem of a person, Amy Lynn:

There was a time when Eric (my oldest cousin) was babysitting my sister, myself and the girl behind my house talks. My sister must have been about three or four years old, and she just flipped out on him. This screaming tantrum went on for at least an hour or two. Of course, Eric kept his cool and was completely the responsible older cousin. Turns out, my sister was just a little grouchy because she hadn’t been fed.

Well, I admit, it must be genetic.

I too get severe “cranky pants” if I wait too long between meals.

Most of those close to me recognize the signs early on and attempt to quell the beast.

Not too long ago, the boyfriend ran over a screw… on a Sunday night before he had to be at work at 6 am the next morning. We had to get a new tire, now! It took about two hours and five different repair shops, all on an empty stomach. My empty stomach. The screaming three-year-old stomach. Bless his heart, he actually thanked me for keeping calm, even though he knew it was prime time for “cranky pants”.

Which leads me to Humphry’s. If you ever find yourself in Southern California, on a mission for a great meal, you have to go to Humphry’s. These are the most welcoming, sincere folks you could ever hope to come across. Especially when you haven’t eaten… in like, 6 hours!! I have the good fortune of living about 0.25 miles away from this place, yes, I clocked it. They see me often.

Today, I had a breakfast burrito with sausage and salsa, no potatoes.

Other go to’s: Spinach Wrap and the Spinach Salad.

I may even try to make my own rendition in future guest posts, but for now, fly or drive to San Clemente, California for a must-have meal. Seriously, you will not be disappointed. Better yet, bring a friend with cranky pants! ~ Amy Lynn

Happy weekend, Everyone!!

spa week

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Last week Dallas celebrated Spa Week! It’s a whole week of deals, from massages to chemical peels. You can try the latest-and-greatest or just schedule your favorite services at half the price! Yep, half off!! I wasn’t going to standby while these celebrations were going on and deals were being had! So, I called our local spa to schedule my services that would cross off another item on my 33 before I’m 33 list!


I first scheduled the hubs and I for a massage on Tuesday night after work. It was so soothing to meet up at the spa after a long day of work. We both needed it!

Then on Friday, I came back for a facial and manicure/pedicure (check!), to finish out the spa celebrations! I picked a fun fall color, dark cider pumpkin, at least that would be my description on the polish, but O.P.I. has other ideas… which I love all the same.


It was such a relaxing experience! I absolutely recommend a facial to anyone and everyone! It feels SO amazingly wonderful, especially when it’s half the price! Score!

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!