I'm Still Here I Swear...2 Months Squished Into One Post

Ok, where to start....

You may or may not have noticed that I haven't written a new blog post in like....2 months, but believe me I have lots to share.

This post is probably going to be a little overboard, I have that feeling that you get when you see a really good friend for the first time after being apart for a long time....all the things you NEED to share with them just can't come out of your mouth fast enough!

Shall we start with food??

Mason Jar Salads And Snacks

Ok, so I have started a new system of jarring my food...stay with me.

I have a bad habit of not getting all of my daily fruits and veggies in. This is bad not only because they are just overall necessary for survival but they help keep your hair and skin beautimus (yup that's a word, I don't care if it's not in the dictionary). 

I found out that pre-portioning out healthy food, that is ready for me to just grab on the go, is really helping me. 

As if there weren't enough uses for mason jars...here's another one. Usually on the weekend I will make up salads and put them in large mouth mason jars and then use smaller jars to fill with chopped fruit and veggies. In the morning before work I just grab from the fridge and go!!

The jars are so amazing at keeping things fresh all week that I have no idea why everyone is not doing this!!

For the salads I just did a traditional one with all the things I like and then I did a pasta salad.

In these pictures I have the dressing already in the bottom of the jars because I thought it would just marinate the veggies but I found out that I don't actually like that......so I don't do that anymore!! I just add it in right before eating and shake it up to coat the lettuce. 

For the pasta salad jars I added whole wheat cooked pasta, spinach, and tomatoes then added balsamic dressing, but there are so many options for that as well!!

As for the dressing, I thought I would try making my own and it was so stinkin' good people!!

It tastes so much better than pre-made stuff.

Fresh Lemon Salad Dressing

Ingredients: 

1/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/4 cup + 3 Tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

3 Tablespoons honey

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper 

Put all ingredients in a jar....and shake!

If your like me and decide to take these to work, your going to get a few looks and questions about why your eating out of jars but you won't care because your coworkers are missing out on a great idea!!

DIY For The Bride

My bestie is getting married y'all.....in just a little over two months, therefore it's time for the festivities to begin. 

Along with some pretty spectacular bridesmaids and one amazing planner, a beautiful bridal shower was formed!

Everything about this shower with the exception of the date, time, and location were a secret to the bride which is why I couldn't post about anything until now!!! Believe me, it was killer to keep what I have been up to a secret all this time. 

For my part in the shower, it was all about the DIY to make personalized things for the bride.

The only guidelines where a shabby chic/rustic theme and cream/white colors.....we're talkin' my language people!!

I was to be in charge of creating a bridal sash, veil, various dessert items, and a pasta salad, and I was determined to deliver.

With the help of the craft store, lots of burlap, my sewing machine, and copious amounts of fabric glue (a Godsend as far as I'm concerned) this is what I created.

So I wish that I had taken step by step pictures of the production of the sash and veil but to be honest this was the first time I had attempted this project and wasn't sure how it would turn out. It was kind of one of those things where I just went into work mode and hoped everything turned out like my vision. 

For the dessert table I decided to do two things; the bride and grooms favorite cookies in jars, and rice krispies on a stick. 

The jars where pretty easy, I just cut out some burlap and attached a chalkboard bubble to each, and as for the glass jars themselves....Walmart just has everything!

All that was left to do was make the cookies.

Rice krispies on a stick don't sound too glamorous, but they sure did turn out cute!!

Not only are the easy, but they are super cheap to make!

I just followed the traditional recipe that's on the side of the rice krispie box and then while still warm, formed them into balls and placed on parchment paper. 

I drizzled them with melted white chocolate and then sprinkled them with gold sprinkles. 

I put them in the fridge overnight to make sure they set and then inserted cakepop sticks (which you can find at the craft store) that I had tied a piece of twine around. 

For the pasta salad, I decided to try something I had never had before...and it did not fail!

The ingredient list looks long and daunting but you probably have a lot of the items already and if you don't, everything on the list is very inexpensive. 

Summer Veggie Pasta Salad

Ingredients: 

12 oz. bow tie pasta

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup olive oil

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1 Tablespoon dijon mustard

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 medium roma tomatoes

1 medium summer squash

1 medium zucchini

1 medium broccoli crown

1/2 medium red onion

2/3 of a 15 oz. jar roasted red bell peppers

1/2 bunch fresh parsely

Salt and pepper to taste 

Boil noodles until al-detente, drain, and pour into a large bowl.

In a smaller bowl combine the oils, vinegar, dijon mustard, oregano, garlic, and salt and pepper.

Whisk until combined. 

Chop veggies into bite sized pieces (or slices) and the onion and red bell peppers into thin slices. 

Add to the bowl with the cooked pasta and pour the dressing over top.

Stir until all combined and then refrigerate until your ready to eat.

The shower was so beautiful and I was so happy that I had the opportunity to make personalized items for the bride!

Mr. Owen Michael

My precious little nephew Owen Michael was born on May 19th at 7 lbs. 13 oz. and 21 inches long, and thus I became aunt Sarah!!

Last week I flew with my family to go see him....and the boy did not disappoint. Needless to say, the newest addition to the family has everyone wrapped around his tiny infant finger. 

Now I can't say I've been around many two week olds, and I may be a little biased but I'm convinced he is already far ahead of the curve. 

He is super strong and look, he is ready to beat this little toy fox up!!!

Like his auntie, he enjoys long afternoons of napping and a constant supply of food...he fits right into this family.

Next time I will see him will be in late August and I am so excited to see how much he will have changed!!

Random Tid-Bits

1. I'd say full on summer-mode has kicked in and all I want to do is be outside and keep it moving!! Most people think it's crazy, and maybe it's just the Florida girl in me, but being outside during the hottest part of the day is my favorite. I have the most energy at that point and I try and take that time to get in a work out and a little sun (which you wouldn't have guessed because my skin stays pale no matter what I do). Sweating it out in the heat makes me feel like I'm getting a better workout and getting rid of all the toxins in my body!!

2. I decided freshen up our guest room which meant getting rid of a bunch of crap and moving around furniture. Pictures will be posted once I finish decorating it, but it's finally functioning as an office and guest space instead of just a holding room for Kevin's hobbies. I'm actually writing in it right now!!

Oh, and this project reminded me how much of a pain in the ass painting is...there were plans to do the whole apartment, but those have been scrubbed for the time-being. 

3. It's still my ongoing mission to have crazy mermaid hair. Today I am trying out a new sea salt spray and I don't know if it really looks any different but somehow having sea salt in my hair makes me feel like I'm accomplishing my goal...don't judge me!!

There are big plans for it in the future so stay tuned. 

So I guess that's it for now. I feel like I'm probably leaving out a lot of other updates, but this post is probably long enough.

These next few months are going to be pretty hectic but I promise I will try and do more posts so that this doesn't happen again!

P.S. I'm not looking forward to going back and proof reading all of this :) 

A Long Distance Baby Shower And All Things Blue

In a little over a month my baby nephew is due, and I will be an aunt for the first time!!

Unfortunately, my brother and sister-in-law live in a different state than most of their friends and family so having a baby shower in which everyone could physically attend would be pretty difficult.

Fortunately, my sister-in-law has some creative friends.

Enter....the virtual baby shower.

Now before yesterday, I had never heard of a virtual baby shower but when you combine excited friends and family members, a dedicated father-to-be, and a little bit of technology anything becomes possible. 

While the mommy-to-be was out to breakfast, my brother decorated their nursery and set out all of the gifts that we had sent over the past week. Using Google Hangouts, we were all able to video chat at the same time, and see the nursery all put together!

Since we couldn't all physically be with the future parents, I set up a bit of a "viewing party" at my house to celebrate with my mom and my sister.

I just wanted to share with you all some of the crafts, decorations, and recipes that went into my little celebration of the newest little family member! 

Of coarse everything must be blue.....even our outfits. 

For the table, I set out some flowers with blue hydrangeas and a fame with the word "boy" inside. 

To make the "boy" frame, I used a piece of burlap cut to the size of the glass and stencils to paint on the letters.

They have a woodland creature theme for their nursery which was also the theme of the baby shower, so I set out my little owls along with my blue plates, blue glasses, blue drink coasters, and a blue candle.

For a snack I made brie and apple crescents. 

They were so easy to make and everyone loved them!

Ingredients: 

1 tube of crescent dough for 8 crescents

Granny Smith apple

Brie 

Honey 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. 

On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, lay out each triangle of dough.

Peel the apple, and cut into 1/2 inch slices.

Cut brie into pieces that are slightly smaller than your slices of apple. 

Onto the widest part of the triangle, place one piece of brie and then place one slice of apple on top.

Drizzle honey over the apple and then wrap the rest of the dough around.

Place in the oven for 10 minutes or until the crescents are browned. 

For the drink, I tried my hardest to think of something that would be blue, without having to add food coloring. What I got was not exactly blue....but it was close!! Haha. 

Ingredients:

Lemonade

Acai-Blueberry-Pomegranate Vitamin Water

Champagne

There is no science behind this one, I just added equal parts of each ingredient and stirred.   

There you have it, my little virtual baby shower viewing party!

A Womans Love/Hate Relationship With "The Home Improvement Store"

So as I have mentioned before...I'm a renter, but I ain't no baby.

I'm not going to call my landlord to fix every little problem that pops up. If it's inexpensive to fix, I will usually just do it myself. In fact I have this nifty thing called a boyfriend who actually knows how to fix just about anything buuuuuut I'm not that patient of a soul.

I mean if I wanted something to be done within this decade, I would ask him...I'm not exaggerating.  To really be honest I love learning how to do things myself.

If he does end up fixing something for me I'm usually hovering over his shoulder watching, and asking a billion questions so I can do it myself next time.

It seems like something is always in need of some tweaking in this place, which takes me to "the home improvement store". 

The actual name of this place may change depending on where you live, but I'm sure they are all the same.

This is a tricky place for a woman, full of both love and hate.

•  This place is a playground for your expensive imagination, and it can be very dangerous. I mean, you can practically plan out your entire dream home in one store!!!! For God's sake they have miniature kitchens set up for you to drool over. After you are done in the kitchen section you can go one aisle over and pick out all of your appliances, and then stroll right on over to the flooring section. You can even pick out your paint colors and front door while your at it!!! By the time your drug out of the store by your very frightened partner, you're on a design high and your house just won't cut it anymore...it's time to gut the place. 

• Apparently they employ wizards because it seems as though everyone who works there can magically disappear as soon as you need some help. Why is it that when you know exactly what you want and know where you are going, you are hounded by employees asking if you need any help, but as soon as you need something the place turns into a virtual ghost town???? These are the questions that haunt me I tell you. I just want to know what flapper to buy for my toilet and no one will help me!!! Usually this ends up turning into some other experienced customer taking pity on me and giving me some much needed advice.....along with their business card, because they are a plumber. 

• That stupid rolling lift is everywhere!!! You know what I'm talking about. That lift that they drive around the store at a snails pace to get things off of the top shelves, that always happens to be in the aisle that you need to be in.....I hate them. Either they have already blocked it off, or they need to be in the aisle that you are shopping in and awkwardly try to push you out. I refuse to leave until I'm done and try to ignore the radio conversation between employees going on.  

"Hey Bob, did you get that pallet on aisle seven yet?"

"No, we have a customer still in the way and are waiting to close it off"

I'm not leaving until I pick out the right air filter damn it!!!!

• This place is a pick-up hot spot for a poor woman. No joke, I absolutely HATE going to this store without Kevin because I feel like I am being gawked at the entire time. Usually the store is packed with men and there are just way to many stares for my comfort level. This could be good or bad for you based on your answer to two questions:

1. Are you single?

2. Are the men staring at you, worth a glance back?

There is no shortage of sweaty men at this place, but what kind of sweaty man are we

 talking about?

I'd say this is what we are going to for here ladies...

Oh Mike from Desperate Housewives....we all miss you!!!

• Those billion paint swatches can be both good and bad. Like any other person, I have an idea in my head about what color I'm looking for before I go to the store to find just the right one. Please tell me that I am not the only one who ends up with something looking completely different?!?! The color that ends up on the walls is never what I imagined and I just end up asking myself, "where did I go wrong?" It's gotten to the point where I just don't trust myself anymore because somehow this vision, turned into this reality....yeah they're not quite the same color.

Well regardless if I love it or hate it, I don't see my need for this store weaning anytime soon because this just happened....I guess I'm just too strong for my own good. 

Christmas...Like A Lady

Well, well, well it's that time of year again.

That time when we all take a moment to reflect on the people and things we are grateful for in our lives and gift the ones we love with hand picked presents. 

You want to know what crossed my mind a few times this cheerful season....

Why does Christmas have to be "womens work"???

Why is it that Christmas has to be so much work for the ladies while the men in our lives get to sit back and enjoy the spoils?  

Lets examine the evidence shall we...

Exhibit A: Shopping for gifts

Why is it that I spent every day scouring the planet for perfectly thought out presents for over a month? Why is it that I spent nights after work in department stores until ungodly hours, only to finally go home practically crippled due to the lack of appropriate shopping footwear? (Sneakers ladies...sneakers) Why do I do this?....because I care.

My dad waits until Christmas Eve every year to START his Christmas shopping. You want to know who is brought along to be the sidekick in this extravagant display of procrastination.....me or my sister. Someone has to go with him or who knows what my poor mother would receive on Christmas morning. (He once went shopping without me and got her a dust pan....a giant yellow obnoxious dust pan) Once we have finished this yearly epic department store battle alongside countless other scrambling men who are scouring the mall for last minute gifts, he says "well that was easy, I don't know what you girls complain about every year".
Or there is the other type of man who buys a bunch of gift cards and cigars for "his boys", dusts off his hands and calls it a year. Yeah that doesn't sound like any boyfriend I know....

Exhibit B: Holiday Treats 
This is a rip off...one giant yearly rip off!!
Somehow every year we find ourselves elbows deep in flour, making holiday cookies and other treats to give away to our neighbors, friends, and coworkers and where are the men you ask? Their batting their eyes from the sofa while asking for a glass of milk to wash those treats down with.
You want to know the only thing women gain from holiday cookies......weight!!
By the time I'm done shopping for gifts and wrapping them, I'm half asleep on the sofa watching "Boardwalk Empire" while simultaneously drowning the pain from my aching feet with some good old fashioned classic chocolate chip. I then head straight to bed while my good jeans are sobbing in my dresser drawer saying "I'll see you after you make your New Years resolution to get in shape".
Maybe next year I won't even make cookies, since everyone has magically become allergic to gluten anyways and I don't know if I can bring myself to go through the learning curve of making anything gluten free taste remotely edible.

Exhibit C: Holiday Cards
Holiday cards are a dirty rotten game I just can't win.
Not surprisingly I have to be the one burdened with the responsibility of thinking of a way to represent our entire year as a couple in one card...it's impossible.
I'm lucky to get one picture (or picture session) a year from Kevin and that has to be good enough to count as my Facebook profile picture, our holiday picture, my birthday picture, his birthday picture, our engagement picture (if that should happen within that particular year), valentines picture, St. Patrick's day picture, etc. etc. etc.
If sending out a Christmas card with our picture on it has to involve me being around an extremely unhappy Kevin with a festive jingling Santa Claus hat on for any length of time, I'm going to have to take a hard pass on having a card for the year.
Hats off to the ladies who manage to get their kids to sit still long enough to get a picture where their not crying or hitting their sibling over the head with a candy cane, you are much stronger than I am.

So, what shall we do about this?
Yes we could boycott but lets face it, when it comes to Christmas...we are the magic and things just wouldn't be the same without us.
So next year we will trudge on like usual and make everything sparkle and taste amazing.

We all know that Mrs. Claus is the real reason all those gifts get out on time anyways...just sayin'. 



Inside The Little Fish Livin' Kitchen

So I've been a busy little bee in the kitchen today, and while doing the dishes for about the third time it dawned on me that I've never showed you guys around!

Although there isn't much to "show around" (apartment living), I feel like for as many posts that come from my kitchen you should know what it looks like.

You can tell a lot about a cook from whats in their kitchen and how they operate so....

Welcome to my kitchen, lets take a tour...

Yes my stove/oven is the only non-matching major appliance. I call it the Oreo stove. 

First things first, I need music. I love to cook with music on, I think it helps you get in the rhythm of things. Most of the time I'm listening to Pandora, on the Miranda Lambert channel...which brings me to the headphones. Kevin hates country, and I love it haha. Every time I'm tired and don't feel like making dinner, I try and put on one of my favorite songs to get me going. 

When nobody is home...I dance around. 

Here are a couple of songs I love that I listened to today!!

Next, I grab an apron.

1. Because I'm a mess and don't want sauce all over my clothes

2. I put my phone that's playing music, in the pocket 

I bought this cast iron anchor from The Mint Mermaid that's perfect for holding my aprons! 

Every time I find a recipe that's a "keeper" I write it out on a piece of paper, put one of those plastic coverings on it, and put it in a binder. When I need it, I just pull it out of the binder and if I get anything on it I can just wipe it off. 

Yes, I write them out in cursive. It's going to be a lost art one of these days!!

On my stove I have a navy teapot that I made while taking a pottery class in high school...it was one of my color inspirations for some of the other things in my kitchen. 

I also kind of have a nautical theme going on (see anchor above) but I didn't want it to be obnoxious. These little towels are cute, and they go with my style. They are also from The Mint Mermaid. 

Next to the stove I have a leaf spoon holder....that space on the counter right next to the spoon holder....yeah, that's where Kevin likes to lay his sauce covered spoon....men. 

Right now I have a butter dish on my counter...just because I think it's too adorable to be put somewhere where it can't be seen. One day I'll actually put butter in it. 

This is the magical corner, because it holds my favorite things in the kitchen; my stand mixer and my Keurig. 

When it comes to coffee, the darker the roast the better in my opinion. My favorite brand is Gevalia! I try not to drink coffee every single day but...the struggle is real. 

My stand mixer is...well do I even have to explain why it's so wonderful??

My paper towels just sit on the counter. If anybody has found a paper towel holder that is neither ugly, or tacky let me know...I'm about 4 years into the search with nothing to show for it. 

I love my canisters, they are simple, white, and have a great seal on them. It's so great in fact, the man of the house always seems to struggle with getting them opened and closed....I've had no problems. 

This is "the booze corner". Because our kitchen is small, this makes us look like a bunch of lushes, and everyone likes to comment about it. Truth is, we barely drink...most of this is ancient. 

It sits above the dishwasher I never use. I am aware that sounds crazy, but I like my dishes clean and this particular model seems to only specialize in baking pieces of food onto the dishes instead of getting rid of them, soooo hand wash it is. (hey we're renting, there's not much I can do about it)

This is our fridge...it provides us with water. 

It's also where I like to stick things as reminders. 

It's actually pretty clear of things right now, but it's displaying a picture of my best friend that lives far away (frowny face), a card asking me to be a bridesmaid in her upcoming wedding, a dentist appointment reminder, magnets from my dads travels to Australia, a tire pressure gauge magnet (because everyone has one of those), and a Christmas themed pad of paper for list making.

The inside of our fridge looks like this....

The essentials include Greek yogurt (it's the only kind I'll eat), a lot of milk, black beans and corn because that gets put in just about everything I make, pickles, lunch meat for Kevin, opened bottles of wine that we never finished but are too lazy to throw away, coffee creamer, and a lot of condiments. 

When I say a lot of condiments, it may sound like we like variety....no. 

Someone in this household has an obsession with collecting mustard and barbecue sauce....and it's not me. My latest count is 5 types of mustard and 6 types of barbecue sauce. 

I also know that if I ever want to hide anything, I just have to put it at the bottom of either one of the vegetable or fruit drawers because he has never opened them. 

*By the way, did you know if you put your milk in the center of the fridge instead of on the door it stays super cold...I like it cold. 

Over here is the narrowest cabinet ever made, also known as our pantry. 

I'm not going to show you the inside, because no matter what you do it's always going to look like a chaotic mess. There is no way to organize a pantry that narrow, although I am grateful I have one at all. 

I also have pictures on either side of the window, which I never open because at that same moment someone will be walking by and awkward eye contact WILL be made. 

I didn't risk taking a photo of the window because I didn't want my neighbor, who would inevitably walk by right at that moment, think that I was taking a picture of them. 

My kitchen isn't perfect; one of the cabinets doesn't close all the way because my plates are too big, and my microwave door handle is about two uses away from falling off, but a lot of great things are made in it. 

By the way, if your thinking to yourself that it looks too clean to be true...your correct. Usually it is covered in ingredients and recipes, but I cleaned it up for you....which should last for about an hour, dinner needs to be made :)

Thanks for taking a look around, I hope you feel more at home!