Lavender Gray

Valentine's Day Door Decor

2012-02-01T08:30:00.000-06:00

I stumbled across this neat Valentine's Day Door Decor post on Pinterest last week. I decided to give it a try and make my own!

I purchased Styrofoam shapes (you can find these in the floral department of craft stores). The 'O' was easy because they have different sized Styrofoam wreaths. I had to create the 'X' by cutting two rectangles of Styrofoam and gluing them together. I painted the 'X' and 'O' with red craft paint just so they would blend in with the flowers.

While I really liked the rustic look of using pink and red berries for this, I wasn't able to find any in my local craft stores. I decided to use pink and red roses with white carnations instead. Since these flowers had metal stems I was able to cut them and just push them into the styrofoam. I used hot glue where needed to make sure nothing would fall off.

Here's a side by side comparison. What do you think?

Ordering the Kisses and Hugs Berry Wreath from Etsy would have been $75 plus $17 shipping. I made mine for less than $30.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Low-Cal Strawberry Icebox Dessert

2012-01-30T14:11:00.002-06:00

While killing time on Pinterest, I found this simple recipe for No Bake Strawberry Icebox Cake. The recipe seemed easy enough, but I decided I would make a low calorie/nearly sugar free version.

I used about 3 cups of sugar free chocolate pudding, 12 Low Fat Honey Graham Crackers, almost a whole container of Cool Whip Free, and maybe 1 cup of sliced fresh strawberries. Then I layered them like a lasagna and refrigerated it over night. (You definitively have to let it set for a minimum of 4 hours, this allows the graham crackers to absorb moisture from the Cool Whip and pudding and softens them.)

Here is the nutritional break down for 1 of the 12 servings of this -

Calories - 145
Carbs - 25
Fat - 1g

Pretty good I think! More importantly ~ How did it taste? It was very tasty! It's no chocolate birthday cake but it will definitely satisfy your sweet tooth craving.

I will make a few changes for next time. I think I will cook down the strawberries to make more of a strawberry sauce and I think I will try cream cheese sugar free pudding.

Freaux Yeaux Addict

2012-01-23T14:06:00.001-06:00

Apparently I'm late to the game about this new 'Frozen Yogurt" craze. I've noticed the 10 different yogurt stores popping up around town, but I wasn't so sure about this 'pay by the ounce' deal.

So on Saturday Michael and I decided to try it out. We went to Orange Leaf - (I think) a relatively new yogurt shoppe in town. At first glance this place was CUTE and they had a Facebook check in deal. I was 'liking' it. My coworker had recommend I try the Cheesecake yogurt, and boy was I glad she did. It was delicious!

I decided to swirl Strawberry and the Cheesecake together for a tasty treat!

Michael swirled Key Lime Pie and Coconut together, and he was pretty excited about it!

He is holding (and playing like a guitar) the second best thing about Orange Leaf - The Spoon! It's not your usual plastic spoon. It's made of sturdy plastic and has a rounded rectangle shape.

In the past at other frozen desert establishments I've had plastic spoons cut my tongue. That would never happen with this spoon. I'm not going to lie, I wanted to save mine and bring it home.

Regarding the 'Pay by the Ounce' deal - it wasn't as bad as I thought. I believe its about .42 an ounce. They only offer you one large size container and you don't know until you check out how much it will cost. But for the 2 of us it was only $7 which I think is a very good deal compared to other frozen dessert places.

Michael and I will definitively be going back! We can't wait to try more flavors.

Fall Garden Harvest

2012-01-19T13:58:00.000-06:00

Back in October we planted our Fall garden. We doubled the size of our garden from the summer, and I was excited to see how our plants would do.

Here is a list of everything we've harvested:
4 heads of Broccoli plus many broccoli florets
2 heads of Cauliflower with one more we are about to pick
A salad's amount of lettuce - there was more but we didn't pick it all
We have a cabbage but we are waiting for it to get bigger to pick

All in all not too bad.

What I learned from this is that carrots are really hard to grow! After nearly 4 months in the ground ours only got this big!

We are still waiting on our brussel spouts, maybe by next Thanksgiving!

Resolutions

2012-01-03T14:17:00.003-06:00

Happy New Year!

I'm sure we say this every year, but boy did 2011 fly by! I thought I'd share my resolutions in order to hold myself to them for 2012.

Exercise more. Well any exercise really. I think my plan is to purchase a bike and start riding. And if I do maybe I will get a pet bike carrier for Lola.
Be more organized. I think I'm getting a good start on this. I have a handy dandy 2012 planner to keep my life in order. I also think I will utilize auto bill pay so I have less bills to remember.
This is the big one. Try not to worry about things I can not control. This is very difficult for me. I tend to worry about everything.

We'll see how I do on these resolutions. Wish me luck!

Her Name is Lola...

2011-12-07T10:59:00.001-06:00

Last Friday we got our new puppy Lola!

She is a 10 week old Chiweenie. I have been a dachshund owner/lover for many years. Growing up my family had 3 (two chocolates and a black & tan), my grandma had 2 (black & tan and a red) and my aunt had one (black & tan)!

Sadly after the last one passed away 2 years ago no one in my family had gotten a new puppy.

This is Mo playing in the snow of 2008.

We started talking about getting a dog soon after I purchased the house. And things just all fell into place these last few weeks.

We are working on potty and crate training. And she also is biting/mouthing now because I think she will be losing her baby teeth. If anyone has any advice on training please let us know!

Merry Christmas!

- Michael, Sarah and Lola

Guest Bath

2011-11-15T15:47:00.001-06:00

A few weeks ago we discovered a leak in my downstairs bath ceiling. After ripping out a large portion of the ceiling we learned the leak was coming from the upstairs bath shower. (The leak is all fixed now!)

Thanks to this little leak we had an impromptu mini bathroom renovation!

When I first bought the house, this bathroom was a pink nightmare.

We ended up gutting the entire bathroom and starting over. Since there was a lot of wasted space we added 2 closets, one for the bathroom and another for the hallway. (One can never have enough closet space.)

One odd thing about this bathroom was the shower/tub. Originally there was only a bath tub so after we added the shower, I had to find an 'L' shaped shower curtain rod.

I had never decorated or done much to the downstairs bath so this gave me the opportunity to do so. Since we had to repaint (after sheet rocking the ceiling there was texture and mud on the walls) I decided to pick a new color. Originally I had painted this bathroom yellow. Now it's a fun apple green!

Laundry Room Complete!

2011-10-24T12:21:00.001-05:00

After about 8 weekends of work (with a few other projects in between) my laundry room expansion is complete!

So incase you've forgotten what this laundry space was before, I'll link you to my first blog entry - It all comes out in the wash - to refresh your memory.

I have plenty of space for storage in the craigslist cabinets I got. And lots of space for doing laundry, I even moved a dresser in there for folding and even more storage!

I'm so pleased with our work! We took a completely underutilized space (and a broken bathroom) and created a nearly 10' x 10' room! This room is probably better made and insulated than the rest of my home!

Stay tuned for our next great outdoors project - vinyl siding!

Every Southern Girl needs a front porch

2011-10-17T11:09:00.001-05:00

When I bought my house last year, I knew from the outside it would be ugly for a while. The inside was my first priority, so I could move in and work on the exterior over time.

Finally, last weekend we started on the first project of the exterior: My Front Porch. Originally, the house just had cement stairs leading to the front door. I think this cheapened the look of the home, it needed a decent front porch to help balance the house.

There wasn't much room to build a proper southern porch, but we created a nice landing and stairs. We added two columns for balance and some railings.

I have to wait 30 days for the lumber to acclimate to the weather before I can paint. But eventually it will be navy blue and white. I will have my address numbers on the left column.

We are all decorated for Halloween, so hopefully I will get many Trick-or-treators to try out my new porch!

Here is a side by side comparison before and after.

I know it doesn't look like much now, but after we vinyl side the house things will be looking good.

A is for Apples

2011-10-12T10:33:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I was bit by the baking bug. I just can't help it! Fall is here and it's time to start perfecting some recipes for all the holidays! Last year I was on a quest to find the perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie reciepe, and I've found a pretty good one.

I decided to bake an apple cobbler this weekend. I was hoping to find a quick and easy recipe using Bisquick so I would be able to make it often. Since my dad is a diabetic, I used Splenda for baking in these recipes. Not only does this make them basically sugar free, but it also lowers the calories by a ton!

My first attempt was very easy, it had just a few ingredients. It was basically like a pot pie with apples and cinnamon inside.

While everyone said this was tastey, I was not impressed. The topping was kinda soft and basically flavorless.

In my second attempt, I decided to try an Apple Crisp. I thought a crispy topping would taste better. So I made Aunt Lillian's Apple Crisp Recipe. Again I used both Splenda Blend and Splenda Brown Sugar for this.

This was a hit! Everyone loved it and it was gone in a day! I can promise you it doesn't taste "sugar free" or "healtly".

Here is the Nutrition facts break down per serving (1/8 sized portions):

Calories 223

Carbs 40

Fat 7

Protein 2

Fiber 3

Sodium 391

Fall Garden

2011-10-10T11:17:00.000-05:00

The first weekend of October we planted our fall garden. Since we did so well with our summer crops we decided to double our garden area.

We planted Cabbage, Brocolli, Cauliflower, Lettuce, Brussel Sprouts and Carrots. I am so excited about these veggies, they are all so delicious and I could eat them everyday. Hopefully they will yield as much as our summer garden did.

We started the Carrots from seed, and after a little over a week they have started sprouting! I'm hoping this is a good sign!

I think most of these veggies will be ready for picking at the end of November, right in time for Thanksgiving! Hopefully I can cook some cabbage for New Years to instill some good luck for 2012!

Choosing the right grout color

2011-09-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

I want to stress the importance of choosing the right grout color for your tile. Don't rush in choosing grout, make sure you lay it out with the tiles in the room it will be in before you decide!

There are a few options when looking at grout colors. You can:

Blend the grout with the tiles, meaning you choose a grout that is nearly the same color as the tiles (such as white on white). This will create the appearance that the floor is one seamless color.
Contrast the grout and tiles, meaning if the tiles are light than you choose a dark grout (or vice versa). This creates a checkerboard appearance.
Accent the tile with grout, meaning if you have multiple colors in your tile you can choose one of those colors to accent in the grout.

When I first started my home renovations, I thought I preferred to blend my grout and tiles. I thought this would make the rooms look larger.

My downstairs bath has a beige tile with Oyster Gray Polyblend grout. I picked this tile because it was inexpensive and a neutral color for the bathroom. The grout dried darker than I expected and it looks kinda dingy with the beige tiles.

I had purchased too much of these tiles, so instead of returning them I kept them to use in my laundry room. Since I didn't have much of the Oyster Gray grout left, I decided to use the Alabaster Polyblend Grout that I had left over from my Master Bath. I didn't want to spend extra money on grout so I was hoping the colors would be tolerable together.

It turns out that Alabaster Grout looks amazing with this tile! It completely transformed the look and color of these boring beige tiles. I know it's hard to tell but these two images are the same tile just in two different rooms with different grout colors.

Maybe down the road I will regrout the downstairs bath to help brighten up that dingy floor.

Parran's PoBoys and Creole Creamery

2011-09-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

Since we had to drop my parents off at the airport over the weekend, Michael and I decided to treat ourselves to some yummy NOLA food.

(Warning the following blog contains images of extremely delicious foods, I am not responsible for any drooling or diet cheating this will cause. Janel and Jeff, you have been warned.)

Michael was craving a po-boy so I asked my dad for restaurant recommendations and he suggested Parran's in Metairie.

Parran's was great! It was very cute, and I would guess Mom and Pop owned. (Because I think Pop ran the register and Mom brought out our food.)

I got a side of Fried Pickles, and they were awesome. They must be hand sliced from whole pickles because they were thick and crispy! I didn't realize a side was going to be so huge!

Michael got a Shrimp Po-boy and fries and I got a Roast Beef Po-boy.

I think he enjoyed it!

About a year ago, Michael and I saw this episode of Kid in a Candy Store that featured The Creole Creamery. We had wanted to check them out and finally got a chance on Saturday.

OMG this is the best ice cream I have ever eaten. It is so creamy, I would call it Cold Cream - there is nothing icy about it. The prices are great too! Cheaper than other chain ice cream places. Just remember to bring CASH.

Michael really wanted to get the Cracked Pepper and Cream Corn ice cream (that was mentioned in the video) but sadly they did not have that flavor right now. But his second choice was Lavender Honey. I think he looks sleepy because he was in a yummy food coma.

I got the Salted Carmel in a waffle cone. It was amazing! I can't wait to go back and try more flavors!

Flying, not just for the birds

2011-09-19T10:48:00.000-05:00

In my 26 years on Earth I have never been on a plane. I guess I never went anywhere that required taking a plane. Because of this, I was apprehensive about flying. I don't like roller coasters and I get car sick, so I really didn't know what to expect. When I found out I was going to have to fly to Dallas for work I got really anxious.

Michael knew how much this was bothering me (to the point of losing sleep laying awake worrying about it). So he contacted his mom's boyfriend (Mr. Vaughn) who has a plane. He graciously offered to take me for my first flight and teach me all about planes and flying.

When we pulled up to the airport and I saw this tin can (literally, it's made of aluminum) sized plane I started to panic. But I had come this far so I had to do it.

After a 20 minute lesson on all the parts of the plane, why the plane flies and all the inside controls, it was time to get in.

This is a small plane that only seats 4, but its surprisingly not cramped inside. But it is hot. There is no a/c.

Smaller planes like this are steered on the ground using pedals. Mr. Vaughn let me drive the plane to the runway. This is incredibly difficult! I was supposed to drive on a straight yellow line, but if there would have been police around, they would have pulled me over for drunk driving!

We got to the runway and tested the engine, checked the gas, controls etc. Then it was time to take off! This plane has to go at least 75mph before it will take flight. So as we were going down the runway I began to brace myself. While I was deciding if I should close my eyes when we went up, we were already in the air! I had barely even noticed! My ears started popping as we rose over the houses and trees. But the sight was beautiful! Everything looked like colorful geometric shapes. We flew over the Mississippi River and could see for miles!

Then, it was my turn to fly the plane! It was so easy! The plane basically flies itself. There were a few bumps as we hit air pockets and clouds and such. But the plane just leveled out naturally. I flew around for 30 minutes, then we made two circles (which made me a little sick) and then landed. It was an amazing experience! I am so thankful to know that flying is not scary!

Mr. Vaughn said I was smiling the whole time. And afterwards my face was sore! I can now check 'fly in a plane and FLY a plane" off my to-do list.

Maybe next I'll learn how to swim.

Flying Solo

2011-09-16T10:52:00.000-05:00

This weekend Michael and I will tackle our first big home renovation project alone! Usually, we have my parents running the show, but he and I will be tiling the laundry room floor all by ourselves.

We had a quick lesson last night on how to lay tiles

Start in the center of the room
only use as much adhesive that you need for a few tiles
use the tile spacers
proper use of the tile cutter

Pretty much everything that DIY covers here.

Now that we are tile experts hopefully we can complete the tile and grout this weekend. I don't think anything can go terribly wrong.

But the real question is will this Home Renovation make or break our relationship? I should video the process and submit it to Renovation Realities, I'm sure we will be quite entertaining!

I also scored a great deal on 6 wall cabinets for the laundry room. I found them on Craigs List. This was my first time using Craigs List and it was great! The price I paid for these 6 cabinets (only 4 pictured below) is less than what one would cost at the store!

Here are the cabinets before we sand and paint them. I think we will just paint them white. But maybe I'll get gutsy and try a dark bold color.

Laundry Room Update

2011-09-06T15:22:00.000-05:00

It was a rainy weekend, thanks to TS Lee. But we were able to get a good bit of work done on the Laundry Room.

Here is what we completed -

Insulate the walls and ceiling. DONE
Move hot water heater out of room and rerun pipes etc. for it. DONE

This was a challenging process, but after like 7 times we had no leaks!

Run electricity for Dryer, Fridge and outlets. DONE
Hang sheet rock - float, sand repeat. - Almost all hung, I will be working on floating in the evenings after work this week.
Change out window. - Not Done - We will hopefully get to that one night this week.

And we ran the A/C duct and vent so once the room is closed in we can connect it to the A/C system.

Here is what the room looks like after the 3 day weekend.

I am very pleased with our progress, I can't wait to see the finished product!

Labor Day Laundry List

2011-09-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd post pictures of where we are with the Laundry Room prior to the 3 day weekend, then we can track our progress. To see the before pictures of the space, please check out my previous blog It All Comes Out in the Wash.

This is a view from the kitchen into the new laundry room. You can see that once we close in the room, you will now exit the kitchen into the laundry room, then exit through the side door to get into the garage.

The space is about 9ft x 9ft. Which is at least double the size of the original garage bathroom.

There is still plenty of garage space all around the new laundry room. You could easily fit a car in there, if my driveway/garage was accessible by car. The area to the right (behind the wall of the new room) is where my washer and dryer is currently.

Here is our Labor Day Weekend "Laundry List" for the Laundry Room Expansion:

Insulate the walls and ceiling.
Move hot water heater out of room and rerun pipes etc. for it.
Run electricity for Dryer, Fridge and outlets.
Hang sheet rock - float, sand repeat.
Change out window.

I think this is a good starting point. We'll see how much we actually get done because it's supposed to rain all weekend and that could put a kink in our plans.

It all comes out in the wash

2011-08-31T12:14:00.000-05:00

We spent the last 2 weekends working on the last "major" renovation inside my house. The Laundry Room. Up until now, my washer and dryer were set up in the garage. Not the ideal place for cleaning clothes.

Originally, we were going to turn the bathroom (that was inside my garage) into the laundry room. But my dad came up with an even better idea! Expand the bathroom to make an even larger laundry/storage room!

So here is what the "Garage Bathroom" looked like before.This bathroom was gross. The shower leaked and was causing the wall in between the kitchen and garage to rot. We did a lot of repair initially after we demoed the bathroom.

The second image is taken from inside the garage. You can see how the hot water heater was also in the "bathroom".

Also before when you exited from the kitchen you went down 3 stairs into the garage. You can see the garage door in this image. (Behind my Dad.)

We will be working on the laundry room during the 3 day Labor Day weekend. I'll post pics to show you our progress then!

A Royal Dessert

2011-08-22T11:37:00.000-05:00

I decided to bake a Royal Blue Velvet Cake this weekend. I saw the recipe in a Betty Crocker email, and the picture was just too pretty to ignore. I figured I didn't need a special occasion to bake, especially when you are baking a Royal Cake.

The biggest challenge was finding the paste food color. I decided to check out Michaels, and learned they carry Duff Goldman's (the Ace of Cakes guy) line of baking products. I got the jewel tone 4 pack which included a sapphire blue, yellow, teal and black. These colors are amazing, very vivid and didn't stain my hands while preparing or my mouth while eating.

The cake is pretty basic, using a box white cake mix. You use butter milk and a little cocoa powder to make it red velvet-like.

The best part of this recipe was the icing. It was delicious! By using the marshmallow fluff it makes regular powder sugar and butter icing super light and fluffy. Also, I put the cake in my cake dome, and the icing didn't harden over night, like many store bought icings will do. 2 days later and the icing is still light and fluffy!

This was a pretty successful cake baking, because in 2 days I only have 1 slice left! I had intended on bringing the cake to work to share, but bringing just one piece didn't seem fair.

I am excited to experiment with the rest of the Duff Cake product line as I make more cakes and cupcakes. I think I will make some teal cupcakes (think Tiffany Cupcakes) next!

Living Room

2011-08-17T09:03:00.002-05:00

This past weekend I moved furniture around in my living room... for at least the 4th time (in a year). In my defense one of those times involved making space for my Christmas tree so it doesn't count.

Since I spruced up my living room by swapping around furniture and getting new curtains, I thought it would be a good time to see how far this space has come.

Here is what the living room looked like when I first saw the house.

The stairs were a HUGE selling point for me. They were gorgeous! And after we refinished them they make a dramatic feature in the room.

The living room had little renovation work that needed to be done. It was dying for some fresh paint and a really good cleaning. Once we refinished the hardwood floors, this room was instantly transformed.

The living room is probably one of the more frequented spaces in my house because we eat in here and watch TV in here. This was a challenging space to lay my furniture out in because nearly every wall has a door, some opening or stairs or something that you could not put furniture against.

Sadly, we can only sit about 3-4 people comfortably in here. Eventually we'd like to get a larger couch and one of those oversized chairs to replace my lovely hand-me-down red love-seat/chaise.

I use to have a full sized bookcase where the short dvd shelf is. So now I need some type of art to hang above it on that wall. It looks kind of empty now.

My beautiful stairs! This picture really doesn't do them justice (bad lighting and such). They also double as a great place to hang our stockings at Christmas!

Road Trip

2011-08-08T14:58:00.002-05:00

This past weekend Michael and I took a mini road trip to Foley, Alabama. I figured with the tax free shopping weekend, it would be a good time to hit the Tanger Outlets!

Michael enjoying his roll!

We left at 8am, since it's a 2 and a half hour drive. We had planned on eating at Lambert's Cafe for lunch since Michael made all A's this past semester!

Lambert's opens at 10:30am, we arrived at 10:40 and the parking lot was full and there was already a long line and a 15+ minute wait! It was definitively worth the wait! If you've never been to Lambert's it's a great family dining experience. The portions are HUGE, the servers are fun and play practical jokes on everyone and they throw rolls!! It is impossible to leave this place hungry! In additional to rolls, they have more sides they "pass around"! (Usually fried okra, cabbage, beans, and macaroni.)

I ordered the chicken tenders which come with 2 sides ~ You must try the cucumber and onion side. It's cucumbers and onions soaked in sugar and vinegar. Michael ordered the meatloaf which comes with mashed potatoes and 2 sides (corn and cold slaw).

We were super stuffed afterwards and had to get an ice chest at Walmart to keep all our leftovers!

Then after a long day of shopping, we had to stop for something sweet on the way home....

A Dairy Queen Blizzard!

Itsy bitsy spider...

2011-08-01T14:06:00.000-05:00

So last week I noticed a bug bite on my leg. It was a little itchy at first, so I didn't think anything of it. By Friday I noticed it hurt more than itched and it was getting redder. I showed Michael and my mom and they both thought I was over reacting and the redness was from scratching.

This is a picture of what the bite looked like on Saturday morning. Once Michael saw it, he told me I had to go to a doctor. I was in a lot more pain, especially when I walked. The bite was very swollen and standing on it increased the blood flow to the bite and caused it to throb. Also, walking was a challenge because it's on the back of my leg and the skin was very tight and hurt when I stretched my leg out.

I went to a Walgreen's Take Care Clinic. (I highly recommend going here rather than a Redi Med. I felt like the doctor really listened to me and that she knew what she was talking about.) She informed me that I was most likely bitten by a Brown Recluse Spider. She prescribed me some antibiotics and cream for the bite, but warned me that if by Monday it wasn't better that I should go to the E.R.

We went to Gonzales on Saturday to visit Michael's mom. After a tasty Thai lunch (which included Sweet Rice, the best rice ever) I noticed the bite had gotten larger. Mali (Michael's mom) suggested we mark the edge to track the swelling. This picture was taken Saturday night. The inner circle was drawn around 3pm, by Saturday night it had swelled to the outer circle.

At this point I started to worry, I really didn't want to go to the E.R.

Thankfully, when I woke up on Sunday the swelling had decreased. Obviously the antibiotics were working, and as a side effect I was exhausted. I spent all day laying down. Though even if I felt well enough to move Michael wouldn't let me! Thankfully, he took care of me this weekend and in a few days the bite should be gone!

Why I Love Reality TV

2011-07-28T09:01:00.001-05:00

Monday while watching the overnight dates on Ashley's season of The Bachelorette, I realized why I love reality tv so much.

I'm a sucker for romance. Movies like The Notebook always strike a chord within me. I can't help thinking, "Will someone love me like that one day?". I can't get enough of the mushy stuff. And always in the movies, things go pretty smoothly and there is always that perfect moment. That moment when the two people both know they love each other.

On the Bachelorette, I am rooting for J.P. I think he has been genuine from the beginning, (as genuine as reality tv can be). And you can't fake that look he has in his eyes when he stares at Ashley. On Monday night I found myself yelling at the tv., "J.P just tell her you love her," he hasn't yet, but I know he will. Based on the little truth that we see on this show, I think they will be very happy together. (I'm an avid reader of Reality Steve's Blog, so I know who the rumored winner is, and I'm excited about it!)

Even though reality tv is scripted, I can still believe some of what they say. I still want to believe these people are falling in love on National tv. Call me a fool for believing that but I do. I need to believe that love like that exists in the world. That two people can find each other and know that they are meant to be together.

With all the bad in the world today, I am comforted by the belief that love is out there. I'll be a hopeless romantic forever.

Mom's Birthday

2011-07-26T09:52:00.002-05:00

Me in my apron,
ready to bake!

This past weekend was my mom's birthday. I decided to bake her a Velvet Cocoa Cake with Instant Buttercream by Martha Stewart. I have baked a few of Martha's recipes before and they tasted very good. (My favorite was the Fudgy Chocolate Brownies I made for Father's Day!)

I'm not a huge fan of chocolate cake, but this cake surprised me. The cake tasted almost brownie like, and it didn't need any icing in my opinion.

Speaking of the icing, the instant buttercream was my initial interest in this cake. Who doesn't love buttercream icing, so an easy way to make that would be great. This icing used marshmallow fluff (2 jars!!), butter, cocoa, and melted chocolate.

This icing was a little disappointing. First off, the taste wasn't what I was expecting. It was chocolaty, but not buttercreamy. The texture wasn't like buttercream either. It was more moussey and it melted very quickly in this Louisiana humidity. So, I had to put the cake in the refrigerator which dried out the cake a bit.

Over all it was a tasty cake. I will probably make the cake again but try a different icing.

Movie Review

2011-07-18T14:36:00.000-05:00

Last week, two of my cowrkers (Jeff and Jimmy) highly recommended Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. I'll admit that I was skeptical, this movie didn't seem appealing to me. But I can admit that I was pleasantly surprised.

My inner geek was delighted with all the old school video game references. My personal favorite was the nod to Zelda.(Check out the full list of video game references.) The movie was very entertaining, and I think even non-gamer/nerds would enjoy it.

On Saturday, we went to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. I am sad to admit that I didn't attend a midnight showing like I have previously done for the Harry Potter movies. But I am getting to old to stay up with those teenie-boppers and have them cheering and clapping throughout the movie.

The movie was amazing! I am a huge fan, but I really think the special effects were great! If you go in expecting the movie to reflect the book 100% then you probably won't love it as much. But it was a great ending to this series. I think the books are better than the movies, but the movies are still exciting to watch and it's interesting to see how certain scenes will be adapted for film.

I do have some complaints. I don't think non-book readers will understand the whole Snape and Lilly Potter plot. I think some people are thinking that Snape was Harry's father. (FYI, Snape loved Lilly, called her a mudblood and she never spoke to him for 3 years in which time she and James married and had Harry.) Also, Neville's speech while Harry was "dead", while nice for his character, not really how it happened.

The sad part is that I haven't read the book since it came out in 2007. So I think it's time I reread the entire series. This way I can be in denial that it's over.

Apple of my eye

2011-07-07T21:32:00.001-05:00

Dear Apple,

As I sit here typing this blog on my MacBook Pro, I can't help but think of all the Apple products I have owned. My first was a MacBook circa 2004 or 2005 that came with a Fifth generation iPod for a nominal fee.

My iPod

This MacBook lasted me 6 years, and I have since passed it on to my brother who is still enjoying it (He did purchase a new battery for it, since the old one wasn't holding a charge anymore). I added extra memory to it, but other than that the MacBook gave me no problems. I did have to replace the MagSafe Power Adaptor due to fraying. I read numerous reports of this happening and I recall that Apple reconfigured the Adaptor material to help prevent this from occuring.

Then 2 years ago I got a 3GS iPhone. I love my iPhone, I honestly don't know how I lived without it. Within the past 2 years I have gone through 3 Apple Dock Connector to USB Cables. I find it hard to believe I am the only person having this problem. I don't abuse my cables, I don't wrap them up, or stuff them in my purse. My cable just rests on my nightstand. That's all. Am I just cursed when it comes to Apple Cables and Adapters? Does someone else make these accessories? Because if my MacBook and iPod can survive 6+ years then why can't the cables?

I am a loyal Apple fan. I purchased a new MacBook Pro last year and I love it. I love the OS, it's so easy to use. I love iTunes, iMovie, iEtc. I'm a designer and I know many other designers who share my love for Apple. But I also know some that don't. (But everyone knows that Macs are better at the creative stuff ;).)

All I ask of you Apple, is to create all your products with the same standards as your computers and other devices. Please don't make me a hypocrite for all the praises I have given you and for all the times I stood up for you when others were a "PC".

Because "Hello, my name is Sarah, and I'm a Mac."

Thanks Ma'am...

2011-07-06T21:53:00.001-05:00

Don't tell anyone but I turned 26. To be honest I am not where I thought I would be by now. I had set goals for myself that I wanted to accomplish. One was to visit Greece by the time I was 25. Well, that didn't happen. I don't even have a passport. (I've been meaning to get one tho.)

Lately, I haven't been a fan of celebrating birthdays because they just remind me that I haven't accomplished everything I've wanted.

So, we didn't really celebrate my birthday, we worked at a fireworks stand this past weekend. It's a lot of work but a fun experience. But it was like everyone knew. I was called Ma'am all day!! Do I look like a Ma'am? It was like salt in a wound.

I think most girls have had a moment like this one Rachel Green from Friends had on her 30th Birthday.

I had it figured out that I would be married by the time I was 25, 26 at the latest, because I wanted to be married for a few years before I had children etc etc. Well, for those of you who don't know me, I'm not married, engaged or anything. But I am in love. I've found that person, which I think is probably the hardest part of "the plan".

So, I want to thank him - for accepting that I hate celebrating birthdays, for saying I'm still 21, for everything he does. He's amazing and the best birthday gift I could ever want.

If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!

2011-06-30T21:29:00.000-05:00

When I first started looking to buy a house, I didn't focus too much on the kitchen. I'm not the greatest cook, and it isn't much fun cooking for one. So, I didn't need anything fancy or sizable, I just needed a kitchen.

My house had a decent sized kitchen, granted it was unusable because it had no appliances!

We ended up removing everything from the kitchen - cabinets, counter tops, flooring - All 7 layers of hideous flooring! I did save the cabinet knobs since they were brand new.

I finally got around to cleaning my kitchen and taking the 'after' shots of the renovation.

Originally, there was no pantry, so we added a pantry where the A/C Unit use to be.
I have to give a shout out to Rachael Ray for this great pantry organization tip - Use an over the door shoe rack to organize all the little things! It's a great help and saves a lot of space!

Unfortunately, there isn't really a dining room in my house. So I have a small eating area in my kitchen. Thankfully, I found this great table at Bed Bath and Beyond that fit perfectly!

I think my favorite part of my new kitchen is the 'chandelier' light fixture above my table. I got it on clearance at Lowe's for $70!

I am definitively enjoying my new kitchen!

Product Review - Filtrete Water Station

2011-06-27T20:52:00.000-05:00

Filtrete Water Station

As an early birthday gift, my mom got me a Filtrete Water Station. I had seen the commercials and I thought it was a great idea since I always buy cases of bottled water.

So far I really like this water filtration station. It will definitively save me money. The station costs around $35 and comes with 4 bottles and 1 filter. (Filters usually last 3 months). Not only will this save me money, but I won't feel as bad for throwing away all those plastic bottles.

I do have a few complaints. First, it is not recommended to wash the bottles in the dishwasher. I'm not a fan of hand washing, so I think I will try to just wash the bottle lids in the dishwasher and hand wash the rest. Secondly, the station takes up some precious counter top space. I already have far too many items on my counter top, so I may need to find a new location for this. Lastly, the station has a spout so you can fill glasses or pitchers. The problem is the height of the unit. I had to prop the station up in order to rest a pitcher under the spout.

All in all, I really like this filtration system. I will continue is use it in conjunction with my Brita Pitcher. Thanks mom for a great early birthday gift!

As Long as You Love Me...

2011-06-27T09:51:00.001-05:00

For our one year anniversary (April 3, 2011) I got Michael tickets to the NKOTBSB Concert. I'll admit this was partly a selfish gift because I am a HUGE BSB fan! (I saw them February 26th, 2000 at the Superdome and January 27th, 2001 at the Georgia Dome.)

With my BFF Katie at our First BSB Show in 2000!

Getting all dolled up for the show in Georgia with Katie and Laura.

Michael loves 90's music and had definitively expressed interest in seeing NKOTB. He even bought their greatest hits cd! So I knew he would be excited to see them in concert.

So after a 2+ hour drive to Lafayette we finally arrived at the Cajundome!

The show was amazing! Nearly 3 hours of NKOTB and BSB songs! They played all of their hits and then some! It was probably the loudest concert I have ever attended - the screaming fans were nearly deafening. At one point Donnie ripped his tank top off and the crowd went crazy!!

NKOTB on the rising platform.

The one negative was our dancing neighbor. She clearly didn't understand she needed to stay within her chair area. She kept bumping into us!

I know Michael had a great time, he was singing along to all the songs!

BSB!

I was very impressed by the set-up of the show. They did a few group numbers, then Nkotb would sing 3 songs, then they would swap. And these boys can still sing and dance! Nkotb has been doing this for 25 years and they are pros! BSB has been performing for 18 years and you'd never know they weren't all in their teens and 20s.

It was a great show. Michael is ready to see them again!

To view all my pics from the concert, click here.

Weekend Project

2011-06-20T13:58:00.002-05:00

This weekend Michael and I decided to build a Compost Corral. We had been talking about creating something to hold our organic waste, grass clippings and leaves for a while now. And the compost will be great to add to our soil when we expand our garden in the fall.

We recently watched an episode of P. Allen Smith GardenHome and saw he had built his own Compost Corral.

We got all the supplies from Lowes for only $25. We opted to build a 4' x 4' corral so we saved some money and only purchased (8) 8 foot landscape timbers.

Basically, you use blocks to raise the corral (so you can scoop the compost out from the bottom). Then you make a base of landscaping timbers, drill a hole halfway through the ends and place the rebar in the timbers.

Then it's just like "Lincoln Logs", you just add a log to opposite sides and build all the way up.

But it can get a little cumbersome if the holes aren't exact.

This project only took us an hour! It was extremely easily and I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a way to 'corral' your compost.

I can't wait for our next weekend project, a Custom Pergola!

When you wish upon a star...

2011-06-16T20:47:00.000-05:00

Are we ever "too old" for something? I don't think so. I don't think we can ever grow out of the excitement that Disney World has to offer. I've visited Disney World on 4 separate occasions.

The first in 1994 with my parents.

Twice while in High School. In 2001, I had the privilege of performing as part of the Disney Magic Music Days on the Galaxy Palace Theater (which has since been closed) with my High School Band. It was an amazing experience.

Then in 2003 we went to Disney for our senior class trip.

And most recently in 2007.

My favorite Disney movies are 101 Dalmatians and Lady and the Tramp. So I was very excited to eat at Tony's Town Square, the restaurant where Lady and Tramp shared that magical kiss.

And here is my best souvenir ever! I use it every day!

I can't wait to visit Disney again. We are planning a trip for next year, and I'm so excited to take Michael to Disney for his FIRST VISIT!!

Since Disney is "The Happiest Place on Earth", I thought what a great theme for my guest room. I have so many Disney collectibles that I would hate to pack away in boxes, so I decided to showcase them and make my guests feel like they are experiencing some of the Disney Magic in my home.

So here is my guest room pre-renovation.

And here's my Disney inspired room!

Hopefully soon you can Be Our Guest!

I hate tomatoes

2011-06-14T13:40:00.000-05:00

Michael was brought up with a knack for gardening. So when he suggested we start our own garden this year, I was excited but afraid because I don't have a green thumb. I have quite the opposite, I usually kill plants just by being near them.

We discovered that here on the Northshore we have bad soil. I'm not sure I would even call it soil, more like a clay/rock combo. So after much debate we built a small semi raised garden.

So that was our garden back in March. We planted 3 different types of Tomato (Creole, Roma and Pink Lady), eggplant, banana and cayenne pepper, corn and cucumbers. I figured the more plants we had the better odds they would have to survive! Maybe we would get a few of each vegetable.

Boy was I wrong. Our little garden defied all odds- bad soil, my un-green thumb, Louisiana heat, and no space! Now our garden is exploding at the seams!

At first we had so many cayenne peppers I didn't know what to do!

But atleast I like peppers... Now we have so many tomatoes its ridiculous...

And I don't even like tomatoes!

So if anyone has any good recipes for tomato sauce, or salsa or anything with tomatoes please share them with me!

Home Atlast

2011-05-31T21:54:00.009-05:00

Last year I bought my first house. Pretty crazy for a 25 year old I know. It's a 4 bed, 2 bath home. Sounds great right? Except it hadn't been lived in for over 18 months (except by the family of raccoons that were in the attic), had no working A/C and was pretty much a mess. After 6 months of tearing it apart, I was finally able to move in. Many times while we were renovating I thought we would never finish, that buying this house was a HUGE mistake.

And now after owning the house for a year, my master bath is complete. I owe so much to my parents for all their help and hard work. I know none of this would have been possible without them.

I am most proud of the master bath for a few reasons. First, this is a tiny "master" bath. It only has a shower, so I'm not 100% sure you can even call it a master bath. We turned a 4ft x 8ft bathroom stall into a beautiful space. Secondly, we pushed ourselves and tried things that we had never done before; glass tiling a window, switching a shower and a toilet. And lastly, after all the previous work we did on the house, we had really worked out all the kinks, so this bathroom looks almost professionally done.

This bathroom took far longer than we expected, with having to order the shower basin twice (once because it wasn't the size we ordered and then it came in broken), deciding after a test run that a shower curtain wasn't keeping the water in the shower and we needed a sliding door.

So here's what the bathroom looked like before...

This was the old shower area, see the lovely slanted ceiling because of the slope of the roof. Previously you could only shower if you were 5ft or under.

And here is the window, toilet and vanity. And some amazing laminate tile flooring that was glued over the original 50+ year old hardwood floors...

And here's what the bathroom looks like now, nearly 6 months after we started the renovation.

So this is what was the shower area. Now it's much more spacious with just the toilet.

Here's the new vanity area. We added a much smaller pedestal sink, and a small cabinet for storage.

You can see the glass tile window and the tile accent that took me months to decide on!

A towel bar and the glass shower door.

I honestly can't believe this is the same bathroom!