Look, we're grown-ups

A few months back, my parents came to visit during my spring break. It was the first time they had seen our new condo and it was overall a wonderful visit. I had spoken about how the next big purchase Kevin and I make would be a new bed. We have been sharing my Ikea bed that I got in college. Now, not to insult Ikea, especially because almost all of our furniture is from them, but that bed was not the most stable thing. You would flip over in the night and it felt like there was an earthquake. Not to mention the fact that it was only a full size, and for two people a full size bed just does not cut it.

My parents said that when we found a bed we liked they would purchase it for us as gifts for every occasion for many years to come. A good deal since I am not a fan of gifts to start with. A few weeks after they left we found a bed that I loved and that Kevin didn't mind sleeping in and we scheduled a delivery.

This is where the fun began. They came at the scheduled delivery time and opened up the first box of the bed frame and we realized it was the wrong color. Darn. They left the mattress and box spring and said they would return in a couple of days with the right bed frame. The second delivery of the correct color bed occurred right on schedule. They opened up all of the boxes, everything matched and was exactly what we wanted. They had almost finished assembling it and realized that it was a defective frame. Some of the holes required to assemble it had not been drilled. They packed it all back up and promised to deliver again with a bed frame that could actually be assembled. Finally on the third delivery we got a bed that was the right style, color and could actually be assembled.

Despite the complications of delivery, in the end we now have a new bed that is perfect. Much fancier than my old Ikea bed and something that turns our house into a home.

In addition to the new bed, this past weekend Kevin and I went to Ikea (not to look at beds of course), but instead to get bedside lamps to complete the look of the room.

Our beautiful new bed with our awesome lamps as well -- can't get much cooler than this :-)

Our room is now complete. It is elegant and grown-up looking but still representative of mine and Kevin's unique style.

Here's to hoping we can enjoy our new home and the beautiful furnishings that make it look even better. :-)

Kevin's New Favorite Thing

After quite a few weeks of Kevin asking for a barbecue and me saying, "maybe next year," I finally gave in.

We had been discussing the idea for quite a few weeks and I was worried I would end up having to clean it all of the time and it would just become another nuisance for me to deal with. One weekend we ended up going over to a friends house for a barbecue and we remembered how delicious barbecue food was and how there was no easy way to replicate the flavors without an actual barbecue.

Kevin and me with our beautiful new BBQ

A few days later, I think, Kevin headed out to Lowe's to purchase a barbecue that we had been looking at. He picked out some grilling tools that he liked as well. He headed home with a gigantic box in the back of the car and we then assembled the barbecue.

It fit perfectly on our patio and has since become a great addition to our home. We have enjoyed barbecue food quite often and even had a 4th of July BBQ with friends.

I must admit that Kevin was right and getting a barbecue was a great idea. He is a pretty smart guy and I am thankful that I gave in, or I would be missing out on so much delicious food.

About to enjoy our first barbecued meal :-)

Here's to hoping we continue to cook awesome food on the grill and that Kevin continues to clean it. A few nights without having to clean dishes from dinner is a welcome reprieve. :-)

Cooking 2011

So just like my baking goal for the year, I also made a cooking goal. My goal is to cook 75 new recipes by the end of the year, and I am well on my way. I think I only have about 10-15 recipes left. Instead of posting pictures for every single recipe I will simply post a picture of my most favorite meal.....wonton soup.


This recipe took forever to make. Filling about 100 wontons is a laborious task, but the delicious outcome makes it completely worthwhile.

Here is the list of all of the other new recipes we have cooked this year so far:

Hot Dogs a la Rose
Spinach, Pesto and Gruyere Lasagna
Open Faced Avocado Chicken Burgers
Sloppy Joe Pizza
BLT Salad
Terrific Teryiaki Burger
Egg Salad Pockets
Family Favorite Taco Salad
Sesame Shrimp and Rice
BLT and More Salad
Ants Climbing a Tree
Dijon Crusted Chicken Breast
Ideal Chopped Salad
Spaghetti and Meatballs with Garlic Crumbs
Fast and Fabulous Thai Chicken Salad
Thai Fried Rice
Wonton Soup
Parmesan Crusted Tilapia
French Canadian Tourtierre
Cheesy Shell Stuffed Shells
Breakfast Tortas
Peanut Chicken Pockets
Bacon Cheese Stuffed Shells
Cajun Shrimp with Mango Edamame Salsa
Asian Chicken Salad Wraps
Pecan Crusted Chicken with Blue Cheese Sauce
Ginger Chicken
Herb and Cheese Stuffed Burgers
Taco Soup
Four Cheese Lasagna
Easy Chicken Strips
Rosemary Garlic Roasted Potatoes
Turkey Reuben Loaf
Chickpea and Feta Salad
Easy Barbecue Ribs
Lemon Chicken
Teriyaki Shrimp Stir Fry
Spicy Ground Beef Taco Filling
Barbecue Shredded Beef
Crispy Traditional Potato Pancakes
Grilled Caesar Chicken
Chicken Pesto Asparagus Rice Dinner
Cheese Egg Scramble
Shrimp Stir Fry
Island Pork Tenderloin & Coleslaw
Turkey Burgers w/ Cheese & Garlic Mushrooms
Chicken with Broccoli
Chicken Tarragon with Cream Sauce
Funghi and Tallegio Pizza
Fiesta Taco Salad
Mushroom Basil Cheese Tortellini
Simply Seasoned Chicken
Chicken Provolone Pizza
Beer Battered Fish Filets
BBQ Sausages
Three Cheese Florentine Burgers
Loin Sirloin Steak with McCormick seasoning
Three Cheese Mushroom Calzone
Grilled Barbecue Chicken Pizza

Here's to hoping we continue to find and make super delicious meals.

Baking 2011

For those of you who don't know, I make a list of goals for the year. Kind of like resolutions but with no pressure. One of my goals was to bake 30 new recipes. I am a little over halfway there and wanted to show you some of the delicious treats I have made.

Francois Payards Flourless Chocolate Cookies --- surprisingly similar to IOTC's cracklejack...hmmm

Lemon Crumb Muffins -- super delicious

Gluten free mini berry cheesecakes -- our passover seder dessert

Star studded mini strawberry pies for our 4th of July celebration -- super simple and delicious

Here is the actual list of new dessert recipes I have made this year thus far:

Francois Payard's Flourless Chocolate Walnut Cookies
Lemon Crumb Muffins
Huey's Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies - w/ rice milk
Orange Marmalade
Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
Tuxedo Brownies
Light Sour Cream Coffee Cake
Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies
Slow cooker hot fudge sundae cake
Cookie Pretzel Peanut Bark
Microwave Marshmallow Fudge
Rice Pudding
Healthified Triple Berry Mini Cheesecakes
Simplest Homemade Brownies
Lemon Bars
Star Studded Mini Pies
Tiramisu

Here's to hoping I can finish out my goal for baking and share these wonderful desserts with anyone who is interested.

Finally a vegetable garden.

So after two failed attempts of starting seeds indoors and transplanting them to the pots outside, I finally decided to just put the seeds in the pots outside and hope for the best. For weeks I watered daily and saw nothing, but then suddenly the seeds began to sprout. After a few months of watching the plants, I finally realized I should take some pictures of our beautiful garden and it's bountiful harvest.

Planters that Kevin made growing watermelons, radishes and cucumbers.

Tomatoes and Beans. We are finally beginning to have the tomatoes turn red.

Our little herb corner: basil, chives, rosemary, green onions, parsley

Here's to hoping we are able to continue enjoying the food and herbs our garden produces and that we can continue to have a beautiful garden in the years to come.

and I'm back

So I promised a lot of blogs to catch up on the past few months, so here it begins.

A few months back, April to be precise, Kevin and I redid our patio area. When we moved in there were two huge plants on either side of the walkway and not much else. They were overgrown dieing in sections and overall just not appealing. One day I decided that it was time to change the garden and remove them. Kevin and I headed over to Lowe's picked out some flowers and bought a shovel to dig up the old horrible plants.

The almost before picture. Forgot to take one before we started digging, but you get the idea

After not too much time we realized that we only needed to remove one bushy plant on each side and then it was suddenly better. We added cute little flowers and some pavers so you could easily get to the patio. In just a few short hours we gave new life to our entry way and personalized our new home even more.

After. New pavers, plants and overall much better.

A few months later. Everything has grown in and we moved our hummingbird feeder.

Here's to hoping that our garden continues to inspire us and bring us daily joy.