Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Christmas Season!

Tonight they light the tree in Rockefeller Center and the Christmas Season starts to gather some serious momentum.
















I loooooove this time of year. Love love love. The decorations, the anticipation, the baking, the music, the conspiratorial planning... It's a holiday that turned into an entire SEASON. What's not to love?

Plus, I got all of my Christmas shopping done. (That's right, done-sies.) This leaves me free to cook and decorate to my heart's content. I have very ambition plan that involves gingerbread and the New York Skyline.... Too much? Nah.

Merry Christmas!!!

Choice

Monday, November 29, 2010

Indoor Swing

I love indoor swings! And giant paper lanterns! And exposed rafters! And big wide open rooms! And dark wood floors! But mostly I love indoor swings.

Hair Fade

1. I love this outfit that she is wearing.

2. I've been growing my hair out, trying to get to a point where I don't have to color it anymore. Just for funsies... since I've been coloring my hair since I was 15 I thought it might be nice to see what my natural color is. I was about ready to throw in the towel this week though and just go get highlights, but I love her hair so much in this shot that I'm going to hang on. Just a few more months and I'll look like I have a cool faded look going on and not just really really bad roots.

Heaven

Snow!

I'd like to visit it sometime...

Meant to be
















Now that I've found my husband, it feels like it was inevitable all along that we'd end up together. If I could go back, I would tell myself not to worry so much because it really does work out.

It is my dream to have this said about me one day

Do Good

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Amen














While I appreciate the sentiment, the grammatical error is like a cheese grater on my eyes.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have a life that is truly blessed and for which I am very grateful. A wonderful husband, an exceptional family, loving in-laws, health, opportunity, education, comfort, peace of mind for the present, hope for the future and a sense of purpose in my daily life... to name a few.












I wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving full of crazy fun family and delicious food.

More reasons to be thankful

Awesome Man Outfit

Husband, how do you feel about a white button down with an espresso cardigan and a fabulous tweed blazer with surprising blue accents? Yes? Good.





















If you also wanted to grow your hair like this, that would be fine by me.

{thank you Sartorialist}

Capes and Crowns

This is the first Christmas of my life that I have had nieces and nephews. This is also the first year that I have had a sewing machine, a talented sister in law and a modicum of crafty ability.

Thus, said sister-in-law and I made capes and crowns for the nieces and nephews, thereby securing our places as favorites for all time.

For the crowns we cut out a stiff fabric facing, ironed it onto grey felt, hot glued little sparkly gems all over and then glued in some wide elastic across the back. Voila!




For the capes we took two left over rectangles of red fabric, cut them to cape shape, sewed up the seems, added some elastic around the neck and painted lighting bolts in gold fabric paint.



Aunt of the YEAR!

Boys Room

Remember this great vintage bedroom for three little boys? Here is a more modern version of a great room that makes clever usage of space along with gorgeous styling for three little boys.

















Am I jinxing myself by always talking about a peck of man-children? I wouldn't know what to do with myself. Girls I can handle, boys would turn my parenting-know-how (what little tiny bit there may be) right on its head. Of course that means I'll be having boys. Because life is about learning new things and experience new challenges.... right?

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

SNL Black Friday Skit

I haven't stopped laughing since I saw this on Sunday night...



See the full screen here.

A very interesting thought

"I fear that most contemporary people are answering questions not because they’re flattered by the attention; they’re answering questions because they feel as though they deserve to be asked. About everything. Their opinions are special, so they are entitled to a public forum. Their voice is supposed to be heard, lest their life become empty."
-Chuck Klosterman, Eating the Dinosaur

Red Books

Blue Hallway

This shot is making me re-think my original position on insanely bright wall paint. I'm kind of loving it. Although... I think what makes it work is that the color is balanced by all of the photos on the walls.























Blue wall. Photo gallery. I can see this in my future.

If there was space on the plane, I'd be on the next flight

Empire and Chrysler

Then and Now

This used to be me...






















Now, I'm more like this...

Monday, November 22, 2010

Verabel

Great gift idea alert!

Check out the beautiful, bright and sometimes clever lockets over at the Etsy shop Verabel.

Here are a few of my favorites...









A girl after my own heart...























The illustrious Rachel McAdams. I like her way better after readin that quote.... Not that I didn't like her before, but now, we're friends.

{via Lady Laurin}

Rugged Boots

At first this trend towards military and industrial styled ankle boots was not my thing... but I find myself warming to it greatly, and wishing it had been in style last winter when I was slipping through the slush puddles in the streets of New York.

Steve Madden Calah...






















Steve Madden Caddet...






















Steve Madden Clovurr...






















The first one is my favorite. What do you think of the trend? Would you wear it?

Thursday, November 18, 2010

The super fluffiest dinner rolls you will ever make

I found a recipe a few weeks ago claiming to be the "World's Best Dinner Rolls" and since I have been assigned rolls for next week's festivities, and because I wanted to do a trial run before I showed up at my in-laws house with rolls so dense they crack your teeth, I therefore determined to do a trial run on the rolls last night to eat with the chicken and dumpling soup that I was making.

They turned out really well. They are by far the lightest and fluffiest rolls that I have ever made. So, in the event that you, like me, have a tempestuous relationship with yeast, and despite that, have been assigned to bring the rolls this year, AND you consider it a matter of pride to make them yourself.... I give you the recipe for super light and fluffy dinner rolls.

Super Light and Fluffy Dinner Rolls

2 c. whole milk (if you're in a pinch, you can use 2%, but whole is best. Don't use 1% or skim)

½ c. + 1 Tbsp. sugar, divided
1/3 c. (5 1/3 Tbsp.) butter
2 tsp. salt (don't accidentally dump in three, like I did, and then have to make a 1 1/2 times recipe)
2 pkgs. active dry yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp.)
2/3 c. warm water (just get it as hot as it comes out of your tap)
8-9 c. all-purpose flour
3 beaten eggs

1. Stir milk, sugar, butter and salt in a medium sauce pan until the butter melts, stirring regularly, and watch it so it doesn't start to bubble. When the butter is melted remove from the stove and set the sauce pan in a bowl or a sink full of ice. You need to cool the milk mixture down to room temperature or it will kill the yeast. This is key.
 
2. While the salty sweet milk stuff is cooling, activate the yeast. We do this by stirring together 1 Tbsp of sugar, with the warm water and the yeast. Give it a good stir so that every thing is combined and then let it sit for a few minutes until the yeast has a chance to blossom or bubble or fizz or whatever it does that makes it look like its working. You can also tell that its working when you lean in a little and you can smell the strong yeastiness. This is a good sign.
 
3. Meanwhile, measure 3 cups of your flour into a rather large bowl. Do not underestimate the size of this bowl or when your dough is rising it will overflow the bowl. That is not preferrable. So, with the large bowl and the flour... Add the milk mixture, but check first to see that it is luke warm. Beat the mixture on low for 30 seconds, scraping the sides as you go. Now, if the yeast mixture is ready for action, pour it in and beat the whole thing for 3 minutes.
 
4. Now stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can to create a really soft dough. You want to get to the point where you call pull the dough away from the sides, but it will still stick to your finger if you touch it. Don't fret, it will firm up a bit during the rising process and adding too much flour will make it more dense.
 
5. Now... we rise. When the dough is all mixed, just cover your large bowl with a clean dish cloth and set it in a warm place to rise for one hour. If you're lucky, and you're not me, your dough will remain in its bowl and not make a jump for the counter.
 
6. When your time is up, punch down dough. Lightly flour your work surface and turn dough out onto surface. Divide in half.
7. Spray 2 9x13 glass pans with cooking spray. Roll first portion of dough into a rectangle and then cut it into 12 equal-sized pieces. This is most easily accomplished with a pizza cutter, if you have one. This dough should be very easy to work with, almost like playdough. Shape each piece into a ball and place in prepared pan. Repeat with remaining dough in the second pan. Cover both pans with a dish towel and let rise again for 30 mins. While you're at it, preheat the oven to 375.

8. Place both pans on a middle rack of the oven and bake for 15 - 18 minutes. Halfway through the baking time, switch the pans so that they cook evenly. When they are golden brown, pull them out and rub a stick of butter across the top of each hot roll.

9. Now pull one out and eat it. Throw the rest in a basket and no one will know that you sneaked one. Mmm.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Victorious

"Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while; you don't do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.

There is no room for second place. There is only one place in my game, and that's first place…It is and always has been an American zeal to be first in anything we do, and to win, and to win, and to win.

Every time a football player goes to play his trade he's got to play from the ground up-from the soles of his feet right up to his head. Every inch of him has to play. Some guys play with their heads. That's O.K. You've got to be smart to be number one in any business. But more importantly, you've got to play with your heart, with every fiber of your body. If you're lucky enough to find a guy with a lot of head and a lot of heart, he's never going to come off the field second…

It is a reality of life that men are competitive and the most competitive games draw the most competitive men. That's why they are there-to compete. To know the rules and objectives when they get in the game. The object is to win fairly, squarely, by the rules-but to win.

And in truth, I've never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn't appreciate the grind, the discipline. There is something in good men that really yearns for discipline and the harsh reality of head to head combat.

I don't say these things because I believe in the "brute" nature of man or that men must be brutalized to be combative. I believe in God, and I believe in human decency. But I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious."

-Vince Lombardi

Monday, November 15, 2010

Sutherland

It wasn't until I saw this picture that I put together the connection between Donald and Keifer Sutherland.























Don't you just love this shot though? The word that keeps coming to mind is dashing.

Say it the simple way

“Style is a simple way of saying complicated things.” ~Jean Cocteau
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
{image via The Sartorialist}

Miles























“I know what I’ve done for music, but don’t call me a legend. Just call me Miles Davis.”