High Five For Friday!

Hope you guys had an awesome Thanksgiving, filled with family, friends & of course yummy food! Since I skipped the last few H54F, this week's is a compilation of a few weeks worth of highlights =]

1. I might have mentioned this before, but I few weeks back I had a midnight-airport-coffee date with one of my besties from when we were little. She had a layover in Seattle on her way back home to AK and I went to meet her and catch up! It was awesome!

2. While we were in Spokane visiting our friends Jeremy in Amaleah, I had my first Moscow Mule! Finally! I've been wanting to try it for a while now.

3. This years Thanksgiving was spent at my parents house. It was great! We all cooked something and it was really nice just to be home with my family. The sweet treat this year could not have been anything other than a Pie from A La Mode. If you are ever in Seattle, do yourself a favor and have some pie there. We had Mexican Chocolate Mousse, It has Cayenne pepper on top =], same as at our wedding.

4. And speaking of our wedding, it was featured in The Knot! I am beyond excited about this!!!

5. Every time we drive up I5, Brian always says " Our favorite house is coming up!", so today I thought I'd share it with you. It's pretty cool really.

Happy Friday Friends!!!

This week I'm linking up with:

Lauren @ The Lauren Elizabeth
Jennie @ The Diary of a Real House Wife

Happy Thanksgiving!

Darlings! I hope the holidays are kind to you and that you spend them with the ones you love! I am thankful for so many things, but most of all for having such great people around me. People who I know I can trust and who trust me right back. Have an amazing day and a fabulous holiday season!

                                                        
                                          

Curried Butternut Squash Soup | with Coconut Milk

This year I am starting off the holidays on a healthier note. Holiday food is undoubtedly delicious, comforting, filling...but in many cases it is also fattening and makes you sleepy. This tasty soup is all of the former and non of the latter. I've made it a few times in Peru and it turned out great every single time. It also freezes nicely for up to a month or so. If you are not a big curry fan, I have also made it without curry and it was very good as well.

Curried Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk
adapted from sweet sugar bean
about 8 servings

1 large butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1-2 heaping tbsp Indian curry paste or powder [optional]
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium carrots, cubed
2 tbsp coconut oil
4-5 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 can [398 ml]coconut milk
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
salt, pepper

• in a large soup pot saute onions in coconut oil for a few minutes

• add butternut squash, carrots, garlic and saute for a few more minutes

• add curry paste, stir and cook for 2 more minutes

• pour stock in pot to just cover the veggies

• cover with lid, bring to a boil and cook until the squash is tender

• remove from head and using an immersion blender puree in to smooth soup [you can also use a blender, but let cool down first]

• return to heat and add coconut milk, honey and lime juice + salt and pepper to taste

• if your soup is too thick, just add more stock
  

Happy Tasty Thursday on Wednesday...!!!

Our Wedding on The Knot | Happy Dance

So this happened yesterday...
Our sweet, dear, amazing wedding photographer (I really can't say enough about how great she is) Arlene submitted our wedding to The Knot a few months back. I remember her saying we'll hear soon if it's a go and then I kind of forgot about it until... yesterday! I was stalking people on FB as usual when she tagged me in the best post of my life!!! HAHAHA I know it sounds a little dramatic, but I felt like I won an award HAHA! I put so much time and effort into all the details and into picking out just the right vendors that this really means so much more to me than anyone would know!

You can find the feature here. The is a small vendors list at the top of it, if you are interested in any of our other vendors just shoot me an email. Also here is my one advise on wedding planning, pick the right people and let them take care of it all. Weddings can be done on a budget and you don't have to go breaking the back just to get married. I promise there are still honest and reasonable vendors out there =]!

Oh and if you want even more wedding pictures, check out Arlene's page here.

Have a Happy Tuesday Darlings!

Christmas Cards | Love and Freebies

Darlings it has been so good to be home! I have been spending lots of time with family & friends...and have not been posting very much. However I will not apologize, because I am not sorry at all! Here I am though, ready to tell you about my Christmas cards and this little freebie.

It might look a bit similar and it should, it is a variation of this card I shared with you. I had been seeing these "Married & Bright" wedding themed Christmas cards and I completely loved them. So again I made, printed, and cut my own.

Download this wedding themed card HERE.

If you are looking to print your own cards this holiday season, I recommend Office Depot, the paper is 110lb SILK. I ended up cutting them myself with a rotary cutter. If you are looking to get them printed online, I've heard Tiny Prints does a pretty good job.

Here I am very excited to mail these little pretties! I love sending and receiving mail, it's the best!

Happy Monday Friends!

Almond Butter Cups | Raw

 

It seams I crave sweet treats so much more often during fall and winter. Ugh, right?! As if all the extra fattening holiday food isn't enough =]. SO I decided to make a healthier version of my favorite treat, the peanut butter cup! These raw almond butter and chocolate cups are better tasting and so so so much better for you, plus you know everything that's in them.

Raw Almond Butter Cups

adapted from Oh She Glows

makes about 8 regular cupcake size cups

@ 194cals each

for the base:

3/4 cups raw almonds

1/4 cup rolled oats

2 TBSP nut butter of choice [I used PB]

1.5 TBSP coconut oil

1 TBSP honey

1/4 TSP cinnamon

1/4 TSP pure vanilla extract

a pinch of salt

for the topping:2 TBSP cocoa powder

3 TBSP coconut oil

1 TBSP honey

a pinch of salt

• Add almonds and oats to a food processor and blend until a fine flour forms. Transfer to a big bowl.

• Add nut butter, coconut oil, honey, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Stir until well combined and dough forms.

• Line muffin tins with paper liners, or use silicone pans. Divide the mixture evenly between the 8 cups and smooth out the tops.

• To make the chocolate topping: in a small pot over low heat combine cocoa powder, coconut oil, honey, and salt. Mix until liquid. Do not let it boil. Distribute evenly over cups.

• Place cups in freezer for about 40 minutes until firm. Pop out of the liner or cups and eat up! These are best right out of the freezer.

Happy Tasty Thursday Everyone!

DIY // baby blanket

You guys, I've gone and done it again, I've made another baby blanket! I had some left over baby alpaca yarn and decided to spend my last days in Peru packing and crocheting! I love to crochet so for every bag packed, I would reward myself by crocheting a ball of yarn [whatever was left over of it really]. I had one gray, one blue, a little bit of "camo" and some white. I wasn't sure If I'd have enough for a baby blanket but I did! This one is for a little guy named Dominic, who will be born this winter. I can't wait to meet him! 

This blanky is identical in size to the pink&white one I made a little while back. It is about 22" X 22". It's more of a comforting/snuggling blanket, because it will be out grown in a few months. If you want to make it bigger just keep on crocheting until you reach the desired size =]!

for the blanket you'll need:

2.5 to 3 balls of yarn in colors of your choice + a tiny bit of white [or contrasting color] for the outside border

this awesome and easy video on how to crochet a granny square

am 8.00mm crochet hook

how to:

I started with the gray and crocheted until I was out of yard, about 11 rows. Next I started with the blue and crocheted again until I was out of yarn, this time 6 rows. The third color I used was this camo-y green and brown. I crocheted 2 rows with it. I finished it off with 1 row of single stitch in white.

for the felt owl you'll need:
wool felt in 4 different colors. I used royal blue, lavender, teal, and white.

gray or black thread for the eyes

some pillow stuffing

2 white buttons

teal thread

scissors

needle

pencil

hot to:

• I folded over a 6" X 3" piece of blue felt and cut out the main shape of the owl. I didn't draw it on first, because this was a pretty abstract owl. If you want to have a more realistic looking one, sketch some stuff out!

• Next I cut two wings out of the lavender felt, two small circles for the eyes out of white, and a tiny teal triangle for the beak.

• I placed the circles where I wanted the eyes to be and sewed a button over each one, using the gray thread. This way they look like eyes. When done with the eyes, I added the beak.

• I sewed the wings in place, however I only sewed the inside seam so don't end up with two outside seams when I connect the front and back of the body. For this I used the teal thread.

• All I did next is sew the front and back side of the body together, when I was almost done I stuffed the owl with the pillow stuffing and closed the gap.

• Lastly I attached the owl to one corner of the blanket using again needle and thread. When you do this, try and hide the stitches in the layers of the fabric.

And that's really all there is to it. I don't know if you can tell, but I tried to embroider a small "D" for Dominic on owly's  right facing wing. My embroidering skills need improving for sure =].

Have a Happy Crafty Wednesday Dolls!

A Life Update

Hi Darlings! It's been a crazy couple of weeks for me. Last Friday Brian and I FINALLY moved back from Peru, this couldn't happen fast enough! We made some great friends and were sad to leave them behind, even though just for a little while since we are all reuniting in Vegas =]. But I'm not going to lie, it feels so good to be back to cleaner air, wide streets, sane drivers, and my mom's food. Needless to say, I've missed being home! In other news, I've changed my hair again. This time it's side bangs, layers, and it's even blonder. I love it. I am going to miss the fabulous hair salon Tanya and I used to go to, the prices too. Full foil, cut, and style $80! I know, right?!

This is it, the last two years packed into five suitcases and a carry-on. We ended up giving away many of our belongings to friends and still had a hard time fitting everything in! We were lucky and were able to find a fully furnished, super cute too, apartment just a block in from the Pacific Ocean. That might be the thing I'll miss most about Peru. JK but really, it was nice =].

Our plane arrived at about 4pm on November 1st, it was last Friday. My parents picked us up from the airport and took us to their house. There was food, there was wine, there was hugging. Oh, and the puppies didn't miss a chance to lick our faces. On Saturday we were on an early ferry from Seattle to Bremerton to visit Brian's mommy and to pick up his truck. After lunch we were on a ferry back to Seattle. I had a peppermint tea to pick me up. There was some crazy and cold wind that day. That night we met up with our awesome friends, who planned a welcome home party for us. If you are reading this: "Thank you Michelle, Robert, Ashley, Joel, Lindsay, Eric, Geoff, Geoff's cousin, Callie, Akida, Tyler, and Brian L. for coming to celebrate with us! It means very much to us =]!"

Stay tuned for an eventual craft tutorial or maybe even a recipe. Something's a brewin'!

Have a Happy Tuesday Dolls!!!