Exposed Brick Walls

I know I should complete a real post.
One about NYE fashion and what fun adventures I'll be having.

Unfortunately. I'll be working. Serving up Shrimp and Lobster.
Fun.Fun.
I'm hoping to rake in the cash though and start 2012 off on a better, less broke, note.


So seeing as how I just finished work tonight and have to get some chores done before bedtime and work tomorrow, I thought I would post briefly about one of my favorite obsessions =

Exposed Brick Walls

I would sacrifice a lot in an apartment (or future home) if I could just have an exposed brick wall. 

In the kitchen

In the living room

In the bedroom

Heck, even in the bathroom!

A.N.Y.W.H.E.R.E.

So join me in my obsession and fantasize about having these rooms in your life...

A Very Merry Christmas

Simply want to wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas.

I am so blessed by those around me and am grateful for the wonderful people in my life.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Pinterest and Cooking

I have a Christmas Party tonight.
A work Christmas Party.
Which means more drinking than eating.
But I'm stubborn and will use any excuse to cook
So today (courtesy of pinterest) I'm cooking:

Chili

Balsamic Green Beans and Mushrooms

Spinach & Artichoke Dip

Buffalo Chicken Dip

YUM.

I've already posted the recipe for the CHILI

and I have a pre-prepped blend for the Spinach and Artichoke Dip

                       (Get the goods in Galena, Illinios. They don't have a website currently)

BALSAMIC GREEN BEANS AND MUSHROOMS

BUFFALO CHICKEN DIP

Happy Cooking!

Visitor Alert

My Mother.

My Best Friend.

I couldn't have asked for a better mother. Seriously. She is the most incredible woman I know. If someday I find myself with children, I can only hope that I will sacrifice as much as she did for me. I know it wasn't always easy, but she did a phenomenal job.

Everything I am today, I owe to her.

She taught me to love. to show patience. to understand people. to know yourself. to show forgiveness. to give grace, even when it's undeserved. 

And how to get a little crazy from time to time.

She's not just a great mother,

she's an astounding human being.

I'm just so lucky to call her mom.

And my best friend.

AND SHE'S COMING TO VISIT TOMORROW.

I'm a very happy girl.

And my apartment is the cleanest it's been in quite a while :)

3 Generations.
Love these two women.

Our 2ND time skydiving.
This time was for my 21st birthday.

 Our semi-matching tattoos.

Her's says "Mother" in Hebrew

Mine says "Daughter" in Hebrew

Best College Grad Present EVER.

All my love

and then some. 

Winter Goodies

Shame on me.

I forgot how much I adore cooking and baking.
Seriously. I adore it.

Whenever finals would stress me out, you could, without fail, find me in the kitchen.
Then came June 2011, where I believed I had no working stove.
For. Six. Months.

Since having my stove "fixed", I have been eager to get back in the kitchen.
After work last night, I rushed to the grocery store and gathered ingredients for:

Chili
Stuffed Mushrooms
Gluten-Free Cornbread
Gluten-Free Banana Bread  (Mom's allergic to gluten [and is coming into town on THURS!])
Cranberry Orange Oatmeal Cookies
Chewy Molasses Cookies

Then I hurried home and started cooking like a mad woman (with the genius, Florence, playing in the background!)


Chili first!


Recipe HERE!

I am incapable of following any recipe exactly. It's the inner foodie in me :)
I cut the recipe in half to start with.
Then I used half regular Italian Sausage, half Hot Italian Sausage
Also used half spicy chili beans, half black beans
and 1/4 of the called for onion.

I have to say,
I'm pretty impressed with the outcome.
I let it simmer for over three hours and it turned out like a dream.
Even the boy thought it was fantastic.
I'll definitely be keeping this recipe around, with the added changes, of course!

Cranberry Orange Oatmeal Cookies

The recipe is HERE!

These tasted AMAZING in the pre-cooked stage.
I used 1 tsp Vanilla and 1/2 tsp Almond
And a handful of cherry soaked dried cranberries to spice it up.

Unfortunately, I'm still learning the temperature change of my stove and I burned the first batch.
The second batch survived, but the oven was cooking the top before the middle even started to cook.
Baking might be a problem in this oven. I'm sure I'll work out the kinks in no time though!

If you're a fan of Chili, please please please try this recipe!

I promise you'll love it.

And please feel free to share any Chili recipes of your own!

I would love to give them a shot and let you know what I think!

Ready for some Laughter?

Since I moved into my new apartment in June,
I haven't had a working stove.
I mean, I HAVE a stove, it just didn't work.

I put in one maintenance request
no one came.
And I'm ashamed to say that due to the busyness of my life,
and the fact that I live alone,
I didn't worry about it.

Soooo
I've been without a stove for 6 months now.
And damn it, I want to bake Christmas goodies.
This morning, while nannying,
I decided enough was enough
and put in another maintenance request.

I arrive home to see a little yellow note from my maintenance man
"Breaker for stove was flipped off"

Awesome.
Humiliating, actually.

I pretty much live by the motto:
"I can do anything boys can do"
Ummm, except turn my stove on, I guess.
I have lived without a stove for SIX months because my breaker was in the wrong position.
Alright, pride, you just got checked.


I can only imagine what that maintenance man thinks of me.

At least I have shelves and shelves lined with excellent choices in books and DVDs.
I do have some redeeming qualities, even on my not-so-hot days :)

Total absence of humor renders life impossible.

Me Time

Precious, precious Me Time.

How I take thee for granted all too often.

My life is...busy.
I have four jobs and a relationship.
I still struggle to make ends meet and I'm pretty sure I'm currently behind on at least 3 bills.

So Me Time gets pushed aside. A LOT.


So night's like these, where I come home from one job, light my holiday scented candles,
turn on a steady flow of artists like: Florence + the machine, Elle Goulding, Mumford&Sons, Jessica Lee Mayfield, Adele, The Avett Brothers, etc.
are beautiful gifts of serenity.

As I said, my life is busy
and I struggle to pay all my bills.
Did I mention, I struggle to pay my bills?

That being the case,
I often feel stressed out.
Much more than I would like.
I mean, let's be honest,
by nature, I'm wound up pretty tight.
I can be a perfectionist, a control freak, an overachiever (the list goes on)
but I try to keep myself from stressing.
Stress is like a poison that seeps through your veins and into your attitude.
It affects the ones we care about most,
as we often take it out on our loved ones.

I'm a big believer/fan of loving on people,
so the last thing I want to to is to burden another person
by saying something harsh or uncalled for.

Moral of the Story?

When life leaves me stressing,

it's normally because I've been neglecting Me Time.

I wish I was one of those "always peaceful/centered" people

BUT I'm one of those "continuously remind myself to chill out" people.

And all in all,

I like who I am.

And I adore the people around me.

BUT

I can't always be around them.

I need my space, my thoughts, my journal, and my candles

to remind me of my center

my balance

my life.

Me Time is crucial to my survival.

And whenever I start to become annoyed by those around me,

I am aware that it is not the others that have the problem,

but myself,

and (most likely) my lack of Me Time.

So here's a cheer to Me Time.

EXACTLY what I needed this week.

Without knowing what I am and Why I am here,

Life is impossible

-Leo Tolstoy

P.S. Missing California and the Ocean today...