the infinite carryover

I've never been one of those people who was quite good at keeping resolutions or had specific resolutions for that matter. I would have the standard: lose weight, eat better, go to church more, clean more, spend less etc. Less of a resolution and more of a just be a better version of myself. Isn't that the thing with New Years resolutions? An opportunity to redeem your worse self. Should be called redemption if you ask me. 

New Years Eve is often held in the highest standard as if it's the end all be all of epic nights. Fancy outfit, endless bubbly, midnight kiss. For some 10-15 years it had been a mish mash of these typical "NYE things" for me but never quite a complete and full on perfect evening, not until I guess I met my hubby and things started finally falling into place. But before I get off topic the whole point of this rambling was and is that I've been thinking about resolutions and the crazy fast approaching new year ahead and how I want to simply just do life better. 

How I hope to be the best version of myself, and ultimately a better wife, daughter, sister and importantly mother to my darling son. How I really need to dust underneath the couches one first time (half-joke). How I need to stop buying of the moment entertaining accessories if I'm not hosting and having fabulous dinner parties. How I need to start having fabulous dinner parties. How I need to accept that I really can't do it all and be "on" all the time. How that "baby's first year" book stopped growing at 7 months old and is looking more like a bag of photos and momentos that has been sitting far too long on the Ikea Expedit shelving unit that never quite came to life in the guest room that too was never realized.. sigh it's all so exhausting, can't I just blame it on the working mom schedule? Anyway messy life aside, that is my vision. To do better, be better, and maybe actually use that on trend copper hammered drink bucket currently living in my fireplace :)
 
What are you redeeming this year?
Happy New Year! Bring it 2015.

merry kiss kiss

So it's over. The holiday week has come to an end, my vacation has sadly come to an end.. it's Sunday morning. I have mixed feelings about Sundays. The morning is nice as it's meant to be lazy loungy breakfast by the tv-y and the not often enough visit to church... but a new year ahead.
Well Christmas here was delightful. I successfully hosted my first Christmas and first real dinner party. I got to use my gold flatware what felt like I was hoarding for so long in the cabinet. Tablescape came out so nice. If only it could stay that way. Most importantly, food was good. A few things I can take away and learn from but nothing burned, nothing was raw and tummies were filled.
After dinner and dessert, we got a visit from Santa Clause! Courtesy of my dreamboat with his not so Northern Pole accent. My little munchkin was a bit uneasy around him but the nephews ate it up. Santa brought A LOT of gifts! Seems like more and more each year. My little guy got all sorts of ....alternative furniture... as I like to call it, toys galore that will now take space in our living room. But they make him happy so that's that. I got a bunch of knick knacks, a lot of useful house things that we needed and then a few pretty items for fun. My hubster got me a crossbody I was eyeing and a super sweet sentimental ring.
I hope you all had a blessed and fulfilling holiday. Here are some snapshots from our Christmas.

Christmas morning with my munchkin

All gussied up and ready for the family to arrive

tablescape

ripped up skinnys and new red plaid loafers

My favorite gift from my favorite man

Boxing Day photo shoot with my little guy taking his favorite gift for a spin

Our silly family

Onto New Year's Eve!

T-3 days for Xmas and here's a role playing segue

Monday morning here. Day 1 of the most long awaited for week in my life... My company initiated free week off from work... yahoo! A whole week of anything and everything that I ever wanted to do, try and accomplish. High expectations, yes but isn't it better to aim high and naturally set yourself up for automatic failure then to just accept that you'll most likely be doing nothing at all? And by nothing at all, I would marathoning a show, possibly taking a peek at that book on my night stand and heck of a lot of pinning. So I guess it's win win either way :) But today I'm actually trying something I have never done but have always wanted to. Brace yourself people, I am currently sitting in the local Starbucks, latte in hand, cozy winter hat adorned, people watching on the sly, typing on my laptop as I write this. Yes, I am living the dream of SAHM/aspiring photographer (or insert any other work at home profession) working away at the interwebs like so many others before me and amongst me. Big dreams here. But seriously, there is a desire there. Not just to be worry free and have endless hours of free time but to do something on my time, my way and get there on my own even if by trial and error. A little backstory here. Do I have a profession that I have worked and succeeded at. Yes absolutely. Is there still opportunity and years left in my field for continued growth and financial potential. Yes again. But here's the big one.. the one you hear so many times at real life and after school special graduation speeches, is it something I am passionate about, wake up wanting to go to work, and believe is the reason I was put here to do... sadly-truly-flat-out no.

I wish it was easy enough to just quit and start anew. If this was 10 years ago, sure. I could quit and not do a thing if that was what I was aiming for. But we're responsible adults here and I am happy and proud to contribute to my family's financial well being and success. Could I take a step back and tighten up the homestead if that was what was required as a SAHM. Yes I would, but right now it's just not in the books for us. What I hope though is, FT job or not, although married with a toddler and planning for another bundle, that even with all that chaos, I can still dream big and try the things that I scoffed at in years past and never thought I had in me. I tell myself, if I could travel back 10 years, oh the things I'd tell my younger self, but we all know how that goes. I doubt I would take that advice and utilize it. This is life, you live and learn and when it makes sense, you'll do it and it will come from the heart. That doesn't mean I will find success and happiness in my attempted endeavors, but hey at least I tried. Years from now I can look back and I won't have reason to say, I wish I did this or that. 

So today, I am doing just that. I'm caffeinated, well rested and I have my DSLR in tow. I'm going to drop all of the typical things I would have done on a day off and I'm going to play photographer. I don't know what I'll find out there but it's worth taking a look.

Wishing myself luck here at another attempt at grabbing life by the bullhorns.
Have you had a similar awakening? Were you able to find a healthy balance?
Wishing us all luck, success and well being.
Happy Monday!

christmas day menu planning round 1

So it's been a week since my last post. Truth is I have been busy. Heck everyone's busy, ammiright. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Festivus for the restofus etc. There's tons to do and plan for for the many holidays of the month. I haven't even started on NYE. Way too overwhelming. One day at at time. I have the tree up and it's decorated! Despite my 1.5 year old pulling it down ONTO his little body.... yup! I can laugh about it now. (Not a scratch or brush of anything :) totally unphased and went to try again post broken ornament cleanup.)

Conclusively, I'm glad that it's not due to the fact that I have been uninspired. Quite contrary, I did some practice 12/25 meal prep with photos last week of some recipes and crafts that I had wanted to test initially planning to showcase, but then I realized this all being very knew to me as a novice "blogger" (have I earned that title?) who is just starting out, I just don't have all the wrinkles ironed out yet. We'll get there. In the meantime these are some of the things I tried out. More successes than not .. so yay me! In the order of best to least best. Recipes linked in title.

Pumpkin Hummos.. yum! Although this one could go either way. I grew up on this stuff - plain old homemade hummos that is - so the thought of making it untraditionally and gasp! adding pumpkin could result in an undesirable impression on the 'rents. Luckily the pumpkin flavor is subtle so long as you follow recipe and is almost something of a je ne sais quoi. You notice something different but can't quite put your finger on it. That will be my aha! moment where I reveal the secret ingredient. Then again I am/was planning to use food labels, so there goes that.. oy.


Taste: Yum although tweak lemon/salt/garlic to your liking.
Level: Super easy so long as you have a food processor. Blender would work too.

Parmesan-Herb Roasted Potatoes .. another yum. I never thought to put parm on roasted potatoes. I usually keep it simple with oil, S&P, and some garlic powder. If I'm feeling a little extra fancy I'll bust out the garlic and garlic press but ain't nobody got time for that at 6:30pm on a weeknight. But for Christmas, we're pulling out all the stops. So here we have simple cut potatoes, oil, S&P, garlic, fresh herbs and top it off with shredded parm! Yup so easy and so good.

Taste: Yum. Cook accordingly. (I was cooking something else at 400F prior to putting the potatoes in so they cooked faster a little uneven though.)

Level: Super easy. Be mindful of not burning parm. One thing to consider is lightly dusting parm and then go full force when potatoes are half-way cooked to avoid immediate burning of cheese.

Christmas Salad This one I have not tried yet but I'm really excited about. Finely chopped red cabbage and kale may just be the winning combo for the reluctant kale eaters. Add in pomegranate seeds and dried cranberries.. wowza so simple yet could be so good. I'll probably throw in some shredded feta or goat cheese and perhaps pine nuts. I'm excited for the crunch factor here. Nothing worse then soggy wilted over dressed lettuce leaves.



From my previous post, I tested out these two crafts:

 


Both were super easy and quick! Although, if time allows, I'm planning to spray paint the candy canes gold. I think it will it make for a more elegant look and will pair perfect with the debut of my long-waited gold flatware :)
I have one set of napkins in a heather gray like color that I think will look nice despite not being the color of a tree. Oh well. I have yet to decide what the topper will be but that should finish the look.

Lastly, I tested these out: Red Velvet Cheesecake Cookies
I was so excited for these. Cheesecake filled cookie? Oh yeah. But alas this did not please me as I hoped for. They were by no means a fail but I will not be making these for the big day. They actually came out as pictured although I did not follow thru and complete with the white chocolate icing. I figured this was a testing round and I was more concerned with the cookie then with the icing. I was expecting the cheesecake filling to be the biggest fail and but alas even that stayed put. My gripe is the box cake mix - across the board it seems. I've tried to like the ole mix from a box but it just fails. The quality homemade gooey cookie taste is not there. As I suppose it rightfully just can't be. I love the idea of using a mix for the base of a cookie but the flavor/texture falls flat. Snob I may be but it's just not my cup of tea. Were they awful? No. Tolerable? Absolutely. My son devoured them. But were they what I envisioned them to be? Sadly not close. Will they be tossed? No way. My unofficial taste-testers aka the office crowd will eat these up before lunch. But they are pretty, huh.

Off to round two.

more like the newbied'or

It's happening... I'm hosting my first adult holiday dinner party... my mom is actually letting me do this. And I'm equally honored and excited yet majorly scared! Ok ok, I should give myself some credit. In my 3 years of wedded homeownership, have I had people over for dinner? Surrre. Did majority of those times include takeout containers? ….maybe. Have I cooked and baked from scratch for a lucky few, yes it is true I have, but this is the mega of all holidays, Christmas! (Well meal wise, Thanksgiving is. I will not take that away from you November 27! but Christmas! Christmas is what dreams are made of. Is it silly and completely taken to the next level by society that tends to forget the real reason of the season? – unfortunately absolutely. But do I still love all the glitz and glamour that belongs to this time of month all whilst celebrating the birth of my Savior? Yes.. yes I do!) So, back to the reason for this post, have I done this epic of a dinner party for my parents and family? NOPE! I do not take this lightly. This is my opportunity. 

All those pins tucked away on a variety of to do someday Pinterest boards, recipes hoarded that I tell myself "I'll try later on” (foolish girl), all of the cute holiday/hosting décor that is collecting dust, this is my time people! Which is why I want to ensure I plan ahead and plan accordingly. I want to make an impression..well that I surely will if it’s a bad one :( but I want it to be a knock ‘em off their holiday socks / “wow my middle child is so creative”/ our Auntie rocks / cocktail-clickin’/ appetizer springin’, hammin' it up for the cammy kind of shindig.  

Expectations people. 

I’m hoping that if I write this all down and have a place centrally to reference come 12/24, I’ll be better prepared. The plan people is to start testing out recipes, DIY holiday crafting and anything else in between, starting.. today... errr tomorrow, until J-day is here (Judgement and Jesus … see what I did there). T-minus 16 days! 

Some current pinspiration:

Put those old fashioned round glass ornaments to good use and my son won't be able to reach these... score!:

Festive and affordable option for food labels and placecards:

Cute cheerful edible Xmas tree apps... yes please:

Now we're getting ambitious, hmm:

Stay tuned for my first attempt.

oh christmas tree

Last week I had blogged about the notion of holiday traditions and essentially that I would like to take this tradition thing seriously going forward. In the past I've tended to mostly commit to a consistent thing whether it be casual, a monthly occurrence or an annual event. I'm not sure why on occasions such things are a no question about/we are definitely doing this now and then why another equally as worthy practice is passed upon so nonchalantly. Who knows.. I don't. And I guess there's no point in pondering why. What it is worth pondering is figuring out which traditions I may do say this or next year that will continue to make sense to commit to down the line once the kid and God willing the other kid/s are bouncing and consuming all of my time and space. I suppose there is no way to guarantee it and perhaps should be a little bit trial and error and a lot of intentional effort.

It dawned on me just the other day that since celebrating my first Christmas with the hubby as man and wife, we have bought a fresh deliciously divine smelling real Christmas pine tree every year. Yes! 1 for me on the mental traditions board. I've always loved the idea of a real tree. Perhaps even more than the actual tree itself. Something about the timing, the mood and the overall feel of being with other fellow holiday celebrating patrons all bundled up navigating a sea of trees all sorts and sizes. And then heading into the nearby mom+pop store for some hot cocoa... isn't it such the early scene of a Hallmark holiday movie? :) guilty pleasure yes! (Hmm that could be potential for another future tradition .. though it might just be me myself and I ..hmm). So yeah, last week after our tummies regulated post turkey and like we did the year before, we visited our local tree farm Thanksgiving weekend to get an early start on all things Christmas decorating. Out with the old ... bye bye Woody you cute straw light up outdoor pumpkin you, in with the new... hellllllo Francis our just today fully lighted and ornamented balsam fir. We welcome you. Except you'll notice little man is straight up all over you unlike last year.. sorry for the endless tugging and yanking. Despite my unintentional ombre of ornaments from heavy glass/breakable on top to plastic and kid-friendly at the bottom 2 layers, all lit up, you look like a falcon of hope in this otherwise messy but cozy house :) Looks like we got our first Christmas tradition realized!

Will you be putting up a tree this year? Do you go real or fake?

Hostess Gifting

With the holiday season fast approaching and all those on your list it's inevitable to forget some of the not so obvious giftees. We all have them, our go to service people, one of many of your child's teachers, the stocking stuffers and in particular hostess gifts. With the many holiday parties approaching all the way thru the end of the year, I find it best to strategize early on and buy accordingly - if only I'll take that advice as well :P.

Here are my picks for the hostess with the mostess.

1 Foolproof Recipes  2 Glitter Salad Set 3 Salt Gift Trio 4 Kitchen Gift Set
5 Glass X Candleholders 6 Lion Place Card Holders 7 Hammered Gold Serving Tray 8 Faceted Terrariums
9 Cocktail Recipe Plates 10 Geo Bottle Stoppers 11 Record Coasters 12 Wine Pearls