Monday, February 28, 2011

Lemon & Blueberry Muffins

This past weekends my in-laws were in town to visit. No visit is complete until we shop at the Michigan Avenue Crate & Barrel. While there, I pointed out to hubster this cookbook that I've been longing for. Little did I know that my mother-in-law took note. She surprised me with the book later that night over dinner! She bought me "Easy Breakfast & Brunch". Breakfast/Brunch is a family tradition (on my side). There is nothing better than waking up on a Sunday morning to dad cooking breakfast. I personally love his peppercorn bacon, cinnamon french toast and potatoes-o-brien. Perfection.

{ photo from CrateandBarrel.com } 

I made my first recipe from the book last night. I baked lemon blueberry muffins and they were delicious! I used fresh lemon juice and a little bit of the lemon zest to flavor the homemade batter, as well as fresh blueberries. 




Next on the recipe lineup: cornmeal and bacon breakfast stacks

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

New 'do

Thank you so much to blogger Kate at "I Take Photos in the Bathroom" . Not only do I pick up a lot of fashion ideas from her, but she pointed me in the right direction when it comes to my ideal hair 'do.

Kate posted a link from Amy and Lyndsay's you tube page about how to do the perfect 'curl down'.


For years, I've been figuring out how to get curly, yet wavy LC hair. Example: 


 What I love best about this hair style is that I don't have to worry about doing the perfect blow dry. I curl about 10 small sections of my hair, put in a little hair spray and I'm set. It takes me about 5-10 minutes to do the curls. So simple!

Side note: Kate is also the blogger behind Elefantitas Alegres. She posts really great recipes on her blog. Be sure to check out her page. = )

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Home Projects

This weekend, hubster and I decided to make a little list of some home projects we want to do before summer. In no particular order...
  • Paint the bedroom (it's an ugly beige right now) 
  • Buy a new bedroom set (check out the set we found and love!) We found the set at World Market and have a discount coupon to use. We're just waiting to sell our current set to make some extra $$ before we invest in the new one. 
    • Storage bed frame  This frame has 4 large drawers underneath. It will allow us city dwellers to store winter clothes, blankets, etc. It's a must if you live in the city! 
    • Headboard  A headboard rounds out the bedroom and gives it an adult look. 
    • Tall Dresser This will give us more floor space... again, a must in the city! 
    • Another dresser  
    • Nightstand I have to have a place for my lamp and alarm clock.
  • Paint the trim in the bathroom a bright white
  • Buy one more wine rack
    • Crate and Barrel 5 bottle rack  We have 2 of these already hung vertically, but decided we need 1 more. We drink a lot of wine and to be honest, one more will make it look complete.
One thing we've been dying to do since we bought our place back in November 2009, is to hang some artwork. Let me just say, blending design styles with your significant other is challenging. I tend to lean more towards feminine and chic designs and he is clearly the opposite. This is why it has taken us so long to find art we both agreed to. 

We bought a vintage poster featuring the Chicago mass transit lines from a store called Art Effect on Armitage. The best part about the artwork/poster? It was only $6.00! Click here to see the poster.  The poster is an odd size (19.5 x 27 inches). We had to drive all the way out to Ikea in Schaumburg to buy a frame. It was worth it though. It looks great on our wall!

Hubster got started taping our bedroom while I was at a bridal shower today. We'll probably finish in the next two nights after work so we can start painting. The condo is starting to feel like home.  <3 

Friday, February 18, 2011

What I've Been Up To....

It's plain and simple. I love my job. For the past three months, I've been working with a student to plan a concert. It was nice to see our months of hard work pay off. We brought a band called Matt & Kim to campus and though I never heard of them until we went under contract, I am now a huge fan. Here are some highlights of the event: 






{ setting up the lights and sound... quite the production } 


{ Matt & Kim... awesome folks } 


A photographer came to the concert and took a ton of awesome photographs. He even submitted some to Time Out Chicago and Metromix. I'm keeping my eye on the websites and if I see anything, I'll be sure to post it. 

Seriously though... I have the best job ever. 

Thursday, February 17, 2011

"Fabulous Favorites"

Welcome to the debut of Fabulous Favorites. It is my way of showcasing some of my most loved items... Oprah style. Oh yes, I said it... OPRAH STYLE! 

Every time I reach a follower milestone, I will have a giveaway. So here it goes.... 

When I reach 15 followers (nearly double what I have now), I will give away a simple, yet absolute fabulous favorite item to one one lucky follower. 

Here are some things that I'm head over heels with at the moment: 

{ tervis tumbler... GREAT for hot and cold drinks, photo from tervis.com } 

{ Benefit Cosmetics - Creaseless Creme Eye Shadow, photo from benefitcosmetics.com }


{ Starbucks Via Ready Brew Iced Coffee... a great change from a hot beverage & easy to make, photo from starbucks.com } 

{ What's not to love about office supplies? } 




{ nothing says spring like ballet flats and dark skinny jeans }


Who will be the lucky follower? Will it be you? 



Thursday, February 3, 2011

I'm Intense (insert sarcasm)

Check out this weirdo who decided it was a good idea to run the day after the Chicago blizzard:



Really? C'mon! 22 inches of snow was just dumped on the city and you thought it was a brilliant idea to go for a light jog.

I'm not afraid to say it... YOU ARE RIDICULOUS!!!

Blizzard 2K11

Here are some pictures from around my neighborhood after Blizzard 2k11...












Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Hollar

I like to say that I've been a part of exciting things in history. Word on the street is that this blizzard is going to be one for the books and the city of Chicago is getting it the worst.

Guess what I have tomorrow?


I went grocery shopping on Sunday, but I picked up a few more essential items to get me through the next day of cabin fever....Baileys, dark chocolate chip cookies, chips and salsa. Though I brought some work home with me, I have absolutely no intention on getting out of my pajamas tomorrow. What's the point? 

I'll update tomorrow with pictures of the city blanketed in snow from (drum roll please)....

Snowpocolypse
SnOMG
Snowmagedden 
Snowtorious BIG