A Few Fabulous Things...

Lately, I have noticed a trend on blogs that I think I might join in on the party with. The posts are typically titled "5 Things" and included a current listing of things that the author is loving or involved with that week that are displayed in the post each Friday. So here is a go at my "few fabulous things"...

One

I am not ashamed of being a self proclaimed craft addict and this new line by American Crafts is feeding my habit like mad! I am in love with the colors, designs and overall feel the collection gives and have accumulated a delightful variety of most all of the papers and accessories that were put out. Here is a little sampling of the beautiful pieces and you can see the entire collection here.

(all images from http://elizabethkartchner.com/) 

Two

BLOGS!

Why I couldn't leave out my source of inspiration for this post could I?

I have always been a lover of blogs and they were the reason that I decided to start mine so long ago but lately I have ventured out of my normal crafty stops and discovered a few that seem to be more about food, pretty clothes, modern living and the things that make life enjoyable. I am a loyal follower of the few listed below and am sure that you will become fans too.

Cupcakes and Cashmere

here

Goat Cheese & Gucci

(a dear friend of our authors this blog!)

here

Curly Girl Design
here


Three

(picture compliments of Amazon.com)

Burgers Baby!

We are infatuated with burgers at my house and when we go to Vegas we are always indulging ourselves at the namesake restaurant for this book, The Burger Bar, so I thought it would be fun to pick up this little beauty and we could have a taste of Mr. Keller's master creations at home too! There are lots of burger recipes, along with toppings and drinks to go along. A must for any fan!

The Sewing Adventure

Some sweet friends of our are welcoming their first baby this spring and I wanted to make them something special for their baby shower gift, enter the bunny and the blanket above!

For Christmas Alex gave me another of my ever coveted Martha Stewart books, The Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts, and I decided that these projects would be perfect gifts. I don't have a sewing machine of my own yet but my mother in law was kind enough to let me borrow hers for the afternoon. I will admit that it was overwhelming at first but I was so pleased with the outcome.

The book has lots of different blanket styles and other fun baby related gifts but I think that these little darlings will be classics for a long time to come.

 

Welcoming 2012... Vegas Style!

(Disclaimer- I have had these pictures uploaded in a drafted post for WEEKS now and can't believe that it has taken me this long to finally post but here we are!)

VEGAS BABY!

My darling and I just returned from another trip to the happiest place on earth, no, not Disneyland, but Las Vegas. The last time we were there was in December of 2009 and returning proved to be much more exciting the originally anticipated. I had spent weeks researching restaurants and new spots that we hadn't been to before strategically planning our time there. This was Alex and I's first trip there just the two of us so it was kind of exciting knowing we could go and do whatever we wanted and not worry about interrupting someone else plans! So needless to say that Friday morning arrived and we were out the door, cruising down Las Vegas Boulevard by 10:30. The rest is history...

First shot of the trip!

Literally, I Love Burgers!

Our feast

I Love Bacon Burger

Fried pickles? Yes, Please!

Fabulous new find, Todd English Pub



Hands down the best Irish Pub in Vegas




Great new find in Caesars





Hello lover...





Leaving Vegas was hard but this sweet little girl made it all worth it!



The next trip will by no means be as long between as before, See you again in May Vegas!

Pie Pie, Oh My!

Well, I did it, I made my very first pie this past weekend and it turned out beautifully!

I had originally bought a few cans of pumpkin puree to make the pumpkin snickerdoodles with and noticed that there was a recipe for a pumpkin pie on the back so I think that may have been what triggered my interest even more (besides the gorgeous pie dish that I had been spying for a while now). I had prepared myself to be kind of scared as I went through the process but amazingly enough it was so simple! The ingredients were not out of this world and the whole prep time really only took about 10 minutes. I picked up some pie crusts at the store that are all rolled out and ready to be put in and formed to the dish so that was blissfully simple too. The packages come with two to a box so I was able to use one for my crust and the other one to cut out the shapes with my fun pie crust cutters I also got at Williams Sonoma.

(of course I had to add in a pumpkin butter jar with my purchases, I couldn't help myself!)

I have plans to make about 6 more pies for Thanksgiving festivities and then maybe a few more for Christmas. I have to admit that I am so proud of myself, I truly thought pies were only for the "real" bakers of the world and I am living proof that they are not!



My little helper of course...



Here's to the pumpkin pie lovers out there! 

November Gratitude

Well, welcome Fall!!!

I have neglected my lovely little bog for another 5 months and thought it time to really pick it back up since the holidays are quickly approaching and I plan to be a very busy bee.

I have found my passion and love for baking again and I am positively giddy with excitement! I had baked a few yummy treats in October that included a pumpkin pecan bread, my delish pumpkin butter cake and finally a successful batch of pumpkin snickerdoodle cookies!



Found the recipe here...

 

They didn't even burn!



My little helper



My baking inspiration supply store, Williams Sonoma



I have also made a gratitude journal that I will be keeping through out the month. I'm looking forward to having that to use to record all that I am thankful for during this beautiful time of year...

Here's to another successful baking season!

Oh good grief...

It has been MONTHS since I've blogged, how sad!

I just had breakfast with my dear friend Maria over the weekend and she said how she missed blogging and it got me to thinking that I am sad to have completely abandoned mine.

So Maria... thank you for planting the seed again!

Life has been good to me and my loves the past 6 months or so. We are still living in our little house with our sweet and wonderful little dog who is the best thing to have ever happened to us. I have seriously become one of those crazy dog ladies, ha ha! Lets just say, when we stop for Starbucks, Whoopie gets an ice water too...(see? told you!) She is totally worth it though!

I feel as if lately my creative juices have ceased to flow. I don't journal any more, I only make cards when I have to, the baking stopped a while back... I feel as if I don't really have anything to say any more. Hard for my husband to believe, I'm sure, but it's how I feel. I recently purchased a Smash Book and a gazillion little accessories to go with it and I literally had to force myself to put anything in it. And what I did put in was just glued down scraps, not even any words! I then was so discouraged by that I thought that maybe I'd try just writing in a new beautiful journal. Got in one page, ONE page before I set it down a week ago. I'm not sure whats going on with me. I am almost in a gloomy phase that is carrying over into other areas of my life. I have an idea of what I think it is and I'm in the process of tests and doctors visits to try to pin point the cause but I think my thoughts are just consumed with this, uh, possibility (for lack of better words) that I have nothing left to give these other parts of my life which used to be so alive. 

Well, here is to hoping that things get a little brighter in the coming summer months of sun dresses, flip flops and warm beautiful Peony weather...

Much Love,

Nikki

  

Love is in the Air

Wow! It's already the end of January and I've only blogged once this month?? I'm sorry! I will promise to get back into the swing of my blog and post new happenings.

Until then, here is a picture of my and my groom on our wedding day to help you feel the love that is coming it's was as we get closer to Valentines Day!!

xoxoxoxo!!!