Oh, hi there.

We bought our first house!!

A Living Room to Build a Dream On

sources: sofa and chair, lamps, coffee table, white zigzag side table, pillows, rug, window panels, art, bowl

Lately I've had the urge to nest, so just for fun I've been doing a design concept board for a possible version of my future living room.  I'm finally figuring out how to communicate to Mr Husband Elect what my vision of a space might be - get the whole thing visually pulled together before pointing out individual elements.  It's the most frustrating thing in the world to try and get him to agree to items for our home one by one because he can't envision them in a complete package.  See my solution above.  What do you think?  In the end, I couldn't decide on a table lamp, so I just chose my top five and threw them all in there.  What's your favorite?

List of Things Women Should NEVER Apologize For

As I'm fast approaching thirty, I've been doing some reflecting on the person I've grown into, and the things I want to take with me into the next thirty years. One thing I wish I would have taken to heart as a younger woman is, unless you have really hurt someone, you don't have to apologize for anything you do.  Not everyone is going to be happy with the decisions you make, and not everyone is going to agree with you.  So who cares?  I'm still working on the not caring part, but I do find that as I get older, I require the approval of others less and less - and I like that.  In the spirit of wisdom gained and wisdom shared, here is my list of things a girl should never apologize for:

1. Winning - This includes sports, promotions, and bets, to name a few.  Ladies, if you earned it, you shouldn't be apologetic for your victory.  Take it gracefully and own it.  Do you think a new CEO's first objective is to apologize to everyone else who didn't get the job?

2. Turning Someone Down for a Date - Just because he/she asked, doesn't mean you are expected to say yes.  When you turn a person down, he/she doesn't want your sympathy.  Just say no (kindly) and move on.  You don't owe an explanation on why that person isn't worthy of your company and you certainly don't have to apologize.

3. Having a Difference of Opinion - Not agreeing with a friend or colleague is nothing to be sorry about.  Offer your view (gently, if needed) and let it stand.  Stammering and back-tracking only chips away at how someone perceives the validity of your statement.  If you believe in what you said, stand your ground.

4. Things You Like - Short of having a preference for something truly terrible like child pornography,  there's no reason to say you're sorry about liking something off-beat, strange, or even "too pedestrian."  Example: I am a fan of Mariah Carey and I don't care what people think of me for loving the shit out of her voice.  That woman has a powerhouse set of pipes and you all know it, whether you like her or not.

Daydreaming About Vacations

Every once in a while I like to pop over to the Kate Spade website and browse around.  I can't actually afford anything, but a little Friday afternoon swoon never hurt a girl.

Doesn't this screen shot make you want to set sail on a fabulous sunny vacation?

What I'm Wearing - Making the Most of It

Those of you who read my other blog know I've been running to work a few days a week, gearing up for May when I release the parking spot I have been leasing in my office's garage.

The plan is to run each way, which gives me a great workout when I'd normally just be sitting on my ass in my car dealing with road rage.  It won't be a piece of cake, but I think it's the best (and cheapest!) solution out there.  I'm trying to lose that last 15 lbs, and I get to do one of my favorite things: multitask!

Running to work takes some planning ahead.  I have to champion a 400-foot hillclimb between point A and point B, so I really don't like to carry stuff on my back -- discovered this one the hard way.  This means I throw a bunch of similar looking things into a bag that will all work with one pair of shoes, the same sweater, and maybe a belt, and drop the bag off at the office over the weekend and just hope to heck it all matches.

This week is a combo of driving and running, so I put together three outfits (that I don't have to iron) to make the most of what I've got.  When I say I put these outfits together, what I really mean is I was frantically running around the apartment Monday morning grabbing anything that was nearby.  Luckily, I keep my clothes pretty basic, because as I have said before, I look stupid in trendy clothes.  Really wishing for some black tights right now, though.  Note to self...

Tuesday Morning Serenade - Jamie Cullum

Let's pull one out of my archives. Yes. I like this better than the orig, don't you?

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Let's start March of with a bang, shall we? Nikka Costa, you're rockin' my world with this song. I love her attitude and fire as she belts out "Get offa my sunshine!" I can't tell you how many times I've wanted to say this to someone who was telling my I can't do something. I know you ladies out there have felt this way too. This one's for us.

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Winner Winner Chili Dinner

 Yesterday our office held its second annual chili cook-off.

As contenders arrived at the start of the workday, they plugged in their respective chili-laden crock pots and simmered their concoctions all morning.

I participated, of course, with a three-meat, two-bean chili that had won last year's first prize: "the golden spoon of victory," which is nothing more than bragging rights.  I had to bring it back to see if it could hold its own.  There was much less trash-talking, and since I helped organize it this year, imagine my embarrassment when I counted the votes to reveal:

Yep, still a first place winner.  Don't get me wrong, I'm very proud of the accomplishment.  It was just sort of anti-climactic to announce my own win.  So I had Ken, our IT guy do it.

[booming announcer voice] BEHOLD! THE GOLDEN SPOON OF VICTORYYYYY!

Aaaaand I signed it again this year to commemorate my fantastic chili.

Here's the recipe with the latest tweaks:

Ingredients

1 lb bacon, diced
2 lbs beef chuck roast, cut into 1.5-inch cubes
2 lbs pork roast, cut into 1.5-inch cubes
1 cup mole sauce
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 Tbsp kosher salt
3 cups stock of your choice, divided
2 med sweet yellow onions, chopped
1 anaheim pepper, seeded and diced
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 cup chili powder
2 tsp cayenne pepper + more to taste
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
2 14-oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2 14-oz cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 Tbsp fish sauce
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

Directions

Cook bacon in large soup pot, and remove meat to a bowl, reserving bacon grease on the side.
Use small amounts of bacon grease to brown your meat (in batches so as not to crowd the pan) and dump them into your slow cooker with juices and all as you go.
Set the slow cooker on low, stir the mole, kosher salt, brown sugar, and 1-1/2 cups stock in with your meat and cook for 4 hrs.
Meanwhile, return the rest of the grease to your pot and cook your onion, anaheim pepper, and garlic until onion is translucent.
Add your ground spices and simmer a few more minutes to bring out their flavor.
Add the remaining 1-1/2 cups stock, tomatoes, cooked bacon, and 1 can of each kind of beans, and bring to a boil.
Using a hand/stick blender, puree everything in pot.  If you don't have a hand blender, wait for the chili to cool a little and do it in batches in your food processor.
add in your remaining beans, the fish sauce, and apple cider vinegar, stir and add meat after it has slow cooked for an appropriate amount of time.
Refrigerate over night.
The next day, reheat chili slowly, and taste before you tweak.

Serves an army.

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Nothing Like Technicolor Cake...

image source

I had a bit of a bumpy morning yesterday and stormed into the office like a dark cloud.  Insignificant annoyances were inspiring rage, which I had to keep checked for professional conduct reasons, and though every fiber of me wanted to take each dish in the kitchen and smash it on the floor, I decided it would feel even worse to get fired from a place I actually love for my own childish behavior.  Everything was needling me in the worst way with no relief in sight.  So at 9am, I decided to take a little breather and check in on one of my favorite blogs, Confections of a (Closet) Master Baker.

I love this blog. Gesine, the author, is one talented woman.  In addition to creating some of the most amazing cakes I've ever seen, she has a book out and runs marathons, which is something I aspire to do but so far have been too scared... on both counts.  My fiance has had the hots for her sister for years, but I'm more of a fan of this lady.  She's someone I can relate to and look up to at the same time.  In fact, if my best friends and I took each of our best features and combined forces into one awesome woman, she just might be our "Captain Planet."  Ok, enough gushing.  Back to my bad day.

In order to take my mind off everything that was getting to me, I went to take a look at CCMB to see what kind of lovelies she had that day.  Right there smiling back at me was the most glorious rainbow layer cake I've ever seen.  I nearly fell off my chair with joy.  It was a trifecta of happiness: my own longtime love of rainbow cakes, beautiful and innovative execution, and wonderful pictures.  My heart went like this:

And just like that, I lightened up a little bit.  I took a deep breath, found my inner-rainbow, and shook off that bad attitude I'd worked up over the last coupe hours.  It's amazing what a little beauty and creative inspiration can do.

A Lot-a Yukata, Etc

This past weekend my friend Patricia had a trunk show at Fabric Crush featuring her vast collection on vintage Japanese fabrics.  It just so happens that the house I grew up in, where my parents still reside, is three blocks away.

Saturday afternoon I collected my mom and dragged her out to the show.  I knew I was going to at least buy a yard or two, but then something happened... We were talking about the nautical decor in my upcoming wedding (which I know I have promised will not take over my blog) when Patricia got out the bolt of fabric you see her holding in the above photo and oops!  I bought the whole bolt.  She gave me an amazing deal on it because of some areas she saw as flaws in the fabric (whereas I will call them character and not think about it again).

I'm so excited!  Blue and white stripes?  Check.  Artsy waves?  Check.  Helloooo table decor!

Afterward, we wandered over to Fainting Goat on 45th for gelato.  It's the best gelato I've ever had, and I'm not exaggerating.  If you're thinking, "well I went to Italy, and the stuff I had there..." stop right there.  Yep, it's better than that.  I got dark chocolate and salted caramel.  My mom got pistachio and hazelnut.  It was all heavenly.  I was especially impressed with the pistachio, which does not taste like that disappointing spumoni pistachio, but rather the real nut.  Amazing.  Check it:

Adorable logo and delicious product. I am in love.

Tuesday Morning Serenade

What I'm Wearing - TGIF!

sources: necklace, jacket, pants, shoes

Yeah, I know it's not Friday.  Today we're out and about getting the groomsmen's tuxes fitted.  It's a guy thing, but I've been asked to tag along as the fashion consultant to make sure it looks as good on the real guys as it did in the catalog.  This is a particularly wise move, because Andrew is the type of fellow who is more interested in if it fits than if it looks good.

About a year ago, Andrew went out and bought two new suits to replace the one that he'd had for the last 10 years and no longer fit his now adult frame.  It felt like quite an investment, and he wanted to do it right, so Andrew took his dad along for some father-son bonding time.  They settled on the best two, and he had them tailored so they would look really sharp.  When they were ready, I went with Andrew to pick them up from the tailor and saw them for the first time.  Pleated pants on both of them.  They've been altered, they've been paid for.  I'm keeping my damn mouth shut.  It came out later that I was disappointed his expensive new suits had pleated pants, after we had spent a lot of time in the recent past cleaning out his work wardrobe of the offending and dated article.  He looked at me in disbelief, went to the closet, and exclaimed, "you're right!  They are pleated!  I didn't even notice."  Ahem, what?  

Yes, folks - that was a moment of discovery.  I should take a moment here to say that this was more funny than upsetting.  He doesn't have to look like he stepped out of GQ in order to get my attention.  And as infrequent as it is that he has the occasion to wear suits, it's really not that big of a deal.  Maybe during the next ten years that my husband has these suits, pleats will come back in style.  One can only hope. (Also, every time I see those pants, I'm going to think, "no!  it's the pleats in this pants - they're an optical illusion.  I'm taking them back to the pants store immediately." you know what I'm talking about)

So as a result of that little adventure into the realm of formal wear, I get the last say in the tuxes at our upcoming wedding.  Takes the pressure off Andrew, and I know what to expect.  Win win.

Anyway, I really wanted to share with you my Friday outfit.  This is what I wore yesterday.  I didn't have the guts for the leggings and boots shown in yesterday's post, so this is sort of a test run.  I'm wearing gray (actual) pants and black platform heels.  Sort of casual Friday-ish but still dressed up enough for client meetings.  PS - the text in the graphic is my lipstick color.

Fashion Advice, Please

 

Some of you might know I am obsessed with Fashion Under $100.  I am inherently bad at fashion, so I read this blog all the frickin' time to make sure I don't get stuck in the 90s like I have been in the past. I'm not exaggerating.  Ask any of my friends.  They'll be nice about it, but it's true.  So I'm cruising through Dana's old December 2010 posts when I come across this outfit of Cameron Diaz.  I happen to have all of the pieces you see here, including an improvement on the leggings with a sequin tux stripe running up the side. I love this look, but I'm wondering if I can pull it off.  My two concerns: 1) I do not look like Cameron Diaz, nor do I have her body - I am more of a Christina Hendricks type.  2) I've said this before: I tend to look stupid in trendy outfits.  This leans toward a more classic look, but would I look like I'm trying too hard?  Thoughts??

What I'm Wearing - Minty Fresh

sources: earrings, necklace, shirt, trousers, pumps

As you can see, I'm ready for spring.  I've been all about pastels and colors that call upon fresh blooms with gray Seattle skies.  Today's look is a little old fashioned and sweet with the ruffles and jewelry, but still fresh and crisp by sticking to solid-color fabrics and avoiding patterns.  I'm also totally loving my wool pants and organza top.  Cozy and airy in one.

Tuesday Morning Serenade

What I'm Wearing - Feeling Slim

sources: shirt, pants, shoes, pendant

The wii told me this morning I am no longer fat.  Yay!  I decided to bust out my skinny gray pants and new shirt from BR to celebrate.  It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.

What I'm Wearing - Say It Loud

sources: necklace, earrings, dress, shoes

For those of you who know me, you already know I like to pair conservative clothing with crazy shoes.  Today was a page right out of that book.  I'm wearing a very conservative sheath dress, crazy red shoes, and then taking color cues from my shoes for my jewelry.  These shoes are oh, so much fun.

Here's the key to wearing sex-pot shoes without looking like you're asking for it: show as little skin as possible and absolutely no cleavage.  Today, I'm even wearing opaque black tights for this reason ...and because it's helping to cut the chill.

Tuesday Morning Serenade