Project Driven

I have this "itch" to constantly have some sort of project going on in my life. Whether it's something around the house, or a photography idea, or something for the blog. This "itch" is always there, lurking in my brain, causing me to do late night probings (under the covers so I won't wake up Micah) on pinterest for ideas and craigslist too for good deals.
This "itch" has been aimed towards homemaking lately. There have been some changes in our home the last few weeks. Here are bits and pieces of what what we have changed and added in our home. We've got a long but adventurous way to go until it's finished but I am really loving our home more and more!

 We got this old display case from one of a local primitive store. I painted it white and sanded it down some to give it a slightly shabby chic look. The dining chairs are a craigslist score and is another BIG future project because I have to sew 8 sew slip covers for each of them! The dresses are recent purchases from Anthro and Free People and I am brainstorming on how to do a photo shoot with them on. I hope you have a fantastic and productive week =)

BBQ and Summer Nights

Only during summer nights would we feel like inviting friends over slap dab in the middle of the week for some barbequed burgers and hanging out. We kept it our signature simple dinner and just did a burger buffet with our friend Sophia bringing the dessert and Sophie bringing a side (confused by names much). We had a great time just eating, sharing stories, and sinking into our new, big sectional!

Cute little Kailah while watching Disney on our comfy couch.

Our sides: broccoli and Sophie's really yummy potato salad.

At the other end of the table: the burger stuff.

How it all looked before we dug in!

Celebrating Christmas

Celebrating Christmas means gathering all our loved ones (or at least the ones nearby) around our dining table. We didn't go all out this Christmas. We just kept our decorations and dining simple and budget friendly. Here are a few photos of what Christmas is looking like in our home:

1.) Our inexpensive Christmas decorations from the dollar store. Everything costs around $6 total.

2.) Whoopie pies and candy canes. This was my first time making whoopie pies (here is the recipe). My personal review of this recipe is I didn't like how the filling tasted. It wasn't sweet enough. Next time I would cut the cream cheese and whip cream by half and add more marshmallow cream to make it sweeter. I also just used the cake mix without the extra ingredients that the recipe called for. But I think I will try following the cake part of the recipe to the T next time.

3.) Pretty fruits. Been craving summer fruits lately. Although these are not in season, they were on sale.

4.) Since I had all the fruits that I prefer for crepes, I made some (recipe for crepe batter here). I love crepes all year round but especially in the winter for sentimental sakes. It reminds me of NYC when I lived with my older sis one winter and she would always make them and we would devour them together!

5.) A little dinner I made for my cousins and brother. We are leaving for Texas soon and I wanted to have a little Christmas get together with them before we left. From right to left: herb rice, lumpia, crockpot chicken with gravy (recipe here), spring mix salad with blueberries and strawberries (I've been putting those fruits to good use).

I hope your Christmas/Holiday is going well!

House Update in Pictures

1.) The Chrismas wreath I made back in early November.


2.) Our comfy and handsome livingroom. "Handsome" seems like the proper word because it is more on the masculine side. Above the couch is the collage of family photos that we are still working on. We have some gorgeous gold frames that are still pictureless. Can't wait to update you with the finished project.


3.) Our fun and rustic reclaimed wood cart. Everytime we have kids over they want to ride on it. Yeah, it's not very childproof.


3.) My updated indoor garden. I am growing some herbs this year. Can't wait until they yield me my own grown tasty herbs!


4.) The piano where the more colorful things in the house hang out. Kind of plain but it's not the final product.Still playing around with ideas with what I want to do with this space. But it will do for now.

Cute Cupcake Meals or Hors d'oeuvres

I think my husband has figured out that in order for him to get the best of my cooking, is to have guests over. That may be why we have had some people over for dinner twice in one week (oh boy was that alot of work!). The perfect little host that I am, I try to make interesting if not yummy dishes. I have been wanting to try these little cupcake meals and since I was going to have some guinea pigs over, I took the opportunity!

If you want to impress some guests these would make cute littel meals or hors d'oeuvres! Click here for the Lasagna cupcakes, and click here for the Taco cupcakes. Let me know if you have any questions about making them and I will try my best to answer =)

The sides were corn on the cob, and salad.
P.S. I don't recommend that much butter on your corn ;)

The side were cream corn and salad (not pictured). Btw, I allowed everyone
to customize their tacos by laying out the taco stuff buffet style.