Insta Recap

It's time for another photo-of-the-day recap already.  I don't think I quite managed to take a photo each day this past week, but I took multiple on other days.  Sometimes the days just get away from me.  So I borrowed from others again this week.  Enjoy!

 {Jan 12 - Mr. Miles}

One day he'll fit in Daddy's shoes!

{Jan 15 - Miss Tinsley}

Want some Cheerios?

{Jan 16}

A little electro-acupuncture never hurt anyone!

This cutie patootie - Miss Hanna - is already 7 months old!!

Yummy frittatas at home in The Lou courtesy of Chef John.

{Jan 17}

Can barely believe you can find these in STL!  They fly off the shelves the same day in KC!

Miss Ellie wearing the new birthday outfit we bought her.  Adorbs!

Cheers!

Random Reading

Some bit and pieces to keep you entertained this weekend.  Hope you enjoy!

{Fun}

Random facts good for any trivia night.  I totally missed the solo stop sign in Paris!

{Fabulousness}

I heart NYC!  It would be oh so cool if this actually comes to fruition!

{Self}

Love these self-improvement ideas!  Who wouldn't love something that's good for you..and fun?!?!

{Fave Blog of the Week}

Ending on a positive note.  An awesome post from a blog that I ran across for the first time this week, 15 Things To Remember To Start The New Year.  I thought about posting only one of these quotes, but they are all too fabulous not to post.  Read.  Reflect.  Enjoy.  Find your passion! 

 Happy Reading!

Local KC: Raygun

Think Local - Buy Local - Be Local

As most of you know, we live in downtown KC.  Downtown is a super cool area with a lot of great things going on!  It's alive, vibrant & growing.  In the past year, I've gotten really excited about supporting our city & community...and buying local.  This excitement has really grown into a focus for me recently, and I'd really like to continue this effort throughout 2015.  So I thought I'd share some of my favorite "local" KC places.

Raygun

Raygun was not founded in KC - rather Des Moines, but KC is it's 2nd store.  Such a fun store to visit, and it's just a few minutes from our place!  

The products inside are all about the KC area.  We've purchased some super cool things here - gifts for our friends, family and ourselves!  Our first experience with Raygun's goods was a gift from some friends - these glasses.  Awesome pics of KC!

We grabbed the coaster below in support of our beloved Royals during their postseason.

 I just picked up this cutesy-patootsy onesie as a baby shower gift for a co-worker.  

If you've seen Chad recently, the odds are that you've seen him wearing this shirt.  LOL!  Can barely get him to take it off!

As you can see, we totally love Raygun...and love it even more that it's local!   

Come Visit Us! 

Insta Recap

I read somewhere - probably a blog - to try and take a photo a day.  I decided to adapt this a bit and use others' photos that were taken on those dates.  I doubt that I'll be able to sustain this, but I thought I'd give it a shot.  Most of these are posted on my Instagram account.  Enjoy!

{Jan 1 - First Le Creuset}

Completely loving this pot!!!!!

{Jan 2 - Jerod & his girls}

Celebrating the Big 3-0!

{Jan 3 - The Smokester}

{Jan 4 - First Snow of the Year}

{Jan 5 - Random Downtown KC Shot}

{Jan 6 - OPP Sunrise}

{Jan 7 - Teddi}

{Jan 8 - Another OPP Sunrise}

Apparently this was a theme this week.  LOL.

{Jan 9 - More Teddi Cuteness!}

{Jan 10 - Cooper's Hawk Wine Tasting}

Love when this comes around each month!

Cheers!

 

Combining Passions

I mentioned in my New Year's post that my resolution was going to be to add passion back into my life.  I've always been passionate about animals and volunteering.  So I've decided to combine those passions and volunteer at a local animal shelter.  I've volunteered for several organizations before but never an animal shelter.  Chad has agreed to take on this opportunity with me, which makes me even more excited about it!

We both submitted our volunteer applications and signed up for volunteer orientation.  Apparently others must have also taken on this type of resolution, because volunteer orientation is booked through mid-March!  Can you believe it?!  Oh, well.  At least we're signed up, right?

More to come on the local

organization and our experiences with it once we attend orientation.  Can't wait to begin this journey!!

I'm re-posting these cuties!  I just can't resist!

Here's to finding your passion!  Cheers!

 

Random Reading

Throughout the week I read a lot of blogs - probably too many.  I like it, because I end up discovering so many new things, websites, people, etc.  The downfall of that is because of my schedule, I often don't get back to those sites or get to try the new things that I've learned.  I'm hoping to change that a bit this year.  Regardless, I thought that I would share some of them with you.

{Self}

I'm completely infatuated with this article, 6 Subtle Things Highly Productive People Do Every Day!  I'm willing to try anything that would possibly make me more productive and allow me more personal time.  I'm a total believer in #1.  I think it's important to know where you are on the "mood elevator" (as the company I work for calls it) everyday.  Once you check your mood, you know how to approach tasks, meetings, etc. for the day.  I completely fail at #2 though.  Must.  Try.  To.  Be.  Better.

{Food}

 

A new healthy snack to try!


We can't seem to get enough mussels lately and have wanting to try our hand at making them at home.  I see people making them on all the cooking shows that we watch - seems easy, but for some reason I'm intimidated by them.  I ran across this recipe the other day, and I must admit, it does seem super easy.  We have an awesome butcher shop, The Broadway Butcher, just down the street that carries fresh seafood.  Thinking we'll have to make these soon!

{Fun}

I'm not a big "DIYer", but this wrapping job would be fun to try!

{Fave Blog of the Week}

I truly enjoy the "Hand Luggage" blog - makes me smile each time I read it!  I often find daydreaming after I've read a particular post.  LOL!  This post, 50 Meals You Have to Eat In 50 Countries, combines travel & food.  It can't get much better than that, right?!  I'm happy to say that I've had the recommended dishes for the U.S. (easy-peasy), Germany, France & Switzerland, but I was a complete miss on Mexico & South Africa.  Guess I'll need to travel back there soon!

Happy Reading!  Cheers!

2015 - I've Got This!

We're not ending 2014 on a good note at all given that we're both sick.  We really know how to do it up right in our household.  Mucinex, nebulizer machines & bubbly!  LOL!

{Ringin' in the New Year!}

That being said - we're hoping for a better start to 2015.  Maybe we're getting the sickness out now? Possibly?

The start of a new year always brings about discussion of New Year's Resolutions...a time to reflect upon the past and ponder the year to come.  Out of this developed the custom of making a resolution.  I've never been good at keeping my resolutions and not even very consistent about making them.  This year I have decided to make a resolution but one that is different from years past.  This year I've decided that my resolution will be to...

Add "passion" back into my life!

Now I don't mean passion in a romantic term but instead adding things back into my personal & professional life that I'm passionate about.  As I've been reflecting on 2014 and pondering 2015, I've discovered that I've lost a lot of my passion, especially professionally.  I've been working in a profession that has provided well for my family, but it has kept me very busy, very stressed and with little time for much else.  I've been working hard the last few months or so to balance my professional & personal lives and have found it extremely difficult.  But I continue to try and have found myself marginally successful so far...more successful than I've been in a few years.  I sit behind a desk all day doing very important work that serve individuals in need...but I feel that I'm a bit disconnected from a lot of it.  I feel that I need to be more "connected".  I'm in no way going back to hands on patient care, and I'm not looking to change jobs...just add more things to my life that I enjoy doing to allow me to feel fulfilled in other areas.

Things that I can connect to...feel good about.  Things like...

Family

Animals

Children

Food

I haven't quite figured out how to "enhance" these areas of my life, but I do have some ideas!  More to come as I start to wade my way through this new "challenge"...and it is a challenge for me...but one I will enjoy!

Happy New Year!  Cheers! 

Cookies!!!

This year we decided to do a little holiday baking.  I used to love to bake but haven't found the time in recent years.  However, I completely failed to take any decent pics.  We were completely successful at baking though, so I thought I'd share our yummy creations!

{Pumpkin Snickerdoodles}

These were scrumptious - so moist & fluffy and not too "pumpkiny"!

Probably my fave of all!

{Wiesbaden Cookies}

I had to make these just for the name given that my grandmother & mother are from there!  They are actually quite good though!

Shortbread-like with touch of cinnamon.  Perfect for dunking!

{Humongous Chocolate Chip Cookies}

Absolutely huge - perfect to share...and great for dunking!

{Crack Bark}

Probably my least favorite of the bunch - just too rich for me.

Super easy to make though!

I'm totally banning myself from baking for several more years.  
We completely over-indulged this holiday season!  
Now we need to immerse ourselves in the gym downstairs!

Enjoy!  Happy Baking!

Happy Christmas!

Yes, yes, I know that I'm not in England...but I love the "Happy Christmas" expression over the "Merry Christmas" expression.  As you may know, I'm not much of a fan of the Christmas season.  I never feel "merry" during this time, but I do often feel "happy".  I enjoy spending downtime with family & friends.  So I've taken to using the "Happy Christmas" expression.  :)

This Christmas was a bit different for us.  It was our 2nd Christmas that we've spent in KC without family - but for good reason.  We spent the days before Christmas in Columbia babysitting Lehni & Miles while Mom & Dad were in the hospital delivering their 3rd little one.  It had been awhile since we babysat the kids, so we really enjoyed spending some quality time with them!! k We also love getting to meet Miss Teddi!! (How cute is her name, right?!?!)

{Babysitting Mr. Miles}

 

 {Gorgeous Teddi!}

{Teddi with big sister, Lehni}

 

{Sleepy Teddi!}

{I have this exact same pic of Mr. Miles two years ago.  LOL!}

We arrived back in KC Christmas Eve evening and immediately took a nap.  Apparently we were more tired than the two cuties pictured above.  LOL!  You can tell we aren't used to watching kids...especially when one of them is sick.  We loved every minute of it but truly needed to re-energize before our heading out to dinner.  We had reservations at Affare, a modern German restaurant.  They were having a 4 course prix fixe meal with wine pairing.  We had been here once before and loved it!  so we thought it the perfect place to return to for a special dinner.

{Pic of us in the lobby of OPP}

 

Christmas Day was spent in comfies watching movies, eating holiday treats and cooking.  It was quiet but lovely.  We watched the 2nd of our two annual holiday movies - Love Actually and The Holiday. (The first was watched one night while wrapping gifts.)  We also rented This is Where I Leave You.  It has a lot of big names in it and was so much better than I thought it would be.  Totally recommend it!

The evening after Christmas one of our neighbors was having a get together for their birthday.  It's so nice being able to just walk home after celebrating.  Fun evening!!

{Crazy Kids}

Happy Merry Christmas!  Hope you enjoyed the holiday with your loved ones!

Cheers!

Flyin' Solo

This past weekend the hubs was out of town visiting his brother who was in from South Africa, which means I was flying solo for the weekend. It was the perfect weekend of girl time, laziness, cooking & shopping!

I kicked off the weekend with some girl time - happy hour at Jax Fish House!  A couple friends work in the same building as Jax, so it's a HH that is frequented often.  If you haven't been there yet, go now!  I haven't actually eaten off of their dinner menu yet, but their HH menu is superb!  I've gotten the curry mussels each time and never leave disappointed. 

Saturday morning was a bit rough - not from the HH - but just due to a few personal things...but that was cured quickly with a little retail therapy.  I headed out to The Legends early, as I thought it was going to be mobbed, but it was completely dead.  Yahoo!  Getting in and out of The Legends quickly meant I had time for a few other stores!  I accomplished quite a lot, I must say.  I only have two more people to buy for, and I have gifts in mind already.  This never happens!  Go me!

Saturday evening, I made some Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese for dinner.  It's basically a lightened up version of mac & cheese (very little cheese & low fat milk) and it quite healthy with the added squash.  It was actually pretty good.  It at least makes me feel a bit better about eating carbs!  LOL!

My goal Saturday evening was just to relax.  I needed some chill time desperately!  I even tried to take a bath - something I literally never do.  It just feels so weird to just sit there in a tub of water.  I know people find it relaxing, but I'm just not sure what to do.  I brought some magazines in with me, but I quickly got bored of those.  Oh well.  I'm giving myself an "A" for effort!  Maybe I'll attempt it again in a few years.  LOL!  The remainder of the evening was spent with a fire, wine and one of my favorite movies...The Holiday.  Who can resist a little Jude Law?!

Sunday involved a bit more shopping, laundry, cooking, computer work...and a bit of relaxing in the evening.  I'm missed the hubs terribly but was ever so grateful for the bit of "me" time that I had. We have our OPP Holiday Party tonight with plans to bake & wrap presents the remainder of the weekend.  Hope all of you have fun plans too!


Cheers!

Advent for Adults

Growing up one of my favorite things about the Christmas season was my advent calendar!  I just loved waking up every day during December and opening a "prize"!!  What better way to celebrate the days in anticipation of Christmas?! I think this tradition is completely to blame for my "birthday month" celebration.  Ha.

My advent calendar growing up came from Germany.  It was a tapestry-like calendar with rings in which to attach the gifts...similar in concept to this one:

I haven't had an advent calendar in years...until now!  Woot woot!  It's not my vintage German one, which is safely packed away in case with have a "Little" running around one day.  Instead the hubs surprised me on Monday with this one...a Benefit advent calendar!

Apparently these are a thing and sell out each year...and I got one!! Each day is supposed to be sample-sized Benefit items.  I already religiously use Benefit moisturizer, primer and foundation, as well as several other smaller items.  So this is right up my alley!  Here's what I received the first week...

 Dec 1st - Paper clips
Dec 2nd - Lip gloss
Dec 3rd - They're Real! mascara
Dec 4th - Stay Don't Stray (a favorite!)
Dec 5th - It's Potent! eye cream (another fave!)
Dec 6th - Pore Professional

This may not be an advent calendar to get year after year, as I'm sure the products don't change that much.  But it is a super fun way to try out new products and obtain travel sizes of the products I do love!  Who can beat daily prizes, right?!

Here's to hoping that you wake up to something fun each morning this month!

Cheers!

A taste of Italy - Spicy Oil

We finally got around to making the Italian Spicy Oil we found on every Italian restaurant table while in Paris & Geneva.  We couldn't get enough of this stuff while we there.  If you missed my previous post, you can find it here.

I researched several ways to make it, but there really isn't much more to it outside of putting some peppers in oil and waiting...and waiting...and waiting.  That was truly the most difficult part - the waiting.  LOL!  I wanted it to be perfect immediately!

It really is super easy! Take about 15-20 ornamental red peppers and make a slit vertically down the pepper.

Put the peppers in the bottle and fill it with EVOO.  Then the waiting begins.  As the peppers begin to fill with oil they will sink to the bottom.  But it will take at least two weeks for it become spicy.  

Several of the recipes I read mentioned that any peppers floating at the top should be covered in oil, or they will become moldy.  This has not happened to us to date, but we tipped the bottle from side to side at least once each day during the first week.  We also ended up adding a bit more oil than what is shown above.

Ours has been marinating for about 2 weeks now.  I'm thinking that we're going to have to order pizza soon, so that we can try it out.  I'm sure hoping it tastes just as good as Paris! Finger crossed!!

Cheers!

Hello, December!

I can barely believe it's December already!  This Fall flew by...and Winter has arrived and smacked me in the face.  But enough about that, let's talk Thanksgiving.

The hubs and I traveled back to St. Louis for an extended weekend.  We had a lovely time.  We were able to spend a couple of nights with friends and the rest with family.  It had been quite awhile since we had spent that much time there.  Here's some of our favorite pics from the month...

Baby Hanna - 5 months old now!

Night out with friends.  

Jefferson's solves all problems!

Turkey time!

Grams

Tea party with Tinsley

More kick ass friends!

 

We truly did have a great time!  We're so thankful to have such wonderful people in our lives!  I just wish I would have taken more pics.  There's a few peeps missing.  

Until next time...

Cheers!