Outfit Inspiration: Belted Floral Top

found via Pinterest from The Life Pretty Anonymous

I love, love, love this outfit! A beautiful ruffley floral shirt + cardigan + belt + jean skinnies = great combo! I do have a floral top and could create an outfit quite similar to this one. Perfect for Spring (though, if you live in the PNW, might I suggest a pair of boots for this week?).

Happy Tuesday!

P.S. I checked out this fashion blog and it's authored by two sisters who enjoy fashion. They write anonymously with tasteful humor. I think I'll peruse their site a bit more!

Outfit Inspiration: Chilly Spring Days

via Pinterest -- Lilly's Style

I have had this outfit saved on Pinterest for quite some time, but I think it is applicable for the moody PNW Spring days. In agreement with Courtney, layers are great this time of year! I love how Lilly tied the belt, it adds a little more interest to a fairly casual outfit. I wouldn't wear those type of boots right now (fleece/fuzzy boot layers aren't necessary anymore! Not that cold here thankfully!) -- probably a lighter weight brown pair or even flats if the weather is conducive.

Happy Thursday!

Southwestern Chipotle Salad

Tonight we had a delicious Southwestern salad... mmm... Oh, SO good! Mom got the idea from two sources: Pinterest and surfing the web. This will be a repeated recipe for sure!

Pinterest ~ Southwestern salad here at this awesome food blog, "For the Love of Cooking" :

Mom's version has black beans, corn, grape tomatoes (yum!), Romaine lettuce & mixed greens, and if one wanted- a lil Parmesan cheese sprinkled over the top.

Web  ~ Chipotle dressing recipe here from another great food blog, "Pinch My Salt" :

1 chipotle chile from a can of chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crumbled

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste (used regular salt)

Take a bite of this... mmm...

I think this salad will be even better in the summer when there's fresh corn and tomatoes. My avocados aren't ripe yet but they would certainly be a wonderful addition to this salad. :) I'd like to try the cilantro lime vinaigrette that's on the For the Love of Cooking blog sometime too. Such an awesome salad!

Enjoy!

A Peacock Love Affair

I must confess:

1. I love rainbows.
2. I love peacocks, as they are neat birds with rainbows on their feathers.
3. I love teal.
3. I love Pinterest because it has the above mentioned things.

With that said, I wanted to share some peacock ideas from Pinterest. I think I will be creating a whole board just for this topic... (I won't take offense if you think I am strange ;-) ) Looking at these "pins," I am quite amused with how most of them are wedding-type ideas. I guess I have taken up more of an interest in weddings since my sister recently got married, but I also just genuinely like these peacock things. So pretty!!

Definitely my favorite!!!

I also have a great love affair with all things related to the beach... Peacocks and the beach make me a happy gal. I love all of the colors with both of those creations: blues and greens. Though, to throw you off a bit, red rose bouquets put a smile on my face too. :)

What are some of your love affairs?!

iCan Bake!

Yesterday was a day filled with goodies! Baking goodies and one big treat. :)

Mom and I spent the day baking all sorts of delicious cookies and truffles. iMade lots of tasty things! iCan't wait to try the truffles....

Notice my funny [cheesy] writing?

iGot an iPhone!!!!

Sarah and her fiance got the iPhone 4G (since they are getting married soon they wanted their own plan). Mom thought the iPhones looked neat and decided to "invest" in them. She was able to score 2 iPhone 3G phones for 99 cents each. Of course, the service is what costs quite a bit. Ah... I have been forced to go to the smart phone age! This is something I have resisted for some time now. I think smart phones are neat but have not been able to come to terms with paying for the service. Generously, I am not paying for service now, thanks to Mom, but if I had to, I would still be with my text-only phone. Anyhow... I am thoroughly enjoying my new phone and used it to document the baking experience, which of course I documented on FB throughout the day! ;-)

So.... to unveil the sweet goodies:

Mom actually baked these per my request. M & M cookies! Just use the  typical recipe for chocolate chip cookies but substitute with M & Ms. :) Delicious!!!

Oreo Balls! Basically, a truffle and it is amazing.  A cousin made these awhile ago and I have been hooked ever since! I added some  Christmas sprinkles for an extra touch. And yes, iDID these! haha

Coffee Bon Bons... delish!

*

A Pinterest idea. All you need is Hershey Kisses, M & Ms and pretzels. Here's the link to the blog post,  "Our Favorite Christmas Treats." *

Hope you all are having a wonderful day! 

*Taken with my camera, wish the iPhone was that snazzy! haha

A Thankful Day

I don't think I could have said it better myself. A student this week said, after learning about the pilgrims coming to live in North America, "so it is a thankful day." I love how children say things so simply. They are profound lil beings sometimes.

Ah.... Where has the time gone and how did we get here? I will say, today was a wonderful day of being with loved ones. Life has been so hectic in these past few weeks, and in my partial emerged state of mind, it felt good to be around the people I care about. It was good to get a mental break, as there are plenty of little stressors. Putting those aside for a moment, here is how I spent Thanksgiving:

one of the beautifully decorated tables at my aunt & uncle's house

Granny's sweet potatoes cooking. Yuummm

we always have nut & chocolate cups (this year just chocolate!), thanks to Granny

my plate :)

Our contribution to Thanksgiving dessert, pilgrim hats. Thank you Pinterest!

Here is the link to website that was pinned on Pinterest. Just scroll down and you will see  how to make 'em. Very simple:  chocolate striped cookies, buttercream frosting, orange tic-tacs and mini-peanut butter cups. Yum!

While it is so easy to be absorbed with the comings and goings of life, it is good to reflect on what we have. With each class I have subbed for in this past week I have made the students say what they are thankful for. Since I have made them do it, I should too. Here is a small list (items in random order) -- I could write for days and days:

-- My health: So thankful to not be sick or have any major illnesses.
-- Education: Though I have loans, I am thankful for the opportunity to learn more and better myself. Not everyone gets this chance.
-- Cats: My two kitties make me smile everyday. I feel blessed to have such silly furry friends.
-- Family: Thankful for my immediate and extended family members. I am grateful that I have gotten to know some of these individuals better.
-- My two jobs: They wear me out some days but I am so thankful to have them. I enjoy being a tutor and a substitute teacher. Both have helped me to refine my teaching skills and grow in many ways.
-- My faith: Something I have not talked much about, truthfully, because it has not been real strong this year... but even when I struggle I am thankful that Jesus is patient with me. Even during this 'dry' time, I feel like some things are changing in my heart...
-- My car: Always thankful for my safe lil car. It gets me to and from with fairly good gas mileage.
-- Friends: Where would I be without my friends?! I don't get to see them as much as I would like, but I feel incredibly blessed to have them in my life. They are patient, kind, always have a listening ear, and make the dreary times bright again.
-- For the roof over my head: This is something I need to remind myself of everyday. There are lots and lots of people in the world that do not have this blessing.
-- The fact that I don't go hungry for days: Also something that is lacking in the world... I am so blessed to always have what I need.

Yes, I could write days on end about the blessings in my life. As I tell the students, even in the hardest of times, there is always something to be grateful for. Sometimes it is difficult to see and appreciate but those blessings are there....

Smoothie, Subbing & Sinks

"Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if you try!"                   --Dr. Seuss

Okay, this is my mixed bag post! I have a little list of things I want to write about, but don't want to do two or three separate posts.

As I am writing this, I am sipping on a smoothie, thinking about this whole discombobulated week (love that big 'd' word, for its looks, it is Angela-ish - not real fond of feeling this way tho). I will be honest in saying that I have been disorganized, fairly lazy (I have been joining in with my sister as she is on her break in between terms), distractable, and strangely, all that the same time, very inspired. How that all goes together, is beyond me! ha ha

Well, okay, I may have one itty bitty idea... Um, I am going to confess something here: I have just discovered the wonderful world of PINTEREST. Yes, I don't normally write things in caps as that means you are yelling, but this is worthy of those big letters. I have seen this website mentioned on a few blogs (believe Flower Patch Farmgirl was one of them...) and decided to check out... Oh my, I am not sure if that was a good idea or not!! On one hand I feel incredibly inspired and mentally rejuvenated, on the other hand and foot-- I am so horribly addicted... So bad that I even got my sister hooked on it! ;-) Anyhow... at least I did end up making something, the smoothie:

This is called a Green Monster Smoothie, which comes from Sing For Your Supper blog via Pinterest. For the most part I like this smoothie, I mainly taste the banana and strawberries (I used 5 big strawberries). I think next time I will add more yogurt (I used honey flavored Greek yogurt since we don't use honey much). Also, this would be much better if mango was added. I think this needs more sweetness and tanginess. Overall though, not bad. You don't taste the spinach at all!

Now that you know what I am sippin' on (actually it is all consumed now), I will continue with the rest of what I have to say: Today was a subbing day! I subbed in the same classroom from last time (4th grade), but only in the afternoon. I was a bit apprehensive about it being Friday and the afternoon, but the kids surprised me! They were pretty good for the most part- I was the one that made them get riled up at one point... ha. ;-) So, the kids were working quietly on their writing and one suggested that I put on music. Knowing that their teacher has done that in the past, I thought it would be a nice idea. Unfortunately, she doesn't have any calming tranquil CDs.... Sooo I made the huge mistake of putting on a CD with the first song being the "YMCA." Um, yeah. As Sara says, fail. Okay, it wasn't that bad though they all started doing the hand motions.. obviously, not writing... So I let them have about a minute of it and then told them if they continued to do their work and stay on task, they could have music time later. Whew.... Rest of the afternoon was just fine, thank heavens.

... On to a totally different topic, sinks. As a way to procrastinate on writing an annotated bibliography and other homework, I decided to unclog the bathroom sink that my sister and I share. I have been wanting to deal with it but hadn't decided how to go about fixing the problem. So, thanks to Tidy Mom via Pinterest I was reminded of an easy, simple, green cleaning solution: vinegar and baking soda! I knew I needed something that would effervesce (in college I unclogged a drain with Mentos and Coke). Unfortunately, our sink was very clogged so I had to use a few tools in addition to B & BS. It took big tweezers, a flashlight, little tweezers, and some hot water (and several B & BS rinses). I am still not completely done with it. Last night my uncle gave me this nifty tool to dig under the plug. I think I will go mess with that now...

Isn't it beautiful?! I should have done a before pic but just know that it was very clogged. 

Always good: Vinegar and Baking Soda. Natural  & economical.

*Dad came over on Saturday and showed me how to take out the plug. Now our bathroom sink flows even better!

Happy Friday to all!!!