{foodie} friday: no bake lasagna

9.27.2013

You can find the recipe on my pinterest board here although I added mushrooms.
It was a nice, light change from the meaty lasagna I grew up eating (not that i don't love that as well).
I served it with a side of pretzel bites, but I don't think I've mastered those quite yet...
Do you have a good lasagna recipe you'd recommend?


$6 DIY Project//Dotty

9.24.2013

I've been pushing myself this week to create more. I made a little skirt for my friends new baby, I'm working on a fall pancho for myself and I gave this thrifted $2 vase a little make-over.
When I was at the fabric store getting supplies for the afore mentioned sewing projects I came across this gold-leaf pen and since I had a 50% off coupon, I snagged it for $4. (I'm pretty sure I was at JoAnn's but it might have been Michael's--both have apps that offer awesome instant coupons, so i recommend downloading them before you check out!)
I had found this vase last week at the goodwill and I liked the shape, but something about it reminded me a little too much of the 80s, probably because that's when it was made...so I knew I wanted to do something, and this pen made that 'something' gold polka dots!
I just freehanded the dots on, but be careful because if you put too much of the gold leaf on, it will drip--if you catch it soon enough, you can wipe it off, but once it dries, it's not so easy.
or you can buy it here
The flower is fake, but looks really real, I picked it up on a different trip to Michael's, again with a 40% off coupon.
Anyway, I'm happy with my pretty 'new' $6 vase, and I'm even happier with it, because I made it, and that's always fun!
Did you make anything fun this week? Crafts or in the kitchen? I'd love to see/hear!
p.s. thanks for sharing your states' specialties in this post! I can't wait to try them all someday!

gettin' down on the farm//

9.23.2013

(vintage inspired swimsuit from BevSwim--here)
seeing animals interact with other animals is so amusing.
this mastiff was so desperate to play with poppy he was crawling on the ground in an effort to show he could be small and nice.
Poppy wasn't risking it.
one of my favorite 'fall' memories coming home to a giant bowl full of sliced peaches in cream. my mom is never one to be accused of skimping on any of the good stuff, so although Utah peaches are just about as perfect as they get, she still worked a little magic on them and old friends still talk about craving a bowl of my mom's peaches and cream.

it's that time again where us Arizonans stand in 30 minute lines in someone's carport to buy a crate full of fresh Utah peaches and if the crate wasn't kept at my mom's house (only 2 minutes away) i'm pretty peaches would be all i lived on for the next month. As it is, I drive over there at least once a day to get my fix. They truly are perfect.

A few month's ago, Marcus and I heard about the Peach Festival and pick-your-own peaches down at Schepf Farm so we took Poppy and had a little adventure wondering around the acres of land, introducing Poppy to the farm animals--she thought it would be nice to give each one a proper face sniffing, and picking a bag of peaches. They were not as good as Utah peaches but it was fun none-the-less. We went straight to the pool after we were done (it was horrendously hot that day, as usual) and picked up some chocolate croissants from our friends at Proof.


So, where are you from? 
What's your State's specialty? 
Here in Arizona we have AMAZING citrus! 
I'm serious, I'd love to hear, so I know what I need to try if I ever find myself in your home state. 

my happyness project.

9.19.2013


This morning instead of waking up and checking emails, insta-notifications, and the like I started my morning off with a gratitude prayer. I remember doing this in college, but I admit, it's been a long time since I've done one.

As it may sound, it's prayer that you spend the whole time just being thankful for the things, opportunities and people you have in your life. It felt good, and because you don't want God to think you're not appreciative, you end up digging deep and thinking of all the little things you might not think of at first. It was a great way to start off the morning and aided in my goal of feeling more satisfied and happy. Once I was finished a few service ideas popped into my head and I'm excited to incorporate more of that into my life.

Later I went to mom's house to visit and get her suggestion on a pattern for something I'm sewing--I have a few projects in the works and plenty of people who read my post and are holding me accountable :) THANKS! I'm feeling better already!
What are you doing to feel happier today?

<<what i wore>>
fringe necklace//c.o. & ave (find here)
initial necklace//divas boutique in tempe (find similar here)
red checked blouse//madewell sale rack (find here or cheaper option here)
highway blues skinnies//nasty gal (find here or cheaper option here)
black oxfords//c.o. persunmall (find here)
watch//arvo (find here)
leopard purse//c.o. oasap (find here)
red lipstick//covergirl really red (find here)
hair//beach curl tutorial (watch here)

Taking my happyness into my own hands.

9.16.2013

As I mentioned in my last post, I've been in a little funk lately, I really appreciated to book and lecture suggestions--i listened to them and even ordered a book. I'm ready to take this head on and figure out how to feel more excited about this life I have (and don't worry about me, i'm not that bad, just want to feel happier).
As a part of that, i'm making a few changes in my day to day life--like cooking at home more, going to the gym more regularly, leaving my phone at home more often, and as a more exciting part of this change--i've decided to become a better seamstress. I grew up with a mother who could make it all--anything I could sketch out, she could create and to perfect fit. She's a bit of a perfectionist, so rather than let me do it (and do it wrong) she would generally just take over my sewing projects, and since I can be a little bit lazy (and i knew full well that if she did it, it would be a lot better) I would generally let her without a peep. So, although i can probably sew better than some, it's still not great.

But a friend of mine shared with me this super silly Simplicity Pattern video from the 1950s that is really corny and probably somewhat sexists if you looked even a little bit into it, but nonetheless, it accomplished it's goal of inspiring women to want to sew, at least for me. I'm putting this on the blog as a sort of accountability tactic. I'm going to go to the fabric store this week and my goal is to sew something this weekend--hoping it will get me feeling like my old self.
What are your tricks for feeling good?
Do you have any talents you'd like to explore deeper?
 <<what i wore>>
hat//free people sale (buy similar here $11)
'm' necklace//divas boutique in tempe (buy similar here $30)
turquoise necklace//forever21 (buy here $10)
leather belt//(old) j.crew
zella dress// free people (buy it here $88)
leather mexican purse//vintage (similar here)
gold bracelets//stylelately, vintage, a beautiful heart
sandals//(old) old navy (similar here $22)
hair//beach curl tutorial here


more time with my head in the clouds.

9.12.2013

Lately I've been feeling rather frustrated and possibly the most frustrating part of it all, is that I don't know what exactly I'm frustrated about. I try to tell my brain to figure it out, but it hasn't listened to me yet.
It's been so nice to escape up to the mountains, to our family cabin, to cooler weather and open spaces--i find myself craving places with bad reception and lots of family time. There's something magical to me about being in a place where windows down seems most natural. I have small town in my blood.

© i believe in unicorns. Maira Gall.