Happy Thursday

Today, be BOLD.

Take me there...

December 1, 2011

"Don’t be afraid to fall in love.  It’s the only thing that matters in life. Fall in love with as many things as possible."

Shoe whore-der

I can't help it - all I can think about today are shoes. I went to Belk last night to look for a few Christmas gifts, and instead ended up in the shoe section, drooling over Frye, Kate Spade, Vince Camuto, Michael Kors, and much more. BUT, as it's the season of giving, I refrained and instead made some fabulous purchases for some other worthy individuals that mean a lot to me. Nonetheless, i'm still dreaming of a black suede 4 inch Christmas.

Need a good Holiday Appetizer??

Look no further! My boss gave me this recipe and it's absolutely amazing!! If you are like me and your holidays wouldn't be the same without an overload of cream cheese, then you will love these stuffed mushrooms. So easy, and SO delish! 

You will need:

8oz cream cheese

4-6 slices of bacon

Butter

Fresh rosemary

½ large Vidalia onion

2 pints of baby bella mushrooms

Shredded parmesan cheese

Put an 8oz wedge of cream cheese in a medium bowl to soften (while you are cooking the bacon & onions)

In a skillet cook 4-6 pieces of bacon – set aside and crumble

Remove all but about 1 TBSP of bacon grease from the skillet, add about 1 TBSP of butter to the bacon grease ( I didn't say these were healthy)

Add about ½ of a large Vidalia onion (diced) to the grease

Cook over medium heat until the onions are caramelized

While the onions are cooking, clean the mushrooms and remove the stems

Mince some fresh rosemary –  use about 2 TBS ort to taste

Put the rosemary & bacon crumbs into the bowl with the cream cheese

When the onions are done, pour them on top of the cream cheese mixture

Stir it all together until it is well blended

Fill the mushroom caps with the cheese mixture

Top with shredded parmesan cheese

Bake at 350 for about 15-20 minutes or until parmesan starts to brown (lightly)

November 23, 2011

I'm so excited to get to go home for the holidays this year. I have always worked part-time jobs that weren't very permitting of time off during the holidays -- in fact, I can't remember the last time I got to go home for more than a day over Thanksgiving or Christmas. Needless to say, I feel so blessed to now have a full-time job with PTO! I am looking forward to cooking and baking with mom, Christmas shopping around town, game night with the family, and doing absolutely whatever else I want! There is absolutely nothing in the world like home, and I am so thankful to have a family and the best dog ever to go home to this week!

Tis the season of my favorite color combo

Nothing says cold weather better than black and cream. It's totally warm yet chic and looks fab with gold accents and of course red lips. This is one of my very favorite color combinations ever. So Chanel! Love love love!!!

Happy Monday

It doesn't matter to me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart's longing.
    It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to
know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your
dream, for the adventure if being alive.
    It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your
moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your
own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have
become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain. I want
to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without
moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.
    I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your
own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill
you to the tips if your fingers and toes without cautioning us
to be careful, to be realistic, to remember the limitations of
being human.
    It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is
true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true
to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not
betray your own soul; if you can be faithless and therefore
trustworthy.
    I want to know if you can see beauty, even when it's
not pretty, every day, and if you can source your own life from
it's presence.
    I want to know if you can live with failure, yours
and mine, and still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to
the silver of the full moon, "Yes!"
    It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how
much money you have. I want to know if you can get up, after
the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone,
and do what needs to be done to feed the children.
    It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came
to be here. I want to know of you will stand in the center of
the fire with me and not shrink back.
    It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom
you have studied. I want to know what sustains you, from the
inside, when all else falls away.
    I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and
if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.

"We should certainly count our blessings..."

My feelings wouldn't be hurt...

If these gems magically appeared in my closet.

Live Sparkly

Orange was never really my color...

I'm all about customizing things to fit my personality, especially for my home. Why settle for average or predictable when you can be chic and fabulous? And no, I'm not your average red and green gal for Christmas, either ;)

Now that I think about it, these may be a go for my fall dream wedding I have been planning since I was 10...

Time to reFURbish

I never thought I'd say this, but I'm ready for cold weather... all because of my new (actually vintage rabbit) fur! Talk about a staple! (Sorry, vegans) Can't wait to pair it with my new red jeans or black leggings, a simple top {even a white v-neck to keep it edgy} and a messy pony, with chunky shoes and of course--red lips. Are you feeling me?

Lips are in

"Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know it when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on." - Steve Jobs

Happy Wednesday

Craving Color

My latest fall fettish is color... lots of COLOR. How easy is that? It's super easy to revamp your wardrobe with just a few splashes of color. Some of my favorites are Kelly Green, RED, Mustard, and last but certainly not least, Cobalt Blue. It's so easy to dress up even a t-shirt with a scarf, cardigan, earrings, or bag in one of these colors. And don't be afraid to wear them together!  I love love love all the color I am seeing this season! It's about time!

September 26, 2011

Lately, I have been logging on to my blogger account only to get overwhelmed with where to start and what to catch up on and find myself logging right back off. I hate using 'being busy' as an excuse as to why the upkeep of something so 'swank' has become such a struggle-fest, but my life over the past couple of months has truly been a whirlwind of transition and commotion and I am finally easing my way to the surface of it all. Oh, and in my defense, my internet has not yet been installed in my new apartment. For now, Happy Monday.