Weekly wrap up ♥

Well, hello there! We've come to the end of another week. 

 

The last week in March, can you believe it? 

 

March came in like a lion and is definitely going out like a lamb.  It was 64 degrees today, which in New England, is shorts weather for some people!  I'm not quite there yet, but I did treat myself to one (or two) ice coffee's this week! That's my sign that things are changing! 

 

Here's a few random pictures of what my week looked like ♥

 

 

 I've had this lipstick for SO LONG.  It's called Rose Gold by Maybelline.  I accidentally found it in the bottom of an old makeup bag.  It made my day.

 

 

 

 

 

Daffodils in my living room because....

 

 

 

 

 

...the Easter Bunny is on his way!

 

 

 

 

 

My Easter village is all set up.  I love all the pastel colors ♥

 

 

 

 

 

 I brought home a parsley plant from the grocery store.  Fresh herbs make it feel like summer.  I love adding them to salads, pasta, potatoes, or as a finishing touch on chicken. 

 

 #makesmefeelfancy ♥

 

 

 

 

 Have you tried  Starkist tuna in  pouch? It's so good.  I brought one to work to add to a salad and it was delish! The best part is there is no smelly can to tend to.  The tuna is all drained and ready to go. Love it!

 

 

 

 

 

Got a friendly little surprise in the ladies room of the movie theater!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm loving the light these days.  This picture was taken at 6 pm!

 

Thank you daylight savings ♥

 

 

 

 

 

I'm totally obsessed with Dunkin Donuts Girl Scout Thin Mint ice coffee!!!! 

(I told you I've had one or two....)

 

Have you tried it?

 

It's amazing!

 

 

 

 

 

So obsessed that I had to try it hot.  Turns out I like the iced better, but still really good ♥

(I love anything mint : )

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have always wanted to do outfit of the day posts, but I never have because honestly, I wear pretty much the same outfit everyday.  For the past 5 months I've been wearing a cardigan everyday! I have a black one and gray one and I just switch up what I wear underneath.  They are so comfortable and versatile. 

 

Here's a few of this weeks selections:

 

Tuesday ♥

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday ♥

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday ♥

 

Ok, you get the idea : )

 

 

 

 

 

Have you seen The White Princess? I'm watching it on Starz.  A few years ago I watched The White Queen. This is a continuation of that series.  They only made one season of each which makes me sad because its really, really good!  If you love Tudor history/historical fiction you will really like this series.  I'm watching one episode a night after John goes to bed.  I'm trying to make it last ♥

 

 

 

 

 John colored 51 eggs today for the big family egg hunt on Sunday.  He's super excited to be in charge of hiding the eggs this year! 

 

 

 

 

He did a really good job!

 

 

 

 

And look what I found today in the front yard! Yessssssss!

 

 

Wishing you all a very happy and blessed Easter!

 

I hope you enjoy your weekend! I'm off to make pies! 

 

Bye! xoxo

 

My counter top oven ♥

Hi Everyone! I hope the new week is treating you well! It's still freezing here, but at least the sun is shining and the snow is melting so we are getting there.  Spring is slowly creeping up on us! 

♥

So today I wanted to give you a closer look at my counter top oven.  After I showed a picture of it last week a few of you had questions on it.  

I decided she deserved her own post (yes, I love it that much! : ) 

When we moved I downsized my kitchen quite a bit. We have just about everything we once had except the space is a little bit smaller.  One thing  we decided to omit was an oven.  Of course we have full access to my parents kitchen downstairs, but I really missed having my own oven. (and my legs were feeling the burn running up and down the stairs every time I wanted to bake something - which is alot: ) 

For Christmas my parents got us this counter top one and I absolutely love it! ♥

I've cooked dinners, desserts, & snacks in it.  Don't  be fooled, this is not your regular toaster oven!  

The brand is Oster.  You can get it on Amazon for under $100. 

Here's a shot of the settings.  You can definitely use it as an everyday toaster. I don't do that because when I'm not using it I put it away.  If I had more counter space I would keep it out all the time but for me it's easier to just take it out when I need it.  

Oh - and it's pretty lightweight.  I can lug it around all by myself without any problems ♥ 

Yesterday I roasted sausages!  

I baked them at 350 degrees for one hour.  They came out delicious!  ♥

(sometimes I do baked potatoes too!)

I also made brownies.  You can easily fit a 9x13 baking dish without any issues. 

YUM! 

Pizza is a snap! There is a pizza setting on it but honestly I haven't used it.  I just cook it at 450 degrees for 15 minutes just like it used to in my full size oven ♥ 

The one thing I will say is you should keep an eye on certain things, that they don't brown too much.  I think because the space is smaller the heat is more intense.  This took me a few tries to get the hang of it, but once I learned what to be careful of I've had no problems.  

 I highly recommend this oven if you have a small kitchen or if you just want an extra oven in the house! I can totally roast a chicken in here, which I will be doing soon!  ♥

I love anything that makes my life easier! Xx 

Weekly wrap up ♥

One of the many million reasons I love blogging so much is because this space is a memory holder.  I am able to capture little moments in time and then be able to go back and revisit them.  I'm happy that I had been blogging for so many years before I moved because now I have countless photos of my old house, frozen in time.  When I go back to look up a recipe, there it is! So many meals cooked in a kitchen that doesn't belong to me anymore, but will always have a piece of my heart ♥ And that feels good! 

 This week I made a conscious decision to try to take more pictures so I can post them every Friday in a wrap up post.  I had gotten away from it for some reason and I've missed it. Even the little mundane things have memories attached to them. I'm grateful to be able to share my little scrapbook of memories with you ♥  

So here's what this week looked like in my corner of the world.... 

I'm loving the morning sunlight these days.  The shadows are so pretty! 

We were supposed to be hit with another Nor'easter on Thursday but luckily it passed us!  It would have been the 4th one this month! Needless to say we've had our fill of snow/winter around here.  I was so happy when I woke up Thursday morning to just a dusting and not the 6-8 inches that was predicted! 

Happy dance! ♥ 

Celebrated St. Patty's day with another round of Irish bread! So good! 

And yes, that's coffee...I should have had tea : ) 

A clear but cool day! 

John and I took a day and went exploring! 

We can't wait for it to get warm  :) 

And impromptu lunch at Subway. 

Note: the Mr. Rogers shirt! 

I love this kid ♥ 

I can't get enough of this view off our back desk.  I'm noticing how the light shines at different times of day and at high & low tides.  

Leftover strawberry rhubarb crisp! ♥♥♥

My favorite appliance ever! 

For Christmas my parents gave us this counter top oven for our kitchen.  

It is the joy of my life right now! Works so great and FAST!  

It works just like a regular oven.  

I've cooked muffins, cakes, meatloaf, chicken parm, and here I am cooking pizza! 

Yeeeeesssss!!!! 

I also made a pie this week ♥  

Just. Because. 

Do you guys remember this movie? It came out in the early 90's.  I remember loving it then and I watched it the other night in bed (when I couldn't sleep) and oh man - I still love it!  It's such a good movie and will make you feel good about mankind ♥  Also has an awesome soundtrack.  

Anything with Frank Sinatra & Tony Bennett will certainly hook me! ♥ 

I was having an annoying day at work so I took myself out to lunch.  

Then I felt better ♥

My John is so into Pixar/Disney movies that he made this poster about it! I only wish he could turn it in as a school project!  

No such luck on that, but I love his creativity! ♥

And, we had a first this week.  He made me scrambled eggs! 

They were yummy!  

He also brought me coffee which I could definitely get used to!  

I guess there are positives to your baby growing up after all ♥ 

My Easter bunnies have started popping up around the house.  

More decorating this week, as Easter is only a week away!  

Happy weekend, my friends!  I hope you spend it making memories and doing something you love! 

Thank you for stopping by today! I'm always grateful that you do! ♥ 

xoxo

Strawberry rhubarb crisp ♥

 

Hello Friends! It's Monday again.....♥

 

I hope you all had a nice weekend! Mine was lovely. I did errands, housework, had a special lunch date with John, and celebrated St. Patrick's Day with my family over a traditional boiled dinner! 

 

 Sunday morning I organized my date book so I'm feeling very content stepping into a new week.  Plus, there are no snowstorms in the forecast this week which is making me very happy!  Tomorrow is the first day of spring! Let's start feeling it!  ♥

 

I thought I would start off this week with something pretty and delicious! 

 

Strawberry rhubarb crisp!

 

  I was inspired to make this after seeing all the rhubarb at the grocery store last Sunday. It was everywhere!  I couldn't not bring some home!  Why not a crisp? And why not add some strawberries?  They are match made in heaven ♥

 

 

 

I've never had rhubarb in anything other than a dessert.  Have you?  I don't think I've even ever tasted it raw.  I just know that when it's cooked it's sweet and near perfect ♥ 

 

Seeing the rhubarb and strawberries together have me missing the farmers markets! I can't wait for them to start up again....which is usually late April/early May. Not that far away!

 

I'm picture myself on an early Saturday morning in flip flops, messy hair, holding an ice coffee...drifting up and down the rows of fresh fruits and veggies, herbs, plants, & handcrafted goods. I can't wait! : )

 

Here is the recipe in case you want to try it.  It served 5 people perfectly. If you a baking for a bigger crowd I suggest doubling the recipe ♥ 

*Recipe from Martha Stewart ♥

2 cups strawberries - hulled and cut in half (quarters if large)

2 cups rhubarb - cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 cup sugar

1 tbsp. cornstarch

1/4 tsp. salt

 

For the topping:

1 cup rolled oats

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

1/4 cup brown sugar

dash of salt

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

 

In an 8 inch baking dish combine fruit, sugar, cornstarch, and salt.  Toss until all the fruit is coated.

 

 

 

 

 

In a medium bowl combine oats, flour, butter, brown sugar, and salt.  Stir until combined and sprinkle over fruit. 

 

 

 

 

Bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes. 

 

The juices will be bubbly and yummy!

 

Let cool and serve. 

 

Wait. We are missing something...

 

 

That's better!

 

I served mine with strawberry ice cream and whip cream!

 

 

 

 

 

It's so good! And not overly sweet, so don't worry about that : )

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apple crisp has big shoes to fill around here.  This crisp is giving apple a run for her money! ♥

 

 

 

 

 

YUM! ~

 

 

Wishing you all a happy first day of spring! We still have snow on the ground, but hopefully not for long!  I'm keeping the faith! ♥