Monday, May 30, 2011

my memorial day adventures

we are planning on having some friends over tonight to grill and hang. i woke up this morning and cleaned the house and made a cake. i was going to make the strawberry summer cake again since it was such a big hit but i didn't have enough strawberries. i did however have a bunch of raspberries. i decided to also add coco to the cake. i think it turned out great but i have yet to try it. 







after i finished baking i went thrifting with my wonderful friend alicia. we went to two goodwills and came home with some wonderful finds. because of memorial day they were having a big sale, 50% off everything!!!!!

i found a small wooden table for the deck. i have been looking for something little just to hold my morning cup of coffee and my book. i was so excited when i came across the able of my dreams. i also found a wonderful little leather ottoman to use an extra seat in my living room, it's adorable. and last but certainly not least........i found a balling ball, bag and shoes!!! the ball is the correct weight and the shoes fit perfect!!!

i am a very happy camper. 



hope you all had a wonderful memorial day!

xoxo cbe


happy memorial day!!


i want to give a big thank you out today to all of the men and women who have served and protected our country, and continue to do so today. 
thank you for you bravery, courage and passion for freedom.

xoxo cbe

braided beauty

so, something that i have been trying to learn for a long time is how to french braid hair, especially my own. these pictures have given me the push to finally get serious and learn. wanted to share them :)





anyone wanna teach me? i'm off today!

xoxo cbe


Thursday, May 26, 2011

lovely day off

i have the day off and it has been perfectly relaxing. 
this morning i met my mom and dad for coffee.  after that mom and i went and got some very beautiful flowers to put in my planters.
they turned out gorgeous, my small city deck has been transformed into an oasis. 




i also got these great pillows, so cute and comfy!

after mom and i finished planting i decided to do a little baking. i know, what else is new. 
i came across this wonderful strawberry summer cake on one of my favorite food blogs, Smitten Kitchen.  I love strawberries and lucky for me they were on sale at my local grocer. 
the cake turned out perfectly and couldn't have been easier. i can't wait to make it for the fourth of july!







today was lovely. the perfect day off with nothing to do, couldn't have enjoyed it more. 

xoxo cbe


Tuesday, May 24, 2011

seeing red

a little over a month ago i decided to ditch the brunette and go red. i couldn't be happier with this decision and have been completely obsessed ever since. 





i can't wait to get my red brightened up, next pay check.

xoxo cbe

tickle me pink tuesday

today i had planned on finally putting some flowers in our planters but i woke up to lightning and thunder. i am not complaining, but i am a little disappointed. so instead of planting cheery flowers, i went searching for some cheery pink pictures to inspire me for when the sun comes out. 





images found at weheartit.com

have a beautiful day!
xoxo cbe

Monday, May 23, 2011

lunch break....

today is my friday. work is slow and it seems like time is standing still.
i took my lunch break and tried to get my second wind back. i am reading a great book that my friend allison recommended, although i didn't get much reading done because i was playing with my food.......

 a good, creepy book. allison knows me so well :)


lunch, yum!

i'm an adult so i am allowed to play with my food since i was the one who bought it.

tomorrow is my day off and i have no exciting plans, which, is actually really exciting.

happy monday!

xoxo cbe


Friday, May 20, 2011

chocolate espresso cupcakes


the weather here has been super rainy the past week and i for one am not complaining. it hardly rains here so i welcome the chance to wear my rain boots.

this past tuesday i was invited to dinner at my friends house and i wanted to bring dessert. since the weather was grey and gloomy i settled on chocolate cupcakes, always a safe bet. as i was pulling the ingredients out of the cabinet i saw a can of unopened espresso and a light bulb went off.  i added 3 tablespoons of espresso into the cupcake batter. the result was a warm, smokey taste that went perfectly with the chocolate. i loved them! 

i found great recipes for both the cupcakes here and the frosting here


give them a try on your next rainy day, i recommend having a big cup of hot coffee with them. 

xoxo cbe


Friday, May 13, 2011

breakfast for dinner




i've had a recipe for homemade poptarts that i have been dying to try! tonight after work i decided to give it a go. collin worked late so i had the kitchen all to myself. i used a recipe from one of my all time favorite blogs, the smitten kitchen. i couldn't be happier with the end result. i need to work on my sizing, but i think they turned out rather cute. 

i filled my poptarts with nutella. next time i think i will try jam. i highly recommend this recipe, homemade-pop-tarts





cheers to eating breakfast for dinner. i'm allowed to ya know. i do what i want.

xoxo cbe


Wednesday, May 11, 2011

rainy wednesday

this morning i woke up to rain and all i wanted to do was stay in bed all day. alas, i am an adult and had to go to work...but not until noon. i put on my rain boots, bundled up and collin and i walked downtown and had a wonderful breakfast together before i headed off to work.
there is something so wonderful about the rain, i love everything about it. i love wearing rain boots, i love the fresh smell of the rain, i love bundling up and watching movies all day while the rain beats on the windows.
i love rain.


Rain
by Shel Silverstein

I opened my eyes
And looked up at the rain,
And it dripped in my head
And flowed into my brain,
And all that I hear as I lie in my bed
Is the slishity-slosh of the rain in my head.

I step very softly,
I walk very slow,
I can't do a handstand--
I might overflow,
So pardon the wild crazy thing I just said--
I'm just not the same since there's rain in my head.

 enjoy the rain!


xoxo cbe

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

cheer up chelsea chocolate cupcakes



my dear friend chelsea had a rough day yesterday. she was planning on coming over after work and i wanted to make a little something sweet to cheer her up and decided on chocolate something or other. i finally settled on chocolate cupcakes. i used this recipe (easy chocolate cupcakes). i put the cupcakes in the oven and after about 10 mins i realized i forgot the flour....oops. the cupcakes were not rising. so much for cupcakes, but then i decided to drop the pan which caused the center of the cupcakes to form craters. i baked them for 20 mins or so and then took them out to cool. i decided to fill the little craters with fresh chopped strawberries.


after i filled the little craters i made a chocolate cream cheese frosting. i wanted it to be almost like a chocolate syrup so i added a little milk to make the right consistency.




i used the remainder of the batter to make a small cake and once again dropped the pan and got a lovely crater to fill. this was not the dessert i had set out to make but it ended up being a lovely surprise. the cake was more brownie like and worked perfect with the strawberries and chocolate sauce.


it's funny how mistakes can sometimes turn into sweet surprises.

xoxo cbe

Sunday, May 8, 2011

mommy

happy  mother's day to the most wonderful mother i know.
thank you for all of your love and support. thank you for being my biggest cheerleader and my best friend.



i love you. 

xoxo 

Saturday, May 7, 2011

homemade

tomorrow is mother's day and collin and i are going to his grandmothers for bunch with his family. i wanted to make something fun and decided on doughnuts. 
i have never made them before and used this recipe. 


i used a powdered sugar glaze and bright sprinkles. 
i am not in love with the final results but am happy at my first ever attempt. 
i know i will try to make them again soon if they go over well tomorrow. 


happy mother's day!!!

xoxo cbe

Friday, May 6, 2011

a perfect wednesday

i had wednesday off and i couldn't have asked for a more perfect day.
first thing in the morning i met mom and we walked up to the highlands to the wooden spoon cafe and bakery. my mom was raving about their breakfast sandwiches and i had to try one for my self. it was absolutely heavenly! i love this little bakery. if you are in the neighborhood be sure to check it out. http://woodenspooncafeandbakery.blogspot.com/

lovely little breakfast sandwich

after our little breakfast we walked home and i headed to the grocery store. collin and i had planned to have a little cinco de mayo party. i got so distracted by the beautiful flowers when i first walked in the store that i forgot half of the things on my list and had to go back later that evening.........

my sunny little flowers

amazingly enough i was able to focus enough at the store to pick up all of the ingredients i needed to try out a new cupcake recipe. i had wanted to make coconut cream pie, my favorite, but after doing a lot of research i concluded that it would be a two day process (letting the pie chill over night) and i am way to impatient for that. instead of pie i decided to make coconut cupcakes and i couldn't be happier with the results. i used this recipe and loved it!

my lovely little cupcakes, big hit at the cinco de mayo celebration :)

hope you had a wonderful week and happy early mothers day!!!

xoxo cbe