Friday, January 31, 2014

Catch Up

Phew, I am so happy we survived the "Great Freeze" here in Charleston.
According to FB,
my Uncle in Atlanta was not so lucky and had to spend the night in a Kroger!
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I had a chance to upload some random photos from a while back last night.
Here we go!
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We had a yummy family dinner out at Glass Onion recently.
And what would a night out with my family be without shuffleboard at Gene's? 
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A friendly flock visiting my condo parking lot:
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Christmas Charcuterie!
My brother's masterpiece, now featured at The Macintosh.
And a LeaMond Christmas jam session.  Alfie is totally feelin the music.
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I bought a pack of fake nails from Wal-mart, and they actually worked great.  They lasted about a week before they started popping off.  Not bad for $5.00!
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Have you been to any Oyster Roasts this season??  We have!
Well, I think that gets me caught up (Christmas pics?!)
What are you up to this weekend?
We are going to the College of Charleston Homecoming Game tomorrow,
and then totally indulging in Game day fun on Sunday.
:)

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Lost in Manslation

A snippet of our conversation at dinner last night:

L: How was work today babe?
K: It was good, Little T came by.  She got her hair done.
L: Oh, cool.  How does it look?
K: Looks good, it's not sombrero any more.
L: What does that mean?
K: Ya know, it's all dark now.
L: Oh, you meant ombre!
K: Whatever.

I'm still chuckling over this one.
Hope y'all are enjoying the weekend!

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Cauliflower Crust Success!

Happy Thursday bloggy people!
As I mentioned before, I've been cooking and eating low carb 3 nights a week.
This is extremely difficult for me because my own personal food pyramid is built primarily out of "Italian Food" (pasta, breads, and pizza!).
K does not share my love of pizza at all, so I took advantage of his night out with friends last night to try my hand at Cauliflower Pizza Crust.
I didn't think this would turn out, at all. I was actually documenting the step-by-step in anticipation of writing a "Cauliflower Crust Fail" post today. But wouldn't ya know it, it worked! If you aren't a pizza fanatic, then you won't want to make this as I'm sure you'd be underwhelmed. It's a recipe for those of us that LOVE pizza but are looking for more veg/less carb.
Here is what I did if you're interested in trying it out!

What you need:
1 bag of frozen cauliflower florets
2 cups of cheese
2 eggs
Seasoning: Garlic, Oregano, whatever you want.
Pizza Toppings: Again, whatever you want. (I went safe with marinara, mozz, and pep)

What you do:
Preheat your oven to 450.
The first step is to thaw out your cauliflower and turn it into "Rice".
To do this, I used my blender.
It's recommended by several recipes to use a food processor, but since I do not own one, blender baby!
I put all of my cauliflower into the blender and then filled it with water.
I blended until smooth and then took a clean dish cloth and poured the cauliflower puree into it.  I didn't get a photo of this, but I lined my colander with the cloth so that it wouldn't go everywhere.
I pulled the cloth together and started to ring it out.
It's amazing how much water comes out! 
Here is what it should look like:
Next: Mix in a cup of your cheese, 2 eggs, and any seasoning you'd like.
(I chose cheddar because it makes everything better!)
Here you go:
Note* It's important to grease your pizza pan or foil. 
Spread out your dough.  I was extremely skeptical at this point because the dough is so moist, even after wringing it out.  But I soldiered on.
Bake at 450' for anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes.  
Mine took about 15 minutes until I was satisfied with the crispness.
 
Ready for toppings!
Like I said, I played it safe with mozz and pep, but next time I'll go Hawaiian.
(This is where you use your 2nd cup of cheese)
Pop it back in the oven on broil for about 5 minutes.
Drumroll....
Sturdy enough to eat with your hands!
Now, you can tell it's cauliflower, not bread, but the cheese and egg make it "crusty" enough to forget.  
So friends,
Go forth and pizza!

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Pet Names

What is going on y'all!  I am so very happy it's already Wednesday!
We are going to Poogan's for Rollback Saturday night, and hopefully winning big at a Silent Auction on Sunday.  Lots to look forward to :)
The other night I was just laying in bed listening my little Alfie boy snoozing beside me and I had a thought.  Is there any other sound so sweet as a cooing baby, or in my case, a puppy baby?
A close second for me is the sound of K's laughter, there is nothing more delightful in my book!
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In the 4 years that I've had Alfie, my little nicknames for him have run the gamut.
Examples:
Food:  meatball, blueberry, sugarplum, alfredo
Anything followed by "boo": sugar boo, stinky boo, booger boo
Random:  Sweet sweet, Angel, Chunkamonk
I just love this baby boy so much. He was sent to me from Heaven, of that I'm sure!!!
That is all.

Friday, January 17, 2014

Wedding Details: Bridesmaids

As I mentioned last post, I picked my bridesmaids dresses lickity split last weekend. I found them at Jean's Bridal. My consultant is Mikaela, and she is super fun to work with.  I totally recommend.
Anyway! I picked a floor length dress by Allure Bridesmaids, style#1307:  
The top is structured like a corset so it's very flattering.  I chose the color "Mocha" which is pictured below.  The belt will be barely a shade lighter (called cappuccino) for a slight contrast.
My girls are going to be gorgeous! 
And I finally got around to sending out my little bridesmaid surcees:
I sent these along with a special note to my 5 most important ladies.
I am just having so much fun with this stuff.
Next up: caterer and stationery!
xoxo,
Laura

Oh! I almost forgot.  I added a Recipes Tab at the top...I want to get better about sharing what I'm cookin'!
okTGIFbye

Monday, January 13, 2014

inVESTment

Hello Monday!
How was everyone's weekend?  I picked out my bridesmaids dresses this weekend, which I'll share later in the week.  But for now...
I want to share two new vests that have recently become wardrobe stables.
Isn't this "fauxbulous"?!  Omg insta-chic. 
And, I finally found a puffer that I love!
Buy your own here.
In other news, we were surrounded by puppy love all weekend.
Miss Penny came for a visit and we just adore that little sweetheart. 
So much fun!
Sleeping Beauties:
Don't forget, Bachelor tonight!

Friday, January 10, 2014

Some Like It Hot!

What's happenin' hot stuff?
We are having a little at home happy hour tonight and I'm pretty excited about it.
I am in the mood for a cold Fat tire and a hot snack...
I absolutely love snacks with a kick!  Here are a few of my recommendations:










That is all.
Have a spicy weekend :)

Thursday, January 9, 2014

The Future Mrs. Stabler

 When K and I began dating my mom asked me "Well, what does he look like??"
 I immediately thought of Detective Elliot Stabler,
of my favorite Law and Order SVU.
(minus receding hairline)
What a stud I get to marry!
So back up, ladies.
But if you're looking for the next best thing,
you can catch SVU reruns almost every night.
;)
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The Evidence:


 

Yet another reason I am one lucky lucky lady.

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

The Big Chill

A Polar Vortex?!
It seems I may be one of the only ones who is actually enjoying this cold spell in Charleston.  I say that while sitting at my desk, cozily munching on some Cinnamon Life.  But I gotta say, cold weather invigorates me...it makes me feel alive and crisp!  I guess it's easy for me to say that, coming from the South.
But what better way is there to cozy up on a chilly night, than with a warm cup of Sleepytime tea and the Bachelor premiere? 
Juan Pablo, however, is not my cup of tea ;)))
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In other news, we have decided to eat low carb/avoid alcohol 3 nights a week from here forward.
This doesn't sound difficult, and really it isn't.  But my purest form of relaxation = cooking a pasta dish with a glass of wine in my hand.  So for me this will be a challenge.  But okay, here is my menu for the week:
Recipes found here:
Stuffed Peppers (similar minus rice)
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Charleston Restaraunt Week begins tomorrow!
We are heading to the Grocery next weekend.
Also, Poogans Porch Rollback starts January 20th.
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And last, I love this:
This song just warms my heart right up!
Stay toasty, y'all.

Monday, January 6, 2014

Misc. Monday

Hey everyone! I have some random things to share with you this Monday morning...
Unfortunately my computer shut off last week and will not come back on, so I can not share my camera snaps, but here are some updates based on what's captured on my phone.
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First things first: I found my dress!!!!
All I will say is that it is by Jim Hjelm and I bought it from The Bridal House of Charleston.
And I'm in LOVE!
Mom and I stopped by California Dreaming for some champagne and nachos to celebrate: 
Cali Dreaming has the best nachos y'all.
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Friday night we caught up with some friends and met their puppy baby Murray.  He's just about the sweetest thing you ever did see.  Our puppy fever comes at the perfect time because we are babysitting sweet Penny (Alfie's gf) this weekend and we're so happy about it :) 
Twins:
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Has anyone braved the crowds at H&M recently?
I went in and waited in line for this $4 necklace: 
I love the way it layers with my pearl.
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And last, yesterday we took down all of the Christmas decorations and I miss them already.
 Here is my attempt at using my headband to make a star on the tree. 
This was after several glasses of champagne and I was so tickled by my genius idea.
That is all I have to share today. 
Stay warm friends!
xoxo