tickle me tuesday: rain

since I'm in Ireland this week, 

I thought a list of things I love [or would love to have]
to prepare me for the damp weather was fitting
for Tickle Me Tuesday.

hunter women's tall boot

via

ikea umbrealla [I'm rocking the black one]

via

actually if I could look like her, that would be great!

via

Happy Tuesday!

memorial day

I will not forget to remember the many men & women 

who served & still serve our country in the military.

If you've been following me for a while, you know I grew up

an Air Force brat & am proud of that heritage!

The Boston Common covered in American flags for Memorial Day

With so many family members having careers in the Air Force,
I can't help but admire their service.
I am grateful to my father, both grandfathers, uncle and brother-in-law.
Even though none of them gave their lives in service,
I may never fully understand the sacrifices they
[and so many others] have made.

via

For a lot of Americans, Memorial Day means it's time to pull
out the grill and have a cookout or watch the Indy 500.

Those are great traditions, but I hope we can be grateful to the
many men and women who gave their lives while serving this country.
Happy Memorial Day!

mom's eggplant parm

Recently, I made one of my mom's favorite recipes.
I had almost forgotten how much I love eggplant parm.

 I used slightly less sauce than the recipe calls for because

that's the way I like it [no soggy bread crumbs, please].

ingredients

1 large eggplant
2-3 eggs, beaten
1 c. dry bread crumbs
3/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp. oregano
1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1/2 lb. shredded or sliced mozzarella
1 24 oz. jar of your favorite pasta sauce

dredged in bread crumbs 

on the cooktop

directions

Pare eggplant [cut into 1/4 inch slices]
Dip slices into beaten eggs, dredge in bread crumbs & oregano
Saute eggplant slices in hot oil [on cook top] until golden brown
Spray large glass baking dish with non-stick spray & cover
with thin [or desired amount] of pasta sauce
Arrange eggplant in single layer, top with cheeses and sauce, repeat
Top second layer with remaining cheese & sauce
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes
[or until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbly]

ready to go in the oven

ready to eat

What's your favorite recipe 

your mom [or dad] cooked?

my bags are packed

I'm leaving for Ireland soon & I'm trying something different than usual;
I packed a color scheme rather than "outfits."
I "planned" the color scheme as I pulled things out of my closet,
and I just put this together to give you an idea of the actual colors,
finding a picture on Pinterest that showed my colors [sans black].

image, palette generator

I'm going with reds, teal/blues, grays, black and white.
For anyone who knows me in real life, this is
a bit of a step out of my comfort zone for [at least] two reasons:
I wear mostly earth tones browns or navy blue &
I've always taken outfits when traveling.

notice my helper? He knows something is up.

The good thing about living in New England,

is that it's prepared me for the weather "across the pond."

I'm thinking the dreary, cool weather
[high around 60 degrees Fahrenheit] has prepared me well.
It's extra sad because the temps hit 80  here for the first time since October this week.

Since I'm going to be in a new place,
I've been doing my best to prepare for changes I anticipate.
Here's my list of [hopefully] helpful items:
Celsius to Fahrenheit conversion app [iPad]
Electrical adapter & transformer
Skype [iPad] to call home
Two rain jackets & an umbrella

phew...it all fit!

What do you always pack when you travel?


P.S. -I'm also over at City of Blackbirds today!

a few of my favorite things & giveaway winner

I'm thankful it's Thursday & my last day in the office for a while...

two weeks to be exact.

I don't often do "about me" style posts, but thought I might try one.

So here's a little glimpse into the gal behind the blog...

 1 - I don't like to read, I mean not even a little bit

2 - I rarely finish a book...so many good intentions

3 - I have short-term memory loss...just kidding!
[I work in higher ed, so the not liking to read thing can be hard to explain]

4 - I prefer the mountains to the beach

5 - I am almost never without a jacket...living in Colorado 

& the Northeast has conditioned me

6 - I've been to over forty of the United States

7 - I have never watched Grease from start to finish [gasp]

8 - I travel with Excedrin in case I can't get a cup of coffee
[a sure sign of addiction, I know]

9 - I usually listen to classic rock [streaming KBCO online]

10 - my favorite musicians include: U2, Sandra McCracken,

James Taylor, Sara Groves, Amos Lee, Jack Johnson

photo credits

{1} {2} {3} {4}

Thanks again to Lindsay for the 
fantastic $25 shop credit {giveaway}

The winner is...

results via Random.org

Shoot me an email & we'll get you in touch with Lindsay

about how you'd like to spend your shop credit.
Congrats, Kayla & a big thanks to everyone who entered!

sunny pup

...he's never been to the beach, 

but he'd get along just fine with his blanket & nap.

Milton was lucky to catch a few rays 

that poured through the window last weekend.

Don't forget to enter the giveaway
{$25 shop credit} to Paint Me a Picture!

tickle me tuesday: mason jars

on Sunday, I woke up thinking about mason jars.

How odd is that? 

I love the idea of decorating with mason jars and have for a while.

I think it's their understated& classic look that drew me 

to them when I was considering wedding decor over a year ago.

We used them at the ceremony & reception.

photo by Meaghan Elliott

This week's Tickle Me Tuesday led me to

find these lovely mason jars via Pinterest....

...bringing light {wall sconce}

via

...promising a refreshing summer {sweet tea}

via

...holding a delicious treat {cherry pie}

via

what's your favorite use for a mason jar?

P.S. Have you entered the Paint Me Picture Giveaway yet?

miscellany monday {9}

[I was really bad about taking pictures this weekend, so I borrowed a few]

{one}

...anyone want to guess the number of trips made to Home Depot

& Lowe's this past weekend as we installed a new kitchen sink?

[I didn't actually count, but there were multiple trips per day]

{two}

our Friday night started out with a flat tire.

{via}

We were about to go to Ikea to buy more cabinets

for the kitchen, but realized our tire wasn't going to allow it

 [and it was 5pm...too late to get it fixed].

Instead, we walked to the grocery store & picked up

ice cream and a movie, to turn it into a date night!

{three}

Don't miss the guest post I did for Virginia at Geeky and Sassy

as part of her Social Media Month.

{four}

breakfast with a dear friend on Saturday

[hooray for get the tire repaired first thing!]

{via}

{five}

I finally sewed something...okay, I actually made a minor change
turning a maxi dress into a skirt
[thanks to Caroline for turning me on to such a great idea].

Don't forget to enter the giveaway

{$25 shop credit} to Paint Me a Picture!

giveaway {paint me a picture}

The giveaway is now closed.


I'm so excited for this GIVEAWAY

from Lindsay's handmade shop, Paint Me a Picture!

Let's get to know Lindsay...

Tell us about yourself.

Hi, I am Lindsay. I like to paint; I mean I really like to paint. 

When I am not chasing around my two year old, 

making my nine month old giggle, or spending time with Mr.Wonderful 

you will find me in my studio a.k.a. my kitchen creating my art.

When did you start blogging & open your Etsy shop?

In college I took an art history class that really inspired me to paint. 

I played around with painting for friends, and in 2008 I decided 

to start selling my work locally and started Paint Me a Picture - the blog

simply to provide an online place to showcase my art.

In May of 2009 after my first son was born I opened my shop on Etsy. 

After opening my shop I began to connect with other bloggers 

and handmade shop owners and established amazing relationships. 

 I closed my personal blog 

[a 3 year work in progress with about 3 followers]

and merged it with Paint Me a Picture - the blog, 

realizing I could share my paintings and glimpses of my life together. 

If it weren't for finding a place in this blogging/handmade community 

I know my blog and shop would not be growing as they are today. 

Where do you get your inspiration for painting from?

I am constantly inspired by fabrics, popular color combinations, 

and what's trending, taking ideas and making them my own on canvas.

What's your favorite city?

My favorite city is Savannah, Georgia. 

It's where I went to college and fell in love with art!

And now, for the moment you've been waiting for,

Lindsay is giving away a $25 shop credit!

Aren't Lindsay's paintings fantastic?

[can you guess which one is my favorite?!]

How to enter

{mandatory entry}

Visit Lindsay's shop & tell me your favorite item.

For more ways to enter the giveaway

{leave a separate comment for each}

-  follow Lindsay and me on Twitter [1 entry]

- become a follower via Google Friend Connect of
dot...in the city or let me know if you already are [1 entry]

- tweet or blog about this giveaway and link to this post 

[1 entry each]
- heart Paint Me a Picture on Etsy &
let me know your username [1 entry]

Giveaway ends on Thursday, May 26 at 12noon EDT

and is open INTERNATIONALLY.

pesto ricotta pizza

[I'm also guest-posting for Virginia at Geeky and Sassy today!]

a few weeks ago, I came across ready-made pizza crusts

at the grocery store and they were buy-one-get-one free,

so I couldn't help myself.

I threw this together and it turned out pretty well.

ingredients:

ready-made pizza crust

basil pesto sauce [about 1/3 cup]

ricotta cheese [about 3/4 cup]

zucchini [small]

white onion [1/3 of large]

olive oil cooking spray

paremsean cheese

Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb

directions:

preheat oven according to package instructions.

slice zucchini and onion thinly &
cook over medium heat in pan with cooking spray.

while veggies cook, brush pre-made pesto over pizza crust 

and top with ricotta cheese [about 3/4 up].

by this time, the veggies should be lightly browned, 

remove from heat and add to pizza as topping.

shake paremsean and Mrs. Dash on top.

bake according to package instructions [~10 min.]

what's your favorite make-at-home pizza?

cabinet pulls {kitchen update}

It's finally coming together and I'm feeling

more & more confident our kitchen is going to look fantastic!

We have scored some great deals along the way.

99 cent cabinet pulls!

they come in a package of two and were previously sold for $6.99/pack

[clearance at Ikea, sorry I couldn't find a link online]

love the "cottage" look it gives to our pantry [also from Ikea]

and currently the only cabinet in the kitchen!

...and they will look great on the island [when we're finished painting it].

I can't wait to share more along the way.

Kitchen renovation is quite the process & 

I am so grateful my husband loves it.

Happy Friday!

simple smoothie

I love a good smoothie. 

I love having a blender that crushes ice to make a good smoothie.

I've made several of these smoothies lately, 

so I wanted to share the recipe.

ingredients:

2 well ripened bananas

6 ice cubes

1/2 cup of milk [measure with ice in blender]

Hershey's chocolate syrup

directions:

Place 6 ice cubes in the blender

Pour in milk until the 1/2 cup line [less than half a cup]

Slice banana and add to blender

Add chocolate syrup [about two decent squirts]

Mix on "ice crush" mode until blended

Makes two 8 oz. smoothies [+ a little extra]

What's your favorite kind of smoothie?

networking

As I mentioned in a recent post,
I've given some thought to my Twitter use lately, which resulted
in creating a second Twitter account @dotinthecity.

via

Why do I tweet?
I have to be honest, when I started in 2009, I was somewhat reluctant.
But over time, it won me over.
You may have heard this before,
but the more I use it, the more I love it.
[Ever wonder when you signed up for Twitter? Check Tweet Anniversary]

For me, Twitter is about marketing & networking.
I consider it my on-line persona, therefore,
I only tweet [share] what I want others to know.
I have met colleagues who work in my field from across the country,
bloggers & handmade artists from around the world.
And at times, those worlds collide, finding handmade shop owners
and bloggers who work in student affairs.

via

A few tips for tweeting well:
{have a purpose}
first define your reason for joining Twitter,
then with each tweet, consider why you're tweeting
{complete your profile}
add a photo, your location [it's better to be vague than leave it blank]
& fill in your bio [answer: what will people see if they follow you?]
{make connections}

follow people you may want to connect with,
but have some discernment about who you follow
[sites like TwitBlock can help you manage spam].

also, remember to be patient as you build your network.

How do you use Twitter?

tickle me tuesday: maps

In the past week, I have been drooling over maps.

I've always liked maps and even bought a few on
eBay a few years ago to hang as art in my living room.
But I'm getting more & more ideas for how to decorate with maps
thanks to Pinterest.

through the glass of a window

via

make a cork board to record your travels

via

create a collage of the places you love

via

Tuesdays are easily becoming my favorite

blog day of the week with Tickle Me Tuesdays!

P.S.  If you haven't heard of Pinterest or want an invite, just ask!

miscellany monday {8}

another busy weekend has come & gone,

and I remembered to pull out the camera!

trying on bridesmaid's dresses for an october wedding...

we liked the style, not the color [the cape was a prop...I think...]

scouting the scene for flower girl dresses.

paper masks on a stick at a local shop.

biking inside of the L.L.Bean store

[too bad you can't tell it's the same color as the dresses we tried on.]

anniversary gift my husband.

A special thanks to my friend, Lindsay, 
from Paint Me a Picture for creating this state love painting!


Happy Monday, friends!