hump day. :)

howdy! happy hump day y'all :)
now if only the weather was the same as mondays..

i'm kinda over the dreary weather - actually not kinda, i definitely am. i like to keep myself busy so i don't have to think about it. {out of sight, out of mind} although its not completely out of sight, but you catch my drift.. so let's get to some of the fun things i've been doing shall we?

three words: island bar crawl.
i know right? who doesn't love a bar crawl, especially a just-cause-we-wanna-crawl type of crawl. some friends call downtown an island so we did a 'just cause' bar crawl around a new area downtown - fountain square. well, a new area to us. who knew there were so many cute little bars in fountain square? i sure didn't! so we threw on some leis and called it an... island bar crawl. 

the plan was to start at la margarita for margaritas then crawl into each establishment that serves alcohol and have one drink. after the restaurant bucket list book i made, i was all about trying these new places. and boy we had so much fun! :) speaking of the book, my sister and i decided to try one of the places on friday night - sushi house in geist. and i must say it was a success! definitely looking forward to trying more new restaurants in my book.

to round off my fun weekend, i took a trip down yonder to seymour ;) for amandas wedding shower.
i am so happy for that girlie. XO

and you better believe i was already thinking about the next weekend as i was laying in bed sunday night. just admit it, you probably were too.

and now its wednesday.. two days. twoooo-a!
and guess what? my very good friend kim is heading to the hospital friday am to get ready for her second little one. so pumped! can not wait to meet little corbin. :) another busy and fun weekend ahead! uh and sorry this post was nothing but my weekend and a few other random things. i'll call it an all about jenn rae news post. {so dorky}

oh! in other cleaning news, i did clean out my entire jeep this week.. such a good feeling.
alright. enough of the rambling. :)

have a good day y'all.
XO

easy breakfast

whew it's 10:30 and i'm finally able to sit down and relax. what a productive night!

but honestly, i'd rather have a super busy day than a relaxing one. {i always have a list, and i always check things off that list.} some nights, like tonight, i immediately start on my to do list as soon as i get home. 'cause once i sit on that couch.. oh there is no gettin' up. i google. i check facebook. i youtube {by the way, get on there & watch family feud pork loin on ellen - hilarious!}. i check facebook. i catch up on my dvr. i update twitter. i check facebook, again.. its a sad sad cycle. it's like pringles, once you pop you can't stop.

so my to do list for this evening:
eat dinner {yep it's on there}, clean the piles of things on my desk, put crafts away, and start cleaning out & organizing the closet in the office - turns out i didn't just start this..

yep, i got everything checked off & completed. score!

ok because i know you want more than just my evening recap, here is an easy & yummy oatmeal recipe i found on pinterest...

blueberry & raspberry baked oatmeal

recipe from sohowsittaste.com!

1 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

pinch of salt

1/4 cup maple syrup   i used sugar free

1 cup milk   i used almond milk

1 large egg, lightly beaten

2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted & cooled

1 tsp vanilla extract

2-3 ripe bananas, peeled and sliced

1 cup blueberries or raspberries   i used both, frozen & a few extra

preheat oven to 375.
lightly grease 2 quart baking dish.
mix oats, half of the walnuts, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in medium bowl. stir to combine.
in a separate bowl, combine the syrup, milk, egg, butter, and vanilla.

spread the sliced bananas in a single layer over the bottom of the baking dish. top with half of the berries. 
sprinkle the dry oat mixture over the fruit in an even layer. 
pour the liquid ingredients evenly over the oats. 
sprinkle the remaining nuts and berries over the top. 
bake for about 35 minutes, or until the oats have set. 
let cool before serving.

before the oven, after the oven. they look the same huh?

next time, i may use a smaller dish or add in more berries - or both!

this recipe was yummy the entire week and made for easy mornings.

enjoy! XO

weekend & a craft.

hellooooo rain.

and boohoo to tuesday.


you are my least favorite day of the week. every week. and this week isn't any different. i'm blaming it on the rain. unless you're a fisherman or a puddle stomper, i'm assuming you would agree that rainy days aren't the best days. i am exhausted with a capital e. and the thing is, i didn't do much this weekend. whats up with that?

literally did nothing. {which was perfect considering the next month is busy busy busy!}
i relaxed and snacked. yep, did nothing. :)

i did, however, make a restaurant book of all sorts of places i have yet to dine at. {yes i have lived in the area my entire life. wish this idea came to me way back when} after each visit, i'll mark the page with a sticker. first outing is this friday - pretty excited to try these new places.

restaurants range from.. well anything & everything. and located anywhere & everywhere. well, in indy and the northside.

well y'all hope your tuesday is a bit more sunny than mine.

XO

high five for friday

FRIDAY! it may be rainy and overcast outside but hey, it's still friday.
today i am linking up with lauren from my grey desk for high five for friday!

1. um spring has officially sprung! this might be my favorite part of this week.
2. planning an engagement party for my best friend and her fun fiancé - ahh! love saying that!
3. dinner with my favorite girls. always a good time. just love them. {ok so this picture wasn't exactly taken at this dinner and we didn't drink margs, but its mexican and thats what we ate so it counts right?}
4. playing with this sweet face.
5. tickets to a reds game were purchased..yahoo!

HAPPY FRIDAY Y'ALL.
XO

easter fun

so as the saying goes, its better late than never.. right?
well easter was a couple weeks ago but i realized i never blogged about the goodies i made, and we all know that's a must! i know i told y'all about the spinach dip i made but let's get down to the...

good stuff.

i'm all about the good stuff. i'm talking the chocolatey, salty, chewy good stuff!

lets start with these tasty pretzel chocolate treats...

these are addicting. i'm warning you. :) and even worse, they are so easy. two baaad combinations. 

you can just add in different colors of chocolates and m&ms and boom! you can serve with any holiday party or theme! great, right? i used green white and black for st.patricks day and these bright cheery colors for easter. so here we go..

line cookie sheet with pretzels  i used square pretzels

drop wilton candy melts on each pretzel  you can find these in the baking aisle at party city, or even walmart.. they come in any color imaginable - yellow green purple blue pink and so on

place in oven for 30 seconds - 2 min  this really depends on your oven but keep a close eye on the goodies. you just want chocolate to melt just a wee bit

squish m&ms on each candy melt  ok not really squish but as soon as pan comes out of oven, put m&ms on each melt - this needs to be done quickly before chocolate hardens (grab extra hands if you have 'em)

wait till chocolate cools & enjoy  need them now? pop them in the freezer

see? so. easy. 

next up.. tweet tweet treats {say that ten times.}

i must say, i took this idea from my absolute favorite blogger love from the oven. shes so wise & creative with her sweets.

i mean, who doesn't think of twitter when they see these cute blue peeps?

to make these peep pops, i just stuck a black straw (only because i wanted the stick to be black - but cake pop sticks work great) into a blue peep and since the sides are white from pulling them apart i dump a few blue sprinkles in that empty spot and violá! and the signs are made with washi tape. :)

now for the fun part - decorating the eggs. i wanted to do something super fun but just went with the standard decorating box and called it a day. 

{maybe next year} 

i also whipped up some strawberry cupcakes as treats for my parents.

well y'all how was your easter? any sweet treats you want to share?

XO

dip dip we all love DIP!

this past weekend i decided to take a dip over to my parents so we could have something to munch on before our big easter feast of ham and greens that evening. i mean, who doesn't love a good dip? i wanted to try something new and {somewhat} healthy - so i took a peek at pinterest, of course, and this is what i found.. feta and spinach dip.
it screams creativity, don't ya think?

{i actually found this sitting in my car in the target parking lot - quickly made my list - and then ventured inside. i actually do this quite often - and believe it or not, i'm usually quite the planner. i often find the best recipes this way though, including this one!}

creamy feta spinach dip

1-8oz container of plain low-fat yogurt  i used greek

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese  i used the entire 4oz pkg

1/4 cup low-fat cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup low-fat sour cream

1 garlic clove, crushed

1-1/2 cups finely chopped spinach

1 tbsp minced fresh dill

1/8 tsp black pepper

fresh dill  optional, and i did not use

spoon yogurt onto several layers of heavy duty paper towels - spread to 1/2 inch thickness. cover with additional paper towels & let stand five minutes. scrape into food processor using rubber spatula. (yes, i thought this part was a bit on the odd side but i think it just drains the liquid out of the yogurt - yum.)

add the cheeses, sour cream, and garlic. mix until smooth. spoon yogurt mixture in a medium bowl, and stir in the spinach, minced dill, and pepper. cover and chill.

garnish with fresh dill, if desired, and serve with whatever your heart desires. :) i went with snack factory pretzel crisps. have you tried these? you must rush to the store right now if you haven't!

so there you have it! this dip is a must try. i'm a sucker for any dip & this goes to the top of my list!

mmmhmmm!

XO

a little black paint

you guys.
remember when i went to the flea market and posted about a wine rack i purchased but it needed a little scrub and some black paint? well y'all i am in love. {yes i know its just a wine rack} but seriously it was just what the little corner in my kitchen needed!

         

before

annnnnnnnd.... {drum roll please}

   

after!

ok so i know you can't really tell the difference in these pictures {original was faded green and black} but trust me, the updated version looks so. much. better. :) it just took a few coats of black spray paint and now it looks like a brand new piece. yahoo for great flea market finds!

now, who wants some wine?