summer closet...

i have been itching to branch out with my wardrobe, and i am super stoked for some of the styles that are currently trending out there... this craving has been especially difficult since cleaning out my closet, but unfortunately my overly expensive taste and limited funds {thank you, car and home-ownership} have not afforded me much splurging.  but it's fun to play online, and i have multiple shopping bags full of desired items that i thought i would share...

courtesy of abercrombie & fitch

first off, love, love, LOVE the colored jeans trend.  i so want this particular pair from a&f, but not sure if my short stature and overly pale complexion can handle the boldness...

both courtesy of abercrombie & fitch

i'm also obsessed with easy fit tops and a fitted short, specifically in stripe formatting...

courtesy of abercrombie & fitch

catching on yet? abercrombie clothes fit me pretty dang well, so they are my first go-to when it comes to shopping somewhere other than target!  dying to get a polo, and am loving the cuffed denim... i seriously cannot own enough pairs of cuffed shorts...

courtesy of pinterest

if i play my cards right, i may soon be the proud owner of an over-sized boyfriend watch which i have been eyeing for over a month now, and cannot wait to pair it with my bracelet collection!  fossil has some lovelies out right now...

courtesy of pinterest

funky, colored heels/flats/wedges that go with nothing in my closet, but i have to own anyway.  

it's so fun to dream lol...

pomp and circumstance...

well, we all know what this means.  gotta go to salina.  truth be told i had been avoiding this town like the plague; if it weren't for instant streaming, live broadcasts and live stats of matthew's baseball games i may have ended up there a lot sooner.  but clearly, for this event i made an exception.  the trip itself was no small feat, and i still feel my brother should have paid me to attend given the conditions and situations i had to endure, but that is besides the point.  after three near-death experiences, a couple cumbersome car rides and a nausea-inducing flight, i finally made it to witness said graduation...

we're real proud of you, kid.  

can't wait to see your face on ESPN one day! ♥

but seriously, i'm never going back there...

cute as a button...

for the love of a hot glue gun.  as {tacky} as it may be, it truly makes a world of difference with some things... and, really, is a one-year-old going to be able to tell?

now, i had seen some similar things to this on pinterest, but they were all super complicated and required way too many materials and prep.  so, i can honestly say i have not found something that is exactly like the way i did things here...

crafty necessities {yields: one happy birthday girl}

5 x 7 frame, i'd recommend black or white depending on your colors

1 sheet of card stock to back the letter

wooden letter of choice

embellishments

hot glue gun

acrylic paint of choice

i painted my letter a very pale pink, as i figured there would be little pops of color that would show through in between the embellishments.  i chose mainly buttons in different colors, shapes and sizes, as well as some rhinestones and 3D stickers and beads.

i started by hot gluing the biggest buttons down, and then went from there.  a toothpick came in real handy to get the smaller buttons into tough spaces and push down to secure them without singeing my fingertips off {i had just gotten a fresh manicure after all!}.  i used tiny beads to fill smaller holes and give the letter a little more "bling," because miss samaira is one fancy lady!

once the entire letter was filled, i glued it onto a light blue piece of card stock and placed it in my frame.  you don't use the glass for this project, and it gives the frame a nice "pop-out" look.  i did reinforce the letter with some extra cardboard to make sure it wasn't flimsy...

 and there we have it!  i thought about decorating the frame itself, but didn't want to distract from the monogram; overall i think it turned out awesome!!! it was also fairly inexpensive, and only cost me about $20 for all the supplies; craft on people!

through the lollipop forest...

as usual at this blog, a birthday is a great excuse to get crafty.  it's even better when the birthday is for a one-year-old, because then the sky is the limit!  one of my best friend's daughter was turning one, and she spared no expense or creative genius to give her an amazing birthday.  the party was Candyland themed, and cute as ever!  we had an awesome time making fun food and decorating, and the party was a huge success...

cake pops, chocolate dipped marshmallows, candied oreos and smore pops!

there were 6 different gourmet cupcakes!

these were some of the cupcake cards i made to label each flavor

now, naturally i cannot attend a birthday anymore without a lovely craft in hand.  see my next post to find out what i made for samaira!

my continued affair with spicy food...

i've been busy on my hiatus, and again apologize for the lack of posts.  however, i've moved into a new position {and thus a new office}, purchased a car and have been losing my weekends to graduations and cleaning.  but nonetheless, i promised to deliver some more amazingness to this blog, and now i give you...

{those beans are from a can, i'm not that good...}

like always, this recipe is an adaptation from a recipe found here, and i adjusted the ingredients according to my preference.  i've been on such a spicy food kick, and literally plan my meals lately around jalapenos... it's sad.

this recipe was super easy to make and {i think} was even better the second day!  here is what you need to do to create this super amazing dinner...

recipe necessities {yields 4 chicken breasts}:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

spices of your choice {i used onion powder, garlic salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, seasoning salt and cumin}

bacon, 4 slices, cooked and chopped

sour cream

jalapenos {i used nacho jalapenos from a jar}, diced

taco seasoning

shredded cheese, mexican blend

olive oil

combine any spices you want, literally in any amount, and dredge your chicken in the mixture.  then, you will want to sear the chicken on both sides in olive oil over a hot pan.  you can also cook your bacon during this time {make it crispy!}

while the chicken is searing, take the sour cream, diced jalapenos, bacon and taco seasoning and combine it to make a thick, creamy sauce.  i also added a bit of jalapeno juice to it...

then, once the chicken is done, place it in a pre-sprayed baking dish. place a generous amount of the sauce on top of each chicken breast, and then smother with cheese.

now you will want to bake these beauties in the oven at 375 degrees for about 15-25 minutes depending on the thickness of your chicken. once they are done, serve with a side of mexican rice or refried beans and an ice cold margarita... yumm!

sooo, i did it again.  i was neglectful to my little blog.  trust, that i have good reasons...  a lot of changes have happened in my tiny world, and i have BIG plans to update on all of it.  here is a sneak peek of posts to come:

• recipe rave {smothered southwestern chicken}
• crafty bee {embellished monogram letter}
• house tour, pt. 2 {kitchen}
• therapizer {office re-do}
• pinsprations
• etc... check back soon!

house tour

i love real estate. therefore, it should be totally unsurprising that i started this blog as a diary of my house hunting journey.  even though i have been living in little orchid for a year, i still have a slight obsession with home-buying.  enter my DVR, overloaded with house hunters, my first place and property virgins; thank you HGTV.  while i still feel there is so much more i want to do with my home, i originally intended to document the transformation process, and so here is the first sneak peek:

in first looking at pictures online of the listing, i was in love with the purple walls!  in person? not so much...  so in came my paint brush, down came the shelves anchored into the wall, and i ushered in some new furniture courtesy of my favorite store ever - ikea!

i was most excited about getting bookshelves to display things on and add color to the room; i went with pecan sandie as a base color for most of the house, and it was perfect for adding pops of color!  you will notice (if you know me personally) that those are not the original couches that i moved in with...

these two decided to eat them!