the whole nine yards...

i've been crafty lately people.  it's been bad, real bad.  mainly because i see these amazing ideas on pinterest, and think i can undertake the most amazing of crafts with minimal sewing skills and 70 cents in nickels.  once i accepted that i seem to lack the martha stewart gene, i moved on to more realistic undertakings.  like yarn.

i got the idea {obviously} from pinterest from this blog.  i thought sarah's tutorial was awesome, so i decided to attempt it on my own.  let me tell those of you are intrigued and potentially thinking of trying this: choose your word carefully.  i had the brilliant {read: dumb} idea to yarn-spin home.  whoooo, boy...

the h and the e, no problemo.  the o proved more complicated, and i wanted to kill myself trying to wrap the m. seeing as without the m, i'd be left with a harlot or a gardening tool as a result, i trucked on...

i used cardboard letters from hobby lobby {$2.49 a pop} and i went with bright neon colored yarn {$2 a pop} to wrap them with.  so all in all, about a $20 project, and i'm pretty pleased with the end result!

i secured the yarn with hot glue, and the back of these letters are kind of a hot mess, buuut... worth it!

what will you wrap today?

culinary genius

no joke people, i have hit the low-carb jackpot.  thanks to a lovely little pinterest post, i have found a way to combine my two favorite things on the planet: pizza, sans carbs!

i am not making this up, you read it correctly... i {like colombus} have discovered a new world!

fear not, this crust goes way past infinity into the beyond.  i am always looking for new low carb recipes, and have been on quite a kick lately {and down some major el-bees if i do say so myself}.  this pizza is perfect for  literally anyone; i got drew to eat it, so that should tell you something!  i found the original recipe here, at the your lighter side blog, but i made a few adjustments...

recipe necessities {yields one 10" crust}:
1 egg
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup cooked, riced* cauliflower
2-4 Tbl. grated parmesan
garlic salt {to taste, aka a lot}
oregano {to taste, aka a lot}
italian seasoning {to taste, aka a lot}
toppings of choice

mix the egg, cauliflower and cheeses together in a bowl until well combined.  flatten it onto a pre-greased cookie sheet; you'll want to make it pretty thin to avoid soggy crust...

then, add all your preferred seasonings; i tend to season a lot since the cauliflower really takes on the flavors well...

after it's seasoned, i bake it at 425 degrees for 12 minutes; the edges will burn a bit. then i set the oven to broil, add a thin layer of sauce, veggies, meats and cheeses, then stick it back in the oven just until the cheese melts.  cut and serve, and you'll never even believe there is cauliflower in the crust!

*to rice the cauliflower, i literally grate fresh cauliflower on a cheese grater and then microwave it covered for about 3 minutes {any longer tends to burn the little guys to a crisp}

of course this culinary masterpiece could not have been completed without the best of helpers...

moblogomy

february and march brought several matrimonial moments for drew and i, and one very special wedding we were blessed to be a part of!  i wanted to share a few of those moments here...

brandon and marissa had their big day on February 10th at the Arizona Golf Resort in Mesa, and drew had the unfortunate luck of being paired with me in the bridal party and having to walk me down the aisle... don't worry, we made it all the way!

then one of my dearest friends Nichole had her wedding a mere month later on March 9th at Inspiridor in Chandler.  it was an absolutely beautiful wedding, and drew and i had an amazing time celebrating with her and her husband Gregg...

 i thought these chairs were super adorable

clearly we had a great time, cut to me playing air guitar:

yes, yes it was an open bar.

the next day {March 10th}, our friends Jenna and Tony got married as well; our somewhat awkward photobooth pictures are below.  let's just say drew and i are "weddinged out" for a few months... if we know you and you're getting married in the near future, don't hold your breath for a good gift.

and a birthday for all my friends

drew and i have the pleasure of being born a mere eight days apart, and that makes for a significant amount of celebrating in a short amount of time. needless to say, we did 25 up right this year and i had the privilege {yet again} of dating an older man for a week...

we celebrated both of our birthdays at the place where everyone knows your name, and also realized that we cannot drink like we used to.  the week also brought some new experiences for the both of us as boyfriend moved into the lovely house on Orchid Lane.  however, despite the presence of another male in the home {and yes, barkley counts}, i received a wonderful little surprise to keep the girly-girl essence alive and well...

how cute is this keep calm and CARRIE on sign from my dearest amanda?  it fully completed the blank section on my sex and the city devoted shelf in my living room.  but she didn't stop there ladies and gentlemen, my crafty bestie topped it off with a DIY chalkboard plate platter that is now stylishly displayed atop my fridge...

after the birthday season officially rounded out with some grimaldi's pizza and excessive adult beverages, it was back to the real world...

oh ikea, how we love and loathe you...

uber quick recap

for those of you that don't know, i'm ashley!  you can read --------> for a tiny bit about me, but pictures tend to communicate so much better!

::: i bought a little house approximately one year ago. she's lovely :::

::: i have two adorable and rambunctious puppies who tend to grace the space of my posts.  i apologize in advance for this, but they are awesome. meet barkley & mia! :::

 ::: boyfriend {drew} and i love vegas.  i may or may not have a serious gambling problem. :::

everything has a purpose...

after a {not so} brief hiatus from blogging, i'm back and more determined than ever to get this right and stick with it!  after a lengthy face lift, this little blog is ready for its close-up...

this blog originated as my diary of my first home-buying experience (and let's just say it made for some great bed-worthy reading) and eventually evolved into a hodge podge of random things and too many pictures of my puppies {oops!}. my intention for the house diaries  part deux is to share the parts of my creative brain that will hopefully serve to inspire you as well; recipes, crafts, commentary, and general inspirations await you...

welcome to the house diaries...