to infinity and beyond...

so it's been a million years since my last update. we've had a strange & busy month. i started working a second [part-time] job with kids. it's great, but i'm still adjusting to the schedule, so needless to say, i'm tired. anyway, i have not forgotten about the blog world; i just haven't felt like myself enough to post.

the good news? i'm working on redo-ing some ladder back dinning room chairs we purchased. so far, i've recovered them and have been working on sanding them down. once they are done i'll post a before and after! i'm excited to be doing them, and they are coming along quite nicely i must say.
in other home news, we finally got new linens for the guest bedroom and i am IN LOVE with them. they couldn't have been more perfect, and BONUS they were free because we had a gift card.

randomly, i can't believe it's APRIL?! where is this year going? speaking of april, we are hosting easter this year and i'm all giddy about setting the table. i have a ton of ideas, and i'm searching for more. hopefully, it'll come out great. i'm loving robin's egg blue this year. we'll see where that leads.

my plan is to share some pictures from our time off in march, so be looking out for that. here's one to tide over:

shakers

i love fun salt & pepper shakers. i found these little gems at a local antique store yesterday while out on the town with mr. phipps. they were only $5.50 for the pair. if you know me personally, then you know i love cacti & the desert. these couldn't be any more perfect to add to my tiny collection of shakers. maybe some day i'll do a post on the ones i've come own. 

2 posts in one day? i guess i'm making up for lost time :) 

Also,  HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BEST FRIEND JACQUELINE!! LOVE YOU LADY.

2weeks later, and a taco tuesday

so it's been just about two weeks since i last posted, sorry about the lull. things have been a little crazy around here. we have a ton going on with our little family, and thankfully we have just begun a two week vacation. our anniversary is in 6 days, i can't believe it's been a year already! it seems like this year has been forever and just yesterday all at the same time. to prepare for being gone on vacation, work was slammed [thankfully!] last week. i more than doubled my normal week and worked a ton. so that's in part for the reason for no posts.
anyway, we don't know what the plan is for these two weeks, surely rest and enjoying each other, maybe an a few over night trips, or maybe the best stay-cation there has ever been. who knows! but i'm up for whatever and i'm loving the time off. hopefully i'll be able to put this lovely camera to use tons and can update ya'll on some adventures! as for tonight, we are enjoying dinner with my parents & brother; i can't wait!
and speaking of dinner, last week, tuesday to be exact, i made tacos for dinner. they were nothing super special, just absolutely delicious! if i do say so myself of course :) oh, except i DID make homemade guacamole using my moms fantastic recipe. thank you momma! taco tuesday should be weekly; i love tacos. at very least monthly!

homemade beef & broccoli

tonight i made, for the very first time ever, chinese. i decided to start with stir-fry, and i choose beef & broccoli. mainly, because i found a fairly simple recipe, but who doesn't love beef & broccoli?!

anyway, i've been wanting to get into making chinese food because we have a wok & some great cookbooks by Martin Yan. the recipe i used today, however, is from a Great American Recipes card i ended up with sometime in the last couple years. the recipe was fantastic! i had a little trouble getting the sauce to thicken [took an extra minute & a half than what was called for], and we decided that next time we'll use more brown sugar [just our taste]. i made white rice to accompany the meal. mr. phipps loved it, and i was pretty stoked to have tried it out. it's a great introductory recipe. it was easy & did i mention delicious? i can't wait to venture more into asian cooking.
i'll share the recipe & some photos. enjoy!

Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry
serves: 6, prep time: 20mins, cook time: 15mins


ingredients:
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tbsp. firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp. black pepper
2 tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
2 lb top sirloin, sliced 1/4-inch thick
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 medium heads broccoli
2 tsp. grated fresh gingerroot

steps:
1. in a small bowl, combine soy sauce, lemon juice, cornstarch, brown sugar, garlic & pepper. set aside.
2. heat 1 tbsp. vegetable oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. add beef & stir-fry until almost cooked through, about 2 mins. transfer beef to a plate & cover to keep warm.
3. heat remaining oil in wok/skillet. add onion & stir-fry for 5 mins. cut broccoli into florets & add to wok/skillet with 1/2 cup water. bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat & simmer for 3 mins.
4. return beef to skillet with soy sauce mixture; add ginger. bring to a boil & cook stirring constantly, until sauce thickens, about 2 minutes. serve hot.

Oatmeal Cookies

i always love tuesdays because they are like my friday. i got off work a little early today and decided to come home and make oatmeal cookies. i had been looking thru cookbooks and found a recipe from Mrs. Fields Cookie Book that i wanted to try. the recipe is called "oatmeal raisin chews" but i decided to use craisins instead.

Oatmeal Chews


2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup quick oats [not instant]
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup salted butter, softened
2 Tbsp. honey
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups craisins [or whatever fruit you prefer]
[optional] 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
combine flour, soda, salt & oats. mix well with wire whisk, set aside.
blend sugars with mixer at medium speed. add butter & mix to form a grainy paste. scrape down sides of bowl, then add honey, vanilla & eggs. mix at medium speed until light & fluffy.
add flour mixture, craisins & nuts. blend at low speed just until combined.
drop onto cookie sheets. bake for 20-24 mins or until cookies are a light golden brown.
yield: about 3 dozen

                                       

i was really impressed with this recipe. the cookies are delicious [if i do say so myself!], moist, & chewy. i will definitely be making these again in the future.

ALSO, it's late, but, yesterday was Captain's [our nickname for Kevin] birthday! happy one year old my sweet little monster.

br00tal + kevin

last night mr. phipps and i were playing with our monsters [or dogs, whatever you prefer] in the office. i was thinking that aside from phones & computers, we've never taken actual pictures of them. i thought you might want a peek, so here they are:


kevin is our almost [his birthday is february 14th] 1 year old brown/tan miniature dachshund.
br00tal is our 11-ish [his birthday is march 14th] month old grey miniature poodle.
they both have such enormous personality & are wildly different. br00tal is slightly, okay no a lot, spastic, and kevin thinks he's the boss of the universe, but he's such a love pie. he always wants to cuddle. the poodle can't stay still for more than a second.

those are our boys xo

sandwich delight

it's amazing what a cupboard will hide! while moving we found a sandwich grill we had gotten as a gift for our wedding. and a couple weeks ago when my parents were up helping us unpack my mom suggested that we use it to make lunch. i just wanna say... if you have never used one, you're totally missing out! it's probably one of the greatest things ever.
we have this one by Cuisinart; it's really reasonably priced. there are several out on the market, however, if you have a different  preference or price range. this one grills 2 at one time, so that is an awesome feature. it not only grills your sandwich into delicious yumminess, but it also seals off the crust and cuts it on the diagonal. it transforms a blah lunch/dinner into something amazing. i think we've had more sandwiches in the last 2 weeks than i had in the previous year. there are so many options, and we are having a great time coming up with new spins on a classic.  my current fave is kind of our take on a Monte Cristo. kind of.

ingredients [for two!]:

-4 slices of bread

-deli sliced turkey, ham or both

-cream cheese

-2 small slices sharp cheddar cheese

-spreadable butter

-raspberry preserve 

steps:

lightly butter 1 side of each slice of bread. lightly spread cream cheese on 2 slices, on the non-buttered side. place on grill butter side down. add meat[s] and cheese. grill sandwich. add preserves to your preference and enjoy!

sandwiches have never been more delicious or easy! do you have any sandwich favorites?