Friday, June 5, 2009

Summer Nights

The weather has truly been amazing! Not too hot. Not too cool. Just enough wind. Yum! Speaking of YUM…this is a must try summer recipe…

Steak Tostadas with Avacados, Tomatoes, and Olives

1 ½ lbs beef flank steak
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
2 tbsp Crushed Peppercorn & Garlic Rub
2 medium avocados
1 cup grape tomatoes
1 cup pitted kalamata olives
1 lemon
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
¼ tsp salt
12 tostadas
¾ cup cotija cheese, crumbled

  1. Heat Grill Pan over med-high heat 5 min. Brush both sides of steak with 1 tbsp of oil and sprinkle with rub. Place steak into pan; top with Grill Press. Cook 4 min. Turn; top with press. Reduce heat to med.;cook an additional 4-6 min. Remove from pan. Let stand 5 min.
  2. Meanwhile, peel and dice avocados. Cut tomatoes in half and coarsely chop olives. Zest lemon to measure 1 tsp. Juice lemon to measure 1 tbsp juice. Combine avocados, tomatoes, olives, zest, juice, parsley, salt and remaining oil; mix well.
  3. Thinly slice steak diagnally against the grain. Cut slices into 1-inch pieces. Divide among tostadas; top with avocado mixture and cheese.

Serves 6

My take-I used lime juice and zest because I didn’t have a lemon. I used roma tomatoes. We left out cheese and olives (David hates olives). We also used tortillas because I didn’t have tostadas. And last, if you don’t have the rub you can press 3 cloves of garlic, 1tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper instead. YUMMY!!! Super easy, but fresh, fantastic taste in your mouth.

Here is a pic of our oh so short bicycle lessons.

Good bedtime books from the library-Charlie and Lola :)

Then morning comes and today she is off for a a fun day of Sprinklers and Splashing at school.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Welcome To My Dressing Room

So, David (and Averi, of course) bought me a super cute dress for Mother’s Day, but it was a bit too big. By the time I took it back, they were all clearanced and did not have a smaller size. I was going to buy gym shorts instead (good intentions I have), but David really wanted me to have a new dress. So knowing me, I must try on every dress in town to make sure I get the right one at the right price. And on these journeys, here are a few thoughts from my precious little girl!

Dressing Room 1:

Averi- “Mom you have a baby in your tummy.”

Me- “No, Averi, I don’t. Why would you say something like that?”

Averi- “Because it’s big, mom.”

I knew I should have gone with the gym shorts instead of a dress! She’s so sweet, isn’t she?

Dressing Room 2:

Setting: We are in one of the front dressing rooms so the staff is right outside, 3 of them to be exact.

Averi- “Mom, why did you take your panties off?

Me- “Averi, I didn’t take my panties off. That’s not funny.”

Averi- “Yes you did mom. Why did you take your panties off?”

Me- “Averi Love, I am wearing my panties.”

Averi- “No you aren’t mommy. Why did you take them off?”

Clearly I look like I have totally taken off ALL of my clothing and am trying to cover up the fact that my sweet little girl is announcing it to the entire dressing room when in fact I NEVER took my panties off!!! She’s so funny, right!

The replacement dress...awful pictures, but they really are cute!

It's eggplant, empire waist and full length. Love it!


Perfect green, strapless and knee length!
I guess I'm ready for a summer night out now!:)

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

And the winner is...

This is for all 4 of my voters! Yes, that comment is to the millions of other blog readers I have that did not vote!

Well, I was torn, and I waited hoping the the votes would pour in and the decision would be clear. And this is how the votes fell…

Bag 1-3
Bag 2-2
Bag 3-1
Bag 4-0
Bag 5-1
Bag 6-0
Added Later
Bag 7-0
Bag 8-1
And I went with the winner.

Bag 1 is on its way to being mine! Oh I hope the delivery man comes soon! I can’t wait!

Bags 2 and 4 sold. All bags except the added ones were from Etsy. They were from Ebay. And Shelli did send me a few pics to consider too. Etsy is a great place to find vintage stuff. BUT since I really wanted to pay like $4 for a bag like I found at the garage sale, I have been frequenting thrift shops and garage sales. It is fun! And a bit addicting, so if I start posting finds like crazy, please tell me to STOP! This is one of my favorite finds…

A great addition to brighten the kitchen and add a bit of COLOR!

I have some new projects I am working on with some other finds. Can’t wait to show them to you soon!

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Snag that Bag

As I mentioned before, I passed over a great yellow purse at a garage sale about a month ago. But I still really, really want one. I don't need one...not at all really. But I have a bit of money that I could snag one with. So, the one I saw was a medium to large size bag with some pockets, etc. But it is GONE...right, Emilee, it is GONE! So, these are a few options. I am not giving you prices in the initial voting, but do tell, which yellow purse would make your day brighter? (your meaning mine of course, because if i discovered one of you thought, that is a cute purse, i think i'll snag it...oh man oh man! not a good day...point taken. :) But I would love your vote!Numero Uno

Number 2

Three Three Three

Four

High Five
Blast for the Last...#6

Can't wait to hear from you!

Monday, May 25, 2009

Weekend Update by Emilee Little

Friday night was GIRLS NIGHT!!! I rarely leave my little lady, so I was thankful when she came up with the idea to stay at her Nammy's house on Friday. (even though she was going there anyway) But it was so fun to hang out with my lady friends! We started the night at Flips. My neighbor is a waitress there and so kindly comped my Stella! The Italian Nachos were fabulous, but not so much the bruchetta. Still a fun time!

Then we went to Burlington...random. But at dinner I was talking about how I have been mad at myself for 3 weeks because I went to this garage sale around the corner because they had some super cute chairs out. I realized, if I bring those chairs home, David might think I am truly a crazed pack rat. So Averi and I browsed a bit. Saw this yellow purse. Liked it. Loved it. Passed it up. Realized I had made a big mistake. Went back, and it was GONE! So, inspired by my grief, we went to find a yellow purse. Nothing! But I did get some new sunglasses! I suck at shopping alone, so after 20 "nos", we found a "yes".

We ended the night at Cuppies and Joe. Great place. I had a Caramel Latte and Bangarang. Delicious!

Here we are...

This is little Addie laughing! So cute!


Saturday...
Girls came over for breakfast. Yummy waffles and berries and sausage balls and bacon....Still full! We enjoyed the great weather, but the dang misquitos! I hate them and they still love me!

Watched Because I said So while the kiddos napped! Great movie!

Went to Daisy Exchange. Wish I could get passed my foot thing because they have cute shoes, but used shoes are just a bit gross to me.

Enjoyed the sand park...what a wonderful place.

Finished with tacos!

One more day to this weekend makes me so so happy. They should always be like this!

The morning project...


What do you think??? Ave has a breaker box above her bed, so this will cover it up. It has been black for a while now, so we added a little dancer. She had to be abstract because I don't really know how to paint, and the swishes are with glitter paint. Looks better in person. Fun!

Shopped a bit. As soon as my napper wakes we are off to the Paseo Arts Festival and to celebrate my sisters b-day!

Friday, May 22, 2009

Sooo HOT!

My coffee this morning was SOOO HOT! AND I didn't have to boil water prior to making it! A true miracle. You see, I am a real thrifty lady, so for the past month I have been boiling water in my tea kettle and putting it into my coffee maker to make hot coffee because my coffee maker that I have had for 5 years has quit on me!:( But coffee makers aren't cheap. Occasionally you might luck on to a clearance one otherwise you are looking at $70 and up for a quality machine. And having to spend this much is not something that makes me happy. BUT a while back we did luck on to a great Delonghi that we got for David. And since he is not in an office all day, he said he no longer needs coffee to wake him up in the mornings. (No matter where I work, I will always need and want coffee in the morning.) So...I now have his coffee maker, and I drank some really HOT coffee today and it was amazing.So thankful!

Averi does like coffee, but she is not really allowed to drink drink coffee at this point. So, she started her Friday off with a bowl of okra. That's right. Okra. She loves it. I figure it is just a good for her as most breakfast foods, so I let her eat okra for breakfast today.


As she happily stares at her okra! It must be good!
And we both say...We hope your Friday morning was as good as ours!

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Who Would Have Thought

She LOVED her new school!!! She made some new friends when we took her in, and she didn't even cry when I headed across the street to work. When I picked her up she couldn't stop talking about how much fun she had, her new teachers, new friends, and how it was "really great" and everyone was "really nice" and how Nammy "really" should come meet her new friends sometime soon. She really likes to use the word "really" right now and she sounds so old!

We went to Barnes and Noble in celebration. Since it is right by my office and her new school it will be tricky to not go there every day. She loves it, and well...so do I.

Last night we began again. We began the family journey we love...The Bachlorette! We love Jillian and can't wait to see what happens. We know it is corny and faulty and fake, but we love love and we love The Bachlorette! So far we like Kiptyn, weird name though...we'll see!