Travel 101: Part 1

I've been thinking a lot about travel lately - and honestly, that's nothing new.  But I've also been thinking about how I travel and how I plan to travel.  I'm assuming everyone has their own way of going about it and deciding what they'll see.  And I'm definitely no different. 

But I'm just now starting some big trip planning for 2017 and I thought it might be at least a little bit interesting to hear how I go about planning my own trips.  I've been told I'm a little too organized when it comes to itineraries and planning, but I like to see everything when I travel, and it's the best way I know how to do that. So here's my own personal Step 1 in the travel journey.  And I'm sure you're excited to hear that there will be more steps over the coming months : )

Of course, Pre-Step 1 is deciding where to go.  This is the most important  and necessary step I suppose.  In this case, I'm thinking Italy.  I've never been there, and I LOVE Italian food. It's a win-win.  However, I know next to nothing about Italy. So the very best place I know to fix that is not the Google, but the Pinterest. In the old days, I probably would have hit travel guides, but now that Pinterest exists, it makes my life so much easier. 

After initially searching on Italy travel, I learned a few things.  Lots of people have been to Italy and have written loads about their travels.  And most importantly, I never realized just how many amazing destinations there are within Italy, and how very, very little I know about any of them.  Usually I have a vague idea of what I want to see.  When it comes to travel planning, I highly suggest that.  Because after that first search, I was ready to scrap Italy and just go back to England where I knew what I liked and where I loved. 

But I pushed on.  Any articles that included places that looked interesting, I pinned.  I wasn't looking for set destinations per se, I was just looking for ideas. And in this searching for ideas I found I really liked the idea of seeing Venice (I learned most people visit during the day there, so it's kind of cool and eerie to find a hotel and do the overnight thing.) I liked Verona for no other reason than the Shakespeare connection.  I also learned that while everyone says you have to see Rome, it wasn't catching my eye like other places were.  I learned I pin a lot of food related travel items which should really come as no surprise. And so far, that's pretty much it.  I'm definitely not "there" yet. But we're getting there.

That's basically my pinning stage in a nutshell.  Pinterest helps me because I'm visual and just getting to see the photos of these beautiful places really sparks my interest in the country and gets me excited to go there.  I'll most likely stay in this stage for another few months.  By that time, I will have a general idea of the places I want to see.  Then we'll move on to the next stage - paring down the list.  Not nearly as fun, but definitely necessary if you value not racing around a country with heavy luggage for a week.

Pinteresting Dinner

One thing I love about living in the 21st century is being able to go online when I have no idea what to make for dinner and be shown hundreds of photos of yummy meals. It really is a time saver.  Once again, I'm proclaiming my love for Pinterest.  And this time around, I'm also throwing in Pillsbury into my most favorite things list.

These are Baked Egg Crescents and they can be found here. And they are awesome! Unfortunately, I cooked them a teensy bit too long which meant the eggs weren't ooey and gooey like they were supposed to be.  Other than that mini flaw, I'd say these things were an absolute success.  

You used to be able to do this recipe searching in cookbooks before the amazingness of the internet, but I feel it's just so much easier with Pinterest.  Afterall, a cookbook doesn't also have craft projects, travel planning ideas and all the cute dog pictures you could ever want : )

52 Lists: Week 10

While compiling the list of the sites I visit EVERY day, I've learned 2 things.  One, I'm quite predictable in my site visiting as well as the order in which I visit them.  And two, the sites I visit are ridiculous.  No deep thoughts there...

There's the serious addiction to Social Media.  To be fair, I hardly ever post, but I do love looking at everyone else's posts. I'm quite partial to Twitter and Pinterest...

Then there's the requisite email check - usually full of stores wanting me to buy things.

Then I head over to Feedly Reader to read up on all the blogs that were post over night.  I have mostly crafting, food and entertainment blogs. I usually gravitate to articles posted by BuzzFeed, Studio Calico and TV Line. 

                                                                                                           

Then I actually start reading intelligent articles.  I like to check the news overnight and since the NY Times and the Baltimore Sun require you to actually pay for a subscription, I tend to go to the Huffington Post for the big headlines - the big headlines that is, that I didn't see already on Twitter.

Lastly, if I find something fabulous on Twitter, I head over to Broadway.com, NY Times Arts section, NY Times Travel section and Serious Eats.

Oh and last, but not least, it's most definitely a trip to YouTube - usually while I'm reading to listen to a loop of about 20 music videos that are my faves.  It's a pretty great playlist - wish there was a way to get it on my iPod!

 Like I said, there's not a lot of big thoughts happening on my daily internet searches.  However, there doesn't seem to be a lot of big thoughts happening in the hard news these days, so why not enjoy myself? 

Isn't She Crafty?

I'm one of those people that walk around stores and think "I could make that." Then I spend hours upon hours and 3 times the amount of money it would have cost to just buy the item, to make it.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.  You wouldn't believe the number of half made projects I have laying around my house.

So when the whole watercolor craze kicked up, obviously, I decided " I can do that." And based on my first attempt, this is one of those times when I actually can do that.  The best part is, it's actually quite fun.  Don't ask me why I decided to paint Shrek. I was on Etsy last night. There were cute typographic quotes from movies.  One thing led to another, and out popped Shrek.  

What I now have to figure out is how to print on watercolor paper, so I can add some super cute quote to it.  I mean he's fairly adorable, but right now he's just half a head.  It definitely needs something else. But thanks to Pinterest, I have quite a few ideas of what to add.  

Long live craftiness!

Life Lately...

Reading...There's been absolutely no reading in the last month.  I have a stack of Christmas books calling my name and yet I can't seem to focus on anything long enough to start them. Thank goodness for Christmas vacation - I foresee loads of reading in my future.

Obsessing Over...Strangely enough, scrapbook organization products.  I literally went out at lunch earlier today just because I had found a great way to store stickers and embellishments on Pinterest and I wanted to see if Michael's had the containers I was coveting.  Score! They not only had them, but all the storage pieces were 40% off.  Now that's what I call a good deal.

Perusing...Loads of Project Life centered blogs and sites.  The internet is such a rabbit hole. One amazing blogger links to another amazing blogger and then so on and so forth.  Before you know it, I'm following 50 different scrappers on Instagram and have 452 thousand new ideas for projects. 

Socializing...I'm still a Twitter girl (reading hardly ever tweeting) but I'm finding myself on Instagram more and more.  So many fun things to find!

Buying...Even though it's Christmas time and even though I've asked for crafty things for Christmas, I can't resist the pull of Black Friday Sales.  StudioCalico.com has been my downfall this week.  I can hardly contain my excitement for my package to arrive. You have no idea the steals they're offering!

Feeling...Super ready for the Holiday Fun to begin.  Christmas is always stressful but it really is the most wonderful time of the year!

Pondering...A new fun feature/blog thing that could be awesome if I could get my bestie to take the bait.  Also, is it possible to survive solely by crafting all day.  I don't really need a job.  I can quit my boring 9-5 for greener pastures of crafting, travel and reading and just assume I'll win the lottery to support myself, right?

Friday Five

1. Getting things done!  Woohoo!  I just spent the last 4 hours trying to get a craft project done and while I still need a few things to finish it, it's about 95% there.  Thank goodness! Now that it's almost done, I'm loving it!  I've been hating it for a while mostly because I couldn't make it work, but now that I have, it's really coming together.  So happy and can't wait to see the recipient get it next week ; )

2. I feel this same way when someone won't share their food with me : )

3. I went on the lookout this week for some bookish twitter accounts - yep, I'm that girl.  Anyway, my very favorite account could be quite interesting for all I know, but the real reason I followed it was for her Twitter handle - @ScrewyDecimal.  Ha!  Love it!

4. And while on the subject of books, I want to open a book store just so I can use these adorable signs.  I love the puns and the sentiment.  Yay books!

5. My new obsession is freebies for Digital Project Life on Pinterest.  Do you have any idea how many free things are on Pinterest?  It's amazing.  Why on earth would any one buy kits, when you can just use the super cute freebies online.  I can't wait to start using them.

Currently...

Please excuse the mundane this evening, my brain is fried...

Watching (Actually bingeing): Psych - I'm 3.5 seasons from the end.  I'm working toward finishing before the new season starts on Monday.  I don't think even I can watch it quick enough.

Reading: A Seaside Affair by Fern Britton.  I read The Holiday Home last year and loved it. I'm even more in love with this one since it's based on Cornwall.  One of these days I'm going to get down there.  For now, I'll just have to read and dream.

Feeling: Quite warm.  I "officially" turned off the air on Monday since it's been chilly in the mornings.  However, it's now 80 degrees in here and I'm a bit toasty.  I plan to go to bed in a few minutes and I'm pretty sure, before I do, the AC's coming with me.

Crafting: A surprise present for someone special, Christmas cards and my England album.  All of which are way too stressful than they should be.

Wondering: If the Chiefs can manage to beat the Broncos this evening.  I hope so mostly because I'm so tired of hearing Manning's name and the Broncos beat us this weekend so they deserve to lose!

Googling: Austin Texas places to eat. Vancouver (places to eat if you really must know), Drexel U online, how to unclog a drain naturally

Loving: FREE Project Life Printables on Pinterest.  FREE!!!  How awesome is that!?

Kitchen Pinning

Every once in a while, Pinterest delivers a winning recipe.  Tonight's was Skillet Lasagna.  It was a weird little recipe but it was also delicious!  I love lasagna, but it takes hours and hours to make - of course, I've never actually made it so I can't really talk.  Anyway, this only took about an hour - disregard the 30 minute part.  It's definitely not a 30 minute recipe.  I mean, it's quick but it's not that quick.

It may have had something to do with adding peppers and onions to it.  Everything is better with peppers and onions.  Oh and switching from ground beef to ground pork made it pretty delicious too - and a little healthier too.  Check me out, being all healthy and stuff! Anyway, it's most definitely a keeper.

Add to that, the garlic knots that I sort of kitchen sink-ed together - Pillsbury Crescents, tossed with some garlic, parmesan, butter and Italian seasoning, before and after baking.  Yum!  It was pretty much the perfect Italian dinner - and I don't often say that about food that I've made. (Unless of course, you're grading the photos too, in which case I've failed miserably.  Honestly, it was much too delicious to worry about cameras and such...)

Two for the Price of One

Feeling super-accomplished today.  Not that anything huge happened.  I didn't mark anything giant off any lists or tough it out through any big projects.  No, I just managed to be doubly-creative - in the kitchen and the craft room.  Seeing as I've been basically a slug this summer for some reason, it feels pretty good to say that.  Usually it's one or the other, not both.  And when I've attempted both, things have not gone as smoothly as they did today.

First up was dinner which consisted of two Pinterest recipes-ish.  The main course was Bruschetta Chicken.  Basically grilled chicken with tomato mozzarella salad on top.  I didn't really require a recipe since I make both a lot, but for some reason I never thought to put the salad on the chicken.  It sort of goes against the no hot tomato rule, however, since the tomatoes weren't on top for long, it wasn't too bad.  It was actually pretty delicious!

For the side dish, I'd been wracking my brain all week.  I wanted something summery and not too heavy.  Originally I thought noodles, but I wasn't sure what to serve on them.  Then I started leaning towards Zucchini but I couldn't figure out how to serve it without having to go through the trouble of breading it and frying it.  That's where Pinterest comes to the rescue again.  Just type in zucchini and you have hundreds of recipes at your fingertips. That's where I found the Zucchini Crisps with Parmesan cheese.  They couldn't have been easier. However, they could have been crisper.  Next time, I'll try parchment rather than cooking spray. But all in all they were pretty tasty.  Not necessarily the prettiest, but great in a pinch.

Then it was off to make cards for a guy that's leaving work for another state tomorrow.  I'm terrible at making guy cards, so they may be a wee-bit girlier than they should be.  Thought I honestly don't think they're too bad, when you think about all the pink and flowers I had to sift through to find boy-ish paper and embellishments : )

In the Kitchen: Experimental Edition

Looks delicious doesn't it?  I thought so too. Until I decided to scoop it out and nothing in the center was done...

I started the day searching for a recipe on Pinterest for dinner tonight.  I wanted something breakfast-y like a strata, however, those need to be refrigerated over night and I didn't have that kind of time.  After picking through a few, I found a sausage gravy version that used Grands Biscuits and store-bought gravy mix.  I hate store bought gravy but I LOVED the idea of using Grands as opposed to plain old bread. 

So I sort of improvised.  I used sausage, and onions and peppers.  Then I scrambled some eggs and mixed it all in with quartered grands biscuits.  And that's where we picked up the story.  It took a bit to get it to finish, and when I pulled it out, it wasn't jiggly anymore.  But as soon as I scooped, it was still juicy inside. Gross!

I followed the directions from the sausage gravy recipe for timing. Apparently, store bought gravy cooks much faster than eggs & sausage...Fortunately, I have a microwave which helped.  After the grumpiness of uncooked eggs subsided, the dinner was pretty delicious! 

I have to say, if it weren't for that annoying part in the middle, I would amaze myself : )

Nosy Nelly

Way back when, when scrapbook magazines were a thing, I discovered that I was a nosy nelly.  I would buy the magazines to look for ideas for scrapbooking or new tools, but would wind up caring way too much about the stories on the pages.  They put these beautiful pages that have all sorts of stories about their kids or their travels, and I just had to read them.  And seeing as most of the photos of the pages were tiny, it required some seriously close-reading - it's probably why I wear glasses today :)

Anyway, scrapbook magazines went out and so did the stories.  But after perusing some Project Life ideas on Pinterest today, I realized I'm still just as nosy.  The best part of doing this sort of research online is that I can make the photos bigger and easier to read.  How have I never figured this out? And even better, with blogs, you can mostly read the entire story rather than just the snippet in the magazine.  How great is that?!

Please tell me I'm not the only one who loves just a little snooping?  Because honestly, scrapbookers are so darn creative, that their stories are much more fascinating and well written than some authors out there.  

Friday Five

1. 3 Words to Describe Comic Con: I suppose if I had to describe it, I'd choose, Super Awesome, Geektastic! 
           
2. This is 100% truth.  Though I highly disagree with #11.  It should be Books & Tea - wine is not necessary at all!

3. I'm kinda loving Complications on USA Network.  I was trying not to get interested, because I'm still mourning White Collar (How could USA cancel the best show on TV!?).  But I accidentally caught an episode on repeat, and it's pretty darn compelling.  I'm guessing it's because Jason O'Mara is darn watchable (and adorable, but that's beside the point.)  Oh and Parker from Leverage is playing his wife - how could it go wrong!?

4. A few years ago I found the Almost Better than Anything cake on the back of a chocolate cake box.  And fell in love with it.  It's basically a chocolate poke cake with the holes filled with sweetened condensed milk, caramel and toffee, then covered in whip cream.  Yes, it's as decadent and delicious as it sounds!  I hadn't made it in forever, until last night, and had forgotten just how amazing it actually was.  I do amaze myself sometimes : )

5. I'm in the middle of a little Lunchbox Project.  I've been terrible at taking my lunch to work with me lately, so I wanted to start.  But the problem with taking lunches is that I can never find something yummy to make.  That's when Pinterest came to the rescue.  For the last 4 days, I was able to put together some fairly healthy, delicious lunches that included snacks and goodies.  Oh and they're kinda pretty too!  Plans are to continue at least 4 days a week.  At least one day has to be out lunch fun day : )

Pinning in the Kitchen

After a bit of a drought on the cooking/baking front, I somehow happened upon 2 winners on Pinterest this week.  I actually went back and forth on trying either of them; I wasn't sure how they'd turn out.  But I'm super happy I decided to give them a shot.  They were both delicious, even if dessert wasn't exactly what I was expecting.

First up, for dinner was the Chicken Caprese Flatbreads.  This one I sort of winged.  I can see the pin, and click on it, but no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to scroll down and see the recipe.  But I sort of got the idea from the picture, so I just rolled with it. Maybe you'll have better luck.  

I'm not sure why it never occurred to me to grill the bread dough like that, but it's a fabulous idea!  I used chicken thighs because I like them, and they shred well, and excluded the arugula and pesto, in favor of garlic oil.  I also strategically placed the tomatoes between the chicken and the cheese to avoid the whole warm tomato conundrum.  (There's a good chance you won't have to do that, since you're probably not as weird about hot tomatoes as I am, but in case you are, it worked perfectly!)

Conclusion: Perfect dinner for a super hot and humid summer day!

Next up, for dessert was Peach Cobbler.  Now, I LOVE peach cobbler.  It's one of my most favorite desserts. However, it's quite difficult to make when you don't have really good peaches, which is the whole reason I chose this recipe.  It used canned peaches as opposed to fresh, which is a good thing since it's not quite peach season time yet.  I had a bit of problem with the pin not matching the recipe; it's basically 2 recipes in one.  And seeing as I misread and forgot the self rising flour, there was a bit of finessing of the recipe - AP Flour mixed with baking powder seemed to do the trick.  I also had to bake it for a full hour as opposed to the 45 minutes.  I probably would have baked it longer, since I was dreaming of  a crispy top, but the master baker prevailed and I finally took it out.  It was no where near what I was expecting. In the photo it looks all nice and crisp and crunchy on top.  Mine was neither, but...

Conclusion: It was pretty darn tasty with vanilla ice cream!  Delish!

Looks like it was a 2 for 2 evening in the kitchen - love it when that happens!

Things you Learn...

When attempting to teach yourself how to shoot in manual as opposed to automatic.  

~ Turns out, I have no idea what I'm doing.

~ Pinterest cheat sheets are awesome, seeing as I'd have a 0% chance of ever figuring things out without them.

~ This centerpiece was a lovely subject.  However, you can't see it in a single one of the photos I took because even though the cheat sheet told me I was doing everything right, my camera wasn't believing it.  

 ~ Once I figure things out and I actually succeed in taking a single decent picture, I've no way to replicate it because I forget what I've changed to make it all work in the first place.

~ I'm terrible at selfies... though this may not be just a manual photo phenomenon.

~ England, may just have to be taken using auto.  There's too much to photograph and not enough time to learn how.

In the Kitchen: Danish Dream Cake

I was so excited when I found this recipe for Danish Dream Cake last week on Saveur (another reason to love Twitter - Recipes!!).  It looked absolutely delicious!  How can you say no to coconut.  What's even better, which is slightly out of the ordinary for a Saveur recipe, it seemed fairly easy.  There were no crazy expensive ingredients that would only be used for this cake, and never to be seen again. 

And honestly, seeing it come out of the oven, I was pretty darn proud of myself.  I mean look at it!  It's gorgeous!

                 

 

And while, it's beautiful, it wasn't exactly what I wanted.  The cake itself was pretty good - more like a pound cake than I was expecting.  And the topping was coconut-y, but for me it was too coconut-y.  Too sweet!  The verdict is that it's definitely not my favorite, but I have to say - I might have to make it again, just for the sheer wow factor of just how pretty it is : )

Friday Five

1. Another Friday, another BarkPost full of more Dog Shaming.  Why these are so funny, I've never quite figured out but they so are!

2. I can't quite figure out how to post something this long so I'm linking the Pin.  I think this will work.  What a super cute way to get girls interested in making things.  And it's cheap to boot! I have to say, if I attempted these works of art, I'm not sure they'd be this awesome. But I know for a fact they wouldn't succeed if I tried them with fabric!  Gotta love a cheap craft!

3. Truth!

4. I saw this the other day and thought it was the cutest quote ever.  Leave it to GISHWHES to be funny and tug a the heartstrings at the same time.

5. I've been dying to see An Act of God on Broadway since it was announced that Jim Parsons was cast as God.  Well it opened last night to glowing reviews!  Woohoo!  Not that I was worried, but I'm super happy that it's as good as I was hoping it would be.  Now to just get tickets...

Craft and Burn

I have a friend that pushes himself to be creative at least an hour a week.  He does all sorts of crafty, and writer-y things in one hour on Sunday. It's pretty impressive because I just tried to do an hour and I fizzled after 20 minutes.  What the heck?!  This winter, I was full of crafty ideas and had plans for lots of projects.  I was on a roll and crafting up a storm.  I still have some of those plans in my head, but I can't make myself do them.

I had one idea for this evening, after it appeared to crash and burn, I gave up.  I can't seem to like whatever I'm making or writing for that matter.  That leaves baking and cooking. Thank goodness for that.  At least I'm having some good luck with those projects.  Love Pinterest recipes!  

Of course, thanks to Pinterest, I have all sorts of craftiness too calling my name, but I just hate the way it's all turning out.  Why am I so picky? I can't even show them to other people. Chances are they'd like what they see, but I hate it, so they stay in the bin of junk crafts. Ugh! It's a vicious cycle - oh the life of a creative person : ) I see scrapbookers and bloggers create beautifully crafted projects each and everyday. They share ideas, and photos.  Every day they're creative and fantastic! 

Today?  I spent most of my time attending a cyber policy seminar.  How in the world did I wind up here?

Bucket List Confusion

There's a new trend that's been sweeping Pinterest for the last few months.  Apparently, pinners are taking actions or activities they'd like added to their bucket list and making sentimental little posters of them, then pinning them for all their Pinterest friends to see. At first it seemed like a good idea to me.  Having goals is always positive.  But then I started to read them.  It's sort of easy to see who may be doing the majority of the pinning of these "very important" life goals.

Some are completely attainable, in that, they could literally complete the action at that very moment.  For instance, send a message in a bottle or take a photo a day for a year.  I understand wanting to introduce creativity to your life, but why make it a huge goal when you most likely have paper, pen and bottle at your fingertips and you most likely own a smart phone with a fantastic camera that's glued to your hip?  Hello!  You can start your bucket list right this very moment.  It literally took you longer to create the poster and pin it to Pinterest than it would have taken you to write the letter in a bottle.

Some go in the opposite direction.  Basically they're impossible for some reason or another, like being against the laws of physics ("Be in 2 places at once.") or not being a real place ("Visit Tomorrowland.") Bloggers note: I'm assuming they mean the super natural setting of the new George Clooney movie but I could be mistaken.

Then they're are others that are so ridiculous that you wonder about the person that would include these items as a life goal:
Jump in a swimming pool of jello.
Put a piece of gum on the gum wall in Seattle.
Do paint balloon darting. (I have NO idea what this even means!)
Go through a drive-thru on a horse (What?)

Of course, you also have ones that are just a bit sad.  Those are the people I worry about.  I worry that one of their biggest goals in life is really having a walk-on closet, or building a gingerbread house.  I'm just not thinking they're thinking big enough.  Or the girls (it just has to be teen girls) can't really think in 50 years they'll care about having a wardrobe they actually like (why'd you buy the clothes in the first place if you didn't like them?) or making a rainbow rose.

But then again, all this focus on big ideas and big trips, is sometimes good for the ego. Sometimes, you hear about these amazing trips that people have taken and you start to wonder if you'll ever get to go to these places and have awesome adventures.  But then, you start seeing fabulous places pop up on Bucket Lists - fabulous places you've actually been (Shop in NYC.  See a Broadway Show. Visit Abbey Road. See the monuments in DC), and you start to realize how lucky you really are.

Of course there's always room for a few extra awesome goals to strive for in the future:

~See Australia, Germany, Austria, Italy, and New Zealand.

~Have my happily ever after complete with the perfect shabby chic wedding to Prince Charming and 2. 5 kids (with the picket fence and the puppy too - not really tied to the picket fence, most flats in Notting Hill don't have picket fences...)

~Dinner at the French Laundry, Franklin BBQ, and Momofuku.

~Master French and re-master Spanish, and learn Sign Language.

~Create the perfect job that mixes helping people, papercrafting, travel and entertainment. Quit my old boring job and do that instead : )

~Completely step out of my comfort zone and do GISHWHES

Project Life Update

Almost 2 months in, and I'm still loving it.  I never thought I'd be saying that, but I am.  I will admit to being slightly skeptical about some layouts I've seen on Pinterest.  They're incredibly complex and look like they took hours and hours. They're also gorgeous!  But others are beautifully simple and perfect! Those are the ones I'm jealous of.

Mine?  Mine's not so perfect.  There's no real theme and it's pretty much a mish-mash of random photos that have been taken the last 7 weeks.  But it means something to me. And that's what really matters.  The worst part is that I find myself wishing someone would look at it.  When it's all finished of course.  I haven't shared it yet.  But I like the idea of someone besides me looking back at the year.  Not someone who has a great deal of scrap-titude, because it's not entirely up to snuff.  But, someone who appreciates the idea behind it.  Of course, most of my friends, really aren't into scrapping so it's sort of lost on them.  

I also like the idea of melding the pocket scrapping onto other trips and events.  I've already started a smaller album for Where I've Stood this year, as well as the grand European adventure, a DC event and my Austin trip. Of course, the more ideas I get the more albums I want to start.  It's obviously a never ending cycle - dangerous and fantastic at the same time!

Oh and 2 months in, and I've yet to tire of finding the perfect organizational strategy for Project Life.  I'm really feeling a trip to Ikea sooner rather than later...

Pinning in the Kitchen

This might be the best brownie recipe ever.  Please ignore the utter crappiness of my own cell phone photo on the fly and just give the recipe a try.  They were made for tomorrow and cut to look like hearts - clever and original I thought?  I'm just glad I did the cutting.  That way I could have tons of bites from the leftover non-cut pieces.  Smart, right?  These make me very, very happy : )

And you haven't heard the best part yet.  So here's the poem that will accompany the email that will be sent to my co-workers announcing the arrival of said brownies.

Roses are Red,

Violets are Blue,

You've been working very hard,

So come have a brownie or two...

I'm ashamed to say that took me a lot longer to come up with that you'd think...