Our Weekend Menu!

Earlier this week I posted about mint-chocolate chip cookies and it really got me thinking. I had a nice little convo with myself (per usual) and it went something like this:

"Self, you should really reserve this weekend as a stay-in-to-cook-and-crochet-all-day weekend."

And I replied... "You are absolutely right, self."

I immediately looked at the weather forecast (I think the current temperature truly effects your diet). It's calling for low 70s, upper 60s all weekend. Perfect! My next step was to start searching around for new fall recipes that I haven't tried. I'm really into soups these days, plus all those pumpkin-y treats that are so a-la fall. So as I was searching around I stumbled across Annie's Eats and instantly fell in love. What a great food blog!

Here is my entire weekend menu straight to you. Maybe you'll be inspired to try something new! ;)

Saturday Morning:

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes Yum!

Saturday Lunch:

Roasted Garlic-Potato Soup

Saturday Dinner:

Braised Chicken with Peppers, Olives and Capers

Sunday Breakfast:

Baked Quinoa

Sunday Lunch:

Creamy Avacado Chicken Salad

*repurpose some of the chicken from last night's dinner*

Sunday Dinner

Chicken Pot-Pie

*Perfect for lunch the next day!*another re-purpose meal*

What's on your menu this weekend?

Time to update the calendar!

Just wanted to pop in and give you a few calendar updates!

10/1: Eveready Square Jewelry Show

10/8-9: Catoctin Color Fest

11/5: 2 Hands Market (morning/early afternoon)

11/5: http://www.shopthemuse.com/

11/19: Liberty High School Craft Fair

I guess it's time to hit the hooks ;)

xo,

Liz

my sentiments exactly.

The last weeks of August were surprisingly chilly in Maryland. September has been very temperate so far, and we have a few peeks of color changes on our trees! yay!

Now that I've been back to school for a while I'm realizing that life this time of year is just so good. It's sooo good.

Warmth and richness, I love it all.

xo, Liz

Too Pretty... DIY

When I stumbled across this, I instantly imagined it in every single color possible. If you're a holiday person, but don't get into festive colors, make one and you're done. However, they're SO easy, SO afordable, and SO beautiful. Check out this Pretty Rosie Wreath DIY over at The Pretty Poppy.

DIY Overload take 2!

As I meantioned earlier this week, I have been bookmarking so many DIYs. Some of them are more seasonal than others, but I think they each have loads of potential as we head into the coziest time of year. I hope you enjoy these DIYs or at leat find a few new cool blogs along the way!

 I saved this Pom Pom Wreath DIY from Miss. James over at Bleubird Vintage. It's a keeper for every season, but if you need some instant pep and cuteness--here you go! You can make a few for under $10! I made so many of these last year... for me and my friends! They loved how warm and quirky they were. Don't hesitate to make a smaller version if you have a teeny tiny apartment that you're trying to spruce up. I made my BFF in NYC a mini 8 inch wreath for her shoebox in Manhattan and it fit perfectly!

I don't know about you, but I am constantly forgetting where I put my needles. Unfortunately, my feet always find them. Or worse, Cory's feet. Leigh-Ann over at Freckled Nest had this adorable Needlebook DIY that would be the perfect handmade gift for a beginning seamstress, or a stocking stuffer for someone who is getting their very first sewing machine! There are many possibilities. If I can grab a second to myself this weekend, I need to get on this so I can stop buying new needles!

Now, I know the pom pom craze of the summer may have passed...but I think I'm going to bring it back for Christmas. Paper mistletoe! I think it would be so pretty to make a few of these in festive colors and then change them out in silver and gold just in time for New Years! I mean they're such a quick craft to use your pennies towards, you might as well make 'em to your heart's content! So, just incase you missed the summer-time obsession, here is Rachel's Paper Pom Pom DIY from over at Smile and Wave.



Now this DIY I am completely in love with. Talk about the perfect way to add some color to your holiday decor from October through Thanksgiving. Take a look at Danielle Thompson's Fabric Pumpkin DIY. A-d-o-r-a-b-l-e. I doubt I ever delete this DIY. I feel like I could make a million of these as gifts. Gosh. So stinking cute!

Okay, okay. I'll settle down now. Now go and create! Give the ladies behind these DIYs some love. They totally deserve it :).

P.S. Have you seen any awesome DIYs that I've missed? Paste a link in the comments! I'm always on the prowl :)

Theme of the Week...

After today's DIY Overload post, I decided that it should be the theme of the week. I understand you may not be in the same frame of mind as me (you know, craving some serious crafty time)... but I thought it would be handy to have SO many awesome DIYs all in one place! Agree?

Check back EVERY day this week for more DIYs to add to your To Make list or your gift list for the upcoming holiday season. I challenge you to try out a few of these DIYs and let me know how they go! Also, be sure to give credit where it's due to the artists behind the DIYs. They are so talented!

So go! Go make something! Enjoy your week and spend a little time in your creative mind :)

xo, Liz

(P.S. Anyone know the original source of the image above?)

Autumn Wishes

It's 10-10-10!

As geeky as it sounds, I love it when the dates align as so.

There is just something so magical and inspiring about it.

Maybe it's just me...

(source)

I know that I talk a lot about my love of this season, but it truly makes me feel so comfortable. It's nice to be myself again. Sometimes I feel like I pressure myself to fill my calendar to the brim when the weather is nice outside. Gotta take advantage of those beautiful days, ya know? However, I think fall and winter allow me to move at my own pace. Take a moment to cuddle if I want to. That's how I feel at least.

I love being able to take it s-l-o-w.

I am so excited for the last few months of 2010.

So in the name of taking it slow, here's what I hope to accomplish:

finish my handmade gifts for Christmas

decorate and re-decorate my home over and over again

drink lots of hot cider and hot chocolate

spend some time outdoors when the air is chilly and crisp

fall in love all over again

What are you putting on your plate for the rest of the year?

P.S. I'll be back later tonight with some adorable DIYs I've been bookmarking recently. Check back if you're in need of creative inspiration or gift ideas!

Long time no see...

Good morning! I'm sorry I haven't been around much this week; things have been very busy after school prepping for the big Homecoming Dance (tonight)! I haven't even had the time to pick up a crochet hook! boo!

Homecoming Week at the school I teach at looks a little something like this:

Monday-Friday is Spirit Week and each day has a different theme. These themes are omnipresent in the hallways, are the inspiration for many crazy outfits, and give us something to think about other than the regular hub-lub.

Thursday evening, after the home soccer game, is the annual Homecoming Bonfire on the softball field. Many school organizations set up booths with games, food, and photo ops, to raise a little money for their group. We have a large bonfire and the cheerleaders cheer, the band plays, and it's all around good holesome fun. It's one of my all-time favorite traditions. We even have a local fire truck that comes to "watch guard" that is green and white (our school colors).

Friday during the school day my classes help me and the SGA in the gym to help decorate for the dance. We usually have to stay after school for a few hours to finish up--but this year it went off without an ounce of trouble! We finished in RECORD time and I was pleased to have a few hours to myself before the annual Friday evening Homecoming football game. This where I am in charge of organizing the Homecoming Court and their families to be announced during halftime. This is where dreams come true and the Homecoming King and Queen are announced! This is also a lot of fun as mothers usually cry and dads well up, but hold it back.

Saturday is the Homecoming Dance from 8-11, but as advisor, I have to be at school a few hours early to greet the balloon delivery and DJ. I am so happy this year, though, because Ben (our friend and DJ from our wedding) is DJing the dance! Nothing like being able to hangout with your friend while at work!

As of midnight tonight, life will become normal as we tuck ourselves into a very deep and deserving sleep. I might wake up with a little more glitter in my hair than any other typical night, but it will be worth it.

I think I have finally found my happy place with school. I just had to stop comparing my students to semesters of yester years. It's a transition, and I know they are completely capable of achieving great things, but I think I need to be a bit more patient and show them "the way."

So off I go to find a new Little Black Dress for tonight's dance, but I want to leave you with some of my favorite dance photos! Have a lovely Saturday!

(P.S. All images were found here).

When will it happen!?

In my little corner of Maryland, it is still a blistering 90 degrees.

That's right. It's the last weekend in September, and we're still in shorts and tanks.

I am ready for autumn, gosh darn it! I feel like I need to send autumn an invitation to finally show up to the mid-Atlantic! Goodness gracious!

And to be perfectly honest, I'm pretty jealous of these beautiful field pictures. They make me crave corn mazes, crisp breezes, and well, you know the rest...

(sources: weheartit.com /tag: field)

Autumn Home Makeover part 2

A while back I posted the first post about my Autumn Home Makeover.

Here's how I used my rotary phone to add a little autumn flair to my dining room table!

Add a few instax camera to the avacado vintage glass candy dish and a few decorative pieces and wha-la!

Autumn Home Makeover

Cory and I have lived in our home for almost a year and a half. It's not our dream home by any means, but we really love the location, so we have tried our best to adjust to living with just one closet and no air conditioning.

In order to adjust to living in a rental home (we live in a 2-story duplex built in the late 1700s, so it's quite quirky), I like to re-decorate as often as possible. We started a "deep clean" last week and are still putting the finishing touches on each of the rooms, but I wanted to go ahead and show you our living room space!

Remember last week I mentioned the huge thrift store in Silver Spring, MD? The purpose of our trip was so I could find goodies to freshen up our home just in time to welcome autumn. Here's a look!

1. Pretty autumn inspired pom-pom and pennant garland.

The pennant has our "new" last name on it!

We had to get rid of my old army-green couch a few weeks ago, so we moved one of Cory's down from the office. It's a simple, modern shape from IKEA. I threw on a thrifted afghan to break up the white walls blending into the white couch.

2. New Mantel Design.

Check out these ah-mazing thermos' I got my hands on at the thirft store last weekend! The colors are great for fall; I'll probably keep the plaid and wood-grain patterns up for Christmas, too! My adorable Duaflex II camera has been abandoned for too long, so I put it on display ontop of a few vintage books (Joan Didion, a collection of British lit, and a folk art collection).

3. New Cross-Stitch pictures!

When I found a set of 3 of these beauties, I refused to sit them back down. I have two hanging in the living room, side by side, and one in our teeny-tiny bathroom. I'll post a better picture later!

So there's your first little taste! I'll be back with more soon.

What are you doing to make your home cozier for fall?

P.S. The thrift store I've been drooling over in this post is called Unique Thrift Store! Definitely a must-visit!

Pumpkin Crochet-Along

Wanna get into the autumn spirit? I know I'm already in the spirit, I'm just waiting for the season to catch up! Well, here's an awesome idea by an awesome lady. Let's crochet pumpkins!

I just signed up for the Itsy Bitsy Spider's Pumpkin Crochet-Along! I thought this would be great to make to decorate my home for Halloween and Thanksgiving. I also thought, since it's such a quick project, that I could make them for the little ones I see often! So, now that I've peer (or craft) pressured you... go sign up!

Watching the Leaves Change

I am so ready for autumn. I am ready for pumpkin patches, apple orchards, football games, flannel shirts, good books, slow music, cold nights. I am so ready. Autumn is my favorite season; everything feels like it glows in the sun. I love to go on long drives and look at the leaves. I love rainy autumn days. I'm ready. Here are some pictures I found (weheartit) that make me crazy about the second to last season of 2010! Enjoy :)

What are you looking forward to?