labor day weekend.

I was trying to decide what image to use for this post - and when I typed in "end of summer" this is the image I stumbled across. Could there be a picture that says "end of summer" any better? I think not. And now I'd like to rent Grease, ASAP.

Anyway - I've admittedly been a bad blogger this week. Throw a dog in your life, and you have to refigure your entire routine. Who knew? I promise I'm working on figuring out the best time for blogging, and I'll be back in full force next week.

This week I:

- had a short visit to the ER (yt was being overly cautious) due to an incident with the doggy. we're both fine! 

- had the girls over for taco and wine night - yum. 

- gave emory access to the couch (that lasted long...)

- made the best dinner involving this chicken recipe and a simple risotto - you must all try! 

- took a night time walk to this ice cream shop. i had toasted coconut, yt had cookies and cream. both in homemade waffle cones - of course! 

- went on five long runs, filled with chasing squirrels, stopping to say hello to K9 friends, and sniff everything - thanks to my new running partner :)

This weekend I'm:

- ready for my husband to have a day off! its been 12 long days. 

- making some yummy snacks for the first michigan game - soft pretzels with cheesy dipping sauce is on the list. 

- hitting up the farmers market

- using my newly purchased donut pan 

- taking a nap

- hanging out with ms. julia - because i tempted her with delicious food and playing with the pup :)

What are you up to over Labor Day weekend?? 

Life lately.

here's what i've been up to:

excited to soak up the last bit of summer in the coming weeks :)

a long week + a our winners!

This has been a long freakin week. Like really long. 

Emory has been taking up every single minute of my free time (which in turn has turned into a lack of blog posts Wednesday and Thursday). Not only was she sick, but she's not really a fan of sleeping at night, which has made for several nights consisting of three hours of sleep and a little emotional breakdown yesterday morning. I've been assured that she just needs to adjust to her new environment - and hopefully she will be healthy and happy in no time. 

And now for our Barre Bee Fit winners!! Hannah and Anna are our winners :) Thanks to all who entered! Please send me your email address and we will get you all set up for your free three classes. XO. 

What's everyone up to this weekend??

Barre Bee Fit Giveaway!

Barre Bee Fit kind of changed me. I know that's a bold statement to make, but it's a true one. Prior to Barre Bee Fit, I was a runner. That was my workout and I believed whole heartedly that running was enough. 

When it came time to get in shape for my wedding {I did not want to lose a ton of weight, just tone up a bit and shed a couple of lbs ... you know the extra couple of pounds that give us fat arms in pictures and make it a little hard to get our pants on in the morning} I realized that running was not going to cut it. 

After my first BBF class, I was sore {I was surprised by this ... I was in shape! I was a runner! How could some class with 2 lb weights and a ballet barre make me this sore!?} And this is when I fell in love. I promised myself that after the wedding, I would go back to running. But, our wedding is three months behind me and I'm still attending classes regularly ... 

After every class I come home and say "barre was really hard today", which makes yt laugh and say "you know you say that every day". I love the challenge, I love the variety, I love the results, and I love the people. 

It's hard to explain why Barre Bee Fit is so awesome, so instead I'd like to show you!! I'm partnering with BBF to give away (2) sets of three classes! 

to enter: please make sure you are following both barre bee fit on twitter, and following simply irresistible here via google friends connect!

for extra entries: follow me via twitter, like BBF on facebook, or tweet about the giveaway! make sure to leave a comment for each extra entry.

the giveaway will close on thursday at midnight and the winner will be announced here on friday at noon. thanks so much for participating!

MEET EMORY

After much debate and a lot of begging, pleading, and many obnoxious emails and texts to yt containing pictures of adorable pups, we finally got a dog! 

We went to PAWS early Sunday morning and met two pups. One was a three month old puppy and one was a one year old lab mix. While the puppy was adorable and a ball full of energy, she had a bit too much energy and a bit too much pup in her. The second dog was absolutely perfect. Calm, curious, and full of love. She seems to have a little beagle in her, and perhaps a little boxer too. We're not really sure. She's 30 lbs and should be just about full grown! 

It only took a few minutes for us to decide that she was the one for us and that we wanted to take her home {yt was kind of smitten}. 

She spent the day getting acclimated to our apartment - and to elevators! She is still a bit confused during the entire ride... She has already declared the spot under the couch for napping {although I'm sure she would appreciate full reign of our furniture ... maybe eventually!}. 

I feel like a new mom. I have lots of questions about the best ways to train her, and what to feed her, and I'm not looking forward to having to leave her alone tomorrow! But I'm sure we will figure it all out :) I can't wait to introduce her to all of our friends and family. I know they will fall in love immediately, too.

Welcome to our home Ms. Emory. We are so happy to have you as a part of our little family. 

little victories

Happy Friday! First and foremost, I need these donuts in my life. I need them this weekend, I need them on a chilly fall Sunday morning, and I need them on a snowy winter night. Needless to say, I will be purchasing a donut pan, stocking up on cinnamon and sugar, and making these immediately. 

I had one of those genuinely happy days yesterday. Not everything went perfectly, but I counted the little victories and went to bed smiling. Some of the little victories included:

waking up for an early workout despite the rain
picking out an outfit in one try {this never happens!}
hoping in a cab and avoiding the rainy commute
a happy {and productive} day at work
an afternoon chai tea latte
coming home to bake yummy bread
indulging in a glass of red wine
yt and i went to bed hysterically laughing and being silly

.... And, when I make these cinnamon sugar donuts, and refrain from eating each and every last one, I will count that as a little victory as well :) 

5 INGREDIENT DINNER.

Sometimes less is more ... like in the case of this amazing cheesy, saucy, and comforting pasta dish that only requires five ingredients. Yep, just five. Pasta, tomato sauce, sausage, mozzarella, and ricotta. Sometimes more is more .... like in the case of wine and dessert {both sure would go well with this dish}. In any case, this recipe is perfect for those days when measuring and mixing seems like too much, when you're too tired to carry a large bag of groceries, or when you just need some cheese and carbs in your life {aka all days that end in "y" for me}. 

I also really enjoyed having only my skillet to clean... again, less is so much more. 

Here's what you'll need... 
3/4 lb penne pasta
1/2 lb italian sausage (turkey and chicken sausage work well too)
1 jar of your favorite tomato sauce
8 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese

Here's what to do... 
Cook pasta to al dente according to instructions on box. Drain well and set aside. Remove sausage from casing and cook in large skillet over medium high heat until cooked through. Use the back of a large spoon to break apart sausage. Spoon about 1/4 cup of your tomato sauce into the bottom of your skillet and spread a thin layer over the bottom of the skillet. Put half of your cooked pasta into the skillet, spreading into an even layer. Top with half of the sausage, 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, 1/2 of the cheese mozzarella cheese, and dollop 1/2 cup of the ricotta over pasta evenly. Top with remaining pasta, then remaining sausage, 1/2 cup sauce, and finish with remaining cheeses. Bake at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes. Turn broiler on high and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes under broiler, until cheese is bubbly. Sprinkle 1 tsp of italian seasoning over the top (optional 6th ingredient but just as yummy without it!)

dubois mirrors

When I fall in love with something, I fall hard. Case in point, the below Dubois Mirrors from Crate and Barrel. After searching for something to hang on either side of the passthrough from our kitchen to our living room, I decided that these would be perfect. I love the size, the antique but modern look, and that they come in a discounted set of two! Unfortunately for me, yt did not feel the same. I believe his initial reaction to them was "I hate them."

A while back Alaina made such a fabulous point about living with boys. She said:

"i do not understand why boys spend their entire lives not caring about decorating - they'll tape a jim belushi poster to their wall, use the musty couch from their parents' basement, and sleep on a mattress on the floor. but when they move in with a lady, they all of a sudden have a very strong opinion about how things look"      

and I could not agree more. What is up with that?!

Nevertheless, after some persistence {aka pestering and mentioning these mirrors a few times a day} yt finally said "sure babe, get the mirrors, just please stop talking about them."

Win.

He will be hanging them in their new home tomorrow.

Win again.

They were purchased with wedding gift cards so I did not break the "spending freeze". 

Win, yet again. 

If you live with a boy, who makes the decor decisions in your home? P.S. I'm kind of diggin' that magenta accented room above. yt should be happy I'm not asking for that. 

The Best Chicken Salad, Ever.

Imagine a chicken salad without mayonnaise. Healthy yes. But delicious? Unlikely. Right?

WRONG. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you, to my mother-in-law for sharing some of her kitchen skills and for teaching me how to re-create one of my all time favorite recipes of hers. Turkish Cerkez Tavugu involves creating a "sauce" of ground walnuts and garlic, combining it with meticulously shredded chicken, and adding a bit of spice. The seemingly odd secret ingredient? A piece of day old bread.

We had this for dinner Sunday night with a bit of bread and a big salad of mixed greens, watermelon, feta and balsamic. Yesterday it made for an insanely awesome chicken salad sandwich. Now that I know how to make this dish, there's no doubt I will be making it again and again.

Here's what you'll need:

1 4-5 lb whole chicken

2 cups of whole walnuts

3 cloves garlic

1 1/2 cups reserved stock {from poaching liquid}

2 pieces day old bread (crumbled)

1 1/2 tsp paprika

1 tsp salt

Here's what to do:
Remove giblets from chicken and pat dry. Place in large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a simmer and cook for 30-45 minutes, until cooked through. Do not boil. Once chicken is done cooking, remove chicken and set aside. Reserve 1 1/2-2 cups of poaching liquid and set aside. Once chicken is cool, shred meat from entire chicken into small pieces. Set aside.

Add walnuts and garlic to a food processor and pulse until walnuts and garlic are ground into very small pieces. Then, in a saucepan over medium high heat, add stock, crumbled bread and walnut/garlic mixture. Whisk to combine until you have a uniform mixture. Remove from heat and stir in chicken, adding a bit more stock if needed. Add in paprika and salt. Refrigerate until ready to serve. You may sprinkle with additional paprika or a drizzle of olive oil before serving.

Serve with crackers or bread and enjoy!

mint, grapefruit, & almond.

No, I'm not referring to food. And no, I'm not writing a post about trendy colors. I'm sharing my favorite new cleaning products with you. I realize this is kind of a lame topic. No one really enjoys cleaning {okay fine, I secretly enjoy cleaning a little bit}, but we all have to do it! After trying all sorts of brands and scents, my mom told me about the below products. All can be found at Target, and they are kind of life changing. 

The first is a mint scented bathroom cleaner. It leaves your tiles and sinks smelling minty fresh {so much better than the offensive smell of bleach!} The second is an all purpose cleaner... I basically went around and sprayed it on every surface in my home. It leaves a sweet but subtle smell of grapefruit behind. The last is an almond scented wood cleaner. We don't have much wood in our home so I didn't buy this one, but I basically love almond scented anything, so I'm sure this one is fabulous too. And the best part? All natural, green, products! 

Try 'em out. It makes cleaning just a little bit better :)

a simple summer dinner

This recipe is the result of a "look in the fridge, asses the contents, and throw something together" moment. I had some ground turkey, a lot of veggies, and some leftover greek yogurt and sour cream. Add in a few spices from the pantry, and you've got a meal - not too shabby. You could easily trade out the turkey for ground beef, any of the veggies, the sauce for a classic tomato or pesto, or the base for some other pasta or rice - whatever you like! This is what I had in my fridge and it was quite satisfying!

Here's what you'll need...

for the meatballs.

1 lb ground turkey

1 tablespoons olive oil (plus 2 tablespoons for frying)

1/3 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp parsley

1/2 tsp dill 

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/3 cup crumbled fat free feta cheese

directions: mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl until combined. heat 2 tablespoons of olive  oil in a large sautee pan and cook meatballs, turning every 3-5 minutes, until browned on all sides. cook in 375 degree oven for an additional 30 minutes, or until cooked through. 

for the israeli couscous

1 box of couscous 

1/4 cup chopped red onion

1 yellow squash, chopped

1 zucchini, chopped

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1/4 cup kalamata olives, cut in half

1/2 cup chopped cucumber 

2 tablespoons olive oil

juice of 1 lemon

1/2 tsp dill

1/2 tsp parsley

1/2 oregano 

salt and pepper

directions: cook couscous according to directions on box. while couscous is cooking (and meatballs are in the oven) sautee chopped zucchini and squash in pan over medium heat. remove from heat and add cooked cous cous and remaining vegetables to the pan. add herbs, olive oil, and lemon juice. season with salt and pepper to taste. 

for the herbed yogurt sauce 

1/2 cup fat free plain greek yogurt

1/2 cup fat free sour cream

juice of half a lemon

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp dill

1/2 tsp parsley

1/4 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp pepper

directions: mix all ingredients in a medium sized bowl! 

drink your fruit.

Yes, that's right. Drink up. 

One of my favorite summer drinks {or really any time of the year} is a nice big glass of sangria. While the sweet and slightly tangy liquid sure is delicious, my favorite part is biting into the liquor soaked fruit... because, well it's liquor soaked fruit. 

One of the items on my summer bucket list was to make a batch of sangria, and I think that's just what I'll be doing this weekend. 

lavender infused champagne sangria

white sangria with apple and mint

a classic red

and with cherries and berries

So here is where I turn to you, friends. What's your go to recipe for sangria? Do you go with white or red? Add in a bit of champagne or brandy? Is your fruit of choice peaches, apples, berries, or citrus ? I'm not sure what will wind up in my sangria jar yet.

spending smartly.

I'm forcing myself to go on a little bit of a spending freeze. Nothing serious, but I've gotten into some pretty bad habits that need correcting. My spending problems are pretty easy to pinpoint. 

There's the clothing: I'm a girl, and I'm a blogger, and I like to shop. After reading countless fashion blogs, and walking past every possible store front on the way to and from work, it's really easy to convince myself that not only do I need a new dress for each and every event in my life, but also that I would work out better with some new lululemon gear, and that I'd be so much cooler with a few more pops of color in my wardrobe and that girls night would be that much more fun if I were sporting some new summer sandals. Sure it's nice to feel cute, and the instant gratification of some new Kate Spade earrings is awesome - but sometimes I just need to say "no". 

There's the home decor: I'm a huge home body. I spend a lot of time in my living room, almost every evening in the kitchen cooking, and I love to entertain. I'm a tad obsessed with keeping our home picture perfect, which leads to unnecessary fresh flower purchases and expensive candles for every room. Then there's the throw pillows that must compliment the walls, that must also match the vases that the unnecessary fresh flowers are in. You get the picture. It's one thing to have a nice home, it's another to spend too much time and money trying to make it look like the floor model at Crate and Barrel. 

Theres the food: Yes, I like to cook. But I also dream about dining out. I have a list of about 1,000 restaurants I want to try in Chicago and then another list of 1,000 I'd like to return to. I went from bringing my lunch to work daily, to eating out almost every day {hello whole foods salad bar, sandwich shops, and afternoon trips to pinkberry}, and not only is my wallet hurting, but so is my waist line. 

Here's my plan: I am surely not suggesting that any of the above are not okay - they all are, but in moderation. I'm giving myself a four week spending "freeze" to get back on track and remind myself that new fall clothes, the finishing touches on our apartment, and eating out are wants and not needs. So  no new clothing purchases, no more flowers or pieces of decor for the home, and only eating out ONCE a week until after labor day. Ready, set, wish me luck :)

this past weekend

This past weekend was one of those times where I count my lucky stars that I have the best friends and the best husband in the world. We took a trip to California {for a friends wedding} and I could not have asked for a more perfect four days.

We started the weekend in San Francisco, and since we only had 24 hours there, wanted to make the most of it. We started the day exploring the city... I was warned about the chillier temps, but I could not believe that even in jeans and a light coat, I was still a bit cold! We ate lunch at Pizzeria Delfina {thanks for the recommendation, friends!}, toured Alcatraz, and finished the night at Tacolicious {eating way too many tacos and drinking a few too many margaritas!} 

Friday we woke up bright and early and headed to Napa. This was one of the most beautiful drives of my life - rolling hills filled with acres upon acres of green grass and grape vines. We did a wine tasting, a little sparkling wine tasting, and then a little more wine tasting... it was so so fun. We met up with friends for lunch at Mustards {where I stumbled across the biggest sunflower ever in their garden} and then finished the night at Bottega {with two desserts and some tasty pasta!}. 

Saturday morning was filled with ... more wine tasting!! {and a trip to In n Out} Yum yum yum. That night we watched two of our friends tie the knot in one of the most beautiful wedding venues I could imagine. The wedding took place overlooking the vineyards and the most adorable love sign in the distance. 

Sunday morning we headed back to San Francisco. I waited in line for an hour at Tartine and when I got to the front of the line, went a little overboard. After sampling about six pastries, I deemed it worth the wait :) Our entire weekend was absolutely wonderful. 

a new favorite.

I'm not usually one to talk about specific food products on this blog {although I do have a lot of favorites... so maybe I should..} but this one was worth mentioning. I like need the indulgence of a cup of coffee every morning. Seriously... I can't make it very far into the day without it. Once I'm finished with my morning cup of joe, I usually don't drink anything the rest of the day. It's bad, I mean really bad. Anyway, I'm getting off track. I was on the hunt for something thirst quenching aside from water, and decided to give one of Starbucks new Refreshers a try - major yum! 60 cals for a grande {not horrible}.

My favorite is the lime flavor and I would compare it to a mojito, except with caffeine instead of alcohol :)

CROSTINI x 3

Saturday night I had Carly and Julia over for a little girls night. I had worked all day so I didn't have much time to pull something extensive together, but I did want to put out something for my guest! The solution - crostini served three ways. The ingredient list is short, the assembly quick and easy, and the results are impressive {or so I was told my these gals!}... 

Here's what you'll need... {for 6 of each type}
1 small loaf french bread... I used the small loaves from Trader Joe's
1 small loaf dark bread ... I used a seeded whole wheat from whole foods
10 strawberries, sliced
1 small brie round ... about 5oz, cut into small strips
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 peaches, sliced into thin strips
2 oz goat cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon honey
2 vine ripe tomatoes, sliced into thin rounds
1 small container sun-dried tomatoes
6 mozzarella balls in water, cut into 3 slices
1 tsp italian seasoning
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil

Here's what to do...
cut bread into slices about 1 inch thick and place on sheet tray. bake at 350 degrees for 5-8 minutes, until bread is firm on the outside and slightly browned. put toppings on each bread:
1) french loaf + two pieces of brie + three strawberry slices (bake) + confetti basil
2) french bread + 2 slices of peaches + 2 tsps crumbled goat cheese (bake) + drizzle honey
3) dark bread + 1 slice of tomato + a drizzle of balsamic vinegar + 1 ball of mozzarella cheese + italian seasoning + sun dried tomato (bake)
(bake) each for about 5-10 minutes, or until cheese is melty.



I kind of wish I could have crostini for dinner every night!