Wednesday, August 29, 2012

My 100th Post

Can you believe it? After starting this blog about a year ago and barely using it in the beginning. Now 100 entries later many rave about my little ole blog, it’s a little hard to believe.

For my 100th post I wanted to do something a little different (a little more interactive). Let’s hear from you…
What have you been wanting to ask me?
Are there any questions you have about our move, new life, new jobs, Joe, or anything?
Ask me now!

I know most of you are reading this blog as guests so I made sure you will still be able to post a comment even if you are not signed up with Google.

You are also welcome to leave an anonymous question.

Just scroll down to the bottom of this post and click the link that says “comments.”

I want to hear from you!!

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Recipe Edition: Every Cookbook Deserves a 2nd Chance

In one of my previous posts I shared with you a recipe Joe and I both hated. Well, I gave the cookbook a second chance to wow me. I decided to play it safe and make basic white cupcakes with buttermilk frosting. And the result: Yuuuumm! As most say a picture is worth a thousand words, so here are a couple pictures:

My amazing frosting which was almost too good!

Fresh out of the oven.


The finished product!

The best part about baking these cupcakes was that I got to break in my cake decorating kit my dad bought me for Christmas.

Yes, I know I didn't really decorate anything but its a start!

Friday, August 24, 2012

The Jersey Shore

You might have noticed my blog has slowed down a little. This is because Joe and I took a couple days off work and vacationed down at The Jersey Shore. Joe and I and about 15 of our friends rented hotel rooms and beach houses to blow off a little steam. It was nice to get away and it was actually more relaxing than I thought it was going to be. When we arrived at the famous boardwalk I realized it was nothing like the show. It was somewhat dirty and grimy but all in all a good time. 


The first night we spent some time at the beach house and walked on the boardwalk. I was itching to get to the beach the next morning.


It was perfect!


Gotta love the beach waves... NOT!

Jersey itself is a really weird state if you ask me. Here are some weird facts I learned while I was there:

1. U-Turns are 100% illegal in the entire state
2. It's Illegal for you to pump your own gas. A gas station attendant must do it for you.
3. Parking meters run 24/7 and if you think you won't get a ticket at 4am... your wrong!
4. You have to be 19 to buy cigarettes.
5. You have to pay a $5.00 cover charge just to step foot on the beach.
6. While visiting you will notice that there are a lack of cabs. There were times that no matter what cab company you called there were no cabs and no one would even give you a time they would just say no.
7. You can not buy any alcohol besides beer after 10pm at the liquor stores.

 Pretty strange!!

I am sure some of your are wondering and... yes, we did see some sites from MTV's Jersey Shore.


We shopped at the Shore Store and even saw the owner. Not all that exciting but I heard rumors that the shore is more enjoyable when the cast is not there. 


Joe and another brother got Henna tattoos to represent their fraternity. (It kind of looks like I did it - Thank goodness it's not real)



We were in shock to see this little guy driving up and down the boardwalk. When we asked to take a picture they made sure to tell us this was for the boardwalk only and they have regular cars for the street.


Over all we had a very fun weekend with VERY fun people. We can't wait to go back!!

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Recipe Edition: Turkey Meatloaf with Feta and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

I had a little trouble with this recipe the first time I made it, and this leads me to my recipe tip for this entry:

Recipe Tip: If the recipe is online and has been reviewed A LOT at least read the worst reviews before attempting to make the dish. (I wish I knew this first)

I was never really a fan of meatloaf just because I don't usually eat it all that often. Joe on the other hand loves meatloaf so as soon as I saw a recipe with feta and sun-dried tomatoes I knew I had to try it. Doesn't look so good here:


But it turned out looking pretty good:


Unfortunately, like I said before I did not read the reviews for this recipe before I made it and I found out the hard way that everyone agreed the additional salt needs to be left out of the recipe... opps!

Recipe Here - Remember leave out the salt!!!

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Time Zone Protest

Up until just now (and I mean a couple seconds ago) I have left all my clocks and watches on Pacific time. It's not really that big of a deal to change the time on my truck clock, laptop, and my watches but for some reason I have been avoiding it. I love being here and living in New York but I just could not bring myself to change my time to Eastern Standard Time. While surfing the internet I looked down at the clock and decided now was the time ;) to change my time zone. Laptop down.... now just for the other 20 clocks/watches I need to adjust!

I have finally accepted it... I am now an East Coast girl! <--- So strange :))

Monday, August 13, 2012

Rain, Rain, Okay, You Can Stay

Last weekend Joe and I went to Kohls to get some things for work. We were in the store for now longer then ten minutes. When we left the store the sky was black. 



I should explain that these pictures were not taken at night.
I was kind of creepy but because I love the weather here so far, I find this kind of cool. These kind of storms make the drive to work hard and the day at work very crazy but it's nice when you are home and have nowhere to be.

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Recipe Edition: AKA Recipe Fail!

Finally, I have stopped searching for recipes on the internet and I have cracked open one of my cookbooks. This is the cookbook I choose to break in: (for obvious reasons) ;)


Still on the breakfast kick I once again wanted to make something to grab-and-go for the morning so I choose this recipe:


Don't they look delish??
I followed the recipe step by step and this was the final product:



Not too shabby... or so I thought. They smelled amazing so Joe and I each took a bite. To our surprise these muffins were bland and somewhat dry, overall not good! I know what your thinking and no I am not going to let this one recipe reflect the entire cookbook. I am willing to give another recipe a try because who knows I could have done something wrong. Better luck next time!

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Just Another Friday Night at the Fraternity House

I am sure when you think fraternity house you think parties, drinking, messy, etc. This past Friday night Joe and I went to the fraternity house for dinner and this is what was waiting for us:


The boys made spaghetti with homemade sauce and meatballs, salad, and bread. Pretty impressive if I do say so myself! These boys are very important in our lives and I am so happy I have a 2nd family to enjoy family dinners with here on the east coast!

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Recipe Edition: Mom's Baked Egg Muffins

Even though I have once again neglected my cookbooks I have really found a recipe I love. Ever sense Joe and I started working full time it's been a challenge to get up early enough to enjoy breakfast. Considering I have to be at work at 7am each morning and it takes around 20-25 minutes to get there, I knew I needed to make something we could eat and run with in the morning. I started with blueberry muffins but wanted to make something a little more involved. (I am never going to become better at baking or cooking if I don't take on things I have never tried before) I found a recipe on allrecipes.com for Mom's Baked Egg Muffins. Each muffin is a full breakfast on-the-go which includes toast,eggs,cheese, and bacon. These are amazing!

(Please excuse the last lonely blueberry muffin)

Again, if your interested in the recipe you can find it here.

Recipe tips:
*Bake for the full 15 minutes and make sure the centers are cooked and have thickened
*To each their own but I suggest leaving out the heavy cream - there's really no need for it

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Recipe Edition: Blueberry Muffins

I was able to take sometime last weekend to bake Blueberry Muffins and I used a different recipe. These muffins turned out moist and larger than my original recipe. I give this new recipe a big A+!


If you are interested you can see the recipe here.

Happy Baking :)

Friday, August 3, 2012

eBay Success Story

For a couple years now I have been selling odds and ends on eBay and really began to love using it as my online garage-sale. During our move I discovered these beauties:


Yes, I know these are a little crazy looking but there is a story behind them. I bought them while on vacation in Seattle. I walked into Bebe and found this pair in my size on the clearance rack. I had seen these in the Bebe catalog and secretly loved them even though they are not really my style. I asked the rep how much they were and I was told that they had found these in the back room that morning with no box and no price, but if I gave her a few minutes she would come up with a price. She came back and said I could have them for $50. I told her to wrap them up and hoped that she would complete the transaction before she realized that she was selling me $250 boots for $50. When I returned from my vacation in Seattle I was dying to try them out. As I was trying to slip my right foot into the boot I was horrified to realize that because of my high arches and there being no zipper on the boots there was no way I was going to get my foot into this boot. I tried a couple other times and even had a friend of mine struggle and fail to get them on herself. Reluctantly, I kept these in my closet for years. 

I was finally ready to part with them when I unpacked them in New York. I decided to sell them on eBay because it made me feel better if I at least got my money back. To my surprise these were in high demand and I ended up selling them for a whopping $150.00!!

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Nail Fun

I am defiantly known for having an extensive collection of OPI Nail Polish. Lately, I have been getting a little bored with just painting my nails. So I've been getting a little more creative. Take a look:



This was my inspiration for the last one:


Thanks Pinterest!