Happy Halloween!!

Handmade Kitchen Couture

I've been busy lately (as reflected in my lack of posts). What have I been doing? I've been SEWING! I don't know how it happened but, the other day I just got the urge to bust out my sewing machine (I hadn't touched it in at least 5 years). I went to the fabric store, picked up some apron patterns and some fabric and decided to get to it! To quote the lady at the fabric store "Aprons are very popular right now!"

The first apron I made is definitely a "Monet". It looks good from a distance but not-as-good up close. I suppose it's still suitable for personal use but I definitely won't be gifting it to anyone.

The next apron I made was from a different pattern. Much more girly and all around adorable.

See? So cute. I love the dog fabric.

After my success with this style, I decided that I would stick to it and not revert back to the original pattern. I planned on making some more to give as Christmas gifts! Hooray! So, Uriah and I went to the fabric store (turns out they are all in the ghetto) and got some kitchen-themed fabric and I got crackin!

I had to cut a smaller pattern because all of Uriah's family is small and asian. So this next one is a size "small" (the first one that I made was a "large")

Love it! Uriah found this fabric. He's occasionally useful:-)

Perhaps if I become faster at making these, I'll start up an Etsy shop and make a bit of money. We'll see.

In the mean time, I have a few more to make that will be dedicated as Christmas gifts so I'll have plenty of practice! I can't WAIT to give these to their intended recipients. I have a feeling they will be well received.

HUZZAH!

Uriah and I went to the Renaissance Festival yesterday and it was AWESOME!

Despite sitting in a line of traffic for an hour to get into the parking lot (still not sure why it took so long), we had an amazing time. I had never been to a Renaissance Festival before but Uriah had so, he was kind of like my guide.

The first thing we did when we got there? We sought out and devoured giant turkey legs! Ok, I didn't quite devour mine but I gave it a good college try... I have no idea where they find turkeys with legs that enormous.

Other activities included a Jousting Tournament in which "our Knight" won! Huzzah!

We also partook in an abundance of general merriment and silliness. Great fun!

We had a great time and can't wait to go again next year!

NASCAR!

This past Saturday, Uriah and I were invited to join one of my very best friends and her husband (and a group of others) for a NASCAR race! It was much more fun than we expected it to be. We had passes to get us down into the pits before (and some for during) the race. It was really fun and I would do it again tomorrow! :-)

12 photo panorama

Me and Aubrey in the pits pre-race

Me and Uriah in the stands with race in full-swing

All photos taken and courtesy of my amazingly talented husband.

An American Tradition

Chocolate Chip Cookies!

Who among us doesn't have a happy little memory of baking Nestle Toll House chocolate chip cookies with our moms/grandmas/sisters/friends growing up? If you don't have this memory, I'm terribly sorry. There was nothing like licking the batter off of the mixer and then consequently, the bowl (and also sneaking a spoonful of dough when mom wasn't looking).

I actually haven't made these cookies from scratch with out my mom... ever. In college I'd just get the pre-made dough and bake it up. One of my roommates baked when she was stressed and always had the giant Costco sized tub of cookie dough in the fridge. You can definitely tell the difference between the two because the home made come out flat for some reason. Still delicious, just flat. I've googled some solutions to this problem so next time I can hopefully remedy the situation.





Home Alone

No, not the movie. Uriah went down to Orlando for business and left me and Pogi here all alone. Womp womp womp. It's really no big deal but while he's been away I've learned a few things about myself:

1. I am a slob when there's no one here to convince otherwise. I have not washed one dish since Sunday   morning. I will remedy this at some point today but honestly, it's not really bothering me to have a sink full of dirty dishes. Hence - Slob
2. I might be a little OCD about checking that the doors are all locked properly. This is a behavior that I've noticed on a small scale in the past but evidently escalates into full-blown-obsession when I have no man to protect me from the possibility of danger. My logical brain knows that locked doors will not deter someone who really wants to get into my house but, at least it's one more obstacle.
3. I think this may be along the lines of #1 but it's clear that I don't see showering as a necessary daily task. I showered today tho so, there's that.
   
   

It's really a good thing that I don't live alone because I don't think that it would be too pretty.

Charlotte Food Adventure - episode 2

One of the first things that Uriah and I do when we move somewhere new is we seek out the best sushi in town. We've been to 3 places so far here but we've picked our spot and now we're monogamous with Yama Asian Fusion in the South Park neighborhood.

What do we get when we go there? We get this:

It's called "The Love Boat" and as you can see, it's got a little bit of everything. You can't see but this also comes with miso soup and salad. It's not cheap but, as Uriah says "You gotta pay to play" and it's not super expensive by sushi standards.

Sushi is a really nice treat and this sushi is so fresh, it's an extra special treat. We even went there for our anniversary. 3 years of wedded bliss! Woohoo!

So the verdict is, if you are in Charlotte and you are looking for yummy sushi, you should check out Yama Asian Fusion. If you have a favorite sushi place, please share! We love foodie adventures!

Charlotte Food Adventure - episode 1

My dear friend from high school, Tressa, was in town a couple of weekends ago and we went on a culinary adventure! I've heard through the grape-vine that Cabo Fish Taco in NoDa is a MUST if you live in Charlotte. I hadn't been yet and I was planning on taking Tressa to NoDa anyway because it's an adorable art district so, we went for it. Unfortunately, we went on a Monday and all of the shops and galleries were closed. Lesson learned, I suppose. Lucky for us, the restaurant was open and we were NOT disappointed. Tressa ordered some sort of chicken wrap (with a rice and beans side) that looked tasty and she vouched for it but when she tried my Lemon Grilled Tuna Tacos (with fresh fruit side), she said that it was defintely the winner. Hands down. I can not wait to go there with Uriah because I have a feeling that it's going to become his most favorite place.

Lemon Grilled Tuna Tacos at Cabo Fish Taco
taken with my iPhone

Halloween Craftiness

Yesterday after I was done baking some delicious peanut butter cookies, I did some crafting! Yahoo!

It's been a long time since I attempted any sort of craft. I did a lot of knitting in college but that skill was limited to scarves. They were awesome scarves but I never branched out to bigger and better things. I have the best intentions of making a blanket at some point but honestly, I don't think that I have the patience. I'm more of an instant-gratification type person. Which is why when I was reading my Taste of Home magazine and came across this craft, I was super excited. It's quick, easy and involves repurposing jars that at one time held pasta sauce, salsa and whatever else comes in a jar. So, after a week or two of saving jars (and eating more pasta than normal), I was ready to go! It kept me busy for the afternoon and I have some adorable stuff to show for it. See?

That's a Monster, a few Jack-o-Lanterns and a Ghost

Oh, and they liked the cookies too. Nom nom Nom

Peanut Butter Cookie Time!

Peanut Butter Cookies are not something that I enjoyed as a child and I haven't made/had them in my adult like that I can remember so I decided to make some today. In order to make these special old-fasioned treats, I used this recipe from The Joy of Baking. The recipe makes about 40 cookies so, there are plenty to share! They turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself. Here's a picture (to whet your appetite)! Yum!

Oh Look! A Picture!

We did a grown-up thing yesterday and bought a new mattress. I know I made fun a few days ago but in reality, we needed a new mattress badly. Today I woke up with out a back ache for the first time in a LONG time. Loving our new mattress.



This is my dog, Pogi. He also loves the new mattress. He loves everything and everyone. Except squirrels.

Why I tolerate football

1- It makes daytime drinking ok (this alone, could be enough)

2- Chicken wings, pizza and nachos are my favorite foods and seem to be a staple at any viewing of any game

3- It makes me giggle when the commentater says things like "DB", "Sack" and "Tight End" (in other news, I'm immature)

4- I don't actually care about football at all so I'm never upset when "my team" doesn't win



So, In conclusion... I get to drink during the day and noone will judge me, eat copious amounts of unhealthy, albiet delicious, food and giggle at grown, manly men saying words that they would never say otherwise. The icing on the football cake? No disappointment. Ever. Unless of course they run out of chicken wings or beer. In which case, I'm leaving. Haha.

Go Team Go!

Happy Columbus Day!

Now, go buy some shit!

Evidently the way to celebrate the "discovering" of North America is to purchase a mattress! Why? I have no idea... perhaps Mr. Columbus really liked to sleep. All I know is that there are a lot of sales this weekend on things to sleep on and there are a lot of commercials promoting said sales.

So there you go America! Let's celebrate a day off from work by buying some stuff! Oh, and just to be 100% American, let's binge on junk food too!

Housewifin' aint easy

Listen, being a housewife with no kids isn't easy... oh wait... yes it is. I usually sleep in, watch some trashy TV and either clean something or bake something while thinking about what I'm going to make for dinner.

Today I baked some Chocolate Sugar Cookies. They are delicious and I got the recipe from The Joy of Baking. They have so many yummy recipes. I also enjoy their Snickerdoodle recipe. I plan on making a lot more of their sweet treats so, I suppose, stay tuned (although I know you won't and that doesn't really matter). Next time, I will take some pictures to show you how delicious these treats are and how EASY they are to make.

Really, this blog is for me. Because I'm in a relatively new city and I don't really know anyone who I feel comfortable sharing with so, I guess I will just talk out there to the interwebs. I hope you enjoy, and if not... move along and don't hate.