:: let them decorate cake ::

this weekend, i found myself out of the apt quite a bit. LOVE that. especially when eric is so busy with work, it's nice to keep myself busy with some extracurriculars.

it's become quite the habit for my friend lauren and i to find our way to brunch once a weekend. healthy? no. fun and delish? absolutely. this weekend we TRIED to go to Hearty Boys, but it's closed on saturdays {booooooo}, so we headed up to m.henry in andersonville {pretty far north}. we got one sweet and one savory dish and shared them - this is the perfect set-up because i cannot pass-up a sweet offering. i know you're all shocked. plus, they had the best and biggest lattes i've had in a while. andersonville is dotted with ethnic restaurants/bakeries and lots of antique shops. so, we took advantage of our brunch locale and dropped in and out of a few. got pastries at a "panderia" {mexican bakery}, bought a small table and two mirrors at a cute antique shop and was tempted to buy a king cake at a swedish bakery:)

sunday i had a cake decorating class with some friends. oh my, so FUN. we learned all the techniques for piping, frosting and writing. it was just a dream - my fave type of thing:) at the end of class we got to decorate our own cakes and, of course, i couldn't help but use ALL the techniques and colors available:)

my vanilla latte. it was like a bowl of soup.


lauren with our TWO plates of fab food.


the cute yellow table with a cutting board top... here's the extra counter space we need:)


jennie, robyn & i {erin had to leave early} at the cake decorating class.


piping city. i'm the mayor.


other antique store inspiration... it took everything in me not to buy all of this!

:: betty crocker ::

i've got a LOT to learn about being a mom. cooking, baking and household duties take up SO much time. booooor-ing. but, i've started to make a better effort around the house and it's starting to get a bit easier/more enjoyable.

for valentine's day/our six-month wedding anniversary, i made a LOVEly feast for my man {and, selfishly, for myself}. here are the homemade highlights {recipes available for anyone interested}:
* spicy pulled pork
* spicy slaw
* mac 'n cheese
* sugar cookies
* pretzel valentine treats
* chicken noodle soup {this was more for my lunches during the week, but they were rolled into my day 'o cooking}.

eric was blown away by the outcome {i was too} and we're still enjoying the fruits of my labor.

pioneer woman's mac 'n cheese {i added bacon and cayenne pepper}.


cute little valentine treats for work. they are DANGEROUS because you can just pop them one-by-one... but so easy. hugs on pretzel snaps {bake in oven until they look glossy... it's QUICK}, press down on the hug with m&m's {i used peanut butter m&m's}.


this shows the pulled pork and cookies. the spicy pulled pork is pioneer woman's dr. pepper/adobo pulled pork. the cookies were ah-mazing and here's the recipe i used {didn't use the frosting recipe, i like buttercream on sugar cookies}.
http://www.makoodle.com/the-best-soft-sugar-cookie-recipe-ever/

:: KC trip - lizzy's engaged! sally's a mom! ::

much like i miss my fam, i miss my ladies. with so many fun friends in and around kansas city and SO much fabulous news to celebrate - i made a quick jaunt to the land 'o bbq to visit. lizzy recently got engaged to chris and sally just had baby annabelle - what better reasons could i ask for??

first, i'm SO bummed i failed to snap a photo of my rental car. it was the most peculiar thing i've ever seen {or driven}. picture this... ford focus.hatchback.fiery orange. BAM. watch out, kc. not only have i not driven often in four years, now i'm not doing my self any favors by "blending in."

friday night {once i picked out the FFF = fiery ford focus} i met lizzy, omang, meghan, leah, lindsey and sal at Extra Virgin for apps and drinks. it was just amazing to spend some time catching up. after dinner we headed out on the town - a drop by the levee and onto close down o'dowds {we are ooohhh-ld}.

saturday i brunched with lizzy, omang, bree & scott at urban table. it was delish!! seriously there are so many cool places in kc. can't wait to head back to try more. after brunch, i headed to sal's to meet annabelle {SO CUTE!!}. i cannot believe one of my best friends has a little newborn... she's just a little miracle. we spent the day shopping and the night watching the ku/mu basketball game with some chinese takeout. just awesome. it's always bittersweet to have to say adios to my dear friends, but i'm so lucky to have such great buds up in chi, too.

dinner at extra virgin.



here's a pic of the ladies at o'dowds.


i mean... how often are you able to laugh like this?!


andy and annabelle. how precious?! i think i kept waking him up because i was being paparazzi. oops!

:: kochs come to chi ::

january is typically a pretty grim month in the life of me... eric works crazy hours, weather is crummy and the holidays have passed. booo.

this year, january was full of fun because my parents came up for a nice, long weekend! we got to shop, eat, relax and spend time together. SO nice since we weren't able to go to my parents' for the holidays.

here are a few quick pics from their trip. we hit-up all the places my mom loves {michigan avenue, state street, southport} my dad's faves {billy goat tavern, chicago-style pizza, berghoff's}. plus, i introduced them to homegoods. their lives are forever changed!

it was just so amazing having them here... wish they lived in our extra bedroom... clean house, great home-cooked food and the best company:)