Nursery Tour - Under Construction

Although the nursery isn't complete yet (and these days I wonder if it will EVER be done) I wanted to give you a sneak peak at what I've been working on. It all started with these three fabrics. It actually started with about 12 swatches of fabric and after a lot of deliberation and input from my sewing friends, I decided on the three main fabrics above. I was drawn to the soft sherbet orange and the shades of baby pink and bold fuchsia.

With my color pallet chosen, I started designing the bedding and found a seamstress in the area to create the custom dust ruffle and bumper. I'm not sure about the boa, I admit it just may be over the top. I love the ruffles, it's so feminine and I find the pattern modern not baby-ish.

Shrimp, Corn and Potato Chowder

I can't say what it was that made me want this Corn, Bacon and Potato Chowder I found on the Weight Watchers web site. Blame it on the pregnancy, but it sounded so good I had to make it that night. I followed the recipe verbatim and both Jim and I were so impressed with the outcome. He's not a "soup for dinner" kind of guy, so you have to trust me when I say this soup is good. I was kicking myself that I didn't take any photos, and knew instantly I would have to remake the recipe for the blog.

Baby Shower for Harper Grace

I have the best girlfriends. Somer, Shelley, (Me), Dana, Paulina and Nesi. These sweet friends threw me a wonderful shower this past weekend and I felt so blessed by all who came to shower Harper and I with love. Here are some pictures from the memorable day we had.

 

This is the most adorable pink candy bar that I've ever seen. My mom decorated the buffet with a sweet pink dress that she wore as a baby, and that I also wore as a baby!

 

A Pop of Color in the Living Room

I'm so excited to share this fun project with you!

Look at these ugly things. They are probably 10 years old and as you can see we use them a great deal. Yes, we are one of those couples who eats dinner in front of the TV every night.

As we make upgrades to the house the wood in the living room is becoming darker and darker with the majority having an espresso stain. So I had the choice of sanding and staining or doing something more unique with these trays.

Reeses Chocolate Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats

This pregnancy has me craving things I would not normally want to eat. Rice Krispie treats have never been big on my list, and I definitely do not gravitate towards the chocolate peanut butter combo that my husband loves. That's his thing, and I'm happy to make that for him...but it's never been my thing.

I was making dinner for our small group last week and wanted something easy that I could pull together quickly. A simple text to my foodie girlfriends erupted in lots of ideas. When one suggested Rice Krispie Treats, another quickly added that she had recently tried a Reese's version that was to die for. Bingo! I had my dessert for the night. A soft and ooey-gooey marshmallow treat with chocolate and peanut butter sounded so good, my mind was made up.

The grocery list is short and simple:  A box of Cocoa Krispies, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Butter, Karo and Mini Marshmallows. I added a Peanut Butter and Nutella drizzle to the top of my dessert in the end.

Start by chopping up some peanut butter cups. I found bags of 6 on sale for a dollar a piece, so I bought three packages and used 18 total peanut butter cups. I cut them two times horizontally and two times vertically to get 9 pieces from each peanut butter cup.

Remembering May 22, 2010 and a Big Announcement

What a pleasant surprise this morning to wake up and be reminded of May 22, 2010. I received an e-mail from our amazing photographer, Julie Mikos, that our wedding, one of the happiest days of my life, was published on Elizabeth Anne Designs.

To be featured under “Romantic Winery Wedding” made me swoon and ache to relive that week all over again.

New Seasonal Flavors of Dunkin' Donuts at Grocery WINNER Announced

The Dunkin' Donuts Coffee at Grocery Giveaway is now closed. Thank you to everyone who left comments. I used random.org to select the winner...drum roll please...

Congrats to Amy Beth Marantino! 

Contact me at homewithmandy @ gmail dot com with your mailing address and Dunkin' Donuts at Grocery will ship you one full size bag of Strawberry Shortcake and one full size bag of Toasted Almond, plus two cute Dunkin’ Donuts mugs.