The Great Outdoors

This past weekend we put together our new patio furniture.  We ordered it online from Home Depot and thank goodness they had free shipping.  The box would NEVER have fit in one of our cars.

We had the opportunity to sit outside and enjoy the furniture for a few hours after we assembled it.  Luckily it was easy to put together! :)

Memories to Share

I wanted to share with everyone my most recent crafting adventure.  I don't know if you guys have seen the memory boxes out there lately but people are so creative and decorate the tops and sides of the boxes beautifully.  I wanted to make a memory box for friends of David and I who were married at the most beautiful wedding last fall.  (BTW, I don't think David has shared this blog with you guys but if he has, close your eyes and don't look at the pictures below!!)  I had a lot of fun picking out textured papers, making cuts, and stamping away.  What do you think?

Sorry, I couldn't get this one to rotate for me so you'll just have to rotate your head while you look at it!  Consider it a neck stretch....you're welcome! :)

The great thing about these boxes is you can either use them for photos (they provider dividers inside so you can organize and label your photos) or you can use them to hold mementos.

Blue Kitchen

Alright, so I couldn't come up with a clever title for this post.  I've told you before, I'm not much of a writer! :)  Since we have moved into our house I have made the comment that I liked the kitchen color (blue) but would have chosen a different shade of blue.  Well this weekend I finally made it happen. I have some before and after pictures for you but I honestly don't know if you can tell the difference in the photos between the two shades of blue.  The kitchen was a brighter periwinkle blue before and now it is a lighter, grayish blue.  I painted the kitchen Manhattan Mist by Behr and I used the paint with the primer so the whole kitchen only took one coat.

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

Let's see if you can tell the difference.  It maybe all in my head but I think the kitchen looks a little airier now (and yes, that must be a word because spell check didn't stop me!!).  Next on my painting "to do" list is to paint the mantel.  It needs another coat of paint from what was originally painted on it.  Will keep you updated!

What's for Dinner?

So, while stuck at home recovering from a cold and strep throat, I had a chance to get caught up on my Martha Stewart Living magazines that I had let pile up over the holiday season.  I stumbled upon some great recipes calling for Parmesan, parsley, and lemon.  With Martha recipes, it is hit or miss for me.  Many times they call for a lot of ingredients I don't have or look very complex but these recipes seemed right up my alley in skill level and ingredients needed.  I decided to start with the Lemon, parsley, and Parmesan with chicken and potatoes.  I love when a whole meal can be cooked with one recipe and one baking dish.  The meal was pretty easy to make and the only thing I changed with the recipe was to add more garlic when called for.  Oh and I used shredded Parmesan rather than grated, still tasted grrrrreat!

Ingredients

• Chicken and potatoes

1 whole organic chicken (about 3 1/2 pounds)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 lemon, halved

1 pound fingerling potatoes, halved or cut into thirds if large

• Sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 lemon, zested (2 teaspoons) and juiced (1 1/2 tablespoons)

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

Pinch of red-pepper flakes

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place chicken, breast side up, on a baking sheet. Rub with 2 tablespoons oil; season generously with salt and pepper. Place parsley and 1 lemon half in cavity. Tie legs together with kitchen twine. Toss potatoes and 2 tablespoons oil. Drizzle with juice from remaining lemon half. Season with salt and pepper. Scatter potatoes along chicken.

Roast for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 375 degrees F; cook for 25 minutes. Rotate pan, toss potatoes, and cook until potatoes and chicken are golden brown and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken’s thigh reaches 165 degrees F, about 25 minutes more. Let chicken and potatoes stand for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, make the sauce: Combine ingredients. After 10 minutes, brush sauce on chicken and drizzle on potatoes.

Active time: 15 minutes

Total time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Serving Size - Serves 6

Martha Stewart Living, January issue (2012)

www.marthastewart.com

Twenty Twelve

To jump start the new year I wanted to do a little mini-update post.  The  month of December was a very busy one around here filled with holiday parties, dinners with friends and family, and lots of good memories.  We hosted a Christmas dinner one Sunday night in December and I wanted to share some pictures of the table decorations.  Sometimes Sunday night dinners are the best to host.  If we're having friends over for dinner on a Sunday I always pick an earlier than usual time for everyone to arrive.  This gives everyone the chance to socialize and catch up but also allows everyone the chance to get home at a reasonable hour and get ready for the work week.  

I made chicken parmigiana; my first attempt and I think it turned out pretty good if I do say so myself.  It was a great excuse to pull out the china, that makes twice in one year, a new record!! :)

I made the same "place cards" that I made for Thanksgiving and put a little Christmas twist on them with the red berries. 

A little close-up of the center of the table.  Since I wanted the dinner to be relaxed, I kept the table decor to a minimum.

There were 8 of us total so the men sat in the dinning room while the women sat in the kitchen.

On another Christmas note, I mentioned my mom's nativity scene to a few of my coworkers so I took some pictures while we were at my parent's for Christmas.  My mom had the the wooden barn made for the nativity scene.  She has taken different animals she finds and incorporates them into the scene.  The "ground" is decorated brown paper that her family used for their nativity scene's growing up.

I have many goals on my list to accomplish this year with the house.  Hopefully I will be updating the blog more than I did in the month of December.  I have a few little projects in store but my next big project is painting the kitchen.  Will keep you updated.  Happy New Year everyone!!