Hot Date

So last weekend I had a hot date with baby Sean. I headed south to watch my best friend Nora's baby who just turned one. Baby Sean and Auntie Maden had a great time, and Auntie Erin came to play too.



After about 5 minutes of screaming that mom and dad left, we calmed down and then were happy and well behaved all night. We played inside for a while, then headed outside to enjoy the nice weather. We hit the swings, him in my lap in the real swing, Sean couldn't be bothered with any silly baby swing! Then we played wacky stroller and took a nice long walk. Then dinner time, bath time and bed time. It was a wild night.





Look at those chubby feet!



It was fun baby Sean, I can't wait to see what else you can do and what else you can say next time I come down to play!

Pesto Ladies Night

I had some friends over a few weeks ago for dinner. I was in serious need of some lady chit chat and wine after 2 weeks of cramming for my exam. I decided to use the occasion to try out a new recipe. The recipe was ok, not great, but I am still going to share it. It made a nice dinner, but I am not sure I would make it again, or if I did I think I would change it up a bit. Maybe I'll just keep trying pesto recipes until I find one I love. : )

Did I tell you I have been in the market for an apron? Anthropology always has super cute ones, but they are usually so thin, which probably wouldn't keep your clothes dry if you leaned into the sink while doing dishes. And the thick ones you can find places are usually boring smoring. BUT last time I wandered into Anthropology they had thick canvas one with a fun pattern! Yay!



We started with some summer wine of course. click for recipe





Arugula Hazelnut Pesto
from April 2010's Family Circle

2 cups baby arugula leaves
3/4 cup basil leaves
1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts
2 cloves garlic
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 1/4 teaspoon salt

In food processor, combine arugula, basil, nuts and garlic. Process 1 minute. Gradually add oil and process until blended. Add cheese and salt. Process until smooth.

The recipe called for adding Salmon, but we added shrimp instead.

If I was too make it again, I would do more basil, less hazelnuts and a lot less cheese. I used pecorino romano since that was what was in the house. I thought you tasted too much of the cheese, and the flavor of the cheese alone kind of overpowered the sauce.



I only have mini food processors so I just split the recipe in half and used 2. haha

I also added steamed asparagus and diced tomatoes into the dish for a little added interest.



Ladies Dinner was also a nice occasion to use my fun new napkins. Yay!





The final product: Dinner and Friends!







Let's hope I passed so I can celebrate passing as opposed to celebrating just being done studying! : )

Finally, some nice end tables around here!

SO as you might recall from numerous older posts that I bought some end tables for my living room at a used furniture store down in North Carolina and have been working on re-finishing them.

Buying Them
Re-Finishing Take One
Re-Finishing Take Two

And they are finally done; sanded, stained, dry, resembled and neatly placed in my living room. yay! At the rate it took me to finish them, perhaps I should have just bought new ones...but it was fun! : )







hmm perhaps I should have removed the paper towels, cords and trash basket for the photo shoot!



And I present to you, the finshed living room! Yay!
What room needs a facelift next???? : )

a little break

So I am taking a blog break for about a week. I just have too much going on right now. Don't miss me too much! : )

Hello New Friend, Welcome to my Garden

Some Rhododendrons for you to enjoy

Veinte de Mayo Dinner

So last week I had my annual "Cinco de Mayo" party, that is never actually on the 5th. haha









Friends and Toppings:




Margaritas:








Yummy Summer White Wine (aka White Sangria)
This was SO good, and so simple! I have whipped up many a white wine cocktail/spritzer/sangria in my day, but this might be the best one.

1 big bottle of white wine
1 small bottle of club soda (1/2 liter)
1/3 cup sugar
Fruit - I used a whole orange, which I think should be used regardless of the other fruit. Then berries just since that was what looked the best at the store.

serves - depends who is drinking it! : )


Baby Tilley came to the party and some strawberries to go with brownies courtesy of Erin.



My friend Aimee is home from Korea, so she came to play before she jets off to France for the summer. Quite the world traveler!



For food I set up a make your own burrito bar, that way everyone gets what they want! I used a recipe I got at a cooking class I went to with my mom. We also had some chips, salsa, guac and naughty taco dip courtesy of Alexis and Lindsay.

Chicken Burritos

This recipe was part of a packet of quick and easy meals

1 roasted chicken (the pre-cooked ones)

1 envelope taco seasoning mix

1 (16oz) can refried beans

1 pack 8" tortillas

1 pkg shredded sharp cheddar cheese

(I just used the mexican mix cheese-no seasoning- just the mix of cheeses)

3 plum tomatoes, diced

1 small onion, diced

1 small can sliced olive
cilantro

then for toppings - salsa, guac, and sour cream

1. Remove chicken from bones and chop. Place chicken and seasoning mix in a strong food storage bag and shake to coat chicken.

(I find cutting the chicken off the bones is alot of work, next time i might just boil some cutlets in chicken stock and chop those...)

2. Spread beans evenly down the center of tortillas. Top with chicken, cheese, and other ingredients of your choice (cilantro, olives, onion, tomatoes) and roll up.

3.Wrap each burrito in foil. Don't worry about over stuffing and having trouble rolling since it all stays together once you take it out of the oven from the foil.

* Handy tip - Have everyone write their name on the foil with a sharpie that way everyone knows who's is who's if you do a "make your own bar" like I always do.

4. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes on a cookie sheet. Add your topping and gobble up!

serves - 4 to 6, easy meal to double, and they taste good after being frozen too!

I love the smell of freshly cut limes!



Late night photo shoot! Only one of many! haha

How the other half live

So you want to know how the other half live? Oh, they live with beautiful gardens like these! So you want to know what I do all day? Oh, that would be design beautiful gardens like these.

Well that is a little white lie, I didn't actually design this one, my boss did. Another Landscape Architect and the house Architect did the hardscape (patios, walks, walls, pool) and my boss did the landscape (planting). I have been out in the field laying perennials out though. If you have to do manual labor, this is not a bad place to have to do it right?

So enjoy these gardens designed by my firm, and soon enough I'll get some of mine designs up too! Just need to get some pictures. : )






This is actually an all white garden. All of the plants are white, no exceptions. So these purple irises need to go! They were mis-labeled last fall.















The pool area is going to be gorgeous in the summer when all the white hydrangea are blooming (and the cover is off haha)!










A pool house nicer than most people's regular houses! You should see the inside! It is so beautiful!






This woodland garden is all new, all the plants were designed and newly planted and all those walks are new.