one word

Somehow 2011 slipped by and 2012 ushered itself in in record time. 2011 was an amazing year for me filled with more blessings, opportunities and experiences then I would have believed were coming my way this time last year. I'm looking forward to see what 2012 has in store and I know it's going to be a great year.

"Resolution" has become essentially synonymous with "New Year" and I've spent the last few days reading about my friends' resolutions and tips for setting new years goals. I've never been too big on setting any resolutions or goals, but I think that this year I am going to embrace the one word challenge. It's an idea of picking one word any applying it to the many and different areas of your life, so that you set a 'theme' for your year. What I like most about this idea is that it can't become condensed into a simple 'accomplished/didn't accomplish' kind of resolution checklist, but something that you can continually go back to month after month, reevaluate and work toward. Some of my favorite ones that I've heard have been: create, humility, purify, inspire, authenticity and focus.

I'm so excited for 2012 to get rolling! What do you want the theme of your year to be?

Not your momma's brussels sprouts

You should know upfront that if you have horrible memories of being forced to eat microwaved-from-frozen brussels sprouts, you are not alone. Many people grow up fearing the mini green cabage, the smell, the texture, the social stigma -- this poor, undervalued vegtable.

I don't have those memories, because I was never exposed to these growing up. My mom must hate them, and that's how it went -- if my mom didn't like something, it was never in the house.

But I don't blame my mom, it's a certainty that I wouldn't have eaten them anyway.

I saw this recipie on a Barefoot Contessa episode and knew that I needed to make them asap, but when picking up the cute little sprouts in Trader Joe's one Sunday afternoon, my roommate was instantly grossed out and told me about her hatred toward the veg after being forced to sit at her kitchen table for hours when she refused to eat them growing up.

For all of you out there who share her sentiment, you've got to know that these are amazing (even she agreed!). Trust that 1. your taste buds have changed 2. the crunchy texture is not what you remember from the microwave 3. everything is better with maple syrup.

I think America's most hated veggie just became a new 'fridge staple for this girl.

So here you have it, Maple Glazed Brussels Sprouts:

1 bag of fresh sprouts, halved
Olive Oil
Maple Syrup
Salt and Pepper
Easy Peasy

get these cutie pies halved and give 'em a run through the sink if they don't come pre-wash

Put them in a bowl or pot and coat with with enough olive oil to fully cover them, but not drench them, you're going to add some yummy maple syrup next

Use about the same amount of syrup as you did olive oil, mix it well and add salt and pepper. You may want to give it 15 or so minutes to soak its heavenly goodness into every little leaf of the sprout

Get them on a baking sheet with foil - or the syrup will ruin your pan - and put them in a 400 degree oven for 20 to 30ish minutes, or until they're crispy, smell delicious and look like this:

voila

Give them a try, I promise you won't pull the fake 'mouth wipe but really spit into a napkin,' feed to the dog, strategically spread out on the plate, or remind you of the hours you spent sitting at your kitchen table.

falling in love with [a southern] autumn.

Last year, I wrote an homage to my favorite season of the year-- my beloved fall.

When I found out that I was moving to Nashville I was more than a little bummed that I would be leaving the infamously beautiful Northeast for the fall season. I imagined the south to be lacking in any kind of fall weather, colors and everything of the like. I thought it would be 90 degrees until October and then just turn to 40 degrees.

How amazingly wrong I was! I've spent this autumn season in Tennessee and Georgia and it is just as beautiful as the Northeast... except there's a lot less rain. It's been absolutely perfect.

Eating lots of squash, wearing a jacket and sweaters and scarves, putting cinnamon in my coffee and taking photos of leaves. Fall, you'll always have my heart.

token fall produce photo

A Georgia Antebellum Home, so beautiful

Oktoberfesting

cutie Nashville, just because

Fall, you've been good to me

hurricane pizza

this delicious piece of heaven may not have anything to do with a hurricane, but it was born as a product of watching 8,000 hours of hurricane Irene coverage. No, but really.

As I sat in my tennessee apartment where it was sunny and 1,000 degrees outside, my pennsylvania-native roommate and I spent a good portion of last weekend glued to CNN as we kept our eye on our beloved Northeast and news anchors told us "this storm is unique because of its size" and "there will be a storm surge" 20 times per hour. At 9 am we were really into it, curled up on our couch with our coffee, but by 9 pm when it was apparent that most everyone in the Northeast was going to be just fine, we were wine CNN drunk and couldn't stop laughing at the poor reporters getting hit by sea foam.

post vicious attack

So, we decided to watch Sex and the City and make pizza.. which brings you hurricane pizza.

The ingredients on this are pretty outlandish, but this will seriously be the most heavenly specimen of pizza you may ever eat. So as I list off what you need, don't be all 'oh no she didn't' because trust me it'll kick you in the mouth with flavor. 

Here it is, you need:

1. your favorite pizza dough
2. a few slices of mozarella cheese
3. a few slices of jack cheese
4. blue cheese
5. fig preserves or jam
6. green onions
7. honey mustard

cheese. yes.

So roll out your dough, you can buy pre-made but it's cheaper and more delicious to make your own. I made this one with 1/2 of a 84 cent package of quick rising dough. Add warm water, wait five minutes and it's ready to go.

Then, add that ridiculous fig jam. It's super sweet, so don't over do it, just a light spread.  **because if you over do it, it'll be too sweet and you'll want to throw it out and you'll have wasted all of your ingredients and you'll still be hungry and nobody will be happy -- so just don't do it. 

Then add all that cheese.

 

Then half of the onions

 

Now it's time to bake it, I wish I could say I had an exact time and temp that works but I usually keep it spontaneous. Sometimes it's 350 for 15 minutes, or 425 for 10. Jut wait till its gooey and the crust gets golden, then your good to go. 

At this point, try not to be overcome by your instinct to rip this apart and inhale it, hold out because it's about to get really good.

Add the other half of your green onions, then dip a fork or knife into honey mustard and drizzle it on top and finish it off with a little pepper.

Cut it up and eat it right away because by this point the anticipation should be killing you and you deserve some relief. The flavor combos on this thing will really change your life.

I've found that this pizza pairs well with a Pennsylvania brewed lager and a lazy weekend, but you can eat it however you want. 

Can I have it please?

DIY bliss!

What's a girl to do when she wants her apartment to feel like home but is living life on a --- we'll just say less than pottery barn -- budget? DIY decorating my friends.

Not only is DIY decorating adorable and wallet friendly, but I love the ability to have everything in your home be one of a kind and perfectly tailored to your taste!

While browsing around for ideas and inspiration on pinterest, I came across these two lovely ideas for over the bed art and decided to combine them to give my dreadful white walls a little love.

The first, from ballard designs for $169.00

And the second from DIY Chic Home

When I was still living in Pennsylvania and painted my room a dreamy shade of grey, I spray painted everything in my possession white

 

But when I found out a week later that I would be moving to Nashville, I was left with empty white frames and no idea what to do with them. 

So after spending an indulging amount of time in Hobby Lobby (the south has been holding out from the north with this store... think about the sheer wonder that would be if Home Goods and A.C. Moore had a child, on steroids) and I found myself some cute scrapbook paper pages, for fifty cents a piece. 

I attached them to the back of the frames in about three minutes and then spread the frames out on my floor and tested every possible hanging combination.

 

Once I eventually picked one, I popped a few nails in the wall and voila! 

They add a small touch of color and most importantly give me a sense of feeling like this place is my home. And because I already had the frames and nails, it only cost me $3! I'd love to keep adding to this so the frames can be more condensed and the look as a whole will be bigger -- so I'm going to be on the hunt for cheap frames of different shapes and sizes every time I leave the house now. And if I get around to painting my walls or buying a new comforter that doesn't go along with the color scheme, switching out the backs of these frames is as easy as changing a pillow case.

Lets face it, DIY decorating is a win for everyone! What DIY project are you most proud of?

childhood dreams, coming true.

I will proudly tell the world that I love Britney Spears. I have since the third grade when I felt like she understood my life, dancing around in that catholic school uniform. Since then, my musical tastes have shifted, but I've always loved Brit Brit. Tride and true.

However, while I have loved her since 1998, spending the amount she charges to see her concerts never something I desired to do. Turning her up when she comes on the radio and vehemently defending her when people claim Christina is better is about as far as my loyalty went.

Then, I came across an opportunity to have amazing seats for her concert in Nashville for....18 dollars! I'll see just about anybody for $18, so the fact that it was my childhood idol was the cherry on top. I expected her to put on a good show and to have a fun time singing and dancing along to tunes that defined my elementary, middle school, junior high, high school and even college years. But, I didn't expect her to be as good as she was. She can put on a show, entertain a crowd and get thousands of people singing just as well as she's always been able to. Yes, Britney Spears has still got it.

It was one of the best concerts I've ever been to and so much fun to sing along to the oldies with all the 20 and 30 somethings in the crowd while the 15-year-olds looked at each other mouthing 'do you know this one.... me either.' come on, who doesn't know toxic and stronger?

So cheers to you Britney Spears, and your music that's kept me dancing like a fool since 1998. As long as you keep singing, I'll keep turning you up on the radio.

We had great seats, she was so close!

 

light up outfits, duh.

suspended with huge angel wings while fireworks go off behind her -- why not?

and just for the heck of it, 

let yourself take a trip down memory lane, you know you want to