Its Five O'Clock Somewhere....

I love happy hour and wine is usually my drink of choice. There is nothing better than sitting out on my back patio with my hubby, enjoying a tall glass of wine after a long day! In July I wrote a post about a few wines I had tried and loved. I found two more beauties I want to share with you. I am still on a white wine kick since the temperatures here in Charleston are hovering in the upper 80-90s. White wine is quite refreshing after a hot and sweaty day of lugging an 18 pound baby in and out of my car! Although, come fall and cooler temperatures, I will be more than ready to dive back into my trusty reds!

As you all know I used to be a purely pinot grigio kind of girl, then I branched out to sauvignon blancs. Now, I am onto chardonnays! Gasp! That is right, the girl that said she hated chardonnays, now kind of likes them. But don't worry I won't be sampling any white zinfandels or rieslings, I haven't gone crazy:) My parents had a bottle of this chardonnay and it knocked my socks off! It is unbelievable! It is not sweet at all and so smooth. It also didn't have a strong oak flavor like most chardonnays. My hubby even loves it and he is not a wine drinker. This wine retails for about $18-20 but if you are a Costco member you can get it there for $13! Go out and buy it today!! It is the bomb.



My second wine selection is Gazela Vinho Verde. My girls, Alissa and Jill, introduced me to this and it is the perfect summer wine. It has a slight effervescence to it, which makes it so tasty! This gem retails for about $9. I bought mine at Total Wine but I saw it at my grocery store the other day too. Try this wine before the end of summer, but be careful it is easy to drink a whole bottle of this stuff, it is so light and crisp! Any other recommendations for stellar wines I should try? I loved trying all the recommendations I got last time!

My new Obsession

I have a new obsession. It is white gloss spray paint. I can't get enough of it. After painting Sterling's clothes hanger for his nursery in gloss white, I wanted to paint something else. I found this frame at TJMaxx for $4.99. I was not a big fan of the bright yellow but loved the lines and design of the frame. I thought if it was white, it would look perfect in my den and look like a designer frame.


Enter my new best friend, white gloss spray paint. This was such a quick and easy project. That is why I love spray paint! Two coats and this frame was ready to go! How much better does this frame look now that it is white??




So far spray paint is the extent of my craft talents, but I am feeling inspired and ambitious! Next, I am thinking of glossing up a wine rack and mirror. Pictures to come if I don't butcher these projects!

Our Little Romeo

Two of my dear friends down here in Charleston, Katie and Molly, have babies that are close to the same age as Sterling. Katie and I met when we were both 10 weeks pregnant and hadn't told anyone but for some reason told each other and immediately bonded. We had so much fun being pregnant together, well mainly eating together! I can't tell you how many times we hit up McDonald's, Krispy Kreme, and any other restaurant with the excuse, "well we are eating for two now". Her son, Henry was born a week after Sterling. We have had playdates together since they were about 4 weeks old!

Sterling and Henry, best buddies!

Katie introduced me to Molly, while I was pregnant. She is the sweetest girl ever! Molly had her daughter, Eliza about a month after our boys. Now the three of us try to do frequent playgroups and lunches to get the kids together and have mommy time! I am so thankful to have them as friends, they make motherhood an even richer experience! I think the three babies will have a special bond for life and probably make a lot of trouble for us once they are all in high school together.

Sterling, Henry, and Eliza, the three amigos!

Today at our little playgroup Sterling was very full of himself. He was being very flirty with Miss Eliza. He kept trying to hold her hand, which she kept moving away. Sterling then tried to move to 2nd base and grab her chest! We were shocked, honestly dying laughing about how bold my son was being. Finally, since his other attempts had failed, he went for her panty line! At that point I promptly picked him up, and I instructed Matt to have a daddy talk with him when we got home! I think Matt and I are going to have our hands full with this little Romeo in about 15 years!

First attempt at hand holding

Next attempt, since she won't hold his hand he goes for her dress!


Henry is back in the picture, and Sterling doesn't like him creeping on his woman!

Now is he about to roll on top of her before I ended it. Eliza has clearly had enough!

White Bean Tuna Salad

After a Labor Day weekend filled with many indulgences, I decided it was time to crack down on my diet and detox. Yes, I ate pizza and chick fila three times this weekend, drank way too much wine, and gained three pounds(yikes!). At the beginning of the week I normally try to make some sort of salad to have for my lunches during the week. Saves me time with the little one not having to cook or put together a lunch. On Monday, I made this tuna and white bean salad. I have actually made this before, but not since I lived in Charlotte so it has been awhile. The salad was just as good as I remembered it. It is so easy to make and really tastes even better the next day after the flavors have seeped in. It is such a healthy salad, no cheese or dressing, so very diet friendly. If you don't like tuna I think you could substitute canned salmon and this would still be great! I highly recommend you try out this salad, you will have to restrain yourself not to eat the whole bowl.

I would also like to point out, why is it so darn hard to take appetizing pictures of food?? I know my camera sucks big time but this salad honestly looked so much better in person! I don't understand how the peeps at Food and Wine and Bon Appetit get such gorgeous looking pictures of food. Anyways, don't judge my recipes by my poor quality pictures!

WHITE BEAN TUNA SALAD

INGREDIENTS
2 (6-ounce) cans dark meat tuna, packed in olive oil
2 (15-ounce) cans cannelini white beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup small capers, nonpareil in brine, drained and rinsed
6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes
2 cups fresh arugula
6 fresh basil leaves

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, add the tuna, reserving the olive oil in a separate small bowl. Break tuna into bite-size pieces with a large fork. Add the beans and capers. Into the bowl of olive oil, add the red wine vinegar. You should have 1 part vinegar to 2 parts oil - add more extra-virgin olive oil if necessary. Season with salt and pepper. Pour dressing on the tuna, bean and caper mixture and allow the flavors to infuse while slicing the vegetables. Add the onion and tomatoes to tuna mixture and toss gently.
Place the arugula on large decorative platter and top with tuna mixture. Tear fresh basil leaves over the top and serve immediately

**I used the white albacore tuna packed in water and then just used my own olive oil to make the vinaigrette. I also added more basil than called for because we had an abundance on our basil plant that was about to die. I also didn't use the arugula.**


Print this recipe HERE

You Want the Answers?

The gorgeous Jill at A Beautiful Life tagged me with these 8 questions she came up with. She is a mommy to three precious kids and her blog is one of my daily reads, so check her out! I really enjoyed reading all her answers to the questions, it is so fun to learn something new about my virtual friends.


1. If your house was to catch on fire what is the one thing you would take? (non living)
If I were not wearing it, my wedding rings and my grandmother's wedding ring. Both are so meaningful to me. I was thinking photo albums at first, but now with pictures saved on online sites like shutterfly, I could always reprint them. So, I would definitely save my two special pieces of jewelry.

2. What is your all time favorite piece of clothing?
This is a hard one, as I frequently tire of my clothing. I guess I would say my two Missoni dresses. One I wore the night of my rehearsal dinner and the other is more of a fall sweater dress. Love them both and I feel like they are pieces I will always have in my closet.

3. If you had to live in one place the rest of your life would it be on a beach or a mountain top?

The beach! I love the mountains but I am much more of a beach gal. Love the water, salty air, sand, and palm trees!

4. What is your favorite TV show?
Umm, this just might be the hardest question ever! I have way too many favorite shows! I will just give you a run down of my favorites starting back up this fall: Desperate Housewives, Greys Anatomy, Modern Family, Gossip Girl (mainly for the fashion), and just recently added Glee to my list. I am also obsessed with the Food Network. I hate to even go into the reality TV category, there are way too many reality shows I love. As you can see I have a small TV watching problem!

5. If there ever was a movie about your life, which actress would you want to play you?
This would be a toss up between Cameron Diaz, Charlize Theron and Gwyneth Paltrow. I am thinking Charlize Theron, because someone once told me we looked alike. One of the few times I have ever been told I look like someone famous and I was beyond flattered. I think she is gorgeous, now who would my leading man be...........


6. Are you an animal lover? Do you have any pets?
I love animals! Well most animals, I am really not a big fan of cats, but I do love dogs. We have a 7 year old boxer named Nelson. She is the sweetest dog ever!


7. Are you a righty or a lefty?
Righty

8. What is the last book you read? OK I stole this question, but I need some suggestions for some good books!

Please don't make fun of me for this cheeseball cover. I promise I don't always read romance novels! This is quartet of books by Nora Roberts about a group of wedding planers. I just finished the second one, Bed of Roses (see cheesy cover above). Sometimes I am just in the mood for a light and easy read and that's exactly what these books are! So don't judge me, I know you all like a romance novel every now and then too!

Now, here are my 8 questions for these lovely ladies (and no pressure if you don't want to answer:)
1)Who are your female and male celebrity crushes?
2)What is your favorite beverage? alcoholic and non-alcoholic?
3)What food can you not live without?
4)What is your favorite reality tv show?
5)What is your must read magazine?
6)Are you a purse or a shoe girl?
7)Do you like to cook? If so what is your signature dish?
8)If you were rich, what is one item that you would have to splurge on?

I TAG:
Erin at Huddy P

Brooke at Life.Love.Lawton

Lise at Sticky Baby Chronicles

Operation Den Spruce Up

As quickly as I tire of the clothes in my closet, I tire of the decor in my home. Last weekend my parents were in town and my mom and I did some home shopping. I really want a new couch and two chairs for my den, but that is just not in the budget right now. For a quick fix my mom and I rearranged some furniture and switched out pillows. It made a huge difference in my opinion. The room feels fresh now when I walk into it. I had been feeling like the room was too neutral, so we searched for some geometric pillows to give the room some personality. I think it worked for now:) I am trying to save for some new furniture, so as I buy that I will keep you updated on the progress of the room. Please excuse all furniture, it was all bought or passed down to us before we got married and really none of it matches. I kind of cringe at the gold/orangey color of our couch and chair now. It is a very hard color to decorate around. And the love seat has seen better days. After two dogs and a baby, its fabric is filthy. But you gotta work with what you got, right?

THE BEFORE:



THE AFTER:



By switching the chair and the love seat, it really opened up the entrance into our house. I am loving the new pillow on this chair!





The love seat now sits where the singular chair used to be and it makes a cozy little corner. Eventually this is where I would like to put two matching chairs. I am kind of obsessed with these geometric animal print pillows, they make me so happy! So, that is my updated room, still no where near what I want it to look like, but a nice change of scenery for now!

Boys will be Boys

The whole crew from this weekend. Lat, Matt, Matheiu, Richard and Ryan plus Sterling.

I have survived my fratastic Labor Day weekend. There were a total of 8 people and two dogs staying in our tiny 1400 square foot house. It was college style living all weekend. My husband had 4 of his best friends from high school in town, plus one of their wives and dog. I was happy he was getting to spend time with them, not happy at the mess that ensued all weekend long. I swear boys are just so messy and clueless about it. Didn't their mothers teach them to clean up after themselves! and it doesn't help that I am super anal about having a neat and tidy house. I finally decided to just relax and try to ignore the disaster area that my house had become! I am now on my 4th load of laundry with 4-5 more to go. Besides the tight quarters and messy men we had a great weekend.

We spent yesterday at beach and had the best time. I think Sterling really enjoyed having some quality male time! This was the first time several of Matt's friends had even met Sterling. Matt is the first daddy out of the group which is hard to believe!

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend! Tonight on our agenda, a run for me to sweat out all the booze and food I consumed all weekend. Then I'm trying out some new recipes, that will most definitely be blogged about later (unless they suck big time).

Matt and his best friend Lat

Dr. Richard Park and Sterling (doesn't he look just like Jin from LOST?) Any ladies in New York, he is a single doctor at Mount Sinai hospital and the sweetest guy ever!

my sweet boy and his mama at the beach!

loving the beach time with all the boys!
HAPPY LABOR DAY!