Weekend Happenings

How is it possibly Monday already?? I feel like our weekend flew by, probably because it was jam packed!

Friday we had a low key evening. I made a big pot of Paula Deen's French Onion Soup. It is always amazing! The recipe is under my recipes tab if you have never made it. I highly recommend it, it is cheap, easy and so tasty!

Saturday we had some pictures done for our Christmas Cards by my girl Julia- sneak peek to come later. But here is one shot of Sterling in his adorable outfit. We had to bribe him to cooperate with raisins so if you get one of our Christmas cards it will mostly likely have a box of raisins in it!

Later that day we had a birthday party for one of Sterling's friends Oliver. The kids got to go to the fire station and had so much fun. Not sure who loved it more Matt or Sterling! I'm not kidding Matt talked to the firefighters forever and was pretty eager to hop in the front seat!

Then I was off to a Bachelorette party for my dear friend, Alissa. We started with Champagne and pureed fresh strawberries- amazing. I highly recommend you try this instead of mimosas, such a great twist. My sister in law pureed the strawberries in her juicer but I think you could use a blender too.

Then we headed to my favorite wine bar Bin 152.

They have an amazing wine list and the most delicious Cheese and Charcuterie plates. I was in heaven.

Somehow later on into the evening I ended up doing alot of these! I mean that's what Bachelorette Parties are all about right?? It was a good idea until the next morning....

We had such a fun time and I was super happy to have my sister in town to hang with us. She is always my partner in crime!

I will leave y'all one with one OOTD from this weekend. Ladies if you don't have a Tory Burch Cardigan you need one. I have one in brown and red and they are my favorite sweaters. So versatile and always look chic!

Tory Burch Cardigan, JCrew Talia Blouse, Seven "The Skinny" Black Jeans, Micheal Kors Pumps
Oh, and thanks to the time change this nugget has woken up at 5:30 the past two days. I was not a happy Mommy this morning! But it is hard to stay angry at this sweet face. Any suggestions on getting kids adjusted to the time change are welcome!

CopyCat

I thought it would be fun to try and recreate three outfits I saw online and LOVE!! They each showcase three of my favorite trends for fall: Leopard Prints, Fur Vests, and Colored Jeans.
**One day I promise I will get Matt to snap the pictures of me. I am usually working on my blog during naptime so it's just me to take the pictures, so sorry for the cheesy self shots!**

Outfit One: Leopard Print

I adore this outfit Miranda Kerr is wearing. Perfectly Chic. If only I actually dressed like that when I traveled. I really like the blue paired with the leopard, something I would not have thought of on my own. Here is my version.

Blouse Joie (Similar Here), Jeans Seven "The Skinny" In black, Cardigan Banana Republic (similar here), Nine West Booties (similar Here)

Outfit Two: Fur Vest

I think you all know how much I loved this outfit of Blair's. Here is my version:

Parker Multi-Squares Dress, Kensie Vest (similar Here), Necklace Banana Republic (Similar Here)

Outfit Three: Colored Jeans

Burgundy Jeans are one of my favorite trends for the fall. Love the simplicity of this outfit. I think you can dress this up or down with heels and jewelry.

Joe's Jeans Alice the Skinny Visionaire, JCrew Talia Blouse, Michael Kors Pumps

It was so fun digging through my closet trying to recreate these looks. Thank you Pinterest for taking up another of my naptimes! Happy Friday Dolls! xoxo

Stalker.

I have to admit I have been a bit of a stalker lately. That's right I have been stalking the heck out of this mirror. She is from Ballard Designs and haunts me everyday. I keep seeing her pop everywhere and it has me convinced I need her in my foyer. She is perfection in my book. I present to you the

BALLARD DESIGNS ATOLL MIRROR

I am also stalking these Sam Edleman booties. Everytime I open a magazine they are there staring me right in the face. I think it's a sign, right? I love the detail on these beauties and they come in 3 gorgeous colors. I think they would look rocking with skinny jeans or a dress. So versatile. Its official I need them!
SAM EDLEMAN RENZO BOOTIES

Sigh, Santa can you add these two things to the top of my list? That is unless I cave and buy them first which is a strong possibility!

Roasted Winter Vegetable Soup

This recipe is a tried and true favorite of mine. As soon as the weather gets cool I start craving this soup. The roasted vegetables are delicious on their own but even tastier pureed into this soup. We serve ours drizzled with truffle oil and Gruyere cheese toast, perfection in my book. Of course this recipe comes compliments of my numero uno girl Ina, she really never disappoints. This soup freezes wonderfully and even my munchkin will eat it which makes me happy because at least I know he got a few veggies in for the day! Enjoy!






ROASTED WINTER VEGETABLE SOUP
From Barefoot Contessa Family Style
Ingredients
3 to 4 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
1 quart Roasted Winter Vegetables, recipe follows
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Good olive oil

Directions
In a large saucepan, heat 3 cups of chicken stock. Coarsely puree the Roasted Winter Vegetables and the chicken stock in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade (or use a handheld blender). Pour the soup back into the pot and season, to taste. Thin with more chicken stock and reheat. The soup should be thick but not like a vegetable puree, so add more chicken stock and/or water until it's the consistency you like.


Roasted Winter Vegetables:
1 pound carrots, peeled
1 pound parsnips, peeled
1 large sweet potato, peeled
1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled and seeded
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Cut the carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, and butternut squash in 1 to 1 1/4-inch cubes. All the vegetables will shrink while baking, so don't cut them too small.

Place all the cut vegetables in a single layer on 2 sheet pans. Drizzle them with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss well. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender, turning once with a metal spatula.

Sprinkle with parsley, season to taste, and serve hot

Print Recipe HERE

Obsessions

LUCITE BAR STOOLS
How gorgeous are these beauties? I think they would make the perfect addition to the bar in our kitchen!

CLARKS WALLABEE FIRST BOOTS
I will be the first to admit is hard to find cute boy shoes. When I saw these I knew they would be perfect for my little man. They are cute and everytime Sterling wears them we get tons of compliments. I will be ordering them every year from now on. They have them online right now at Piperlime in tan and dark brown. I love them both.


Here is Sterling sporting his

VEGGIE STRAWS
This is my new favorite snack. I bought the snack size bags of these for Sterling's lunch and I keep eating them all. They are crunchy, salty, and have great flavor. If you haven't tried these you must!


MISSONI INFINITY SCARF
We have finally had some cooler weather here in Charleston and I am all about some scarves. I love this Missoni one, it comes in three fabulous colors and I really didn't think the price was too bad for a Missoni item. The black and gray color combo is my favorite because it would go with everything!

HOT CARAMELIZED ONION DIP WITH BACON AND GRUYERE
When I saw this dip in last month's Coastal Living it was love at first site. I made this dip twice in the last week. It is the perfect appetizer for a party or anytime. Everyone raved about this dish. I am so obsessed with this dip I would scarf it down right now at 7:00 in the morning. I recommend serving with Kettle Chips and adding more bacon than it calls for:) Print Recipe Here. You're welcome because this will become your new favorite dip.

STEVE JOB'S EULOGY
If you haven't read the Eulogy Steve Job's sister gave at his funeral you really should. What an amazing man he was. I got goosebumps reading this especially the end when right before he died he kept saying "Oh Wow, Oh Wow." So inspiring. Read it Here.

Weekend Happenings

I hope everyone had a fabulous pre-halloween weekend! Ours was busy but great! Here is what went down this weekend.

We enjoyed two park outings. One at the park near our house and the other down at The Battery. We finally had some cooler weather here and I loved it!

I ate the most delicious cheeseburger appropriately called The Sh*$. It had chorizo, jalapenos and a fried egg. Perfection. This amazeballs burger can be found at the Triangle Char and Bar in West Ashley. They use all local grass fed beef which is always a plus in my book!

I did a little abstract painting. She is not done yet but so far I am pretty happy with what's going on.

Sterling also worked on a little painting of his own. I think I might have a little Picasso on my hands.

I planted some new fall pansies on our front porch. My mom assures me they are easy to take care of and will last through the winter. I don't have the greenest thumb so I like easy plants!

I watched Bad Teacher Saturday night and was pleasantly surprised. I thought the movie looked stupid but it was actually pretty funny. I must say I do love Justin Timberlake and another pleasant surprise was Cam from Modern Family was also in the movie.

Here is one OOTD from this weekend. I wore my DVF dress to church. She's on sale right now:)


We took Sterling to a fabulous Halloween Costume Party at Chassity's House. She really went all out with the decorations and food! I so wish I had snapped some pictures of all the creative food she made, but I bet she will post some pictures on her Blog!

Sterling went as DJ Lance a character from his favorite TV show Yo Gabba Gabba.

In case you aren't familiar with DJ Lance, here he is, please note Sterling refused to wear the hat or glasses. Otherwise the outfit was pretty close!

Sterling and Lily chilling at the Halloween Party. Although it looks more like he was harassing her!

Happy Halloween. I hope you all enjoy lots of Snickers, Reeses, Kit-Kats, and Twix today! xoxo