Taylor and Jake????

Is this for real??? I just read on People.com, which is usually a pretty reliable gossip source, that Jake Gyllenhaal and Taylor Swift had been seen hanging out. Not just hanging out as friends, cuddling and more. WTF, Jake you can do so much better! You can't even take her to a bar to grab a drink!! I'm pretty sure she is not even 21 yet. I actually like Taylor Swift, I think she is cute and super talented and I really like Jake- what a hottie, have you seen the shirtless pics of him filming the King of Persia??! But what a random couple! I bet Reese is getting a good laugh over this!

You can check out the article on People HERE
photo: people.com

Organizing by the Rainbow

Yesterday after Matt was already at work, I realized my keys were locked in my car. He couldn't leave work to bring them to me, so I was stranded all day. I was so bored, no trips to the grocery store, Target or any errands. I decided to take advantage of my time while Sterling napped and clean and organize my kitchen. I cleaned out my pantry, polished all the stainless appliances, organized drawers and mopped. A very productive nap time. I was inspired by Megan at Honey Were Home's bookshelves. They are organized my color and look gorgeous! Unfortunately we don't have any bookshelves, but I do have an abundance of cookbooks that I decided to organize. I love the result, it makes me happy to look at this rainbow on top of my fridge. If you had seen the top of my fridge before covered with baby food, dog food, cookbooks, jugs of water, etc- this is a huge improvement!



I also found one of my mom's old silver trays and used it to arrange my salt and pepper and oil shaker. I think this brings a bit of glamour to the kitchen!

Sadly, my kitchen only stayed immaculate for a few hours, once the dog came inside, the hubby got home, and dinner was cooked it was kind of a mess again!

Just Call me Martha

My sister-in-law turned the big 30 this weekend. In honor of her birthday and to help her celebrate I made her these delicious Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing.

They take literally like 5 minutes to mix and make- icing them takes a bit longer, but still they are super easy. This recipe comes compliments of my girl Martha Stewart, who I strive to be like (minus the jail time of course), she is so organized and a genius in the kitchen.
I substituted sprinkles instead of candy corn. I found these cute sprinkles in the dollar section at Target and thought they would be perfect on the birthday cupcakes.

I highly recommend you make these cupcakes if you have a Halloween Party coming up, everyone will be impressed!
Print this Recipe: PUMPKIN CUPCAKES WITH CREAM CHEESE ICING

I'm on a Boat

We finally took Sterling on his first boat ride this weekend! He really loved it and didn't even cry once. This made his daddy very happy because he is boat obsessed and was worried about his son not loving boats as much as he does. We had a lovely afternoon cruising around. This time of the year is just gorgeous here!

Matt's pride and joy, his boat, AKA "peanut". Sometimes I think he loves this boat more than us:)

Matt's requirement to take the boat out, fried chicken and Bud Light. I did manage to sneak some LaCrema for me (it's hidden in the Perrier bottle, the captain prefers no glass bottles on his boat)!

Loving his first boat ride!

our self portrait

Cuddling with my little man- it was quite chilly out on the water!

Helping daddy drive the boat

Trying to get a smile out of my little man, useless when the camera comes out. Normally he is so smiley but once he sees the camera, he is all Mr. Serious.

Monogram Obsession

I love, love, love a monogrammed outfit on a baby! While I was pregnant, I had so much stuff monogrammed that Matt said he was scared I was going to monogram the baby when he came out. If we have another boy, I am seriously considering choosing a name with the same initials so we can reuse all of the stuff I monogrammed for Sterling. I couldn't resist sharing these sweet pictures of my little man in his monogrammed outfit yesterday. I mean how cute is the royal blue corduroy jumper with the red monogram:)
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Roasted Carrot and Ginger Soup

I love making homemade soups. They are usually pretty easy and healthy. This recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks (I have mentioned it before) The Comfort Table by Katie Lee Joel. At first the hubby sneered at this so-called carrot soup, but after he tasted it, he was sold. This soup is rich and creamy. The combination of carrots and fresh ginger is out of this world good!

ROASTED CARROT AND GINGER SOUP

- 1.5 LBS CARROTS CUT INTO LARGE DICE (ABOUT 4 CUPS)
- 2 TABLESPOONS OLIVE OIL
- 1 TABLESPOON UNSALTED BUTTER
- 1 MEDIUM YELLOW ONION DICED
- 1 TABLESPOON FINELY MINCED FRESH GINGER
- 2 BAY LEAVES
- 1 QUART CHICKEN BROTH
- 1 TABLESPOON FRESH LEMON JUICE
- 1 TABLESPOON WORCESTERSHIRE
- 1/2 CUP PLAIN YOGURT
- MINCED FLAT LEAF PARSLEY

PREHEAT OVEN TO 400 DEGREES AND LINE A BAKING SHEET WITH PARCHMENT PAPER. TOSS THE CARROTS WITH 1 TBLS OLIVE, SALT AND PEPPER AND SPREAD IN SINGLE LAYER ON BAKING SHEET. ROAST UNTIL FORK TENDER ABOUT 20 MINUTES.

MEANWHILE IN A DUTCH OVEN OR STOCKPOT, HEAT THE REMAINING OLIVE OIL AND BUTTER OVER MEDIUM HIGH HEAT. SAUTE THE ONIONS, GINGER AND BAY LEAVES UNTIL THE ONIONS ARE TRANSPARENT, ABOUT 5 MINUTES. ADD THE CHICKEN BROTH, LEMON JUICE, WORCESTERSHIRE, 1/2 TEASPOON SALT AND 1/2 TEASPOON PEPPER, AND BRING TO A LOW BOIL. ADD THE CARROTS, REDUCE TO A SIMMER AND COOK ABOUT 10 MINUTES. REMOVE THE BAY LEAVES. USE AN IMMERSION BLENDER OR TRANSFER IN BATCHES TO A BLENDER AND BLEND UNTIL CREAMY. ADD THE YOGURT AND BLEND TO COMBINE. SERVE GARNISHED WITH FRESH PARSLEY.

Master Bedroom Update

I am in the (long) process of updating our master bedroom and making some changes. I have do it in stages because it is too darn expensive to buy everything at once. Now that I am a stay at home mommy, we don't have quite the money flow that we used to. My sister gave me a zebra rug that she had bought for her house, but that didn't work in the space. I don't know about you but I love zebra! I immediately brought it home and put it in our bedroom and I love it. It is amazing how one new piece can make a room seem so fresh and new. Next on my list recovering the yellow chair, some new artwork, and I would really love an upholstered headboard.