Thoughts For Friday

Happy Friday! I am so excited for this weekend. We have so many fun parties to attend which is very welcome after two low key weekends. I am ready to get dressed up and get my party on!

I went out to dinner Monday night with two of my favorite ladies Chassity and Caycee to celebrate Chassity's birthday. We dined at The Macintosh and it was amazing. Loved everything we ate. If you dine there I highly recommend the truffled fries and Lavender Martini- out of this world! Here is my Outfit (Dress is Generra from Hampden Clothing a few years ago)

How cute does Kristen Cavelleri look preggo in her one-piece. I mean I seriously want that bathing suit pregnant or not it is so chic. Anyone know who makes this swimsuit?

I am thinking about picking up these rubber Tory Burch flipflops. Anyone own a pair? I am looking for a casual pair of flipflops to wear with shorts and dresses this summer. I am digging the black and tan. They seem like the perfect summer sandal for a fraction of the cost of her other shoes.

I rue the day Matt ever brought home this new Fruity Pebbles cereal. You see I have a weakness for cereal. I can't buy the sweet kind because I will eat a whole box in a day. The Marshmallow Pebbles is ridiculously good, you should buy some. But be warned, its like crack I can't stop eating it.

I was browsing through Oprah's magazine (which surprisingly was a pretty good read) while I got my nails done last week and came across a new juice recipe from Dr. Oz. He said it was his go-to detox juice recipe. I made it this week and really liked it. For those of you with juicers you should totally try this recipe out.

I am not a huge St. Patrick's Day partier. Although I will say I went through a stage in college where I loved Guinness and it was all I wanted to drink (so random, right?? But I found since it was less carbonated I could drink more without feeling so full. Priorities in college. Plus it does have less calories than most beers.) Now I never really drink beer but I am thinking I want to make these festive "Pot of Gold" cocktails featured on the Glitter Guide yesterday. They have fresh pear juice and champagne in them and sound divine.

My birthday is a week from Saturday and I am actually excited about it this year. My family gets in town Thursday and I am hoping to hit up the Rooftop Bar or somewhere with fabulous outdoor seating since the weather has been so nice. For my local readers what are your favorite outdoor spots to enjoy drinks in Charleston?
If money were no object this is what I would like to wear for my Birthday night out.
Tibi Draped Shift Dress

and I would pair it with these DVF Sinead Twist Sandals

Here's to hoping the weather this weekend is as amazing as it has been all week. We have been loving our park playdates! Gotta love that my little man insists on wearing his rainboots with every outfit!

Have a fabulous weekend!

The Look For Less x 2

I am pretty sure you have all seen this Tibi Maxi Skirt all over Pinterest and the blogasphere lately. I love it, really do but $495 for a skirt is ridiculously expensive. There is no way I am going to pay that.
TIBI ARIZONA PLEATED SKIRT, $495

I came across this skirt from Anthropolgie. The pattern is different, and yeah I probably like the Tibi pattern better, but this skirt is a 1/3 the price of the Tibi skirt and the style is pretty much exactly the same. I actually really like the color blocking on the Anthro skirt.
FIELD OF VISION SKIRT, $148

Another item I have been stalking is the Celine Colorblock Tote. Sadly, at $2000+ that purse will never be mine!

I found this super cute similar version at Old Navy. I know I am shocked too, but Old Navy has been killing it this year with their line! First the sailboat blouse and now these totes. This purse is truly a fraction of the cost of the Celine Tote. It was orginally $29 but it is one sale right now for $17.80. Heck I would almost buy two for that price. They are faux leather so I think they would be adorable beach totes because they would be easy to clean!
OLD NAVY COLORBLOCK TOTE, $17.80

Cheesy Enchilada Casserole

I made this casserole a few weeks ago because it was voted Casserole of the year by Taste of Home Magazine. Plus lets be honest, I never met a Mexican dish I didn't love! This casserole certainly did not disappoint and the best part it was so simple to put together. If you are a Vegetarian I think this would be great without meat and you could just add another type of beans or an additional veggie. I also think it would be great with ground turkey or shredded chicken if you don't like red meat. It was cheesy and filled with so many great flavors! I love making casseroles because I can make them earlier that day and then just pop them in the oven. I usually make them during nap time and then I have more time to spend with Sterling and Matt when he gets home (and more time to sit and sip my glass of wine). I highly recommend this, it was super tasty!

I promise it tastes better than my sad picture looks, but wanted to show you our "real life" picture of the casserole.


CHEESY ENCHILADA CASSEROLE
Ingredients
•1 pound lean ground beef ( lean)
•1 large onion, chopped or season with Onion powder or minced onion
•2 1/2 cups salsa
•1 can (15 ounces) black beans or red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
•1/4 cup reduced-fat Italian salad dressing
•2 tablespoons reduced-sodium taco seasoning
•1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
•6 flour or corn tortillas (8 inches)
•1 small can of drained corn, or about 1 1/4 cups of frozen corn
•3/4 cup sour cream
•2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend or your favorite cheese
•1 cup shredded lettuce
•1 medium tomato, chopped
•1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro to garnish
• *Note: I cut the flour tortillas to fit my pan, since they were the very large size. I also added in a can of refried beans to the mix because I love refried beans. It is not in the original recipe but I thought it worked perfectly.

Directions
•In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.
•Stir in the salsa, beans, corn, dressing, sour cream, taco seasoning and cumin.
•Spoon a generous layer of meat mixture on bottom of 2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle with grated cheese.
•Place a flour or corn tortilla on top of meat mixture. Layer with half of the meat mixture, and cheese. Repeat as many layers as you like.
•The last & final layer should be a healthy dose of grated cheese.
•Cover with foil that has been sprayed with pam or other and bake at 400° for 25 minutes, or until hot & bubbly.
• Let stand for 5 minutes before topping with lettuce, tomato and cilantro. Yield: 8 servings

Top Two Photos and Recipe VIA

Obsessions

I am so glad everyone is still digging the Obsessions posts because I sure do love writing them!

AQUA CANYON IKAT TIERED MAXI DRESS
Obsessed with this dress and even more so with the price tag. It is only $118, such a steal for a cute maxi dress. Pretty sure she will be mine soon!

HOUSE OF HARLOW JEWELRY
So of course I had heard of Nicole Ritchie's jewelry line but I had never seen it in person. While I was in Charlotte we stopped in Nordtroms where they had a display set up of her jewelry. I loved every piece I tried on. The jewelry was made so well and even more beautiful in person. I thought it looked like it should cost alot more than it did! My two favorites pictured below. They both come in black as well but I was really digging the neutral color.
Station Leather Necklace

Double Sunburst Pendant

34 DEGREES CRISPBREAD
I am so hooked on these crackers. They’re the thinnest, crispiest cracker around, and they’re baked with no added oil. I bought the multi-grain kind and it is made with only 3 ingredients, so you know they are good for you. One serving of 34° Crispbread is 9 crackers and that is only 35 calories and 0 grams of fat. Seriously go pick up a box of these. I found mine at Costco but I have seen them at Earthfare as well. They pair perfectly with my cheese and wine in the afternoon!

DVF KLEE TOE FLATS
I am in love with these shoes in a major way. They are the perfect nude color with a hint of hot pink.

ALMOND MILK
I have to admit I switched to Almond Milk after I heard Gwyneth say that she drank it. I know alot of regular diary and milk are laden with hormones and Almond milk is not. There is no cholesterol, lactose, or animal products in Almond Milk. It is so good I may not switch back to regular milk. The Silk brand is what I tried and love.

TRADER JOES WILD MUSHROOM AND BLACK TRUFFLE PIZZA
This is the pizza I blogged out yesterday. It is so darn good. You must try this if you love Truffles. You can really taste the flavor in the pizza. I think mushrooms and truffles are quite possibly the perfect combo. I do recommend adding extra cheese.

Scenes From Our Weekend

Happy Monday Dolls! Several of you asked what Marshalls I shop at when I am in Charlotte, it's the one at Cotswold. We always go to that one because it gets in pretty good brands (ie. Vince, See by Chloe, Paige, J Brand, Marc Jacobs, Prada- just a few they have right now). You still have to dig but you can find some great stuff there.

We had a good weekend, but they sure do go by fast! Here's what went down:

I ended up staying in Charlotte til Saturday. I decided to stay and meet one of my oldest friends for a drink Friday night. Here is what I wore:

Tory Burch Cardigan, Micheal Stars Tank Top, Seven "The Skinny" Jeans, Halston Flats.

Got new lamps for our dining room buffet and a new Lucite chair for our desk. Thank you Mom for the lamps and thank you TJMaxx for the amazing Lucite chair.

We took Sterling on his first bike ride and he absolutely loved it!! Anyone know where we can find a cute kids Helmet? We just took him for a slow spin around the block because we couldn't find a Helmet.

My mother-in-law gave me the most gorgeous Oscar De La Renta Coffee table book. I love it so much!

The tulips the hubs gave me for Valentines that we planted finally bloomed this week- look how pretty!

Tried the best flatbread ever from Trader Joes, Wild Mushroom and Black Truffle. This will be eaten on a regular basis around here (although I did add more cheese to ours, I love ALOT of cheese).

We cooked one of my all time favorite side dishes to go with our Burgers, Confetti Corn. See Recipe Here. I added fresh Swiss Chard from our garden and it was the perfect addition!

Lastly I am guesting posting over at Sam's gorgeous blog "The Peak of Tres Chic" about my Monday Inspirations!

Check out my post HERE! Sam's blog is a must read if you havn't visited it before!

Thoughts For Friday

First of all, thank you so much for all the feedback and kind words yesterday. You ladies made me feel so loved and made my day! I am so happy so many of you enjoy reading my blog everyday!! I am getting ready to work on some more day to day posts and my question and answer post so stay tuned! I am glad you like what I putting out there, makes me so happy!

This week Matt and I ate lunch at a place called the Tattooed Moose. We saw it on Diners, Drive-in and Dives (told you we love that show) and knew we had to go. It is a little off the beaten path downtown on Morrison but worth the drive. The food was amazing. They have a great beer selection as well which we plan to go back on the weekend and enjoy. I had the Duck Confit Club which they touted as their favorite sandwich on the show. It did not disappoint it was mouth watering good. Filled with fresh duck, bacon, cheddar cheese and garlic aoli. They also cook their fries in duck fat (yep, I am serious and they are divine). Locals go here soon. For real I am still dreaming out our food.

Anybody catch GCB on Sunday night? I recorded it and watched it this week and loved it. New favorite Sunday night show. I love Lesile Bibb and Kristen Chenowenth. I think the cast is hilarious. Totally cheesy but I love it.

I really want this DVF dress. I found it on sale on Shopbop for 30 percent off but I wish it was more like 50% off. Somebody let me know if you see it for less than $200!

I headed home this week to visit my rents. I have been in a funk and sometimes getting out of town is just the thing I need to clear my head and cheer up. Totally worked, feeling so refreshed after some quality time with my mom! We hit up Marshalls while I was home and found some great stuff. My mom got these gorgeous Prada shoes (they didn't have my size- boo).

and I found these Paige brown skinny jeans and the perfect white Michael Stars Tank. I have a feeling a will be wearing both of these staples often! Oh, how I love Marshalls, you gotta dig thru some junk but you can find some great deals!

Two things I tried on and didn't pick up, for you Charlotte Readers- a stripped French Connection Dress and white silk Vince Blouse. Great buys. Somebody go buy them!

I am obsessed with the band The Head and The Heart. Look them up on ITunes and buy some songs, I promise you will love them!

Drank some delicious wine this week, Dry Creek Vineyards Zinfandel. For real this is one of the best reds I have had in a long time and I am not even a huge Zinfandel fan (although side note this is actually a Meritage) but this wine is excellent. A little out of my price range for nightly drinking at $30 a bottle but when I am at my parents I love to drink it up. Perfect for a special night!

And I got my first real pedicure since last summer! It is so hard to ever find time to get my nails done with a little one. I went with OPI You're a Pisa Work. The perfect transition color between Spring and Summer.

Have a great weekend friends! Thank you again for all the sweet words about my blog you know how to make a lady feel loved!! xoxo

Lay It On Me....

Happy Thursday Lovely Ladies!
Today I am looking for some feedback from you. I want to know what you enjoy reading on my blog. I feel like there are so many blogs out there and I want to be one you enjoy reading daily. I know I personally like blogs that are a mix of family, fashion, food, and interiors. That is what inspires me and makes me happy, so that is what I like to write about. I like "real life" blogs where people show me a sneak peek into their lives. That is why I often show pictures of things we did over the weekend etc. I love seeing how other people live and spend their time.

I have gotten pretty comfortable with my standard line-up of Monday being Weekend Happenings/Random, Tuesday- Obsessions, Wednesday- Recipes, Thursday- Fashion/Interiors, Friday- Random Thoughts. But is this working or am I in a rut?
Are the Obsessions posts getting old or do you still enjoy them? Same with the Recipes and Random Thoughts. Are you sick of seeing pictures of my family (be honest)? Basically I want to know your favorite thing to read on my blog and what you would like to see more or less of. I love writing this blog and your comments make my day, seriously! I am so honored that you guys read and actually respond to things I write. You see I majored in Journalism in College so this is my jam writing this blog. Spelling and grammar however are so not my jam, so bear with my grammatical errors. I may or may not have failed the Spelling and Grammar Test 7 times in College, but hey that is what computers and spell check are for these days! Blogging makes me so happy and I look forward to doing it each and everyday as well as reading your blogs. I feel like I have made so many "virtual" friends through this crazy blogging world and I love you all and treasure your friendships. I get excited each morning to read your blogs and see what you write on mine! Being a stay at Home Mom= long ass days alot of the time and blogging helps keep me creative and sane.

A reader emailed me and asked if I would do a questions and answers post about myself which I am working on. She said she wanted to know more about me and my daily life and life preblog etc. So if you have any questions you want me to answer for this post shoot them my way and I will add them in.

So lay it on me ladies. Share what you love/hate want to see more of! I want to make this blog even better! I appreciate each and everyone of your feedbacks. xoxo
(and if you actually read this whole post- you rock because I can be kind of wordy at times)!