My Entertaining Essentials

Having a toddler means that we entertain at our house alot.  It is easy to put our little one to bed and then have friends over for happy hour.   Sterling is at the age where he is not fun to take out to restaurants.  All he wants to do is run around and pour salt and pepper all the table.  I can't ever really relax so it is much easier to entertain at home sometimes.   I have a few essentials that I always keep on hand in the fridge for quick or last minute entertaining purposes.  If you stock up on these things during your regular grocery store visit you will always be prepared for invited or uninvited guests!  Plus who doesn't like tasty snacks and booze sitting around their house?

The most important thing in my opinion is alcohol.  Duh.  That is what happy hour revolves around.  My three favorite wines that I always keep in on hand are:

FOXGLOVE CHARDONNAY, $13.50

CHALK HILL SAUVIGNON BLANC, $13.99

B.R. COHN CABERNET, $14.99

All three wines are under $15 and always crowd pleasers. I buy FoxGlove at our local ABC store (on Harborview) and you can find the Chalk Hill and B.R. Cohn at Costco.  If you are looking for a great bubbly to have on hand I highly recommend Contempo Prosecco.  It is light and refreshing and not too sweet.  Most grocery stores carry the Contempo line.

CONTEMPO PROSECCO, $11.99

My favorite go-to appetizer is a cheese tray.  I like to always have three different varieties of cheese on hand.  Usually an Aged Gouda, Soft Brie/Goat Cheese, and a white Cheddar.

My favorites are:  A Dutch Masterpiece aged Gouda, KerryGold White Cheddar, Triple Creme Goat Brie.

In addition to the three cheeses,  I always put out a dish with Kalamata Olives and Pickled Okra.   If I have time I like to buy fresh olives from the case but I usually keep a jar on hand for times when I can't stop at the store.

I like to serve one meat with the cheese, either Pepperoni or Salami.    Harris Teeter has some great pre-sliced meats right under the deli meat case.  They are vacuum sealed and really quite tasty.

Add a few crackers and you have the perfect, easy to throw together appetizer. Currently I am loving the 34 degrees Crispbread Crackers.  They are so thin and super crispy and pair great with cheese.  I buy these in bulk at Costco but Earthfare carries them as well.

 

This is a tray I threw together last minute a few weeks ago with what I had on hand.  See, it pays to keep these few things stocked up in your house for unexpected guests.

Two other staples I also always keep on hand are Sabra Hummus and Palmetto Pimento Cheese.  Both are my favorite snacks and easy to toss in a dish and serve with crackers for guests.  I always put the hummus in a dish and drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika- it makes it look fancy!

Keeping a few simple things on hand makes your entertaining life much easier!  So sit back enjoy that wine and don't stress about uninvited guests!

Scenes From Our Weekend

Lets dish.  We had a great weekend, did you?  My parents and sister were here plus my in-laws officially moved here this week so we had a crazy busy weekend!

Remember when I told you about my in-laws Estate sale? Well this rug is one of the pieces we were lucky enough to score.  We were originally planning to put it in our dining room but decided she was more Den worthy.  What do you think?  I am pretty smitten with her, pretty amazing how a rug can transform a room.

I had the best time with my sister. Seriously she is my best friend and I love hanging out her.  We definitely didn't plan to both wear matching orange shirts.  Sisters Intuition I guess.

My parents brought Sterling one of my old CareBears and he is obsessed with it.  My mom saved everything from when we were kids which is kind of awesome.  The Vintage Toys are so much better. You can see the CareBear peeking out below.

Did a little shopping with my mom and scored these Dolce Vita Sandals at TJMaxx, yes I am serious.  $29.99. (Don't judge my giant size 9.5 feet).

Mom also treated me to this perfect silk shirt from Banana Republic.  The back is so cute.  Sported it with my blush jeans this weekend.  And yes that is a giant stain at the bottom.  Silk shirts with a two year are a bad idea but I refuse to sacrifice my style now that I am a Mommy....
Luckily this is the type of silk that can be washed not drycleaned.

{BR Lauren Silk Flutter Top}

We caught another awesome sunset and Sterling saw his first Fireworks at The Yacht Club on Saturday.

I have a new favorite drink.  The good Old Greyhound.  Only it must be made with fresh squeezed, not bottled Grapefruit Juice.  It is so refreshing.

Cooked the New York Times Recipe for Spicy Quinoa, Cucumber, and Tomato Salad. and it was awesome!  Recipe HERE.

My little man is growing up so fast. How do I slow down the time???

Doesn't he totally look like a fraternity boy in the first picture?  Just chilling with his crazy hair.

Have a great Monday.  Looks like its gonna be a rainy day here spent indoors!

Friday's Obsessions

Since I didn't do my Obsessions post earlier this week, I thought I would share today!  TGIF- By the way does abyone remember the TGIF line-up on Friday nights with Full House, Perfect Strangers,  and Family Matters?  I remember we used to get so excited for Fridays to watch those shows.    Now I get excited for an adult beverage and a dinner out!

MICHEAL STARS SCOOPNECK TANK

I ended up ordering this tank from Piperlime that I blogged about on my search for the perfect tee blog.  I freaking love it.  When I ordered it was only available in black so that is what I ordered but now I want the white too.  It fits perfect, it is not too tight and is long enough to wear with skinny jeans.  A+ in my book for a tank top.  I picture it being perfect for fall too layered under blazers and sweaters.

TWIX MINI ICE CREAM BARS

These are the Shiz.  I kid you not when I say Matt ate an entire box in 24 hours and I only ate one out of the box.  They are the perfect after dinner dessert.  Plus they are only 90 calories so you don't have to feel too guilty about eating one.

ANTHROPOLOGIE SKY TRELIS MAXI DRESS

I am beyond smitten with this dress.  The colors and pattern are perfection in my book.  Wish I could see it in person before I buy...

This Hair

Can someone please teach me how to recreate this hair?  Love it!

BAUBLE BAR ICE MADIS COLLAR NECKLACE

Meet the newest addition to my necklace collection.  $36 ladies.  Comes in Turquoise too.

GRAPEFRUIT COCKTAIL

Tequila and grapefruit together?  Sign me up.  This tasty drink will so be made this weekend.  Recipe VIA

Your Friday quote.  Have a great weekend Dolls!

Cooking For Kids + Black Tee Dress

For all you non-moms, sorry this post might be boring:)  I have had several people email me asking ideas for kids week night meals.  Wondering if Sterling always eats the recipes I post.  The reality is, no.  My husband works most nights til 7:30 so he and I usually don't eat til 8 or 9.   Sterling eats dinner around 6 so I usually prepare him something different from what Matt and I are eating for dinner.  I know you are probably thinking wow, that is alot of effort to cook two meals every night.   But it really is not, I have a few go-to, easy meals for Sterling that I keep on rotation.   I definitely buy frozen food that is easy to heat up at night- but I am picky about what frozen foods I buy him. 

When I first got pregnant with Sterling I immediately thought I am going to make all his baby food.  My friends even gifted me with the Beba Baby Food maker- which don't get me wrong is awesome- but then life set and I realized s*$t I don't have time to be making homemade food all day.  And I still don't and that is why I rely on some premade things to help me out.  I do always try to serve fresh fruit and one veggie in addition to the premade items.  While pregnant I also went to a Midwife and thought I was going to have a natural birth sans epidural- I was clearly on crazy pills while pregnant (For those of you who delivered without an epidural more power to you, I realized early on I needed one, quickly!).  That is another story for another time.....

Last week I took pictures of the meals I cooked Sterling each night to give you guys an idea of what I feed him.   I did not picture Friday because usually it is a wild card.  We either order pizza or I fed him
Spaghetti-os.  Here is a week of my little man's meals:

MONDAY

{Panko Breaded Tilapia, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, and Strawberries.}

I highly recommend this frozen fish, Trident Panko Breaded Tilapia.

 I am weirded out by all the fish sticks and fish where it says it is made with "minced white fish", I mean what kind of fish is even in there?  I always think would I eat this when I am feeding Sterling.  I have tasted this fish and it is good and not terribly processed.  I usually serve it with ketchup for him to dip it in and he loves it.  As for the sweet potatoes I slice them in round circles and roast them in Olive Oil, I tell Sterling they are "chips" and he eats them:)  It is all about deception sometimes.

TUESDAY

{Spanakopita, peaches, and Greek Yogurt drizzled with honey}

My little man has some serious vegetarian tendencies, probably because I do too!  Anyways he loves Spanakopita and I feel like at least he is getting a green vegetable because normally he won't eat one.  I buy the Spanakopita in the frozen section at Costco.  It is super easy to just pop in the oven and cook.  He adores Greek yogurt which I feel at least gives him some protein.

WEDNESDAY

{Chicken Nuggets, Strawberries + Peaches, and Roasted Carrots.}

This day we ate lunch at Chick-fila and had leftover nuggets so I just reheated them for dinner.  If I am buying chicken nuggets I like the Morining Star brand- yes I know they are not real chicken but after watching Food Inc you better believe I am not buying Tyson nuggets. 

I will sometimes buy the organic brands of chicken nuggets as well.  The carrots I cut to look like french fries in an attempt to trick Sterling into eating them, and it worked.   I just slice them into strips and roast in olive oil until tender.  I always save extra sauce when we eat at Chick-fila to use at home:)  My man is sauce lover like his momma.

THURSDAY

{Grilled cheese, sliced Bananas, and sauteed Zucchini and Squash}
So I feel like I should tell you Sterling hated the Zucchini.  He put it in his mouth spit it out and said "Sterling no eat."  I keep trying to sneak in green veggies but my little man ain't buying it.  Grilled cheese and bananas are always a hit though.

Now on to some fashion!  Several of you wanted to know about my black tee shirt dress in this picture.  The brand is Velvet by Graham and Spencer and I bought it at TJMaxx years ago.  So no dice on finding the exact same dress...

But I did find these similar versions

C&C Tee-shirt dress, $68

It doesn't come in black but it comes in six different colors.  I love the brown.  Honestly thinking about ordering one of these, they look super cute.

Velvet Gianna Dress, $93
This is the same brand as my dress little different style.

Hope that helps!

Tomato, Corn, and Avocado Salad

For those of you who follow me on Instagram you probably already saw the picture of this delish salad.   It is quite possibly the perfect summer salad.  Ooozing with all the fresh flavors of summer- crispy corn, juicy heirloom tomatoes, creamy avocado and sweet basil.    This might just become my go-to summer salad.    Nothing has to be pre-cooked and it was so easy to whip together!  We served ours with crab cakes and it was in my humble opinion an amazing meal!  It would also pair great with chicken, shrimp, fish, or anything your heart desires.  Make this light and tasty salad, I promise you will love it!

Tomato Corn and Avocado Salad - adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients

3 ears corn (husk and silk removed; tip cut off)

2 pints cherry, grape, or pear tomatoes, halved (or quartered if large)

1 avocado, halved, pitted, peeled, and diced

3 scallions, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (one lime juiced)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil, such as safflower (I used Olive Oil)

Fresh julienned Basil

Coarse salt and ground pepper

Directions

1.Stand ear in a large wide bowl; with a sharp knife, carefully slice downward to release the kernels. Discard cob. Add tomatoes, avocado, scallions, lime juice,  basil, and oil to bowl. Season with salt and pepper, and toss gently to combine

Friends +Champagne +Shoping Finds +Grub

I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend! Did you guys miss me Friday? I usually never skip a day blogging but I had friends coming in town and a CPR class that morning so I was crazy busy! We had a great weekend filled with lots of fun. 

My friend Melissa and her son Colin came in town to visit and we had a blast.  We were roommates in college and it is so fun to see our boys together now!  We always joke that Sterling and Colin look like they could be brothers.

Sterling has decided he no longer needs to wear clothes when he is outside.  It is becoming quite comical.  Our friends have started referring to him as "Naked Boy."  Thinking it is probably a sign I should start potty training.  This is him at the beach weekend after stripping off all his clothes.

We took all the kids to the Yacht Club Saturday night and I got to catch up with some of my favorite ladies.

Cooked up my favorite Tomato Pie for dinner.  You can find the recipe under my recipes, tab it is amazing!  It will not disappoint, one of my favorite meals.

My C&C California Colorblock Maxi dress came in the mail and I love it.  It is so soft and long enough for me which is always a plus!  I highly recommend it, you know how much I love a good maxi dress!

I hit up JCrew on Monday to do a few returns and stalk the necklace my friend Weezie was wearing this weekend (you can see it in the picture above).  It was my lucky day because I got a credit and it was on sale, so this beauty came home with me!  It looks even better on!  For some weird reason it was not on sale online just in the actual store.

Bauble Cascade Necklace

And a big thank you to JCrew for the giant lollipop they gave my little man so I could look around.  He was a hot mess afterwards but it kept him happy for awhile!

I ended my weekend with some Prosecco and Magazines.  If you are not drinking Cupcake Prosecco you should be it.  It is delish for the price.  I added fresh sliced cucumber and mint in my drink.  And the new House Beautiful is good, real good!

Lastly, while browsing Pinterest last night, I came across this recipe for a homemade CrunchWrap Supreme.  Tell me I am not the only one with a strong love for Taco Bell.  I don't eat Taco Bell often but I freaking love it.  I will so be making these Crunchwraps.  Recipe Via.