It IS the Oscars

So this was a great low key weekend in VA. Mike and I went out with some good friends on Friday night and it was our last hurrah before they move back to TX. I met Alice last year and our friendship blossomed. I always wanted to meet a best friend in my neighborhood and I did!! Sadly, Alice is moving back to TX to be closer to family. I will miss her SO much and so thankful I met a great friend.

On Sunday Mike and I went to an Oscar party (my first one ever), and boy was I excited. It was going to be a night of classy food and wine with casual wear. My kind of party. So I was in charge of dessert and wanted to make something special.....it is the Oscars! So I scoured my cooking blogs and found a perfect cake for the event. A Tuxedo Cake. Let me tell you this was one serious cake. With 4 cups of sugar, 2 sticks of butter, a whole cup of coco powder I knew it was going to be good. The cake has the name from the black and white theme throughout the cake. The cake was chocolate and it had a cool whip type icing and then a chocolate glaze. So it was a beautiful cake and classy enough for our party.

After I spent the day making the cake we headed out to the party. Louie even came too! We had some good wine, a champagne toast, and LOTS of good food. You can see from the picture we had home made sushi, great cheeses, and lots of other fun finger food. Mike and I each filled out a ballot in hopes to win the prize for the evening. I started out leading the pack and held this lead most of the way through the night. Unfortunately, I could not keep my lead and did not end up winning. But it was fun keeping score throughout the night. Here are a few pics of the ladies with our wine (notice our red teeth) and the boys with Louie. Thanks Val for a nice night!

Happy Whoppie Day

Hello virtural world out there. Happy Valentines Day...or Whoppie day. I have a bunch of things to share from this past weekend and today. So lets start with the weekend. Mike and I headed home to see Emma and visit with my parents. As I mentioned before she had ACL surgery. Before she went into surgery she could barely walk, so this was a much needed surgery. We picked her up on Saturday morning and she came roaring out of the office like a new gal. She is already able to put some weight on her leg and she was in great spirits. Here are a few pics of the patient.

Emma and her momma and giving us a big smile.

On Saturday I had an urge to bake and I had found the perfect recipie for the upcoming "holiday". They are red velvet whoppie pies. Now mind you I have never made whoppie pies so this was a first. Luckily mom was there to help and she helped me conquer the dreaded pastry bag. ( I am not the best using them and mom was a big help). These turned out ok not sure I liked the texture but they were still good. Here are a few pics from the baking adventure.



While we were at home we had a belated bday celebration for Mike. We all went out to a nice dinner and enjoyed the evening. So it was a great weekend at home visiting with family and taking care of my baby Emma. We all had to smoosh to fit in the pic!

And last but not least Happy Valentines Day. I still think this is a hallmark holiday so I don't go overboard celebrating. Love should be shared and expressed everyday not just today. But no matter how you decide to spend the day I hope it is with someone you love. Thanks to my Valentine for my beautiful flowers and our surprise dinner later tonight. Love you.

PS. Thanks Mom for the Valentines day gift card!! Mike and I can't wait to use it.

Special Thoughts

Thinking about my baby girl Emma today. She will be in surgery this morning to fix her torn ACL. I had no idea this was even an issue with dogs, but apparently it is common with bigger dogs. She has been in pain for a while so I hope this helps her out and gets her back to spunky Emma. I know her cousin Louie will be sad that they can not play for a while but she will be back to normal in no time. So thinking about you baby girl!

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday to everyone out there. Although for some (my husband included) today was not a happy Monday. The Steelers did not win the superbowl last night so it was somber in our household last night. We had some friends over to watch the game and we all had a great time...minus the loss.

Although I am a bit tired today I am very excited at the same time, for many reasons.
1. It is a short week for me. Meaning this is my Friday off
2. We have booked a trip with some friends to Mexico!!! (yeah for some sun)
3. My parents are visiting this weekend. (we will be having a belated bday celebration for Mike).
4. The days are getting closer as to when I can see my sister. ( I talked to her today and can't wait to give her a big hug)

So yes it is Monday but I am very happy. Did you all have a good weekend?

Thankful

I am so thankful to have such wonderful friends in my life. I cherish all the friendships that I have and don't know what I would do without some of my girlfriends. My besties have gotten me through some hard times in my life and I am a better person because of them. I value everything about the word friendship. I think when you have a best friend you take an oath similar to marriage. To be there through good times and bad, through all the tears and laughter, the fights and hugs, and most of all just being who you are. If you look up friendship in the dictionary some of the synonyms are; harmony, accord, understanding, and rapport. I think harmony and understanding are my two favorite words there.

So thank you to all my friends out there who have supported me when I needed you the most, listened to me when I needed a friend, let me cry, gave me hugs, and shared my laughter. I love you all and would not be who I am today without you.

The best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a porch swing with, never say a word, then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation that you ever had.

Football Sundays

With all this cold weather we have been subjected to, it has been nice to have some football to watch. Last weekend we spent the better part of the weekend watching the games on Saturday and Sunday. We had some friends over on Saturday and then Sunday went to another friends house. I loved every part of the weekend- spending the day in sweats, hanging out with good friends, watching the games, and eating good food. I have tried a couple new recipes over the last few weeks but I have been totally slacking in sharing them with you. I promise I will catch up one day.

But today there is a HUGE game on this afternoon. Steelers will decide their superbowl fate this afternoon. We are headed to a friends house to watch the game. But what would football be without sausage dip and amazing chocolate/peanut butter cookies. I decided to try 2 new recipes again this weekend (last weekend I tried 2 new ones as well) and wanted to share one of them with you. I had not baked in a while so along with the sausage dip I found a recipe for Salted Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies. The double in front of chocolate sold me on the cookies. I do like peanut butter but I wouldn't call myself a PB lover like most do. Mike does love PB so I thought these cookies would be perfect.

I put the recipe below and here are some pics of the cookies. Let me warn you these are HUGE cookies but so delicious!! How can you go wrong when you have chocolate chips, coco powder, PB, and peanuts?? The dough was so easy to work with and I loved every part of these cookies. I will let you know how the gang likes them later. Until then GO STEELERS!!!

Salted Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

Yield: 16 to 18 large cookies

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Bake Time: 12 minutes

1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup creamy peanut butter
2/3 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
½ cup peanuts
Coarse salt for sprinkling

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.

3. Beat together the butter, peanut butter and both sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla extract. Scrape the bowl. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low until just combined. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the chocolate chips and peanuts.

4. Drop by two heaping tablespoonfuls of dough, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart. Sprinkle a small pinch of coarse salt on top of each cookie. Bake for about 12 minutes, or until the outside of the cookies are set but the middles are still a little soft. Cool cookies on the baking sheets. Store in an airtight container.

Happy 2011

HAPPY 2011!!

Wow….already January 11^th I can’t even believe it. The time flew by so fast. I am sure by now everyone has made all their new years resolutions to eat better, workout more, volunteer, be a better person….you know the usual. I personally don’t make resolutions because I think they are a bit silly. I usually try to eat well and work out and be a better person. This year I hope is just as great as last year (although 2010 was pretty fun). In 2010 Mike and I were able to take a bunch of trips and share some great experiences together. I am not sure we can live up to that this year but I am sure we will try. We already have plans to go on a tropical trip in March with some friends.

Christmas was very relaxing and festive. This year Mike and I stayed in our house in VA and we really enjoyed ourselves. It was nice to be in our house that we had worked so hard on all year. We were able to start some new traditions together and we look forward to many more Christmases in our house. Here are a couple pictures from our holiday. We ate, drank, watched lots of football, and relaxed all weekend. It was so fun to decorate and be around to enjoy everything. I can’t wait for next year.

So what are everyone’s big plans for 2011? I for one will count down the days until the beginning of March when I get to see my sister. I miss her so much and can’t wait to spend a few days with her. Then I will begin the countdown till July when she is home for good. It has been so hard not having her around for some of the big experiences….like sharing our birthdays and sharing holidays together. So although I didn’t make any resolutions for 2011, I am still looking forward to great things and who knows what will be in store for this year.

PS> Louie did not get a brother but there is always Valentines Day!

Louie Torture

Momma making the best cookies ever

Family :)

Tree with all the gifts. Think we had enough for 4 people??