Keyfob DIY

Another cute project to file under "when I have time on my hands and want to be crafty." These would be a great casual gift for girlfriends.

By the way, a quick glance at this woman's work shows she is amazing. Looking at her hobo bag project makes me wish I had the patience for sewing.

Tool Belt

I may have found a father's day gift for the dad who loves all things tool-related :0)

Honeycomb

Where was this rug when I was searching high and low for cute floor coverings several months ago?

And, to rub it in, it's on SALE. Bah!

Nightstand

I might borrow this clever idea to spruce up a nightstand with wallpaper. Our nightstands are old wooden tables I refinished years ago with an ebony paint, but over the years, a few chips have popped up on the surface. A fun black-and-white pattern might bring a little fun back.

Breakfast Casserole

This is my go-to breakfast recipe when I have overnight guests.

Breakfast Casserole
1 lb. pork sage sausage
1 tsp. mustard powder
1/2 tsp. salt
4 eggs, beaten
2 c. milk
6 slices bread, toasted & cubed
8 oz. shredded mild cheddar

Cook and drain sausage. Mix mustard powder, salt, eggs and milk. Add sausage, bread and cheese and stir to coat. Pour into a greased 9x13 dish. Cover and chill in refrigerator for 8 hours or overnight.

Cover and bake at 350 for 45-60 min. Uncover and reduce temperature to 325 and bake for an additional 30 min. or until set. Or, if you're like me and forget to plan ahead in the morning, bake at whatever temp you like until the top is brown and the inside isn't too runny.

Simmer Down

Another Trader Joe's product I am loving: the simmer sauces. For a quick weeknight meal, all I do is pour a bottle of simmer sauce in a large saucepan, add cubed chicken or shrimp, and make basmati rice while it simmers away. In 15 minutes, dinner is on the table. Yum.

Bright Idea

In case you're updating all of your old light bulbs to the energy-friendly ones and are feeling crafty, a DIY tutorial to recycle lights into vases:

Blizzard 2008

While I'm starting to feel a little cooped up, Oakley thinks Blizzard 2008 is the best thing since sliced bread. She has been roaming the neighborhood and catching up with her friend Monty down the street for some winter fun. Napoleon, however, has chosen to enjoy the weather from the warmth of indoor windowsills.

More photos from the day:

WV 2008

A couple photos from our ski trip:

Enchiladas

One of my go-to meals is enchiladas, a recipe that has evolved from a few different sources, and constantly changes depending on what I have on hand that day.

Enchiladas
2-3 chicken breasts
chicken stock
lime juice
1 pkg. cream cheese, softened (or less, to taste)
1 can black beans
spices
whole wheat tortillas
1 can enchilada sauce
shredded cheese

Poach the chicken breasts in chicken stock and lime juice. Set aside to cool, then shred.

In a large bowl, mix softened cream cheese with drained & rinsed black beans. Add shredded chicken, lime juice and any spices that sound good (salt & pepper, chili powder, cumin, etc.) Other optional ingredients could include: chipotle in adobe, mushrooms, onions, etc.

Place spoonfuls of filling into whole wheat tortillas. Roll each tortilla up and line them along the bottom of a baking dish. Cover with a can of enchilada sauce. I use mild La Preferida red sauce, although the green chile variety is also good. Top with shredded cheese. Bake until heated through and the cheese is bubbly, about 30 minutes at 350.

Wanted: This Furniture

It's been a while since we tackled renovating the office upstairs off the second bedroom. I drew up some designs and Doug got all handy-man and we somehow pulled off a large, built-in desk that spans the back wall under the large windows.

But, that's as far as we got. I've been waffling on staining the desk and repainting the walls because I haven't found the perfect, affordable piece of furniture to meet our storage/office needs. Then, I came across this photo on a blog. It's perfect -- that's the bookcase I want! I have no idea where it's from, though. Sigh...

Dressed Head

When I was planning my wedding, I knew I was not a tiara-and-veil type of bride. I ended up with a simple fuji mum tucked back in my hair. But, if I had known about this headpiece from Head Dress Designs, I might have been swayed to sass it up a bit.

Yum!

The food during our ski trip was amazing! We split up planning & cooking meals and were treated to some delectable dishes, like this breakfast from Cooking Light (thanks, Katie M!):

Brie Strata with Apricot-Papaya Mango Salsa
1 cup apricot nectar
3/4 cup dried apricots, quartered
2 cups diced peeled papaya [we used mango instead]
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 (15-ounce) round Brie
8 cups (1-inch) cubes French bread
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 (12-ounce) can evaporated skimmed milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 egg whites, lightly beaten
2 eggs, lightly beaten

Combine the nectar and apricots in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at high 2 minutes or until mixture boils; cover and let stand 30 minutes or until apricots soften. Drain apricots, reserving 2 tablespoons nectar; discard remaining nectar. Combine apricots, reserved nectar, papaya, honey, and lime juice; stir gently, and set salsa aside.

Remove rind from Brie, and discard. Cut Brie into small pieces. Arrange half of bread cubes in the bottom of a 9-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Top with half of Brie, and sprinkle with half of brown sugar. Repeat procedure with remaining bread, Brie, and brown sugar.

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine milk, salt, egg whites, and eggs; stir well. Pour over bread; press firmly with back of spoon to moisten all bread cubes. Cover; chill 30 minutes.

Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean. Serve warm with salsa.