Kristin’s Vintage Garden Review and Giveaway!

March 23, 2011 by Aliesha

Today I am excited to introduce you to Kristin’s Vintage Garden! Kristin of Windy Poplars and Living Graciously has recently opened up a sweet little shop filled with lovely designs, such as floral brooches (“blooms”) and chrysanthemum earrings.

I had the opportunity to review the Soft Crimini Bloom and a pair of flower earrings. The brooch is lovely, soft, and feminine, and the earrings are fun and flirty! The bloom is perfect pinned on a jacket, scarf, or purse, and the earrings are ones I’ll grab anytime I need a pop of color!

this bloom looks great on my favorite brown bag!

Kristin has recently debuted her spring line, so you’ll want to check it out. In addition to blooms and earrings, she also has hair clips, purses, and stationary. I love this new turquoise bloom – such a fun color combo for spring!

For a video by Kristin which highlights all of the new spring line products, visit Windy Poplars!

Today I am giving away a bloom to one lucky reader!

To enter, just leave a comment on this post telling me which item in Kristin’s Vintage Garden is your favorite.

Winner will be randomly selected and announced on March 30.

Good luck!

Nap Protest

March 22, 2011 by Aliesha

Since Vera has been able to sit up on her own, she has started protesting her naps (i.e. sitting up and not sleeping!) on a somewhat regular basis. Sometimes these are angry protests, with tears and lots of drama…

And sometimes these are happy protests, with giggles and smiles!

And sometimes she takes naps without any protesting.

Spaghetti

March 22, 2011 by Aliesha

Here’s a simple recipe for you today: spaghetti! Tad has always loved his mom’s spaghetti (and let’s be honest – who doesn’t think their mom’s spaghetti is the best?!), so when we were first married she gave her recipe to me. I basically follow her recipe, but I’ve tweaked it a little bit. Also, I highly recommend using good-quality spices for this recipe (i.e. from Penzeys!). You will notice a difference when you use really good herbs! (And I love to make this with fresh herbs in the summer.)

Spaghetti

1 yellow onion, minced
5 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. lean ground beef or ground turkey (I have also made this without meat plenty of times)
2 large cans tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes (Italian style or plain), not drained
1 Tbsp. basil
1 Tbsp. oregano
1 Tbsp. marjoram
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
a shake of crushed red pepper flakes
1 bay leaf

Saute onions and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until slightly tender. Add ground beef and cook until meat is no longer pink. Drain. Return to stovetop and add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, basil, oregano, marjoram, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and the bay leaf. Simmer on low for at least 3-4 hours (the longer the better!). Remove the bay leaf at the end of the cooking time. Serve over pasta.