I'm Not An Alcoholic. I'm Irish!

"St. Patrick's day is the closest thing the Irish have to Christmas"

 -Michael from The Office

So St. Patrick's day is coming up and I am beyond excited! Not only because you can drink until your liver falls out without people passing judgement but because my birthday is two days after. People have had a day to recover and are ready to help the bars finish off that green beer or get rid of those green Bud Light bottles. 

Other reason why this is my favorite holiday/week of the year include:

Corn beef hash? Yes please!

The color green is everywhere!

Green beer!

Green Wine!

When I take pictures with Shamrocks my green eyes really stand out.

I am also taller than a leprechaun. It feels nice to not be the shortest one for once.

So drink till you can't stand and make sure your kilt is long enough to cover your lucky charms!

Happy St. Patrick's day!

Ahoy! It's a Boy! Part 2

Update: Here are the invitations that I have made for my cousins baby shower.

Want to make these? 

What you will need: 

navy, yellow and white cardstock                printer with navy ink 

white paint                                                Q-tips
white Hemp or cord                                  double stick tape

                           Martha Stewart anchor punch                             scissors

Directions
Cut navy card stock into 1 1/2 thick strips so that it is the size of a grosgrain ribbon.
Next cut off tip of the Q-tip and dip into white paint to make dots. While paint is drying print out invitations.

 

Use double sided stick tape to attach navy cardstock strip to the invite.

Fold extra behind the invite and tape. Take white hemp and tie it around the invite and make a knot. Make sure you have enough of the string to tie in the anchor. 

(Sorry I don't have a picture of it!)

Next use the tape and put invite on the yellow card stock. (I cut mine into 5x7 pieces)

Take extra string and tie in the anchor. You shouldn't need to knot it.


And TADAAAA!

These were some of the other invitations that I made but decided not to use.

What's for Dinner?

Being unemployed has given me all of this free time to cook. I have some family recipes but I also wanted to find some of my own that I could share. My search for quick and fabulous recipes led me to the one and only Martha Stewart.

At her website I found Chicken with Artichokes and Angel Hair. My husband and I were in love at first bite. (Sorry that sounded like some vampire quote. LAME.) Anyway not only was it delic but it was super easy to make.

Ingredients
Coarse salt and ground pepper

    8 thin chicken cutlets (about 1 1/2 pounds total)

    2 tablespoons olive oil

    1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

    1 can (14 ounces) artichoke hearts packed in water, rinsed, drained, and quartered

    2 tablespoons rinsed and drained capers

     8 ounces angel-hair pasta

    1/2 cup parsley leaves

     1/4 cup all-purpose flour

    2 tablespoons butter

Directions

(I copy and pasted these from Martha. The link is up top if you are not impressed.)

Set a large pot of salted water to boil. Place flour in a shallow dish, and season with salt and pepper. Dredge cutlets, shaking off excess. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high. Cook chicken in batches, adding remaining oil as needed, until light golden, 1 to 3 minutes per side; transfer to a dish.

Add broth to skillet, and bring to a boil; cook until reduced by half. Add artichokes, capers, and the chicken with any juices. Gently swirl to combine, and bring just to a boil. Remove skillet from heat. Swirl in butter, and cover to keep warm.

( I also added some shallots because why not)

Add pasta to boiling water. Cook until al dente; drain. Serve chicken and sauce over pasta, topped with parsley.

And TADAA!

Martha's

Ali's

 Instead of that glass of water in Martha's photo we has some vino and I recommend it. Lance likes to drink after a long day at work and I never let anyone drink alone.

Let me know if you like it!

My Mother Always Told Me White Is Right!

Spring is right around the corner and I cannot wait! I also cannot wait until my birthday. Not only because it's my birthday, but it is also the last day of winter and that means I can start wearing bright colors and whites without getting the stink eye. Anyway after some online window shopping I noticed a trend... White! Lots and lots of white!

 Lilly Pulitzer seems to think to think white is right. Just check out their new arrivals.

Need more white? How about some Shoshanna:

  

Even Carrie is into white.

What is the best part about wearing white?

 All of the bold accessories that you can wear with it.

Like these from Saks

 Piperlime

and Banana Republic

Yummy! So dearest Spring, please hurry!