Blue

My photo club's assignment this week is BLUE. Photos of anything and everything associated with the color. I never realized how few blue things there are (both artificial and in nature) until I was faced with a 5-day assignment! Thus far, I've photographed tiny blue flowers, blue tiles in the sidewalk, and the sky's reflection in the hood of my blue car. That's all I got.

Any other ideas? I'm looking for inspiration in any avenue I can get!

image/maryruffle

Gossip For a Reason

It's amazing to me how interchangeable the relationships are on this show. After last night's episode, I'm convinced "Gossip Girl" should be renamed "boyfriend-girlfriend swap," or something to that effect. It goes something like this...

He's with me, oh wait...
(Terrible break-up)
Now, he's with you..

Drama ensues...
Wait a minute, he's with her?

Gossip, gossip, profanity, gossip
(Kiss and make-up)
Back together,
I can't believe he did that,
Yep, once again, back with you
Wait, wait, okay, caught up now...

Not that I don't enjoy the drama, just observing...

image/entertainmentweekly

Sun, Beautiful Sun

Yesterday was a GORGEOUS day in Seattle. After months (literally months) of cold, rain, ice, and snow (very uncharacteristic of March), we had a day of glorious sunshine. I made the most of the day, and spent the entire afternoon outside, and saw many pretty pink cherry blossoms. Hopefully we'll have many more lovely days to come...

image/ffffound

Apple A Day

I can picture this hanging in my classroom. No doubt it's meant for the nutritional slogan, but hey, works for teachers too.image/keepcalm

This Weekend...

Take some time to smell the roses...Excited for a much lower key weekend, report cards are in and mailed (contented sigh of relief), me and my boy are headed out to a belated birthday dinner and evening at the theater! Very excited! Have a lovely 2 days off!

image/maryruffle

You Know You Love Me...

If you haven't gotten hooked yet, it's only a matter of time...Gossip Girl is my favorite guilty indulgence. Mondays at 8:00 pm, you will typically find me camped out in front of my television, awaiting the juicy drama of Upper Eastside high school girls to unfold. You don't believe me? ...I dare you to tune in. XOXO.
image/rollingstone

Anticipation

With Spring break just on the horizon, my excitement is mounting by the day for my summer adventure to Italy and Croatia with my family. I keep imagining the fabulous sights, smells, colors, sounds, and delicious food. Some days I catch myself day-dreaming about all the things I want to see, while making invisible "must-see, to-do" lists in my head. 3 months to go! image/maryruffle

LOST lust

I admit it, I am obsessed with the TV show LOST. If you're also a fan, you are definitely aware of the love triangle (well, now "love square") mounting this season between Jack, Kate, Sawyer, and Juliet. Personally, I've always been a fan of the Sawyer/Kate pairing, but hey, that's just me. I came across this lusty LOST photo shoot on Entertainment Weekly of Matt Fox (Jack) and Evangeline Lilly (Kate) prancing around in the jungle. Premonition much?...images/ew

Moroccan Flavor

One of my good friends is currently on a journey of self-discovery in Northern Africa. He's spent the last 2 weeks exploring the highs and lows of Morocco culture, and only recently migrated to Egypt. As a tribute to my friend and his amazing adventure, I found this recipe for Moroccan-spiced chicken à la Martha, the mixture of the spices and the sweetness of cinnamon looks delicious! If you're interested in his travels, check out my friend's blog!

Moroccan Spiced Chicken

Ingredients

Serves 4
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 whole chicken (4 pounds), quartered, skin on
  • 1 lemon, quartered

Directions

  1. Place a rimmed baking sheet on the center rack of oven, and preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix spices, 2 teaspoons salt, 3/4 teaspoon pepper, and the oil in a small bowl. Rub spice paste all over chicken.
  2. Carefully arrange chicken in a single layer on hot sheet, and arrange lemon wedges around chicken. Bake until chicken registers 165 degrees on an instant-read thermometer and juices run clear, 30 to 35 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, and serve with pan juices and roasted lemon wedges on the side.

image+recipe/marthastewart

Click Your Heels

I'm having some serious vacation cravings...one of my good friends is headed for New Zealand on Wednesday, and I can't even begin to fathom the amazing adventures she is going to have! If you could click your red heels together right now (a la Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz), where would you go? I'm thinking I would go to...Costa Rica. ...or Spain ...or maybe Hawaii Where would you go right this minute? image/maryruffle

Thinking...Reflecting...

After getting some recent news about a few tragic happenings that indirectly affected me, thought I'd take a moment to reflect in the wake of everything. And remember to recognize how fragile life really is...so utterly precious and limited. It's sad that life often ends so unexpectedly, and too frequently by unforeseen causes. image/sweetiepiepumpkinnoodle

Little Julia

Julia Robert's niece is blooming into a stunning starlet! Emma Roberts, star of many-a-Disney movie is gracing the cover of Teen Vogue, wearing a sassy little black and yellow number.

Wouldn't you love to have a famous actress like Julia Roberts for an aunt? You'd get to ask her all the personal questions that even US weekly can't get away with asking. I wonder if Emma calls her Aunt Julia...

image/teenvogue

Busy Busy Bee

This weekend is going to be a busy one...dining out with friends, my boyfriend's official birthday celebration, writing report cards, hopefully getting in at least one good run, and ideally...relaxing (for at least 15 minutes...).

I'm getting more and more excited by the prospect of Spring Break, which is creeping closer by the day, (remember as a teacher I get a week off work, and yes, it's as awesome as it sounds!). Looking forward to taking some time to myself, since it doesn't appear I'll have any leftover this weekend!

Have a great one! Any exciting plans?

image/katty

First Day of Spring

It's the first day of Spring - the birds are chirping, flowers beginning to bud and bloom, and hibernating souls are beginning to emerge. Today is my parents 27th anniversary, cheers to that!

image/ffffound

Blues Traveler

Love the concept of this photo shoot, and it's from Teen Vogue of all places! Plaids and stripes, gingham and denim, things are looking pretty sexy out in the country!image/teenvogue
via merrymishap

Happy Birthday

It's my boyfriend's birthday today. He's spending the majority of his special day in sheer and utter joy, cheering on his team at the NCAA tournament in Portland - every basketball fan's dream! He's scheduled to make it back just in time for a birthday dinner out with yours truly!
Happy Birthday!!!

image/ffffound

Spring Fever

Seattle is slowly defrosting, the sun is peeking out a little more by the day. After a chilly 30-degree February & March, spring is literally just around the corner, and I couldn't be happier!

image/ohappyday

Tired

I am dragging today. I did a stairs workout yesterday, part of my strength building on the road to my half marathon. This morning, I could hardly open my eyes...I was so tempted to call in sick, but the prospect of writing sub plans is just not appealing. Wish I was relaxing like these people right now...

St. Patty's Day

I'm as Irish as they get. Hope you a celebratory St. Patrick's Day. Wishing you all the luck of the Irish! Hope you find a leprechaun!

image/valentinadesign

Cupcake Shoot

This past weekend I spent a good chunk of my Saturday sitting at a Cupcake inspired cafe eating red velvet minis while writing report card comments.

While my friend and I were hard at work, a couple sat down at the table next to us, and almost immediately a photographer appeared out of nowhere, snapping away at the two as they nibbled their cupcakes. Turns out it was an engagement photo shoot. Without invitation, we found ourselves front row spectators for the happy couple's sweet shoot. The lovebirds kissed, held hands, and smiled at each other adoringly over maple frosted cupcakes. They even got a little playful, dabbing a little frosting on each others noses, it was pretty cute!

Initially, I thought a cupcake cafe was an unusual place for an engagement shoot, but it seems creative locations are the trend right now. These days people celebrate their engagement by playing on swings, jumping on trampolines, playful poses, and accessorizing with lollipops. I guess the moral of the story is: there is no limit to creativity!

image/maryruffle

Girl Scout Season

In case you haven't noticed, Girl Scout cookie season is in full swing. I know I can't resist those pricy $4-a-box Samoas and Thin Mints. But for the budget Girl Scout enthusiast, try making your own Samoas bars at home. You might not be supporting a troop of 9-year olds in merit badges, but these sweet homemade treats look pretty good!

image/bakingbites

Relax

Wishing you a relaxing weekend!image/absolutelyunique

Random Acts of Kindness

The other morning, I woke up late, exhausted, and promptly decided it was going to be a coffee-kind-of-day, and pulled into the Starbucks drive through, not expecting anything out of the ordinary. When I got to the window to pay the cashier informed me, "Your coffee is free! The car ahead of you gave us a gift card and asked us to pay for everyone behind her until it ran out." I immediately thought wow, that is so generous! Something as simple as a stranger's generosity truly put me in a great mood for the rest of the day. Now I have the urge to do something similar, and pass the random acts of kindness along to others. Have you ever done something like that? Or had someone do a random act of kindness for you? image/maryruffle

Garlic Goodness

Who loves garlic bread? You've got to be crazy if you can say no. I came across this delectable recipe while blog cruising - although for the life of me I cannot remember the lovely blog that gave me the tip (which deserves all the credit for this tasty find)...

Behold, Garlic Bread Soup - ingenious! Check out the recipe here.

image/marthastewart

Marco? Polo?

Wouldn't you love to get one of these cards from an out-of-state friend? I'm a self-proclaimed stationary/correspondence fiend, as I've probably already told you. I think what I love most about cards, aside from the notion of real mail in my mailbox, is the tactile, tangible nature of cards (as opposed to the ever-convenient email alternative). Currently loving these cards by K is for Katie.This one would be especially funny for that friend who likes to facebook stalk!
image/kisforkatie
via missjane

Culinary Crush

I think I've said this before, but I take back any previous claims, because this is my dream kitchen, or at least a corner of it. It's just so lovely, the blue cabinet, the old country-kitchen jars and kettles, the fresh flowers in the jug, and the shiny white tile...it's just so pretty.

image/housebeautiful
via stephmodo

(500) Days of Summer

I just stumbled upon this sweet little movie preview, Sundance Film Festival pick (500) Days of Summer, via Design Crush. It looks fab!

video/youtube
via designcrush

Little Ones

My friend Lyssa turned me on to zooborns, a website that catalogs the newest arrivals in zoos and aquariums around the world. Here are a few of my recent favorites.image/zooborns

American Icons

The latest from Glamour Magazine - celebrities posing as American icons. I think Alexis Bledel is the most captivating, an impressive rendition of Rosie the Riveter. Also among the young Hollywoodites are Emma Roberts as Audrey Hepburn and Hayden Panettiere as Amelia Earhart.image/glamour

I Heart Cookie Dough

Who doesn't love cookie dough? Try a chocolate-chip cookie dough cupcake. You can't beat cookie dough that doubles as frosting. All I can say is...yum!

image/loveandoliveoil

Kick Your Feet Up

It's Friday (followed by a big, exhausted sigh)! This week crept by, and I'm looking forward to a weekend of not being sick! Hooray!

On the agenda: treating my toes to a pedicure, hanging out with girlfriends, attending a benefit auction, and hopefully a run or two - my official half marathon training was postponed due to sickness, but it has now re-commenced!

Have a lovely Friday, Saturday, and Sunday!

image/maryruffle

Spring Cleaning

I'm very particular the cleaning products I use. I don't usually go with the bargain brand, and I've for sure never been a Mr. Clean kind of girl. One product I consistently go back too, and have admittedly fallen in love with is Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day.

I originally was introduced to Mrs. Meyer's brand by a friend who gave me a "Spring Cleaning Set" as a housewarming gift when I moved into my studio. Their scents are fresh and leave a pleasant after-cleaning aroma in your home. Personally, my favorites are lemon verbena and basil, but I am very excited to try the new scent snap pea.

If you've never tried Mrs. Meyer's I highly recommend, and FYI they are earth-friendly and do not test on animals!

image/mrsmeyers

Day Off

Sorry for the unexpected day "off" blogging. My entire day yesterday went something like this... It started with a tough day at school...followed by a migraine headache...followed by a sleepless night...no fun! Hoping today will be a better day! Be back in full force ASAP!