happy hour: best looking drinks

happy friday!  today, i thought we'd have some cocktail fun and enjoy these gorgeous drinks.  i firmly believe that the prettier the drink is, the better it tastes...

 

1 blue margarita / 2 pink lemonade / 3 passion fruit mojito / 4 raspberry beer cocktail / 5 kiwi colada / 6 blackberry julep
recipes {here}

so, mavens, which drink gets your vote?

and, just because it's friday...here are a few more drinks for you : )

cool poster, right?!  credit {here}

enjoy your weekend!  and, wish me luck, i start yogadharma teacher training tonight!

i carry your heart song

a big welcome to all the lovely ladies from sits who are stopping by today.  i hope you enjoy your visit, and i look forward to checking out your blogs as well!

something you may not know about me is that i love singing and have been composing songs (for fun) ever since high school.  since i always enjoy learning something new about my fellow bloggers, i thought it would be fun to share one of the songs i've written.

i wrote this song for my sister, hannah, as a christmas gift a few years ago.  the lyrics are adapted from e.e. cumming's poem "i carry your <3" - a favorite of ours. 

i hope you enjoy (and if you don't - please be kind : )

 

original poem by e.e. cummings

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in my heart)
i am never without it
(anywhere i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)

i fear no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet)
i want no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

so, mavens, do you have any hobbies or interests that not too many people know about?  i encourage you to share them too!

foodie wednesday: spanakopita (a.k.a. spinach pie)

a few weeks ago, i had a girls' dinner with my old boss and former co-worker.  my boss, barb, made a delicious spanakopita (spinach pie) for dinner filled with veggies, yummy feta cheese and wrapped up in a buttery, flaky phyllo crust.

this past monday was "2 months until i do" so i wanted to make something a little different and a little special for our dinner.  knowing craig would love it, i asked barb for her spanakopita recipe.  i made it, and it was delicious!  so, obviously, my next thought was to share the recipe with all of you : )

here's what you'll need:

1/2 package (approx. 20 sheets) of phyllo dough
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
16 oz bag of frozen spinach
3 eggs
1 cup cottage cheese
6 oz feta, crumbled
2 tbsp butter, melted
olive oil
salt & pepper
8 to 9 in pie plate

1. preheat your oven to 375 degrees while you prep the filling.

2. saute onions & mushrooms in a drizzle of olive oil.  cook until lightly browned and softened.

3. while veggies cook, defrost spinach in microwave and drain/press out excess water.

4. mix veggies, spinach, feta and cottage cheese together.  in a separate bowl, lightly scramble the eggs and then add them to the filling.  mix well and season with salt & pepper.

5. take a teaspoon of the melted butter and coat pie plate with it.  then layer in 2-3 sheets of phyllo, drizzle with butter (or brush with butter) and then layer on another 2-3 sheets.  continue until you have 10-12 sheets on the bottom.  tip: since the sheets are square, every time you're done with a layer, give the pie plate a 1/4 turn so that it creates an even crust.

6. spoon filling over the phyllo crust and then cover with 2-3 sheets, drizzle/brush with butter, and continue until you use the remainder of the butter and phyllo.  (again, turn the plate as you proceed to create an even covering.)

7. pierce top to allow steam to escape and then bake for approximately 45 min or until top is golden brown and crispy.

8. allow to cool for at least 10 min before serving.

we enjoyed ours with a simple side salad.  and there were plenty of leftovers - enough for dinner again the next night...and a bit left for lunch after that!

enjoy!

how to fall for fall

i've been loving the cooler weather that's greeted me a few mornings this past week.  with a subtle chill in the air, i'm totally feeling fall.  fall is my favorite season - made all the sweeter this year by our upcoming wedding in just TWO months!

so, with fall weather on the brain, here's a little "recipe" i cooked up to get you falling for fall, too.

drink this - something warm.  i personally love spicy, fallish brews like orange spice or chai tea.  add a teaspoon of sugar and a touch of cream (if you're doing chai).  remember: citrus-based teas can curdle milk - it doesn't taste bad but looks kinda gross.

eat this - apples.  no other fruit says fall quite like a crisp apple.  i can't wait until the orchards open for apple-picking.  craig and i got a little over-zealous a few falls ago and were eating apple-everything for weeks!

do this - go for a walk.  one of my favorite things to do when the weather gets a bit cooler is to pull on a comfy sweater and go for a walk with craig and olive.  (with the risk of sounding like a creeper, i especially like going for walks in the early evening when it's getting dark, because you can peek into the lovely glow that emanates from the houses.)

me sporting my t-shirt necklace

wear this - scarves.  i'm a sucker for a good scarf, pashmina or t-shirt necklace (learn how to make your very own t-shirt necklace in just 15 minutes {here}).  i <3 anything that makes me feel warm and cozy.  plus, they are a super simple way to jazz up your outfit - and considering my go-to is often yoga pants, a fun accessory can be the perfect thing to complete it!


well, mavens...whether you adore fall or are dreading the end of warm weather, i hope this little list has you (at least a little bit) excited and looking forward to fallish fun!

om monday: why do i want that?

morning, mavens.  i hope you're enjoying this fabulously looooong weekend.  i wanted to share with you something from my yoga class yesterday.

often yoga teachings can seem at odds with wants and desires.  i know, for me at least, i sort of felt like i wasn't fully embracing the yoga mindset until a resigned myself to a life of little possessions and quiet meditation.  but, my teacher, amy, in yesterday's class enlightened us to the true yogic take on wants and desires.

she said that it's ok to want things - like a fulfilling job, money to support your family or even (in her case) red cowboy boots.  but, she explained that it's also important to ask "why do i want the things i want?".

this take on it completely resounds with me.  with this philosophy in mind, any earthly desire can be seen as a conduit for discovering something deeper and more meaningful about yourself.  very cool.

credit {here}

so, let's take this idea out for a spin...why do i desire cosmos?  what are they offering me?  and what am i truly looking for when i order my fabulous $6 drink at happy hour?  well, they offer me (and craig) a night out to connect, enjoy one another's company and talk.  they offer me a "treat" after a long week or long day and provide a subtle means of letting go.  of enjoying something for enjoyment's sake.  so, when i order my cosmo, i'm actually ordering a little mini vaca from our day-to-day lives.  a moment to take a breath and connect with the guy i'm crazy about.

now, that i know what i'm truly looking for, perhaps i can find it in other places as well.  (like in a pomegranate martini....just kidding....)

happy hour: spiked shirley

i grew up on shirley temples.  whenever my family would go out to a nice restaurant, my sister and i would order them.  hannah (my sis) never liked the cherry garnish, so i would get two!

now, shirley temples would probably be a little too sweet for my palate (with the sugary lemon-lime soda and lots of grenadine), but there's something so fun about them!  that's why i was delighted when my friend (and one of my yoga teachers) introduced me to her grown-up version of this childhood favorite of mine. 

picture credit {here}

spiked shirley

1-2 shots cherry vodka over ice
topped with club soda
splash of grenadine
garnish with a cherry (or a lime wedge)

the effervescence of the club gives the effect of sprite without the sweetness or calories, and the splash of grenadine adds just enough sweetness....and pinkness....to the drink.  the cherry vodka (obviously) enhances the cherry flavor.  just perfect : )

this girly drink is completely fun, and (bonus) any bartender can easily make it!  (or, of course, you can concoct it yourself.)

have a fantastic weekend.  cheers!

the invites are out!

this past friday, my mom took the completed (stuffed and stamped) wedding invites to the post office.  and, on monday, we started getting texts and emails from people saying they had received them.  with the invites out, it really makes the wedding feel that much more real and imminent.  it's crazy how something so small - like mailing a card - can make you giddy and excited!

we ordered our invites from wedding paper divas and opted for their thermography printing process (i.e. raised text) in gold.  we were completely pleased with the way the invites turned out - they are gorgeous!  and i cannot wait to start getting the response cards in the mail : )

to make them extra special, we ordered custom stamps from zazzle with pictures from our engagement photo shoot on them.  we needed a 64 cent for the invitation envelope and a 44 cent for the response card, so we selected two of our favorite images for those.

we decided to go with formal wording for the invitation.  with my parents "hosting" the wedding and all dates & times spelled out in fine print and calligraphy.  i'm a modern bride, in many ways - straying from the traditional go-tos (like the wedding march for my processional, the garter toss or a church ceremony), but still there are certain elements which i choose to borrow from the tried-and-true.

i love the balance of creating a wedding that's a personal expression of our relationship, while still thinking of ways to incorporate traditions that have been a part of weddings for decades...or even centuries.  the union of old and new gives a sense of tradition while still preserving the uniqueness of us as a couple, and i love that.

just over two months until "i do"!  i can't believe it!