Fetish Friday

This little lady is the "Bellerikah" by Diesel. I think it's a cute little casual shoe for the summertime. AND it's on sale for $37.50 down from $70 at Dillards. It looks pretty comfy, like it will breathe well in our humid Texas heat and it's pink and grey, which is pretty. It does come in some boring tan color, too.
On another note, I don't think any shoe Jessica Simpson makes should be classified as "athletic." This shoe may not be a patent leather party shoe, but it is not athletic. It has a freakin' huge heel! It will make you look much hotter by elongating your legs while at the gym, but you will also fall much farther to the ground when you trip on a weight machine while checking your hair in the mirror. And we all know - swollen ankles are not hot.
By the way, I've been in ABQ for three days so far and haven't been to the Dillards shoe department yet (it's huge here and I know they have a good sale). I don't think I will make it... I have a cooking class tomorrow, Maddie's piano recital, 2 wedding receptions, AND a get together with the girls to try on brides maids dresses... Trust me, this is all way harder than Jeana and Jamie's marathon. They'll be wearing comfortable tennis shoes at least! Good luck girls!

Double Chocolate Whamo

Last night Ben was supposed to work late, so I decided to make cookies to keep in the freezer for him while Lucas and I are out of town. Instead Ben managed to come home on time while I was making the cookies, so it wasn't a surprise, but they still were delicious. I think they are my new fave:

Hershey's Double Chocolate Mini Kisses Cookies
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 t vanilla
2 cups flour
2/3 cup cocoa
3/4 t soda
1/4 t salt
1 3/4 cups mini kisses (I just used chocolate chunks & chocolate chips)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts (optional)

Bake at 350, 8-10 minutes.

Last night I omitted the nuts, but added about 3/4 t peppermint and it was uber-good. Mmmm.

Oh Happy Day!

The Office is BACK! I didn't get to watch it last week or this week. But, thanks to the kind people at nbc.com I can watch episodes while Lucas is asleep! I just watched both new episodes this morning and it was the happiest 45 minutes of my week. I haven't felt such TV induced glee for months and now it's back. All is well in the world. Thank you, Michael Scott and the rest of the team at Dunder Mifflin. Now I have to go get Lucas out of bed...

Fetish Friday

One of my best friends from high school is getting married on May 31st. I'm in the wedding and I get to pick out my own shoes to go with my black sassy dress. I love picking out my own shoes! They do have to be black... I kind of wish I could wear silver, but black will do.
If I was loaded I would buy these babies. They are Margot by Hollywould. I think they would look great while I walked down the aisle. The bow would totally match the calla lilies in my bouquet and the whole thing would be beautiful, as long as my hair wasn't flat. Alas, I am not a millionaire, so I will not be purchasing these beauties. They cost $425, but it's always fun to dream.
Instead, I'm going to try to get away with wearing these Antonio Melanis, which I own in black. BUT, they are on sale right now in RED!!! They only have a couple sizes online. Go to the Dillards nearest you to find them. My mom just bought a pair tonight. She's been waiting for almost two years for them to go on sale. Go Mom!

Yummy - Thai

All the more reason to grow basil in your back yard... or a pot! I used chicken instead of shrimp and added some cilantro, also. Oh, and I used soy sauce instead of fish sauce, and pepper flakes instead of a real pepper. Here is the recipe - YUM!

Fetish Friday

How could anyone not love these little baby shoes? This is the Annie - potpourri by Pediped. I love the cute colors and the dainty pink bow. You can score a pair for your little girl for around $30. They have another version for toddlers that is also cute, but a little more expensive.

Make a Difference

I thought this was a good idea with a great message. We all have the ability to impact people's lives!

Mmmm... Brownies

Brownies, anyone? I tested out a couple brownie recipes for a baby shower I'm having next week. I made mint-chocolate brownies Friday night and then Sunday night I made peanut butter brownies for a BBQ we went to.
The mint brownies are from Cooking Light and they were a hit, as were the less "healthy" peanut butter version.

Chocolate Mint-Bars:
Bottom Layer:
1 cup flour
1/2 t salt
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 T water
1 t vanilla
1 16 oz can chocolate syrup
Mint Layer:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 T milk
1/2 t peppermint extract
2 drops green food coloring
Glaze:
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3 T butter

Just make like normal brownies, cook at 350 for 23 minutes (it took me a lot longer - like 35), until wooden pick comes out almost clean. Cool completely. Frost with mint layer. To prepare glaze, melt chocolate chips and butter in microwave 1 minute at a time, stirring after 30 seconds. Let cool two minutes and then frost over mint layer. Keep in fridge until ready to serve.
Now, the peanut butter brownies are a recipe of my Grandma Cutchen. They won first place at the National Peanut Festival in Dothan, Alabama, The Peanut Capital of the World!


Here's the recipe:
1 cup butter
1/3 cup cocoa
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 t salt
4 eggs
1 t vanilla

Combine butter and cocoa in saucepan over low heat to form chocolate mixture. Cook until butter melts, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, cool slightly.
Combine sugar and dry ingredients in mixing bowl, add chocolate mixture and beat at medium speed until blended. Add eggs and vanilla. Spread into well-greased 9x13. Bake at 350 25 - 30 minutes, or until wooden pick comes out clean.

Peanut Butter Frosting:
1 16 oz jar chunky peanut butter
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup cocoa
1/3 cup milk
10 large marshmallows
1 lb package powdered sugar, sifted

Remove lid from PB jar and microwave at medium for 2 mins or until PB melts, stirring after a minute. Spread over warm brownies. Chill about 30 mins or until set. Combine butter, cocoa, milk, marshmallows in saucepan over medium heat. Add powdered sugar, stirring until smooth. Spread over PB, chill until set. Store in fridge.

When I made the PB brownie, I used to Cooking Light brownie recipe so it wasn't quite so fattening, but I'm sure it's yummy. Both recipes were good. Ben preferred the mint recipe, but he says it's pretty hard to do PB and chocolate from home. I guess I should just buy him some Reeses cups. I thought they were both delicious... just depends on if you're in a mint mood or a PB mood.

Fetish Friday

What can I say? I just love peep toes! Oxford-style pumps are quite trendy right now. These don't lace up too high, so they don't border on ugly-risky-trendy, just beautiful-trendy.
They are the "Vica" peep toe pump by Marc Fisher. You can find them for $79 at Macys. According to the reviews online they are quite comfy for such a high heel. They also come in a safe all black variety, but I really enjoy the black and white.

The Other Woman

Ben's worked a lot this week so last night I took Lucas downtown for a visitation dinner with his daddy. When we got there Ben was working hard crafting a sample of gift card packaging for Lost Pines resort. It's amazing what Ben can do with cool paper and sticky stuff - seriously!
Lucas and I occupied ourselves for about an hour on the stairs around the office, but when I made if over to Ben's cubicle I saw the real reason Ben's been working so late. She was beautiful. I mean, really beautiful. Even I, just a regular girl, was attracted to her.
She was Ben's new iMac. Take a look for yourself. If you got to work with her, you would never want to leave either!
That's all there is to her. The computer is in the monitor. And it's FLAT. Seriously amazing, people. I stared at her for a few minutes and I was suddenly aware of every single one of my flaws wondering if I could ever match up to such a beauty...