Yummy recipe

In honor of my adoration for Bethenny Frankel on the Real Housewives of New York- I found one of her fabulous recipes online. These are so yummy and I made them with all organic ingredients. I went into our local health food market and actually bought oat flour, raw sugar, canola oil, etc.... and I love the idea of cooking organic- it might be a little more expensive, but you can really taste the difference.

Here's the recipe below:

This recipe combines heart-healthy rolled oats and walnuts with potassium-packed bananas, for a delectable dessert. And, it's vegan-friendly, using soy milk and vegan chocolate chips. Enjoy this with a tall glass of milk (or soy milk) for less than 200 calories

Ingredients
1 cup oat flour 1 cup oat flour -->
3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats 3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats -->
1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking powder -->
1/3 teaspoon baking soda 1/3 teaspoon baking soda -->
1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon salt -->
1/2 cup raw sugar 1/2 cup raw sugar -->
1/3 cup canola oil 1/3 cup canola oil -->
1/3 cup plain soy milk 1/3 cup plain soy milk -->
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract -->
1/2 ripe banana, cut into small pieces 1/2 ripe banana, cut into small pieces -->
1/4 cup chopped walnuts or other favorite nut 1/4 cup chopped walnuts or other favorite nut -->
1/3 cup semisweet vegan chocolate chips (such as Tropical Source) 1/3 cup semisweet vegan chocolate chips (such as Tropical Source) -->
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Combine first 6 ingredients (through sugar) in a bowl. Whisk together oil, soy milk, and vanilla in a separate bowl. Add wet mixture to dry ingredients; stir to combine. Fold in banana, walnuts, and chocolate chips.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop dough onto pan with a small ice-cream scoop. Bake 25 minutes or until golden brown, turning baking sheet halfway through. Let cool on a wire rack.

Rain rain go away

I am seriously having to talk myself out of giving in to this rainy day (or days). Charlotte weather has been something I have really needed to get adjusted to- coming from sunny FL is a definite change. One day the weather here is gorgous 70 degrees with a slight breeze and then the next its 45 degrees and rainy. It has been so foggy out today I can't even see the lake. On the other hand I have got a lot of work done on Stellar Goods since I've been in the house all day. I'm thinking a Target trip may perk me up... something has to after this weather.

On another topic we decided to forgo the foreclosure. It just had too many structural issues that we did not want to deal with- plus it was a little more North then we wanted to be. We are back looking at the Magnolia and if all works out we will be putting an offer next week.

My mother was up for almost two weeks. We had so much fun and ended up traveling all over creation looking for a new horse for her. I ended up trying a horse out for her, and I'm still sore a week later! Holy out-of-shapeness! This has definitely awakened me to my need for YOGA- pronto!

Late at night....

So its almost 2am and here I am watching an episode of "Intervention" and thinking I should really turn to a less depressing show, but the remote is across the room and I can't muster the energy. I really should just go to sleep, but my mind feels like its going a million miles a second. Mainly my thoughts are about the housing market...We thought we found our dream house (well the house we would build), but then today we ran across a foreclosure up the street from the lake house (although not on the lake). Its about $50,ooo LESS than what it would be to build the Magnolia. I am on the fence about it... it does remind me of a Florida house (which to me is a big fat negative) and its not as far south as I would like to be (it would be nice to be closer to friends and a younger crowd)... but its a foreclosure in a neighborhood of $260,000+ homes. A new kitchen and some hardwoods and this place could look fantastic. I'm guessing its just the fear of not being happy in this house.... I know I should feel like "this is it, its the one", but I wonder is there any other foreclosures out there better? I just don't know. Its nice to have a buyers market, but when there is so much to choose from how do you decide?

Other than worrying about the housing market I am looking forward to this week. My mother will be up here till Thursday or Friday and we did some great shopping at the Southpark mall. I found the light blue pepper shaker I have wanted forever on sale! 50% off! Very happy about that purchase. Mama found a great pink sweater at J.Crew and also bought two pillow shams at Pottery Barn. Wednesday night is the LKN Jr.s new member social and C and N are coming with me. Should be fun and I'm looking forward to getting more involved with these girls... they all seem very nice and outgoing. Friday night is N's birthday and we are all going out to eat and then to drinks at a local wine bar. Saturday we have Y's baby shower... can I tell you how excited I am for Y's baby Jaxon to arrive?? He's going to be adorable and I can't wait to see mama Y with him- she will be a wonderful mother... speaking of babies... I'm getting a serious case of baby fever...ugh now my brain really needs a rest. Good night....

Sweet Potato fries anyone?

I may be late on this bandwagon, but I am now a SUPER FAN of sweet potato fries! Actually to be more to the point- I am craving anything sweet potato. They are a great mix of salty and sweet and completely satisfy. If you are like me I just think the word carb and I gain an inch, but these are really low fat compared to regular fries. I love dipping them in ketchup-its a definite great side with Turkey burgers too! Yum!

Running in Heels

I have a new show on my radar... Running in Heels on the style network might be a new must see on Sunday nights. It documents three fashionistas on their journey of being a Marie Claire intern. Not sure how much of this show is staged, but cat fights are already ensuing and drama is around every corner. Talita, Ashley, and Samantha demonstrate how internships for fashion magazines aren't as glamorous as they seem to be... and it may just be me, but Talita and Ashley are serious drama queens and Samantha just seems like she needs to bring out some claws just to get some respect around the place..

Pulling in on empty

I'm so notorious for my always empty gas tank. Pumping gas to me is such a waste of time lol. I HATE touching the handle and thinking of all the germs I'm transferring onto my hand (ok I'm not a germaphobe, but don't they just always feel sticky and gross?) THEN sitting there in rainy, cold weather just does not appeal to me either. So today I ended up going to the barn to feed the horses and realized I only had 11 miles to get back into town and find a gas station. My poor mother (who is in town from FL) was beside herself thinking we would be stranded on the side of the road. We literally pulled in on "0" miles to empty. In fact, I didn't even check the gas gage till we got to the station... I felt if I see the number on the gage I more than likely would run out... and denial can be a great thing sometimes lol!

Maybe baby...we could have this?

So hubbs and I are in total LOVE with this house above! Its 2800sqft and although we don't need that much I can see us living here for a long time to come...
Just to give the heads up on what our current situation is... We have a home in FL that we purchased two years ago. Hubbs got an opportunity to get a promotion (yes I did say a promotion in this day and age!) in Charlotte, NC. We had been wanting to move to Charlotte for a few years. We had friends here and we loved the area. My parents came up and took a look at the area and loved it as well. Long story short we rented out our home in FL to a nice older lady and are staying right now at the lake house my parents rented for a year (on Lake Norman). So you might be thinking how completely spoiled this sounds, but although its SO nice to be on a lake- we want our own place! We are so happy to finally be in an area where we see ourselves living and raising a family that it kills us not to have our own "home" here. The lake house is a lake house and living here in the winter is not too fun (we spend more time looking at the lake than being on it lol). We found the perfect house in a great community that will even let us have our beloved Lola (we would never move anywhere where we could not have her...being even a half pit many subdivisions won't allow her:( So we figured we could completely afford payments on this house with us putting $10k down and getting a "gift" or more like a loan from my parents for $10k. We went through the preliminary approval process and we were....
APPROVED!
Yay! Ok so keeping up with my credit cards has eventually paid off! The only thing is its such a big step! Yes, its a big gulp to have two homes with our names on the mortgage, but we were actually one of the smart people who purchased a home we could afford and did not get a crazy ARM that would double our payments in five years. It just is such a pain that we cannot sell our home in a market filled with foreclosures from people who made bad decisions. So we move on with our life and look forward with what might come...
My next dilema comes with living in a subdivision. I've never lived in one and hate the idea of HOA's, but I want my kids to be able to go ride their bikes and grow up with other kids in the neighborhood. I actually want that sense of community.... so we shall see what happens. Right now the housing situation seems to consume us lol

Trish McEvoy

This is my absolute favorite perfume! Its Trish McEvoy #6 Mandarin and Ginger Lily. This perfume smells SO clean and reminds me of someone who is always put together (I do not always fit in that category lol). It is sweet but has a few spicy notes to it and I never get tired of it. I think the one fault I can find with this perfume is that it doesn't hang around long- I normally have to reapply half way through the day, but it always perks me up and refreshes me! Thought I would share:)

Very cute!

How cute is this T? Its hard to find cute T-shirts now a days! This is nautical and preppy all at the same time. Its from Vineyard Vines - $39.00!

Ebay sucked me in again!

So these were so cute I couldn't not bid. I think they retail for around $150 and I got them for $44. Not too shabby, huh?

So Tempted

OK so I'm tempted... so tempted... to bake more of my yummy low fat cookies from a weight watchers recipe. I would.. I'd do it... it would only take how long till one would be in my mouth??? BUT I won't. It's too tempting.. the cookies or more like muffins are good with just about anything, but I can't stop at just one. If I knew they were LOADED with fat I could say no to just one (well maybe), but knowing its a weight watchers recipe changes the game here. So the recipe is just this simply:
1 can of pure pumpkin puree
1 box of spice cake mix
1 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Bake for 30mins at 350 degrees (although may take longer).

Can it get any easier?
But I will be good and go get some "Calm" Tao Tea and fill myself up that way:)

Hair cut and Homegoods

So I was going to be good and go to an "economically" friendly salon- something easy on my wallet. I decided to make an appointment at a salon where I thought I would get somewhat of a cheap cut- I mean really all I wanted was a trim. My Beckham bob has grown into a shaggy ugly sister of the haircut it used to be, but I know I will keep plugging along till I have my long pretty blonde hair back. The girl who cut my hair, Lauren, was very sweet and spunky. I told her I was going to just get a trim and not to worry about the blow out. First, I wanted to spare my wallet the pain of more money and I also hate to sit there through the blow out. Lauren was very friendly, although there were a few minutes where the hairdryer (I asked her to dry my bangs for me so I could at least go out in public looking semi normal) where I felt she was burning a whole in my scalp lol After when I went up to the receptionist I learned my quick shampoo and trim was $50~! Plus with tip it ended up being $60. Ugh. Yes, I will pay a zillion bucks to get my blonde high lights, but a pricey haircut I can do without when I'm growing out my locks.
To make myself feel better about spending that money I decided to go to Homegoods where I got a new pretty yellow spagetti strainer, a new pepper shaker, and some nice black yoga pants that I love. I know.. spend money.feel bad. spend more money because you feel bad. It's a sickness lol

Buy on ebay!

So this is going to sound so absurd, but although I sell hot tubs online for my business, I have never purchased anything online! Nothing! Nadda! I decided to see what deals I could fine on ebay for J.Crew shoes as its so hard to find size 11s on J.Crews sale page (I'm 5'11 okay- size 11 comes with the territory lol). I found these Alessia patent leather ivory shoes and fell in love- yes they are neutral with no fancy print like J.Crew has come to be known for, but they are going to go with everything!! I'm trying to expand my horizons and update my wardrobe, along with losing some weight along the way (more to come on that subject lol) ... Although we are saving for a downpayment on our house in NC, I thought I deserved a little treat:)

A few snap shots from our wedding day:)

This boat was just tied up, so our photographer had us jump in:)

So happy together:)

Our beautiful reception

This was too funny- I had a zillion buttons lol

Our Wedding ~June 9, 2007~ Isleworth CC

I decided since I am a lover of all things wedding I would post a few pics of our wedding day. Although the planning can be beyond stressful (my wedding planner was not much help), the day could not have been more perfect. I'm so excited for everyone that is in the planning process because I know what a magical day they will have! We had our wedding at Isleworth Country Club on June 9, 2007. I loved Isleworth from the moment we saw it for its gorgeous grounds, Dan loved it because Tiger Woods lived there (I could care less- golf isn't my thing). It was my dream wedding..

Little Miss Perfect

So I'm watching the WE Tv show "Little Miss Perfect" and I'm so undecided on what I think about these pagents. I know you can't judge the whole industry on a reality tv show, but its so hard not too. Then you have to take the other side of it and look at how many intelligent ladies have come out of beauty pagents to be actresses, TV anchors, etc etc..... I still don't know though...life is tough enough without having to be "literally" judged on your talent and looks. If you listen to every parent on this show they all talk about how special their children are...it reminds me of Donald Trump in his new book (I'm reading it and even forgot the name, maybe theres a reason?haha), but he has a segment in the book about how we are a generation of "special children". Our whole lives we were told how special we are, how our parents gloated about the honor classes we were in, and how we were going to be something amazing. The interesting thing is that many parents failed to tell us how the hell we were going to get there lol! The cold reality in Donald Trump's world is how we aren't all special and we aren't all going to become something great... kinda depressing, huh? Anyways whether you agree with it or not is besides the point... pagents fall in the category of "to each his own"... do what you will, but I don't know if I would want my little girl's dreams to be wrapped up in becoming "Little Miss Perfect".

Pretty!

So I am in the process right now of growing out my "beckham bob" and I'm completely jealous of anyone with long hair right now lol How pretty are these J.Crew hair ties? I always knew there was a way to wear pony tails right! Ok, so I know $16.50 is a little pricey for hair ties, but if you always wear your hair in a pony tail at least now you can finally do it in style.

Magnolia Bakery Cupcakes

At the last supper club we had I decided to try making the famous Magnolia Bakery cupcakes... any Sex and the City addict may remember them mentioned in a few episodes. I was also lucky enough to find pink and brown sprinkles at Homegoods which made me very happy! In fact the sprinkles inspired me to do the cupcakes. Although the cupcake part was good... the icing was very soupy and I couldn't thicken it for the life of me. Two batches later it wasn't much better.. the icing was sweet to say the least. Below is the recipe for the Magnolia Bakery cupcakes... if anyone has good luck with the icing please pass along the advice:)

Makes 2 dozen cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened• 2 cups sugar• 4 large eggs, at room temperature• 1 cup milk• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONSPreheat oven to 350 degrees.Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.In a small bowl, combine the flours. Set aside.In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not overbeat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended. Carefully spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them about three-quarters full. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean.Cool the cupcakes in the tins for 15 minutes. Remove from the tins and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

Vanilla Buttercream Icing

Magnolia Bakery

Makes enough for one 2-layer 9-inch cake or 2 dozen cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened• 6-8 cups confectioners’ sugar• 1/2 cup milk• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONSPlace the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, about 3-5 minutes.Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the icing is thick enough to be of a good spreading consistency. You may not need to add all of the sugar.If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly. (Use and store the icing at room temperature because icing will set if chilled.) Icing can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Those darn chairs

After finally deciding to paint my chairs.. it took me a total of two weeks to prime, paint, and distress six chairs. I was really lucky because the couple that we purchased our old house in FL for had these chairs (painted dark green- not pretty lets just say that...), but did have this expensive fabric on them that I actually think is very cute. The majority of my furniture is distressed or some version of white wash. Its killing me not to have a house up here, but I know its just a matter of time before we find the perfect one. Until then we are staying at my parents lake house on Lake Norman... which looking at the lake is not to hard to take lol. The PROBLEM is that I'm just a nester... for every Allure, Marie Claire, Glamour magazine I get I purchase two home design magazines. So for right now most of our belongings and furniture are in the pool house apartment in boxes and up against walls. I feel like if I completely unpack its like resorting myself to a longer life of lake house living... which is great, but its not "our" home. Its funny how when I was younger I would absolutely, positively, completely loathe going into furniture and decor stores- now I live for them! I guess my Aunt T was right- its in my blood (my Aunt T is an interior designer) and would come out eventually.
Back to the chairs- I used spray primer- which ended up covering as much of me as the chairs- and then painted them a creamy white. I then took sand paper and rubbed the edges. After I was done with that I took a hammer and then a bag of nails and literally banged the crap out of them- and they look GREAT!

Snow!

Louie enjoying the snow

I threatened them with their lives for this picture lol

Lola watching kids across the street playing

My poor pink chairs

So last night we finally got some decent snow outside Charlotte! Now for most people up north it's not a big deal, but for ex-floridians its a BIG deal! Hubbs and I were very excited! Even though Hubbs grew up in Raleigh, he was in Florida for the past six years. He was even so elated to see snow last night at around 11pm he wanted to go take a drive down the street lol I was begging him not to go and as fate would have it he ended up FALLING DOWN the front stairs! It was slow motion and although I should have rushed to his aid I was on the slippery stuff as well. It was like God telling him to get his butt back in the house. Classic.

I was so happy that I had gone to walmart the day before and bought a rain coat and big rubber boots- although I want the ones at Target badly... I figured with me working at the barn on the weekend its not worth getting cute ones all nasty. I was however able to slip the boots on and go play in the snow with the pups- I appreciated my ugly black boots from walmart:)