lace and wheels

Blouse: Jason Wu for Target

Blazer: Anthropologie

Jeans: Urban Outfitters

Shoes: Charlotte Russe

    Well, I survived my first week of classes. The most stressful part of my quarter is definitely going to be my new position on the Western Front. With two papers every week, there is a lot of work to do. I'm enjoying it so far, but there is a part of me that wonders why I took on all this extra stress. I'm sure when I look back, it will all be worth it! 

    In addition to school, Clinique is in gift with purchase, so work is crazy. I'm also looking for a place to live as our lease is up mid-May. So much to do! I'm hoping to find a place with a little yard, but it's looking like we will end up in an apartment. I'm ready for a change, but it will be hard to transition from a big ol' house to  an apartment. 

    I'm almost finished with the second book of Game of Thrones, and and so excited for the new season on Sunday! Do you guys have any shows coming up that you're excited for? 

French Toast Casserole

  For claiming to not be much of a breakfast person, I sure ate lot of good breakfast over spring break. It probably had everything to do with being able to sleep in regularly.

  I made this french toast casserole with some leftover, somewhat stale bread and ohhhh man was it good. If you like bread pudding, you gotta make this. Because that's basically what it is. Try it cold as well!



French Toast Casserole:

1/2 of a french baguette (sliced)
4 eggs
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup of milk
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
butter to grease pan

1. Lightly grease a 8x8 pan with butter.
2. Slice baguette and arrange in pan.
3. Mix all ingredients, and pour over bread. Let sit overnight.
4. In the morning, preheat oven to 350.
5. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until bread has puffed up and is golden brown.
6. Cover with berries, or syrup. A side of bacon is highly recommended.

* I made a berry syrup out of some fresh blackberries. I sprinkled my blackberries with powdered sugar, and mashed them with a fork until I got some juice. I added a bit of water, and put them in the microwave for about 30 seconds to warm. Yum!

some beer by the bay

   Spring break is quickly coming to an end. *sigh* My favorite day this week was definitely Wednesday, when Tommy and I took a trip to Mukilteo and Everett to visit some breweries. We stopped at Diamond Knot Brewery in Mukilteo first, where we drank lots of beer and ate some sandwiches. I had never been before and I can't wait to go again!

   The atmosphere was really relaxed and friendly. So relaxed that the proper way of disposing of your peanut shells is to throw them on the floor. Score! Their sandwiches are served on a hot stone, and you get to cook the meat and build your own sandwich. I love that kind of stuff.

   The brewery is located right next to the ferry terminal, so we took some time to sit by the ocean and sober up. It was cloudy and rather cold, but not raining, so we couldn't complain! When I was young I spent a lot of time at the Mukilteo ferry terminal in order to get to my grandma's house on Whidbey Island, so there are a lot of fond memories there.

    After Diamond Knot and a bit of beach play, we started the drive home and stopped at Scuttlebutt Brewery in Everett on the way. The atmosphere is more family orientated at Scuttlebutt and not quite as unique as Diamond Knot, but their beer is super delicious. If you see the Triple Seven from Scuttlebutt at your grocery store, definitely give it a try. It has a bit of a banana flavor, not to mention a high alcohol content...so you get your money's worth :)

   Crazy to think this break is the last! Crazy, crazy awesome. Com'on last quarter of my college career, let's do this. 

Leia's new hat

  My sister brought her bulldog Leia to our place last night, and we had a lot of fun giving her love. Snorting constantly, Leia also is kinda smelly and will eat anything. So, in other words she is just a piglett. She loves to snuggle, but hasn't come to grips with the fact that she is much bigger than before. Gahh, so cute.

  I happen to have a Princess Leia "hat" that is usually worn by a Princess Leia bear. It fit Leia perfectly! Getting it on her was tricky, as she would whip her head back and forth. Eventually Tommy calmed her down enough to put her ears through the holes, and I was able to snap a few pictures.

Obviously from her face, you can see she just loves the hat. The last picture is half yawn, half "get this thing off me," face. The hat was thrown from her head shortly after.

sister time

Jacket: Delias

Shirt: Urban Outfitters

Skirt: Nordstrom

Boots: Vintage

Earrings: Nordstrom

      Today my sister Amber came up, and we spent the night watching My Week with Marilyn, eating pizza and ice cream and snuggling her pup Leia. It's always so nice to be able to spend time with her. Even though one hour isn't that long of drive, it's hard to find the time.

   Tomorrow Tommy and I are driving down to Everett/Mukilteo to visit a few breweries. I am so excited to simply spend the day drinking beer by the ocean. The weather is even supposed to be nice! Well, not raining. Yay :)

lazy monday

  The picture above pretty much summarizes my day. And although it's not over yet, I think it's safe to say today has been awesome. Spring break, please never leave me. I have spent nearly the entire day (save a quick trip to the supply store for hair dye) in my pajamas, reading Game of Thrones. I am so close to being done, and can't wait to start the next book!

    Adding to today's awesomeness was a Birchbox! I have been receiving them for about four months now, and they have gotten increasingly better. You can read about the first one I got here. I was pretty bummed with the service at that point, but decided to give it another month. I'm glad I did, because I have gotten to try some great products. If you are thinking about trying Birchbox, I would recommend doing so. Keep in mind that some months are better than others!

   Here are a few highlights from the box I received today:

Two Kusmi green tea bags. I gave this tea a try today and really loved it. Green tea is one of my favorites, and it was the perfect addition to my lounging party.

 A generous amount of Miss Jessie's Quick Curls. I have wavy hair, so I am always looking for a product to add definition, but not weigh my hair down. Can't wait to give this a try!

 A sample of three eye shadows from Stila. I have never tried Stila eyeshadows before, and these colors are right up my alley. 

 Tomorrow I need to be productive, but I only have a few more days to read this book! Gotta finish it tomorrow, so I can start on the next. I don't work for the next three days, which is pretty amazing. When school is in session I feel like I go nonstop, so these next few days are much needed.

  Also, Kate from Katelyn Brooke Designs featured my new layout made by Hannah! It was a really fun process creating the layout, so hearing such nice things about the end result feels pretty amazing. Kate is a designer herself, and has created some really lovely layouts! You can head over to the post here, and then hop over to Kate's other blog, Stripes and Polka Dots. 

  Oh, and for all you fellow Pacific Northwest bloggers, the Pacific Northwest Blogger Meetup was announced! I did not go last year (cause you know...I wasn't a blogger then), and I would really love to make it this year.Trouble is it's down in Portland, and I won't be done with the quarter so I don't really see it happening. Maybe though! Anybody planning on attending?

Lemon Blueberry Pancakes with Sour Cream Topping

  I'll admit it...I'm not a huge breakfast person. After eating a big breakfast, I usually just want to crawl back into bed.. If I have time to eat breakfast, I always go for something savory like eggs and toast. Or I just skip breakfast foods altogether and have lunch. Give me a sandwich over a waffle any day.

  But every now and then, I get a craving for something sweet for breakfast. While french toast is my favorite carby way to start the day, blueberry pancakes are a close second. I love adding lemon to my blueberry pancakes for a little zip, and this sour cream topping is such a yummy substitute to super sweet syrup.

 Pancakes: Recipe adapted from About.com
2 cups all-purpose flour, stirred or sifted before measuring
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups milk
tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
2 tsp lemon zest

Sift together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and 1 1/2 cups of milk; add to flour mixture, stirring only until smooth. Blend in melted butter. If the batter seems too thick to pour, add a little more milk. Add blueberries and lemon zest and combine. Cook on a hot, greased griddle, using about 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake. Cook until bubbly, a little dry around the edges, and lightly browned on the bottom; turn and brown the other side. Recipe for pancakes serves 4.

Topping
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 to 2 tbs. powdered sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)

 Combine all ingredients in a microwave safe bowl. Heat in the microwave for about 30 seconds or until warm.

white swans

Sweater: Urban Outfitters

Skirt: Jason Wu for Target

Tights: Nordstrom

Watch: Betsey Johnson

Shoes: Anthropologie

Scarf: Urban Outfitters

      It was fairly warm out, but so windy! The scarf was a bad idea. It came off soon after these photos.

     Today was the first day of spring break, and boy...I could get used to this. After a fun night of playing Catan with some friends, Tommy and I woke up around noon. I spent most of the day in a cozy chair, reading A Game of Thrones by George R.R Martin. Yes, I am a little obsessed. It's just so good! If you watch the series but haven't read the books, I would highly advise doing so. I am not even halfway into the book yet, but I already have so much more insight into the characters and story. Aaaannyway, I will stop geeking out now.

    In other news, I got a new job! Well, another job. I will be working as a photographer for my college newspaper, The Western Front. I am excited and a little nervous. I am really thankful to get the opportunity; it will be a lot of work, but I know I will learn a lot. Next quarter is my last as an undergraduate...so I need to take advantages of all opportunities available! I am meeting with my editor tomorrow at noon to go over all the details.

    As far as this outfit goes, this sweater was a Christmas gift from my sister. I picked up the skirt at Target (on sale!) while picking up my Game of Thrones books. I bought a shirt from the Jason Wu collection for Target a few weeks back, and love it as well. I see myself getting a lot of wear out of both pieces.

    I am so excited for the next week! I am hoping to finish my chair re-do, cook lots of yummy things and make a trip down to see my family. So much to finish, so little time.

Blog Layout Inspiration

 When I first started talking with Hannah about my ideas for my blog layout, I was a bit all over the place. There are so many things to consider, it felt a little overwhelming at first. I knew what inspired me, and I knew the overall feel I wanted.

So, to convey my many ideas and give her a starting point, I made her a board on Pinterest. I think she would agree that it came in really handy! Here are some of the pins that inspired this new layout.
 

Source: etsy.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: design-seeds.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: society6.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: society6.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: design-seeds.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: ohhellofriendblog.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: society6.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: society6.com via Amanda on Pinterest

little red polka dots

Dress: Thrifted

Coat: Forever 21

Shoes: Urban Outfitters

Necklace: Nordstrom 

Belt: Delia's

      I love this dress because it has just the right amount of swing to the bottom. When I put it on, a part of me turns into a five year old that just wants to twirl!

     Well, this week is the last week of classes, and soon it will be spring break! It's so close and yet so far away...there's still so much to be done! I'm trying not to get too stressed; I just keep telling myself that somehow it all gets done.

     It doesn't help that the season one dvd of Game of Thrones came out the other day....all I want to do is watch it! I have already seen the first season, but I need to relive it all before season two comes out. Anybody else watch it? I can't stop humming the theme song! Oh, and Daenerys Targaryen? Such a badass.