Sunday, November 29, 2009

Trying to take nice pictures of china = not possible!

The Christmas china is officially unpacked! Now, our wedding registry pattern is the Spode Christmas Rose (excuse the horrid photos... china is so glossy and iPhone cameras are less-than-forgiving!):





I chose this pattern because it goes really nicely with one of our formal china patterns (Herend Golden Edge) and can be mixed in well during the holidays. I also love it because it is more winter-y than specifically Christmas-y. We've started our collection with salad plates because I figured we would most likely be using them for dessert and coffee (as the golden edge makes them slightly high maintenance and non dishwasher safe).

All that to say, we've also begun little collections of the original Christmas Tree pattern by Cuthbertson. Here are our basic dinner plates:






And our embossed octagonal salad plates:






Here's a closer look at the embossing detail:





I dressed our mantle...





...and china hutch with standing Christmas plates  for a little extra cheer:





More decor is underway... I am trying not to overwhelm our small space!

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving Night!

I hope you've all enjoyed a lovely day full of family, friends and delicious food. Thanks mostly to this:




...we're putting up our feet to watch the big game -- we're pooped from a big day of running, eating and napping (!).

Now that Thanksgiving is officially (ok, almost) over, Christmas decorations will finally be going up this weekend... can't wait to share! Anyone braving the day-after-Thanksgiving sales? Yikes!

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Wifey Wednesday

I went a little overboard during my most recent trip to the grocery and got inspired to cook a dish including every veggie color I could see... thankfully, I ended up with this nice little side dish. If you're looking to include something healthy, but not boring to your holiday spread, here's an easy and festive veggie side dish recipe for you.


*Ingredients:
brussel sprouts
zucchini
bell pepper
cherry tomatoes
red onion
carrots
broccoli
EVOO
salt
pepper

*the beauty of this recipe is that it's really more of a method... you can choose any veggies you like! Good alternatives/additions could be butternut squash, asparagus, or even sweet potatoes...

Tools:
mixing bowls
chop mat/chop knife
rectangular baker (well, whichever baker is the right size for your quantity! I used a 9 x 13 below)

Cooking Instructions:
preheat oven to 400
rinse and chop all veggies, making sure to keep sizes uniform (you'll get a more evenly cooked dish... not to mention, it looks prettier!)
place all prepped veggies in large prep bowl
coat with EVOO, coarse salt and pepper
coat baking dish with PAM, or other non-stick spray
pour veggies into baking dish
bake for 30 minutes, or just before veggies are fork tender (check on your hardest veggies first - carrots, brussel sprouts, potatoes, red onion - they'll take the longest to soften up)
remove from oven, sprinkle with parmesan cheese
pop back in oven until cheese is melted
serve immediately and enjoy!

(this dish can be prepared up to 1 day in advance... I would recommend doing the parmesan cheese addition immediately before serving, while you're reheating, and not 1 day ahead)

pre-bake




post-bake





And voila! You'll have a colorful medley of veggies, sure to add color and nutrition to any holiday meal.  I made this dish for a friends/family potluck dinner and it might re-appear on Thursday...! :)

Monday, November 16, 2009

Am I the last to know?

That Amy Butler has a line at Bed Bath & Beyond?!

To my happy surprise, I rounded the corner of the bath/towel section of BBB to see a lovey tower of color and delight:



For those of you already familiar with Amy, you either A) cannot believe I didn't know this! or B) are ecstatic to know that you can snatch up Amy Butler bath towels for 12 bucks. There's also bedding, which I did not get to see in person, but I imagine it is just as delightful.





For those of you not-so-familiar, let's admire some of her great patterns:















 
So, visit Amy Butler's website if you're at all into fabric/design. You're guaranteed to want to re-upholster every surface in your home.

As long as we're talking about cute towels, another towel obsession of mine is this beauty from Anthropologie:



I received the yellow/white as a wedding gift and they make me happy every time I put them out! They make excellent guest towels to leave folded on the foot of a guest bed for friends passing through town. What a great (easy!) way to spoil your friends and fam!

Friday, November 13, 2009

Another Love...

Has been stealing my attention lately... for much longer than I had realized! Meet Dixie, the newest member of our little fam here at Life as a Wife:




Hubby and I are having a fantastic time transitioning into life as puppy parents, which we really couldn't be more thrilled about!


My obsession with Dixie didn't take long to grow...







Okay... OUR obsession with Dixie:








When my iPhone started to run slowly due to obscene amounts of photos of this little white fluff... I had to admit my puppy obsession problem.

But can you really blame me?! At least I am not in denial.


Well, to get to the point, we're back and we're redesigned (a small step in the right direction!). Join Dixie, Hubby and me because we've got a whole new slew of posts to share!

Happy Friday!

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