We have a Tie

Out of an overwhelming 5 votes (this blog keeps me humble haha) we have a tie between two headers. Sadly we have to say goodbye to header #1. Thanks for playing!

And now a tie breaker between 

Header #2

And

Header #3

Although, I couldn't think of any tie breaker ideas...

so I asked my hubs his opinion :-) Then I asked my co-workers and after getting 4 more votes there was an obvious favorite.

Header # 3 is the winner!!! yay!! shoes!


Thank you everyone for your help :-)
 

I need your help!

My fabulous friend Libby created headers for me, because my plain header just wasn't cutting it... and I'm 100% technologically challenged when it comes to this blog stuff. But anyways, I equally loved all of her headers and don't think I have it in me to choose!

So I decided, why not have my readers vote! I mean, you guys are the ones who will see it, so you should get a say :-) 

So here are your choices

1.

2.

 3.

Which one is your favorite?


Ps. Photo props to Tami Paige :-)

It's official!

Our bed is no longer in the middle of our living room floor!  Woo hoo!

This has actually been official for about a week now and it's been slightly life changing. Our friends and family no longer have to side step our mattress when heading for the couch. I no longer have to climb around our coffee table to get to my side of the bed. And now we actually use what used to be that empty little room at the end of the hall. Isaac and I agree that our house feels a whole lot bigger now, and our hallway from the bedroom to the kitchen feels like a mile long. With all this extra space comes.... a lot of extra space, and our living room now has a queen bed shaped... empty space, which got me thinking,

"I need chairs." 

Yep. I really need some cool chairs. Thrift stores here I come :-)



Sensible Buys: Comforter Sets

Comforter sets... I like em. We got ours at Overstock.com for $100. It came with a set of sheets, shams, and bedskirt, and did I mention this was for a king sized bed? What a deal. And you know how I love deals :-)

Here are just a few I found on Overstock.com that I also liked.

$84 

• Set includes: Comforter, tailored bedskirt and two shams

$65

Set includes: Duvet cover and two shams

$98

Set includes: Comforter, bedskirt, and two shams

(this one is my fave!)

This one is a little more pricey $177.13

- Also comes in grey, and chocolate brown

Set includes: One duvet cover and two standard shams

Classic Creme Brulee

My sister Tara's birthday was this past weekend, so I tried my hand at a few recipes for her birthday dinner. One of which was the Classic Creme Brulee recipe off of Williams-Sonoma's website. (Click HERE).

I've never made Creme Brulee before but knew (after taste testing it MANY times) that there are fabulous Creme Brulees or eggy Creme Brulees... and the latter is so so so gross. Why are some Creme Brulees delicious and some so gross?

After making it myself, I have found the answer!

It's all in the method of caramelizing the sugar.

I made mine the night before our dinner but hadn't caramelized the sugar yet. I had Isaac try one just to see how I did; They were amazing! No egg taste at all! The next day, it was time to caramelize, and I have a hand torch that my lovely cousin Heidi gave me but we forgot to get the gas/propane for it... so I broiled them.

Do not do this.

It cooks the eggs... and this is bad. Hand torching is the answer to yummy creme brulees. Yep.

Here is the recipe I used. Definitely a good one!

Classic Creme Brulee

Ingredients:

• 8 egg yolks
• 1/3 cup sugar, plus 1/4 cup for the brulee topping
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300ºF.

In a large bowl, combine the egg yolks and the 1/3 cup sugar, whisk together until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is thick and pale yellow. Add cream and vanilla, and continue to whisk until well blended, strain into a large bowl, skimming off any foam or bubbles.

Divide mixture among 6 ramekins or custard cups. Place in a water bath, and bake until set around edges, but still loose in the center, about 40-50 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave in the water bath until cooled. Remove cups from water bath and chill for at least 2 hours, or up to 2 days.

When ready to serve, sprinkle about 2 tsp. sugar over each custard. For best results, use a small hand torch to melt the sugar. If you do not have a torch, place ramekins under the broiler until sugar melts. Re-chill custards a few minutes before serving.

Serves 6.