Slice of Life Saturday’s ~ Presents & Out-of-Town Guests

Happy Saturday! Are you celebrating St. Patty’s Day early, or have you been going strong and celebrating since Friday? Squirrel and I usually go out on St. Patty’s Day for some corn beef and cabbage, but we’re skipping that this year. Squirrel is diligently working on the upstairs renovations in order to have it done before the carpet is installed in the next 2 weeks. Three cheers for Squirrel!

Y’all, I’ve been waiting a very long time for Squirrel to finish my office and photo studio, so I’m beyond thrilled that it’s finally happening. I’ve been using my dining room table as a desk for the past 3 years! It’s time I get my own space and some peace and quiet to write. As soon as the carpet is installed, I’m going to flop down on the floor and roll around on the new, plush carpet like a child rolling around in the snow. It’s going to be complete bliss!

My life was a bit uneventful this week. Lucy and I had tons of fun on our girlie date on Sunday. We hit a local museum and acted super smart as we were trying to figure out what some of the more contemporary art was trying to express. There was one particular piece of art that eluded us. It was a gigantic gray splotch. Just a gray splotch, nothing more. We sat there, pondered for a moment, then quickly moved along to the next piece. We’re not art buffs, so we had no idea what the gray splotch was trying to tell us.

Lucy decided to wear heels on our date.  Her feet quickly became angry with her. Why she decided to wear sexy heels on a date that required a ton of walking is beyond me. Maybe she was trying to look sexy for me. Who knows! We even swapped shoes, as I was smart and wore flat boots, but her feet were still angry. We ended up cutting our date short after dinner. Sound familiar? The weekend before last my mom pooped out on me, and this time, Lucy pooped out on me. Better luck next time?

My lovely grandparents are visiting this weekend. I’m so excited! I haven’t seen them in a few months and miss them like crazy. So, I’ll be spending the entire weekend with my family. We’re going to do some shopping, sip some wine, and eat a a boat load of cookies. We’re going to be giving my grandmother a very special gift this weekend, too. I can’t wait to see the look on her face as she opens the gift. I’ll tell you all about it next week.

I also get the pleasure of hanging out with this cute little piggy. She is so much fun. She’s only 2 1/2 months, but she loves to dance. Her favorite song is (you won’t believe it) “Push It” by Salt & Pepa. What can I say, the girl has good taste.

I made a special trip to the library this week to pick up Bakewise by Shirley Corriher. I’ve been dabbling in dessert development lately, so I picked up Shirley’s book in hopes that it will teach me the science/chemistry behind baking. So far, it has helped tremendously. It teaches you the purpose of each ingredient and how they work together as a whole to build a delicious recipe. I can’t wait to share the recipes I’ve come up with so far. If you’re a baker, I definitely recommend reading this book.

Here’s what I pinned this week:

How to Create Your Own Original Cookie Recipe and Cookie Scienc by Baker Bettie- This post is extremely helpful if you want to develop your own cookie recipe. It’s definitely a must read. Thanks, Bettie!
Peanut Butter Cadbury Mini Egg Muffins by Crazy for Crust- Y’all know how much I like my muffins. I can’t stop thinking about these beauties!
Fudgy Cookies w/ Cookie Dough Frosting by Hidden Ponies- Gah! I love these!

Here’s what I’m craving:

Chocolate Chip Milk Dunkers by Crunchy Creamy Sweet- Let’s just say Anna is a genius.
Creamy Tomato Soup w/ Tortellini by Bake Your Day- Oh boy, this soup is calling my name.
Chocolate Pretzel Nachos by Gimmie Some Oven- Images of these gooey nachos enter my brain at the most unexpected times, causing me to stop in my tracks and start drooling.

Look what I made:

Buffalo Cream Cheese Stuffed Chicken by In the Kitchen with KP- We loved this dish…absolutely loved it! I had a small helping and was going back for more when I found that casserole dish that was sitting on my counter just minutes ago was no longer there. I asked Squirrel what happened to the dish. His response, “Oh, um, I scooped some out for dinner and packed up the rest to take to work tomorrow for lunch.” Um, I guess I wasn’t getting seconds, and I didn’t. Needless to say, Squirrel loved this dish and consumed the entire thing. No lie!
Grilled Chuck Burgers w/ Lemon Aioli by Home Skillet- This recipe is burger perfection! It’s simple, yet extremely delicious. This burger is going to show up on our summer menu, for sure. Thanks, Jenn and Seth!
Italian Drunken Noodles by The Cozy Apron- Oh my, this recipe was beyond delicious. It was easy enough to make on a week night, but packed a huge punch of flavor. Thanks, Ingrid!