Ready For the Weekend

I know it's just Wednesday but I am anxiously awaiting the weekend to get here...actually the end of the day Friday to be more exact.

Why? Because this weekend I will be spending time with 2 of my best friends in Atlanta.

Kimberly's 25th birthday is this weekend so I will be making the trip from Dallas to Atlanta Friday night to spend it with her! Our friend Tina will be coming from NYC as well.

Its been since my bachelorette party since Kimberly and I have seen Tina so it is bound to be a wonderful time with the girls.

Now if I can survive the rest of the work week, here's hoping right?

YUM!!

I must say that Red Velvet Cupcakes/Cakes are by far a favorite of mine. This tasty treat from Paula Dean and the Food Network is sure to please at your next party or just to bake up something sweet for your and the family!

Whip up a batch and enjoy!

(photo from www.foodnetwork.com)

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons red food coloring
1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 pound cream cheese, softened
2 sticks butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
Chopped pecans and fresh raspberries or strawberries, for garnish

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 (12-cup) muffin pans with cupcake papers.
In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. In a large bowl gently beat together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla with a handheld electric mixer. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth and thoroughly combined.
Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake tins about 2/3 filled. Bake in oven for about 20 to 22 minutes, turning the pans once, half way through. Test the cupcakes with a toothpick for doneness. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar and on low speed, beat until incorporated. Increase the speed to high and mix until very light and fluffy.
Garnish with chopped pecans and a fresh raspberry or strawberry.

Wow the summer really is over, well almost

I had a not so great email pop up into my inbox tonight...the syllabus for one of my classes this fall. I knew that it was getting to be that time but somehow it is coming along sooner than expected.

I guess this means an end to lazy days by the pool but it's time to start organizing my schedule and buying new highlighters, yes that's right the summer is pretty much over and its back to school....

I guess I'll enjoy one of the last lazy Sunday nights I get before the reading of textbooks starts all over again.

Updated Master Bedroom

We finally got around to buying new bedding for our room! We had been saying that was the first on the "update list" once we got married but somehow the money went to the living room, dining room, and guest room. So a couple of weekends ago we start looking all over for something new.

I have been a bit picky when it comes to bedding, I just never seem to have the bedding that just makes you want to jump into bed all day and comfortable looking. I loved the pattern of our last bedding but must admit that the comforter was not nice to sleep with so it ended up rolled up at the foot of the bed each night. And I just could not bring myself to spend $300-$400 on bedding when I know that eventually we may get a larger bed once we move into a house and again need to buy even more bedding...

So after lots of looking, I finally was able to find something I liked! At Target nonetheless! And we only spent about $200!

(Not the greatest photo, I know)

It's clear that Stitch and Nala both appreciate the new bedding too!

We went with a duvet cover and got a down comforter so its warm but not overly warm in the summer and cozy in the winter. We used the dark brown from our current window treatments for the accents of the bed skirt and throw pillow and went with a dark red sheet and throws. I love our new bed now, its super comfy!

Now all that is left is to finally order our wedding photos on canvas so that we can hang them on the wall, and buy some new lamps, or lamp shades and officially "finish" the bedroom.

Thought of the Day-Your Office Etiquette

Office Etiquette, is it really that hard?

I got to thinking at around 8:30am today as I stared at the coffee pot in my office kitchen which held maybe an ounce of coffee in it clearly not enough for a cup or even a half cup and started thinking…what ever happened to office etiquette or just being a good colleague in the work place?

Don’t get me wrong most of the people I work with are great; they are willing to pick up your fax or copy off the printer and drop it by your desk or take a message if you aren’t able to get a call….

However, this brings me back to the coffee. Why is it that when the coffee pot is just about empty and there is a little more than one cup left does the person taking that last cup think it is OK to just leave the tiny bit that remains? I mean really will anyone drink just that? No and add to that the bottom of the pot is never good so why not just dump it out and make a fresh pot??

So here’s my thought for the day, if you happen to be that person who takes the last bit of coffee don’t leave just that tiny bit at the bottom be a good office mate and make the fresh pot, the person after you will be grateful. And while we are at it, refill the ice cube tray if you take the last of that as well…

Have a great day!

Where has the year gone?

We've already gone through the first week of August?! Where has the year gone? I feel like just a few weeks ago I was typing up a posting about the progress on my new years resolutions and now we are getting ready to finish up the last month of summer?



I think that is so funny thinking back about being in school when I was little and counting down the last 100 days of school waiting for summer break and wishing that things would go faster, and now each year I wish that time would somewhat slow down. Yet the days just keep rolling by quicker and quicker each year.

I love the Dallas heat but this summer has been super HOT! I can't remember the last time that we had a day where the temperature was not triple digits and I know that Stitch will be looking forward to the cooler days of autumn as well.


But August is a great month in Dallas of course, why?? Because with it comes Dallas Restaurant Week of course! This year Rene and I will be trying out 2 new places. Chamberlin's (in Dallas) and Ferre (in Fort Worth). It will be nice to have 2 little date nights before Rene goes into busy season again and starts traveling every week again and before I start into the fall semester and my weekends are consumed by classes and homework.

The New Mr. and Mrs. Waters

After being MIA for a bit I am back! But I was gone for good reason of course!
My congratulations go out to the newest of my married friends Mrs. Waters!

Rene and I had a great time at their wedding July 24th in Boca Raton Florida....after of course a 12+ hour trip from Dallas no thanks to Delta Airlines (which we will never ever fly again....unless there is a huge super deal).

Our warmest wishes to them both!