The Luck of the Irish

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Valentine's Cards by Rifle Paper Co.

Happy Valentine’s Day!! I’m so in love with these awesome cards from Rifle Paper Co. They are one of my favorite things in the store!

Valentine's Day: The Pretty Stuff

 

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Valentine's Day Ideas: Love Doughnuts??

With less than two weeks until Valentine’s Day (my favorite holiday), I thought I should share some of my favorite Valentine’s ideas and inspirations. Let’s get real, holidays are made great by their food and Valentine’s Day is no exception. If you don’t have a lot of time or cash this year, why not indulge in some “love” doughnuts? Stop by Krispy Kreme for some of these sweet confections, then pair with some letter cookies to spell this simple message!

Image via Krispy Kreme

Ho Cho & Kitchen Renovations

Why is it that no matter what age you are, we all feel the need to ask the proverbial question: what did you get for Christmas?? Even as an adult, we still compare notes after the holiday. At work, my fiancé and his coworker compared Home Depot gift cards. My BFF and I discussed iPhones and coffee makers…a far cry from the days of Nintendo games and ‘NSYNC cd’s. Even though the gifts might change as we get older, the sentiment still remains: we want to make sure we got better gifts than our friends.

This year, we were thrilled to find that Santa brought us a Keurig coffee maker. It sure was a surprise considering neither my fiancé nor I drink coffee. But ever so thoughtful, Santa was sure to include Hot Cocoa! We were also lucky enough to get a minor kitchen renovation for Christmas, so we spent the last few days sipping hot cocoa in our beautiful new kitchen (the first finished room in the entire house). Please enjoy a look at the “original” kitchen. Last year when we bought it, this is the sad sight that greeted us. I’ll post pics of the “new” kitchen soon!

 

Devilish Devil's Food Cupcakes by Ambrosia

With only one day until Halloween, it’s never too late to start celebrating. If you’re like me, then the best way to celebrate any holiday is by baking! I stumbled upon this great post (with beautiful photography) by Nina on her blog, Ambrosia.  

Devilish Devil's Food Cupcakes
Cupcakes from Epicurious, Frosting from The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook (available soon at French Toast)

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes

1 cup boiling water
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature

For the Frosting

4 cups confectioner's sugar
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 tablespoons whole milk
1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract (to taste)
red food coloring (Wilton gel colors)

fondant, tinted black (for decoration)

For detailed directions, visit Ambrosia Baking.

1000th Pin!!!

It’s official: I’m addicted to Pinterest. As of July 2^nd, I’ve pinned 1000 images. Here is lucky number 1000! Yes, I know its July, and I pinned a gingerbread house…it’s just so cute! I’ll be happy I saved this image when the holiday season finally arrives.

Style Guide: Kids | 4th of July

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