What you need to Pin today.

Last night I was in a baking mood.  This does nothing for one's diet, but it happens from time to time.  It's not stressed induced or anything - just in the mood. The plan was maybe cookies from scratch but the only recipe that I'd have access to was a recipe my husband wouldn't eat.  (He'll eat oatmeal raisin, he'll eat chocolate chip, but oatmeal chocolate chip is...unreasonable?!)

So I asked myself what do I have already?  I have 3 graham cracker crusts my Mom gave me knowing she wouldn't come up with something to do with them before they hit their "date."

And then I remembered a favorite recipe I found on a link party from Tatertots and Jello one evening last year.  It was called the No Bake Cheesecake and I've made it countless times since then.  Why?  Because it is one of the fastest, easiest and tastiest recipes.  And there's nothing I don't love about those three adjectives when it comes to food.

Since I've made it so many times I knew the ingredients by heart.  I picked them up and went home to get started.  Before Pinterest I'd always just tried to remember where I'd seen something - seriously Pinterest is wonderful.  This time I searched Pinterest first because there's no way this recipe wouldn't be on there.  And after clicking through a couple of them it was there!  The wonderful recipe I'd found on Tatertots and Jello so many times before.  This time with much less internet searching.  Of course, I pinned it for safe keeping.  I made it last night and left it to cool overnight in the refrigerator.  It really only need 2-3 hours but I didn't have 2-3 hours last night and I'm saving it for today.

This recipe is from Random Thoughts of a Supermom who posted it originally in August of last year.  Then she linked it and I'm so glad she did!  The post is HERE if you don't have a Pinterest account.  And let me tell you - it's delicious!

Really you can put any topping on this cheesecake but I used the cherries too and I think the flavors really compliment each other.  Trust me this is so simple and delicious - if you like cheesecake at all it'll quickly become your go-to dessert to make or bring somewhere.

Another recipe I have actually made and thought was AMAZING:

Mexican Cilantro Grilled Shrimp!

This was a recipe I saw on a linky party and after clicking through it I pinned it.  The recipe is from the blog "Fresh Plate" and she posted it in May of this year.  I had never cooked shrimp before but this recipe wasn't difficult at all.  It was DELICIOUS!  It has the perfect amount of heat - the taste is amazing and we even used some leftovers to put in soft tacos - which were equally good!  Seriously - you need to pin this as well because it is SO tasty!

This is her original post with the instructions of how to make it.  Trust me on this - you'll want to make it! 

There you have it - tried and true recipes found on the blogosphere.  Having made them myself I can vouch for their tastiness.  Go ahead and pin them - but make sure you pin them off of the original blog posts - that way you can be taken directly to the recipe without having to go through 3 different sites!

A new place to waste time

A couple days ago I was wasting time and browsing through Wonderwall like I do when I'm really bored. Like reeeeeaally bored.

I'm not on there often, thankfully, but while I was on there I saw a little snippet about Zooey Deschanel. She's a favorite of mine, so I clicked and read about whats new with her. She started discussing a comedy website she created just for girls, Hello Giggles.

She says:

"We wanted to do a comedy website for women and girls. I felt like there wasn't a place that was specifically stuff that made me and my friends laugh. It was more stuff that was geared towards guys that maybe made us laugh a little bit. It's evolved from the original idea we had and become its own thing, which is really cool. It's about people writing stuff that they're passionate about, that makes us laugh and entertains us in the end. It's so much fun."

After I clicked through the interview I made a mental note to check it out because I'll take Zooey Deschanel's word for it.

So yesterday at the beginning of a slow afternoon I stopped by and I'm now a fan. After 30 minutes I was giggling to myself at my desk. This site is girls talking about what they like, dislike and laugh about. There are posts on topics from the helpful to the hilarious and everything in between. There are so many topics to choose from too!

I'm already such a big fan. In fact, I wasted way more time than I care to admit while at work on that site. Seriously - take a look.

Giveaway Alert: Slip Shop Giveaway on Love Stitched

Love Stitched is having an awesome giveaway today: The Slip Shop!



This is a fantastic and cute idea for those skirts or dresses that need a good slip & a little something extra:

This cute frilly add on is brought to you courtesy of the Three Tiered White Eyelet Slip.

This is how it works - add this little beauty to a skirt/ dress of yours...

And voila! A cute ruffly addition to an already cute outfit!


Some more styles:

See? Adorable and a creative idea to spice up old skirts. I want...all of them.


Hope over to Love Stitched to enter!

Hoo Are You?

Today is one of those days. You know the ones? When you look outside and the weather is not only dreary, but SNOWING?! Yep. I said snowing. I've lived here all of my life and I swear it has never snowed this frequently in April - ever. I'm not going to say anything about hoping that this is the end of it because I've said that before.

Instead I'm going to participate in Hoo Are You Tuesdays at Night Owl Crafting. You should participate too - it's fun getting to know people like this!!




1. Do you plant a garden or flowers, or neither?


I live in a condo. Therefore there isn't a place to do any of that junk. But I do plan on having a nice backyard one day. However, I have an intense dislike of yard work. (Probably because it was a punishment as a kid...) The beauty part about my future yard is that my husband LOVES it. He says that mowing a lawn is relaxing. Well knock yourself out, big guy! I've already given him control over our future yard. We're both very pleased with this decision.

2. Does it bother you to have your blinds or curtains open after dark so people can see in your house?


Um...yeah. My husband and I like to play a game where either of us do a strange or crazy random thing to make each other laugh from time to time. I don't think we should subject our neighbors to our madness. That and I've seen one too many scary movies.

3. Do you like to go camping?


Honestly I haven't been camping since my Senior Trip in High School. We camped at Lake Powell, it was heaven. My husband and his family were huge on camping and hopefully we'll be able to go this Summer. I just have one hangup that bothers my husband. There must be a modern-ish toilet...or I'll basically be the most unpleasant person to camp with. I'm very passionate about the fact that women weren't made to pee in the woods.

4. Do you have a laptop or a desk top computer?

We have both at home. We have a laptop and a Mac. The Mac is sexy, and the laptop is useful when you don't feel like getting up and going to the other room. Guess which one gets used the most?

5. What time during the day do you have your most energy?


Probably between the hours of 6:00 pm & 8:00 pm. I get a burst around 10:00 am when I'm at work, but I'm afraid that doesn't happen on the weekends. Weird. Must have something to do with the fact that I'm usually curled up on the couch catching up with my On Demand shows. In pajamas...feeling guilty that I should probably go to the gym, but I know I won't make it until at least 1:00 pm. If ever.



*I have no idea why blogger is messing with font size with the questions. Best of luck reading the really small ones. I can't seem to make it stop!

I Heart Them: Love Stitched

*First let me just say: I have never talked to the head honcho at any of these Etsy shop. I haven't been asked nor do I get anything out of discussing these Etsy shops. I'm just telling you because I "heart" them.


Today I'm going to tell you about a crush I have...



On a necklace.

But really it's so much more than that. It's a crush on a shop. An etsy shop. And the cuteness is of epic proportions.


Of course, anyone with eyes (who reads blogs like I do all day) has seen the creative cuteness that is Love Stitched. She's got an adorable blog, which is truthfully, a daily read for me as well.

The rosettes, the colors, the love...stitched..., I die.

This necklace.
Its the one I have a crush on. It's called the Breakfast at Tiffany's. The little pearls, the little yellow gems. Those colors together? Yep - I'm hooked.

Little. Rosette. Rings.
Adorable.

Again - the colors, the little pearly accents.

Cute pastel and adorable!

I love these dainty blue earrings - they're lovely.

This is the Ashley Lynn. The browns, yellow, tan and cream together? I love it all.

I think I "heart" just about everything in the shop. I got carried away when I first peeked. But she'll do that to ya.



*Alright. I have something to admit.
First - I really do "heart" love stitched. That's no lie. But I have to admit that my love for the shop may be a little over-the-top right, shout-it-from-the-rooftops right now because I may...or may not have won a necklace from the shop. A mum necklace. Go ahead - take a look.

Whew - I'm glad I got that off my chest.

Oh The Epic Awesomeness

This morning as I was doing my daily ritual of clicking through my RSS feeds and reading my favorite blogs, I noticed a post by Vintage Revivals that I couldn't help but share!

First off, I LOVE Vintage Revivals. The creative awesomeness of this woman boggles my mind. She redid a nightstand using TIN FOIL and it looks amazing. TIN.FOIL. Also - she took two different rugs and cut them and worked them together into an amazing zebra print rug...as in made the thing herself. I, myself, could never do this. I don't have the willpower or the creativity to come up with this stuff - but she does and she shares her unbelievable ideas.

Also - she's giving away a FREE ROOM MAKEOVER done by her and her creative genius. Seriously. She'll travel anywhere in the United States too.

Anyway...this isn't about my blog crush on Mandi at Vintage Revivals.

This is about a blog that was launched:

My Favorite Hate Mail: Where Mean Comments Go To Die.


A blog dedicated completely to the negative commenters of the world. I personally haven't received a negative comment, yet, but I have read posts about bloggers who get hurt and contemplate blogger suicide by deleting their blog forever. I HATE when this happens!

Yes, these negative people are entitled to their opinion and exercise the incredible right of free speech. However, this doesn't make them right and it certainly doesn't mean they're not complete D-bags.

I've also seen the blog posts where the bloggers put their commenters front and center and say "Screw the high road and your high horse!" I applaud these bloggers - I really do. High road or not, you have to take a stand somewhere!


And now there's a place for these bloggers to defend themselves! This is a place where bloggers can submit their own mud slingers and defend their blog, their creativity and their lives.


I know I haven't received a negative comment yet. (To my nice commenters: thank you, I wish I could hug you all individually. You truly brighten my day!)


But if and when I do: you can be sure to find it on My Favorite Hate Mail.


Even better? You can join the crusade as a blogger who doesn't stand for negativity! Click here to join! I did. I know this blog is tiny, but this is too big not to support!