One more year’s gone by
Your gift’s my love, my best friend
Happy Birthday, man!

“For those who love European cuisine and ambiance, there’s no better destination than La Boniche…”

This statement gives the perfect setting for this restaurant. La Boniche, nestled in the heart of downtown Lowell is an excellent spot for that “something different” experience you are looking for. Here, they are serving up classic cuisine dishes cooked to perfection.

Walking into La Boniche you are transformed from Downtown Lowell to Old World Europe. The ambiance is intimate and quaint but doesn’t feel crowded. You instantly have a warm and inviting feeling. The restaurant is divided into a small bar area and a seating area for dining. The few pictures on the walls are from local artists, which plays more into the comforting feeling. When weather permits, there is outdoor seating available. This would have been my preferred seating if the weather were nicer. There are not too many days in New England where you can sit outside and enjoy the weather so when they are here, you want to take full advantage. Even though outdoor seating wasn’t available, we were lucky enough to score a window seat.

To start things off, we were given French bread with a side dish of hummus.  This was a pleasant surprise and different from just the normal butter.  If the little you receive with the bread isn’t enough, they do offer hummus as an appetizer plate.

I had the soup special which was a type of mussel bisque with shrimp, carrots, celery, and potatoes. It was a good choice, I was very pleased.  My partner-in-crime tried his hands at the Escargot.  When asked if he liked it, his response was:

“Instead of the traditional method of roasting with garlic and herbs, they poach the snails in a light Dijon cream sauce with sliced seasonal vegetables.  Everything was cooked perfectly. The vegetables were al dente and the escargot was tender. This was a great dish.”

For the main course I had the Veal with Shrimp. It had roasted tomato, fresh asparagus, roasted potatoes, in a rosemary butter sauce. Again this dish was good. The veal was cooked good and not over done; the asparagus and potatoes were spot on. I wasn’t a huge fan of the rosemary sauce at first but after a little while the taste grew on me.

My counterpart had the Pan Roasted Trout with mushroom, roasted brussel sprouts, garlic, basil, sherry butter, and roasted potato.  His take:

“The pan-roasted trout was awesome. They take a whole trout minus the head and pan roast it in traditional French fashion in butter and sherry wine. Then roast the trout until it is flaky. They finish the dish by taking the remaining sherry wine and butter in the pan throw in some cherry tomatoes and pour it over the fish. They serve it with roasted wild mushrooms and baked Yukon potato wedges. It was an excellent dish.”

As for desert, it was a torn decision between bread pudding and crème brulee. Since we couldn’t decide, we turned to our waitress for some advice. We asked if the crème brulee was made fresh and she informed us that a baker comes in every morning and makes the crème brulee in house.  We were sold and it was delicious.

Overall, I was so pleased and impressed with my experience. Our waitress was excellent. She was very knowledgeable of the menu and the restaurant. If you are worried about the pricing, I think it was well worth it.  For the service provided and the dishes, this is what I would expect.  But if you are concerned regarding prices, there are ways to help. La Boniche offers a prix fixe menu during the week for only $20.00. You can also purchase a restaurant.com gift certificate for the amount of $10 or $25 for only a few dollars.

Another great tidbit is La Boniche offers cooking classes about twice a month.  Classes are held on Sundays from 3pm-5pm and are $50.00 per person.  Check out their website to find a listing of upcoming classes. This could possibly be a great date idea!

La Boniche Website
Map 143 Merrimack St, Lowell MA

I had the pleasure this past weekend to host a Silk® Soymilk Marvelous Mornings House Party. Now I know what you might be thinking, what exactly are you talking about? Well….

First, I have to take you back to 2010. This was the year that I started house hunting. To keep things short and sweet, I started looking at blog sites to help me learn how to save money. I came across Hip2Save.com and since then, my life has changed in more ways than one. One of the blog posts talked about hosting parties from houseparty.com. Of course I was intrigued and decided to look. How it works is they tell you about upcoming parties which you can apply to host. If chosen, you will be given all the tools you need to host the party, all you need to do is invite family and friends. What’s so great about this is you can get exclusive access to try some new products before anyone else. Who doesn’t like to be a trendsetter?!

Fast forward to present time. I applied and was chosen to host a Silk® Marvelous Mornings House Party. I was seriously excited when I found out. Silk® Soymilk is a product I have tried in the past but really wanted to learn more about, especially their new line of Fruit & Protein drinks. I couldn’t wait to see what I had for my party. This is what my party pack included:

For the host:

• 4 coupons for 1 free quart or half gallon of any Silk® product
• 1 Silk® juice glass
• 1 Silk® tumbler
• 1 $5 Visa® gift card

For the guests:

• 42 coupons for $1 off any quart size or larger Silk® Fruit & Protein
• 42 Silk® tasting cups
• 14 Silk® bowls, plates, and napkins
• 14 Silk® magnets
• 14 crazy straws
• 14 coupons for $15 off a Ninja® kitchen appliance

I decided to put together gift bags, which included the crazy straw, coupons, magnets, and recipes from Silk®, for everyone who came to the party.

The menu for brunch was:

• Samples of Silk® Fruit & Protein Mango Peach, Silk® Fruit & Protein Strawberry Banana, and Silk® Dark Chocolate
• Spinach and mushroom quiche made with Silk® unsweetened
• Blueberry pancakes made with Silk® unsweetened
• Quiche Lorraine
• Fruit skewers
• Apple, strawberry, and raspberry pastries
• Bloody Marys

Everyone who came seemed to really enjoyed the products and seeing how to incorporate Silk® Soymilk into everyday cooking. For most who attended, it was their first time ever trying Silk® and it was a hit! I feel lucky and fortunate to have been able to host this event. I would like to thank Silk® Soymilk and houseparty.com for the opportunity! I hope I am chosen again to host a future party.

  Silk Marvelous Mornings Recipes (1.1 MiB, 8 hits)

We don’t do a whole lot of posts anymore about specific real estate for sale, but the owners of this house also happen to be big supporters of our blog from back in the day…so this one’s for them – NOW BUY THEIR HOUSE!

The bright and welcoming split entry located at 187 Concord Road in desirable Westford Massachusetts sits on just over 1.5 acres. While the home is located near shopping and restaurants and is convenient for commuters, the front yard provides natural surroundings with the soothing sounds and atmosphere of Vine Brook. The oversized deck is perfect for entertaining and everyday enjoyment with plenty of space for outdoor furniture and the back yard has room for gardens and activities. There are three bedrooms and two bathrooms located on the main level plus there is finished space in the walkout basement that is perfect for a den, office or playroom. The 2 car garage has direct access from the basement and you will find plenty of storage in addition to a comfortable amount of living area. Move right in and start enjoying all this home has to offer.
 

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187 Concord Road, Westford, Massachusetts
 

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This may come as a surprise given the fact that a shot of my big, bald mug is directly below. But I’m actually giving a shout out and a big, fat “fanks” to someone else!

We meet all kinds of interesting peeps from all over the world and it’s really awesome to be able to learn and collaborate with like-minded dorks. Oretta Norris, an expert in internet marketing and social media management, is a perfect example. Oretta is founder of Social Media Hive, a London-based company which mainly focuses on a blended approach to teaching social media techniques and strategies via online video conferencing sessions. She calls it Tuition, which I had never heard before but which I think sounds a lot more swank than Tutoring, though it could just be her cool accent.

Anyway…after interacting with her on Facebook for a bit, she was kind enough (or crazy enough) to reach out to us for the chance to be interviewed for what she calls Friday Fanks. In her words, Friday Fanks is how she shows appreciation and gratitude to those who interact on her Facebook page each week. We go there to learn but we’ll take the plug and it was so much fun! I’m also happy to report I was able to teach her a fancy new word too. As you’ll see in the video, we’re slowly spreading some Haiku love around the globe so Oretta…I asked Ruby to write a special one just for you:

Fank you Oretta

Your online tuition rocks

See you at the hive!

I was recently asked if I would write a post evaluating my online shopping experience with MrChewy.com. They offered me a $50 credit in exchange for the post. Truth is, I would have done it for $25, but I did not share that little tidbit of information with Mr. Chewy!

I spent some time perusing all the delicious products online. It was hard to narrow my order down given there are over 80 brands to choose from on their site, but I finally made my selections which included a Merrick “The Tank” Meaty Beef Knuckle Bone, Natural Balance L.I.D. Limited Ingredient Diets Potato & Duck Formula Treat Roll for Dogs, and Three Dog Bakery Classic Cremes Carob Cookies with Natural Peanut Butter Filling.

I was ready to check out using my handy PupPal account when mom came in and ruined all my fun. I got “the look” then she said, “Ruby, while those treats look delicious and are great for other dogs, they are not appropriate for a diabetic dog like yourself ”. She may be practical and pragmatic, but she was also right, so I went back to the drawing board and picked out more fitting treats for a dog like me.

Luckily, there is an ingredients tab for most of the products offered online at MrChewy.com so it was easy to find treats which met my dietary special needs. I also liked that I could see ratings and read reviews from other pups. I definitely plan on adding a few of my own!

My mom-approved order contained Zukes Chicken Mini Naturals Dog Treats, Zukes Salmon Mini Naturals Dog Treats, PureBites Freeze Dried Chicken Breast Dog Treats, Dogswell Vitality Minis Chicken Breast Jerky Dog Treats, Dogswell Veggie Life Happy Hips Chicken & Sweet Potato Dog Treats, and I threw in a small bag of Zukes Natural Purrz Tender Chicken Cat Treat for Emma the cat because I am nice like that (fine, mom made me). I did have a question when I was checking out so I clicked on the Live Chat and was immediately greeted by Shanna. She was very helpful, knowledgeable and friendly. I know, I am gushing. I may have a crush on Shanna.

I am not usually happy when the delivery truck arrives at my house. It’s loud, strange people approach my door, and the doorbell irritates me. Who wants to have ‘ding and dong’ wake them up during a relaxing afternoon nap? However, I was very happy to see my MrChewy.com order and the free shipping for orders over $49 is nothing to bark at. I checked the box and the contents were exactly what I had ordered. I spent the next few days being a very good boy so the taste testing of my treats went smoothly. I am partial to chicken, so it may seem a little fishy but the Zukes Salmon Mini Naturals Dog Treats are my new favorite.

I love their selection and customer service and it’s fun to get social on their Facebook page so I highly recommend ordering from MrChewy.com. I look forward to placing my next order!

Since I was a very little girl, Easter for me was less about baskets and more about bunny cake. I am not sure when she started making them, but my grandmother made them just about every Easter while she was still baking. The cake was always referred to as “he” and varied little year to year. It was always a yellow cake. The frosting was the same frosting every year (though how she made it I don’t know). Every year the ears had pink insides and were covered in coconut. For some reason only the ears had coconut. (Was it because some picky people–likely a younger me–didn’t like coconut? Later I would learn to love coconut by eating this cake.) Each year the eyes were made of jelly beans (preferably Russell Stover pectin jelly beans) and the whiskers were made of cut strawberry Twizzlers. As a kid, my brother and I would often get to take home the leftover candy–an added bonus to bunny cake!

One of my favorite parts about the cake was that my grandfather would describe him to us either before we arrived, when we got there, or by phone for the years I was not home for Easter. Some years he would say he looked too good to eat.  If his eyes were a little too small, he would often say of the cake, “He looks a little malevolent.” This was a frequent description. When Gram was cutting it always seemed a shame to ruin her creation, but it tasted too good to resist. She would ask everyone if they wanted a piece of ear (with coconut) or from the face. Sometimes my brother and I would request specific parts of the face so that we could have a piece with the candy we wanted. We were spoiled that way.

My 2011 version of the Bunny Cake

At some point the Bunny Cake duties shifted to me. That first year I felt the pressure to get him just right. It was hard to achieve the same effect. What color jelly beans did she use? How did she get the whiskers to look just right?  Did he have a mouth? (Most often yes, but I don’t always include one.) Some years Easter would overlap with my Mom and Grandfather’s birthday (they share a birthday). One year I put candles in the Bunny Cake and wished I had come up with a clever way to incorporate them into his design.

If you would like to try this at home, it couldn’t be easier. Make your favorite cake in standard cake pans. Cut one of the cooled cakes in half. Arrange the cake in the shape of a bunny head on a tray or cookie sheet (full round at bottom, two halves on top). Make your favorite white frosting.  Put some frosting in a separate bowl and tint pink. Frost the head and edges of ears with the white frosting. Frost the inner ears with the pink frosting. Sprinkle coconut on the whole cake or just the ears. Arrange candies to make eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, and whiskers (whatever you like). This would be a great project to do with kids. Then simply enjoy. I am hoping that this tradition will continue and that my new nephew, Ben, will anticipate the bunny cake like I did on Easter.

On a lazy Sunday I pulled out my treasured old vinyl records and reignited my love for French chanteuses Edith Piaf, Lucienne Boyer, and my all-time favorite Berthe Sylva. As I listened to the grande dames and sipped on a lovely Bonedeaux, I looked through the rest of my collection and noticed a lot of dog-themed album covers.

Perhaps a line in Berthe’s single, mon vieux Pataud, can explain why so many artists trust dogs to be the face of their album;

“Quand tu veux mordre on voit tes dents”, let me translate in case you don’t speak French, “When you want to bite your teeth are seen”.

When it comes to canines, what you see is what you get so a dog will always live up to the ideal of truth in advertising. Which also got me thinking…when I put out my first album, what might the cover look like?

I recently went to get my taxes filed for the first time as a new home owner. (Yippee!) I made the appointment and started gathering all my paperwork and realized something…I didn’t know what I would need to file as a homeowner. This would, of course, be my first time filing long form. That’s when I headed to my reliable source, my dad, who I knew would be able help me out with what I would need. You should call your tax consultant before your appointment to make sure you have all the correct paperwork. (I suggest at least a week before just to make sure you have everything.) Know that you need the same paperwork for filing for both state or federal tax returns and that you will have to pay more when filing long form.

Another thing to consider is if you purchased your place towards the end of the year. You will either not be able to claim or there may not be enough to claim so you will have to wait until next year, this happened with me. I purchased my place in September and since I have only paid about $100.00 in taxes for the rest of the year, I was unable to take any deductions on my place. But it’s okay because it just means a higher return next year! If this happens to be the case with you, I would still bring everything to your appointment and let the accountant decide what is best for your situation. Even though I was unable to claim, I still handed in all the paperwork and now it is in the system ready for next year. It’s a few less papers that I need to remember when filing next year.

Here is a quick checklist of paperwork I needed to file “long form”:

• HUD-1 Statement–Only need this form the first time filing as a new home owner

• Closing costs–Only need this the first time filing as a new home owner

• Taxes/Interest paid towards mortgage–Need this information every year

• Donations–Need documentation for anything over $200.00. This is the case for Massachusetts but I do not know if this is the case for other states.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to be financial advice. Consult your accountant or other tax professional.

A (mostly) weekly round-up of links or peeps or places or things around the interweb, that caught our eyes or ears and that we think is worth sharing!

Michelle

I am always looking for ways to save money and with swap.com it’s easy to do that. It is a website where you can turn in anything that you have and swap it for anything you are interested in. From books and movies to jewelry and electronics. It’s a great way to get your hands on some new things while parting with the old.

Ruby

I recently enjoyed my morning walk while listening to this NPR podcast. It details the ways in which pets can help humans to enjoy physically and emotionally healthier lives. But this is not just a one way street – if you rub my belly, I will rub yours. Yes, the kind souls who volunteer to walk shelter dogs reap the benefits of exercise but they also have a huge impact on the lives of my canine friends. Dogs in volunteer walking programs are more likely to be adopted thanks to the exercise and socialization they receive. Speaking from experience, a forever home is the most important factor in keeping a dog’s heart healthy and happy.

Kat

“The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” recently won an Oscar for Best Animated Short. The animation is fantastic. I can’t resist an anthropomorphized book. The link is for YouTube, but this is also available via iTunes.

Beth

I am simply fascinated by this camera and the pictures it takes. When you click on different parts of the picture, the focus changes. We are talking AFTER the picture is taken, it’s revolutionary!

I started working out at home in the early 90’s. VHS was where it was at and Susan Powter was seen in TV infomercials raising her fists and yelling, “Stop the Insanity”. The truth is I was immediately hooked on the colorful leotards which stretched up past the instructor’s hipbones, the big hair and loud makeup, and the bad music. Hey, it was an easy transition since I am an 80’s girl at heart. Armed with a step aerobics bench my mom bought for me at a yard sale, a few VHS tapes, and mismatched hand weights, my home workouts began and they’ve never stopped. What has kept me working out at home for over 20 years? It’s the variety, convenience, flexibility, affordability, and an interest in the preservation of my health. Plus, moving my body feels good and it’s just fun!

Collage Video has been an essential key to my consistently working out at home all these years. It was and still is my favorite place to buy workout videos. Now I shop online instead of their paper catalog and I purchase DVD’s not VHS. However, I still own many tapes and have a combo VHS/DVD player so I can continue to work out with my favorite step aerobics tape of all time; Kathy Smith’s Step Workout ©1992. That’s right, I made a $10 investment 20 years ago and Kathy and I are still going strong. Their website www.collagevideo.com offers shoppers a video clip of each DVD. I love this feature because I can get a feel for the instructor, workout, music, and set. If I buy something I like I am more likely to use it.

While I started out with strictly step aerobics tapes I now have a variety of workouts ranging from classical ballet to booty shaking salsa. I have learned over time to vary my routines so I don’t get bored. Also, when I feel the need for some inspiration, I turn to online fitness websites for exercise ideas. Sites like www.shape.com and www.fitnessmagazine.com offer a variety of exercise demonstrations meant to be done at home with little to no equipment. They have great instructional photos, written descriptions, and videos…all for free!!

I have lived in tiny apartments and comfortable homes and I have always had enough area to work out. When I was tight on space I stashed my workout gear under my bed and put my tapes on a bookshelf. Now I have a dedicated room for my home gym, so I have added a few items including a medicine ball, some resistance tubes and a mat since my gym does not have a thick carpet. Mostly, though, I remain surprised at how little space and equipment I need to get in a good workout at home.

At the invitation of friends and co-workers, I have signed up for gym classes a few times. I found I did not like the inflexibility. What if I can’t make my cardio class at 7:30 tonight? What if it’s raining or snowing or I just don’t feel like packing my gym bag and driving to the gym? These are obstacles between me and working out. At home, I can pick the time and type of workout I want to do each day. Saving on driving time, gas, and a gym membership are all bonuses as well. Most importantly, at home I can really let loose and be the star of my very own fitness video that is playing in my head. And, yes, I am in spandex, leg warmers, and a matching head band. What else would I be wearing?

Irish eyes smiling
The sweet day we meet again
Luck rain down on me

I have a secret that I will share with you…I LOVE bargains! Yes, that’s right, I love saving money. Who doesn’t? I do whatever I can to save. I wouldn’t consider myself cheap; I am just conscious of how I spend my hard earned cash. I will occasionally splurge on things like a nice dinner or some new clothes but for the most part, everything I spend is planned. I have to plan; I’m a new homeowner!

A few weekends ago I had a great Saturday planned. My morning started at Brew’d Awakening Coffeehaus, on Market Street in Lowell. The house-like feel makes you feel relaxed and welcomed anytime of day. They serve cafe drinks such as coffee, hot chocolate, lattes, and chai tea. Brew’d Awakening also offers a variety of pastries and desserts, made-to-order bagel sandwiches and more. On this morning, I ordered two breakfast sandwiches, a coffee, and purchased a newspaper. I had a coupon with me from the Entertainment® Book (only one of the best purchases I have made in a long time) for “Two-for-One Menu Item”. With this I only ended up spending $6.00 for everything. Sweet deal if you ask me!

Next, it was off to the American Textile History Museum (ATHM) located on Dutton Street in Lowell. I had two free admission passes and well, since it’s right across the street from where I live, I figured I would check it out. Even if I didn’t have passes, I had still planned on visiting the museum. They currently have an exhibit called “The Wonderful World of Kites” now through May 27, 2012. This exhibit showcases that kites are more than child’s play.

“They are objects of artistic expression as well as cultural and religious symbols, tools of war, artifacts of history and instruments of science, technology, and mathematics.” athm.org

At the ATHM, you will experience the history of textile not just in Lowell, but the impact it has had throughout the years on society. Wanna find out what sheep and baseball have in common? Then visit the museum Wednesday to Sunday 10:00am to 5:00pm. Admission is free for children under 6, $6.00 for children 6-16 and senior citizens, and $8.00 for adults. AND if you have an Entertainment® Book for the Greater Boston area, there is a coupon for “Buy One Admission, Get One Free.”

Later on in the night, I made my way over to the Tsongas Arena to watch the UMass Lowell River Hawks game. For only $7.00 a ticket, I was able to enjoy a Division 1, college hockey game with family and friends. The River Hawks games offer all of the amenities of a professional hockey game but for a much lower cost.

My day was perfect. I had a very eventful day without spending a fortune to do so. And I walked everywhere so I had great exercise and saved on gas! It just goes to show that you can be frugal and still have fun!

Unless you’ve been pinned under a very heavy boulder for the last year, you’ve probably heard a little something about Pinterest.com. Let’s get something up on the board right away…Mrs. Jacob Clayton is addicted, and quite possibly on the verge of developing a severe case of “carpal pinning syndrome”. So with that in mind, it’s been a topic of conversation around the house as well. I have to say, I kinda love it too. Their website says:

“Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes.”

Sounds fun but I think they sell themselves WAY too short with that description (and that explains why they quickly developed a rep as a “female-centric” hang). The problem is, they’ve been getting more and more heat from folks concerned with copyright issues, and they need to make money – so why not change the focus more to brands? I did some brainstorming in traffic last week…bring on the examples!

Let’s say I’m Rachel Zoe.

I’m running around my studio in Ferragamo pumps, all kibbyin’ out and taking digital shots of a new collection that just arrived from Milan. Then PHEW I’m pooped, gotta go! So one of my 7 assistants uploads the pics to my Pinterest “Spring 2012″ board. Take it a step further and one of my other assistants can tweet out “Shut the front door – we’ve Pinned Spring 2012 Versace Couture – It’s EVERYTHING!”

Or let’s say I’m Zagat.

If you follow them on Google+ you know their photos are so amazing it’s like scratch and sniff without the scratch. So why not put up city boards? Like “Best of Boston”, Paris, etc. I remember my father actually purchasing and using real paper Zagat guides, SAY WHAT!? This would accomplish much of the same goal, I could go to the city board and pick my top spots to try.

Let’s say I’m an animal shelter.

More of a non-profit type of example, but I’ve got a thing for rescue pets if you haven’t noticed. I could pin shots of dogs and cats up for adoption, of course, and make it even more fun and pin pictures of folks picking up their pets or open up some boards and let folks post pics of their new furry friends at home.

Let’s say I’m JCrew.

I could put together look boards that coincide with my catalogs and organize them by line or style – “By the Beach”, “On the Town”, “Pinks, Greens, and Popped Collars”.

Let’s say I’m a local restaurant.

Why not take the daily “specials board” to a new level? Put some delicious looking shots up each day to make folks nice and hungry! Auto tweets and facebook posting to announce it guarantee a crowd by noon.

Let’s say you get the idea!

A (hopefully) weekly round-up of links or peeps or places or things around the interweb, that caught our eyes or ears and that we think is worth sharing!

Kat

This post from the Atlantic shows how art can be made interactive through digital animation. The most amazing thing to me about the Van Gogh Starry Night example is that the painting always had that sense of movement to me without it being animated. Impressive possibilities.

Starry Night (interactive animation) from Petros Vrellis on Vimeo.

Michelle

I came across this article earlier this week by The Motley Fool. I thought it was interesting since I hear these misconceptions constantly.

This is an article from The Lowell Sun which talks about Catie’s Closet, an organization that provides the fundamental needs for underprivileged students so they can be better prepared for school. What a great cause!

Beth

I heard Kevin Olusola, a 23 year beat-boxing cellist on NPR…amazing.

I recently signed up to get emails from Homegoods in the hopes they would be sending coupons. Today I received an email about their blog…I think i could get lost here.

Jake

Pinterest absolutely fascinates. If I were a pinner I’d have a wall full of articles like this one on their copyright controversy.

Our continuing series with real life tips from the experiences of our resident recent first-time homebuyer.

I remember the very first place I went to look at. I was so super excited to finally start taking the first steps to moving out. I did my research, looked at what I could afford, the area(s) where I wanted to live, and understood better what was going to be expected when it came to finances. I thought I was ready. Sure I didn’t know everything but I felt like I had a good enough understanding that I would be able to wing it along the way.

With my parents by my side, I met up with Jake who brought along, what I didn’t know at the time would be my savior, Beth Lucht. So there we were right outside the first place I was ever going to look at. It was a very hot and sticky summer day but that didn’t matter. I remember thinking to myself “wouldn’t it be amazing if the first place was THE PLACE?” How simple would that be? As Jake knocked at the door and started to turn the key, someone opened the door.

Wait, what?! I thought that the owners weren’t supposed to be home when you were househunting?!

Which brings me to…

Tip 2: Expect the unexpected.

Okay, so the seller is at home, maybe he will just step out while we looked around, right? Wrong. Instead he decided he would show us around himself. Because who better knows the place than the owner? Seems logical. HA! Oh boy, if I only knew how awkward things were about to get. First, he tried to show us his “mineral collection”. No I don’t mean anything dirty by that; I am talking about his actual rock collection that I am pretty sure he gathered from the ground right outside his condo. I did the polite thing and just nodded and smiled and hoped that would be the extent of it. Of course, it wasn’t.

I started to get a really weird feeling when I realized that this guy was watching every move I made. Living room, kitchen, bath, and patio all seemed nice but I wasn’t really concentrating. Next, we went upstairs to look at the bedrooms and as we are going up the stairs the owner runs right after us and closes his bedroom door. He stood, looked Jake in the eye and stated, “This is my private space. I don’t want anyone to see it.”

Ha-ha what!? Come on, is this really happening right now? What the hell did I get my self into? At that point I was uncomfortable and had seen enough. I am pretty sure I was only in there for about 5 minutes but it felt like an eternity. Here I am thinking, “This isn’t normal right?” It was only day 1 and about 5 minutes in but I knew right then that this wasn’t going to be a short and simple process. If you know me then you know that in my world, I wouldn’t expect anything less.

As time went on, it felt like these crazy things only happened to me. There were many places I saw and I think every time I went out, there was something entertaining that happened. There was a time when it was so freezing cold out that we couldn’t get the lock box open. After 5 solid minutes of fumbling in the dark, it was simply frozen shut. Another time the place I looked at was COMPLETELY tiled. Every single room in the condo had a blue tile floor running through it, including the bedrooms. One time in the middle of the day, a bat flew out from the porch where it was living. We decided to call him “Wing-Nut”. That was actually the place I was going to purchase before I got laid off but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. There was also the time when we had a confirmed appointment to look at a place. We rang the doorbell and after several minutes a guy in his mid-twenties answered the door. He wouldn’t let us in because his mom was still sleeping and they absolutely no idea people were coming by, their agent never told them. He seemed a little like Norman Bates and we had to wonder if mom was really “sleeping”.

Just a few examples of why I say to expect the unexpected. You really can’t go into this thinking that everything is going to be easy and magical like they show on HGTV. This is the real world and real (often weird) things happen. At the time it might seem so frustrating but when you look back at it, they will make a good story. That’s all you can do at the end is look back at the moments that you wanted to pull out your hair and just chuckle about it. Because honestly it’s not going to be a smooth ride. There are going to be things along the way that trip you up. Take it from me, just when you think things are going great, you had better be ready for what’s behind the next door.

A (hopefully) weekly round-up of links or peeps or places or things around the interweb, that caught our eyes or ears and that we think is worth sharing!

Ruby

I am never surprised yet always delighted to read about human beings discovering artistic inspiration in their canine companions. There is no better muse if you ask me! Perhaps you or your two-legged friends would enjoy one of the dog-inspired art happenings going on in New York this month.

Beth

Ran across an article about this house and the blog documenting the renovation of it. I am ready to move right in. the finishes, the art, everything seems to have been chosen for me!!

Michelle

Little Monsters rejoice! Mother Monster is coming back on tour. Earlier this week, Lady Gaga released the stage set up for the “Born This Way Ball” Tour 2012-2013 along with the first 11 tour dates.  Can’t wait to see this concert!

Kat

I’m still thinking about Madonna’s half-time show from the Super Bowl last week. NPR’s pup-culture blog, Monkey See, had a great post about Madonna’s performance and career. It has some of her videos embedded as well. Definitely worth checking out!

Jake

There have been lots of articles written about the national foreclosure settlement that was announced last week, a Federal lawsuit that Massachusetts participated in. Unfortunately, as with most Government programs, there is lots of fine print and an equal amount of red tape. A dedicated website has been set up to help folks discern if and how they can receive assistance.

Love’s a fickle beast
She loves me, she loves me not
I’ve made room for two

A (hopefully) weekly round-up of links or peeps or places or things around the interweb, that caught our eyes or ears and that we think is worth sharing!

Kat

This post was one of the few things that I really and truly enjoyed reading on the web this week. E.B. White was one of my favorite authors as a kid. His animals were so real, so vivid to me. No wonder seeing how much he cared for them. (Thank you to @yellowcardigan of http://www.heypais.com for sharing this link via twitter.)

Jake

I’m really into infographics lately. The combination of data, pictures, and lots of colors makes me very happy! Oh… and you can learn a lot from them too. This weekend I came across this one on Millennials and how they are on course to radically change the way all consumers behave towards brands and vice-versa.

Ruby

I’m on the email list for the United States Humane Society and they asked me to spread the word about showing your furry friends some love. Check out their Be My Valentine online store, there’s even people gifts and every purchase helps!

Beth

I can easily get caught up in watching cat videos on the web. I just love them. And these cats at Big Cat Rescue in Tampa bring it to a whole new level.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHZJrx7RZ2w

There has been so much Super Bowl frenzy, that it would be easy to overlook that Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. Here are some ideas–both purchased and homemade–for you to consider as you plan for Valentine’s Day.

Five Treats You Can Purchase

Harbor Sweets makes really special chocolates. The Sweet Sloops are deservedly one of their most popular chocolates.

We received some Taza Chocolate as a gift for Christmas and find it so unique. They have some intriguing Valentine’s options.

Though I have not ordered her special Valentine S’mores, the regular ones are special enough. I have sent a gift from Sweet Lydia’s in the past and would definitely do so again.

Recently at a holiday fair I attended I had the opportunity to taste some of the delicious roasted and flavored nuts from Q’s Nuts and was really impressed. The key lime ginger almonds were great!

Just about everything from Stonewall Kitchen’s jam collection is enticing. However, after having purchased their Wild Maine Blueberry Champagne Jam I might never buy another flavor again. The berries are so tiny and perfect. The champagne is subtle, but adds a nice accent.

Nine Treats You Can Make

Red velvet is just perfect for Valentine’s Day. Last year I made Red Velvet Whoopie Pies for my office for Valentine’s Day. I didn’t use this particular recipe, but it is the one will try next.

If you haven’t fallen victim to the cake ball craze, these will make you fall hard. Bakerella’s cake pops are real works of art. Her Red Velvet Cake Balls look easy enough for any of us to try.

These Red Velvet Cheesecake Cookies are high on my list of things to make in the near future.

I made these Red Velvet Cupcakes from Martha Stewart for a party at work. Some real cupcake aficionados proclaimed these some of the best they had eaten (and they aren’t the sort to flatter). They are definitely my go-to red velvet recipe.

Red Velvet not your thing? There are plenty of other options. As usual, Smitten Kitchen has a recipe that is both homey and has that little something special about it. Who could resist these White and Dark Hearted Brownies ?

The Bitten Word made a lovely-sounding Bon Appétit recipe for Bittersweet Cocoa Soufflés with Orange Blossom Cream for their Valentine’s Day last year.  How special those would be?

If you aren’t a chocolate lover, the Magnolia Bakery Vanilla Cupcake with Vanilla Buttercream is an ideal treat.

This Almond Cake would be a great treat for me to make for my husband, but I have something else in mind…

Finally, in an ideal world, my Valentine’s Day morning would begin with the pancakes made by my husband. He won me over with these pancakes. I am sure he does little things differently, but his basic recipe is from Alton Brown.

Whatever you make and/or eat for Valentine’s Day, I hope you treat yourself (or your sweetie) to something a little special.

Not too long ago I posted THIS on my facebook page. I love this blog! They are always so inspirational and have such amazing DIY ideas. They ended that post with a quote that I loved: “Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try” so needless to say I was thrilled when I got the call to Do-Ovah a fireplace, I wanted to try! Full disclosure – I have absolutely no experience with this, but my girl S. was on board, we were gonna do this together and, although we are not masons, we were pretty confident we could figure this out. With a little research and several YouTube videos, we were ready to take on this monster…

First, we talked to about a zillion people about the process of tiling over marble and, YES, we got a zillion different responses, at least a million of which could not believe we were actually tiling over marble…but I digress. First we roughed up the marble surface with sand paper.

Once that was roughed up and wiped down, we used this adhesive to stick those little suckers on.

Two little hints we’ll give ya. First, did you notice the painters’ tape around the tiled area? Yeah, don’t do that! It was a complete horror show when we tried to pull the tape off when the adhesive started to dry. Second, measure and lay out the tile before you start…it will save you lots of headaches when you have the adhesive smeared and ready to go.

OK, now onto the smearing (yup…totally a technical term. Herein, all professional jargon!) So we scooped a big goop of gunk on the trowel and smeared it onto the marble and made it wicked flat but not too thick. Then, my favorite part, you pull the teeth side across the gunk and make cool grooves.

We plopped our tiles into the goop and held it there for a few seconds…then it was onto the next section!

We even had time to stop for a coffee break (as long as the mug was color-coordinated, of course) but what a difference already! After all the tile was stuck into place and the adhesive had time to dry, we grouted with an oatmealish color (after YouTubing the grouting process, of course). In short, think “wax on, wax off”.

Now that the tile was done, it was time to work our magic on the rest of the mantel! We kept that part pretty simple. We started with some primer that would adhere well to the glossy surface.

This certainly confirmed the fact that we did not want a white mantel and made us love the chocolate brown color we chose.

And after several coats of this yummy chocolate color, it was DONE! Just in time for S.’s huge Holiday Gala.

Not too shabby for two “experts” fueled with coffee, YouTube, and, of course, a little bit of Nate Berkus on in the background.

Now onto the wall color change, given that S. recently called the color an insult to colors everywhere…and so it continues!

She follows my lead
We walk through life together
Me and my shadow

So you’re thinking about buying your first place. Congratulations! Where should you start?

As a recent first-time homebuyer, I want to share my experience with other first-timers and provide tips I found to be quite helpful throughout the homebuying process.

Tip 1: Be prepared

The first thing that I did was go over my expenses. I knew I felt ready to buy a place but could I realistically afford it? I believe this is the single, most important thing that you need to do before anything else. You can use something similar to this monthly expenses worksheet to help you get started. You want to make sure that you don’t stretch yourself too thin. The economy seems to be getting better now but you need to make sure that your job is secure and you should have at least 2 months worth of savings set aside in case something ever did happen.

The next thing that I researched was my credit score. You can obtain this report once a year for free by visiting myfico.com. It is important to know what your credit score is because banks and mortgage lenders will use this to determine if you are a good candidate for a loan. Scores range from 300 to 850. A good place to be is in the 700’s. Your credit score is one of the factors that helps to determine the interest rate you will qualify for. Take the time to read over your credit report and understand it. Fix whatever is incorrect BEFORE seeing a lender so it doesn’t hurt your chances of receiving a loan. To learn more about your credit score check out this article from fiscalgeek.com.

Once you have a handle on this, the next thing on your list is to get pre-qualified from the bank or mortgage lender of your choice. A good place to start is with the bank where you have your accounts already. Know that there is a difference between pre-qualified and pre-approved. When you are pre-qualified, it means that you are in the very initial stages of getting a mortgage. Your overall finances are looked at, including current salary and amount of debt, and you will find out the amount for which you qualify.

Pre-approval is the next step. You have to fill out the mortgage application and, in some cases, pay a fee. A more in-depth look is done into your finances. This is why it is important to know your credit score beforehand so you know where you stand. Most real estate agents require that you are pre-approved before they will take you out to look at any properties. Why? A couple of reasons. One is that you want to be sure that you are looking at the right price range. You don’t want to see a house you love and find out that you can’t afford it. You also want to have a pre-approval in hand so that you are ready to submit an offer on that house you love rather than having to wait. Another reason to be pre-approved is because of all the recent foreclosures. It’s very tedious to go through the loan process (believe me and even more so if you need a co-signer) lenders are very particular about everything.

From my experience, here are a few tips for what to bring when you go to get a loan:

1. Recent pay stub(s). If you have worked in more than one job over the past 2 years have pay stubs from all.
2. Copies of 2 most recent bank statement(s) and retirement fund statement(s).
3. Know your work history for the past 2 years. Lenders want to know you are a steady employee. If you have bounced from job to job, been laid off, or worked in different industries, they will need to know. They want to make sure you are not a risk.
4. Copies of tax returns for the past 2 years. They will need all the papers so just bring everything you have.
5. Dig out your checkbook (considering many people pay bills online). There may be a fee for processing the application.
6. Bring reinforcements, if you can. I had my dad come along with me the first time I met up with the mortgage lender. No matter the amount of research that I did, there were still things that I didn’t know/understand. It was helpful to have someone there who has been through the process before and could help out. Shout out to Dad!
7. List of questions/notebook. This is a long, drawn out process. If you have questions or concerns along the way, make sure you ask them and keep notes. Understand everything you are getting into is very important. Remember, this is a huge investment; don’t be afraid to ask questions.

Once you have your finances in check, know your credit score and are pre-approved, what’s next? Find a good real estate agent! How? My suggestion is to talk to people who might have recently moved or are in the process of looking. Word of mouth is usually the best way to go. I happen to know someone who was a realtor so when I decided I wanted to start looking; I contacted Jake who then put me in contact with Beth. And with that said, I suggest contacting Beth Lucht! She is the best realtor hands down. I absolutely loved working with her. She is very organized, up-to-date, professional and an overall pleasure to be around. I feel very lucky to have worked with her. Tell her I sent you.

This is how I began everything. Scared? So was I. But you really don’t know what you are getting into until you experience it first hand. The fun is only beginning!

Let’s face it, this whole blogging phenomenon is here to stay, and I couldn’t be happier. I love reading blogs. I’ve never been one to gravitate towards corporate or popular media type stuff, so for me, blogs have been an excellent way to get a “real” people perspective on things that interest me. They have also proven to be invaluable when it comes to learning new things.

I also love working on blogs. Designing, developing, coding, writing, you name it. It’s a constant learning experience that lets me be simultaneously creative AND dorky…what’s not to love? The core challenge in building a really high quality blog is that you not only have to build a really high quality blog, you also need to build your audience and make sure folks have lots of different ways to access all your good stuff. Like most blogging platforms (or maybe all of them? should be all of them!) the default WordPress install loads several different feed options for syndicating content. Probably the most widely used is RSS. Interestingly enough, I feel like RSS is also widely underused.

Like many, I started out by running our feed through FeedBurner, putting a feed icon and a sign-up box in the sidebar, and calling it a day. That definitely gets the job done in terms of syndicating and managing the feed, but let’s be honest…as you can see, by default this option is U.G.L.Y for sending out email updates. It doesn’t give proper attribution to the authors, there aren’t a whole lot of configuration or segmenting options, and it certainly doesn’t convey the look and feel of your blog.

I realized early on that what I really wanted was more of a newsletter, a SUPERnewsletter! My criteria was simple, I just wanted something that would:

• auto-populate via single or multiple RSS feeds when new posts were added,
• auto-email on a daily, weekly or monthly basis,
• allow me to segment my feeds and mailing lists,
• give authors their proper shout-outs and branding,
• incorporate the overall look and feel of the blog,
• add some social networking and other blog bling.

Enter Mailchimp.

Their RSS to Email campaign does all of this and so much more. Call me crazy, but this is a slightly better looking email than the one above, non? I’ve been running our email updates this way for years with basic settings but when we recently relaunched as myuntangledlife.com, I decided to take another look at the options, and this product just keeps getting better.

The introduction of Post Thumbnails in WordPress 2.9 has opened up a new way to have fun with your MailChimp campaigns. On our site, we’re using that featured image as the sort of “logo” for our blog sections or authors, and I wanted that branding to carry over everywhere. Mailchimp gives you an option to use the merge tag RSSITEM:IMAGE, but I really wanted the images to show in the feed itself, as well. A great little piece of code from Digging into WordPress adds this function and just like that, you’ve given your feed some syndication bling!

I didn’t want to send out full posts in our emails, but I’m a control freak and auto-truncating post summaries mid-word with an [...], and such, makes me twitch and doesn’t make for very compelling copy! I also knew we’d have posts that don’t always contain a lot of text, (like, I don’t know, perhaps an occasional photo/haiku). So another little tweak for a better Mailchimp campaign involves the use of the WordPress excerpt. Manually populating the excerpt for each post allows us to pull a custom and complete summary for our homepage. Use it in combination with the Mailchimp *|RSSITEM:CONTENT|* merge tag and you’ve got yourself the beginnings of a really nice looking blog newsletter!

Now that we’ve got our styling down, I’ll be digging into Mailchimp segmentation and other functions. As our blog grows, I can see us wanting to give foodies the chance to sign up for foodie-only news, or maybe there are some folks who don’t want to read this type of pseudo-geeky stuff! No problem! I can build on this existing infrastructure by creating category or author based feeds, combined with groups and smart merge tags and now you’re talking! Throw in some dynamically-generated, location-based events, or a mashup of recent posts from related feeds, or the latest from your facebook wall or twitter feed and WOWEE you’ve got a lot more than just an email with a blog post going out to the world.

A few little tweaks under the hood and a little planning can really give your email marketing campaign a kick in 2012; but you don’t have to be a blogger to benefit from the RSS to Email function in Mailchimp. Since almost everything is or could be syndicated, you could use this type of function to alert folks to new products via an RSS feed from your shopping cart software. Or maybe you’re a photographer; in that case, why not set up a monthly portfolio newsletter that feeds from your Flickr or Picasa account. You could even pull your Google+ posts in this way if you’re using that as your new blogging platform. The possibilities are endless – start monkeying around already!!