This Casita

The Thing About Pinterest

2012-02-28T08:46:00.000-06:00

Here's the thing about Pinterest, for as many things that I pin that I never do, there are quite a few things that I've done that I probably never would have were it not for this site.

Created and hung art (here, here, here):

Cooked some great recipes (here):

Wore some new outfits (although I used Polyvore, they were originally pins... post here):

Decorated and been crafty for parties (here):

Decorated for the holidays (here):

I've also tried new hairstyles, started activities to do with HUT, cleaned and organized my house, amongst a decently long list of other things.

I know that there is a lot of controversy going on right now about copyrights and Pinterest. I don't know the whole story, so I'm not going to even try to get into those politics. What I do know is that, thanks to the site, I've been introduced to many ideas, topics and retail items that I never would have were it not for Pinterest's existence. Just make sure that when you pin something, you're pinning from the original source - it's not so hard, people.

So - yes, we can all complain that this time suck that's been invented makes us feel a bit lazy and unproductive at times, but think about all the things that you HAVE done that you probably wouldn't have were it not for this site. I'm a Pinterest-aholic and proud of it, damnit.

Academy Awards 2012

2012-02-27T09:11:00.000-06:00

We noshed on crab cakes, salad and sweet potato fries, drank some Pinot Grigio and watched the entire broadcast last night, but we most definitely started watching the 4:30pm coverage on E! to see all of the gowns from last night's awards. Here were some of my favorites...

These ladies of comedy totally stepped up to the plate...

While it took a while for this collar to grow on me, once she took the stage, it just worked for me...

Talk about the perfect dress for the woman with a figure...

This dress color, I thought, was perfection with that hair color...

One of my favs, especially without the cape. Simple, timeless and classic...

{ all images from here }

And now I will take advantage of HUT's first nap this morning to take a little snooze myself. His alarm clock went off a bit to early for me this morning and, after drinking that wine with my mom, I need a little rest.

What did you think of the show last night?

The Skating Rink - A Blast from the Past

2012-02-24T07:00:00.000-06:00

Last Friday my niece turned nine and they decided that instead of having a small party of select friends, they'd rent out the nearest skating rink, invite her whole grade and, instead of having presents, they just asked that the kids bring something to donate to the St. Vincent de Paul charity.

My SIL had little snacks in bins, the rink provided drinks and they had a nice big cake. It was a really fun party, and perfect for their age group.

Or for 30-year-olds.

Yup, I most definitely strapped on a pair of rollerblades and showed off my sweet moves that I still have thankyouverymuch.

But aside from all of that jazz, I couldn't believe the nostalgia that comes along with the skating rink. Although I went to a totally different one while growing up, it was just the same. Same smell, same carpet, same games. Man, how many birthday parties did I have and attend at the rink?!?

It. was. awesome.

Here are some pics of exactly what I'm talking about.

{ Don't worry - his hands were thoroughly cleaned after this. This kid was ALL OVER THE PLACE! }

And how much fun do I think an adult party would be at this place (if only you could rent it out and bring booze along)?!?

Easy Red Beans

2012-02-23T07:00:00.000-06:00

I made this as a side dish and it was super delish. I was so tired of having potato salad/coleslaw/chips/etc. with hamburgers, so this was a nice way to switch it up!

Ingredients

3 Cans Kidney Beans

4 Slices Bacon, chopped

1 Large Onion, chopped

1 Bell Pepper, chopped

2 Large Tomatoes, chopped

1 Clove Garlic

1 Table Spoon BBQ Sauce

Worcester Sauce

Salt

Directions

Chop the bacon and put into a pan to brown.

When bacon is decently brown, add in onion, bell pepper and garlic (I just use a small grater to add my garlic).

Once all is cooked, add in tomatoes. Cover for about 10 minutes or so to let the juices from the tomatoes release.

After 10 minutes, add in the canned beans, BBQ sauce, Worcester and salt.

Mix together and cook for several hours, or until the beans are the consistency that you like.

Blog Updates...

2012-02-22T15:49:00.000-06:00

I've added a few tabs to the top of my page...

1) Recipes - whether it be my "Pinterest-ipes" or recipes that I've actually made up, you can now access them from the top, if you're looking for them.

2) Blog Sale - I've decided to start slowly cleaning out my closet of items that I just don't wear, or have never worn, or doubt I'll fit into again. I'll keep it updated and add new things from time to time. Feel free to browse around and make me an offer on anything you're interested in!

3) Printables - I will have links to various free printables that I've designed and decided to share. I'll try to post when new things have gone up, but I will always keep them under this tab! I've added a new weekly planner that I've been using, as well as the PDFs for the Valentine's cards that I designed this year for HUT's Valentine's gifts.

Enjoy!

Buy This, Not That - Summertime Colorblock Dress

2012-02-22T07:00:00.000-06:00

Now, there are quite a few differences in these two dresses and if I could afford the more expensive version I would totally splurge, but if you're on a budget, here's a great alternative to an expensive colorblock dress!

{ Old Navy, Heidi Merrick }

HUT's First Supercross

2012-02-21T07:00:00.001-06:00

Last weekend we took HUT to his first Supercross. I've been a long time fan, thanks to my brother, and the U is also a fan and was so before we ever got together. It is probably one of my most favorite things to go to each year, believe it or not, so I was super excited to get to take HUT for the first time.

{ Vroom }

Unfortunately, HUT, as per usual on days that we have something fun and out of the ordinary planned, napped horribly. Things were already touch and go at dinner, so I was a little worried as to how he'd act at ~~Jerry's World~~ Cowboys Stadium. Although the fireworks scared him at first, he finally allowed us to put on his ear protector thingamajigs and he was pretty happy watching the "vroom vrooms" go round and round. Oh yeah, and he was glad his mama brought along some cinnamon apple snacks as well.

{ Of course I had to throw in a pic of the infamous screen - I couldn't even get the whole thing to fit with the lens that I use. }

{ Tired Eyes }

The parking situation at Cowboys Stadium is an absolute nightmare and we spent almost an hour trying to get out of our lot. We didn't make it home until around midnight. It was a late night, but oh so worth it. Thanks to my brother for getting all of us tickets!

Spinach and Mushroom Chicken

2012-02-20T07:00:00.000-06:00

For some reason I thought that I'd posted this recipe on here, but I cannot find it for the life of me. So I'm sharing it again. I made this a couple of weeks ago for our neighborly dinner exchange and it was a hit. It's the easiest recipe in the world and oh so delish.

I don't have a picture of this, though, so I'll come back and add one to this post when I make it again. I promise it's worth it though.

Ingredients

2 Chicken Breasts

1 bag of fresh spinach

1 carton fresh mushrooms

1 cup mozzarella cheese

2 lemons

Lemon Pepper

Seasoning Salt

Directions

Place spinach at the bottom of your baking dish.

Squeeze the juice of the two lemons all over the spinach.

Rinse chicken and season both sides with lemon pepper and seasoning salt as desired. Place on top of the spinach.

Clean the mushrooms and chop them into pieces. Place on top of the chicken.

Spread cheese evenly on top.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Remove foil and let the cheese brown.

I typically serve this with orzo or cous cous and it's always tasty. You can adjust the cooking time on your chicken based on how well you like it cooked. I usually cut into it at some point to make sure that there is no pink left.

Enjoy!

Taking Videos

2012-02-17T07:00:00.001-06:00

One thing that we have been really bad about since HUT was born? Taking videos. We have shot quite a few on our cell phones, but those last a minute max. We have an old Flip cam that we took a few videos on when he was a baby, but it's not HD and we always forget to bring it out. My mom has been giving me the hardest time about it so, thanks to our tax return, we have decided to splurge on this:

{ Kodak PlaySport (ZX5) Waterproof Pocket Video Camera Bundle (Includes Remote Control, Tripod, Memory Card, HDMI Cable, and Camera Case) - Burton Bundle (2nd Generation) }

After much research, we decided that a small, handheld camcorder was better for us. Especially since my dSLR takes video as well. One day we hope to get a different lens for my camera that will allow us to take a wider shot video with my digital camera, so this camcorder we decided was best for us for now. The best part is that it's waterproof - so I'm definitely looking forward to taking some swimming videos of HUT when we're in Cabo and when we're at the pool this summer.

This camera was on all of the "best-of" lists that I found online and the waterproof/shatterproof/dustproof features really sold us. The bummer is that Kodak is going to discontinue their production of video equipment, but their warranty stays in tact for this. We opted for the Burton edition because for only $13 more we got the tripod, case, card and remote. Not sure if we'll need all of those gadgets, but for only $13 more? Why not. Plus I kinda dig the funky blue pattern on the camera.

And, since we're on the subject of videos, here's one of HUT from last week. We watch a lot of motorsports around here, and right now Supercross has been on our tv every weekend. We're even headed to the races tomorrow night with HUT in tow. All of a sudden, while we were watching tv one night, HUT started doing this with his motorcycle (when not being distracted by American Idol on the tv - boy loves him some music)...

Happy weekend everyone!

Buy This, Not That - Pink Maxi Skirt

2012-02-16T07:00:00.000-06:00

The other night I decided that I had to have a bright pink maxi skirt to recreate the infamous outfit that Erika at Urban Grace Interiors wore.

It donned on me, as my hunt went from her Anthropologie skirt, to one from Reiss, to another from YesStyle, then on to the Gap and, finally Old Navy, that if you really search long and hard enough, you can find almost anything trendy for much cheaper elsewhere.

And since I'm more on an H&M, Forever 21, Target, sale rack and whatever else is inexpensive kind of a budget these days, the search is worth it.

So I might occasionally share some of these finds on the blog - to share with others, and to remember myself. I'm no fashion blogger, and definitely have zero intentions of becoming one, but I definitely like a good deal.

Except on handbags, sunglasses and some shoes. Those, my friends, I will probably always save up to splurge on.

So here's my cheaper version of Erika's outfit that I put together - most likely to make its debut when we're in Cabo in a couple of months...

Summer Maxi Outfit by stephaniehaintorres featuring j crew sandals

HUT's Valentine

2012-02-15T07:00:00.000-06:00

HUT's one lucky little dude. You see, he's spoiled by his "Aunt" Jen. I'll only use those quotations this once, so that you know that she's technically not his Aunt. I have declared her so by default. She's been my best friend for almost 10 years and is also HUT's Godmother. And if anyone can put up with me for 10 years, they automatically get that title with my kiddo.

On Sunday Aunt Jen came over to watch the Grammy's and brought a big ol' surprise for HUT.

Needless to say, he was beyond excited. We spent about 15 minutes picking it up, throwing it, looking at it, grunting at it, then finally opening it to get to the goodies inside.

And the U enjoyed his Valentines date yesterday, as well as this little care that I whipped up (totally not an original idea, I saw it on Pinterest and just made my own version)...

HUT got a card as well to go in his baby book...

Cute as a Button Valentine's Gifts

2012-02-14T08:58:00.000-06:00

Of course I couldn't let a holiday go by without doing something a little creative. On a whim yesterday, I decided to make a little treat for HUT to give to his close family and a couple of friends. I found this idea on Pinterest and went from there...

Source: griffithsrated.blogspot.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

This is how HUT's version turned out:

I just bought the caramel stuffed and regular kisses and opted to go with the regular shaped pretzels as well, since they are shaped like a heart. However, I have to warn that more of the caramel drips through the gaps in these pretzels as opposed to the square ones, making it a bit of a sticky mess.

They are totally tasty though and I'm excited for HUT to hand them out today.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T07:00:00.000-06:00

Since the U is pretty awesome about always making sure I get what I want, today HUT and I are taking him out for Valentine's Day. It's kind of funny how women take over the holiday, so we're showing the U some love and taking him for what he would consider the best. date. ever.

Wings and beer. Or wings and milk. Depends on which age bracket you fall into at our table.

Hope you all get to spend some time with the ones that you love!

Valentines Wish List

2012-02-13T07:00:00.000-06:00

Or more like, what I want for our upcoming vacation to Cabo. Not likely that I'll get any of these, but a girl can dream, right?

1. Tory Burch 2. Fred Flare 3. Kate Spade 4. Gap 5. Kate Spade for Amazon

The Hunger Games

2012-02-10T12:18:00.001-06:00

I got into the Twilight craze when the books were all the rage. The movies? Lost me half-way through the second, although I fully intend to watch them all at some point.

But The Hunger Games? Man, did this series take the cake for me. Dark, depressing and, yet, I couldn't get enough. Yes, there was a love story in the plot line, but it wasn't the entire basis of the book, or at least not to me.

So for the past week I feel as though nothing has been accomplished in our house and in our lives because I've been too busy burying my nose into this series at every moment that I could. I finally finished them today, to the U's delight. Probably HUTs as well.

Anyways, if you haven't given into the craze and want some entertaining reading, get this series. Or at least give the first book a shot and then decide whether or not to invest in all three books.

So now I'm off to spend time with my little family and make up for all of the time that I've taken away from them this week while I was preoccupied with The Hunger Games.

And now that I'm done, but have reignited my love for reading - what books and/or series do you recommend I move onto next?

And I'm Sick

2012-02-09T07:00:00.000-06:00

There's a whole lot of this going on around my house right now:

{ source }

There's been a nasty virus running around these parts and I'm afraid that I didn't manage to avoid it this year. I saw the doctor, then immediately stocked up on Sudafed, Chloraseptic and finally caved and got a neti pot.

This thing is frightening.

I hate water up my nose, so the thought of purposely pouring water into my nose just plain scared the bejesus out of me. But I did it. And I, surprisingly, loved it. Not so much how the process felt, but how great I felt afterward.

It was like a whole new awakening when it comes to treating a cold.

So I'm hoping that today or tomorrow I'll start to feel more like myself and not this lethargic person who has to take breaks to rest all of the time. I'm lucky that my mom took over caring for HUT and made me lunch on Tuesday, the U stayed home to care for me yesterday and I was able to get some much needed rest in the midst of raising a crazy busy toddler.

If only my appetite had disappeared when the sickness showed up - at least then the weight loss would have justified feeling so shitty for a week. No luck in that department though. Back to the gym next week we go.

Kowalski Cafe Blog Design

2012-02-08T07:00:00.000-06:00

Last week I took it upon myself to spruce up the blog of my good friend Rachael. I've mentioned her blog on here several times and she has such great content that I kindly suggested that she let me give her blog a little makeover.

I'm no whiz when it comes to html and blog design, but I've done enough trial and error to help her switch things up a bit. I designed it so that she can go in and use the Blogger template controls to change it however she pleases, whenever she pleases, but I designed a new header and some of the other little details and put it all together.

She's super happy, and so am I. Head on over to check out her new look!

Pinterest-ipes

2012-02-07T07:00:00.000-06:00

Healthy Banana Bread

Source: 8weekstoabetteryourecipes.blogspot.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

I made these yesterday morning - they aren't horrible, but they aren't amazing either. I didn't have whole wheat flour so I used regular, I opted for agave nectar because I had it on hand and I also added two cups of oatmeal because I love oatmeal. I doubled the recipe which made a small loaf and about 18 muffins.

Crock Pot Ravioli

Source: becomingbetty.blogspot.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

Ok, truth. I didn't make this, but Jenn did for our weekly dinner exchange last week. It was super tasty, but both of us were kind of wondering why the heck they call it ravioli. Either way, it was delish.

Cheesy Wild Rice Casserole

Source: picky-palate.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

This was my contribution to the neighborly dinner exchange last week. Instead of using her recommendation for rice, I opted to make it super simple and prep two boxes of Uncle Ben's wild rice. I also added a bit more chicken and cut up some red bell peppers to add to the dish. Both houses loved the meal, so it's another one that will be made again. Turns out Elefantitas Alegres made this recipe with her own modifications this week as well.

This one would be a good one to prep and then freeze for later.

Bzzzzing About Comforts for Baby

2012-02-06T07:00:00.000-06:00

Lots of baby product reviews around here lately - and I'm totally loving it. Babies are expensive and if I can grab a deal here and there, I'm all over it. Not to mention that I like to give new products a try. When I was asked to participate in the Comforts for Baby campaign, a new more natural/less chemical brand from Kroger, I immediately accepted. Little did I know that my package couldn't have arrived at a better time.

My package included two sippy cups, a large pack of wipes, a coupon for a free large package of diapers and 20% coupons to share with people.

Just the night before I received my coupon for a large pack of diapers, we had our first major leakage incident over night. So I opted to take the coupon and buy a size up in diapers to use during the night. So far? No leaks. Although HUT has had a diaper rash, it wasn't because of the switch in diapers but rather his mom feeding him too much fruit. Too much fruit = lots of poop. Lots of poop = lots of diaper changes. You get the rest.

The wipes, surprisingly, I really liked. They were nice and thick, not quite as soft as my usual Pampers sensitive, but they did a much better job than the Honest wipes that I've tried as of late.

And I'm so excited that they sent sippy cups because we are planning to wean HUT off of his bottles pretty soon and the more of these cups that we have, the better. I like that they are hard plastic and not soft rubber. They aren't leak proof, though, so we have to be careful where we give him these sippy cups (i.e. not next to our new light-colored couch).

So, while I could keep the 20% off coupons for myself, I don't think that's fair since I've already received so much for free. I have already given two coupons away, but I have 3 more available. If you're interested, just leave a comment below with your email and I'll get in touch to mail you a coupon!

Pesto Pork Shoulder with Veggies

2012-02-03T07:00:00.001-06:00

When I made my PW pork shoulder a couple of weeks ago I had to purchase the shoulders in a two-pack to get the good price. So this week I defrosted the shoulder and came up with my own little recipe that turned out to be delicious!

I cooked this in my Le Creuset in the oven, but I think it's also manageable in a crockpot, so long as your crockpot will fit it all (mine wouldn't).

Ingredients

1 Pork Shoulder

2 Large Red Onions

8-10 Small Red Potatoes, Halved

5-7 Carrots, Peeled and Cut into Chunks

1 Beer (whatever flavor you prefer)

Pesto (enough to decently cover both sides of the shoulder)

Salt & Pepper

Directions

Clean and chop up your veggies. Place into pot.

Salt and pepper one side of the shoulder, then smother in pesto. I used homemade pesto that I had frozen over the summer, but you can just buy any pesto out of a jar if need be.

Place the pesto side of the should down into the pot, then salt, pepper and smother the other side.

Grab a bottle of beer - we had this Fireman's 4 in our fridge, so that's what I opted for. I think that a dark beer would really be nice with this recipe as well.

Pour beer all around the bottom of the pot into the vegetables.

Place into the oven on 350 for 6-8 hours. About half way through cooking, I flipped the shoulder and also basted it to make sure it stayed nice and moist.

I served this with roasted brussels sprouts, but, truthfully, there is so much flavor at the bottom of that pot that next time I'm going to add the brussels in with the veggies at the beginning. You will have quite a bit of oil to skim off of the veggies because of the pesto, so it's not the healthiest thing out there. The meat fell right off of the bone and it was a big hit with our family. Enjoy!

Jean Paul Gaultier at the DMA

2012-02-02T07:00:00.001-06:00

Last Thursday, my mom, the U, HUT and myself decided to check out the Jean Paul Gaultier exhibit that is showing at the Dallas Museum of Art through February 11.

{ source }

I didn't snap any pictures of the exhibit from the outside, but I must say - if you are in the area, I highly recommend you go and check this out before it leaves Dallas. Even the U, who could care less about fashion, was impressed. I don't think he ever really thought of fashion as art until he saw this. Whether or not you like the fashion and Haute Couture, it's definitely admirable that someone could even think up these creations, let alone create them by hand.

It took us almost two hours to get through the exhibit, so we decided that we weren't going to visit any other areas of the museum that day, save for a hands-on area that I remembered seeing the last time that we were there. There are activities for kids to do, which is awesome, but they are geared to an older crowd. One of the security guards, however, directed us to a small room near the back by some offices.

Arturo's Nest is a great space for toddlers and everything is in Spanish and English - an added bonus for our little family.

HUT was pretty done with being in his stroller and held during the JPG exhibit, so we immediately let him loose. He was in heaven.

There was this area to climb, which HUT found so entertaining. In and out and in and out and in and out. It could have gone on all day.

There were also a lot of puzzles, books, plastic toys, etc. HUT is obsessed with dogs at the moment - mainly because he has three best friends between our house and his Grammy's house. Sometimes, although I hate to admit this, he tries to eat his food like a dog and I *might* have caught him trying to drink out of their water bowl once. He has also learned to say "ruff, ruff, ruff" when you ask what the doggy says. As long as we get him to eat like a human, and not a canine, I'll be fine with this.

All was going well, until he approached an older little girl in the room who tried to kick him in the head when he was sharing his train. That was the end of Arturo's Nest for HUT because the U couldn't handle it. Oh daddies - if only you were around to see how all little kids behave at this age.

So, aside from the exhibit, if you have little ones in Dallas, make sure to explore this area of the museum. It's such a nice feature to have right in our own backyard!

A Review of The Honest Co.

2012-02-01T07:00:00.001-06:00

The minute I heard about Jessica Alba's new venture into natural baby products, I was intrigued. As much as I would love to do everything natural, it does become costly, so I pick and choose which products I think are more important and beneficial to our family.

When I saw the sale on Zulily* a few weeks ago to try the products for half of the price, I took them up on their offer to try one month of The Honest Co. diapers, wipes as well as baby products. I received two coupon codes, set up my account, gave them my credit info and selected which diapers I would be needing. They auto subscribe you to their services, so if you don't want to be charged the full price the next month, you have to call and cancel your subscription once your items have shipped. Within a week all items were on my doorstep.

Right off the bat, the packaging is greatness. Vibrant, modern and not your typical baby prints. Love that.

As for the products, here's my review:

So far, the wipes are not my favorite. I think that they don't quite do the cleaning job like my Pampers sensitive and, seeing as they arrived in the midst of HUT's first major diaper rash, they seemed a little harsh on his sensitive tush. I also had to use about twice the amount of the Pampers wipes to get him nice and clean, which isn't very effective.

The bath products, however, I'm loving. The scents are great (although the vanilla of the baby wash is a bit strong, but I'm not a big vanilla person in the first place), the detergent is great, they all come in more than reasonable sizes and you get to pick and choose which items you want for the upcoming month (i.e. detergent, lotions, sunscreen, sanitizers, household cleaner, etc.).

I haven't tried the diapers yet, but they come in these insanely cute little designs. The designs, however, are not enough to get me to pay for them monthly. Without my nifty little coupon, a month's supply of diapers and wipes will cost you $80. I did the math and I buy a large box of Pampers on Amazon Mom (using Subscribe and Save) that costs me $33 for 196 diapers. This tends to last us about 4-6 weeks. Wipes I purchase the same way and spend about $21 on a four pack of 192 wipes that last us at least a couple of months - probably more. All in all, I just cannot justify the expense, even if the products are more natural, because we know what works on our baby, and on our budget.

So, overall, I think that we're going to do a few more months of the baby products, but nix the diapers/wipes. I went ahead and cancelled everything right off of the bat so I wouldn't forget to, but I'm planning on re-subscribing for the bath products.

Has anyone else tried out The Honest Co. yet?

*Just to clarify, I didn't receive anything for this review. I love to try new products and have no problem reviewing my thoughts on products on this blog, but this one was all me. I bought it. I tried it. I reviewed it.

Dirty Crib

2012-01-31T07:00:00.001-06:00

Well, the time finally came.

It was all my fault really. A busy boy napping in just a diaper is a recipe for disaster. A busy mom who heard him wake, but ran to brush her teeth, wash her face and get on some workout gear before she grabbed him, leaving him with wide awake alone time for more than five minutes is a recipe for disaster.

Yup, I walked into a crib full of shit.

HUT, big grin and all, had ripped his diaper off and was standing there in his birthday suit with a big poopy surprise for me to clean. On his hands, in his hair, on the rail guards - it. was. everywhere.

So, like they say, just when you think you have a handle on this mothering thing - your kid snaps you right back into reality.

And no, there are no pictures. I try to avoid baby nudity on here, but this post is picture-less mainly because I was so shocked at the mess that I opted to throw him in the tub, get the sheets in the washer and get the crib wiped down as fast as possible that I didn't even think to take a picture for memories sake.

You can thank me for that at any time.

Pinterest-ipes

2012-01-30T07:00:00.000-06:00

Only two recipes from this past week. Unfortunately, self control is something that both the U and I struggle with and we ate out several times. I've made a new meal plan for this week and we are DETERMINED to stick to it.

This past week I also had a craving for margaritas - I have no clue why. Since we are limiting drinking to 1-2 nights a week, we decided to make this recipe. We both loved it - it will change how you feel about margaritas forever.

Source: Uploaded by user via Stephanie on Pinterest

For my neighborly dinner exchange last week, I made this Beef Stroganoff. I really enjoyed it. I made way too much pasta, but overall the flavor was there. Next time I might add some fresh mushrooms and peas to get some veggies in. I was worried that the amount of meat wouldn't be enough for 4 adults, but we had plenty left over. Which was a good thing because HUT also really loved it!

Source: thecrockstar.blogspot.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

Official Titles

2012-01-27T07:00:00.000-06:00

The opportunity came up for me recently to help out a local wedding planner with some of her weddings in the year to come. She presented me with a really reasonable offer and I was pretty excited at first, but after talking it over with the U and taking some time to think about it I finally made up my mind.

I'm officially a SAHM.

Sure, the extra money would be great, and I'd get back into something I really enjoy, but I'm finally getting into the groove of this new gig of mine. And I definitely want a second baby, so I don't want to waste anyone's time with thinking that I'm going back into the workforce anytime soon - at least not unless absolutely necessary.

Don't want to eat my own words one day - because I never say never.

It's just that I've finally come to terms with the fact that I'm not meant to be a wedding planner - in fact, the rat race that comes along with getting clients, schmoozing with vendors, etc. - well, it's just not my personality. I have no problem making the plans, organizing, implementing, but the rest of it I find utterly exhausting, emotionally draining and, to be quite honest, a lot of bullshitting that I'm just not into.

So as sad as a part of me is to give up on that dream - another part of me is so amazingly relieved to let it go.

I'm still not giving up on the paper design, because that's where my true desires have been for a couple of years now. I hope to one day take some additional classes to better my skills, and hopefully I'll still get a few design jobs now and again from people who really do like my work. But, again, it's on the side. If my life has time for it, if my heart is in it, then I'm going to do it.

So, I've officially given up the title of "event planner" because the only events I'll be planning are the ones that take place with my own family, on my own time. I might not get a monetary check every month, but I do get some priceless memories that I am happy to say, I'll get to keep with me in my heart forever.

Forever.

P.S. The planner was Kimberly Rhodes of Hitched Events in Dallas - she's an amazing woman who was more than understanding of my situation. She also had quite a plan worked out for us that, had she come back to Dallas a few years ago, would have worked out like a dream. If you know someone looking for a planner in Dallas, check her out!