lost.

my favorite show on tv returns on tuesday, for the last season.  my heart breaks.  

 

[image from google]

i've been watching season 5 on dvd this weekend in anticipation.  

tuesday night can't  come soon enough!

weekend plans.

i'm going here tomorrow.

 

that's right.  the white house.  i'm taking a tour.  along with my twin, ryan, his parents, grandparents, my cousin and aunt, and a friend.  that's 10 of us.  all you need to schedule a private tour of the white house.  i can't have a camera so i won't be able to snap any pictures of the inside (so if there happens to be an obama sighting, which i hear happens from time to time) you'll just have to take my word for it.   

i also plan to craft, meal plan for the next week, and grocery shop.  

what's on tap for your weekend?

diy: $5 or less

so since i've started myself on this pesky thing called a budget, i've been keeping my eye out for new ideas that won't break the bank.  while browsing one one of my favorite diy sites, i came across this idea.

its a large canvas (or mdf if you have some) in your favorite color.  then wrap white tape around the canvas.  that's it - pretty simple huh.  i love the cool shade of gray with the subtle hint of the rust color.  i could see something like this in shades of gray, white, and turquoise for my bedroom.  maybe i'll create one before the next installment of my house tour. 

so what other cheap diy ideas have you done, do share.

wine wednesday

this week i'm reviewing one of my all time, stock up when its on sale, want to visit the vineyard white wines.

   image from google

kendall jackson chardonnay from the vintner's reserve line

it also happens to be one of the most widely-sold wine in restaurants in the US.  i like my chardonnay to have a hint of butter to it, and this one delivers, although not in the i think i ate too many butter cookies kinda way.  the initial flavor is light peach with a hint of oak but as you drink it, it lends to more a cream butterscotch finish.  its great for sipping stand-alone (as i often do) or paired with a savory meal.  and at about $14 a pop, its not too hard on the wallet either. i often find it on sale at my local grocery store and if that's the case, watch out, cause i'm stocking up. 

for more information about this wine and all the other KJ wines, visit their homepage. 

BBQ Pitmaster Spotting

Anyone else as obsessed with BBQ as Ryan?  No, well then this post isn't for you (but I promise cool stuff coming this week, another Wine Wednesday!).  While at home this past weekend, we ventured out for some BBQ.  And when I say we, I mean Ryan & Jessica and I tagged along, cause remember I don't like BBQ.

Ryan and I have been watching BBQ Pitmasters on TLC and Wood Chicks BBQ owner Lee Ann happens to be profiled as one of the 7 pit masters.  She's the only girl and she rocks it.  So naturally, Ryan wanted give her BBQ a whirl.  Her her restaurant isn't too far from my parents house, so we headed out.  I enjoyed some mac & cheese and some chicken BBQ while the others got actual BBQ.  The coolest part, we saw the owner as we were walking in!  It all happened so fast I didn't get a photo, but trust me, if you've ever seen the show, her hair is just as blond & just as curly as on the show.

credit

Home for the weekend

Ryan and I are visiting my folks this weekend. And celebrating my dads birthday. Hope everyone has a great weekend!


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Recipe Rundown: Oven Roasted Cauliflower

Bear with me on this recipe.  It might sound a little different, but give it a try and you might be surprised.  I'd never roasted anything before, much less cauliflower, but it was quite simple and very tasty.  I've made this side dish many times and keep coming back to it in a pinch.

Oven Roasted Cauliflower

adapted from Gina

Ingredients: 

6 cups cauliflower florets (1 large cauliflower) cut small

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1/4 cup olive oil

kosher salt and fresh pepper

juice of 1/4 lemon

1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated (sometimes I add this, sometimes I don't)

How To:

-Preheat oven to 450°F. 

-Combine cauliflower, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper well so all the florets are coated and seasoned.  

-Place in a large shallow roasting pan and place in the center of the oven.
-Roast for about 1 hour, turning florets occasionally so they are evenly cooked.

-Remove from over and top with Parmigiano Reggiano (should your heart desire) and additional salt and pepper if needed.

Since I'm a big fan of this recipe, I don't often keep it on my plate long enough to get a picture..

So what are you go to side dishes?  Any other fun ways you've eaten cauliflower?

Martha Stewart Kinda Day

While my sister was in town last weekend, she mentioned making a visit to HomeGoods.  We all know my love for HomeGoods and since I hadn't been in about 3 days (kidding, it was more like a month, gasp!) my eyes lit up and I was in the car before she said she wanted to go the next day. 

In my typical fashion, I found tons of stuff I needed wanted.  In the spirit of my new budget, I kept my purchases to a minimmn but wanted to share some of what I got. 

HomeGoods reusable bags (2 for $.99 - and they are huge!)

Martha Stewart - pom pom kit & flower tissue kit

Martha Stewart Cupcakes (to go with my Martha Stewart Cookies cookbook)

Pink and tan oven mit

(not pictured but will be featured later, Food & Wine guide for 2010)

I can't wait to create the pom poms for my next party.  I'm thinking something with a Spring theme..

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And with my re-vamped craft space, its time to get busy.

Another Birthday

Today's my dad's birthday.  January is a popular month.  I just got to my blog after a busy day at work so here's a late birthday shout-out to my Dad (and yes, I called him this morning). 

Happy Birthday Dad!

Grab your scissors...

...its a tour of my craft area!

This is my little piece of heaven, despite the dark wood paneling (if I owned the place, it'd be gone by now, but since I don't, I make do).  And I have Ryan to thank for this.  He's the one who bought me all my craft storage, after he said he couldn't stand the bookcase that was overflowing with baking supplies, hostess gifts, beads, and paper.  Who could blame him?

So we set out one weekend (armed with caffeine and snacks) to Michaels and Target and that's where the magic happened.  It all started with just a simple white storage container to hold my ribbons, and somehow I ended up with all this:

 

 

The cube storage is from Target, and it happened to be on sale( so meant to be, right).  Inside the fabric cubes are all my paints and supplies, stamps and ink pads, miscellaneous paper products (punches, embellishments, etc), and one holds my sewing supplies.  Yea, I have sewing supplies, yet I haven't broken ground with the machine yet (details, details).  This also stores some craft books and my beads for when I decide to whip up some jewelry of my own.

See that fancy cube on top of the white storage?  It holds all my craft/scrapbooking paper.  Its all organized by color, pattern, and size and safely stored in plastic sleeves.  My heart melts.  I picked up the small boxes from Ross and those hold odds and ends, pens, scissors, etc.

Wondering what's the monogrammed thing?  Its a cake holder.  My sister gave it to me for Christmas.  Now how many people can say they have a monogrammed cake transporter/holder?  I wonder if Bakerella has one...

Beneath my cake holder is all my baking supplies.  Sprinkles, cookie cutters, flavorings, and of course all my cake pop essentials.  All neatly organized and hidden behind the safety of a closet door.

Ohh and finally, you can see the ribbon holder that started the re-organization.  I'm sure as my crafts evolve, so will my storage needs.  One day maybe I'll have something like Martha.  Or at least a room without wood paneling.  Until then, I'll make do.

(all products were purchased at Michaels, Target, and Ross.  On sale to boot.)

Want to see more of my house?  Check out the tour of my living room here.

Ryan's Birthday

Today is Ryan's birthday.  He turns the big 2-6.  We've had a weekend of celebrating.  Saturday I hosted a Pampered Chef party (that was more for me than him).  The party was lots of fun and unfortunately I was too busy being a hostess with mostess to snap any pictures.  Trust me, good times were had by all.

Then we went out to dinner with his parents and my sister Jessica.  D.C. held Restaurant Week so we got an appetizer, entree, and dessert for $35.10.  We went to Georgia Browns, a southern institution.

Sunday I took him to Melting Pot, also participating in Restaurant Week.  By far the best course of the meal was dessert, I enjoyed it so much, I wound up with chocolate on my shirt! Here's a photo from dinner last night.  

Happy Birthday Ryan!

Changes, Changes

Yes, I changed my blog layout again.  I think this one is going to stick for a while.  I felt like my last layout took too long to load, so hopefully I get a different vibe from this one. 

I'm still tweaking this layout with colors and such and maybe I'll make a new header.  Who knows, things could get crazy over here at Miss Prissy Paige.  In the meantime, I've created a twitter account too - so follow me around town too!

Why you shouldn't have!

I've been so fortunate to meet some great gals through my blogging.  I read their posts like I watch Criminal Minds and drink wine, almost daily :)  Even though I've never meet some of them in "real life" I still think of them as friends and I know if we ever got the chance to meet up, we'd have a blast. 

I've been blessed with some awards from some of my blog pals, so I'd like to take some time to say a big thanks (and let you in on some little facts about me).  Most of the awards call for telling some things about yourself that you might not know, so I'm going to compile the list into one big one.  After all, I've never met a list I didn't like.

My first award came from Jenn at This Girl Loves Pink.  She gave this back to me in September, just after I'd started blogging.  Jenn's great and I'd love to raid her closet for some Coach bags and chat over Starbucks pumpkin spice lattes one day.

The next two awards came from Christi at Grey Umbrella.  She's a girl after my own heart, we both rock the scarf and pearls daily and her recipes make my tummy growl.

Thanks to both of you for the shout out - I love reading your blogs and finding inspiration in what you do.

So here's some tidbits about yours truly.

1.   My twin sister and I are identical and were born 7 minutes apart.

2.   I haven't eaten red meat in at least 10 years.

3.   I hate driving.

4.   When I am forced to drive (like to work) I must drive barefoot or with socks on, even in the winter.  I learned to drive my stick barefoot and now I have a complex.

5.   I hate watching chick flicks.  I'd rather watch action or sci-fi.

6.   I could eat pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day and never tire of it.

7.   I can't stand drying racks for dishes and refuse to allow one into my kitchen.

8.   The most used gadget in my kitchen is my wine opener. 

9.   I love hosting parties and hope to someday have my own special events business.

10. One day not too long ago, Ryan and I played the original Nintendo for 8 hours straight.  That was back before you could save and return to a game. 

11.  I have ridiculously white teeth thanks to my obsession with brushing and Crest white-strips (but I don't floss like I should).

12.  I hardly ever have paint on my nails but always have my toes done.

13.  My favorite music is country and I love Sugarland.

14.  This is a lot harder than I thought it would be.

15.  The best concert I ever went to (so far) was seeing Celine Dion in Las Vegas.

16.  My favorite shoes are my Rainbow flip flops.

17.  I love coconut cake.

18.  I broke a toe at a Jimmy Buffet concert once.

19.  I didn't start really following sports and football until Ryan and I started dating, and now I find myself listening to sports talk radio in the mornings and actually knowing the people they talk about.

20.  I have about 15 different colored cashmere scarves and wear one all the time.

21.  I love finding a deal and clip coupons like its my job.

22.  Crafting relaxes me and I'm trying to make more time for it.

23.  I'd rather text than talk on the phone. 

24.  I just started a Twitter account (missprissypaige). 

25.  I eat peanut butter straight from the jar.  And double dip. And its gotta be crunchy.

So now I'd like to pass along the awards to some of my fellow bloggers.

abby @ tales and trials - I just discovered her blog and love reading it.  She's got some super cute craft ideas.

leigh @ kesler expressler - Real life friend who I've know forever, who got me started with blogging.  And she just got a new camera - jealous, table for 1 please.

jennifer @ crazy shenanigans - She tells life like it is.  And her what not to say on a date posts, crack me up.

ruhiyyih @ ruhiyyih's reflections - Newlywed and real life friend who just moved back to WA and who I miss dearly.  Her posts have me laughing out loud.

jenny @ words on wendhurst - love following her on her home remodel.  she's got great ideas.

ashley @ little moments - she loves cheese and I do too.  enough said.

kelly @ one day at a time - her blog title says it all.  check it out!

ps.  this is my 100th post, can you believe it!

Quick & Crafty: Hometown Art

So let me first say I totally channeled Katie at Bower Power on this project.  She blogged a while ago about this awesome idea, and I am following suit. 

You might not be aware of this but Ryan and I are both from Richmond, VA.  We've been at the same school since 5th grade when my family moved from one side of the city to another.  Even college, we both went to James Madison University in Harrisonburg, VA.  And no, we haven't been dating our entire lives.  We've been dating just over 2 years (remember when we went to NYC to celebrate in December).  But we have known each other for pretty much forever.  So taking off Katie's idea where she made hometown art to represent her & her hubby's hometowns, I made my art represent places we share together.  The names range from neighborhoods, streets, restaurants, bars, schools and cities.

I made mine in Word.  I created text boxes for each word and used different fonts & sizes to fill the the white space.  In one afternoon and I'd put a lifetime of memories onto paper.  It was quick, easy, and budget friendly (I'd already had the frame and white paper came free from work).

So what are some quick and crafty projects you've made?

Wine Wednesdays

Remember, how I coerced you into following me for my wine reviews?  Welcome to Wine Wednesdays.  I'm going to try and post 2 Wine Wednesdays a month on new wines I've tried or some classics that I love.

Note to readers: I drink wine in the safety of my own home or when I have a DD.  Never drink and drive.  Its stupid.

I wasn't much of a red wine drinker...well that was until I tried this.

Ménage à Trois Red - 2008. 

Its made of 3 different wines, blended together into something quite delicious.  And WAY to easy to drink...(if you get my drift).  Zinfandel, Merlot, and Cabernet.  Its not heavy as some red wines can be and didn't leave me with a pounding headache the next morning.  For those who might be skiddish of red wine, this is an excellent stepping stone.  I found this particular bottle at my local grocery store.  But I also happen to know that Target sells it.  Typically it runs for about $12 a bottle, not too shabby.  Even Ryan liked it - and getting him to drink wine is like getting me to vacuum.  It rarely happens. 

For more information about this wine and others made by Folie à Deux visit their homepage.

 
I'd love to hear your recommendations, as I'm not sure I've got 24 bottles of wine to talk about.  Leave me your favorites in the comments and I'll try them and post about 'em.  Don't drink wine?  Leave me a comment about your favorite drink (alcoholic or not - I'm always looking to try new things).

Grab a seat...

..its a tour of my living room!  Slowly but surely (and after cleaning day) I will start sharing one element of the townhouse where I live.  The first edition is the living room.  It really is the room we live in.  A lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into creating this room.  Well not so much blood, but there were some tears, and a whole lotta sweat!  This is the first room that you enter when you walk in the front door and its also the first room people see when they walk by our house if the blinds are open, so it had to be fabulous right!  I remember seeing this image from Pottery Barn and immediately loving it.

Knowing that I couldn't afford to purchase the letters from Pottery Barn, I took to the streets in search of varying letters and symbols to recreate this image.  I wanted a mixture of capital letters, lowercase letters, and symbols but in different fonts and sizes.  I found my letters at Paper Source, Pottery Barn Kids, and Michaels craft store.  I used 7 different paint colors and painted each letter (multiple coats), cut holes, and hung them randomly.  And when I say I hung them, Ryan actually did it, but I supervised.  I think the effect is quite similar to my inspiration photo and the wall gets so many compliments, all the blood, sweat, and tears were worth it!  I went for a chocolate brown, lime green, aqua blue, and yellow color scheme with some black & gray accents.  Most of the items in the living room were picked up one on of my many excursions to HomeGoods, TJ Maxx, or Ikea. 

(clearly my photography skills need some work)

One thing I don't tolerate in this room is clutter.  Since its the landing spot when we come in the front door, the little table and the loveseat tend to become a shelf for crap.  I try to have a 10 minute power de-clutter each night where I'll put sort the mail and clean up the shoes and jackets that the couch somehow seems to catch.  It drives Ryan crazy but clutter drives me crazy, so I win.

This room is constantly evolving, specifically the black ladder shelf (found on Craigslist for $20).  Some days I think, OK I'm done, and other days I think I hate the corner shelf and the furniture placement is awful.  But I guess that's what decorating is all about - mixing it up and trying new things!

Now if I could just find a way to get this chair into the room...

Cupcakes & Cowboys

How adorable is this Coach cupcake keyring?  Santa brought it for me in my stocking and seeing as I love cupcakes & baking, its very fitting.

Dallas plays in the Wildcard game tonight at 8pm and I'm hoping its another Eagles shut-out!  Ryan and I are done in our Pigskin Pick'Em (remember how I won) but decided to do our own picks for the playoffs.  The loser has to clean the bathrooms and vacuum the entire house for 4 Sundays straight.  I won't be posting the playoff picks, but please think of me.  The only thing that I hate more than cleaning the bathrooms, is vacuuming! 

(images from Google)

New Shoe Attitude

(Mom, if you are reading this, you will love these shoes - they are your favorite - bronze metallic!)

So after Christmas, Ryan and I headed to Target to scope out the after holiday sales and pick up some stuff on the cheap.  We've re-organized all the Christmas decorations so pulling them out next year will be easy-peasey.  As I was walking to the storage section, I stopped off at shoes.  That's where I spotted these.

Before Ryan could catch up to me and steer me away, I'd slipped off my shoes and put these puppies on.  I love the slight heel, the metallic color, the pointy toe, and the criss-cross detail.  Since I'm pretty tall as it is (almost 5'8) I don't like too much a heel - I don't like feeling as if I'm towering over people.  So this heel is perfect for me!  I wore them to work yesterday and got lots of compliments too!  I figure with the color, I can wear them now and even into the spring with some of my capris.  They will be great with jeans too!  With this great find of mine, I can say, I got a new shoe attitude!  

Hold the wine (yea, I said that)

So I got home from work last night and as is my customary routine, sifted through the mall before hitting the wine bottle.  Normally, its a quick glance and then off to pour myself a glass of wine, but last night, something caught my eye and caused me to pause.

It was this beauty on the cover of West Elm.

My heat is skipping beats over the gray and white combo.  Yellow accent too!  Granted, I haven't shared pictures of my living room yet (one day soon, I promise!) but trust me - this would look great!  

I love West Elm's stuff and lucky for me there's a store nearby, so I can at least enjoy the seat in the store, since with the $299 price tag on this Slipper Chair, it won't be coming home with me anytime soon.

Recipe Rundown: Chicken Feta Burgers

Well we all know my love of cheese and feta is no exception.  Here's a "go-to" recipe in my kitchen.

Chicken Feta Burgers (adapted from weigh watchers)

Ingredients: 

1 pound uncooked ground chicken breast

1 Tbsp fresh oregano

1/4 tsp garlic powder

7 Tbsp feta cheese, crumbled

your choice of bun and burger fixins'

How To:

-Preheat grill or broiler.

-In a medium bowl, combine chicken, oregano, garlic powder and feta; divide mixture into four balls and then press them gently into patties. (I make mine smaller, more like slider size so I have more to enjoy later - and then don't feel guilty when I eat 2 or 3 at a time.)

-Grill or broil patties until internal temperature of burgers reaches 165°F, about 7 to 8 minutes per side.  (My new grill pan is great for this recipe!)

As you can see, I served mine on an English muffin with a side salad.  Delicious.  And yes, that's a paper towel as a place mat.  Only the best for my dinner table.

Goals: Let's Recap

December Goals - how'd I do? 
-Try 2 new recipes for dinner. FAIL.  I barely cooked this month.

-Yoga and/or 30 Day Shred twice a week.  Epic FAIL.  But I've already been to the gym once this year, so I'm off to a better start. 

-Bake a dessert and donate to firemen in the neighborhood.  FAIL.  I baked, but didn't share any of the goodies.

-Enjoy the holiday season with family and friends.  Great holiday season! 
-Host a fun holiday party (and collect Toys for Tots at the party). Smashing success, will make this a tradition.

-Go ice skating.  Remember when I went in NYC and didn't bite it on the ice :)

-Try a new wine.  (Future post coming...)

-Tacky lights tour in DC/visit National Christmas Tree.  FAIL.

-Get 30 followers by the end of the year. So if you are reading this and aren't following me, please help me achieve my goal and follow me!  Thanks to everyone who is following me!

January Goals

Craftiness:

-re-organize craft space

-practice sewing

-craft 2 projects

Healthy Habits:

-eat vegetarian once a week

-workout once a week (small steps people, I don't want to start the new year with a FAIL)

Food & Fun:

-celebrate Ryan's birthday in style

-host a fun Pampered Chef party

-try 2 new recipes

Other:

-set a budget & stick to it

-make trip to Goodwill with old clothes

-help Ryan re-organize his closet

Pigskin Pick'Em: I Won!!!

After 17 weeks of hard work, analyzing the teams, the weather conditions, and the odds I can successfully say I won the first annual Pigskin Pick'Em. And the $200 massage! I'd like to thank everyone for their well wishes and prayers throughout the season. It meant so much!



Sad face Ryan after Green Bay shut down Arizona. My theory paid off!

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Pigskin Pick'Em: The Final Week

Its the final countdown: we are tied going into the final week.  That means this massage is up for grabs with today's games.  This week we only differ on one game: Green Bay vs Arizona.  I picked Green Bay, with the thought that Arizona hasn't played well at home this season.  Let's hope my theory pays off - to the ring of a new massage!

Ohh and yesterday, I completely re-organized all my crafts.  Can't wait to share pics in a future post of my new craft space!