sarah's bridal shower!

i stole some photos off my madre's facebook of my pretty sister's bridal shower last weekend!  my aunt hosted the party at the cutest little tea house and we all got to eat yummy finger sandwiches and played a few games before sarah opened her new kitchen.

i say this because that girl is stocked with kitchen wares now!  if anybody is looking to have a tea party in michigan, i'd highly recommend sweet afton's tea room in plymouth.  it was adorable and delicious!

as maid of honor, i enjoyed the duty of making some bizarre bouquet of bows that really looked more like a hot mess of purple and orange tulle.  my on-the-fly repurposing DIY bouquet skills might not be top notch.  oh well.  maybe it'll get spruced up a little before the rehearsal dinner.

since the shower was near ann arbor, sarah and dave stayed with me steve and bert and even though it was a little tight in our one bedroom apartment (it may have inspired us to add a new air mattress to our wedding registry) we miss you guys already!!  hoepfully we'll be making our way closer to the west coast asap!

happy friday everybody!

it's feasting season

hello lovely readers!  the americans among us have a short week otherwise known as feasting initiation night otherwise known as thanksgiving!  essentially we've arrived at the time of year when the influx of food never stops.  even though our double thanksgiving dinners (yes read that: dinnerS) aren't coming til tomorrow, steve's birthday last weekend got us a head start on stretching our bellies.  last friday several of our friends from out of town came over for a surprise party i threw for steve (it was only so surprising, seeing as he requested such a thing).

i left work early to grocery shop, clean, and cook like a crazy lady.  lucky for me our apartment isn't too big so the place was good to go by the time andy and cha showed up to yell surprise.  not to brag or nuthin, but the food was pretty darn good.  in honor of steve's birthday bash and all the eating we've yet to do, i'll share a couple pretty delicious recipes i invented for the party.

black bean, corn, avacado salad (10 servings)

in a large serving bowl combine:

1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)

1 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels (thawed)

1 large diced avacado

1 large diced red bell pepper

1/2 large diced red onion

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1/2 tbsp cumin

salt and pepper to taste

christmas cranberry face-punch (25 servings)

(please drink responsibly... this stuff is delicious and FAR from baby formula...

consider yourself warned)

in a large serving bowl combine:

3 1/5 cups of vodka (1 fifth of a gallon bottle)

1 1/2 cups of triple sec (about 1/2 a bottle)

2 litres sierra mist cranberry splash

3/4 litre simply limeade

4-5 large scoops of lime sherbet

handful of frozen cranberries

hope everyone has a great thanksgiving!

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happy birthday stevedore!!

happy birthday to:

my personal comedian

my co-cat wrangler

my bff

and my very favorite human in the entire universe

steve is officially 22 today (does it feel like the perfect night to dress up like a hipster bebay?)

happy happy happy birthday to my handsome, hairy younger man!  the world has been infinitely better the past 22 years since you've been busy livin' in it!!

[insert excessive/obsessive proclamations of love here]

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we're getting murried

at the gull lake country club to be more specific.

it's a bit hard to tell from the photo, but the room has a panoramic view of the lake, where we're hoping to have a waterfront ceremony outdoors.  it really doesn't matter what time of year you hold a wedding in michigan, you always want a plan b for weather.

hashtag: pure michigan.

lately things have been quite wedding-y and we are currently gearing up for a lot of travel in the upcoming weeks.  first, steve is flying to texas for business.  he's going to be gone for four whole days and i'm having trouble coping.

then we are heading to virginia for emily and colin's wedding.

then i am meeting my sister in chicago to go wedding dress shopping.

then we should have just enough time to squeeze in a nap before halloween.

so things are rather busy, but i still found time to throw together a wedding website for us.  personally i think the header graphic is pretty cute.

ta!

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how to throw a cinco de mayo party in under 12 hours

last year around 11:59 pm on the 4th of may i was scrolling through the DIY section of oh happy day!  i stumbled across one of jordan's many pinata tutorials and decided i was going to throw a cinco de mayo party... which would be scheduled to begin in about 12 hours.  

now i'm not going to say i got a lot of sleep that night (thank god meijer is a 24 hour superstore), and it was a risky move considering nobody was going to be invited with more than a few hours notice, but ultimately, it turned into one of my better parties!  almost 20 people showed up (which was PLENTY considering the party was being thrown in a 800 square foot 3rd floor walk up).  everyone had a blast and for a few hours of lost sleep, this easy peasey party was totally worth it!  so in case you're looking for a reason to entertain, let me walk you through the essentials to pulling it off!

step 1: food

enticing people to drop their plans in favor of a last minute party is a lot easier when you promise to feed them.  the best thing about a fiesta is how easy it is to prepare mexican food in bulk.  here was the menu:

short notice calls for super easy recipes.  with no time to make homemade salsa or queso, i settled for my favorite store-bought brands: garden fresh gourmet, and on the border monterey jack.  the tacos and rice are effortless, idiot-proof recipes that require only a few inexpensive ingredients along with a crockpot and a rice cooker, which is perfect, as both appliances can be used to keep food warm throughout the course of the party.  see the recipe for tacos here and the recipe for the mexican rice here.

step 2: drink

the best part about mexican-themed anything is that it usually can be used as an excuse for margaritas!  but every good host knows that variety is key for happy guests so here is how we stocked the bar:

limes (and salt!) are probably the most critical element to a cinco de mayo bar menu.  they can garnish a margarita, take the edge off a tequila shot, or freshen up the neck of a cerveza (psst modelo is definitely worth the upgrade from corona)!  i went with frozen margaritas, so be sure you have a good blender.  if you are going with margaritas on the rocks i would definitely recommend daily's margarita mix.  cheaper options are fine for frozen, but won't hold as good a flavor without all the slush.  if you really want to add variety grab a bottle of jose cuervo's premixed flavored margarita as well!  it couldn't be simpler (already mixed in the bottle.. just add ice and blend) and it adds a sweet twist as an alternative to lime lime and more lime.  my favorite flavors are mango and pomegranate!

step 3: fun stuff

it is a party after all!

if you've never made a homemade pinata (tutorial here), i would really recommend you try it.  it is easy, it is fun, and it will save you so much money in the long run (those store bought things aren't cheap)!  i'm not talking paper mache, a balloon, and mess... you can make an adorable pinata like that alligator with nothing more than scissors, a cardboard box, crepe paper, and glue (or tape if you're in a pinch like I was last year).  if you're thinking it won't turn out like it does in the picture you're wrong.  they are easy peasey and so stinking cute! they're a total crowd pleasing party game too!  i mean, who doesn't like to bash an adorable box full of candy after a couple shots of tequila?

i also threw together a flag garland like the one pictured (which has a tutorial here).  i used construction paper instead of tissue, which gave it more structure and kept the flags from looking wonky from the tissue folds.  it made a great festive touch!

no party would be complete without some music.  obviously i say go with what your guest list likes, but for something that sounds a little indie-pop and a little mariachi band, i would recommend heading your playlist with the song mission bells by armistice.  it sets the fiesta tone without getting too over the top theme-y.

so there you have it!  the easiest way to throw a cinco de mayo party in less than 12 hours.  adios amigos!

birthday / easter weekend recap

there is no better way to get through Monday than bouncing back after a weekend as good as this last one!  we had so much fun!  the night of my birthday steve took me out for tapas at one of my favorite restaurants in town and we stuffed our bellies so full of beef tournedos, risotto balls, smoked gouda mac and cheese, and sweet potato fries, we barely had room for the free chocolate mousse they gave me!  (yeah elliptical machine every day this week, obviously).  

we got a bird's eye view at dinner!

mmmmmmmmmmmm

 after dinner we watched michigan make a pretty ridiculous come back against kansas securing their place in the elite eight (and now the final four woohoo)!  with everybody's high spirits and festive generosity things got pretty outrageous in the joint birthday / afterparty bash... so let's skip to saturday...

fortunately we avoided photo evidence of friday night...
except this smashing image of me and tim.

after a hangover related debacle with our dinner reservation we finally made it out on saturday to enjoy some very tasty german food with my parents and grandmother, who all spoiled me rotten with too many birthday presents, easter candy, and carrot cake.  i'm pretty darn lucky to have such an awesome (and flexibly understanding / forgiving) family.  

speaking of awesome families, remember that gorgeous arrow bangle bracelet i posted last week from stella and dot?  well imagine my surprise when it showed up on my doorstep, with a very sweet birthday card, all compliments of steve's lovely parents!  i sure was feeling pretty darn doted upon this weekend!

thanks karpinski's!

steve and i spent easter sunday enjoying the start of some real spring weather here, and we took an easter walk through the arboretum, where we found some ducks, a plastic egg, and a real life easter bunny.

quack

hope everybody had as lovely a weekend as we did, and here's wishing everyone a belated happy easter!  best wishes on this april fool's day... and an extra happy birthday shout out to my dear friend sari, who is not only cool enough to be born on april fool's day, but is also the baddest biotch in NYC.  believe me, lady, 23 isn't too shabby.

cheers!