house, kitchen

In my kitchen

Hey guys, I thought it would be fun to go on a small kitchen tour to see where all the magic happens!

For some reason I cannot find any decent kitchen pictures and it’s too messy right now to take a new picture =) so these will have to do.

 

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This picture was taken right after we moved in. We have since changed our stove and fridge that I will show below. I just love the ample counter space! I love the HUGE island and tall cabinets, too.

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The entire back side of the house is full windows making it a great place for natural light. This was taken from J’s Birthday party but I love how it shows how open the layout is. I often sit at the far right chair on the bar and blog (like I am doing right now) but I also love sitting at the breakfast table and peer out of the window. We face a woody green belt and it makes me feel like I am no longer in the city.

Here are the new upgrades we have done to our kitchen – new gas stove and new fridge.

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I absolutely love cooking with gas. At first I was really scared of it but it has automatic lighters and safety shut off valves to make it simple. It also is a convection oven which helps regulate the temperature inside the oven; it makes food cook evenly and faster.

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I also love our fridge. The freezer is on the bottom, and both fridge doors open up to one huge fridge area. It’s awesome!

So now that you have a glimpse on the outside here is what is on the inside of some of my cabinets – the important ones. 😉

Plates

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Our plates are made by Crestware. We bought them through my husbands old restaurant supply company and unfortunately I cannot find many places online that sells them. I saw one on Overstock but it looks as though they are made for supply companies to buy in bulk.

They are heavy duty and work wonderfully. I love all of the bright colors, too. I think we will be trading in for some new ones here soon – I have this obsession with square, Asian plates.

We also have our sushi set on the very top shelf and some white plates on the bottom. We have a very nice white china set, that happen to be square, and I love using the white plates of photographing food. It enhances the color of the food.

Cups and Mugs

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Marc had a large selection of bar glasses that we have just kept and used throughout the years. They are thick and there is no need to change them out. But I do have a problem with mugs – I just love them! None of them match, they are all different sizes and each one has character and a story behind it. Then we have our white and red wine glasses; and the very top has some odd and ends – plastic cups, a tea pot and a few insulated cups.

Spices

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Mmmm… don’t you just love the smell of a spice cabinet!? This cabinet gets used a lot! Spices are on the bottom, larger bottles, sugar and flour are on the second and misc. baking supplies are on the third shelf. I don’t think there is anything on the very top shelf, besides some dust.

Cookbooks and Jordan’s shelves

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Marc and I debated and butted heads for a while about keeping the cookbooks in the kitchen. He thought they belonged on the book shelf in the office BUT I said they belong in the kitchen for easy access and inspiration. Naturally I won that debate. I do have more but I have run out of room so only the ones I use frequently get the honor of being on these shelves.

This is also where I keep J’s snacks, bottles, cups and bibs.

Kitchen Appliances

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This cabinet also gets used very frequently. All of my kitchen appliances are here, minus my mixer as it is on the counter. I have my Breville Juicer, Kitchen Aid Food Processor, Vita Mix Blender and my French press, which is not shown. The shelves are deep and hold everything nicely.

Believe me, there is much more to my kitchen but I wanted to showcase the most loved and used parts. Plus, J has completely rearranged my tupper ware and baking dishes – pretty much anything he can reach he gets into. Oh well – the joy of having a little chef!

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ztashaz

holiday, house, jordan, thanksgiving

Pictures speak louder than words

I know everyone was inundated with overloads of turkey, mash potato and pumpkin pie pictures the past few days… so I wanted to share what we did on Thanksgiving Eve!

We woke up and started baking… and prepping! I made OhSheGlows vegan pumpkin pie for dessert! IT WAS AMAZING!

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Spelt crust

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Pecan surprise on the bottom

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Ready for the oven

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Perfectly baked!

I made a mini pie because not that I don’t trust Angela… but I wanted to make sure it was “family friendly”. Success! It was totally awesome tasting! The crust was nutty and you could really tell there was maple syrup in the filling! YUM!

Then I took a break and started to decorate the house! We do it BEFORE Thanksgiving =) We tend not to overload out home with annoying cute Christmas decorations – we come from two different religion backgrounds. Marc is Jewish and I was brought up believing in Santa and the whole Christmas mayhem. We compromised – we have a Hanukah bush (it’s decorated in blue and white/clear/silver}, display our nutcrackers and just have a great time! The one thing Marc loves are presents – both giving and receiving! He is such a kid this time of year!

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J, playing with the tree – yes we have a fake tree (I am a hippy, tree hugger!)

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We have two lighted mail boxes around the mantel

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J loves the tree!

And this was the table all set for a Thanksgiving feast!

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I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with your family and friends!

tasha

house, jordan

We’re going pumpkins!

Hello Saturday!!!

Wow – we had a great day today! We went to the pumpkin patch to get pumpkins – this was the first time for Jordan! We all had so much fun!

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It was a little chilly but not bad at all. VERY muddy, though! I did not wear the proper shoes – my white slip on tennis shoes. Yikes, talk about a mess! We each picked one out to carve. I can’t wait to see how Jordan reacts to the “guts” of the pumpkins 🙂

The day started out kind of “pumpkiny” – I made pumpkin pancakes!

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Marc didn’t feel like pumpkin in his pancakes so I was man handling TWO at one time 😉

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All I did to make my pumpkin pancakes was add some 100% canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix) to my regular batter. I added some nutmeg and cinnamon and a tad of agave syrup and whisked it together. They ended up cooking longer than regular ones, that’s why they look so dark.
I used this can of pumpkin mix:

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I have had it for a few weeks now and wasn’t sure when I was going to use it. Now I HAVE to find some recipes to use it with! I was thinking of adding some to my shakes in the morning…
Any ideas?

After the farm, we went to the mall to pick up Marc some cologne. I ended up looking at some Halloween costumes, too. I don’t have one yet and Marc wants me to dress up. No offense, but they are all slutty and totally not my style. I feel very uncomfortable showing that much skin. Of course, Marc wants me to wear something tight and revealing but I just don’t know. :sigh: I guess I am just really self conscious of myself still. I feel that I look heavier than I really am. I did see some really cute ones so I probably will just suck it up and buy one after all. It might be fun…

Did I mention that we bought a new stove a few days ago? While we were driving back home we received a call that they were going to be at our house soon. YAY!
This was our old stove:

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I was really nice and nothing was wrong with it, but we wanted our appliances to be stainless. We replaced the fridge last month and this month we replaced the stove.
Isn’t it beautiful!?

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Now all of our appliances match! Woohoo!

Well, I am off to make some dinner. 🙂 Have a great night everyone!

birthday, house, jordan, product review, Project Feed Me

Happy (almost) Birthday, my son!

This time last year (11:09pm Pacific time) I was moaning on the couch. WITH CONTRACTIONS! I had been having contractions off and on for a few hours but the later it got, the harder why came. Little did I know that a few house later I would whisked away to the hospital by my night in shining armor, Marc, admitted and about to be a mom for the first time! Amazing how life changes in an instant!

More about that later… this week is nuts. First my birthday – it was amazing! Of course Marc spoiled me rotten, like always. After a nice relaxing morning with some surprises, my mom and I went out to a nice lunch at a Mongolian Grill. My kind of place!

At a Mongolian grill you take a bowl and load it up with any kind of veggie, noodle, meat and sauce you love.

Once your bowl is loaded and practically over flowing, they cook it on a big flat top right in front of you. I think it looks like a Bunsen burner from science class! lol

I got the works: green onions, broccoli, baby corn, spinach leaves, pineapple, carrots, water chestnuts, ginger, sesame oil, sesame seeds, peanuts, bok choy, and I am sure there is more! No meat, tough – just didn’t feel like it. I did get a side of terriyaki for a little dipping.

I DEVOURED it!

One of my favorite stores is World Market. They have a lot of imported furniture, funky colored decor, rare food items and an AMAZING wine selection! My mom had never been so to kill some time we went to check it out. If I was single and had my own place I would buy most, if not all, of my decor from this store! Big throw pillows, simple couches and chairs and did I mention WINE?!
I ended up eying some hot chocolate, green tea soap and a can of pumpkin – very random but it worked!

We had a lovely dinner! Marc cooked up some lobster tails, garlic-parm mashed potatoes, bbq tenderloin (rare for me) and I whipped up a caesar salad. It was amazing! The funny thing is is that I totally spaced and didn’t take a picture! Ooops!

After dinner I went to put the baby down and while I was doing that my mom and Marc were in the kitchen prepping my cake AND taking pictures for me! 🙂

Marc bought a pumpkin ice cream cake – HOLY YUM!

It had little shortbread cookies on the top and in the middle and the pumpkin ice cream was sooo addicting! I had a large piece, immediately following a trip upstairs to put on my sweats and a comfy sweatshirt! I was incredibly stuffed!

We wished my mom good by, cleaned up and relaxed on the couch. Marc had also surprised me with the new Alice in Chains CD and my mom gave me some new workout clothes, a pepper plant and some seeds for my garden next year!

Here is one of the jackets that Marc bought me:

It is so comfy and warm! He also bought me a black one but that one is better worn with dresses.
I had a blast – surrounded with the ones that I love! Thank you for those that made my Birthday special – I love you.

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In house news: Our wine cellar is completed!



From the very first day we were in our new house we thought about turning out back closet into a cellar. We have cases of wine that has been moved, shaken, drastic temperature changes… anything that you are NOT supposed to do to wine it happened. We found the wine rack through Williams Sonoma and my uncle did the transformation. The door was costumed made by a local company, too. It’s beautiful and we are so happy that our wine finally has a permanent and SAFE home!

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Project Feed Me
– the first week.
This weeks theme was two can of chili. I have yet to go and pick up my cans but I did add these articles to my bag to donate.

I FINALLY organized our pantry and found these lonely jars. They are still good and we enjoy them, but I felt these were items that we could give up. It’s one thing to go buy items but to part with them once they are in your home is a different feeling; it’s a deeper, more giving feeling. I love any aspect to giving to those in need and encourage all of you that have not signed up to please do so!

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Product review – R.W. Knudsen Pomegranate juice
I know most of you have tried POM and loved it; including myself. Marc was on the hunt for a larger pomegranate juice bottle and I happened to spot one down low on a shelf.

It’s wonderful! A little strong in taste but it’s pure pomegranate juice which we all love. AND it’s actually less money, much less, than those cute bottles of POM. I definitely suggest you try to find this and try it!

Wow, it’s already after midnight and my eyes are getting heavy. Hopefully the weather will hold as we are hoping to go to a pumpkin farm for Jordan’s Birthday and pick our pumpkins for Halloween.
Hope everyone had a great day and don’t forget to sign up for my give away!

book, dinner, fridays favorites, house, jordan, lunch, product review

All crammed into one

Hey guys! Hope everyone had a pleasant evening! Marc was busy researching our fantasy football team so I ended up going to bed early. ( I didn’t get much sleep last night so if I sound a little dazed in my post then that’s why!)

It ended up being a beautiful day! This is rare for Seattle weather this time of year.

Book

My night was uneventful but relaxing. I was drooling over all of the raw food recipes in my new cook book and picked out at least a dozen to try! The main concept that I love about Ani’s book is the ingredient list is simple, and most of them I already have on hand! I think people are intimidated by the raw food concept because they think “special” food is required. Nope, quite the opposite really. So now I am all prepped and planned for Wednesday’s Raw Food challenge! You will probably see a few of these recipes this weekend though. 😉 They really do look and sound quite delicious!

House
We have made a lot of progress on our house since we moved in July. The home was move in ready but we love the idea of customizing the look and feel to really make it our own. My uncle Don is a general contractor and has helped us turn our vision into reality. From painting to shelving units, his work is amazing!

Recently we had him repaint the entire outside of the house. This is what it looked like before:

We really did not care for the yellow and white. Too bland and did nothing for how the house really is inside, elegant. We saw our exact same house in another part of the neighborhood and fell in love with the color scheme they had! So Marc went and asked them for a sample. We had my mom copy the colors, as she is a paint manager, and came up with this:

I love it! The contrasting color is gorgeous and if you notice the second tier above the garage is now painted the trim color, as well. The one thing we still don’t like are the vertical stripes on the very top of the house. My uncle said it would be easy to change those back to horizontal siding. I think we will tackle that one next spring.
We also changed out our front lights for something more modern:

And had our door repainted. There were chips and scratches all in it and it looks like a brand new door now!

And no more soliciting! I can’t even count how many times solicitors have rang the doorbell to sell something to me. It makes Lilly bark, scares Jordan and he starts wailing. Not fun. Hopefully this will put an end to it!

Lunch, dinner and product reviews

Let’s just jump right into yesterday’s eats.

Lunch:

I was craving melted cheese all morning so I new a nice hot sammy was in order. And this is really weird for me because I hardly ever eat cheese!

Max Flax sprouted bread, cheddar, tomato, basil leaves, tempeh slices and shredded parm/mozz mix. It really hit the spot!

I paired it with some juicy green grapes
I was stuffed afterwords! You may notice that I don’t eat a lot of sandwiches and when I do it’s like it just swells in my belly.

I bought some tempeh at the store the other day – first time trying it! Honestly though… I have no idea how I am supposed to fix it. Is it supposed to be warm? Cold? By it’s self? As the main meal? So I did the least intimidating thing I could think of – slather it with melted cheese and hope for the best! It was seedy and hearty… but I really couldn’t taste it. lol I do like the ingredient list, though.

Simple, just how I like it.

Now to dinner:

  • Spring mix and romain
  • quinoa
  • chicken
  • gorganzola – I forgot how much I really enjoy this cheese!
  • tomato
  • basil
  • sesame seeds
  • a lot of s & p
  • home made balsamic dressing
  • and some pita chips on the side

I think I am done with the balsamic dressings. I am not a fan if vinegar as it’s too acidic for my palate. I love my salads with fresh herbs and a drizzle of EVOO. The pita chips were yummy and added a great crunch on the side.

And for dessert?! Coconut ice cream!

I even gave Jordan some bites and he loved it too! Of course he never eats anything sweetened so it was a real treat for him. 🙂
If you have never tried this, please do! It tastes like the real deal!

At about 9:30 I was starving! Weird since I never eat late but I fixed a small bowl of Chobani with trail mix and granola.

Jordan

I FINALLY was able to snap a picture of Jordan standing. Little stinker is so quick, as soon as he sees my camera he gets down and starts crawling to me.

He still has not taken any steps on his own. We are waiting and waiting but nothing. He can walk if he is holding onto something but he’s still not 100% sure of himself. Come on Baby J – you can do it!
His party is almost here! Wow, I am soon going to be a mother to a toddler – must. prepare.

New idea

Since Wednesday’s are so much fun around here I thought I would share the love with Friday’s! I am now featuring Fridays Favorites! The idea is to share your favorite items, feelings, smells, foods… anything! I will either have a theme to go by or a free for all for you to post random favorites.

Today is a free for all! These are my current favorite items:


Organique Intensive Moisturizing FootCare Cream
. I have very dry feet and I slather a healthy amount on before bed, put a pair of socks on and I wake up with supple feet! Amazing cream! It has a nice scent of patchouli and coriander but it is strong. With healing ingredients of beeswax, honey and sesame oil, your cracked feet will love you!
I picked it up at our local health food store for only 10 bucks – the website offers it for 20. Strange.
It is oily so if you can’t wear socks to bed try it during the day instead. You really don’t want to be soiling your sheets with this stuff.

My pumpkin spice candle. Nothing compares to the scent of pumpkin, spice and everything nice in my home. After a day of errands it so warming to open my door and automatically smell autumn. I love this time of year!

If you would like to participate in Fridays Favorites please take my badge, leave a comment and post on your blog linking to me – it’s simple as that! I am looking for suggestions for upcoming Fridays – any ideas?

So that concludes my random post – have a great day!