Friday, February 14, 2014

Come Waste Your Time with Me


For Valentine's Day I sent my husband the link to Dave Matthews and Trey Anastasio from Phish singing the song Waste.  The song's famous chorus...Come waste your time with me is one of my favorites.

If you're married with kids - you know the days of just kickin' it and hanging out are little to non-existent without a 5 page paper of family schedules and routines for the grandparents that is.

So my message to my husband is that if there was ever time in the day to waste, I'd want to spend it with him.

Happy Valentine's Day to you all! 

xo

Kelly

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Fun Temporary Tattoos

I've just about had it with the snow and the predictions of more snow.  So I'm distracting myself with the idea of getting a temporary tattoo.  Check out Tattly for some fun tat designs!

Which ones are your favorite?  I think I might start sending these to my girlfriends as Cabin Fever Gifts, ha!

Stay warm!

xo

Kelly












Monday, February 10, 2014

Words of Wisdom



Please share this with someone who could use some encouragement today!

xo

Kelly

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Valentine's Day Guide

I like my Valentine's Day gifts to be thoughtful, fun and even witty.  Check out my favorite picks for all the sweethearts in your life!

Links: 1/2/3/4/5/6/7

For the pretzel lover...



For your best friend that needs a laugh...



Take a pic of your baby in this onesie for your favorite auntie...



For your marriage - open some wine and listen to your favorite records...



For your kids and their buddies - a heart pencil with a handwritten love poem...



A special Valentine's breakfast for the fam...



For a romantic Valentine's dinner for two - forget cooking and get gourmet delivery...



And finally an e-card for everyone and anyone you want to feel loved...













Friday, February 7, 2014

The Coziest Wrap Sweater


It has been a LONG winter for me, and I recently splurged on this sweater for two reasons...

1.  I am cold.  A heavy wrap sweater is kind of like an acceptable robe to be worn around the house and on the town.

2.  Cabin Fever.  This winter we have lost power and been trapped inside more times than I can count.  I needed some retail therapy, big time.

Love it too?  It's on sale right now at Zappos.com.  

Stay warm!

xo

Kelly

Monday, February 3, 2014

Homemade Bread in 5 Minutes


One of my oldest friends another Jenna! started making her own bread and claimed it was so easy even I could do it.  

At the time I had 3 kids under 3.  I didn't have time to open a pack of pop-tarts let alone make my own bread!

Nonetheless, she sent me the link for the recipe...Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes.  I took one look and gave it a fat NO!

She insisted on coming over and giving me a personal bread making demonstration.  

To my surprise it was so easy that, yes, even I could do it!

You can try and follow the website's recipe or take a look at my step by step instructions with pictures below.  I tried to make it busy mom friendly.  

Ready to give it a try?  Check out my version of the recipe - I know you'll love it!

Artisan Bread Recipe

Tools: 
Deep bowl 
Plate
Clean dish towel
Sheet of parchment paper
Baking tray
Measuring cups and spoons

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
1 tablespoon salt
3 1/2 cups lukewarm water
6 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Directions:
In a deep bowl add the following ingredients...

1 tablespoon ACTIVE DRY YEAST


1 tablespoon of kosher salt


3 1/2 cups lukewarm water


Stir ingredients

Add 6 1/2 cups all purpose flour


Stir

Your dough will look like this...


Throw a clean dish towel over your bowl on the countertop for 2 hours.  I used to use 2 baby bibbs, ha!

It will rise and look like this...


Place a plate on top of your bowl of dough, but make sure it is not completely sealed.  Stick it in the frig until ready to bake.  Let it chill for about 1 hour. 

Place a layer of parchment on an oven tray and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

After your dough has chilled, flour your hands and the top of your dough generously or it will be too sticky to pick up.

Pick up a softball sized slab of dough and tuck the edges under to form a loaf.  Take a serrated knife and make 3 quarter inch slices across the top of your loaf.

It should look something like this...


Let the unbaked loaf sit on the counter for about 15-20 minutes while the oven is  warming up.

After the loaf is done resting, stick it in the oven for 30 minutes or until the surface is golden.

See the pic at the top for a look of the finished product!

Let it is sit for 10-15 minutes before digging in.  

Repeat the process with the remaining dough the next time you are hungry for bread.  

The dough is good for about a week.  I've found the dough gets a little crunchy after that.