I Just Can't Wait

…to Be King!

Last week I was invited to see Broadway's eighth longest running musical, The Lion King.

What a great show it was!  All of the cast members did a great job. 

The costumes were amazing, but the giraffes were by far my favorite!
I mean, could you imagine walking on stilts on all fours?!  I can't even imagine stilts on my lower half!

Before heading over to the Hippodrome to see The Lion King, we grabbed a bite to eat and cocktails at Ale Wife.  I had never been there, but I highly recommend this place…especially as a start to a great show (it's right across the street).  They are known for their burgers, so that is what I get…look how this monstrous thing comes out!

After the show, we headed back to Canton and had some birthday drinks at one of my favorite places on the square, Mama's on the Half Shell…I think I've been living here a little too much recently, but I love it!

Have you all been to see any great plays recently?

Scents of the Holiday!

I love having a candle lit when I have guests over, but I have read and heard that eventually it can make your ceiling look black.  Yuck!  (I think it takes quite a while for this to happen, but regardless, I do not want my newly painted home looking dusky.)

So, I saw a bunch of potpourri recipes on pintrest and decided to try mix one up on my own.  

Ingredients that I used

 cranberries

orange, quartered

 whole cloves

cinnamon sticks

nutmeg

Directions

Combine all ingredients and add water.  

Let simmer on low heat.

And for some more great scents to warm up your home, check out the recipe swap over at Flip Flops and Pearls!  

We Love You!

Today would have been Granddad's Birthday. We miss you, Granddad!

Always on our minds; forever in our hearts.

TGIF

How adorable and perfect are these napkins?!

My dear friend came over for dinner the other night and bought these as part of a housewarming/birthday gift and I just LOVE them!  

After a rough 2010, I'm ready to take on 2011 and I think it's going to be a great year!

I don't like to start my New Years Resolutions until after my birthday weekend…I mean, come on, give up dinner and dessert for my birthday and torture myself with a freezing cold run outside?  Not yet…

That will start Sunday…Brrrr, I'm cold just thinking about it!

Today is day one of my 365 days to be thankful!

Today I'm thankful for so much!

First, I'm so thankful for all my friends and family who called, emailed, texted, messaged on facebook, etc to wish me a Happy Birthday yesterday.  All the wishes truly helped make it a wonderful day!

Second, I'm thankful for my mom.  

Guess what happened yesterday?!  I wanted this mirror for so long at this store, but it was going to go down in price soon so I was trying to wait.  It would look perfect in the dining area!  Well, yesterday I decided since it was my birthday I was no longer going to wait for the price to go down, so I went to the store, and it was GONE!  I was so disappointed.

So, I went home and opened the door and there was the mirror in my dining room!  My mom had bought it for me and put it in my house while I was at work!

THANKS, MOM!

Third, I'm so thankful for my coworkers.  They are seriously the best group to work with and each of them makes everyday so great to be at work.  We have tons of laughs together, but we are also there for each other during hard times and are so wonderful to bounce ideas off of.

Yesterday it was one of my coworkers last day.  It was bittersweet as we don't want to see her leave, but I know we will see her tons outside of work!

We went out to lunch yesterday and had such a great time!  I always leave our "meetings"thinking I have the worlds best job, and frankly, it's because of the team I work with!

Lastly, I'm thankful for Fridays!  

Cheers to the weekend and my birthday dinner with the family!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Tuesday Treats: Double Decker Fudge

This was one of my many recipes I wanted to make before Christmas, but time got away from me, so I made it this past weekend and enjoyed it during the Raven's game!

Again, the perfect combination of peanut butter and chocolate…YUM!

Ingredients

12 ounce peanut butter chips

1/4 cup butter

1 can sweetened condensed milk

6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Line 8 inch square pan with wax paper.

In saucepan, on low heat, combine 2 Tbsp butter, peanut butter chips and 1 cup of milk.

Stir consistently until well blended and melted.

Spread peanut butter mixture into 8 in pan.

In saucepan, combine chocolate chips, remainder of milk, and remaining butter.

Continue to stir until well blended and melted.

Spread evenly on top of peanut butter mixture.

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Loosen wax paper, turn pan upside down.

Remove wax paper from fudge and slice.

ENJOY!!!

Tuesday Treats: Hot Chocolate

So, it's freezing here in Maryland, and I mean FREEZING!

I'm not a fan of this weather and if I didn't just buy this house I think I would pack up my belongings and head south with the birds!

But for now, Maryland is my home and I have to learn to adjust (sigh!).

So, what better time to bake and get that oven started!

BUT...I'm going out of town this weekend (YAY!), so it's a little difficult to bake and I barely have anything to eat in this house.

So in order to stay warm and toasty I decided to drink some hot cocoa after work yesterday and call it a night!

Who doesn't love chocolate?! I mean, really!

But as I was searching for the best hot chocolate recipe, I came across something even more cool....a Hot Chocolate Bar!!!

So, friends, if you are one of those couples who likes to get married in the freezing cold temperatures, I have such a neat idea for you!

Almost everyone now is doing the Candy Bar theme at weddings, so why not switch it up for a more unique twist with this

Hot Chocolate Bar?

Here's how you do it:

Serve it in some fancy mugs (or even mugs of your weddings colors).

Have an assortment of flavored hot cocoa, such as peppermint, white chocolate, and dark chocolate.

Have an assortment of add ins (make sure they are finely chopped so they will melt easily),

such as

peppermint sticks

flavored syrups

flavored whipped cream

cinnamon sticks

orange twists or rinds

chopped up candy bar

chocolate chips

chocolate truffles

caramel squares

How fun would that be?!

For now, I think I'll look forward to an evening that includes a nice warm bath with my hot chocolate in hand!