OMGosh!!!

If this little romper from Polka Dot Posh doesn't make you want to have a little girl or buy one for your little girl, I don't know what will!!! I love it!!!


You can find it at http://www.polkadotposh.com/product/toddler-lace-romper-pre-order

I love it!!

Another Drab to Fab moment!

I have this small obsession with pineapples after I saw a white ceramic one on this last season of The Biggest Loser. I want one so bad and have not been able to find one, so if anyone knows where one is, please fill me in!

Here's the back story on the pineapple:

Since the late 1700s, the pineapple has been used as a symbol of welcome and hospitality. Families whose homes are adorned with the fruit wish their guests a feeling of graciousness and inviting warmth.

I picked up these outdoor ornaments from Old Time Pottery (love that place!) last week when my parents were in town. I got both of them for less than $10!!! But who says you can't transform an outdoor ornament into indoor gloriousness??



I wanted to bring these lovely symbols of hospitality to life as well as to match the decor in my living room. The great thing about these are that you could go real funky with them, or you can mute them down to be subtle. I knew I wanted mine to be two toned. I want the pedestal part one color and the actual pineapple part to be a different color. So in order to do that, I used painter tape to tape off the bottom of the pineapple so that I didn't get paint all over the bottom.



Once they are taped off, I took spraypaint (color of your choice) and sprayed the top portion of the pineapple.




Once the paint dried, I took the tape off and got out my acrylic paint to paint the pedestal portion. Acrylic paint dries really quickly, that's why I like to use it. I love some instant gratification! :)


After a jif when the paint dries you've got a brand new, transformed, indoor/outdoor accent piece!


And while I'm on my pineapple kick today, the recipe for the day is Pineapple Cheesecake Squares!

Pineapple Cheesecake Squares


2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup sliced almonds
2/3 cup butter

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1/2 cup white sugar 2 eggs
2/3 cup unsweetened pineapple juice

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained with juice reserved
1/2 cup heavy cream, whipped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine 2 cups flour, confectioners' sugar, and almonds. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press into the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan. Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20minutes.

While the crust is baking, prepare the cream cheese layer. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in 2/3cup unsweetened pineapple juice. Pour over hot crust and bake for about 20 minutes more in preheated oven. Allow to cool completely.

Make the topping: In a saucepan, combine 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup sugar and 1 cup reserved pineapple juice. Bring to a boil and stir for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in crushed pineapple. Cool completely. When cool, fold in whipped cream. Spread topping over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate 4 hours before cutting into squares and serving.

Happy Wednesday!

Creamy Lemon Pepper Chicken-- New Recipe!

I came up with this recipe on a fly one night at the request of my hubs. And to my surprise it turned out really yummy! So since it was so yummy, I'm going to share!

Creamy Lemon Pepper Chicken!


4 thin cut chicken breasts
lemon pepper seasoning
1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

For Sauce:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
3 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. minced garlic
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1 tsp. dried parsley
salt to taste
1 tbsp. all purpose flour

Generously apply lemon pepper to the chicken and fry in olive oil over medium heat until cooked through. While the chicken is cooking, start the sauce.
To start the sauce you will need to make a rue with the butter and flour over medium-high heat. Once combined, add the garlic and heat for 2 minutes. Add the heavy whipping cream and heat for 2-3 minutes, whisking constantly. Add herbs and cook for 2-3 more minutes. Add more herbs for more seasoning. The sauce should thicken as you heat it. If you would like it thicker, add just a little bit more flour to the sauce. Once chicken is cooked through, top with sauce.

This recipe goes great with my mashed potatoes as well!! Shoot, everything goes well with my mashed potatoes! :) Happy Tuesday!

Dog Days of Summer!

I'm back in action and back to my normal routine this morning after a great week-long visit with my family! There's never a dull moment when they are around, especially my little brother! It has been ridiculously hot here in Florida, and when I mean ridiculous, I mean 100F plus!!! It makes it real hard to try to keep up this new tan that I'm sporting. :) So in honor of these Dog Days of Summer, today's post is in honor of my child, Halo. She has such a rough life. She has her own routine and when it gets out of whack, well... let's just say everyone pays dearly. :)

This is Halo.


She knows what she wants and she'll do anything in her power to get it, even if it includes being mischievious...


She listens intently when you have to say something. Especially if it includes any of the words "hungry, food, eat or ride."


She's a girly girl and loves her makeup. We ladies have to look good you know...


This is her rendition of a child falling asleep in a highchair.


She's definitely not modest!


Her favorite thing in the whole wide world is a Gatorade bottle.


And it wouldn't be fathomable to miss a naptime! She has a rough life huh?




So in honor of Halo, I'm posting a dog treat recipe!!

Dog Treats


½ cup Peanut Butter
½ cup Honey
1 Tablespoon Coconut Oil (or Olive Oil)
1 cup Chicken Broth
1 cup Rolled Oats
1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 cup All-purpose Flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Whisk together peanut butter, honey, oil and chicken broth.
In a separate bowl, combine flours and oatmeal. Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients. Place dough on flour dusted surface. Roll or press dough out to about 1/4” inch thick. Use a small bone cookie cutter, or cutter of your choosing to cut out cookies. Roll out leftover scraps and cut out as many as possible.
Put cut out cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 14-16 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack.

Thursday Surf'n Turf

The Family and I ventured to the beach today. A big thank you to Aunt Cindy for letting us graciously use the deck and the pool because it was H-O-T!!!! The water was beautiful, although a little seaweedy.




We enjoyed ourselves thoroughly and got a lot of sun! On a good note- I'm now officially not the palest resident in Florida!!! I feel a great sense of accomplishment about this. A little tan does a body good. :)

So since we did the surf today, I thought I would give you the Turf as the recipe of the day! According to some, I have one of the best steaks around, so I'm giving away my top secret, famous-maker marinade. You would be so surprised how simple yet fabulous this is.

Steak Marinade


4 2" cut filet mignons
Montreal Steak Seasoning
Worcestershire Sauce

Place the filets in a casserole dish and season heavily with the Montreal Steak seasoning on both sides. Pour on Worcestershire sauce and let soak on each side for 30 minutes to an hour. Grill (best if medium rare-rare). You will eat nothing better! This steak marinade goes extremely well with my mashed potato recipe that I posted in a previous post! Enjoy!!!!

Parmesan Crusted Talapia!

The family and I went to Baytowne last night to catch the fireworks off the pier. They were gorgeous dispite how humid and muggy it was outside!


And in honor of being on the pier, I'm following that up with some Parmesan Herb Crusted Talapia!!!

Parmesan Herb Crusted Talapia


4 talapia filets
cooking spray
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. minced green onions
1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs, I used panko breadcrumbs
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Preheat oven to 400F.
Place fish on a foil lined baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Combine cheese, mayo, and onions and spread evenly over fish. Combine breadcrumbs and herbs, salt and pepper, and sprinkle evenly over the fish. Lightly coat fish with cooking spray. Bake at 400F for 10 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork. Enjoy!

Breakfast gourmet style!

My parents made the big trek to visit me this week and for their first morning here at the house I thought I would do something special. Who can resist a cream cheese danish!? Especially a homemade cream cheese danish!? This would be fabulous to take to a brunch. My only suggestion would be to make it the night before so that the cream cheese has a chance to set up before being served. Serving it out of the oven makes for a gooey, hot mess. But it's still sooooo goood!



Cream Cheese Danish
2 (8oz) cream cheese room temp
1 cup sugar plus more for sprinkling on top
1 egg, plus 1 egg white
2 cans crescent rolls
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9x13" baking dish with cooking spray. Press one can of the crescent rolls into the bottom of the pan. In a medium size bowl, mix together the cream cheese, egg, sugar and vanilla with a hand mixer. Once mixed, spread on top of the crescent rolls, then top with the remaining can of crescent rolls. Brush the top with egg white and sprinkle with sugar. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Let cool.

You will be known as a pastry chef with this dish! My husband can't keep his hands out of it! :) Happy Monday!