Lamppostings

Finding and creating adventures in everyday life.

Monthly Archives: May 2011


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Challenge #3 Italian Nachos – Johnny Carinos Copycat

My favourite dish at Johnny Carinos is their Italian Nachos. Love it. Since it’s still blustery & cold, my Mom & I decided to make these nachos instead of more traditional Memorial Day fare.

I found this recipe online & used it. It was surprisingly simple & the results were wonderful!

It is rich & satisfying. I don’t recommend it as a nightly meal, but for special occasions it is fabulous.

Italian Nachos

I took the photos before we put the Pepperochini peppers on. We served them on the side since not everyone wanted them.

Yummy

For details of this challenge, click here.

The sun did break through a time or two during the day so we took advantage of it while it did. The boys played soccer/football with Papa & we all enjoyed several games of Original Jarts – you know, the ones that can cause severe injury? Jarts are one of my all-time favourite outdoor games. It took me a while to track down a real set, but I have it now & we love it.


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I Feel Good!

You know how there are some things that just make you feel good? The outfit I wore yesterday is one of those things. I’ve had the dress for years – thrifted sometime, somewhere. I love the colours & the pattern & the fit – it’s made of super comfortable cotton. I shortened it at some point as well. Also wearing my new favourite shoes. I don’t have a lot of Summer shoes besides flip-flops so these will get a lot of wear this season.

I love it when style & comfort coincide. I felt confident in these clothes, funky & comfy too. What more could you ask for? I am hoping to have the same sensation in less than a week when I get to cross an item off my bucket list. We’re going to see U2 in concert! I am so excited.

 

 

It's glass!

 

 

Detail of fabric & cool zipper pull

 

I tried unsuccessfully to do 60s eye makeup – you know, the heavy eyeliner thing. I really want to learn how to do it. Love that look!

Dress: Vintage – thrifted
Jeans: 2BWY
Shoes: Blowfish – Gimik
Earrings & Ring: ?

We also started on a project for the boys that I will write about soon. I saw the idea on Pinterest to create an outdoor chalkboard. We got the board mounted, but still have to sand, prime & paint it. This will happen when it quits snowing! Yes, we had snow yesterday. Craziness. I’m hoping to get my garden planted before July! We shall see.


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Challenge #3 Super Simple Cranberry Roast

I haven’t always had great success with beef roasts – even in the crock pot. I think they can get dry & tough very easily. My supermarket often does buy one, get one free deals on roasts though so I usually have one or two on hand. I found this recipe & had to try it.

It did not disappoint. By the end of the day the sauce had reduced to this amazing concoction so full of flavour – yummy! I served the sauce separately & it was lovely for dipping the meat into. And the roast itself was juicy & tender. My husband really liked it too. I love that it’s a little bit sweet, but not too sweet. Definitely a winner – so simple & easy – it will be on my regular rotation of roast recipes from now on! It’s great that it can be used for pork or beef as well.

Super Simple Cranberry Roast

For details of this challenge, click here.


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I Miss Marks & Spencer

Today I’m wearing my favourite cardigan. It’s from Marks & Spencer in the UK & I’ve had it for at least 15 years. My love for men’s Marks & Sparks cardigans began when I borrowed one from my Dad’s closet while we were living in London. That was it, I had to have one for myself. My parents got me one as a present & I still have it! I love the colour – it’s green with bits of colour woven in. I love the fit, the warmth. Not sure what will happen when it wears out…I just looked it up, they still have cardigans, though not in the same colour.

Cardigan: Marks & Spencer
T-Shirt: Target
Jeans: Angel
Shoes: Forever 21
Earrings & Brooch: ?
Ring: Torrid

I miss a lot of things about the UK. One of the more shallow things I miss is the shops. I like that there was different stuff than we have in the US. I love the big shops like M&S & Harrods & the high street shops like New Look, Top Shop & Primark. I also love all the markets & street stalls as well as smaller shops. We had a couple of great street markets near to where we lived – so much fun. I walked through the Bethnal Green Market most every day. The Whitechapel Market was great too. Then there was Old Spitalfields Market which was always buzzing on Sundays. We actually got my wedding ring at Spitalfields.

All that to say, I miss shopping in London. I’m thankful for what we have here, but I do miss it.


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Highland Feathers

I’ve been busy the past few days organizing! Shocking I know. Seems like I’m always working on some get tidy project. I’ve come to realize, sadly, that it’s never a one-off event. Life, kids, stuff happens & the organized spaces of our lives get jumbled again. I can deal with that. One of my motivations for what I’ve been working on lately has been the upcoming 30 Days of Creativity that I am taking part in. It begins on June 1st & entails creating something everyday for 30 days. I am very excited about it. I really needed to get my yarn, thread, pens, pencils, beads, paints & other art/craft supplies in order so that I can create without stressing about finding stuff. That being said, my house has been a mess for the past few days as I get everything out & dump it on the living room floor & sort through it. It’s actually been really inspiring – I’ve got lots of ideas. Hopefully I have at least 30 of them.

It’s rainy here today. That’s ok – more time indoors to get things tidy. I’m wearing a super casual outfit & it’s very comfy. I pinned my top with a Scottish clan pin that I got at a yard sale years ago. That put me in a Scottish frame of mind so I wore my tartan flats. And for some reason, the tartan made me want to wear feathers!

I received this ring for free! It came from Anika Burke Eclectic Boutique. It was a free giveaway via one of my favourite style blogs, Coffee & A Cardigan. I love free stuff & the ring is super fun. I’ll definitely be checking out more of the stuff at Anika Burke when my spending fast ends.

Shrug: Ross
Dress: Old Navy
Jeans: 2BWY
Shoes: Torrid
Ring: Anika Burke
Earrings: ?
Pin: Yard Sale
Headband: H&M


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My Sister Knows Me So Well

A couple of years ago, my sister picked up some fabulous fabric for me at a thrift store. She knew that I would love it. There was a decent amount of it, so I knew I could make a dress out of it. It’s bright, bold & full of polyester goodness. Definitely not a summertime fabric, but it is wonderful.

A few months ago, I finally got around to making a dress out of it. I found an A-line, modish pattern & went for it. Sadly I cut it way too big & then cut it too short. So it’s taken some time to make it wearable. I added some cotton lace at the bottom to compensate for the short length & had to take it in quite a bit. It’s still not exactly right, the shoulders need some work. But I do love it. Super fun. I love that clothes can take you to a different era.

Dress: Made by Me – fabric thrifted
Leggings: Fred Meyer
Shoes: Blowfish – Gimmik
Necklace: Thrifted
Ring: New Zealand Dollar Store
Sunglasses: Ross


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Mashed Potatoes for Breakfast? Yes, Please.

I LOVE mashed potatoes, I really do. One of my all-time favourite foods. I’m always in charge of the mashed potatoes at Christmas & Thanksgiving. I can’t state it strongly enough, I love mashed potatoes. So while perusing Pinterest, when I came across this recipe, I was anxious to try it.

I don’t have a cast iron muffin pan & the last time I cooked hash browns in a muffin tin, it took a lot of work to clean the pan. That being the case, I used muffin liners for this recipe. It meant that the potatoes didn’t crisp up much, but it was worth it for easy clean up.

I added bacon because everything is better with bacon & I mixed the eggs rather than having a whole egg in each space. I also added grated cheese to the mashed potatoes.

Overall a good recipe. My youngest son loved them! And really, bacon & mashed potatoes for breakfast – it’s all good!

For details of this challenge, click here.


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I Like Rain

I really do. I don’t like uninterrupted rain for weeks on end, but I do love rain. I’ve lived in tropical countries where the thunderstorms are in intense, fast & sometimes scary. I lived in London where it was sometimes drizzily & would last all day. I lived for a time in Tacoma, Washington – again kind of drizzly. I love it all! Now I live in Bend, Oregon where it’s pretty much sunny or snowy. This Spring we’ve had quite a bit of rain, which is a bit unusual. It’s been lovely.

Today we were scheduled for more yard work. We have a big project underway & neither Colin or I are really into it, but we know it’s good & necessary. Anyway, when we got up it was raining! So I said, “No yard work today!” We all breathed a sigh of relief. Yet another reason to love the rain! So I cleaned my room instead.

Sweater: Walmart
Shorts: Source of Wisdom
Leggings: Target
Boots: Ross
Ring: H&M
Earrings: Forever 21
Umbrella: Target


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I Woke Up in the Wrong Decade

But I’m very happy to be here. I need to find a DeLorean powered by garbage to take a ride in.  The 50s were such a great time for glamour, music, clothes, hairstyles. I so wish I had my Mom’s clothes & amazing beehives.

Top: Walmart
Skirt: Source of Wisdom
Leggings: Fred Meyer
Shoes: Blowfish – Gimmik
Scarf: Thrifted
Sunglasses/Glasses: ?


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Perfect Park Day

Bright sun, not too hot, not too cold, gentle breeze. All these things meant we just had to go to the park. Jude rode his scooter part of the way, but mostly it was me pulling the wagon with both boys in it. Let me tell you, 70+ pounds of boy is a lot to pull – makes for a good workout. I also didn’t wear the shoes I wore in my photos. They’re pretty comfortable, but not THAT comfortable.

I seriously need to take some time & put together a bunch of outfits, and not just in my head – actually trying them on. This whole trying to figure it out in five minutes in the morning isn’t working too well. This outfit was about the fourth I tried on today. Happy with the result, but could have done with the extra time. I’m also really into brooches lately – looking for different ways to wear them.

Sweater: Walmart
Skirt: Torrid
Leggings: Target
Shoes: Torrid
Headband: Ross
Brooch: ?