this weekend...

This weekend we have so much going on.  It's one of those perfect holiday weekends where the whole thing is a celebration of all the people we love.  Tonight we'll head for Charleston, the college town where we used to live because Darrell's little brother (well, I suppose OUR brother now)is graduating.  So excited to see him walk across the stage - I'm a sentimental one so I love stuff like that.  

Tomorrow after the morning's events we'll head back to St. Louis because we are hosting our annual Christmas party.  I suppose I can call it annual because we hosted one last year as well, except this year is even better, because I recruited a partner in crime to help.  Right now it's difficult to get to the yogurt in my fridge because it's stuffed full of champagne.  

A few of my favorite things this week:

this hairstyle looks easy and adorable

a heck of a deal on some beautiful mint julep cups

my dining room table isn't my favorite right now - i've got a nice inexpensive one picked out to replace it, but wouldn't it be amazing to have a little nook like this?

love this beautiful arrangement for a christmas party, and they have these for a few bucks at Trader Joe's right now!  

finally did this in our bathroom and I'm loving it - our bathtub has ugly blue tile all around it and this is the perfect solution

tis the season - incredible fruit crumble

Before you read on to the recipe for this pan of deliciousness, I feel as though I should let you know that it is a big deal I am sharing this with the universe.  This is my one true, fail-safe, pleases anybody and everybody recipe for the best dessert I ever have and ever will make.  If it's a holiday, it doubles as breakfast.   It can be made gluten free.  It can be made vegan.  It's incredibly hard to believe I found this  recipe in an old issue of Glamour Magazine (article titled "20 things every woman should know how to cook" or something like that...) but I did.  

It's always been sort of my secret recipe, but I got to thinking, why keep secrets?  It's Christmas, and this just screams Christmas to me.  So um, here's my Christmas gift to the internet!  

TOPPING

1/2 cup flour (use bob's red mill all-purpose gluten free flour here if gluten free)

1/4 cup rolled oats (use bob's red mill certified gluten free oats here if gluten free)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. kosher salt - don't skimp on this, i may even go a tsp.  the salty/sweet thing is the best part about this crumble

10 tbsp. chilled butter or earth balance, cut into small bits

1 cup chopped pecans

FRUIT FILLING

4 cups fresh fruit (i like a mix of raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries, but just peaches, or peaches and blueberries, or just apples would be great here.  okay anything goes, you get the idea.  whatever you do, DO NOT use frozen fruit.  it'll be all kinds of watery if you do.)

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 tbsp corn starch

pinch of salt

1.Preheat oven to 375°F. Place first 6 ingredients in food processor and pulse to combine.

2.Add butter and pulse 6 to 8 times until mixture has pea-size pieces of butter mixed in. Toss in pecans and pulse a few times to chop. Refrigerate in a bowl for 15 minutes.

3.In a large bowl, combine fruit, sugar, corn starch and salt, folding them together. Place in a round pie dish or 9x9 baking dish.

4.Sprinkle chilled topping over fruit. Bake until fruit is bubbly and top is golden, 35 to 45 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving (best with vanilla ice cream!). Makes 6 servings.

wishes & wants/cable knit socks

There are about a hundred picture of cable knit socks like this all over the internet, and yet I seem totally unable to actually find them to buy!  Anyone want to let me in on the secret of who sells these cozy things, or (as i presume to be the case) are people ACTUALLY knitting them??

never truer words...

first world problems

It has been one.  of.  those. weeks.  

Mostly in relation to my car.  Which, to some people, would not be much of an annoyance at all.  I, however, drive frequently if not every single day and pretty much feel like I can't accomplish anything without being able to drive.  

Here's a little breakdown: 

Sunday the 25th I get hit by somebody not looking where they're going in a parking lot.  Car still drive-able, so we move on with life and pray that the insurance company sees reason and calls it their fault.  Still waiting...

Tuesday the 27th I'm driving back from working out of town all day and I get a flat tire.  In a town where there's just been a bank robbery, and the robber is on foot, and he's still not been caught, but sure has been spotted right by where I break down.  I wait terrified with the doors locked until my sainted father-in-law and brother-in-law come to change my tires.  Praise the lord I married into a family with lots of handy men!  

Thursday the 29th I go out to my car and it's totally dead.  I get jumped by my parents a few hours later, because luckily they were in town on business, so then I go to the shop and buy a new tire to replace the spare.  

Today, December 4th, I wake up and my car won't start but makes a funny buzzing noise.  I need a new battery, an oil change, and a new filter.  

Lots of money later (our poor emergency fund...) I think I'll spit on my car if anything else goes wrong with it but I am strangely unstressed.  

I mean, talk about first world problems.  If anything, all kinds of stuff going wrong with my car just shows me how awesome all my people are.  

Because when my car got hit Sunday, Darrell made me hot chocolate and just cuddled with me all night because he wanted me to smile.  

And when my tire went flat Jimmy & Dylan came to the rescue right away, smiles on their faces, and let me sit in the warm car while they fixed it.  

My Mom picked me up for work the next day because she didn't want me to drive on the spare.  

My Dad & Mom jumped my car when it died, and he had no time to have breakfast because of it but he came out anyways.  

My job was just fine with my being late to work today because of my car trouble.  

So I think, for now, I'll just get over all my problems because they aren't really that big.  

I'll realize that stuff happens, and I should just be grateful I could afford to fix the "stuff."

I'll say a little prayer of thanks for all the awesome people in my life.  

And maybe while I'm watching "New Girl" tonight, I'll re-sign up for AAA.