Let Them Eat Pasta

My Aunt Sarah came up with that title...she's so witty! :)

So, I wanted to share this little gem that is partially inspired by Pinterest but put into action by an instagrammer I follow.

Have you all seen the "One Pot Pasta" recipe floating around on Pinterest?

I have the awful habit of being an I'm-gonna-pin-it-but-I'll-never-try-it kind of gal.

However, when I saw that my Instagram friend had tried it and given instructions I was a woman on a mission.
And ermagerd!!!!!
Magic in a pot. 

I tried it for the first time last week to figure it out and see if I needed to change anything.

And it's a good thing I did!

The little tweaks I made to the recipe made it sooooo much better.

Here's what you need:

12 oz. of linguine (one normal-sized box)

4 cups of chicken broth (I used a 32 oz. container)

2 14.5 oz. cans of diced tomatoes with the juice

2 TBSP olive oil

garlic to taste (which means I used 4 heaping spoonfuls)

4 sprigs of basil leaves chopped or torn

2 TBSP red pepper flakes

1 TPSP oregano

1 medium onion sliced thinly

**optional**

chicken breast

parmesan cheese

I put all the dry stuff in first.

The first time I made this I put the items in as I came to them...bad choice.

The noodles sat in the liquid as I was chopping the onion and such and became a gooey, sticky mess.

They were clumped together in the most unattractive manner.

I added the wet stuff right before turning the burner on.

Bring it to a boil uncovered.

Once boiling, cover and lower to a simmer.

Simmer for 15 - 20 minutes stirring occasionally.

I cooked it for 15 this time because I wanted the noodles more al dente than the last time. 

**Optional**

I baked some chicken while I was cooking the pasta to round out the meal.

I put sea salt and pepper on it before cooking.

Doesn't that look good???!!!

The broth, tomato juice and olive oil create a light, yummy sauce.

Garnish with parmesan cheese if you so choose.

It was pretty awesome to hear Handsome Husband mumbling, "So good!!" while he was eating.

Let me know if you try it!

Laters,

Mrs. B

The Nursery Has Begun to Become...

This whole baby thing-a-ma-jig is starting to get more real.

For one thing, I think that my belly bulge is starting to become more baby than residual I-shoulda-worked-out-more gut.

For another, I painted the room that will be the baby's nursery!

I am in LOVE with the color I picked.

I wanted to go a little outside the box with whatever was chosen.

A BIG thanks to Julie Bergdall of Red Door Design for helping me pick the color!!!

We are not finding out the gender of our child, so it had to be neutral.

However, I did not want to go with the old standbys...you know...grey, yellow, green, etc.

While this color may not be neutral to some, it goes with so many more colors that even I thought.

We will be accenting with rich colors like dark grey, rich red, navy blue, yellow, and white.

Here's the before:

The grey wasn't bad or anything, I just wasn't feeling it for the nursery since I know that I want to use grey as an accent color.

This color is called Breaktime by Sherwin Williams.

It's a compromise for both Handsome Husband and me.

His favorite color is blue while mine is green.

It brightens the room and makes me want to put the whole dang nursery together now!

However, Handsome Husband and I rent our house out during Notre Dame's football season and we need this room for some revenue for a while yet.  :)

Here's the list of to-dos for this room:

paint walls

hang curtains

set up crib

sand and paint trim

find an area rug

wall art

pillows and other decorations

replace ceiling fan with one with a light

replace outlets and light switch with white ones

crochet a blanket (or five) for the room

We've got a way to go, but plenty of time!

Laters!

Mrs. B

As for a little side-note...I will NEVER paint with another paint ever ever EVER again.

I have used Sherwin Williams' paint plus primer for the living room and nursery and have been blown away.

The dark wall in the living room needed two coats while the others only need ONE!!

The same thing for the nursery!!

It is quality, quality, quality.

LOVE!

Pencil Sharpener Envy

Ho-kay...

Sharpening loads of pencils everyday is the bane of my very existence.

I have to do it since my kiddos have already destroyed one sharpener.

However, I keep reading about this awesome pencil sharpener.

And, luckily enough, Saddle up for Second Grade is doing a giveaway featuring this very sharpener!

It's a dream come true!

So, I am keeping my fingers crossed that I win this sharpener!

Go ahead...enter yourself!

Laters!

Mrs. B

Dressing Up My Drawers

Don't worry!

I'm not talking undies in this post.

I'm talking the wonders of how consignment furniture + a little paint and tlc = a fanabulous new piece.

I found this little number for $50 at a local store.

It has great bones, but the color just doesn't cut it for my eyeballs or my kitchen.

My kitchen is white and tan with some pops of color.

This color was too washed out.

So, with the help of the ever-so-wonderful Julie Bergdall of Red Door Designs I picked Rave Red by Sherwin Williams.

Since I wanted the paint to have a bit more durability I used Sherwin Williams' latex enamel paint. 

(FYI...make sure that if you use this kind the person mixing your paint double, triple, quadruple checks the tint.  It took 4 tries to get the color right, but we did!!)

I reused the original handles.

I spray-painted them using Valspar black in gloss.

I am in LOVE with the result!

Doesn't it just POP??!!

I can't wait to get my paint-covered hands on something else!

Laters,

Mrs. B

High 5 For Friday!

Fridays don't have quite the same appeal during the summer as they do during the school year.

They simply mark that the school year is that much closer!!!

Boo.

Oh well!

Here are my top 5 from this week:

(top row, l to r)

1)  Handsome Husband and I took his parents dogs on a long walk the other day.

It was absolutely GORGEOUS!

The only problemo was that kinda stinky dogs + close quarters in the car + pregnant woman = the pregnant woman hanging out the window while moving...not the dogs.

I may have to drive separately next time...blech!

2)  I have been finding some GREAT furniture at consignment stores and garage sales this summer.

I got around to painting this dresser this week.

When it's done it will go in our kitchen to house towels, placemats, potholders, etc.

I LOVE the color.  

It really pops in our kitchen.

3)  Handsome Husband and I F.I.N.A.L.L.Y. got around to eating our wedding cake topper.

We completely forgot last year, so second anniversary it was.

It was still sooooo good.

I definitely recommend Mrs. T's Bakery for your wedding cake and other occasions.

(bottom row, l to r)

4)  I painted the future nursery this week!

The color is Breaktime by Sherwin Williams.

I love the color.

It's neutral without being grey, yellow or green.

5)  I moved my dresser while painting and found the message that my mom had "written" to me when we painted the dresser after we rescued it from the side of the road way back when.

I love finding old memories like that.

6)  Handsome Husband ADORED his anniversary meal.

We went to a local restaurant where he ordered the "Sword of John Adams".

It consisted of a ribeye, quarter chicken, and small rack of ribs.

So cool!

(I love the look on his face!!!)

I hope your week was great, too!

Check out other posts here.

Laters,

Mrs. B

Stepping Stones

Each summer the lovely Donna Jo hosts a stepping stone party at her home.

It is a blast!

Here are the photos from this year's get-together:

April

John being John.

I really love this little orange stool!

My momma

Leighbert

I LOVE this photo of my mom.

She thought she was hilarious or something and I clicked at just the right time.

Mom again.

Some of the stones laid out before the concrete was poured.

John sitting pretty.

My stone from this year...I love the mirrors.

This is such a fun, creative activity!

I am so grateful that Donna is willing to host and feed us all on these mornings.

I can't wait to see what I come up with next year!

Laters,

Mrs. B

Vacation Photo Dump

So, I think I've pretty well established that when my mind and body begin summer vacation...so does my blog.

I had every intention of still blogging 5 days a week and keeping things updated.

Welp, we all know how that turned out.

I just didn't feel like I was doing anything "blog worthy".

Plus, this growing a human thing takes it right outta me.

Here are some of the pictures from my camera taken on our vacation...

Lake Michigan

Niagara Falls

In Maine with the family...

Johnathon

Riley

Mom and Riley

Reece

This kid was BORN with muscles...

A gorgeous picture of my mom.

Handsome Husband doing some light reading while cooling off...

and listing to one side. :)

Visiting the veterans cemetery where my Memere and Pepere are buried.

(Grandma and Grandpa on my mom's side.)

If we have a little girl her middle name will be Josephine after Pepere.

Some pictures taken in mom's friend Sandy's garden

So, even though I was blog-absent I was definitely life-present.

The month of June was filled with visiting Michigan, South Carolina, Michigan again, Canada and Maine.

Whew!

What did you do this summer?

Laters!

Mrs. B

P.S.  I can't stinking believe that I am starting school TWO WEEKS FROM TODAY!

I'M NOT READY!!

WAHHHHH!