All That Glitters is Gold

I know this is what you've all been waiting for...

The Glitter wall!!

How awesome is it?

I love it so much.  It's mesmerizing.  

When Nick picked up the can of Craig & Rose Gold Glitter Glaze 

I was worried my worst fears had been confirmed...

(that Nick has Elton John, homosexual tendencies...)

But this glitter is so pretty I don't care!

Even if it looks like we hired Tinkerbell as our interior designer!!

I tried to capture it in different lights for the full affect.  

My favorite is when there is just a dim light in the room. 

It makes the whole room feel like its glowing.

Do you want to glitter a wall in your house now?  I bet you do!

Here are a few tips from your resident glitter expert (me)

• The instructions said, use a foam roller.  I did not.  But I should have.  Follow directions!  I used a regular roller, and it turned out blotchy.
• Because no one wants blotchy glitter, if you screw this up like me use a paint brush in haphazard crisscross strokes to achieve a better all over glittery finish.
• If you're not lazy just use a brush for the whole wall.  This worked best.
• Test your glitter out in different lights and different times of day.  This will reveal patchiness where you need to add more glitter!

Do you love it?  I love it.

7 Days 7 Dos

Eeeek I have so much to share with you guys lately!  

I've been gettin REALLY busy so you'll probably be tired of my post overload in a minute!

I finished another Day Zero task last week!

Task : Don't wear my hair in a bun for a week straight.

Why: I have SO much hair.

Lately I've been wondering why I have so much 

if all I ever do is put it straight up into a bun.

It's actually a lot of work.

And I was trying to answer the question - 

Is it time to take the plunge and cut it all off again?

To start we have what Nick likes to call my "Princess Leia" look.

Though personally I think it is more of a Heidi (not the dog!) look.

For day 2 we have a lions mane look, 

with a hint of the Donald Trump comb over for good measure.

Day 3 is the old classic, some up some down.  

But at this point I look mostly downsie.

Day 4 is what my little sister called my "soiled housewife" look 

when we were skyping.

Nice.  It's very popular in England right now.  

Still not sure if I think it's cute or I look like a total goober.

Day 5 is a reoccurring some up some down theme,

 but my curls have been enhanced with an iron.  

Definitely a tried and true classic.

Day 6 is missing because I was slightly hung over and on a train all day.  

But it was a side braid - if you must know.

Lastly we have Day 7, a French braid finished off in a messy bun.

I can assure you it wasn't quite so messy at the start of the day.

Oh well!

I still can't decide whether the hair is here to stay,

But I do know that a haircut and some bangs need to be happening in my near future.

Possibly highlights.  

Eeek anyways one more task done!

And thanks to Nick for taking most of these pics.

I have a whole new respect for fashion bloggers who work with their bfs now!

H20 - vember Comes to a Close

Today is the last day of what I have been calling H20-vember.  

One of my Day Zero List goals was to drink ONLY water for a month.

Why would I put on such a stupid goal?

After a month sans kitchen, eating a bunch of crap and picking up habits from my juice drinking husband, my skin was BAD.  

Well not that bad, cuz I generally have alright skin, 

but as bad as it was in high school.

And pimples are NOT a good look for anybody, are they?

Secondly, how many stupid calories was I consuming 

from drinking orange juice and worse - the dreaded...

 tea with 2 sugars please??

Well I'll tell you it was far too many.

Hi, I'm Kelly and I'm a serial yo-yo dieter.  Truth.

Drinking only water for a month was part of my plan to start a small change in my diet, 

that was manageable and perhaps could help me establish more of a

lifestyle change than a "diet."

A way of eating that would leave me feeling 

happy, healthy, confident in my own skin,

and without the urge to do crazy fad diets.

So here is my skin now... courtesy of accidently zooming in while taking selfies yesterday....

For no makeup and no retouching it's pretty good if I do say so myself!  

I'll admit I made a few exceptions to my H20 - vember rules.

1. I could drink herbal tea as long as no milk or sugar was added.
2. I could drink alcohol at Ed and Keeley's wedding.
3. I could drink a glass of wine at our Thanksgiving feast.
4. I had one peppermint mocha, which was technically cheating, but I so needed it! 

So obviously, I wasn't perfect.  

But sometimes life isn't about being perfect.  

Baby steps can make big changes in the end.

What baby steps have you taken recently?

ps.  I have been using Lush products on my face recently, which are also making it fabulous.

Winter Wonderland Fun!

I had the most fabulous day today!

We've been getting a couple little taste testers of snow, 

but this morning we woke up to the real deal.

Luckily, (or unluckily) today was my first day of funemployment again

 after my 5 week stint of being temporarily employed, but to be honest, 

I couldn't have had a better day!

I bundled up and the Doodle and I had the most beautiful winter wonderland walk.  

Nick warned me not to bring my camera 

because I'd probably fall and drop it and break it.  

I told him I've never fallen in the woods and I just couldn't resist... 

I just had to share it with you!  

Note: I got bulldozed over by a huge boxer dog Heidi was playing with.  

I fell and I hit my head pretty hard, don't worry I'm fine, but karma is a bitch, no?

I'm sorry I always take pictures of my dog, but she is a pretty good model.  

And by good model I mean I've taught her to sit and stay....

The rest of the day I went back to my Martha Stewart ways.

 I've been cooking up a delicious storm.  More on that later.  

Also the carpet fitters came today, which means our house seems half livable!  

I've never been so excited about carpet in my life.  

And I painted the bedroom wall with glitter!!!  

I promise to share all these things soon.  Ahhhh the cliffhangers!

Hope your day was plenty fun too!

Gobble Gobble... Gullible!

Spending the Holidays away from home and your family is always hard.  And to be honest I didn't have high hopes for this Thanksgiving at all.  I was pretty bummed about the fact that Nick and I were both working so we couldn't really even attempt to celebrate.

On Wednesday night before Thanksgiving Nick and I went grocery shopping after work - STARVING.  Not a good idea.  We pretty much bought everything in the entire store, times two.  Our cab driver on the way home even asked us if we "had a big family"... Umm.... no we're just hungry - LAY OFF!

So anyways Thursday night I was on my way home and Nick calls me and says he is on the bus just ahead of me, and asked me what I was making for dinner tonight.  Umm husband you'll be home before me!  Maybe perhaps you could cook with the plethora of food we bought the previous night????  So he tells me he will make his "special" pasta, which I don't really think is special at all I mean it's essentially a glorified version of spaghetti and I thought considering we spent like two week's worth of my minimum wage salary on exotic ingredients at the supermarket the night before he could come up with something a little tastier.  So I sat on the bus in a foul mood wondering what it was about marriage that suddenly makes your better half turn deaf, dumb, and blind....  (did I mention earlier in the week he thought someone stole our vacuum?  I told him it was in the guest room, but it took him like 2 hours to find it!  It is a big vacuum.  soooo blind!)

Anyways I get home after a long bus ride of stewing and brewing these nasty thoughts... and I walk in the door to find this....

And since we're being honest, I'll admit that I burst into tears.  

Which really confused him, but they were happy tears.  

And then he appeared with this...

A vegetarian nut roast... and I think I cried again. 

 But then I stopped crying and we sat down to this delicious meal...

I am generally pretty easy to surprise, but I couldn't believe this.  

He took the afternoon off work to come home and cook me a Thanksgiving feast.

It was definitely delicious, but it's also the thought that counts right? 

I don't usually go for that kind of bullshit, but this meant everything to me.

I am SO thankful to have found him...  

In an AOL chat room in September 2001.

It's a Christian chat room, Mom! ;)

I swear he's not a pedo, Dad!

See, we all turned out alright!

Hope you all had very good Thanksgivings too!

ps.  Check that nut roast recipe out, it was soooo effing good!

Breakfast at Tiffany's Tuesdays : Pumpkin Pie

With Thanksgiving just around the corner I am sure you are making lots of pumpkin inspired desserts!  Yum!  But what to do when you bust open a can of pumpkin and the recipe only requires a cup's worth and you have a bunch left over???

Well friends, I got the answer for you!  It's Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal... 

and it's as easy as PIE. Go figure.

Get yourself a bowl and just throw some oatmeal, your leftover pumpkin puree, a spoonful of brown sugar, a shake of cinnamon and a pinch of salt.  Cover with just enough boiling water, and mix.

Maybe throw in some extra pumpkin seeds for a little crunch if you feel so inclined.  I'm such a pumpkin lover so you know I think it's delish.  I am loving the versatility of oatmeal these days.  I feel like my day is so much better when I have a good hearty breakfast.  It just starts everything out right. 

Are you breakfast eaters or breakfast skippers?

A Little Wedding Magic

We had such a fun weekend!  

Saturday morning we had an early start and took a very long train ride 

down south for a beautiful British wedding! 

Such excited newly weds!

Look at the groom in his morning suit - soooo british right?  

Beautiful old stone church.

Big white tent reception.

Nick is friend's with the groom, Ed, from college where they studied technical theater.

He sure didn't skimp on the lighting design for the wedding!

Oh hey and there's us.

How cute are they?

Welcome to married life Keeley and Ed!

ps.  Remember the other day when I said the groom had his eyebrow shaved off?  Yeah well understandably the bride was a little pissed off, so what do you do when you work in theater and are missing an eyebrow before your wedding day?  Call in the make up artist from Harry Potter of course!  Yep that is why both his eyebrows look intact, what a great story huh!

Double Birthday Madness

Yesterday was Heidi AND Nick's Birthday!  

Woo hooo double birthday fabulosity!  

I tried to make it Nick's best birthday ever.  

I'm pretty sure his ideal wife is an all singing, all dancing type of domestic/career goddess who gets up in the morning before him, runs him a bubble bath, cooks him breakfast and sends him out the door with a kiss.  Then this woman goes to work making lots of $£$£$£ but not more than him, and manages to cook him dinner and keep an impeccable house at the same time.  

She also irons his shirts.  

Clearly, this is NOT me.  But hey, for one day I can try right...?

At 7:00 am the alarm went off and I jumped out of bed to put these in the oven...

Pumpkin cinnamon buns... mmmm....

While they were cooking I whipped up some icing AND ran him a bubble bath 

(perfect japanese housewife - no?  fyi our current house does NOT have a shower)

After we had breakfast he put on a well ironed shirt and headed out the door with this... 

A pretty sloppy looking Carrot Cake,
and I'll never know if it tasted any good since his colleagues ate it all, 

but considering the fact there is 1.5 pounds of powdered sugar and 2 packs of cream cheese in the icing alone - I'm guessing it tasted alright....

After he went out to work I decorated the house and wrapped his present. 

 Unfortunately, at noon I got a call from the restaurant I was trying to make reservations at to let me know there was no room at the inn.  

boo.  

Massive wife fail.  

We did go out to eat but the food was wack.  

Hello restaurants of Sheffield - why do you all suck?

I thought I'd finally managed to get him a present he'd actually like that was a complete surprise...

but when I gave it to him, he held it for a minute and asked if I got him a tent.

Yes that would be it. 

Do you think that counts as a surprise?  

Because getting him a surprise bday present that he likes is on my bucket list -

 and I don't know if I succeeded or not.

This picture makes me laugh...

Oh there we go Doodle, now you can see!  

She's not allowed on the couch because she is always dirty and couches aren't washable like sheets are, 

but she is convinced that she should be allowed on the couch, 

and we didn't have the heart to kick her off / miss the photo opp.  

Besides, it was her first birthday afterall!

Sideways puppy kisses!

I love this little dog sooo much.  

And I love him too.

Even if we do take the most god awful selfies together... 

Those cinnamon buns appear to have been stuck straight to my chin.

Oh well, enjoy my doobler, internet. 

If only Heidi had a keen eye for photography and opposing thumbs - 

I swear were really not that unattractive of a couple.

Well that's all folks.  

I know I skimped on Heidi in favor of Nick, 

but truth be told she didn't actually know it was her birthday.  

I plan on fixing her up some pupcakes on Monday though.  

I hope you have a fabulous weekend!  

We're off to a wedding tomorrow morning which is sure to be fun!

A Fall Weekend Photos and Flavors

Hi Friends,

How was your weekend?  I know it's Tuesday but it feels like Monday to me because I don't work on Mondays.  My weekend was fabulous and very busy. Nick went away for the weekend to a rowdy bachelor party, he came back intact, but the groom is missing an eyebrow!  They get married this weekend - how mad would you be?!  I would be soo mad!

The Doodle and I had a much less crazy girls weekend enjoying a little much needed sunshine.

And playing with lots of friends.  New and old....

This is Heidi's new friend Chili.  

I really liked the way she matched the fall colors.

Such a model, no?

I also did lots of DIY and cleaning and baking!

Like this delicious loaf...

You should definitely try this New York times No Knead bread recipe - right now.  

So easy to fit into your day, and whats better than fresh bread?

Nothing else can make your house smell that good.

I've been getting SO busy in the kitchen this week.  

I can't wait to show you what I've been making, 

but its a birthday surprise so I can't reveal it just yet!

It's Heidi and Nick's birthday on Thursday.

I'm sooo excited!

More on that later, but rest assured, Thursday will be mouth wateringly delicious!

Things That Make Me Happy : Starbucks

Confession : I'm not that good at being a wife.  It took me about a year to figure out that being married wasn't just a state of being, like being alive or breathing.  But being married is a skill.  It's something you have to learn how to do.  Like sharing or algebra.  And I'm learning.  Sometimes I think maybe I'm learning too slowly.  I get tired of compromise and collaboration.  And considering Nick and I were dating long distance for 8 years, it's no surprise that some days I miss my independence.

Yesterday I threw a temper tantrum.  To be honest I was just tired of having another person infiltrate all of my being.  I just wanted to not have to ask questions like...

"What do YOU want for dinner?"

"Can WE go to bed now?"

"When are you going to do that DIY project that

I've been nagging you about for a week so we can stop living in chaos? 

Or answer questions like...

"Have you done the laundry?"

"Have you ironed my shirts?"

"Where is my ____ ?"

And then there is the always looming even bigger question -

When can I peace out of this country?  

Because God knows if it wasn't for this (big shiny) ring on my finger I would have done so SO long ago.
In fact, are long distance marriages possible?  And do people judge you for that?  Because I met someone on Thursday whose wife lived in DC and he worked at the University and I couldn't help but wonder if that is the best or the worst relationship ever...

Long story short: I went to bed in a horrible mood, and then I couldn't sleep because I was in a horrible mood, so I was in an even worse mood in the morning.  All of these things being my fault.  Plus I was REALLY tired.

Then I passed Starbucks, which is the point of this post, I'm trying to identify 100 things that make me happy for Day Zero.  And I would like to say  - Starbucks, you make me happy.

This freestyle is for you.

Starbucks, you warm my cold fingers.
I like the way that peppermint mocha lingers...
On the tip of my tongue, that caffeine's got me sprung.
Elizabeth and James, we think the same.
A delicious mocha, twins come on ova.
Mary Kate is great, but I think Ashley is more like me...

Gee.. I really feel cooler when holding this recycled tree.
Just sippin on a latte, walking through the fray.
Whatever country I'm in - in each Starbucks that I have been,
Everything is the same,
and while some hipsters think that is LAME
I totally disagree, you see
Because even in England,
you look the same as my main S-bucks location,
in my homeland, a great nation.
It is a good thing I must say
to have a place where I can go on any given day,
That doesn't feel so foreign.

I hope you enjoyed my rhymes.  Anyways after my Starbucks I felt much better and called Nick and apologized for my temper tantrum.  This is the truth.  I'm lucky he holds no grudge.  Someday I'll be a good wife.  I just wonder how many soy peppermint mocha latte's later?

ps.  If my obscure pop culture references were lost on you MK and A like Starbucks.  And I like MK and A.  Hope you are having a good Friday! 

Dani's First Half Marathon

Hi Friends,

I just wanted to tell you about my pretty sister, Dani. The tall tan one.

I mean, my mom and Lizzie are pretty too, but I wanted to tell you about Dani.

Dani was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis this year.  It's a disease in which your immune system attacks your colon, resulting in painful ulcers in your intestines.  It's not a very nice thing.  She has to go to the doctor a lot now and the steroids she is on to treat it don't work very well, plus they make her gain weight - every girls worst nightmare right?

Well anyways she is running a half marathon in Las Vegas in December, for Team Challenge - an organization that fund raises for crohns and colitis.  I really wish I could run with her, to support her ( read : party in vegas with her...) and because it's on my bucket list!  But unfortunately I can't be there.  

She is so close to reaching her fundraising goal, but she needs about $200 more.  So I told her I would enlist the help of the lovely people of the blogosphere.  If you feel inclined to donate a lil something something to help my sister and to help find a cure for her disease, you can do so on her fundraising page.

I know she'd appreciate any tips from you hardcore runners out there as well!  This is her first half marathon!  Thanks guys!

Breakfast at Tiffany's Tuesdays : Orange Juice in My Oatmeal

Yes that's right, Breakfast at Tiffany's Tuesdays is back and better than ever!  And I have a fantastic recipe for you today... I was inspired to make this while watching River Cottage, and I am hooked.  I don't think orange juice oatmeal is the technical term for it, but that's what I'm calling it.  It's pretty forgiving and you can tailor it to your own liking, but here is my favorite way to eat it.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup oatmeal
• 1/2 cup orange juice - give or take
• 1 apple, grated
• 2 dried dates
• 2 dried figs
• 1 spoonful of toasted almonds
• 1 Total with Honey

Mix grated apple with oatmeal and orange juice, so the consistency looks something like this...

At this point it's best if you leave it to sit for awhile, so I usually go take a shower and get ready while the oatmeal is soaking up the OJ.  You can even make it overnight and leave it in the fridge for the morning, but Lord knows I'm never that well prepared....

Next take it out of the fridge and sprinkle with nuts and dried fruit.  Then top with yogurt and drizzle with honey. 

 I liked how convenient the Total Greek Yogurt with Honey was for making this -the prepackaged portions mean I can't get too heavy handed with the honey, which my chubby little self has the tendency to do.

The best part about this breakfast is it's not only delicious, but the combination of oatmeal, fruit, nuts, and yogurt gives you the protein and fiber combination you need to feel full until lunch time.  And for those of you that are vegan, it tastes equally good without the yogurt and honey, but in my experience it doesn't keep me feeling as satisfied for as long.  I know this recipe may sound a little funny, but I think you'll love it!  Go on - give it a try!

ps.  Thanks to the nice people at Total for supplying me with this delicious creamy Greek yogurt!  I have so much of it I'm sure it will turn up in recipes later on in the week..

Wedding Fashion

Yesterday while running errands I mentioned I purchased this dress for a wedding...

From Mint Velvet.

I think it's pretty cute, but I'm struggling with styling it. 

So I was just wondering, my fashion savy blogging pals, 

how would you style it for a late November wedding? 

The only definite I have so far is I need to buy a belt,

and I will probably wear a chunky gold flower necklace with it.

Also, it is likely to be rainy and cold.  

So I am thinking tights?

Totally not sure about shoes or coat.

Help!

French Onion Soup - A Delightful Kitchen Fail

Friends I am back in the kitchen!  On Saturday I spent the day slaving away over a delicious French Onion Soup, which I saw on Closet Cooking earlier in the week.

It looked so delectable, and we had a plethora of onions from our Riverford Organic vegetable box left over from the week since I don't really cook with onions too frequently.  Let me tell you, this soup was a labor of love - blood, sweat and tears all went into the making of this French classic.

I got to work on Saturday morning cutting up 4 pounds of the things. This is where the blood and tears came into to play - I cut myself and duh onions make you cry.

I didn't want to start the soup making process just then, so I popped them in the fridge for a bit.  When I went back a few hours later, the smell had permeated our entire kitchen.  Nice little foreshadowing of things to come.

The onions take about 2-3 hours to caramelize, and need to be stirred every 15 minutes.  Like I said labor of love right?  By that point our whole house smelled of onions.  I followed Kevin's recipe exactly, (except I replaced beef stock with vegetable stock) and soon I ended up with this....

The crusty french bread, the melted emmental, oh boy, my mouth is watering just thinking about it.  It was simply perfect for a crisp fall lazy weekend dinner.  So perfect in fact, I went back for seconds.  Nick on the other hand, was not feeling well, and only ate a tiny bit.

Now you may think the review of this soup should end there, and maybe some of you more sensitive types should stop reading now, but if I were to recommend for you to make this soup I feel like I would be doing you a huge disservice.  Yes I know I said it was good and I went back for seconds and yes that gooey cheese may be calling your name, but don't do it.

You see by 6am the following morning I woke myself up with a thundering case of the French Onion Soup Dutch oven.  When my darling husband awoke to the putrid lingering smell of my onion puffs, he had to immediately remove himself from the same room as me.  I'm not sure even my dog wanted to be around me.

I had many errands to run on Sunday, but my French Onion shame nearly left me housebound.  In the end I decided that the show must go on and I didn't have time to be embarrassed, so I did go out.  One of my tasks was to get a dress to wear to a wedding, and let this be a public apology to the fitting room assistant.  Darling, that je ne sais quoi you smelled, that was me.

What came first, the soup that made the French man smell, or the smelly Frenchmen that the soup was named after?  I may never know.  But I do know that the leftovers of this labor of love were thrown out by my husband who said, "If you love me, you will never make this soup again."

Trust me, je t'aime, baby.