treasures...

Wedding_0043
Originally uploaded by jengardner

We just got a new printer and I discovered, much to my delight that it is also a scanner. So, inspired by all the love this Valentine's Day, I got out our wedding photos and scanned them all! I've been wanting to do this forever...

Here's my favorite.

happy valentine's day.

So, since everyone knows that chocolate and Valentine's Day go together perfectly...I wanted to share the BEST chocolate cookie recipe in the whole world. I got it from the blog of one of my dearest friends who is also something of a gourmet cook in my book. But be forewarned, if you don't care for chocolate, you will not like these cookies. They are made with dark chocolate chips and are amazingly rich. I make them at least once a month, much to the chagrin of my four year old who despises chocolate (I know, I know, something went horribly amiss in the gene pool there...)

restoration hardware kitchen.

Restoration Hardware - Shop By Room

I just LOVE this kitchen...especially the reclaimed wood island.

make you own...

photo

With three sons, I've been going through baby wipes like there's no tomorrow, and they're not cheap. Lately, several of my friends have been making their own (and raving about how great they are), so I thought I'd find a recipe and try them out soon. I need to run to the natural food store to get some of the ingredients (I think I might try some organic baby wash and essential oil in mine...either lavender or tea tree oil). And here's a link to a tutorial on how to make the lovely wipe case cover shown above...to put your homemade wipes in...

photo

I also ran across this recipe for home-made deodorant on a great little blog I just discovered. I've (unsuccessfully) tried several all-natural deodorants before because I've heard the aluminum that is in EVERY anti-perspirant is not good for you. So I think I will whip this up and see if it works. It's made with coconut oil, so it has to smell pretty good...

love this home.

I found these photos of a home in Brussels, Belgium that I LOVE on a design blog today. The whole house is done in shades of off-white, with touches of buttery yellow and sea-foam green. The owners have an amazing assortment of antique furniture like this hutch and farm table in the kitchen...

The kitchen is my favorite room...the owners used old library shelving, complete with ladder, to house their beautiful stoneware and dishes (hate to think how dusty those dishes get, though...)

The library is beautiful as well, looks like the same shelving. I just LOVE the sparsely treated wood on the ceilings and floor and the airy french doors. I'm imagining that they open to a lovely garden that smells like lavender...

The entryway is a bit more formal, but still feels very welcoming to me thanks to that lovely, warm, yellow color...

And lastly, the bathroom, which has a little green in it...I love green, especially when it's understated like this.

I'll have to incorporate some of this design style into my own home, It feels old and homey, but fresh at the same time. I could live in this house. But it's not too kid friendly, I would imagine...

make your own grocery totes...

I have decided to start posting links to blogs, etc. that I am enjoying every now and then to my page. I rarely actually get to do projects, or even update my blog, and it seems to me that one of the greatest things about blogging is sharing the wealth of amazingly creative ideas that are out there. So here is a link to a tutorial from this blog for these sweet recycled grocery totes. I would just love to make these...sometime...

mom's pancakes.

You know those recipes that your mom makes, that you totally take for granted when you are a little kid? And then you grow up, and one day you remember that wonderful...well, whatever...that your mom made and you just have to call her for the recipe? Well, last week I resurrected my mom's pancake recipe. I have actually had the recipe for a while, but haven't ever made it. I guess I overestimate the difficulty of getting out ALL those dry ingredients. That, and I never seem to have buttermilk on hand. But last week, I just happened to have the perfect amount of buttermilk and the overwhelming desire to eat some of my mom's pancakes. They were just as good as I remembered...

Here is the recipe:

Mom's Half Whole Wheat Buttermilk Pancakes

• 2 cups flour (1 cup white/1 cup whole wheat)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons oil

1. Sift together dry ingredients in large bowl, mix wet ingredients in smaller bowl and combine, mixing well.
2. Pour by 1/4 to 1/2 cup onto hot, buttered griddle (I usually have mine around 300-350, I think). Cook until bubbles on top pop, then flip and cook until browned on opposite side.
3. Top with whatever you want and enjoy! These can be frozen and reheated in the toaster.