Holiday Brie

{image from Simply Hue}

Baked Holiday Brie...Sounds delightful!
serves 4-6

1 brie cheese round (about 8 oz)
1 T maple syrup
1/4 c fresh cranberries, chopped
2 t fresh thyme leaves
1/2 t grated orange peel

Preheat oven to 400F. Place brie on a baking sheet. Pour maple syrup
over top, and add cranberries. Sprinkle with thyme and orange peel.
Place in oven and bake 25-30 minutes, until brie is soft when cut.
Serve immediately with your favorite crackers.

xo

Hostess with the Mostess

Where has this blog been hiding all my life?!?! Who doesn't adore entertaining? I mean, I might throw a party every weekend if the budget and schedule allowed for it. I always way over-stress before one, but love it at the same time! This site has all essentials for putting on the perfect little soiree...party themes, party boards, recipes, entertaining tips (and cute ones at that). This may just become a new daily read for this lady.

xo~
"Hostess with the Mostess" voted by my PHS senior class ;)

Kissing Tree

She is a phtographer. Her name is Elizabeth Messina, and she's based out of California. I have been sitting here ooooing and awwing over her website and blog! Her work is absolutely stunning in every sense of the word. And after looking further into her pictures, quite a few celebs were spotted, including...Brooke Shields & baby, Jason Priestly & baby, Tori and Dean & baby, Jeri Ryan wedding. Everything about her photographs are alluring and angelic.

As I start approaching 2010, and my news years resolution of digging into photography, I am loving being drawn into all the brilliant work caputured by others.

European Vacation

High fashion, shopping, site-seeing galore, tourists, language barriers, wine during the afternoon, mopeds & scooters, an abundance of outdoor dining, lights, yummy treats, history...and on and on.

Ahhh...who wouldn't want to surround themselves with this. I have been encountering this rather large itch to go back overseas again. And I find myself throughout the day periodically daydreaming of excuses to go, looking up airfare, hotels and trying to figure out how on earth I could possibly make this work for 2010! Italy and Paris are among the top choices at the moment. I mean, you only live once, right??!! Here's to hoping for a five day miracle....

Fa-La-La-La-La

Last night we did my most favorite thing to do during the holiday season...pick out and decorate our Christmas tree!!! It was a little bit of an adventure finding it, as it took us three tree "farms" for us to find the perfect one! By the time it got in the house and set-up it was late, but I poured myself a nice glass of red vino, turned on Sounds of the Season and decorated away!! I loved my sis's message after I sent her a picture of it all finished..."You just bought it less than two hours ago and its already decorated?!?!?! Holy smokes." Val...of course it's decorated!!!
We did however have to re-introduce Duke to the tree, and inform him that if he dare touch those ornaments that are at his level, Mom and Dad would NOT be happy campers. Let's hope he got the message ;)

Tomorrow night we're hosting our annual Christmas Soiree, so lots of cleaning and cooking is to be had before then!

Cheers to the holidays!! xo

Winter Staple

LOVE LOVE LOVE these leggings! After having my eye on them for a while, I decided to take the plunge on Black Friday. I found them at a local boutique here in Raleigh, where luckily they were having a sale on the entire store. I have a feeling I'm going to be sporting these everyday when we go to Telluride, with my NF Boots!

{David Lerner leggings}

Ultimate Giveaway

Check out http://www.fantabulouslyfrugal.com/ for the ultimate giveaway this holiday season!!! I don't usually sign-up for these because I NEVER win....but here's to hoping this year :)

Thankful

I'm a little late with my Thanksgiving post, but what a great week last week was. I have so much to be thankful for in my life, and was extremely blessed that I got to spend our first Thanksgiving in our home together with family and friends!! It was so great having my Mom in town to help us celebrate! Though we missed and were thinking about those that we couldn't spend it with. I was sooo glad I got up early that morning to walk with Julie in the Turkey Trot 8k benefiting the MS Society (one that is very meaningful to our family), because after all the food I ate that day, it made me feel a little less guilty for indulging.

{preparing our first bird}

{the final product...so delish}

{table decor}

{Blair and her amazing pumpkin pie!!}

Furniture Shopping

Matt was finally given the "OK" by his doc to ditch the crutches and his leg brace just before Thanksgiving, so we decided to venture out of the house to search for furniture for our basement. We realized that it was time to part with the 30+ year old couch, and after drving up and down Glenwood Ave. (furniture haven here in Raleigh), we had success. After one loveseat, one coffee table, one ottoman and two chairs later...we called it a day! Here's some pics of the final product...minus carpet (that's next).

The Man Cave

Here is the finished product of our most recent house project...our basement!! It was only partially finished, and well, since Matt grew up in NJ almost all houses have basements. This is where he frequented most in his house. So, it quickly moved up top on his list of things to complete. I was a little skeptical because of what he was labeling it as....see title. However, I'm pretty much sure at this point as soon as we have a functioning TV, I'll be down there as well. And just ignore the awesome teal floors...they are getting replaced with carpet, hopefully this weekend!!

{BEFORE pics}



{AFTER pics...furniture & decorating is still left to be done}



{our little helper!}

Photography

So last week officially began a new venture in my life. I started my first PHOTOGRAPHY class! It's a six-week course at our local tech school, that will teach me some of the secrets to better photography. I'm so excited!

I have always LOVED pictures, and typically don't go anywhere without my camera. It's such a fabulous way of catching every special moment in your life and being able to reflect on that for years to come. I guess it's only been up until recently where I really started developing a fasicnation for it and looking at it through a whole different light. I have found myself spending a great deal of time browsing blog after blog to see the different techniques, all at the same time while trying to gain my own ideas and develop my personal style.

I sometimes look back at my life and think about the things I wish I would have done, and lately I've been looking ahead thinking about the things that I would like to do...and should do, because it's never too late.

I'm so ready and motivated to dig right into this new adventure I can hardly stand it. Stay tuned!! xo

I'm baaack...

and hopefully this time for good. Not quite sure why the long hiatus, but things have just been busy I guess. Everytime I sit down to write, I get side-tracked, so hopefully now it's been long enough that the creative juices will get flowing again :) Stay tuned as my most FAVORITE time of year is coming up...which means lots of pictures, recipes, fashion fixes, stories and holiday cheer to share! xo

Run like the wind...

That is what I will mentally be telling myself a week from Sunday! I can't believe race time is almost a week away, and I feel soo unprepared. I am going for my 'first' long-run on Saturday morning with a friend, and have no clue what to expect. I can probably guess not much! I am WAY behind on the banwagon of training this go around. But I figure I've got about 4 days before we leave next week for the Outer Banks to get in a few good runs and exercise. I ran my first one last year in Nashville, and what an amazing experience it was! So I'm hoping for that same adrenaline rush to help carry me through all 13.1 miles this time around...including a bridge at mile 9 that's 82 feet high! Here's a couple pics from last year...

beach life = the good life

This past weekend we were at our final wedding of the year! It was a fantastic time, but I am glad to finally be able to slow down a little now. We were back in the Outer Banks, not too far from where our wedding was, and it was so fun to be back there. The weather was absolutely perfect for this time of year, which meant we were poolside every day! I finally have a "slight" tan going on again, but I'm sure will quickly fade. I got up early one morning and ventured out to the beach to try and sneek in a few artistic shots...so enjoy!

the MANSION we stayed in...all 36 of us

calm ocean
so in love with the sea grass

Matt and I
OBX wild horses
the bride in this amazing setting

Delicious Fall Recipes

Toffee Apple Dip:

Ingredients:


(1) 8 oz block of cream cheese

(1) containter of caramel apple dip (found in the produce section)

(1) bag of toffee pieces with chocolate OR (2) crushed Heath Bars

Sliced Apples OR Graham Crackers


What to Do:


-In a pie dish, spread the cream cheese to cover the bottom
-Top with the caramel sauce
-Top with toffee pieces
-Serve with sliced apples or graham crackers

The Great White Pumpkin Cheese Ball: (a friend just sent this to me, and it looks muy delicioso!)...can also be substituted as a wreath for Christmas, adjust directions accordingly

Ingredients:

(2) 10 oz blocks of Extra Sharp White Cheddar Cheese, shredded

(1) 8 oz package cream cheese, softened

(2) 4 oz goat cheese logs, softened

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Braided pretzel, muscadine vine and leaf

Crackers and assorted vegetables

What to Do:

-Stir together first 4 ingredients.
-Shape mixture into a ball to resemble a pumpkin (or wreath for Christmas). Smooth pumpkin's entire surface with metal spatula or table knife. Make vertical grooves in ball, if desired, using fingertips.
-Press pretzel into top of cheese ball to resemble a pumpkin stem; place muscadine vine and leaf beside pretzel.
-Serve with crackers and assorted vegetables.

Homemade Chili

Well, I think Raleigh got it's first dose of COLD weather over the weekend! I personally, LOVED it!! I always find that this time of year I get really gitty. There's just something about the air, cool weather, leaves changing and everything else fall/winter related. Since the temps took a turn downward, we decided to make a big pot of chili. Except this time, Matt decided to take the challenge on himself. I had a meeting to go to last night, so when I came home, it was simmering on the stove. And I must say, it tasted pretty good. It could've been a little sweeter, but otherwise, not too shabby. Dummy me forgot to take a picture of the finish product all served up in the bowl, but not to worry...this is only a taste of chili season in our house...yum yum :)

{I know the pictures look a little un-appetizing, but I can asure you, it's delish!}

"Simone" Booties

Finally, my new Sam Edelman booties arrived via Zappos over the weekend! Not only are they pretty comfortable, the price was "fairly" comfy for my wallet as well. I use the term loosely because it's been hard to find a pair of these that haven't been $200 plus! But these look super cute with tights and a dress/skirt for the fall-winter season, and I'm sure will become a new staple in my wardrobe.

Download of the Week

Train "Hey Soul Sister"

This song has been on repeat on my Ipod this past week. GREAT running jam!

Home Sweet Home...

at least this weekend we are. We're finally home for a weekend, with absolutely nothing planned and I can't wait! Well, Matt has a work function tonight, so I decided to treat myself to a "Ginger massage" after work. Now, I rarely do this, but my neck has been giving me fits for a few weeks now, and M refuses to rub my shoulders...so I said screw it ;) Tomorrow I plan to make my test run of Mama C's delicious Chili recipe (pics to come later)...yum yum!! Gotta make sure it's good and ready for Halloween's chimnea night! I'm also hoping to get a little organzied...the closests and bedrooms need it desperately. Oh-and we're also going to try and venture out to see 'Couples Retreat'! I have heard it's laugh out loud funny, and ever since the movie trailer came out we've been dying to see it.

Happy Weekend!! xo

The hubby...

Well this week has been quite the adventure in the Coltrera household. Matt had more bad luck this week while playing in a soccer game Tuesday night. He took another hit to his knee, but this time much worse. Say a little prayer for him today as he has an MRI this afternoon to confirm if what the doctor said yesterday is true. He more than likely has torn his ACL, broken some bone off the area and tore his meniscus. Whew...yeah, you can imagine he has been in quite a bit of pain. It's been like a three-ringed circus in our house, because not only are we dealing with a lab puppy who has been couped up, but we are also dog sitting my sisters two pugs! So lots of excitement. But let's just hope it's not as bad as we think, otherwise someone is not going to be a happy camper if the doc tells him that skiing is not an option when we go to Telluride in February...
Back later with an update.

Mountains

Well, I think I am finally recovered from this past weekends wedding festivities! It was quite the weekend filled with lots of tears and laughter. It was the picture perfect setting for a wedding bringing two great people together. My sister looked beautiful...and Jack looked quite handsome. They were both so happy, and truely enjoyed themselves. How could you not, being surrounded by beauty like this with your closest family and friends. Thursday night was the "Meet & Greet", which was a fun time and somehow turned into Matt getting behind the bar serving "Firefly" shots to everyone...scary! Then Friday afternoon was the Bridesmaids luncheon, overlooking the beautimous mountain ranges and Friday night was the Rehearsal and Rehearsal dinner. Everything was outside, which was lovely! And of course, Saturday was the BIG DAY. Unfortunately the weather was not in our favor, but things worked out just fine. The new Mr. and Mrs. Sprague throroughly enjoyed themselves, and it truly showed. Here's a few highlights from the weekend..