ST. PATTY'S IS A HOLIDAY TOO!

If you know us at all, you know that holidays are a big deal in our house and just because St. Patrick's day is a fairly small holiday that is often passed over doesn't mean you can't decorate! There are 'things and stuff' that can be done for even the most obscure holiday's!

We like to decorate our bannister for the holidays. It is easy to do, doesn't take a lot of time or energy, but it makes the entry fun and inviting. I just used stuff this year that I picked up at the grocery store.

A green glitter derby, a feather boa and mardi-gras beads combine with a variety of ribbon to create a St. Patrick's day garland.


When we remodeled our kitchen this year (I know... I haven't posted the new kitchen yet) I put in cabinets above the new wet bar that could display all of our fun holiday theme collections. Everything in the cupboard is not St. Patrick's day but it is amazing when you start looking around how many things you own that can be combined into a 'themed' collection.


Lighting the inside of the cabinets and using glass shelves allows you to showcase a collection.


Yes, these are really Christmas angels... I just missed them when I was cleaning up after the holiday. Now they are St. Patty's angels! After all, the medallion says "Kiss me, I'm Irish". Now you can kiss me under the mistletoe!


Shamrock's on the front porch welcome visitors! The large shamrock is cut from Masonite, the smaller shamrocks are from the dollar store. I painted the spots on them to make them look like they all go together.


May the luck of the Irish be yours!

WHAT'S FOR DINNER TONIGHT? #1

So, I was browsing through Pinterest the other day and saw a recipe on SimplyReem.com for Japanese Soba noodles that looked amazing so I decided to try it out. It didn't just look amazing, it was amazing. I made some additions and changes to the original recipe for my family but it was defiantly a "do again"! You should try it out... the recipe is below.

SOBA NOODLES WITH SWEET GINGER SCALLION SAUCE
2 12 oz. packages of Soba Noodles
4 TBSP sesame seeds lightly toasted
1 cucumber thinly jullienned
Lime wedges
2 chicken breasts, baked or grilled, thinly sliced ( I added this for protein)

FOR SAUCE
2 bunches of scallions finely chopped to make 2 cups
2 TBSP minced ginger
4 eggs, scrambled (I also added this because I like eggs in Pad Thai)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 TBSP minced garlic (adjust to your taste)
6 TBSP oil (like peanut or grape seed)
4 tsp chili oil
2 TBSP soy sauce
4 TBSP rice vinegar
4 TBSP honey

METHOD
Mix all ingredients for the sauce in a bowl and set aside for 10-15 minutes to let the flavors develop. The soy takes the moisture out of the scallions and creates a really nice sauce.
Boil the Soba noodles per the package instructions.
Add the sauce and sesame seeds to the noodles and toss well.
Plate the noodles up into individual servings. Top with slices of chicken, julienne cucumber and a couple wedges of lime.

This recipe is good served hot or cold.

Fresh ingredients add to the flavor of good food! Let me know what you think!

I'M BAAAACK!!

Get ready for a new and improved blog! Maybe I will actually give my results from "The Great Sugar Cookie" adventure!

COMING SOON!!!