DIY Pallet Herb Garden.

Fresh herbs are such a happy and fragrant addition to the kitchen. I've been wanting to get some potted herbs for awhile, mostly because I have the perfect little window sill just screaming for an herb garden. After getting this pallet-looking crate box from Michaels for Maxson's pirate party, I was stumped on how to use it somewhere in the house and not send it to my decor graveyard (aka the garage). Then, I realized four mason jars fit perfectly inside of it, and that's where my herb garden idea was born. This project is super simple, yet gives a very charming and upscale vibe. Anyone can do this! No craftiness necessary.

What You'll Need:

-four mason jars

-raw wood crate (bought at Michaels; $12 retail price but I used a 40% off coupon)

-stain of your choice (I used Minwax stain in Jacobean)

-four 4" herb planters of your choice. (I got oregano, basil, rosemary, and sage.)

What To Do:

 1. Stain your box and let dry completely. I really liked the Jacobean I chose because it gave it a nice, old-looking finish that really makes it look like pallet wood.

2. One at a time, pull your herb out of the pot and loosen the roots. Gently put each one into a mason jar and fill with extra dirt from the pot, if necessary.

3. Place all the jars in your box and water them.

4. Place in your kitchen and marvel at the charm and life it brings to it!

easy, right?!

four reasons you need a denim jacket.

Denim jackets have been popping up all over lately. I must admit, I was really skeptical at first of participating in this trend--mostly because I'm a teenager of the "aughts" (that's what they call 2000-2009, right?) and the denim jacket for me epitomizes fashion of junior high and high school. I was so not interested in getting a denim jacket that looked American Eagle circa 2002. But I've seen them worn in so many chic, cute and unexpected ways lately and so I went on the hunt for the perfect one that didn't conjure memories of puberty. Because who wants to dwell on that, am I right?

On a day last week when my kids and I were going stir crazy, I loaded them in the car and headed to Fashion Island in Newport Beach to walk around and window shop. Let me just say, that shopping center has the best  Forever 21 I've ever been to. It's huge and clean and isn't full of their really young, grungy/tween clothes. My eyes zeroed in on this jacket and I knew I had found the one. It's dark wash, stretchy, light-weight, a little cropped, not too boxy...the list goes on and on. They only had an XS, and usually I size up to a medium in tops at Forever 21 because otherwise everything is a crop-top. But I think this jacket runs big because the XS fits perfectly. I've seriously been wearing this sucker non-stop since I got it. I love it.

Now, four reasons you need one too: 

Simple and Summery

Tee: H&M

Necklace: Forever 21

Shorts: Downeast

Sandals: Target

Layered over a striped tee and worn with shorts, the denim jacket completes and otherwise basic and simple outfit. 

Dressy-Casual

Dress: Target

Necklace: Forever 21

Sandals: Target

An easy jersey dress looks really put together when paired with a monochrome bubble necklace and completed with the denim jacket. This look could be worn anywhere from church, to the park, to running errands.

Date Night 

Jeweled Top: Topshop

Skinnies: Citizens of Humanity via Nordstrom Rack

Shoes: H&M

Paired with black skinnies, the jacket could look really 90's. But when you add modern, pointed-toe loafers and a super embellished tee, it looks and feels current. It has just enough sparkle and edge to be great for a casual date.

Boho-Chic

Skirt: Made by me

Earrings: Made by my 9 year old sister

Ring: Charlotte Russe 

Arrow bracelet: Forever 21

Shoes: Steven by Steve Madden via TJ Maxx

Buttoned up and worn with a maxi and some 70's inspired sandals, it gives you a boho, free spirit look without being too baggy or unflattering. (which is what usually turns me off from wearing boho looks.) 

So what do you think? Have I convinced you? I'd love to know your thoughts on the trend!

Cozy Baby Fashion.

My Zellie girl has almost officially dropped her naps. Insert deep sigh here. I'm lucky if she goes down for more than half an hour anymore! For the first few days of this, she seemed pretty crabby without her naps, but now she seems well-rested and ready to play, play, play without downtime. I feel totally unprepared to have a toddler who doesn't nap. Moms, is this a little girl thing? Do they just not sleep as much? Maxson continues to take 2-3 hour naps, even at three years old. 

In any case, no naps have meant a lot more mommy-daughter time. We are enjoying finding new things to do around the house that won't wake brother up. Mostly, we go right outside and explore. She's come to expect it: brother goes to bed and she exclaims, "OUSIDE!" while tugging on my leg. We grab a smoothie popsicle, or even just an ice cube, and go to the backyard where we color pictures with chalk, point out the airplanes, dig in the dirt, and chase the puppy. Music is mandatory. Dance parties usually ensue. 

While I find myself complaining of this new no-nap policy, afternoons with my girl are pretty good.

ice cube in hand.

"airpane!"

"dance!"//"puppy!"

(two of her favorite things.)

on Zellie:

neon pink old navy tee//thrifted legging capris//old navy sandals//easy top-knot

Also, I've decided to dress Zellie in clothes that are more comfortable for her. She's a no-fuss kinda gal and hates when she has too much going on with her clothes, so I'm starting a little series on cozy baby fashion! We can dress our kids in clothes that are still cute and trendy, but easy for the little ones to run and play in too!

Thanks for reading!

Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting | {aka the best cupcakes you'll ever make.}

As promised, I'm back today to share with you the amazingly delicious cupcakes I made for my son's birthday party last weekend. Seriously, I've never made better cupcakes than these. They are incredibly moist, yet super light and fluffy. And anything salted caramel is automatically a winner in my books! I promise you won't be let down by these! This is one of those recipes I plan on keeping around for a long time in anticipation of everyone requesting them for their birthdays. I'll warn you right away before you start reading the recipe, there are some ingredients I was hesitant using. I am usually a 100% made-from-scratch kinda gal, but I decided to give them a go anyways because they sounded so yummy. I modified the original recipe including swapping melted butter for vegetable oil and omitting chocolate chips and vanilla to make them a little less sweet; the original recipe is linked at the bottom. The frosting recipe is one I compiled from a few different sources and made it my own.

Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting

Cupcakes:

-One box Devil's Food cake mix

-1 small box Jello Chocolate Fudge instant pudding mix

-4 eggs

-1 stick melted butter

-1/2 cup milk

-1 cup sour cream

Salted Caramel Frosting:

-1 stick of butter, cubed

-1 cup dark brown sugar

-1/4 cup heavy cream

-1 tsp vanilla extract

-1/2 tsp salt

-2 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar

-sprinkle of coarse salt (i.e. sea salt or kosher salt) optional

NOTE: DOUBLE THIS RECIPE IF YOU'RE DOING THE FULL CUPCAKE RECIPE LISTED. THIS ONLY MAKES ENOUGH FROSTING FOR A DOZEN CUPCAKES.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line two 12-cupcake pans with liners and set aside.

2. Combine all ingredients under "cupcakes" category in your stand mixer or in a large bowl with electric beaters and beat for 2 minutes or until very well combined.

3. Using a 1/4 cup measuring spoon, scoop the batter into the cupcake liners. For me, this yielded 22 cupcakes.

3. Bake for 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from the tin and place on a cooling rack. Let cool completely before frosting.

I mean, how pretty are these even without frosting?!

4. Once cooled, frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with coarse salt. You can also garnish with a pretzel (which is what I did), in which case extra salt won't be necessary since the pretzels have coarse salt on them.

Frosting (while cupcakes are cooling):

1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. 

2. Once melted, add the brown sugar and cream and mix with a whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Add salt and vanilla and mix. Let the mixture come to a simmer and let it bubble for exactly 2 minutes. Seriously, set a timer. Remove from heat and let cool. Once cooled, add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time until the frosting is the consistency you are looking for.

resist the temptation to eat the entire batch right out of this pan. Or not, and triple the recipe :)

fudge cupcakes here; frosting recipe is my own. please link back to this post if you use the frosting recipe. 

P.S. This post wouldn't be complete if I didn't wish my little Maxson boy the happiest 3rd birthday! I'm seriously so lucky to get to be his mama. What an amazing day three years ago was--he made me a mama and for that I have been eternally changed for the better. I love you big moon five, sweet angel!!

An Old-World Pirate Party

My little boy Maxson turns three this week! I can't believe how fast time goes. He is such a fun and vivacious little guy, his personality just kills me. One of his favorite things to pretend to be is a pirate. He loves them! So when the time came to plan his birthday party, I knew a pirate party would make his day.

There's a lot of cheesy pirate stuff out there, and I'm not one to get what everyone else has, so I was determined not to just go the party store and buy all of their pirate birthday stuff. Instead, I gathered stuff I found from the thrift store, made what I couldn't thrift, and the end result was chic and old-world--but still pleasing for my three year old!

I started off with my trademark pennant banner. I wanted something that felt old-world, had yellows and blues, and wasn't too masculine or feminine. The Indie Chic line from My Minds Eye was perfect! I love that the papers in the pad all coordinated so well; I could have chosen any of the papers in any order and I would have looked just as good. Totally fool-proof!

 I also added a tassel garland to add an extra layer and texture. Silver and gold to symbolize pirate treasure!

I found this awesome boat at salvation army the day before the party. I was so worried the pirate theme wouldn't come through strong enough, but then this boat pulled it all together! And Maxson absolutely    loves it so it's on the shelf in his room now.

I had gotten this little chest at the craft store forever ago with the intention of creating a jewelry box out of it. That project never happened, so I used it as a treasure chest for napkins instead. A little stain took the raw wood and gave it an aged feel.

I found this rad jar at Salvation Army and filled it with sand and treasure. I also added a runner of burlap and a stained crate from the craft store flipped upside-down as a cupcake stand.

While we're on the topic of cupcakes...

I seriously made the best homemade cupcakes ever. I have the recipe coming tomorrow! Chocolate fudge with salted caramel frosting and a pretzel garnish. I put pirate sails I got from this printable to reinforce the theme. 

I set up a "treasure dig" for the kids and it was a big hit! It kept them entertained for the majority of the party.

The whole spread: fresh fruit, peppers and dip, kale salad, and grilled hamburgers and hot dogs.

And cupcakes, of course.

And of course, I have to leave it on this picture. The joy in this little boy's face made all the planning and work totally worth it. 

I love you Maxson! I can't believe you are three. I'm so thankful to get to be your mom!

P.S. Come back tomorrow for the most delicious cupcakes you'll ever make!

Grandma's Lasagna

I don't know about you, but I love learning family recipes from other people's families. I think our grandmas and great-grandmas made food that was so comforting and homey and I just love to recreate that in my own kitchen. Because of this, I wanted to share with you my grandma's lasagna recipe. I've never tasted lasagna better than this, and my mom and aunt both make it all the time at family gatherings and I can't get enough. I make it several times a year, and just recently nailed it. I think the love required in making this lasagna from scratch makes all the difference in the taste.




My Grandma's Lasagna

Ingredients

Sauce:
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
3 cloves garlic
1 T dried parsley
1 T dried basil
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce

Cottage Cheese Mixture:
2 lb carton cottage cheese
2 eggs
1/2 t pepper
1/4 cup fresh parsley or 2 tsp dried

2 Lbs shredded mozzarella cheese

12 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained


Directions
1. Cook ground beef until brown and drain. Add all ingredients under "sauce" category and simmer on low while noodles are boiling.

2. While beef is cooking and noodles are boiling, combine all ingredients under "cottage cheese mixture" category in a medium bowl and set aside.

3. In a 9x13" baking pan, layer ingredients thusly:

1. Noodles
2. Thin layer of sauce mixture
3. Thin layer of mozzarella
4. Thin layer of cottage cheese mixture
5. Repeat 1-4
6. Finish with a layer of mozzarella over the top.

Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes, or until cheese on top is bubbly and browned and lasagna is set. Serve with garlic bread and salad.

 Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy this as much as my family does!

Bold Florals with Merricks Art

A couple of months ago, before I moved to California and was just visiting, I made time to go to the famed Fabric District in L.A. While I was there, I found this amazing silk fabric with a large scale floral print. I was instantly obsessed and there was no way I could choose which I liked best. Luckily, it was only $2 a yard(!) so I got both. I told Merrick I would pick her up some fabric if I found anything amazing, so I gave her the pick of which she wanted--thus taking away the agonizing decision of which I liked best! I ended up with the blush rose version and I absolutely love it.

It was really fun to see how we each envisioned our fabrics! I went for a basic blouse that wears like a T-shirt but seems dressy because it is silk, and Merrick did an adorable and hi-low dress with her fabric that also feels casual but is easily dressed up too. This fabric feels so luxurious and I love that it is as fancy or as everyday as you want it to be.

shirt: me

tank: target

skinnies: citizens via anthropologie

flats: thrifted sam edelmans

bag: vintage coach (thrifted)

bracelet: forever21

I styled this blouse very casual here, but I also love to wear it with my white blazer and a big chunky necklace and heels for date night!

What I Did:

1. Traced a pattern from a blouse I have from forever21.

2. Folded the sleeves in and cut around like pictured. Cut out two pieces like this, then modified the front piece to give it a scoop neck.

3. pinned right sides together and sewed up the sides and across the shoulders.

4. Cut out the sleeve pieces. Pinned and pressed and sewed arm holes. Attached to the blouse.

5. Fold, pin, press neck hem and bottom hems. Zig Zag stitched inside seams to give it a finished look.

It really is just a basic shirt, but when I wear it it looks like I put more effort into getting dressed than I actually did! I totally recommend doing this if you find a cheap silk!

Head on over to Merricks blog for the full tutorial on her amazing hi-low dress!

Thanks for reading!