puff daddy

Last weekend, I wanted to make something new for breakfast. A while ago, I'd been watching the Barefoot Contessa and she whipped up some oven pancakes {also known as Dutch babies or German pancakes}. They puffed over the side of gratin dishes, turning golden brown and delicious-looking. A few days later, I stumbled upon this puffed pancake recipe and decided it was time to make them myself.

They were simple and delicious. And Mark was happy to wake up to a made-from-scratch breakfast before we headed out for the day.

If you don't have a pie pan, try a cast-iron skillet.

Top with a little butter, sprinkle on some powdered sugar, add some strawberries and maple syrup, if you please.

fresh spring meal

Inspired by our successful Easter meal on Sunday {check out my baking disaster},  Mark and I spent some more time in the kitchen last night. We whipped up some delicious, light and healthy turkey lettuce wraps for dinner - perfect for spring.

When we first started dating, Mark would make me the most amazing meals {it's no secret that my culinary skills are firmly planted in the world of baking}. As we grew in our relationship and tried making meals together, it was usually a disaster, where I would end up in tears and he would be fuming. We would always get in each other's way and on each other's nerves.

Maybe we're still in the honeymoon phase, or maybe we've just learned how to work better together, but we've become a really good team in the kitchen. I'm a much better cook than ever before and now creating meals is always quick and easy!

It was the first time we've made this recipe, and although we'll be making a few tweaks next time {like a little less Chinese five-spice} we polished off the entire dish.

I always like a good shortcut in the kitchen, and for this recipe we used ready rice cups. One cup is the perfect size for the recipe. 

Another thing I like? Substitutions. Mostly because I always forget to pick up at least one ingredient when I'm at the grocery store. This time I forgot to get a fresh bottle of sesame oil, so we substituted stir fry oil.

We topped off each wrap with freshly shredded carrot, julienned basil {for Mark} and a mix of sweet chili and soy sauces.

Pure perfection. 

a post about love, and about a blog about love

I've been reading lots about love and marriage lately. Not sure why these things keep popping up on my radar, but they have been, so I'm embracing the knowledge being showered upon me.

One of my favorite bits of advice is to hang out without other couples {double dates!}. Experts {i.e. authors I've been reading} say that you can learn a lot from your friends' relationships. Watch how they interact - do they hold hands? Are they quick to apologize to each other? Are they polite to one another? Even if they're having a not-so-wonderful night, you can learn from that, too - how not to act, perhaps. Either way, it can strengthen your relationship, and it's fun to spend time with friends!

Another thing I've learned? Appreciate the little things. And make sure your partner knows you appreciate and love them.

One of my new favorite blogs - A Blog About Love - posted on that very thing recently. It's too good not to share with you. While in the story, the author had originally written the advice as six things to always say to your spouse, I think it's applicable to your friends and maybe even yourself, too.

~via~

a sweet six months

Today marks six months of marriage for Mark and me. Hooray! To celebrate, I visited our wedding website and watched the save the date video Mark created. I love it and it always makes me smile.

Check it out here.

~photo from our amazing photographers~

a sweet little note

When Mark is away, I love to send him cards. Just little reminders that I'm thinking of him, missing him and wishing he was here with me. I have a good collection to choose from - big ones, small ones, sweet ones, funny ones - but my favorites are always from Papyrus.

They are cute, creative and always come with a matching envelope liner. It's the little things that make a difference, don't you think?

Thankfully, Papyrus cards are readily available at my Target, so whenever I'm there, I swing by the card section and see if there's anything special.

weekend recap

This weekend was hectic, but we're {nearly} all moved in to our new home.  And in between the madness, we still managed to have some fun {Friday night, I went to a little dive bar with my friend, Diana, to see her boyfriend's band play while Mark had hockey games two nights in a row}.

~officially changed my last name at the social security building in downtown phoenix~

~painting the inside of the pantry a dark grey~

~my handy dad {along with mark} painting one of our guest rooms a lovely lavender~

~good morning! the view from my bedroom~

interior inspiration

Remember when I mentioned that Mark and I were looking to buy a house and get married and go on a honeymoon? Well, we are officially married, had a crazy honeymoon and now own our first home together! We're in the process of really putting our stamp on it {fun before-and-afters coming soon!}, but marrying our two styles is tough. We're obsessively watching HGTV and searching for projects and advice on DIY websites.

A few nights ago, while watching House Hunters International - a personal favorite - a commercial for Ethan Allen popped up. I remember Ethan Allen being the store full of the stuffy classic furniture that fills my parents sitting room {you know, the sofas you don't actually sit on but once a year}, but things have changed. I checked out their website, took a fun Signature style quiz and found some great inspiration.

~romance~

PS: I made Mark take the quiz, too. Not surprisingly, his style is modern. Mine is a mix between romance and vintage - I took it a couple of times.

~modern for mark~

~vintage~

~elegance~

~explorer~

Which is your favorite style? And how do you mix up two styles to create one seamless look?

mad for missoni

The launch of Missoni for Target was crazy! Websites crashed, stores sold out, fighting fashionistas were spotted. All I wanted were these ballet flats...and I'm happy to say my nearest store had a pair!

I also picked up a few other treasures. Mark laughed when I showed him..."You really are obsessed with chevron."

~plates, pillow, towel, makeup bags~

speaking of weddings...

A few wonderful things came in the mail yesterday {i love getting packages...} but the most wonderful was a wedding gift from two of Mark's friends in Canada. The surprise was carefully packed in paper and sealed with a Papyrus hummingbird sticker {i'm obsessed with their cards, so this detail really got me excited for what could be inside}. And what was inside?

Our wedding invitation.

Mounted in a matching blue-gray frame and mat.

What a perfect wedding gift! It's so personal and romantic. I cannot wait to hang it alongside our engagement and wedding photos in our new home. It's going to look amazing - just wait.

a surprise proposal

Who doesn't love an amazing proposal? Girls dream of how, when and where the man of their dreams will ask them to be his forever. But can you imagine being this girl?

The amazing two-part proposal below was created, choreographed and coordinated by Mark's cousin, Markwell. I wish I could have been there to see it first-hand, but I'm so glad he and his friends captured it.

Congratulations!

the perfect long weekend

We spent our Labor Day weekend relaxing in the pines of Northern Arizona with my folks. They have a cozy cottage 30 minutes outside of Payson and it's just perfect. We checked out an arts and craft fair, ate tons of good food, watched movies and made s'mores.

~in downtown Pine~

~he wanted so badly to win~

~the pepper jelly lady~

~i got a freshly squeezed lemonade and tossed some of Mark's strawberry flavored shave ice - instant strawberry lemonade!~

~the creek near my parents place~

A long weekend worth of happy hearts and happy tummies.

if you can't take the heat...

I tried to set fire to my kitchen the other night. Not on purpose, of course. And actually, it was a joint effort - I couldn't have done it without my husband.

We like to cook dinner together, testing out recipes {although most of the time, I serve as his sous chef - I am the baker, after all} and enjoying the fruits of our labor. So it stands to reason that we'd like to start a kitchen fire together.

Here's the scene : I came home late from work and Mark had started our dinner - spaghetti and turkey meatballs. The sauce was simmering on the stove, but the pasta needed to be boiled. The pot was filled with water, so I turned the burner on and walked into the dining room to chat with Mark. A few minutes later, Mark asked me what was burning. I headed back into the kitchen and began shrieking, "It's a fire! It's a fire!"

The spoon Mark had used to stir the sauce had fallen out of the spoon holder and onto the back burner. It wouldn't have been a problem, except I had turned on the back burner, instead of the front burner where the pot was sitting.

Everything turned out fine {Mark calmly put the fire out while ran around like a crazy person, throwing windows open so as not set off the fire alarm/condo sprinklers}. But our spoon is a little worse for the wear.

Moral of the story : pay attention in the kitchen, whether you're working with knives or heat sources. Oh, and invest in a fire extinguisher.

a new burger joint

On Saturday, Mark and I were running errands and stopped by a new burger place to grab a bite to eat - Coal Burger. I've been looking forward to testing out the burgers here for some time and was not disappointed.

All the burgers are cooked in a coal-fire oven and are so flavorful. I ordered the green chile burger with jalepenos and Mark chose a Coal Burger. We split an order of fries and tried the chipotle BBQ dipping sauce {which is much tastier on the burger than on fries, in my opinion}.

One of my favorite parts of our dining experience was the sparkling soda fountain - no Coke or Pepsi products here! - featuring Boyland's products {you can also pick up bottles of Boyland's sodas at World Market}. I tried the natural diet cola and Mark mixed lemonade and black cherry for a delicious and refreshing beverage combo. I highly recommend either.

The restaurant concept, by the same folks that created Grimaldi's Pizzeria, is eco-minded and they use all-natural ingredients {they even offer grass-fed beef burger patties and a vegetarian patty option, and gluten-free buns, if you like}.

Right now, Coal Burger can only be found in Arizona {there are two locations, one in Scottsdale Quarter and one in Chandler at Casa Paloma} and one in Texas, but Mark and I spoke with the manager and they are planning to expand - and quickly! Keep your eyes peeled.

a unique honeymoon adventure

After an amazing wedding spent with our closest friends and family {whether they were there in person or in spirit}, Mark and I jetted off to Kauai for our honeymoon : eight days filled with relaxing, hiking, exploring the island, snorkeling, enjoying each other's company, hospital stays...

Yes, hospital stays.

Who knew that our vows "In sickness and in health" would be tested just one day after we got married?

Poor Mark got a really bad infection that had to be knocked out with a series of heavy-duty antibiotics, so he spent the first few days of our honeymoon in a hospital room. The doctors and nurses were so lovely, and we were known around the hospital as "the honeymooners."

After he was released, he was given strict orders to rest, elevate his leg and continue his antibiotics. So our honeymoon didn't exactly start out as expected, but we had some wonderful times. Check back later this week to see what we ate, what we saw {unfortunately, no sightings of Jennifer Aniston and Justin Thereaux, who were there the same time we were} and what we did.