The Sweets

mini cheesecakes with berries!

pumpkin spice cheesecake cups

"puppy chow"

The Spread

Here is all the other stuff I cooked. I had a blast and I think everyone liked everything. Mostly, the cheese soup! Sorry the pictures are so dark. I'm living in a world of darkness. Seriously, our house is like a cave. An awesome, great smelling cave full of books, shoes and video games.

Pasta salad with alligator sausage! Made my own dressing. Yum.

Cheddar Ale soup dressed with peppered bacon, sour cream and home made croutons. I tried Williams-Sonoma's recipe for this about a year ago ... no good. So, I just kind of winged it this ear and ended up high-fiving myself all night. I'll post the recipe later, but just know that it involves 2 lbs of cheddar, a cup of pale ale and heavy whipping cream. Dear God.

Sausage balls!

Piggies.

My mashed potatoes are made with red potatoes, a 1/2 block of cream cheese and heavy whipping cream ... not healthy. at. all.

The Bird

I decided not to use other people's recipes this year, but I'll do my best to tell you how I cooked this ...

Stuffing : 2 loaves of French bread [about 4oz each], cut into cubes, 1lb alligator sausage, 1/2 large white onion, garlic [I usually use 2 or 3 cloves], 3 celery stalks [chopped], 1 shallot [chopped] 2 carrots [chopped], a handful or so of parsley, rosemary, salt, pepper, Tony's to taste. 2 beaten eggs, 1/2 cup white wine, 2 cups chicken broth. : Sautee the veggies and sausage in olive oil for about 7-10 mintues, ... I don't like soggy veggies, but if you do, make sure you sautee them for longer. Add the mixture to the bread, add the beaten eggs and white wine mixture as well. Add chicken broth to desired sogginess! I usually only use a cup, just enough to moisten the mixture. 

I am not a clean cook. 

Take the stuffing you don't ... stuff, and bake it at 375 until golden.

Gorgeous and delicious!

And now, the bird ... 12lbs of deliciousness! I always start by thawing it correctly ... and by always, I mean almost never. Seriously, last year we had to run luke warm water through its but for 3 hours because we forgot to thaw correctly. Anyway, this year our turkey, Turkey Michelle Gellar-Prinze thawed out perfectly. 

Take some cheesecloth and soak it in a mixture of white wine, minced garlic and melted [real] butter. I can't remember how much of each. I'd guess a 1/2 cup of wine and a stick of butter. 

Next step, butter + salt + pepper + fresh rosemary + lemon ... proceed to rub it down! Brandon grows rosemary for me, but dried rosemary will do just fine. 

Cover turkey with the soaked cheese cloth, stuff with stuffing and tie up the legs ... bake for 30 minutes at 400 and then for about 3 hours at a reduced heat of 350.

Switcheroo

I've changed up the mantel display for Thanksgiving. The real mini-pumpkins are my favorite part. I borrowed the short, chunky apothecary jar from a friend and re-displayed some leftover candy from the Halloween party. I love my house to glow and be cozy! 

Halloween Prep / Craft Time

Oh, man! I can't wait to show everyone the pictures from the Halloween Party! I thought I'd do a "prep" blog first, though. I did a candy bar for the party, which involved apothecary jars, ribbon and an absolute shit-ton of candy. Whoo! I carry a mini hot glue gun around in my purse ... that's how crafty I've been over the last month! Absurd, but great fun.

It's best to put a hot glue dot right on the glass, press the ribbon and then tightly wrap it around and glue again. You shouldn't need to glue all the way around!

 Black, glitter spiderweb ribbon on thick grosgrain; a layered look for the licorice jar!

 I made little baggies, decorated with foam stickers for the guests to fill their candy buffet treats with.

 The little ghost was my favorite!!

 I made VIP ribbons for the ladies who helped me set up for the party. I used little ribbons to wrap up the tulle, plus a mixture of different widths of grosgrain, satin and organza ribbon in

 Halloween colors and a lot of hot glue!

 I think they turned out pretty great!

Meanwhile, Mallori was busy painting a haunted tree for the background. Freezing her tail off, surely.

Party pics coming soon! My post-Halloween depression is settling in nicely. 363 days left to plan the next party ... I already have so many ideas! The best way to combat my depression is to plan a glorious Thanksgiving dinner, so that will be my focus for the next few weeks. 

Maui Amour

I'm glad I can finally post pictures I took of Kim before she walked down the beautiful, sandy aisle to marry Tyler. I thought I'd take the pre-wedding pictures in black and white to capture the mood. Kim was the most calm and collected bride ever! We had a great afternoon getting dolled up and counting down the minutes to the ceremony. My favorite part was when she was being asked a few "what ifs," she responded, "oh, I don't care ... I just want to marry Tyler today!" Precious.

It was truly the most romantic wedding I've ever been to. Mostly because I only remember the two of them; no distractions, no pressure ... just love! So amazing. There was, of course a professional photographer [and videographer] there, but I snapped some shots while Kim was getting ready and a few right before the ceremony. You can really tell how happy she was! I switched to color for the last few; they were literally taken minutes before she became Mrs. Hicks and I couldn't resist the greenery growing on the stone wall you walk through to enter the beach. We were in Maui, on Makena Cove; a tiny, secret beach just before sunset. I am so glad that Brandon and I were able to be a part of this amazing moment.

Killer dress ... killer figure to put it on, too!

 This is happiness ... beautiful!

Beautiful bouquet!!

Perfect! She required no airbrushing, obviously. Not that I know how to do that ...

 My dear hubby helping her up the stairs! Definitely one of my favorite shots. Cant wait to frame it!

Mr. & Mrs. Hicks!

Bye!! What a cute patoot!!

A Very Merry Market

So, I took my little Zombees to market in Alexandria this past week. I have to say, it was really fun and I'm pretty sure I could do this for a living! There really are people that just travel the country with their products instead of having straight 9to5 jobs. I was romanticizing it, like I always do, until I realized ... I hate to travel!
Here are some shots of my Zombees on display! My favorite part was the cash register. I used to play "store" when I was a kid ... well into my pre-teen days, actually. So doing it for real was pretty awesome. I'm lame, I know.

Hubby and his beard.

Awww. Ready for their new homes!

 Met up with my swim buddies from high school! Memories!

Zombee Kiss!