Memorial Day Weekend

Sorry for the late post but I've been without a phone for over a week :(

Well last weekend was Memorial Day weekend, the start of summer! Woooo! Every year all my cousins, Aunt and Uncles even Great Aunts and Uncles, all get together for a family picnic. It's the only time of the year I get to see most of my family and we had a great time! We ate hamburgers and hotdogs and all the good picnic food. I tried to make my grandmothers potato salad but it didn't turn out that great. It's difficult to cook potatoes that you're not going to mash. 

There was also a pool, so my kids loved that!!

All pictures were taken by my cousin, Leigh-Anne. That's why there is actually a picture of me! Haha.

And I want to thank everyone that fights or lost their lives fighting so that we could be free. 

Thank you Papa. 

Thank you Tony. 

I hope everyone had a great weekend too :)

XoXOxOXo

Stephanie

Guest Room

I haven't been planning on doing anything to the guest room but I went to a estate sale and that changed everything. I was driving back from the store on Friday and I saw there was an estate sale right down the street. I obviously had to go! You never know what you can get at the estate sales around here. I live around a lot of very old, very large houses.

Beautiful.

This house is actually for sale. Who wants to be my neighbor?!? 

So I go into the sale and I go directly down into the basement, all the good stuff is down there. And there it is, the Pottery Barn desk I've been wanting for a year!!! And it was only $150!!

Waaahhhhhhhht?!?!? 

Totally amazing. So I shoved it into my Jetta and drove home. It was like playing a game of Tetris to get the desk in my car, but luckily I was born in the 80's :)

So I came home and found some paint and got to work! The guest room was a bright blue color. 

Before-

I painted it a really light blue, it's so light it almost looks white. Then I put the desk in and rearranged the furniture. 

After-

I think it is so relaxing. I totally see myself sitting in here and reading a book. 

Maybe I'll take a nap in here today. I'm going to a video premier tonight with one of my girlfriends, so I better rest up. 

Have a great Monday :)

XoXOxOXo 

Stephanie

Caveman

On Monday I went to a video release party for the video 'In The City' by the band Caveman. It was at The Wooly in the old Woolworth building in Manhattan. My girlfriend Alisha and I had a great time. Even thought I stayed out way too late, realizing that it is very difficult to function on only 3 hours of sleep.  The bar was dark and adorable. They had great wallpaper, furniture, art, pretty much everything was beautiful. Unfortunately I left my phone in a cab so I have no pictures.

But here's the video-

The video is a little creepy but I love the song. Their whole album is awesome. Check them out, Caveman. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

XoXOxOXo 

Stephanie

Mother's Day

Yesterday was Mother's Day and mine was super fantastic. Anytime I'm eatin good food with my family, I'm happy. So we started the day off with my favorite, Sausage Gravy and Biscuits. I totally cheated on the biscuits and used Pillsbury Grands. You can put the gravy on anything, I also like to put it on hash browns or French fries.

Ingredients 

Pillsbury Grands Biscuits  

1/2 package of sausage - I used Johnsonville Maple breakfast links

2 Tbs Butter- plus extra for looking the sausage

1 1/2 cups of Milk

2 Tbs Flour

2 tbs Salt

1 tbs garlic powder

1 tbs season salt

Cook biscuits according to directions on package. 

Melt 1/2 a Tbs of butter in a large skillit and cook sausage on medium high. Cool sausage for about 5-6 minutes. When sausage is cooked cut into bite-size pieces. Place sausages onto a plate and save for later. 

Then melt butter in same pan used for cooking sausage. Add flour to melted butter and whisk. Add milk and continue to whisk until there are no lumps. 

Add spices and return sausage to mixture. 

Pour gravy mixture over biscuits and devour. 

So I start by browning the sausage. When they are cooked, cut them into bite-size pieces and move them to a plate. 

Then melt the butter in the same pan. You want all those yummy brunt sausage pieces for the gravy. Add the flour and wisk constantly. 

Pour in the milk slowly and keep whisking     It may be lumpy at first just keep going. It will get smooth. 

Then add your spices and whisk till its thick. You should be able to swipe your finger on the back of a spoon and have the gravy stick. Yum :)

 Then add sausage back into gravy. 

Pour the gravy onto whatever you desire.

This recipe is super easy and I love it! You can mix it up and use it for anything. With or without sausage. You can use chicken or beef broth instead of milk. I love gravy. It fills you up and makes you happy at the same time. That's what good food is all about. 

Maybe you can make this for your loved ones and have a special day like I did with my family. 

And without question I had a great Mother's Day :)

XoXOxOXo 

Stephanie

DIY Water Barrel

I decided to start collecting rain water so I could use the water for my garden. Last year we planted a lot of new plants in our yard and I used a lot of water. So this year I figured I could collect the rain water and use that. 

So I started looking into different types of rain barrels. You can buy a plastic one from the hardwear store but they are kinda expensive and they look well, plastic! Hahaha. 

So I checked Craigslist and found an oak barrel for $75. Perfect! 

So I picked that up. I also got a shut off nozzle from Home Depot. 

First I drilled a hole in the side of the barrel using a 1/2 drill spade. Then you put the nozzle in the hole and seal it. I used silicon cauck. You HAVE to seal it. Otherwise water will drip out and it will turn to mold and that's disgusting. 

Also cut a hole in the top of the barrel for the water to run into. 

This was difficult because the barrel was so thick. I suggest drilling holes all the way along the square then used a Dremel saw to cut through the holes.... This was after several other attempts to cut it, that's why it looks kinda rough. 

I should probably put some mesh netting or something so big sticks and stuff don't get in the barrel. But otherwise it's done! 

 

And I should of put the tap lower so more water could drain out. But my thinking was, that you couldn't fill up the watering can if its too low. But in that case you would just put the barrel up higher on bricks or something. 

 

I think it looks good and it kinda blends in. It definitely makes the house look rustic ;)

 

Happy Wednesday everyone :)

XoXOxOXo

Stephanie 

In The City

This week has been fantastic and we are only half way through! Woo! I have been out for lunch with friends twice this week. And for a mom/girl who never gets to do anything, twice is super exciting! Have two kids and living away from family makes it difficult to have a social life :(
First I met my longtime friend, Anthony. He is moving out of Brooklyn, so I bought him some farewell pizza from my favorite place, Carmine's. It was a perfect day to hang out in Brooklyn.

We stopped and had a beer at 2 in the afternoon because we had nothing better to do. It's fun to be an adult sometime :)

The next day I had lunch with another friend of mine and her adorable baby. Every time I'm around a baby I want one. Ugh. We went for a great walk along the Hudson River. Then she took me to a restaurant I've never been to before called Bubby's. It was farm fresh and delicious. Dylan thought he was on a farm. It was great!

Dylan thought every boat was a pirate ship.

He also wanted to ride this cow. Hahahaha.

I love just walking around taking pictures of things. The art is always changing. The city is like one big living art museum.

Think about being able to climb this wall. That would be crazy!

The mind wanders......

XoXOxOXo
Stephanie