House Warming Time!

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This weekend we welcomed all our Minnesota friends to our new home. We barbecued and served buffet style on the island (super casual). I managed to snap a picture of the fruit pizza but forgot to take more pictures of the food we served. Our friends were great and brought food and drinks as well. Can you tell what I made?

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Also I attempted something I found on Pinterest

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Thank you lily shop for this GREAT idea!

Too bad we could not use our new deck furniture today. (55 degrees in May… Really??)

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Smiles,
Erica

MIA

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Where have I been? Well… Today marks 2 weeks being in our house. None of you warned me that even after the last box is unpacked and the apartment was all cleaned that we would still have tons of stuff to do.

Here are a couple pictures of our progress:

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Our new kitchen table from HOM. It came with the four chairs and has two leaves which will allow us to seat up to 12. Yippee for dinner parties, book clubs, and BBQ’s.

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Justin has been quite the handy man. This weekend he put together an end table, bench, and bookcase.

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One of the finished products. I ran to TARGET to get another one of these canvas bins (the second bin isn’t in the picture). I figure in the summer they can hold sunscreen and flip flops. The winter will be for hats, gloves, and scarves. Two cheers for organizing!

Tomorrow we have a day off from school so I will begin tackling all the rocks in the backyard. I’ll blog about the progress on that soon.

Any good home tips?

Smiles,
Erica

Welcome to New Hope

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It’s official… We have started moving into our house. After closing on Tuesday… We began hauling all of our stuff over.

We have successfully unpacked the whole kitchen, transferred my closet, and brought over the office bits and pieces. Tonight we will move Justin’s closet.

On Saturday the movers come and will move all the furniture.

Yippee!
Erica

Happy 6!

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Tomorrow is Justin and my 6 year Anniversary. It’s amazing how time has flown by and how much has changed in these 6 years. We moved from Indiana to Alabama and now to Minnesota. We have lived in 5 apartments together and are finally taking a big step and closing on our first house in a week. We have changed jobs, hair color, and even tastes in foods (Justin now likes feta and beets :) ) The one thing that hasn’t changed is our relationship. I am so lucky to have found someone who is always there for me and who continues to support me and keep me laughing throughout life.

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(I got lucky and signed up for a cake decorating class at Cooks of Crocus Hill for the day before our anniversary. I still need to work on my piping skills but I was quite happy with my border. There was no question….It had to be a GREEN cake)

Happy 6 years Justin!
:)
Erica

Day Trip

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Sometimes all you really need to unwind is a day trip. Week long vacations involve lots of planning and packing. A day trip can be decided on the spot and only requires a tank of gas and the support from your in laws to watch your dog. Justin and I took this past week of from work. We had thought about taking a vacation but in the end decided it was a good idea to save some money. Justin suggested on Wednesday that we drive to Duluth on Friday. I’ve only been there once (last spring) I remembered that I really enjoyed the lake views and all the beautiful flowers we saw.

When we hopped in the car Friday morning there was no question as to where we would be heading when we got to Duluth… New Scenic Cafe. We LOVED this place last year and have been wanting to go back. I was impressed that some of the same stuff was on the menu this year (no reason to change a good thing).
Here are some of our lunch pictures.

Appetizer: Artichoke Slather

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Salad: Roasted Beet Salad

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Entree: Lobster Bisque

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Justin and I were joking before we ordered that he always orders the same thing at restaurants. He told me he was going to try something new and order the Prime Rib Dip. After we ordered I remembered I had blogged our trip last year. Anyways the point of my story is I looked at my previous entry while we were waiting for our meal and I found out that Justin ordered the same sandwich for lunch. (So… I did not snap a picture of his sandwich) He did want me to tell y’all it was just as good as last year.

Here are some links to some other spots we checked out while in Duluth.

1. Cooter Pottery
2. Blue Heron Trading Company
3. Duluth Kitchen Company

Happy Weekend!

Erica

Lucky Treats

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Maybe it’s me but I feel like March has flown by! This weekend I decided to celebrate my favorite color, green. Nope I’m not Irish but why not celebrate spring. I picked up green sprinkled cinnamon twists from Isles Bun on Saturday to bring over to my friends house for dinner last night. Today I ran by Sephora and snagged the Pantone Universe Emerald Nail polish trio . I painted 8 of my nails the plain green and used the sparkly green as an accent nail for my pointers. This evening we are having Justin’s sisters over for dinner and I decided to make a green treat: LuckyCharm Treats. I ended up using the Limited Edition Green Clover Lucky Charms. I think they turned out pretty cute.

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Happy Spring!

Erica

It’s turtle time

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Don’t worry this post is not about eating turtles but is about a great Turtle Cake. Cafe Latte is a restaurant in St Paul that is known for its friendly cozy cafe feel. It also is known for its killer desserts. My mom and I are head over heels for their almond fruit tart (marzipan in the filling..amazing). Anyways I had heard from my friend, Kat that on Cafe Latte’s website. I decided that it was time to try making my first 3 layer chocolate cake. Thanks Cafe Latte for providing the recipe for your Turtle Cake.

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Justin’s verdict- I loved it. It tasted pretty good for breakfast too.

Happy Sunday!

Erica

D SPOT

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Last night I convinced some of my friends to travel with me to Maplewood for dinner. I had been wanting to try a wing place that had been featured in the Minneapolis St Paul Magazine. We drove about 30 minutes and were not sure what to expect as we pulled into the parking lot. The restaurant has about 8 tables and has a very relaxed atmosphere. The menu well…that is another story…I now consider the owner, Darren (the d in D SPOT we all learned) the Willy Wonka of wings. I mean just look at this menu. Darren can cook….like really cook…We spoke with him after we devoured all our wings and learned about his culinary background. Now the pictures… They will make you hungry… I’m just warning you.

20130309-135635.jpg Here we have Pesto, Frenchy, and Black Widow

20130309-135801.jpg Desert Heat was a favorite of the group.

20130309-135906.jpgHere is Szechwan and Ranch. Ranch was one of my favorites.

20130309-140052.jpg Then we have Muy Thai, Salsa Verde, Buffalo, and Asian BBQ.

20130309-140542.jpg After that came Teriyaki. (I didn’t try that one…side note 8 people were at dinner and most of the wings came in orders of 6.)

20130309-140706.jpgDarren sent us complimentary dessert wings. This was Spicy Caramel and Snackers.

Last but not least. My friend, Mike whose part of the blog Two Happy Cooks decided he could not leave Dspot without trying the wings from the spicier part of the menu. He ordered the El Loco which are described as ridiculously HOT and for the extremist only! They even came with a can of green tea. All I can say is I have known Mike for about 4 years and this is the first time I saw him have tears in his eyes and I can promise you they were not for joy.

20130309-141422.jpgDarren and Mike, the fearless wing eater!

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I will definitely be back to try some more options and have some more Ranch wings. It was a great night with lots of laughter and wings!!!

Happy Weekend!
Erica

Nutella Stuffed Browned Butter Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Let’s rewind to the Super Bowl… The amazing Beyonce halftime show, Destiny Chold performing together, and these cookies.

The guy that made these cookies sent me the link. I waited a month and have finally gotten around to making them. They are AMAZING. Yes, a bit of effort goes into browning butter and waiting for the dough to chill in the fridge, however, it’s so worth it. I managed to send home some cookies with my friend, Lindsey and I will be packaging the rest up for more friends.

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Happy Weekend!

Erica