Peanut Butter Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake Recipe

Over the past few years I’ve been honing my baking skills, and subsequently it’s become tradition for me to bake a celebratory dessert when MC and I are travelling to see our families for [insert special occasion of choice here].  Seriously, I’ve pretty much got a dessert up my sleeve for all major holidays at this point.  Most recently we visited for Father’s Day, which always falls within a week of my Dad’s birthday.  When … Read more…

DIY Orange Creamsicle Sugar Scrub Recipe

Summer is now upon us and we’ve been in a heat spell as of late, making sundresses, tank tops and skirts my current wardrobe of choice which inevitably leads to baring more skin.  I recently ran out of my last batch of Cappuccino Sugar Scrub so I figure time for a new batch, why not make a new scent?  And here you have it, concocted from your childhood memories of ice cream truck music approaching in … Read more…

Gluten-Free Blackberry Peach Cobbler Recipe

Simple, unassuming, homemade fresh fruit cobblers are one of my all-time favorite desserts — quick and easy to assemble, and I generally have most of the ingredients on hand.  I recently had a dinner date with a friend and her family, and we decided on chili and hoecakes for the main course.  It’s become tradition for me to do the dessert, and cobbler sprung to mind as the perfect complement to our meal so I … Read more…

DIY T-Shirt to Skirt Refashion Tutorial Part I

We’ve discussed my rather serious obsession with “binning,” aka hitting up the Goodwill bins where clothes are sold by the pound, in Taking in a Skirt DIY Sewing Tutorial.  The ability to tailor an ill-fitting but otherwise perfect-as-is item is a great skill to have, however sometimes you will find pieces that have fabric in good condition but in no way work for your own personal style and/or body as-is.  This is where a little … Read more…

Indian Spiced Black-Eyed Peas Recipe

We’ve recently discovered Jenny Lewis (seriously, how have we never listened to her before?) and the old school country music influence that comes through in her songs has put me in the mood for some southern cooking.  Either that or we’ve simply been eating a bit too much junk lately and I was craving something nutritious (probably the latter, but whatever, Jenny Lewis, southern food, makes sense to me!).  I went with this tried and … Read more…

Citrus All-Purpose DIY Surface Cleaner

It’s a warm spring Saturday, the windows are open with a light breeze drifting through the house, and it’s a perfect day to catch up on some housework.  What better time to share one of my favorite DIY house cleaning products?  This Citrus All-Purpose DIY Surface Cleaner is inexpensive, only takes 5 minutes to make, and cleans as well as any commercial surface cleaner I’ve ever tried (think Windex, 409, Clorox Green Works, etc).  It’s … Read more…

DIY Green Man Beard Oil Recipe

Chances are, you have at least one gloriously bearded man in your life.  Perhaps you are even a gloriously bearded man yourself!  As someone with a partner sporting a beard I have to tell you that despite the beard’s epic awesomeness, it can also be a bit scratchy and prickly if I get too close.  The partner and I have been considering coming up with a DIY beard conditioning oil for a while to see … Read more…

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe

One of my best friends, the lovely and notorious Frankie, had a birthday last weekend and requested a cheesecake when I asked her what kind of special dessert she would like for the occasion.  Once in a blue moon I get to experiment with different types of dessert recipes, but the vast majority of the time that I offer to make a dessert for someone, cheesecake it is!  I also like to give the person … Read more…

Taking in a Skirt DIY Sewing Tutorial

For those of you who haven’t yet succumbed to the awesome epicness of Game of Thrones, Sunday was the season 5 premiere (yes, I’m an addict) and I was super stoked.  As we were going to a friend’s house to watch and we’ve all been anticipating this moment for months, I wanted something cute to wear.  I’ve had this hunter green pencil skirt for a while, but she’s been patiently waiting on me to fix … Read more…

Layered Mocha Cheesecake Recipe (with gluten-free option)

  We’re a bit behind with the blog this week, so sorry about that, but it’s for a good reason!  Let me explain.  We were busy hot tubbing it up at a cabin retreat last weekend.  Haha!  We spent most of our time eating delicious food, lounging in the hot tub, and of course drinking beer and socializing around the fire pit–the fire pit that we dug and then filled back in ourselves because there … Read more…