Tune in Tuesday: The Drums

I first heard this song on my favorite local radio station a few weeks ago, and the two show hosts were discussing whether or not this song was good. One host loved it, but it drove the other insane. I'm definitely on the "love it" boat, but I'll let you decide for yourself. Here's to the last little bit of summer. Now let's go surfing!

"Let's Go Surfing" - The Drums

Mmm Mmm Monday: Citrus-Garlic Roasted Chicken

I have a pretty simple criteria for deciding whether or not to keep recipes. The dish has to be:

1. Easy
2. Delicious

This recipe definitely fits the bill for easy and delicious. The chicken is juicy, succulent, and flavorful, and when paired with couscous and some sweet corn, it's a dish I'll be sure to make over and over again.

Citrus Garlic-Roasted Chicken
source: Claire Robinson, Food Network
prep time: 5 min.  |  inactive prep time: 45 min. |  cook time: 45 min  |  
serves: 4 to 6

INGREDIENTS
4 large bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (about 3 lbs.)
4 large whole chicken thighs (about 2 lbs.)
1/2 navel orange, zested, plus the juice of 1 whole orange
2 limes, 1 zested, both juiced
1/2 c. extra-virgin olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 tsp. kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
Freshly cracked black pepper

DIRECTIONS

Put the chicken in a large nonmetalic bowl. Put the orange and lime zests in a small bowl and add the fruit juices. Whisk in the olive oil, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and a generous grind of black pepper. Pour the marinade over the chicken and toss until well coated. Marinate for 20 to 30 minutes but no longer than 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Put a rack on a rimmed baking sheet. With tongs, remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and arrange them on the rack leaving space between each piece. Drizzle a small spoonful of the marinade over the top of each chicken piece; season well with salt and pepper, to taste. Roast until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear when meat is pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a serving platter. Cool slightly before serving or let stand until room temperature before refrigerating for later use.

365

I started Project 365 on my birthday, and so far, so good. The first four photos I've taken aren't anything too special, but it's been a busy week of celebrating. Now that all of that is out of the way, I should be able to concentrate more on taking some photos I can be proud of.

Here's what I've got so far:

#001 - 8.24 - Birthday Salsa

#002 - 8.25 - Birthday Flowers (thanks, Mama!)

#003 - 8.26 - Birthday Fabric

#004 - 8.27 - Paper Plane Toss

Twenty-six

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Yup. It's the big 2-6 today. We've actually already done most of our celebrating (I say "our", since Marcus' birthday was yesterday), but we still have a few things planned. We'll be spending part of today in Lawrence (Urban Outfitters, here I come!), and part of it with my dad, who's buying us sushi and making me a cake. It's a pretty low-key birthday, but I'm OK with that. I imagine next year is going to be pretty raucous (Marcus and his twin bro turn 30 ... yowzers!), so we've got to start resting up now. :)

I'll also be starting the 365 project today, AND my 26 before 27 list. Quite an eventful day! Here's my 26 before 27 ... let's see how many of these I can accomplish!

1. Finish the "25" book I made a year ago ... and left sitting totally unworked.
2. Find an amazing new hairstyle.
3. Run a 5K.
4. Take photos of everything!
5. Paint at least once a month.
6. Sew one whole garment for myself.
7. Make at least 25% of my gifts to give at Christmas.
8. Cook a whole meal at least once a week (cereal does NOT count!).
9. Blog makeover!
10. Open up the Arvonia shop on Etsy.
11. Visit my grandparents more often.
12. Visit my BFF, wherever she may be living.
13. Spend more time being active.
14. Make a trip to Trader Joe's in STL.
15. Be more strict on the monthly budget.
16. Organize my recipe collection.
17. Battle the clutter that has taken over the apartment.
18. Host at least two gatherings in our apartment.
19. Find great storage for the bedroom.
20. Redo one piece of furniture.
21. Finally put up some curtains (handmade!).
22. Finish my Sketchbook Project sketchbook ... and sketch for myself, too!
23. Do more cheap, fun stuff with my main man (picnics, coffee dates, etc.).
24. Help both of my parents ring in 55 with style.
25. Organize the files between my two computers.
26. Print the hundreds of photos I've been talking about printing for years.
27. Continue to live happy and in love.

"If I was richer, I'd still be with you"

Let it be known that one of my all-time favorite voices is Mr. Cee-Lo Green. From his days with Goodie Mob and the Dungeon Family, Gnarls Barkley, and his solo work, I'm pretty in love with everything he does. His new song is absolutely no exception. Such a harsh message packaged in a sweet little song! And please note, if you are at all offended by foul language, DO NOT watch this video. You've been warned.

Fashion Friday? Or Fantasy Friday?

I'm still trying to decide what to do for Fridays on the ol' blog schedule. I'd love a Fashion Friday, but everyone does a Fashion Friday. And a Fantasy Friday could be kind of cool, but ... uh ... I don't want anyone to take that "Fantasy" part the wrong way. If you catch my drift.

Today, I'm combining the two into Fantasy Fashion Friday. Because let's be honest ... I could never afford most of these real things in life. And the ones I could afford, I wouldn't dream of spending that much money on that particular item. And with my birthday coming up {ahem}, I thought I'd put together a little something with some gear I'd LOVE to wear to a dream birthday dinner with my favorite guy.

Dream Date Night by sarakate5 featuring Marc by Marc Jacobs bags

Lanvin T-shirt dress with draping, 540 GBP

La Perla New Venus push-up bra, $214
La Perla Inverno Greta thong, $87
PRADA Stitched Bootie - Nude, $790
MARC BY MARC JACOBS M302071 DIRTY MARTINI LEATHER E4415, 470 GBP
Zoe White Diamond Pave Necklace, $2,750
michael kors watch, $315
CHANEL PURPLE BEAD EARRING, $750
Roberto Cavalli Serpent ring, $265
Louisette Large Ring, $17,200
Yves Saint Laurent - Pure Lipstick - No.142 Honey Beige 3.5g/0.12oz, $32
Tom Ford - Black Orchid Eau De Parfum Spray 100ml/3.4oz, $158
Amazon.com: Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour Spring 2010 INATTENDU…, $24

Tune in Tuesday: Tequila!

I had this big long post about some of my all-time music faves planned for today ... but really, this trumps anything I could have come up with. This might just be my favorite musical scene from a movie ever. Pee Wee, FTW, forever and always!

Mmm Mmm Monday: Wish List Edition

I am now 8 days out from turning 26. 26! Sheesh. I realized today that I haven't posted any wish list items lately. And, since I've got nothing in the food department to share today, I decided to devote today's MMM to food/kitchen-related items I'd love to get as gifts next Tuesday. Or any day, for that matter.

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Zak! Confetti 4-Piece Mixing Bowl Set
I actually pointed this awesome set out to my dad the other day while we were shopping in KC. I'm hoping he took the (blatant) hint I dropped and got these babies for me! I've finally settled on a multi-colored scheme for our kitchen (since everything else is white), and these would match perfectly. Plus they're made with recycled materials, which is pretty sweet.

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KitchenAid Stand Mixer
Yeah, I'm probably straight out of my mind with this one. Quite honestly, I probably wouldn't even have room for this in our current kitchen. But it matches pretty well the KitchenAid hand mixer I got last year for my birthday! And they're pretty BA.

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Fred & Friends M-Spoons
I LOVE Fred products, and own a few, too. I already have the M-Cups, so why not the M-Spoons? It makes perfect sense. Oh, you know what else makes perfect sense? Getting me the Babushkups while you're at it. You know, for the Matryoshka triple threat. And maybe the 2-Carat Cup ... just because.

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Pantone Coffee Mugs
What good artist or designer should be without these? And I'm not being greedy and asking for a set of these bad boys (unless you want to get me a whole set. I wouldn't object), just one measly little mug! Word to the wise: you can never go wrong with turquoise.

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Plasticland Bird Whisks
Love these. No explanation needed.

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Imm Living Totem Cup Set
These are gorgeous. Urban has them in metallic gold, too, but I like the simplicity of the white. Besides, with all the other crazy colored things I'm gonna have going on in the kitchen, I've got to keep something simple, right?

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Mini Donut Factory
My mom had a similar donut maker when we were kids. I can not tell you the kind of joy we got from waking up to freshly-made chocolate chip donuts almost every Saturday morning. I want to keep that love train rollin' now that I'm all grown up. Time to make the donuts!

Thunderboomies!

We had some pretty wicked storms in northeast Kansas last night. Manhattan, home to both Kansas State University and my little sis (who is a student at the aforementioned school), got hammered by a microburst with winds over 90 mph. Thankfully everyone was OK, but a lot of trees were uprooted (uprooted! HUGE trees!), and some damage was done to the campus. We didn't get hit too hard here at home, but it did make for some interesting photos. I camped out on our balcony to try and get some cool shots (side note -- hooray for working on my first goal!). Here are just a few photos from my impromptu photo shoot.

I took the screen off of one of our windows so I could move the stupid cables that are always hanging in my westward shots from our balcony. Marcus decided to take advantage and take a look around.

I've made plenty of double rainbow jokes about this. Feel free to make your own.

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On a totally unrelated note, I took advantage of the extended registration deadline and signed up for Home Ec today! (side note no. 2 -- hooray for working on my third goal!)

Four Simple Goals

I decided to take on Elsie's 4 Simple Goals challenge. Check it out!

{1} Use those cameras!

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There are no good excuses for me not photographing everything. I have two very nice digital and film SLRs, a digital point-and-shoot, as well as a pretty extensive collection of vintage cameras (no, those aren't mine above, but I'm pretty sure I own at least one of most of those shown), so I always have one on hand. I don't want to say I'll shoot every day, but somewhere in that range is my goal!

{2} Exercise, exercise, exercise!

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There are about a million (OK, OK ... a billion) things I'd rather do than work out. I think it stems from being a naturally skinny person for most of my life, and never really needing to exercise (not for weight loss, anyway). As I get older, though, the pounds don't come off nearly as easily as they used to. Yes, I'm still relatively thin, but there's some pudge I'd be more than happy to get rid of. Pilates is just about the only exercise I don't hate, so I need to find a good routine and stick to it. For real this time!

{3} Become a better seamstress

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This is one I've been working on for awhile. I've made some headway, but I'm still not where I want to be. I mean, I know how to sew, but I really want to know how to sew. Oh, and I'm excited that LA, Rachel, and Courtney extended the registration for the Home Ec class ... because I'm pretty sure it's going to be a birthday present to myself (unless I can talk the BF into buying it for me as an early birthday present!).

{4} Create a better brand image for Arvonia

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This is definitely the biggest of the four goals, and maybe a little too un-simple to be a "Simple Goal". It's going to entail a new blog, my Etsy shop, and a totally new look. But it's something I've been thinking about and working toward for a long time, so I'm going to shoot for the moon! I'll definitely be referring back to my lessons from this year's Indie Biz class for help -- what an inspiration!

Thanks for letting me share my goals for the rest of this year. I hope you all play along, too!

Mmm Mmm Monday: French Macarons @ the Bloom Baking Co.

I know I'm pretty late with hopping on the macaron boat. Story of my life. But I've been admiring these bad boys from afar for quite some time. I never had the chance to sink my teeth into one of these French delights ... until yesterday.

My dad, sister and I hit up the Kansas City Farmers Market (something we do at least once a year) this past weekend, and discovered a new bakery had taken up residency in the market since the last time we had been there. Bloom Baking Co. is a delightful little place with even more delightful palate-pleasing goodies for the sweet-toothed and non-sweet-toothed alike. Cupcakes, whoopie pies (!!), quiches, spinach and gruyere empanadas ... and French macarons. I was in (big fat) hog heaven! I instantly knew I would be buying one of each of the three flavors of macarons offered. You'll have to forgive me if I don't remember what they were exactly, but give a girl a break. I was excited! (You'll also have to forgive me for eating one of the three macarons before I could get home and snap a photo. They were too good not to eat!) I do know that the two pictured were lemon something-or-other, and lavender something-or-other. They, too, have since been devoured.

Anyway.

Here is a list of decadent-sounding macaron recipes from one of my very favorite foodie blogs, Tartelette. Hope you enjoy! I can't wait to try some of these out myself!

• Raspberry Mascarpone
• PB & J / Lemon Meringue / Caramel Banana 
• Black Tie
• Pecan Pie
• Creme Brulee Pistachio
• Powdered Strawberry & Vanilla Bean
• Coffee & Chicory
• Violet & Vanilla Bean

KC

we ♥ it

I got back a few hours ago from a nice little getaway in "The City" ... or for those of you that don't live in my neck of the woods, Kansas City. Spent some quality time with the family, found some amazing (AMAZING) bargains, and probably gained a few pounds from all the eating I did the past few days. I hope to be back tomorrow with a recap!

Gaga in KC

Just wanted to drop in with a quick post-Gaga post. Lady Gaga totally, 100% blew my mind. The live show was phenomenal. If you ever have a chance to go see her, do it without question! I haven't been on the pop band wagon for many, many years, but she's one talented woman, and I can't argue with that.

I took over 180 photos on Tuesday night. I had a lot of OK photos, but very few turned out to be good. Here are the best of the bunch, as few as there may be. I might also try to get around to upload a video or two to YouTube ... but we'll see how that goes.

(It should go without saying, but these photos are mine. If you decide to repost them, please do so with credit back to either this website or my Flickr. Thanks!!)

Me and the ever-lovely Jamie, before Gaga's set.

Brad and Mandi. LOVE these two! We had two others in our party, but the photos of them (as well as our group shots) are on other peoples' cameras. Boo!

Pretty close to what our actual view was. This might be slightly more zoomed in ... but you get the idea.

I loved all of the Wizard of Oz imagery she used. She knows the way to a Kansan's heart, I guess.

My favorite shot.

I wish this was a bit more clear. The costume was crazy ... reminded me of a Banana Splits character, if said character entered some weirdo dimension.

I think "Paparazzi" was my favorite performance of the night. Not my favorite Gaga song, but it was intense!

"Bad Romance"

More "Bad Romance". I love how close she is to the audience.

And there you have it! There are more images on my FB page. If you're really that interested in seeing them ... let's be friends!

Tune in Tuesday: Lady Gaga

All images found via we ♥ it

Tonight, I'll be seeing Lady Gaga in Kansas City.

I'm not sure I've ever been more excited for a show in my entire life. Which is funny, considering when Lady Gaga first came out, I was not a fan of her music. I even went dressed as her last Halloween ... as a joke. But the second I stepped into that black lace bodysuit and donned the blonde wig and faux-Ray Ban wayfarers, I realized I wasn't doing it as a joke, I was doing it as an homage. I loved Lady Gaga, and there was no more denying it!

But seriously, I love her. She's a strong, smart, beautiful woman, which is something I really, really admire. Plus her music is so damn catchy. So without further ado, here's the one that started it all ...