Our First Place - Common Areas

As we continue to pack (I find that doing it a little at a time doesn't overwhelm me as much) and edge closer to the point of moving out of our first place together, I thought it would be nice to share some of the rooms with you.  Today we'll take a look at the common areas and later we'll check out the bedrooms and bathrooms.

These pictures were taken when we moved in November of 2008, so there may be a Christmas decoration or two.  I'm one of those people that loves to decorate for Christmas in November - Chris thinks I'm crazy.

Dinning Room

The dinning room also contains the built in desk.  It's tight quarters, but we've made due.  The maroon and gold color scheme was inspired by my time in Aggieland.  The table was given to me by my Aunt Bunny when she was moving.  Love free furniture!  There is a leaf with the table, and we have since added it and 2 end chairs. When we move into a house I would really like a new table to seat 8, so this table minus the leaf (as it is pictured here) may become our kitchen nook everyday table.

Living Room

The living room is definitely the space we spend the most time in when awake.  We've added some more decorations over the past couple of years so the walls aren't so bare.  This is a prime example of why I'm so excited to move into a place that we can paint.  I've lived with white walls all of my life.  In my childhood home, in my parent's place in Texas, in my college dorm and townhouse and in my post college apartments.  I am so over plain white walls!

The furniture has seen some better days, so it will probably be moved into a gameroom/loft in a future house.  Even though I have never used that fireplace, I will be looking for one in our house hunt.  I love decorating the mantel, especially during the holidays.  The TV stand is great for this space, but I would love a way to hide the wires.  That stand will also be moved into the gameroom in the future house.

Kitchen

Our kitchen is very functional, but not exactly what we're looking for in our next place.  We aren't the biggest fan of the white cabinets/white appliances combination and would like the kitchen to be a little more open, hopefully with an island.  The countertop space is pretty decent, and I do love the amount of cabinets that we currently have.  Chris and I would both love to upgrade to stainless steel appliances at some point, but the savings will dictate when those type of purchases could be made.  Since we're talking about dream kitchens, I'll go ahead and put it out there that I would love granite or quartz countertops, an under mount sink and a cool, colorful backsplash.

What inspires the color combinations in your home?  Do you have non white walls?  If so how long did it take you to decide on colors to paint?

On The Kindle: Same Kind Of Different As Me

"Same Kind of Different As Me" was the November selection for the book club and I have to admit I had mixed feelings as I began to read it.

Via Amazon

Reading about the life of African Americans in the days following slavery always breaks my heart. It's hard to read about the way that they were treated and think about how the lives of my grandparents and great grandparents really were.  But this novel has a very uplifting message about how one person can change the life of another and in turn make a difference to so many more.  Another book that had me in tears, but made me step back and be thankful for another day of life.  I feel like I connected a little bit more with this true story as it mainly took place in locations around Dallas and Ft. Worth, Texas.

Since the book club will be taking a break for the holidays I think I'm going to look into the Hunger Games or Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest).  Any votes for which trilogy I should start first?

Guest Postin' on Geek in Heels

Hey guys!  Head on over to Geek in Heels to check out my guest post on the changing times, my different internet habits and the new appreciation for appliance shopping.

Flatbread Cheeseburger Melts

Another delicious Pinterest recipe, thanks to Stephanie over at This Casita.  I love looking through her food pins for new ideas.

 Ingredients:
- 1 lb Ground Beef
- 1/4 cup Water
- 1/2 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 package of Dry Onion Soup Mix
- 1/4 cup Ketchup
- 11 oz Thin Crust Pizza Dough
- 1 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 2 tbsp Oil (for frying)

Start off with the usual browning and draining of the ground beef.  Add in the dry onion soup mix, ketchup, water, and vinegar.  The original recipe includes mustard (which we are not a fan of) and minced garlic.  I threw on some garlic salt to add in a little more flavor. Stir and simmer over low heat.

Heat another pan with oil to medium.  The recipe instructs you to divide the pizza dough into 6 pieces and roll into a round shape.  I quickly learned (or really remembered) that we don't own a roller.  I attempted to just press it into shape, but as you can see that didn't turn out exactly round.

Fry the dough on each side until golden brown and bubbly.  After topping with meat and cheese, I threw them into the microwave for 20 seconds to get the melty cheese effect.

With how quickly these vanished from our table, it's safe to say that they will be made again.

Do you have any favorite pinterest boards for inspiration?

Home Ideas: Wine Corks

As we branch out and try more wines, we have started to save the corks.  Although my last experience with corks was not an enjoyable one, I still want to do something cool with them.

A quick search of Pinterest and I came up with a couple of DIY projects for the home.

Via The Elephant's Trunk

Cork letters would be great in a gameroom or bar area.

Via Style at Home, pin from Justsunny

Via Katydidandkid, pin from Rachel

How cute is that little tree?  Both of those ideas are cute and perfect for the holidays.  I love decorating for Christmas!

Via Whole Living, pin from Joy

Cork trivet, these would come in handy for any dinner party or when the time comes for us to host a holiday meal.

Via Green Eco Services pin from Go Supper Clubbing

I don't think we could drink enough wine for this table, but it looks too awesome to not be included!  Maybe a smaller version as a side table?

Via craftynest, pin from Christina

I don't know how comfortable that would be to step onto, or how it does with water, but I do like the look of it.

Via Flirting with Design

Probably the most likely project for me, the cork pin board would make a good addition to our future office.

Do you have any collections that you can turn into a DIY project?

West Coast Eats In The Big D

If you live on the west coast, or have ever visited I'm sure you've heard of (and probably ate at) In N Out.  They have recently started opening locations in North Dallas, and let me tell you...these Texans must love them some In N Out!  Lines on opening days have been ridiculous, as seen on You Tube.

Truth be told, I'm not sure what all the rage is.  I had it once when I was visiting my friend in San Diego and it seemed like just another burger to me.  Maybe it's just the novelty of the chain?  Anyways, Chris really wanted to try it out, so we headed over for an early lunch.

The drive-thru line wasn't crazy, yet, but we went ahead and ate inside.

As you can see, the menu is very limited.  Well, limited to those not in the know.  Chris looked up the not so secret menu online, but we decided to stick with regular burger, fries and strawberry milkshakes.

Pretty much like I remembered it in California, it was good but nothing amazingly special.  Am I weird?  Is there something that I'm missing with these burgers and fries?

Have you had In N Out before?  If so, are you a huge fan?

Pumpkin Mini Cupcakes

If you're on Pinterest, I'm sure you've seen the two ingredient pumpkin cake.  Thanks to a tip from a friend, here's my little take on the recipe.

Ingredients:

- Yellow Cake Mix

- 15 oz can of Pumpkin

- 1/2 cup Vegetable Oil

- 3 Eggs

- 1 cup Diet Dr. Pepper

- Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting

As you can see I have a few more than 2 ingredients.  This is a direct result of the fact that I picked up the Betty Crocker mix instead of the Duncan Hines (which I'm assuming does not require anything other than water).  My friend mentioned substituting the water for diet Dr. Pepper for a little added punch.

I simply followed the instruction on the back of the box, mixing all of the ingredients except for the frosting.  I'm so excited about busting out the Kitchen Aid mixer in the future, but until then my hand mixer did the job.

Since we were taking these to the Halloween party, where there would be other snacks, I opted to make mini cupcakes.  This size was great for people to sample and still enjoy the rest of the edible goodies.

Pop them into the oven at 325 degrees for 15 mins.  While they were baking, I heated up the frosting over the stove on low, constantly stirring. Let the cupcakes cool off before drizzling the frosting.  I made the mistake of drizzling too early on the last batch and the frosting melted off.  I'll chalk that up to being a little lazy after spooning in mix for a total of 96 minis. 

They were a hit at the party, and the leftovers are still a hit in our household!

What are some of your favorite fall foods?