garden plotting

Ben is the garden plotter as he meticulously plots all the veggies that go in. I was going through some old garden pictures and was so amazed at the different things we have grown over the years (see here, here, and here). We kind of forget because we start again for the different harvest seasons.

We haven't done a winter garden in so long because the past few winters we either just had a baby or I just got pregnant. Though we always make sure to get our summer garden in. We just love tomatoes too much not to! Ben already ordered 14 tomato varieties so those are coming in mid-April. Last year we grew 34 different kinds, I wonder how many he plans to do this year!

Do you have an edible garden? What are your must haves in it?

HUZZAH!

Friday, Friday... it comes after Thursday. Anyone know this song on youtube that got ripped up for not being that great?! Yeah. Well, it's stuck in my head. You'll thank me later for getting it stuck in your head now. Gotta admit it's annoyingly catchy, especially when it's Friday.

Yesterday, I had a good time with the BFF hanging out at the Daily Buzz event (along with Kira and Kim) at the Madewell in Century City. There was champagne, cupcakes, and games. I would say shopping, but I didn't buy a thing. I was good. Plus, Ben didn't give me permission and he did just let me buy a couch this week, so yeah, I didn't need to shop. Though, I really wanted to.

This week's learned and links...

- True loves math, but let's just say it isn't my favorite subject to teach. Math was not my favorite subject.

-Finally got the whole Junie B. Jones series and can't wait to read them with the girls!

- Soul is starting to look more like a little girl than a baby.

- I am really thankful for our church family. If you are looking for a church in L.A. area, you should come visit!

- My chesterfield couch is really pretty. Love craigslist!

- Announced the giveaway winners on twitter. Follow me here.

- Watch this cute wedding video from last weekend's wedding by Cakeflix. The wedding was totally like we time traveled cause the location was beautiful and it was all "vintaged" out. You will get to see me as a bridesmaid and my girls walk down the aisle too!

- Got my own pair of tumbleweeds sunglasses and LOVE them. Seriously the raddest pair of sunglasses I have ever owned. They are currently having a 25% off sale, so you better hurry.

- My friend Taylor got the memo regarding my bridesmaid retirement. He is hilariously funny, but first you might need to know him to understand him. Otherwise, he might just come across a wee bit too sarcastic for you. 'Sup Sexytay!

We, we so excited... it's Friday, Friday!!!

DIY: TEENY TINY PAPER BOOKS

By now you know that we're always looking for quick little projects in our house. These teeny books are for drawing and writing quick little stories inside and can keep them occupied forever. As I read through the ones they have already made, it makes me smile how cute their little writing is. They write everything phonetically and it is really sweet. A little jar full of these is perfect for when they get their wanting-to-make-something itches.

*Every little book we made had a different number of pages inside. I didn't count them out, I kind of just distributed the pages, so some books had more than others. We also cut up some colored index cards for more book covers.

OUT TO SCHOOL: WEEK TWENTY-THREE

{where from again? shirt & pants: misha lulu; short sleeve jacket: vintage; socks: target; shoes: vintage; bow: made by mom.}

Her favorite class at school is Spanish. Ben was home and I tried talking to her in Spanish, I don't know the language at all, but I was trying. After I said something, she went to Ben and whispered into his ear, "Mommy, does not know Spanish." Hey! I tried! I wish I knew how to speak it.

FAMILY MEALS: WEEK NINE

I love our family meals. It takes work to plan, but the result is great. We really do enjoy eating together more.

Monday, Ben worked late, so we had leftovers, but Tuesday I made Crunchy Turkey Tacos...

It's one of the few things I make from memory. When Ben and I started dating, he would make me a lot of tacos when we were just hanging out at his house. I expected them to be the crunchy shell kind because that's what I had growing up, but they were always just corn tortilla warmed up with fillings. I learned to love tacos in warmed up corn tortillas, but I am partial to the crunchy shell kind when it comes to ground turkey tacos. According to Ben, those crunchy shells aren't authentic Mexican food.

For Wednesday's dinner we had Garlic Soba Noodles...

Another yummy tofu dish. My changes to the recipe was to add cayenne pepper to the breading that went on the tofu for Ben and me. Told you we like that spice. I wasn't generous with the oil like the recipe says because we were try to practice moderation. And I didn't use garlic powder, but instead sauteed the spinach in minced garlic. This is another definitely making again soon dish. We all loved it.

The dishes I choose and make have all been pretty easy and have not taken more than 30-40 minutes of active prep time. Trust me, I am a busy mama and I don't have all day to be in the kitchen.

We have enough leftovers to last the rest of the week and actually I won't be here for dinner tomorrow because I will be at the Daily Buzz Style event at the Madewell in Century City tomorrow. If anyone local bloggers want to attend, send your RSVP to store.214@madewell.com. The event is a private party from 7-9pm Thursday night! If you go, let me know as it would be fun to meet you!!!

Week 3/19 - 3/23

Monday: Spaghetti and Meatballs

Tuesday: Simple Tomato Soup Recipe

Wednesday: Pizza with Garlic Cream and Nettles

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday: Pizza

Have you made any new yummy dishes lately?

|week 8|week 7|week 6|week 5|week 4|week 3|week 2| week 1|

FLOWER PICKINGS

Flowers are blooming again, which means every time the girls go outside, they are out picking them. We have little flowers, petals, and rocks strewn all over the carpet, all the time and they keep gifting me tiny bouquets. It gets kinda messy when their collections get quite large, but it's cute nonetheless. I like watching them pick the flowers outside. It reminds me of a funny story when I was a little girl...

I was in first grade and it was recess. My friends and I were behind the bushes picking flowers and leaves. The other girls were doing the talking and I was just listening. I used to be kinda shy back then, kinda like True, but not as extreme. They were talking about catching their parents doing you know what. Well, I had never heard of this stuff before, so I was kind of surprised. Mind you, this is just first grade and I was just six years old. There weren't details, but they just talked about catching their parents, yada yada...

Well, fast forward a few days later when I am home watching a movie with my parents and a kissing scene comes on... they immediately cover my head with a pillow and then I blurt out, "Why?!! Cause they're having sex?!!" My parents were dumbfounded. They turned off the movie and we had a little talk.

All this to say... I wonder what my girls are talking about when they're picking flowers. I am pretty sure it is just all about She-ra and My Little Pony. At least, I hope.

VINTAGE TINS AND FLOWERS

Besides being a bridesmaid, I also did the flowers for my friend's wedding this past weekend. I love doing flowers and sometimes miss doing them for weddings, but it is a lot of work. This job was especially fun though because the bride had amassed vintage tins and they were all so uniquely pretty. I secretly wanted to sneak one and keep it to my self. Which one from the tins above is your favorite?

MODCLOTH'S COLOR YOURSELF LUCKY CONTEST

Do you love color? I do! And to have a bit of some St. Patty's Day fun, Modcloth asked me, along with 5 other lovely ladies, to style a pretty dress from one color of the rainbow. I chose yellow and I am totally in love with it!

Once I got my pretty yellow dress, I knew it would go perfect with this vintage blazer Ben had bought for me so long ago when we were dating. It is such a bold blazer and doesn't get much use, but it went perfect with the dress. I also opted to switch out the fabric belt for a brown one. I think it gives it a nice contrast. What do you think?

What I'm wearing... daffodil centerpiece dress, c/o modcloth. blazer, vintage. belt, thrifted. shoes, seychelles (gifted from my parents, but can get here).

Today might just be your lucky day because Modcloth is having a fabulous contest and giving away a "pot of gold" in the form of a $50 gift certificate! All you have to do is sign in with your modcloth account, make your own rainbow colored wish list, and share it. Easy and fun right?!! Get more details here. Also, be sure to see the other 5 ladies and their color of choice over here too!

Do you like wearing color or are you more into neutrals?

:: SPONSOR WELCOME ::

You probably already know Lisa Leonard and her beautiful designs. She keep expanding her collection and they are all consistently lovely. Lisa continues to create and inspire such timeless pieces that are treasured and loved by everyone!

For you, my dear friends, Lisa Leonard Designs is giving away a $50 gift certificate to two lucky reader. TWO! There a few ways to enter and get yourself more chances to win this lovely giveaway.

Here are some things you can do:
1. Leave a comment on this post telling me about your favorite Lisa Leonard design.
2. Blog, tweet, or facebook about this giveaway and leave the link here.

Now, if you do all of the things mentioned above, you might even be able to up your chances by getting your name in 4 times! Fantastic, right? Even if you are overseas, please feel welcomed to join in on the fun!

If you can't wait to find out if you win or not, use coupon code connect20 for 20% off anything in the shop (offer expires march 15).

The giveaway will end at 8am PST on Friday, March 16th and the winner will be announced via twitter (follow me on twitter here). Good luck!

lisa leonard website...
lisa leonard blog...

:: SPONSOR WELCOME ::

Do you love embroidery? Wild Olive is meant for you...

Meet Mollie, the lady behind Wild Olive shop and blog...

My name is Mollie, and I love Jesus. I could stop there, because that's all that really matters, but of course, there's more. Being creative, drinking coffee, listening to good music, and spending time with my family are also important to me, and they occupy most of my days.

Wild Olive means...
Wild Olive is a term used in the Bible to describe those who have, through Jesus, been "grafted" into God's family (Romans 12:17). From the first moment I read that, I have held onto that phrase. It's also probably the most wild thing about me...I'm pretty conservative about a lot of things!

Her most favorite thing about blogging...
Both blogging and having a shop have given me so many opportunities to meet people, both far and near, so that's probably my favorite thing. But I've also been able to help some great causes through my blog and shop, which makes me very happy!

For Cakies readers, Mollie is giving away a membership to her Project of the Month Club, which retails for $45. Here are some things you can do to get yourself in this lovely giveaway:

1. Leave a comment on this post telling me about your favorite thing from Wild Olive.

2. Blog, tweet, or facebook about this giveaway and leave each separate links here.

Now, if you do all of the things mentioned above, you might even be able to up your chances by getting your name in 4 times! Fantastic, right? Even if you are overseas, please feel welcomed to join in on the fun!

The giveaway will end at 8am PST on Friday, March 16th and the winner will be announced via twitter (follow me on twitter here). Good luck!

see the wild olive blog...

see the wild olive shop...

:: SPONSOR WELCOME ::

A little bit about Peggy, the gal behind Cake Crumbs and Beach Sand...

I am a working mum running a small business full time. I am wholeheartedly devoted to my family and have spent years mastering the balancing act that is working motherhood. I love my work, I love my family more. I find joy in the small moments and don't scrimp on quality time with my family. I am also a writer (which is my true passion).

All about her blog...
My blog started off as a place for me to share all things beautiful and focus on the simple things in life. I have been known to eat cupcakes in bed and I don't mind the 'cake crumbs', and the beach is my happy place and I love 'beach sand'. The name is made up of the simple things that bring me joy. The cake crumbs also refers to my love of food.

Her most favorite thing about blogging...
My most favourite thing about blogging is the camaraderie of the blogging community. A lot of women write some beautiful comments in response to some of my blog posts and it opens up my eyes to the genuine good nature of people.

For Cakies readers, Peggy is giving away 5 copies of her eBook The Self-Love Guide for the Working Mum. Here are some things you can do to get yourself in this lovely giveaway:

1. Leave a comment on this post telling me about why you love blogs.

2. Blog, tweet, or facebook about this giveaway and leave each separate links here.

Now, if you do all of the things mentioned above, you might even be able to up your chances by getting your name in 4 times! Fantastic, right? Even if you are overseas, please feel welcomed to join in on the fun!

The giveaway will end at 8am PST on Friday, March 16th and the winner will be announced via twitter (follow me on twitter here). Good luck!

see the cake crumbs & beach sand blog...

see her e-book...

HUZZAH!

Another friend wed and I think my days as a bridesmaid is slowly coming to an end. Is there such thing as bridesmaid retirement? Well, at least until my baby sister gets married and I will happily come out of retirement for that. The wedding was beautiful and I am sure the pictures will come out stunning. I really can't wait to see them. Other than that, I hope life can settle down just a tad after having back to back weddings.

Learned and links...

- Despite our crazy schedule these last few days doing wedding prep, the girls have been pretty well behaved. That makes this mama happy.

- Danni's post is so encouraging.

- We've got 14 tomato plants coming and will soon be ready to plant them in the garden. Excited for gardening!

- Kinda behind (again) in responding to comments and emails, but will hopefully get on that soon. It's been a busy past few days!

- Thanks for the all the video love. Levi's® is offering 15% off your order using the coupon code: MYCAKIES at checkout. Offer expires at 11:59pm PST on Wednesday 3/21. Try the Levi's® Curve ID quiz now...

I have a few giveaways coming up tonight, so don't forget to check back. Enjoy your Sunday everyone!!!