Party Day!

There wasn't a more perfect weekend than Cinco de Mayo weekend to celebrate back to back parties for a special bridey! On Saturday, 12 of us threw Kristen a yellow themed bridal shower. Later that evening some close family friends of Kristen also threw her an absolutely beautiful poolside engagement party.

{the bridal shower invitation}

{the food table}

Each of the hosts signed up to bring a few appetizers. The menu from left to right: donuts, chocolate and vanilla cake pops, caprese skewers, chicken nuggets, brie & raspberry cups, veggie platter, fruit salad, pimento cheese and chicken salad sandwiches, shrimp bruschetta.

{the desserts}

  {the mimosa bar}

The shower was held at McKinsey's home which just so happens to already have a yellow theme! How adorable, cozy and happy is this living room? That girl is talented!

{the outdoor bar}

{McKinsey and I with the bride}

{group shot}

{gifts}

{After we tied all the gift ribbons to a plate for Kristen's rehearsal bouquet, our favorite northern girl in the group showed our southern bride a tradition where you tie the bouquet to your head like a hat. I'm still not sure if this was made up or not.}

{champagne party favors}

And several hours later...the engagement party! Regrettably, I didn't take nearly enough pictures to do this party justice. I blame the wine.

 {guests were greeted with mint juleps}

 {the poolside candlelit dinner setup}

{the hubs}

{gorgeous tablescape}

Party day success!

It's Not Delivery...

It's homemade. Last weekend I made a pizza so delicious that I surprised myself! We were just about to walk out the door to eat at the pizza place down the street when I offered to just make a pizza at home. I still can't stop thinking about it. I've made lots and lots of pizzas at home before, but this one beats them all. And Matt agrees.

I had everything on hand since I had just run to Trader Joe's a few days earlier.    Ingredients: Trader Joe's Ready-to-Bake Whole Wheat Pizza Dough Trader Joe's Pizza Sauce Frozen Broccoli Florets Baby Portobello Mushrooms Roma Tomato, diced Fresh Basil Trader Joe's Goat Cheese Crumbles Mozzarella Cheese Olive Oil Minced Garlic     Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare dough as directed. Saute garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet. Add garlic to dough. Spread pizza sauce onto dough and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Layer as much of your your favorite toppings as you like! Top with crumbled goat cheese and fresh basil. Bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Halfway into the cook time, brush crust with olive oil and return pizza to the oven. Broil for a few minutes until cheese is lightly browned.

Looks like there will be many pizza nights in our future!

My Baking Fail

Just in case you were wondering if I ever screw up in the kitchen...i do.    All. The. Time.   My most recent recipe gone awry was The Easiest Mini Deep Dish Fruit Pizzas. Did you catch "easiest" in the recipe title? You should also know that this recipe was created by a mom who wanted to bake with the help of her 4 year old.   3 Step Recipe: Bake pre-made cookie dough. Add cream cheese and cool whip topping. Decorate with fruit.   Fail proof, right? Here is what the fruit pizzas were supposed to look like...

via And here's how mine turned out...

Epic baking fail.    Despite doubling the cooking time the recipe called for, my cookies came out doughy and mushy. Then I decided the frosting wasn't sweet enough, so I added powdered sugar, which really just made the frosting super runny and gross.    Matt declined to taste the final product.
Just keepin it real.