Our puppy!

We drove to northern Indiana two Sundays ago to pick out our new family member... Crosby! We got this picture from our breeder when the puppies were a few weeks old, but we weren't sure which puppy we wanted at the time.

So we decided to spend 6 hours in the car and pick out the pup for us by meeting them all in person. Even though being in the car that long is not the most fun, it was a great birthday present just to meet our puppy.

We were greeted by these six cutie-pies. Two of the puppies are girls, and we had already planned to get a boy, so the breeder got out the four boys for us to play with. After some careful consideration, and some kisses and heavy tail-wagging by one specific pup, we knew which boy was the one for us. We're bringing him home this Sunday. I can't wait!! 

50 posts!

The previous post was my 50th post to this blog. I've been at it since August 15, 2010. I've really enjoyed sharing my recipes, crafts, and other aspects of my life. Having the blog has gotten me back into photography, and also made me like writing more then I knew I did!

Where I've been

The 50 posts I've made so far fall within ten different categories. The graph shows how often I'm writing about each of these subjects.

When I started this blog, I thought it would mostly be about our house and crafting. I've always loved cooking, so after posting a few recipes, I began to realize I also love writing about cooking, and writing recipes. I hope you've been inspired by the recipes I've provided.

Where I'm going

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I know that some of the categories in the pie chart will soon be occupying larger spaces and I also hope to add a few new pieces to my pie!

Slice o' pie that will grow:

• Puppy: We're getting our puppy on June 26th, and I'm already obsessed, so there will surely be more dog posts to come. 
• Food (excludes recipes): While I love cooking, sometimes I just need a night off! We have many favorite restaurants, and also love to check out new places, especially when locally-owned restaurants that use artisan, locally-grown, organic and/or fresh ingredients. 
• House: We had our 1-year house anniversary earlier in June. I haven't kept up on blogs for all the developments with our house, but hope to add more here. We're always doing something, and that will continue (forever, so I hear). 

Coming soon to my pie: 

• Gardening: Well, this sort of falls in the "House" category, but it really is its own topic. We've had more time this summer to do some gardening, and I can't wait to share these new developments with all of you. 
• Other subjects that I haven't even realized I want to write about, yet!

Stats about my blog: 

While the majority of my page views come from the United States (no surprise), I've got readers in Canada, Germany, Russia, Ukraine, Denmark, Singapore, Columbia, and Japan. That BLOWS MY MIND! How did this happen?

Tell me, are you reading this from another country?

After finding out that 15 percent of the visits to my blog are from mobile devices, I've set-up a mobile viewing version of my blog for easier reading on your mobile device. Here's what it looks like.

Where do you access the music note from most often?

birthday dinner

My mom made me an fresh and delicious homemade birthday dinner on Sunday night. Jake, Elizabeth, and Weston weren't able to make it, but Mom, Dad, James and I had a great time!

Thanks for making this awesome dinner for me, Mom! Here's what we had:

drinks: white wine sangria & local beer from the bier brewery

caprese salads

tuscan grilled chicken with lemon and rosemary

roasted vegetables with balsamic

homemade focaccia bread

and the finale.....
molten brownies cupcakes
as you can see, I couldn't wait to take a bite, so this picture is after my first bite.

weston's baptism

Last weekend was Weston's baptism. I made invitations seen at the right for the baptism (and party!) a while back. Elizabeth wanted a preppy look with navy and green, so I created this patchwork plaid for the invitation.

Weston was calm (as always) through the whole mass and baptism. He didn't cry during the baptism as babies often do because he is a little fish! He wanted to get all the way in the water, not just have it on his head!

Then came the work for the party. I made water bottle labels, food cards that matched the invitations, and two signs for for party decorations.

For the first party sign, I cut custom stencils to match the font used on the invitation to spray paint pieces of burlap with "WESTON" and a cross on each side. I then strung each letter together with navy ribbon.

The second sign was made on my fancy-schmancy new sewing machine that I got for Christmas last year. Elizabeth found the patchwork fabric at Joann, so I luckily didn't have to sew all those pieces together! I created the white border around the edges with mitered corners - my first time with this technique! I cut a J, W, and a cross out of Navy fabric and sewed those on, too. I used kelly green ribbon to string it up. Then came the problems... since the sign was made of fabric, it didn't stay stiff and square when hanging by the bow... so I used a little spray adhesive and a piece of cardboard to make the sign nice and sturdy.

We had a huge array of amazing food after the baptism, but I can't take credit for any of these. Jake, Elizabeth, and Elizabeth's mom Pat made each and every delicious morsel you'll see below.

Here's a great family picture from the church. My Grandma and Grandpa Riedy made the trip up to Indianapolis from Cincinnati for the weekend to come to Weston's baptism, too!

chili-cheese sloppy joes

Last year I was on a kick of creating new types of sloppy joes. This is not one I made then, but I was thinking it was time to make some of those recipes (and some new ones) again. Loose-meat sandwiches are quick, flavorful, and almost a blank canvas to try out a variety of flavor profiles on.

I love chili, but I don't particularly want to eat it on a hot and humid summer day. This sandwich satisfies the chili-flavor craving, but lightens and freshens it up a bit for a summer day. I serve it with a cold pasta salad packed with fresh, organic veggies.

chili-cheese sloppy joes

adapted from Bon Appétit
Serves 2


2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 c. red onion, diced
8 oz. extra lean ground beef
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
1/4 c. water
Salt and pepper
1 baguette
Shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 c. fresh cilantro, chopped

• Heat olive oil in a heavy skillet. Add 3/4 c. onion and saute for 2 minutes. Add ground beef, chili powder, cumin, and garlic. Saute until beef is cooked through, breaking up with a spoon. 
• Add tomatoes and water, and simmer until thickened, about 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 
• Slice baguette open, and hollow out a little to make more room for the meat. Top with cheese and broil for 2-3 minutes, or until bread is toasted and cheese is melted. 
• Top baguette with meat mixture, cilantro, and raw red onion.