Good morning, and TGIF!
You know how the weeks leading up to a vacation usually crawl by at a snail’s pace, leaving you waiting for the feel of smooth sand, and taste of minty mojitos in pure agony? This week has been the complete opposite! I feel like I’ve been running around like a crazy person trying to get everything on my to-do list done, and there’s just not enough hours in the day to do it all!
At this point I’m kind of in “wedding mode” though. Jamaica is coming a little over one week from now whether everything is done or not, so I guess I’ll just keep my eye on the prize. ;)
I hope things are going well in your world, and you’ve got some fun plans to look forward to this weekend. In the meantime, please enjoy my favorite finds from around the web in this week’s Friday Favorites!
PS: sorry for the abundance of cakes. I actually had about three times as many, but Ben talked me down off the ledge…
Favorite mouthwater: Baked Lime Pudding Cake. This creamy, sweet & tangy cake makes my mouth water. I think my citrus obsession from last summer is coming back in full swing!
Favorite dress: Malibu Maxi Dress. How cah-UTE is this maxi dress?! I’ve never bought one because I’m so short (5’2) and I feel like they’d always drag on the ground, but the color blocking and cut is absolutely adorable regardless.
Favorite gadget: S’more Maker. No bonfire? No problem! Pop s’more ingredients into the cups of this s’more maker, then place it on the grill or in the oven. Awesome for the summertime.
Favorite weekend treat: Meyer Lemon Doughnuts. Angharad featured these doughnuts on her blog the other day and I about fell off my chair when I saw them. I always associate doughnuts as a weekend treat. This is certainly one to work for!
Favorite funny. I don’t know why, but the visual image of me and my girlfriends trolling around on golf carts in our bejeweled track suits when we’re 80 made me laugh like crazy. Love it. ;)
Favorite retreat. Oh, those summer nights…
Favorite bite: Parmesan Baked Potato Halves. Potatoes + garlic + butter + parmesan cheese. What’s not to love?
Favorite before & after: Re-purposed Barn Doors. I am just obsessed with making the old, new, and using it in unexpected ways. So rustic chic!
Favorite moist maker: Peach Vanilla Bean Bundt Cake. I simply cannot get over how moist, dense, sweet, and luscious this cake looks.
Favorite pooch. Ben and I nearly died laughing over this picture. I mean, WHAT?!
Favorite slurp: Creamy Garlic Pasta. This is my ideal weeknight meal. Easy and SO pleasey.
Favorite woah: Sand Paintings. San Francisco based artist Andreas Amador creates “paintings” in beach sand using only a rake, and time. You should see these pictures!
Favorite scene. Love the DIY window treatment, open shelves, granite color, and that FARM SINK! Obsessed with farm sinks.
Favorite bikini buster: Bacon Taco Shells. Just once, sometime, mmkay?
Favorite awesome: Camera Lens Mug. A must-give gift for the camera enthusiast in your life!
Favorite twist: Ginger Coconut-Carrot Cake. Yes, to all of those flavors. I want to make these into mini cupcakes.
Favorite flavor combo: Cantaloupe Ribbons with Chorizo. This reminds me of the Prosciutto, Cantaloupe & Cashews salad I posted a couple months ago. I’d like to try the spicy chorizo!
Favorite view: Streets of Najac, France. I wonder if these people wake up everyday thinking, “I get to LIVE here!”
Favorite memory: Framed Corks. Frame corks from champagne bottles opened for important events in your life – wedding, births, anniversaries, etc. Great conversation piece – I just wish I would have saved one from our wedding!
Favorite .com: Chocolate Chip Cookie Mousse Bomb. This recipe makes me sublimely happy. Cookies on top of cookies topped with chocolate. ‘Nuff said. ;)
Have a great weekend everyone!
Sophia 06.04.2012
Where is that maxi dress from?
Marie B. 04.02.2012
Made the CCCMousse Bombs and they were sooo good (as in too tempting to eat all of them
myself!), I had to share with friends, sister, other friend……..anyone I could find, but I absolutely loved them and so did my recipients! I saw a recipe for making chocolate bowls which would work well with the mousse, also! Oh, my!
Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious 04.02.2012
I think I bookmarked every recipe in this post!
Tom H. 04.01.2012
Hey Kristen…I know I’m probably not your target demo here, but I do enjoy perusing your Friday Favorites from time to time. I must say…IMO, you have a GREAT eye for interior design! Missy and I are currently building (well…just about finished building) our new house, and her dad found TWO old barn doors on one of his farms that we’re incorporating into the design. One is actually used as a slider that separates rooms…it turned out SO COOL!
Missy wants to use the second door for pictures…hopefully we get it finished before baby #4 arrives!
We also had a farm sink (Ikea Domsjo) IN OUR HOUSE until we realized that it wouldn’t fit due to the angle of the island it was supposed to be installed in. Ugh…so frustrating!
Iowa Girl Eats 04.02.2012
I am SO excited/envious of you and Missy’s new house! What fun to be able to pick everything out and customize for your family. I need your mud room. :)
Tom H. 04.02.2012
Thanks! It’s been a long, and at times tedious process. We never realized how many decisions are involved in building…let’s just say it was fun, but we hope to never have to do it again. We’re certainly loving the way it has all finally come together though…and we hope to be permanently moved in by mid-April!
Yes, the built in mudroom lockers were one of Missy’s “non-negotiables,” especially for the amount of *stuff* the girls will (eventually) have. Coats, shoes, backpacks…it will be nice to just stow it away and close the door. Glad you like them as much as we do!
Marie B. 03.31.2012
Am I the only one now craving the Chocolate Chip Cookie Mousse Bomb? Also, the Parmesan Baked Potato Skin Halves are ON for a dinner side! My extra weight will thank you! :)
I bought a SixQuack in honor of my six wonderful grandchildren! I wanted to put Ben’s name, but
couldn’t figure out where! Oh well, at least it goes to his team AND for a great cause!
Have a great vacation!
Iowa Girl Eats 04.02.2012
Thank you so much Marie!
Robyn 03.31.2012
Chia drinks?? Sometimes I wish I didn’t live in “redneckville”, I have to travel 50+ miles to get anything ‘different’, anyway….since I eat Chia seeds everyday, I found a recipe for Chia Fresca that I can’t wait to try, perhaps it will be as good as those Chia drinks look?
1/2 c lemon or lime juice
1/2 Pom juice
1 tablespoon chia seeds
9 c water
mix, shake and shake again!
P.S Thank goodness your husband talked you down from the cake ledge (it’s just not worth it!)
Beth 03.31.2012
Oy! I’d give anything to get to live in that little French village. Imagine all the history.
Alison 03.30.2012
Those are some fantastic favourites! The drink with chia seeds in it sounds really interesting – perhaps kind of like a bubble tea? And I LOVE that backyard scene. Amazing. I want to live there!
nosogirl 03.30.2012
I adopted a six quack!! How fun is that?? And for a good cause, of course.
I’m also going to bake the Baked Lime Pudding Cake tomorrow – yum!
Iowa Girl Eats 04.02.2012
Thank you, thank you, thank you! :)
Amanda Betts 03.30.2012
That lime pudding cake and those lemon donuts. Wow!!! And I am definitely going to search out that chia drink. I’ve been reading so much about chia seeds lately. And I am in LOVE with that backyard retreat! I’m BEGGING my husband to let us move to an acreage…someday…
Stephanie/SwoodsonVintage 03.30.2012
1. I am 5’2 and rock maxi skirt/dresses! Just have to hem them :)
2. That Mamma Chia stuff reminds me of a healthy Orbit Drink.. gosh what was that called… it had the little gooey balls in it? 90’s?
3. YESS does amazing work! You should check out IHYC http://www.iowahomelessyouth.org – they deal with homeless & near homeless teens & young adults , so the kids from YESS once they’ve gotten older :)
Shannon @ Her Dog Blog 03.30.2012
Mama Chia is THE BEST. It’s sweeter than GT’s Synergy Kombucha with Chia seeds, but that is pretty darn good, too.
Emily 03.30.2012
Always love seeing your Friday Favorites! That’s funny, I always think of donuts as a weekend treat, too. I am craving one at the moment actually…
Staci G 03.30.2012
The YESS shelter is an amazing place for kids and families in need, great reminder to get our ducks! I never knew I needed a camera lens mug…but alas, I DO!
Mary 03.30.2012
The peach cake…it calls for peach puree….where do you find that? Thanks!!
Kaleen 03.30.2012
We sell those chia drinks where I work, at Gateway Market. I actually spoke to your brother there yesterday, haha!! I hope I didn’t freak him out, but I had to tell him how much I love your blog and congrats on the beautiful new baby! :)
Candy 03.30.2012
We just adopted a 6-quack!! Sooo cute!! We have always had a heart for children and this sounds like a great cause!!
Iowa Girl Eats 04.02.2012
Thanks a million, Candy!
Caitlin Murphy 03.30.2012
All of these look great! They actually have a taco “shell” made with bacon at the Lardon truck here in LA. Its called the “baco” http://getyourlardon.com/menu/
erica 03.30.2012
OOH, i love that framed cork idea!!! i’m going to do that!
McKinzie S 03.30.2012
I’ve been reading your blog for a while now but have never commented, this time I have to! Just wanted to say I feel the fear of maxi dresses also being under 5’3″! I alwaysalwaysalways stick with skirts and dresses above the knee, otherwise I drown in fabric!