Swap Meet, anyone?

I've got this idea, and it stems from my first Swap Meet I had back in May and this video from Swap.com.

Did you watch the video? If you didn't watch it before you keep reading so you know kinda what I'm talking about here.


We should do something like this at the Osage Center!!! I think it would be a big hit for women around here and an awesome way to help the less fortunate in our area. Here's basically how it would work.

We'd have the event on a Saturday night. The week up until the event (Monday thru Friday) would be the drop-off days. When you come to drop off your items (new or slightly used clothes, shoes, and accessories), you will be given a ticket to get into the door on the day of the event. Throughout the week, volunteers will filter through the items and arrange them by size and type so they will be easily accessible on the Swap Day.

The day of the event, the doors could open at say 5pm, and women will probably be waiting in line to get in because it will be free for all type thing. Hopefully no pushing or fighting! There will be a donation required to enter, with a recommended amount of $5-$10. That money will go towards a local charity like say the Salvation Army or Safe House for Women. The extra clothes leftover at the end of the Swap will also be donated to the charity.

We could have a little fashion show at the end of the Swap to showcase some of the items. Maybe get some local restaurants or my office to donate wine and food?

I know I've talked about doing this before, but if you're at all interested in doing this please let me know. I can't do it without help! The next step for me will be to bring this idea to local businesses and to the media.

Eggplant Parmesan and Summer Peach Pie.

I realized that it's been awhile since I've talked about food---which is one of my favorite subjects :)

We stopped by Diebold Orchards over the weekend and I picked up.....of all things.....an eggplant. Yep. Never cooked one before, never seen one "in the raw" before, but I'm always up for a challenge.

I looked up a couple recipes for eggplant parmesan online, and just took a couple aspects of each recipe and made it my own. I also made a peach pie--oh my gosh sooooo good! Here are both the recipes. Enjoy!

EGGPLANT PARMESAN

INGREDIENTS:
1 large eggplant, sliced in circles
1 cup mozzarella cheese
1 cup  parmesan cheese
8 oz ricotta cheese
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 egg
a few sprinkles of oregano
a few sprinkles of basil
salt
extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS:
1. Cover the eggplant slices in salt, and place in a colander to drain for 30 minutes. This is called "de-gorging." It takes the bitterness out of the eggplant.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Rinse all the salt from the eggplant. Put some olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and fry the eggplant for a few minutes on each side until brown. You might have to add more olive oil, because the eggplant is really porous and will absorb the oil quickly. Once you have fried all the slices, transfer to a plate with a paper towel to blot.

3. Mix the mozz cheese, parm cheese, ricotta cheese, the oregano, basil, and 1 egg all together in a mixing bowl. Spread some of the spaghetti sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish, enough to cover the entire dish.

4. Place the eggplant circles on top of the spaghetti sauce in the dish. Using a spoon, spread the cheese mixture on top of each eggplant slice.

5. Top with a bit more spaghetti sauce and parm cheese. Bake for 45 minutes in the 350 degree oven. Allow to sit for a few minutes after removing from the oven b/c if you try to serve it straight away it will be all gooey and messy. Enjoy, friends!

And now....onto my favorite dish of the weekend.....

SUMMER PEACH PIE

INGREDIENTS:
2 rolled pie crusts, thawed.
12-15 fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
nutmeg and cinnamon
1 cup of sugar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, combine the peaches and the sugar, mixing together with your hands to evenly coat each peach. Thrown in a few dashes of nutmeg and cinnamon.

3. Spread one of the pie crusts into the bottom of a round pie dish. Curl the edges a bit to make it pretty :) Pour the peach and sugar mixture into the crust.

4. Take the 2nd pie crust and slice it into 1 inch thick strips. You can either weave the strips like lattice onto the top of the pie, or just lay them however you want. I actually cut little star shapes with a cookie cutter and laid them on top of my pie :) It adds a little charm! Top with a few dashes of cinnamon.

5. Bake pie in the 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Turn heat up to 400 degrees and bake for 10 minutes more. Enjoy with vanilla ice cream!

What's been cookin' in your kitchen good lookin'?

Weekend.

Saturday we went to the Jackson City Homecomers celebration and today we spent the day leisurely cooking and watching movies. My kinda weekend!

John is about to ride his first Homecomers ride. The Notorious Pink Elephants.

Dad: "Ok, John. You sure you want to ride by yourself?"
Mommy was definitely scared!

He's an elephant riding pro. Duh. 

After the elephants, we headed to a safer ride, the Motorcycles.

The motorcycles were definitely his favorite. 

Going down a big slide with Dad!!

Yep, that is a really, really big slide. 

One more trip to the motorcycles before we left. 

Homecomers 2011 = A success! 

It definitely felt different being the one observing at Homecomers vs. the one participating. I can't say I miss the unstable rides and the expensive carny games though!

What weekend would be complete without a little randomness? This chair is sitting on the side of a cornfield on our way home. Ghost Guardian of the Field, perhaps?

Fashion Friday: Taking a Risk

Hey Everyone! I'm excited about today's post for a couple of different reasons.

1. It's Fashion Friday, and that = FUN!

2. Today's post reveals a little something about me that most people might not know.

The reason I do Fashion Friday is because I secretly love taking risks. There. I said it. Now, you know.

And while I don't always take risks in my day to day life, (example: I never try anything new at Starbucks, I'm a Soy Latte kinda girl!) I do like taking risks when it comes to fashion because, frankly, I don't care what people think. Now I do care about PEOPLE in general, but I don't care whether or not they think I look like a crazy person or a fashion icon.

Here are two outfits that I LOVE, but some people might think they're a little strange. One thing that I absolutely love is taking a vintage piece and making it my own, and that's what I did with this dress here.

Dress from Annie Laurie's Antiques

The dress is straight out of the 80's, but I love that it looks bit more modern with the wide belt and the tall platform shoes. I also removed the shoulder pads myself, and tied the bow loosely and off to the side a bit.

I've noticed that sometimes women (especially around here in Southeast MO) can be a bit hesitant to wear vintage pieces. They may feel that it's not "stylish" or that they might get a few too many stares. You may be getting stares, but it won't be because you look bad, trust me! Wearing vintage is not only good for the environment, it's also a way that you can truly wear something unique.

If you're not comfortable with wearing vintage clothes just yet, start small and try a handbag or scarf. Accessories are great ways to re-purpose and incorporate vintage into your life.

This bag is also from Annie Laurie's Antiques. It's a vintage Dooney and Bourke over-the-shoulder bag. OTSB's are seen everywhere recently, and they're perfect for date night when you don't want to carry your huge "mommy purse" :)


This next outfit is also a re-purposed find. The dress I bought new from Target last summer, but I made it unique and tied a denim shirt over the top to make it a completely different look! If I get too hot today I can just untie the shirt and wear the dress the old way. I re-purposed by taking an old dress and changing the look to something completely unique.

You might think this look is a bit strange, but I love it. One of my co-workers said "Howdy Cowgirl" when he saw me in this, but I didn't mind :) I think this look is unique and I'm loving it!

Think about your own wardrobe. Do you have old dresses that need an update? Do you have a vintage piece that you've been hesitant to wear before? It's time to bust out of your shell and try something new!

Have a great weekend, everyone! xo

Vintage Finds and Skinny Wraps.

Last night was SO much fun! I had an impromptu "Skinny Wrap" party with just a few close friends. It was impromptu because my friend Lauren, who sells the wraps, was just going to come wrap me but I invited a couple girls over to make it more fun. Turns out since I invited people over it was considered a "party" so I got a FREE wrap! Woo hoo! We had a great time but unfortunately I didn't lose any inches around my waist from the Skinny Wrap. I hear other girls had great success with it which is awesome! Guess my tummy fat just likes to stay where it is, and not "detox" out of me via saran wrap. Ha.

I also scored some sweet new kitchen accessories from Annie Laurie's Antiques. The table cloth and the new salt and pepper shakers are adorable and if you've been to my house recently you know I desperately needed some new salt and pepper shakers! Check out the Annie Laurie's blog for inspiration on decorating with vintage pieces.

 Notice the delicious hummus and snow pea appetizer.....yummy. I'm kicking myself today for not packing this in my bag as a snack.

Hahahahhaaaa. Hilarious. My plastic wrapped belly. Flattering, huh?

I'm glad my friends and I are so comfortable and in love with each other that we can act silly and not be embarrassed to pose in our boxers and saran wrap.

When's the last time you did something silly and fun? Let your hair down, ladies. Let it down.




Random little things.

Check this guy out. It's a moth, but I'm not sure what kind. Prettiest one I've ever seen though! Instead of squashing him I scooped him up inside a cup and set him free.

Look how grown up John looks in this pic with Nana. His back is so straight and he's sitting nice and tall.

My two boys have been a bit obsessed with Angry Birds lately. So much so that find myself humming the song daily. Ha.

French fries and chicken fingers with Uncle Donald make for a great Sunday afternoon lunch.

These are still my favorite sandals. I've had them for years but still love them. The big toe protector is awesome for keeping playground pee gravel away from my feet.

Ok all you plant gurus. What the heck is this thing?? It popped up right along our front porch. Christine says it's a Rhubarb plant. I say it's a giant weed.

Here's a close-up of the little white blooms it has on it. Does that help? What do you think it is?

As you can see, the stem is really think and red. Rhubarb? Weed? What do you think? Or, if you don't know what it is, do you think it would be totally weird of me to take the photo's by the conservation center and ask them what it is?


How are you spending your Tuesday?

Sanity Saving Monday Tip: Is it really all about the Benjamins??

I hate money. I really do.

I don't like how it makes you take for granted what you already have.

I don't like how it competes for affection.

I don't like how it's used in poor ways.

I don't like how it makes me feel.

Money makes people feel snobby.  It can make you feel inadequate, unworthy, or sub-par. Money seems to do more harm than good, I'd say. But we need money, right?

I need money to pay bills.

I need money to feed my coffee addiction.

I need money to give gifts.

I need money to conduct business.

Wouldn't it be great if we didn't need money to do all those things? If we could just pay for goods and services with other goods or services?

I actually heard someone say recently "When I have a car I like, then I'll feel like I'm on the right track. When I have a job that pays what I want it to pay, then I'll have it made." Do you see something wrong with this? Me too.

I hate how money makes people feel like they aren't as good as everyone else, or that they haven't "made it" to where they want to be.

I've been thinking a lot about money lately. It takes money to get into the real estate business like my husband and I are currently trying to do. We have to have a down payment to buy a rental house, then we have to have a loan from the bank to make improvements on the property, then we have to find the best interest rate, and so on and so forth. Money money money. Can I just vent a little here and say that I don't like all this? I mean, does growing up really have to be about moving "up" as well? 

What if all the money we made, actually went to someone else, instead of to "move up" in our business? Who says we can't be satisfied with what we have? Why do we need more and more and more?

My Sanity Saving Tip: Don't let having money or the lack thereof make you forget what your purpose is. Share Jesus. Give to those who need. If you have more, give more. Do your part in sharing Christ's love.

Pray that you can conduct your business in a manner that is wholesome and humble. Don't get too far ahead of yourself.

Stop, smell the flowers, and think about the best way to utilize your money.

Have a good Monday, friends.