Last week we were up in our mountain cottage near Boone, NC. We had such a wonderful relaxing week! We were able to catch up on some reading, being surrounded by the beauty of the mountains, ate some great BBQ, and did not get to go hiking, but enjoyed the rain anyways. The dogs enjoyed their stay as well, and caught up on their much needed naps.Here’s to lovely summer vacations, relaxing and enjoying all the great and small things that life has to offer!
This is one of my absolute pins from Pinterest! I love the photograph, it is just lovely. But really the reason why it’s one of my favorites is that I would really love to be there! I have been wanting to take a trip to Italy for years now, Rome, Venice, and Milan, and a dozen or so other cities as well. It looks like such an amazing place to visit with it’s amazing architecture, rich history and culture, and heavenly cuisine. I hope to experience it myself someday!
This week we are taking a much needed break up to our little cottage in the mountains here in NC. I love coming up here, it’s always so lovely and relaxing, and one of my favorite places is our porch on the cottage, it’s the perfect place to enjoy the view, and a nice cup of tea, of course. More to come of our mountain adventure next week. Happy Monday everyone!
This month we are starting a monthly post with some clothing ensemble ideas for the ladies, What to Wear. This month the garden is in full bloom and there are so many beautiful spots. I have found some beautiful clothing ideas for you all with breezy dresses, relaxed denim, and of course I had to throw in something fun and bright! I have also added my daughter Ashlee’s collection of lovely summer ensembles just for fun, and more inspiration. Enjoy!
When I saw this photograph on Pinterest I was immediately captivated, it’s just so stunning! The photo is titled Nuthatch Reflection, and was taken by photographer Mark Hancox. Kudos to Mark on capturing this amazing moment! You can see this image and source on Pinterest Here.
Image found here
In honor of the Independance Day Celebrations tommorow, todays tip is on how to get great pictures of fireworks. If you have a DSLR camera put it on a tripod. You need to use a cable release. Set your camera to manual, your shutter speed to the bulb setting, and your ISO to 100. Start with your aperature at around f-11, then set your lens to the widest angle, ie. 16mm,24mm,28mm ect. When the fireworks shoot up press your shutter release, when the fireworks stop release your shutter release. If your images are too dark, try opening your lens more, and if they are too light shut your lens down more. And there you have it, an easy tip for getting beautiful shots at your local fireworks display show this July 4th!
Have a Happy and Safe 4th of July!
As many of you already know, our house is an animal house! We have two dogs, two indoor cat, an outdoor kitty, and 10 chickens. This week my favorite instagrams from my personal portfolio are of two of the fuzzy babies in the house. I happened to catch our Siamese kitty ,Titus, up on one of his favorite spots, the beam above the stairs in the studio. My other favorite pic from this week is of my little Italian greyhound, Sadie. She loves to sleep on top of the couch in the sun room. I love her sweet little expressions. But don’t let that cute face fool you, she’s a real hellion, and keeps us on our feet most of the time. I’m sure you’ll be seeing a lot more of Sadie and Titus, as well as the rest of our clan soon….
Hope you all have a Happy Monday!
One of my favorite new kitchen gadgets is my instant frozen pop maker! I love fruit pops in the summer! I wanted to try a layered pop, and found a great recipe on Zoku’s blog for triple layer berries and cream pops. These are so easy, tasty, and they look fantastic! Great for any fourth of July bash, don’t you think! If you have an instant frozen pop maker, great, but you can still do these with regular popsicle molds as well. You could also use any type of fruit layers you like. The possibilities are endless!
Ingredients:
1/4 Cup Fresh Blueberries
1/4 Cup Fresh Strawberries
A Splash of Apple Juice
2&1/4 Tablespoons of Milk
2&1/2 Tablespoons of Heavy Cream
1&1/2 Tablespoons of Sugar
1&1/2 Teaspoons of Vanilla Extract
First puree your blueberries with a splash of apple juice. Once they are nice and pureed pour into your pop molds filling up 1/3 of the mold. Let freeze. Add sticks to mold.
For the second layer mix milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla until well incorporated, then pour into pop molds filling until only 1/3 of the mold is left. Let freeze.
For the third layer puree strawberries with a splash of apple juice. Once nice and pureed carefully pour into the pop molds filling to just right at the top. Let freeze. Serve and enjoy this lovely summer pop!
Linking with:
Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, It’s a Hodgepodge Life, & My Romantic Home
