take me there: santa cruz

This picture is just beautiful. I love the soft pink hue of the sky. and I love all of the colors of the sky buckets. I must visit the boardwalk if I'm ever in Santa Cruz.

xo,
logan

[[photo by Jana Laurene]]

last night's dinner: couscous salad

Feeding my sweet babe has become a challenge recently (since his refusal to eat anything pureed) so I'm always looking for a simple meal that is kid friendly.

I came upon this couscous recipe and improvised a bit since I didn't have a few of the ingredients.


Greek Isreali Couscous Salad
**recipe from Weelicious

1 1/2 cups Israeli Couscous
3 tbsp Olive Oil, divided
2 cups Water
2 tbsp Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Crumbled Feta Cheese
2 Persian Cucumbers, seeded & diced (or 1 cucumber)
1 Large Tomato, seeded & diced
1 tbsp Parsley, chopped

1. Place the couscous and 1 tbsp of olive oil in a pot and toast for 5 minutes over medium heat.
2. Add water and bring to a boil then simmer for 12 minutes.
3. Remove to a bowl and cool.
4. Pour in the remaining ingredients plus the 2 remaining tbsps of olive oil and stir to combine.
5. Serve.

NOTES:
1. I used Canadian whole wheat toasted couscous.
2. I only had about half a cucumber, so I added some corn to the salad.
3. I omitted the salt and parsley (didn't have fresh parsley on hand. This is why a small herb garden would be awesome).
4. Didn't have feta cheese (yum!) so I used grated parmesan cheese.

It turned out to be tasty, and the little G monkey actually ate about half his bowl! My dad and I added some tilapia to the dish, which made it even yummier. G didn't like the fish, so he just ate the couscous. But we're making progress! and it's another meal option for the little babe.

If you have any kid friendly recipes you'd like to share, leave me a comment! I'm always on the search for yummy food for the little one (and us parents too!).

xo,
logan

best cookies ever!

When we were in FL we were introduced to the best chocolate chip cookie ever. and I finally got my hands on the recipe. So that's what I did on Sunday. These cookies are so delicious and chewy (they even stay chewy once completely cool, day after day).

If you bake them, let me know if you like them as much as I do. Best ever, in my opinion.

xo,
logan

happy weekend!

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! and Happy Birthday to my baby sister! Love ya!

xo,
logan

[[photo by kalyxcornucopia]]

colorful bench

Love this colorful bench. Reminds me of this colorful doormat. Maybe a perfect combination for our future outdoor space...at our future house.

xo,
logan

[[photo by Christina Diaz]]

cake batter bark

This cake batter bark just looks so fun and festive. Chocolate + cake batter AND sprinkles, um HELLO! Definitely adding this to recipes that I must try in the near future. It's a good thing I have a few baby showers coming up, it will give me an excuse to make fun sweets like this.

xo,
logan

[[photo by how sweet it is]]

time of your life

[[print by Kavan Studio]]

yard jenga

Another project that I'm adding to our to-do list is yard jenga. How fun does that sound? Way fun.

I can't wait until G is old enough to play with me!

xo,
logan

[[photo via instructables]]

happy weekend!

Happy weekend you guys!! Sorry for the lack of posts this week! We spent 5 days in FL - enjoying friends, pool time, and beach time. My sweet boy has decided to walk, so I've also been busy chasing him around the house. Hope to be back to regular blogging next week.

xo,
logan

happy 4th of july weekend!

Wishing everyone a safe and happy 4th of July weekend!

It's been a long week, so I'm definitely looking forward to the long weekend.

Summer = fruit in my mind. So here's a quick list of recipes I've pinned that scream summer to me, and might make good 4th of July treats.

++ this strawberry cream cake looks divine (pictured above)

++ you could make these citrus cookies to go along with the coasters I posted earlier today

++ pink lemonade cupcakes

++ these adorably cute watermelon shaped cookies

++ apple pie is always a winner, so what about apple pie ice cream. two good things must equal awesome.

++ the kids will love these strawberry milk whoopie pies (as will the adults I'm sure)

++ and for the adult cocktail hour, try these strawberry & peach vodka collins popsicles or these watermelon mojito popsicles

Happy weekend!!

xo,
logan

[[photo by Jenny of Everyday Occasions]]

DIY: citrus coasters

Aren't these citrus coasters adorable? They just scream summer to me and I love the colors. They would make the perfect addition to any summer gathering.

xo,
logan

[[photo by the purl bee]]

ah, another watch

I'm really loving this new j.crew watch. It's very similar to the watch (which I never bought) that I mentioned a while back, except that it's a little more feminine. I love the thinner band and the silver face. Plus you can interchange the bands with all kinds of color. I'm definitely digging the seashore green. Now the only thing that I don't like is it's price tag of $98 dollars. Seriously? If anyone wants to buy me something fancy, feel free, but I can't bring myself to drop that kind of money for a watch. Because then I'll want to spend another $12 dollars for my color of choice.

I'll just wish and hope that it goes on sale. and if it does, then I'll be wishing and hoping that I get my hands on one.

xo,
logan

[[photo via j.crew]]

pink macarons

[[photo by Azar of Principal Planner]]

new lens

Well, I'm the official owner of this beauty, the new Nikon 50mm f/1.8G lens. I saved the extra $$ from tutoring and splurged on one big ticket item. Not sure if it was as satisfying as buying a lot of things, but I'm totally convinced that I'll enjoy this purchase so much that it will be worth every penny invested. Now I just have to take it for a test drive :)

xo,
logan

[[photo from amazon]]

NIKE

Love this. Simple slogan, but it rings so true.

xo,
logan

[[photo from here]]