A guest room update...

Something VERY exciting happened last weekend.  My Aunt Lou came to visit! She stays pretty busy between work and her many adventures so to get her for the weekend was a treat.  And to top it off, it was her birthday! Woohoo! She was staying at our house, which was awesome, except our guest bedroom had become a catch all since we moved in this house.... almost a year ago... So it was time to give it a little attention and a few bucks.

This was the room when we moved in to the house.  Bobby's grandparents used it as a den.

 (If you're not interested in a long story, keep scrolling!)

The color of the room is now 'Sea Salt'.  It's kind of a funny story.  I, of course, wanted to paint the room SW Rainwashed because it looks good in any room, but the hubs was sick of that color and this was going to be his office.  I told him he could pick any color he wanted for the walls....until he picked a color that resembled the mess our 16 month old niece made in her diaper three times a day.  I actually thought he was kidding when he showed me the brownish-greenish color. My heart was actually a little torn.  Do I let him do this to the biggest room in the house or do I try to convince him to explore some other color options?  The good wife probably would have gone with it but apparently the good wife didn't come to play that day.  So there we were standing by the paint samples in Home Depot, ticked at the world, and Bobby reaches over to the paint samples, and WITHOUT LOOKING, grabs one and says, "this one".  I wasn't about to argue with him, and although I hated the idea of a cream wall with white trim and an off white bed, I decided to just go with it. And so we did.  Looking back it probably wasn't our finest moment but renovating an old home isn't all fun and games.  I'm glad we went with the color but I never knew that until the room was finished.  So now I love the color of the room and I give all the credit to my hubby!

I love all the natural light this room gets, it just pours in those large windows.  By the way, I made those curtains out of a drop cloth from Home Depot and I didn't even use a sewing machine! I'll show you how soon!

We bought this bed at the Nashville Flea Market for $99 a few years back.  I gave it a fresh coat of paint and I think it works well in this room.  I love the detail in the footboard.

I bought the lamp from Wal-Mart, of all places.  I was looking for a mercury glass lamp at HomeGoods and Kirklands but I didn't want to pay $60.  I stumbled across this one and it's perfect, and at $14.99 what's not to love!  I did buy the vase of pink ranunculus at HomeGoods.  It was kind of a splurge at $19.99 but I needed a pop of color.

 These nightstands were another great find.... on the side of the road in someone's garbage! Yep, I am not above taking one man's trash if I think I can turn it into a treasure! My mother-in-law actually saw someone throwing these in the garbage and she snatched them up for me.  She knows me well :)  There's two of them and they are solid wood.  They were a pretty rough green color but a little paint can work wonders!

This is my favorite chair in the whole wide world and it didn't fit in the living room.  I wasn't about to get rid of it so I created a reading nook in the corner.  Now two apologies are in order.  I haven't found a lampshade for the lamp yet.  I probably should have bought one before this post but I haven't had any time! I'll get on that soon! Secondly, I found this side table, again, on the side of the road.  It's a great table and the paint is easily chipping off so it won't be hard to refinish.....soon. Again, I haven't had time but I'll let you know when it happens!

I bought this lovely rug at Target for $79, again, a good deal in my book!

I grabbed a few more pillows for the bed at HomeGoods and the two grayish/brownish pillows in the back, those pillowcases are from Goodwill, 50 cents each.  You never know what you'll find at Goodwill!

Although this was a comfy room before, we used our small budget to turn it into a guest room that fits our needs and taste!  Thanks for stopping in to check it out!

Weeknight Chicken

This is my 'go-to, weeknight, I'm in a bind and don't know what we are going to eat for dinner in an hour' chicken.  But sometimes I make it for guests as well, because not only is it really easy, it's incredibly delicious! It's great on sandwiches, in salads, on top of pasta or on the side with some veggies, you really can't go wrong here. It's also makes for good leftovers.  I usually make a few extra pieces to throw on salads during the week. And it's easy because you throw everything in one bowl (or bag) and let it marinade and then put it on the grill, in the oven, or pan fry it like I did for this post.

 Seriously, it's so good.

Everyday Chicken-

4-6 chicken breasts (or you could use tenderloins)

1/3 cp olive or canola oil

1 Tbsp dijon mustard

1 Tbsp lemon juice (or about half of one lemon)

4 cloves crushed garlic, or if you aren't crazy garlic fans, like us, you can use less.

1 tsp Kosher salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 cp chopped, fresh parsley OR 3 Tbsp dried parsley

Put all of the ingredients in a medium size bowl or a gallon size bag and mix around well so that everything is evenly coated.  You can let this marinade overnight or if you don't have time, let it marinade for at least 30 minutes. Grilling is my method of choice but in the winter I like to pan fry it in a small pat of butter over medium-high heat. You could also pop it in the oven but I like a little bit more color on my chicken and I get that from the stove or grill! However you cook it, it will taste great! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family does!

THE Dressing, Revisited

I have a confession.  It's a little embarrassing but it happened and now I'm fixing it!  A LONG time ago I posted the recipe for 'THE dressing', and yes, that's actually what we call it. It's a dressing that I concocted one day when I was attempting to make a yummy balsamic vinaigrette.  Here's the thing though, it turns out I'm not really a balsamic vinaigrette person.  Pop open a bottle of ranch and I'm a happy girl but put a basic balsamic vinaigrette on my salad and I probably won't eat it.  So I made the vinaigrette, hated it, and decided to add some things that I do like to try to correct this mistake, like brown sugar :)  I threw it in with some mixed greens, tomatoes and feta and it was a hit.  When friends were coming over they'd ask beforehand if I was making 'the dressing', and so it stuck! And then people started asking for the recipe but I had never written down the actual measurements.  I decided to make a batch and measure out each ingredient and post it to the blog.  After awhile I had friends make the comment that their dressing just wasn't the same as mine and blamed it on their lack of cooking skills, which was totally not the case.  It was MY FAULT! I made a batch using the recipe I posted on the blog and while it wasn't bad, it just wasn't the same.  And so I apologize.  I made another batch, measured the ingredients, copied it down, and have made the dressing SIX TIMES using this recipe.  It's on point! I hope you'll give it a try! It's a hit! And a little goes A LONG way!

The Dressing-
2 cloves minced garlic
1 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp dijon mustard
3 Tbsp brown sugar
2/3 cp extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cp balsamic vinegar

Mix ingredients together and refrigerate.  The olive oil will solidify when it gets cold, just set the dressing out five minutes before you're ready to use it.  Stir (or shake) before pouring!  

The Cooker's Fling Tea

Growing up there was a really great restaurant that we frequented often after church on Sundays.  It was right down the road from our church and it was always my first pick for one reason. Fling Tea. The restaurant was called 'The Cooker' and the only thing I remember was the fruit tea! It was just so good! It closed when I was about twelve and that was the end of Fling Tea...until...I was messing around with my mom's fruit tea recipe and I accidentally duplicated it.  Cha-Ching!  Because it is a little heavy on sugar, we only drink it on 'special occasions' ha! If I could drink it with breakfast, lunch and dinner, I would!  If you've never tried Fling Tea, I HIGHLY recommend you make a pitcher for your next dinner or holiday. You can thank me later ;)

Fling Tea-
5 Family Tea Bags
1.5 cps sugar (Of course, you can add less if you don't like your tea this sweet.)
1 cp frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
3/4 cp frozen pineapple juice concentrate, thawed
1/2 cp frozen cranberry juice concentrate, thawed

Heat 3 cups water and seep the tea bags.  While the water is still warm stir in the sugar until it has dissolved.  Add the juices and 8 cups of ice water.  Stir and enjoy!

You're welcome.