Strawberry Picking

My mom and I have been going strawberry picking almost every summer since I was a little girl. It's a super fun tradition and we always have a great time. And who doesn't love bringing home (literally) pounds of farm-fresh strawberries?! What's something you love doing in the summer?

Sushi and Fondue.

No the sushi and fondue was not eaten together!

As I had previously promised here is a semi-epic food post from over winter break. My cousin, aunt and I spent some quality time together literally eating a boatful of sushi! I also went to a fondue restaurant with my mom and nana to celebrate me getting a 3.7 GPA last semester. 

Weekstagram: December 23rd-29th

  

  

1. My aunt Joan wore this necklace I made her many, many Christmases ago. 

2. Homemade shortbread cookies with cake batter frosting. Amazing.

3. Penny loves snow. I just about had to carry her in!

4. Sparkly nails and red velvet truffles. My mom picks out the best Christmas candy.

 

Weekstagram: December 16th-22nd

1. Penny wanted to hold hands.

2. Penny loves Christmas lights.

3. My mom and I got breakfast at a diner.

4. My grandparents actually went to this diner on their first date in the '50s.

5. Kitty snuggles! 

 

Last Weekend: Big E

So last weekend I went to the Big E with my mom, nana, godmother and cousin. It's a family tradition and I've actually never missed a year ever. This year was my 20th fair! Isn't that crazy? It's the perfect time between summer and fall and it was great to spend some time with my family. There's a bunch of fun things to do there. My favorite is seeing the animals and shopping. And I also love eating a bunch of really unhealthy food too! One of my favorites from this year was the fried butterballs. So delicious!

A Few Weekends Ago...

A few weekends ago, my mom, nana and I went to breakfast a few towns over and spent the afternoon walking around art galleries and garden shops.

We had breakfast at a place called the Barn. It was so pretty inside and the light was just gorgeous that morning. There were a bunch of sweet details inside like the iron rooster coat hook in the bathroom and mismatched wooden chairs. I had english muffins topped with sauteed spinach and poached eggs smothered in delicious hollandaise sauce. It was served with a side of home fries and fresh coffee and was absolutely amazing. All of the ingredients were so fresh and the farm fresh eggs were amazing!

After breakfast we walked around this gorgeous garden and a few art galleries. There was a whole room dedicated to elephant art as in paintings by elephants. Absolutely incredible. I ended my afternoon with some refreshing blood orange sorbet from a local gelato shop. It was such a nice summer afternoon and a great opportunity to spend some time with my family before moving back into school.

Photos from my Weekend

This weekend while at my aunt's house I played with some cute little kittens that one of her cats had a few months ago. One of them took a liking to my toes and then I couldn't help but cuddle with him after dinner. 

On Sunday my little cousin Charlotte was baptized. She's so cute and I snapped a few pictures of her during the service. She lost one of her tiny slippers most likely because her big sister, Sadie kept touching her feet to show every one her shoes. Charlotte Quinn and I spent some time together during the party and she was having a great time bouncing up and down on my lap and giggling from pulling my hair.

At the party, Sadie was going around pouring sand from her sandbox on everyone's feet. It was so adorable and when she was done "sanding" my mom she helped her put her sandals back on. Charlotte's mom made a gorgeous cake complete with a fondant baby that ended up getting saved in the freezer because no one could eat it. My other sweet cousin, Leila had a great time playing with Charlotte and then stole my camera and took about fifty out of focus pictures of Charlotte. 

How was your weekend?

xo,
Kristen

Fajitas!

 
I love fajitas. Well, there is pretty much no Mexican food I have come across that I couldn't devour four times my weight of, if we're being honest.  My mom and I cannot get enough of south-of-the-border anything so she started making her version of fajitas. They're not authentic by any means but they sure taste delicious and are easy to make. I hope you try them out. Let me know if you do in the comments!

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces

1/4 cup lime juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 bag frozen peppers + onions
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
salt + pepper to taste

Instructions:
1. Marinate chicken in lime juice and 1 tablespoon of oil. Add salt and pepper and stir together.
2. Refridgerate for 5 minutes.
3. Saute thawed onions and peppers with garlic in olive oil until soft.
4. Add chicken.
5. When chicken is cooked, serve in tortillas. I like mine with cheese and tomatoes.

xo,
Kristen

Life this Summer

I'm trying to enjoy my summer. Really, I am. I wanted to be in Boston but I'm not and still attempting to make the best out of it. Between two jobs a biweekly internship and a science class I am stressed and always busy. As, I've mentioned before, my dog has the early stages of kidney failure so I'm doing the best I can with keep a solid medication schedule and going to her doctors appointments. On top of it all I'm trying to still spend time with friends and family while I'm in Rhode Island. In the midst of my crazy life, I snapped a few calming pictures I thought I'd share.

What are you doing this summer?
xo,
Kristen

It's all in the details.

I am a firm believer that the little things make life exciting. I find that the photos I take (I'm trying to take even more!) are of random things that I see. These little details make my life exciting and I'm excited to start sharing them with you in my "It's all in the details" series. 


I went to the beach with my family last Thursday and it was a great time. I went swimming and caught up on some guilty pleasure reading. I can't help it! Cosmo is just perfect for the beach... Anyways, the beach was beautiful. I couldn't help but include this silly photo of me and my nana. She hates having her picture taken because she says they come out so bad. Most of the time, it is her fault considering she's moving or talking. Either way I thought this picture was super cute. I found this crab shell in the sand. It was pretty but looked kind of gross so I took a picture instead of picking it up.


My eleven year old Golden Retriever, Penny, makes the most adorable faces. I swear she has no idea that she's a dog and responds to what you say to her. Penny is sick and has the early stages of kidney disease. This means that she takes a ton of pills every day and doesn't want to eat or drink. I've been cooking chicken and rice or ground beef and rice for her and giving her at home IV's to keep her healthy. I've been trying to be the best puppy-mama I can and have been wrestling her to eat and take her medicine. It's a challenge, considering how uncooperative she is but she's definitely more energetic after she's eaten.


In the middle of working two jobs and doing a summer internship I finally had time to spend with some friends from high school. Erin, Kristen (yes there's another one!, Lily and I got dinner and ice cream and hung out for a few hours. While waiting for Erin to get out of work, the rest of us found some awesome graffiti in a random alley way. I'm loving the ram's head with bows and hearts. 


xo,
Kristen