humph!

Ok.
I'm doing this post from my iPhone.
No idea if it will work.
My handy Mac is ill and is currently residing at the Genius Bar for a few days. Boo!

Hopefully I will have my laptop back soon. Until then I may be M.I.A.

xoxo - erin

let there be light

with your help [see here and here],

i finally purchased and installed the new kitchen light.
well, honestly.... dan installed it.

all i can say is it's love. 

here's the before (oooh, yuck, the horror)

isn't she` lovely... ha!

maybe i'd like it a little if it wasn't such shiny, yellow brass?? nah!

here's the after

see my furry caboose? she follows me all day... that is until daddy gets home.

i love the new pendant.

you can get one here.

hope you have a fantastic day!

xoxo - erin

it looks like we got ourselves a new mayor

i never talk about politics here [on the blog].

although i love politics.... very very much.

 this i will say...

we've had a great and crabby mayor for years and years.

goodbye mayor daley,

you will be missed.

and hello rahm emanuel.

hopefully being buddies with the president will help our fair city.

can you believe rahm received over 55% of the vote... wow!

birthday party

at long last, we're planning reilly's 8th birthday party.

her birthday was in january, but we like to spread out the wealth [a little bit].

that way, she doesn't have christmas, her family birthday party and a friend's party all squished together.

what kid needs 3 gift-giving occasions in the span of 11 days?

so, now it's february and it's time.
reilly is insisting on a bowling party... ick. but i'll go with it.

(a. i'm not a great bowler and i hate doing stuff i suck at. b. the thought of 14 little girls with big heavy balls sends a shiver up my spine)

here is her invitation. i'll give you the party rundown once it happens!

have you had a bowling party? if so, how'd it go????

xoxo - erin

a quick hello

lots on my to do list.

just dropping in to say a quick hello and show you a little home progress.

i just snapped this photo...  some of the frames are a little crooked.

ya, i'm not a photo stylist. but i try.

we still have BIG plans for the stairwell.

including grasscloth wallpaper, carpet removal, re-staining the stairs and painting the risers and trim white. i just have to wait until my toddler is a little more sure-footed, as to avoid injury :)

it's very warm and super dreary outside. all the snow is melting and my backyard looks ugly, naked and muddy. boo.

xoxo -erin

shutterfly.com and the worlds greatest candy

i've been a little busy

working on my shutterfly.com spring release.

i have several new designs going live today

and several more going live in april [still working on this release].

ugh.

here's a new baby announcement design

that went live online today...

kinda makes me want another bundle. HA!

what the heck am i thinking?

i hope you all had a wonderful valentine's day! my sweet husband made a wonderful dinner of steak diane and sage red potatoes with shallots! we finished the evening with a perfect pink cupcake (made by reilly and i). YUM!

i even got a GIANT 

what is it about toblerone? they're just the yummiest treat. ever.

hope your valentine spoiled you too!

xoxo - erin

living room [in progress]

the living room is coming along.

the sofa is ordered and will arrive in about 6 weeks [ugh!].

the pottery barn carlisle sofa

i purchased the two white leather chairs [overstock.com].

i picked up a  new rug at homegoods annual rug sale [30% off... woot woot].

here are a few photos...

i still need to paint the walls [a color not yet chosen] and paint the trim white.

so clearly it's not even close to complete.

it still needs...

throw pillows

artwork

curtains

some small furniture pieces

etc.

have a great weekend!

xoxo -erin

maggiano's rigatoni d...... OH YA!

have you ever tasted this pasta?

if not, you're in for quite a treat. i'm not kidding.

maggiano's rigatoni d

ingredients.

2 tbs. extra virgin olive oil

12 oz. button mushrooms (cut in have if large)

3 tbs. balsamic vinegar

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 tsp. pureed garlic (i use trader joe's frozen garlic)

salt and pepper

1 lb. chicken breast, cut into 1 to 1-1/2 in. pieces

1/2 quart chicken stock

2-4 oz. marsala wine

2 oz. white wine

1/2 quart heavy cream

1 lb. rigatoni pasta

1 tbs. fresh basil, chopped

2 tbs. garlic butter (i use whole foods kerigold garlic and herb butter)

parmesan cheese, shavings (garnish)

chopped fresh parsley (garnish)

directions.

1. heat oil in a large pan

2. caramelize onions set aside in a bowl

3. add mushrooms to pan and saute with balsamic vinegar (until soft and slightly browned)

4. add onions to mushrooms

5. season with salt and pepper

6. add garlic

7. add chicken

8. add chicken stock, 2 oz. of the marsala and white wine, cook until reduced by half

9. add cream and bring to a boil, cook until it thickens (to your personal preference)

10. turn down heat and simmer to skim away impurities

11. cook rigatoni at dente

12. add drained rigatoni to chicken mixture in pan and finish with basil, parsley, parmesan cheese, garlic butter and salt and pepper

13. add additional marsala for flavor as needed

14. place in a bowl and garnish with parmesan shavings and chopped parsley

enjoy friends.... it's super-duper yummy!!

xoxo - erin

heart artwork

i blogged about this etsy artwork last week.

seeing as next week it's valentine's day, i thought i'd share my
copycat artwork. i created it for my husband on our 11th anniversary.

 

the number 20 has special meaning to us. you can read more about it here.

oh.... one more thing... i owe you an apology. it just came to my attention that random photos have been inserted into my blog posts. i'm guessing it happened because i was using a browser that wasn't getting along with blogger. not sure. but be assured i've cleaned up my past posts and am using a new browser. hopefully the problem is solved!

take care and stay warm! it's a whopping 7 degrees outside and with the wind chill it feels like -10 degrees! YIKES!!!!

blizzard twenty-eleven

it's been interesting around these parts.

school has been out for 2 days.

the snow plows couldn't get through.

the city sent a bulldozer to get us out of our court.

all of my muscles ache from shoveling massive amounts of snow.

now the sun is shining and all is good.

our house after the storm

reilly and the neighborhood kids

coop playing in the snow

coop-a-loop

reilly standing the the front yard

our upstairs balcony

the back deck... maybe i should have taken in the furniture :)

our court during the storm

our front yard during the storm

hope you're all staying warm!

hugs - erin

shopping list...

this post is more for me than it is for anyone else.

over the past few months i have bookmarked items for the new house,
knowing that we can afford all of them now,
but eventually...

so here's the "to buy" list to date...

one

the carlisle sofa [pottery barn] – for the living room

two

stockholm rand flatwoven run [ikea] – living room

three

merete curtains [ikea] – living room

four

mercer magazine rack & paper holder in satin nickle finish [pottery barn] – downstairs powder room

five

victory pendant lamp [cb2] – above kitchen table

six

henny blanket/bedspread [ikea] – foot of the bed in the master bedroom

seven

aina pillows [ikea] – 2 for bed in master bedroom

eight

side ruffles pillow in mustard yellow [jillybeancraft] - 1 for the bed in the master bedroom

nine

dwell studio mustard yellow mod lattice pillow [idari] – 1 for master bedroom chair

ten

other items i need...
1. family room entertainment unit
2. dresser for master bedroom
3. console table for the sitting room in the master bedroom
4. a sideboard/console type table (thrifted) for the living room
5. a mirror [from kiwi wood werks] for powder room
6. a new white toilet for the powder room

well... now i'm off to watch the snow fall. if you haven't heard chicago is under a 

BLIZZARD WARNING!!!!

xoxo - erin