Happy Birthday, Atticus!

Atticus is 4 years old now.

We're not really sure when her birthday is, but the vet guessed when she was found that she was 3 months old.  That was in November of 2008.

I feel like this needs some sort of disclaimer...I don't throw my dog a birthday party every year.

But I feel like that would just surprise you.

Doesn't it surprise you that this is the first time that I've done this?

It surprises me.

But Atticus has had a rough couple of months.  And she's finally feeling better and seems more like herself...so, I felt like celebrating.

Plus, while Brian & I were in the emergency animal hospital at 3 in the morning with her, we read on a chart that Atticus is about 27 in dog years.  I'm about 27 in human years.

Back in November of 2008, I had just spent a weekend away with my cousin, Grove, and her husband, Adam, at their home over on the Gulf Coast.  I was actively looking for a puppy to adopt, having just settled into my first apartment on my own.

Grove and I looked around while I was there, checked with a few animal shelters...but didn't find anything.

The night that I got back home, I received a text from Grove.  It was a picture of Atticus.

"I think I found your dog," she said.

A friend of Grove's had found her on a rural road.  I told her that I wanted her, and the next morning my mom and I drove halfway to Grove's to meet them.  To meet Atticus.

This was the first time that I saw her.

Obviously, it was love at first sight.

I was on my own for the first time in my life.  But then I had Atticus with me.

She's been with me ever since.

Christmas 2008

                                        

So, you get it.  I love my dog.  

And now she's Brian's dog, too. 

And now she's 4 years old.  Or 27.  

And I felt like celebrating.

So, because Atticus has been having her health issues, I have been very interested in finding some healthy homemade treat recipes.  

By the way, we no longer think she could have epilepsy because she has improved so much since we started giving her a daily antihistamine.  In fact, she hasn't gotten sick in a few weeks now, {knock on wood} so we definitely think that the issue is allergy related.

I found the recipe for these treats on Dog Nutrition Naturally.

Sandra, the site's author, has done excellent research on the topic and her site is full of great information.  

Basically, the idea behind these treats is that dogs are carnivores.  And I am no expert, but she explains that dogs do not need carbohydrates in the same way that we do...and carbohydrates make up the bulk of most popular dog food brands out there today.  

So, Atticus' food now is grain-free, but it is chicken based.  In doing my own research on the episodes that Atticus was having, I read that it is fairly common for dogs to be allergic to poultry.  So, I wanted to find a recipe without chicken, too.

Here is the recipe that I found on Sandra's site:

1 large sweet potato, diced and then boiled for about 10 minutes.

And then mashed...I ended up taking the skin out.

1 large egg

1 lb of your choice of ground meat, {not vegan}
I used ground beef, $4.

Also mix in 5 Tbsp of rolled oats and a 1/4 teaspoon
of garlic powder.

Spread it out onto a lightly greased baking sheet
& bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees.

"that smells good.  is that for me?"

Not sure why this happened...
but at this point you should take the pan
out of the oven and cut the mixture or
use your cookie cutter.

Like this.  And then put it back into the oven at 250 degrees
for another hour.

So, this is how they turned out.

Not how I thought they'd look, but Atticus was very pleased.  

I'm keeping them in an air tight container in the refrigerator.

The recipe for the cupcakes came from DogTreatKitchen.com. 

This recipe calls for whole wheat flour...3 cups, in fact, which seemed like a lot to me.  And I actually ended up reducing the amount because the mixture was so dry.

But I used brown rice flour, to keep the cupcakes gluten free.

2 cups of shredded carrots

mix together with 3 large eggs {oye, that's a lot}
and 1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce.

In a separate bowl, mix together 3 cups of gluten free flour,
2 tsp of cinnamon, and 1/2 cup of rolled oats.

Then, slowly, mix the wet and dry ingredients.
Like I said, this was super dry, I did not add all of the flour
and I added some extra applesauce.

It's helpful to wet your fingers and press the dough
into the cupcake liners.

The cupcakes won't rise, so fill them on up.

I made the frosting using reduced fat
cream cheese and applesauce.

I forgot to buy a candle...but this ended up being a lot better, I think.

Plus, putting a yummy cupcake in front of a dog with a lit candle stuck in it probably isn't an awesome idea.

Sweet Atticus, these pictures crack me up.  I am definitely going to frame some.  

I think they would be really cute as a series, maybe with some colorful mattes.  Maybe hanging in the kitchen?

I don't know, but I love them.  And I love her.  

She seems a little sluggish tonight...I'll probably let her have more of the cupcakes, but probably not a whole one at once.  They are very dense, but she loved them!

So, Atticus and I are the same age now.  And all I can think about is how from now on she will be growing older much faster than I am.

It doesn't matter, Atticus is going to live forever.  Until then, I hope you love your life as much as I do.

Throwing a Party for Under $100

So, Brian & I are throwing a housewarming party this weekend.

Side-story:  Brian & I spent the night before last in the Emergency Animal Hospital with Atticus.

She's okay now, but after a couple hours of veraciously trying to eat anything that she could find on our floors & then violently throwing up...we decided to take her in.  {The decision was actually made for me when I bent down to pet her and she tried to eat my hair...}

So, after getting no sleep Tuesday night, we spent all day yesterday monitoring sweet Atticus & feeding her handfuls of food at a time in between naps.

Oh, she's cute.

So, the point of the story is that:

1) we are behind in our party planning, cleaning & organizing this week because we literally did not do anything yesterday except sleep and check on Atticus.  And,

2) we really need to throw this party on a budget now because trips to the animal hospital in the middle of the night are not cheap.

Today is for planning & making sure that this party stays on budget.

So, I have been working on some ideas on how to throw a party on the cheap.

The first thing that I saved money on was the invitation.  

I created a Facebook event to get the word out, but I also designed a cute invitation that I sent out via e-mail as well as uploaded as an image onto the event page on Facebook.  

Addresses have been changed {erased} to
protect the hosts.

So, I thought that this was a cute way to still have an invitation without having to spend the extra money on printing and delivery.

Even if you do work stamps into your budget, printing your own invitations is a great way to save money and there are great websites out there to help you do it!  

For example, I created a blank template on Photoshop & saved it as a JPEG, then opened it on PicMonkey.com.

PicMonkey has great fonts to choose from as well as the cute label shapes that you see on my pictures a lot...

Another good way to save money is to limit your bar.  

Alcohol is a budget buster.  But it's also a lot of fun at parties, so instead of just declaring the 'ole BYOB, let everyone know that you will have a few things to offer, but that if they'd like something else...then bring yo' own.  

We are going to get a few packs of beer and I am going to make some mixed drinks to have ready, {I have been wanting to have mason jar cocktails ever since seeing this idea on Pinterest...} 

So, I will be looking for recipes that I can use with the alcohol that we've already got at home so that we hopefully won't have to buy any more, {which is a "post-animal hospital visit" development in the budget.}

Save money on your menu by sticking to heavy hors d'oeuvres instead of having a sit-down dinner.

And save money on your heavy hors d'oeuvres by shopping seasonally & doubling up on ingredients.

For example, I am serving these baked mozzarella sticks along with a homemade marinara sauce from SkinnyTaste.com.

So, because I will have the marinara sauce ready, I decided to find a mini-pizza recipe that I could use the marinara sauce in...

And because I will have the cheese for the mini-pizzas...I decided to make these zucchini tots that will need the cheese, too, and all I will have to buy is one zucchini.

{And I only have to buy one zucchini because I already have the rest of the ingredients in my pantry.}

So, 'round and 'round it goes.  It was pretty fun thinking up this menu...every time that I settled on something, I started looking for things only with common ingredients.

And shopping seasonally with produce can really save you some money.  For example, I have a wrapped asparagus recipe that I thought of making, but it's pretty late in the summer and asparagus are a spring vegetable so their prices are rising now.

But avocados are peeking now so their prices are pretty low, which is great 'cause I'm making my famous guacamole.

I'm also making a salsa that is my go-to for taking to parties and is always a big hit.  It's labor intensive, a lot of chopping, but worth it because it's really cheap and makes a lot.  It also gets better the more it sits so it's great to make ahead of time.

Here's the recipe...I can't remember where I found this recipe originally, it was years ago...

1 small onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 pt cherry tomatoes, diced
3 or 4 green onions, diced
1 small jalapeño, very finely chopped
1 can black beans, rinsed & drained
1 can black eyed peas, rinsed & drained
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp coriander
1 handful fresh cilantro, chopped
1 small {8 oz} bottle Italian dressing

I'll be honest, I'm not 100% on this...I pretty much just eyeball it.  Sometimes I leave the bell pepper out and sometimes I add corn.  It's pretty easy.

I'm also making a basic hummus which is super easy and inexpensive.

I'll let you know my full menu after the party...I might have to make some adjustments.

So, that takes care of the invitations, food & drinks.  I am planning on keeping my food bill well under $50 which leaves $50 to spend on drinks...I'm basically trying to keep this baby as far under $100 as we possibly can.

But while I'm shopping this afternoon I am going to take my list and keep track of what things cost as I put them into the cart and if it's not working out then I will have to rethink a couple of things.

Now, I'm not spending any money on decorations because this is a housewarming party and I want people to see my home decor...so I am less concerned with party decor.

But there are so many great ideas for party decor that can easily be done with things you can find around the house or at your local crafts store, {my house is basically a crafts store with everything that I've accumulated over the years though, so it probably is a lot easier for me to use things that I find around the house...}

But buy a few sheets of scrapbook paper for under $1/a piece and string together shapes or letters to make a cute garland for the door, {which I probably am going to do...so one decoration.}

Spend $10 on some flowers from the grocery store and create a cute centerpiece for your food table.  Get creative with what you use for a vase or fill a glass vase with leftover lemons or limes.

Spend 10 minutes on Pinterest and I bet that you can find 100 ideas for party decor that you won't have to spend any money on at all...

{Pssst...Pinterest just announced open registration for ALL, so no more waiting for invitations...so for any of you crazy people who haven't joined yet...yippee!}

So, that's what I'm working on today!

AND Brian and I are going to see our reception site this afternoon with our florist/event designer, {my cousin, Grove} so I am really excited about that...

I'm also working on a new page for the blog that will be dedicated to all things wedding...so look for that this week.

I'm aso trying to work in catching up on a few dozen hours of sleep that I've missed this week.

I just don't think it's going to happen.

Until then, always remember to tie back your hair if your dog is sick.

Salt Roasted Rosemary Potatoes with Roasted Garlic Rosemary Butter & Arugula Salad...[gasp]

Hi, folks.

I made this dinner a few weeks ago for my parents and some of their friends.  

It all started because I made a chicken recipe {found on Pinterest} for my parents & my mom liked it so much she had me make it for all of her friends that she raved about it to.

I have made this chicken so many times...well, more on that later.

Right now I want to tell you about the sides that I made for this dinner.

First, I salt roasted some baking potatoes. 

I first heard about salt-roasting when Brian & I were over on the Gulf Coast visiting my cousin, Grove, & her husband, Adam.

They made these for us and I thought it was so cool but also seriously delicious.

The potatoes turn out so moist & fluffy that you really don't even need to put butter on them...but I did, because everything is better with butter.  

And because I found a recipe for Roasted Garlic Rosemary Butter.  

Puh-lease.  Just try to stop me.

{this recipe is from Cook's Illustrated magazine}

Scrub your potatoes to get rid of any dirt or grime...ew.

Fresh rosemary...yum.

Thoroughly cover the bottom of a 9x13
inch baking dish with table salt.
Remove outer paper from a whole head
of garlic and cut the top off.

Nestle the dry potatoes,
4 or 5 sprigs of rosemary,
& the garlic {cut side up} in the salt
leaving space between the potatoes...

...like this.
Cover with foil & bake in a pre-heated, 450 degree oven for
an hour to an hour & 25 minutes.
Carefully remove the foil, take the garlic out & brush
the potatoes with a little olive oil.
Increase the oven's temperature to 500 degrees
& bake the potatoes, uncovered, for an additional 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine an 1/8 teaspoon of salt
& a 1/4 teaspoon of fresh, minced rosemary...

& once the garlic is cool enough to handle, gently squeeze
the garlic out of the paper & mash it on up.

Add the garlic to the bowl with the salt & rosemary
& 4 Tablespoons of unsalted, softened butter
& mix well!
{Hey, Vegans, use Soy-Free Earth Balance!}

I really hope y'all will try this...the potato turns out crispy on the outside & moist & fluffy on the inside. 

Plus, they're infused with the garlic & rosemary flavors.

& with the Roasted Garlic Rosemary Butter...umm, yea.  Yum.

So, next I made this really delicious salad.  

My friend Ashley made it for us one night when we were cooking out.  It is just a baby arugula salad with a basic vinaigrette, {from Barefoot Contessa's Back to Basics Cookbook.}

I used a bag of baby arugula...

the juice of 2 lemons, a 1/2 cup of olive oil, a 1/2 teaspoon of salt,
a 1/4 teaspoon of pepper & freshly grated parmesan cheese.

{I asked Brian to stir the dressing while I was finishing up the potatoes & about 10 minutes later I realized he was still stirring...he's cute.}

Mmm.

Mmmm.

Mmmmmmm.

So, this dinner turned out preeeeeetty well.  It was delicious & really very easy.

I'll tell you more about the chicken later...

Until then, enjoy your Thursdays everyone, Brian & I are trying out a new recipe tonight at my parents' house for the White Sox v. Red Sox game.  Go White Sox!

{Keeeeeeen-waaaa} Burrito Bowls

What's up, y'all?

I had so much fun yesterday sharing my new ottoman with you, it's been awesome seeing how many of you have checked it out today!

Tonight I wanted to share a new recipe that I tried out this week that. was. DELICIOUS.

Brian & I love Chipotle.  It's fresh and delicious.  

And it's Mexican, which makes up about 94% of Brian's and my diet.  

This recipe is a take on Chipotle's Burrito Bowls.  Only instead of using rice, the recipe calls for quinoa.

Ah, quinoa.  

Never had it?  Quinoa, {keen-wa} is a whole grain, prepared just like rice & it is a complete protein.  Big in the Vegetarian world, but catching on in meat eaters' worlds as well,  it's awesome. 

I came across this recipe on Pinterest, {duh.}  It hails originally from The Shiksa in the Kitchen,

{an AWESOME little blog, if you haven't checked it out yet, I recommend it...amazing recipes.}

but I did make some changes to her recipe.  

Here they are:

- Start by sautéing some finely chopped Onion in 1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil in a medium sauce pan,

{the recipe called for 1/4 Cup, but y'all know I love sautéed onions, so I just used half of a small onion}

- Go ahead and throw a clove or 2 of minced garlic in there now, too

Give them a few minutes to get nice and
translucent and brown...I like to salt them when I first put them in.

- Next, rinse & drain 2 {15 oz} cans of black beans

- Now, combine the black beans in the sauce pan with the onions & add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, a Tablespoon of cumin, 1/2 Cup of water, a small handful of fresh, chopped cilantro & the juice of 1 lime

{these seasonings differ from the original recipe, I used my traditional taco seasonings}

- Bring the black beans to a boil and then turn to low and simmer for at least 15 minutes

- Meanwhile, rinse 1 cup of quinoa in a fine mesh strainer

- Bring the quinoa to a boil in 2 Cups of water, then reduce to low and simmer, covered, for around 20 minutes

{leave the quinoa alone while it's simmering...once the water has all evaporated, fluff with a fork...this should keep the quinoa nice & fluffy}

- After the quinoa is cooked, stir in a small handful of fresh, chopped cilantro & the juice of 1 lime

Now, use whichever taco or burrito toppings you prefer!  

I made my favorite corn salsa, {you can find the recipe here,} shredded cheese, chopped lettuce & avocado, {duhr.}

- First, put your quinoa in the bowl and serve black beans over that

- And, finally, add your toppings!

These turned out so well!  We really enjoyed them.

Seriously.  Delicious.

They are so filling thanks to the quinoa and black beans...yum.

I hope you'll give them a try, until then, here's hoping you made it through today without coming down with a case of the Mondays.

**Update**

I'm linking this up to another Pinterest Party, here!

This one is put on by:

Sherry {Young House Love}
- Check out Sherry's awesome Paint Project

Katie {The Bower Power Blog}
- Katie made such a cute TeePee, {from a project which I've also pinned!}

Kate {Centsational Girl}
- I am obsessed with Kate's X Base Table

& Michelle {Ten June Blog}
- Michelle's Modge Podge Nursery Art has the wheels in my head turning for sure...

These ladies are a huge inspiration to me.

If you haven't been to their blogs yet...well, you're crazy...but seriously, go.  At least check out their Pinterest projects!

Until then, Happy Tuesday, folks.