Videos of Dublin & Venice

This is way overdue, but I finally uploaded some videos that I took in Europe last summer. You'll notice [if you watch it, that is. I hardly ever watch other bloggers' videos, so my feelings won't be hurt if you politely move along] that we can't stop talking for even one minute for a good video! That's always how it is...

This first one is from the first day of my trip when I arrived in Dublin. It's a live Irish band performing at Temple Bar - Irish music is so fun!

Here's one from the same day. We were outside of Dublin Castle and this group of people was singing. I creepily recorded them because they were so good [The images are capturing the buildings so that I wasn't just pointing my camera at them. You really only need to listen to the audio.]

And finally, one from Venice, Italy of the gondolas floating down the canal. Isn't it so beautiful?! I think it's probably the prettiest city I've ever been to. It doesn't even seem real.

If you're interested in reading all the posts about my 2-week European adventure last summer, click here!

Recent recipe wins

I love to read cooking blogs, meal plan and cook lately, I think it's something that happens to newlyweds. Here are some the recipes I've tried recently that are definite repeats!

Pizza Dough

(from thepioneerwoman.com)

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Next time I'm going to try it with whole wheat flour, and I'll update this post with the results. Update: I tried it with whole wheat flour - it's fine but much better with white! That's how I'm going to make it from now on.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

(from my bloggy friend mrsedwardscooks.blogspot.com)

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Amazing! That's all I have to say! Everyone loves it.

Healthy Baked Potato Soup

(from skinnytaste.com)

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This is almost as good as the recipe I posted a few months ago, but a lot healthier because instead of all potatoes it's half potatoes, half pureed cauliflower.

Cilantro Lime Rice

(from skinnytaste.com)

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I made it with brown rice and it was still sooo good, just like Chipotle.

Fresh Salsa

(from allrecipes.com)

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I've realized that salsa freshly made at home far surpasses any prepared salsa I can buy. I like this base recipe, and add to it lime/lemon juice, sometimes cilantro, and I'd like to try corn too. Fresh tomatoes can be used instead of canned, and I keep it chunky instead of blending it.

Bolognese Stuffed Bell Peppers

(from allrecipes.com)

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Pretty and delicious :)

Pepperoncini Beef Sandwiches

(from crockpot365.blogspot.com)

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I added some BBQ sauce on top of the sandwich.

Open houses 3/6/11

Today we visited three open houses. If I could have convinced hubby, we would have gone to about 30. There were open house signs on every corner!

The first one we knew before going that it wasn't for us, but it's only a block from our house so we wanted to check it out anyway!

Besides being pretty far out of our price range, it only has one bathroom. I thought it would be nicer though. Everything was so outdated and it just seemed like it has seen better days. On the plus side, it did have charming built-ins and a cute living room. Even if we liked it we can't afford it.

The second house was not in our plans, but it was across the street from house #1 so we checked it out without knowing the price or any details.

It turned out to be about twice our budget, and nice for the most part but still only one bathroom (common in this old neighborhood).

It had a super creepy dungeon-esque basement. A great home overall though, with a beautiful living and dining room.

The last house is more modern. It's in a cute neighborhood, although the schools are not very good.

We didn't like this one either... it appears nice at first glance, but everything was put together very cheaply. Like the carpets were coming up on the sides. It had a nice layout but it's not for us.

We're working on getting pre-approved for a loan right now, and I'm getting impatient! I really want to start making appointments because there are some homes that I'd love to see and I think we'd really like.

Dreaming of home ownership - bathrooms

Our bathroom situation right now is... not the best. For starters, we have only one. In our next house, I'd love to have at least 1.5 bathrooms. James says we need two but I've convinced him to look at houses with 1.5 if they're in ideal neighborhoods.

In addition to having only one bathroom, it's a small one at that. There's room for approximately one body in there, which is why I do my makeup in the hallway, with the mirror I mounted there. A master bath with two sinks would be fantastic.

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I forgot to say in my kitchen post how much I love mosaic tile. I actually imagine it more as a kitchen backsplash

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but I'll put it out there now that I'd love it in a shower as well!

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A nice shower head is a must too. I've replaced the standard shower in almost every rental I've had - although 5'9" isn't that tall, it seems like showers are made for people who are 5'2"... I can't stand having to bend down to wash my hair!

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I admit that this detail is kind of silly, but I like it okay?! We've stayed at several hotels that have this curved shower curtain rod. It feels like you have so much room when you're showering, and I want one :)

My cosmetics storage is a bit of a cluster currently because we have a pedestal sink. It's really cute but the only storage in the bathroom is the small medicine cabinet. Drawers = a dream come true.

I like calm, relaxing paint colors like blue and gray.

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Wine tasting in Placerville

I wanted to share some photos of a wine tasting day from a few weekends ago - we were celebrating my sister's birthday and hit up some yummy wineries in the mountains!

Our group included myself, mom, sister and three of her friends. Lots of fun! Thanks for driving Mom! And thanks for taking the photos Kelly... I totally stole all of these from Facebook.

There was snow as we got higher up, and it was even snowing when we first arrived. This is a big deal to me because I hardly ever see snow :)

Dreaming of home ownership - bedrooms

I like our current bedroom a lot. It's nice and big, and has two separate closets for James and me (mine's a little bigger :) I love the size and the neutral tan wall color too. In the future, I'd love to have a walk-in closet.

And nice matching furniture (I say the next bed we get should be a king!). Now let's not kid ourselves by putting up a photo of fancy schmancy thousands of dollar furniture when I know well that I will never spend that kind of money on anything! I've heard good reviews of this line of dressers from Ikea and that works for me!

We already have nice side tables that James got me for Christmas a few years ago, so I want to match those (they're dark brown).

I'd also love to find and renovate an older piece like this this beauty by the amazing John and Sherry at YoungHouseLove. They bought it like this

And made it into this! Love them!

  

Our bedding is kind of worn out, but I'm waiting to move to buy a new set. Hey, maybe we'll decide to put our bed in the new guest room and need a king for ours - then the bedding would be a different size!

I'm loving dark browns for bedding, but of course the one we registered for is no longer online so I can't show you :(

This one from Bed Bath & Beyond is so pretty right?

Overall I love the feel of these pretty rooms (source)

Tulip trees

One of my favorite things about spring is going for a walk on a beautiful day and seeing the blooming tulip trees. They're so cheerful, fresh and pretty!

All photos from Google Images.