Cookie Love

I am in love... 

With these cookies.

These are now my hands-down new fave. 

White choc and macadamia.

Ingredients

½ teaspoons Of Baking Soda

½ teaspoons Of Salt

2 cups Of All Purpose Flour.

¾ cups Of Unsalted Butter, Melted

1 cup Of Packed Brown Sugar

½ cups Of White Sugar

1 Tablespoon Of Vanilla Extract

1 whole Egg

1 whole Egg Yolk

2 cups Of White Chocolate Chips

1 cup Of Roughly Chopped Macadamia Nuts

Ready ? Set... GO!

Start by preheating your oven to 165 degrees C

Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Sift together the baking soda, salt and flour. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together the melted butter and the sugars until well blended. 

Add in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk and mix well until light and creamy.

Mix in the flour mixture until just blended. 

Stir in the white chocolate chips and the macadamia nuts by hand using a wooden spoon.

Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. 

Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until the edges are lightly brown. 

Cool on a cooling rack a few minutes after they have been taken out of the oven.

xx

Conquering IKEA

It's true. I did it.

I went to IKEA.

I navigated through the warehouse to the right shelf and identified the correct box.

And I took it home...

That's when I secretly started to panic.

My 6 months of employment at the Swedish furniture store may have been a huge advantage when it comes to shopping there, but it certainly didn't teach me any skills in the realm of furniture assembly.

In fact (and I admit this quietly and with shame) - Before the store's Grand Opening back in 2006, staff had to assist by building the display furniture. A task I was quickly removed from due to my obvious talents in other areas (aka embarrassingly slow furniture assembly skills).

And since when did IKEA furniture require a drill and a hammer to build?! Obviously the days of a simple allan key are long gone.

Anyway... 2 boxes; 1,000,000 nuts, bolts and screws; and 5.5 hours later - It was complete!

Hooray!

Yep.. I'm an independent woman.

But please - Don't ask me to help next time you've been shopping at IKEA.

I am done for atleast another 6 years!

One last thing - 

Those candy jars on top are just gorgeous and perfect for storing almost anything.

I'm using them for jewellery, but they've also done time in the kitchen and bathroom.

They're available here - Brown Button Trading

xx

Three Cheers for My Chair

Are you ready for the unveiling of The Chair ?

Because it's pretty awesome.

All shiny and gold and fancy in a regal but not too over the top kind of way..

Plus it has buttons.

And wings.

So I love it.

Wanna see it?

OK.....

I hope you love it as much as I do. 

The photos don't really do it justice (iphone cameras will do that to a chair..)

But trust me. It's pretty amazing.

It's OK - I know what you're thinking... "WOW! Awesome chair. But that cushion is the most gorgeous thing I've ever seen!"

Yeah. I know, right?! It's a LukaMish speciality - Happy Paris (available on Etsy).

xx

Afternoon Tea with Miss KB

I finally got to see the SFC over Easter!
(And then sadly got too slack to post about it before now!)

Even though Miss KB insists that there's still sooo much work to do, the place is ah-mazing and I am truly jealous!

Miss Emmy was invited to the afternoon tea because she won't be welcome after the arrival of Chuck Bass - understandable, because Emmy is practically from Brooklyn and Mr Bass has high standards....!

The afternoon tea was delicious (I think I ate my body weight in mini quiches) and it was wonderful to catch up with KB but my petulant teenager of a dog, clearly dissatisfied with being confined to the courtyard, gave us all a heart attack mid-afternoon, by successfully escaped and disappeared up the street.

Luckily KB noticed she was missing before she could venture too far so she spent the remainder of the afternoon inside with us.

I took this opportunity to engage her chair modelling skills.....

Hmmm... She really needs a haircut!!

xx

Virtual Celebration

My little blog turned ONE on Saturday.

Care to celebrate with me?

When ? NOW!!!

Would you like some refreshments ?

Here

Seriously though - If I was throwing a party, it would be pink and FABULOUS. Just like the board below that Miss Jodie found for me on Pinterest.

LOVE LOVE LOVE

xx

Easter Snapshot

Due to moving house last weekend, I didn't really make any exciting plans for the Easter Weekend but in the end my four day break disappeared in the blink of an eye in a blur of more unpacking, quality Emmy-time, catch up with friends, several visits to my poor nan in hospital and far too much chocolate. There wasn't even any baking!!

I did manage to take a few quick snaps throughout the weekend.

Allow me to share them with you --

Miss Emmy chilling in one of her fave new spots in the house

The pile of chocolate, which disappeared much faster than I am willing to admit

Chad Michael Murray made a return to One Tree Hill -
I may have squealed when he appeared on my tv...
(and then I scrambled for the remote so I could pause and take a photo!)

Miss Emmy and I went for a walk at the beach -
BTW.. this is not me trying to be abstract , this is Emmy pulling on the lead around my wrist as I took the photo!!

Good Friday dinner. Delish!

I felt this way after the long weekend too...

Planning on doing more of the same this weekend. But with less chocolate!!!

xx

Operation Happiness

A happiness slump.

I'm sure you've been there.

In a little bit of a rut; Feeling a little bit down; Just sadly counting down the days til the weekend - then rinsing and repeating..

It's just too easy to dwell on things instead of living in the moment.

And honestly ?  Unhealthy habits breed unhealthy minds and bodies.

So it's time to get positive. I am going to harness good energy and start to feel better about everything.

I'm going to make a conscious effort to pull myself out of this slump and get some happiness into my life.

How ?? 

Well, I'll tell you...

EAT HEALTHY

Let's face it - Everyone feels better when they feed their body nutritious food rather than pizza and chocolate. Healthy foods give us energy.

Here

BE ACTIVE

I am by no means a gym junkie. I do not crave exercise and I can't say I understand the need to get up early and go for a run. But I do enjoy long walks with Miss Emmy. So long walks we shall have.

GET ORGANISED

We're in the new house now, so it's time to get organised. This means major wardrobe reassessment. Once upon a time, I had a super organised wardrobe, right down to the colour coding of my tops. (Yes, this is perhaps slight over kill, but trust me - a neat wardrobe helps me sleep at night!)

Here

BAKE

It somewhat contradicts my 'Be Healthy' initiative, but baking is my relaxation. And as long as I share the baked goods, I shouldn't be undoing all the hard work.

Besides, I have sooo many recipes over on Pinterest that I can't wait to try!

Here

FEEL FABULOUS

I can't remember the last time I went to the hairdressers to have my hair done. Like properly done (not just for a trim). I have been dying my own hair for over a year now, but I've decided it's time for a change. A fabulous change, which involves the hairdresser giving me a brand new hair colour.

Here

REMEMBER

Life is made of the little moments.

So even if getting out of bed and going to work is tough sometimes, every day there are little moments to stop and enjoy.

Here

I guess this is an extension of Project Healthy House. It's about the body, the mind and the soul.
Let's call it Operation Happiness.

xx

PJ's as Daywear

I love my pajama's. 

L-O-V-E them.

I am known for coming home from work and putting them on straight away. Infact, when I was in school, I did the same thing, even if my day finished at 2.15pm. 

So, you'd think I'd be excited about the news that PJ's are IN. Celebs are wearing them on the red carpet and apparently it's now socially acceptable to wear them to your local pub for a glass of vino.

The Advertiser - 11 April 2012

Ummm... I don't think I'm entirely onboard with this trend.

Sure it means that at the end of the night I don't have to fuss with difficult zips on dresses, I can simply kick off my heals (because ladies - you still wear heals with your pj's) and crawl into bed.. But seriously?!

If nothing else, the story in today's Advertiser has me inspired to invest in some new pj's (although you don't ever need an excuse). Not because I want to flaunt them around town on a night out, but because they'll make me look amazing when I'm curled up on the couch at the end of a long day (probably drinking a sneaky vino...)

xx

Along The Way With Bree

My pretty sister has started her very own blog.

I like to think it's because she thinks I'm really cool, and she wants to be just like me, but we all know that I am a little delusional at times...!

Her having a blog works out well for me, because even though she lives in a different state, now I can find out exactly what's going on in her life without actually having to talk to her!  KIDDING!

Seriously though, we chat regularly and we email almost daily, but it will be super fun to follow her in blog-land too. You should pop over and say hello.

xx

It's Not a Dead Muppet, I Swear

I wrote about my ideas for decorating the new house here.

Shortly after, by pure coincidence, I came across a rug which ticked several boxes - fun; girly; PINK! Plus it's oh so soft.

And totally the style Miss Morgan and I are going for in the new house.

It was quickly labelled a Dead Muppet by the Pippa, which is fine because Muppets are weird and scare me, so I'd much prefer it be dead and on my floor... Sorry kids.

Anyway, the Dead Muppet rug was one of the first things to be unpacked in the new house and I think it fits in quite nicely with our borrowed couch (Thanks Pip!), glass coffee table and sparkly cushions.

Barbie pink shag pile rug = Dead Muppet

More pics of the new place to come as we unpacked a little more over the weekend - in between playing with Miss Emmy and eating chocolate..!

xx

Reunited

Those of you who read my blog regularly (which to be honest is probably just my sister!) would know that after selling my house I moved to a sharehouse where my gorgeous puppy was not permitted to live. It was extremely difficult to make the choice to move when I knew she couldn't come with me and I experienced a huge amount of guilt throughout the five months I spent there, but I made the decision for many reasons, but perhaps selfishly because being with friends was what I needed at the time. 

Miss Emmy was temporarily adopted by my mum so I knew she was being looked after - and judging by the amount of weight she has gained during that time, I know she was definitely well fed - but I knew I could only take advantage of mum's offer to be a halfway home for Miss Emmy for a limited time. And, if I'm 100% truthful, Emmy is a huge part of my life and I missed her immensely.

So... over the weekend I've moved house again (yes.. that's now 3 moves in 6 months) and Miss Emmy and I are finally reunited.

The weekend was emotional - combined sadness over leaving Miss Pip; excitement over another new beginning which includes 'Morg's and Andie's Pink House of Fabulousness'; and ofcourse having Emmy back on a full-time basis (which means no more weekend visitation issues or awkward access visits).

And, Miss Emmy seems to have settled into our new house nicely and quickly claimed Morgan's bed as her own.

It was my first day back at work today since the move, and whilst Emmy was somewhat confused by being confined to the yard all day (since she's previously had a dog door and therefore access into the house at all times), I must admit - I do love coming home to such an enthusiastic greeting at the end of a long day.

All packed up and ready to go..

It was an exhausting day - all that exploring in the new backyard tired her out

Then she discovered Miss Morgan's bed

My vicious guard dog - keeping watch out my bedroom door
(and maybe napping on the job!)

Where is she? Oh, back on Morgan's bed!

This is her Happy Face

And now she's discovered another Comfy Spot - the fur rug beside my bed

xx