blogging lull

sorry for the lack of blogging lately. it's simple really...i just feel like i have nothing to blog about besides elle and my etsy shop. there is really not much going on...

elle has been hilarious lately. so very funny!

-i put her down for a "rest" on friday morning. she played quietly in her bed for an hour. i finished up some elle + ollie stuff and got ready to meet some friends for lunch. when i went to get her out of her bed and get her ready she was nekkid. head to toe. zero clothes. not even her pull-up. i didn't even make a deal of it, just got her out of her bed and got her dressed. i don't know how long she was without clothes, just thankful she didn't have a potty mess in her bed!

-aaron was giving her a bath the other night (which she has been HATING lately. agh.) and she was playing like she was a baby. laying down in the water and splashing and kicking. she told aaron "baby very funny!". it cracked us up that she used the word very in it's correct content!

-the day i lost my iphone at target. well stupidly left it in the cart... at some point i uttered the words "oh geez" and for a couple days after that elle kept saying "oh geez baby jesus". not really sure why she added the "baby jesus" but she did. and while i don't think saying "oh geez" is bad, it just made me really conscious of the words i speak in her presence, because the a couple days later i said "stupid car" and if i heard it once, i heard it a hundreds times spoken from the mouth of my sweet and lovely almost 2 year old. stupid is not a lovely word i want my sweet girl speaking.

-aaron was playing "mommy and daddy" with elle....which is it what she calls her critter family and critter townhouse. anyway, aaron asked her if the babies were sleepy and she responded "no, i don't think so...". again, she is so smart and is using big phrases the right way! it blows our minds every day!

-we have been frequenting hobby lobby and joann to get supplies that i'm constantly running out of...elastic, thread and buttons mainly. every day elle asks "momma go to hobby lobby today?" and whatever my response is she always asks if we will go to joann too! and she says "too".

-super into dressing herself too! can be frustrating but its not ALL THE TIME, just sometimes. so i just try to let her "express herself" without it getting on my nerves too much! she can reach her pants drawer and her top drawer and most the time she has an opinion about one or the other but not both and she very rarely wants to wear a dress. but if i make a big deal about it then she's ok with it! same goes with shoes and headbands.

i could go on and on...but i'll spare ya!



1-lunch with our good buddies, courtney and kane; 2-loving on nana; 3-being silly at the library; 4-found momma's makeup; 5-a rough morning where elle was very opinionated on what she wanted to wear. threw several fits until i let her wear "these pants" and "monster shirts" and "sparkles shoes". oh geez.; 6-sitting pretty with big cousin listening to a book being read!



3 new dresses i finished last week that i hope to get in the shop today. all three are amy butler fabric. i have a couple new combinations coming up this week! they are going to be super sweet too. but they are not amy butler but kaffe fasset.



yesterday we took some 2-year old pics of elle and she killed it...like she usually does! she wore the cutest dress ever! wish i could say that i made it (one day!) but i didn't. the most perfect knot dress is from SheShe Made online boutique. i'm sorry but i've never seen a cuter knot dress ever. take that matilda jane! ha ha!

i'm going to frame some of the pics we took for her party on this coming saturday!!! i cannot believe that my baby girl is 6 days away from being two!

hope everyone has had a wonderful weekend! ours has been low-key and relaxing. today i'm working on the last small details for elle's party and knocking out a few elle and ollie orders!

nice catching up! hopefully i get back into blogging more frequently soon!

last night

for christmas aaron got me tickets to see the civil wars in tulsa. the show was last night. we had so much fun. they are absolutely wonderful live. so engaging with the audience and joy's voice is so angelic. i could have listened all night. seriously. even more so if i would have had somewhere to sit down.


packed in like sardines.


horrible picture. wish i would have thought to take my point and shoot.

here is some video i shot with my iphone. horrible quality but you can get a great idea of how awesome they sound live.







listen to the crowd sing. definitely an all-around favorite. love this song.



billy jean! so hoped they would play this!

oh, and for years i've been friends a girl named jenny. we met through blogging and became fast friends. several times we tried to meet up but it just never worked out. not really sure why because we only live an hour and a half apart. last night we ate a mexican restaurant near to the venue and jenny was there. she recognized aaron first and then me and said hi. i'm so glad she did!



going to live shows has always been one of mine and aaron's favorite things to do together. the last show we went to was a show here in fayetteville when i was something like 8 months pregnant with elle. so, it was fun to get to go last night. and, now that elle is older and loves staying the night with her grands, i foresee many shows in our future...

the latest addition

phew...have we had a day...

started off with elle waking up about an hour earlier than she should of and with that came some sassy-pants attitude, so i put her back to bed right after breakfast. she did not go to sleep but rather played in her bed for an hour. and since my sewing room is right across the hall from her bedroom i couldn't sew.  tried that last week and she yelled my name 500 times. and no, not "momma" but "kari beth". ummm...yea.

i had 4 things i needed to get done today. 2 somethings for a baby girl shower, 1 something for a friend that just had a baby and the fourth something was an elle + ollie order that i need to ship tomorrow.

after e's no nap, i decided to go ahead and run my errands. just get it over with early in the day. so...we ventured to target. i had 2 things i needed: burp cloths and a rubbermaid storage for some of my sewing notions. elle was still in her cantankerous mood so i gave her my phone to pass the time and we walked right out of the store without it. i figured it out as i was getting ready to pull out of my parking spot. went to get it out of my purse to see what was next on our to-do list and it was no where to be found. talk about a sinking feeling. grabbed elle and ran back inside and it had not been turned in. i was lost without it. all my notes were on it, i couldn't run any more of my errands, so we just went back home...sick to my stomach, i might add. i gave target aaron's phone number to call if it was turned in and low-and-behold it was. aaron emailed me about 10 minutes after i called him from target to tell him about the phone and it had be turned in. hallelujah.

we went on with our day. ate lunch. elle went down for a much needed nap. i made chicken pot pie for dinner. which for some reason took me forever to make this afternoon. the entirety of elle's nap to be exact. usually only takes me about an hour. well, not today. so i didn't get any sewing done this afternoon.

but, i did get the elle + ollie order done this evening that i need to ship tomorrow and i just lovey love. i bought extra fabric because i love it so much i want to make elle a skirt out of it. and, ya know what? i'm taking a sewing class....hopefully going to learn all kinds of new tricks of the trade and will become more skilled. goal is to be able to do more than just sew straight lines.



isn't she lovely? love these colors together! very versatile!

happy monday. here's to hoping tuesday is a little less clumsy!

oh, and because i would hate to post with out a picture of little me, here she is this afternoon:



boy, oh boy. this girl has got her one sneaky streak!

hippie chic {+ some shop news}

last night aaron and elle were playing in her room and got her purse basket out. a while back i cleaned out her chest of drawers and her cubby in her closet and condensed things. she had several pairs of sunglasses from last summer that i put in her cubby basket that has her purses. well...she found a pair last night and decided that they are pretty cool and really hasn't wanted to take them off. she wore them over to my parents' house this morning and when she finally did decide to take them off there were little red indentions on her nose. she's so funny these days. definitely keeping me on my toes.



looking so hippie chic with the cross-body bag. she also had on a necklace and bracelets. i think since she dressed up with landry on tuesday, she's been really into it!

on wednesday my friend, megan, featured elle + ollie handmades on her blog. and i'm so thankful to her for doing so. since wednesday i've made numerous sales, had several inquiries and my etsy shop favorers have seriously like tripled. it was so sweet of megan to do that. thankful to have made such great friends through the blogosphere and twittersphere. a couple very sweet gals on twitter have purchased from me and i'm so grateful. loving the support elle + ollie's been getting. i really want this to be a success. makes me giddy thinking that people love and enjoy what i put my time and heart into.



my sil asked me to make her daughter (my niece) a dress, so i decided that whatever i made for her i would name after her and sale in the shop. the taylor onesie dress has become a fast fav. its amy butler fabric and i just know that's whats selling it. so darling! i'll be busy making taylor onesie dresses this week and next!



i sold both my ready-to-ship listings as well. and even had an inquiry about it but unfortunately the sweet green floral is no longer available. i'm so sad, but it does come in a pretty burgundy color that i'm going to snatch up and make for the shop. its adorable and perfect for spring/summer.



elle louise rock'n her elle + ollie original

i am having so much fun! thanks for letting me share my shop with you! one day soon i'll start and elle + ollie blog, but until then i love being able to blog about it here!



we are headed to the movies. elle's first trip. i'm so excited and keep my fingers crossed that she enjoys it!


happy saturday!

tasty tuesday {pw's marmalade muffins}

this morning we went to my friend, lindsey's, house so that our girls could play. i told lindsey last week if she would have the coffee ready i would bring some muffins. pioneer woman's marmalade muffins looked easy enough to whip together this morning, and they were. not only were they easy to make, they were really tasty!



marmalade muffins
{the pioneer woman cooks}

ingredients

2 oranges
1/2 pound butter, softened (2 sticks, i used salted)
1 c sugar
2 large eggs
2 c all-purpose flour
1 c buttermilk (substitute: 1 tbs vinegar added to just under 1 c of milk)
1 tsp baking soda
1 c firmly packed brown sugar

directions

preheat oven to 375 degrees.

grate zest from both oranges. cream butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl. add eggs and mix until well combined. add flour and gently stir the mixture using as few strokes as possible. combine baking soda and buttermilk (or milk/vinegar mixture) in a separate bowl and add to the muffin batter and mix until just combined. add orange zest and mix until just combined, be careful not to over mix. grease 12 muffin tins and fill each 2/3 full with the batter. bake for 20-25 minutes until light brown.

while the muffins are baking prepare the glaze by juicing the 2 oranges and adding to the brown sugar and stirring until just combined. you want the glaze to have a grainy texture.

as soon as the muffins are done, drizzle with the glaze. serve warm and enjoy!

elle and landry had a lot of fun playing this morning. it was the first time that e's every played dress up and she really loved it! i think we may have to get her a dress up outfit for her birthday!



elle and landry are the exact same size and so close in age, so neither one is in the least bit intimidated by the other. they were so funny today and elle was actually kind of a bully: we were sitting on the floor and the girls were playing between us and elle just reached over and pushed landry, i told her no and she did it again. right in front of us. so we had a little "talk" and she got a spanking. she didn't push anymore but she was still pretty sassy towards her! hopefully that will never happy again!

the saddest face

she's got it down to an art!

insta elle {elle + ollie}

we have had a busy week and weekend. something every day. very little time to relax, but i foresee a slow-paced week ahead. looking very forward to it.

here are some instagram pics from the last week or so.



and some of my recent elle + ollie creations.



the shirts are for a couple of sweet, twitter, friends. thank you jennifer and katie for your support! the burp cloth set was for a friend of my mom's. loved how it turned out with the red, turquoise, lime and brown. i think i might add the set to the shop. and the dresses were made for my friend jennifer's sweet willa. the navy blue and pink dress turned out so pretty. its amy butler fabric, so of course it did.

hope everyone has had a nice weekend. arkansas has been unseasonably warm and its been absolutely perfect. makes me long for spring. i dread the winter time.

p.s. elle louise turns 2 in less than a month. can you believe it? i refuse to!

tasty tuesday {blackened chicken potpie}

first off, HAPPY 2012! so hard to believe that we are already 3 days into the new year. feels good though. i've been looking forward to the new year. fresh start. new chapter. elle louise turns 2 one month from tomorrow. my brain has been focused on her birthday...lists, lists, and more lists. it will be here before i know it. that will be a bittersweet day!

so on to my recipe for today...

let me just say, this recipe is very detailed and time-consuming but don't get discouraged when reading it because it is SO WORTH IT. it is so good and different from the potpie we are all used to (aka frozen veggies and cream of chicken wrapped in store-bought pie dough and baked). and it makes 2! that is always a deal breaker for me. so worth all the effort and time i put into it. make one for tonight and freeze one for a couple weeks down the road, when you are sick of your new year's diet and you want some comfort food! because this will comfort you, i assure you.



best. chicken potpie recipe. ever.

blackened chicken potpie
{honey tupelo cafe cookbook}

4 chicken breasts
1/4 c, plus 2 tbs canola oil
4 tbs blackening spice (recipe to follow)
2 c chopped onion (recipe calls for vidalia, i use whatever i have on hand)
2 c chopped celery (6-8 ribs)
2 c peeled and chopped red potatoes (3 med size)
2 c peeled and chopped carrots (4 large)
1 c diced poblano pepper (1 large pepper is enough!)
2/3 c all-purp flour
2 c chicken stock
3/4 c coconut milk (recipe calls for coconut, but i've always just used regular 2% organic)
2 tbs minced hot cherry peppers (have never added this, can't find it at walmart)
2 tbs worcestershire sauce
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
pie dough (recipe to follow)

heat cast iron skillet on high heat. rub chicken breasts with 2 tbs oil and coat with the blackening spice mixture. cook quickly in skillet, 4-5 minutes each side. when cooked completely, set aside and let cool.

preheat oven to 400-degrees. heat 1/4 c oil in a large stock pot over high heat. add onion, celery, potatoes, carrots, and poblano pepper(s) and cook, stirring occasionally, 15-20 minutes or until the poblano is just tender. decrease heat to medium and stir in flour until well combined, cook until just thickened. add stock, milk (regular or coconut), cherry peppers, worcestershire, thyme, salt and pepper. cook 10 more minutes. cut up the chicken and add to the filling mixture. mix until well combined.

butter 2 (9-inch) deep-dish pie pans. roll out 4, 10-inch, pie crusts. place a crust in bottom of each pan, pour chicken mixture in each pan and top with another pie crust. crimp edges with a fork. bake 45-50 minutes or until golden brown.



blackening spice

1 tbs sugar
1 tbs salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbs smoked paprika
1 tsp powdered onion
1 tsp powdered garlic
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano

combine all. easy as that. makes 1/2 cup and is, i kid you not, good marinade for everything. i'm not a grilled chicken or fish fan, but with this rub i love both!



easiest pie dough you will ever make

2 1/2 c all-purp flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 c cold unsalted butter (2 sticks), cut into pieces
1/2 c ice water

combine flour, salt and sugar in the food processor. add the butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. add ice water slowly, pulsing the mixture no more than 30 seconds, until it begins to form a ball. remove dough from the processor and divide into 2 pieces. wrap in plastic wrap and flatten with palm of your hand. refrigerate for at least an hour. when ready to use, roll out each piece on a floured surface using a floured rolling pin to make 2 pie crusts.

happy cooking, friends!

p.s. linking up with 33 shades of green. head on over for other awesome recipes!