Thursday, August 30, 2012

Places and Spaces

WELCOME
to the home I grew up in....




Balsamic Vinegar





I took these photographs of my folks place while back home in Illinois. I had a morning all to myself  and thought it would be nice to take a few photos of the home that I grew up in.  I always feel such a sense of nostalgia when I visit.....
My folks have lived in the home for 25 years, it will be a sad day when they decide to move to Texas to be closer to my husband and I. Oh wait, no it won't ... That'd be AWESOME! But really, we will miss the house....So many memories.

Ruth

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Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Italian Sausage



Yum! This is one of my favorite dinners to make! It has such a great flavor and it is very easy to make.

Ingredients
Hot Italian Sausages
Steak Rolls
1 large Onion
1 can stewed tomatoes
1/2-3/4 cup red wine
Red pepper flakes (to taste)
Italian seasoning (to taste)
Garlic or Garlic powder (to taste)
1-2 tbsp. Olive oil

Directions 
1. Heat oil in a good sized frying pan
2. Brown sausages very slowly. Do not sear the sausages! Cook them on low for about 30 minutes,
turning them occasionally to get an even brown
3. Remove sausages and set aside. Turn up heat to med high and add onions
4. Saute' onions well, about 5 minutes. You should make sure to blacken them a little bit. This will give your meal a good flavor
5. Add fresh garlic or garlic powder to taste. Cook about 1-2 minutes
6. Add wine and scrape the blacken bits from the bottom of the pan
7. Let wine reduce by half. Add stewed tomatoes, red pepper flakes, and Italian seasoning. Saute' for about 3-4 minutes
8.Add sausages back into pan, cover, and cook about 20 minutes

Tips: Make sure to brown sausages really slowly! This helps to keep them nice and moist.
Blackening the onions will really give this dish an amazing flavor
Be careful when deglazing the pan! Cooking with alcohol can be dangerous!
It is very important to cover at the end, this too will keep the dish nice and moist!

You can experiment with different wines, spices, and veggies in this dish to change up the flavor!

<3 Ruth <3

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Sunday, August 26, 2012

Plain 'Ole, Plano

Well, I finally have my computer set up! YAY! Hence the collage, right?!? We have made a lot of progress, but there are still many boxes hangin' around, photos to be hung, and things to be organized.
I am am excited for all the fun projects we will be doing around the new place, I'll be sure to document them! Happy Sunday y'all! 

Ruth

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Saturday, August 25, 2012

Update: The shift

Palo Duro Canyon State Park. Canyon, Texas

Well, it has been a long road. We have officially been in the new house for one full week. Unfortunately, because of working long hours, we are only 50% unpacked. This weekend, I plan on knocking out the majority of that! Although I am alive and well, I have been super busy and am still without a computer!!! I'm going to pressure the hubs to set it up tomorrow. Well, I am tired of ordering take out, so it's off to the store I go!
Be back in full force real soon!

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Monday, August 20, 2012

Places and Spaces







I took these photographs while back at home in Illinois. My folks and I stopped by their good friends house, the DeYoungs'. They own a nursery and happen to have this little treasure in their back yard. Well, not really their back yard so to speak, try their back 40.

This weekend, Mark and I were able to get most everything moved into the new house on Friday, with a few things left back at the old place. Saturday morning we took a ride back out there to grab the last few stragglers and to clean house. I thought I would have been more sentimental than I was, but I think excitement overrode any feelings of nostalgia. We loved our first Texas Ranch, but it was obviously time to move forward!

I couldn't be happier with the new place, now we just have to get little miss Sophee started on new boundaries and routines.

I'm still without a computer and my beloved Adobe Creative Suite. It might be a few weeks until we get the house up and running and fully-functional. I can't wait!

Ruth

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Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Windy Daze...



Top (Mod Cloth) Belt (Tape Measure) Jeans (homemade) Boots (Nine West)

In case you were wondering, or even if you weren't, I'm not preparing to sing a ballad in these photos. I was attempting to photograph myself in 40 mph winds and my hair kept smacking me in the face! We ended up having some pretty intense thunderstorms roll through North Texas last night.

Just for the record, using a tripod in such wind speeds isn't a good idea! I learned my lesson when my tripod (and camera) blew over and hit concrete! I am a very lucky girl, says my husband, because my lens, camera, and tripod are fully intact. Thankfully, because DSLR's are not cheap. Although, there was some minor damage done to the plastic of the lens, I got off easy! 

Future note to self: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO PHOTOGRAPH MY OWN OUTFIT IN 40 MPH WINDS!

We will be moving this coming Friday, so I will be without a PC and internet until early next week.
Until then, rock on blogoshere!

<3 Ruth <3

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Tuesday, August 14, 2012

The best man...




<3 Ruth <3

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Saturday, August 11, 2012

My cousin's Wedding







I wanted to share a few photographs I took at my cousin, Samantha's wedding. It was an elegant, beautifully simple, DIY wedding. Aren't they the best kind? The wedding favors and place holders were super cute and handmade!!! The botanical gardens were incredibly inspiring. Just perfect.
It was a beautiful night of friends, family, and ball room dancing. I am so happy for Sam and Rob!!! Marriage is a wonderful thing! I wish them the best and I am so grateful for the oppurtunity to visit my hometown and be part of their special day!

You cans see more photographs of the big day here!

<3 Ruth <3

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Friday, August 10, 2012

Places and Spaces; Outside our Texas Ranch

Concrete
Cactus

Salvia

Herbs

It will soon be no more. We loved it while it lasted. Our first Texas Ranch was a real gem and we couldn't have asked for anything more. We made some great friends and loved "The Ranch" during our first year in Texas. And the best part about all of it, this is where we found our precious little Sophee....
We will be moving in a week from today!!!!


<3Ruth<3

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Wednesday, August 8, 2012

DIY Fringe Shirt




 Do you have an old, favorite T-shirt that has seen better days. Me too. I decided to mutilate this one. All I did was straight stitch from the hem to the neckline on either side of the back panel. Then I folded it and cut! Maybe I'll dye it next! We'll see....

<3 Ruth <3


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Monday, August 6, 2012

Moving...



We've found a new home in Plano! YAY. We will be moving on August 17th. I think my last post brought us good fortune, because that evening we viewed the property and the next day signed the lease! My commute will be cut from 150 miles per day to 50 miles per day. I am incredibly excited!

We are so blessed to be moving to Plano. It has recently been named one of the safest and best places to live in the country. We also will have real landlords and not just another property management company. The family that owns the home are amazing and we can't wait to love the new home as much as they do!

I will be around here, but probably not as active as usual. You know, since I won't be able to do any fun crafts of fashion shoots over the next month or so! WOW! Sounds crazy, but it will take us that long to get it all packed, unpacked, and set up!






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Thursday, August 2, 2012

Finding Inspiration

Pretty Flowers
Antique

I've been pretty quiet around here this week. I have been finding inspiration hard to come by since arriving back from Chicago. I chalk it up to STRESS! My husband and I have been looking for a new place, so I've been a bit preoccupied every night this week.

I've been commuting nearly 800 miles a week since accepting my new job, which by the way, I am loving! So, needless to say, the commute needs to stop. It's not so much the 15+ hours I spend in the car on a weekly basis, it's more the cost! Let's just say it's in the ball park of a dollar a mile! That's CRAZY talk!

Well, I will keep praying that we find the right place in the right time! I am not looking forward to a move, but it will be sooooo worth it in the end!

Just a side note, I had an amazing trip to Chicago and I will be sharing photos with you soon! Here are two from my cousin's wedding!

<3 Ruth <3

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