A Most Delicious Cafe' au Lait

These last couple of mornings  I've been enjoying a delicious cafe' au lait made with Cafe' du Monde coffee.   The can photographed above was recently purchased from our local Fresh N Easy, but MacGyver husband and I first enjoyed the coffee and chicory during a trip to New Orleans last August.

We went to New Orleans for a summer weekend to celebrate my birthday.  I immediately fell in love with the beautiful sights, the friendly people, and the delicious food.  Drinking my cafe' au lait this morning brought back memories of our fun trip, especially the delicious beignets and chicory coffee at Cafe' du Monde.  As you can imagine, it was a rather hot and humid August morning (note my frizzy hair!), and we had to wait in line for quite awhile, but the delicious coffee and fresh beignets were worth it!  If you ever have the opportunity to visit New Orleans, you simply can't leave without a tasty treat from Cafe' Du Monde.  And don't be surprised if you must go more than once (We went twice during our 3 day stay!).



A bit of Valentine fun....

It went from this.....

To these....

Hope you're having fun getting ready for Valentine's Day!

I Love garlands.

I always love a pretty garland.  They bring a bit of fun and whimsy wherever they are...

I  particularly love this one that I made for my valentine front porch...

 

If you would like to make a tassel garland, visit this website.  I can assure you that it will be fun and easy!

Kitchen Treats

I know, I've been a bad blogger.  There's really no excuse...I've just got to get my rear in gear and start doing more blogging and less pinteresting!!  Anyway, I am excited to share with you a few treats that I've added to the kitchen lately...

First, MacGyver husband made this great sign for me!  Years ago, I bought this "Bon Appetit" decal at Home Goods and  have been saving it for the perfect spot.  Lucky me, MacGyver husband cut a board for me, we painted it with white chalk paint and then added a black border.  I love how it adds a touch of whimsy to the kitchen!

Next, I made a trip to Cost Plus and found these metal club chairs on sale.  I should have shown you a beautifully set table, but this is how we sit down to eat at every meal!  I love not having to set the table because the silverware is already there!

Well, after buying those chairs, Cost Plus sent me a coupon, and I had to go, of course!  Anyway, while I was there, I bought this adorable paper towel holder.  I really need to stay away from that place! Hee!Hee!

A Woodland Tree

The other night, I caught a glimpse of our beautiful woodland tree....

 

At the beginning of the season, I realized I was a bit tired of the woodland tree theme (you can see last year's version here), but I've collected so many ornaments throughout the years that there is just no going back.  In fact, I wasn't  planning on putting up our big tree this year, but my youngest just wouldn't budge, and she got out the 6' tree and put it up herself! Don't tell her, but now I'm glad she did, because it did turn out beautifully!

 

 

 

 

Now that the decorating is officially done, I'm off to start holiday baking and cooking, but before I go I just want to wish all of you and your families a happy holiday!  Merry Christmas !

 

A Christmas Kitchen

 

 

Christmas decorating is finally wrapping up here at Love and Life at Leadora.  Yesterday, I finished making a little Christmas banner to hang across the kitchen window....

The table is set...

 

 

And even the Welsh Terrier of the house is ready!

 

A Christmas Dining Room

 

 

I am excited to share with you the dining room at Love and Life at Leadora!  Once again, I brought out all my pink and white china.  It's not necessarily "Christmasy", but I was lazy, and I didn't feel like hauling in the Spode!  I tried to make it work by putting teacups on the tree and using the piles of china as presents!

 

 

Once again, I filled my wooden box centerpiece with china, greenery, and a little burlap bow....

 

 

 

 

 

 

And, as always, the corner cabinet is decorated with more pink and white china along with my collection of silvers bells..... 

 

 

The dining room is done, so now it's time to move on to the rest of the house!  Hope that you are having a wonderful time decorating too!

 





Roller Shade 102

 

 

Well, I thought after having you stare at the last roller shade for the past four months, it was about time I replaced it with one I made for the holidays!  So sorry, I took a blog vacation which turned into more than a quick getaway.  Special thanks to my friends, Martha and Kim P., for pestering me to return with a new blog post.  Also, thanks to all of you who checked on me to make sure everything was okay.   Everyone here at Love and Life at Leadora is doing just fine.  I am looking forward to reading everyone else's blogs, and I hope to return to the land of blogging soon!

Roller Shades 101

The new kitchen is coming along.  I hadn't planned on making any window treatments, but the afternoon sun has been streaming through the back door, making it quite difficult to eat dinner at the kitchen table.  I wanted to make something fast and easy, and these roller shades are just that.  You can find the tutorial

here.

Now when I say fast, I mean fast!  This roller shade took about a half hour to make, and most of my time was spent making sure I cut the fabric straight.  The best thing is if I get tired of this one, I can find new fabric and whip up another! 

An Old, But New Dining Room Table

Several months ago, I inherited this lovely dining room table from my grandmother.  I was fortunate enough to grow up next door to my grandparents, and I remember eating many family dinners at this table.  Over the years, the table had some wear and tear, so after it moved to my home, I gave it a pretty coat of paint.  I wish I had some before photos to show you, but unfortunately because of an upcoming  social occasion, I had to dress this gal up quick!  In addition, I reupholstered the seat cushions with a white and black check.

My mother told me that I had to take a close up of the centerpiece I made for my old, but new dining room table.  Since I always do what my mother says, here goes...

I did what so many bloggers are doing these days..."shopping" at home.  You've seen all of these items at one time or the other on this blog.  It's quite fun to reuse things in a new way!  Have you been "shopping" around your house lately?

A New Kitchen Backsplash!

Tom, our tile guy, literally finished our kitchen backsplash moments ago!  I was so excited to share the new tile with all of you, that I immediately grabbed the camera!....

And here's another shot....

I was originally going to put a piece of stainless steel behind the stove, but now I am so glad I didn't.  Although I love stainless, I think it would have broken up that space too much.   Hope you like it!  Stay tuned...next comes the floor!! 

Would you like succulents with your turkey?

I've fallen in love with succulents.  I have been especially inspired by the succulent arrangements my very talented mother from la vie quotidienne has created.  Look at this beautiful succulent arrangement she made....

  I have this little funky cabinet in my kitchen which I store canned goods.  I needed to primp it up a bit, and I immediately thought "succulents"!   Lucky for me, I have a free source for succulents (thank you, my dear mumsie!), so all I needed now was a container.  I told the kids, "I'm off to the GoodWill!". 

It happen to be  50% off day for red tags, so I only spent $1.50 on this gravy boat.  Here it sits prettily filled with succulents in my little funky kitchen cabinet...

For those of you wondering what's happening with the kitchen remodel, all I can say is that it's been a very long process!  MacGyver husband has done a lot, but we still need to install the tile backsplash and new floor.  I am hoping by the end of summer, we'll be done.  But in the meantime, here's a sneak peek!....

Hello!  I am sorry for my long absence.  I really have no excuse, other than I just lost my blogging mojo.  As you may have guessed by looking at the photo above,  I recently hosted bunco!  When my bunco friend Patti came, she told me I had to take a  photo of this cake.  So, in honor of Patti, I am sharing my Bunco flag cake with you! 

This is a fantastic chocolate cake recipe, and leftovers freeze wonderfully.    After Bunco, I sliced up the rest and put it in the freezer.  Several days later, my mother wanted to know where her piece of cake was, and so I defrosted some, and  I have to say it was quite delicious!  You can find the recipe here.  Enjoy!  Warning, you may have to run a few extra laps after eating, but extra exercise is truly worth it for a piece of this! 

House Numbers

Well, hello!  It seems like forever since I've posted!  I'd like to say that I've been doing all sorts of wonderful, exciting things, but the truth is, everyday life at Love and Life at Leadora just got in the way!  Anyway, I did manage to come up with a new way to display our house numbers. 

This was a super easy project which only required a trip to the BadWon't (aka GoodWill) and a visit to the blog, Jones Design Company.   First, I found the frame for $3.99 at the BadWon't.   After  popping out the glass, I glued black cardstock on the cardboard backing that came with the 8x 10 frame.  Next, I  transferred the numbers from Jones Design Company onto the black cardstock and then colored them in with my chalkboard paint pen.  Finally, I hung the frame with wide white ribbon purchased at Joann's with a 40% off coupon.    In the end, my house numbers cost less than $10.  This is my kind of project...fast and cheap!

Spring Placemats

Well, my kids have started calling me "that crazy placemat lady".  Yes, I  made more placemats! 

During a trip to JoAnn's, I saw this gray and yellow cotton fabric.  As many of you know, gray is one of my favorite colors, and the yellow shapes reminded me of daffodils.  I thought to myself, "What can I make with this?".  Well, placemats, of course!

 Now I just couldn't show you a bare placemat without a little special treat, and a piece of glazed lemon cake looks fabulous on it!  But then, I realized a cup of my favorite iced coffee would be delicious too...

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to eat!..

followed by a trip on the treadmill!

Easter Peat Pots

It's the day before Easter, and candy filled peat pots are waiting to decorate the Easter table here at Love and Life at Leadora...

You can see last year's Easter peat pots here.  I enjoy making these because they are easy and inexpensive.  I've even made decorated peat pots for Halloween bunco favors.

I am hoping all my little peat pots will look even prettier sitting next to a plate of Easter ham!

Have a wonderful Easter!!

Blackberry Cobbler

Yesterday, while shopping at the market,  I came across these beautiful blackberries.  They yelled at me, "Make us into a cobbler!", and so I did!

Fruit cobblers are so very easy to make!  If you're like me, you probably want an official recipe, which you can find here.

Now, for the rest of you, get a stick of butter and melt it in a 8x8 pyrex dish.  I use the microwave to melt the butter in the pyrex dish.  While that's going, mix 1 cup of all purpose flour, 1 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder and 2/3 cup of milk.

Now, it's very important that after you take that pyrex dish of wonderful, melted butter out of the microwave, you simply plop on the batter.  Do not mix.  Do not stir.  Plop that batter onto the melted butter, and then throw those beautiful berries on top.

Bake this delicious goodness at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool slightly, and then top with a scoop of vanilla icecream....mmmm

Oh, and here's a little baker's secret...save those corners of the pan for you.  That's where all the butter is at, and after baking it turns into a delicious, buttery, and chewy treat!  Enjoy!

Spring Decorating

Spring has sprung here at Love and Life at Leadora.  I realized yesterday that I'd better get decorating, because if I didn't finish soon, the Easter bunny was going to come and go!  Anyway, it wouldn't be a holiday without my corner cabinet being decorated, so that's where I started...

And then, of course, I had to put out my Costco Mr. and Mrs. Bunny....

Finally, I finished with a spring quote on the chalkboard...

The one good thing about waiting so late to decorate is that I won't get too tired of the decorations.  Plus, they won't get dusty either!  What about you?  Are you decorating for spring or will the  Easter bunny be skipping your house?