picture packing.

I am very lucky to have a talented husband who paints and creates beautiful art. I love that I get to have his paintings on the walls. But with moving, that means transporting these canvases and frames.

Some of my beautifully wrapped frames and canvases (just the really big ones).

That is where bubble wrap comes in. I am now a professional at bubble-wrapping and taping boxes. I was really worried about transporting these paintings this time because someone else is loading and unloading all of our boxes. I wanted everything to have some extra padding and protection to be sure that it will all be safe.

Bubble-wrap selections and acid-free tissue paper for wrapping.

I learned a few important things about packing paintings: if there is no glass covering the painting, acid-free tissue paper is a must; small bubble-wrap paper is the best; there is never too much tape.

The acid-free paper is really important because it can be wrapped right against a painting without worrying that any sort of reaction is going to happen and ruin the paint. It also protects it from anything that might scratch it.

The small bubble-wrap paper is the best because there are more bubbles so it is easier to wrap all the way around a frame or canvas. It is also a thinner layer so it won't cause too much pressure on the canvas, which could cause the canvas frame to break or buckle...and that is no good.

Tape. Tape has been my best friend recently. Especially with bubble wrapping. We bought a four-pack of clear packing tape at the store and I have probably used almost two whole rolls. I do not shy away from heavy taping. The tape is what makes it sturdy. With bubble-wrapping canvases or frames, tape is a great thing to have as your last line of protective defense.

I am ready for this move to be over already, but I am very grateful for the time I have had to be able to pack correctly and stay organized. It has really been a lot easier than it could have been so I am glad for that, but next thursday can't seem to get here fast enough!

pounded chicken breast.

I have recently become obsessed with pounding chicken breasts for cooking. There are a few reasons: it cooks a lot quicker, I use less chicken, they look so pretty all thin and pounded. And it is really simple to do.

Since we are moving soon and will then have to take on all of the shopping ourselves, I have been brainstorming and figuring out ways to stretch our food and money a little more. This is one of them. Because for a recipe that I would normally use 3-4 chicken breasts, I can pound out 1 or 2 and get the same results and amounts. That is really nice when I have such a big eater for a husband.

Here's how I do it. 

Take a thawed chicken breast and slice it horizontally, like you are going to butterfly it (slice parallel to the countertop, instead of perpendicular like a normal cut). Slice the breast all the way through so that you have two pieces. Place the pieces next to each other on the cutting board and cover them with a piece of plastic cling wrap. Using a mallet, heavy bottomed skillet, or empty wine bottle (any easy to wield item with a wide surface area should work) carefully pound the chicken breast from the center out. Keep touching the top of the chicken to check for uniformity. You want the breast to be evenly pounded so it will cook through evenly. Gently pound any edges that are too thick. Be careful not to pound it too thin; you do not want to tear holes in the chicken breast.

When the breast is pounded thin enough for your liking, move it to another dish to season or marinate. In the picture above, I used salt, pepper, garlic, olive oil, and lemon to season the chicken before I pan seared it in butter. Then I tossed the chicken with egg noodles and fresh diced tomatoes and a little pasta water to create a sauce. It was perfect.

clean slate.

With the new year comes resolutions. Resolutions that usually involve being healthier or exercising more. 2014 was also full of the fade cleanses to detox your body and lose weight usually.

While there is nothing wrong with any of this, it is really lifestyle changes that are the best way to gain a healthier life and lose or maintain weight.

I just finished reading through a new book focused around the idea of making small lifestyle changes to promote healthier eating and help you feel your best: Clean Slate: A Cookbook and Guide. This book is from the editors of Martha Stewart Living.

The book is broken into two sections: a guide to healthy foods and choices (including two detox plans) and healthy recipes. I found this book incredibly informative and helpful. I found myself researching more about healthy fats, the benefits of legumes, and what makes products organic. The information is sound and is presented in a way that is easy to understand and not laborious to read. I enjoyed reading through the different types of quinoa, what makes a grain a whole-grain, and what foods and spices fight inflammation. Maybe I am just interested in the health components of foods, but I actually enjoyed learning how much better a choice avocado is than mayo or yogurt over sour cream.

The recipe section was also very interesting. Usually in healthy or clean eating cook books, you will find recipes will a bunch of ingredients you don't understand or have never heard of. Clean Slate introduces all of the ingredients included in their recipes in the guide section at the beginning. So when you see amaranth in a recipe, you can reference an earlier page and see what it is, why it is healthy, and how exactly to cook it. With that said, most of the recipes had less than 10 ingredients and all of the ingredients are readily available in most grocery stores.

The detoxing section was also interesting because it calls for the same meal to be served multiple times in a week. The three-day cleanse was the same three meals for everyday, so logically you could make each meal one time and eat off the leftovers for the rest of the cleanse. For the 21-day cleanse, each week had a rotation of the same three or four recipes for each meal of the day. So you could make each recipe in bulk and eat off of it on the corresponding day and meal. This makes it so easy to stick to the plan.

And the recipes really do look delicious. Salmon and avocado, watercress salad, roasted vegetables and pasta, halibut tacos. These are basic meals that I eat all the time, just with a healthy spin. Instead of ground beef for tacos, use halibut. Instead of creamy alfredo sauce and pasta, use roasted vegetables and a vinaigrette. These small changes really do make a difference health wise and are the first step to healthy lifestyle changes. I can't wait to incorporate more of these recipes into everyday cooking and reap the health benefits without sacrificing any flavor.


**I received a complementary copy of this book from Blogging For Books in exchange for this review.**

sausage, peppers, and onions.

I have always love sausage. That sounds really weird to say but it's true. I am a fan of meat stuffed into a casing. It's just good eating. Recently I have become a big fan of the classic recipe Sausage with peppers and onions. Put that nonsense on a bun or just serve it up on a plate and I will eat the crap outta it. This dish really is all about the sausage that you buy. So get something that you like and the dish will be a success. You can mix up the peppers you use and maybe add some spice if you are up to it. I keep the seasoning really simple so that the sausage shines through and the peppers really keep their sweet flavor. Here is how I have been cooking it up recently.

sausage with peppers and onions

5 sausage links (whole)
1/2 cup water or broth
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 yellow onion
2 garlic cloves, chopped
olive oil
salt and pepper

In a skillet with a lid, heat some olive oil over medium heat. Add the sausage links and brown on all sides. When they are all browned, add the water and put the lid on. Let the sausages cook in the water for 5-7 minutes or until no longer pink in the middle. Toss them around in the pan every few minutes to keep them from sticking and burning. Watch the water level as well and add more if necessary.

While the sausages cook, start prepping all your vegetables. Cut the onion in half and then slice both halves into 1/4 inch slices. Slice all the peppers the same size.

When the sausages are cooked through, remove them from the pan to rest. Drain any excess water and heat some more oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot add the peppers and onions. Season with salt and pepper liberally. Keep stirring the vegetables and scraping any brown bits left by the sausages from the bottom of the pan. After cooking for 3 minutes, add the garlic and toss around. Keep cooking the vegetables until they are done.

If you wish, slice the sausages into 1/2 inch rounds. Toss the sausages and any juices back into the pan with the peppers and onions and toss to coat.

Serve hot on hoagie rolls or with pasta or just heaped on a plate.

(I like to slice the sausages before I toss them with the veggies because it stretches the dish a little farther and the sausage juices combine really well with the veggies, but keeping the sausages whole works well too.)

moving.

Moving is stressful. I don't think there has ever been a move in my life that has been stress free. There is organizing, packing, cleaning, loading the car/van/moving truck, traveling, unpacking, more cleaning, more organizing, and finally settling into a new place. That's a lot of stuff to do in a short period of time.

Alex and I have made two big moves. One when we left California and moved to Idaho for me to finish school and the second when we left Idaho and moved back to California (southern California this time).

The first move was dicey. There was only one car and we didn't have any money for a moving truck, so we shoved and stuffed and roped and taped and compacted as much stuff into our little Jeep as we could and we drove the thousand mile journey. It was not pretty. And it was a testament to how much we were still in the honeymoon phase of our marriage (being married for all of two weeks at the time) because it was hard. But we did it! And we vowed to never do a move like that again.

The second move was hard, but easier than the first. We had a truck this time and the ability to pull our Jeep so we did not have to drive separate. The truck was spacious and had plenty of room for our stuff. We took our time loading it perfectly and it was much less stressful. Except that we then drove, for 16 hours, through the night, with an 18 month old puppy, in little cramped two-seated truck. Rex was a gem for 97% of the drive. He slept, he chewed bones, he looked out the window, he cuddled, and he stayed calm. Except for the few times he whined and moaned and made us stop earlier than we wanted and then wouldn't go to the bathroom when we needed him to. But a great majority of the time he was wonderful.

This move is just as stressful. Regardless of the fact that we are hiring a moving company to move our stuff for us (not because we are too good to move our own stuff but because it is really the cheapest option we could find), that we have most of our stuff already packed and in storage just waiting to be loaded on the truck, that packing what we do need to pack could realistically take me only 4 to 5 hours to complete, and that we still have two weeks before this all needs to happen, it's still making me into a big ball of anxiety. Which is always fun to be around.

But it is all happening like it should. We are organized, we have the money saved, we have all our paperwork completed, and Alex is still able to work through all of this. There have definitely been blessings during this time for which we are truly grateful.

But the next two weeks will be filled with final preparations, actually packing the things that need to be, organizing for the moving guys, saying goodbye to Southern California, and soaking in the last of any sunshine the sky wants to give me because who knows when the sun is going to shine in Portland!

garlic chicken and spinach with pasta.

I've said it before but it still rings true: pasta is my comfort food. It seems like whenever I need to just cook for myself, I make pasta. And this one was especially delicious. I found a chicken recipe online and started seriously craving chicken and pasta, so I made this one. It's for sure a winner.

garlic chicken and spinach with pasta

6 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 chicken breasts, sliced thin
3 tbsp olive oil
3 cups fresh spinach
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 lb pasta (any shape)
Salt and Pepper

Boil a large pot of water and cook pasta according to the directions. Reserve 1-1 1/2 cups of the pasta water before draining the pasta.

While the pasta cooks, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. When the oil starts to ripple, add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute until it starts to brown and become fragrant. Season the chicken strips with salt and pepper and add to the skillet with the garlic. Toss the chicken in the oil and cook until the chicken is no longer pink inside. When the chicken is cooked through, add the spinach to the pan and toss it with the chicken to wilt it, about 2 minutes.

When the pasta is finished cooking, reserve some cooking water and drain the pasta. Add the cooking water to the pan with the chicken and spinach and toss around. Turn the skillet's heat down the low, add the cooked pasta, heavy cream, and parmesan cheese to the pan and toss well. Let the pasta cook for 3-4 minutes on low to thicken the sauce and combine the flavors. Taste, add more pepper and maybe salt if necessary. Serve immediately, with more parmesan cheese if desired.

book shelves.

I love books. I am unashamed to admit that fact as well as the fact that I own a lot of books...including many books that I have not yet read. Again, totally unashamed.

I love how books look and feel and smell. Old books, new books, used books, books right from the printer. Books that have stains and torn pages and broken bindings and pen markings. Books with crisp pages and the bindings uncracked and no finger smudges. All books.

Alex promised me before we got married that one day he would build me a library in our home with floor to ceiling shelves and a ladder and portraits of great authors and maps and globes. I haven't stopped dreaming about it since he made that promise.

I have also started to fill that library, even though it is not built yet. I buy a lot of books. I am poor so I buy a lot of used books but they are all beautiful. But because I buy a lot of books currently, I need a lot of shelves. I have compiled some inspiration pictures for my library as well as for the shelves we will need when we move. I love book shelves.

sources:
1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9

pillows.

I love throw pillows. I love bed pillows. I love being surrounded by pillows all the time.

I am big on comfort. And pillows are highly comfortable. So without regard to my husband or how he feels about 8 billion pillows, I am having 8 billion pillows in our new apartment.

Only fun pillows allowed! I found an amazing place to get pillows too: Society 6. You will not be disappointed. Feast your eyes on some of my favorites:

apartment decorating.

I am currently unemployed.

It feels so weird to say that but I tend to say it often.

The good thing about this though, is that I have a lot of free time to spend planning for our move (which is now only 22 days away) and plan for our apartment.

When we were in Idaho, we both knew that we weren't going to be there for long (same when we moved to Simi Valley, though we have been here a lot longer than we anticipated), so we didn't really take too much time to decorate or buy nice furniture or really settle everything into a place. But we have decided that Portland is going to be a settling place for us for the foreseeable future. Maybe not this exact apartment for the whole time but we don't plan on moving too much outside the Portland area.

That idea really excites me because I love to decorate and I want us to make a real home. So off to Pinterest I went. Obviously budget is an issue. We can't be blowing all of the money we were finally able to save on super expense items. So DIY and thrift stores is our best option.

One thing we will not have an issue with is art for our walls. Alex is so talented and I am very lucky to be able to display a lot of his art on our walls. The only problem is, we have A LOT of it. Paintings, drawings, pictures, nicknacks, you name it. So I have adopted the idea for a gallery wall. The floor plan of our apartment shows so really good wall space that won't be inhabited by furniture (because we don't have much) so we can do a really cool gallery wall. In Idaho, one thing everyone commented on when they came into our apartment was the art on the walls; how unconventional it was and how refreshingly different our apartment looked (granted, every married couple in Rexburg has the same wedding pictures, the same "families are forever" carved wood pieces, the same monogram letters, and the same chevron curtains. We knew we would never fit into that mold so we went way outside the box with our maps, orc paintings, and portraits). I want this same thing to happen in Portland, though I think we will fit in a lot better, mainly because there doesn't seem to be a mold in Portland.

Here are some inspiration pictures I have been drooling over:

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I like when the wall is full. Like really full. And when different textures are incorporated. I also like the lack of cohesion. We have plenty of things to hang on these walls, now it's just a matter of getting there and getting hanging.

happy new year.

happy new year!

I spent most of the day yesterday reflecting, like all people do on new years eve and I came to the conclusion that 2014 was ok.

Just ok.

Not super-duper fantastical like I wish every year was. But not disappointingly disgusting and poopy like it could have been.

Here are my favorite highlights:

~ Rex. We started 2014 right by finding and being saved by this precious little cupcake of a pit bull. He definitely saved us as much if not more than we saved him.
~ We survived the frigid winter in Rexburg.
~ I graduated from college. Finally. With a bachelor's degree. yay me!
~ We left the icy tundra of Idaho for the beautiful beaches of California. (or close to the beaches)
~ Alex and I both got jobs relatively quickly after moving at Geekatoo and Target respectively.
~ I got the chance to spend a lot of time with my mother-in-law and just soak up the amazingness that she exudes. She's great. I'm lucky. I always laugh at things on the Internet that talk about "How to deal with your mother-in-law" because mine is fantastic.
~ We significantly decreased our debt and successfully figured out how saving money will work for us (trust me when I say that saving money works differently for everyone and we finally figured it out).
~ We had our first anniversary! I just love this guy so much and we went through a lot of crap during that first year that brought us much closer together.
~ We took a lot of trips. I went to Sacramento for my sister's bridal shower, Alex went to San Luis Obispo to visit friends multiple times, we both went to Sacramento for my sister's wedding and then to Texas to visit Alex's nana, and Alex went to Portland to scout out the city for our move.
~ We finalized our feelings and plans to move to Portland (even if it was just in our own minds and not on paper, it was still a good feeling).
~ We got to spend all the holidays with family.
~ We road-tripped to Reno to spend a Christmas weekend with my family and had a blast. We were pretty spoiled by everyone.
~ I quit my job at Target. It was a blessing.
~ We found an affordable apartment in Portland and signed a contract just three days before the new year!

There is a lot of not so good stuff that happened too, like running out of money and not having jobs for a while, but this good stuff is actually really good.

So here is to making 2015 a lot better and with a lot more adventures!!