Hat boxes

I can never think of what to blog about on Thursdays. I've exhausted all my topics from the weekend, and I'm really looking forward to the weekend, so much so that I usually write Friday's post long before Friday :p
But that is why I have book marked links. I see things on the internet and on Thursdays I dig them out and share them with you. This Thursday I'm going to share a little website I found that sells hat boxes.
Do you LOVE hat boxes? Because I LOVE hat boxes. This site allows you to choose from all kinds of sizes and colors and shapes. Isn't their show room adorable and exciting?

All those boxes and in all those colors! The room itself isn't much to look at, but man do I want a hat box. The best part about these hat boxes is that they're made in the US out of non-toxic recycled materials. I like local, healthy products, I like them even better when they're awesome.

Sarah's Hat Boxes

And the store is apparently fairly nearby! oooooooh can you say August Road Trip? I can.
You may be asking yourself what on earth am I going to do with a hat box. Fair point. But Sarah's Hat Boxes has a part of their website that is just a list of what you can do with a hat box. The whole website is pretty low tech, and some of the items on the list are a little silly. But I think I'd use a hat box for: old letters, christmas ornaments, storing scarves with a lavender sachet, art supplies (like the crayons, markers, glue and hole punch that wander around and are never in the same spot), gloves and mittens (a great way to store winter stuff) and gifts (Tallman's family is totally getting their gifts in hat boxes this year!).  Some of my favorite suggestions on this list are "crowns/tiaras" because we all have those and they're just lying around too!, and canisters (canisters of what?)

Suede Horse Hatbox

If you love hat boxes you'll enjoy the site, it seems that they have hat boxes in all sizes and some that are just ridiculous--ly Awesome! Like this faux suede horse, or the suede leopard print, some have Norman Rockwell Designs on them. Oh man. I'm getting so excited by the Christmas gift possibilities!

Back to studying, but go check out Sarah's Hat Boxes! Such cute stuff!

Homegoods Rocks

No this isn't a post about rocks. This is a post about a trip I took to a TJMaxx with a very large home goods section and their incredible amount of glassware.
I took pictures. But I left the store with a pair of strappy wedge sandals and a movie so the trip was not for naught! (all pictures are my own)

 Check out this awesome tray. It was metal, but had an awesome embossed alligator skin pattern on it. I liked that it was metal because then you could use it outside or for drinks that sweat.

 I almost bought one of these books. They were beautifully made, and they were secret storage spaces. I love books, and I want a library in my home some day, and in that library you better believe there will be fake books!

 Tallman wanted me to bring him home a Puma. So I took a picture of this tiger. Can you see Sherry from Young House Love painting it white and adoring it? No? Me either, its pretty silly looking. So is the baby giraffe in the background.

 AHHHHH THE GLASSWARE! There is so much of it these pictures do not do it justice. There were cloche jars and tops for cake plates and three foot tall candy jars and little jars and round glass jars and skinny glass jars.

Do you see how crazy it is?! If you need glass jars get your butt over to TJ maxx because oh man do they have a lot right now. I liked looking at the jars and thinking of them full of Jelly Beans and Reeses Pieces. Yum.

Weekend Cooking Adventures

As the bar draws near (29 days!) expect fewer and fewer posts from me. Not because I don't love you all, but because I'm really busy studying.

Professional Multi Chop

This weekend Tallman and I were able to hang out quite a bit, and when we have time/energy one of the things we like to do is cook. A few weeks ago he made the most amazing fish tacos with his own sauces, salsas, fried fish fillets, and really out did himself. This weekend, I'd been wanting to try a chopping contraption Tallman had received for Christmas. Its like a slap chop but fancier. As seen to your left...

From Pinterest

See what they're making? French Fries. hmmm ya know whats better than french fries? SWEET POTATO FRIES. Yum. So the plan was to make sweet potato fries this weekend, and they were super easy to make. Slice, toss so covered in oil, then sprinkle with a rub that was basically 1/2 tsp peprika, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper, and 1/4 tsp onion powder.  Then spread them out on a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 450. Done. AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS.

Tallman wanted to have another fun cooking moment, so he suggested we make bacon wrapped dates stuffed with goat cheese. I, of course, was fine with this plan, having had them in tapas restaurants before and loving all the ingredients. Unfortunately we got side tracked during the baking process by watching Social Network and we didn't check them. They became tiny burnt turds. Inedible. Disgusting. It was really sad. We're pretty sure the oven was both on too high and we left them in too long. Let me tell you people, the difference between 20 minutes at 375 and 30 minutes at 450 is the difference between this:

From Pinterest

Sad Face :(

and this:












Those were my weekend adventures in the culinary arts. Delicious sweet potato fries and sad burn bacon wrapped dates.

Sleepy Kitty of the Week

 Parsley says "good morning, and happy monday, now would you please let me get back to sleep?"

One of my personal missions in life is to disrupt Parsley's sleep as much as she disturbs mine. I think she actually likes it.

Barnyard Pic of the Week

Happy Friday! Does everyone have their weekend plans set? Does it involve a hammock?
Perhaps a cow? What about pigs? Goats? No?
That's ok...

These are my own personal pictures. They're taken from the pasture behind a restaurant near my parent's house. Isn't it peaceful looking?
Happy Weekend!

Bar Prep: Week 4

We're almost half way through the classes portion of the course, and there are only 33 days until day 1 of the bar exam. And dear readers, let me tell you, I am looking forward to August.

Al and Steph- we're on for any amazing plans you want to envision in August.
August also holds an two day Indian wedding, the first of my high school friends to marry, and what will possibly set a high bar for fun and dancing and awesomeness for the rest of us.
In August I'd also like to go to the beach. Because dear readers, friends, random internet ghosts, let me tell you: I'm pale. Sure, I wear sunscreen and this is so I won't prematurely age my skin or die of skin cancer, but even with the sunscreen I'm pale.
Today I saw one of my closest law school friends with his girlfriend, and I was struck at how pale he was. His girlfriend looked like it was summer, healthy glow, a couple freckles since the last time I saw her, etc. And next to her he looked like he lived underground (which other than the fact that he hangs out on the 6th floor of the library is basically true).

I know these August plans/skin tone don't seem to really be a reflection on how studying for the bar is going. But if you were, or are, in the thick of things studying along side me, you would understand how looking forward to August and getting some sun is related to the work that still has to be done. Its a carrot. (The stick is the idea that if I don't do well in August I'll have to do this whole damn thing over again.)

Other than looking forward to fun and sun, studying is going well. I'm doing what the checklists tell me to do, wishing there were more hours in a day to study, and enjoying it when I decide to go home early instead.

Thursday is the day before Friday

We're almost there, and in the mean time let me share something I found a while ago on the interwebs:

Seems to be going around the internet, but no one claims original ownership...

I like: "maintain your weight" because that is such a healthier attitude than constantly trying to lose weight, "praise other people" sometimes we forget that other people need to hear good job just as much as we do, and "always make copies of important papers" because seriously, I don't lose things often but when I do I seriously regret not having made a copy.
Remember folks, tomorrow is Friday!