And The Winners Are...

Congratulations to all of the winners! If you won, please be sure to let me know your address as soon as possible so I can get your pressie in the mail.

Giveaway Day 1: Megan at Fried Green Pickles

Giveaway Day 2: Noemi at Classy N Glamorous

Giveaway Day 3: Kristen Grace

Giveaway Day 4: Southern Living: Preppy Style

Giveaway Day 5: Suburban Prep

........

TGIF & Giveaways Reminder

Sorry to have been M.I.A. yesterday, but I ended up staying out of town longer than I had planned. Thank you to my sweet Daph for a wonderful post on Wednesday. I got fresh avocados today and will be making that delish sandwich this weekend.

I had a wonderful trip to Northwest Arkansas, where my sister was spending a couple of days in between business trips. I plan on doing a full post on my trip, plus show you a few pictures. I am exhausted and do not have the energy to go find my camera right now. All I can say is that time spent with a sister and time spent with a dear friends truly revives the soul. I have been so blessed with generous heapings of both this week.

Don't forget about the giveaways that I still have going on. I will be drawing and announcing winners Sunday morning. Have a wonderful weekend!

XOXO,

Hannah

decisions decisions.........

greetings y'all! it's daphne from flip flops & pearls filling in for our 

sweet sweet hannah today!

hannah, i hope your having a blessed getaway ☺

i was having a hard time deciding what to blog about this morning. hannah and i share so many of the same loves: family, fashion, shopping, faith & cooking. after a long hard evening of "thinking" i decided on a recipe! 

fried egg & avocado sandwich

{via paula deen}

{printable version of recipe}

Ingredients 

4 slices bacon
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
4 slices wheat bread, toasted
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley leaves
1 teaspoon minced green onion
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 large eggs
4 slices tomato
1/2 avocado, peeled, pitted, and sliced

Directions

In a small skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat until crispy. Remove from pan, and drain on paper towels. Drain grease from pan, reserving 1 tablespoon.

Spread butter over each side of bread. Place 4 slices of bread, butter side down, on skillet over medium heat. Flip bread and toast the other side. Remove to serving plates.

In a small bowl, add cream cheese, parsley and green onions together. Add salt and pepper. Spread onto 1 side of each toast slice.

In same small skillet, fry the eggs in reserved bacon grease over medium-low heat. Crack the yolks and flip. Place each egg on top of 2 pieces of toast. Cover each egg with 2 slices of bacon, 2 slices of tomato, and 2 slices of avocado. Top with another piece of toast and serve immediately.

{all images via}

i hope you enjoy the above recipe and have a beautiful day!

Shrimp & Artichoke Casserole

Shrimp & Artichoke Casserole

Ingredients:

6 1/2 tablespoons butter, divided

4 1/2 tablespoons flour

1 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup half and half

salt and pepper to taste

1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts

1 1/2 to 2 pounds shrimp, cooked and deveined

1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced

1/4 teaspoon flour

1/4 cup dry sherry

1 tablespoon Worcestershire

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

paprika

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Drain artichokes and cut in half. Place on bottom of casserole dish.

Saute shrimp in a little bit of butter or olive oil until lightly pink. Place shrimp over artichokes.

Melt 4 1/2 tablespoons butter. Stir in 4 1/2 tablespoons flour. Add creams, stirring constantly. When thick, add salt and pepper to taste.

Saute mushrooms in remaining butter. Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon flour over mushrooms. Stir. Scatter mushrooms over shrimp.

Add sherry and Worcestershire to cream sauce. Pour over casserole. Top with cheese and paprika. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.

Tips: I seasoned the shrimp with a little bit of pepper and paprika. I did not use butter for this, but instead used a little bit of nonstick spray and olive oil where it says to use butter. Actually, I did use the butter in the cream sauce, but just cut it down a bit. To kick it up a notch add some chopped jalapenos or cayenne pepper.

This recipe came from sweet Megan, who posted it a few weeks ago. When I saw that it had artichokes and shrimp in it I had to make it! I'm going to be gone tomorrow, but be sure to check back to see what my dear friend Daph has in store!

Recap, Recap, Recap

Yes, I know I am getting this post up late in the day, but I have been on the go and I am just now sitting down for the first time today. I have so much to share! So, sit back with a glass of wine and read what has been going on in my life the past few days (if you have a couple of minutes to spare).

Since Bryan had to work Saturday, my mom and I got up and headed to a plant nursery to find flowers for the front and back of the house. We ended up only getting plants for the planters/pots since the back flowerbed was not completely ready and I wanted to give the weather a few more weeks to warm up for good. I left the camera in the car, only getting it after we had gone though all the greenhouses. I managed so snap a few pictures though before we left. There were some really pretty flowers that had been planted together in the neatest iron planters that I would have gladly loaded up and taken home.

The rest of Saturday and Sunday was spent in the yard. Airplane plants were the filler that I chose to plant in the pots on the front porch. All of the plants are still in the beginning stages, so I decided to pick ones that could easily be split. They will multiply and grow much larger rather rapidly.

This morning we had horrible storms. Look at the huge tree that is/was in the front yard! A neighbor stopped by and told Bryan that three chicken houses down the road were totally demolished. Our grill that was on the back patio (and has only been out of the box a month or so) was totally flipped over and landed face-down, dented.

After the storm passed and I left school, my mom and I head out for a girls' afternoon of food and shopping. Let me tell ya, I racked up on some deals! At Hobby Lobby I was able to get paper and ribbon for the flip scrapbooks that I am making my kids as their end of the year presents.

Michael's was having a huge clearance sale. The green ribbon cost $3, the others cost $1 each. I got the ABC stickers just because they were cheap, and the packing tape with letters was too fun to pass up. The stamps and note cards cost a whopping penny each! No lie, look at the receipt!

There is a fabulous little chain called Ellis Pottery which has home decor and garden items. I found this crown and box for a total of $14! They were both 75% off the lowest ticketed price.

The pot holders and candle on the right are gifts for a friend. The candle on the left just might be the best smelling thing that I have ever put my nose on and sniffed. It is Glazed Walnut Spice by Swan Creek Candle Company. OMGoodness, I wish you could see the spice that is sprinkled on the top and makes this candle smell amazing!

That is everything that has been going on in my world, now I have to go get everything put away and show my hubby some attention!

Sunday Inspiration

On this beautiful Sunday morning, I pray that each one of you has a blessed day today. May your hearts be rejuvenated and you find peace in what has troubled you. This is the day that the Lord has made--rejoice and be glad!!

It's Friday--Giveaway Day 5

Thank goodness it's Friday! Going back to work after Spring Break has been extremely hard this week. Little ones do not do well getting out of their routines, so coming back to school after a week's break is not always the easiest on them or me. I do not have any plans for this weekend and I am very happy about that. There are plenty of small tasks that need to be done at home. Do you have fun plans for this weekend?

This last giveaway is for Lilly Pulitzer Monkey Trouble Circle Notes. They make any desk look more cheery!

The rules are simple:

1. For one entry--You must be a follower.

2. For one entry--Leave a comment letting me know your favorite Lilly Pulitzer item.

3. For three entries--Blog about this giveaway.

You can earn up to five entries for this giveaway. Add them up and leave just one comment on this post. Sunday, April 10, 2011 I will announce the winner.

Be sure to click here to read Lonny Magazine's Lilly Pulitzer article if you have not already.