Matt & Beth Anne

Recently, I've made some pretty delicious pizzas so I thought I would share. There's nothing fancy about it, but I'm all about easy, quick meals that won't leave me with a crazy amount of leftovers.

I usually buy those pre-made pizza crusts made by Boboli. But, while shopping at Whole Foods when Mama was in town recently, I bought some whole wheat naan. Naan is an Indian flat bread and it. is. scrumptious! I'm sure you can find it at other grocery stores, I just haven't checked since going to WF. Anyway, the first pizzas we made were delicious {pictured below}, but I would have liked the crust to be a little more crispy. Maybe you all already know this trick, but I didn't. The key is to bake the crust {with a little olive oil} for about 10 minutes, BEFORE putting your sauce and toppings on the pizza. Genius! Bake for another 10 minutes and you have a great little thin crust pizza. YUM. 

Since making this another time, I add the cheese first and place the tomatoes and basil on top of the cheese. Either way works!

My pizza stone isn't pretty, but according to what I've read, they aren't necessarily supposed to be so, let's just say it's been well loved. :)

We made margherita pizzas since we already had most of the ingredients. I'd like to try using mushrooms too.

So here's what you'll need:
**I don't have measurements. You can use however little or much you wish to use, and you can substitute to fit your preferences. 
-Fresh basil
-Cheese - you can use fresh mozzarella, I used an Italian blend of shredded cheese.
-Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-Your sauce of choice
-Tomatoes - I used roma tomatoes
-Pinch minced garlic - I had a little jar, but you can use fresh.
-Pinch of Kosher salt

Now, here's what you do:

-Pre-heat oven to 400. If you have a stone, make sure it is in the oven so it is nice and hot.
-Brush on some EVOO onto your naan.  {or whatever you want to use for your crust}
-Bake for approx 10 minutes.
-While it is baking, slice your tomatoes, chop your fresh basil and prep any other veggies you would like to add to your pizza.
-Pull out the crust and set it on a baking sheet. Use a spoon to spread the sauce on the crust and add your toppings. I used the minced garlic and Kosher salt to sprinkle on the tomatoes to add some more flavor.
-Place it back on the pizza stone {carefully, don't burn yourself!} and bake for another 8-10 minutes.

Pair it with your favorite glass of wine and enjoy!!!

Notice, there is not really an 'after' picture, we were too excited to eat it! haha! Typical.

Warning - this post is probably going to be a little long and full of pictures! :)

While Mom was here, we decided to take a mini-vacay north to Wisconsin. I'd heard really great things about Lake Geneva, so we booked a 2 night stay at the Grand Geneva Resort. It's about 90 miles from Chicago and honestly, a great little town. The downtown is darling and the lake is beautiful! It's been a Chicago getaway for years and years for folks like the Wrigley's, Schwinn's and Maytag's to name a few. You may have heard of them. :)

After talking to a few friends who were familiar with the area, we hit up a few local spots and I'm so glad we did! We got there on Sunday and could not check in until 4 pm, so we had lunch on the porch at a cute house turned restaurant called Bistro 220. Then, we roamed the streets of downtown Lake Geneva for some shopping and ventured into a cute shop for some wine tasting.

One of my girlfriends told me about this adorable place called The Baker House. I believe you can also stay there, but they have a great restaurant and bar that is right on the lake. The house was built in 1885 and has a ton of history. We ended up eating at the bar since we did not have a reservation {oops! Poor planning on my part. I didn't realize they were going to be closed on Monday, so it was a game time decision to go Sunday night}. If you have reservations the tables are set all through the house {I believe} so it creates a cool atmosphere. They also have hats everywhere if you want to "dress up" while you eat your dinner. At sunset, they ring a big bell and everyone goes out to the front lawn and they pass out a drink and give a toast. Really unique and fun!

 A view of the front of the house. The owners are standing on the steps about to give the toast.
 We took our wine outside {a girl never leaves her drink out of her sight, right?!}, but we didn't realize they would be passing out drinks too. PS: Isn't my mom so cute? love her.
Mother/Daughter vacay 2011! I think this is the only picture we took together, but we had lots of fun while she was here!


Monday, we went on the famous Mail Boat Tour. It's really the only way to see all of the gorgeous homes {most are mansions, really} on the lake and it was so worth it. This particular boat is one, if not the only, remaining boats in the country that delivers the mail from the lake. Of course, many have opted to have their mail delivered the conventional way, but there are some who still have their mailboxes on their docks and every day, the boat comes by and a the mail carrier JUMPS off the boat, delivers the mail and jumps back on the boat. Oh and by the way, the boat never stops moving!!! It's really a sight to see. The person only has about a foot wide ledge to jump back on to, so there isn't much room for error. Tryouts for the job are entertaining to say the least!

Here are a few pictures of the homes on the lake. There were so many amazing and gorgeous homes, this is really only a small fraction of what we saw. I only wish we could have seen the inside of these homes! Mom and I would have really been in heaven!





Eenie meenie miny moe... I mean honestly, can you really say you wouldn't live in any of these homes? Or at least want to stay a week or two in one?! Gorgeous!

Finally, we had lunch at The Cheese Box. They have great little sandwiches and sell lots of cheese and treats. We bought some cheese curds and toffee for the road trip home. The owner is Ed Schwinn {yes, of the Schwinn's} and he is really a very nice man. He came out while we were eating our sandwiches and chatted with us for a good 20 minutes or so! Love local business owners!



Thanks for a wonderful getaway, Lake Geneva! I hope to return soon!

So...about a month or so ago, I posted a 'before picture' of some Craigslist treasures I found. I ran into an unexpected snag during my DIY project that delayed the completion and reveal. During this project, I found out that you cannot buy spray paint within the city limits of Chicago. Say whaaa??? Stupid huffers, graffiti writers, hoodlums, you ruin it for the rest of us law abiding citizens who want to design on a dime! :)

Fast forward a few weeks. I finally made a trip out to the suburbs to visit and spend time with the bestie, Lauren and her sweet family, and while I was there we ran to Lowe's so that I could get my spray paint! YES!

Before... it was very beat up and needed some serious TLC.
  *Side note: The wicker chair is still the same color. I just added a pillow for now. :) 

and After...


I'll be honest, I underestimated my spray painting needs - so it's not exactly finished. I need to make a trip out to pick up another can of spray paint for some final touches. I was so thrilled with how it turned out though, I just couldn't wait to post an update about it! Love it.

I bought the piece on Craigslist for $10 and I would say I spent approx $10-15 on spray paint/sealer/sand paper! Not a bad investment, if I do say so myself. YAY! 

If you're curious, I used Valspar paint in a Satin finish. I don't know the color, but it's like an almond cream color. Obsessed with it. 

Let me know what y'all think!

bethanne

So, I'm behind on posting from the last week because MY MOM IS VISITING! Can you tell I get excited when she comes to town? I'm like a kid on Christmas morning. She arrived last Friday, and I took a week off from work to play while she's in town. Since I was taking this week off, I couldn't take off work on Friday when her flight landed. I told her for about 2 months that she was going to be on her own to take the train into downtown and I would meet her at the station. She was...freaked, to say the least. Little did she know that I had arranged for a town car to pick her up and drive her to my office! I had to tell her the day before so she could coordinate with the car service to meet her at the appropriate gate, and she was so excited!

True to form, when I called to make sure she had her luggage and had met up with her driver, she tells me, "Yeah! I made friends and he let me sit in the front seat! I wanted to be able to see everything coming into town." Oh Mom. I love you. Seriously, I love that she is the friendliest woman on the planet. Those drivers probably pick up some less than pleasant people and this guy was lucky enough to pick up the nicest, cutest little Texan. She's the best! Ok. Enough of me bragging on how awesome my mom is...


I had to document her arrival to my office. Is it Rahm? A CEO of a big company? Nope! It's my mom! We scurried off to a quick lunch and then she shopped around State St while I finished out my work day. Longest. Friday. Afternoon. Ever.

She's here for another day and a half, so I'm off to soak up every second before she has to go back home! Thank goodness the hubs gets home the same day she leaves or else I might be an emotional messy wreck. :)

Last week, a few girlfriends and I met up for a painting class. I have to say, it was an absolute blast! The night we signed up for we were going to paint peacocks. The class was about 20-25 people and they supply the aprons, brushes, paint and canvas. All we had to bring was the wine and our creativity! The instructor walks you through which colors to mix and gives you tips on how to paint the piece. Seriously, such a fun thing to do with a group of girlfriends!

It was so fun to see everyone's peacocks come alive on the canvas!

 Almost done!
 We may not be Picasso, but we know how to paint a darn cute peacock!
 Currently, my masterpiece is hanging in the hallway. I love my afro-rockin' peacock! :)

Do y'all remember those Sure commercials?You know, the deodorant commercial where the person using Sure raises their arms in full confidence of smelling fresh and clean, while the unsure person thinks their B.O. might sneak out and stink up the place if they don't keep their arms squeezed tightly by their sides.

Well, I'll be honest, I haven't always been SURE myself. I always felt like after a while, the deodorant I was using would stop working for me. It's like my body became immune or something! I also feel like some of my shirts were never completely rid of the underarm funk after I washed my clothes. Maybe I'm the only one. If so, I'll own it and y'all can point at the girl with coodies. {oh coodies - who came up with that?!}

I'm happy to report though that my life has changed when it comes to deodorant and I want to shout it from the rooftops of my blog! To all of my 5 readers! :) A dear friend swore by this product and told me about it multiple times I'm sure. It's a little pricier than your typical Degree or Secret, and I thought "Yeah, sure. It works for you, but I'm a 'sweater' and I don't want to spend $$$ on something that won't work." I'm so happy I gave in and purchased this little miracle. I've been using it since sometime in May and I still love it!

So without further adieu...
 You should run to your nearest Macy's, Nordstrom, Neiman's or any other retailer that carries Donna Karan and buy it! I honestly don't think you'll be disappointed and it's worth every penny. I find that some things are worth the splurge, and this is one of those for me. And...even though I posted the links for Macy's and Neiman's ($18 at both stores) - I found it at Norstrom for $12! And it lasts quite a while - I'm still on my first stick!

Special thanks to my friend, Lauren, who told me about this gem. :)

Disclaimer: Now I'm not saying I no longer ever sweat - BUT - the major difference is that despite the sweat, I still feel/smell just as fresh at the end of the day. :)

via

How cute are these cords/jeggings?! I think they would be perfect for cheering on my Oklahoma State Cowboys!!! I'm getting so excited about football season. If only I could be back in Stillwater, America tailgating with all of our wonderful friends - but someday we will be back to cheer on the Pokes in person! Until then, I hope to be rockin' these cords all over the Windy City this fall!