the only sober birthday party picture!

my family at my birthday bbq this year! love them so much!

I missed my bloggy anniversary. I officially suck at blogging!

blog birthday was oct 15th! i cant believe i missed it! two whole years! {via *pinterest}

welp guys. i'm clearly stuck in a blogging rut! i haven't cooked/baked much recently, haven't spent a ton of money of crafts i cant finish, just been SUPER busy with life! a ton of my friends (including myself) have fall birthdays. between that and wedding season i haven't had time to do much except for party (which is fun...and awesome) but i don't want to post a bunch more pictures of me being drunk on here. you guys have seen that plenty - whether it be in real life or on here....

someone helpppp me get out of this rut!

hmmm maybe i should take a chill pill since i'm over 25 now (NOT COOL) - quarter life crisis needs to end at some point! hah!

Hokie Hokie Hokie Hi!

it's true. we do.

homecoming week. my birthday week. middle of fall. football season. changing leaves. DOES IT GET ANY BETTER??

ps - check out the homecoming campaign for my sorority this year- it's epic! go sigma kappa!!! (i may have graduated 4 years ago, but i still love my sistas!)

http://www.movinlikebuyrnie.com/

happy october! + my birthday month!

{*via mimi+meg}

i just love these monthly calendars that meg biram from mimi+meg posts at the beginning of each month!

hahaha i just have to point out that my 26th birthday (oct 19th) is "evaluate your life day" - HAHAHHAA embarrassing. i will be doing nothing of the sort.

happy october!

happy birthday rachel!!

the birthday girl!!!!!!

post-surprise! absolutely love these girls!

hahaha typical

MEGS!!!!

loved seeing AJ! it's been way too long!

i love surprises and birthdays! the combo is the best! saw sooo many great friends that i havent seen in forever, it was a great night! did i mention we went to my favorite bar, RUMORS?! LOVE IT!

hope your birthday was AMAZING, rach! love you!

HAPPY 3rd BIRTHDAY SIENNA!!!!!

"mom, i need to lose weight"

tired pup after a long walk!

no gray hairs yet!

my little angel baby!

happy birthday to my 3 year old puppydog, sienna!!! 

i love you times a million despite how much trouble you cause me.

3=21 in dog years...she is gonna get SO DRUNK tonight on her bar crawl! (just kidding of course)

post from last year!

Happy 50th Birthday Mommy!!!!!

happy 50th birthday to the best mom in the WORLD (i know we all think that, but mine really is the BEST)!!!!!!!

blow out your candles, wish for 50 more!!!!!!

yesterday was my mom's 50th birthday! we had quite the day with her - we made her open presents (a LOT of them) and then we had to celebrate at my grandmas house...she just got out of the hospital after a scary few days. probably not the ideal way to celebrate a birthday, but we are all very happy to know our grandma is on the mend (note all of the religious stuff in the pics, that's grammy's).
for dinner we went to this restaurant we've been going to for years - and ate more prime rib than i'd care to admit. here is a pic of my dad's...it was like a cowboy steak....too huge and ridiculous - he ate about 1/4 of it:

i love my momma more than anything in this world! she cracks me up constantly and is always there for me when i need anything at all. i cant wait to celebrate 50 more years with her, she truly is the very best in the world.  she deserves an amazing day and an even more amazing year - can't wait to celebrate more with her in CANCUN this weekend (and next week!)!

LOVE YOU MOM!!!!!!

Birthday Potluck!

mom and papi came from maryland to make us a delish dinner and celebrate!! i love them so much!

all the girls at the potluck (we missed a few who couldn't make it! :( next time!)

on the menu: spinach and pumpkin seed salad - amazing!, Mediterranean couscous, cheesy cornbread, and Papi made Aji de Gallina with chicken AND scallops - yum! (that recipe is very similar to my dads)
we also ate lots of delicious desserts! it was the most perfect 25th birthday ever, thank you to all my friends who made it so special!

Happy 25th Birthday to ME!

i'm old. i have a lot of candles to blow out!

thanks for all the birthday love and wishes :) you are all fabulous! i have the best friends in the whole wide world!

BLOGOVERSARY!!!

Happy Blogoversary to....ME :)

I can't believe it's been a year! I love blogging so much! Sharing my recipes, crafts, and fun with everyone that reads makes me happy!

Happy 1st Birthday Lily!!

this little cupcake got her very own (VERY large) cupcake for her birthday! she dove riiiiiight in!

October!

Oh hello, it's my birthday month!!

i'll be celebrating quite a bit as a ton of my friends have October birthdays too!

to name a few:
arron
nikki
katiebo
timmy - if he ever comes home from traveling the world....
coste
dave - birthday twins!
ali


eeee it's going to be a great month! :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CLAIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

my little dooley is 23 today!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY Claire! Can't wait to celebrate at Rascal Flatts tomorrow with you :) ragefestttttttttt!!!!!!!

while claire has made me post about her in the past, this is a birthday post dedicated to her many personalities which you can see in the pics below :)

shy, but not.

super pretty and adorable

weird, bashful, mustachio

freak, gorgeous

Happy Birthday Claire! I hope it's super fabulous (despite having class in the morning, woof)! Love you times a million, can't wait to eat our faces off this weekend in celebration :) xooxooxoxoxo sissy

Sienna's Birthday Treats + proof I'm a moron

I had no time to bake the pup a cake due to the home search and various varsity drinking events this week. So instead, I bought her some treats at the local dog bakery. apparently, if you want a cake, you have to order it 24 hrs in advance. (hello people. its a DOG, they wont know the cake is stale.)

regardless, she enjoyed her treats :)

and because i am an IDIOT, i fed her a crumbly muffin type thing on my carpet that she has so kindly ripped up. totally fun for cleanup!!!! yayyyy i'm SO smart sometimes.

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY PRINCESS SIENNA!!

Princess Sienna is 2 years old today!! Contrary to popular belief - she is WELL aware that it is her birthday, and for this reason, I am making her a cake!

oh to be young:little did i know this picture above would be foreshadowing of the future + 45 lbs.


i loooved when her ears did that all the time when she was in her growing up, awkward phase. although she is still pretty awkward.


she looooves running on the beach in the water:


hahaha looks like she is smoking a blunt. but she isn't. seriously.

present day pup in her birthday gift:

some people blog about their kids. i blog about my dog. JUDGE ME!

Lavender Cupcakes with Citrus Cream Cheese Icing

For my room mates birthday the other day, I decided to make something new (surprise, surprise!) so I made Lavender Cupcakes with Citrus Cream Cheese Icing. Delish! Two of my room mates said it was their favorite cupcake to date (and i've made a LOT!)

Here are the recipes and some pictures!

Lavender Cupcakes - from here*
makes 12 cupcakes. clearly, i doubled the recipe :)

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon dried lavender flowers
• 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup self-rising flour (how-to make yourself, here*)
• 2 tablespoons milk

Preparation:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F; line a 12 count muffin pan with paper liners.
• Put the sugar and lavender flowers in a food processor. Process briefly to combine.
• Tip the lavender sugar into a bowl with the butter and beat together until pale and fluffy.
• Beat the eggs into the butter mixture, one at a time, then sift in the flour and fold gently. Stir in the milk, then spoon the mixture into the muffin cups.
• Bake for about 18 minutes until risen and golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

1. mixing the batter. 2. placing in cupcake tins. 3. making the icing with lots of zest! 4. adding the color!

Citrus Cream Cheese Icing - from here*
for 12 cupcakes. clearly, i doubled the recipe. :)

1/2 stick butter
1 8oz packages of cream cheese
1/2 teaspoon mixed citrus zest (from lemons, limes, oranges, whatever citrus you have)
1 teaspoon citrus juice (same as above)
2 cups confectioner’s sugar
3-4 drops of purple food coloring

1. soften butter in the mixer on high speed
2. add cream cheese and beat until combined
3. sift confectioner’s sugar
4. add about half of the confectioner’s sugar and citrus juice and zest to the butter/cream cheese mixture and beat on high speed to combine
5. add remaining confectioner’s sugar in stages until desired consistency and sweetness is achieved
6. add purple food coloring and mix until consistent color is achieved

haha funny thing, she actually turned 23. what shitty friends we are....eeeeks.but we did make it all look adorable for when she came home!

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

Guinness Cupcakes + Baileys Chocolate Ganache Filling + Baileys Buttercream = the fatty's version of the Irish Car Bomb!

I made these little delights in honor of my good friend Albert's birthday because because it was just St. Patty's Day! Perfect!

Due to strict instructions from Michelle, this is a picture-packed post that is sure to crash your internet browser...haha!

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes - adapted from Annie Eats :)
Yield: 24 cupcakes
Ingredients:
For the Guinness chocolate cupcakes:
1 cup stout (Guinness)
16 tbsp. unsalted butter
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1½ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream
For the Bailey’s ganache filling:
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp. butter, at room temperature
2 tsp. Bailey’s Irish cream
For the Bailey’s buttercream frosting:
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
3-4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
4-8 tbsp. Bailey’s Irish cream
Directions:
To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350° F. Line two cupcake pans with paper liners. Combine the stout and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the cocoa powder and whisk until smooth. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the eggs and sour cream to blend. Add the stout-butter mixture and beat just to combine. Mix in the dry ingredients on low speed just until incorporated. Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners, filling them about 2/3 to ¾ full. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 17 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the ganache filling, place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan until simmering, then pour it over the chocolate. Let sit for one minute and then whisk until smooth. If the chocolate is not completely melted, place the bowl over a double boiler or give it a very short burst in the microwave (15-20 seconds). Add the butter and Bailey’s and stir until combined.


Set aside to let the ganache cool until it is thick enough to be piped. (You can use the refrigerator to speed the cooling process, but be sure to stir every 10 minutes or so to ensure even cooling.) Meanwhile, cut out a portion from the center of the cupcake using the cone method (a small paring knife works best for this). Once the ganache has reached the correct consistency, transfer it to a piping bag fitted with a wide tip and pipe it into the cupcakes.




To make the frosting, place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Gradually add the powdered sugar until it is all incorporated. Mix in the Bailey’s until smooth. Add more if necessary until the frosting has reached a good consistency for piping or spreading. Frost the cupcakes as desired. sprinkle with extra cocoa powder because it's PRETTY!






packed up and ready to go!! such little cutie pies!