struggling to find time

Oh time, why can't we be better friends? You know, take things slow, enjoy our time together... I once again had a whirlwind week: three more interviews (only half of one trancribed so far, blah), surprise visit from distant family, one test, lots of walking to and fro, and now I have stumbled upon the wonders of Tracy Anderson, workout guru to the stars, and something evil but wonderful that she calls a "post-pregnancy workout". 

Ok, yes, you can laugh. I know I haven't had kids yet, but man, that workout is intense!! I have already seen a change in my abs...and I'm hooked. Lol!

Add to all of this eating and cooking... my week was over before I knew it!! And unfortunately, I haven't even had energy to crochet...or finish the paper bunting! 

Amazingly, I have found moments that I was able to capture via Canon, my love. 

So I guess I'll just cut to the chase and show you some pretty pictures!! :) 

This was last Saturday. We had snow. It melted during the week. This morning, we had snow again! It's melting as I type. I am surprised that I don't mind the snow we are getting (still!), as long as there isn't any snow in a couple weeks... My fingers are itching to garden! :)

Dear Baby Luke and his parents,

I finished your gift last Saturday, but haven't had time to make it to the post office! Will try harder next week! Hope you are well!

Love, Anneli

p.s. Kissa can never stay out of my pictures!

This is made with soft, fine 100% merino wool. Brand: Viking Baby Ull. I love it. I want one!!!

Since Kissa seemed willing to be in photos... I obliged.

Pretty Kitty Grill.

New to our home: St Paulia. I'm in love, hoping I can keep them alive, and trying to keep Kissa from eating them.

Another flower found... This is from THIS plant from last autumn. I thought it was a goner, but nope! I kept it around just to have something green and I swear, it died a couple times of thirst... Yet it seemed to have survived my haphazard care and even produced this single flower!! WooWoo!

 Here are the meringues I made last Saturday... The rosettes were to show my friend (for her wedding) but I had so much meringue left over that I made those pink and light blue ones... but let me tell you, I need to just halve my recipe because baking two tray of meringues makes for ugliness seen in the back there. Cracked, browned, and ugly ugliness all thanks to the hot air not having a free flow with too many pans. :( Lesson learned. Again.

Here is the bunting flags all cut out... They are just waiting to be attached to string and hung. Time, will you at least help me on this one?

I loved the little shreds of paper left. So pretty. 

This deliciousness was enjoyed two nights in a row for dinner. Toasted pitas filled with homemade hummus, bell pepper and cucumber. One night we added chicken to it, too. Um yeah, delicious and nutritious!

Carrot sticks proved to be amazing dipped in the hummus. 

I recommend this!!

More delicious food this week was consumed... Homemade "Chinese Chicken" with (fresh) mushrooms and broccoli. Shwing! I made the sauce with a winged-version of this recipe to guide me.

I've been taking pictures of these babies all week. They are GORGEOUS! I have taken so many pictures that I am going to have to dedicate a whole post to them... This one is already so picture-laden and long as is!

There are some flea market/thrift store finds this week by myself and my mama. 

She bought me this beautiful blue pot. One of my St. Paulia fits in it perfectly. 

She also picked up these beautiful crocheted trivets. Love!

And now I finally have something Pip Studio!! Thanks Mama!! 

I found some pretty pillowcases this week, and this yellow teapot! Can you say "crocheted teapot cozy"? :)

Ah, what a blessed life. I am so thankful for this blog. It always reminds me, especially when I am feeling busy/stressed/tired etc, that I am so lucky to have such beautiful things in my life!

Thanks for reading, see you next time with a GAZILLION tulip pictures! :)

Enjoy your weekend!

the meringue obsession continues...and so on.

Oh hey hi there!

I have finally started the come-down and re-boot from what feels like a very busy and draining week.

 Lord almighty.

It finally ended this gray and rainy Saturday morning at about 9 a.m. when I finished transcribing my last interview from yesterday, for yup, my bachelor's thesis. 

I thought 3 interviews would be a piece of cake and thought my teachers were a bit dramatic when they said I'd be exhausted...but yeah, I hate to say they were right! 

Add a few days of intensive CPR and resuscitation practice (also somehow exhausting)... I'm pooped!  

So now that I have the last interview done, I'm not thinking or doing anything thesis related until Monday when I interview again! 

Which essentially means that I am going to spoil myself and only do things I want to do! 

I am going to eat well. 

Not that I haven't been, lol!

People wonder how I stay relatively thin despite all the chocolate and nonsense I seem to be continuously shoving into my mouth...

Well #1, I try to walk everywhere. And I usually end up competing with myself, which means breaking a sweat. When no one is around, I walk backwards. I also clench my stomach muscles especially up hills, it's a killer ab workout if you add a twist. (I am so weird, lol!)

#2, I eat "stupid" meals like this sometimes when I am either too lazy to go to the store or just feeling picky. This is a fridge raid!

It was delicious though, and looking at I am getting hungry! 

So now that you see all that beautiful red and those yellow yolks... Look at this!

Remnants of chocolate pudding (the second one I made this past week, shhh).... 

And since pudding requires yolks, I had egg whites. And where does my mind go when given egg whites? No healthy omelets here my friends, but meringue!! Soft, sweet, pillowy but crunchy, marshmallows-eat-your-heart-out meringue (recipe linked)!!

Ok, so I am a little obsessed. 

Today there will be some more meringue business going on... making a sampling for a friend whose wedding is coming up in June and has asked me to bake something. Of course I can't resist a challenge, and it's for such a good cause and happy occasion! :) I've also been asked (and volunteered) my photography "services". Oh experience how I look forward to gaining you! :) 

Anywho, I want to make some pretty rose swirl meringue cookies for her to test. They are a great dessert for a bit event like that since they are milk-free (--> lactose free), as well as gluten-free. Food allergies and the like are pretty big here in Finland, so it's good to have something for everyone!

Yesterday on my way home from interviewing, I stopped by a little craft shop and picked up some paper... Bunting paper... Atelier bunting paper... 

So obviously that is on my list of weekend stuff.

I've also been working on little Luke's gift. It's going to be a semi-surprise (maybe), but let me say (esp. compared) to the last project I 

a) love it!

b) love the colors!

c) love the 100% merino wool!

d) want one for myself, lol!

Once this gift is done (probably today), I can resume work on those gray border grannies. Yaay! I've kind of missed them! If I remember correctly, I am up to 70!

Hmmm....what else.... 

Well, the usual boring stuff like cleaning... Let me tell you, having a 90lbs dog is no picnic during spring shedding!! I feel like I'd have to vacuum daily to stop these tufts, and we all know I am not the daily-vacuuming type! In fact, this week we've vacuumed already multiple times, yet the hair balls just keep on keepin' on. 

(Would it have been weird if I had taken a picture of our vacuum and added it here? lol)

So, I suppose I am off! 

Thanks for reading... You know, I think once the bunting goes up, the last thing to do before I launch my atelier is pick up my easel from the parents. 

P.S. Isn't it funny how life builds up and gets really busy all at once? I feel like the week before last was a breeze...and the week after next will be a relative breeze, too. It's just these two weeks that I know are SO busy and SO exhausting!! 

St Patrick's Day festivities

Wow! What a party!

I felt exhausted after everyone left, but kept on trekking and cleaning so I could enjoy my Sunday morning in peace... I must be getting old because everyone left for the bars at 11pm and I was so happy to just curl up in bed and go to sleep! Lol!

Don't get me wrong though, I had fun!

But I do think the best part of having a party is the planning and preparation bit when you get to be creative and decorate and bake and arrange... It's just in my nature...

So here is a little photo journey of the party.

The cake batter than I could have eaten by the spoonful... I really really really wanted to!

  ...But I was smart and not so selfish and actually made a "sheet cake" with it... This is the cupcake recipe from Annie's Eats. I love tried and true recipes... I would have made my usual Busy Day Chocolate cake, but we didn't have enough vegetable oil. Annie's Eats came through for me again though, I really love this recipe! 

I made little pastry bites with puff pastry again. I brushed the dough with egg yolk and then put a dollop of herb cream cheese and a little piece of pepper on top. Baked until golden brown... Anything bite-size and made of buttery pastry is always a party favorite. 

These are also good for budget parties because the 1kg of dough only cost (I think 3e) and I got 80 squares out of it. Add about 2e for the cream cheese and about 1-2e for the pepper and you have a nice little savory appetizer for a decent crowd for only a max of 7e! I like! This is also so versatile, e.g. I made blue cheese apple pastries for new years the same way.

I was soooooooooo happy with the decor!!! I seriously don't want to take down the little squiggle streamers and especially the bunting!

 Here are the savory bites set out before folks arrived... 

I always serve carrot sticks as an alternative to dip (dips not shown...) and other on-sale vegetables... They are cheap, tasty, and everyone loves them! It also ensures that there is something for everyone, since not everyone wants buttery pastries and greasy chips... Yeah, weird, I know!

We popped the popcorn ourselves stove-top style. I think it tastes the best (plus we don't own a microwave). 

To flavor it, we made a chili butter by adding hot sauce to the butter as it was melting. Then we tossed it in the bowl! 

The green herb popcorn was made by adding a green herb spice mix (it has everything in it!) to the melting butter and then tossing it in the bowl. 

We have been making a lot of popcorn lately because it's also such a blank slate, and cheap too!

Right at the bottom of the picture above is the caramel corn we made on Thursday. This little bowl was all that was left after 2 days munching on it. OMG, delicious! Recipe is from none other than Annie's Eats. Hey, I like that site!!

With all the bars I have been making lately, it was only natural that I make one for the party as well. So I made up a recipe inspired by this recipe. Well, I used that recipe for the crust because it is a really good crust for these types of things (believe me, I have tried a few). 

But the topping or filling if you will, is made with:

200g Finnish rahka (could be substituted for really thick Turkish yogurt?)

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

lemon zest of half of a lemon

juice of one lemon (about 1/2 cup)

1 tsp vanilla

Mix and then pour on top of the crust (that has been in the oven for about 15min per the linked recipe) and then bake again for about 25-30, until it's set but not burnt or brown. (Wow, great discription!)

I topped it with the leftover 7 minute frosting from my cake and then put the extra lemon zest on top with some kiwis (which were great with the lemon and brought the added bonus of being green!) 

And last but not least, the cake.

As I just said, it's covered in a 7 minute frosting (more like 15 minute frosting) which was a new baking challenge for me. (By the way, I halved the recipe and still ended up with a lot).
I liked the frosting, but I didn't like it. I don't know, the jury is still out on it, I guess.

I made the green swirls by taking my Wilton's green coloring gel and dropping individual drops all over. Then I took a toothpick and swirled it around in the frosting back and forth, kind of connecting the dots.

It was FUN!

Like I said, I love having and planning parties.

I love the excuse to bake new things. 

This was a fun one to have the green theme!

Thanks for reading, hope you are enjoying a relaxing post-St Pat's Sunday!

home improvements

We've been working on some home improvements. Well ok, nothing dramatic, just hanging some stuff up on our walls! :)

We have had some tapestries and stuff to hang for a while now... well depending on the tapestry from 6 months to a year! We were going to frame them, only to discover the expense and fact that suitably sized frames just don't exist... So then we got to thinking, why not just staple them around a wooden frame like a canvas? Voila! Hubby made them all! Gotta love a good DIY-er! :)

This is a slightly faded kitchen towel we found in a flea market last fall. I loved it though and immediately pictured it in the kitchen. Now, it's finally in the kitchen! 

It makes me laugh to look at it and in an "Italian" accent say the veggies. "Pomodori! Rapanelli! Cavolfiore!" and so on... Lol!

The living room walls finally got more stuff on them. It's kind of hard to adjust to something being there now. It is super nice however, to see all the Japan memorabilia we brought back from our honeymoon. 

Oh, Japan ♥

Close ups!

Yes, that is a group of cats in a boat! Ahahaha....

This is what they had as kind of door hangings....

 Hubby ordered me a Kiki's Delivery Service GiGi jewelry box for Christmas. I just got it now. It goes so nicely on the top shelf of our china cabinet, next to the Japan bowls and a wind-up sushi. 

The definite highlight of yesterday was going to Ikea. We bought some stuff, nothing too exciting. But I couldn't not share these napkins! Aren't they cute! So bright and summery!

Today is International Women's Day. I wasn't expecting anything since our anniversary is coming up so I know I will get some flowers then... but sure enough hubby surprised me and brought me some very bright and sunny tulips! 

I have also been doing some crocheting lately. I shouldn't be, but I've been a little stressed and anxious and it's a good way to just tune out and calm down. 

There has been progress with the grannies. I've brought myself up to an even-steven 60! Isn't this bag just joyful?

I've also been working on the surprise for an expected little one...

Well, it's off to bed for me once I finish this popcorn "dinner". Hey! Don't judge!

 Heeeheee. 

A test tomorrow morning that I am poorly prepared for...followed by some time with my mama...and I'll be relishing the weekend. Despite all these stupid tests and school things coming my way!

Should I break out the crochet hooks now to control my blood pressure? 

Thanks for reading! Hope you have a wonderful day! :)