High Five for Friday!

This Friday I've decided to link up with Lauren at 'From my Grey Desk' for High Five for Friday. Here are my top 5 from this week:

 1. Spring needs to get here: Pronto Tonto. I know I live in New England but this is getting old.

 2. Yay! I will finally have siblings, and awesome ones at that.

3.  For my ladies! Oh Pinterest you have the best wedding ideas.

4. And sometimes at the end of the day, you just gotta remember; It is what it is. Saw this one in Homegoods and seriously considered purchasing.
5. Also, this Friday makes it a coveted long weekend since Spring break is now gone! Have a fabulous weekend everyone! Happy Easter!

How engaging!

So, first I would like to apologize for the hiatus in posting. The past week I have only had one thing on my mind...and that is my engagement to this wonderful man.

The past week has been so exciting! and overwhelming, stay tuned because there are now two guarantees for the future: 1.) I will have straps on my wedding dress (thank you Kate Middleton for bringing sleeves back) and 2.) this blog will probably focus on wedding planning for the next 16 months.

Follow me on Pinterest for some of the ideas I'm thinking about for the wedding: Mkdubs

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Ahhh- St. Patrick's Day, when everyone who has a drop of Irish blood in them insists on eating corned beef (although there is still debate on whether the Irish really eat it all that much) and drinking Guinness. While I certainly look Irish (my students tell me all the time) I can only say that it makes up about 25% of my ancestry. Sadly, I must confess, I'm not a big fan of corned beef and Guinness. I'm more of a Shock Top and turkey sandwich kind of girl. I realize that's not going to sit well with the Irish readers, so keep reading.
So last week I decided that I was going to try to make corned beef more appetizing for myself. I also decided that because I am a busy teacher with lots to do that it needed to be made in the crock-pot. However, I could not find a recipe on-line that 1.) was made in the crockpot and 2.) had ingredients that were in my pantry. So I decided I would improvise, and for one of the few times in my life, it worked!

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 small corned beef brisket (about 2 pounds)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup dijon mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar

1. Trim excess fat off corned beef.
2. Boil the corned beef for a few minutes to cut down the saltiness (if you enjoy the saltiness of this meat, then I would say omit this step)
3. Mix honey, dijon mustard and brown sugar together.
4. Place corned beef in crock pot, if it came with a packet of seasoning throw that in also.
5. Pour mixture of honey, mustard and brown sugar over beef.
6. Cook on low for 7-8 hours, high 4.

I forgot an "after" photo, but I was very good. Falls apart on it's own and great for sandwich making.

Slainte!

Went on a walk to clear my head...

Teachers have one of the most stressful jobs, period. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. It's demanding and degrading at times, but people do it because they love it.  However, that is not to say that you need to de-stress when you get a chance. St. Mary's by the Sea is my favorite place to go when I need to clear my head, take a look at these pictures, you'll understand why.

When people ask you what's your favorite place on Earth, this is always mine. I'm not sure what it is about it, but it just makes me feel better to walk a couple laps when I have a bad day. Where do you like to go/do to clear your head?

Lashes and Lipstick

Since my best friend Mary works for the department store Lord and Taylor I had the opportunity to attend their Spring Beauty Trend Show this past Saturday. It was alot of fun; especially if you are a bit of a girly-girl like myself. The title was "Lipsticks, lashes and lessons I've learned". It was dedicated to beauty products. They provided breakfast where a handful of company spokespeople came up and talked about trends for Spring. Everyone received a bag of samples and a makeup consultation.

These are some notes I took from the speakers about trends for spring. 

• Serums are the "it" skincare product. Every company seemed to be pushing them.
• Skin-correcting cremes are also big, there is an emphasis on showing off beautiful, glowing skin; not just covering up flaws. 
• Chanel is showcasing the colors gold and coral for the season. 

Mary and I both had our make-up done at the Bobbi Brown counter. The artist did a great job of just showcasing my features and creating a natural look for me. Here's what the finished product was: 

I did end up purchasing a few things that I felt were key to re-create the look such as foundation, eye brightening concealer (which did wonders!) and the lip gloss. 

I had a great time, and can't wait for next year!

Here's Mary and I posing like we love to: 

Furry Boots- last one

So this is the last outfit I have put together for the whole "Boots with the Fur" series. One might say, hey it's spring time, put those things away! However, as I look out the window tonight it's apparent that old man winter is taking his time leaving us here in Connecticut. Snow tonight and into the morning. Le sigh, maybe I'll get to sleep in if school is delayed.

I know we are all longing for warmer weather, but I always try to dress in the current season. Winter is still here, at least for a few more weeks. These magenta pants are a good way to transition.They are dark enough to go with my winter wardrobe, but bright enough to move with me into spring. Pair them with any neutral on the top and you're good to go.
These particular pants are from Kohls, they are part of the Elle line and they were purchased a while ago, yet I've seen the style in a few stores with the upcoming spring fashion lines.

Boots with the Fur...Part 2

This is another outfit that I can get away with wearing to work or to another casual event. I love blazers- throw one on over some jeans and a tee and you look instantly sophisticated. This season, try a new color, I love this orange/ red color, it goes well with my complexion and it also goes with a good deal of my wardrobe. Some colors to try this Spring might be a true orange, mint, or fuchsia. If you can't spring the money for a quality blazer, a cardigan in a bold color might be a smart alternative.

Jeans- Levis Blazer/ Shirt - Cynthia Rowley Boots- Bare Traps Bracelets- Alex and Ani