Party Garb

I’m so glad I picked out a basic little black dress back a couple of months ago.  I’ve put it to good use during the holidays.

We first saw it appear for my birthday party…

A few weekends ago we attended both my work Christmas dinner and Michael’s work Christmas dinner.  My same dress appeared at his party…a yummy affair in the recently renovated Crystal Ballroom at The Fairmont Empress.

And then I wore the dress from his last year’s party to my this year’s party…a cool event held at the Royal BC Museum.  Our catered dinner was served up in Old Town among the cobblestones.

This past weekend we hosted a pre-Christmas family party and I found myself fishing around in the back of my closet for a different dress.  This little blue denim number has saved a few ‘I need an outfit’ moments.

For Christmas Day I guess I never found time to stare at myself in the mirror because I have no photos of myself, but rest assured you aren’t missing out because that same little black dress made another appearance. 

Tis the season of versatility.  I’m appreciating it for sure.

Do you repurpose the same outfit? Or do you find you feel more festive with something new?  Thankfully I don’t require an outfit for New Years Eve!

Smitten Sunday

For my birthday I received the new Smitten Kitchen cookbook.

Almost everyone who has ever surfed the internet for a recipe has ended up on Smitten Kitchen at one time or another.  She has recipes for everything.

As I flipped through the book I immediately flagged a dozen recipes to try as soon as possible.  Sunday dinners are going to be so fun in the New Year.

Before the holiday season kicks into full gear I decided to sneak in one more cozy dinner for two while I still had the chance.  Last weekend I took over Michael’s kitchen and tackled two recipes from the book.

The Mini Meatloaves with Browned Butter Mashed Potatoes were just as good as the name suggests.  I loved that there were no ‘odd’ or ‘special’ ingredients…just normal things we generally keep in our pantries or can easily grab from the supermarket.  The meatloaf was so moist and flavourful…and made excellent leftovers.  And how could browned butter mashed potatoes be anything but ah-mazing?  You know we gobbled those down.

I served the meal with sauteed Brussels sprouts.  A comfort food marriage.

For a Sunday night treat I chose the Whole Lemon Bars because Michael loves anything lemony.  These came together so fast and easy (would have been even easier if I’d had a food processor there instead of a blender!) and are a great adaptation of a traditional lemon bar.

The crust is crisp and sugar-cookie like, while the top is fresh, tart and creamy.  Can’t ask for much more from a lemon bar now can we?

You can see here how Michael just couldn’t wait to dig in.

This entire Smitten Kitchen meal will be finding it’s way into regular rotation.  We were both particularly pleased with our Sunday dinner.  Yum!

Getting Festive

In between my constant sitting at desks and staring at computer screens I’ve managed to snag a couple of Saturdays off here and there.  Last weekend I was determined not to work for a whole day so we could dedicate that day to getting our festive on.

This year I’ve opted to take the majority of my Christmas decor over to Michael’s since we’ll be spending the actual holiday there with our families. 

My poor apartment is a wee bit sad with it’s lack of festive decorations now though.  The Charlie Brown Xmas tree is quite fitting this year!

And I kept my beloved Gingerbread House here until closer to actual Christmas.  This year it even has a Gingerbread scented candle inside, which has totally helped to put me in the mood a few nights this week!

Next up:  Preparing Christmas cards, and trying to do all of my shopping in one day.  Challenge accepted!

How goes your Christmas preparations?