It is super cold today, with a wind that makes it hard to breath. Despite that though, there are signs of spring all around.
Our crocus are out in full force, and they make me so happy. There are tons of yellow and white, and a few special purple flowers mixed in as well. The tulips and hyacinth are starting to come up, as are the iris. Yes, signs of spring everywhere. It’s even staying lighter longer at night, and getting lighter earlier in the morning. I can’t wait.
I first learned of The Sweet Tooth Fairy through reading Stephanie’s blog (NieNie). She had mentioned that there was a local cupcake shop that had named a cupcake in her honor. Well, being a complete and utter vanilla lover, I had been thinking of the vaNIElla Squared cupcakes ever since.
I finally had a little free time to make the trek down to The Sweet Tooth Fairy shop (it’s not that far away, but it does take time to get there). I bought two cupcakes and put them in the fridge until my hubby came home. Once dinner was over, the special treat came out and I wasn’t even able to snap a photo. My hubby and I were both too ready to bite into them. They did not disappoint! Here is what they look like:
There is a very yummy coconut flavor in with the vanilla. The frosting is super rich, and the cake very moist. A yummy cupcake indeed. I can see why they are a favorite of Miss Stephanie. There were a lot of other tasty looking treats in the shop too. It’s certainly an indulgence though, as they are a bit expensive, but as a special treat it is worth the price.
On a side note, I saw Stephanie at Target around Christmas time. We were both in the Christmas decoration section, and it was super busy in the store. She had the most adorable coat on, and she is also very pretty. I didn’t talk to her of course (after all, I don’t actually know her) but in a way it felt like a “celebrity spotting” moment. 
Have you ever wondered where certain sayings or words come from? We often wonder about the origins of foreign words, and what they mean. Another fun thing that we often talk and speculate over is where certain phrases started. So of course when I was sent a review copy of the new book new book A Certain “Je Ne Sais Quoi”: The Origin of Foreign Words Used in English
, I was very excited.
In the book we get the answers to a lot of these questions! The book has tons of interesting words, and tells the story of where they come from and how we came to adopt them into the English language.
Having studied French for 4 years, I already knew most of the French words and meanings. However, there were so many words from other cultures that I had no idea of. For example:
- Ketchup began life as a spicy pickled fish sauce called koechiap in seventeenth-century China.
- Honcho came from the Japanese world hancho, which means squad chief. The word was brought to the United States sometime during the 1940s by soldiers who had served in Japan.
- Dungarees comes from the Hindi word dungri, the thick cotton cloth used for sails and tents in India.
I love that the book is laid out like alphabetically, from A to Z you can easily find and look up what you have been curious about. It’s a really fun book to have around, we have been cracking it open off and on and learning new things each time. It’s a great book for people who love trivia or languages (or both)! And to whet your appetite for the book even more, here is an article from the author. Continue reading 'A Certain “Je Ne Sais Quoi”'»
How’s that for alliteration? Today we had the tastiest, and cutest, strawberry shortcakes. Despite the snow on the ground outside, the strawberries in the store were absolutely sweet and plump. They just had to be eaten. There were cute little shortcakes (mini sized), and I even bought glaze. The glaze had an unfortunate accident and spilled all over the floor, rendering it unusable. Luckily I had just made our favorite fruit dip, and my hubby who is a genius, said we should try using it instead. It was better than the glaze by far!
To make the fruit dip, you just need a large size of vanilla yogurt (32 oz), and a small size of instant banana cream pudding mix (3.5 oz). Mix the two together, and you have a yummy treat that is perfect for dipping fruit in (though I often eat it sans fruit), and even more perfect for filling shortcakes with. The strawberry banana combo was divine!
As you can see from the photo, the shortcakes were very little. We put more strawberries on, but I had to get a “pretty” photo first of course. And yes, there was even Redi-Whip to spray on top. A perfect treat for a snowy Saturday.
I have a lazy bone in my body.
Recently it has been taking over, making it near impossible to get much done. Although I have been forcing myself to do certain things, the lazy in me wants to do absolutely nothing at all. And I have so much that I need to be doing, and it’s come to the point where I am not even sure where to begin.
So I let the lazy bone take over. I avoid all the things I should be doing, and indulge in the things that sound good at the moment. It’s all good… food still gets cooked, we still have clean clothes and dishes. Every so often I just have to indulge my laziness (oh alright, I indulge it more than I really should, but it feels so right).
*the photo was taken with the kitty holga camera on a very warm winter day*
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