mother's day.

mother's day.

5.09.2011

Mom at 26

Dear Mom,

How can I put into words how much I love you?

I was cleaning out my room yesterday and getting things organized to move when I found the birthday card you sent me this year. Just seeing your naturally loopy writing on the inside brought tears to my eyes. 

You are such an amazing, strong, beautiful woman and "when I grow up", I can only hope to be half the woman you are. Being so far away all these years has made me really appreciate you and I so wish that I could have spend this day celebrating you!!

Through highs and lows, you've been that rock in my life that boosted be up when I was low and pulled me off the ledge when I was so high I might just start to fly. You've kept me grounded but also pushed me beyond my boundaries.

This day is about you, Mom! Thank you for drying my tears after graduation, thanks for telling me your mac and cheese recipe to win the hearts of all my guy friends....

....thank you for you advice on how to paint a chair...

...and whether or not to get a puppy....

....thanks for forcing me to learn to paint my own nails....

...and for pretending you couldn't hear me sneaking out in the middle of the night to see my boyfriend....

...thanks for telling me No when all I wanted to hear was Yes... and for always being just a phone call away....

...but most of all - Thanks for just being the best mom a girl could have. I wouldn't trade you for the world!! I love you Mom!!

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this changes everything...

this changes everything...

4.18.2011

My church has been doing a sermon series with the following theme:

Ever had something happen in your life that completely changed everything about your life? Maybe a phone call, an accident, a chance meeting, a discovery? Whatever it was, after "it" happened, nothing in your life was ever the same. Jesus was the catalyst for that type of change for the people he encountered. Sometimes it was a chance encounter with him on the street. And sometimes it was something he did for all the public to see. Regardless, those who encountered Christ usually walked away saying, "This Changes Everything".

There have been a few times in my life when I thought "wow, this changes everything..." - graduating high school, moving away to college, graduating college, etc. Lately, there hasn't been any huge, life changing events happen until this weekend. The management company of the lovely, over-sized townhouse we live in just raised the rent...$500 so it would now cost us over $1000 each. INSANE and totally unacceptable. Long story short, we're all moving and not together. This is where the "this changes everything" part comes in. One of my roommates is taking a huge leap of faith and possibly moving in with her boyfriend and my other roommate is branching out on her own to live by herself for the first time ever! Now you're thinking "And where the heck do you think you're going to live, missy?"

Two options here: live by myself is a super trendy loft/studio for cheap OR find a house in Lakewood and live with a few friends.

So what are the pros and cons? How far away from Uptown do I venture before I get lonely and stranded? Am I ready to live on my own? Is it safe? If we live in a house that means sharing a bathroom again...do I want that? How long will I be staying in Dallas? Do I want to furnish a whole new place by myself? What are my minimum requirements? Do I need an in house washer/dryer? Can I live with a couch/bed/kitchen/bathroom all in the same space? How much am I really willing to spend? Does it need to have hardwoods? Updated appliances? Close to friends? So many questions! Readers, I need your thoughts (and I want to see who the heck reads this thing...).

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margaux webster sarin

margaux webster sarin

4.05.2011

My sister, wow, is honestly one of the coolest people I know. Mom, if you're reading this, I really mean it!! I know it's pretty hard to believe but my sister and I used to fight...bad. We are only 2 years apart so there was a lot of hair pulling, face scratching and chaos in our household. As kids, we both rode horses which caused a lot of competition between us. However, we soon branched out on our own paths and have gotten closer every year. Now, we talk almost every other day and we actually like to hang out with each other, not to mention miss each other.

1. She's 20 years old (but she'll want me to tell you that she'll be 21 on June 29th, let the countdown begin!)
2. She has light brown hair and brown eyes and she's taller...taller than me.
3. She's a junior at UMASS Amherst.
4. She's an Alpha Chi Omega.
5. She had her appendix out in Ecuador.
6. She speaks pretty good Spanish.
7. She used to call me Ya-Ya when she couldn't say my name. Now she calls me San-San. Somethings never change.
8. She loves animals especially our cats (Mikey-RIP, Maddie-RIP and Millie).

Here's a few cool things about my sister:

She was born with 11 toes. No seriously, my mom asked my Dad just after she was born "How many fingers and toes?" to which he promptly replied 11. My Dad is a serious jokester so obviously she laughed it off until she saw the little extra toe coming off her pinky toe. And no, it is no longer attached to her.

She spent her junior year of high school in Ecuador on a Rotary International exchange program. She took french in high school and didn't know ANY spanish. When she came back, she was mostly fluent!

My sister (second from the left) with her host family

She bakes cakes. Yea, I know you're thinking "Hey, I can bake a cake too!" but she bakes KICK BUTT cakes! She's made wedding cakes for our family friends, barbie cakes and even won a cake competition at her school judged by Duff Goldman from Charm City Cakes.

she likes horses

meeting Duff Goldman!

She rides horses, which basically needs no explanation for why it's cool. She rides on the team at UMASS - Amherst where she goes to school. She also plays polo - which is terrifying to watch but also a really cool sport. She played on the Yale high school team.

Yale High School Polo Team

showing

She picked the BEST major - ever. She's a Hospitality and Hotel Management major which means she has to do mandatory internships like last summer in Hilton Head at a resort and this summer at a country club in Nantucket.

working in Hilton Head

Basically, she's all around the best sister there is. I'm so blessed that we've gotten so close over the last year and I hope only for the best for her! I love you seeeesssterrr so very much!

SMU Graduation

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{recipe} banana peanut butter chocolate chip muffins

{recipe} banana peanut butter chocolate chip muffins

I promise you, these are the easiest and most delicious muffins I've every had/made. You will love them too mainly because they are so easy and bonus HEALTHY! Thank Picky-Palate for the great recipe!

“Healthier” Banana Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins

makes 1 dozen muffins

• 4 Tablespoons softened butter
• 2 eggs
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 Cup plain low-fat vanilla yogurt (I happened to have Yoplait Banana Cream Pie yogurt on hand so I just used that)
• 2/3 Cup sugar
• heaping 1/4 Cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 1/2 Cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 Cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 Cup semi sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 Cup coarse sugar (I used Turbinado sugar)
• 1/2 Cup shredded sweetened coconut (I didn't add this)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place butter, eggs, bananas, yogurt, sugar and peanut butter into a large mixing bowl. Mix to combine. Place all dry ingredients into a separate large bowl and stir to combine. Slowly add to wet ingredients along with the chocolate chips until just combined. Scoop into muffin tins lined with paper cups 2/3 way full. Sprinkle with coarse sugar and shredded coconut. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean from center.

This recipe can be found here.

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{recipe} risotto

{recipe} risotto

3.03.2011

Did you know that when you order risotto at a restaurant it's typically made ahead (or at least the base is) and then warmed for your meal? I only know this not because I snuck into the kitchen at Taverna but because I'm sort of addicted to the Food Network show Secrets from a Restaurant Chef. A few weeks ago, she made this insane saffron risotto and mentioned how in her kitchen at the restaurant they usually make it in advance and then heat portions of it for each meal ordered. I know this might be a huge shocker to some of you, but making the perfect risotto takes patience and lots of upper body strength.

That's not to say that you can't master this dish and all of it's infinite possibilities! You really only need a few ingredients to get started and then whatever mix-ins you have on hand. Last night, I made risotto for me and my roommate - Lemon Chicken Risotto to be specific.

Essentials:

• Arborio Rice
• Butter
• Olive Oil
• Chicken Stock

"Mix-ins" 

• Garlic (optional)
• Onion (optional)
• Good white wine 
• Lemon
• Leftover grilled chicken
• Parmesan cheese

1. Melt 2 tbsp each oil and butter in a large sauce pan. If you are adding onions saute them now as well. Heat 3 cups chicken broth in a smaller pot (only 2 1/4 cups if using 3/4 cup wine). Once butter is melted, stir in 1 cup rice and stir constantly (if you are adding garlic, add it now). You are essentially "toasting" the rice and releasing lots of yummy flavor. 
2. After 2 minutes, stir in 3/4 cup wine. Stir pretty much constantly until wine is absorbed. Then add ladle-fulls of chicken broth one at a time until each one is absorbed - always taking time to stir vigorously. There is no cream in risotto - what makes it creamy is the constant stirring which develops the starches and creates a creamy consistency. 
3. Once you've added all the chicken broth gradually and it has all been absorbed, taste the rice to make sure it's cooked through. There should be a slight bite left in it, but there shouldn't be any crunchy bits in your teeth. Remove from heat and stir in 2 tbsp butter, a a few palm-fulls of cheese to your taste. Squeeze in lemon as well with lots of pepper. You probably won't need salt since the cheese is plenty salty. 
4. Stir in shredded chicken at the end and sprinkle freshly chopped parsley over the top (which we will have soon due to our new herb garden!). 

Voila! 20 minutes later, you have the perfect risotto. Use this recipe minus the lemon as your go-to base risotto and feel free to experiment with all kinds of toppings and flavors. 

Next on the list - asparagus and baby shrimp risotto!

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