TGIS!

Seriously, I thought Saturday would never get here.

I’m sorry I skipped the last two Slice of Life Saturday’s. Did you miss me? Nah, you probably didn’t even notice I was gone. I have a very good excuse for my Saturday absence. Wanna hear it?

I was busy preparing for my very last day of class as a college student. That’s right, kiddos, I’m finished. I’m officially the proud owner of smarts—the for reals kind, too. Not that fake, hear-say kind. Nope, I have a piece of paper to back me up… A very expensive piece of paper, I might add.

So, I’m officially for reals smart. Time to break out the bubbly and celebrate!

What’s a girl to do with her newfound freedom? Up until now, I haven’t had any freedom. I my life pretty much came to a halt when I decided to back to school three years ago (remind me again why I did that). I’m not even familiar with the word freedom; it left my vocabulary in 2009 and hasn’t returned. I’m sure I’ll find something to fill the gaping void that was once writing extensive research papers and reading 500-page novels from the literary canon.

IMG_1314Heck, I might just go wild and crazy! Eh, maybe I’ll wait awhile. I think I’ll take a small break first–give my brain a much deserved rest before, say, riding a mechanical bull or doing body shots. Maybe read a few books, peruse my extensive cookbook collection, ride my bike. Yeah, I’ll take it slow. Ease myself into wild and crazy.

Here’s what I’ve been doing in my free time. I’m not ready to go wild and crazy just yet, but that doesn’t mean my nails shouldn’t be given the opportunity to get funky.

I hope all the moms out there had a wonderful Mother’s Day. I know my mom did…thanks to me and not my lackadaisical brothers. I don’t know what it is about my brothers (maybe even boys in general), but they’re just not good at being attentive and involved when it comes to special occasions. Every year, I do all of the work when it comes to making Mother’s Day and my mom’s birthday special. They literally have no clue. I pick out and purchase the gift, make the card, and prepare the celebratory cocktails and food while they sit back and relax. When the day IMG_1312arrives, they try not to act surprised when my mom unwraps her gift from the three of us. “Oh yeah, I picked that out myself. I risked my life in the throng of people at the jewelry store the day before Mother’s Day purchasing your gift. Don’t you love it,” my brother mocks. Ugh, I could kick him sometimes. “Yeah, bravo on the gift,” I quip in return. My mom just looks at him with that please-I’m-sure-this-was-all-your-idea look on her face.

IMG_1310I knew I wanted to make my mom a special cocktail for her special day. I chose to go simple and make sangria. I knew I could rely on Stephanie, the author of Eat. Drink. Love., for a great recipe.Stephanie doesn’t know it, but I call her the Sangria Queen. Her sangria recipes, along with all of her other recipes, are creative and full of flavor. I’m a frequent flyer at Stephanie’s site, and I’m always drooling over her yummy cocktail recipes. I made her Spring Sangria. It was a hit! My mom adored it. It’s fruity and bubbly and perfectly sweet. We loved it so much that we decided to put it the menu for my graduation party.

I also made my mama a cake. What’s a special occasion without a cake? Certainly not special. I decided to go with a simple white cake with blueberry filling and lemon buttercream frosting. Mmm, it was so good. I think it’s safe to say that my mama had a delicious Mother’s Day. IMG_1307

I’d like to thank Baltimore County Public Library for allowing me to borrow books even though I’m an irresponsible library patron. I promise I’ll find and return the misplaced (maybe even lost) book that I owe you. Thanks for having faith in me and allowing me to borrow these lovelies in the meantime.

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Recipes I pinned this week:

Tipsy Lemonade & Peach Iced Tea by The Comfort of Cooking
Grapefruit Margaritas by Fake Ginger
Grain-Free Raw Peanut Butter Cookie Dough by Texanerin Baking

Recipes I’m craving:

Chocolate Caramel Pretzel Tart by Food Babbles- No words can describe the deliciousness that is this tart. Seriously, this is a must make!
Blueberry Cheesecake with a Macadamia Nut Crust by A Periodic Table- This cheesecake is absolutely stunning with its beautiful blue-purple bursts of fresh blueberries.
Buttermilk Ranch French Fries by Savory Simple- I’ll take a double order, please!
Peanut Butter Honey Buttermilk Cake with Chocolate Peanut Butter Streusel by Averie Cooks- This cake means business. Averie, you’re a peanut butter genius!
Turtles French Toast by Cravings of a Lunatic- This recipe is the very reason I love Kim. The girl loves her some turtles, and I love her for it.

Look What I made:

Teedo’s Famous Salsa by Eat.Drink.Love (original recipe by Jenny Flake of Picky Palate)- This salsa was a hit in my house. We snacked on it. Cooked with it, and maybe even ate it by the spoonfuls (I’m obviously a weirdo).
Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough by Eat.Drink.Love- I made this recipe for my brother’s 18th birthday. They didn’t last long. Seriously, make these!
Toasted Coconut Blueberry Muffins by Honey What’s Cooking?- I made these for a breakfast gathering with my favorite ladies a few weeks ago. These are really special muffins. The combination of blueberries and coconut together is dreamy.