DIY Cafe Mocha

Today I bring to you a different kind of DIY! Homemade coffee drinks like the ones you pay $5 for at Starbucks! We have really been watching our cash flow lately, so Starbucks has been out of the question. I feel like the coffee world is making progress by offering lattes etc. at places like McDonalds for cheaper, but they are full of calories! I still had to go to Starbucks to get my "skinny" versions of coffee. Well not anymore! T.J. and I had another couple over last night and they are so very sweet, they brought us an espresso maker. Better yet, they showed us how to use it!

I am still experimenting, but our friend Scott gave me a good idea for a first recipe to try. This is what I made this morning:

Espresso (filled up to the 2 line)
1 1/2 tbs. cocoa
1 tbs. organic cane sugar
A few drops of vanilla
1/2 c. unsweetened almond milk, steamed

I made sure to mix the cocoa and sugar right into the espresso when it came out piping hot so it would dissolve, then I added the vanilla and poured it all into my steamed milk. Pretty darn good I must say! I will continue to tweak and experiment and let you all know how it goes. In the meantime I plan to conquer quite the to-do list today with this extra kick of energy. :-)

Nesting Tables

I purchased a set of 3 nesting tables at my Goodwill about a year ago. They have alternatively been sitting in the garage or being used for impromptu tables in the mancave ever since. When I put out the Christmas decorations this year I had to move some things around, so the littlest one got pulled out and used as a plant stand. I loved how it looked! The tables are cute and have really nice lines. I especially love that the smallest one is square (the larger ones that fit on top of it are rectangle). I paid less than $10 for the set of 3.

The table was originally a dark wood color, which I liked, but didn't fit in very well in the light and airy white living room. Now that it is white I like it even better. I was able to spray paint during the winter - which is a rarity and a real treat - a couple weekends ago when it was unseasonably warm. I also worked in an outdoor run with my man (read about it here on his running blog).

The wavy edges on top compliment the wavy bottom of the hutch. 

The fate of the other 2 is unknown, but when I bought them I imagined they would be really cute painted three different bright colors. When time and space allow, we will see!

The Cadillac of Dog Bowls

Today I took my grocery shopping to the other side of the river to Target. Target is the best place to buy groceries because there is a ton of other things to look at. Most efficient? No. Most inexpensive? No. But definitely the most fun.

I had been curious about the Neiman Marcus at Target collection since seeing the commercials on TV. When I got there to check it out in December I was shocked. $140 for a blazer? No one at Target is going to pay that. I'm not sure if anyone ever did, but I do know that they had a ton of the items left after Christmas. The day after Christmas my mom and I went to Target to stock up on ornaments and lights for next year. That day the Neiman Marcus collection was 50% off. I thought it would be worth another look at that price. I fell in love with these Oscar de la Renta dog bowls but could not bear the $30 price tag it would cost me to buy two (originally $60!). Maybe if I needed them, but I had a perfectly good and cute set at home. But today, when the big 70% off clearance sign was above the shelf they were sitting on I could not hold out any longer.

I imagine I will have these dog bowls forever! They are gorgeous. Worth every penny of the $18 I ended up spending on them. They are even dishwasher safe. And now when I walk into my kitchen I will look down at them and know that my fancy dogs are eating and drinking from Oscar de la Renta bowls. They have such a cush life! I wonder if she thinks her food tastes better out of such a luxury dish. :-)