Bird's Nest Treats {w/ recipes}

hello friends. Today I am so happy to have Sarah from To Be Mrs. Collier guest posting. She is sharing some delicious Easter treats.

It's easy to get caught up in the fun of Easter - egg hunts and candy, ham dinners - but the real reason for Easter is plain and simple. 

For God so loved

the world

that he gave

his one and only Son,

that whoever

believes in HIM

shall not perish

but have eternal life.

- John 3:16

***

Birds Nest Easter Treats

Busy. {w/ life}

hello friends.... allow me to introduce myself. I'm Kristin, the writer of this blog. You may not remember me because it's been so long.

It's true, this little blog has been neglected a bit over the last few weeks. Hopefully you forgive me.

My mind has been elsewhere. A good elsewhere though.

Last week I landed a new job (woohoo!). Since then my mind has been preoccupied. I will also use this as an excuse for my neglect in the preceding weeks, since I was in the process of interviewing.

Here's a little of what I've been doing besides work:

Enjoying the Carlsbad Flower Fields. My new position is actually within the same company so I don't have to give up the great location. I get to see the thousands of flowers each day at lunch from March through May.



via

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes {w/ recipes}

Top o' the morning to you!

Happy St. Patty's Day! I thought I'd share one of my favorite cupcake recipes:
Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

If you're not familiar with the drink, an Irish Car Bomb is a Guinness beer with a shot of Jameson Irish Whiskey and Bailey's Irish Cream. In "bomb" drink fashion, the shot is dropped into the beer and then you basically chug it.

If you're in the mood for something sweet and want to celebrate your Irish pride (because everyone's Irish on March 17th), these cupcakes will do the trick. The cake is a dark chocolate stout  (the Guinness) and the frosting is a basic butter cream with a little Bailey's and Jameson Whiskey, just enough for an insane frosting flavor. {Since the alcohol in the frosting is NOT cooked off, please be sure you only make these if you are of the legal drinking age.}

belly flops {w/ kitchen stories}

Did you know that Jelly Belly sells its wonky shaped jelly beans at a discounted price? The same jelly beans, just misshaped or stuck together with another. Essentially, the rejects. The flops. 

Of course they still taste the same, so long as you don't mind the aesthetics you get to enjoy yummy jelly beans at a discount. And Jelly Belly still gets to make money on their "mess-ups". 

Too bad there's nothing to save my own kitchen flops. You know, those times you try a new recipe and nothing turns out right? You've seen my successes - my favorite dinners and desserts, my kitchen tips and tricks. But what I have yet to share, thus far, are those belly flops. Until now. 

Cranberry Orange Scones {w/ recipes)

There's something to be said about tradition. It gives stability and structure in times when things can be in array, which seems to be the norm in this world we live in. And while some could say that tradition can hold us back, I like to believe it roots us, and give us the foundation for our branches to grow tall.

Take the tradition of afternoon tea. A time each day to take a step back, sit down, enjoy some hot tea and a quick bite to eat. Sounds lovely to me.

So let us embrace tradition, particularly the tradition of tea time. Whether you drink coffee or tea or just water, come three o'clock, let's gather and sip away, chatting about our day, and nibbling on these delicious Cranberry Orange Scones.

San Diego Bloggers MeetUp

Have you ever been to a Meetup? No? Up until last Thursday, me neither. I had heard of Meetup.com, an online community connecting people with similar interests to literally “meet up” throughout the community. There are Meetup groups for people who love hiking, motorcycles, writing, videogames, and more. If you can think of it, there’s probably already a group meeting in your community. If not, you can start it.

A few months ago I joined the website to hopefully meet more bloggers in my area. It’s been amazing going through this whole blogging journey with one of my best friends, Katie from Unwritten. But I also know it’s important to network and meet other similar bloggers, as well as bloggers with a completely different agenda. It’s always refreshing to get a completely new view on something. Especially when you can meet in person. As much as I love this world wide web, there is nothing that beats meeting face to face with someone. Shaking their hand and looking them straight in the eye.

Channy-boo-boo {w/ pet life} & a GIVEAWAY

Chan. 

Chanerino. 

Chan-Chan. 

Chan Man. 

Channy.

Channers.

and, finally Channy-boo-boo. 

I am embarrassed to admit, 

but these are all nicknames I have for my puppy, 

whose real name is Chandler (Bing).