caramel salted brownies.

 

I have been wanting to make these caramel sea salt brownies since seeing them on olivia-rae's blog. She has a lovely blog which documents her travels, creativity, and scrumptious food as she lives in Charleston, South Carolina. Her daily endeavors often inspire to make my own sometimes unsuccessful adventures of my own. So today I dressed myself in a an flowery vintage apron, invited the company of Billie Holiday and Bessie Smith, and set out to make Caramel Sea Salt brownies.

 I made a batch of fudgey milk chocolate and a batch of dark chocolate brownies.

(due  to time constraints I am ashamed to say they were from a box)

 I believe this experimentation may have been a success...we shall see what the peanut gallery says at the pool gathering tomorrow.

please ignore my tired look, I was trying to capture an image of me in my apron....obviously I failed.

wam bam thank you mamn.

It is hard to believe but I have finally graduated! What a long and beautiful journey the past

three years at Temple University has been. It has been enriching intellectually, socially, and spiritual. A time of extreme growth and understanding more and more of myself. A time filled with special moments that will be remembered the rest of my life, here are just a few snippets of my life during college...

The snow apocalypse coming to Philly... two of the most amazing girls and I walking to reading terminal market.

Fun cabin trips with high-school friends...

The stephens house...my humble abode for two years.

studying abroad in Roma...miss these days!

getting to visit my best friend in Switzerland

helping my little sister get ready for prom...love this beauty!

what a beautiful and blessed life I have had thus far...looking forward to the memories and adventures yet to come!

Spring Cleaning is about to commence!

So spring has sprung (at least on the calendar) and it is time for a good ole fashion cleaning. I have since moved rooms since taking these pictures but you see what I am getting at, either these are pictures of what I hope my room to look like or I just needed a room to express the theme of what I am getting at. 

glorious weekends

ok so I know I have complained once or twice about living in Lancaster County, but the truth is despite some flaws it is an absolute gorgeous place to live. Surrounded with acres of farmland and people who honestly do try to live for the Lord. Sometimes I forget about the beauty that this place offers. However this past weekend I was able to visit it again. I have begun my monthly ritual of running on a 2.5 mile trail near my house, remembering every lovely detail of nature that I had forgotten over the winter. Also my sister and I embarked on Saturday on a photography walk where we attempted to capture some of the remarkable scenery found in Lancaster county. Here are a few of the pictures from our relaxing walk...

Springin into an new routine...

ok so there was a time in my life where I had devos everyday in the morning, went on a run, cut out bread, and only ate sweets on the weekends. During this time I felt better about myself, had a different relationship with God, and was able to concentrate on what is important. Don't get me wrong this time wasn't perfect, I still had issues and my friends will attest to this, but making those small changes in my life made a huge difference.
    After moving home from Cali I started to let things slip. Concerns for school and the worries of the world clouded my views and I became lazy in the areas that were most important. I don't however want to discount the growth I have made in other areas. Being in a University challenged my beliefs and put me in some very uncomfortable situations. But going through those times reaffirmed how much I do believe in Jesus Christ and how much I want my life to be about Him. Health wise I am continually blessed with a functioning body. During the warm months I find myself in a routine of running five miles a day, and during these cold months although I am no where near where I should be in my fitness schedule I do try to shake what I've got every week in Zumba. 
   I feel though there are times where you need to step back and assess the choices you are making. I am idealist, I believe people can change. We just need to start small and believe in the God who is capable of making the BIG changes come true. We must play our part...
  Over these past couple of years I have started workout routines, diets, weekly devotionals, but all have failed due to the fact that my focus has not been completely on God. So as I examine what needs to change in my life I am committing to starting to make the changes in my relationship with God and then stemming from that making other healthy commitments. 
SO... Here are some goals for 2011 no scratch that...how about for the end of february into march.
1. Spend time in prayer and reading everyday....at least 10 minutes.
2. Cut back on sugar and carbs
3. Fill my time with productive things instead of hulu 
4. Exercise more
5. write 3 letters a month


alrighty so this is the beginning of my springing into new healthy routines in the months of february and march. I will keep you abreast on my progress. 

Italia Remembered...

It has now been about more than two months since I returned home to America... oh but the memories of Roma and my life there linger. What a beautiful place with a resounding history, a very alive culture, and a passion for keeping old traditions alive and well. Oh how I loved navigating my way around this beautiful old city. I pray that one day I will be able to return and again take in its beautiful aroma. These pictures along with many others capture snippets of my favorite days spent in Italy.

1. The first picture was taken from a church on the top of capitoline hill. This was captured right after a class with one of my favorite professors, Frank Dabelle, after learning about Michael Angelo during the Italian Renaissance. I love that you can see a line of the many mopeds which populate Roma and the earthy colors of the Italian Architecture can be seen.

2. This picture was taken in the beautiful Borghese gardens. This day was especially beautiful with the bright hues of blue and green popping out from the vegetation. I had just finished shooting a self-portrait assignment for digital photography class.

3. This picture was taken by best friend in Roma, Andrew. I am in a church found in Trastevere which has a hidden an 800 year old fresco located in the upper chapel of the church. My class and I was escorted by a little old nun to this room in which she was responsible for taking care of these precious paintings. I am obviously captivated by them in this picture.

4. The last picture is a small small snippet from a wonderful couple of days spent with my friend Kimbalicious in Florence. One of my favorite places in the city was an amazing bagel cafe with wonderful cappuccinos run by a british gent.

I will never forget my time there...and will continue to show glimpses of my bella life in Italia and my trip to Switzerland.

I'm Back...

Sorry about the long hiatus. But not to fear the next posts will be a complete recap of parts of my european adventure, home, and life in my last semester of school. I hope to feature new health posts, decorating and art, and a feature on the talented and amazing people that are a part of my life. So my "New Years" resolution is to be continually blogging from now till the end of the semester. Wish me luck! oh yes and a very Happy Valentines day to you and yours...


stay tuned for  a longer more detailed post later today!