What the hell...

      I seem to find myself saying that on a regular basis, well this would be the PG version of what I hear myself saying on a regular basis.  Because really people, WTH?  Like for instance WTH was Mark Jacobs thinking with the likes of this?
Exhibit A...
Source: modaoperandi.com via nd on Pinterest




Update:  One actually wears not wheres...it's late, but WTH?

Where am I going to wear this Mark?  Where is anyone going to wear this Mark...WTH?

I mean really, or this...as if a traditional rose tattoo wasn't horrific enough, we have the crafty crossed stitched version...WTH?

Source: google.com via Tove on Pinterest


OK this is creepy, I've seen you at the gym with these ridiculous minimalist toe shoes... I'm talking to you Mr. What Was I Thinking...WTH?


WTH Sarah?  There are no words...


Pumpkins, Whole Foods and a very Cheeky Chevrolet...

     I ventured to Whole foods (who doesn't love Whole Foods?!) for their amazing made in-store fresh mozzarella cheese and fresh baguette for a tasty pesto panini (made from chez Cheeky Kitchen...Here yee shall find said tasty pesto recipe...(add a little kosher salt and cracked pepper to the pesto too, makes all the difference!)  Anyhoo, I always feel a little insecure whilst perusing the aisles of Whole Foods.
     I had this moment today whilst looking at a bag of black beans, and thinking true bonafide worthy Whole Food aficionados would take said bag of black beans to the appropriate level and boil them into submission along with a very healthy whole grain tortilla and organic tomato salsa and free range chicken situation for a truly authentic Whole Foods Tex Mex dinner...instead of what I was thinking...a bowl full of Velveeta and Rotel.  Thank God I was wearing my gynormous nerd glasses because contacts are out of the question with the hellacious allergies that are plaguing Dallas right now, because I think they may have sent me packing, somehow reading my interior dialogue of inferior side dishes.
     True story...it's a cautionary tale, I once went to Whole Foods and dared to ask for Crisco...don't judge me people I was making a pie, I believe pumpkin during Thanksgiving, and I was buying all my other traditional fare from Whole Foods doing the "I'm shoppin at Whole Foods, and I'm healthy...nana nana nana..."  Except I needed the Crisco, the equivalent of lard, the equivalent of artery clogging hydrogentated saturated fat excessiveness...and I wasn't at Kroger.  Oh no that was made painfully clear, when I dared to ask a tatted up, zen, incredibly friendly Whole Foods associate 'where prey tell do they keep the Crisco'!  Crickets...absolute crickets...followed by um, well...what are you making fried chicken?  No, no I'm not making fried chicken, I'm making a PIE!  I REALIZE it's just an equally valve clogging food unworthy Whole Foods food...but it's Thanksgiving!  So suffice it to say, I feel somewhat unWholeFoods worthy.  I don't think I've reached the phobia stage because I actually looked it up, I mean there is all kinds of crazy phobias out there and someone has to have a Whole Foods one for the love of God, but sadly I only came across under the W's...Walloonphobia, fear of Wallons.  Well what the hell is a Walloon, I mean really? And, Wiccaphobia, fear of witches and witchcraft.  That sounds exciting.  I'm going to start telling people I have Wiccaphobia and see what they do...

But today they had pumpkins in a very Cheeky in Blue Chevrolet!
 Just proving they are the coolest grocery store EVAH!!

Cheeky in Blue's kick ass Apple Pie...oh yes it is!

     It is still in the 90's around here, but I am going to drag fall in kicking and screaming if I have to!  Nothing says fall like the most delicious Apple Pie that you will ever eat, and I do mean EVAH!  It has a crumb topping so it's kind of a combo of an apple crisp and a traditional pie.  Trust people, this is worth the muffin top that is soon to follow!  I come from a long line of pie bakers so I know what I'm doing here.  Remember my Blueberry Cobbler, well I love this one even more!

Kick Ass Apple Pie...

First you will have to make...that's right, I said make...your very own pie crust from scratch.  It is soooooooooooo very easy people I promise.

Pie Crust
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup vegetable shortening (this makes a very flaky crust, you could also do half shortening and half butter if you want a more flavorful crust)
5-7 T ice water

-Combine flour, salt, and 1/3 cup of the shortening with a pastry blender until the mixture is broken up

-Add the other 1/3 cup of shortening to the mixture and continue to blend until it resembles peas.  Don't over mix

-Gradually add the ice water 1 Tablespoon at a time until the dough holds together just enough without being too wet or too dry

-Roll out crust and place into a deep dish pie plate
 Crimp the edges (yikes on the really bad pic!)

Filling
9-10 peeled and sliced medium Granny Smith Apples
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 -1/2 cup all purpose flour (I've done it both ways, it depends on how many apples you use in your filling)
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
pinch of salt

-Heat oven to 425 degrees.
-Peel your apples (or make your husband do it like I did!)


Peel 9-10 medium Granny Smith Apples


-Mix sugar, flour, spices, and salt in a bowl
-Pour over sliced apples and mix thoroughly 
-Place apple mixture into your tasty made from scratch pie crust

Crumb Topping
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup cold butter
-Mix ingredients in bowl until crumbly

 Place Crumb topping over pie filling
- Place pie in oven.  Bake for around 10 minutes and then loosely cover with foil (just lay a sheet over the top) to prevent over cooking the crust and crumb topping
-Bake an additional 30-40 minutes
-you may need to remove the foil towards the end of baking to brown the crust a bit 

And then eat!





Fab fall boots...

     It's getting to be that time of year again when we can all start thinking about pulling out everyone's favorite thing to wear...boots!  It's still a wee bit too hot in Dallas and will be for another month or so, but up north the chill of fall has started to make it's way transitioning from chilly nights to chilly days.

Leather is huge this fall.  It is everywhere!  You see everything from leather dresses, to pants, to skirts.  Here's a way of pairing some boots with that look, by way of biker chic!
Source: vogue.com via Maureen on Pinterest

These boots are similar to the Biker Chic look... Dorado by Frye...

  Equestrian boots are always a great classic fit...
Source: vogue.com via Maureen on Pinterest

Love these by Tory Burch, Erica Flat Riding Boot in leather and in suede!




Something with a heel...who doesn't love velvet?  These are by Thakoon...and are gorgeous!
Source: vogue.com via Maureen on Pinterest

And of course you can never go wrong with some Wellies!





Time for a little yard art...

     I was out perusing a great nursery called Shades of Green, which is in the north Dallas suburb of Frisco.
They have a little lily pond...

     They are known for planting indigenous and drought tolerant plants for our area which is a good thing because I need a little work done in our back yard since our junipers are a hot mess from our hot as hell summer and will have to be replaced with something that can take the Africa hotness.  I was also looking for fall mums when I came across some great pieces of art that are amazing!  They are a wee bit spensive for sure, but they really are works of art.
 Love this blue one!




They have all kinds of things for the yard like this stone and marble table with two seats...
 All kinds of great pots...


And interesting planters...


Lazy Sundays...

     It's been a crazy week around here.  It was back to college last weekend for our oldest, and this week was filled with Homecoming activities for our daughter which included a house full of teenagers up all night long.  So today has been a rather lazy day of lounging on the couch watching a constant drizzle outside and a cool 68 degrees which is altogether the perfect kind of lazy Sunday.  Fall is just around the corner, and pumpkins are all over the market...






 Oh and the best apple in the world is back for fall too...Honeycrisp!

Fab kitchen range hoods for the beach or anywhere...

     Who knew there were so many varieties of kitchen hoods to be had?  I mean there is an endless supply of choices out there.  The one that our builder for Beach Cheeky uses in the majority of his homes is this one...

While functional, I would prefer something a bit snazzier...
But what?  There's a lot out there people...
Like this, 
I'm loving this, and I posted it under my wood beam post (which is still under discussion people!)...

Or this in white...

How great is this?
Source: houzz.com via Maureen on Pinterest

Or this...

Very beachy...
Source: veranda.com via Mary on Pinterest

This looks like the same type of hood our builder uses, love the open shelves on the sides...





Wowza!

Yes and yes!  Looks like metal, but it is actually a stone hood by Mont Blanc!