Individual Baked Mashed Potatoes

Sometimes you need to brainstorm a recipe that you can share on your blog.

Sometimes you have leftover Gruyere cheese and chives that'll die as soon as a frost decides to hit.

Sometimes you're a potato addict.

This recipe is a result of these times.

Life is a smidge crazy around my household currently. Michael has a huge workload to deal with in his new job as a caseworker plus school plus things I ask him to do around the house plus wedding stuff plus a need/obligation to see family and friends.

I suppose it'd be more accurate to say Michael's life is crazy. But...ya know...I'm kinda busy-ish too.

Anyway...

Maybe you're busy too. Maybe you just want some comfort food. Maybe you want flavorful and cheesy potatoes. Maybe you only want a single serving so you can control yourself. Or maybe you already have self-control without having to impose it upon yourself and maybe you're having a dinner party (or...hmmm....Thanksgiving isn't too far awayyyy). Maybe you're having a dinner party and you want a side dish you can make ahead of the time and just put it in the oven when you're ready. Maybe these individual mashed potatoes are as much of a lifesaver for you as they were for me?

Yeah. I thought so.

Something Saturdays (10/25/14)

Have I shown you guys our wedding website yet? If not--here it is!: 

http://kayleandmichael.wix.com/wedding

Um....Renee Zellweger legit. looks like a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PERSON???! What the eff?? I've read a lot of articles shaming people for being so obsessed with her different look but....this isn't about her aging or plastic surgery or anything. It's just that...she literally does not look like the same person and I cannot figure out how that happened.

I had another alterations appointment to work on my mom's/my wedding dress and it is really coming along! For the first time I'm feeling really good about it-I am 99% sure that this dress is going to turn out the way I want, now! A bunch of the things I didn't like have been removed and the off-the-shoulder sleeves are looking the way I imagined them. There's still a lot of work to do but I'm super duper excited! Plus Wava, my alterations woman, took a look at my tiara and earrings and said she thought they were perfect! woot!

Aaaaand finally: tomorrow I am SO excited because I'M GOING TO PITTSBURGH TO SEE CARLA (AKA Chocolate Moosey)!!! I'm approx. a 2 hour drive from Pitt and I've been wanting to explore the city, and meet Carla in person, so I'm very excited! But...also nervous. This is my biggest, longest, scariest driving venture I've done so far. Fingers crossed I'm alive to post Monday! :P

La Piuma Bella Review

La Piuma Bella...google translate tells me it means "the beautiful feather". And how fitting a name that is for this fantastic little shop. Feathers are one of a kind and evoke a feeling of fantasy-of flight. Plus...they're pretty. Just like all the things that La Piuma Bella sells!

I knew that I wanted all of my bridesmaids to have a matching jewelry item as one of their gifts, as well as for them to wear in the wedding. And...since roses are something of a theme...I wanted something with roses. My first thought was necklace but, due to the necklines of the dresses we're looking at, necklaces wouldn't work. So then my thoughts jumped to earrings! And then I found La Piuma Bella and I fell in love.