Welcome to my blog ~ where aesthetics are a passion, details are a priority, and pleasure in simple things is celebrated!
I invite you to share my inspirations for a creative life and a lifetime of adventures.
Thanks so much for visiting, Jackie
It’s funny how much I love the change of season when it is becoming summer…but, when summer is leaving – not so much!
Nature is starting to send some subtle signs of the approaching season and it makes me feel sad…
Today on Friday field trip, the photos I am sharing are from my Labor Day weekend in New York state.
I hope yours was as good as mine!
Have a wonderful weekend! Thanks for stopping by!
Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie
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As a kid, I would never even consider eating a tomato! Not sure why, because, as an adult, I look forward to this time of year when local tomatoes are beautifully ripe and ready to enjoy!
There are so many wonderful ways to eat tomatoes. You can’t beat a tomato tart when made with fresh, ripe produce! (Click here for a great recipe.)
Another fabulous, but very simple way to eat a tomato is grilled. And, skewers of cherry tomatoes, hot off the grill, are so very flavorful! I love eating grilled cherry tomatoes on toast spread with goat cheese. Or, just all on their own, sprinkled with salt!
Grilling skewers of cherry tomatoes is simple enough. If I am using them on toast, I just grill them, as is, on skewers. I season them once they are on the bread. If I am eating them plain, I first toss them in a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper before skewering and grilling. Either way, they grill up fast and taste fabulous! Heating them up makes their flavor explode!
So, if you have a bumper crop of cherry tomatoes…or, have just picked some up at your local farmers market, be sure to try some skewered and heated on the grill! Tasty!
Remember to take pleasure in simple things…like seasonally delicious tomatoes!
Thanks for stopping by, Jackie
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Are you gearing up for this holiday weekend? I look forward to my family being together for a laid back weekend with friends. We call it “No Labor Day” – a much more accurate name for the weekend activities!
I am doing my best to grasp every last, wonderful bit of summer! I hope you are able to enjoy some “No Labor Day” time as well. Have a wonderful weekend!
The photos today on Friday field trip were taken at Battery Park while attending a family party. It was a wonderful summer day in New York City!
Thanks for stopping by!
Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie
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I truly believe personalization is the key to a great party. And, creating favors that do a great job of embracing the occasion are a key component of any successful celebration!
I have a great example from a recent family baby shower I wanted to share – it should definitely get your creative juices flowing!
So, the mom-to-be had a passion for a particular brand of sprinkles. The future dad had always loved animal crackers. What better way to personalize a baby shower favor, than to incorporate these 2 loves! How?
To execute this into a baby shower favor, a tin baby-sized cup was used to house some animal crackers. To elevate the garden variety animal cracker, they were dipped into white chocolate and then sprinkles before getting packaged in cellphone bags. Baby bracelets crafted of beads by the grandma-to-be were attached to each cup as a place card and a ‘sprinkled with love’ tag was added. Cute, right? Of course, there were many ways to carry through the sprinkles (like the cake!) and animal themes throughout the rest of the party!
Can you think of a cool way to incorporate personal elements into the favors you create for your next celebration?
Thanks for stopping by!
Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie
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Because of my unplanned summer hiatus, I am changing up the timing of my monthly giveaway a little bit. Today I am announcing the July winner and at the same time, I am putting up the September giveaway. This gives you a little extra time – from now until the end of September – to leave a comment for a chance to win this September giveaway.
I don’t know about you, but I constantly seem to be bombarded with creative ideas just when it is time to drift off to sleep! (Either then, or in the middle of washing my hair in the shower!) In an effort not to lose my marvelous thought, I have to quickly locate a pencil and paper to jot down my thoughts or I can not get to sleep! So, when I saw this book, I had to pick it up to use as a monthly giveaway! The title: Can’t Sleep Write Now…a nocturnal journal for tireless thinkers. The perfect journal to keep bedside!
In addition to the journal, I am including in the giveaway, some custom pencils I had imprinted with ‘bookish’ phrases and a custom designed bookmark. Just leave a comment and you will have a chance to win this giveaway!
Congratulations to Diane, winner of the July giveaway – the Kate Spade notebook. To see more, click here.
Thanks for the lovely email message Diane! Enjoy the notebook, I know you will put this win to good use!
Instagram users, please read on! From now until the end of September, please share your favorite reads from this summer. Just share a photo with hashtag #pleasuregram. I will be sharing some on my Instagram stories. I was able to get some great advance copies and I have some recommendations to share! (How many of you have read Educated this summer? Amazing, right?)
Have a wonderful weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie
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Cereal treat dessert bowls have been popular for a while now. I thought I’d give it a try just once so I could put my own spin on it.
Since everything I’ve seen has been made with plain rice or fruit cereal, I decided to make some cereal treat bowls with a chocolate cereal. And what flavor goes best with chocolate? A darker chocolate? Coffee? Raspberry? Peanut butter? That’s it! I decided on peanut butter.
Peanut butter mousse in a chocolate cereal bowl sounds like a good combination!
I made the standard cereal treat recipe of 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, 10 oz. of melted marshmallows, and 6 cups of cereal. I lightly sprayed some small bowls with cooking spray (and sprayed a little on my hands as well). Using my favorite little Anthro bowls as a guide, I spooned the mixture into them and used my fingers to form the mixture into a bowl shape. Since I don’t have air-conditioning, I popped them into the fridge for a little bit to set them up.
I chose little bowls to make a nice sized individual serving, but you can make your bowls in any size you’d like! Since I am making a mousse to put inside, I am leaving them as is. If you plan on putting something more liquidy (I know this probably isn’t a word) than a mousse, I would suggest melting some chocolate and spreading a coat to harden on the bottom before adding anything so it will act as a seal and prevent any of your dessert from leaking out.
For the peanut butter mixture – kind of a cross between a mousse and a cheesecake – I beat together 4 oz. cream cheese, 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 2/3 cup heavy cream till smooth and then beat on high speed for a minute or two. I spooned this into the cups and garnished them with milk chocolate shavings. I think peanut butter ice cream would have been a better choice than the mousse idea. Whatever you spoon into the dessert bowls, be sure to do it just before serving so the bowls don’t get soggy.
Make a cereal treat bowl. Check. Have you tried making one? What did you serve inside it?
Thanks for stopping by! Have a great week!
Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie
P.S. If you liked this, click here to see a similar treat I made recently…peanut butter cereal treat bites.
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One of the first perennial borders planted by the founders of White Flower Farm was pure white. (For a short time, the owners even considered growing and offering only white-flowered perennials and shrubs..I wish that was carried through!)
I call my all-white garden a ‘virgin’ garden. At White’s, the all-white garden is called a ‘moon’ garden. The white border is planted with a white tree wisteria and looks crisp and refreshing during the day and positively glows at twilight – the reason for its name!
This garden is my favorite at the farm, but visitors can’t get too close to admire it. This changes once a year when White’s has their open house. During the open house tour – and the best part of it – visitors can get up close and personal to the fabulous moon garden!
This year, the open house happened on a rainy day, but I wasn’t going to miss the tour and my chance to get close to the moon garden!
Today, on Friday field trip, I am sharing some photos from the beautiful moon garden at White Flower Farm in Morris, Connecticut. Enjoy!
Thanks for stopping by! Have a fabulous weekend!
Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie
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There are some things that are just out of our control. I learned this the hard way recently. I also learned how very lucky I am. The support I have been receiving from my family and friends during this tough time is truly amazing! I am humbled by all the amazing people that surround me.
Thank you. I could never even begin to express the love and gratitude I feel.
As I continue to grow stronger each day and try to get back to my regular schedule, I am happy to welcome you all back into my life. I may be a little slow on the upswing, but I am back!
Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie xo
P.S. I will do the July giveaway I missed while on break next week.
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Hello friends!
I am sorry to say that due to some totally unexpected circumstances, I am unable to use the computer – probably for a couple weeks. :( Since this blog has been started, I have never missed a post – so you know this is serious!
I will be back at it as soon as I am able. I will miss you during my break.
Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie
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I’m still trying to recover from an exciting weekend! Our family had a big (white party) celebration on Saturday and it is taking me some time to get back into my work routine!
Today, I wanted to let my local friends know that right now is prime lavender blooming time here in Connecticut! If you have not yet visited Lavender Pond Farm, now is the time to go!
With over 10,000 plants on 25 acres, Lavender Pond is the largest lavender farm in New England.
It is easy to find off the Clinton exit of I95 – just a couple minutes north of the outlets.
The photos here were taken before the prime blooming season – about a month ago.
Thanks for stopping by!
Have a great week and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie
P.S. In other news – It is SHARK WEEK on the Discovery channel!
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