Friday Favorites December 20th

  Happy Friday friends! This has been such a fun and festive week and I am so excited for the next five days! 

As always, I am linking up with Andrea & Erika for a little Friday Favorites. A peek into a few of my favorite things from the week. 

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We celebrated my birthday on Wednesday! I actually celebrate a birthday week! Why? Well, for one, I work in retail, so having a birthday seven days before Christmas… It kind of gets lost in the shuffle! Secondly, it’s a true privilege to be able to grow another year older every year, so I love celebrating my birthday all week long! 

I got my free birthday drink at Starbucks. I typically get a pike place or this time of year I grab Christmas blend coffee. But I treated myself on my birthday and I got a latte with two pumps of peppermint and two pumps of vanilla. It tasted like Christmas in a cup, and I love when I get a personal message on my cup!

We went out to a late dinner on my actual birthday. The four of us went to Lucia’s on the lake. It’s not often we all get dressed up, so I was happy to be dressed, festive and get a family picture. My dress is so comfortable, and is under $30. It comes in several colors, but I loved the green for the holiday.

Ella’s top is a very similar style, and you would not believe that it is $10! Also comes in several colors, but she has a pink girl!

I love seeing Luke out of a hoodie! Lukes jacket is perfect for the holidays!

We started our dinner with two of my favorite things, oysters, and truffle fries! I could really just eat that and skip dinner all together!

But I didn’t, I had a plate of amazing scallops with risotto.

And we finished off with a chocolate salted caramel pie with a sweet message.

Love this little crew of mine! My coat is from last season, but I linked one that’s very similar. The same with Ella’s coat. Last year’s version, but a very similar one offered this year. And while neither of us wear these coats very often, I’m always glad that we have them when we’re going out to dinner during the winter!

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As if my birthday couldn’t get any sweeter, my girlfriend delivered us a tray of their cookies! This is the highlight of Luke’s holiday season. He cannot wait until we get this family’s tray of cookies. And can you blame him, these are like picture perfect!

One of my friends at work sent me this package of Wicked Whoopies for my birthday. Apparently you can order them from L.L. Bean, and they will ship frozen to the recipient. We were thrown off when an LLBean box arrived and had a sticker that said freeze immediately- ha!  They make such a cute gift and they are delicious.

three

These last few weeks have been fun for my kids! I think I mentioned this a couple of weeks go, but we are back in basketball season and I couldn’t be happier- it's my favorite sports season. That’s my guy in the picture with the bright yellow shoes. 

And Ella keeps getting fun mail, admitting her to some of the colleges she applied to!

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Last weekend we celebrated my birthday with my parents, my sister and Paul’s parents.

Since I love to cook, I made dinner for everyone. I shared the details on this amazing pesto salmon. It’s a perfect meal to make for the holidays.

Love my little sister!

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Paul and I went to a holiday party last week, and I really cannot quit these Target sweaters. They are so comfortable and looks so fun and festive.

It also comes in this cute post holiday version!

Speaking of target, I saw this bag in store the other day and thought it was adorable. It also comes in an all black version too.

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I shared my gift list ideas here a couple of weeks ago. You can check it out here. But if you’re just looking for a few last-minute gifts, a.k.a. something that will be here by Christmas. These are a few things from Amazon that can probably make it to you by the 24th! 

This shower steamer box is such a great gift idea. This is perfect for a teenage daughter, maybe a mom or mother-in-law or a girlfriend. It’s in a cute box for gifting, and it is currently on 50% off!

I have purchased these a few times as birthday gift ideas. Just fill the glasses with some cute tissue or shredded paper and add a gift card for your favorite coffee shop.

These cloud socks are so soft and make a great stocking stuffer. They come in several colors. These would also be cute as a gift with a little gift card tucked inside.

My teen boy is obsessed with any gummy candy. And this brand of gummy bears is his favorite. A six pack would be his dream!

These shower scrubs are always a favorite of mine and Ella’s! A great little stocking stuffer!

Another idea for a teen girl, are these eye patches!  I mean I would love these in my stocking too!

Sometimes I struggle with what to put in Paul's stocking. I saw these and grabbed them for him this year. I think they would be great if you are doing work on a car or in a darker space. as  they provide a little flashlight. I got them for him for when he goes mountain biking. In case he’s riding close to dusk, these will provide some light for him.

And lastly. This is a fun alarm clock for a teenager. My teen struggles with waking up to his current alarm, hoping this will help!

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And while Winter is not my favorite season, I do love the way the house looks with a little fresh snow in December.

And I am always happy to see these little friends in our yard.

These next five days are my favorite days of the year. Later today, Luke and I are going on our annual shopping trip together. He loves to go pick out a gift for Ella and Paul. So we will hit the mall and then do dinner together. One of my favorite traditions. And then tomorrow we continue my birthday celebrations, with the Lion King Broadway show and dinner with Paul!

Wishing you a great weekend! See you back here soon, there is always room for one more at our family table.

xoxo

Genevieve

p.s. I get commission for purchases or clicks made through links in this post. Thank you for supporting my blog.

Weekend Wrap & An Easy Holiday Meal Idea

 Happy Monday friends! We are officially in my most favorite week of the year. This is my birthday week! It may sound funny to say that it’s a weeklong celebration, but when your birthday is a week before Christmas and you work in retail, it sometimes get lost in the shuffle, so I like to celebrate all week!

We got lots of snow at the end of last week, so we enjoyed a couple of snow days at home, nice and cozy! This sweatshirt is adorable, and these socks are so cozy!

Paul and I went to a holiday party with some friends on Saturday night.

And then last night, we got to watch our favorite football team win an exciting game and had our parents over to celebrate my birthday a few days early!

Here I am with a few of my favorite things- my parents and a coconut cream pie!

Trying to get the whole gang in one picture!

As I’ve shared here before, cooking is one of my most favorite things to do. So I was happy to make dinner for everyone. Sharing some of the details here, because it was a pretty simple meal that you can make ahead of time. It can easily feed a crowd, and there was some red and green in the presentation that looks kind of festive. If you are looking for a  meal idea for the Christmas season, this would be a good one. 

I made two proteins. I did pesto salmon and a chicken pesto Caprese. I loosely followed this recipe. I placed six chicken cutlets on a baking sheet, seasoned with salt and pepper, and added about 2 teaspoons of basil pesto to the chicken.

Then I topped the chicken with some thinly sliced tomato, and fresh mozzarella cheese. I assembled these all before everyone came over and kept in the refrigerator until I was ready to bake them. I baked them in a 400° oven for about 15 to 20 minutes. When they were done, I drizzled them with a little balsamic glaze and some fresh basil.

Next was the pesto salmon. To go with the salmon, I did this pesto tomato mixture. 2 pints of cherry tomatoes, tossed with 2 tablespoons of pesto, and half of a red onion, very thinly sliced. Again, this could be done ahead of time and just goes in the oven for about 25 to 30 minutes, also at 400 degrees, giving it a mix halfway through. 

For a vegetable, I did roasted zucchini. I quartered the zucchini and tossed with some olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Roasted for 20 minutes in a 400° oven. When I took it out, I squeezed the juice of half a lemon over the top and grated a little bit of Parmesan cheese over the dish to finish it off. 

I forgot to take a picture of the salmon before it went in the oven. Pretty simple to make- pat the salmon dry, sprinkle with salt pepper and then add about a tablespoon or so to each piece. The salmon bake in a 400° oven for about 15 minutes, depending the thickness of the salmon. Once it was done, I transferred it to a platter and added the tomato mixture & chopped basil to the top. 

I think it’s a pretty presentation for the holidays!

Here is the chicken finished off with the balsamic glaze and basil.

I also made roasted garlic mashed potatoes.

Such a good Sunday dinner!

For dessert was my favorite coconut cream pie, and a birthday cake from one of my favorite old bakeries. My favorite cake combination is chocolate cake with white buttercream frosting.

Excited to celebrate another trip around the sun with this crew!

Wishing you a great week ahead! I’ll see you back here later in the week. There’s always room for one more in our family.

xoxo

Genevieve

Friday Favorites December 13th

 Happy Friday friends!

Is it really December 13th? I feel like I say this every week, but gosh this was a whirlwind week! I work in the retail space and this time of year is a little wild, but I do love it!!  

Excited for a weekend at home with some kids sports, a holiday party and a family dinner. 

But before we get to the weekend, I'm sharing some of my favorites from the week. As always, I am linking up with Andrea & Erika for a little Friday Favorites.

one 

I was looking at pictures over the last couple of weeks, and clearly one of my favorite things is a puffer vest. As I am running in between stores, I just like a little layer and not a huge puffy coat. I also think they look super cute. This multicolor one has been a favorite this season, and I’ve gotten so many compliments on it.

 

You cannot go wrong with a red puffer vest for the holiday!

And this ivory leather one from Old Navy has been a real winner this season. The quality is so nice for the price. It also comes in black. And this is the link for My holiday flannel.

This boot is one of my favorites for winter. They are warm and functional, but also look cute. My style is from last year, but this style from this year is very similar.

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I love wearing a fun holiday earring. This set of pink trees is so cute! 

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If you’re looking for a unique gift, these customizable neon signs are a really fun idea. They’re great for a teen room, or I think to add to a bar or game room with someone’s last name is a really neat way to "light up the room".. If you order now, you should be able to get it in time for Christmas

four

My family has always been into basketball. My dad and brother played, Paul played in college, and it is by far Luke’s favorite sport. I am so excited it is basketball season again! He had a great game this week to start the season and I love seeing him back on the court. 

five

We got some wild weather yesterday, with nearly 4 feet of snow! My kids had a snow day, and even though they’re in high school now, I love making a snow day lunch of grilled cheese and tomato soup.

When I tell you we got snow, we got snow! But look how cozy and Christmas-y my family room looks!

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I was craving a Thanksgiving dinner again last week, so I made one. I have never cooked just a turkey breast, I have always done the full bird. But they were on sale at the store so I picked one up and was inspired to make a Round 2 Thanksgiving dinner!

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My kids love Poppi! This has been their new favorite flavor this season. It has been hit and miss finding in the store, but the cranberry fizz is a winner.

eight

One of my favorite things is just sitting in the family room and looking at twinkle lights. Whether it is with a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, it’s just the most peaceful place to be.

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Lastly, I have gotten so much use out of this heart necklace  I grabbed a few months ago.  I get so many compliments on it because it looks like a unique designer piece, but it is like $20! It’s a great gift to give or give to yourself!

We are heading into my favorite 12 days of the year! It's my birthday week and then we roll right into Christmas!!!!

Wishing you a great weekend! See you back here on Monday, there is always room for one more at our family table 

xoxo

Genevieve

p.s. I get commission for purchases or clicks made through links in this post. Thank you for supporting my blog.