There is something magical about the Nutcracker ballet... the music, the story, the thought of a land filled with endless sweets. Many years growing up, I looked forward to wearing my holiday dress and using those little glasses to magnify the dancers up on their toes. I would leave the theatre feeling like I too had been transported to the land of...

I believe I have met my match. Never before have I heard myself utter the words after savoring a bite of dessert, "That's too much chocolate..." but this month's holiday Daring Bakers challenge has proven that such a thing exists. Since I served the yule log for our holiday dinner, I added some festive vintage decorations. The mushrooms and silver trees...

Can you believe it's 2009?!? It seems like we just rang in Y2K and now all of a sudden it's nine years later. I have high hopes for 2009 though! To celebrate the new year, we joined some good friends for dinner at Houston's new "green" restaurant, Pizza Fusion. Well, calling it Houston is kind of a stretch since we had to drive 40 minutes to get there...

Two of my closest friends will be welcoming a baby girl into this crazy jungle of a world in just about a month, so this past weekend I cohosted a co-ed baby shower in their honor. The mom-to-be's only request (besides minimizing the pink) was that I make a cake for the occasion. All that pressure! So I really didn't want to disappoint... For this...

Confession: I used to be a shopaholic when it came to shoes. I loved them all... rugged hiking boots, dainty ballet flats, trusty running shoes, funky wedges, and even those killer spiky heels. After going vegan I realized that most of the shoes in my growing collection were born of cruelty so I slowly began to purge my closet and took them to Goodwill....

I mentioned a few posts back that I have been struggling somewhat to find cooking inspiration. Reviewing many of my recent posts, it may appear to my readers that all I eat are cupcakes and treats! While I do tend to indulge in something sweet once a day, the bulk of my daily food intake is actually quite healthy. All I had to do to find a little inspiration...