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I LOVE cooking from recipes, and making up meals, I LOVE spending time with my boys (all three) and entertaining my family and friends, I LOVE bargain shopping (vintage stores included), I LOVE flipping through fashion and design mags, I LOVE the smell of libraries and how often I could get lost there, I LOVE scanning realty websites, I LOVE Trader Joes and LUSH, I LOVE fresh flowers and all four seasons, I LOVE Cincinnati and am always ready to travel, I LOVE stationary and stamps, I LOVE diamonds and pearls, tulle and lace, I LOVE smelling coffee and drinking tea, I love marshmallows and chocolate, I LOVE cozy sheets and morning sunshine, I LOVE me and I love GOD!

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Friday, August 31, 2012

{Vampy Lips Vampy Tips Fall/Winter 2012}

Vampy Lips Vampy Tips Fall/Winter 2012


This fall and winter I will be rocking a deeper darker lip and deep dark tips. I am loving all the choices out now for the vamp look.

I will alternate between this look and a blood red look. My picks for the reds to come.

What's in your fall/winter makeup bag?



Bobbi Brown Cosmetics matte lipstick / Lancôme sheer makeup / Iman black lipstick / Revlon lipstick, $12 / Ellis Faas beauty product, $35 / Essie nailpolish / Butter London nail polish / Essie nail polish / Nail care

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

{weekend snapshots}

1}brotherly love: the boys right before swimming 2}CSA box #6 3}fresh picked flowers from my farm CSA
4}dinner from Mahogany's on the Banks- Plum Loco wings (dinner club-girl's night out), fries and mac and cheese 5} my first Love Club sample box

I hope you all had a great weekend. We sure did!

xoxo,
Ronita

Friday, August 24, 2012

{mommy fabulous: Solange}

You all know how much I love Solange well I love her the most when she is photographed with her son Julez..
Here are some of my favorites!

(via)

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My most recent picture obsessions!!
They were photographed for the latest issue of Elle Magazine.


(via)

Happy Friday!
xoxo,
Ronita

Thursday, August 23, 2012

{CSA boxes 3, 4, 5)

We are still receiving our summer share of our CSA. On top of our veggie boxes we also get a dozen brown eggs each week. I love supporting our local farmers and the CSA.

Here is what have been in our boxes the past couple weeks.

#3 tomatoes, eggplant, corn, Swiss chard, onions

#4 green beans, okra, tomatoes, potatoes, bell pepper, onion

#5 lettuce. tomatoes, onion, carrots, zucchini, quash, corn and a watermelon that was so sweet.

Eat Fresh. Eat Local

xoxo,
Ronita

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

{my mushroom and crab ravioli recipe with garlic cream sauce}

Step 1: Make pasta dough
Mix in standmixer with paddle attachment
2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
3 eggs
1tbsp of olive oil
pink of salt
*I had to add about 1/8 cup of water to moisten the dry mixture*

Once incorporated switch to dough hook and knead for 6 minutes.
Cover with kitchen towel and let rest for 30 minutes.

Cut the dough into 4ths
Using my mixer, I switched to the pasta roller attachment and rolled out 4 pasta bands


Step 2: make ravioli filling
Saute in a skillet
1 cup of finely chopped shitake mushrooms
1/2 small red onion
1 cup of crab meat
sage
basil
garlic
*take off heat and let cool for 5 minutes*

In a separate bowl mix
1 egg
1 cup of ricotta cheese
salt
pepper

Mix the cheese mixture with the saute mixture


Step 3:
Spoon filling onto pasta roll and cover with another pasta roll

Step 4: I used a ravioli stamp I purchased from William Sonoma

Stamp out ravioli and place on well floured plate. Let rest for 30 minutes.

Step 5: Boil salted water and add ravioli. Boil 3-5 minutes.


While the ravioli was resting I prepared a basic cream sauce.

Step 6: Saute 1 tbsp of butter with garlic, sage, onion, basil add 1 cup of heavy cream and simmer for 5 minutes.

Plate and enjoy!

xoxo,
Ronita

{August sample box round up}

This post is a bit late but I wanted to share my August sample boxes.


Shampoo and conditioner that I gave away, a duo lip gloss, body balm, foot cream and fragrance towelette.


facial cleanser, hydro silk razor, viva la juicy fragrance, show stopper double sided tape


Cantu curl cream, Carol's Daughter's Curl Cream, deep conditioner, twisted sistas sample


3 beautiful polishes and one lip gloss!

I have a bit of a problem and now have some of my friends at work addicted.

I am going to have to cut back soon...real soon...

Until next month!!!

xoxo,
Ronita

Friday, August 17, 2012

{mello moody music}

This week has been extremely fast, extremely challenging and extremely exhausting. I look forward to a weekend with my family, watching my son's first football game, celebrating my nieces 5th birthday, and just unwinding in my kitchen.

It's weekends like this that put me in the mood for Nora...




xoxo,
Ronita

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

{2 of my Favorites: Solange and Madewell}







Two of my favorites Solange and Madewell.

I am so happy they did this partnership.
She is one of my favorite fashionistas. I love her style!

xoxo,
Ronita

{peace}

(via)

I came across this quote and I find it so fitting. In life I try to be at a place of peace but sometimes situations and circumstances get in the way. I find it so necessary to get back in a place of PEACE. I usually whisper prayers to internally center myself. I also use cooking as a way to meditate and get away from it all. My mom always teases me and says, that she will come in my house and the boys will be running all over, Scott's watching TV and I am in a cool, dim kitchen chopping onions, pots boiling and I will be in my happy place.

One of the things I love so much about my husband is that he has a quiet peaceful personality. He is always able to talk me through some of the things that get me all stirred up and bring me back to a place of PEACE. I always jokingly refer to him as my own dose of NICOTINE. 

PEACE is so important to me whether at home or work and I am consistently seeking it. I know that life will happen around me, chaos and hardship...but I thrive to be at a place of internal PEACE.

How do you center yourself and get to a place of PEACE?

xoxo,
Ronita

Sunday, August 12, 2012

{My Fall Fashion Favs 2012}

2012 Fall Favorites

Within the next couple of months, I am so looking forward to cooler weather, the new school year,  Tre' playing football, and some very memorable trips. I love the fall for so many reasons but of course it's my birthday season (and my DH's 30th!!!).

Here are my fall fashion picks for the upcoming season. 
Leather and gold, animal prints, dark lips, vampy tips  and scarves scarves scarves to wrap up in on those cool brisk mornings and nights.

What are you looking forward to sporting this fall?

xoxo,
Ronita

Friday, August 10, 2012

{Online Magazine Roundup}

I know I have been MIA for awhile...taking a break from the blog but I am back!

Here are some a the beautiful e-Magazines I have been engulfed in during my spare time...






Do you have any online magazines that you enjoy reading?

xoxo,
Ronita