Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Seattle Finds - Magic Mouse Toys and more

Many Portlanders seem to have a hate/love relationship with Seattle. Some think it's the worst place ever while others like just about everything about it, other than the traffic. Before this weekend I didn't have a chance to explore the city much but now I must admit it's pretty awesome! Here are some of the cool stores we discovered while wandering around Seattle.
This is a picture of the window display at Revolution Books. I wasn't quite ready to venture inside but overall it is certainly an interesting place. Glad it exists! Bookstores are the best. It's a different experience than Powells. Good place to go if you're looking to become an activist.
Magic Mouse Toys is a two story toy store full of awesomeness. We spent quite a bit of time in here exploring all of the goodies inside. Of all the things we could have gotten my boys settled on fart bombs. Note to self: never, ever set one off in an apartment. We had to evacuate for a few hours :P.
Here we have Shotgun Ceremonies wedding chapel. Now you no longer need to drive to Vegas for a quickie marriage! Best of all there are plenty of fun dives within walking distance for the reception party.
This lovely iridescent dragon currently lives in the Children's room of the Seattle library's central branch. The library is beautiful outside and in.
Out of all the cool pictures I could have taken at Pike's Place Market this is the only one that I have. The market was insanely crowded. We managed to get a good meal in while weaving through the crowds but I certainly recommend coming here on a weekday rather than the weekend. It was unfathomably crowded. I feel like it was worse than Disneyland due to the small aisles. Still yet, this market is amazing. I'll have to do a whole post on Pike's next time I go.

We also went down to the wharf to meet up with family and had some amazing clam chowder. I got the New Jersey style, which is red and white mixed together. I could basically live off of that stuff. That alone was totally worth the drive. 

Happy travels!

<3 KM

Friday, May 27, 2016

Joe Boxer's Awesome Prints


Joe Boxer always has super cool prints featuring skulls, eyeballs, dinosaurs, and plenty more of my favorite things. The quality is not bad for box store stuff, too. I've had a pair of their sleep pants for over 5 years and they have yet to develop any holes, which is great because they are inexpensive. The best patterns are always in the little boy's section, unfortunately. They totally need to make grownup stuff with the cool little boy designs. Who can deny a print featuring pizza and flying saucers?


Joe Boxer is only sold at K-Mart and Sears. The problem with that is that both of their websites suck. The sites are not fun to navigate and say things are in stock when they are not. The K-Mart near me closed, so I have little choice but to go online. I was super disappointed that I couldn't buy my favorite designs.




Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Pizza Dip Fail

When I was little my Mom used to make pizza dip for football parties. I have watched her make it so many times but somehow I messed it up. Don't use this recipe, try a different one.


Failure Pizza Dip

1/2 Block of cream cheese
1/2 jar of pizza sauce
2 different kinds of pepperoni 
Munster cheese slices
Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper 

Warning: I do not recommend this recipe. This is just here for scientific purposes. Will try to get Moms recipe soon.

1. Mix cream cheese with Italian seasoning and salt and pepper to taste. Spread on bottom of glass smaller rectangle Pyrex dish. 

2. Pour some sauce over the cheese mix.

3. Layer with muenster cheese slices. 

4. Cover with lots pepperoni.

5. Be sadly disappointed that it doesn't taste the way it's supposed to.

If anyone has a good recipe for pizza dip let me know! I mostly followed a few different recipes other than the cheese recommendation. The Munster I get basically tastes like fancy mozzarella and I use it on pizza and pasta so I don't think that's the culprit. Maybe I used low fat cream cheese on accident. That stuff is never as good.

Hubby thinks I may have used to much pepperoni but I didn't think that would be possible. Come to think of it my Mom doesn't put pepperoni on hers... At least the kids liked it lol. 

<3 KM

Friday, May 20, 2016

Second Terrarium


I just want to show off my mossy terrarium. It was vaguely inspired by the end of Ender's Game, as I remember it from years ago, but scaled way down. I guess this way it is a fairly normal forest scene of what a small critter left behind and what grows from the remains.



I used an old tuna can, a jar that some fancy cottage cheese came in, and some Sculpy, which I painted. I accidentally left it in the sun one day and the moss kind of fried, but the other little plant has taken over pretty well. 



Here is my first terrarium with a tutorial: The Kraken 

Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Revival of the Sneaker Pimps

On my way back from the office 94.7 KNRK played 6 Underground by the Sneaker Pimps and it seriously made my whole day. I had totally forgotten about them. Seriously can't believe myself because when I finally discovered Becoming X years ago it was on constant replay.

 

This is the one that made it onto the radio today. Probably their most popular song.


That chorus though. 



The sounds in this one are just off the charts. So mesmerizing.


"She makes every move they make. She takes everything they take. She must be a Thelma or Louise. She must be a post-modern sleaze."

Apparently the Sneaker Pimps reunited in 2015 after a 10 year hiatus and they are working on a new album. They are pretty hidden at the moment, so hoping its true. 

<3 KM 

Friday, May 13, 2016

Easy Strawberry Brunch Ideas

It is strawberry season! Time to go picking or head to the store to grab some of nature's most delectable treats. Strawberries make an excellent snack on their own and everyone knows they are great in desserts. This post, however, is dedicated to meals. I have yet to perfect my strawberry rhubarb crumble.


Strawberry Avocado Goat-Cheese Sandwich 

Smash an avocado and spread on a piece of toasted sour dough bread.

Spread a little goat cheese on the other half, place sliced strawberries in the middle, and the other piece of bread.

Grill in butter until golden-brown.
Eat hot.


Strawberry Poppy-Seed Bagel


Toast a plain or poppy seed bagel (never enough poppy seeds - am I right?)

Spread on some cream cheese and sprinkle on (more) poppy seeds, pressing them in slightly so they won't fall everywhere when you shove it in your mouth.

Arrange sliced strawberries on top.


 Strawberry Spinach Salad

Slice some strawberries and put on top of some baby spinach.

Blend a dressing of strawberries, stone ground mustard, poppy seeds (optional), and balsamic vinegar.


 Strawberry-Shortcake Pancakes

Make pancakes as you normally would.

Whip some heavy cream with a little vanilla extract. You can add some sugar, but it is not necessary.

Top with sliced strawberries. 
If you want a more "strawberry shortcake" feel, put some sugar over the sliced strawberries and let them sit a while. The strawberries will soften and a lovely red syrup will form.


I thought everyone should know that while writing this I made the typo of "stabberies" multiple times. I thought is was hilarious. They leak red juice!

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Kawaii Toys for Your Inner Kid

Today's toys are freaking adorable. Now that it's cool for boys to play with girl toys and vice verse there is a whole new world of possibilities. Thankfully I have kids to spoil so I have an excuse to pick up some of these haha.
I want Num Noms so bad that it's stupid. They even smell like ice cream. So adorable!


Just in case you want to see more Num Noms check out this challenge. Apparently Num Noms also come in blind packs that have lipgloss bases instead of moving ones. So cool!
Here's a whole herd of tiny ponies which can be carried around discretely. Multiple unicorns included!!! They would make amazing ornaments. 
This Hello Kitty food truck comes with all sorts of tiny foods. So kawaii! Reminds me of an Americanized re-ment set.
Gotta love Tsum Tsums!!
Looks like he forgot to peel the banana before he ate it.
A board game about squirrels? I think this one is a must for my family. 
Apparently there are two types of Bananagrams now, awesome!
My kids really want this game although I'm not so excited about this one lol. So hipster though. 
That Lego Kylo Ren looks totally unreal.
Candy bubbles 2.0, complete with strange Grimus doppelgänger. The Air hogs droid is just amazing. It's tiny!
This RC car contains a habitat for bugs. After you catch them you can race them around. Not sure is this is cruel or awesome. Pretty sure there aren't any seat belts. Even if there were how would you buckle a bug? 

<3 KM

Friday, May 6, 2016

Gifts for Hippie Moms


If you are the creative type, you can get a plain, recycled, cotton, reusable grocery bag and paint something on it. She will love it because it will remind her of the days you used to make stuff for her in grade-school. What earth-loving mom doesn't need more reusable bags?

Photo by Austin King
What crunchy mom doesn't like homemade granola? There are lots of recipes featuring maple syrup or honey instead of sugar. I suggest you use puffed rice and egg whites (if your mom is not vegan). You could also make her some homemade yogurt to eat it with.


Hippie moms love plants. An organically grown plant would be perfect! Plants that produce edibles are a good chose. Make sure the plant grows well in her climate, or indoors if she lives in an apartment. Make sure you buy a pretty pot to, so she doesn't have to worry about earth-destroying plastic on her special day.

Get her a natural beeswax candle from a local bee farm. Bee keepers are helping keep the bee population up after mass hive collapse. Also, local bee keepers usually provide candles in many interesting shapes - at least one has to match up with your mom's interests. 


A normal Mother's Day gift for moms is her favorite perfume. Perfumes can be full of chemicals that hippie moms won't enjoy. Why not try an essential oil instead? All the great smell and none of the yuck, plus your earthy mom will probably know how to use it therapeutically, too. If you're feeling ambitious you could even mix a few scents with some water and put it in a pretty bottle.

I hope this helped you find the perfect gift for your hippie mom. My mom is not even full hippie and is extremely hard to shop for. Good luck!

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Tuesday, May 3, 2016

#GetEmWhileYouCan Urban Decay Revolution Lipsticks Sale Haul!

Urban Decay just announced that it is releasing a new line of lipsticks that will be available in 100 shades. And they will only be $17 each. And they feature an updated version of the old school UD bullet case. Pinch me! 
What makes this news even sweeter? All of UD's Revolution lipsticks are now half off at various vendors!!! Right now you can scoop them up for only $11 each. 

The Revolution lipsticks are my current favorite lipstick formula. I bet the Vice collection will be amazing! I go through phases but right now Rapture, Backtalk and Sheer Rapture are my go to shades. According to Temptalia's list all of these will exist in the new Vice line so there's no need to buy twenty of each.
You can shop the Revolution sale at any of these vendors: 
  • Urban Decay
    • about half of the shades gone
  • Sephora
    • mostly sold out online
  • Macy's
    • quite a few shades left
  • Ulta
    • some shades sold out
    • need to add to bag to check stock
I bought Stark Naked and Naked 2 thinking that I am ready for a lighter summer lip, but I'm so not ready. Thankfully the nudes blend well with other colors. 

<3 KM