s'mores ice cream

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post and recipe!

together again // (a belated post)

So this post is embarrassingly late....oops!

Way back in June, Clara had a wedding to photograph in Kamloops, and asked if I'd second shoot for her!  Of course I said yes (duh!), and we were able to make it into a mini vacation together.  It was an amazing few days of laughter, a belated birthday celebration, forgotten luggage (sorry Clara...that will never not be funny! ;) hehe), amazing food, exploring, thrifting and just enjoying spending time with each other in person.

Kamloops was gorgeous.  The locations we found were stunning.  And the wedding was perfect.

It's always so much fun to go exploring with Clara....especially when we stumble on the most photogenic little spots!  We're like the same person, and just give each other a look, maybe a laugh, and then quickly pull out our cameras!  We saw this gorgeous white fence with pink flowers peeking out, and couldn't resist taking a few snaps on our way to breakfast one morning.



Brambles was perhaps them most unexpected and wonderful surprise of our trip!  We stopped in Merritt for lunch on our way to Kamloops, and had no clue where we should eat.  If you're familiar with the town, you'll know it's pretty small, and we had resigned ourselves to fast food when we stumbled upon this cute little café!  The food was amazing, and the décor was adorable.  It was the perfect pit stop!

And I believe in the photo below Clara is explaining why it's perfectly acceptable to begin a meal with your dessert!



All the photos are mine except this last one of Clara and I, which is from Clara!

Above are a few snaps from the wedding!  It was ridiculously hot day, but everyone was so relaxed and full of joy that it made our job so much fun!  Three cheers for an adventurous bride and groom that didn't mind trekking into the wilderness on the side of a mountain!  So gorgeous.

Hop on over to Clara's photography blog to see the full wedding!

p.s.  ♥ kelsey & clara

sunrise session // a white dress

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post!

mint chip ice cream

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post and recipe!

-kels

rhubarb coffee cake

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post and recipe!

-kels

outfit post: the hampton dress

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post!

diy: painted vase with a chalkboard label // mother's day inspiration

This DIY was inspired by our mom.  She absolutely loves flowers and gardening!

Kelsey and I found this adorable card on Treat Cards, and we knew we had to get it.  For as long as I can remember our mom has been gardening.  Our backyard is always bursting with flowers, and is so lovely to be in.

This mother's day we will be lucky enough to celebrate with our mom, and both our grandmothers!  Our mom's mom is traveling out from Alberta to stay with us for a while, so that will be lots of fun.  Our mom definitely got her love of gardening from her mother, so I imagine there will be lots of flower love happening this weekend!

Now mom will have a new customizable vase to display her lovely flowers in!

This vase is super cute, and you can use it for any occasion.  Also you can make the chalkboard label as big or small as you would like!

Materials:
-vase (any shape or size - we thrifted ours!)
-acrylic paint (we chose to use white)
-chalkboard paint
-chalk
-masking/painting tape
-paint brush/sponge

Instructions:
1)  First, wash and dry your vase thoroughly.
2)  Pour a generous amount of paint into your vase (more than you think you will need).
3)  Tip your vase on it's side, and rotate it, letting the paint completely cover the inside of the vase.
4)  Pour out any excess paint (you can put this back in the bottle if you wish).
5)  Wipe the lip of the vase clean.
6)  Tip upside down, and let dry overnight.
7)  Using masking tape, tape a rectangle or square onto the vase (in the exact shape you want your chalkboard message label.
8)  Tape exactly around the edges of your first tape rectangle, and peel off the original rectangle.
*or you can always choose to freehand something!
9)  Following the directions of your chalkboard paint, paint it on (I painted on one layer, let it dry for a couple hours, and then painted it on another layer and let it dry overnight).
10)  Once you are sure your chalkboard paint is dry, peel off the tape.  Be very careful while doing this, our chalkboard paint started peeling off with the tape.  You may need to hold down the paint layer with a finger while you slowly peel the tape off.
11)  Use a toothpick to clean up the edges of your chalkboard label.
12)  Now you need to condition your chalkboard.  To do this rub a piece of chalk all over the area covered in chalkboard paint.
13)  With a slightly damp paper towel wipe the chalkboard clean.
14)  Write a fun message!

basic pancakes // mother's day inspiration

Mother's Day is quickly approaching (hint hint....to those of you who had no idea!), and I thought I'd share a super basic pancake recipe as inspiration of what you could do for your mom.  Breakfast in bed is always sweet, and these are nice and simple!  As my mom always says: "Everything tastes so much better when you don't have to make it!".

Serve these pancakes with some fresh fruit, and a quirky card, and you'll be sure to make your mom's day!

The inside of the card reads "Great moms turn the mixer off first."  Haha.  My mom definitely let me lick the beaters when I was younger....and still does!  The card came from Treat Cards, which we were recently introduced to, and they have a huge collection of hilarious, as well as gorgeous cards.  They can all be personalized as well, with photos and text, which I think is pretty rad!  

Anyway, these pancakes are nice and simple, and can easily be customized.  Throw in a few chocolate chips, or maybe some blueberries to jazz them up a bit if you feel like it.

Basic Pancakes

slightly adapted from: Martha Stewart

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup milk
2 tbsp butter, melted (or vegetable oil)
1 large egg

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1)  In a small bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together; set aside.

2)  In a medium bow, whisk milk, melted butter, and egg together. 

3)  Add dry ingredients to milk mixture and mix until just combined.  (a few lumps are fine here)

4)  Heat a large frying pan or griddle to medium heat.

5)  Grease pan with cooking spray, oil, or butter.

6)  Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of batter onto your pan.  You can use the back of a spoon to help spread it into a circle.  *Make sure you don't spread your batter too thinly.  You'll get flat pancakes if you do!

*If your pancakes spread out too much and are flat, you might need to add a small amount of flour to help thicken the batter up.  Or, if your batter is too thick, just add a small amount of milk to the mixture.

7)  Cook until bubbles have formed and started to burst (1-2 minutes).  Flip and cook until both sides are brown (1-2 more minutes). 

8)  Serve warm and top with syrup, jam, fruit, peanut butter and/or whipped cream!

And another gif!  This time I used a tripod, so it's a little prettier than my last one.

Let's hope you don't get sick of them...since I think they're my new favorite thing!

Please note that yellow maple syrup + a blue plate = green looking syrup.  Oops!

p.s.  ♥ kelsey

s'mores cupcakes

Three things that you must know:

1)  I have never actually been camping before.
(Shame on me right?  That's what you get when you live on a berry farm in Summer)

2)  I have made s'mores in Winter by placing a marshmallow on a toothpick, and holding it over a candle.

3)  I definitely borrowed my Dad's blowtorch for these cupcakes since I don't have a proper kitchen one yet....and it just sounded way more exciting.

It's always fun when I get to experiment with something new in the kitchen....and using a blowtorch for these cupcakes was a hoot!  Haha.  Let's say there was quite a bit of squealing and giggling coming from the kitchen as Jordyn and I tested our torching skills!

These cupcakes were inspired by call me cupcake's version, although I used my own chocolate cake recipe!  You should definitely go check her website out!  Some of it is in Swedish, but she always has her recipes in English as well.  It's just so darling!

I'm in love with all of the textures these cupcakes have going on.  The crunchy/crumbly graham cracker crust (that will inevitably end up all over your lap), the fluffy chocolate cake, and finally the little dollop of toasted heaven on top!  So good.

S'mores Cupcakes
inspired by: Linda Lomelino

Ingredients:
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsp butter (melted)

1/2 cups Flour
1 cups Sugar
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/3 cup Cocoa
1/2 TBSP Vanilla
1 TBSP Vinegar
1/3 cup Margarine (melted)
1 cups Warm Water

3 large egg whites
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

*thermometer (for measuring marshmallow frosting temperature)

Instructions:
1) Mix together graham cracker crumbs and melted butter.  (If crumbs seem too gooey or too dry, you can just add either a bit more crumbs or butter).
2)  Prepare a cupcake tin with paper liners.  Firmly press a couple teaspoons of crumb mixture into the bottom of 12 liners.
3)  Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.  Set aside.
4)  In a large bowl, mix together all dry ingredients together.
5)  Pour wet ingredients over dry, and mix until combined.
6)  Pour cake batter into the 12 liners.
7)  Bake cupcakes for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Allow to cool completely.
8)  Mix together egg whites and sugar in a bowl set over a saucepan with gently boiling water.  Whisk constantly to ensure your eggs don't curdle.  Whisk like crazy!  Keep cooking until the mixture reaches 65 degrees celsius. 
9)  Remove from heat and whip on your highest speed until stiff peaks form.  Add in vanilla.
10)  Frost your cupcakes however you like!  I used my largest star tip and a frosting bag, but a large ziplock with the end simply cut out would also work great.
11)  If you have a kitchen torch, then go to town toasting your marshmallow frosting.  
If not, you can place your cupcakes on a cookie sheet and broil them in the oven.  These do not take long at all, so please do not take your eyes off of them!
Or, you can always borrow a blowtorch and toast them that way...

outfit post: mint and cherry

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post and recipe!

p.s.  ♥ kelsey

3-layer angel food peeps cake

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post and recipe!

p.s.  ♥ kelsey 

diy: glitter Easter eggs

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post!

p.s. ♥ kelsey

Paska (Easter Bread)

I've moved over to a new blog!  Head over to The Farmer's Daughter for the full post and recipe!

p.s. ♥ kelsey

blossoms and yellow pants

So, after an eternity (aka: maybe a year) of searching....I finally have a green military parka!  Seriously though, it's been on my must-have list for so long, and I never could find the right one.  I actually got this one for Christmas (after picking it out...hehe), and I'm pretty happy with it.  Of course nothing ever quite lives up to "the one" you've built up in your head, right?  Haha.

Anywho....it's Spring!  And here it actually feels like Spring.  We even hit 20 degrees this week.  Pretty stoked about that.  Oh ya, and the cherry blossoms are also in full bloom and are ridiculously gorgeous.  I'm thinking someone needs to engineer an ever-blooming cherry tree.  Who's with me? 

parka: the garage // chambray top: plenty // pants: clothing swap // shoes: target

chicken vegetable soup (aka: clean out the fridge soup)

My family loves soup.  In addition to our "What's new Wednesday" - the day we try out a brand new recipe, "Fish Taco Friday" - the day we have fish tacos (recipe here!), we also have "Soup Saturday".

Yeah we really like alliterations.  And food.

If you haven't figure it out yet, "Soup Saturday" is the day we have soup. It is also bun day, (hmmm do we need an alliteration for that? Wheat Weekend?)  so we often have soup to complement my mother's delicious home made buns.  

We made this recipe when my parents were vacationing in Arizona (with our Grandparents, no fair!), so we didn't have any fresh homemade buns to enjoy.  So, on her way home from work, Kelsey stopped by a local farmer's market and picked up a fresh baked baguette!  It was delicious, and we even added some cheese and broiled it to make some cheesy bread.  It was the best.