I can't stop buying animal pattern clothing

I previously mentioned the Westie dress that I received from Urban Outfitters.  Well, since then these two items of clothing have also happened:

Rhyme & Echo Winking Owl Blouse

Loft Smitten Kitten Dress

Smitten Kitten Pattern

I think I have a problem...

Homemade Deep Dish Pizza

As part of the Christmas gift-buying extravaganza, I bought some of my Chicago family a gift card for a pizzeria that serves deep dish pizza.  This made me crave deep dish pizza like none other.  Tonight, I tried to make something close to deep dish pizza.

I preheated the oven to 425° and set to work grating Trader Joe's mozzarella, cutting green peppers, and draining a can of black olives.  We have a Fiestaware deep dish pie baker that I greased with olive oil and floured with of all things flour.  I stretched a ball of defrosted Whole Foods pizza dough over the dish so that it was thickly lined, including edges, with dough.  

I spread pre-fab pizza sauce over the dough in a thick layer and topped that with a generous heaping of mozzarella, green peppers, and olives. 

Then I added another layer of sauce and mozzarella.

And another layer of olives and green peppers.

And to finish it off a layer of grated parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil.

I baked the pizza for about 40 - 45 minutes.  I recommend putting a baking sheet on the rack below, because my pizza overflowed onto the oven floor.  That might also be because I went a little sauce and cheese happy.

The finished product was a doughy, saucy, cheesy pie.

We ate half of the pizza and it was decadent.

Not necessarily authentic deep dish, but pretty good.

It's gonna be a piece of cake, Bren.

I stopped by Magnolia Bakery again this Monday.  This time I got a piece of cake.  I ate it before dinner with a glass of milk.  This combo always makes me think of one of my favorite childhood books Harriet the Spy.  In the book, she eats a piece of cake with a glass of milk every day after school.

Christmas Shopping

This weekend was mostly spent Christmas shopping and cleaning.  I found some really good presents.

My husband needed this Anker External Battery Pack so that he can charge his iphone while out and about at work, etc.

I also got him this Bean Yoga Mat Bag in Burgundy that I have in green and love.  It's a little bit roomy, but that's good.  We like to go to yoga together.  Are we yuppies?  Is my husband a metrosexual?  I don't care.

Crazy cat lady that I am, I got our kittens a second cat carrier (the exact same model that they already have) so that they don't have to be squashed  into a little bag together anymore when we take them to the vet.

I also bought them this "slumber thermal cat mat" for cold winter nights.

My mom requested a new gravy boat (hers broke over Thanksgiving); so I got her this Sur  la Table gravy boat.  I also got her something a little blingy as well, but on the off chance she's reading this, I'll tell you about it later.

While at Sur la Table, I got this Kuhn Rikon polka dot paring knife, because it's adorable and extremely useful.  I have one in blue that I use all the time.

I drew my sister in our Christmas drawing and  bought this adorable Wanderlust + Co  Petite Multi-Bar Bracelet that I saw in Lucky Magazine.  I also bought her a gift card for a mani pedi at a really nice nail place in Chicago.  5 stars on Yelp.  I love her.

We hadn't done laundry since being home from France, and there is a new wash and fold near us (finally), so we gave it a try.  It was $37 for all of this and such a luxury not to have to schlep to the gross laundromat near us.  I will definitely be using this new place again.

Monday Cupcake

This Monday, I was feeling sort of down and gloomy on my way home from work.  It's getting darker and darker outside earlier and earlier.  Bloomingdales has a Magnolia Bakery, and I passed by it.  I ended up buying a vanilla cupcake w/ chocolate frosting to split with my husband after dinner.  We have some leftover birthday candles, and I thought it would nice for both of us to make a wish for the week.

This might become a tradition.

French Stuff

Kir

CANCOILLOTTE

Cancoillotte in Action

Country Store Cereal

Cornichons, Emmental, Baguette, Jambon, etc.

When in Provence, drink like a Provençal.

Nightcap of Pastis

Suchard is a sweet treat

Chocolatey nugget of goodness

My two favorite French tabloids - Public and Voici

I love a good "stylo plume."

I was shocked & delighted to discover that
maïs grillé aka corn nuts are a popular snack
in France right now.  Please ignore my
purple elephant pajama bottoms.

Squirrel Tape Dispenser

Just saw this on Anthropologie and think I need it for Christmas:

Squirreled Away Tape Dispenser