A Little News….

One of us is pregnant! WooHoo!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend

By Erin

I’m sad to see this weekend come to end, but so happy that summer (well, at least fake summer for another month) is here. I’m so ready for flip flops, cotton dresses and an excuse to eat frozen yogurt for lunch every day.

How did you spend the weekend? Do you have any traditions for this weekend? Did you do something special to honor those who are and who have served in the military?

I went to visit my parents in Rehoboth for a few days.  We took a power walk along the boardwalk on Saturday morning. At 10:30 am, the beach was already packed with people enjoying the Ocean Breeze on that very hot day.

 

We skipped the beach this trip – I only like to sit at the beach when its hot enough to take a dip in the water.  In May, the Atlantic Ocean is still a bit too chilly for my tastes!

We did head on over to the pool in my parent’s neighborhood, and got some good vitamin D. (While wearing Neutrogenia’s SPF 70, don’t you worry.)

On Monday I spent the day redoing our back garden, planting new plants, essentially planting new life.  It was the perfect alone time to spend the day reflecting on what Memorial Day is all about.  Something much bigger, much  greater than hot dogs, berry pie and crowded beaches.   Thank you to all those who serve, who have served, and to those who have paid the ultimate price.  Our lives are better because of what you have done.

The Never-ending Unraveling Ball of Yarn

The lovely people over at Hadaki recently sent me a few samples of their newest line of bags!  I’m loving this pink and green one they sent.  I love the bright bold colors, and the bag is super strong and very well made. Hadaki has a range of purses and totes, but  I thought was perfect for storing my yarn when traveling!

Normally when I travel I just throw balls of yarn in my bag.  (Mom, I know you’re not shocked by this.)  Let’s just say that’s a little messy.  And by a little, I mean, ALOT.  I spend tons of time chasing around yarn!  But now it’s all nice and neat and ready for my trip to the Poconos this weekend.  (The Sweet Hubby is running a marathon – wish him luck!)

 

Of course, I’m loving the preppy stripes inside.

The bag is waterproof – it has a bit of that plastic-y feel, so it would actually be perfect for wet bathing suits following the pool or beach. The drawstring is SUPER tight, so you wouldn’t worry about it getting your other clothes wet. They also sent me this cute case, which would probably be good for pencils, or perfume or make-up, since its waterproof.

But I use it for knitting needles to sew of the ends of my projects, and scissors!

 

You can order them online, here: http://hadakishop.com/  The site has a variety of other sizes and colors.  These aren’t ones they sent me, but I’m loving these, too. Isn’t this cute for summer? As a beach/pool bag?

And these dots are just too much. LOVE.

And I love the greens/blues in this make-up case:

 To comply with FTC regulations, Hadaki sent me samples for free. But I only wrote about them because I liked them!  As a rule, we will review any product, but will only include ones in the blog that we would have purchased ourselves. 

Welcome to Pretty | Delicious!

Well, hello there!  Whether you’re a longtime reader of Yay! DIY or a new visitor, let us be the first to welcome you to Pretty | Delicious.

For the last two years, Erin and I have blogged at Yay! DIY, but we found ourselves somewhat limited in terms of what we could write and discuss. As professionals with full-time jobs, we have a fast-paced lifestyle with just a few hours a week to follow our passions  – cooking, crafting, eating, drinking and traveling. Pretty | Delicious is an evolution for us – our guide for the working woman to have a pretty home and a tasty table, keeping in mind her limited time and in some cases, limited budget.

So snoop around! Email us! We can’t wait to share with you, and have you share with us.

Special thanks to our Web designer extraordinaire Brian Van Nieuwenhoven for helping us get this new site up and running and Wendy Robison for our fabulous new graphics. We thank you and couldn’t have done it without you!

We hope you enjoy!

xo,

Lia and Erin

Just a little quiet…

More to come very, very soon!

L&E

The Last Honeymoon Istallment: Mendoza, Argentina

If you’re a wine lover, you must, at some point, go to Mendoza.  It was such an amazing experience.  Steak, wine, more steak, and more wine.  It’s similar to the Sonoma Valley, but also different in a few major ways.  It has a big town square, like the Sonoma Square, and its wineries are all spread out around the region – they’re not on one main road, like in Napa.  However, unlike Sonoma, you can’t just walk into wineries here. You have to call ahead and make a resversation at each one.  The appointments are never just tastings – they’re always full tours.  So get ready to see ALOT of barrells.  But also get ready for people who are wonderful, friendly and exteremely passionate about their craft: winemaking.  It was a little like hevean.  And by a little, I mean, this is probably what heavan is like.  At least my heavan.

Mendoza is fairly close to the Andes, with fabulous views of the mountains.  So in addition to wine lovers, the town also attracts those who like adventure sports.  The result is a town that’s well equipped to handle tourists from other coutnries, but one that doesn’t loose its Argentinian charm.  It had plenty of hotels and resturaunts, late night hearty steak dinners, and beautiful cafes where you can sip a cup of coffee in the afternoon outside.  Here’s a few photos.  Enjoy!

Lunch our first day in Mendoza, where we discovered one of our most favorite bottles of wine. Ruca Malen Cabernet.  We liked it so much, we went on a tour of Ruca Malen the next day.  Even though we were in the region for Malbec, we really enjoyed some of the amazing cabs this region is producing.  There were several that were just out of this world.

And, as you’ll see, my sweet husband was ALMOST sporting a full beard by this point.

More after the jump [Read more...]

The Last Honeymoon Installment: Mendoza, Argentina

If you’re a wine lover, you must, at some point, go to Mendoza.  It was such an amazing experience.  Steak, wine, more steak, and more wine.  It’s similar to the Sonoma Valley, but also different in a few major ways.  It has a big town square, like the Sonoma Square, and its wineries are all spread out around the region – they’re not on one main road, like in Napa.  However, unlike Sonoma, you can’t just walk into wineries here. You have to call ahead and make a resversation at each one.  The appointments are never just tastings – they’re always full tours.  So get ready to see ALOT of barrells.  But also get ready for people who are wonderful, friendly and exteremely passionate about their craft: winemaking.  It was a little like hevean.  And by a little, I mean, this is probably what heavan is like.  At least my heavan.

Mendoza is fairly close to the Andes, with fabulous views of the mountains.  So in addition to wine lovers, the town also attracts those who like adventure sports.  The result is a town that’s well equipped to handle tourists from other coutnries, but one that doesn’t loose its Argentinian charm.  It had plenty of hotels and resturaunts, late night hearty steak dinners, and beautiful cafes where you can sip a cup of coffee in the afternoon outside.  Here’s a few photos.  Enjoy!

Lunch our first day in Mendoza, where we discovered one of our most favorite bottles of wine. Ruca Malen Cabernet.  We liked it so much, we went on a tour of Ruca Malen the next day.  Even though we were in the region for Malbec, we really enjoyed some of the amazing cabs this region is producing.  There were several that were just out of this world.

And, as you’ll see, my sweet husband was ALMOST sporting a full beard by this point.

More after the jump [Read more...]

Weekend Shots – March 24

Erin and I ran a half marathon with four other coworkers through the cute town of Sleepy Hollow! As you can see it was such a gorgeous day! Erin ran it in 2:07 and I ran it in 2:18!

Donate Bras for a Good Cause

As you know, Erin and I are all about making something good come out of something old – and we were just alerted to a great campaign from Journelle that does just that.

The company is asking women to donate their old bras, which they will donate to a non-profit called Free the Girls. Free the Girls provides job opportunities for women rescued from sex trafficking. In exchange for your old bra, Journelle will give you 20 percent off a new one.  For more information, click this flyer from the company about the campaign.

As the company says, make something wonderful come out of your spring cleaning!

Weekend Snapshots

This is my niece, Lilah, down in South Florida this weekend. She got a hold of my sister’s fedora and struck a few poses for us with it, as well as in her new dress.  She’s a little bit of a ham.  Just a little.