Twin Falls Hike

A month or so ago we went on a little hiking adventure since the sun was (finally) shining! We originally planned to go to Snoqualmie Falls, but discovered the hiking trails are closed until 2013! Boo. A coworker told me about Twin Falls and we decided to check it out instead. And we are glad we did!

The trail head is about a 30 minute drive Northeast of our place in Renton, so not too far. We had to pay $10 to use the trail (or, you can pay around $30 for a yearly pass - which we will probably be doing next time!), but I'd say it was worth it. It's not a hard hike, but was just right for me (me, being out of shape). The trial was a little uneven in places... literally within five minutes on the trail, I rolled my ankle on a tree root. But I walked it off and persevered! 

The trail runs along the river and then goes up and back down and then up again until you reach the Twin Falls. It was a pretty hike with all the tall green trees. It's a big change from our desert hiking days in Arizona!

There's a cool bridge that stretches across the falls giving you a great view. Perfect for some impromptu family photos (yeah, we are that dorky with our matching vests. :). Once we got to the bridge, we turned around to head back. It was a fun hike and we will definitely be going back!

Well, Hello There.

It's been a while. I've been super busy with work lately and that means this little blog is getting neglected (sad face here). It doesn't mean I haven't had good intentions... I have lots of fun DIY ideas, but just haven't had the time or energy to type them up or take any photos (but I can't wait to share them with you soon!). 

Anyways, just wanted to pop in and say hi. We are just plugging along in the Kane household... Zachary studying for board exams and school, me with busy season. It's definitely a "this too, shall pass" kind of time in our lives. But, we have a each other and our puppy and that makes us happy (if you want to see more of my little stinker check out my #dailybuster photo and follow me on instagram! @mykane). 

I hope to be back soon with some fun posts, but if I take a while, don't hate me! In the meantime, here's some fun sayings from pinterest that pretty much sum up our life right now. 

coffee, flow, breathe, enjoy, make it happen!


P.S. Andrew Bird's new album, Break It Yourself, came out today! I can't wait to listen! He is our favorite... Are you a fan?

I Love Lamp.

Specifically, this lamp.

Isn't she pretty? So golden yellow and cheery. I must admit, I feel a little bit more like a grown up. I've never bought a nice, big, stylish lamp before. Seriously, every lamp we have in our house is either from IKEA or a hand me down from the 90s. Not stylish. 

I may have gone a little over my allowance this month, but getting this lamp makes our living room feel more complete, and that makes me happy. It's the little things during busy season.

At first, I bought a different shade. It was the same yellow color, but with a pattern that I loved. It looked great in the store when the light wasn't on...

...but once I brought it home and got it all lit up, it was not as pretty as I had pictured. Darker, and the white pattern didn't look as great as I thought it would.

What do you think? Yellow pattern? Or soft subtle white and wavy? I'm partial to the white now (obviously) but still think the yellow one is pretty too (just not all lit up). Have you guys purchased any nice grown up lamps lately? Or still rocking the IKEA lighting?

Loved.

(source)

Chai Latte Cupcakes

I don't usually make cupcakes, but had to try these out. It's my friend's recipe and they are delicious (Thanks, Sutira!). It's a little complex for me - lots and lots of steps! I guess I'm just not used to making cupcakes and frosting from scratch (box mix is much easier! and faster!) but it was well worth it for these ones.

Chai Latte Cupcakes

// 350 degrees // 15-18 minutes // makes about 12 regular cupcakes //

Chai Spice Mixture

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

1 teaspoon ground ginger 

1 teaspoon ground cloves 

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom 

Combine the spices together in a small bowl.

(FYI - cardamom is super expensive... like $12 for a little itty bit. So being on the spending diet that we are, I ended up using about 1/4 teaspoon each of cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice. It's not an exact substitute for cardamom, but I think it did the trick.)

Vanilla Chai Cupcakes

1 ½ cups cake flour 

1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder 

½ teaspoon salt 

2 teaspoons chai spice mixture 

½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature 

1 cup sugar 

1 egg plus 2 egg whites 

½ cup whole milk 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees 

2. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners

3. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together into a medium bowl

4. Stir in the chai spice mixture

5. Cream the butter and sugar together in a stand mixer with paddle attachment on medium speed until soft and creamy

6. Add in egg and egg whites, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition to combine before adding the next

7. Add in the flour mixture and milk mixture in three alternating additions, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Beat just to combine each addition before adding the next

8. Using a spoon or a cookie scoop, fill each cupcake liner about ¾ full with batter

9. Bake in oven for 15 to 18 minutes

Now for the frosting... I've never made buttercream or meringue before, so this was interesting. A lot of work if you ask me (and a lot of butter!) but it was pretty darn tasty.

Swiss Meringue Honey Buttercream

Ingredients

3/4 cup sugar 

2 teaspoons honey 

4 large egg whites 

1 ½ cups unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into 1-in pieces 

1 tablespoon vanilla extract 

Directions

1. Combine the sugar, honey, and egg whites in a medium metal bowl and place over a pan of simmering water

2. Whisk the sugar mixture constantly over heat until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture looks smooth and shiny. Continue whisking until the mixture reaches 160 degrees

3. Remove mixture from heat and pour into a stand mixer bowl. Whisk on medium speed for about 5 minutes until the mixture has cooled

4. Switch to the paddle attachment and with the speed on low, add the butter a few pieces at a time, beating until smooth. Do not add the butter too quickly or beat too quickly or the buttercream may 

break

5. When all the butter has been added, beat the buttercream on medium-high speed for about 6-10 minutes until it is very thick and smooth. It may appear to separate briefly but continue beating and it should come back together

6. Add in the vanilla extract and beat to combine. Place a piece of plastic wrap against the surface until you are ready to use it to prevent it from drying out. 

Enjoy!

Our Home: Bedroom

As I promised last week, here's a little bit about our bedroom. Oooh la la. Not like that... come on! For some reason, in two out of the last three places we've lived (three different places in three years!) we've created a funky bedroom set up right when we move in and then don't get around to updating the layout until months and months later. Well, we are at about the six month mark and finally made the change. 

Before, our bed was the first thing we walked into when we came in the door. I had to walk right-left-left around the bed to get to my side. Not good flow at all. One of the reasons we had it that way was because that was the only full wall in the room that we could put our headboard against. The opposite wall has an off-centered window that was cramping my style.

I really don't like our dressers. Not one bit. Oh, IKEA. You get me every time with your cheap prices and cheaply made products. Anyways, back on point. We switched it up. A big old Flip. Flop. How did we remedy the off centered window on the other side of the room? We put a bird curtain on it of course!

We took the two green IKEA curtains from each window and combined them on one long curtain rod to cover most of the wall. It gives the perfect backdrop for our neutral headboard.

Since we never really used that window, I didn't mind covering it up and making it look like it didn't even exist at all. Not having as much light doesn't bother us either. You know... since we only go in there to sleep. I love how it turned out. The best part is that it totally works a lot better for the flow of the room. Now husband can keep all his clothes on the floor by the window instead of right in front of the door where I used to step on them. :)

I've got big plans for the blank wall across from the bed and for the dresser. It involves a scarf and a frame. Still working on putting the two together. Right now the dresser is kind of a holding place for all my frames. Since we don't have much display storage in our house, the long dresser is the spot until we get another solution (which might be soon!). I also added some sheer IKEA curtains over the remaining naked window since the green curtains got moved behind the headboard. 

It's so dramatic. I love the added color too. More of the green and less of the blue on one wall that came with the place. I like the blue (it's the same color out in our living room) but it doesn't really go with the whole green color scheme we have going on. 

Any re-arranging in your world lately? I love how it gives you the feeling of a fresh start. Something new and exciting. At least for a little while. 

Red Velvet Sandwich Cookies

Only one week until Valentine's Day and I'm starting to get into the spirit. Last year, I made sugar cookies for my sweetie - some of the heart variety and some of the Star Wars variety. The hubby loved them. This year I wanted to try something red velvet-y since I've never really attempted it before. And because anything red velvet screams Valentine's Day. It's kind of perfect. 

I found this recipe on Pinterest (of course) from A Small Snippet (original recipe from Bakerella) and it was delicious. I've made them twice this week so far! Once for Zach's school potluck and once for the Super Bowl party we went to. 

The best part is it's super easy! 

Ingredients

Red Velvet Cake Mix

2 eggs

1 stick butter, softened

Frosting

1 stick butter, softened

1 8 ounce package cream cheese

1 1 pound box confectioner's sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine cake mix, eggs, and butter.

3. Place on cookie sheet in balls (I used my cookie scoop the first time, and then used smaller dough balls the second time)

4. Bake about 10 minutes.
5. If desired, use a cookie cutter to cut hearts out of cooled cookies. I did this for a few, but decided to leave them as full cookies for the rest. 

6. I didn't make the frosting this time, just used some pre-made pink vanilla frosting. (Once I ran out of the frosting, I used Nutella and it was really good too!) Frost one side of the cookie and then put two cookies together to make a little sandwich.

So delicious!

These are so fast and easy to whip up. I hope you enjoy!