Bed Buddy

I always used to be critical of "those people" who let their dogs sleep on their beds. I thought, "how can you sleep with a 50 lb dog next to you?" or "how can that be good for a relationship?" Well, slap me upside the head and call me stupid, because I started the habit with Sadie.

It started out with me letting her lay on the bed while I read before falling asleep. Well, just a few minutes into my reading she passes out cold. I just told myself, whatever, just let her sleep there for the rest of the night. This one act of kindness towards Sadie has now turned into a nightly ritual. Part of my enabling is probably because I don't get to see her during the day because of work. So, I guess I'll just chalk it up to 'bonding.' Here's the little 'angel' sleeping...

Wanted: double boiler

Not sure if I've made it clear on this blog, but I don't cook. Ever. I tried my hand at cooking last weekend by making a sauce that I only thought people like my mom could make. Behold ...Hollandaise! I made eggs benedict (I know you're wondering "Blair, why are you eating so healthy?") with Truss and he assigned me to the Hollandaise. We cooked at his house because it requires a double boiler, which of course, I don't have. Hollandaise, much to my dislike, takes patience. 45 minutes of it, to be exact. So, in went the eggs and butter and I began stirring. And stirring. And stirring. It wasn't difficult, especially because the double boiler was managing the heat- or so I thought. Long story short, 15 or so minutes into stirring, I noticed some clumping started happening and before I knew it the Hollandaise was ruined. Accordingly to Truss, we can't salvage scrambled egg-like sauce. So, after another run to the grocery store for more eggs, I started from scratch. I managed to not screw up this batch and had great success with my first Hollandaise sauce! Here's a pic of the finished product. Yum, yum!

Guilty of internet shopping

E-mail is the best thing ever and the worst thing ever. Each morning I check my yahoo mail account and find that I have between 10-15 e-mails. This usually gives me a mini-morning high, then I open it up to find 8-10 of those are what I call "shopping" e-mails. Retailers would call them "hook line and sinker" for people like me. So, I sift through them and delete the obvious ones that I only receive because I bought something with that company a long time ago. Then, there are the ones I hold onto like JCrew, airline deals and the ever-so-popular e-mail bill reminders.

It was at least a couple of years ago I heard people buzzing about a new website called GiltGroupe.com. It was all about shopping, so of course I automatically signed up. Gilt Groupe is an online retailer that sells "Luxury designers and fashion brands at prices up to 70% off retail." Every day they send out a preview of the days deals and the sale begins at 11 a.m. CT. The items are limited, which I think is why the website is so successful. Its like a race to see what you can get in the first five minutes before it's sold out. I've bought a few things and have been happy with my purchases.

I was equally excited when my aunt introduced me to a similar style website called OneKingsLane.com. It's like Gilt Group but for home decor and goods. However, this one, to my excitement starts at 10 a.m. every morning. It's great, they have things from linens to silver to artwork. The discounted prices really aren't too bad and they offer a variety of home styles, from traditional to modern. In addition, it has been nice learning more about designers I have never heard of. I've ordered two things so far. One is a lamp (which I'm waiting to receive) and the other is a super cute green toile dog bed for Sadie. Here's a pic of the bed.


So, if you happen to be low on e-mails and are looking for a fun one to actually read, sign up for OneKingsLane. If anything, it's entertaining to look at.