cheers to turning 7!

Mary James’ birthday falls at a (sort of) unfortunate time – right after the fourth of July.  Families are still on vacation, this year we were ending a vacation and time for all this party planning just did not exist.  So I let MJ pick out her invitations from Target (no homemade ones this year) and she picked out a fun star invitation.  She knew she wanted to do a cheer party so she conspired with her babysitter to help. My parents have a cabin in the woods they let us use (score! on not having to clean up my house) As unorganized as I was…it turned out to be the most fun party I think we have had!  It was SO HOT  that a friend suggested i bring along extra bathing suits just in case we had to jump in the pond and while i am against jumping in the pond…i did pack the extra suits and was so glad i did!  the girls took turns riding a paddle boat under the fountain and had a blast!

mj, molly, & mills painted the frames below.

Favors: megaphones that they glittered up


 
  

 
  
 
 
 
 
Isn’t emily great?!  She was so sweet to lead the girls through cheers and play and just help out with the party.  
 
and after everyone was gone, we changed up the concessions a bit and had our own after party
 

it’s good to be 7 :)
A little s&j side note – we do have some chalkboards in stock!  send us an email if you are intersted (hello @ stewartandjames.com)

cheers {to a HOT weekend}!

things have been so wild around here that i almost forgot to post this week's cocktail - whew!

Shelley, of Pas de Deux, posted these on Cassandra's blog a few weeks ago and I literally went straight to the liquor store (actually, no. it was more like i called matt and asked him to swing by on his way home from work.). I've pretty much not stopped drinking them (and constantly re-buying the ingredients.) since then ;)

They are perfectly fun and fresh - just what the sultry evenings around here are (already) calling for. sheesh!

st-germain cocktail

their signature recipe!

• 2 parts Brut Champagne (or you can use Dry Sparkling Wine but I don't)

• 1 1/2 parts St-Germain

• 2 parts Club Soda (or you can use sparkling water but (again) I don't)

Method:

Fill a tall Collins glass with ice. Add Champagne first, then St-Germain, then Club Soda. Stir completely.

* Garnish with a lemon twist, making sure to squeeze essential oils into the glass.
* St-Germain is heavier than wine, thus it will settle to the bottom unless mixed thoroughly. (and if it sits for a while it requires a re-stir)




oh - and i really did listen to pink martini while i made and drank these (the first time, anyway!)

happy weekend!

xx

image source

when life gives you lemons…

make cupcakes.
Yesterday was our blogaversary :)  We have been blogging for 1 full year now.  So to celebrate, we made cupcakes.   Really really yummy lemon cupcakes.

lemon isn’t exactly the flavor my kids had in mind for cupcakes so no one wanted to lick the bowl….except my go-to girl on food. 

 may not be the healthiest snack for a baby but who wants to lick a bowl alone?

The final product was d.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s!  So cheers to you blog world, but mostly to all of our readers (who we appreciate more than you can know)!  We’ve had a great first year and are thrilled to see what the next one will hold!
post by kristen

cheers {to a wedding weekend}

this weekend i'm celebrating an old friend as he gets married. and a frou-frou drink will not do. so bourbon it will be.




+


BBG

1.5 oz. Bulleit

4 oz. Blenheim

1-2 oz. grapefruit juice

pour all ingredients over ice and stir. If you are particularly dexterous, pour the Bulleit and Blenheim at the same time so they mix evenly.
 
recipe courtesy of (the same) Mark

have a good one!

cheers {to another weekend}!

I don't know how long this is gonna last (just because that's the kind of girl I am ;) ) but Kristen inspired me and I'm going to attempt to do a Friday Cocktail Series. Starting now!

first up ... Ginger Martini (you might have heard me mention these before ...)

Ginger Martini
3 oz. Rain Organic Vodka (I've made it with other vodkas - they work)

1.5 oz. Stone's ginger black currant wine (Albanians - Warehouse has this)

Shake Vodka and Stone's in a shaker with ice.


LIGHTLY coat the glass with honey.
 Pour and enjoy.


(can be served on the rocks (my preference) or straight up)


Stay tuned (at least to see how long it lasts!).

recipe courtesy of Basmati's via my bartending friend Mark(ster) (opposite fonts throughout recipe, my notes ;) )

h a p p y   w e e k e n d !

cheers {to summer's last long weekend}

remember these?! i sort of dropped the ball. but i'm picking it back up. and to (re)start us off, i found this
delectable recipe from what katie ate (adorable, by the way) on this is glamorous. Mark(ster) adapted it to better suit my cocktail-loving ways..

a few weeks ago, i had the most delightful greyhound - ever. it was made with fresh grapefruit juice (as in, squeezed right out of the fruit upon my order) and served in an old fashioned with perfect ice and a wooden stirrer... but i digress. (i wanted to feature it but it seemed to ordinary (for the record though, mark said just combine equal parts grapefruit juice + vodka.

when i came upon this recipe, it remided me of that beloved cocktail but with a perfect-for-hot-days twist.

here it is:

Pink Grapefruit Granita

INGREDIENTS:

• 
  
  2 1/2 cups fresh pink or ruby grapefruit juice, at room temperature

• 1 cup boiling water

• 1/3 cup superfine sugar

• 1 - 1.5 oz. vodka (mixologist recommends Hanger One)

• Mint sprigs, for garnish

 PROCESS:

1. Combine juice, water and sugar in bowl and whisk until the sugar has dissolved.

2. Pour liquid into a 13 by 9-inch baking pan. Freeze until hard, about 3 to 4 hours.

3. To serve, scrape with a fork and spoon the scrapings into small chilled martini glasses or small glass bowls.


4. Mix in as much vodka as the frozen consistency will allow without becoming soupy (1-1.5 oz)


5. Garnish with mint


6. Enjoy Monday!

cheers {to the (still) summer weekend}

Now I know a recipe like this would have been better for say... the Fourth of July weekend but... I was busy that weekend and well, I wasn't keeping up with this series at that time.

Anyway, this sounds too good to pass up just becuase I wasn't paying attention.

So, here it is

watermelon slush (because Summer. Isn't. Over. Two more weeks, people.)

Ingredients:

• 
  
  Four cups of pureed watermelon
• 
  
  Halfcup of simple syrup
• 
  
  Half cup of St. Germain (remember this?! Meg loves it too)

Process:

• 
  
  Combine watermelon, simple syrup and st. germain.
• 
  
  Freeze in a baking pan.
• 
  
  Scoop and serve!

yum!

recipe from shape magazine

image source

2011: the second half…

(plus a few days into 2012) captured via cell phone.  Isn’t it convenient and frustrating at the same time that a lot of our lives are captured by cell phone cameras and are rarely organized to fit in or order with our “regular” pictures?  I downloaded 700 pictures from the second half of the year that were capture on my cell phone and here the highlights are, as organized as they will get!

birthdays

uncle matt

our friend, Molly

 

our friend, Jamie

 

our friend, Brandi

 

babies

Bates

this is one of my nephews, i am not sure which!

Susan

 

mills sitting on all her babies, they are all named Daisy

 

my sweet (new!) nephew – Jack, my younger sister Kathryn’s 1st!

 

Kathryn & Jack

 

mills and her real babies (frances & luke)

the 3

at the beach

at the zoo

 

 

at s&j

 

at my mother-in-laws store

 

at Nanny’s creek

 

at Su Su’s

 

back porch

 

halloween!

 

stewart & james

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 food & drink

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you have a fabulous January and are staying well.  Cheers to last year and the new year just beginning!