All posts by Peneloping

Room decor fun! aka Pinterest addiction

So if anyone’s interested in the long list of reasons I haven’t posted in ten years, it includes everything from not having internet to getting norovirus to my keyboard epic failing. In fact, I’m back in the land of interwebs and recovered from norovirus but am somehow getting by typing on a keyboard with a broken o, l, and enter key. I keep copy-pasting the letters I need, and needess to say, it’s taking forever.

Anyway, I’m getting ready to move next week so of course instead of spending my time packing like a responsible adult, I’ve made a new board on Pinterest and have been pinning all sorts of ideas for pretty room decor.

This is vaguely the color scheme I’m going for.

I find it hilarious that it was inspired by this photo.

I made my own version of this duvet cover. I’m considering doing some pillows too.

This is the paint color I’m going with. Unless I change my mind tomorrow at the store.

Source: homedepot.com via Ping on Pinterest

I’m trying smething different with my bed this time. First of all I’m downgrading to a full because the room is so small that my queen would just take up all of the space. I also decided to get a plain wooden ikea bed which I’m going attempt t uphster. More on that later but here is the fabric I’ll be using for that.

Source: fabric.com via Ping on Pinterest

Andd meet the rug I bought today! I had a different one in mind but when I went in to look at it, it just seemed a little too big, a little too dark, and a little too off. luckily this one was sitting nearby screaming “Buy meeee instead!” So I did.

Anyhoo, I’m super excited to get to start putting everything together! And I’m crossing my fingers this doesn’t all end up looking heinous together..

Sidenote: fabric.com is having a fantastic sale right now, and on top of that, you can use the promo code THX128 THX218 [sorry!] to get 15% off your order! [I’m not affiliated with them, I just discovered this as I was ordering and wanted to share!]

Almost back!

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Well, at the beginning of summer I had the mistaken impression that summer would be full of free time and daily postings. Clearly I was mistaken.

In any case, Boyfriend and I got back to the east coast yesterday and are currently spending the weekend at a friend’s. Then on Monday I get to start the super fun process of packing and getting ready to move! I’m super excited about the new apartment, just not the moving bit.

Anyway, the point is, long absence is almost over, and in the meantime, enjoy the hilarious photo of me passed out cuddling with Boyfriend’s dog.

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Holy jet lag, guys. I thought I was wide awake but a tiny snooze sounded nice, so I crawled into bed and set my alarm for three hours later, just in case. And woke up three and a half hours later with my alarm blaring at me. Whoops!

It was so hard to peel myself out of bed, except I knew that if I kept sleeping I’d regret it later.

It is so weird being back here! When I first lived here, the Host Sibs were 10, 14, 17, and 17. Now the youngest has just turned 14!!

Anyway, I’ll stop being an old lady now. Here are some things that made me smile today, Instagram style:

This is the view from my room. It never gets old. I used to open the windows at night and put a cushion on the ledge and just sit there looking at stars and blasting Explosions in the Sky.

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Family dinners here are the best. It feels like you’re surrounded by trees in a little oasis.

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I adore this chandelier thing. DIY inspiration? Methinks yes.

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I’m pretty sure this kitchen is the most French thing I’ve ever seen.

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I’ve been raving about all of the lovely hot weather things to do but this fireplace is the best thing in the world in the winter. When I lived here we would have hot tea and sit in our pajamas and watch English movies dubbed in French.

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Look what I found in the living room! *tears*

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I absolutely adore this rug. The end.

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This little munchkin has been following me around all day. I might steal her; I’m 90% sure she’ll fit in my purse.

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And right now I’m sitting in bed sipping a tizane brewed from some flower we just picked from a tree outside. It’s supposed to help you fall asle..zzzzzzzzz.

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France <3

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Welp, I’m off to the airport soon! I’ll be in the south of France for the next two and a half weeks! I’ll have limited access to the interwebs so I’ll try to post but no promises.

Have a lovely few weeks!

PS Don’t you hate that nagging feeling where you can just feel that you’re forgetting something vitally important but you can’t even begin to guess what it might be? Gahhh!

Enchiladas (mostly) from scratch

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I’ve been obsessed with enchiladas lately. They’ve always been a favorite of mine but in a guilty pleasure sort of way because of the way Mexican restaurants tend to pile on the scrumptious melty cheeses.

I’m drooling.

Anyway, I was wasting time meandering on Pinterest when I found this lovely food blog, and specifically this amazing looking recipe.

I had to make it immediately. I had never cooked with tomatillos before but she gives very clear instructions and they turned out not to be so very scary after all. Which is awesome because salsa verde is my faaavorite.

The enchiladas turned out decent (and even better the next day!) but there were a few things I wanted to tweak so I made them again tonight.

The nice thing about this recipe is that you can prepare the chicken and salsa beforehand and then just toss everything together and throw it in the oven right before dinner. Or you can be lazy and leave everything to the last minute like moi.

Ingredients:
– A 3/4 – 1 lb chicken breast; more if you want meatier enchiladas, less if you want to add other things into the mix
– 1 small onion, chopped
– 4 oz Greek yogurt (I nearly typed “Geek” there. lol)
– 2 cups salsa verde; I made some from scratch the first time using the recipe linked above but I cheated this time and bought a jar. In my defense my blender is broken and last time I had to mince everything by hand and it took ages :[
– Package of 8 wheat tortillas; the ones I got were 120 calories per tortilla. 
– Cheese, grated; Last time I used a four cheese Mexican pre-grated mix and then grated cheddar on top. This time I only used the pre-grated mix. Guess which one was tons better? Grate your own cheese.

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Start with the chicken. It’ll need to be shredded and according to the interwebs, the best way to do that is to either grill it or boil it. I have no grilling skills so I tossed it in a pot of boiling water for 15 minutes.

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It’s ok if it’s a little undercooked because it’s going right back in the oven for another twenty minutes. Just remember not to snack on it if it’s still pink!

(If you’re making your own salsa verde, now would be the time to do it!)

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Pull the chicken out of the pot and transfer it to a largeish bowl. I’m sure there’s a fancy utensil with a fancy name that was designed for shredding chicken, but I went the poor grad student route and attacked mine with two forks.

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In a pan, drizzle some olive oil and add the chopped onions and a dash of salt.

Let it cook for a few minutes on medium heat and then add the chicken, half of the salsa verde, Greek yogurt, and whatever else you might want to add. I kind of want to try it with spinach. Or broccoli? Hmm, maybe not broccoli.

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Mix it all together and turn the heat off. Grab your tortillas because here’s the fun part!

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Drizzle a few tablespoons of salsa verde onto a 9 x 13″ baking dish. Spoon a few tablespoons of filling onto the tortilla in a straight line. Fold one side of the tortilla over, tuck it under a little, and then roll the whole thing closed.

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Place it on the baking dish with the seam side facing down.

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Rinse and repeat.

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Once all of the enchiladas are filled and tucked, drizzle the rest of the salsa on top of them and spread it evenly.

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Then sprinkle the cheese on top.

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Bake at 375 F for about 15-20min. It’s ready when the cheese on top is golden and bubbling.

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Nom and enjoy! (Make sure you make extra because it’s reeeally good as leftovers!)

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Next I want to try a version with red sauce!