Macaron Day

Today is Macaron Day! 

I would say out of every bite of confectionery goodness I have had, macarons are my absolute favorite. 

Not to be confused with their chocolate-coconut counterpart (macaroons), macarons (with one "o") are French meringue cookies. They come in pretty much every flavor you can think of and are typically filled with a ganache, jam, or cream. 

Dainty, pretty, just a couple bites. 

Perfectly scrumptious. 

Whether you have them often or never heard of such a thing, today would be the perfect day to treat yourself to one. And if you do, please let me know what you think.

Either way, I hope your day is sweet. 

image: Anh and On

Shake o' the Irish

Even if I'm only a quarter Irish, I'm 100% into reasons to celebrate. 

This weekend's wardrobe was green, green, green. (I realized I don't actually own many green things, so a bright green nail polish helped seal the deal.) We watched shows based in Ireland. Dinner tonight will be of the Irish variety. (I'm still trying to figure out what exactly we'll have - any ideas you lads and ladies would be willing to share?) 

For a sweet treat this weekend, we made homemade Shamrock shakes thanks to this Williams-Sonoma recipe.

The most complicated part of the recipe is the mint infused simple syrup which F and I both agreed was totally skipable. If you are looking for a simple, festive way to celebrate tonight, grab vanilla ice cream, peppermint extract, green food coloring, milk and blend, blend, blend your way to the luck o' the Irish.

(psst. If you really want to impress the leprechauns, sprinkle crushed thin mints on top.)

Happy St. Patrick's Day, sweet readers. 

images: hilaryclair

Birthday

Today is my birthday.
I love birthdays. Always have. Always will.
A reason to celebrate.
For sparkle and sweets.
For celebrating, surrounded by loves.
For saying "Yes!" to dessert.
For decorations.
For dressing up.
For reminiscing on the last year and imagining the next.

25
High: Loving our neighborhood, particularly the tennis courts by the lake and the endless summer hours spent there.
Low: Wishing for a job where my passions collide with a paycheck.
Random: Went to Vegas this year with F and my in-laws. This was my 26th US state visited; Excited to be more than half way there.

I'm thanking my lucky stars for all the blessings in my life.

On to 26...
xo, H

images: BHLDN