{Free} Printable Valentines!

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 I have a new printable for you today! I can think of countless ways you could use these sweet Valentines. They would be adorable with a piece of candy attached to it, as a gift tag on a present, or whatever other creative ideas you have up your sleeve this Valentine's day!

Just print on cardstock for best results, cut, hole punch (if desired) and spread the love this Valentine's Day!

You should be able to click here and be redirected to Google Docs, then click the file menu and "download original". Then print as many as you need!

>>CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD VALENTINES<< 

4 unique Valentines to a page:

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Looking for another option? Check out the adorable Love You tags below! You can find and download these by clicking here to visit my printables page. 

weekend

 

our weekend was spent:

*enjoying pretty views of the space needle @ sunset*

*on a date night out for puerto rican food* 

*watching loads of himym*

*shopping with my sister*

*buying new yarn to fuel my knitting addiction*

*at an evening service @ church*

*going out for drinks with friends*

now back to real life.

what did you do this weekend?

Life With Lance. Part 3.

Where I share things that I find sweet or amusing about life with my husband

part 1

part 2

1. Lance keeps a box full of our love notes and other mementos in our closet. It's a pretty big box full of sweet things that he has collected over the years since we started dating (7 years ago!). I didn't know he even had it until we got married and moved in together. It's seriously the cutest thing, but makes me feel pretty lame because I don't have one. Well, not one with that many things in it anyway. Lance, on the other hand, has kept all sorts of little trinkets here and there that I would have never thought to hold onto. Receipts, ticket stubs, printed out aim conversations (does anyone even use aim anymore?!), emails, random doodles I made in his notebooks... I stumbled upon the box in a cleaning frenzy the other day and spent a couple hours reading through notes. I'm so so glad he's kept them!

2. Lance is married to a big gray rat. Remember how I told you in part 2 about the many unflattering nicknames Lance has bestowed upon me over the years? Well, I only told you about Chewbacca. That was a great starting point, but today I shall introduce you to The Big Gray Rat. Yep. You heard me. Big. Gray. Rat. That awesome title is one I hear often when I am donning what Lance has ordained as "the big gray rat suit". This is what I wear on particularly cold and lazy evenings when all I want is to be comfy and cozy. It consists of an ensemble that is entirely gray. I happen to have many variations of said big gray rat suit, but the picture to follow is one of the most hideous, grayest, and rat-esque. I look so great don't I? Yep, that's one smokin' hot rat right there.

Now, to be fair, Lance also dons this fabulous attire from time to time and during such occasions has allowed me to also refer to him as a big gray rat. In fact, now whenever we see anyone sportin' the gray we take a moment to appreciate their big gray ratness. Okay. I've revealed too much. This is getting embarrassing so moving on...

3. Lance sleeps like this. Only sometimes his face is completely covered and I'm pretty sure he can't breathe. His tendency to roll up in the blankets makes for an epic tug of war every night.

And those are just three of the reasons why I love life with Lance.

To be continued...

H    A    P    P    Y    W    E    E    K    E    N    D

reminiscing

 take me back to europe
where the cappuccinos overflow

we'll eat carbs for every meal

and gelato every night

we can gaze at gorgeous castles

and brightly colored hillsides

and we'll travel everywhere by gondola

with a glass of wine in hand

come with me?

all photos from my trip to Italy and Germany in 2009

Insta Life.

I realized today that my phone contains a lot of pictures of food and the Space Needle. Both of which I happen to enjoy, so I'm totally okay with that. If you don't follow me already on instagram (@kynoelle), you should! Especially if you're into pictures of food and the Space Needle. Be sure and introduce yourself so I know who you are and can follow you back!

Also, I've been nominated not one, not two, but three times this week for the Liebster blog award! Thank you oh-so-very much to the three lovely ladies who passed this award on to me: Christina, Carly, and Lauren! You all have such fab blogs and I'm so honored to be included on your lists!

This award is given to bloggers with less than 200 followers, in the hopes that it will bring them many new friends/followers. Liebster is German and means 'dearest' or 'beloved' but it can also mean 'favorite'. To continue the love, I'm passing the award on to five bloggers that I think deserve some recognition. Please stop by and visit them!

The rules are: 

1. Thank your Liebster Blog Award presenter on your blog.

2. Link back to the blogger who awarded you.

3. Copy & paste the blog award on your blog.

4. Reveal your 5 blog picks.

5. Let them know you chose them by leaving a comment on their blog.

Here are my five picks:

1. The Life of the Wife

Jenna is seriously the sweetest person ever. Plus she has such an adorable little family. 

2. Two Kitchen Promenade 

Food. Enough said.

3. Urban Anthropology

Natalie's got some great style! I'm lovin' her fashion sense. 

4. Not a Couple's Blog

Cute couple, baby on the way. What's not to love?

5. Fiction, Flight & Everything Nice

Melissa blogs about decorating, fashion, and recipes...and shops at Whole Foods. All good things.

Sponsors Feature Pt. 2

Introducing you to four more of my wonderful sponsors! Head on over to their blogs and send them some love!

xo

Find Courtney-> blog :: facebook :: pinterest :: bloglovin'

Find Amber--> blog

 Find Christina--> blog

 Find Melina--> blog :: facebook 
instagram: melu103

Kale Chips Recipe

Don't let the picture or the greenness fool you. This may not look like a tasty snack. But it actually really and truly is!

If you're not a fan of kale's consistency or flavor when raw or steamed, then I encourage you to try this method of cooking it and see how you feel. Or, if you've never tried kale before, maybe this would be a good starting point. They turn out to be a light, crispy, salty delight! The first time I tried it I was actually quite surprised by the consistency and the transformation in taste. Kale can be bitter, heavy, and slimy, but the chips are not! They are slightly reminiscent of potato chips. I do love kale in all forms, but this one is definitely my favorite. 

Okay, time for a little health pep talk. As you may have gathered from my previous recipes, I like to eat healthy. So why consider adding kale to your diet? Kale scores a perfect 1000 ANDI score, which indexes food based on their nutritional density relative to calories. So, kale packs a lot of  nutritional punch in very few calories!

A few of the many health benefits of kale:

• high in antioxidants
• anti-inflammatory
• good for cancer prevention
• many important vitamins and minerals

So I try not to be preachy about how people should eat. But why not be concerned about the health of my lovely readers? :)

Kale Chips or Kale Crisps Recipe

adapted from many recipes around the internet

Ingredients:

-Kale (any kale works, but I think I the curly kind works best)

-Olive Oil

-Sea Salt

What to do with those ingredients:

• Preheat oven to 350
• Thoroughly wash and dry kale
• Rip kale leaves off of stem (as much as you please)
• Spread out onto cookie sheet and drizzle lightly with olive oil (I've been meaning to get an olive oil sprayer because I think it would help to get an even coat. You can also try tossing them in the oil in a separate bowl to get it more even.)
• Sprinkle with sea salt to taste
• Bake for about 10-15 minutes, until edges just slightly start to brown.

*Kale should be light, dry and crispy, not wet and limp

Similar Recipe: Pan-fried Chickpeas
You can find more of my recipes here!

Snow Day, Snow Day

The snow has arrived! I was beginning to doubt the forecast last night when the skies were completely void of clouds. But as I slept soundly in my bed the clouds arrived, snow began to fall and we awoke to a winter wonderland! A very, very cold and blustery wonderland. Considering Seattle snow is not a particularly common occurance, we figured we could venture out and have some good old-fashioned snow fun. 

But no. About five minutes into our snow journey we decided it wasn't worth it. Freezing snowflakes were blowing into our faces. I couldn't even keep my face up or eyes open long enough for a picture, resulting in many sad, depressed, head-hung-low or face-scrunched pics. It's okay though, we get to continue cuddling up inside, watching movies and drinking hot chocolate! Thanks snow. We appreciate the day off.

Is there any snow where you live? Bright, sunny skies? Do tell below!

Snow?!

Supposedly the biggest snowstorm since 1985 is headed toward Seattle. I'll believe it when I see it. In anticipation of this event, schools have closed early and Lance doesn't have to work. So we've stocked up on food, movies, blankets and candles and are ready to snuggle the night away! Speaking of movies, Hubs and I watched Justin Bieber: Never Say Never last night. I noticed it as I perused Netflix instant watch and snuck it on while Lance was in the other room. He never had a chance to say never. So yeah, we watched it. And yeah, it might not have been all that bad. Would I consider myself a belieber? Maybe.
 

Sponsors Feature Pt. 1

I sure do have some amazing sponsors that I'm introducing to you today! Aren't these ladies just gorgeous? And they all have such wonderful blogs too. I know you'll adore them as much as I do! I really hope you will go check each of them out, leave them some love, and let them know I sent you! Happy reading!

xoxo

Find Jenna--> blog :: twitter

Find Katie--> blog :: flickr

Find Aunie-> blog :: bloglovin :: twitter

 

Find Bri--> blog  ::  facebook

Sunny Seattle Days = Sunny Seattle Dates

In pursuit of continuing to uphold our New Years resolutions, yesterday Lance and I decided that we would get out of the house before we had to go to work and actually walk somewhere for lunch. Shocking, I know. Another shock? The ever-looming clouds parted and gorgeous rays of sun beamed upon our perpetually pale Seattleite faces. It was glorious. 

H   A   P   P   Y   W   E   E   K   E   N   D  !

My name is Kylee and I like to organize things.

*warning: the following post contains absolutely thrilling information about my organizational habits that I'm sure you are all dying to read {haa jokes}*
 
I am obsessed with making lists. To-do lists, grocery lists, honey-do lists, future baby name lists, thankful lists, blog-post-idea-lists, etc. etc. etc. I color code my calendar. I randomly refold whole drawers of shirts or reorganize the bathroom cabinet for fun. I write out meal plans every week before I shop. When we were in school I would spend hours working on massive spreadsheets to organize our class schedules and six jobs in such a way that we could do it with just one car. 

These things keep me sane. Lance, not so much. I can't imagine him making a list, or a plan for that matter, if his life depended on it. He's more of a go-with-the-flow kind of guy. But I like to be organized and well planned, making the absolute most of my days. No idle time for this girl. If it was up to me our days would be planned out to the second minute hour. The first thing I do when I wake up Hubby finally gets out of bed on a day off is ask him what he wants to do for the day. He then looks at me like I'm a crazy person. And if I do force an idea out of him my next question is, "what time?". To which he he responds, "I dunno, we'll see where the day goes." Yeah, I don't like that, but I have learned that a bit of unknown is okay, and he does appreciate my attention to detail. 

Am I the only plan-making, list-loving, organization junkie? And no, I don't have OCD. There are two closets and a pantry in complete disarray at the moment and I don't feel the slightest bit of guilt about it! I just know I will thoroughly enjoy the process of making them beautiful again soon.

Some proof of my obsessiveness:

Re-folded these for fun the other day

Last January... Our schedules are no longer that jam-packed

And now embarassing proof that I'm not OCD (and great incentive to take care of this issue and show the after pics!)

Hearty Lentil & Rice Soup Recipe

Last week I concocted a lentil soup with some ingredients I had on hand and hoped for the best. I was surprisingly pleased with the result so thought I'd share it! It's a great meal for those "get healthy" New Year Resolutions!

Hearty Lentil & Rice Soup 
Serves around 5

Ingredients:

• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 3 medium carrots
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 4 cups (32oz) of chicken broth (veggie broth for a vegetarian option!)
• 1 cup of any lentils or split peas, rinsed and drained (I used 1/3 c. each of green lentils, red lentils and yellow split peas)
• 1/2 cup cooked rice
• 2 cups spinach
• Grated Parmesan (optional)
• Parsely (optional)

What to do with those ingredients:

• chop onion and sautee in olive oil until translucent
• add garlic and chopped carrots and sautee for about 5-10 minutes
• add lentils, 4 cups of chicken broth, 2 cups of water and salt & pepper to vegetables and bring to a boil
• reduce heat to simmer and cook for 45 minutes
• add cooked rice and spinach
• simmer for another 15-20 minutes, until lentils are soft
• salt and pepper to taste
• garnish with parsley and Parmesan.

Tip:

Because lentils soak up the liquid, you may need to add more water part way through to thin soup (depending on how chunky you like it).

Check out more of my recipes here!

Never take Yourself Too Seriously.

Even though one of our resolutions was to get out the house more, we spent Friday night in being ridiculous together. It was totally worth not furthering our resolution. I'm pretty convinced that life is way more fun when you don't take yourself too seriously. Although there's a time for being serious, too much serious=not enough laughter. We needed all the laughter that came with Friday night's antics. It truly is the best medicine.

Photos above:

-Lance played photographer.

-I recommended building a fort to play a board game in. Our attempt was an utter failure which resulted in me having to pull Lance out of the collapsed fort. 

-We sat around the MacBook creating silly videos of which we've only included the two screenshots in the last photo. We agreed that the videos don't need to be forever embedded on the internet...