Think Pink!

I've been really obsessed with light pinks, silver, and white makeup routines. Below are some of my recent favorite products for achieving the soft, feminine looks!

1. Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush lipgloss, $7 or 2/$12

2. Mary Kay Mineral Highlighting Powder, $12

3. Sonia Kashuk for TARGET, super sheer liquid tint blush, $9.99

4. Lorac, Double Feature Concealer & Highlighter, $25

5. Smashbox, Be Discovered Eye Shadow Palette, $44

Baked Chicken Nuggets

A while back, I kept having a craving for any type of breaded, fried, fast food chicken nugget meal so I decided to make a healthy rendition. Skinny Taste is one of the best go-to blogs when you know what you want to eat, and you want it to be healthy. These were super easy and fast to make. I also really love when I have an excuse to dip something so we also put out a variety of sauces to compliment them. One of my good friends Michelle also made them and was satisfied at the ease of an easy dinner (and satisfying her preggo cravings). Bon Appetite!

Daily update...

Check out my new round of favorite blogs listed in the left side bar, and some colorful sunnies in my "Piece of the Week" widget (and below). Bring on the sunshine! 

c/o

Inspiration Friday

Some of my favorite quotes.

Happy Friday!

- All images via Pinterest.

Warm Days Ahead

We recently confirmed some Spring and Summer plans - one of which is a long weekend at the beach with all of our friends. In preparation, after confirming our reservations, I ordered all of my bathing suits from VS (a lot of them go on back order so it's good to order early), and will hopefully be doing some spring/summer shopping in the next month or two. All of our plans had me dreaming of summer days which is why I've compiled this collage of summer essentials - including the bathing suits I just ordered. Hope you enjoy!

         

1. Marc by Marc Jacobs Sunglasses, $98
2. Forever 21 Rhinestone Pyramid Bracelet, $10.80
3. Victoria's Secret, Neon Paisley, $20/top $19/bottom
4. Redken Color Extend Sun Hair Care series
5. Victoria's Secret Ruffle Trim (in white), $15/top $14/bottom
6. Victoria's Secret Tinted Self-Tan Lotion, $12
7. Victoria's Secret Sara Halter (in Maldive stripe), $22/top   $18/bottom

Mom's Cream Cheese Cookies

My mom has had this recipe for a really long time; she found it in the local newspaper at home in PA. In addition to her infamous chocolate chip cookies we sometimes throw these cookies into the mix around the holidays as well. If you're any type of fan of cream cheese, you'll love these! I will warn you though - they go fast. They're very light and creamy so it's hard to just eat one or two at a time.

Cream Cheese Cookie Recipe:


1 cup of butter (2 sticks)

8 oz. cream cheese
1 cup of sugar

1/4 tsp. of salt

1 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

2 tbsp. milk

2 cups of flourBeat butter,  cream cheese, sugar, salt and vanilla.  Mix well.  Add egg and milk.  Mix well. Gradually add flour.  Mix.  Drop by teaspoon or tablespoon (based on desired size) on a lightly greased cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes.

Try not to eat all the batter before baking

My make shift cooling rack: toaster oven insert racks and drinking glasses!

Add a few pieces of bread to wherever you store your cookies - it will keep them moist!

Long Weekends

There's nothing quite like DC <3

I thoroughly enjoy extra long weekends because they make getting to the next weekend even easier! In addition to gaining extra sleep on this Monday off, I got to spend quality time with my sisters, niece and nephew, and all of our friends over the weekend. We've been very busy making spring and summer plans that I feel like the next few months are completely mapped out. It's a bit overwhelming when you want to squeeze in last minute things, but my obsessive planning gene loves that I know what to expect and prepare for. This week I'll be sure to include some of those plans in my posts and keep you up-to-date on some of my latest projects. Does anyone else have big plans for spring/summer?

NYFW 2012

DVF

New York Fashion Week has fallen upon the city this week and I've been checking into Style.com daily to see what the geniuses behind our clothing inspirations have come up with for Fall 2012. As always, I love all the black. Even though some people may get bored with the monotone dark color, it's been a staple everyone's wardrobe for years, looks great on everyone, and is a fail-safe option when you don't know what to wear. I was also impressed with all the jewel tones and muted brights that can be worked into our fall wardrobes. The whites, neutrals, and soft pinks in some designer's collection added a nice whimsical and feminine touch which I'm always a sucker for. Here are some of my favorites pieces I've been picking out throughout the week. I'll be sure to work on a more affordable look-alike post for us girls on a normal budget. I'm so glad this week is over! It's a long weekend for most of us who work in the DC area, and I will most definitely be enjoying manicures, drinks at Josephine's, and time spent with sisters shopping.

Elie Tahari

Marchesa

Rachel Zoe

Rachel Zoe

Red Valentino

Individual Chicken Pot Pies

Obviously everything is more appealing and cuter when it comes in an individual serving! I found this easy chicken pot pie recipe via all recipes and I of course had to try it when it called for ramekins! It's as easy as grabbing ready made pie crust, frozen veggies, and a can of chicken soup at the store. They do need to bake for 35-40 minutes so leave enough baking time! I made mine later at night and although the preparation was fast, I was anxiously waiting to eat while they baked away in the oven. They even tasted delicious warmed up the next day for lunch.

Home Sweet Home

I've been taking a certification class at work all week which requires me to be there an hour earlier than I normally would go in for work and long hours listening to an instructor speaking all day.  Now, I don't mean to complain or whine, and I'm very fortunate to have all these great opportunities at my job that I really enjoy, BUT those of you who know me well .... know I like my sleep! To help me (and maybe you) get through this very slow week, I snapped a few pics of some of my favorite things around the house. Who doesn't love some new accessories and a few reorgs? My green vanity desk was not getting any use in the office (remember from here) because of this, so I placed it behind the couch in front of our huge front windows and it looks perfect in our green living room! It's a great place to display all my extra pictures, makes magazines easy to grab, and is a convenient place to throw the mail when you come in the door. Below are some of my other favorite new additions to the house. Happy Wednesday, everyone! We're slowly getting to Friday!

Finally replaced our old Keurig!
(No more daily 4 dollar coffees at Starbucks, but I do cave every now and then)

What I like to call "Shmedium" bowls from Anthropologie.
The perfect in-between size! (1 design, 2 design)

An easy to to access jewelry tray with a water carafe for late night/early morning waters!

Ornate knobs from Anthropologie. A DIY jewelry holder project, coming soon!

Bloggers Do it Better: RED

Red Lips

Courtesy of Pretty Shiny Sparkly, I have decided to join Bloggers do it Better - a movement to reach all of the fabulous bloggers across the web and show everyone your style.  My first assignment I get to join in on was RED! Obviously, for Valentine's day - bloggers were asked to post their own interpretation of the assignment for this day of LOVE. Below are some of my red inspirations I have partaked in recently. Read PSS's post on BDIB to find out how you can join if you're a blogger or to just learn what it is! Stay tuned for future BDIB posts on Pixels and Pumps!

Homemade Chicken Pot Pies in RED ramekins

Essie - Russian Roulette

Rachel Zoe's RED velvet pumps - She shared this pic prior to her show!

RED Velvet Cake

Team Clinton

For the past several months we watched as my sister's neighbor - and now our good friend - shared updates on Facebook about a family friend's son and his battle with cancer (Medulloblastoma to be exact). She shared stories with us about him and his family and I think we all quietly found ourselves checking facebook daily, waiting for posts, and wishing and praying that all would turn out okay for the little man.  On January 19th, Clinton Milliken lost his battle to cancer at just 7 years old.  In order to spread awareness, my sisters and I have decided to get heavily involved in making everyone aware of children, cancer, and the scary statistic of 46/7. Today, 46 kids will be diagnosed with cancer, and today 7 kids will die. In order to spread this message we joined Team Clinton for Maryland's Warrior Dash on May 19th - volunteers and participants welcome if anyone would like to get involved, and Lindsey and I are proud to announce our involvement in Maryland's chapter of Clinton's Club. If you don't live in the area and can't be physically involved, you can donate to one of our St. Jude's pages for Warrior Dash, or help spread about 46/7 because not enough people can be aware!

Zoup

One of the great things about working downtown (can also be a negative) is ALL of the amazing restaurants everywhere. This week my coworker and I headed down the street to Zoup - located on Vermont Avenue -  for a quick "soup and sandwich" lunch when it started to lightly snow. You might have seen my pictures if you follow me on Instagram. As you know I'm obsessed with soup as seen in some of numerous soup posts. Zoup has a hefty soup, salad, and sandwich menu which you can choose to have a combo of two of the three. I opted for the Loco Burrito salad and lobster bisque soup. Yes, it's an odd combo but it was the perfect quick lunch on a chilly day.   

Bright Whites

BCBG dress, Forever 21 headband, H&M ring

I've had this BCBG dress in my closet for years and have only pulled it out a few times. I'm vowing to find more than occasion to wear it this summer. The eyelet cotton material is light enough to wear on a hot day and I love the big billowy sleeves! On a side note from the outfit, I've also had this white checked comforter cover on my bed at home and snagged it last time I was up in PA.

Homemade Pita Chips

I tested out these homemade pita chips one night as a pretrial run for the Superbowl and because we had avocados that needed to be used. I bought all the ingredients to make them last Sunday but ended up forgetting about them as I got lost in the shuffle of cooking. Following this recipe, I made a batch using jalapeno tortillas instead of plain flour tortillas. Next time, I'll probably cut down on the chilli powder which is saying a lot because I love spicy food - but they were definitely a delicious treat.  I also baked mine a little long because I love burnt crispy edges!