snow – Rooted Gracefully

Irrational Happiness

This morning I woke up and was irrationally happy because I knew that I would finally be able to watch last weeks episode of The Bachelor online. Something as silly as a TV show shouldn’t have the power to dictate my mood, but sometimes it does. It got me wondering what other things that make me irrationally happy and I could come up with quite a few!

A few things that I love more than I probably should…

1. No morning plans and a big cup of coffee

2. A fresh manicure

3. A brand new book

4. A clean/vacuumed bedroom

5. A burning candle

6. A mid afternoon nap

7. A cancelled meeting

There’s nothing wrong with finding happiness in the random, everyday aspects of life. Another thing that I love is the idea of a snow day! However, I hate the after effects…

This is the amount of snow right out of my apartment! It’s insane. Luckily there are only 20 more days until I leave for Australia. I can’t wait to spend my days in the 75 – 80 degree weather. 🙂

xo,

Jaclyn

Valentine’s Day Recap

Of course yesterday was filled with even more snow. I really didn’t think it was possible to have such a horrible winter. In some areas outside of my apartment the snowbanks are almost double my height!

Because of this crazy weather, Conor and I’s Valentine’s Day plans were cancelled. 🙁 While I was really looking forward to going into Boston, we still had the perfect day. We went to Joey’s Bar and Grill for dinner and it was phenomenal. We were so lucky that we could just walk in without a reservation, and we didn’t even have to wait!

After filling up on the most delicious Italian bread I have ever had (oops), I ordered the short rib with asparagus and garlic mashed potatoes on my mom’s recommendation. It definitely lived up to my expectations.

CFab had the New York Strip Steak with french fries and asparagus.

We were so stuffed that we didn’t have room for dessert. Instead, we stopped at Price Chopper and picked up two pints of Ben & Jerry’s for later.

We came back to my apartment, took a food coma induced nap, and then started watching Breaking Bad. We have been looking for a new series for a little while now and I think we will enjoy this one!

Since the dinner plans were Conor’s gift to me, I decided to make him a surprise breakfast this morning. I made red velvet chocolate chip pancakes, sausage, and coffee. I also surprised CFab with a copy of Men’s Health magazine and one of his favorite smoothies waiting at the breakfast table.

The pancakes were absolutely delicious, but weren’t the prettiest thing I have ever made. I may have also set the smoke alarms off at 8AM and woke up all of my roommates and completely ruined the surprise of breakfast, but it was still a perfect way to wrap up our Valentine’s Day. 🙂

xo,

Jaclyn

Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Before I start on today’s post, I want to take a minute to mention an inspirational, beautiful, and kind woman who passed away earlier this week – my great grandmother. While we no longer have her here with us on earth, I know that my family has gained another guardian angel.

On another note – we got bombarded with THREE FEET of snow today! If you know me at all – you know that I will always prefer the warmth of summer to the cold and miserable New England Winter. There is something to be said, however, for the first snow day of the year! I love nothing more than cuddling up on the couch with a big cup of coffee and watching movies all day.

Cozy, cozy, cozy 🙂

Another thing I love to do when snowed in is bake. Today I attempted coconut oil based coconut and chocolate chip cookies. They came out alright, but I am going to continue perfecting the recipe before I share it. Instead, I am going to share one of my favorite cookies of all time – Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies!

Every year at Christmas time my mom, brother, and I bake tons of cookies. We make enough to give to family members, bring to parties, and of course eat ourselves. We all choose one type of cookie that we want to make for that year and are in charge of that one. This year, these were the cookies I chose to make!

I love how festive these cookies are for Christmas, but they are still delicious year round! I hope you love them as much as I do.

Preparation:

1. Combine butter, brown sugar, and granular sugar in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy.

2. Stir the egg and vanilla extract.

3. Finally, stir in the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt until a dough is formed.

4. Next, fold cranberries and white chocolate chips into the dough using your hands.

5. Wrap the dough in saran wrap and refrigerate for a MINIMUM of ONE HOUR. This will create the light and fluffy cookie texture that we all love.

6. After an hour, pre-heat the oven to 350 F and roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls. Place them approximately 1.5″ apart on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

7. Bake for 8-10 minutes before removing from the oven. The cookies might appear to be undercooked, but they are not! Let them sit on the cookie sheet for about ten minutes before moving them to a wire cooling rack.

8. Enjoy!

xo, Jaclyn