A Very Happy Day Indeed!

It's gonna be another amazing year bloggers! I've just discovered I made the Graphic 45 Design Team again. It was a rough, tense morning waiting for the announcement. I thought our internet was acting up because I couldn't log on to certain websites, namely Graphic 45's blog. At precisely 8:00 a.m., they were to announce the final team members, but I couldn't get ANYthing! I waited, I tried everything I could think of. I even called a few people, but no one was around.

So Suki and I jumped in the car with my iPhone and raced to the nearest Wi-Fi hot spot (McDonalds) and I tried again. Nope. Not working. Ergh!! However, Facebook WAS working and that's how I found out. Fellow 2014 team member Susan Lui congratulated us (thanks again Susan). Then I discovered from Graphic 45 on Facebook that their Typepad host was down. Thankfully, they attached a link to their newsletter and that's when it was officially confirmed for me.

(In the car in McDonald's parking lot. Suki's back there somewhere.) Such a dork, I know.

You can check out everyone's final audition videos on the Graphic 45 blog (which is now up and running just fine) to get to know the new designers and their styles. What fun!

I'm thrilled and honored to be serving another year and can't wait to get my hands on the new products coming out. Have you seen the two new Spring releases yet? Well, it's time to check them out this week on Graphic 45's blog. Today, below the DT list, they are sharing sneak peeks of the papers from the new "An Eerie Tale" collection and later this week, a second new collection that I know you'll LOVE.

Now that I've shared my exciting news with you, I thought I'd pop up some pictures from our Easter brunch yesterday. It was such a nice day with family. The food was great, we sipped Mimosas, and talked for hours. I don't blog much about it, but my second passion to paper crafting is cooking & entertaining. I look forward to cooking dinner every night (a foreign concept to many of you, I know) and trying new recipes; always striving for as healthy as possible while maintaining great flavor. I've been an avid Cooking Light Magazine subscriber for over 10 years and I can't wait to get each issue and try things out on my family.

Getting the table ready for brunch. All the pretties I made for Easter with Graphic 45's Sweet Sentiments collection adorn my table. The cake pops are sitting in each little treat holder at everyone's seat. The napkin rings are on the napkins and the egg blossom centerpiece is perched atop a vintage mini cake stand I found recently at an antique store.

The banner is hanging over the table.

I don't like to fill up the dining table with lots of trays and dishes of food, so when I entertain I prefer buffet style. It also looks prettier this way. You can use pretty plates, cake stands, and such to elevate things for a nicer presentation.

Everyone just grabs their plates and moves down the line.

Ham and cheese Palmiers (in puff pastry), extra cake pops and Mushroom, Gruyere and Spinach Quiche. (Cooking Light, April issue) (I'm eating leftovers of the quiche as I'm typing this. Yum!)

I tried a new deviled egg recipe this year and it was a HUGE hit. Herb & Crumb Deviled Eggs (also Cooking Light, April.) The two key ingredients that made all the difference: chopped fresh tarragon in the egg mixture and toasted panko crumbs sprinkled on top. Gosh, they were to DIE for!

Oven-roasted fingerlings with lots of shallots, rosemary and thyme.  

Pan-charred Asparagus with toasted walnuts and shavings of parmesan. There's a little tarragon in here too, plus balsamic vinegar and a splash of soy sauce instead of salt. (Cooking Light, April) 

Banana Nut Bread. I like to grate a bit of lemon rind into the batter and I use pecans instead of walnuts. Makes such a difference.

Fresh fruit bowl with "healthy" whipped cream. Another idea from Cooking Light. Just mix some plain, low-fat Greek yogurt and use less heavy whipping cream than usual and it tastes even better than the full-fat version!

I had some fun going around the room taking selfies with everyone. I realized as I was working on a Father's Day project the other day that I have hardly any photos of my father and me together. I'm usually the photographer getting everyone else's pics, so I made sure to get myself with everyone in the family this time, including Suki.

After dinner, the guys had to go check out my Dad's new Honda Accord. It was a big deal that he got a Honda since he's always been a Ford/Chevy kind of guy. Paul and I have owned several Hondas over the past 20 years. We love them!

It was really a great day. I hope you had a lovely Easter Sunday as well. It's always nice to make time for family, no matter what the occasion.

Thanks for stopping in today! Have a fabulous Monday!!