A New Look!

So I'd been letting the blog design slide for awhile now, and decided to give it an update! I also have some cool new features!

• You can now mouse over any image on the site for a "pin it" button. If you are planning on pinning something from a blog post, I please ask that you are on that specific post page. So the link back will take other pinterest users to the right place. IE Click the title of the blog post from the main page and then pin the image. 
• The mobile site is now easier to browse through.
• On the sidebar I've linked the various ways you can follow the blog, and the other places online you can find me. Do you prefer bloglovin, feedly, or good old fashion RSS? I've got them all linked on the side for easy following! You can also check out my etsy where I sell printable scrapbooking supplies (and sometimes vintage). As well as any of my posts of foodgawker or craftgawker! 
• Social links (Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, & Facebook) are now located at the bottom of any page. Twitter is also a good way to keep up with the blog as all new post will be linked there!
• There's now a button that you can link back to Lux Per Diem on your blog with! On the sidebar you'll find the button, including all the code needed to just copy and paste everything into your blog. If you'd like to trade buttons just contact me and I'd be more than happy too! 
• I'm currently working on a project page to link my most popular crafts and recipes. Although it's not live yet, expect it soon! I hope it makes it easier to find what your looking for. 
• I'm also working on a new blog schedule. I've been a little lax on actually getting blog posts together, even though I'm still doing projects. I feel like a flexible blog post schedule will help with that. 

Do you like the new design? What kind of posts would you as a reader like to see more of?

Pinned! : Chicken Power Bowls

I know I can't be the only one. My Pinterest is packed full of awesome ideas that I think I'll never actually do. So I'm going to start blogging my attempts at a Pinterest project two to four times a month. I started with this recipe I found on Iowa Girl Eats via Pinterest. It's a chicken power bowl. Basically a salad, but doesn't power bowl sound way cooler? 

Basically just throw together some chicken, roasted chickpeas, hard boiled egg, blue cheese, brown rice, and spinach. I just dressed it with a super simple vinaigrette. It's super good! I didn't follow the recipe really though, except for the roasted chick peas. I took two cans of chickpeas, rinsed and drained, and tossed them with a little bit of olive oil. I put them in an oven at 350F for about 40 minutes or until they were crispy. When they were finished I seasoned them with some lemon pepper and garlic salt. 

For the chicken I cut it into strips and cooked it in a skillet with a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and garlic. I deglazed it with madeira wine. It turned out nice a juicy and perfect for a salad. The original recipe called for wonton strips, but my grocery store didn't actually have any. Which is probably for the best since we don't like to eat a whole lot of wheat anyway. I added some brown rice for that very reason, to keep the carbs up a bit, but without flour. 

So my first "Pinned!" project is a win at this point! Are you better than me about actually doing the projects you pin?

Daily Life

We had a mini vacation this week for my Brother's wedding. 

The wedding and our accommodations were at the Mayhurst Inn. Which was wonderful, and full of history. Mayhurst was built by Colonel John Willis, a great-nephew of President James Madison. The bed and breakfast's owners Pat and Jack were amazing. If you ever find yourself in Orange Virginia you should really look this place up! 

The Wedding was a black tie affair, so I probably took around a million photos of everyone dressed up. I'll spare you those. I do love this picture of Brian and I so much though! 

We visited Montpelier (James Madison's Estate) the day after the ceremony. Although the weather was rainy and awful, the house was still impressive. You couldn't take any pictures inside, so here's the view from the porch. Without cloud cover there are some pretty amazing mountains in the skyline. 

Before we left Virginia I managed to have some time to take my sister's graduation announcement photos! Fun fact, she's an honest to god rocket scientist!   

Brian's Dad's Birthday dinner! We got him The Blob on blu-ray. It was very well received. 

I attempted to make Chicken Marsala, but accidentally grabbed madeira wine. So we had some pretty tasty Chicken Madeira instead. Italian comfort food is my favorite. 

My very messy sewing space. I didn't manage to finish the dress in time for the wedding. Although I'm a zipper insertion and a hem away from being all the way done. I'll post more on the dress later in the week when it's hopefully finished! 

Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara are starring in the move Carol, which has been filming all over Cincinnati this month. It's so strange/awesome to see all the old cars, extras in costume, and oh you know MOVIE STARS everyday. Although I have gotten close enough to take pictures of the actresses in the movie, I feel like a total creeper and decided against it. But if you search #carolwatch you'll find some. 

Happy Monday! How has your week been so far?