Hey, Sweet Friend! Do you have a recipe that immediately makes you think of someone you love? Maybe it's your grandmother's Sunday pot roast. Your mama's macaroni and cheese. The baked spaghetti that shows up at every family gathering, church potluck, and holiday dinner. You know the one. The recipe that doesn't even have to be particularly fancy, but somehow tastes like a whole lifetime of memories. I think that's one of the most beautiful things about cooking. Food has this extraordinary...
22 days ago • 4 min read
Happy Monday, Friend! I have a little assignment for you this week. I want you to invite someone over for dinner. (I know, revolutionary, right?!) And before you start mentally rearranging your entire schedule, planning a five-course menu, and wondering when you'll have time to clean the baseboards... STOP RIGHT THERE, MISS MA'AM. I'm not talking about THAT kind of dinner party. I'm talking about the kind where you make a big pot of something delicious, light a few candles, and tell your...
25 days ago • 4 min read
Hey, Sweet Friend! I have a theory. A cozy home isn't necessarily one that's decorated beautifully, perfectly organized, or even particularly clean. It's one that feels GOOD to come home to. 👉 The kitchen is ready for you to make dinner. 👉 There's a place to sit down and enjoy it. 👉 You know what's in your refrigerator. 👉 And when someone texts to ask if they can stop by, you don't immediately start calculating where you're going to toss all your clutter by the time they ring the doorbell......
29 days ago • 4 min read
Can I tell you something I've been thinking about lately? We spend an awful lot of time preparing for special occasions and not nearly enough time enjoying the perfectly ordinary days that make up most of our lives. We save the good candles for company. The pretty dishes for holidays. The recipes we really want to make for a dinner party that isn't even on the calendar yet. And in the meantime, all these perfectly lovely Tuesday evenings are waiting for us to enjoy. I think that's where the...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit! Happy October, Friend! Welcome to October at Chez Sweetpea! 🍂 This month, we're embracing cozy candles, comfort cooking, and a little bit of everyday luxury. And before you start thinking you need to buy something, redecorate your house, or completely overhaul your routine, let me tell you something. The most luxurious thing you can have is a home you actually enjoy living in. ✨ One where you light the good candles on a Tuesday. ✨ Where dinner is something you look...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Sweetpea… Butter bean... Snookey Ookums.. October starts Thursday. THURSDAY. How?! 😂 September has been our month of coming home. We've gotten back into our routines. We've cooked dinner. We've talked about making our houses the place to be. We've gathered people. We've made Game Day count as dinner. We've practiced taking care of Future Us. And now? We're ready for October. Not because everything is perfectly organized. Not because the freezer is empty and waiting. Not because we've...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
I think one of the nicest things we can do for ourselves this time of year is notice the season we're actually in. Not the one coming next. Not the holiday we're preparing for. Not the weather we wish we were having. 😂 Right now. Late September. The light is changing. The evenings are getting shorter. The produce at the market is shifting. The house starts asking for lamps instead of overhead lights a little earlier. And even though we've started talking about preparing for the holidays...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Okay, Sweetpea. Darling. Angel of mine. I've made us a plan. Last Thursday, I asked you to think about the things that make the holidays harder than they need to be. The overflowing freezer. The guest room that's become a holding zone. The weeknight dinners that completely fall apart in December. The Thanksgiving dishes we KNOW could have been made ahead. The gifts with nowhere to hide. The seventeen things we suddenly remember need doing at the exact same time. And I told you I've been...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
I have a question for you: What could you do now that would make November You want to reach back through time and kiss you on the mouth? 😘 I'm serious. Because somewhere around the middle of September, I start noticing something. The calendar isn't exactly busy yet. But I can see it coming. October will arrive. Then somehow we'll blink, and it's November. Then there are approximately seventeen things happening every weekend, someone needs you to bring an appetizer, the grocery store is out of...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read