THE DAILY GRIND.

Today's been a good day, despite the fact that Maple and I are still trying to kick these Thanksgiving colds of ours.  Nonetheless, crisp weather, ample sunshine, and a busy calendar is making me pretty dang happy today, though I'm still reminiscing about last night's dinner (and what followed suit):

I made Asian pear pizza, topped with pancetta, mozzeralla, 

feta,and of course shredded parmesan:

 It was nothing short of delicious and I haven't stopped thinking about it since! Thank goodness there were leftovers...which I just devoured. Really...it was the perfect concoction of sweet and savory, and the salty pancetta really heightened it to perfection. And it's so easy: simply roll out your dough, top it with thin slices from two ripe Asian pears, crack some fresh black pepper atop, and layer on your cheese of choice. Top it with pancetta straight from the package (no need to pre-cook), and throw it in a 400 degree oven until the edges are lightly browned.

And in case you're curiosity's been peaked, here's my favorite dough recipe:

The Pioneer Woman's pizza dough

(simply scroll to the very bottom)

Maple strung the lights on our tree

(which I was more than excited to pick out!)

Our first tree in our first house:

We make or give one another an ornament every December that represents the year gone by, so we don't have all that many. All that we do have, though, are super special, and it's so fun to reminisce over each one as we hang them. See that round, wooden one? That's my favorite--made by Maple himself...before we got hitched.

So my morning started off at Wildflour bakery--chatting it up with a really good friend over delicious coffee.

I grabbed some Sherwin Williams paint samples after coffee and headed over to another good friends house to discuss decorating plans for her amazingly cute kitchen nook:

Cool, crisp weather has finally descended upon Charleston--which means beloved boots and legwarmers for me today:

So Amy and I sipped some tea, talked paint, stain, and other fun things, then headed to the Habitat Restore to peruse hidden treasures with peppermint hot chocolate in-hand. We scored: amazing bentwood cafe chairs for $5 a piece. Amy left with two, and I couldn't bear to part without at least one. So in my guestroom it now sits:

$5!! She'll sit pretty with a custom round cushion and newly spruced walls (whenever I muster up the energy for that dreaded painting task).

So now I'm home, nestled in front of the computer, with a candle burning and tea in the kettle, tackling an email or two and wrapping  up some design work:

...daydreaming over my office revamp (goodbye halfway painted peacock wall...hello diamond grass cloth paper and glossy moulding) and that oh-so-cool console I found for dirt cheap that I so badly want to paint (see the brass, corner hardware and half circle, flush drawer pulls?!):

And that's my day.

Full of dear friends and all the things I love.

So I'm off...to finish work...clean house...and anxiously await the arrival of a best friend from college.

Happy Thursday!

 P.S. don't be surprised by Maple + Shade's soon-to-be new look. I'll get around to updating it in the next few days or so :)