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Our Favorite Food Photography Redos

January 2, 2019

When we started the blog, we were inspired to post all of our favorite recipes. However, we really weren’t paying too much attention to the quality of the photos. But over the last seven years, we stepped up our photography and food styling. My first thought when I looked back at some of these photos was, “Really, Brian?” With a background in film and television production, I was kicking myself,…

January 2, 2019 By Brian

Side Dishes

Five Favorite Things: December 2018

December 31, 2018

We cannot believe how fast this year flew by. 2018 is over, but it was a great year. Having a baby means having many firsts: first Mother’s & Father’s Day, first Halloween, first Thanksgiving, first Christmas, first laugh, first words, first time sleeping more than 3 hours at night, first [insert cute baby thing]. However, our new year’s eve plans will be like the last few years and involve watching our…

December 31, 2018 By Fatima and Brian

Celebrations/ Christmas/ DIY/ Family Fun/ Millennial and Parents/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Christmas Card 2018

December 19, 2018

Merry Christmas from our family to yours! 2018 has been a whirlwind and we can’t believe we get to celebrate our first Christmas with our son. As our family changes, so will our traditions. Luckily he doesn’t really know what’s going on yet, so we have at least another year to figure out our family’s traditions for the holidays. Like doing an annual family Christmas card. What we do know…

December 19, 2018 By Brian

Celebrations/ Christmas/ DIY/ Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Holiday Flower Centerpiece

December 5, 2018

If you want to put a smile on my face there are two guaranteed ways: feed me or give me flowers. There is nothing like having a fresh arrangement to brighten any room. When I was a little girl, I remember there were these Robinson crabapple or magnolia trees, which would bloom pink flowers every summer. Those trees lined the block and I would pick flowers to give to my…

December 5, 2018 By Fatima

Side Dishes

Five Favorite Things: November 2018

November 30, 2018

How is it the last day of November!? Thanksgiving is over and we look forward to the Christmas season getting into full swing. Whenever we leave the city for our Thanksgiving holiday, we love coming back to all the mobile Christmas tree shops setup on almost every corner. It’s a fantastic welcome back present. Until the Rockefeller Christmas tree was turned on, all of our decorating felt like prep work.…

November 30, 2018 By Fatima and Brian

DIY/ Family Fun/ Millennial and Parents/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

DIY Mrs. Weasley Sweaters

November 28, 2018

Every December, we scramble to find a cute or ugly Christmas sweater for a holiday party. It usually ends in a last-minute purchase with one we aren’t thrilled about. Since ugly sweaters became trendy, prices have gotten out of control. Last year, I searched for Mrs. Weasley sweaters. I was looking for something we could monogram with our initials (like in the film) not just an ‘H’ nor ‘R’. The…

November 28, 2018 By Brian

All Recipes/ Cooking Through Cravings/ Side Dishes

Cooking Through Cravings 2

November 27, 2018

Our journey through Chrissy Teigen’s first cookbook is still ongoing! There are so many more recipes we want to make in that book. But, when we saw her next cookbook (aka Cravings 2) was going to launch, we jumped on the preorder. And we were not disappointed. Lilies and Loafers has affiliate relationships, so we may get a small share of revenue from your purchases. Items are sold by the…

November 27, 2018 By Fatima and Brian

All Recipes/ Autumn/ Celebrations/ Christmas/ Cooking Through Cravings/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert/ Side Dishes/ Thanksgiving

Chocolate Coconut Banana Bread: Cooking Through Cravings

November 15, 2018

It’s the banana bread that broke the internet. The banana bread that sent people into a frenzy when Chrissy Teigen crowd sourced very ripe bananas. The banana bread of all banana breads. But, what makes this chocolate coconut banana bread so amazing? The chocolate? The coconut? Yes and yes. Chocolate Coconut Banana Bread Lilies and Loafers has affiliate relationships, so we may get a small share of revenue from your…

November 15, 2018 By Brian

DIY/ Family Fun/ Halloween/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

DIY Jack-O-Lantern Halloween Costumes

October 24, 2018

Every Halloween, Fatima and I do a couple’s costume. In college, we were Peter Pan and Tiger Lily, then themed to Shondaland’s Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder, went easy and comfortable with Salt and Pepper, and then Harry Potter. Last year, we stayed in and sat on the couch dressed up as a pregnant married couple. Now, we have a third wheel that has to be themed with us. Our…

October 24, 2018 By Brian

All Recipes/ Cooking Through Cravings/ Healthy Living/ Lunch and Dinner/ Side Dishes/ Vegetarian

Sweet Potato and Pomegranate Salad: Cooking Through Cravings

October 17, 2018

The more proper name for this salad should be ‘Harvest Salad’. This will make a great starter or side salad for Thanksgiving or compliment any fall meal. While pretty basic, this sweet potato and pomegranate salad is delicious. Everything works together really well and the garlicky honey-dijon dressing pulled it together. The original salad was filled with butternut squash, which would be just as delicious, but we substituted it out…

October 17, 2018 By Brian

DIY/ Millennial and Parents/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

DIY Starry Night Baby Mobile

September 26, 2018

Liam is nosy. If it moves, makes noise, stands still, is colorful, lacking color, or not visible to the naked eye, he stares at it. He even has conversations with things around the house, like our shiny doorknobs and the corners of any room. Once his sight began to expand and his focus developed, we knew we needed to give him a mobile to focus his attention. However, every mobile…

September 26, 2018 By Brian

All Recipes/ Cooking Through Cravings/ Lunch and Dinner/ Side Dishes

Fried Fish Tacos: Cooking Through Cravings

September 5, 2018

The past few months have been filled with breastfeeding, diaper changes, lullabies and discovering new recipes. Parental leave has been an amazing time as I bond with Liam and discover a whole new side of myself as a mother. But I could not lose sight of what I’ve always loved doing, which is cooking. Cooking is like therapy for me and it was just what I needed to do between…

September 5, 2018 By Fatima

All Recipes/ Comfort Food/ Cooking Through Cravings/ Lunch and Dinner/ Side Dishes

Onion Rings: Cooking Through Cravings

August 22, 2018

I’ve never been able to make rings, until now. Every attempt leads to failure. While looking for something to make for our cook-in dinner, I consulted our Cravings cookbook and I landed on these onion rings. Lilies and Loafers has affiliate relationships, so we may get a small share of revenue from your purchases. Items are sold by the retailer, not by Lilies and Loafers. Since we were staying in for Fourth…

August 22, 2018 By Brian

All Recipes/ Millennial and Parents/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Our Baby Essentials: Must-Haves in the First Three Months

August 15, 2018

We cannot believe it’s been three months since Liam arrived. It has been a wild ride. When we put our registry together, we thought we had everything. However once Liam arrived, he showed us what he liked, didn’t like, and needed. With three months under our belts, we put together a list of baby essentials. Please note: not everything is listed below, so use the link at the end for a full…

August 15, 2018 By Fatima and Brian

Millennial and Parents/ Parenting/ Side Dishes/ Sponsored

Doona Car Seat and Stroller Full Review

June 27, 2018

We purchased the Doona at a discounted rate in exchange for this review and subsequent posts on Instagram. All the planning we were doing throughout Fatima’s pregnancy involved how to make our lives easier for when our LO (little one) was born. We needed to maximize the storage potential in our apartment, find products that were dual purpose, and only get what we needed. As all parents know, that all goes out the…

June 27, 2018 By Fatima and Brian

Millennial and Parents/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Liam’s Birth Story

May 30, 2018

Dear Liam, The hours leading up to your arrival felt like they happened years ago. But just a few weeks ago, we welcomed you to the world. We wanted to remember the day’s events, so here’s your birth story as told by your parents. We planned on meeting you on June 3. But it seems you wanted to meet us sooner. What a wonderful Mother’s Day surprise! Here is your…

May 30, 2018 By Fatima and Brian

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