Photo illustration by yours truly. Note the sweet frying pan I'm about to review!

It's time to celebrate the end of summer and a transition to tasty, warm, cozy fall foods. It's time for a new series:

Letting Out the Domestic!

(A series on New Apartment Life)

Are you like me: excited for cooler weather, ready for breaking out your fall wardrobe, and stoked to start baking scrumptious breads and whipping up healthy one-pan meals on the stove?

Well, you've come by Alive in the Fire at the right moment! Read on and stay tuned for the latest and greatest adventures in my kitchen as well as the hot room.

And a delicious, healthy recipe for Tagliarini Primavera (a la Sandi, my talented chef stepmom)! Featuring fresh veggies, slivered prsciutto, thin noodles, and fresh parmesan cheese. Oh, and a little whipping cream. Maybe that's why it will taste so good. But hey, if you Bikram, you'll earn it!

Lately I've been loving the look of colorful kitchen stuff, like these Corelle sets. I opted to go with red, black and chrome in my kitchen and I must say it's a kickin' color scheme.

In a few days, I'll also be reviewing this killer frying pan that CSN Stores is asking me to test out. No, they're not paying me to write positive feedback. And yes, it is one of the Rachael Ray series! In a gorgeous lime green color! (OK, so not exactly matching our colors, but it's so pretty...) Obviously I've not used it yet, but the color itself has me jazzed to see what green and tasty things I can use it for. Yum.

Do any of you sexy yogis out there read Green Wedding Shoes, a wedding blog with trendy and stylish but also very down-to-earth wedding posts? The new pan made me think of this wonderful site and all their beautiful posts. I recommend checking it out, especially if you're in the process of planning your Big Day and you want some ideas for photos or just decorative fun possibilities.

More Blogs I Love

OnceWed: The other of my top two wedding blog sites. Features real photos from talented wedding photographers and down-to-earth, genuinely sweet descriptions of weddings by the brides themselves. The overall site has the best laid-back, natural style that any couple can aspire to create at their ceremony and reception.

A Cup of Jo: Joanna has the sweetest little guy, Toby, and a generous and charming husband, Alex, as well as a great eye for fashion and design. Plus she features some ridiculously cool giveaways on the site, and an honest perspective on being married and raising her little boy. She lives in NYC and often offers a wonderful view of what life is like in the Big Apple and how to keep things sane and grounded at the same time. Anything from art pieces to cookie exchange parties, biking and home decor, fall fashion and cool vacation spots -- Joanna seems to cover it all, and quite gracefully!

Pacing the Panic Room: Ryan's keen perception of the world of parenting, photography, freelancing, and life in general makes for some seriously compelling (and talented) writing as well as inspiring photographs. He's one of the best bloggers I encountered and his beautiful series of his wife's pregnancy is out of this world. In fact, it was so spectacular that he followed it up with a much-desired series called Walk to 40 Weeks where you can watch another mom's bump grow into a strong, loving family. Highly recommended reading here, especially for you soon-to-be mums!

Rummey Bears: Rummey baby is the cutest baby I've ever met (online, anyway). I can't get enough of her sweet smiles, silly antics, and lovely family life. Anna, also know as Mama Bear on the site, is one talented and loving mother. She and her husband enjoy time at the beach in Sydney, reading and sipping coffee at local shops, cooking and knitting, and of course enjoying their happy-go-lucky little one.

Those are just a few to get you started. More to come soon! Happy Friday -- here's to tasty meals and a happy weekend filled with back-to-back Bikram doubles! Oh, and bike rides around the entire city of Chicago...that's right: I'm doing CRITICAL MASS. More on that soon, too. Enjoy your weekend!

A little preview compilation of photos taken from the blogs above. Credit to their authors, entirely! Click the links to check em' out.