Early Christmas

My mom went to a Pampered Chef party and asked if I needed anything. Since I had a Pampered Chef bridal shower,there wasn't much I needed. Except, I still have the image in my head of the Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte recipe in one of the Pampered Chef cookbooks....which requires a Torte pan. I couldn't find one anywhere, and my mom decided to get me one. And let me tell you, I cannot wait to make this:mmmm....even if mine doesn't turn out as pretty as this one, you can't go wrong with peanut butter and chocolate! ....I'll let you guys know if its really as delicious as it looks!

Bargains or Bust!

After picking Macyn up for daycare today, I decided to hit up a few rummages. I didn't know how long this would last, since her last bottle was at 1:30 (and it was now 5:00). And, I wasn't sure how easy it would be bringing a 10 month old to different sales, getting her in and out of the car, browsing while she grabs things, etc. But I thought I would try it out, and I made it to 5 rummages!

Here are the items I picked up. I only purchased things at 2 rummages. I bought everything except the jeans at the same one. This is what I got (from left to right)... 3 piece outfit from The Children's Place, 1 pair of Baby Gap jeans, blue track outfit combo (she will look just like grandma!) :).....3 piece long sleeved shirt with a sweater skirt and cardigan from Old Navy, another shirt and pants set, 1 non-fleece sleeper, and one Carter's sleeper. For a grand total of............$9!!!! Thats a whopping 13 items too!

There was one part of the day that totally bummed me out. You see, at this rummage there was a Cozy Coupe that was parked underneath a table. The lady's 2 year old was running around so I just assumed it wasn't for sale. Then this other lady comes up and asks if its for sale, and how much she wanted for it. She made and offer of $3....and she took it!!! REALLY!? A COZY COUPE FOR $3!!!!? Totally bummed!!! I would have paid atleast $10!

Oh well, I guess i shouldn't worry about being one of "those" people who ask if random stuff in the garage is for sale....kinda like when we had ours a couple of years ago, someone asked if the table with items on it was for sale....no joke.

Hopefully I will find more goodies tomorrow. I am excited! Taking off 1/2 day of work and going with my sisters...and it will be much easier without worrying about Macyn!

Fall Fun

Since the weather has been super nice with the little cool in the air, I thought it would be a perfect time to take down my spring/summer decor and replace it with fall decorations. First up, the book case.I added some leaf garland, red bead garland (you can buy after Christmas, and use for Valentine's Day as well), some fake pumpkins and tea lights. The black pail came from my former boss from some Halloween trivia in our office. The flowers in the pail are from my spring/summer collection, but look good together for fall. The white pillar candles are from our wedding, and the framed leaf on the left hand side I made in literally 2 minutes....When I took the garland out of storage, some of these leaves had fallen off, and I thought I would get all creative and frame them instead of throwing them away. Last year on Black Friday, I picked up the 13 frames for $13 packs, and used those for my super fast project. Literally, all I did was put the loose leaves in a frame....that's it! I put them on the end table in our living room as well:The bowl is the one we got on our honeymoon in Colorado. It is carved out of a tree stump that I filled with some fake pumpkins. The leaf it is sitting on is a place mat. I decided to continue this theme to the dining room centerpiece.Once again, the centerpiece is on two leaf place mats. We got the candle holder in our past trip to Colorado. We found it at a little shop in Estes Park, and the person who made these finds dried up Aspen trees and cuts out a space for the candle. All the markings are from moose (or some animal) that would rub its horns against it. It is a pretty light weight wood, but has tons of character! We love buying things that you cannot find around here in good ol' Iowa.

So I think these decorations should last me until Thanksgiving, that is, until I get into the Christmas spirit.....which often happens before turkey day!

Birthday Cake Sneak Peak

After debating what to do for Macyn's first birthday in 1.5 months (I like to be on top of things), I came up with a GREAT idea for a cake....except the only cakes I have ever made are 9x13's. I can't even make the two round cakes and stack them, so I thought for sure I would have to order my cake from someone who makes them. But then I found a way to make a hemisphere shaped cake that would become part of my bigger vision. It turned out great! But please, don't turn it into Cake Wrecks for it looking like a "poo mound" as they like to call it.

I know it's not much, but a HUGE step in the right direction. What kind of cake am I making, you may wonder? Well, I guess you will have to wait and see!

F double O T B A double L - FOOTBALL!

Macyn went to her first Northwestern football game on Saturday. Its the same college that DH graduated from (my college didn't have football) and it was their first home game and they were hosting the #1 rated team who hasn't lost in the conference in 50-ish?? games. It was a perfect night, not too hot, but had a little chill in the air. We got there a whole hour early to get seats, and it seemed pretty packed 20 minutes before kick off.

The red raiders were doing well when I left (after staying to watch the marching band, because I'm a band geek like that) and were up by 10 points. Well, I was trying to listen to the game on they way home, but Macyn thought it would be a great time to cry the entire way. So I quick go home, put her to bed, and listen to the game. It turns out NWC lost their lead and ended up losing. It was a great first half from the Red Raiders though, I just wish I could have stayed for the entire game.

For the opposing team, 2 of their offensive starters came from my high school, so that was kinda fun to watch. Next time we go to a game, I will most likely go during the day when Macyn doesn't have to go to bed, and when you don't have to get there a whole hour early just to find a good seat!

Push'n Along My Automobile...

Here is a short video I took of Macyn pushing her car that transforms into a ride-on toy ($3 at a garage sale, you can't go wrong)! My favorite part is when she stops in the middle to wave at Buddy. It's kinda hard to see, but she's doing it. I don't think she will be walking anytime soon because she's pretty content with crawling, but it's still exciting!

23 Meals in 24 Hours!

How do you turn this:into this?:by making 23 meals to freeze for later - all in a Saturday afternoon while getting laundry folded and put away. (Ambitious, I know....and I was exhausted!) Before Macyn was born, I froze a couple of meals and soups. I used them up right away and it was super handy to have something you can thrown into the slow cooker and keep it on low all day and have it ready at supper. No mess, no dishes, no slaving away in the kitchen!

There is an official name for this called OAMC (Once A Month Cooking). It is also more cost effective because you can usually buy in bulk, and you can eat out less and at home more. If you watch for sales (like beef, I only buy that when its less than $2 per pound), you can save even more. I picked up a book at the library about it as well, but just decided to try out my own recipes that I know I like, instead of making a whole bunch of new ones that could be questionable. So I thought I would give it a shot.

So first, I get out the ever-so-handy, Josh & Brittany's Cookbook! If you need an idea for a great Christmas gift, a TasteBook is the way to go! You pretty much make your own cook book with your own recipes - you can even customize it with pictures and whatever else you want! They are really easy to make and decently priced (wait until the fall when they have free shipping when you buy 3) They print out all your recipes, includes dividers, and you can always buy extra pages to add to your book. It is also hard covered and the pages have a little bit of shine to them so the ink doesn't run if you spill something on them. You can also browse other TasteBooks or grab recipes from popular websites. It is super easy, and you can choose your cover, text, and all that stuff! Okay, enough with my TasteBook love, and back to the food!Here are the things I made - I ended up using 17 lbs of beef, 4 lbs of chicken, and 3 lbs of sausage, and TONS of other groceries. I spent about $200 which isn't so bad because it also included Gladware Ovenware pans, all freezer bags, most ingredients, and our everyday groceries. If this can get me through the month, the price tag is definitely worth it.

First up-taco meat:Chili Soup:
Taverns:
Side Dish Casserole (not sure of the real name, its just what DH calls it) - It's more or less hashbrowns, beef, sausage, cheese, and topped with french fried onions (that you put on later):
Cavatini:Taco Hot Dish fillings:
Tator Tot Casserole (sans the tator tots):

White Chicken Chili (forgot to take pic, so this is from google):Those are the meals I made with each freezer bag or pan having a single (family size) serving. These can stay frozen for up to 3 months - which puts us into November, so I'm pretty sure our soups will be gone by then! I will see how all this goes, and I might oficially be on the OAMC bandwagon!