Best of October...

Hard to believe that in 2 short months we will be celebrating New Years, aka my birthday! Where has the time gone? This month was filled with many ups and some downs, downs that I cannot share with you at this moment. I'm excited for the upcoming holidays and most excited about a trip that Boo and I have planned. Hope you are enjoying fall as much as I am! Here is a short recap of October around our little family...

my sweet boys curls were all cut off, against my will...

future blackbelt...

tradition continues at the same pumpkin patch...

big beautiful Colorado sky...

Boo's first time with us at this patch...

burst of colors...

simple DIY...here

lots of snuggles as the weather gets cooler...

Homemade Batman costume, Happy Halloween!

Citrus Herb Chicken, recipe here

Apple Cinnamon Muffins, recipe here

Pumpkin carving...

"gross"...

Ditka and Harry Caray...

Warmed up with Posole, recipe here

Fall has treated us right so far, cannot wait for Winter.

Posole and being sick...

Happy Wednesday everyone, hope you're staying warm and healthy. I'm surrounded by some sickie sicker sons, Boo has some sinus issue, Liam has a rough cough, and I'm just feeling blah. Lots of hot tea, fireplaces, and soup  happening around here. So this post will be short and sweet.

Whenever sickness hits me, I eat as much spicy foods, garlic, and hot tea as I can handle. A combination that I believes helps me get better. So when everyone got sick I knew the perfect thing to make...Posole. Posole is a traditional Mexican soup that I've been eating since I've been in the restaurant business. This particular recipe I've had for a couple of years, I got is out of a Men's Health magazine. I'm sorry, I'm that asshole that rips up the magazine while I wait getting my car's oil changed.

Brown Sugar Panna Cotta and Dressing up for Halloween...

Burrrrr....its so cold here! Well, I'm probably overreacting just a little, but its freezing to me. Layers, scarves, and double socks; and we aren't even outside. I'm cold to the bones. I'm pretty sure we are done with warmer weather until spring.

This past weekend was spent celebrating Halloween, we went to a party up in the mountains. A blast was had by all! Halloween has to be one of my favorite holidays, I love dressing up! Boo and I dressed as a couple of Chicago legends, he was Harry Caray and I was Mike Ditka. It was such a blast! What's your costume this year?

Ditka is infamous for giving the bird!

Apple Cinnamon Muffins and planning my fall menus...

I've been wanting to make some muffins for my Boo for some time, he loves muffins and is always buying them at the store. Why I haven't made them for him yet is beyond me. I picked up some local apples at the store the other day and wanted to make a pie, a tart, apple butter, crostada...everything fall related of course.

Citrus Herb Roasted Chicken and Blogging...

My morning usually begins with reading my favorite blogs and today was no exception, except I felt a little discouragement from one. The question she asked, "are you reading blogs less?". I'm still new to the blogging world and I love it, I love to share stories, pictures, recipes, DIY, I love it all. I wish I had more time to write posts, but unfortunately I do not. Everything I've done has been a learning process, from taking an OK picture to writing. I'm not the best but hope to one day be a blogger that is followed, I love sharing with you. To the people that follow me, THANK YOU! I hope that you enjoy what I have to say and are making a good meal or a fun DIY. So I will keep on keeping on, BOOM!

Now onto some good food...

Orange, lemon, garlic, thyme, rosemary, and olive oil; whats not to love? I first came across this recipe on Pinterest, via HERE. I've made it a few times and always go back to it, Liam loves it so much. I love the crispy skin and bright rich flavors. Its a go to recipe and could easily be used for entertaining, freezes well if you have leftovers, and is put together in a snap!

Broke and Bored, installment 3

Hello and Happy Monday! Are you enjoying fall yet? Its been really starting to cool off around here and it couldn't be nicer. This past weekend Boo and I hosted a family game night, we played games, ate tons of food, and had plenty to drink. It was really nice seeing everyone, it was like the home-opener for the holidays. We had a chili bar, complete with chili (of course), all the toppings, baked potatoes, nachos, Boo's moms crab dip that was TO DIE FOR, and Pumpkin whoopie pies. I'm really happy to be involved with his family, its really nice for everyone to be so accepting. 

Last week Liam and I had a little fall scavenger hunt around our apartment complex; we collected leaves, pine cones, and sticks. He really gets into nature and I love his excitement about the change in colors and the seasons. Once we got home we inspected our findings and created a new fall vignette for our living room. We put our colorful leaves in an old frame that I had, scattered the pine cones, and saving the sticks for something else. Its not the most original idea out there, but it was fun spending time with him and watching his excitement and I get to look at something new and beautiful for a little bit. 

photo bomb!

There are so many different trees around our apartment, every color too! I think I might miss this place when we move, especially the pool! 

Are you bringing nature into your home this fall?

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls...

Holy moly, I fell in love at first sight and then all over again at first bite with the Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll. I first noticed this recipe on Pinterest HERE, and knew that I had to make these. I love cinnamon rolls and pumpkin, so whats not to love about these? I changed her recipe a little, suiting my own tastes and altitude as well.

These came out incredible, they are now part of my permanent autumn baking list. Perfect served warm with Spiked Apple Cider on a cool morning. Tomorrow Boo, Liam, and I are going to the pumpkin patch and these will probably make an appearance in our picnic basket.

Pumpkin Pie Spice...

Happy Monday, hope you all enjoyed your weekend. Mine was spent under the weather, got a nasty cold that has been going around. Saturday Boo and I took his step mom out for dinner and had a nice time with her. She's such a sweet woman and I'm glad to have her in our lives. Hi Korinne!  I'm feeling almost 100% and really want to bake.

My next post will be a yummy recipe that I cannot wait to share with you. This post right here was kind of impromptu. The recipe I am making right now called for pumpkin pie spice and I didn't have enough, so I whipped a batch real quick, took a couple photos, and here I am sharing with you. Pumpkin pie spice is just a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger...probably stuff you already have laying around. So instead of wasting money on the prepackaged stuff just make your own!

In a small jar mix together...

3 Tablespoons Ground Cinnamon

4 teaspoons Ground Ginger

2 teaspoons Ground Cloves

1 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg

Spiked Cider...

Happy Friday!!! We got a taste of winter here this morning, a light dusting of snow and below normal temperatures. Some people are excited for winter to come, I just want to have a proper fall. The leaves just started turning and it is beautiful. Fall is my favorite time of year, I can do without winter or snow at least.

I bought some local apple cider this week and knew that I wanted to spike it up! Who doesn't love hot apple cider and who doesn't love spiked cider more? Its just one of those things that put a smile on this girls face, whisky makes me frisky.

Hope you all have a great weekend and get a chance to enjoy fall or an early winter.

Spiked Hot Apple Cider

serves 2 

1 1/2 Cups Apple Cider

3 ounces Jim Beam Red Stag Spiced Bourbon Whisky

1 Cinnamon Stick

In a small pan, add cinnamon stick to apple cider and heat on low for 15 minutes. Do not let boil, you are just infusing the cinnamon into the cider. Add booze and serve. 

Broke and Bored, installment 2

Happy Monday! Hope you enjoyed your weekend, mine wasn't to exciting. Sometimes I prefer a low-key weekend with minimal plans than always having something to do.

Today is the second installment of Broke and Bored, I started this series last week with a DIY studded purse, see HERE. I will be living la vida broka for some time and I'm so bored with all my clothes and house decor that I have to jazz things up. I have lots of ideas and hope that you can find some inspiration to DIY yourself something and save a buck.

Now, on to some fun...

I DIY'ed my old cotton ball and Q-tips containers with some gold. I'm obsessed with all things gold, and can't think of a place where it doesn't belong. I've had these simple candle holders from the dollar store for years now, and realized that they needed something.

So, in comes Rub and Buff...

Clean and dry the entire surface and tape off what you want to keep clear. 

This was the first time I ever used this product and was really impressed with the outcome. Just put on a small about with your fingers and rub until it has luster. It is pretty grainy and it will smooth out the more you rub it. 

Goldfinger!!!

The finished product, I'm really happy! 

this thing couldn't stand a chance...

LOVE IT!!!

Broke and Bored, installment 1

I'm starting a new series on the blog here called Broke and Bored. Recently I've put myself on a tight budget and I have to come up with clever ways to keep from spending. I don't wanna break my rules, but there are so many things that are screaming my name. Mostly clothes and home decor items are what I have serious ADD about. So in this series I am going to DIY or repurpose items that I already have to curb my impulsive shopping. 

First up a studded purse...

I've had this purse laying around for some time now, it came with a matching tote bag. I love the color but thought that it was really lacking something. So what else is a girl to do but stud it. Studs are everywhere now, on everything. I'm not one to follow trends, in fact I've been rocking studs for as long as I remember and will continue to even after the fad is gone. 

I ordered the studs off Etsy from HERE, picked up some E6000 glue and went to town. Leave to dry for 24 hours. I do plan on studding the matching tote bag too and probably everything else in my line of vision.

What do you think?

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies and Praying for Colorado...

I'm sure most of you have heard about the recent floods in Colorado, its been a trying time for many people and business'. I've never thought that our state would be a victim of flood damage, but I have been proven wrong. Its been very scary not knowing if our area was next, luckily we are all fine...truly blessed. Please visit HERE to donate to those affected by the floods, any amount will help.

Last weeks dreary weather definitely put me in the mood for fall treats. I got to break out the boots and sweaters a couple times and it was really nice. But this week the sun is back shining, the sky is as blue as the ocean is deep, and its hot again...too hot! But that's not stopping me from making the first treats of  long awaited fall. I'm welcoming fall weather with Pumpkin Whoopie Pies! I love a good Whoopie Pie, soft cake that stands tall and stuffed with fluffy filling.

Red Beans and Rice and getting ready for fall...

Hello everyone, hope you all enjoyed your weekend. Saturday we hit up Festival Italiano, it was my first time at this particular event and definatly won't be my last. We braved the horrible heat wave by drinking wine and Italian inspired cocktails, feeding our faces with wood-fired pizza, pastries, and gelato, and cheered Liam on as he stomped grapes to make some wine. It was awesome!

It has been so hot lately, and we are finally getting a break this week. I cannot wait for the change in season, its all about comfort food, sweaters, scarves and boots, and snuggling up with a warm drink with the one you love. Defiantly planning a trip up to the mountains to see some fall foliage, its my favorite time of year.

I was in the mood for something spicy today and Liam loves rice and beans, so I made Red Beans and Rice. I wanted low maintenance, therefore the crock pot made its first appearance this season. I forget how much I love me a slow cooker!

Fig Thyme Jam and remembering an old friend...

I know that some of you are thinking "why figs and thyme", its one of those magical combinations that just work well together. I love pairing savory elements with sweets, for a creation that is unthought of or unexpected. I've been looking for figs to come around for some time and boy did I get a surprise at my last Costco trip, 2 pounds of the most beautiful fresh figs. I was intending on making a tart with them, but time got the best of me again and they started to get too soft. So a jam was in order, and thyme from my little container garden was needing to get used, so Fig Thyme Jam was created.

Quinoa for lunch and ready for school to start...

First recipe post in months and the first for the fall season. I'm really looking forward to fall, the weather has been cooling off a little here and change is in the air. Liam starts school on Wednesday and we are both looking forward to it. I'm ready to get back on a more routine schedule, which means more time for blogging too, YAY!!!

One of my favorite things is quinoa, its such a quick thing to make and you can incorporate so many different ingredients to create many healthy dishes. This recipe happens to be something I eat on the regular, I almost have all these things ready to go and its great to make ahead of time and take it with you on the go, enjoy hot or cold.

Where has the time gone? And a recap of summer...

I cannot believe its been almost TWO whole months since my last post. I had intentions of making so many posts this summer on recipes, travel, and DIY's but the time has just flown by, I apologize and hope to make it up to you this fall. Mad props to the bloggers that post regularly throughout summer.

This summer has been the best I've had in years, I cannot remember a summer filled with so much fun. Here's a short recap of some of our summer happenings...

Liam's first baseball game.

Kid even got a game day ball!

So much sugar!!!

One of many romantic dinners with my boo.

Lots of swimming, Euro style of course.

OAR concert at Red Rocks!

4th of July and super blonde!

Mountain party with Jack and Sierra.

Monday's, Mojitos, and Mommies.

Liam's first sleep over, complete with homemade pizza and ice cream.

First weekend getaway with the boo, to Glenwood Springs, Colorado.

Hot Springs pool, whitewater rafting down the Colorado River, lots of food, a great time!

On the Hanging Lake Trail.

Almost to Hanging Lake.

Worth the struggle!

Rockies VS Cubs game. 

My favorite picture!

Liam and I camping at Golden Gate Canyon State Park, Colorado.

Our Chipmunk friend.

Roasting marshmallows!

A birthday celebration and possibly the best steak I ever had, at Del Frisco's.

Ice Cream CAKE!!!

New Belgium Brewery Tour, Fort Collins Colorado

Such a fun time!

A wedding in Silverthorne, Colorado with these 2 studs!

A brother and sister getting down!

Broncos preseason game, Club level at that!