what i wore: shabby apple edition

yes, this is me doing my best Vanna White in a skywalk

Believe it or not, this dress was actually *won* in an amazing giveaway by Amy Day to Day. When I received the news that I was the winner, my day went from average to awesome in about a nanosecond. 

So where's a girl going to wear a fun red dress? On a surprise New Year's Eve date with her husband, that's where! [I was actually forbidden to wear it any day before NYE...the anticipation made it even better.] We went to Hell's Kitchen to enjoy some live jazz music, and while we were probably the snazziest couple there, it was really fun to get dolled up for an evening out.

Shabby Apple was great. After viewing their sizing chart and finding my measurements all over the board, I read the reviews for advice on which direction, larger or smaller, I should order. It was a huge relief when I tried it on [about 5 minutes after finding it on my doorstep] and it fit perfectly! Well, maybe I need to shorten the skirt for absolute perfection, but they can't build all their dresses for 5' 3" women!  

Have you been to their site? Which dress is your favorite?

resolution: read Bible in a year

While I normally don't do promotional posts, with January 1, 2012 approaching soon, I thought some of you might be forming your New Year's resolutions. Truthfully, I don't normally make any; reflecting on the past year and simply dreaming about the future is enough for me.

This past year, however, I did make a goal. It was time for me to get into Bible reading on a consistent basis, and this is the Bible that did it for me.

If one of your resolutions is to read the Bible in a year, you should really give this one a chance. I've done the approach of reading 3-6 chapters a day from Genesis to Revelation, but I like this way better. Each day is labeled with the date, so you always know where you are (or should be). Each day you read a couple chapters from the Old Testament, a few verses from the Psalms, a couple Proverbs, and a chapter from the New Testament. It's written in the NCV translation, which I wasn't familiar with, so passages read newer than if they were in the ol' NIV. Also, each day starts with a brief excerpt from one of Max Lucado's many books.

Being that it's December, the daily reading mix combines some of the last prophetic books of the OT, and the last chapters of Revelation. It's pretty cool to read both of those perspectives each day.

The next post here will return to our regularly scheduled programming, but until then, have a happy (and safe) New Year!

mason jar decor

Canning jars. They are *so very* versatile! 

One of my favorite parts of the Christmas season is all of the lights that come out to brighten our dark evenings. Here in Minnesota it gets dark eeeaaarrrly. Way too early. Or, maybe, perfectly early because it makes the sparkly lights that much easier to see!

Some day I'll share with you the joys that were canning this past fall, but for now, check out what you can do with the leftover jars:

1. Line up some of your favorite glass jars, varying sizes if you can.

2. Add in some "twinkle lights" (or Christmas lights,  if you prefer, but calling them "twinkle" means they can stay up much, much longer).

3. Wait for, oh, 5 pm to roll around and plug them in...

4. Instant warmth! 

Seriously. We had these on during Thanksgiving and everyone agreed they made the room feel cozier. I love plugging them in every night and basking in their glow...and if there's hot chocolate in my hand, all the better. 

For more ideas, check out the Gussy Sews Inspiration Workshop. This week's theme is "holiday decor."

christmas shopping with etsy

How do you normally pick out Christmas gifts? In my family, we exchange names and if I don't know the cousin (or cousin's child) well, it can be hard to brainstorm a present they would like.

Enter Etsy's new gift finder. It's integrated with Facebook...which is genius! [not to mention fun] If you visit Etsy, check out the sidebar for the gift finder. Then allow it to access your Facebook account and wa-la! For all the things your friends and family list as likes on Facebook, Etsy attributes a search tag to and boom: vintage + handmade items geared directly towards that person.

Normally I'm more of a ask-their-nearby-relative-what-they-want-and-play-it-safe kind of person, or if I'm really desperate, ask the person directly what they want. Takes a bit of the surprise out of gift opening, yes, but chances are good that they'll actually like what they receive. But this...watch out, world, this is making me brave. [Well, this and my mustard tights, but that's a different story.]

It even tempts me to buy things for people *not* on my list, simply because it's so easy to pick a price range + subject matter and find great, unique gifts.

While this strays from my typical company highlights of those that are *using* Etsy [or are otherwise small, independent businesses], I just love this feature on Etsy's site and couldn't resist telling you about it!

Have you tried it? Did it get your gift-ideas flowing?


I am linking up with Gussy Sews Inspiration Workshop and the prompt this week is Holiday How-To.

recipe: fall snack mix

If you're ever looking for a snack mix to bring to a fall party, make this. Please. It's so good. But don't invite me or I'll be tempted to eat it all. I can't resist its salty sweet crunchy melt in your mouth goodness.

Because you take this,

break it into bite-size pieces, and combine it with this: 

Which results in an addicting, but filling, snack mix.

One caveat: if you make a pizza before you make the cornflake crunch, your oven might be lying to you when it says 275 degrees. It's probably still 350 and your cornflake crunchies are burning. But you'll still want to eat them. Not that I would know...ahem.


Peanut Butter Candy Corn Snack Mix
adapted from Daydreamer Desserts

4 c. cornflakes
1/2 c. instant non-fat milk powder
3 T. light brown sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
9 T. butter, melted

1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 1/4 tsp. fine sea salt
1/2 c. butter, softened
1 1/4 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. light brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 c. creamy peanut butter

1 c. candy corn
1 c. peanuts
1/2 c. peanut butter chips

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
2. Mix together instant non-fat milk powder, light brown sugar, and salt. Add cornflakes and stir in melted butter until combined. Crushing flakes a bit as you go is fine. Evenly distribute flake mixture over prepared pan. Bake for 18-20 minutes.
3. While that's baking, line another baking sheet with parchment paper and prepare cookie dough.
4. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a small bowl. Set aside.
5. Cream butter and both types of sugar in a bowl with a hand-held or stand mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Add egg and vanilla, reduce speed to low and beat just until combined.
6. Alternate adding dry ingredients and peanut butter.
7. Heat oven to 375 degrees, and bake cookie for 13-15 minutes.
8. While that's baking, crumble your cornflake crunch into a large container. Add candy corn, peanuts, and peanut butter chips.
9. Allow cookie to cool, then break into bite size pieces and add to the candy + peanut mixture.

what i wore: weekend edition

Have you heard of "What I Wore Wednesday"? You probably have. Every Wednesday, the hashtags are buzzing on Twitter, #wiww and #wihww [what I honestly wore Wednesday] abound. My curiosity gets the best of me and I click - what's this? Another cute outfit? And that one! Ooh - I like that headband!

My own Wednesdays, however, are usually pretty bland. Since my days are spent at an office desk, I tend to be pretty tame. The crazy outfits are reserved for the weekends, when I can truly express myself. Ha! Not sure what that means, but I do tend to take more risks on the weekends and hope my neighbors don't notice. Or maybe my church friends won't see me that Sunday. Nothing like a little mustard tights to get my adrenaline pumping! [confession: each time I try to type pumping, it reads pumpking. I think I have an obsession. Moving on.]

how do i wear this? am i drowning in it?

There are fashion rules, right? But then trendsetters break them and establish new rules, contrary to the ones we had before, and suddenly those are the rules. It's all so confusing. At least that's my excuse. So maybe sometimes I get really rebellious, break the rules, and wear leggings as pants...but just once.

And if I could have actually walked in these $7 shoes, they'd be mine.
...we should probably be happy that I couldn't. :-)

These are the shoes that I *can* walk in [this taken after my lunch hour walk], but that doesn't stop me from sporting the stiletto boots. Because you never can have enough stiletto boot. Or maybe that's just me...

It's a little embarrassing sharing my fashion faux pas with the world, but hey, I'm living on the edge. :-) Does this happen to anyone else?

autumnal addictions

Lately I've been going a little nuts with fall baking. All summer I was a very good girl, avoiding the oven as far as baking sweet treats goes, instead exploring veggie-filled recipes and sweetening things with fruit rather than sugar. It was good while it lasted. [No, really, it was!] It trained me [at least a little] to seek out healthy snack options. Right now my go-to is Greek yogurt + homemade applesauce - naturally sweet with good protein to boot

However, the minute it started to turn cold all I wanted to do was bake. Since it's fall, I'm all about the pumpkin and squash. This is how I spent much of October and November:

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bread. My new fave. Made with whole wheat flour and olive oil, my mouth says it's guilty but my brain tells me it's okay.

Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal. Skipped the baking in oven part and just made it on the stove. Dee.lish.uss. Mmmm.

Downeast Maine Pumpkin Bread. Typically this is a fave; I put the whole thing in a Bundt pan and bake for 70 min. This year I made it healthier by subbing half the oil for applesauce and reducing the sugar...turns out I like the full fat + sugar version better.

Pumpkin Granola. The oats didn't turn out crispy, but it makes an awesome breakfast when covered in milk and heated in the microwave.

Pumpkin French Toast. This was an epic failure. Evidently the places I strayed from the recipe were crucial, as my final product was more mush than toast. Oops.

Pumpkin Spice Pull Apart Bread. Note to self: next time try to avoid adding too much flour. Hubs assures me it's still really good and was hard-pressed to let me share any, but still, no photo.

Squash Pudding. The recipes contains coconut milk, which is probably one of my favorite ingredients. It's simple, creamy, and slightly sweet. Yum.

Squash Ravioli. This tastes great. But maybe you shouldn't skip the "remove with slotted spoon and dry on paper towel" part at the end. They all stuck together and didn't look very ravioli-ish, however, still yum.

--------------------------

Wow. Listing them all out makes me feel a little more crazy than before. But the first step to recovery is admitting, right?

I have a winter squash addiction. [and maybe an inability to follow recipes] There, I said it. Now...do you have any favorite recipes I need to try? :-)