What I'm Loving Wednesdays!

It has been a little hectic around my house - so I haven't been able to post as much as I would like to! But....here's what I'm loving this lovely Wednesday!

I'm loving that we can finally share the exciting news that Baby S will be here in March!! That's right, we've got a bun in the oven. It looks more like a nugget right now, but still cute!

I'm loving that the weather was a little cooler than it has been! Finally no more 115* - I just hope it stays!

I'm loving that my little girl is loving 1st Grade!! I can't believe she's growing up so fast!!

Here are some of my favorite Pinterest finds that I'm loving this week:

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Oh my goodness....I just love this! I definitely plan on doing something like this in March when Baby #2 is coming!

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Now that school is back in session, what a fun way to surprise your kid when they open their lunchbox! These ideas are adorable!

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With the air being slightly cooler, it made me excited thinking Fall is coming! Not nearly close enough, but it's coming! I love all these ideas of ways to decorate pumpkins - how fun!

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Okay, a girl can dream, right?! I love, love, love this bag!! Perfect for Fall!

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There are no words to explain how much I love this! It's perfect!

I hope everyone enjoys their Wednesday!! The weekend is near! 

Foodie Friday! - Taco Pizza

Taco Pizza!

From Life as a Lofthouse

I made this last night for dinner and it was delicious!! All three of us scarfed it down like we hadn't eaten in two weeks. It was super easy, and super fast. Oh, and super yummy! We ate it so fast, I didn't have a chance to take my own pictures of it, so I got this one from Life as a Lofthouse (where I found the recipe!).

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
1 (10 ounce) can refrigerated Pillsbury pizza dough
1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
2-3 cups shredded cheddar cheese (I used colby and monterey jack cheese)
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup sliced black olives
4 green onions, chopped

Directions:

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Brown ground beef in a large skillet, over medium-high heat. Drain grease. Add taco seasoning to the ground beef according to package directions.

Unroll pizza dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet. (I used a 10x15 inch cookie sheet). Let dough sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. Press dough over the bottom and up along all 4 sides the of cookie sheet. Bake pizza dough for 8-10 minutes, or until lightly golden. Remove from oven.

Place refried beans into a microwavable-safe bowl. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir well and then spread beans evenly over the top of the warm pizza crust. Top with the cooked ground beef mixture, sprinkle with cheese and then add the tomatoes, black olives and green onion.

Return to oven and bake another 5-7 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Store any leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

I'm telling you....if you ever need a quick meal - try this one out! You won't regret it!

Foodie Friday! - Chicken Spaghetti

Chicken Spaghetti

Okay, this may not look too delicious - but it is!! Everyone in the family goes back for seconds....annnnnnnd it makes enough to freeze some! Double score! This is a recipe I stumbled across about three years ago when I had nothing better to do than read The Pioneer Woman's blog. I miss those days. Anyway, I've adapted this recipe from her, making a few changes so that it's easier to make for weeknight dinners.

Ingredients
1 Rotisserie Chicken
1 box (about 2-3 cups) Thin Spaghetti, broken into 2" pieces
1 1/2 cups Chicken Stock
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
Onion (finely diced)
Green pepper (finely diced, seeds removed)
2 cups Sharp cheddar cheese
Seasoned Salt, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Bring water, with 1/2 chicken stock to a boil for spaghetti noodles.
• Cook spaghetti noodles until al dente. Do not overcook.
• While noodles are cooking, start pulling the chicken off the bones. You should get around 2 cups. If there are large pieces, break up into bite sized pieces.
• When spaghetti noodles are cooked, drain and place in a large bowl.
• Combine noodles with the cream of mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup, onion, green pepper, and 1 cup of the shredded cheddar cheese. Add the seasoned salt, cayenne pepper (if you want a little kick), salt and pepper - all to taste. Stir.
• Add about 1 cup of chicken stock. You want it to be stirrable, but not soupy. Stir until all ingredients are incorporated.
• Place the mixture in a casserole dish and top with the remaining 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes, until bubbly. If the cheese on top starts to get too cooked, cover with foil.

If you are wanting to freeze this dish, cover and put in the freezer for up to 6 months. When you're ready to bake it, just thaw in the refrigerator overnight, and bake in the oven at 350 for 30-45 minutes. Or, it can be placed in the refrigerator for up to two days, and baked the same way.

I hope you guys enjoy this dish as much as my family does!!

Foodie Friday! - Hocus Pocus

Hocus Pocus

This is all you need to make a magically delicious dessert!!

Ingredients:
Marshmallows
Cinnamon/Sugar
Crescent Rolls
Butter

Instructions:

• Melt butter in a microwave safe bowl (I used 1/2 stick, but you could use less)
• Put cinnamon/sugar mixture in another bowl
• Dip one marshmallow in the melted butter first, then the cinnamon/sugar mixture
• Roll the marshmallow up in a crescent roll, making sure the marshmallow is completely covered
• Repeat with the remaining marshmallows and crescent rolls
• Bake as directed on the crescent roll package 

I basted the top of mine with the leftover melted butter and cinnamon/sugar mixture, so they're not as fluffy as normal - but they sure were delicious!

I'm going to have to play around with this a bit. I bet it would be delicious with chopped pecans, or some chocolate chips! Or both!

This was such a fun thing to do with my daughter! Her job was to dip the marshmallows in the cinnamon/sugar mixture. She was forced to stop after I caught her licking her fingers between marshmallows. But heck, who can blame her?! :)

What I'm Loving Wednesdays!

I hope everyone is having a fantasitc Wednesday!

Here's what I'm loving this lovely Wednesday!

I'm loving that I was able to see all my family and friends this last weekend at my birthday party!

I'm loving the birthday cake that my awesome husband got me!

I'm loving that I'm feeling motivated to get some projects done around the house this weekend! Hopefully we get a lot done!

Here are some of my Pinterest finds that I'm loving this week:

Pinterest

This is such a good idea! My daughter loves reading - this will just make it more interesting and fun! this website is full of ideas!

Pinterest

Is it too early to start thinking about Halloween?? I love Halloween. And, I love tutu's. So this is perfect!

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Does this look like heaven for crafters, or what?! I will be checking out this website before I do my next project!

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This cracks me up!!

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I've been wanting to make bows for my daughter for a long time! Now seems like a good time - these are so cute!

I hope everyone enjoys their Wednesday! It's almost time for the weekend!



Operation Organization

We have spent many, many weekends driving to and from Oklahoma City since we moved away - so not much has happened around our house. We don't have plans to go back to OKC for another three weeks, so I'm going to take this time to do some organizing around the house! Here is a list of projects I plan to do - with the links to where I found them (all on Pinterest, of course!).

School Paperwork Storage:

I love this idea! I don't know about you, but my daughter comes home with at least 20 papers a day. So now, the papers that don't get hung on the art wall will get filed away neatly. Also, you can get free printables here.

Home Management Binder:

I've been wanting to do this for a while. I think it would be wonderful to be this organized! Go here to check out all of Tiffany's awesome ideas!

Dress Up Clothes:

My daughter has a TON of dress up clothes! This would be a great way to get them all together and organized - I love it! Go here for more toy organization.

Laundry Room:

I dream of my laundry room looking like this one day. Maybe then I wouldn't dislike doing laundry so much?! All it needs is a little organization - I love the shelf on the back of the washer and dryer.

Growth Chart:

Okay, this probably doesn't exactly fall under organization - but it's pretty high up on my to-do list, so I thought I would add it. I absolutely love this idea! I think it's an adorable way to chart your children's growth throughout the years! Find the tutorial here.

Playroom Storage:

Our playroom looks like a disaster area! I desperately want some shelving in there - so much so that I asked for a Lowe's gift card for my birthday! These are adorable and would be perfect!


It looks like I have a lot of work cut out for me over the next three weeks! Happy Organizing!!

The Big 3-0

So, 2012 minus 1982 equals 30. I guess it's official. I'm 30.

If you would have asked me 12 years ago, when I graduated high school, where I thought I would be at the age of 30....I'm not sure if this is what I would have in mind. After I got over the initial disgust of thinking 30 is so old, I probably could come up with a few ideas. Perhaps living in Denver, with a big fancy office, a big fancy house, a big fancy car, and a house full of kids. Maybe on the kids part - I went through a phase where the thought of having kids made me cringe.

Well, today my priorities are completely different! I had a little girl, went to college for Early Childhood Education (ironic for someone who didn't like kids, huh?!), and now have an infinite love of children. I love them, their innocence, their cheeky smiles, everything. I couldn't be further from where I thought I would be - but I'm loving my life and couldn't ask for anything better.

So, Happy Birthday to me! Yes, being in the 30-40 bracket now - well it sucks, but I love my life, my wonderful husband, and our fabulous daughter!

......now we just need to work on that big fancy house and that big fancy car. ;)