Happy Halloween!

kicking myself for not whipping up a batch of quinoa clusters for the neighborhood kids

 they'll be devastated when they see the full size candy bars CJ brought home for them

 

can't wait to take SG out trick-or-treating!

 



Trader Joe's Tuesday

 

 

chicken pot pie

 

 

 

this was just ok. SG loved the chicken and veggies so i would definitely call this "toddler approved" but CJ and i could take it or leave it. i felt like the crust was more croissant and less pie or biscuit and, to me, the best part of chicken pot pie is the pie crust or biscuit on top. am i right?

 

 

 

pumpkin cheesecake

 

 

don't buy this. you'll eat the whole thing in one sitting and then you'll hate me.

i topped it with a little homemade whipped cream i made using

 apple cider moonshine and a pinch of sugar

 

 

 

spiked apple cider

 

 

 

i'm a beer and wine girl. i don't usually do liquor drinks.  i like a crown and ginger, an extra dirty martini, makers mark on the rocks, and even the occasional vodka tonic... but usually just one. so this is perfect because this is definitely just a one drink cocktail. i find it to be sweet enough to replace dessert. don't get me wrong, it's really good i'd just never be able to drink enough of them to catch a proper buzz without getting a tummy ache. you can even add a splash of club soda for just a little fizz. this (non-TJ's) vodka is also really good with cranberry juice and OJ

i saw some new thanksgiving stuff in stores last week
 can't wait to get it all home to try it out!

Weekend Recap

i'd like to be able to say that we did everything we'd planned to do this weekend

i'd also like to be able to say that my Gators won this weekend

but neither of those statements would be true

 

 

we had plans to attend a fall carnival on friday night

a surf competition & food fair on saturday morning

watch florida beat georgia saturday afternoon

attend our local elementary school's halloween carnival saturday night

sea world's spooktacular sunday morning

and pumpkin carving sunday night

 

 

instead...

we stayed in on friday night

i barely opened my eyes in time to watch my gators lose

we did make it to the halloween carnival

 sea world didn't happen.

but pumpkin carving did happened

and even though we didn't finish

we had a lot of fun trying

 

 

we did get a lot of much needed rest

SG took a four hour nap on both saturday and sunday

and we just had fun being together

 

 

since it's still in the 80s here in southern california

we had an impromptu alfresco dinner party

crockpot buffalo chicken, jicama, grape tomatoes, snap peas

toasted pumpkin seeds

wine boxes

 and juice boxes

 

 

oh well

better luck next weekend, right?

 

 

 



Friday Five

one

 

in the stillness of the morning, before i even get out of bed, i read my daily devotion. when CJ gets up to make my coffee and fix SG's morning milk, i take that time for myself. and if, for whatever reason, i miss this part of my morning routine i find myself feeling restless throughout the day.

i'm thankful for this type of direction, especially on weeks like this,

 when i've needed peace, strength, prayer, and a little grace.

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you,

you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:5

 

 

Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence

 

 

two

 

 a few weeks ago i set out to BevMo with a pinterest recipe in hand

i won't even link to it because...ew let's just say it didn't turn out as i'd hoped

but i did find something i never knew i always wanted

(which is my favorite kind of thing to find)

this is good with a splash of sprite zero

but i actually prefer it on the rocks!

Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine

 

three

i've been all about slow-cooking and baking this week

and since there is only a little time left for Halloween treats, I decided to make the Duchess of Fork's  Gooey Candy Corn Cookie Bars that I'd been dreaming of ever since she posted them

  

 

(all the candy corn cookies and m&m's were sold out at our local stores)

 

{i used Molly's photo because hers were prettier}

 

four

zara
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t-shirt with faux leather sleeves


five

this conversation eats up at least an hour of our time
every.freaking.friday

 

 

Happy Weekend!

we're packing our weekend with all the halloween festivities SG can handle, watching college football, and trying to hide from the santa ana winds that are supposed to blaze through

 

GO GATORS!

 

i drank the lululemonade

a couple years ago i made my very first Lululemon purchase

...and i was underwhelmed

after lots of recommendations, i went with the groove pants and the ta ta tamer sports bra. after switching sizes in the pants 3 times i finally accepted the fact that i just didn't like the way that they fit and after only a few gentle washes i wasn't happy with how they held up. the tata tamer was more like some kind of s&m gear i'd expect to find in christian grey's red room of pain. i was a 32dd at the time (this was before SG) and if i got it tight enough in the rib cage it would smash my boobs but if i went up a size i could hula hoop with the band. to be fair, before SG this was the story of my bra-wearing life

 

*enter post-breastfeeding bubbies and life as a SAHM*
 

confession? i wear a real bra about once a month

 sports bras have now become my best friend for*freaking*ever

 

i spend most of my time chasing after a busy toddler.  wrangling her through Target, Trader Joe's, and the Gap. driving to and from the gym, playgrounds, splash pads, and playdates. i was starting to feel like all of my "go to" outfits were either too scrubby or, even worse, too fancy (why are all the cute shirts i find 100% silk?) for my new lifestyle. I really want to be cute, comfortable, and at least present the illusion of being put together as I scurry straight from pilates to a playdate.  but if you know me you know that comfort is key.

(star runner pullover)

 

 

i'm a sucker for the Gap. my Gramma raised me to be a Gap girl. and i guess in a lot of ways i'm rasing SG to be one too.  (if only the Gap would add a line of smocked dresses and applique tees)

so it was a natural and seamless transition as the Gap Fit line made it's way to front and center of my wardrobe. but, whenever i would read the product reviews someone would make a comparison to Lululemon. i just kept thinking that they were crazy because, in my experience, Lululemon wasn't half as good as the Gap Fit stuff. and then one day i let myself start browsing their website again. eventually i pulled the trigger on the  No Limits Tank Energy Bra and the Wunder Under Pant

not to be dramatic but...these three items changed my life

 

and this is when i started drinking (what i like to call) the lululemonade

 

 

there are quite a few things that i still prefer to get from Gap Fit.
I prefer their yoga pants and i love the tanks and tees from their Body line.
but when i throw on a pair of wunder unders, the energy bra, a gap body racerback tank, my rainbows, and an in stride jacket i can easily go from pilates to a playdate and still feel cute enough to meet a friend for lunch without having to stop by my house 3 times to change in between...because who the heck has time for that?


essentials

energy bra

no limits tank

 

 

star runner pullover

 

 

in stride jacket

 

 

wunder under pants

 

Trader Joe's Tuesday

cheese & crackers

 

 

i am really liking this cranberry apple butter right now

goes so well with any brie cheese, i just happened to have the light brie on hand

 

 

mac 'n cheese

 

 

i'm somewhat of a mac 'n cheese snob and i'm here to tell you, this is some good stuff

it's been a tough couple of days around here and this was exactly what the doctor ordered

 

 

toddler breakfast

 

 

 

 

 this girl loves greek yogurt

 her favorite is the full fat honey greek yogurt (which is amazing with the pumpkin granola and i don't even like yogurt) but i was caught up in Pumpkinpalooza and stocked up on these individual servings in the pumpkin flavor. I usually load her yogurt up with chia seeds and fresh fruit but lately I've been feeling festive and adding these holiday sprinkles

 

 



weekend recap

this weekend my baby girl went to stay with her grandparents

(it's safe to say i needed the break!)

 

 

and my baby sister celebrated her 24th birthday!

 

 

i knew we'd want the weekend to ourselves

 (and that my sister would have her own plans)

so last week we had the whole gang over for an early birthday celebration

we had an easy dinner of steaks, pasta, and garlic bread

and for dessert i made these cupcakes 

they were so easy and a nice change of pace

i used my Gramma's cream cheese frosting recipe

(which is standard cream cheese frosting but with a bit of orange zest)

i wanted to get the adorable pumpkins like Muffy used but not badly enough to drive across town with an overtired toddler...i think the sprinkles are cute enough and, as an added bonus, i've been putting them on SG's morning yogurt along with her chia seeds and blueberries.

 

~

 

on saturday i took advantage of a rare child-free afternoon and ran a few quick errands

while i was gone, CJ took a trip to Home Depot and surprised me with his fall decorating skills

i can't wait to get more pumpkins and carve them with SG

 

 

we subscribe to San Diego Magazine so when we can,

 we like to check out their featured restaurants.

 since we had the time, we took a drive up to Encinitas to try Fish 101

 

 

Fish 101

 

we split; clam chowder, a dozen oysters, the grilled shrimp taco plate, steamed mussels,

 and a side of bacon & brussels. CJ tried a few IPAs and i had a glass of the verdemar albarino.

this is CJ's favorite kind of restaurant: you order at the front and seat yourself, the food was good but completely unpretentious, and the service was quick & efficient. we sat on the back patio and when it started drizzling we just opened up the big ole red umbrella and barely missed a beat. i wish this place was in my neighborhood. on our way home we stopped by Bardot for an ice cream bar

 

~

Rancho Santa Fe Farmers Market

 

sunday morning we made our way up to the farmers market

it was a rainy day so i was so tempted to stay in bed all day

but after months of miserable heat, i was glad to get out and about and enjoy the day

 

 

i think the rain kept some of my favorite vendors away but we still scored some great stuff!

lots of fresh produce, mexican chocolate almonds, fresh kombucha, coffee, pastries, and i ordered a sweet dress for SG. afterwards, we headed over to del mar for a quick lunch by the water before driving back down to the real world.

 

when we got home it was still cold and rainy so i decided to whip up a quick soup, with some of our fresh produce finds, while CJ gave SG a bath and got her settled back in to her routine

 

Skinnytaste kale and potato soup with turkey sausage

 

my mother-in-law makes this soup and her recipe calls for a little splash of cream at the end but we're all feeling a little bloated and blah so i made the skinnytaste version, which isn't as flavorful.

but i'd give anything for a video of SG eating this soup. just imagine her slurping big ole spoonfuls, then licking her lips and making that "ahh" sound that people sometimes make after they take a drink of something. i mean, where does she learn this stuff? that girl cracks me up

 

i appreciate these child-free weekends so much

but i'm always so happy to have my sweet girl back home

and to have our little family back underneath the same roof

 

 

 

 

 



Happy Birthday, Elley!

 

 

 



Friday Five

this week the heat came back

with a vengeance

but we made the best of it

 

 

 i keep believing fall will come eventually

and so the leggings hoarding continues

 

more leggings

 

patiently waiting on Mr FedEx to deliver all of these

in time for next weeks cooler temps

 

Wunder Under crops

True Bliss Pant

Wunder Under Organic

 

 

and of the non-Lululemon variety...

a friend of mine told me about these and i was shocked when she told me she'd found them at Target of all places!

 

 

 

 

J Crew (Free Shipping)

 

i usually don't order J Crew online because they basically want your first born before they'll offer free shipping. this means that i rarely buy from there anymore because shopping in store with a 20 month old is about as fun as hopping on the scale after a "jack in the box and too many martinis" kind of a weekend. in other words, it ain't gonna happen. but they have free shipping until Sunday, October 21 with the promo code FREESHIP! So I scooped up a couple things for the heck of it

 

i love a popover

 

because it might still be 85* at Christmas

 

 

 

SheShe  Made

 

i love a bloomer set

i'm hoping SG will still be wearing them when she goes to high school

shop SheShe here

 

and here

 

easiest thing to do is "like" her on facebook and you'll be able to see all her sales in your feed

facebook sites are how i find the majority of SG's wardrobe

 

pajamas

 

i have been checking the interwebs constantly looking for 2012 Christmas pj's

i waited too long for halloween and almost made myself crazy hunting down those skeleton ones!

no luck yet on holiday jammies but i did find a few pairs for myself and SG

 that i can't wait to snuggle up in

 

The Dreamer Flannel Pajama

 

 

Fleece PJ set

 

 

EBATES

 

there is NO excuse to not be using ebates

just do it. now.

 

 

sign up here

 

 

i average anywhere from $20-$100 cash back every quarter
and they can post it directly to your paypal account

i've been using it since 2009, i've never had a problem and their customer service is great

 it's also a great resource to check for current promo codes

 

 Have a great weekend!