Blogtober 2018- Day#5- 12 Recipes You Can Make With a Pumpkin

Hi Lovelies!

Fall still hasn't made it's way to our neck of the woods just yet. Hopefully with the cooler temps and the rain chances this week it will begin to feel like Fall. We have quite a few activties this month that we are excited about. Spaghetti and Game night is my oldest's school was last night! We had fun and we even made it onto our local news! Then we have parent teacher conferences, picture day, and Fall Break in the next few weeks. Then the last of the month we have Angelina's Fall party and we might make Candy Corn Cupcakes again. Of course we have Halloween, which my kids are very excited for.

For today's blog post, I wanted to share just what types of recipes can be made with pumpkins!! Enjoy!!

12 Recipes You Can Make With a Pumpkin:

1.  Pumpkin muffins

2.  Pumpkin bread

3.  Pumpkin pancakes

4.  Pumpkin pie

5.  Pumpkin milkshake

6.  Pumpkin cookies

7.  Pumpkin cinnamon rolls

8. Pumpkin cheesecake

9. Pumpkin pie oatmeal

10.  Pumpkin brownies

11.  Pumpkin spread

12.  Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

All of these look yummy! What some ways that you use pumpkins?

Blogtober 2018- Day#4- My Skincare Routine

Okay, so this post is about my skin care routine. The only thing is that I really don't follow a routine. Yes, I wash my face, I use toner, and sometime a moisturizer.... but that's about it.

I have oily skin, always have. I have tried several different types of cleansers, masks, toners, and moisturizers. Some have been expensive while others have been on the cheap side. Through the years, I have found that my skin responds better to the cheaper skin care products.

As of right now, my skin care routine revolves around two of the cheaper products and one moderately expensive of product. So, I am going to share with you a breakdown of skin care routine.

1. Cleanser

I use Cetaphil. It's very light and makes my face feel clean. I use this once in the morning and once in the evening.

2. Toner. After cleansing my face I use witch hazel as a toner.  I use this because it's very gentle on my skin and it makes it feel and look amazing.

 3. Moisturize. I use a moisterizer made by Cetaphil. Again, this is very gentle on my skin and doesn't cause break outs like most other moisturizers that I have used in the past.

What is your skin care routine? Please share in the comments below!

Blogtober 2018 Day #3- Favorite Fall Recipe

Hi Lovelies! 

It's Day #3 of Blogtober and I wanted to share something so delicious and oh so perfect that you are going think yo have died and gone to heaven. 

I was scouring the interwebs for a pumpkin bread recipe and found this little gem. It is so moist and so yummy. We loved it! 

So, here is everything you will need:

Pumpkin Bread:

2 cups all-purpose flour 

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice 

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1 teaspoon salt 

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 

1 can (15 ounces) LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin 

1/2 cup granulated sugar 

1/2 cup packed brown sugar 

1/2 cup NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Fat Free Milk 

1 large egg 

1 large egg white 

1 tablespoon vegetable oil 

1/4 cup chopped nuts

Directions:  

PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Grease 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.

COMBINE flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, salt and baking soda in medium bowl. Blend pumpkin, granulated sugar, brown sugar, evaporated milk, egg, egg white and oil in large mixer bowl. Add flour mixture; mix just until moistened. Pour into prepared loaf pan; sprinkle with nuts.  

BAKE for 60 to 65 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes; remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Easy and delicious!!

What is your favorite fall recipe?

~Angie

Blogtober 2018 Day #2- Intereseting Facts About Me

Hi Lovelies!

Welcome to Day #2 of Blogtber. I thought it would be fun to list 15 interesting facts about myself. Ready! Set! Go!

15 facts about me:

(1) I cannot sleep unless the closet doors are closed.

(2) I have no tattoos and I only have my ears perieced.

(3) Stephen King is my all time favorite author. 

(4) I'm a homebody. I'd rather stay home and watch a movie on Netflix than go to the theater.

(5) I never missed an episode of Beverly Hills 90210. Team Brenda!!

(6) I don't like the taste of coffee, but.......

(7) I love the smell of freshly brewed coffee.

(8) I cry at almost everything.

(9) I love museums.

(10) My kitchen has to be cleaned before I go to bed. 

(11) I love anything and everything from the 80s.

(12) I was 37 when I had my first daughter and I was 42 when I had my second daughter.

(13) My husband and I have known each other since the 3rd grade.

(14) We lived together for 16 years before he asked me to marry him.

(15)  Cheesecake is my favorite dessert.

~Angie

Blogtober 2018 Day 1- October Goals

It has been awhile since I have done a goals post and this post is long overdue. I have completely let the chaos that is my life take over. My husband and I have been sick for the last 2 weeks and  I haven't touched my planner in a couple of weeks, which explains the chaotic life. Whoops!!!

But now that I have our Fall and back to school routines established, I am excited about setting some goals and I am really going to push myself this month. There are a lot of things that I would like to accomplish so hopefully by the end of the month I will feel good about things. Here we go!!!

Personal Goals

• drink more water
• meditate for 5 minutes before bed. Stretch for a few minutes when getting up.
• get better quality sleep by going to bed earlier
• workout consistently

Family Goals

• Adapt to our fall schedule. Update the morning, afternoon, and evening routines for the fall.
• Celebrate Halloween.
• Cross off items from our Fall Bucket List

Blog Goals

• Post once per day during the month of October.
• Make a new list of blog post ideas
• Schedule posts until the end of October
• Create an editorial calendar for the rest of the year

I hope your October has started out as a fantastic month. Have you set any goals yet? Any fun fall plans? Have you started to cross things off of your Fall Bucket List? 

In the Kitchen Friday- Loaded Baked Potato and Chicken Casserole

Hi Lovelies!

Today I am starting a new series on the blog, called In the Kitchen Friday. Every Friday I will be sharing recipes, meal planning tips and strategies, and organizing tips for the kitchen. 

So, for today's In the Kitchen Friday I will be sharing one of my favorite recipes. Enjoy!!!

Loaded Baked Potato & Chicken Casserole

serves 4

Ingredients

3 - 4 medium russet potatoes, scrubbed and diced
        (about 1.5 lbs. or 4 1/2 cups)
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
4 slices bacon, cooked crisp, cooled and crumbled
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
4 green onions, sliced (green parts only for low-FODMAP/low-fructose)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces


Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9" x 9" baking pan or casserole dish.
2. Spread half of the diced potatoes in bottom of pan. Place the diced chicken breasts evenly on top. Season chicken with 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Sprinkle with half the bacon crumbles, 1/2 cup of the cheese, and half the green onions.
3. Spread the remaining diced potatoes on top, followed by the remaining bacon, another 1/2 cup cheese, remaining green onions and another 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Pour heavy cream over top of casserole and then dot with the butter. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Uncover and bake another 30 minutes. In the last few minutes of baking, sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and bake until melted. Serve.

5 Tips to Help You Keep Up with Laundry

I loathe laundry, like really hate it. It's one of those things I wish I could have someone else do it for me. Perhaps one day when I'm rich all of my laundry dreams will come true. I mean a girl can dream, right? To ease the pain of doing this daunting task, I have come up with 5 tips that have helped me keep up with the laundry and will hopefully help you do the same.

5 Tips to Help You Keep Up with Laundry 

1. Schedule it

Laundry is a household chore, plain and simple. So, you will probably never feel up to doing it. So to ensure that it gets done schedule a day and time that you will dedicate to doing the laundry. Some families have a day where they tackle all of the laundry for the week. Personally, I like to wash one load per day to avoid what I call Mount Washmore. I tend to do this first thing in the morning so that it starts washing while I am working on breakfast.

2. Recruit help

Don't place the entire burden of doing laundry on yourself. If your spouse or one of your kids knows how to do the laundry ask them to help. It will make things much easier on you.

3. Don't wash it.

There are several things that don't need to be washed after the first use. Have your kids wear their pajamas for a few nights before they place it in the dirty clothes pile. Let your towels dry so that they can be used more than once. Not only will you have less laundry to wash, but your clothes won't wear out as quick.

4. Put it away the same day.

Now, this is a great concept, but it's one I don't always follow. There are days that the clothes just sit in the dryer waiting to be folded and put away. Don't start a new load if you don't have plans on folding what already dried.

5. Sort as you fold.

What's the purpose of sorting first, then folding? I never understood this concept it's just an extra step in the process. Instead, fold or hang up clothes while you are sorting them in the process. I also find that folding clothes while I watch a favorite show makes the task easier to deal with. Once all the clothing is sorted out, have each family member put away their own clothes. Now, it may not be perfect, but it gets the job done.

So there you have it, 5 simple tips to help you keep your laundry sanity. What are some things you do to keep Mount Washmore at bay?