Thursday, October 28, 2010

MAKING WHOOPIE...PIES

Andrew came home with the assignment of making pumpkin pie for work tomorrow (It's a food day!). Not only did I not have a lot of the ingredients to make a pie, I just didn't feel like it. So, I found this awesome recipe for Mini Pumpkin Whoopie Pies! The recipe looked too good to pass up.

Andrew helped me mix (we won't talk about how my mixer died in the process. KitchenAid mixer, please?), bake, and assemble. Mostly, he did a good job taking pictures.

Hard at work. Please ignore the messy kitchen.

You should have seen the faces Andrew and I made while we were taste testing these. BIG SMILES!


So moist! Andrew was shocked at how much sugar goes into cookies... I told him not to think about it.


They are fantastic. Do you think tomorrow can be take-your-fiance-to-work day? I could have probably eaten all of them in one sitting.

Monday, October 25, 2010

WEEKEND - OCTOBER 22-24

What a busy few days I had. It started on Thursday night when Andrew, Nick, and I went to the Portugal, The Man concert at The Waiting Room. It was awesome. The music, the lights, the guys showing off their dance moves.





Friday night we met up with Andrew's coworkers for sushi and drinks at Blue. It was finally nice to be able to faces with names. Everyone was great and so nice. Later in the night we headed to Paul and Dan's house for a bonfire and more drinks. Their house was so cool! It was decorated perfectly for fall! I had a lot of fun playing with their dog, Murphy!


Saturday, Andrew and I had date day. I really enjoy being able to spend some time together and just relax. We went to The Garden Cafe for lunch. Yuck! That place was awful. From the service, to the food. I give this place a "D". I will not be going back.

We then hit up the theatres to see Jackass 3-D. It was gag-tastic. These movies are always good for a laugh or two. And we looked pretty cool in the glasses.


Nick and Emily came to Omaha for some pumpkin carving and football. I love our Halloween/fall tradition.




We had a lot of fun Saturday that carried over in to Sunday while we spent the day thrifting, watching football, and making food! The best part, the Packers won! It was an intense game. I thought Andrew might have a heart attack. I think it was our jerseys that did the trick.


I had so much fun this weekend, and I'm already looking forward to next weekend. Sarah and Ryan are visiting and we have lots of fun planned.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

THRIFTED FINDS

Today, Emily and I went out in search of good buys at our local Omaha thrift store. We did pretty well at the first stores, while the last two left us more than a little disappointed.

First up, my cake stand. I'm not super excited about it (I really wanted a yellow one...), but this one is cheap and will get the job done.


Next, this rocking casserole dish. I love its vintage look with the white flowers. The only downfall is that it's missing a lid. Those can't be too hard to find though, right?


More milk vases. I only found two today, but that's ok because this one is really unique. It will def. help round out one of my centerpieces.


And the find I was most excited about.... Halloween stickers! Isn't that owl soooo cute?!?!

Thursday, October 21, 2010

WEDDING UPDATE: WEEK 2

1. Making a master guest list - I put it together. Now we just have to cut it down...

2. Putting together an idea board for the guys outfits - Still working on it. Finding dark blue vests (without a satin back) is harder than I planned on. I found this super cute vest on Urban Outfitters, but is $50 too much?

3. Hunting for a vintage cake stand - This was a lot harder than I thought it was. My mom and I stopped by the Brass Armadillo and found a cute candy dish to hold mints or nuts, a card box which is actually an old train case, and other random goodies! No cake stand in sight.... My friend Sarah did find a cute one online that I think might work.

4. Paying for the venues - Now that the venues are paid for, it's official! September 4, 2011

5. Contacting our officiant - Our friend Emily will be our officiant. I know she will do a great job and it will be so personal because she actually knows who we are as a couple.

6. Getting quotes for the chairs to be used at the ceremony - Holy crap chair are expensive!

This week's to-do:
1. Cake - I need to get pricing on sheets of cake and find out what we are going to do for our main cake.
2. Book our photographer - I'm so bummed. The one we really wanted already had a wedding booked for our date. I have found another one that is really good and I need to finish a few things up before it's done.
3. Book DJ - The DJ was almost fully booked when I talked to him last night. Geez! I need to get on it!
4. Order toasting glasses - I think I have found the perfect toasting glasses. They are going to rock!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

ETSY MUST HAVES: WHAT TO WEAR

Here is a list of five things that I would love to buy on etsy if I had the funds!

1. Cape - I have been wanting a cape for awhile now. This one fits the bill!


2. Mittens - How cute are these mittens to keep your fingers cozy on the coolest of days. I think I would love them even more in color. I'm thinking pink or yellow? The jury is still out...


2. Ring - I love turquoise. I love giant rings. Win!


4. Scarf - If I could, I would wear a cute scarf everyday. EVERYDAY! This one is super cute.


5. Bag - I have become an avid cross-body bag person as of late. I love having my hands free for chatting on the phone or maybe carrying a warm pumpkin spice latte.


What are some of your etsy favs?

Monday, October 18, 2010

A FEW PICS OF MY MONDAY

Turkeys held up traffic on the way to work. I also held up traffic when I stopped to take a picture.


One book down, one to go! Take that October goals.


Coloring helps me relax.


Lounging with kitties is also an activity I enjoy.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

WEDDING UPDATE: WEEK 1

Well, it has now been one month (as of October 11th) that Andrew and I have been engaged. I feel like I have gotten a lot accomplished since then, but I will now be posting weekly updates to let you know what I'm up to, ask you for advice, and vent about frustrations/celebrate successes.

So far, I have:
1. Met with our wedding coordinator - She is pretty awesome!

2. Shopped for and ordered my wedding dress - I'm not letting anyone see or know anything about my dress except for my mom and future mother-in-law. Some things are just fun to keep a secret!

3. Picked out attire for bridesmaids - They will be picking out whatever dress they want. The rules are: It must be gray and knee length. Oh, and yellow shoes.

4. Selected a venue for the ceremony and reception - Ceremony: Lago Courtyard at ISU, Reception: Memorial Union at ISU (where we met while working together at the book store)

5. Started purchasing centerpeices - Milk glass vases!

6. And so much more!

This week, I'm working on:
1. Making a master guest list
2. Putting together an idea board for the guys outfits
3. Hunting for a vintage cake stand
4. Paying for the venues
5. Contacting our officiant
6. Getting quotes for the chairs to be used at the ceremony

I think that's about it! Hopefully, I will be able to take more pictures along the way. Now, I just need to get my point and shoot camera fixed...

Monday, October 11, 2010

HORROR MOVIE MONTH

If you don't love October and all of the horror movies that come with it, that's just a shame! My perfect fall night goes something like this: warm soup, cold pumpkin beer, fall scented candles, and plenty of scary films!

This last week we kicked off the month with a movie called Session 9. Although it got a good rating on rottentomatoes.com, we were skeptical of how good it would actually be.


It looked as though it were filmed by college students working on a low budget, and the plot line seemed so predictable. In the end, it held my attention more than I anticipated, and I was actually kind of scared.


I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars.

Last night, Andrew and I set-up the Wii to watch Netflix (so much better than Xbox Live) and watched The House of the Devil.


It was just released in 2009 and it looks like a movie straight from the 80s. Love it!


The story was set-up so well that by the climax of the movie, everything was super tense and eerie. Perfection! Another 4 out of 5 stars for this one.

Friday, October 8, 2010

TAILGATING: FOOD EDITION

I spent the better part of last night watching Jersey Shore and making food for tailgating at this weekend's Iowa State match-up between ISU and Utah. On the menu, Crazy Brownies and Pickle Wraps (my girl Snookie would love those!)

What are Crazy Brownies you ask? A little bit of everything good on top of a brownie. Caramel, mashmallows, and candy corn top off this dessert.


Please... stop drooling already!

And now for everyone's favorite, Pickle Wraps. Are these the ultimate tailgating food or what? Meat, cream cheese, and pickles. You can't go wrong with these finger foods!


What are your favorite tailgating foods? I would love to try out any new recipes, so pass them along :)

Thursday, October 7, 2010

GOOD DEEDS

This morning while I was on facebook, I noticed my friend Sarah's status was one about hating the 7th day of the month. The 7th can be a hard day for people who knew TJ and are still mourning his loss.

Although I miss TJ terribly, I wanted to make the 7th a time to remember and honor him in a positive way. TJ was such a kind person, and I wanted to carry that same caring spirit through doing good deeds for others.

This month: Sarah and I donated food. Although the food choices weren't too exciting (I just grabbed some unopened things in the cupboard), I know that this will help someone, and TJ would be proud of that.



I'm exciting to be doing good things in honor and memory of TJ, and I encourage everyone to join Sarah and I as we continue this new tradition!


If you come in to donate to Together, Inc. you get to see me too! That's just an added bonus.

Friday, October 1, 2010

EPIC MUSTACHE - FINAL WEEK

It's over. It's finally over, and Andrew's couldn't be happier. It's been a long 7 weeks (for him).

Awww, the begining. It was just stuble back then. But then it grew!


To mammoth proportions!


I was hoping he would do a lot more stages of creepy facial hair, but chops was all we got. With this hair, I think he should have a gun.


Luigi? Nope, just Andrew in all of his mustache glory! He said it best when he commented on his 'stache last night, "I've out-stached my dad!" That is quite the feat!


I couldn't think of a shirt that was more appropriate than my RAYGUN mustache shirt. Let the hilarity ensue!


Apparently, Andrew and I are huge RAYGUN fans. It wasn't until I had looked at the pictures that I realized that he was also wearing his "Don't Meth With Iowa" shirt. Free advertising = free t-shirt? I hope so!