October in Review

A busy beautiful month of Fall activities! Lots of photos and weekend fun that didn't make it into a post.

Thrifty finds, Football, Art Fest, Movie filming...and a barn.

A few yardsales.  Mini vase for 25 cents. 

Two Homecoming football games.

A sweet Daddy and daughter moment.

One beautiful niece, crowned Homecoming Queen.

A local art fest.

Can you guess my favorite painting? Hint: It is directly behind the artist. ;-)

Behind the scenes with local filming of Footloose.

LA in Georgia.

Footloose movie remake stunt scene.  Up close!

Even with all the activities....we also have,

the barn addition finished!

Since it's Halloween, here is the winning entry in the University's Carving Contest.

Photo credit:  Clint Samples

Goodbye October.

Whew, so what did you do in October?

Linking in to fun parties found HERE.

Happy Halloween Weekend! Lil' Hocus Pocus



Hope you are enjoying a beautiful Fall Festival weekend!

We decided late Thursday to dress up at the office.

We had students doing double takes all day long.

Fun Friday!

We were all witches, hence Hocus Pocus.

‎"When black cats prowl and pumpkins gleam, may luck be yours on Halloween." (Irish Saying)

Yes, I planned ~ Middle Week Menu

Crockpot Cream Cheese Chicken

I'm running behind with posting this week!

The Cream Cheese Chicken (new recipe on last week's menu) was full of flavor and very creamy.  Easy to set up in the morning on a mad dash out the door for work.  Then add the cream cheese while setting the table and cooking up the veggies.  Very filling!  We ate this as leftovers too.  Only kept the creamy chicken and added fresh pasta.

It's Wednesday and I still haven't been grocery shopping, so my plan included items already on hand.  I plan to stop in the grocery store tomorrow in order to pick up the few items I need to finish out the week.  The best thing is I only need 4 ingredients!

Sunday - Breakfast for dinner

Monday - Picked up dinner in town

Tuesday - Crockpot Roast with potatoes and rolls

Wednesday - Leftovers

Thursday - Ranch Chicken, veggies

Friday - Loaded Baked potatoes

Saturday - BBQ Chicken n Cheddar Pizza Roll 'ems  **new recipe

***NOTE:  I have NO IDEA why there is a pop up sign in on my blog.  I do not use typepad and it's annoying.  I'm working on it.  If anyone has a clue why, please leave me a comment on what to do to fix it.  Ughhh!  Now back to your regularly scheduled blog.  :-)

How is your week going? Did you plan? 

Fruit Baby - Shower idea

I recently shared about the DIY cupcake stand I made for my niece's baby shower.

When I shared my photos from the shower on Facebook, I had numerous comments about this one...

Yep, there is a 'baby' in that watermelon!

Actually, it's a cantaloupe baby head.

Cute though, huh?

Creative too.

Nope, unfortunately I didn't make it.  A friend of my sister's did all the work.

I just get to share it with you.
Who knew fruit could be so Adorable???!!!

A couple of other ideas we used at the shower:

I brought along some twine and clothes pins.
Instant clothes line.
Everyone really enjoyed seeing the clothes 'hung on the line'.

The expectant Mommy framed her 3-D photos to 'introduce' the baby.

Family and friends made tons of food!

Yardsale find fish bowls held the pinkware, paper shreds and lifted up a serving plate.  Plus the thrifty DIY cupcake stand.

Pink lemonade was a fitting 'punch'.

She's going to be such a good mommy.

If you want other party and shower ideas, check out the brand new U-create Parties blog!

The watermelon baby is too sweet to keep the idea to myself, so I will be sharing on some of my fabulous blog party links this week.



Weekly Menu with Recipe Reviews

Crockpot Apple Cake

Last week's menu was quick and easy all the way.  We decided, at the last minute to attend a Homecoming Football game Friday night, so it was Subway sandwiches, prior to the game.  This week we tossed in a few new recipes to try.  The first one was the Crockpot Apple Cake that I baked up today.  It was good, but not 'outstanding'.  Expected a bit more 'cake' feel and it is more like bread.  Very tasty and simple to make, just wouldn't deem it a 'cake'.  Since it's apple season, if you are interested in trying it, you can find the recipe HERE.  

Sunday - Grilled burgers n hot dogs, potato salad, baked beans and Crockpot Apple Cake

Also, baking up Sausage cheese balls for a quick snack this week.

Monday - Sloppy Joes with Ranch potato wedges

Tuesday - Leftover sloppy joes with chips (I put the sandwiches together after the meal, wrap them with plastic wrap and stick them in the fridge, then reheat in the microwave)

Wednesday - Salmon patties, mashed potatoes, english peas and biscuits

Thursday - Cream cheese Crockpot Chicken  (new recipe) served over noodles with broccoli

Friday - Leftovers

Saturday - Dinner out

A couple of weeks ago, we tried 3 new Crockpot recipes with delicious results!  Here's the low down:

Kansas City Sue's Chicken cooked up easily, but just didn't deliver the taste I was looking for from the ingredients.  It wasn't 'bad', just ok.  Not sure this recipe will make the menu cut again.

Maple Brown Sugar Ham was to die for!  The glaze and juices were delicious.  The ham fell apart.  This recipe was SO very Yummy, that I volunteered to cook it for our Thanksgiving Dinner.  If you like ham...You.must.try.it!  Do you remember, I said I cooked this up in the Crockpot too?  A great tip, if your ham is too large, just cover with 2 layers of aluminum foil (worked perfect).

Homestyle Beef Stew was another My Kitchen Cafe recipe.  A very hearty and tasty stew. The only thing I will alter next time is peeling the potatoes because the skin was falling off anyway. This is a great recipe for having leftovers.  The flavors actually blend and are more tasty the next day.

What are you cooking up this week?

For more great menu ideas, be sure to hop on over to Organizing Junkie.  I will also be linking in to other tasty food blog parties, check out my links Here.



Footloose 'remake' filming here

Do you remember the 1984 film Footloose starring Kevin Bacon?

I do!  Does that tell my age?  How about if I add I was already out of High School by that year?

Paramount Productions is remaking the movie and a bit of the filming will be in a small town just down the road.

On this bridge, this week.

This view takes me away to that sleepy little town where Ren McCormack caused a ruckus with the preacher's daughter and danced up a blue streak.

Sunday evening just before dusk, we rode down to Franklin, Georgia.

Picked up a couple of BBQ sandwiches at a roadside 'hut' where they've been cooking it up for years.

Then sat beside this river that Alan Jackson sings about (Chattahoochee).

A beautiful evening in a 'famous' small town, USA.

Serene and quiet.  Not for long.

Barber shop gossip in a small town is that they are filming a fight scene on the bridge.

If I get a chance to snag some photos of the film crew, I will share them.

Do you remember the original movie Footloose?

Linking in to Outdoor Wednesday and Watery Wednesday.



Cheap-n-Easy....Dinner, that is

Do you have one?

A cheap meal that is quick~n~easy.

This is one of my favorites.
A simple loaded baked potato and steamed broccoli.
You can have this on the table in less than 30 minutes.

These simple ingrediants are staples around my house.
Just pick up some nice size potatoes.
Yes, you could fry up your own fresh bacon, but I cheat.  Shhhh!
Another reason I like this quick fix is that I can cook it all up in the microwave.

Wash the potato, poke it with a fork and pop it in the microwave for about 6 minutes (for one, 8-9 minutes for 2 taters).
As soon as the buzzer goes off, take the potatoes out and wrap in aluminum foil.
They will continue to 'cook' for about 5 minutes longer.
Of course, you can bake them up in the oven, but that takes longer.
On my busy schedule, or after a long day at the office; this fits perfectly.

Top with your favorites.

We use: cheese, sour cream, butter, bacon bits, salt and pepper.

Simple, yummy and filling.
The topping possibilities are endless!  Chili would be a fantastic Fall topping.

Menu for this week is simple, cheap and easy too: 
Monday - Leftovers
Tuesday - Breakfast (including oatmeal!)
Wednesday - Dinner with my daughter
Thursday - Pintos and cornbread
Friday - Leftovers
Saturday - Loaded baked potatoes

For more menu ideas check out Organizing Junkie.

What are YOUR favorite tater toppings?

DIY Cupcake Stand

When it came time for my niece's baby shower, I volunteered to put together a cupcake stand because I've been itching to spray paint a new project.

Thanks to the lovely ladies throughout blog land, I gained immense inspiration for a creation.

What is a thrifty gal to do?

Head straight to my local Goodwill store in search of a little junk to transform into a treasure!

Because we all know it doesn't have to cost a pretty penny to shine like one.

3 mismatched plates with 3 candle holders; add spray paint, a bit of glue (I used E6000) and you have....

A beautiful centerpiece display, that looks like it came straight from a magazine photo shoot; if I do say so myself.

The day before ~ cause life's been crazy busy...

I primed all the plates to cover up the design on the small dessert dish.

One glass platter, a glass cake plate and a dessert plate.

A beautiful baby girl is on her way into our family, so pink it is!
Although this would be stunning in all glass for any celebration or holiday table.

And if it gets too late and chilly outdoors, just spray paint on the kitchen island.

NOT highly recommended! 

Thankfully there are no pink disasters to report.

Hey, it's how to get it done, one way or another during the 11th hour!

Not too shabby for $6, a bit of spray paint and lost sleep.

I had fun putting it together and....

It made these two happy.

My sister and my beautiful niece, the expectant mommy.

Miss Olivia is due in December and she is going to have TONS to wear!

I will be linking in to a few DIY blog parties, for a complete list of weekly fun; check out my link at the top of the page.

What project have you been working on lately?