great balls of... candy corn

I've really been in the mood to decorate with candy corn this fall. First I made this candy corn wreath and then I made this cool twig tree with hanging pumpkins and a candy corn filler and now I've added some great balls of fire candy corn to my decorations!

All I did was spray paint 2 styrofoam balls {black} and then used a hot glue gun to add candy corns to my heart's content!

I added black ribbon to cylinder vases to display my candy corn balls and it think they are neat-o!

Warning: with all these yummy decorations it is advised that you set out a bowl of candy corn to snack on so you and your guests do not start munching the decorations!!! haha!!!

chocolate caramel cake

I found this recipe a few weeks ago and knew this was my kind of dessert! Layers of cake caramel, more cake, and then frosting make this recipe soooo rich!

Honestly though, because it is so rich you just need a small piece. I have a plan in my head to turn it into bite sized pieces using mini cupcake pans so stayed tuned for that update!

Chocolate Caramel Cake

1 box German Chocolate Cake mix and the ingredients on the box

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 lg bad of kraft caramels

2 sticks butter

Mix cake mix according to directions and then divide the batter into 2 seperate bowls. In the first bowl of batter, add 1 stick melted butter and 1/2 the can of condensed milk. Mix and pour into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. In double boiler melt 2 stick of butter, all of the unwrapped caramels and the remaining 1/2 can of conddensed milk. Pour over first layer of baked cake and let set for 2-3 minutes. Pour remaining cake batter over caramel layer and bake another 20 minutes. Now, onto the frosting:

1 stick butter

4 tablespoons cocoa

5 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

powdered sugar to taste (about 4 cups)

Cook butter cocoa and milk on stove until boiling. Cook 1 minute more. Remove from stove and add vanilla nd powdered sugar. Frost cake.

CAUTION: this is delicious, but please do not get carried away or you will go into a chocolate-caramel-sugar comma. Please devour responsible in the company of friends :)

{the house} gettin spiffied up for fall

Friday was the first day of the fall season and I was able to spend some time decorating the house for the new season!

First thing I did was make this cool twig tree.

Here's the supplies I used

1. Mini hanging pumpkins (the origional inspiration for this project, I got them at a garage sale earlier this year for $0.50)

2. A glass vase I already owned (also a past garage sale purchase)

3. Cool twig trees I picked up at Hobby Lobby for half price

4. Candy corn to use for vase filler (I love candy corn!)

I started by arranging the twigs in my vase

Then I added the candy corn to fill up the vase because I needed something to balance out the weight. With out a base filler, the twigs were too top heavy for the vase I was using.

Finally, I hung my cute pumpkins on the twig tree

I just love how it turned out!

I picked up some mini gourds from the farmers market for $0.25/each to add to my decorations

And hung a wreath in our picture window

And filled the candy jar with festive yogurt pretzels

Callie even got in the spirit and wore her fall sweater - so cute!

Our tree out front is already a mixture of red, yellow, brown, and green and the leaves are falling fast. I love living in a part of the world that has changing seasons!

Happy Fall!!!

bath time for the puppers

Just a few pictues we took while giving the puppers baths.

Mia in progress

Callie in progress

Beautiful Mia all done

Cute Callie all done

dijon crusted pork chops

This is another recipe I cut from a magazine (sorry I don't know which one, but I promise to start keeping better track). I love it!!! Kevin actually made it, which can only add to how delicious it was, but he said is was easy to make and it sure was yummy! I'm pretty sure it'll become one of the dishes we make regularly.

Dijon Crusted Pork Chops

4 pork loin chops, 3/4 in thick (about 1 1/2 lbs)

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

3/4 cup seasoned dried bread crumbs

(we didn't use seasoned and it still tasted great)

1 tablespoon canola oil

8 oz egg noodles

1 pkg frozen mixed vegatables

2 tablespoon butter

1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper

Heat oven to 350*. Place a sheet of foil on your kitchen counter. Measure mustard and bread crumbs separately onto foil. Coat pork chops with mustard, then coat with bread crumbs. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chops and cook 2-3 minutes on each side, until bread crumbs are browned. Transfer to a foil-lined baking pan and bake 5-10 minutes or until cooked through. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat 4 quarts water to a rapid boil over high heat. add noodles and cook according to package directions. add vegetables in the last 5 minutes of cooking. Drain and toss with butter, pepper, and salt. Serve with pork chops.

diy jewelry frames

I've been seeing different versions of these picture frame jewelry holders online for quite a while now, and knew I wanted to make a version to fit my needs. I'm so happy with the results!!! I didn't follow a tutorial or anything I just ran with it! I'll try to explain my steps, but I'm horrible at taking pictures when I'm in the middles of "creating" :)

Here's my newely completed jewelry picture frames! So pretty!

This is why I needed a different solution. I'd just been hanging my necklaces on the corners of our dresser mirror and they get pretty tangled at times.

These are the frames I started with. I found the larger one at a garages sale for $2.50 and the smaller one at the thrift store for $3.

I removed all the hardware, prints, glass... and then sprayed painted the frames yellow.

On the larger frame I measured even spaces for these little hooks I found at Lowe's. I used a nail to start the holes and then just screwed the hooks in by hand.

On the smaller frame, I used a staple gun to attach 1" chicken wire to the back of the frame. I also used masking tape to tape the edges of the chicken wire so that it wouldn't scratch the wall when hung.

Next, I added hanging hardware and had Kevin hold the frames this way and that until I was satisfied they were right where I wanted them... for now ;)

Finally, I got to add my jewelry!

Notice all my pretty earrings? I can't wear them yet, because I've only recently gotten my ears pierced, but thanks to April, Sarah, Sam, & Kevin for starting my collection. I seriously can't wait to wear them!!!

Do you love them as much as I do???   Haha!!!

  

chilly days and fireplace dreams

The weather is awesome today! A perfectly chilly fall morning! I love when the weather is like this because it really gets me excited for all the things I do love about cold weather, like soft blankets, hot chocolate, bright socks, cozy fires, beautifully colored leaves, and pumpkin flavored ice cream... to name a few. :)

Sadly, we do not have a cozy fireplace in our house, or a fireplace at all. It is a must for our next house though, and it keeps me dreaming about that future day. The only thing better than a fireplace would be a fireplace in a sunroom!!!

Here's some inspiration pics to help get you on the same page

traditional porch design by atlanta architect Summerour Architects

traditional family room design by chicago general contractor Will Waibel

traditional porch design by atlanta architect Soorikian Architecture

traditional patio design by vancouver general contractor Clay Construction Inc.

campfire hash

Even though this recipe is called Campfire Hash, I've actually never had it while camping!

I love it though, it's one of my comfort food recipes!

Campfire Hash

2 Tablespoons cooking oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 large potatoes, peeled and cubed (about 2lb.)

1 lb fully cooked smoked sausage

1 can (4oz) chopped green chilies

1 can (15oz) whole kernel corn, drained

Saute onion and garlic in cooking oil until tender. Add potatoes. Cook uncoverd, over medium heat for 20 minutes stirring occasionally. Add sausage, cook and stir until potatoes are tender and well browend. About 10 more minutes more. Stir in chilies and corn, cook until heated through.

on this day 3 years ago

On this day 3 years ago, Kevin & I got married!!! It was an awesome day and we both loved every second of it! I still love looking at all the pictures and being reminded of all the people we love who were able to share the day with us. So for this sentimental day in time I'm sharing some of my favorite photos/details of our wedding day. Our photographer was Denis Harsh and if you want to see more of our pics one of his sample wedding albums if of us!

This is our awesome wedding party in a corvette parked on the side of the road - the owners were very kind and let us (complete strangers) use it to take pics!!!

Another good one of Kevin & I

The Rogers side of the family

The Boyd side of the family

My favorite snapshot of the day

My dress had the most beautiful train

We gave frisbess out after the ceremony in honor of our obsession with ultimate frisbee and the fact that that's where we met!

The flowers were one of my favorite parts! Each of my bridesmaids had a different type of flower for their bouquet and mine had them all mixed together!

The bride!

Kevin's niece, Jayne, was our flower girl :)

The groom!

Our first dance

Our very beautiful wedding cake made by friends, Tyler & Ashley

Kevin didn't know I was planning on smashing the cake in his face so I had the upper hand... for about 1.5 seconds!

It was so hard to narrow down my 2,000 pics to just these couple to share. Maybe next year I'll just have to share some more :)