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Bird Box and the Missing Hero

It seemed every time I got online I would see images of a blindfolded woman in the woods and the name of Bird Box popping up over and over. So I had to check it out…after all, that’s how I learned about Stranger Things and that was an awesome show, so I decided to watch it. What started off as watching a simple movie, turned into a much deeper lesson in how our culture views what being a hero is, and I think that on its own is pretty disturbing.

I guess this is a good time to say ***There may be spoilers in this post so proceed at your own risk***

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The Best Chili Mac for a Cold Winter Day

My husband and I got married at the age of 22. I know it was young, but honestly, we had been dating for five years at that time and we REALLY just wanted to be married. After the honeymoon when Amin and I were opening our wedding gifts, one of the people I had invited had got me the Betty Crocker “Bridal Edition” Cookbook.

I can honestly say that besides the silverware that someone else got me, it’s been one of the most used gifts. 11 years later, I still pull it out. It taught me everything from how to devein shrimp to how to make chicken broth for chicken soup when Amin had a cold. The recipes were also fairly cheap to make which was a plus since after we returned home from our honeymoon we endured some serious poverty.

While I’ve moved on to some more challenging recipes lately, I usually pull out this book Every November when I’m doing batch freezer meals for the winter. One of our absolute favorite meals is a chili which I throw over pasta and add cheese and sour cream too. It freezes amazingly well and I often cook it in bulk. I can’t tell you how comforting it is after a day of shoveling snow to be able to pull this out and warm it up and dinner is made. It’s also cheap so you have more cash for your holiday shopping!

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How I Planned for Resolution Success!

I LOVE the New Year. It’s actually my favorite holiday. There’s something cleansing about a date on which you can focus a new start on. There’s a lot of discussion on whether New Year’s resolutions are worth having. A lot of them don’t last very long, and honestly, I can admit to a lot of BIG DREAMS That fizzled out a week later. I personally think how the resolutions make you feel has a lot to do with whether or not you should have them. I also think that sometimes people start off with great ideas of what they want to do more of, like “being happier in the New Year” but they don’t actually know what that looks like. This is why I really enjoy the concept of making S.M.A.R.T. goals. If you don’t know what those are I highly suggest that you read up on it HERE.

I’m going to share a few of my resolutions for 2019.

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- autumn 2 Comments

End of Summer Nails

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While technically October is the month that begins fall, I find that people often think of August as their chance to really enjoy true summer since school starts back up in September.

So I decided to do a really fun nail tutorial! Teal is close to my heart because it was my wedding color, and dark blue has always been my husbands favorite color. So I decided to use both of them to creative this fun, ocean like ombre nail. It may take some practice, but these nails will definitely get you noticed! Read more

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How to Make Okonomiyaki

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I am sadly not Asian…unless you want to count the family rumor that my grandfather’s grandmother was Mongolian. Asian culture has always been an interest to me and my husband. I wouldn’t say we’re complete ‘weeaboos’ though. We understand there’s more to Japan than it’s anime. We love to watch Basho (Sumo Wrestling) and I often keep up on Japanese news through the NHK channel. Strangely, Eastern art in general has found it’s way into our home- through lanterns from Marrakesh to Japanese wall hangings of cranes in our dinning room. A few years ago, we even got to enjoy an 16 hour layover in Tokyo where we went to Robot Restaurant in Shinjuku (that trip is for another blog post entirely). Read more

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Alton Brown’s Bourbon Pecan Pie Recipe

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I am a long time fan of Alton Brown. He doesn’t just throw a recipe at you, but rather takes the time to educate you about the way food works and explain exactly happens when you do certain things to your food. So when I was looking for a new dessert to try and make I found his Alton Brown’s Bourbon Pecan Pie Recipe on the Foodnetwork.com website. I served it actually yesterday for my Halloween party that I threw, but it is a wonderful fall dessert and easy to make in comparison to other things I’ve cooked. If you have any questions please feel free to drop me a line and I’ll do my best to answer. I hope you enjoy it. Read more

- autumn 1 Comment

How to: Sculpt a Pumpkin

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So for the last few years I’ve been watching Halloween Wars on the Food Network. It combines two of my favorite hobbies which is cooking and art. One of the things they do that I’ve been wanting to try for years is pumpkin sculpting. Pumpkin sculpting is much different than carving. Pumpkin carving conjures up images of the traditional toothy grinned pumpkins that you would see on anyone’s door stop. Pumpkin sculpting however is a completely different animal. Read more

- autumn 2 Comments

How To Make a Vintage Halloween Garland

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October has to be one of my favorite months next to December. The air starts getting cool and you get to break out all those great fall and winter clothes that you had packed away (or in my case laying on the basement floor waiting to be washed. -_- don’t judge me bro.) Read more

- autumn 11 Comments

To Parents with Nerdy Kids: Four Things You Need to Know

revenge-of-the-nerds

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Dear Parents of Nerdy Kids,

What I’m about to write to you, is what I wish I had been able to write to my family as a kid. This is not a letter to bash, or be mean, but hopefully to shed some light on how I felt, and possibly how your kid might feel being considered a nerd. I’m writing this with the perspective that you as parents want the best for your child as I think my mother wanted for me, but perhaps you may not “get” or understand them all the time, and they may not even know how to explain to you how or why they are nerdy. Hopefully, this letter will give you some relief in understanding the awesome kid you have. Read more

- autumn 2 Comments

And I Quote: “Whether You Think You Can or Think You Can’t – You are Right.”

Henry_Ford

“Whether you think you can or think you can’t – you are right.” -Henry Ford

(Founder of Ford Motor vehicles )

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I found this quote to be extremely true in my life. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that this quote alone, if really taken to heart can absolutely change your life if you take the time to think about it and implement it into your day to day living. Read more