Thursday Randoms

For your Thursday pleasure, the randomness that is Jenny:

• My sweet girl turns 8 months old today.  She has three teeth, is practically crawling, and has started college.  At least that's what it feels like to me.

• My sister let me borrow the Hunger Games (I know...I'm the last person on the planet to read them) and I actually thought, "Hey, I can read that on the plane on the way to Nashville."  Then I remembered that I can no longer do such leisurely things like read on a plane.  

• I'm going back to Purdue for a football game this October and I am beyond excited.  I haven't been back to campus is so long.

• We're leaving Natalie with Matt's parents for the day and I am already having to calm myself down when I think about it.  Like my blood pressure starts to rise and my breathing quickens.  It will be the longest I have ever left her with anyone awake (compared to 2 hours) and I am so nervous.  

• But then I think, hello psycho.  She's 8 months old.  And they are her grandparents.  What do you think is going to happen?  

• Sometimes being a parent is hard.  It sure does change your priorities but nothing changes for anyone else.  I think that has been the hardest part of having a child for me.  The amount of people who are not in your "new baby" situation that have no idea what you are going through and just do not understand what new, everyday challenges your life has turned into.  You're not the person you used to be.  You've changed.  At least I did.

• I'm currently watching the last season of Friday Night Lights and I do not want it to end.  I didn't love the show at first but it has definitely grown on me.  I am so in love with Coach Taylor it is bordering on unhealthy.  And Tim Riggins.  Oh, gotta get me some Tim Riggins.

• Netflix is seriously the way to watch T.V. people.  I rarely even turn on the actual T.V. anymore.  Except to watch Days of Our Lives of course.

• Speaking of Days, all of my favorite characters are coming back in this big new launch of the show on the 26th and I am so excited I can hardly see straight!  How do I know this?  Well, there is a chance I get Soap Opera Digest.  Wait, wait, let me explain.  Matt saw it on DealNews one day for free so I signed up.  I would not pay for Soap Opera Digest.  But now that I have it, I love it.

• Weight Watchers is going pretty well.  I've had a bit of a rough few weeks with having my sister in town (aka: Red Whoopie Pies) and being out of town.  But I'm just a few pounds away from pre-Natalie and I am so excited about it.  It only took me 8 months...which in my opinion is awesome seeing as it took me 9 to put it on.  Let's not mention the 40 additional pounds I need to lose after that okay?  Oh my life is a diet.  

Fave Recipes of the Week

In lieu of a formal Menu Monday post, I thought I would instead share with you some of the recipes I have made over the last few weeks.  Be sure to stick around.  There's dessert!

Probably the best meal I made was this 3 Meat Pizza Casserole.  I fixed it when my sister was here and it's a good thing.  Matt and I would've never finished it by ourselves.  Well, maybe if we ate it all week.  Which come to think of it would not have been a bad thing.

It says to use a 9 X 13 dish, which is what I did, and it was practically overflowing.  In fact, when I came down from putting Natalie to bed I thought I smelled something burning in the oven and sure enough it had leaked all over the place.  As an aside, hello family members that were sitting right there the whole time?  Get with it!  My house is practically catching on fire and you're just sitting there watching T.V.?

I did make a few changes to the recipe.  I left out the ham because I'm more of a pepperoni and sausage only kind of girl.  So technically I made a 2 Meat Pizza Casserole.  Also, the recipe called for 1/2-1 lb. of pepperoni.  I had an 8 oz. bag and didn't have nearly enough room to use all of it.  The recipe instructed you to only put it on the top of the casserole.  Next time I would use it all but also include more within the actual dish.

But y'all.  This was fantastic.  Not good for you by any means.  Not at all.  But if you're looking for a dish to feed to a hungry crowd, this would definitely do the trick.  It could feed at least 8 no problem.


Next up, Bubble Up Enchiladas.  These were also quite delicious.  I have no idea why they are called enchiladas when they're made with biscuits and not tortillas...but hey...I didn't name the recipe so I just went with it.  Fantastic.  It's supposed to be all healthy but I didn't go that route.  I used regular biscuits and ground beef.  Oh yes I did.

I made some cupcakes for a former co-worker and decided on Annie's Cookies and Cream Cupcakes.  I did sneak one before I gave them away and I'm so glad I did.  The cream cheese icing was to die for.  And the cake was so moist and yummy.  Totally worth the 11 points.  Yes.  You read that right.  I wasted 11 points on a freaking cupcake.  It was that good.

Another main dish we tried was Chili & Cheese Macaroni.  It was pretty good.  Nothing blew me away about the dish...but worth a shot.  I'm not sure I'd make it again but it was alright.  Have I sold you on it yet?

Moving on...

When my sister was here I felt the urge to bake.  Perhaps it was the bottle of champagne we were drinking?  Or the wine we had later?  Not sure.  But I was taking requests.  My BIL wanted something red velvet and cream filled.  Hm.  Strange combo I thought.  But I remembered these beauties and whipped them right up.

These Red Velvet Whoopie Pies were fantastic.  They were also 11 points but I think I made them too big.  You definitely could make them smaller for less of a diet buster.  Next time I think I will add some milk to the icing though.  It was way too think to use in a pastry bag and pipe on to make it look pretty.  But this wasn't a "let's make something that looks pretty" occasion.  It was more of a "let's make something that tastes delicious and sugary" occasion.  Done.


Lastly, I threw together some Chunky Peanut Butter Cookies the other day for a friend.  We were finally able to get over to see her beautiful baby girl and I didn't want to show up empty handed.  I decided on these as my darling husband gave me zero notice (as in maybe 3 hours beforehand) and it was the only recipe I could find where I had all of the ingredients.  I thought they were super yummy and I would definitely make them again.  In fact, I'm wishing I would've saved myself some.  Hm.  Fail.

Up, Up, & Away!

As you're reading this, Natalie and I are flying the friendly skies to Nashville, TN to visit my godparents.  I am so excited to spend some real, quality time with them.  Our visits are few and far between and I intend to remedy that situation immediately.  They are amazing, Godly people and I want Natalie to spend as much time with them as possible.  And their sweet daughter is newly pregnant so they need to get in some practice with the babies! 

Here they are at my wedding.  Don't you just want to squish them they're so cute!?!  Oh I cannot wait to get there!

Matt will be joining us on Thursday and then we'll be driving down to Gatlinburg for the remainder of the week for a family reunion with his side of the family.  I am less than thrilled about this trip...but the cabin looks amazing so I am trying to be optimistic.  Perhaps the view will make up for awkward silences and snide comments?  I'll let you know.  At least I have that great excuse now for when I don't want to do something..."I'm so sorry I can't go to dinner with you guys!  But it's Natalie's bedtime.  Maybe next time?"  Nursing saves me again!

Hope y'all have a fabulous week!

Dining Room Before and After

Over Labor Day weekend, my sister and her husband came over from Chicago to visit.  They hadn't been here since Natalie was born in January so it had been quite some time.  Needless to say we were all very excited to get together!

We had a wonderful weekend full of catching up, playing with Natalie, and of course...food.  I'll post a little more about that later this week.  But their main focus this weekend was helping us paint!  And when I say helping us paint, I really mean doing it all.  I rolled some...but after attempting Natalie's nursery I quickly came to realize that painting is just not one of my strengths.  I'm not ashamed to admit that I pretty much suck at it.  So when my sister offered up her services, I jumped at the chance.

After much consideration, we decided to begin with the dining room.  There is a chair rail in there so I was forced to pick two colors, a daunting task to say the least.  Especially when the husband was no help at all.  Unless you call giving no suggestions but shooting down all of your ideas helping.  Which I do not. 

So I said forget him and I did what I wanted.

Obviously.

Here are some before shots:

Well, they were kind of before shots.  Just picture this without the sheet on the table and it's pretty much how it looked before. 

So how did it turn out?

I am in love with it.  I think the colors turned out just perfectly and I could not be more pleased.  I'd eventually like to paint the tray ceiling the Mahogany color but I guess that will have to wait until next visit, right Jess?

An Unexpected Treat

Y'all seriously have to watch this.  I mean, it's priceless. 

We took this last week when Natalie was waking up and we got a big surprise.  Could not have planned this if I tried.  Just promise me one thing, okay?  If you ever meet her, don't ever tell her about this, okay? 

It's just too hilarious cute not to share.

My New Ride

Have I told y'all about my car?

My sweet little 2000 Taurus that's on her last leg?

Honestly, she's not so little.  But that's beside the point.  She's dying people.  And it breaks my heart.  We've been through a lot together.  I've had her since 2005. During that time I've gone to grad school, moved to Cleveland, started and quit my first big girl job, gotten married, and had a baby.  She's made the drive from Indianapolis to Cleveland more times than I can count.  I've tried to treat her well, but let's be real here friends.  I'm never going to win any "driver of the year" awards.  But her missing passenger mirror, scratches on the fender, and dents in the passenger side door show character in my opinion.  Plus, they weren't all my fault.  Wait.  Were they?

Near the end of June I took her to get an oil change and they gave me the bad news.  The gist (because I cannot even begin to explain to you what is wrong...I don't speak car) is fixing her isn't worth it.

Since hearing those words, I've been on the hunt for a new vehicle.  So, almost three months.  Three months I've spent driving only to the gym and back because my car is unsafe.  Three months of only being able to look at cars on Saturdays because I have a husband that gets home when the dealerships are closed and a baby that goes to bed at 6:30 p.m.   It's been a struggle.  But that struggle, has finally come to an end.

Last weekend I bought a new car!!!!  Well, it's new to me.  We don't do new in this house.  Neither Matt nor I have ever had a car payment and I'm not sure we ever will.  We live by the motto of not buying things you can't afford.  So we waited and searched and finally found my sweet new ride!

(this is not my exact car...I'm too lazy to get up off the couch and take a picture)

Now I have things like a sun roof, a CD player, and a radio that shows the name and song of the artist the station is playing.  I've hit the big time people.  Step aside.

In all seriousness, I could not be more excited about my car.  I've been wanting an SUV for so long and it's the perfect time for one.  My little girl sure does require an astonishing amount of gear.  Her stroller alone barely fits in Matt's trunk.  So this beauty, it's just perfect.

I did give the Taurus a long hug goodbye in the dealership parking lot before I drove away.  No.  I'm not kidding.  And I actually feel bad for trading her.  I feel like she knows.  I have issues.  But she's served her purpose.  She was a great car and had a really good life.

Goodbye sweet Taurus.  I'll miss you!

Now, what to name my Bravada?  I feel like it's a boy.  Any ideas?

No Wonder My Pants Won't Button

In case you're wanting to blow your diet anytime soon....here are some recipes I have put on my must make immediately list. 

Source: heatovento350.blogspot.com via Jenny on Pinterest

Source: howsweeteats.com via Jenny on Pinterest

Source: joylicious.net via Jenny on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Jenny on Pinterest

Source: sweetapolita.com via Jenny on Pinterest

Source: blog.fossil.com via Jenny on Pinterest

Source: bakingbites.com via Jenny on Pinterest

You're welcome.