Monday, October 28, 2013

fall love

ok ... this is a couple weeks late :S
and now its snowing!
but here it is anyways ...

i LOVE fall!
it's sometimes hard to admit
because it means we are that much closer to a long cold winter
but i can't resist loving fall!
the colors
the smells
the crisp fresh in the air
and
fall food!
 
i'm gonna take this blog into full fall goodness!
new receipes that taste like fall!
some will be winners
some will be losers (i'm sure !)
 
thanksgiving seemed like the perfect kick off to this.
family, laughs, memories and food!
 
desserts ... i would say are more my forte
so i'm gonna start sharing with you
NEW fall recipes!
 
my 'rules' for myself are this:
1. i can't have made the dessert before (execpt this first post!)
2. i MUST document and
3. i'm going to try doing 1 new dessert a week
i may end up gaining some pounds (!)
 
caramel popcorn

1 cup air popped corn
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup butter
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
 
pop popcorn.  will make about 5 quarts
combine brown sugar, butter, corn syrup and salt in medium pot
bring to a boil -- boil for 5 minutes, without stirring
take off stove and stir in vanilla and baking soda
pour over popcorn and mix well
spread on cookie sheet and bake at 250 for 1 hour.
*i don't usually bake the popcorn, i find it stays softer without baking it.
 
enjoy!
 
 

 


Monday, October 21, 2013

21 things girls in their 20s should have

i LOVE this!
 
21. ability to feed yourself on a daily basis
 
20. a bathing suit you feel grerat in
 
19. a license
 
18. functional famiy relationships
 
17. the ability to laugh at yourself
 
16. ice cream in your freezer in case of emergency
 
15. money you've earned
 
14. a favorite movie that's not the notebook
 
13. if you're going with gosling, at least say blue valentine
 
12. comfort in your own skin
 
11. common sense on social media
 
10. the ability to be woken by an alarm
 
9. friends you adore
 
8. a supportive bra and motivation to exercise once a week
 
7. an interview outfit
 
6. awarness of your country's political situation
 
5. someone to drunk text
 
4. a signature dance move
 
3. savings for a dream trip
 
2. a gynecologist
 
1. self awarness
 
here's to our 20's!
 
much love, b

all credits to buzz feed

Friday, September 27, 2013

"how to" organize: using small spaces efficently

happy friday!
 
today is the start of one of my new blog themes!
"how to"
right now i am going to focus on organizing!
one of my favorite things!

this new segment will not be a ...
'you have to do it my way or your doing it wrong'
it's simply me sharing how my life goes!
it's simply me sharing what works for me!

in saying that .. here we go (!)
 
i want to share a couple things that have helped me when organizing in small spaces.
i am 100% speaking from experience and how i live right now!
 
one of the most helpful things for me when organizing is bins/boxes/baskets.
my family makes fun of me big time for the amount of bins i have!
i have been deemed "the bin lady"!
 
using every space in a room is key.
depends how your closet is, but in mine there is complete wasted space high up
... use it!
 
one thing i like to do is have my summer clothes seperate from my winter/fall clothes.
to do this ... i use bins :)
i know it's kind of simple but its a huge help!
and storing that way up hight in your closet .. out of the way
but completely accesible.

next: 6 month rule
we all have those clothes that we like but we don't wear
or we just hold on to them "just in case"
here's to stopping that!

i put aside those clothes (in yet another bin .. i know i'm crazy!)
and if i don't think about those clothes, look for those clothes, or want those clothes
after 6 months they go directly into a bag and off to salvation army
i don't even look at them when i put them in the bag
adios!

do you have any 'small space' tips that have worked for you?
i love the feedback and trying new things!



much love, b



 


Wednesday, September 11, 2013

4 month planning

Why does writting come so hard?
some days i just want to sit and write and blog
but my life isn't interesting
what could i possibly write about that anyone would be interested in?
 
this is what i sit here contemplating
 
i think "oh i'll just start writting and all sorts of things will come to mind"
...
but no the complete opposite happens
 
so then i think
...
why have a blog?
 
i need something that will keep me and whomever may read this
somewhat interested!
 
so ... i'm revamping my blog
it's going to take a commitment from me
because what i plan to put forward
is going to make me research and prepare!
 
do i have what it takes to actually come up with enough interesting things
to talk about and write about?
i don't know!
is it worth a try?
yes!
 
so it's going to take some trial and error on my part
but i'm going to come up with some themes
and hopefully i can stick with my new "blog plan"
(which even includes a blog binder and calendar .. !!)
so here we go!
 
so my sister came up with something that's really been helping me
i'm going to share with you today the idea of
 
i don't know if anyone else has this problem
but it seems, for me, that i have all these dreams and goals
and i write them down but nothing really gets accomplished
 
alot of people do the new years resolution thing
but honestly who actually follows through the entire year with that list of goals?!
i never do!
 
so what sarah has shared with me is this:
3 times a year, every 4 months
sit down and write your goals, dreams, accomplishments
it's neat to look after those 4 months to see what you had written down previously
 
i think the benefit of making shorter term goals is:
 
1. your less overwhelmed and goals are more attainable -- in the sense that 4 months seems more tangible than lets say an entire year.  maybe one goal will be repearted every 4 months but that's ok.  as long as your working towards it.  it takes time sometimes to accomplish these things but if you give yourself a time line, in this case 4 month periods, it somehow is less overwhelming.
2. see more results -- i've seen myself get to way better places since doing this.  i've accomplished more things.  i work better when i have a time limit to do something.  not everyone is like this, but for me i've been less discouraged seeing where i was 4 months ago to today.  that in itself is an accomplishment!
3. you still have long term goals -- as i will show you with this "plan" you can still have long term goals, but not everything you want to do is a long term goal.
 
when sarah first sat down with me to do this, she gave me some ideas of how to 'catergorize' my goals.  these work for me and i sometimes add something new or change it around, i've just customized it to work for me personally.  not everyone has the same goals/dreams, so personalize and customize what works for you!
 
some of the catergories i have are:
this year ... dec
to come ... 6+ mos.
to do
to learn
to dream
accomplishments
 
this year ... dec:
these are my 4 month goals.
(sept-dec, jan-apr, may-aug)
september, january and may all seem like months that new things happen
september -- summer is finished and life kinda gets back to normal
january -- new year! still a resolution thing :)
may -- winter is finally over, seems like a natural beginning again!
 
to come ... 6+ mos:
these are my longer term goals.
 
to do:
this is where i put specific things i want to do in the next 4 mos.
 
to learn:
there is always something to learn, i put it here.
 
to dream:
things that may not be tangible for me right not, i put here.
 
further to my catergories i have specific things i think about when writting my goals/dreams
i think about personally, finacially, musically, physically, spiritually, career-wise, organizing
what do i want to do with those things in mind.
 
i am in no way saying this is how everyone should plan their life or set things out but it's something that i have been doing and something that works for me!
 
apart of my revamping ... every 4 months, i'm going to give you a glimpse of
what my goals are,
what i may have accomplished,
a new dream.

over the next 4 months a few things that i want to accomplish are:
-paying most of my debt off
-having a work out routine
-planning a trip for 2014
-working towards moving out into my own place (!)
-making this blog something i love
-weekly blog posts

i have yet to decide a name for this blog theme!
it will come, as with the rest of all my ideas jammed in my head!

i would love to hear what your goals/dreams may be
what you're working towards!

much love, b