Recipe Fail

I thought I'd quickly review a recipe that I tried last night from Pinterest. It looked and sounded delicious, but didn't turn out that way.  Anyone that knows my husband knows that he is not a fan of cream cheese or anything white (mayonnaise, sour cream, etc- he got it from his Mama), but I thought that if it was hidden in a spaghetti bake, maybe he wouldn't notice.  WRONG! The first comment when I was dishing it out was, "Ummm.. what is that white stuff?" to which I replied "Oh don't worry, it's just cheese!" (Not a total lie).  After 15 minutes though, (noticing that half of the spaghetti was still on his plate) I knew this recipe was a fail.  I personally didn't detest it, but it was a very unique flavor and not at all like regular spaghetti.  If you're a huge cream cheese fan, you may enjoy it:

Source: salad-in-a-jar.com via Crissy on Pinterest

Fall Shopping!

I have recently become a member of the website Pinterest, and it has inspired me to do some fall shopping! A definite fall essential is a good belt that you can "belt" a dress or cardigan around your waist.  I'm not complaining, but it's hard to find those belts in my size! So yesterday, it was my mission to find some.  I am still looking for the neutral braided belt in my size (a definite fashion staple), but I did find some other belts that will work for some cute outfits!

Source: avestyles.com via Crissy on Pinterest

The belt in the look above inspired this find at Charlotte Russe:

Another look that inspired me was this one:

I think this belt from Charlotte Russe will work well for that look!

Another belt I found was at Gap, and it was the only "skinny" belt that I found during my time shopping that would fit my waist because it is adjustable in the back! I can't wait to wear it!

And finally, I found a cute pair of owl earrings from the new store Love Culture:

They are not as cute as the ones I posted earlier from Urban Outfitters, but they were only $5! I am hoping that Urban Outfitters will get more of their owl earrings in!

Next on my to-do list is to decorate our house for fall! I've gotten some cute ideas for decorating with pumpkins from Pinterest too!

Source: goodhousekeeping.com via Crissy on Pinterest

Fill in the Blank Friday!

1.   The best thing I did all week was clean the whole house in one day- every inch was sprayed down with Lysol! You can never be too careful in cold and flu season!

2.  Cooler weather and scarves make me super happy.

3.  Pets are like family- they melt your heart with their big, brown eyes (Nala)!

4.   Knowing the Lord  is the best thing about my life.

5.  With the cooler weather I am looking forward to the Haunted Corn Maze, fall decorations, and snuggly blankets!

6.  Something that's on my "wish list" right now is a zebra print Clarisonic face brush!

7.  This weekend I am going to be working at the pharmacy!

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

I'm loving The Lying Game

I'm loving D'avines OI/OIL Absolute Beautifying Potion

It makes my hair smooth, shiny, and the scent is unbelievable! I wish the smell came in perfume form!

I'm loving owls! I really want some cute owl stud earrings!

Urban Outfitters

From Hot888 on Etsy

I'm loving Spotify

You can listen to any album, any artist! I love it!

I'm loving that the Pumpkin Spice frappuccino is back at Starbucks!!! My fave!

I'm loving my new Scentsy scents!

I ordered Pumpkin Roll, Pumpkin Marshmallow, Sentimental Cider, Christmas Cottage, and Festival of Trees! I can't wait to try them all! If you are interested in buying a Scentsy, my friend sells them at her page here

I'm loving Gavin DeGraw's new cd, especially the song "Soldier"

Fill in the Blank Friday!

1.   You should always take time to  spend time in prayer. Lately, I've been keeping a prayer journal, and it's so encouraging to see God's answered prayers all week long!

2. Friends and family  make the world a happier place to be.

3.  I can hardly wait for my fall and Christmas Scentsy scents to come in! I want my house to smell like Christmastime!

4.  Saturday  is my favorite day of the week.

5.  Something totally dumb and ridiculous that I love is eating cheetos puffs dipped in barbecue sauce! Yum!

6.  If I could, I would take a trip to Europe and see Paris and London!

7.  I rather like reading a good book instead of watching t.v.!

A Thought for Thursday

"And now that I am away you must be even more careful to do the good things that result from being saved, obeying God with deep reverence, shrinking back from all that might displease Him. For God is at work within you, helping you want to obey Him, and then helping you do what He wants." Philippians 2:12-13 (TLB)

I really like this translation of this verse because I feel it's easier to grasp this difficult concept. God expects us to give 100% of ourselves to trust and obey Him. We have a responsibility to actively pursue obedience. He also knows it's impossible for us to do it all, and He promises to work in us, to make us more like Himself and to produce the good works and spiritual fruit in our lives.  "Paul instructed the Philippians to do what God would want because of His unconditional love and forgiveness toward them. They were to obey, not wait for God to make them want to obey, because of what He did for them in giving them eternal and abundant life in Jesus. They were to do the positive and shrink back from the negative, And they would be able to do that because God would be constantly at work within them through the Holy Spirit, helping them want to obey and then helping them do all that God requires. This is the balance. It's not 100 percent God or 100 percent me; neither is it 50 percent God and 50 percent of us doing our 100 percent together. A relationship with God is much like a marriage relationship: each partner must give 100 percent."- Linda Dillow "Creative Counterpart"

I am going through the book "Creative Counterpart: Becoming the Woman, Wife, and Mother You've Longed to Be" by Linda Dillow with other young women in my family. I would really recommend it! Today, this excerpt really stood out to me, "God will always be faithful to fulfill His promises. He has promised to be faithful to us, never to leave us, to give us the power and strength to live the Christian life."

This chapter was definitely an encouragement to me. God promises to make us more Christlike, but we are to "work out our salvation with fear and trembling"- Phillipians 2:12 (NAS). God expects us to give our all to Him and He promises to give us the power to live it.

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

• I'm loving Lavanila Laboratories "The Healthy Body Butter" in Vanilla Grapefruit

It smells amazing, absorbs almost instantly, and keeps your skin soft and moisturized all day!

• I'm loving Hanson!

After seeing them at the Delta Fair I'm loving listening to all their old songs!

• I'm loving Fresh Sugar Honey Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15

This new color is my favorite out of all of them!

• I'm loving reading the Harry Potter books!

I'm re-reading the first one now (it's the only one I've ever read), and I'm planning on reading all of them!

• I'm loving that fall will be here soon! Believe it or not, I've actually seen some trees that are already turning!

• And finally, I'm loving my day off! :o)

Favorite Time of the Year!

There are few events throughout the year that excite me as much as the fair, and this year definitely did not disappoint! A nice, cool breeze was blowing, and fall was in the air!

So excited for the fair!

The first stop we made was the petting zoo and saw some cute llamas.

Then we strolled around and chose the "Toom of Doom" as our first ride.

Next up was the ride that plays really loud music and goes forwards and backwards really fast.  I can't remember what it's called, but it's definitely fun!

Waiting in line to ride!

After that, we got a call that Kayla and Stephen had arrived at the fair!  We had a great time eating fair food.  Kayla and Stephen chose Prontopups, Brian had a Philly cheesesteak minus the cheese (weirdo), and I (of course) had my beloved Cajun Chicken on a Stick (it's only one time a year, people!)

Kayla & Stephen

Next, Mallory and Bryce arrived at the fair!

Mallory & Bryce

The girls had to have their photo-op in front of the ferris wheel.

And the highlight of the night was getting to see HANSON in concert!  One of my middle school dreams was definitely fulfilled! It was awesome :o) Brian was a little jealous of Taylor Hanson's power pose on the piano:

Power Pose

Taylor Hanson

Taylor Hanson

Issac (on guitar) and Zac (on drums)

Isaac Hanson

Pumped to be at the Hanson concert

After the concert, we were hungry for some more delicious fair food!  We got deep fried Oreos and for the first time tried DEEP FRIED BUTTER. I know it sounds disgusting, but it tastes like a fluffy buttered roll. DELICIOUS! I wanted to also try the new red velvet funnel cake and deep fried Kool-Aid, but Brian said enough is enough. There's always next year, though!

Deep Fried Oreos

Twilight was represented at the fair, so of course I had to get my picture with Edward! (Breaking Dawn November 18 whoop whoop!)

Edward with awkward snake fangs

Finally, to end the night right we rode the Crazy Mouse! It may not look it, but this ride is super fun and a little scary too.

Us on the Crazy Mouse

This fair was one of the best yet, and I'm already looking forward to next year!

Fill in the Blank Friday!

1.   Somewhere someone is  gleefully excited about the fair tonight (hmm... I wonder who?)

2.   Currently, the Proverbs 31 woman  is  my muse.  When did she sleep?

3.  It would stink if   coffee  was no more because,  I would go through some serious withdrawals and miss my Starbucks runs. I heart Starbucks!

4.  Being off work, eating lunch with a pharmacy school friend, and going to the fair  are my favorite things about today.

5.   Life is kind of like a whirlwind- so much to do, so little time!

6.  If I could have anything I wanted I would want a rag doll kitten (I hope you're reading this, Brian Berry)

7.  A funny thing happened the other day...  a man came up to the pharmacy counter to pay for his merchandise. He was eyeing me angrily and then he said in an incredulous tone "Are you the pharmacist?"  I said "Yes sir." He replied in an even more incredulous tone "Did you go to pharmacy school??" I said "Yes sir, I did." By then I was putting his products in a grocery bag and as he walked away he said, "Well, you just look too young." To that I smiled and replied "Thank you, sir, that's a compliment!"

Bryce & Mallory's Wedding

My favorite picture that I took at Bryce and Mallory's wedding. Looks like a fairytale!

Labor Day Weekend Trip!

This year we went to Greer's Ferry Lake for Labor Day weekend with Brian's family.  We only got to stay for two days because of work, but we had a blast while we were there!

The first day on the lake was gorgeous and the water was perfect! (Click on the pictures to make them bigger and click on them again to zoom into full size)

Me, Mallory, Kayla

Brian, Me, Bryce, Mallory, Kayla, Stephen

This was the first trip to the lake as newlyweds for Mallory & Bryce and Kayla & Stephen.

Mallory & Bryce

Kayla & Stephen

The boys had fun on the tube and definitely entertained with their silly antics!

We all relaxed in the lake and tried to keep the boat from sucking us under while floating on our pool noodles.

We met up with Jonas, Ashley, and Juliet at Large Mouth Pizza for lunch (which has delicious barbecue chicken pizza), and then we went back out on the boat.  It got a little choppy, but Mallory and I tried to brave the waves on the tube.

It lasted for literally two minutes, but at least we tried!  That night we had Linda's delicious Mandarin Chicken Salad, played a game of Quiddler, and watched a Star Wars marathon. The next day the water was pretty choppy again, so we cruised around on the boat and took silly pictures.

It's always a great time at the "Berry Patch"!