Wine and Cream Cheese

Cream Cheese is just amazing. Endless possibilities! This week for wine night, I made 2 different dips and both were equally amazing.

Bacon Ranch Beer Dip

1 block cream cheese
2 cups finely shredded cheese
1/2 cup ranch dressing
1/2 cup of beer
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup chopped bacon

1. Mix cream cheese and ranch together until smooth
2. Add beer and mix
3. Add cheese, onions, and bacon
4. Put in container and let cool for at least an hour before serving
5. Serve with Ritz Crackers

Jalapeño Popper Dip

1 block cream cheese
1 1/2 cup finely shredded cheese
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup chopped bacon
1 jalapeño (chopped)
1/3 cup BBQ sauce

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Spray the bottom of an oven safe pan (I used about a 4x9 pan)
3. Mix cream cheese, onions, and cheese together
4. Spread in the bottom of the sprayed pan
5. Spread BBQ sauce on top of cheese mixture with back of spoon or brush
6. Sprinkle chopped jalapeño even over the BBQ sauce
7. Cook in oven until cream cheese is bubbling (about 15-20 min)
8. Take out and sprinkle bacon and cheese over jalapeño
9. Place back in the oven until cheese is just melted
10. Serve with Triscuit Crackers warm

Thank you to Tyler for hand modeling the dips for me!

These are a must for the holiday season and highly recommended! And as always, goes well with any wine night!

Family .:. Baking .:. Crafting Weekend

Friday I got a chance to go with my dad and his former company's (retired) Christmas Party. We went to Sioux Falls to a Cirque De Soleil show! I had saw one of their shows when I was out in Vegas last spring break and I loved it so I didn't want to pass up an opportunity to see them again. It was great! The one in Vegas was better I would say, but this one was still great to see!

This weekend we celebrated the Dudding Family Christmas and it was such a fun time getting to see everyone and play Christmas Minute to Win It games! Here are just a few snap shots and videos of some of the challenges from the day.

Sunday's are normally a day for cleaning, laundry, and cooking. Today I went crazy with the cooking and baking part! Also added a craft in there too so finally I'm getting time to write all about it!

I tried something new today: Stuffed peppers. I thought they were very good and by how much Tyler ate, I would say he also enjoyed them. I was chopping up peppers for chicken fajitas and thought of it before I chopped all of them up.

1 box yellow rice
1 lb browned hamburger
1/2 cup onion
1/4 cup green onion
1 can Rotel (drained)
1/2 cup of cheese
6 green or red peppers

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Cook rice according to directions on box
3. Brown hamburger
4. Add hamburger, onions, and Rotel to rice and mix
5. Take tops and seeds out of peppers
6. Stuff peppers with mixture
7. Place in oven safe pan
8. Top with shredded cheese
9. Cook for 40 minutes
10. Serve with sour cream and guacamole

Next I made some chicken fajitas so that we have meals this week and I don't have to worry about cooking! I would rather cook a bunch on Sunday than have to cook every night during the week.  Instead of cooking in the oven, I cooked it on the stovetop. Same thing, just different way to cook it!

Next I made some very easy banana bread since I had so many old bananas that have been sitting in my freezer for so long. I love banana bread and so does Tyler so I thought it was time since we were going through the freezer. Tyler likes chocolate chips in his bread so added some for him in his batch.

3-4 ripe bananas
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup of sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mash bananas and butter together in a large mixing bowl
3. Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla
4. Sprinkle the baking sofa over the mixture and mix in
5. Add the flour and mix together
5.5. Add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips (optional)
6. Spread into a 4x8 pan
7. Cook for 1 hour
8. Cool on baking rack, slice and serve

This is probably one of the easiest banana bread recipes I've ever followed and I'm so thankful for Pinterest and other people that blog and share their recipes!

Crafting came next on my list of things to get done today in between all the cooking, baking, laundry, and dishes that I did today. Another Pinterest idea that I saw for gifts to neighbors I wanted to try. Thanks to Crazy Little Projects I found this cute M&M jar with a Christmas Story to go along with it. However, instead of filling the whole jar with M&Ms I stuck an empty toilet paper roll in the middle and filled the M&Ms around it. Made my M&MS go further and I could fill the middle with candies and goodies too.  So far I have made 6 and I've got a few more to go!



So that's what I did with my Sunday! I hope everyone else had a productive, relaxing, or fun filled day. I love this time of year and spending time and doing things for the people that I love. Happy Sunday! :)

Family | Vacation | Decorating

This last week was a crazy one and I'm so glad to finally get to share it all with you!

1. Last week I got to travel to Texas to see the rest of my family. On the way down I got the opportunity to stop at the store of one of my favorite shows: Magnolia. If you haven't seen fixer upper, you should probably start watching! Here are just a few of my purchases that I made.

My purchases from Magnolia!

2. This week was such a great way to spend with family and finally get to see those little nephews and my niece. They are just too cute and I can't wait until Christmas when I get to see them again! These are just some of the snaps from this last week with everyone.

 Hiking along trails and rivers.

 Climbing a 425 foot rock. Only 2% of the rock is visible.

 General all around cuteness!

3. Decorating my house when I got home was the highlight of the weekend. I love this time of year and our house is as decked out as we can get it. We might add a few outside lights, but for now we have enough inside. I love getting to decorate this house and make it a home. We also got an early start on holiday baking! Almond bark pretzels, Rolo/m&m pretzels, and Oreo balls. The easiest and yummiest recipes of the season!

4. On another note we are just 24 days away from Christmas and one month and 2 days away for leaving for Mexico! I still can't believe that I get to spend my winter there! 

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving with all of their family and friends!

Roadtrip: Day 2

Today seemed to drag on FOREVER. There were many city skylines, restaurants with Cow wallpaper, yet amazing BBQ, and the classic Texas sign at the rest stop just over the border. I'll be glad when we are finally done driving for a bit. 

Roadtrip: Day 1

We are finally on the road to see the rest of the family all the way down in Texas. Getting me through this long trip? Re runs of OTH of course, homemade caramel corn, and warm blankets. 

One good thing about this drive is that the further we drive, the higher the temp gets! Looking forward to that warmer Texas air. 

Hot Dishes and Final Products

Another cold day meant a perfect day to try a new hot dish for lunch and probably again for supper with all the leftovers!

Cheesy Chicken (turkey) Broccoli Rice Hot Dish

So since we cooked a whole turkey last weekend I thought I would use that instead of chicken. Very easy and quick meal!

Ingredients

2 cups cooked rice
2 cups chicken (turkey)
2 cups Broccoli
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese
1/2 cup mayo
1 can cream of chicken

Crushed corn flakes (I used Fritos chips)
2 tsp butter (melted)

1. Preheat oven at 350 degrees
2. Mix all the ingredients except chips and butter together in a bowl
3. Spread into a greased 9x13 pan
4. Sprinkle crushed chips or corn flakes on top and spread the melted butter over chips
5. Cook for 40 min 

Told ya it was easy! If you like more ingredients more than others then you can change it up. I like a lot of broccoli and Tyler likes a lot of meat so I added a lot of turkey and broccoli. It made a big pan and we will have plenty for leftovers!

My Mail Organizer is finally finished and hung up! It turned out great and leaves so much more room on my shelf for more attractive things than opened mail and papers everywhere.

Magnolia Market

If none of you have watched the show Fixer Upper on HGTV, I suggest you do immediately! Joanna and Chip Gaines host the show in Texas and fix up old homes and make them amazing. I would move to Texas just so they could remodel a home for me. 

Not only do they have their own show, but she also has her own amazing store with a lot of stuff that she uses on the show. Magnolia Market is the place in Waco, TX and guess who will be driving right through there on the way to visit the family in Round Rock and Borne? THIS GIRL! I have been a fan of the show forever and getting the chance to go to this amazing place is kind of like a dream come true for me! 

Here are some of my favorite things from the online store that I hope to snag while I'm down there, unless we don't have enough room, then I can still order them online. So convenient!

Distressed Vase Holder

Metal Flower Bunch

Wire Wine Holder

Locker Baskets

Metal Letters

AND She has her own jewelry line

Feather Necklace

Radiant Necklace

She's got the same style that I love and wish I could fill my house with! Slowly, but surely it will get there! I will hopefully be adding to that collection while I am at the store. I'm so glad I get the opportunity to go and check the place out! Wouldn't that be cool if they were there!? I think I would die. :) See you next weekend Magnolia Market!

Makeover

I thought that it was time the blog got a new facelift. I like the simple layout and colors, less busy than the green checkerboard look. I can't wait to continue blogging and sharing!

This is Really Happening

CABO! Monday was a crazy day. We had a meeting with our professors and we were finally able to get the right codes to register for our FINAL class of our undergrad career. 

That night we booked our one way ticket to paradise… I mean students teaching. Myself and  another girl will be spending the three coldest months in Minnesota in one of the warmest places one could find in the winter, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. 

Buying the non refundable ticket seemed to seal the deal for me and make this experience and trip of a lifetime seem so real. 

It will be scary, exciting, fun, hectic, relaxing, sad to leave and be down there for that long! I’m sure after a week I will be missing home (minus the sub zero temps) and especially Tyler, but I was given this opportunity to study in another country and learn a completely different culture and I am going to take full advantage of this opportunity! See you in the spring, I’ll be the nice and tan one ;) 

I’ll be sharing all my Cabo teaching and adventures here so be sure to check back in a couple months!


Here are some flashbacks from the last time we were in Cabo and the school that we will be at again!

 

Home Edition

Yesterday just seemed like the perfect day to leave work early and finally get things done around the house to make it feel a bit more like home. 

I’ve had frames of various sizes all painted black and pictures to put in them to make a gallery wall. They were all just sitting on the ground waiting for a nail to get put in the wall. I am so happy with the finished product and makes my dining room much more inviting. 

I love the contrast of the black and white pictures in the black frames against that deep red wall! Don't mind my mess. It still looks a little bare and lonely, but it's getting there!

• Project 1: Gallery Wall

When we first moved in I knew I wanted a chalkboard in the kitchen to write different holiday greeting, inspirational quotes, and bible verses on. I was at my parents house one day and saw a frame out in the shed and told my mom I was going to take it. It was so cool looking and big that it would be perfect! So I asked my dad who is very handy in his wood shop if he could cut a board to fit the frame and I could paint it with chalkboard paint. I finally went and picked up the finished product yesterday and Tyler hung it up for me last night. 

 

Who would have thought that a $1 from could turn into such a great addition for the kitchen! I’m going to need to do some more digging out in the shed for some other finds.

• Project 2: Chalkboard

I’ve got two more projects that will be in the works shortly. 

The first one is a mail and key holder for the kitchen. We have this area where an old telephone used to hang, but now it is just a space in the wall with a small shelf that all the mail, keys, pens, and other miscellaneous things get thrown. I like more organization and didn’t want to spend $100 for one from Kohls. So I took one of the many cupboard doors I have from the Habitat for Humanity Restore, ordered a mail/key organizer for $13 from amazon, adding a small chalkboard and there ya go! Organization!

I’m still waiting for the mail organizer part to arrive, but for now I will paint it the red of the dining room and distress it to make it look more rustic and my style. I can’t wait for the finished product and not to have such a mess on that small counter. 

The last project I hope to get done soon is to move an old ice chest from my parents house into mine. It was in my grandma Norma’s grove for many years and it has been sitting in my moms shed for many years. Mom asked me if I would be interested in it because I’m still trying to fill the many blank spaces in our large house with decor. I think that it would be perfect and can use it ask storage and display decorations on top. It’s old, but still looks awesome and I think that it would fit in great with the rest of the house. 

Until next time…

Suppertime: Duck Edition

I'm up for trying new things and with Tyler hunting ducks and pheasants now I needed to find some new recipes to try. Last nights menu was duck and ranch potatoes. 

For the duck we cute them into smaller cubed pieces and marinated them in BBQ sauce. We took bacon and cut them on half and wrapped the marinated duck in the strips and cooked them on the stove until the meat was done. Served with some BBQ sauce and it actually wasn't too bad!

In case I didn't care for the duck I made lots of ranch potatoes. Super easy to make and so much flavor! Cut the potatoes into fourths and put in a glass bowl or pan. Add a little oil at the bottom and microwave for 10 minutes. After the 10 minutes take out and stir in half a pack of the dry ranch dip seasoning. Then stick back in the oven for another 10 minutes or until they become soft. 

If anyone else has another recipe for duck let me know! Hopefully we will have a pheasant soon so I can cook that too! 

Until next time... 

Favorite Pins from the Week

Since Pinterest was a "thing" I've been on it. Everyday. I'm not sure how I would pass the time if I didn't pin! So this week I thought I would share some of my favorite Pins from the week, and who knows, maybe this will turn into a weekly thing! 

Lately, with the house, I've been pinning all sorts of fall decor to decorate my house with and I think that I have been inspired!

This Pin is actually almost the same as my front entry. Well, theirs is obviously much cuter, but I did the best with what I had. (P.S. The 'thanks' string art is available for purchase on my etsy shop)

Another spot that got a fall makeover was my front door and outside the house. Inspired by this Pin I would say the front of the house turned out pretty cute!

And with these colors right outside my door, everything is tied so well together!

From home decor to fall cooking. Being blessed with buying a house with THREE apple trees (one being a honey crisp), they have been a focus of baking. 

One thing I haven't tried, but will soon be baking are my cousin, Desirée's Apple Cinnamon Banana Nut Mini Muffins. It's a mouthful, but they sound mouthwatering! Here's the recipe for these kid approved breakfast muffins. 

One of my favorite desserts are caramel stuffed Rice Krispie treats and I finally decided to try my hand at baking them myself and they were so easy! Here is the Pin with the recipe from Cookies and Cups that I followed. 

 All the ingredients that were needed for this amazing gooey dessert. I could eat a pan a day! I would recommend bringing them to your next event or get together. 

One last topic: Hair styles. With my braces coming off on Monday, I thought it was time to change everything up with a new cut and color. I mean after 2 years of braces and 2 jaw surgeries I thought I would be allowed to treat myself! So here are some options I've been considering:

Cut and Color

Thinking I'm going to go darker and shorter for the upcoming fall and winter seasons. I always enjoy a fresh new look! 

Those are my top pins of the week. Stop by next week and hopefully I will have some more!

Until next time... 

It's Wednesday

Which means wine. Always. 

The regulars.

We are so photogenic. 

Things will get loud, things will get crazy, but it is exactly what I need to break up my week. Wouldn't want to spend my Wednesday's any other day. 

Until next time...

Another Weekend Adventure

Another weekend has past and yet another one that we were away from home. As if we don't spend enough time running on the week days we must spend our weekends like that too. 

Saturday:

My C Squad team crushing it in their last tournament of the season. 1st Place in silver bracket. Only lost 1 close game to Marshall.

Going right from one volleyball to the next. U of M volleyball game, in which they also totally crushed Rutgers. 

Sunday Football Funday

Ever since I started dating Tyler we have gone to a Vikings game every year. So why would this year be any different? Oh yeah, now they play outside. No thanks to the cold and wind! Despite the terrible performance of the Vikings, it was a beautiful day out! 

Now on to another busy week of volleyball and life. 

Until next time...