Grande Pumpkin Spice Latte Please!!

Could I have a grande Pumpkin Spice Latte please???

Gina has provided us with yet another AMAZING recipe! This time it was drink: Skinny Pumpkin Spice Latte...and yes it is good enough to replace Starbucks for me...And I LOVE Starbucks coffee!!

Super simple just make sure to have some Pumpkin Butter on hand, Fat Free Milk (I used 2%), Vanilla Extract, Coffee or Espresso, Sugar or Sugar Substitute, Pumpkin Pie Spice, and fat free whipped topping (optional).

Take your milk, pumkin butter, sugar, and vanilla and bring to a boil, mixing well.

Remove from heat add in your coffee, mix, top with whipped topping, sprinkle Pumpkin Pie Spice on top and take a long sip of this deliciousness!

My god this was AMAZING! I will never have to go to Starbucks again for a Pumpkin Spice Latte because this is that good. Plus it's a SKINNY drink WOO HOO!! Saves me $5 and gives me an excuse to always have Pumpkin Butter on hand! :-)

Also since I wanted a little extra pumpkin I added some Pumpkin Pie Spice to the Milk mixture while it was boiling...I just can't get enough pumpkin!!

Coffee lovers, pumpkin lovers you MUST try this...Trust me you will love it!!

Time to Get B-E-A-UTIFUL!!

On Wednesday I got the most amazing piece of mail delivery!! I got my Benefit Cosmetics Make Up Order!! Ever since my last purchase I've been saving my pennies to put in a big order and replenish with some of my favorite products and also add some new products that I've been eyeballing for months!

It is always packaged so beautifully!

This time around I ordered - the PoreFessional, You Rebel Lite, and the set called This Fab Lane (included BadGal Mascara , That Gal, and Hoola powder) and because I ordered all that and had a coupon code I got the Lana Make Up bag for FREE!! Yes I said for FREE!! And it is AMAZING! My other bag just got to be too small for me (Yikes, maybe that's a bad sign) but this new bag I hope I never outgrow! It's got plenty of room for my daily make up and my "If I have more time in the morning" make up, plus all the brushes I use on a daily basis and more!!! Boy this sounding like a sales pitch....I assure you I don't work for Benefit ....I just love everything about them :-)

First of all you can't go wrong when using the You Rebel Lite moisturizer, it really is amazing! Same with That Gal, which is a primer. But I'd never tried their mascara, Hoola powder, or the PoreFessional....first of all I am IN LOVE with the porefessional. What does it do you ask??

The Porefessional minimizes the look of your pores. I don't have huge pores but around my nose they get out of control...at least when I look at them! And who doesn't see their flaws magnified...so now not only am I in love with another product from Benefit but I also feel less conscious of my pores! WOO HOO!

Their mascara is ehh...it makes my lashes thick but I think it might be a little clumpy to stand on its own. I think I'll only use it when I wear eye shadow!

And the Hoola...it's a tan in a box. And I'm not talking hello orange construction cone...it's a great tan color that is light enough to wear everyday! I was so IMPRESSED with this and since I hardly ever tan anymore...I mean you don't even want to see my legs they are so blinding....this is perfect for entering the winter season. I know I'm going to lose (or have I already lost all my color?) any traces of sun time on my face and now I have a solution! Thank you yet again Benefit...I truly am an addict!

What's Not To Love About Pumpkin??

What can I say? I just love Pumpkin! I was so upset when the pumpkin shortage finally hit our area, but Thank You Libby for coming through and restocking all of our grocery stores!! Thanks to this Amazing Blog (Gina's Skinny Recipes) I have found quite a few new recipes to try that are Weight Watcher Approved. Now I'm not doing Weight Watchers but that doesn't mean those recipes won't be good for me and yummy!!

The first one to make is PUMPKIN BUTTER!! If you don't have these ingredients run, don't walk, but run to your local grocery and stock up!

26 ounce can of Pumpkin Puree, Pumpkin Pie Spice, Vanilla Extract, Cinnamon Sticks, Brown Sugar, and Apple Juice.



Combine everything!!

Bring to a boil and then let simmer for an hour!

Then transfer into containers and pop in the fridge. You probably do not have to refrigerate but thats how I like it.

Then take a piece of bread, toast it and get to spreadin'!

Seriously this recipe couldn't be any easier! And it couldn't taste any better.

As Chuck put it... "It's like pumpkin pie on toast"...Why yes my friends it really is. I LOVE this recipe! So easy, so good, and it makes a BUNCH!! Which is a great thing because Gina supplies you with all kinds of recipes to try with it...which if you've figured me out by now I definitely will be trying them!! The first one up is the Skinny Pumpkin Spice Latte...seriously how could that go wrong?? Stay tuned and get to making this Pumpkin Butter!

Oh Deer!!

Thursday while I at work I'm just minding my own business, working hard of course....But I take a glance out my office windodw and what do I see? A DEER!! One lonely little doe munching away at a bush in our mini courtyard area. I couldn't believe my eyes. (Definitely not normal for this area to see them at my work) I even hollered out to my coworkers.. "Does anyone else see that deer outside?" Of course it wasn't my imagination...and being the scrapbooker I am my camera was in my purse :-)

These first few shots are taken from my actual office through the glass!

This one is literally right below my window (we are the second story) and she was so close!

Then she started heading to the side of the building....

And climbed up into the parking lot...

Yes I really did walk outside and turned myself into a Deer Paparazzi! I just had to see how close I could get !!! As my coworkers laughed at me I'm sure :-)

She let me get pretty close. Its hard to see in this picture but I was probably 10 feet away from her. She was very scared so I backed off and then she took off, while slipping a couple times on the asphalt :-( Luckily she didn't fall completely and was unhurt...

And she made it back up the hill :-) Stopped to eat some tree before fleeing completely!

It was such a random morning because not only did we see her but there was a hot air balloon as well. Which to me was weird cause it was right over the middle of town but then Friday morning my coworker and I saw three more!! I guess everyone is trying to get their last minute rides in before the weather officially turns to winter!

I hope next week has some interesting sights for us as well, somehow I doubt anything will top the deer sighting though!

It's So SPOOKTACULAR!

Chuck and I are always really excited when October 1st comes rolling around because that means it times to really jazz up the house. We love decorating for Holidays and while I put out the fall decorations in September the house isn't super festive until October. And guess what??? IT'S OCTOBER!! 

We pulled out our three tubs of Halloween decorations!! Yes they are black to coordinate with Halloween...I like to be organized.

While we started with the inside decorating first I am going to show you our decorations working from the outside in. We actually just finished our decorating of the outside last night...this year we only did our front patio. The back patio will get decorated next year!!

Welcome to our Home!

Don't you just love our Welcome sign! My Aunt and Uncle gave us that for our Housewarming gift along with holiday banners and an everyday banner!

This year we decorated the door. Usually that gets wrapped out the front pole but I thought itd be more fun on the door. And yes I was right :-) Also those "heads" hanging from the door handle and on the side of the condo are motion sensored. Meaning they move and make noise when someone comes close to them. I LOVE IT!

Here is our little Halloween village that we set up on the breakfast bar. This is Chuck's favorite part of our decorations and he always sets it up :-) It's pretty neat, two of the pieces light up and make noise! We have found all of these pieces in Michael's but this year we didn't really care for the new stuff.

Our entry table got a little festive!

We both LOVE this sign. We got it at Michaels for like 40% last year and it's just so perfect and fun! It hangs in our entryway.

The mantel all done up! We love our candle holders!

The tv stand!

This is a pumpkin Chuck bought me a couple years ago. If you plug him in he glows green! I just love him cause he's fun but kind of spooky! He gets to sit inside this year since we don't have a plug outlet in the front!

My two favorite scarecrows! I found these dolls a few years ago and this is the first year they needed minor repairs. But Mr and Mrs Scarecrow are loving their spot on the bookcase. And that little ghost figurine is another favorite of mine. Chuck and I were out shopping last year and I fell in love with him, but we were trying to only buy what we needed as we were saving money up and Chuck slyly put him in the basket. I didn't even notice til we were checking out :-)

These shelves are on our dining room wall. I love candles and firmly believe the more the merrier!

The other side of the dining room wall...

And last but not least the bathroom downstairs. We only decorate downstairs now because no one but us goes upstairs.

These guys are on the shelf above the toilet! I'm sure for a guy it might be a little creepy to have them staring at you while you are handling your business but I just love them. I found them at a local Dollar Store a few years ago. They actually stay out until after Thanksgiving!

 

And I am very proud of this guy. I put this together a few years ago. I bought the actual scarecrow but I put together the bag and the fall floral items that are with him. He's survived being attacked by the cats (nearly on a daily basis now) and being smushed a few times in a box. What a trooper! :-)

And just a few sink items. Another fall figurine from the dollar store and a cute candle holder Chuck bought me!

And then of course we have to have wall decorations!

I found these signs awhile ago. I can't even remember where I got them, probably the dollar store as when I first moved out thats where I bought most of my holiday decorations! They really do carry some cute items!

Well that's all folks! We love how decked out our house is from September to January 1...granted we are ready to put things away on New Years but the house is so much more fun during Halloween, Thanksgiving, and of course Christmas!

Anyone else all decorated for Halloween?

Calling All Shop-A-Holics!

Last night I finished the 6th book of the Shopaholic Series by Sophie Kinsella! It was as expected!

Source

The movie has ruined the books. I can't stop getting the images of the actors and actresses out of my head and they do not fit the images I had before the movie. I wish I never watched that dang movie. But anyway the book was cute and while I dislike Becky most of the time, she ALWAYS manages to win me over in the end of the book. While it's not really about her daughter being a shopaholic in training it's really about Becky trying to put together a HUGE suprise party for her husband Luke without him finding out and with a huge economic crisis on the rise. Minnie (her daughter) does have a storyline in it but it's hard to read, she's a brat because her mother doesn't know how to discipline. Granted I don't have kids and I do know they act out but I can only imagine what my own Mother would have done to me had I acted the way Minnie did....let's just say she gets herself BANNED from four or five different Santa Land's because of her bad behavior!!

Unfortunately the highest I can give this book is a B+. It kept me intrigued and I finished it in a few days but I wish this was the last in the series. Sophie Kinsella has milked this one for all it's worth (in my opinion) and she really needs to figure out a new character and new storylines...the shopaholic will probably continue into another book though because she left it WIDE open for that...I won't say why but I will say this...

"PLEASE NO MORE SHOPAHOLIC!!!" I love your writing Ms Kinsella but I've had enough of Becky and her unbelievable ways!

By the way - If they make a second movie...I will not be seeing it. The first movie was not done right at all...first of all Becky is British not American and that is a HUGE difference! Okay enough ranting....Read if you love the shopaholic...don't read if you are sick of her!

Alternative Shortcakes Anyone?

Another Hungry Girl recipe down!! The other day I decided to put together the Strawberry Shortcakes from Hungry Girl's 200 Under 200 Cookbook! I love strawberry shortcake because it's light and it's got fruit! I mean what's not to love right? And usually I try and make it as healthy as possible by using Bisquik Heart Smart Mix (which is AMAZING if you haven't tried it). But since Hungry Girl offers an even healthier recipe how could I not try it??

Gather up the ingredients: Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding Snack, Fat Free Nilla Wafers (I used a knock off brand), Fat Free Whipped Topping, and some Strawberry Preserves. My advice get the preserves, I used a jelly cause I had some for my toast.

First combine the whipped topping, pudding snack, and jelly in a bowl. Make sure to mix these really well together!

Use a jelly preserve otherwise it looks like this cause the jelly doesn't mix as well as a preserve would.

Next place a nilla wafer in the bottom of a cupcake paper. This recipe makes 4 of these so you only need 4 wafers.

Top with your mixture and then pop them into the freezer. I froze mine overnight but the recipe says you only have to freeze for one hour if you want to enjoy them the same day you prepare them.

Here is the finished product......

Not the best! I was actually super disappointed because this seemed so easy and such a better alternative then making a mess of my kitchen to make the actual shortcakes. While they weren't horrible, they were alright, I won't be making them again. Maybe they shouldn't have been frozen over night maybe I should have eaten them after an hour, maybe I should have used preserves. I will not be making these again though...good try Hungry Girl but nothing beats a real shortcake :-)

Fab Five Indeed!!!

I just love breakfast. It really is my favorite meal of the day. Give me a cup of coffee and I'll cook you an entire breakfast filled with french toast, bacon, cinnamon rolls, pancakes, eggs, biscuits, sausage, you name it! I of course love being in my kitchen cooking up a storm or baking up a sweet delicious treat so it's been a nice feeling to be back in there. With the hot weather we were experiencing I really wasn't wanting to spend any time in my kitchen, but the weather seems to be turning around and I've been back at it....

And Hungry Girl of course is the top priority on my list. I just made the Fab-Five Banana Pancake Mini's from the 200 Under 200 Cookbook!

I can't even tell you how easy these were! First you will need to gather your ingredients: Whole wheat flour, vanilla extract, non fat vanilla soymilk, cinnamon, egg substitute, baking powder, a sugar alternative like Splenda (I used Ideal), and of course a banana!

Mash up 1/4 cup of banana and combine it with 1 tablespoon soymilk, 3 tablespoons egg substitute, and 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract. In a separate bowl combine your dry ingredients: 1/4 cup whole wheat flour, 1/4 teaspoon baking powder, 1 packet alternative sugar (or like me I just guesstimate) and a dash of cinnamon.

Combine the two mixtures together. Make sure to blend well!

Then divide into 5 mini pancakes in a pan sprayed with baking spray. Now I obviously can't get this right. I ended up making 4 mini pancakes, that are not the same size, but hey who cares right? I'm the one eating them! But cook them just like you would any other pancakes!

Now I had some leftover banana and some leftover egg substitute and not wanting to waste I whipped up some scrambled eggs and topped my pancakes with banana slices! This plus a cup of coffee = a wonderful breakfast to start my day!

Check out these beauties! I couldn't have been happier with this recipe! I for one love adding banana's to my breakfast whether it's cereal, toast, or pancakes isn't abnormal. But to now have a low calorie, low fat, somewhat high fiber breakfast recipe involving banana's just makes my heart swoon!

You pancake lovers MUST try this recipe! Way to go Hungry Girl I couldn't be fuller and happier with this lovely breakfast option!! Another bonus this recipe is super quick to put together and can easily be made on workdays!

It's Mexi Pizza Time

Tonight I couldn't be prouder of myself. While at work today Chuck sends me a text asking if I "wanted Panda for dinner?" A.K.A Panda Express Chinese Food. Am I proud because I finished off a whole crap load of chinese food??? NO NO NO!!  I am proud because while he sat there and ate his extremely delicious smelling Chinese Goodies I chose a Hungry Girl Recipe! And I am so happy I did...within 20 minutes Chuck was complaining he ate too much while I was sitting comfortably fulfilled!!

Tonight for dinner I made the Spicy Tortilla Pizza Mexicali!! For this you only need a few items, granted I had to substitute one because I just can't stomach the soy beef crumbles.

Gather your ingredients: Cheddar Cheese, Mozzarella Cheese, Fat Free Sour Cream, Tortilla, Diced Tomatoes with Green Chile's, Taco Seasoning, and Ground Beef (or soy beef crumbles)

I was lucky to have made taco's earlier this week and had leftover meat that was already prepared with taco seasoning. Next I heated my tortilla up on both sides. Laid it out on a cookie sheet (covered with aluminum foil) and then started layering. First you will want to put 1/3 cup of the diced tomatoes, then top with 1/3 of the beef mixed with taco seasoning, then layer the two cheeses. Pop into your preheated oven at 375 and bake for 12 minutes.

Oh YUM!! This was right up my alley! Once its out of the oven I put a few dollops of lite sour cream on top and sat down to enjoy!

And enjoy I did! This was so delicious and if you love Mexican food here is a healthier alternative. Granted I should be using the La Tortilla Healthy Tortilla's that Hungry Girl calls for but I was working with what I had. So while it wasn't super healthy it was definitely more healthy than what I'd normally eat and it was of course more proportioned to what I should be eating!

Another recipe from Hungry Girl's 200 Under 200 Cookbook down and many more to enjoy! Everyone needs to try this recipe, it's perfect for a simple dinner!