Friday Funnies - 11.30

Today is the last day of November. I have so many blessings in my life and I am thankful for each and every one of them. I'm thankful for my family and friends, Jordan and Paisley, my education, the roof over my head and food in our cupboards, my job and my car, and all of the awesome families and kiddos I get to meet and interact with each week. Just to name a few things.... To sum it up, I have a wonderful life and am truly lucky for everyone and everything that I have in it. Now let's celebrate the fact that it is Friday and time to relax for the weekend!! Also, today is officially my one year blog-iversary!!! Can I get a hell yeah for sticking with it for one year and sharing all of our highs and lows with you all?! I can't wait to see what the next year will bring us but I am sure it will be entertaining either way! Be sure to unwind and laugh a little this weekend even if you have to work!

image via Google
Oh so the Thin Mints aren't a diet plan?
Could have fooled me!

yeah? yeah? covered it with what?

Paisley loses her mind just thinking of being tricked like this...

It's so close it hurts!

Two weeks! Two weeks from today and we will be sailing away enjoying paradise on our honeymoon trip!!! AHHHH!!!! You can do anything for two weeks, right?!! These next two weeks are going to be chaos for both me and Jordan but we have no choice but to power through it all. And the reward that we have waiting for us at the end of the two weeks is totally worth it all! Jordan has his final two weeks of student teaching, yipeee!!! And then has to present his teaching portfolio and get everything lined up for his teaching position in the spring. I have to write two papers, grade projects and then take my final exams.....and get all of my internship stuff finalized and ready to be mailed. It is all consuming me and I am trying to not become a stressed-out-crazy-emotional-person but it is hard! The whole process is a huge time and money commitment and it makes me paranoid...there is so much riding on the line to not get an internship let alone an interview! BUT! Today, I am not going to worry about that! Because, like I said, it is two weeks away from our honeymoon and we absolutely cannot wait! Cheers to that!

Give Kids The World

For the first time in my entire college career, I was able to tell my work supervisor that I am unavailable for Spring Break and can't work. And this is because I am finally going on my first ever Spring Break trip and I could NOT be more excited about it!!!! I got asked to go on the "Child Life Alternative Spring Break Workshop: Give Kids The World Trip" and am so pumped! They only take ten students, TEN students, each spring so I feel honored and lucky to be part of the group of ten. We will be traveling to the Give Kids The World Village which is located about 20 minutes away from DisneyWorld in Florida! GKTW is a home-away-from-home village that is ran entirely by volunteers and it is a place where kids with a life-threatening illness and their families can stay and visit for a week....entirely COST FREE! They get a week of vacation in a fantasy land and get to visit the Disney parks for free. Seriously, this place is like a dream land! If you have seen the movie, Letters To God, then you have seen a glimpse of the village. There is a mailbox there, from the movie, where kids and families can mail letters each day and many times they are prayers, hopes and dreams written by the kids, siblings and parents. There is soft-serve ice-cream served around the clock so kids can have ice-cream for breakfast if they want! I will spend the week volunteering with the group by helping to serve meals, hang out with the families and play with the kiddos and advocating for Child Life while learning different ways to incorporate where Child Life services could be provided. We each will get a diagnosis of a child staying at the village, learn about them and their diagnosis then do a presentation on it at the end of the week. Then to top it off, our group gets to spend a day at SeaWorld and Downtown Disney--possibly a trip to one of the parks is in the works as well!!! Yipee!!! Talk about the best spring break trip ever!!!!!!!!! And it is all entirely covered by Iowa (for me at least!) since I am a teaching assistant so it is covered as part of my tuition...double yipee! I have never felt luckier to be asked to join this amazing group of people going on the trip and I feel like it is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me! It warms my heart and I am so, soooo excited for it! It may have taken me six years of school to go on a spring break trip, but I would say this one is well worth the wait and definitely well deserved! 

Well one week later....

After indulging in an ungodly amount of calories over the past five days, enduring too many belly laughs to count, and working the cramps out of my face from smiling....we are in fact, alive and survived Thanksgiving and Christmas with the Cross Family. And I am so sad that it is all over. The time definitely went by way, way too fast. My parents got to Iowa last Monday night and we all enjoyed some pizza and beers along with some laughs and good conversations. They headed up to Wisconsin on Tuesday while Jordan and I had one last day of work/school for the week. We packed up all of our stuff and hit the road first thing Wednesday morning and didn't stop going until we made it back home yesterday afternoon!!

Thursday was Thanksgiving obviously but more importantly, it was Teagan's 5th birthday! Holy smokes, where does the time go?! I can't believe that she is five now.... She is growing up into such a smart and sassy, hilarious and beautiful little girl! It is so fun watching her grow up and I'm lucky that I have gotten to play such an active role in her life. It would make me sad being so far away from her and Kemper that they don't know me when I come around! Anyway, we celebrated T's birthday after Thanksgiving dinner. She was spoiled with gifts, had a blast beating up on a pinata and then topped it off with cake....which I made! Yummm homemade chocolate cake with peanut butter icing! We capped the night off by having a bon fire once the kids went to bed....

We then quickly shifted gears and went right into Christmas mode on Friday! We watched the Hawks lose, again, first thing which was a total bummer. Not only did they lose to Nebraska which gives them a share at the Big 10 title but it also confirmed they are for sure not going to a bowl game.  Extra sucky. We got over it quickly with a few drinks that we had during the game at least. Then after successfully stuffing our faces again with the Thanksgiving leftovers, we let the Christmas festivities begin! My mom had planned a "fashion show" for all of us...she made all of us tons of awesome projects and crafts! It included some crochet infinity scarves and gloves, fleece hats and jackets and lots of new Iowa gear. Score! My mom just keeps blowing all of our minds with how crafty she is and it rocks! Presents were a big hit with the kids and watching their eye light up with each gift they opened was enough to keep all of us happy. They are so cute and were so thrilled with everything they got...very heart warming to watch! After the kiddos went to bed and so did our parents, things got real crazy. Us adult "kids" played a new game that Scott and Kat got that is called "Cards Against Humanity." Basically, it is like a very very inappropriate version of Apples To Apples. But ridiculously hilarious and awesome. I'm not sure if we have ever laughed that hard before while playing a game before.....it will definitely be played again at our next reunion!

Saturday morning however, came way toooo early! We all hit the road to Charles City and made it to Grandma's! Just when I was thinking I couldn't possibly eat any more food, I managed to stuff myself completely. Again. There's just something about Grandma's home cooking that is irresistible. We all played several rounds of cards together and Jordan finally won two games! Third year of being at the Cross Christmas was the charm and he hit the jackpot twice! Which made me happy because then I didn't have to pay in anything, mwahahaha! 

And just like that, our four days together came to an end once we all woke up on Sunday morning. We were all avoiding saying good-bye to one another because we knew what it meant. That our parents would be driving back to Texas and that meant that none of us know the next time we will see them. And that sucks. Just leaves a giant pit in my stomach. As if I wasn't trying hard enough to fight back the tears, hugging my Dad goodbye after he just said goodbye to his own mom and sister with tears in his eyes and his noticeably choked up voice, was really tough. My dad can always put on a smile though and gave one last bear hug before getting in the car. Let's just say I was a hot mess of emotions on the first thirty minutes of our drive back home....

I'm thankful beyond thankful for the family I have in my life and these past four days just weren't enough. But I am so grateful for the time we did get to have together, the laughs we shared, the hugs and love we exchanged and the memories with each other that we made. I love how much Jordan fits in with my family and how we can all have so much fun with each other without having to do much. I can't wait until we are all together again and am already looking forward to that. I hope the day comes when we all live within a few hours of each other again because this whole living in Texas thing sucks for all of us! Wahh real life! Well I hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving and the time spent with family and some delicious food! I know we definitely did and now I'm dreading the pile-up of school and work stuff that I have been ignoring...well, happy Monday!

Mad about Monday?

It's Monday. I got the afternoon off unexpectedly and my parents are on schedule to get to Iowa about 2 1/2 hours earlier than I thought they were going to! How can I possibly be mad that it is Monday?!! Ahh I'm so excited to be able to spend some quality time with them tonight and enjoy some laughs, cold drinks and good conversations before mass chaos hits on Wednesday and the whole family is together. I love them all, don't get me wrong, but with so many of us it can be hard to get a word in sometimes! I'm thankful to have such a close knit family and for the special times that we get to share with each other! Tomorrow afternoon is going to be my baking extravaganza because I got put in charge of desserts for Thanksgiving and I'm really looking forward to it. I have quite the list of treats to make and it includes caramel apple cheesecake with streusel topping, chocolate cake with peanut butter icing and my famous puppy chow! Yummmy! Can't wait for all the good home cooking and treats this week...thank goodness my metabolism is still on my side!

Wedding Shadow Box

Our wedding was well over three months ago and today I did my first post-wedding related craft! I had purchased a shadow box before the wedding that was on 70% clearance at Michael's so it was only $8.00 and I have been holding onto all of our wedding momentos to make the shadow box. I love these as a keepsake because it shows off our big day without having these items boxed up and stored away! It's like a scrapbook on display...perfect! 

Here is how I did it:
1. I found a piece of thick cardstock and cut it to the size of the frame. This is so I had a study base to secure all the items to.
2. I arranged everything how I wanted it and make sure the words and pictures were visible where I wanted them to be.
3. I glued down the paper from the program first with a regular scrapbooking glue stick. Then I layered the program, invite, picture, monogram and quote on top of that and glued them down with the glue stick as well.
4. To secure the garter, picture charms and boutonniere, I used hot glue and firmly pressed down on each of these. 
5. I let it all dry for about 30 minutes to make sure it was all secure before I put it in the frame. Then today Jordan hung it up for me! 

I love Lazy Sunday's and today has been a good one for us before we start Thanksgiving week! Tomorrow my parents are leaving Texas bright and early...and they are driving all the way up to our place! Yipee, I'm so excited to see them!!!! I'm thankful the weather forecast is clear of snow and other bad weather tomorrow and the rest of the week so that we, and everyone else, has safe travels as they go to celebrate the holidays with their family and friends! Whoo whoo I'm so thankful to be on Thanksgiving Break: bring on a week off from school and a week with my family! 

Homemade Pretzel Bites

Homemade Pretzel Bites with dipping sauces!

Well after watching a brutal first half football game by the Hawks against Michigan, I decided it was time to get in the kitchen and give myself a distraction from the game. I'm thankful for being able to feed myself and Jordan each day! I came across a great recipe that seemed easy enough and we had all of the ingredients for. I tweeked it a little bit here and there but Just Get Off Your Butt and Bake is definitely a site I will be visiting frequently for more delicious and easy recipes! I made both the parmesan garlic bites and cinnamon-sugar bites. The perfect mix of salty and sweet! Make some yourself for the next gameday or group gathering and they are sure to be a big hit...they didn't last long at our place! And you'll be too busy dipping the bites and eating them one after another to even notice the second half of the game!

Ingredients: Bites:
-1 roll of frozen bread dough or frozen roll dough
-2 tablespoons butter
-cinnamon-sugar
-parmesan, kosher salt and garlic salt

Vanilla Glaze:-1 cup powered sugar
-2 tablespoons milk
-1 tablespoon melted butter
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cheese Dip:
-1 tablespoon butter
-1 tablespoon all purpose flour
-1 cup milk
-2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese (I used taco blend and it gave the cheese dip an added zip of flavor!)

Directions: 
1. set out frozen bread or rolls to unthaw. Once it is unthawed, cut it into slices and then cut each slice into 4 pieces.

2. place on a greased baking sheet and allow them to rise and fully "puff up"
3. once they are puffy, bring some water to a boil in a large pot and preheat oven to 375*. Place about 10-15 bites into boiling water for about 45 seconds. After that, remove them from water with a slotted spoon and place them on another baking sheet that is lined with paper towels.
4. remove them carefully from paper towels and place on the greased baking sheet. Bake at 375* for about 15 minutes or until they are a nice golden color.
5. melt the butter and then remove the bites form oven and butter them generously.
6. roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture and/or parmesan with garlic and kosher salt mixture

For the dips: Vanilla Glaze:
1. combine powered sugar, milk, butter and vanilla and mix well.

Cheese Dip:
1. melt butter in saucepan over medium heat then add the flour until blended.
2. slowly whisk in the milk and cook until thickened slightly.
3. remove from the heat and slowly add in the cheese until it's completely melted and stir until it is smooth.

Friday Funnies - 11.16

Finally, it's Friday! Is it just me or did this week drag on for everyone else?!! I feel like that always seems to happen when you're looking forward to something and for me, that something is next week! It's a two day work week and my parents will be here on Monday night! I can't wait to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas with everyone and enjoy some good laughs and food with the whole family! This week has been quite stressful trying to get all of my internship stuff lined up and finalized so it's time for a good laugh to kick off the weekend! Happy Friday everyone!

image via MSN.com
McKayla, it's Friday and you're standing next to President Obama!
I'm so impressed that you're not impressed at all!!!!

Is this real life? Is this gonna last forever?

David, I hope the dentist makes you feel like this again when you get your wisdom teeth out!
And I wish the weekend would last forever like these after effects!

a surprise visit...

Today while at work at the hospital, I got a very sweet surprise visit from a former patient who was back for her 3-month check ups and scans. I hadn't seen Izzy since she left after her last chemo treatment well over 3 months ago and I was not expecting to see her sweet and sassy self! When she was first diagnosed, Izzy didn't take it very well at all and was terrified of anyone and everyone who walked into her room, and rightly so for only being four years old! She refused to come to activity and didn't want any of us to hang out with her in her room to play a game or do a craft. She wanted her normal four year old life back and to spend time at home with her parents and newborn baby brother. And all I wanted was to make a difference in her stay at the hospital and her course of treatment. So every single day, I went to her room and knocked on the door, knowing she would get upset and tell me no and send me on my way just like she did to everyone else. Until one day, that all changed. Izzy finally said, "well I like princess books and puzzles." So I brought some in and together we read some books and worked on some puzzles. It only lasted maybe a half an hour until she got upset when her pole started beeping and she was snapped back to the reality of still being in her hospital room and undergoing cancer treatment. But that one day of books and puzzles was all it took. I returned the next day, and she greeted me with a smile and invited me into her room to play Barbies and princess with her. I guess you could say the rest is history...

We hit it off and she was always quick to give me a hug or snuggle onto my lap. My heart was overwhelmed and I think it was the first time her mom finally breathed a sigh of relief. Izzy then always referred to me as "her best friend" and rarely let any of the other child life assistants do the 1:1 activities with her like she let me. There will always be those adults, kids and patients that I will form different relationships with and a bond with in different ways but I'm so thankful for the bond I formed with Izzy. She trusted only me to chase her around the hospital while she rode the tricycle as we went from floor to floor. And the day she left the hospital after her last chemo treatment, she gave me a sign she had made and decorated that said, "i luv child life and katie. xxxoooooxxoxoxo" and she drew stick people giving hugs to each other. Straight from the mouth and mind of babes...so precious. And I was so beyond happy to see her today as she walked into the playroom healthy with a head full of hair this time, a smile on her face that no one or anything could wipe off, and a big hug waiting for me full of love. Nothing makes my heart happier than a surprise visit from a special kiddo who no longer fears the hospital and I know I made a difference in her life. I'm thankful for my job and the miracles I get to witness day in and day out!

A Grandma's Love

There are few things as good as the love you get from grandma's. I talked to mine last night on the phone for well over an hour but it seemed like only ten minutes. We talked about everything from school to work to our honeymoon to hawkeye football and everything in between! I love that I can talk football and sports with my grandma, how cool is she?!! And she genuinely listens to everything I have to say and is truly interested in what Jordan and I are both doing in our lives. Jordan and I both attended a funeral this morning for the grandfather of Jordan's good friend, Justin, and while sitting in the service, I couldn't help but think of my own grandparents. I feel robbed I lost two of them so early in my life but am thankful for the years I did get with them and the memories I do have. I know many, if not all, of my younger cousins never got to meet our Grandpa & Grandma Coleman and if they did, they were tiny babies. So while our time was short, it will never be forgotten. And I'm beyond thankful for every memory I have with my Papa Duke before he passed away when I was 13. All the summers spent fishing together and playing cards at the river, the twinkle in his eye on Christmas morning as he opened his own presents and his quick sense of humor. I love it all and miss it all terribly at the same time. I can't imagine not having a relationship with my grandparents and it makes me sad when people take their own grandparents, parents, siblings or anyone in general for granted! I look forward to every time I get to see my grandma and having phone calls with her. She can always cheer me up, make me laugh and take some stress away. And not to mention, stuff me with sweet treats, good home cooking and unconditional love. I'm thankful for my grandparents and the influence they have all had on me and for the memories I have with them. Especially the new ones I get to keep making with my grandma!

finally 100%

100%. Today I am finally feeling 100% better and I'm so thankful for that. I can smell, breathe, taste, and hear all completely normal again! And I've never been happier...it's the small things in life, like our senses, that we tend to take for granted until we don't have them. Nothing like sleepless nights from a stuffy nose and no appetite from not being able to smell anything. So thankful the gunk is gone and the rumble in my stomach has disappeared. What a relief. No seriously, what a relief. And another huge relief is that I found out I got 93% on my research paper that was due last week. Booyah! That's close enough to 100% and a heck of a lot better than I thought I was going to get and gave myself credit for! Just all in a day's work.....  

Christmas is in the air!

It's the most wonderful time of the year and we decided it was time to put up our Christmas tree and decorations! This is because of a few things: 1. we are celebrating Christmas next week with my whole family after Thanksgiving since we'll all be together already... 2. we are going to be gone for a week in December so we wanted to be able to fully enjoy the decorations.... and 3. it is well past November 1st so that means it's time for the holiday spirit!!!!

and the stockings were hung by the mantle with care...
and Buddy the Elf makes us laugh out loud into the air!

can't wait to celebrate our first Christmas
as Mr. & Mrs. 

Paisley is the best present under the tree

Christmas is by far Jordan's all-time favorite holiday and rightly so. It is such a magical time of year. And I'm thankful we both have families that cherish it so much and who we get to spend this time of the year with! Ahh I'm so ready to see my family next week...can't wait for all of us to be reunited!

Glitter Wine Bottles...and a very lazy Sunday

What quickly went from being a very productive day between crafting, decorating and grading papers, has now turned into a very lazy Sunday. I'm not sure what just hit me but damn, it does not feel good. There's been a stomach flu bug going around work and in the office and I think it finally caught me. Woof. I'm glad I got one craft in and finished earlier though so now I can be posted up on the couch in the fetal position the rest of the night between trips to the bathroom. Here's what I made for my first Christmas craft of the year! I have been saving wine bottles each time I finish one and waiting to use them for various crafts so I finally decided it was time to put some to use! This was a very easy, quick and cheap project that turned out really cute!

Glitter Wine Bottles!

so festive for our mantle!

Here is what you will need:

-wine bottles of any shape and size

-mod podge

-loose glitter of any color

-sponge brush

cost: about $4.00! I already had the wine bottles and brush along with the mod podge but it is usually $4.99 at any craft/hobby store (and always make sure to use a 40% off coupon!)

Directions:

1. soak the bottles in hot soapy water for about 30 minutes to remove the labels. This took the labels off entirely for the most part then I wiped them off with a sponge where it didn't come off. Dry bottles entirely.

2. mix mod podge with loose glitter. Make sure there is plenty of glitter in the mod podge (pour in so much that you'll almost think "wow that's way too much glitter!") You want to make sure it is heavily concentrated otherwise you'll end up doing ten layers!

3. paint on one layer and make sure it's even other wise it will dry and cause bumps and clumps of glitter

4. I rotated bottles so I painted one layer of gold, then moved onto red, and then green...and just rotated them around. I ended up doing two full layers and then touch ups where necessary!

I can't wait to try out some more Christmas crafts and projects that I have seen online and obviously on Pinterest! Maybe this year everyone will be getting homemade projects for presents...made with lots of love of course!

Heartbreak Hawks

The Hawks did the unthinkable today....they blew the game and lost. At home. On parent's weekend and senior day. So devastating. The game was a pretty boring one to watch but considering it was sunny and warm in the mid-60s and we got tickets for free, we were thankful to just be at Kinnick and watching our hawks! Win or lose, we're still hawk fans! With it being Veteran's Day weekend, they also had a full-field flag and a really cool half-time show that representing each branch of the military services. Thank you to all of the veterans, old and young, who have fought for our country and for our rights. We wouldn't be who we are today without you all and we'll always be thankful for all you've done of us! We were happy to enjoy the beautiful weather today because it's looking like tomorrow and the rest of the week had some 30s and 40s on the forecast...I don't think I'm ready for that yet! But I am ready for Christmas decorating which we will be doing tomorrow!

spending the day with the hubs and hawks....perfect Saturday!

I love Kinnick Stadium

Friday Funnies - 11.9

Whoo whoo another week down and wouldn't ya know, it looks like we have some awesome weather lined up for this weekend!! Jordan and I got tickets for the Iowa football game this weekend so we're pretty pumped about that as well...it's supposed to be mid-60s and we get to spend the day at Kinnick watching our Hawks! There are few things better than that so hopefully the Hawks pull out a big win for us to watch! If not, well, I'm sure we'll have a great time tailgating at least because some of our closest friends will be back in town again. Yay for visits from friends! Hope everyone had a good week and an even better weekend. Now, let's get laughing!

I know I am not the only person to think of Scar whenever you are told "Be prepared!"
These construction signs should actually have his picture on them...just think of how serious people would actually take them!
image via Pinterest

You'll eat a muffin. You'll eat it and like it!

So try all of our delicious Cunningham muffins...at Cunningham muffins!

Paisley The Pup

A dog has no use for fancy cars, big homes, or designer clothes. A water log stick will do just fine.
A dog doesn't care if your rich or poor, clever or dull, educated or illiterate.
Give him your heart and he'll give you his. How many people can you say that about?
How many people can make you feel rare and pure and special? How many people can make you feel extraordinary?
-Marley & Me

Today I thankful for the unconditional love that Paisley gives to me and Jordan. Every day when I get home from work or class, she is waiting there for me and instantly starts wagging her tail in excitement. She frantically scratches at her gate until I get to it and let her out so that she can jump into my arms and give me kisses. She's always down for snuggling and cuddling on the couch or in the chair and she makes the best little spoon. Dogs are so intuitive and know when their person is feeling sad or under the weather and Paisley is always there to help cheer me up and make me feel better. She is so sweet and cute it hurts sometimes! Like when I'm trying to grade papers or work on school stuff of my own, she easily distracts me with her big brown eyes and her slow roll onto her back when she's just itching for a belly rub. I'm so thankful she came into our lives, between the clever work of my mom and Jordan, and I can't imagine our house without her now. She has filled a hole and void in my hear that I didn't know existed and I know she loves us right back!

they make my heart so happy.

many thanks...and chicken ranch roll-ups!

My phone hasn't rang once today from some unknown number. I have been able to watch TV in peace without being bombarded with political ads. The election is finally over and I am so thankful!!!! And I woke up this morning after sleeping easy knowing that President Obama was re-elected as our President for the next 4 years! So many things to be thankful for regarding that and now, today is a new day. Democrat or Republican, left side or right side, blue state or red state....none of that matters anymore. It's time to all unite together as one country and start having each others backs and help one another, regardless of political party. Nothing will ever get done or accomplished if people can't look past their differences and all start getting along. Let's all be friends and just be thankful for our freedom, our rights and for being alive!

Enough with that...here's a quick and great meal that we had for dinner and perfect because it contains all pantry/fridge staples (well at least for us!) so there's no reason to run to the store! What you should do is run to the kitchen and make these delicious chicken ranch roll-ups tonight or as soon as possible!!

What you will need:1 pkg cream cheese (8oz)
1 pkg crescent rolls (8 count) (you can also use TWO packages of regular sized crescents)
2 shredded, cooked chicken breasts
2 C shredded cheese (we have a 4-cheese blend that tasted great!)
1 packet of dry ranch seasoning
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper
bread crumbs
1 tablespoon melted butter

Directions:
1. Set out cream cheese for it to start getting to room temperature! To cook the chicken, I took the chicken breasts right out of the freezer and boiled them for 40 minutes. that way I could prepare the rest of the mix while that was cooking (and do some cleaning!) If you don't want to boil the chicken though, use whatever method works best for you but I like to boil it because that makes it shred really easy!
2. Mix block of cream cheese with shredded cheese, dry ranch, salt, and pepper.

3. Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the water and shred it on a plate and remove any excess fat.
4. Unroll the crescent rolls individually and put the mixture onto the rolls. Just spoon it out first onto all of them before rolling up so you know you won't have left over mixture!

5. Roll them up and criss cross the corners in to make sure the edges are sealed. 
6. Melt the butter and brush the roll-ups with it then top them with bread crumbs. This is optional but makes them extra delicious!
7. Finally, bake them at 350* for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Yum! Super good, easy and quick to make and even easier on the wallet! We made some sweet potato fries to eat with the roll-ups which made dinner an easy clean up! And left overs for lunch tomorrow! Enjoy the roll-ups and political ad free TV because that's our plan!

VOTE!!!!

image via PostSecret

Today we get to watch history be made. Americans everywhere are finding time today to go cast their vote for the next President of the United States. And several Americans have already taken the time to request an absentee ballot and sent in their votes! I'm thankful for living in a country where I have the right to vote for our country's leader and where I have the right to voice my opinions and concerns. I believe anyone and everyone who can vote, should and they need to. Leave work early or go on your lunch break if you have to and take your family, friends, coworkers and neighbors along with you! Use your vote and your voice because people have literally died fighting to give us this right to do so. Vote to make a difference in your own life and the lives of others around you. Vote to help the present and impact the future. I don't care what your reason is or what party you side with, all I care is that you VOTE. Every voice matters and every vote is important.

my fingers hurt

I have spent the past four days typing up a 20-page research paper on the clinical framework of pediatric palliative care and the implications it has in the field of child life. Needless to say, my fingers hurt. I'm not sure I have ever done so much typing like that before!! But, I'm am so thankful to be done with it!!! And it made me really appreciate that fact that I have the opportunity to be getting the higher education that I am getting. I know not everyone can because of financial reasons or where they live and the point they are at in their lives. So while I complain about it some days and how that paper was brutal to write, it made me feel very proud and thankful to be at this position in my life. I think it's awesome seeing the numbers of women my age that choose higher education for themselves first and foremost but then to also give their current, or future, families a better life. And no matter what, no one can take away your education and that is something you can always fall back on and have to help you get back on your feet. I'm thankful to be a big time nerd but also pretty pumped to be done with classes in the spring!!!!

A Quarter Year Celebration

Kiss The Girl

There you see her
Sitting there across the way
She don't got a lot to say
But there's something about her
And you don't know why
But you're dying to try
You wanna kiss the girl.

Yes, you want her
Look at her, you know you do
It's possible she wants you too
There's one way to ask her
It don't take a word, not a single word
Go on and kiss the girl
Shalalalala
My oh my
Looks like the boy's too shy
Ain't gonna kiss the girl
Shalalalala
Ain't that sad
it's such a shame
Too bad, you're gonna miss the girl
go on and kiss the girl

Nows your moment
Floating in a blue lagoon
Boy, you better do it soon
No time will be better
She don't say a word
And she wont say a word
Until you kiss the girl

Shalalalala
My oh my
Looks like the boy's too shy
Ain't gonna kiss the girl
Shalalalala
Ain't that sad
it's such a shame
Too bad, you're gonna miss the girl

Shalalalala
Don't be scared
You better be prepared
Go on and kiss the girl
Shalalalala
Don't stop now
Don't try to hide it how
You wanna kiss the girl
Go on and kiss the girl
Lalalala, Lalalala

Happy quarter of a year Anniversary, Mr. E!
Even though you were too shy to make the move and kiss me first,
you still give the best forehead kisses and bear hugs.
I'm beyond thankful to have you in my life and love sharing it with you.
All my love,
KE

Passport Problems

Today I'm thankful (actually beyond thankful AND relieved!) that Jordan and I have finally applied for our passports!!!! We officially leave for our honeymoon in 40 days from now which means that it is less than 6 weeks away, yipee!!!! ....which means that I will be a paranoid-nervous-hot mess of a wreck until the day our passports arrive in the mail! I say this because everything on-line says that the processing time for passports is 4-6 weeks. Yep, 4-6 weeks. And in case you missed it, we will be leaving in LESS THAN 6 WEEKS! The lady at the post office today swore to us that we won't have a problem receiving it by the time we leave and she was like, "actually, most people have been getting them in 2-3 weeks so I'm sure you'll have no problem!" Alright lady, don't you know I'm like Winnie The Pooh and constantly have a black rain cloud hovering above me?! I'm the epitome of Murphy's Law, so anything that can go wrong, it will! Which leads me to my next thing I'm thankful for today.... I'm thankful that my husband wants to go out to the movies this weekend on a date BUT not if it means we're going to see the new Denzel Washington movie Flight. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Denzel because really, who doesn't?! But I'm good not seeing that and adding to my huge inner-fear of flying and constant internal anxiety I have while flying. I'm all for a movie date but there's just some movies I can't do. Ones about planes crashing for example, are some movies I can't do and refuse to watch. It's looking like it might be a redbox movie date night and a little phase 10 competition afterall and for that, I am just as thankful for!

Friday Funnies - 11.2

Whoop whoop it's Friday! Before I get to the funnies for today, I posted this on facebook today and want to share it here for my daily thankful thought: "Today I'm thankful it's Friday but I'm more thankful to use my right to vote for our President. There will rarely, if ever, be a candidate that you agree with entirely on every issue. Whether it's women's rights/health, education or taxes, pick an issue that you support, advocate for, and fight like hell to make sure it happens. Pick the one that will help you and not hurt you or your family, friends, kids and future generations. Every voice matters and every vote is important." And on that note, everyone who has the opportunity and is of legal age to do so, needs to VOTE! I am so sick of seeing posts on facebook and on the internet from people that say, "I don't like either guys so I'm not voting!" Really?! Educate yourself! And you're lying if you say, "I don't care about politics." Well then, obviously you don't care about your life or how politics can affect you, your family, friends, job, and so much more. Anyway, that's my rant and all I have to say about politics because this is supposed to be my Friday Funnies post!!! So let's get laughing!

happens to me everyday, bro.
image via Google

Kittens Inspired By Kittens! 

Hey, I get it girl. I still give voices to any and all animals in books or movies!
I mean, didn't Homeward Bound make everyone

want to have all animals talk?!

Thankful For November

Ah it's November already! Holy crap, can you believe it?!! I know that I definitely can't! With November, comes Thanksgiving, the start of many gatherings with family and friends and also that wonderful thankful/loving/giving/caring and sharing feeling that everyone starts to have. And it always makes me wonder...why don't we act that way year round towards everyone including strangers? Why is it just the "holiday spirit" that makes us more generous, more thoughtful and more caring? I know during the rest of the year we all get busy and caught up in our own lives everyday but I think it's important for people to take a step back from time to time and realize how much a random act of kindness could mean to someone else, whether it's someone they know or a complete stranger. So with that, I'm going to kick off the month of November by recognizing something that I'm thankful for each and every day. Today I am thankful for my awesome parents because without them, I literally would not be here today. But because of them, I am who I am today. They helped shape me and taught me to be independent, responsible, caring, giving, and respectful. They have always encouraged me and supported me, been there for me when I was wrong and gave me direction again. I can count on them as a friend but know they're always there for me as a parent. I owe them more than they know and hope my own kids look up to me as much I do to them. I'd be lost without them and love them both so much. Alright November, you're about to make my heart feel really full!