This chili is a great recipe! I made it for Henry's seventh birthday party! It was a big hit! My favorite thing to do for Henry's birthday party in the fall is have a chili bar for lunch! I set out tons of toppings and a couple different kinds of chili! Ingredients
Directions Brown ground beef, onion, and garlic. Then dump all ingredients into your Crock Pot. Let cook on low for 4-5 hours! Serve with your choice of topping!
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A couple weeks ago, we had a party to celebrate Henry's seventh birthday! Since his birthday is in the fall, one of my favorite things to serve at the party is chili! I like to set up an entire chili bar with toppings galore! This is always a big hit! We have several different food preferences in our extended family, so I always make several options! I found the recipe for this vegetarian chili and doctored it to my taste! It was a huge hit! Ingredients
Directions Dump all ingredients into your Crock Pot and cook on low for 4-5 hours! I garnished with cilantro! Enjoy! When you prepare for a Nerf themed birthday party, you pray for really good weather so that the party-goers can enjoy the obstacle course you and your husband spent hours creating! Well..... it rained a bit, but Henry and his friends still had a great day! This easel is a must for all birthday signs! I purchased these invitations and absolutely loved them! They were perfect for the party! I purchased these fabulous cookies from our local cookie shop! They are always a hit!! Not only are they adorable, but they taste great too! My two brothers may have given me a hard time for the shape of the Nerf darts! BOYS! And no party would be complete without cupcakes!! This cupcake stand is the perfect piece for display! Our local pizza shop even made "Target Pizzas" for me too for Henry's friend party! Each place setting was complete with safety glasses and a Nerf gun! Pool noodles and pallets were set up throughout our entire front and backyard to create barriers to hide behind! Each child wore a blue or orange bandana for the teams, and they played capture the flag! Henry had a great day with his friends last Saturday and a great family party on Sunday!
I first purchased these faux leather leggings at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale! The minute they were on, I was in love! They are so amazing! Not only are they high waisted, but they are by Spanx, so they suck you in in all the right places! I love how they can be dressed up or dress down! I plan to wear them out for date night, girl's night out, or even to school! For me, they run true to size. I wear them in a size small. They also come in plus size. And recently, I discovered them from QVC at a discounted price. Click here to see those. In my opinion, they are completely worth the investment.
​Check out the ten ways I styled them below!
Check out some other great options below as well at all price ranges!
I am a HUGE fan of Uggs! So while, yes, at first they are a big investment for a pair of shoes, I truly believe they are worth EVERY PENNY! I have had mine for 5+ years and still have lots of life left in them! I use this care kit to help protect and clean them! Click here to learn how to use the care kit. I am a solid 7 in shoes and find these true to size. If you are a half size, reviews suggest to size down.
The funny thing is, Briton used to give me such a hard time every time I would wear my Ugg boots! But then, I got him these slippers and he totally gets my obsession now!!
If you were going to invest in just ONE pair, black Uggs would be my suggestion! (But that is because about half of my wardrobe is black!!) I also like the fact that black hides dirt! I own this pair and love the fun bow details on the back! Here are a few ways to style the black Uggs! Basically, pair them with a tunic and leggings and you are good to go!
If you were purchasing JUST TWO pairs of Ugg boots, I would suggest the black Uggs and the chestnut Uggs! I have the Bailey Button Uggs (pictured above). Here are a few of my favorite ways to style this color of boot!
And while I don't wear these quite as much as my black Uggs and chestnut Uggs , I do love my chocolate Uggs as well! I own the Bailey Button Uggs. Here are a couple ways I style them!
Lastly, I love my grey Uggs! I own the Bailey Button version!
P.S. - if you want your Uggs to hold their shape over time, use a pool noodle that has been cut!
With Christmas right around the corner, I thought I would put together my favorite things to add to your Christmas list now!! Oprah has a list of her favorite things - well, these are mine! This cardigan is my number one choice for your Christmas list! I may sound dramatic, but this cardigan is my favorite item in my closet! I could literally wear it every day! EVERY.... DAY! It runs true to size and is worth every penny! If heaven and pure joy made a candle, this would be it! I have never smelled a candle that smells as good as this one. Every time someone comes to our house and I have this burning, people want to know what smells so good! I don't know about you, but I wear my robe at least once a day! I wear it in the morning when I get ready, and if it's chilly, I wear it at night before bed! This robe by Barefoot Dreams is the softest robe I have ever owned! I recently ordered two of these blankets FOR THE KIDS!! But once I got the blankets in the mail, I decided that they may be better for me! LOL! I have never felt a softer blanket! I have had this perfume for the past 8 years! I first discovered this perfume when Brit and I were on a cruise! We stopped by some little perfume shop before dinner, and I tested out this very perfume. Since then, I have been hooked. This is the only perfume I have purchased over and over! I always buy the "parfum" version because it is a stronger formula. It costs more, but you need less and the smell stays with you all day! Daisy by Marc Jacobs is my signature scent! This tote is adorable and REVERSIBLE!! It is also available for less than $50! This tote is available in three different colors. But you know me, I'm a pink girl!! This scarf by Lululemon is my absolute favorite! It can be worn about a million different ways! I always bring this scarf with me when I travel! You can check out a few ways I style it here. These are hands down the slippers that I wear more than any other! I have never owned a pair of slippers more me! But if giant adorable puff balls aren't your thing, check out some other ones here. I have had this watch for over five years and still love it! Not only does it work amazingly, but it still looks great even after all this time and being worn quite a bit! I also have this one in gold! Last but certainly not least, is my absolute favorite vacuum. I use this vacuum on hard floors as well as carpet. I LOVE that it is cordless! You know you are old when you get excited about a gift like this! Brit bought me this vacuum for my birthday a few years ago, and I literally use it every day!! Christmas will be here before we know it! Hope this adds a few ideas to your wish list or shopping list!
November 6, 2010 will always be remembered as one of the best and scariest days of our lives. On this morning seven years ago, our sweet Henry made his debut! And while this day was certainly one of the happiest days of our lives, it was also one of the scariest. In the beginning of December of 2009, Briton and I found out that we were pregnant with our first baby! We were beyond excited! When I had a miscarriage in the middle of January 2010, the grief was overwhelming. We were shocked to find out that we were pregnant again in March of 2010! Of course, the entire first trimester, I was incredibly nervous that I would do something wrong and have another miscarriage. I had a wonderful second trimester. I feel like this is the time where you are a cute pregnant person in adorable maternity clothing! And then third trimester hit..... and I looked like a swollen elephant. I was also put on bedrest during the third trimester due to my high blood pressure and signs of pre-eclampsia. I took it easy, watched a million movies, and ate a ton of cereal! My due date was November 2, 2010, and that day came and went with no baby! Finally, four days later, I started to have contractions! It was about 6:00 a.m., and we were going to have a baby! Brit drove me to the hospital, and we were excited! After what seemed like FOREVER, we were finally admitted to our hospital room. The nurses hooked me up to all kinds of machines. After monitoring the baby's heartbeat, we discovered that our little peanut was in distress. (At this point, we didn't know if Henry was a boy or a girl.) Henry's heart rate was up, he was breech and sunny side up, and was in distress. This was my first baby, and I was trying to remain calm, but I had no idea what was going on. My doctor was, of course, out of town this day. So the on-call doctor was called. I kept telling the nurses that it felt like the baby was coming. They assured me it wasn't time. But I just KNEW it was going to be soon. The on-call doctor got there and checked me. It was then discovered that Henry's foot was coming out, and his head was caught on my cervix. I was in quite a bit of pain. I was scared for the life of my baby. I remember praying non-stop. The doctor picked me up, placed me on a gurney, and ran me out of the hospital room to the operating room. Poor Briton was left all alone in the room. I remember my wonderful doctor assuring me that everything would be okay. They were going to get the baby out as quickly as they could. He gave me something to put me out and performed an emergency c-section. My cut is vertical rather than horizontal because that cut is one minute faster to get the baby out. At 8:07 a.m., our sweet boy was born. I woke up a couple hours later and remember wondering if my baby was okay. The nurse saw me starting to stir and came over to check on me. My first question was, "Is my baby okay?" After being reassured that my baby was fine, I then learned that it was a boy! After what seemed like an eternity, I was finally able to meet the little angel that was perfectly knit together in my womb for the past nine months. Holding Henry for the first time was unlike anything I had every experienced. The love that I felt for him was overwhelming. We were surrounded by our entire family when I held my sweet boy for the first time. And even though our family had all had a chance to hold Henry, he would not grip anyone's finger - until mine. The picture above is a favorite. It's hard to tell from this picture, but Henry finally gripped someone's finger - mine. We named him Henry Paul! Paul is both my dad's name and Briton's grandpa's name! While this day was certainly a scary one, we feel so blessed to have our sweet boy in our family. We know that God will use him in wonderful ways! Happy birthday, Henry! A couple weeks ago, my fabulous stylist cut and styled my hair! While I was there, we did a little "interview". I asked her questions that perhaps many of you are wondering too. Question 1: How should I wear my hair when I sleep? If you have longer hair, you should braid your hair each night before bed and fasten with a scrunci. Yes, the very scrunci we all wore in middle school! Never fasten your hair at night at the nape of your neck or in a high pony/bun. When you move around at night, the tight pony/bun gets rubbed and can cause damage to your hair. Question 2: What is the product you recommend above all others? Hands down - Olaplex! If you use this product two times a month, you will see great results with the healthiness of your hair. It really helps protect your hair from getting damaged. Use a small amount on wet hair, let it sit for 7-10 minutes, and shampoo and conditioner like normal. Question 3 - Are balayage highlights worth the investment? YES!!!!!!! They cost more upfront because the process takes longer than traditional highlights. Highlights are painted on. The great thing about balayage is you don't have to have it done as often as traditional highlights because it grows out so naturally. (I only get mine done once a year, and I love the look all year at every stage! The picture below is after three months.) Question 4 - Should I wash my hair every day? No! You don't have to wash your hair every day! In fact, you can use this amazing dry shampoo to help achieve the look of "just washed" hair! Question 5 - What mistake do we make when doing our hair? Most people think that you should spray hairspray on your hair AFTER you style your hair. But really, you should spray it BEFORE styling. This helps lock the curl in and your hair is not as weighed down as it is when spraying comes after styling. Hope these tips have been helpful!!
Candace When JP reader, Stacie, reached out to me and asked me to try out Peach, a fabulous workout gear company, I was all ears! Who doesn't love to be comfortable? Stacie sent several great products for me to test out, and honestly, I couldn't love them more! The first item I am loving is this yoga mat! It is perfect for hot yoga because of it's amazing traction! It also comes with a strap to make carrying it a breeze! But I think my favorite thing about this mat is the fact that it matches these pants!! I am also really loving this top with coordinating pants! Both items run true to size! Plus, the pants are reversible (black on the other side)! It's like getting two pants for the price of one! I literally wore these pants all day on Saturday! They are high waisted, stayed in place all day, and are incredibly comfortable! Both items run true to size. I am wearing a small in both. Last up on the fabulous pieces, is this versatile outfit! Go from yoga class to date night by swapping your shoes and spraying on a little perfume! This top is a fabulously soft material and comes down a little lower down in the back. And these pants! Oh my, these pants!! They have that adorably popular "leather" look in the front, but they are incredibly comfortable with a wicking fabric perfect for exercising. Plus, they are HIGH WAISTED!! Whether you are pairing them with flats or your favorite heels, you can't go wrong with either item! Both items run true to size. I am wearing a small in both. The bottom line? This gear just makes you feel good! The fabrics and quality are amazing! I cannot recommend them more!
Soup season is officially here! (At least here in Indiana!!) It is starting to get colder outside, so it is time to warm up inside. This recipe is tried and true! Even my kids like this! Before Brit and I first got married, his mom wrote down all of his favorite recipes for me and put them in a photo album. It is still such a special gift to me. (Future mother-in-laws - take note!) Helpful tip: Double the recipe and freeze half! This soup freezes really well! Plus, who doesn't love to have a meal ready to go during the busy work weeks?? Ingredients:
1 Pound Ground Beef (browned and drained) 1 Chopped Onion Minced Garlic (I usually use 5-6 cloves) 1 Qt Canned Tomatoes 1 Small Can Tomato Paste 1 Cup Chopped Celery 1 Can of Corn 1 Cup Sliced Carrots 1 Can Green Beans 1 Beef Bouillon Cube 3-4 Cups of Water Salt and Pepper to Taste After browning ground beef, onion, and garlic, add remaining ingredients to stock pan. Let simmer for 1-2 hours! Enjoy!! |
AuthorHi! I'm Candace! Wife, mom of two, teacher, and lover of all things fabulous! Here's to home, dishes, & fashionable wishes! Archives
December 2017
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