I'm always on the hunt for something new to make for dinner (preferably quick and without tons of off the wall ingredients). I've found quite a few recipes on Pinterest. Some have been amazing, while some have left us ordering Chinese take-out.

Side Note: The first year of our marriage, I made so much spaghetti that my husband as officially boycotted it. At that time we were on a TIGHT budget (if you could even call it that) and truthfully Taco Bell was cheaper than cooking at home. We literally survived off Taco Bell, frozen pizzas and the infamous spaghetti. Yum.  

While he's not exactly picky he is one of those people that has to have some sort of meat, whether it be chicken, beef, pork - whatever in every meal. So when I found this one pot spaghetti dish that had sausage in it plus many ingredients that I already had - I was stoked!

I found this on Damn Delicious from Pinterest. (I'm now obsessed with her blog)

I did change a few things, but here is her recipe:

Took about 5 minutes to prep and 12 minutes to cook. 

Ingredients

• 1 pound spaghetti
• *1 (12.8-ounce) package smoked andouille sausage, thinly sliced
• *1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 3 cups halved grape tomatoes
• 2 cups basil leaves
• *4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 cup grated Parmesan

Instructions

• In a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium high heat, combine spaghetti, sausage, onion, tomatoes, basil, garlic and 4 1/2 cups water; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until pasta is cooked through and liquid has reduced, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in Parmesan.
• Serve immediately.

*NOTES: I'm not a huge pork fan, so I used beef sausage. Also, I don't cut onions. I just don't. So I bought the pre-chopped ones (picture below) from the grocery store and also used the pre-chopped jar of garlic I had on hand, which again I think actually worked better. I let mine simmer for about 12 minutes. For softer noodles I would suggest about 15 minutes. I used one container of grape tomatoes (cut in half), but next time I'll use two.

(This last picture is it still simmering - maybe another 3-4 minutes. I forgot to take a final picture because I was so hungry!)

It Happened Again!

Just kidding... Kind of. 

(immature giggle)

I got a brand new 2014 Dodge Durango. I'm in love. 

After getting Kenzie we quickly realized the Mustang just wasn't going to work. Well, truth be told, we realized before we got Kenzie that it just wasn't working. Bentley would fit in the back seat (barely), but nothing could fit in the trunk! When we took him to the in-laws one day, his food storage container wouldn't fit, so the hubs ended up riding with it in his lap. The Mustang was fun, but so impractical.

We ended up getting an amazing deal on everything! They gave us only $1k less than what we bought the mustang for (only 6 months earlier - awesome) and that negative equity was eaten up by the $1k rebate offered. They also knocked off just over $4k off MSRP! 

We got the SXT, which is their 'base' model, but it comes with SO much. 

I just couldn't justify spending $7k+ more for things like rear entertainment (I'm sure the dogs would have loved it though), leather seats (in Vegas, I much prefer cloth), an even bigger screen and AWD (if we lived in say.. Montana? Maybe). I would have loved a HEMI though!! 

The SXT (can't figure out a name yet) still comes with keyless entry and go (push button start), paddle shifters (weird), a digital cluster (which tells me PSI, average MPG, text messages, etc.), Bluetooth, touchscreen radio, dual climate control, 3rd row seating, steering wheel mounted controls, this awesome knob shifter thing (technical term),

So, so, so in love! 

Flashbang and Ava Holster - REVIEW

My husband and I are pretty big gun enthusiasts. We're all for learning how to protect yourself and/or your family. We also understand not everyone feels that way, which is FINE! To be honest, if you're not comfortable with guns (and don't want to learn) I don't really want you carrying one around anyway.

Needless to say, the hubs and I go to the shooting range at least twice a month to practice and it's something we greatly enjoy doing together. We also received our CCW (after the ridiculous mail time) and I bought a Sig Sauer P238 to carry. Being female, I've had a pretty rough time finding holsters that are comfortable. Its also a challenge because it greatly depends on what I'm wearing that day as to what holster I can use. I first bought the Ava $49.99 (Link here) to wear inside the waistband (like a crossbreed holster) and I really like it. The problem? I can only wear it with jeans and a dark colored or looser fitting shirt. It fits like this:

(Photo from GunGoddess)

 

Now that it's summer and we live in Vegas I've been wearing more shorts so I needed to find another option. I've heard about the Flashbang $49.99 (Link here) since before I got my CCW, but was worried about how comfortable it would be, if I'd lose support (I'm a bit bigger cheated than most), and if you'd be able to see it. After a friend of mine got a similar holster I decided to just try it out.

 

Packaging looks like this:

 

 

 

Holster alone looks like this:

 

 

 

It fits like this:

(Photo from GunGoddess)

 

I've worn it for a couple days as well as practicing with it at the range and overall I love it. It definitely takes some getting used to and it will feel different depending on what kind of bra you're wearing (something with a thicker base is more comfortable for me). I actually feel safer using this than using the Ava, mainly because this is in front of me and it doesn't show by bending over, sitting down, etc.

 

Video of it in action:

(Wind noise is pretty bad)

 

Also I wanted to add, I bought a Betty before the Ava and hated it so much I took it back for the Ava. It's an inside the waistband holster with a single clip for the waistband. The gun didn't feel secure in the holster and the space between the clip and the actual holster was pretty significant. For $50 I wasn't impressed.

My next find will hopefully be an awesome thigh holster for when I'm wearing dresses. 

What's better than one Great Dane?

 

TWO GREAT DANES!

 

(This is the night we brought her home)

That's right! We found and fell in love with a little Fawn female Great Dane puppy. I made asked my husband to drive 4 1/2 hours to pick her up, but it was well worth it! It took us 3 days to pick out a name for her, but finally decided on Kenzie. She's extremely stubborn, hard headed, loves to cuddle, play with her brother, oh and pee on e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g!

(This is her now)

After all this time? Always.

nerd alert! if you know anything about me, you know I'm pretty obsessed with Harry Potter. i've read all the books multiple times and subjected my husband and dogs to the movies countless times. i figured i'd showcase some of that nerdiness in the crafting i've done! enjoy!

Harry Potter Apron Tutorial

Cinderella Worker Apron - Picture Tutorial

 

 

 

Craftwhore

This past Saturday one of my best friends had a baby shower for her baby girl. I love baby showers because it's an excuse for me to get crafty, and baby stuff is SO easy! Here's a few things I made for it: Newborn Snow White Tutu, Binky Clips, Hooded Baby Swaddler (tutorial is here), Baby Blanket and some Washcloth 'Cupcakes'.

I also found a few of these photos from our time back in Tampa I never posted. 

Ruffled Baby Blanket:

Owl Nap Mat:

Harry Potter 'Slytherin' Apron:

Minnie Mouse Apron:

 

DIY Grinchmas Stocking - Tutorial

I originally saw something like this on Pinterest, but I'm pretty sure it was a plastic door decal type thing. 

But, being the person I am.. I saw it, loved it, and immediately thought "I can make that!". So after two trips to Joann's Fabric (sign up for their email coupons!!) and one to walmart for the green I had all the supplies I needed. 

(I'll do better from now on to keep the receipts so I can post how much I spent on each) This was less than $25 total.

 

Here is what you'll need:
- 1 1/2 to 2 yards of Neon Green Fabric (it was thiiiiin cotton so I got three yards and doubled the front and back layer - $2.99 @ Walmart)
- 1/2 yard of Red Fabric (I got 1 yard because you can never have too many scraps - On sale for $3.99/yd at Joann's)
- Red Boa (this was full price, but had a 50% off one full priced item coupon for Joann's - regularly $8.99)
- Red Thread
- Green Thread
- Tacky Glue (or fabric glue)
- Fiberfill (pillow stuffing - 40% off at Joann's, don't remember the orig. price)
- Ribbon or a piece of fabric (to be able to hang the stocking)

I folded my green fabric so it was in a long rectangle and 4 layers thick, then hand drew the stocking with just a pencil. I would make it another inch thicker than this if I were to do it over again. Pin inside the stocking you drew so it won't move and cut away the excess.

Since my green fabric was so thin I decided to double up so at this point I just quickly (and messily) basted two pieces of fabric together for the front and two for the back. Make sure you sew fairly close to the edge. If your fabric is thick enough just skip this step.

At this point I took random round things from around our house (different size cups, spools of thread/ribbon and a candle holder thing) and traced them on the red fabric with pencil. (Side note: I know people use actual marking pens/pencils and I have quite a few, but nothing has ever worked quite like a plain pencil for me) Now just cut out the circles you've traced. I had a total of 14 I put on the stocking with 2 or 3 left over.

Now just lay your circles out until you like how it looks. Go through one by one and use the tacky (or fabric) glue on the back and lay them back down. (If you are going to use this for indoors, you could probably get away with just gluing them, but I put this outside so I sewed them as well)

This part is technically optional, but like I said mine was going to go outside so I decided I didn't want the spots falling off. I just put the machine on a zig zag stitch and (what felt like took forever) sewed around each circle.

This is where I got lazy with the pictures and they stopped until I was finished. Oops.

Anyway, now after all your circles are securely in place, put right sides together and sew around the stocking, leaving the top open.

Take your filling and a little at a time start at the curl of the toe and pack it in fairly thick so it holds the curl and keep filling until you're at the top.

This is where I took a piece of ribbon probably 6-7" long (1 1/2" thick), fold it so the right sides were facing out (wrong sides together) and stuck the cut ends down into the top left corner of the stocking to make a loop for hanging it. Now sew the top closed. Doesn't have to be pretty it will be covered by the boa.

This is probably the part I hated the most. I took the boa, a needle and some thread and just messily tacked it to the top and just kept overlapping the boa until I used it all.

And wallah! This is your finished product..