{I really dislike mosquitoes}

Mosquitoes love me. I average a mosquito bite per minute, just about anywhere I go. I will walk outside, and instantly panic a little if it is mosquito-loving weather. I am not a stranger to nearly 30 mosquito bites at one time. I would post a picture but it looks like a have a disease rather than mosquito bites. So here's my attempt to find a mosquito trap. The directions online aren't the greatest, so I'll tell you what we did. 

Also, I have to point out the beautiful flowers. I came home to those the other day, and my sweetheart had a beautiful card written too! Who doesn't love a beautiful bunch of flowers after a long day of work & school? It nearly makes it all worth it. 

ingredients.

1/3 c sugar

1 tbsp (or packet) of yeast

1 c warm water 

2 liter empty soda bottle

black paper 

I

Cut the soda bottle about 1/3 from the top. Where the curve starts to go straight into the sides. Invert the top of the soda bottle into the rest of the bottle, and tape them together. {better illustration from birds eye view below}

II

Mix the sugar, warm water, and yeast. Pour into the bottle.

III

Wrap the black paper around the bottle & tape it. {I only had black and white polka dots. The paper is supposed to make it a warm dark place for mosquitoes to be attracted to.} Place outside, and hope that they come to it! Change the mixture once every two weeks.

birds eye view

I've caught a few bugs so far! Can't really tell if they are mosquitoes are not because the mixture is hard to see through. It's also starting to get cooler. They aren't big fans for the cooler weather, BUT I AM. I can post more pictures of the instructions and finished trap if anyone wants. 

{pumpkin chocolate chip cookies}

what beautiful & delicious looks like

Well, I never! It is hard to believe I just had a teacher exclaim, about his class, in front of another student and I, "I have never had such asinine students!" 

I couldn't even think of what asinine meant. You know what it means? 

asinine

adjective: Extremely stupid or foolish

synonym: Foolish

WELL, WELL, WELL. & to think I was probably the only one who understood your convoluted ramblings. Buddy, just you wait until your semester end review. You can bet your derivative loving brain that you won't be getting a pat on the back from me.

However, I did get to come home to happy boyfriend and a tasty batch of pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. I started making these cookies when I lived up North. & by up North, I mean Maine. It doesn't really get much northern, unless you cross into the Great White North. My sweetheart had a few guys over Sunday, and one of them loved these so much he already asked for the recipe & made them. So yes, these are good. 

ingredients.

1 c. pumpkin {I used canned}
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. oil {I use olive oil}
1 egg
2 c. flour {I used whole wheat, but white flour makes it taste more like bread}
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. milk
1 c. chocolate chips
1 tsp. vanilla
Nuts (optional)

I

Preheat oven to 375°F. Dissolve baking soda in milk; set aside.

II

In a large bowl add pumpkin, sugar, oil, and egg; stir. Add flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda mixture. Mix well. 

III

Stir in chocolate chips and vanilla. {Add nuts too if you want them.} Spoon by the tablespoon onto cookie sheet.

IV

Bake at 375°F for 10 to 12 minutes or until done.

obviously delicious

At this point I can't remember where I got the original recipe, but it may have been off of cooks.com. 

{where is time going?}

It's hard to believe that a little over two weeks ago, my friend and I ate at The Dish and then went antique shopping. It's hard to keep up with time during Autumn, don't you think? I'm finally catching up with school, and it's just in time for my sweetheart to get more and more busy at work. Which really just means I will be able to stay on top of school even more...fingers crossed!

 I can't wait until Thanksgiving. By then, all of the projects and group work will be over and I'll only have a final left. I forgot how easy it is to wish away time when you're in school. Sounds like that's what my time is going; I'm wishing it away. For shame.

 Well, the other day I was really craving some of The Dish's sweet butter. My friend called it honey butter, I believe. So, with my amazing Google skills, I found a similar recipe. This recipe only makes 1/2 cup, because I knew we wouldn't use much.

I also made bisquick biscuits to go with the new honey butter. Of course, you know my admiration for bisquick. Perfect combination. Boyfriend approved. 

my biscuits are square

ingredients.
1/8 c honey
1/8 c powdered sugar
1/8c butter
1/4 tsp cinnamon

I

Warm butter until melted. Combine all other ingredients, and stir well. 

The butter will harden once in the fridge. I think this tastes very Autumn reminiscent.

{Mozzarella sticks}

It's official. Dear Wally the Watermelon has decided he doesn't want to stick around. I'm sure he will be much happier in the little wooded strip behind our house. I still have a watermelon the size of my head just sitting on my patio. Not sure what to do with it. I also have about three cucumbers on the way, and Tom Mater has gone completely wild again. I give up, there is no way to control that crazy Tom.

ooey & gooey

I know I promised to let y'all in on these delicious, hot and crispy mozzarella sticks. Even my sweetheart likes these! We make these whenever we buy the string cheese for the stuffed crust pizza. The part that takes the longest is freezing the cheese, and that's not even difficult! Here is my adapted version of the original weight watchers friendly version.

This makes 24 pieces, but I usually make a much smaller batch. Sorry about the blurry picture, someone isn't the best picture taker. Just kidding honey! {I wonder if he even reads this?} The full version filled the two of us up, so that we weren't hungry for dinner! Also, I know this takes a lot of bread crumbs, but they are also good for chicken parm!

ingredients.
12 sticks of string cheese (mozzarella, or really any other kind of cheese you prefer)
1 large egg, beaten
2 tbsp flour
5 tbsp Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
5 tbsp panko crumbs
2 tsp Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp dried parsley
olive oil cooking spray

I

Cut cheese in half to give you 24 pieces. Place cheese in the freezer until cheese is frozen. {This usually takes me about two hours.}

II

In a small bowl, whisk the egg. Place the flour in another small dish. In  a sparate bowl, combine the bread crumbs, panko, Parmesan cheese, and dried parlsey. 

III

Here's the fun par! Dip the frozen sticks in flour, shaking off the excess, then into the egg, and then coat with crumbs. 

IV

Repeat this process with the remaining cheese placing them on a tray with wax paper, if you won't immediately cook them. Place the freeze back into the freezer until ready to bake if not immediately baking them. {Super important, because other wise they will melt before the crumbs get crispy.} 

V

Ready to bake? Pop them in a 400 degree preheated oven. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly spray with oil. {I don't always use foil, oops.} Spray the tops of the sticks with a little bit more oil, and then bake in the bottom third of your oven until crisp, which is only about 4 to 5 minutes. Turn and bake for an additional 4-5 minutes watching them closely so they don't melt!

Credit 

maybe stories are just data with a soul

I have to share a video I watched in my Organizational Behavior course last night. Brene Brown is funny {to me, probably because I think I'm a lot like her} but she also has a really good point. Her studies are based on our ability to empathize, belong, & love. Give the video about five minutes. My favorite part is at 11:25..and a minute later..but really just from there on. 

There's no right way to sum up this video, you just have to watch the whole thing. I've already watched it more than a couple times. Hopefully it doesn't have you running for a banana nut muffin at the end.

Struggling with vulnerability is hard, but there's a reason.

shake, shake, shake

shake me!

Check out these cuties! I traipsed around NoDa with a friend of mine yesterday. Before she got there, I found a little uncommon antique store called Fifteen Ten around the corner that we ended up going to after we ate. We ate at The Dish, and had I had the best chicken and dumplings I've had in a loooong time. 

So, I'm somewhat obsessed with chicken and dumplings. I used to eat the canned kind as a kid, and then last year I tried to make them myself. I don't recommend trying to cook it in your crock pot. My recipe called for Bisquick dumplings, and since I do like Bisquick,  I decided to give it a try. It turned into a flour soup. It was so thick, I could barely eat it. Thank goodness Mountain Man was able to stomach some of it. 

Anyway, the mac'n'cheese at The Dish was amazing too. Definitely the home made kind. They even had a deviled egg on each of our plates, which seems very odd to me. I think they served the biscuit with a honey butter drizzle on top too, which I've never had. Definitely want to make it in the future though! Clearly, I need to eat out more often...

I got these cute little salt and pepper shakers, and my friend got some that were sea green, ceramic, ball shaped with the little holes for shaking on the side and with a cork on top. Very different, and so cool.  The guy said that mine are probably replicas. If they are, they were poorly done. I think these might actually be authentic. There are some bubbles in the glass, and you can see that the salt doesn't sit flat at the base of the shaker. 

Authentic or not, how cute!! Just another piece to make our place feel like a home. 

stick around...

Dear Mister Aloe Plant,
I have read every blog and website about aloe plants. I don't understand why you are still turning brown. I put you outside for sunlight, and I'm sorry you got caught in a massive downpour. I hope you dry out soon. Please don't turn brown and wilt away, I want to create chapstick, shampoo, and aloe lotion with you. Don't rob us of our amazing creative potential.
Sincerely,
Becca Anne