Fabulous Fall Blog Challenge- Day #10

You may have noticed that I skipped day 9...I'm not really into football and therefore I have no favorite football traditions....other than Joe likes to watch the Vikings on Sundays and while he is doing that I am usually cooking, blogging or shopping at Target :)

I like Thanksgiving a lot. For one, it signals the start of the Christmas season for me. Joe and I have spent Thanksgiving with my family in Mississippi and also with his family up in Minnesota. Each one of them is super fun. We always bring silly hats and take pictures of everyone wearing them. I always bring a yummy salad and scrumptious dessert. We eat, we visit, we watch football and then we usually go to the movies.

Then...the day after Thanksgiving, I am one of the crazies who shops :)

Fill In the Blank Friday

1. My current obsession is pizza and Dexter .

2. Ice Cream make me happy.

3. My greatest strength is that I am a great planner .

4. Stress is my greatest weakness.

5. My life is pretty good right now. I have a job that I enjoy, a husband that I love and a baby on the way. No its not perfect but it's my life and I like it.

6. In high school I was in the middle....not popular and not a geek either. High school was just blah....I wish I would have done a few things differently .

7. When I'm super tired I start talking crazy and running into walls .

20 Weeks...Halfway There!!!

*How far along?: 20 weeks/5 months/HALFWAY THERE!!!

*How big is your baby? Thebump.com says she is the size of a cantaloupe.

*Total weight gain?: 10 pounds....

*Sex: GIRL!!! Sally O'Mally Moske

*Maternity clothes: all maternity pants...still wearing some of my regular dresses and tops/sweaters

*Stretch marks: None yet!

*Sleep: Great...I've been tired! I am still waking up a few times to go potty...but other than that I am sleeping like a log!
*Best moment this week: Joe telling me all the stuff he is reading in my baby book. It makes me so happy that he is actually wanting to read it.

*Movement: Lots if flutters!
*Food cravings: fruit, pizza, tacos, french onion dip and ruffles

*Labor signs: nope!!
*Belly button in or out: in

*What I miss: sleeping in my regular position...my belly keeps getting in the way!!

*What I'm looking forward to: I got my fabric swatches in for my bedding...love them! I will be ordering it this week!

Thoughtful Thursday

Fabulous Fall Blog Challenge- Day #8

Today the topic is fall travel...we love to travel (obviously). I am taking you back several years to the fall when we had only been married for a few months. We went to a huge Halloween party in Denver and then drove up to Denver for a few days....in a rental car...and it was a van...ha!

We checked into the super cool Sky Hotel and then started exploring the city. It wasn't quite ski season...so it was mostly locals.

Ready to go out...my hair was so long!

One day we took a drive and found two fun signs and had to pose with them...Mormot Crossing??

Someone had drawn a hula hoop on this sign making it a String Cheese Incident man...love it!

Maroon Bells...some of the most photographed mountains in the world. They were so beautiful!

Beaver Dam!!

Matching shoes :)

We also saw the hotel where they filmed scenes from Dumb and Dumber.

We had a great mini vacation...can't wait to go back sometime!

What I'm Loving Wednesday

I am loving that my sweet husband brought me flowers today when he came home from work and then offered to take a walk with me before dinner :)

I am loving that the leaves on the trees are finally starting to change colors. Now if only Memphis could look like this....sigh...

I am loving that we are already on season 5 of Dexter....we got it in the mail today. I am feeling a Dexter marathon tonight :)

I am loving all of these fun projects that I am planning on doing with my class this fall.

Fabulous Fall Blog Challenge- Day #7

Today's topic is "favorite fall recipes". Making chili is a sacred thing for me. I love all the chopping, stirring, and tasting. To me there is nothing better than making chili on a crisp Sunday afternoon. This is my mama's recipe and I have tweaked it a little bit. Mmmmmm!

My Mama's Chili

2-2.5 lbs. of ground chuck

1 c. chopped onions

1/2 c. diced green bell pepper

3-4 cloves garlic (chopped)

3 (14.5 oz.) cans of stewed chopped tomatoes

1 (16 oz.) can light kidney beans

3 cans (small ones ) of tomato sauce

3 cans (small ones) of water

1 can original Rotel

1.5 tbsp. chili powder

2 tsp. ground cumin

1 chili mix packet (I like Chili Man)

1.5 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. dried oregano

*if you like it spicy like me, add a dash of cayenne pepper!

*In a large pot, cook meat, onion, bell pepper and garlic. Drain well.

*Add undrained tomatoes, drained beans, tomato sauce, water, undrained Rotel, chili powder, oregano, cumin, basil, salt, pepper, and chili mix packet.

*Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes.

*Reduce heat to low. Continue to cook 1-2 hrs. (covered). Cook 4-5 hours and it's even better!

*If it gets too thick, add water.

*Serve with saltines, fritos, cheese and sour cream.

* ENJOY!!!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Friday:

*Joe worked until 8 pm. I caught up on DVR.

*Leftovers for dinner.

*We watched "Trick or Treat" when he came home from work. It was supposed to be a scary movie...but it wasn't.

Saturday:

*Joe worked today from 6-4 pm.

*I got up early and braved the crowds at a huge neighborhood yard sale....I came home with 2 DVD's...it wasn't that great. I also went to Target and Old Navy and bought Sally some cute stuff!

*Stopped by my dads to visit and we went to the bank.

*Joe and I went to Bonefish Grille with Lindsey and Nick. It was our first time there. I am not a big fish eater, but I got some yummy coconut shrimp and a salad. I would go back :) I know everyone likes the Bang Bang shrimp, but I know they put mayo in the sauce...eww! I cannot eat it!

*Came home and the four of us watched Bridesmaids...I fell asleep :)

Sunday:

*Joe had a 10 mile race in the morning. I slept in :)

*Joe went to play golf. I organized the pantry and caught up on the DVR.

*We went to a couple's baby shower and it reminded me how much I have to buy/register for the baby...gosh that's a lot of gear that you need.

*I made fried rice and apple crisp for dinner. Joe and I watched Desperate Housewives. Joe fell asleep on the couch :)

Fabulous Fall Blog Challenge- Day #6

I love fall TV....nothing like curling up on the couch with a cup of soup....or apple crisp!!

Even though I am not currently in weight loss mode (due to Baby Sally), I know I will be again once she is born. This show is always so motivating to me

I LOVE Desperate Housewives. I have been watching it from the beginning and I am so sad this is the last season. I am expecting a lot of drama!

This is probably our favorite show....we love Sam and Dean and all the spooky stuff that they encounter! Dean isn't too bad top look at either :)

These are my new shows that I have started watching. They are really good so far. What are you watching?

Tuesday, September 27th: Fall recipes

Wednesday, September 28th: Fall travel/road trips

Thursday, September 29th: Favorite Football pastimes....assuming
you like that sort of thing

Friday, September 30th: Thanksgiving memories