Things I Like Thursday

I think I always say this, but this time I mean it, I can't believe it is Thursday! Or that it is November already? Where on earth did it come from?! It just seems like we got rid of the snow (and tax season) and here we are zeroing in on it again!

Work has been crazy busy this week, so maybe that is why it went so fast! I did sneak out at 3 yesterday to spent some quality time with my hubby! We headed to Ottumwa to look for a humidifier for our house, it has gotten dry really fast. Those things are hard to find! The only ones Wal-Mart carries are small crappy ones. Trust me, we have already tried two of them. They are pretty much disposable in our house. Of course we had to visit Target and the "mall" as well! Any of you that are familiar with Ottumwa know why "mall" is in quotes! I decided to take the evening off from the gym and we rented a movie instead, Toy Story 3! It was very cute, of course! Now here we are at Thursday and work is very quiet today as almost everyone is out at different classes! Just how I like it!


Man, I have some fantastic finds from around blogland to share with you guys today! Tons of inspiration. I know I have said it for the last two months or so, but I really do have a few things to share with you besides my Thursday and Friday posts and one of these days I hope to get to them. Any of you that do have a blog understand how time consuming it really is! For now though, you will just have to live with looking at things that I dream about making!


I love these old table leg candle holders from Full of Great Ideas!




I really want to try making some stenciled curtains like these that I found at First Home Makeover!




Someday I will find the perfect piece of furniture to refinish. I love this bench redo from A {Blondes} DIY Life (love the name too!)




Check out these festive Thanksgiving Candle Holders from All Thingz Related! Love them!




Here is another great idea for Painted Drapes from The Hand Me Down House via Remodelaholic!




Super cute Pottery Barn knock-off pillows from The Scrap Shoppe!




I can't wait to try to make this pleated purse. The pattern comes from My Spare Time and this is The Pickled Herring's version of it!




I hope you enjoy these projects! If you find inspiration from one of the projects that I have linked to and made it yourself, I would love for you to share!

Have a great day!

Food Friday: Pronto Paella

I found this recipe in one of my Simple & Delicious magazines and I am so glad I tried it. Something a little different than normal. It was really good and very satisfying. Also, it made a TON so we had lots of left overs (which Nick likes to take to work since he can't run home for lunch like I can!) so that is always a win in my book!

Once again I forgot to take a picture! :( Surprisingly though, it looked just like the picture in the magazine. Score!

Pronto Paella

1 pkg (6.09 oz) rice pilaf
1 1/2 cups ready-to-use grilled chicken breast strips (I think these are a waste of money, so I threw a couple chicken breasts on the George Foreman)
1 medium sweet onion, cut into wedges
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning (I used Zattaran's, which here in the midwest I have only been able to find at Wal-Mart)
4 Tbsp butter
1 can (11 oz) Mexicorn, drained
1 pkg (9 oz) frozen baby peas, thawed
1/2 lb cooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (Wal-Mart sells precooked frozen shrimp, it even has the tails removed!)

Microwave rice pilaf according to package directions. Meanhwile, in a large skillet, saute the chicken, onion, garlic, and Cajun seasoning in butter until onion is tender. Stir in the corn, peas, shrimp, and prepared pilaf; heat through.

You could also easily omit the shrimp if you don't care for it. I would probably just add a bit more chicken. The shrimp wasn't all that great re-heated anyway!

Enjoy! Happy Friday!

Things I Like Thursday

Another crazy busy week is almost over! I had the best of intentions to share some actual projects and such with you this week (since all I ever seem to do is this post and my Food Friday posts), but as you can see, that hasn't happened yet! Oh well, maybe soon!


Can you believe Halloween is almost here? You know what that means? Christmas will be here before we know it! Here is a fun idea for gift adornments from Design Dump via Finding Fabulous!




I love the "Keep Calm and Carry On" posters that have been all over blogland for some time now. Here is a fun Thanksgiving version, including a free printable, from Craftily Ever After.




I really love furniture that is partially painted and partially stained. One of these days I will find the perfect piece to try it on. Check out this Chunky Sofa Table from Stories of a House.




Have a great Thursday!

Food Friday: Slow-Cooked Corn Chowder

This recipe comes from one of the Quick Cooking magazines in my file! It is so easy and very tasty!

Slow-Cooked Corn Chowder
2 1/2 cups milk
1 can (14 3/4 oz) cream-style corn
1 can (10 3/4 oz) cream of mushroom soup
1 3/4 cups frozen corn
1 cup frozen shredded hash brown potatoes
1 cup cubed fully cooked ham
1 large onion, chopped
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste

In a slow cooker, combine all ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.

I usually add a little more potatoes and ham than the recipe calls for.

Enjoy!

Things I Like Thursday

What a CRAZY, BUSY week it has been! Work has been nuts and it seems like home has been crazy as well. I am quite glad tomorrow is Friday because I am definitely ready for the weekend! I have several posts started (well I can't really say started, I have the titles typed, does that count?) but haven't had time to do them this week, but never fear, I have a few things to share today!


Boo, EEK, Scare Stacking Pumpkins at Simply Designing. This would be a fun project to do with my new Silhouette!! Oh yes, I bought one, more on that soon!




Here's a very creative fall idea! Pumpkin Yarn Art from A Glimpse Inside.




Another project that I could do with my silhouette! A rustic looking noel sign from Poppies at Play.




Here's a great tutorial for making "old" signs from Funky Junk Interiors.




Check back tomorrow for a yummy, easy crock pot soup recipe!

Food Friday: 3 Great Recipes!

As promised, I am back with three great recipes that I have tried this week!

Sunday evening I was in the mood for pasta! Normally, the only pasta we have is in the form of Spaghetti or Macaroni and Cheese. I really wanted something a little lighter so I decided to search the internet. I found this recipe for Pesto Pasta with Chicken and thought I would give it a whirl. We LOVED it! It felt light and healthy yet very filling. Obviously you could make it a bit more healthy by using a whole wheat pasta. This will be a great one to have in our recipe file. Nick and I usually have supper around 9:00 each evening so it is nice to have lighter dishes to make.


Pesto Pasta with Chicken
courtesy of All Recipes

1 (16 ounce) package bow tie pasta
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
crushed red pepper flakes to taste
1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and cut into strips
1/2 cup pesto sauce

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic until tender, then stir in chicken. Season with red pepper flakes. Cook until chicken is golden, and cooked through.
In a large bowl, combine pasta, chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and pesto. Toss to coat evenly.

Super easy and super delicious!

Tuesday night I was in the mood to try something different. I have a few years worth of Simple & Delicious magazines and for some reason I haven't tried many of the recipes. I thought that would be the place to look! One glance at the first magazine in the pile and I found a recipe for Parmesan Crusted Tilapia that sounded yummy! On the following page was a recipe for Seasoned Corn with Bacon. These two together would make a fabulous meal! Living in the midwest we obviously don't have a great selection of fresh seafood. I decided to check out the frozen section at our local Hy-Vee and found a 2-pound bag of frozen tilapia fillets for $8.99! There are 6 large pieces in the bag, so I thought that was a pretty good price for 3 meals for the two of us! For those of you that have maybe not tried many different fish, this would be a good one to start with, it does not have a strong fish flavor! On to the good stuff!

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia
courtesy of Simple & Delicious

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup crushed butter-flavored crackers (about 10)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
4 tilapia fillets
2 Tbsp olive oil
Lemon Wedges

Place flour and egg in separate shallow bowls. In another shallow bowl, combine the crackers, cheese, and salt. Dip fillets in the flour, egg, then cracker mixture.

In a large skillet, cook fillets in oil over medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side or until golden brown and fish flakes easily with a fork. Serve with lemon.

Seasoned Corn with Bacon
Also from Simple & Delicious

2 bacon strips, diced
1 2/3 cups frozen corn, thawed
1 Tbsp finely chopped onion
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp lemon-pepper seasoning
1/8 tsp dried basil

In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove to paper towels; drain, reserving 1/2 tsp drippings. (I refuse to fry bacon. Don't ask me why, I just do! I love to cook my bacon in the oven. I just line a baking sheet with a couple of layers of aluminum foil and lay the bacon in a single layer. Pop them in the oven and a short time later, like magic, perfectly cooked bacon. See directions on the back of the package for temp! this will also still give you some grease for frying the corn!)

Saute corn, onion, garlic powder, lemon-pepper, and basil in reserved drippings until corn is tender. Stir in bacon.

We loved this dinner and Nick said I could make it anytime!

I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we did! Happy Friday everyone!

Things I Like Thursday

Guess what?! This is my 50th post!! Pretty exciting huh? It has been a super busy week and the next couple of days will be no different! I am getting my hair done tomorrow. I can't tell you what I am doing yet, but it will be different let me tell ya! Maybe I'll share a picture! Saturday I will be going to the annual fish fry at Nick's work. It is so much fun! Then I will head down to my parents so my dad and I can spend some time in the great outdoors deer hunting! No layers or propane heater necessary this year, we are having an unusually warm fall this year! I can't wait. Then Saturday evening we have our annual family hayride! It is usually great fun! Too much excitement for one weekend! I do have a project that I am in the middle of. I hope to finish it tonight and get a post ready for Saturday!

Time for another round of Things I Like Thursday!


I love this Pleated Pouch from A Lemon Squeezy Home!




What a great idea to turn a fall placemat into a tote!




Love these 2x4 Pumpkins from Sassy Sanctuary! I think we might even have enough leftover boards from building our deck (yes I will do a post on that, when it is finished!)




That is about all I have had time to find this week! I hope you enjoy! Don't forget to come back tomorrow for Food Friday. I have not one, not two, but three awesome recipes to share with you all!