Friday Favorites

Happy Friday, friends!  I hope you've had a nice week.  The time change has us dragging over here, but we've enjoyed some nice weather this week.  We survived family pictures and solo parenting last weekend and are excited to go to a Friendsgiving dinner this weekend.

Did you catch my blog posts this week?

Breakfast Bundt Sandwiches - such a yummy breakfast recipe!

Extra Halloween Candy Cookies - my middle guy says these are my best cookies ever.

Unpopular Opinions - My most popular post of the Fall!  The comments are just as interesting as the post!

Now onto my favorites:

1. Leo & Mom Days

I'm trying hard to really enjoy the days of me being 100% in charge of Leo's schedule.  We do a mix of running errands, toddler activities and lunching with our favorite people.  Jason's Deli or Chick-Fil-A are his favorite spots.  Also, his new fleece from Walmart is my favorite.  It's under $10 and looks very Patagonia-esque.

2. Amazon Favorites

I've got two of the cutest Amazon finds to show you today!  I'm loving both!

I ordered a pack of 100 of these mini rubber ducks to use with my Elf on the Shelf plans for December.  They are such great quality and my kids are going to love hunting for 100 little duckies in our house.  I'm going to hide them in their pockets, their bedrooms, their lunch box and more.  It would also be fun to use them with your elves to announce a Christmas bubble bath.  They're on sale and really cute.

 

My 5th grader loves her Stanley so much but didn't love carrying around an open straw.  We looked around on Amazon and found these darling animal straw toppers.  The price is awesome and the quality is even better.  She has this first set and the rest are on her wish list.  She's been using them for a few weeks and they are in perfect condition.  Preteen and mom approved.

    

3. Three is Messy

Leo has had a messy week.  So many baths.  So much laundry.  But look at that cute face.  Three is a messy age.

4. Time Change Snuggles

We have not enjoyed the time change this week, but I have loved finding Leo snuggled up with his siblings.

5. Go Aces!

We kicked off the UE Purple Aces basketball season this week.  The whole family went and sat by my dad.  The kids loved the snacks and the basketball.  We sit by my Dad and Kevin's parents are not too far away.  The kids ate popcorn with my dad and then Kevin's mom got them Dippin Dots.  Perfect evening if you ask them.

6. Clinic Progress

Kevin's newly renovated psychology clinic on campus is coming together nicely!  We came to check out the furniture and see how all of the finishes are looking.  He got to pick out most of it so it's neat to see his vision for the clinic come together.

7. Birthday Party

We went to a family party and Leo asked Grandpa if he could help him blow out his candles.  He loves blowing out the candles, but doesn't love the extra attention.  The weather was so nice!

8. Thanksgiving tour

My house is decorated for Thanksgiving.  I love my cute turkey collection so much!  Olive made me this Happy Thanksgiving banner last year and I'm so glad that I saved it.  It's my favorite.

9. Cousins at the park

We met our cousins at the park and the kids had so much fun!

10. Kevin Goes Camping

Kevin went on his first hiking/backpacking/camping adventure with some friends from work.  He had a good time and learned a lot about camping.  His group hiked fast and he was proud of his camping gear - that chair and the coffee set up were key to enjoying his time in the woods.  The kids are eager to do some backyard camping with him next.

Have a great weekend!  I'll see you back here on Monday.

Linking up with Tanya for Prime Purchases and Momfessionals for Friday Favorites

Unpopular Opinions

I have some unpopular opinions to share with you today.

Let's see if we agree!  Or agree to disagree!

1. I never decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving.  My house is decorated with turkeys, pumpkins and ready for Thanksgiving.  I know cute turkeys are hard to find, but I've been collecting them for years.  I really don't want to see anything Christmas at my house until after Thanksgiving.  I do start shopping for Christmas and tucking things away for Christmas, but that's it - Christmas music, movies and decoration happen after Thanksgiving for us.

2. I know Elf on the Shelf isn't for everyone, but I'm so excited for some elf activities at our house in December.  Anytime you can get your preteen excited about something, you stick with it!  I've been collecting fun things to do and surprise my kids with for months.  That way I can enjoy December and not have to run around like crazy to find elf supplies.

3. I don't understand people who pay money to work on their yard or plant trees and then refuse to water them.  We live in an area of our city with lots of new construction and it's wild to me to watch things die.

4. I'm over holiday gift guides on social media and we're still weeks away from Christmas!  It seems like everyone is putting out their gift guides and they all just blur together.  The only way I enjoy and shop gift suggestions is when people I follow share items that their family owns and loves.  I love those recommendations and often shop them.  The huge gift guides of items someone thinks 10 year old girls would love aren't very helpful to me.

5. Do you ever start to wonder about products when you are seeing them promoted online 24/7?  I'm looking at your Nutrafol, AG1, powder drinks, Magic Spoon, Tommy John and more.  I'm sure some are wonderful, but they can't all be life changing, right?

6. I'm the only one at my house who loves doing family pictures.  I don't love the scheduling/watching the weather portion, but I do love helping everyone pick out outfits and updating our pictures for the year.  And sending out photo Christmas cards is always a highlight of my year (minus the crazy postage costs these days).

7. Super chunky, white tennis shoes are not cute.  I love that tennis shoes have gotten cute and colorful and there are pairs for every type of outfit, but those super chunky white ones do not catch my eye.

8. I hate that so many little kids have phones.  My first grader and fifth grader are both in classes with plenty of cell phones.  I wish more parents would wait.  We don't have a hard and fast age to give cell phones.  We're learning as we go and educating ourselves about the best devices and online safety options for our family.  Kevin and I got cell phones when we were 18 and headed off to college.  I think kids today would be better off with that set up.

9. I would pick going to a Morgan Wallen concert over a Taylor Swift concert any day.

10. I can't wait to get my kid's school pictures for the year.  Some years they're the best and some years they are just so so.  But I love documenting them with a school picture every year.

11. I do not understand the current math curriculums being taught in elementary school.  Let me explain.  The steps and logic are so drawn out.  A simple problem that would take me seconds to solve is broken down into many parts and takes up a whole page to figure out.  There is less emphasis on memorizing facts and more emphasis on learning tricks and steps.  I really need to do some research on this curriculum and the data behind it because it doesn't make sense to me.  We arrive at the same answer, it's just that I do it in a fraction of the time that the new math teaches.  Maybe I'm old or maybe the old way was better.  I need to do some digging on this subject.

12. The pumpkin spice Frosty at Wendy's looks disgusting.  A Frosty should be chocolate.  End of story.

13. I suggested to Kevin that he should hide his ear buds because of Leo.  He didn't think that was necessary.  Ask him how he likes using one ear bud  now instead of two right now!?  Haha.  I'm currently on the hunt for ear bud #2 and Leo is no help.

14. Super wide leg denim doesn't look great on anyone.  I'm not talk about flares or bell bottom type pants.  I'm talking about the jeans where you could fit your whole body into one leg.  Don't get me started on the horseshoe jean trend.  They're awful!

Did we agree or disagree!?  Let's chat in the comments!

Extra Halloween Candy Cookies

I bet you've got an abundance of Halloween candy right now.  Am I right?

I had the kids help me make some Halloween Candy Cookies and Fletcher said they were the best cookie I've ever made.  And he loves all my cookies!

You just need to grab all the candy that you think would taste delicious in a chocolate chip cookie.  Unwrap and chop them up.

We grabbed M&Ms, Reese's Pieces, Reese Cups, Hershey Bars, Cookies and Cream Hershey Bars and more.  I chopped up 1 1/2 cups of candy and then cut my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe from 2 cups of chocolate chips to 1 cup of chocolate chips.  Mix it all together and YUM!

They're the easiest, yummiest cookies.  And your kids will love helping you come up with the recipe.

Pretty cookie tip: Chop a few extra candies to add to the top of your warm cookies.  I added in some extra Reese's cups and M&Ms right when the cookies came out of the oven.

Let me know if you try them!

You can also chop up your favorite chocolates and add them to the top of a pan of brownies before you bake them.  That's another great way to use your leftover Halloween candy.

Breakfast Bundt Sandwiches

I have the most delicious recipe to share with you today!  

I saw the idea on instagram and then worked on a recipe of my own.  It take a few steps (unless you have multiple bundt pans) and it is a recipe that you can assemble ahead of time.  That makes it perfect for the holidays or family gatherings.

Hello, Breakfast Bundt Sandwiches.

Ingredients:

2 cans of crescent rolls

12 eggs

salt and pepper & favorite seasonings to taste

1 lb thick bacon

6 slices of sharp cheddar

Directions:

Grease your bundt pan very very well.  Scramble the eggs and seasonings and then bake it at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until the top is set and slightly browned.  Bake your bacon at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes until it is crispy enough for you.  Bake your crescent rolls in a greased bundt pan.  Lay both cans of crescent rolls into the pan and pinch them together to get make one log.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.  Let cool and then slice in half.

While the crescent roll bundt is cooling.  Gather the egg layer, the bacon and the cheese slices.  I did a layer of half slices of cheese all around the bottom bundt.  Then added eggs, bacon and top of the bundt.  Pop it in the oven for 5-8 minutes until the cheese is melted.  Let cool for a few minutes and slice into individual sandwiches.  It's surprisingly easy to slice and serve for a crowd.

Recipe made 15 sandwiches for me, but you can cut them as big or small as you want.

Make ahead tips:

You can do the egg and bacon layer the night before.  Just let them cool and refrigerate them.  Then reheat them in the oven when you are ready to make your sandwiches.  Make the crescent roll portion the day you need it.  You want that part to be as fresh out of the oven as possible.  Then assemble everything and pop it in the oven to melt the cheese.

The trickiest layer is the eggs because they really wanted to stick to my greased pan.  I used a small spatula to ease my eggs out of the pan.

I will say that even though it didn't come out perfectly, it didn't matter one bit on the sandwiches.  You couldn't tell at all and it still sliced and served perfectly.  

I'm drooling!!

This was so good that I'm making it again for dinner this week!

Would your family or friends enjoy these Breakfast Bundt Sandwiches?  I'm obsessed.

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday, friends!  I hope you've had a nice week.  Happy November.  I just love this time of year - the cooler temps, the festivities and my birthday is this month.  What's not to love!?

Did you catch my blog posts this week?

Muffin Tin Meals - perfect for kids!

Halloween Coffee Chat - I loved the comments!

Halloween 2023

Now onto my favorites from the week:

1. Trick or Treat

We had the best time bundling up and trick or treating our neighborhood.  It was cold - in the 30s and windy so everyone had on all the layers we could manage.  Leo ran from house to house doing his best to keep up with the big kids.  They all got tons of candies and treats.  It seemed like all of our neighbors were out and about so it was a really fun night.

2. T-Rex Goes to College

We surprised Kevin and showed up to his office with a T-Rex.  Leo roared around campus and got some candy.  It wasn't all that long ago that I was taking pirate Olive to visit Kevin at work.

3. Pumpkin Carving

The big kids need less and less help every year.  Leo agreed to some help from me.  Everyone made a pumpkin to match their personality and were so happy with their results.  Their pumpkins turned out so cute!  Kevin surprised them with bat Squishmallows for Halloween.

4. Shopping Buddy

Leo is the best side kick as long as I keep the snacks flowing :)  I started doing some Christmas shopping because I find it much more enjoyable to collect things over a few months versus shopping with crazy crowds in December.  No thank you!

5. Crumbl Cookies

I've mentioned before that Kevin loves Crumbl Cookies and he's made us all fans!  They're gigantic cookies and you really can only get a few bites of them before you're full, but it's so fun to try all the different flavor combos.  This was a really yummy box!  Join their rewards program if you like Crumbl because the rewards add up fast.

6. Market Day

Olive had her monthly market day at school.  The kids are asked to make things to sell to their peers and they spend their class money on them.  Olive asked me to help her make "squish dough" (homemade playdoh) and they turned out so cute - just like she envisioned!  She was inspired by our Crumbl Cookies and we made play-doh cookies.  Don't they look delicious!?  Then she spent a ton of time making clay bead bracelets to sell.  It's so neat to see her learning about pricing, selling, advertising and running her shop.  5th grade has been good to her!

7. Festive Food

I made some yummy things this week for the kids.  I went with easy holiday foods and they were thrilled.  We did a muffin pan meal and candy corn.  I make microwave popcorn and sprinkle some of their favorite candies on top.  They love it!  We look forward to watching a show or part of a movie together in the evenings with a big bowl of candy corn.

8. Halloween movies

We watched all the cute Halloween movies.  And Leo requested foot rubs.  We don't do anything scary so it's all fun and festive movies here.

9. Class parties

Olive's class party was this week and Kevin got to attend.  They did all kinds of fun games and painted pumpkins.  She was silly and sweet and excited for Kevin to be there with her friends.  Kevin loved being there with her and his favorite part was hearing all the wonderful things her teacher had to say about Olive.

10. Bros

Leo has been really into trains lately and I love when Fletcher builds tracks for him.  He surprised Leo with Leo train tracks and now he thinks they should always spell out Leo.

11. Teacher Gifts

You know I love giving our teachers gifts and notes of encouragement.  Here are our November gifts: $10 fuzzy blankets from Walmart with a heartfelt thank you note.  They loved the gifts!  I let the kids pick out the Fall pattern that their teachers would like best.

12. Hard Work

Is there anything better than seeing your kids work so hard in school and see their efforts pay off with "turtley awesome" A+ papers coming home from school!?!

13. Holiday shirts

Old Navy always has cute holiday tees for the kids.  They're super affordable and I loved finding ghost shirts in the boys and girls sections for the kids to wear this week.

14. Fall is my Favorite

The leaves are all looking so pretty and it made my day to see this rainbow peeking through the clouds in our backyard.

15. Farm 57

Coffee dates are my favorite!  We have this cute local shop that sells coffee, treats and gifts.  They also host a food truck night once a week during the warm weather months.  We learned this week that they have a Farm 57 cat - Mama Kitty.  She greets everyone and is so friendly.  She also tries to come in with visitors.  Leo was thrilled and so was I.  She was so sweet.  We had yummy breads for breakfast, visited with our friends and then played on their playground that is right in line with the airport.  The planes fly over so low and Leo loved that!

Linking up with Momfessionals for Friday Favorites

Hope you have a great weekend!  I'll see you back here on Monday!

Halloween 2023

Let me introduce to you our 2023 Halloween crew!

Olive = Stitch

Fletcher = A Spy

Leo = A T-Rex

They were all so excited about their costumes! The weather turned really cold over night with our first big frost and lows in the 20s.  So we bundled ourselves up and trick or treated our neighborhood on Halloween night.   

 

Stitch.  Olive is obsessed with Stitch and was excited that her costume could be layered with warm layers underneath.

 

 

Spy.  Fletcher is really into decoding and mysteries and all things spy/detective related.

 

T-Rex.  Leo roared his way through our neighborhood and on campus when we visited Kevin.  He kept feeding his t-rex candy and yelling Happy Halloween!

I hope you had a Happy Halloween with your favorite people!