Reason #38 to Be Happy: 10 Fall Recipes to Try

I love finding new recipes and trying them. Well, let's be honest. Usually I find a recipe and then basically make the recipe but do my own thing. I'm rarely one to measure things. Oh, and I do a lot more baking than cooking.

Anyway, I wanted to post some recipes that I hope to try during October. I have included 10. I hope you will share your fall recipes with me too! I would love to find some new tried and true ones. 

The order that this list is in doesn't mean anything. But, once I try them I will make a list of the best to my not-so-favorites. Enjoy! :)

1.  Candy Corn Treats from Barefoot and Baking

2.  Pumpkin Souffle from Primally Inspired

3. Pumpkin Oatmeal Scotchies from Just a Pinch Recipes

4.  Pumpkin Fluff Dip and Gingersnaps from Blissful Roots

5.  Apple Spice Muffins from This Gal Cooks

6. Pumpkin Brownies with Brown Sugar Icing and Candied Pecans from Climbing Grier Mountain

7. Pumpkin Pie Frosting from Cupcake Project

8. Apple Cider Caramels from I Heart Naptime (one of my favorite blogs)

9. Molasses Pumpkin Kiss Cookies from The Diary of Dave's Wife

10. Pumpkin Rice Pudding from Candypolooza

Reason #37 to Be Happy: Retail Therapy and A Sweet Treat

Hello my friends! It has been a while. I have been so overwhelmed with moving and my math class that I have not been able to do anything else. Seriously. I have Etsy orders waiting and a blog that has not been written on for almost a week! Let's get it together people (or myself really)! :)

My husband and I have both been working like crazy. I have been gone every day from morning until bed time. I don't really like that too much.

This is us in front of our first apartment together. We finally finished cleaning and moving! 

This weekend I was more ready than ever for it to be the weekend. I decided to give myself some retail therapy. I went shopping with some friends and got these darling things...

I know that this is a terrible picture but these shoes are darling! The teal ones make me excited for fall and winter! I didn't really need the help being excited but I won't complain. The black ones have a strap that go over the middle of the foot and across by the ankle. The straps have a gold chain on them. I am a big fan of gold! (Real as well as fake.) 

Oh! I also made some cookies! They are pumpkin chocolate cookies with pumpkin spice cookies. They are simple and you can see the recipe here.

I hope you are all have a fabulous weekend!

love,

as always,

Reason #36 to Be Happy: Inexpensive Craft to Help You Save Even Pennies

To be honest, I have had such little time for things like blogging. I like blogging but right now I'm trying not to drown in moving and my math class is killing me. (If you are good at math and are just dying to help a poor girl let me know!)

I did do one little craft though. It is also encouraging for some money saving. It was my first experience with chalkboard paint and I LOVE it now. If I ever get some time I will definitely be coming up with some other fun chalkboard paint projects.

This craft seriously takes about ten minutes. I just took a cute jar, painted the top, and wrote on it with chalk. It doesn't get simpler than that.

Who doesn't love finding money? Even if it's just a penny it's still a good thing. After all, it all adds up! I also love going to a store and paying with exact change. It makes me feel lucky just like in the saying, "Find a penny, pick it up. All day long you'll have good luck."

That made me think that it would be great to have an extra little place to keep change for when I find a penny! Of course you could just keep change in a normal jar but this is cuter and almost as simple.


as always,
love,

Reason #35 to Be Happy: Moving. It's in the Little Things.

My husband and I have been moving out of our apartment this past week. We are moving into my mother in-law's home for a few weeks. This moving thing has helped me to find another reason to be happy. Let me be more clear, moving itself, in my opinion, is not a very happy thing. I love new adventures and all that but it's a lot of work. I mean a lot. We are newly weds but we have way more stuff than you would think.

I am going to share five things that have helped the move not be so terrible for me.

1. learning more about my husband

I always knew my husband was a little geeky and it's one of the reasons why I love him. I never realized how geeky he really is though.

We have been clearing space out of my mother in-laws extra bedrooms so that we can have space for our own things. While doing so we have moved boxes and boxes to the garage. What's in the boxes? Toys of course!

Think Star Wars, G.I. Joe, Transformers, and that kind of thing. He has more toys than anyone I have ever known. I have definitely been laughing a lot about this.

These are just a few of his comics. He has plenty more. 

2. realizing how many lotions and perfumes I have

I know that I have a lot of craft supplies but I didn't realize how many lotions and perfumes I have. 

What can I say? I love wonderful smelling things. What girl doesn't? Oh, and if you can't tell I love Bath and Body Works.

3. finding a special necklace

A dear friend of mine gave me this necklace a few years ago. I used to wear it every single day. I was very happy to have it again.

4. a memory of our first date

I was very happy when I found this. It is a ticket to Brave (the Disney movie) that my husband and I saw on our very first date! It was such a perfect first date since I am Merida and all. We have a (kind of) joke about that.

5. a gift card

Gift cards are always nice but they are even better when least expected. I found this gift card to Kohl's while cleaning out our junk drawer. Don't ask me what a gift card was doing in the junk drawer. I certainly don't know! But, it's nice to have! :)

What things have kept you happy when moving? What has helped you to be not as stressed when you don't have time to destress?

as always,

love,

Reason #34 to Be Happy: Mary Poppins Party Thank You

I wanted to give a special thank you to some great bloggers. I went to a blogger party today (my first ever!) and had a wonderful time. Thank you to these ladies:

Just to give you a little idea of what it was like I took a picture of a couple treats. 

Okay, the cookies were darling and were great. The macaroons were to die for though. Instead of frosting in the middle there was caramel. It was SO good. I would love to know where they got them. It's probably best if I don't know though. If you know what I mean... :)

                                 

Is it cute or what?? This was the goody bag that they gave all of their guests. It was the most amazing goody bag that I have ever gotten from a party. Toni and you other ladies should invite me to all of your parties! I will contribute... Diet Coke? ha :) 

But, seriously! I would say not to be jealous but you probably should be. Just to make you wish that you had really been there I will show you what was inside!

                                  

I would definitely say that I won a big giveaway! I got free lunch and dessert, to chat with lots of great ladies, and all of this! 

What is all of this? Well, there is...

washi tape from My Mind's Eye

a super cute flower headband from Vintage Rose Wraps

a coupon to an online fabric store

sprinkles and treat bags from Bake It Pretty

eye shadow from Natural Minerals

a great necklace from Hawthorne Collection

Scrapbooking frames from Crate Paper

bags from Clearbags

vinyl chalkboard labels from Vinyl Wall Art

a gift certificate from The Chocolate

ric rac from Pick Your Plum

colorful straws from Confetti Sunshine

a gift certificate to The Wood Connection

a bag of sampler products from Pure Works

                             

I originally found out about this because it was a giveaway. I have followed the Dating Divas for a while but didn't know much about the others. Anyway, ten lucky ladies and one of their friends would be invited to a party. When I say a party I mean an all out darling party. Toni from Design Dazzle as well as some of these other ladies specialize in parties! They have the cutest ideas. The ones who are not bloggers specializing in parties are also amazing. You really need to check every one of them out. They are sure to inspire you! :)

I have links for all of them below so that it's easy for you to find them. :)

Design Dazzle

Kara's Party Ideas

Paisley Petal Events

The Dating Divas

The Project Girl

One Charming Party

Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust

Just Between Friends

Snap Creativity

Made From Pinterest

Confetti Sunshine

The Shabby Nest

Reason #33 to Be Happy: Freebie from Maddie Rose Doodles

Good morning! It's Thursday so it's almost Friday (in case you couldn't figure that out yourself). ha :) Today I have a freebie just for my blog readers! It's a special little thank you.

I just recently added some fun Halloween items to my shop. You, my friends, can get one free! Seriously, free. That's it. No strings attached. I will send you one trick-or-treat bag. These are great for kids to get a little excited about the holiday as they finish the bag themselves. They can also be great for keeping candy in for trick-or-treaters.

So, how do you get your free bag? Just go to my shop here. Then act as if you are going to buy the bag as normal. But, when you get to the part where you pay choose the "other" option. I can only give one bag to each reader free. But, there will be an added bonus if you keep reading. After placing your order it will be on it's way! :)

As a bonus, I will give you a discount for anything else in my shop! It's a great idea to get started on some early Christmas shopping. The code that you will need to type in will be mysmiles. The discount is for 15% off with no minimum. The free bag and discount both end on Sunday, September 22nd so be sure to place your order soon. Enjoy! :)



as always,
love,

Reason #32 to Be Happy: We Heart It

Have you heard of We Heart It?

It's like Pinterest but just pictures! That means that you can be inspired but not overwhelmed by what other people might be doing but you're not. I don't usually feel that way but I have before. I know some people who won't even get on Pinterest because it's too overwhelming. 

Oh, and another bonus... just in case you need something to distract you from what you think you really should be doing, this is it! I could spend hours just looking at all of the wonderful pictures. 

We are working on moving this week but you can't pack constantly... right? ha :) Basically this is what I did this morning as I was taking a break from moving. Moving is bleh but We Heart It is not. :)

Here are some of my favorites that I have hearted recently:

Claire and Phil... I love them

a sweet doggy and fall leaves... two of my favorite things

just sweet and pretty 

because I love Alice

because... well... you know :)

I hope you have a fabulous day.

as always,

love,

Reason #31 to Be Happy: Hello Liebster Award!

Jesse from Sleepless in DIY Bride Country nominated me for the Liebster Award! It has taken me forever to actually post about it but here it is! :)

Jesse has guest posted on my blog. If you missed it you missed out! Her blog is all about diy weddings. I am all for that since my wedding was a lot of a diy wedding. You can check out her 

blog here.

Here are my answers to her questions:

1.       Do you participate in blog hops and link parties?

I do participate in both. But, I couldn’t really tell you what ones and the days. That probably is something that I should work on. I usually do the ones that I can when I can. I usually try to participate in the ones that Six Sisters or Lil’ Luna do. Those are some of my really big bloggers and I figure that they are good ones to join.

2.       What motivated you to start your blog?

I started my blog because I wanted to focus on the good and simple things in life. I also wanted to share those with others. I also have an Etsy shop so I wanted a place to help others to find my shop. I thought it would be great to have a place to help others promote their shops. I try not to do too much promoting but I also want to help others if I can. I only promote the shops that I personally would love to shop at. My main reason for my blog is to help myself recognize all the good things in life.

3.       What is your favorite comedy movie?

My favorite comedy movie would probably be Baby Mama. It makes me laugh so much. I’m not a fan of comedy movies that are just stupid (Napoleon Dynamite, Hot Rod, etc.). But, that Baby Mama really is a great one.

4.       How often do you write blog posts?

I try to write every other day but sometimes that doesn’t happen. Sometimes I blog a little more and other times a little less. I really need to become more consistent.

5.       What inspires you to write?

I am inspired by wanting to focus on the simple and good things in life.

6.       What is your favorite thing to do on Saturdays?

    My favorite things to do on Saturdays are just to spend time with my husband. I'm pretty laid back so whatever we are doing together is fun.

7.       How many hours do you contribute to your blog per week?

    It really depends on the week.

8.       Who would you like to meet in person?

     This will probably sound kind of shallow but I would love to meet Lucy Hale. I have been              absolutely in love with Pretty Little Liars lately. She plays Aria, the girl who is my favorite and        who I am most like (other than being like two feet taller than her;)). She also played Lena in            Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. I would definitely have been Lena in that group of friends.

    I’m definitely not one of those people who love movie stars and know every single thing about       them. But, I would love to meet her.

    Plus, she is drinking Diet Coke in this picture so we would just have to get along! :)

9.       How would you describe your personality?

    Sometimes I am pretty quiet at first but once you know me I’m crazy (in a good way). I would       say that I am the absolute definition of pisces.

10.   What is your dream job?

    My dream job would be to be a children’s book illustrator or to have a line of my creations like       Mary Engelbreit. My style is pretty different from hers but I would love to be like that.

11.   What was the greatest moment in your life?

    The greatest moment of my life was when I married my husband. I have never been happier in       my life than I have been with him.

I have chosen some blogs that I am very happy to nominate for the Liebster Award! Be sure to check these blogs out because they are wonderful. Here are my picks:

Samantha at Five Heart Home

Ally at The Cheery Baker 

Madi at And So I Did 

Ashley at Ashley Everyday

Ginger at Gingerly Made

Thanks for the nomination Jess and thank you to my readers! :)

as always,

love,

Reason #30 to Be Happy: What I Wish I Had Known Before I Got Married

I am more than half way through the first year of being married. This is still considered being newly weds to a lot of people. But, I feel like we (my husband and I) have learned and grown together. I am sure that will only continue.

Before we got married I knew that my husband was a sweet man. Well, I thought I knew. But, you can never be sure. I had always wondered how people who were wonderful ended up marrying people who were, well, not so wonderful. There are a lot of them out there and we all know them. Luckily, I did not end up in that situation.

To be honest I had never dated anyone as much of a quality person as Brad is. I definitely made my mistakes back in my dating days. However, I am blessed to have ended up with who I did. Sometimes I still wonder what happened.

If there was one thing that I wish I had known before we got married it would be to trust what I was doing. There were a few times when I had break downs because I wasn’t sure if it was perfect. 

No marriage is perfect. But, any marriage can have the potential to become perfect. Because we all have our faults we all have shortcomings. Together or apart we will have successes and failures. The wonderful thing about being married is that you get to experience them all together. Whether you are smiling and laughing or crying you always have someone to do it with.

If I were to give advice to someone dating or engaged I would tell them to trust themselves. This might mean making mistakes but it could also mean making the best decision of your lifetime. Either way you learn and are blessed through those lessons.

Reason #29 to Be Happy: Freedom

With today being September 11th I wouldn't feel very American if I didn't write a post about the events that happened on this day. My experience is not so different from any one else's but it was a day that made me grateful.

I remember it was just a normal day. My brother and I were getting ready for school. He was in 2nd grade and I was in 5th grade. It was around that time when we heard a knock on the door. It was my friend Sadi's parents. Sadi's brother was supposed to be leaving on a plane for an LDS mission on that day. But, it was postponed because there had been some terrorist attacks. 

Thinking back to that day it doesn't seem like it was too long ago in a way. In another way it seems like it was forever ago. I thought I was so old at the time. But, now I realize how young I really was. 

We watched the news in class and talked about what had happened. There was also an assembly. I don't know how much I really comprehended. Even now, I don't understand it all, I doubt any of us do. 

That day was full of more news watching than I have done any other day of my life. There were more tears shed than I can imagine. Families were torn apart. Loved ones were lost. 

But, there was also hope restored. When tragedy strikes people seem to gather closer together. We became more united as a nation. I believe that millions of Americans were able to see things with new eyes. They (including myself) realized how incredible the freedom that we have really is. 

What is your story from that day? 

as always, 

love,