happy friday + the muppets are coming!

free

i can't believe it is already friday!  this week totally got away from me and seemed to zoom by faster than ever.  maybe because thanksgiving is next week? i'm not sure.  but i'm definitely not complaining that tomorrow is saturday, which means i can stay up a little later tonight and sleep a little longer tomorrow. which i think nobody minds that.  not much going on this weekend for us except a few things to look foward to.

i must say i'm so excited for this cinema feature. only if next wednesday would get here!

lots of eating is to be done in the next week or so, but i've always wanted to try this out just once.

decorating, decorating, decorating.  almost finished with the living room, just need a few more of these & a bunch of these. & a bag of these.  its gonna be awesome! will post pictures of my creation.

do some visiting. some reading. and relaxing. and maybe a little shopping. 

ode to peppermint + a recipe

this past weekend was full of whirlwind excitement.  not really, but when i say it, sometimes it feels that way.  it was busy to say the least, but we definitely took advantage of the extra hour and got a few things accomplished.

the step father in law is now on the extended stay program at the hospital where he can receive much love and TLC.

we ate some super terrific pizza here, while playing in downtown fort worth. can i recommend the mediterranean thin crust pizza?  

after stuffing our faces, we continued our fat kid marathon with some amazing cupcakes.

we also tickled our funny bones with this cinema feature.  you've got to see it in 3D for full effect.  can i say i want a waffle bot for christmas?

i went on a small ode to peppermint craze, where i managed to find these. but it was actually Nabisco brand Oreos! and they were heavenly!

finalized our weekend with grocery shopping & football.  oh and taco soup! (recipe below)

Taco Soup

1.5 lbs extra lean ground beef - (I actually used ground turkey and it turned out amazing!)

1 can ranch style beans

1 can pinto beans with jalapenos

1 can hominy - (I didn't add this - neither of us are huge fans)

1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes

1 can Rotel mild (use extra hot for a really spicy soup - that's what I did)

1 can whole kernel corn

1 package dry taco seasoning mix

1 package dry hidden valley ranch dressing mix

Directions

Brown ground beef (or turkey).  Drain.

Combine meat with remaining ingredients in a large pot.  (I used my crock pot for this)

*I also filled up the diced tomato can twice with water and poured in for more broth.

Simmer until flavors are well blended & hot.

Top with cheese and enjoy with tortilla chips.

Recipe can be doubled easily. 

Also freezes well!

The mister and I really love this soup.  I actually have another variation of taco soup, but I prefer the one above more because it was soupier than the previous. The previous one is actually a stoup, so if you want something stewier, then thats perfect for you.

What did you and your loved ones do this past weekend??

Only three days left in the Real Simple Magazine Subscription Giveaway! 

welcome back to the grind.

welcome back to monday my fabulous blogging friends.   i took a much need vacation thursday and friday to get some much needed things accomplished.  mainly just the dreaded social security office and dmv office for the name change from {s} to {g}.  totally legit now.  it feels good. i hope everyone had a fantastic weekend.  heres a little of what we (or i in some cases) did.


had lunch on friday with this lady who runs this totally awesome store. 


caught up on most of our tv shows while chowing down on some yummy treats from here.  total guilty pleasure.


celebrated my mothers birthday at this restaurant.  i actually ate here friday too. but its just soo yummy!


put a little fall into our lives at the pumpkin patch.


watched too much of this.  but it is october. and it is the world series. and the texas rangers are playing.


and enjoyed some much needed r&r.

What fun things did you (and your loved ones) do this weekend?

these smells are welcome and familar.. hello autumn!

the husband and i galavanted at the greatest fair on Earth, yesterday. 

the rain didnt stop us.

welcomed by Big Tex saying "Howdy Folks," I knew exactly Autumn had arrived.

i got my fix of a corn dog and funnel cake.  i passed on the fried oreos this time, but the funnel cake didnt make me miss them any less.

we feed a few babies at the petting zoo.

 have i mentioned i want a baby goat yet? because i do!

we scoped out a few cars that we may be getting next.

we ate lots of yummy samples.

and we even visited a texas history museum.

it can't much more beautiful than this..

outside that is!

Tomorrow the mister and I have both taken off of work because we have lots of fun wedding stuff to do - like cake eating and picking, flowering deciding, centerpiece selecting, and color coordination.  A man's worst nightmare!  LOL and a woman's favorite.  J/K.  

And with the rest of the day (which won't be much after), we will just be galavanting around the city together, enjoying a nice Friday off work in the extremely beautiful weather we have been having here..  We definetely deserve it after the crazy couple of winter weather weeks we experienced.  Yikes, that stuff was a crazy mess!  Texans + ICE = NO!

Anyway,  I just want to say I hope everyone has an amazing, beautiful weather Friday (if you have to work or not) and weekend with those you love.  Soak up the amazing weather, do something crazy and I will be talking to you soon!

Love you all,
xoxo,
Cheers,

wiis, babies, & football..

dance-o-rama

The beautiful weather this weekend & early release from work on Friday allowed the mister and I to get alot of the things on our to-do list complete plus a few fun little bonuses.

My tax return was deposited to my bank account Friday, which was an extremely nice surprise for the week.  I know most people think getting money back on taxes is not good, but hey I like to think of it as a little bonus every year, so please don't rain on my fun. :)  And with my return, I like to buy one fun item and then the rest goes to whatever like bills, weddings, etc.  So this year, we got a Wii. 

I know people, I'm a little behind on the times..  What can I say?  I still have a free cell phone - I refuse to upgrade to anything thats fancy and high tech.  As I'm still getting the hang of the Wii, and all of its amazingness, I can say I thoroughly enjoy it and am glad we finally got one.  My game of choice - Just Dance 2.  It has been kicking my butt since we got it, but thats a good thing - any exercise is good exercise, plus I'm hoping it gets me into a bit better shape before the big day...

Besides the Wii, the mister and I decided to go baby shopping for some friends of ours (The Mister's Best Man) who have a baby due right around our wedding day.  Now wouldn't that be a crazy mess if baby was born at our wedding.  We stuck with the registry to ensure they got some of the things they were wanting, plus a few extra items just for fun.  Shopping for babies is so much fun, as long as its not my baby.  :)

The remainder of our weekend was spent relaxing, catching up on household chores, and of course football - well for the mister it was.  I'm not as big into football as he is, but he grew up playing football through school and I was just a book nerd, so go figure.  I watched long enough to watch Glee's Lea Michelle excel at America the Beautiful, Christina butcher the National Anthem, nasty Ben throw some interceptions, the Black-Eyed Peas rock it (well for what we could hear), Slash make a surprise entrance, and Usher dance without words; then I went to the other room & watched random shows like My Fair Wedding & Kim and Kourtney Take NYC.  Yea I'm lame.  But its better than watching nasty Ben get pummeled by what I think is Jake Gyllenhal's lookalike.  I'm so glad Ben didn't win!!

Anyway, I'm glad its Monday.  I'm glad the Super Bowl is over & we can get our metroplex back.  I'm glad all the Packers & Steelers along with their nasty attitudes went back to their respective places. And I'm definetely glad we have our sun and we're above freezing temps.  Well until tomorrow. 

Have a Happy Monday Friends!

Cheers,

a hint for things to come...

Good Monday morning!  I hope everyone had a terrific, productive, yet relaxing weekend..  I know the mister and I sure did.  Between winning at Winstar, lots of sewing/ETSY projects, & football, it was extremely wonderful.

Here's a peek at what's to come for ETSY - a fold over clutch for any occasion. I'm planning on having several styles/colors available.  Let me know what ya think & any ideas/suggestions for style/color options - send them to me via email (sugarbearbear@live.com).  I would love to hear all your ideas and suggestions that you might have!

Also today is the LAST full day to enter the Bake It Pretty giveaway!  Tomorrow at noon (central time) the giveaway will end and I will announce the winner soon after.  So if you haven't entered and would still like to follow the link above and leave a comment with your favorite items from the Bake It Pretty shop, for your chance at $30.

Until later, have a Marvelous Monday my lovelies!

Cheers,

wedding progress being made..

♥

We had an extremely productive, yet casual weekend.  We managed to get all my family fitted for tuxes as well as his dad on Saturday - his step dad is the only person we have left.  Yay!  I was able to spend some quality time with the girls on Main Street as the fellas ventured to the cigar shop. We were able to find a cute headband for Emilee's flower girl ensemble.  She was quite excited!  Only 102 days until the big one!

We also snuggled, grocery shopped, watched the playoffs, ate delish turkey tacos, and just basically enjoyed our weekend.

Sadly, I forgot the dear beloved camera at home, so Project 365, will have to wait until tomorrow.

How did your weekend go?

Hey there Friday!

♥

Hey There!

What a week folks, but it is Friday! Thank goodness.   I hope everyone has had a pretty enjoyable week, with even a more enjoyable weekend ahead of them.

The mister and I have more tux fittings for the boys, tea party/dress up shopping for Emilee (only to keep her out of the tux store), playoff football, family time, & lots of relaxation, we hope, in store for us this weekend!  

What is everyone else up to this Saturday and Sunday?

Don't forget about the giveaway that ends on January 25.  It started as a $25 dollar giveaway to Bake It Pretty, but the lovely Amanda at Bake It Pretty has added another $5 to your spending spree, so the total giveaway is now $30!  That's right folks, THIRTY dollars, for all your baking needs.  So hop over to the store, find some yummies you like & enter my giveaway.  You could be lucky one!  

Also, starting NEXT week, which day is TBD, I will be hosting yet ANOTHER giveaway, sponsored by the ever so lovely and talented Kathy from Happy Kathy.  Her jewelry is so darling and precious.  Details about this giveaway will be given next week.  Take some time to hop over and say hello to Kathy and show some love.  You will like what we have in store for you!

Have a fantastic Friday my loves! ♥

happy friday

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I hope you have a magnificant and SPLENDID Friday!

What are you doing this weekend??  Me you ask?? 

1.) Picking up my wedding dress

2.) Shopping for wedding reception items

3.) Attending my nephew's 6th birthday party 

4.) Celebrating the mister and I's two year anniversary - I love you!