Friday Favorites!

Friday Favorites! Woohoo!

Y'all ready for this?!

Friday Favorites!

ONE

Well... sadly, I have to start off with one that's NOT my favorite. #boo.

Anyone else get caught with the crappy cold that's going around right now?  Because I sure did! I'm just trying to make sure I don't pass it off to my man. 

Because yuck. 

Hoping this passes quickly! #nyquiltotherescue

TWO

Now that that's out of the way, let's move on to my favorite posts from this week! 

Not sure if you guys caught this, but I posted A Day In The Life post this week for all of you curious girls!

We had fun just showing you around a typical relaxing weekend day :)

As far as recipes go, you know I couldn't skip out on that! Here's what else I shared with you this week!

Monster Cookie Bars with a Fudge Filling

3 cheers for yum!

And...

Caprese Lasagna Rolls

Those babies disappeared  quickly!

THREE

This gorgeous weather has been my new favorite! Cole has been loving it too. His favorite spot to lay down is out on the porch. 

Or hanging his whole head out of the car. This is his absolute favorite part about going for a car ride!

And yes, those pics show 'not so nice' weather... but he does this every single day anyways ;)

FOUR

My next favorite? Looking at new bed sets! 

We sold all of our things to come back to the mainland from Hawaii... so we've had a bed {because I made sure that was the first thing we bought. Mama ain't sleepin' on the floor} since the first week we moved here... but it looks so bare without a bed set!

I'm thinking about going with a classic deep brown wood. I want something very warm that makes you want to climb into bed. 

Plus, deep brown pretty much goes with anything if we ever decide to change our decor up. Right now our decor is a halfway point between farmhouse and cabin decor.

FIVE

Last, but certainly not least....

Nursing school!

I am applying to several as we speak for the upcoming fall semester.

I am so excited to be following my dream, even after the incredibly eventful turn that my year life has taken.



Life becomes so much more exciting with goals in mind!

I don't want to share what schools I'm applying to, but I will tell you, that this is a huge load of work!

But so worth it :)



Hope y'all have a wonderful weekend!

Monster Cookie Bars with a Fudge Filling

Did this catch your eye?!!

I bet it did!

Because even the name of these bars sounds good. 

Don't wait another minute. You NEED these!

Monster Cookie Bars with a Fudge Filling

Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction recipe book.

Shopping List

1. 1 1/3 cups of flour

2. 2/3 cup of oats {regular cooking, not quick cooking}

3. 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

4. 1 stick of salted butter, room temperature

5. 1/2 cup of light brown sugar, packed

6. 1/4 cup of granulated sugar

7. 1 egg, room temperature

8. 3/4 cup of creamy peanut butter

9. 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

10. 3/4 cup of M&Ms

11. 7 oz of sweetened condensed milk

12. 1 cup of semi-sweetened chocolate chips

13. 1 tablespoon of salted butter

14. 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Recipe

1. Mix together your flour, oats, and baking soda in a large bowl. 

2. In a medium sized bowl, cream your butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar. 

3. Once creamed, add in your egg, peanut butter, and vanilla extract. 

4. Line a 8x11 glass baking dish with tin foil. Make sure it has over hang so that you can lift it out with your hands when you're completely done.

5. Spread 2/3 of your mixture evenly across the bottom of your dish.

6. Add in your M&Ms to the rest of the mixture, gently. 

7. Melt your sweetened condensed milk, chocolate chips, and butter together until it's completely melted and creamy. 

8. Spread your fudge over your 1st layer of the bar evenly. 

9. Spread the rest of the mix with M&Ms over the fudge. There won't be enough to cover the whole thing. So just spread it as far as possible, but don't worry about some fudge peeking through.

10. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. The top should be golden brown.

11. Let it cool completely. Then lift it out of the pan by holding the tinfoil. Cut into even squares.

12. Enjoy!

You and everyone you love is going to go crazy for these! You're about to be the belle of the ball with these babies!

White Bean Chicken Chili (& Dessert Too)

Okay. This recipe just screams coziness to me. And my man loved it. So um, I think we qualify this one as a winner. Which is exactly why I'm sharing it with you ladies. So you can impress your family with this super simple recipe and bask in the coziness of it :) So grab a bowl of this and snuggle by the fireplace in your pjs. It's chili time!

White Bean Chicken Chili

(Adapted from Averie Cooks)

Shopping List

1. Shredded Chicken. You can make it in the crockpot ahead of time, like Mix and Match Mama does (I've made it this way several times. And it's divine). Or you can just by a rotisserie chicken. From Costco. Like me ;) 

2. 2 cans of Cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

3. 1 yellow onion, chopped

4. 3 tablespoons of olive oil

5. 1 can of jalepeno peppers, chopped

6. 8 oz. of mild green chiles, not drained

7. 4 cloves of garlic, minced

8. 32 oz. of low sodium chicken broth

9. 1 tbs of lime juice

10. 1 tsp of oregano

11. Salt to taste 

12. 1 tsp of black pepper 

13. 1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes

14. 1/3 cup of fresh cilantro 

15. Tortilla strips, sour cream, avocado, etc. to garnish

Recipe

1. In a large stockpot, add your olive oil in and heat over med-high heat. 

2. Add in the onion, jalepeno, and green chiles and saute until they are soft. 

3. Add in garlic and stir for about 1 more minute. 

4. In a food processor, take 1 cup of the beans and a splash of the chicken broth and blend it until smooth. This will be a thick mixture. 

5. Add chicken broth, chicken, cannellini beans, and cannellini bean mixture into the pot and stir. 

6. Add the lime juice, oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and bring the chili to a boil. Allow this to boil for 7 to 10 minutes. Allow it to boil until it has been reduced to your desired thickness.

7. Taste chili and make sure all of the seasoning is perfect.

8. Spoon into bowls and garnish with whatever your heart desires! 

9. Enjoy :)

I promise. This is so yummy! Such a twist on the regular chili we make here on a weekly basis ;) 

Oh and I told you I'd give you dessert too, didn't I??? Well, here it is. Totally healthy, but so yummy, and easy. This is a great one for your sweet babies to help you with :) 

Dark Chocolate and Oat Clusters

(Adapted from Health.com)

Shopping List

1. 2 tbs of peanut butter

2. 1 tbs of milk

3. 1/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

4. 3/4 cup of old fashioned rolled oats.

Recipe

1. Heat peanut butter, chocolate chips and milk in a saucepan over low heat until the chocolate chips melt. 

2. Stir in the oats and remove from the heat. 

3. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. 

4. Spoon out about 8 balls of yummy goodness and allow this to cool at least 10 minutes in the fridge before serving!

5. Enjoy

Let your little monsters get their hands on these as soon as possible so they can tell you just how yummy these are! Best wife/mom award ever, I promise ;)