In honor of ketchup...and free fries

Have you seen these new, super cute and completely practical Heinz ketchup packets from Chick-fil-a?

Be still my heart :) . I think I am in love.

I know it may sound pathetic but these new ketchup packets have made eating Chick-fil-a waffle fries a more delightful experience.

My father-in-law swears by Heinz ketchup. He says it is the only ketchup to use. I've never really felt like there was much difference between ketchup brands. Until now.

I had some waffle fries the other day and the combination of ketchup in a convenient dippable container with the waffle fries was delicious. I considered going back and getting another order of fries ;). Not to mention, these packets contain 3 times as much ketchup as the old ketchup packets. So you spend less time trying to squeeze the ketchup from a gazillion packets in order to get a nice amount to dip from. You can also squeeze the ketchup from these packets by opening it a different way if you prefer that method too dipping. So versatile!

And you are in luck! If you haven't had the chance to try the new ketchup, next Friday, March 4 from 2-4pm is your day. Chick-fil-a is giving away one medium order of waffle fries when you mention you're there to try the new Heinz Dip and Squeeze! It is a win-win situation: ketchup and FREE fries. Happy Friday!

I'M STILL HERE!

Wow! It sure has been awhile since I last posted! I just wanted all my blog readers to know that I am still here and I plan to start blogging regularly again very soon.

Life has been full of distractions over the past month. Between Jeremy, Spencer, and me we took turns being sick through mid-January. Something about having your face hurt from sinus pressure just takes the blogging energy right out of ya! Then I made a trip to Utah with my mom and sister to attend a women's conference and spend a little girl time together.

While I was out of town, Jeremy called me to say that there had been a fire at our house (we live with my in-laws currently)! I'll admit I didn't believe him at first. We were very lucky. The fire was contained to the sun room at the back of the house and we didn't lose much. Everyone got out of the house ok and the house mostly sustained smoke damage. It could have been MUCH worse and I continue to remind myself everyday that we are blessed. My family was certainly protected that night.

We have been living in a hotel while things are being cleaned up and repaired at our house. The hotel will be our home for several more weeks...I am trying to keep a positive attitude. Living in a hotel is not my favorite thing. But I am grateful :). Life will go on. We will be back in our house soon enough. And I will be blogging again someday soon...until then...here are just a few pictures my father-in-law took of the fire damage.

The door from the living room to the sun room

My whole spray paint collection was destroyed :(.
I did most of my spray painting in the sun room.
I'm sure having all those cans out there helped fuel some of the fire too...
ooops.

Spencer's picnic table completely melted over his water activity table

One small step for man, one giant leap for me...

(I spent all afternoon thinking of titles for this post. Others that didn't make the cut: "Cinnamon Roll Love: My Journey to Conquer Yeast" or "Yeast-a-phobia no more!")

I made a huge step in my range of baking today. Krista, you will pleased to know that I did it. I used yeast for the first time ever. That's right. Yeast. The five letter word that has never been a part of my baking.

Don't get me wrong, I love yeast. There is nothing more beautiful than freshly baked cinnamon rolls, homemade bread, or rolls. I have fully appreciated these yeast based items from others who have chosen to make them. But there has always been something about yeast that has intimidated me. I always felt like there was a part of me missing, but I wasn't adventurous enough to find out if yeast could fill that part of me. I was resigned to use refrigerated cinnamon rolls in a can and Rhodes frozen rolls. Until Krista introduced me to this recipe for cinnamon rolls, from my favorite food blog Our Best Bites.

Now if you know me at all, you know that the quickest way to my heart is through a gooey, warm, homemade cinnamon roll. It is one of life's little pleasures that makes me smile and cannot be found just anywhere. So imagine my curiosity when Krista called me JUST to recommend this cinnamon roll recipe. She said it would be a really easy, fool proof recipe to try using yeast. I must admit I resisted at first. In fact, I tried this other cinnamon roll recipe first from Our Best Bites that doesn't use yeast. But it just didn't cut it for me. So I took the plunge today.

Everything seemed to be going well until I peeked at them after 30 minutes of rising time. According to the recipe it was only supposed to take 30 minutes for the rolls to rise. But at 30 minutes they didn't look much bigger than when I had placed them in the pan. My heart sank and I was immediately disappointed. How could I mess this up? I followed the recipe exactly. I decided I would give them a little more time to rise before calling it a complete failure. One hour later my rolls had risen beautifully (yay!) and I was smiling as I put them in the oven. 20 minutes later I couldn't contain my smile as I pulled these amazing rolls from the oven - that I had made! Here is the finished product: (after they have been glazed)

Wouldn't those make you smile too?

It was pure love. They were everything I had hoped for. I will definitely be making them again.


Would I say that I am completely cured of my yeast-a-phobia? No. But I am definitely on the mend. I need to work with yeast a little more in a variety of recipes before I can say we will be besties. But there is nothing like a homemade cinnamon roll to provide a good dose of medicine for my illness... :) Thanks Krista! You can find this recipe for Everyday Cinnamon Rolls HERE on Our Best Bites.

Hi, my name is Nicole and I like STUFF.

It's true. I like STUFF. STUFF makes me happy. Sometimes. Not just any STUFF. Decorating STUFF. Entertaining STUFF. STUFF that has the potential to make life more beautiful. The whole process of acquiring STUFF can provide quite the thrill. I am a bargain hunter. The thrill of the hunt gives me a nice dose of adrenaline. I have become quite the impulse buyer. When you garage sale you have to be impulsive or someone else will buy it right out from under you.

However, when you are dealing with the kind of space issues that I am, it is difficult to continue acquiring STUFF and not start feeling overwhelmed. The past week I have felt this overwhelming need to PURGE. Get rid of. Donate. Throw away. I have also read a lot of blogs in the last few weeks that have strengthened my desire to simplify my life. Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick tells about her journey with stuff HERE. I love that Jen is sharing her desire and journey to create a House of Order. She has a lot of good tips.

I hope that my desire to conquer my STUFF can have an impact on you too. What STUFF do you need to get rid of? Take a look around. Are there things in your home that are keeping you from living the kind of life you want? Let's help each other out. Maybe we could start a support group for "Lovers of STUFF." Would you come to our meetings :) ?

Deal Alert: 75% off Christmas at Target

I was at Target early this morning and they were marking down all their Christmas merchandise 75% off! They had TONS of stuff left and I certainly didn't leave empty handed. Happy shopping!

A Christmas Table and Centerpiece

I know Christmas is over, but I thought I would share pictures of our Christmas table. I used a deep green tablecloth with silver chargers and my mom's red dinner plates to add some Christmas color (yes, we used plastic cups. Not my first choice but at least they were red :). I kept the centerpiece simple:

A white cake plate standing on a white platter. Add sprigs of fresh greens ($6 for a bundle at United), red berries pulled off some picks from Hobby Lobby, a box of silver ornaments from Dollar Tree, and...

Some glass votive holders with a white votive nestled in some fake snow. A simple and thrifty, yet beautiful centerpiece.

There's nothing like a beautifully simple table, amazingly good food, and being surrounded by family to make Christmas special. I hope your Christmas was as wonderful as ours!

A Reader's Recipe Request: Chocolate Eclair Cake

One of my blog followers requested this recipe - and I aim to please my readers! Her husband stopped by the other night as I was serving this for dessert at our family dinner. Naturally we served him up a plate to share with his wife. I guess it is safe to say that they liked it :) ?

I have seen variations of this recipe many times over the years but this was the first time I had actually made it. My friend, Mikasa, shared this recipe at a recipe exchange and I had printed off almost the exact same recipe from AllRecipes.com a few years ago. If you are looking for a dessert that is simple, yet a big crowd pleaser, look no further.

Chocolate Eclair Cake

2 (3.5 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
3 cups milk
1 (16 ounce) package graham crackers
1 (16 ounce) container prepared chocolate frosting (I didn't use this. I made my own frosting. I'm kind of a store bought frosting snob :). See the bottom of the recipe for the instructions to make your own.)

In a medium bowl, combine both pudding mixes and the milk with a whisk. Let stand for a minute to begin thickening. Fold in the container of whipped topping. Arrange a single layer of graham cracker squares in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. You may have to break some of the squares to cover the whole pan. Evenly spread half of the pudding mixture over the crackers. Top with another layer of crackers and the remaining pudding mixture. Top with a final layer of crackers.

Soften the chocolate frosting in the microwave for about 30 seconds to make it easier to spread. Spread the frosting over the whole cake up to the edges of the pan. Cover, and chill at least 4 hours before serving. Giving enough time to chill is very important! It gives the graham crackers time to soften and be more "cake like."

If you want to make your own chocolate frosting, beat together 3 tablespoons hot water, 3 tablespoons butter, 3 tablespoons cocoa powder and 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar.