Contraband

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Oh Marky Mark...you're such a bad a$$...ha ha. I really liked this movie. All the actors played their characters really well.

The movie is about what you will do for your family and how some people aren't who you thought they were. It was also really neat to see how clever these criminals can be and what they go through to get what they want. I mean I don't really know if all that happens in real life the way it did in the movie, but I can only assume that the writers have to get their ideas from stories they hear and then exaggerate them a little.

Interesting fact...Kate Beckinsale had another movie open the same weekend (Underworld: Awakening). Underworld got the number one spot opening weekend, but Contraband came in number 2 so over all she had a great opening weekend...ha ha. (I've never seen any of the Underworld movies so I really can't say if it deserved the number one spot and I'm also a little biased towards Mark Wahlberg...if you haven't watched him in Shooter you need to!!!)

Harlem Globetrotters

Over the weekend we saw the Harlem Globetrotters! Last time they had come into town, Barrett mentioned that it would have been cool to see them, so when I found out they were coming back I snatched up some tickets (thank you Groupon)! By the end of the "game" my cheeks hurt from laughing so much. If you ever hear that they are coming to your town, I would highly recommend you get tickets.

The beginning of the "game" started with all of the Globetrotters in a circle passing the ball to each other while showing off their tricks. The picture above is Hi-Lite (they all have silly names) spinning the ball.

At one point they tore off one of the opposing team player's clothes and wore them as scarves and made a little catwalk...ha ha...even the ref got into it!

Lastly, this guy's name was Flip and for being a little guy he could jump! Now he didn't just jump and land like that, but he did do some crazy moves to get up there...ha ha.

Like I said I was laughing a lot and that got in my way of taking pictures so those are all I have. Hope you enjoyed.

Crackle Polish

Warning...if you have a thing against looking at feet (especially toes) don't read this post!!!

I had been wanting crackle nail polish for months and got some as a gift for Christmas...woo hoo! I've pretty much stopped painting my finger nails (unless you count clear polish) because I always chip the paint within hours of getting them done or my nail suddenly decides it wants to break...very frustrating. So now I just paint my toes (don't worry I still take care of my fingers).

This past weekend I finally had time to give myself a pedicure and I needed it badly! It was a little embarrassing to go to yoga with half polished toes last week...ahhh

So here it is (if your still with me)...

I love it! It may look a little Halloweenish, but I don't care...I've been wearing black polish year round since 7th grade and no I'm not gothic...ha ha

Have you tried the crackle polish yet? What did you think...yay or nay?

Buckeyes

Happy {Belated} National Peanut Butter Day! In honor of NPBD yesterday, I decided to make buckeyes last night. I got the recipe from here, but halved it since it was just me and the pops at home (of course it still made plenty).

The first time I ever had one of these was my senior year of high school. My friend Heather made these for one of our classes to help us remember she was headed off to the buckeye state for school. I don't know how many I ate that day, but these rich and creamy delights made me a happy girl.

These were just as good as I remembered and I controlled myself and only ate 2! Go me! ha ha

p.s. If you are reading this and are within walking distance of me right now, come get one please (I really don't need to eat all of these by myself)

Valentine's Tulle Wreath

So pretty much the only thing that makes it Valentine's is that it's pink...ha ha. It looks like it should be hanging in a little girls room or used at a ballerina party (rewind 21 years and my mom could have used it at my ballerina party...ha ha), but I love it anyways!

Starting from the top left and going clockwise...

1. I used a 12 inch Styrofoam wreath form (I create all my wreaths in front of the TV usually watching Big Bang Theory aka greatest geek show ever!)
2. I used 1 1/2 hot pink and 1 1/2 regular pink tulle rolls. I cut each tulle color into 50 two feet strips (100 total strips of tulle)
3. and 4. The two different ways I tied the tulle...over and under...I alternated every 2 strips

When you're done tying the tulle, it looks like this! Seriously..if this had fit around my hips I would have danced around my house in it...ha ha

Next, I attached the flower and feathers (all found at Michaels) by sticking the feathers under the tulle and clipping the flower on the tulle (there was already a clip on the flower). I also added a big rhinestone to the middle of the flower.

I glued 110 small rhinestones to the the ends of the tulle using E6000 glue.

The rhinestones kind of look like the are just floating on the strips.

That's it! All done! Hope I didn't overload you on pics...he he.

Yellow/Green Bday Card

This card was quick and simple! The green paper was embossed using my new Cuttlebug machine (not that I needed a new machine but I found it on sale...woo hoo)! The "Happy Birthday" I cut out with my Cricut machine, but thought it needed a little something else so I used a sharpie to "trace-in" the letters. The bow I tied through the card after punching two little holes using a regular hole punch.

Bonus pic! I thought it looked cool using my color select setting on my camera...he he he

*sidenote...this card makes me want to sing my elementary school song...ha ha...If you know it, sing along with me..."we are the bang bear colors green and gold..."

Chocolate Chip Marbled Fudge Cupcakes

For Christmas, I got the above cupcake book. It has a ton of different cupcakes (which is why I put it on my list as one of my 12 things to do in 2012)! Some of them are very simple and some seem very elaborate, but I'm going to try my hand at each kind...ahhh.

As y'all know Monday was MLK Jr. day and I decided to make the marbled cupcakes pictured above (I thought they were represented equaltiy...he he)

They look pretty so far right?!?! The book said to 'marble' as best you can because the batter is extremely thick and it was!

The book also says it's best to make the icing and put it on/serve the same day. Well that didn't really work for me since I wasn't about to wake up at 4 am to make cupcakes. So I made the icing the night before and refrigerated it per the instructions, but when I went to ice them it was already drying out, but still looked decent. Did I take a picture? Nope. So the above cupcake is 3 days later. I couldn't even spread the icing! I had to smush it on...

The cupcake was a little dry...I might have over baked them, but they weren't burnt or anything so it might have just been how thick the batter was. To me the cupcake tasted more like a chocolate chip muffin...which of course I love...hmmm...cupcakes for breakfast?!?!

All in all, I would probably make these again with maybe a different icing.

You're #1 Card

Excuse the quality...taken with my iPhone in a room with horrible lighting

I made this simple (maybe even dorky) card for one of my good friends who was running in the half marathon over the weekend. I still had leftover ribbon from last 4th of July, so I thought what better way to use it than to make a gold medal with it...ha ha! It's the thought that counts right?!?!

The Broadway Melody

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Another Oscar winner! This wasn't bad for being made in 1929! The people are a little hard to understand at times, but that's because I'm not use to how people spoke back then and probably because I was watching it in the car on my teeny tiny dvd player...

It may not look that small, but it fits in one of my make up bags along with it's batteries and cords!

My favorite thing about this movie is how they appreciated the body of a real woman. The "beautiful girl" resembles an early version of Marilyn Monroe. Oh how the views of society have changed...

The story follows a sister act, The Mahoney Sisters, and their dream to make it big on Broadway. Of course it has some love triangle drama, rejection drama and some I'm so happy for you (but not really) drama. Oh and there is music, dancing and humor to round it all out.

January Meal - Taco Stuffed Pasta Shells

My first new recipe to try for 2012!! 1 down 11 more to go! Gotta give a shout out to Erica who was once again my inspiration! She got her recipe from here.

There are a couple of things I did different of course (I don't like being normal)!

First, I didn't use salsa, instead I used a 10 oz jar of taco sauce and put about 8 oz of that in the bottom of my pan. Second, I didn't drizzle the remaining taco sauce on the shells until I put the chips and cheese on. Third, as you can probably see or guess I used a lot less cheese, but that's my personal preference. For anyone who would eat the stuffed shells I made, I would recommend adding more cheese.

I really enjoyed this dish and to quote my brother "This is really good sis!"

The Hurt Locker



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This was another one on my Oscar need to watch list! (For the full list check out my "bucket list" page)

O.M.G. was this movie intense! Honestly, I don't quite get the title other than the fact that things can really mess with you when you are over there so you are "Hurt" in a way.

This movie definitely made me appreciate (even more) what all of our military men and women go through to keep us safe. Thank you to everyone who has served or is serving our country!

12 things in 2012

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I love lists! And I LOVE crossing stuff off lists!! I was inspired by Erica to create a list of 12 things to do in 2012. Let me tell ya...that is not easy...I don't know how people come up with 101 things to do in 1001 days?!?!

Here it goes...Wish me luck!

1. Make one new recipe a month (1/12)
2. Read at least 5 new books (0/5)
3. Watch at least 5 movies off my Oscar list (1/5)
4. Travel to at least 1 new state
5. Go to the Ranch (my parents have owned it for 2 years and I've never been)
6. Learn and use my new stand mixer
7. Make/decorate 1 new cupcake from my new cupcake book per month (0/12)
8. SUCCESSFULLY make fudge (read about my fudge fail here)
9. Finish my friend's wedding gift (hopefully by March 5)
10. Finsih cork frame
11. Make at least 2 more seasonal wreaths (0/2)
12. Move out (ha! I've been saying that for 2 years)

I made a page for this list and will update it as I complete things!!!

Red Rock Canyon

I spent New Year's day at Red Rock Canyon park in Canton, OK. It was really nice to get out and do some minor climbing...

Sunset from the top of the rock...so pretty, but we did have to climb back down fast to avoid darkness

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows



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 You should see this movie if...

1. You liked the first one
2. You aren't so tired that you have fallen asleep at your desk that day
3. You aren't at war with your body trying to fend off a cold

I didn't really care for the first Sherlock Holmes, but Barrett someone convinced me that this was worth seeing and was way better than the first. While I agree it was better than the first, I can honestly say if they make another one I will wait and rent it...that way if I happen to fall asleep I haven't wasted 10 bucks...

*I didn't fall asleep in the movie and I technically saw it for free (thank you reward memberships)

To me, the movie was too dark scenery wise and I couldn't really understand what they were saying, so that made me zone out from time to time.

The movie did have good parts in it as well. My favorites involve a pony and camouflage.

Has anyone else seen this movie? What did you think?

Oreo Truffles

Taken with my iPhone

I love these things! They are super rich, but for the holidays who can really tell with the overload of sugar in our systems. You can find the original recipe here or if you keep scrolling you can see my tweaked version.

Ingredients:

1 package of Double Stuffed Oreos
6 oz. cream cheese
1 package vanilla candy coating (store brand works just fine)

Directions:

Place all but 6 cookies in a food processor and blend (if you don't have a food processor you can use a blender or crush them in a bag with a rolling pin). Dump crushed cookies into a mixing bowl.

Place your 6 leftover cookies in a plastic bag and crush with rolling pin. Set aside for later

Combine cream cheese to crushed cookies in the mixing bowl and mix well. This should form a large cookie ball

Roll mixture into smaller balls (smaller than a cookie scoop) and place on wax paper

Melt your candy coating per instructions on the package

Dip each rolled ball in candy coating and set back wax paper

Sprinkle your 6 leftover crushed cookies on top of wet candy coating and let dry for 30 minutes

Store in an airtight container in the fridge

Notes: The more cream cheese you use the richer they will be. I think next time I am going to try 4 oz of cream cheese, but 6 oz did work great! You can also use other types of Oreos such as the candy cane ones during Christmas for a minty taste.

Enjoy!

Fudge Fail

Source / What it should have looked like

My brother's girlfriend made some awesome peanut butter fudge for us for Christmas. It was so yummy that I wanted to try and make it myself...

Things went wrong quickly...

First of all, I didn't have a candy thermometer, but the recipe on the marshmallow puff jar said to stir it on medium for 5 minutes so that's what I did...

Second thing to go wrong, as I'm stirring it on medium I can start to smell the sugar burning so I turned it down a bit... I didn't really think anything of it because our stove tends to be hotter anyways...

Third mistake, I didn't know what soft ball form meant...

I stir the butter, sugar and milk concoction for the full 5 minutes, take it off and add the marshmallow puff, peanut butter and vanilla...I stirred until it was completely mixed/melted and poured it into my dish...

After 3 hours of cooling in the fridge it was still really soft...it felt like I was cutting through cream cheese. My mom and I decided to try a piece anyways. When we tried to get the piece out it just turned into a gooey mess and stuck to the wax paper like cookie dough sticks to the plastic it's wrapped in...

My mom and I decided to stick it in the freezer overnight to harden and come 6:30 am it was still soft

So that was that...I ruined 3 pounds of fudge! Luckily it was still edible and my brother took it with him New Year's Eve so it wasn't completely wasted.

After all was said and done the following conversation occurred...

Me: Next time I'm definitely using a candy thermometer
Dad: We have one already
Me: I asked you if we did and you didn't say anything
Dad: Oh...well we have one

Men never really listen to us do they?!?! 

p.s. I think I might have to try the recipe from the picture at the top of this post

Mission: Impossible Ghsost Protocol

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I kicked off the new year with an action packed movie! Woo Hoo! Actually I kicked it off with 4 action packed movies since I had never seen the first 3 (I know shocking right?)


This is by far my favorite of the series. To me this one was pretty funny and the stunts that were done off of the building were CRAZY! Oh and does Tom Cruise age? I swear movies 2-4 he looks the same...maybe it's an illusion (or botox...jk...but seriously).


Did y'all go see any movies over the holidays?

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year! I hope everyone has a happy and prosperous 2012. Remember to eat your black eyed peas today for good luck!