Fall Parties & Decor

Fall is officially upon us!!! I LOVE Fall...it represents so many wonderful things to me; crisp mornings, sweaters, falling leaves, our sunset maples changing colors, boots, hot apple cider(I love it from Starbucks without the Carmel, yes without, just try it steamed cider), pumpkins(all things pumpkin, bread, pie, muffins, cupcakes, pastas, bagels, cream cheese, giant pumpkins), cinnamon, the season of thanksgiving, blessing others, my son getting excited to dress up for Halloween, football, and the list goes on. I won't go and say fall is my absolute favorite season but I think its a tie with Winter and Summer. 

I love going through Pinterest and pinning all the gorgeous Pottery barn style front porches and decor. Today in honor of fall I thought I would share with you some of my fall decor and party pictures. I love a good fall party, it has to of course be planned around a major football game, before hunting season, and before we loose all hope of a good sunshine filled weekend. So we plan our party the first weekend in October, hunting season is the second, and always on a Saturday, to avoid any NFL games on Sunday, so my little sister can come home from college if she is able, and we can always still have college football on for the Dad's and grandpas who wish to check on the score;) For us we love to kick of the season with a gathering of our friends and let the kids and adults have a great time!!

Two years ago I did a Chili bar and I got the idea from the Pioneer Woman, you choose your chip preference, put all the fillings in your bag, and just walk around with it! I love the idea and am going to do it again this year along with another fabulous idea I have in the works to add. I did chili and then I did a turkey taco chili for any non meat eaters in attendance. I always try and make sure I have something for everyone.

My desert table is the place I love to keep it simple yet dressed up, each year I feel my style because a little more simple, rustic, and antique. I have a big box of fall decor that I just no longer like...I am IN love with my antique pie holder! I love pies and they are beautiful by them selves. I made my Fabric Garland last year for the party and love that I get to use it again! Hand making a new decoration each year is my favorite. 

We have some fun games lined up for the kids and we usually start out with the balloon dart pumpkin. My husband is a trooper and fills each balloon with candy(which is not an easy task) and makes this pumpkin for the party every year, its a huge hit!! We also do a pumpkin slingshot, and then we have the hay pile....

Each year the kids have tons of fun digging through it and finding all the treasures. This year however I will need to make it bigger and have some of the big kids help the little ones out, I am thinking 10 and under is a good age range for this game!

As you can see gunny sack races are perfect for both kids and adults, I have some pretty awesome diving pictures. Everyone has a blast!! My son is so excited about this, I think it is his favorite, he keeps telling me its not party time till the finish line is set up:) He loves to run back and forth with the groups of racers!

Apple boobing...what kid doesn't love the thrill of getting their head soaking wet and trying to get the apple out! all in all its a great party! In any party planning it takes a lot of work and preparation. I can not take much credit for the games, that is all my husband, he takes full control of that and its perfect. I take care of the decor, food, and presentation and he keeps the party rolling with entertainment. We work as a great team and each year it gets a little better and a little bigger! I am so grateful for all my amazing family and friends who help out so much to help make this party amazing!

So weather you like to go to others parties, are thinking about starting your own fall party, or looking to add a few ides to a party you do, I hope you enjoyed some of our fun games and decor at our Annual Harvest Party.

Happy Fall Y'all!!

Friday Night Lights, Farmers Markets, and a Family Friendly Meal

We are having yet another exceptional summer in Washington State! While part of me is ready for all things fall I still love this burst of heat we are receiving! We went to the local farmers market this weekend and I purchased the above beautiful flowers! Sunflowers are my absolute favorite!!!! Mixed with some beautiful Dahlias and it brings a smile every time I see them. They were also the flowers I had in my wedding. I just love farmers markets, all the fresh produce, flowers, baked goods, homemade items, and fresh homemade PASTA!!! Let me tell you the homemade pasta and ravioli is AMAZING!!! One of the main reasons I wanted to go down, maybe it is from my childhood memories of my mom making homemade pasta and/or just how amazing it tastes! Needless to say I purchased some chipotle pepper pasta(so good) and some wonderful ravioli flavors including a butternut squash and asiago one that is out of this world good!! I also found this Rosemary scone that was so moist, so buttery...perfection!! Then I went home and ran 7 miles because all those carbs require you to run a lot to work them off. Carbs are amazing...how come my metabolism cant function like it did when I was 16?!? 

Our neighbors invited us to the local High school Football game Friday night and it just so happens they were playing my Alumni School, our nephew's are on the team, and my cousins son (who is a stud running back) are on the team! Our nephew cleared the way blocking the lineman as my cousins son was able to run it in for the touchdown! My Alumni won the game and my cousins son even had an article about him in the paper, "Terhune is so good, he is bad..." :) :)!!  It was a gorgeous night for a football game!!

There is something about a high school football game that I never noticed as a high school student. My perspective has changed a bit, seeing the excitement of my son with all the kids around, he so desperately wanted to sit by the big kids, Hayden and his friends:) Seeing the kids running around on the sides of the field having fun, and the parents not needing to worry, the interaction between the girls and the boys, the adults who come just to watch because they love football and the parents & grandparents cheering the kids on! The band and the young girls who want to cheer just like the high school cheerleaders! It was a fun night and I look forward to more Friday Night Lights! 

My sweet boy had to have his head in the photo;) When Blake was a little over 2 years of age he decided he no longer wanted to eat most things I made, lasagna he would gobble up, no thanks mama! It was a bitter battle until he recently turned 4 and his appetite is BACK!! Eating most things I make and has been trying new things! This meal gets his tummy nice and full, he eats it up with no fight and it has chicken(which used to be a big battle) in it!! Let me tell you as a lady who loves to cook for my family it has been a huge breath of fresh air! I honestly thought that there would be no hope for me, but to any moms who are struggling with a picky eater, it gets better and I hope it keeps getting better:)! This dish is super simple, you toss the chicken in the crock pot in the morning and then cook the rice in the evening. You can make these as simple or add as much to them as you like!

Cafe Rio Chicken Rice Bowls:

8 oz Italian Dressing (around half the bottle)
1 Tablespoon cumin
1 Tablespoon chili powder
4 frozen chicken breasts

1.Mix cumin, chili powder, and dressing in a bowl.
2. Place frozen chicken breasts in crock-pot.
3. Pour dressing mixture over chicken.
4. Cook on high for 5 hours or low for 7 to 8. (i find I always shred mine around the 7 hour) Shred chicken in the crock-pot and mix well.

2 cups cooked brown rice(or the grain your family loves best)
2-3 ears of corn cooked (if corn is not in season you could either cook up some canned corn or frozen)
Shredded Cheddar or Pepper Jack Cheese
Ranch Dressing
Optional Ingredients:
Shredded Kale or Lettuce
Black Beans
tomatoes
Jalapenos

Assemble:
For my little one I do rice, chicken, corn, cheddar cheese, and a little bit of ranch mix it all together and he is a happy eater!!
Mix it all up to your desire and enjoy!!

I always have extra chicken so I freeze it in Ziploc containers, usually 1 cup in each Ziploc. That way on nights when I am making something I know my son will not eat and I take this out of the freezer and make his own rice bowl! Its perfect or you can toss it on a salad for a healthy lunch one day!!

Enjoy!

Roasted cherry Tomato Soup

Summer is winding down and if you have tomato plants like me, then you are trying your best to consume them all, preserve them all, or just give them all to your neighbors and chickens (sharing is caring). I discovered this delicious soup a few years back and I make it every summer! Last year I really got into freezer cooking and froze a bunch, it tastes just as amazing as the first day I made it! I even got comments like, "this was frozen, no way!" Yes I am a huge believer in my freezer, I freeze pounds and pounds of summer berries for the months ahead. We go blueberry picking a few times every summer and while I skipped this year, blueberries tend to get us (the husband & I) into friendly arguments;) My husband is a pretty good blueberry picker, "hey babe, you will not believe how many I got today"...please say 25 pounds..."50!!" His excitement is wonderful however processing that much before they all go bad can be nearly impossible! I need more baking sheets and another freezer! So we normally get in a little battle but it's a friendly one and it's all for the love of having delicious and safe berries in our freezer for the family all year long:) Here are a few pictures of years past in the blueberry field...

 This is my precious little one just weeks old!! He had no idea he was there...

We missed the season all together somehow when he was 1, but here he is 2 years old...oh I miss his adorable curly locks!!! Him & sweet Koco in the blueberry field!

This year we started a new tradition Raspberry picking, on top of buying from the local fruit stand. The berries are delicious!! My husband picked them here for his summer job growing up. 

Then the wild blackberry picking, these never make it in the freezer, they are always gone the day we pick them and we end up with purple fingers;) I go on a long walk around our house and we make a stop and I pick a small bag full for my sweet little one to munch on the rest of the walk back, it gives him something fun to look forward too and he loves to help:)!!

Before I got sidetracked with my berries, I was mentioning freezer cooking! Canning  I am not much of a fan of, but freezer cooking count me in!! It saved me so many times this past year when I was not in the mood to cook and would much rather have gone out, which in turn saved us money. Also for those busy days when dinner was the last thing you had time for! 

For storing this soup in the freezer I use these plastic food storage containers I saw on none other then the amazing Pioneer Woman's Blog. She is fantastic and is the reason I am in love with freezer cooking, my family may not be as big, but big or small its worth the extra time to always double something you can freeze and preserve those summer gardens! I found this soup from the wonderful ladies over at Our Best Bites, they always have amazing recipes on using up your gardens harvest. 

You want to start out by roasting 3 cups of fresh corn kernels, 2 heaping cups fresh cherry tomatoes, 4 cloves of roughly chopped garlic, drizzled with olive oil, salt, and freshly cracked pepper @ 400 degrees for 15-20 min.

While the Veggies are roasting away chop up your onion and drain your peppers.

Your tomatoes will be bursting and everything will look and smell delicious.

After all your ingredients are in and have simmered for 20 min, you can either use an immersion blender, transfer to your blender, or food processor. I prefer the immersion blender, saves time of transfer and the immersion blender is faster clean-up (I am all about finding easier ways to get those dishes clean)!

Here is your soup pureed to perfection and ready to eat! It is so simple, so tasty, and filling! I always just taste it and then put it in the freezer. I find it hard to eat hot soup for dinner after a hot day. One batch will fill two containers for the freezer. Enjoy it hot that day or take it out on a cold fall/winter day heat it over the stove and serve it up with a Grilled Cheese!!! YUM!!! Enjoy:)


Roasted Sweet Corn and Tomato Soup
From Our Best Bites

3 cups fresh corn kernels (about 4 cobs)
2 heaping cups cherry tomatoes
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, any color, diced
8 ounce jar roasted red bell peppers, drained
32 ounces chicken broth (4 cups)
3/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
kosher salt
fresh cracked black pepper
optional: chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place corn, tomatoes, and garlic on a foil-lined baking sheet.  Drizzle with 2 teaspoons olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.  Gently toss with hands and then arrange in an even, flat layer.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until tomatoes are crinkled and burst.

While vegetables are roasting, heat a stock pot to medium high heat on stove top.  Add remaining one teaspoon olive oil and diced onion.  Saute about 5 minutes, or until tender.  Add roasted bell peppers, chicken broth, smoked paprika and chipotle chili powder.  Add a 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and black pepper. (you can taste later and add more if need be.)

When corn and tomatoes are done roasting, add them to the pot, making sure to scrape off all of the bits on the pan.  Bring soup to a low simmer and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes.  Use an immersion blender, or transfer soup to stand blender and puree until smooth. Top with extra corn or some chopped cilantro.  Serve and Enjoy!!! 

Hello...I'm Back!!! Fabric Garland & Wreath

Hi friends...I had no intention of taking the entire summer away from the blog but it just happened. Summer around here is pretty busy, we have two big gardens and other vegetables growing around the property. We are finally going to build another garden just for my husbands pumpkins:) I really enjoy my hanging baskets and all the other planters I fill and miracle grow like to crazy to make them as huge and abundant with flowers as possible! Somewhere in the mix of the parties we hosted, birthdays we celebrated, pool time we enjoyed with this amazing summer heat, doing my actual work for my husbands office,and just enjoying life with my little family, big family, and friends it slipped away! To be completely honest we do not eat too many exciting things come summer. We are basically eating what we grow and my poor husband is extremely ready for some hearty fall food;) I do throw in man food throughout the week since I am out numbered in my family but I could eat Chicken, Kale, and tomatoes for days. 

We started of our summer with going on our first trip without our handsome Lil man to celebrate my Lil sister/best friends 21 birthday VEGAS style. Here he is the first night excited to have a sleepover at Aunt Jen's and then in the morning of the day we were coming home, waiting for our car to arrive. He actually watched our plane on the computer screen and they searched google maps to try and find us, he is too precious. He thought he lost me...I am not sure I can ever leave him that long again!!!

This was the first day we arrived and the birthday girl is in the middle! We always said we would go to Vegas for her 21st birthday and so blessed we were able to celebrate her and enjoy it Vegas style and we even won! It was a wonderful vacation! 

A few days after we got back I co-hosted a wonderful couples baby shower in honor of our dear friends! 

Today I am sharing with you a new party decoration that I may be a little obsessed with! My neighbor & good friend introduced these to me last year when she made a super cute one for her daughters first birthday and ever since I can't get enough of them! If you head over to Little Miss Momma you will find the perfect tutorial on how to make the perfect addition for your next party. Above is the fabric garland I made for my dear friends Couple Shower I co-hosted in June, she recently had her beautiful and precious twins, Brynlee & Bronson and they are perfect!! This is such a great idea for baby showers, I highly suggest coordinating your shower colors with the baby/babies room colors. You never know if the mama to be will love them enough to use them as decor in the room. In my case she did and I was blessed I could add a little extra love to their ADORABLE room! I made the above garland using 1/2 yard of each fabric color.

2 weeks later we threw our annual 4th of July party, it is a huge block party with a pig roast, pretty epic firework show, friends, days of fun, and a much needed 14 hours of recovery sleep:) Each year I make something new to add to my decor. Of course I continued my obsession with some more fabric garland. In the two above photos I used 1 yard of each color so the garland would hang a little longer. My Lil sister in the photo above with me is my go to party helper, she is such an amazing helper and I am so blessed she willingly volunteers her time to help me get ready!!

This garland is using 1/2 yard fabric piece. It is much shorter but it works perfect in the right location:)

 I make a wreath for my Sons birthday every year and I hang it on his door until his birthday the next year. In the years past I have always made a balloon wreath, but this year to go along with my new obsession I made this fabric wreath!! Head over too Southern Priss Designs and follow her super easy tutorial! I made a square one and I need to get started on a Seattle Seahawk themed one since football season is upon us and we are World Champions here in Seattle...SEAHAWKS. 

 My son has always had a love for trains. One of his favorite lunch spots we frequent after his haircut is a Pizza place right by the train tracks, so he can eat his favorite Cheese Pizza and watch trains go by. This past year we discovered Dinosaur Train on PBS and he fell in Love, I let him pick between 2 choices for his party theme and he choose Dinosaur train! It was tons of fun to put together, I love party planning, I get it can be a little over the top at times, but its my thing and I really enjoy doing it! He would be happy with just a chocolate cake and his friends but its fun to go all out and be creative:) 

I found the perfect party favor on Etsy from Abigails Hands, she was so wonderful to work with and did an amazing job!! I think I may be seeing some little ones as dinosaurs for Halloween this year!!!

This summer has been amazing and while its not over yet with school a week and a half away I am prepping myself for my little man to start his first day of Pre-K!! While at moments I am ready and moments I could break down, he is going to LOVE it!! One thing is for sure he is ready, he talks about it every day and tells random people he is going to school tomorrow;) While I will have more time to do office work, workout, and do my blog...I am sure going to miss the lazy cuddle watch TV together mornings, I have been so beyond blessed to be able to stay at home with him and create all these wonderful memories and routines, I have cherished them and wish he could stay little forever. But here is to the next step in motherhood and who knows, maybe next year we become a homeschooling family...

I will be back this week with some wonderful recipes to help you use up all those garden tomatoes and zucchini you may have growing as abundant as I do;)

Roasted Anaheim Chile & Smoked Bacon Grilled Cheese

Have you ever made a sand which that just made your taste buds go crazy and you were still able to taste it later on in a good way?!? This Grilled Cheese is just that, it is delicious, the perfect amount of spice from the Chile's and pepper jack cheese and savory from the sharp cheddar and smoked bacon! It was dynamite!! I will make it again tomorrow to indulge in this comfort classic!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! I feel so very blessed to live in our amazing country and even more blessed by those who serve to protect us and our nation. We have good friends who are currently in Alaska and will soon be moving to a new location, the sacrifice of all the moving alone is something I am extremely grateful for, that is a huge commitment to sacrifice, not to mention the many times they serve overseas, and the stress and worry it brings on families. So forever thankful for all military families!!! Which brings me to a friend of mine who designed my logo and whose husband also serves our great country!

I went to high school with Jaclyn of JAE creative Company, she is incredibly talented and extremely kind hearted! If you are ever in need of a logo or want to spruce up an existing logo I would get in touch with her. She is truly amazing at her talent and how cool that she gets to do exactly what she loves as her job! I was so blessed that she was able to help me design my logo, she put all my visions and ideas to print and I am so very thankful!!

Back to the Grilled Cheese...if there is one thing I will say it is that you need to make this today, tonight! Go to the store and indulge in this savory comfort food classic with a dynamite twist, you will not be disappointed.

You will need Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Pepper Jack Cheese, 2 Anaheim Chile's, Sourdough Bread(I used cracked wheat), Applewood Smoked Bacon, Mayo(yes mayo, not butter, just go all out on this one;))

Turn your broiler on high and roast your Chile's until the skins are black, rotating them about every 5-7 minutes until they are completely roasted and the skin nice and black. Toss them into a Ziploc bag to sweat for about 20-30 minutes. This will make it easy to remove the skin from them.

Next you want to remove the skin, membranes, and seeds. Unless you want a little extra kick then leave some seeds. Slice them up and set aside.

Cook up your bacon, I accidentally burned a few pieces, it was a shame but it happens. I cook my bacon in the oven, but if you are not careful it can go from almost done to burnt in seconds! It happens to the best of us!

Heat your skillet over medium heat and spread some mayo on your bread, lay it mayo side down on heated skillet and layer 1/4 cup sharp cheddar and 1/4 pepper jack. Next add your desired amount of Chile and then some crumbled bacon. Top that with 1/4 cup sharp cheddar & 1/4 cup pepper jack. Top with bread and spread mayo on top! Cook about 5 minutes each side until the cheese is nice an melted and tops are Golden Brown.

I love a good grilled cheese...this one is GOOD!!

Roasted Chile & Smoked Bacon Grilled Cheese
Ms. Marquet's Kitchen-Gillian

4 pieces Sourdough bread
2 Anaheim Chile's
4 pieces crumbles Applewood Smoked Bacon
1 cup Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
1 cup Shredded Pepper jack Cheese
Mayo for spreading on bread

Heat your skillet on Medium Heat. Spread Mayo on one piece of bread and lay mayo side down on skillet. Lay 1/4 cup Sharp cheddar & 1/4 Pepper jack Cheese on bread, slices of Chile's, two pieces of crumbled bacon top with another lay or cheese, bread, & mayo. Cook for about 5 minutes each side until cheese is melted and bread is golden brown.

Enjoy!