Fall is finally here! For me at least.

I don’t call it “Fall” until the weather changes. How can you say it’s Fall when it’s still reaching upper 90s? So, with that said…my FAVORITE season of the year is here!!! Seriously. What’s not to love about Fall? The temperature is absolutely euphoric. The air turns so crisp I swear you could detect every little different, distinct smell on the wind. And let’s not forget it’s also the season of yours truly birthday month! Scorpios rule! =]

Every Fall means I look forward to a few special Autumn favorites. Here’s a few of those things I wanted to share.

Hocus Pocus on ABC Family. Or actually, the entire Halloween countdown on ABC Family. If you don’t like this movie we can’t be friends. 3 of the best witches ever (took me forever to realize it was Carrie Bradshaw). Judge me. “Come little children. I”ll take thee away…” Ooops. Sorry. Got caught up in the moment. And how can you not love the oh-so cute Thora Birch (pre-boobie exposing American Beauty)? Which reminds me I want to watch Now and Then again.

Colors. Nothing is prettier than the changing of the foliage. I would DIE to drive up through New England right now. I know it’s absolutely breathtaking. But for now I’ll make due with driving to my parents house in the country and enjoying the scenery there.

Hot cocoa + warm cozy blanket + sofa + movie = heaven (And don’t you dare mix any pumpkin in my perfectly good chocolate cocoa!)

College football. School pride runs rampant in these parts around this time. And I love it. I’m a Big 12 girl. And rather than have a real pic I thought this was SO much better! Although now it’s somewhat void. But you get the picture. Poor Mangino’s face is priceless! And Gundy’s hair is hilarious! GO POKES!

And of course…the style. Now is the perfect temperature to blaze style and be comfortable wearing it! Hoodies, scarfs, boots, sweaters, tights, blazers. What whaaat?! I like summer fashion and all, don’t get me wrong but I’m usually melting away versus being able to really appreciate it. I could post so many pics but I’ll save you the misery and pick a few of my favorites from my Pinterest.

So what’s your favorite things during the Fall season?

Crockpot Italian Chicken Recipe

So I’ve had a crock pot for about 3 months. Just sitting there begging me to utilize it. So, after pinning about 100 crock pot recipes I figured I might as well discover the greatness (and trust me…it’s beyond GREAT!)

My recipe of choice? Italian chicken. The picture alone drew me in. Chicken, with pasta, with a savory looking sauce? I’m sold! Checking the recipe it was pretty easy and I already had most of the ingredients at home.

Recipe (Note: I only made a meal for 2. So double for more):

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (thawed)

1 can cream of chicken

1 pkg Zesty Italian dressing seasoning package

4 oz cream cheese

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp garlic power

1/2 yellow onion

1/2 cup of milk (you’ll need to add this because your sauce will be too thick otherwise)

1/2 package of fettuccine  noodles (even rice would be good)

Cook on low for 4 hours. When done add cooked noodles, toss and serve immediately. (If you leave the noodles in too long they’ll absorb your sauce making it thick instead of creamy)

 

 

Sexiest Woman Aliiive!

Okay. Relax. I’m not talking about myself. I’m talking about the next best thing though! MILA KUNIS! She’s my absolute, positively for sure girl crush. She’s basically the all-encompassing version of what I deem a “cool chick.” The fact she’s Meg from Family Guy ROCKS! I really started crushin’ after seeing Black Swan. She kicked butt in Book of Eli. And was totally lovable in Friends with Benefits (now one of my FAVORITE movies)!

And now she’s been voted as Esquire’s Sexiest Woman Alive for 2012. And that magazine has some good taste. Mila joins the ranks of Rihanna, Minka Kelly and Kate Beckinsale.

If her television and movie resume wasn’t enough, topped with the fact she’s just plain ol’ hawt she’s now dating one of my other fav comedians Ashton Kutcher. I mean COME ON! How absolutely cuuute are they together?! Mostly, it’s because they seem so…well…normal. Just casual walks in the park. Or to a Dodger’s game. No extra-ness. Laid back matching styles. What’s not to love?! I’m just hoping this isn’t his rebound phase from the stunning cougar Demi. ::fingers crossed:: that they end up happily ever after in the land of absolutely gorgeous couples!

 

 

Baked Penne Recipe

I love pasta dishes. It’s one of the recipes you can go to that’s pretty hard to mess or up have it come out tasting funky and it feeds an army (or lots of leftovers in my case). I stumbled upon this recipe on Pinterest and tweaked it a little bit. It’s not for the health guru because there’s lots of cheese but it’s OH SO tasty!

Everything I changed I’ve highlighted. And don’t judge the picture. I was too impatient and hungry for the mozzarella cheese to brown on top. =]

BAKED PENNE

1/2 lb ground turkey (Depending on how meaty you like your pasta you can add a full lb)

7 ounces Polska Kielbasa skinless sausage

3/4 cup chopped yellow onion

1/2 cup red pepper

1 jar of spaghetti sauce

1 tub of Philadelphia Italian Cheese & Herb Cooking Creme – Reduced Fat

2 cup mozzarella cheese

3 cups whole wheat penne pasta

Cook pasta to al dente. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Brown meat with vegetables. Stir in spaghetti sauce, 3/4 of the tub of cooking creme, 1 cup mozzarella cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Add pasta. Mix lightly. Spoon into pan and top with remaining cooking creme and mozzarella cheese. Cover.

Bake 20 minutes, uncovering after 15 minutes. Enjoy!

Stretching Shoes. At home!

Okay ladies. We’ve all been here. We see a pair of shoes that are TOO cute or TOO price savvy to not buy. Even if they are a half or even full size too small. Well, that’s exactly what happened to me. I’ve been on the search for a pair of nude heels/wedges for the longest. Like, literally, since Summer. I was trying to find a nude pair that could be worn through winter, so no open toes or sandals. Strolling through the DSW’s sale rack I stumble upon these…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I wear a 7.5. These are a 7. See the predicament? In an effort to save money and opt out of taking them to a professional shoe place I googled some home remedies. The best method I found was freezing water inside the shoes. And here’s how to:

First: I’d definitely NOT recommend doing this with any shoes that are not leather (obviously) or that are high dollar.

Second: you’ll just need two regular sandwich ziploc bags.

Third: Google said to add water first. However, I tried this way the first time and I’ve edited this part. I was needing the whole toe area to be stretched. Plus, the foot opening was pretty small. So, putting water in the ziplocs first made it hard to get in the front toe part.

So, instead, take the empty ziploc bags and stuff one corner all the way in. Making sure that it covers the whole area you are wanting stretched. It will look like this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fourth: Now that you have the ziploc baggies in place you can then take a cup and fill with water. You want to add the water slowly, making sure you don’t overflow. I added enough water to just come over the top of the shoe. Too much and you’ll not be able to close the ziploc bags.

Fifth: With the water added just seal the ziplocs, pushing any excess air out also. Now it will look like this:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And that’s it! Put the shoes in the freezer overnight or for at least 6+ hours. Then take them out of the freezer and set aside for the water to melt (You won’t be able to pull the frozen ziploc bags out without damaging your shoes). For the best results, I walk around in them right after so while stretched they form to your foot even more! I’ve already done this twice with this pair of shoes and I can tell the difference!