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I'm only creating this blog to make the other blog move down further so the video can be seen. Sorry for anyone who got their hopes up and thought I was making another awesome video blog...

From our home, to yours, Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all, & to all a goodnight!

It's finally here, Christmas.

Reasons I love Christmas:

• Almost everyone is full of holiday cheer
• Christmas music & movies
• An excuse to go shopping and spend money
• Christmas lights make houses look so pretty, warm, & cozy
• Family comes home and gathers around a delicious meal complimented with baked goods afterward
• Buying gifts for someone special and seeing their face after they open it
• I would go on, but I can't even explain why it makes me so happy

Now, I'm going to touch on my 2nd to last point, "Buying gifts for someone special and seeing their face after they open it."  Yesterday, I was at work and every student, teacher, staff, & faculty member was running around exchanging gifts, delivering cupcakes, watching movies, eating popcorn, or just simply smiling. I loved the love in the building and seeing that joy, we all know everyone possesses, surface this one time a year. Lately, everyone in the building has been stressed out and irritable to the max. But, somehow everyone managed to dig deep down and forget about their troubles to make yesterday special to the students and others in the building. It was magical.

The most magical part hit me when I was in my last classroom for the day. This  3rd grade class is considered a "self-contained" class. That means the kids who are in the class have behavioral and/or emotional issues. The class is about 12 kids and usually chaotic (in a good way). The teacher is the sweetest woman ever and her aide is a tough guy with a big heart for each student. Together they work to create a special and very unique family where every person looks out for one another, even if on most days profanity is being shouted from one student to the next, fits are being thrown and lockers are being hit, students are threatening one another's lives, etc. If one outsider tries to come in and join the class, the others are cautious and will do anything to that child if he/she threatens the teacher or anyone else in the class. It's a very weird dynamic, yet so special and amazing to witness. Most of these kids have one parent households, have grown up in foster care, come to school with bugs, bruises, burns, you name it. To sum it up, these kids have very little things or people who appreciate them.

So, every year their teacher asks the students to make a list of toys they'd like for under $10. This year she had the kids look up toys online and write it down. So, yesterday was the Christmas party. The students first watched a video of themselves set to music that the teacher's aide had made of the kids. This video included voice overs of each student and their feelings, and also photos of themselves and staff who have had a meaningful interaction with them throughout the year. Next, was present time. Everyone moved their chairs into a circle and was out of control with excitement. The teacher called each student's name one by one and handed him/her the present. Every child watched as the wrapping paper was torn off and the biggest smile ever was revealed. There was one student in particular who made me cry. She is a girl whose clothes are always to small, who has a big heart along with a big attitude, and who doesn't seem to get much attention or love at home. She opened her gift, moon sand, and immediately ran over to the teacher and embraced her. This hug was the biggest hug I have ever seen a child give. The teacher told her how much she loved her and wished her a Merry Christmas. The girl continued to latch on with the biggest smile and would not move. This site brought myself, my coworker, and the teacher to tears. Seeing how happy she was and feeling the love in that room really hit me. I have so much to be thankful for, why do I always long for more when there are young kids out there who might not have a safe home to go to, who are never told or shown that they are loved, or who are constantly acting out just to hope that someone will notice them.

I want to wish you all a very special holiday season and remind you to show those in our life how much you appreciate them and reach out for those who might be seeking your attention. You never know what story they might have to share with you and how much you could mean to that person. Merry Christmas everyone and safe travels! I love you all, peace.

My Goodies, My Goodies

I know I have failed you all with my "25 days of Christmas" series. I apologize whole heartedly and hope you will forgive me. Since my last post I've had my first campout weekend with the 3rd and 4th graders, started to join bar trivia, ate numerous amounts of delicious wings, started driving like a Buffalonian, went out with some work people (I'm making friends!), found a delicious mexican restaurant, and downed a whole bottle of brandy, wine, & 4 jack'n cokes in one night leaving me with the worst hangover, in history, for 2 days afterward.

The night of drinking was also a night of baking. I baked chippy dippy bars (magic cookie bars to some), almond bark pretzels, sugar cookies (cake recipe), and my new favorite, oreo balls.

Now, I don't know if any of you have experienced these, but my roommates introduced me to them so I thought I'd pass them along.

Oreo Balls

• 1 pkg. regular oreos
• 1 pkg. cream cheese
• almond bark

You'll want to allow the cream cheese to soften, so I usually take it out of the fridge first. Crush up the oreos until they are super fine. In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese and oreos. I have to use my hands because it's hard to do. The mixture will come out feeling like a sticky playdough, so don't panic if it's gooey and thick. Form the oreo mix into 1-2" balls. Use a double boiler, or make one, and melt the almond bark. Then, dip the balls into the almond bark and let dry on wax paper. These are soooo delicious. Very rich so I can only eat about one at a time. This recipe makes about 24 oreo balls depending on how large they are.

Ah!

Posts.are.coming...I promise!

Until then, stay safe and warm my dear Iowa frenzzz!

On the 20th day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

Ok, first things first, I need to post a song. (I really hope you guys are enjoying this holiday music as much as I am!).  Who doesn't love a good classic song sung by an old time 90's favorite?!?  (ignore the foreign language subtitles; it's all I could find!)



Ok, so Oprah recently aired her show, "Oprah's Favorite Things," and the other day I was in the bathroom getting ready for bed when I realized, I have not shared two of my very favorite things that I use everyday! I know that some ladies who read this will really appreciate the first one...

1. Scott's Extra Soft Toilet Paper

• Single-ply tissue paper so you don't feel like you're wasting a giant wad of paper every time you use the lavatory
• Soft & not scratchy like it's competitor "Soft & Gentle" or as I like to call it, "Hard & Scratchy"
• Each roll lasts forever (something I wish I would've discovered before the Brady sisters visited my apartment each month)
• Fairly inexpensive for what you get

Now, a lot of you might not have realized the constant agony my roommates and I went through in past years of finding the "perfect" toilet paper. So, when I came to Buffalo and Cody suggested this, "Scott's Extra Soft," stuff, I was a little hesitant. Aha, I think he was on to something! Here it is in my blog listed under one of my favorite things! I don't know how I missed it all these years. My old favorite was Quilted Northern, before they got rid of the one-ply and started making everything super plush. I'm telling you kids, try this stuff and let me know what you think. I hope I won't let you down.

My other item of choice probably won't be very exciting to you and for that I'm sorry. However, it is an item I swear by and use everyday. Ok, enough with the suspense, it's floss picks!

     2.   DenTek Comfort Clean Floss Picks

• Super easy grip so you'll be sure to get every tooth/gum area
• Make sure to get the angled ones (I find them easier to reach the molars with)
• Help prevent gingivitis (a chronic infection that stimulates your immune system to overreact which could possibly lead to increased heart attacks and strokes!) -thanks, Dr. Oz!
• Inexpensive
• Mint flavoring

I can't stress enough the importance of a healthy mouth! It's something I've always loved and who knows, maybe one day I'll go back and get a degree in dental hygiene! Who would've known that gingivitis, a disease easily prevented by simple oral hygiene practices, could lead to heart attacks and strokes?!?! I sure didn't, so make sure you're flossing those pearly whites and keeping them sparkling!

Happy Holidays!

TwoOne

My bad shawtays, I'm late on yet another blog post. Wah, let's just all be happy I'm making up for the ones I've missed. Ok, let's post a song first. Here's a sweet Christmas song that I like to listen to when I'm having a rough day. So, since I had a rough few days last week (rest in peace Aunt Linda), I thought I'd share it with you. Rachael Yamagata is an amazing artist and if you have not checked out any of her other songs/albums, I highly recommend you do so! I hope you enjoy it!


Ok, enough sappy/downer stuff, let's move onto something that makes everyone happy...COOKIES! A few days ago I mentioned that Taylor and I made some delicious cookies. I promised you the recipe and it's a mighty complex one so bear with me.

Funfetti Cookies

• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup oil
• 1 box Funfetti cake mix (or any flavor cake mix)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a small bowl mix together the eggs, oil, and cake mix. Stir until all the cake mix is dissolved. (Note from me: it'll be tough to mix but don't add water. It'll be very thick and sticky, this is normal.) Place little balls of cookie dough onto a sprayed cookie sheet and Voila! you're ready to place them in the oven and bake them until they are a little golden on the edges. (We all know what cookies look like when they're done.)

Our batch made about 18 large Funfetti cookies. We also made a batch of lemon cookies using lemon cake mix. I must say, these turned out delicious if you like a hint of lemon. We paired them with cream cheese frosting and mmm they were marvelous.

Now, the other recipe I said I would share was the vegan lasagna we made. So, here goes:

Easy Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna

• 1/2 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tsp. chopped garlic
• 2 tbsp. water
• 2 26-oz jars of spaghetti sauce (or your favorite pasta sauce)
• 9 lasagna noodles
• Soy Parmesan (optional; we used vegan shredded mozzarella)
• Sliced black olives (optional)

     Filling:

• 10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed (we used fresh spinach)
• 1 lb tofu (firm, reduced-fat recommended-not silken!)
• 1 tsp. salt (optional)
• 2 tbsp. nutritional yeast (adds a cheesy taste; I don't think we used this...maybe though)
• 1 1/2 tsp. oregano
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. basil
• 1/2 tsp. rosemary, crushed
• 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

Saute the mushrooms and garlic over medium heat in the 2 tbsp. water until tender. Remove from heat and add the spaghetti sauce (use a big pot or we found that a wok worked best).

Place the tofu and thawed spinach in the food processor (we used a big bowl and a potato masher) and process briefly. Add the remaining filling ingredients to the processor and blend until smooth. 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Spread half of the sauce in the bottom of a 9x12 in. pan. Place a layer of noodles over the sauce, using three dry noodles and leaving a space in b/w them. Spread half of the tofu mixture on the noodles. We added some shredded mozzarella after the tofu layer and then repeated the layers. Cover with another layer of 3 noodles and then spread the remaining tofu mixture over them. Top with a final layer of noodles and pour the remaining sauce over this. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Then, remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with soy Parmesan and sliced black olives if you want. The lasagna will cut better if you allow it to cool for 15 minutes before serving. 

**Recipe from: FatFree Vegan Kitchen

XXII

First off, a very fitting song for a very fitting blogpost: 

Snow Day #2 included:

• Breakfast: waffles with peanut butter, orange juice
• Snake: I am determined to beat Val at this game and anyone else who falls in the way
• Cleaned the house a little bit while still in my pajamas; I saw on Oprah that several women clean the house naked...I chose to go against the grain on this one.
• Movie: Wizard of Oz (gosh, I love looking at how the special effects have changed)
• Lunch: Spaghetti with vodka sauce
• Oprah: female murderers (spooky)
• Showered and got ready for the day (I was in my pajamas up until this point, my bad)
• Drank a beer (or 3) and played some cards and then hit up the bars here in Buffalo

All in all, it was a very relaxing day and I took full advantage of being home alone. I still haven't seen the snow that everyone has been talking about. However, it's kind of funny when you're driving around town and all of a sudden you see a car drive by with about a foot of snow on its roof. Then you know they're from one of the south towns, suckas.

Day 23

I've decided to put a song in the beginning so you can listen while reading! So please enjoy, 

Yesterday, I had a snow day. Today, I had ANOTHER SNOW DAY!

Snow day 1:

• Breakfast: eggs, hash-browns, orange juice 
• Laundry
• Grocery shopped at Wegman's:  Wegman's is like a glorified HyVee. Their fresh produce section is crazy large and they have everything you'll ever need, except a nice cut of meat. There's no place like Iowa for a nice good steak.
• Post Office:  had to mail a very good buddy a very belated birthday present
• Cooked:  Taylor and I made a very delicious vegan style lasagna. If anyone wants the recipe I'll be more than happy to post it
• Oprah: never fail with Oprah
• Baked: baked some delicious cookies (I'll def. be posting this recipe)
• Painted Nails: Navy Blue
• Movie: In Her Shoes (highly recommend this flick)

Also, I've given the blog a little facelift. You'll notice I added a "Puppy of the Day" gadget and a "Teeth Whitening Tips" gadget (you know I love teeth). Also, take the poll! I know I'll be lucky to have maybe 6 votes but I want to know people!

Now, a small picture to remember Iowa snow fun:

Ice Skating

Snow day 2 will be posted after I've completed the day :)

24th Day

Woops, I already forgot to post and it was just day #2!!!

Yesterday, as many of you know, Buffalo got hit hard with snow and my phone was hit hard with incoming texts/calls!  So, I'll clear everything up and enlighten some of you with my opinion of this "snowstorm".

I first woke up to a text telling me that school was closed for the day. Woohoo! No work and tons of snow on the ground to play in! Wrong, I looked outside at 7:30am and our road didn't even have a layer of white frosties on it. Really? Buffalo can't even handle the idea of a snowstorm?!? So, I turned on the news and BOOM, there it was, about 10 miles south of where I live. People were stranded on the interstate for 18+ hours without food, water, or heat.

• Cars were running out of gas 
• Semi drivers were opening their doors and allowing people to stay in their cabins. 
• No U-turns were allowed, even though traffic was moving on the other side of the interstate. 
• Thruway patrol was shoveling out one car at a time
• If someone got out of their car, officers instructed them to get back in
• Some good samaritans bought food and drinks and walked up and down the thruway handing it out

The south towns had between 12" to 30" of snow and were still being dumped on. Jeesh! Now, I understand the call for a snow day (not that I was ever complaining). How did I spend my snow day? Let's save that for another day.

Christmas Song: Faith Hill-Where Are You Christmas

The 25 Days of Christmas

It's here. The most joyful time of the year. Christmas music is playing, lights are decorating homes, snow is falling, & shopping has begun. Yup, I smell Christmas!!!

I'm going to try and do a "25 days of Christmas" blog. Hopefully I'll be better at keeping it up to date this time.

So, as you all know I'm living in Buffalo now. I'm living with Taylor (Jared's sister) and Cody (her husband). One major perk of living with them is that Taylor is a photographer. I just so happen to LOVE having my picture taken and getting really into my "photo shoots". About 3 weeks ago, Taylor and I decided to take some fun holiday photos around the house (I loved this day). I'll try to feature a new picture everyday in the blog, but I'm not sure if we have 25 total pics...looks like we'll just have to take more :)

Every year I love going Black Friday shopping. This year was a little different. It was my first time going shopping without my kick-ass shopping partner, Whitdawg. It was also my first time camping outside of a store. Cody and I waited in line outside Target in the rain and wind for 8+ hours. About 15 minutes before the doors were going to open, people jumped out of their cars and tried to cut in the front of the line. Let's just say complete chaos broke out and the "security" guard was worthless. Here's a video of what happened next. (I'm in the white puffy coat and blue hat aka very confused/scared girl who doesn't know what just happened)



Some other things I saw that night in line:
1) Wasted lady causing drama
2) Man dressed in red, sitting on a shopping cart, who budged and claimed he was just seeing what Black Friday was all about, claiming he didn't actually want anything.
3) Buffalo's finest chain smokers
4) A woman with a baby?!?!

And now...the moment you've all been waiting for...here is the premiere of our "Happy Holiday Photo Shoot".

Ricky is telling me the cutest secret.

Holiday Song:  Coldplay-Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas  (my favorite)