Fall Decor: Simple Re-purpose Project

I am starting to put I up my Fall decorations, inside and out. Hopefully I can share some of the ideas I use to inspire someone else.

I found this wreath in one of my Halloween storage tubs.

 

It was too small for a door wreath and was old and falling apart. I decide to reuse the items on the wreath to fill one of the apothecary jars I made. 

 

I think it turned out pretty cute. And I love that I recycled something that I was going to toss.

What have you re-purposed lately? Share your comments below :)

More Paleo Lunch Ideas

Paleo Meat Balls

I made Paleo Meatballs for dinner tonight. The recipe is super delicious and can be found here. I am linking to the recipe since it is not mine and I want to give credit where credit is due. :)

Catch up September

I haven't been very diligent keeping up with my blog lately. Between school and family and home obligations I just haven't made the time.
Let me catch you up on whats been going on around here:

1. School is back in session. I am taking 18 credit hours this semester which means I drive the 50 miles each way to campus Monday through Friday. That is almost 2 hours per day in the car. Not my idea of a good time but it will be worth it in the end :)

2. My sister is staying with us! I love having my baby sister home! We lay in bed and watch tv together and I have someone to cook for when Jason is on the road working. It is such a blessing to have her here with us and I secretly hope she never leaves.  :)

3. Jason and I are planning our One Year Anniversary trip. Fall Break from school is the same week as our wedding anniversary so how could we not go away for a few days??? We are thinking Gatlinburg, Tennessee but are kicking around a few other ideas as well.

4. Harley dog is loving having Cuddy dog here. Cuddy is my sisters big ole baby pitbull. Harley taught Cuddy to bark and play in the yard. Gracie Marie is not fond of having Cuddy around, however, and makes sure to bark and snarl at her anytime Cuddy gets close. Poor Cuddy!

5. FOOTBALL SEASON IS HERE!!!!!!  Enuf said :)

Paleo Lunch Ideas

I have been trying really hard to eat Paleo for most of my meals. Something that really helps me is to make my lunch to take to school instead of eating in the dining hall or student union. By taking my lunch I have complete control over what I eat and I limit my portions to only what my Planetbox lunchbox will hold. I have shared a few pictures of my lunches on Instagram but decided to put them on my blog to help spark some ideas for others who need Paleo lunches.

Hopefully this will spark some ideas for you all on items to pack for a healthy lunch.

Fried Squash

Fried Squash Amanda Style

 

 

You will need:

Yellow Squash, peeled and sliced medium thick.

1/2 cup corn meal

1/2 cup all purpose flour

salt and pepper (to your liking)

1/2 cup milk

1 egg, beaten

canola (or your favorite kind) oil

 

Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet on high heat.

Mix the milk and egg in a bowl.

In a separate bowl, mix flour, corn meal, salt, and pepper.

Dunk the squash into the milk mix and then into the flour mix. You want a good coating on the squash so don't try to do it all at once!

Place several (maybe 7)  pieces of squash in the hot oil in a single layer. Let it cook for 2 or so and then flip and cook the other side for 2 minutes. If you have ever fried eggplant, then it is the same principle idea.

Pull from the oil and drain on a paper towel.

 

This is so simple but soooo good, especially when you use fresh squash from the garden. It isn't really healthy (it is fried after all!) but it is a nice treat now and again.

 

 



 



Summer Time

Whew. It has been a busy summer around the Bradley's neck of the woods.
I am attending both summer semesters at Henderson State University. Six is the maximum number of hours the college will allow a student to take in each summer session, and there are two sessions. So I will be twelve hours closer to finishing my BSE degree in August :) 
Summer I ended June 27 and I was so pleased to see that I earned As in both of my classes. Hooray!

Jason had the weekend home recently and surprised me with an impromptu trip out of town. He wouldn't tell me where we were going, just to pack an overnight bag and leave the fur kids extra food. We left on Saturday morning and drove the back highways from Benton to Harrison. The weather was absolutely gorgeous!  We made some fun stops along the way.

We stopped by Heifer Ranch in Perryville, Arkansas. Since this wasn't our original destination and a last minute decision to stop, we didn't do the tour. We did watch a video about the mission of Heifer International and selected a few items from the gift shop. If you are interested, you can find out more about the organization by going to http://www.heifer.org/ 

We stopped at several little stores and tourist sites along the way. We I wanted to go see an Opera in the Ozarks performance in Eureka Springs but we didn't want to hurry so we decided to wait and go another time. We found a Hampton Inn in Harrison, Arkansas and checked in for the night. After going out to dinner we returned to the room and were in bed before ten. We were both pretty tired.

The next morning we decided to meander back home. We stopped at a couple of places along the Buffalo River to scout out some possible camp sites for an upcoming camping trip we want to take soon.  We had swim suits but had forgotten to bring towels and really didn't want to get wet and then have a long car ride home. I elected to wade in the river in my board shorts and flip flops. There were tiny fish and they tickled as they nibbled at my feet!

 

 

 

Jason is a fan of smoked meats and cheeses. We found two places within a mile of each other on Highway 64 in St. Joe, Arkansas. We stopped at both :)    Coursey's Smoked Meats makes really awesome sliced meat sandwiches so we picked up two along with chips and canned sodas and had a picnic on the Buffalo National River at Tyler Bend. I joked with Jason that the forest ranger was going to kick me out of the park for feeding a bear. My pet name for him is Honey Bear.

We had a really good time and it was just the break I needed between summer sessions. We got home Sunday afternoon and classes started back on Monday morning.

Hopefully we will get to take that camping trip next month and I can share more of our adventures.