From Pinterest to Reality {Taco Salad}

A few days behind due to my whirlwind trip to CA--but I have not abandoned my plan of 30 projects!!
From Pinterest:

100daysofrealfood via pinterest

To Reality

This salad was tasty. I did not spring for grass fed beef or whole grain tortillas or organic produce--we belong to a food co-op and we got tortillas and lettuce and tomatoes etc. It felt less heavy than my traditional taco salad and Elle loved being able to pick off the platter--mostly cheese for her!

Pinterest to Reality {Pumpkin Dump Cake}

Oh yeah fall is here in Western CO and pumpkin is finally in the grocery store--for weeks I have hunted for it and compliled a bunch of recipes to try. Especially this one because I have a sweet tooth to indulge!
From Pinterest:

the picky apple via pinterest

To Reality:

While my pictures do not do it justice--Umm yummy--the kind of cake that has you smushing your fork into the pan to get all the crumbs--a perfect cross between a pumpkin pie and a cake. And dang pecans are expensive and this recipe calls for a cup and a half(a 2 cup bag was 8 bucks at my store). My colleagues loved it, my hubby loved it, and it is super easy to put together!!

Pinterest to Reality {Pumpkin Spice Outfit}

It seems the morning hours fly by so fast; the time between waking up at 5:15 and having to be out the door at 6:20 seem to go by in the blink of an eye. But the time before Elle's bedtime drags by like molasses. This morning was no exception, but the arrival of some cooler weather means breaking out my boots and scarves!! And it was a morning that needed a pumpkin spice latte as I rushed to daycare and my early morning meeting at school.

From Pinterest

Polyvore via Jenn Riggs via Pinterest

To Reality

Please excuse the mess that is our hall entry way--our toddler's favorite game is empty out the bag--be it her diaper bag, my purse, my gym bag, our swim bag etc--so everything usually ends up in a pile in our entry way.
Elle of course couldn't resist being in a picture and my hubby was trying to show the boots in the picture(they are hard to see). I got this infinity scarf from jannysGirl on etsy--and you know what they are much harder to style than I thought. No outfit like this is complete without a pumpkin spice latte as an accessory(and they are much cheaper than the purse I want). The boots are from Lands End(again much cheaper than the Frye Veronica I am in lust with!)

Pinterest to Reality {Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup}

Still not quite fall here yet, but sometimes a good bowl of soup is all you need to make a day better!
From Pinterest:

Mama Loves Food Blog via Pinterest


To Reality:

Very tasty! I only ended up using about half the cream cheese in the recipe. I also threw some cauliflower in my slow cooker, since we had some from our co-op. I also used broth instead of stock. I mixed some salsa in mine and it was excellent. Plus it is just nice to throw things together in the am and come home to a cooked meal!

From Pinterest to Reality {A dress}

There are many reasons why I am not a math teacher but measuring just might be one fo them. I was so excited to drag out my sewing machine from its long hiatus in the hall closet and work on a project for Elle. Plus the pospect of some baby free time thanks to my inlaws I knew I could whip out a couple dresses. My 15 month old is just now fitting into 12 month clothing so I followed the 12 month guide on my pattern cutting a fabric length of 19 inches knowing I would hem an inch off the bottom and an inch of the top for the ties. That makes 17 inches give or take and my baby is 29 inches tall so her dress should be knee length right...
From Pinterest:

ShwinandShwin Blog via Pinterest

To Reality:

Her picture is a dress from the Gap and then a link to a tutorial for a dress, I knew I couldn't tackle sleeves so I decided just to add tulle to the bottom of my pillowcase dress which I can do with my eyes closed. I just tacked pleats on and decided another row was needed for fullness. They came out so cute--even if they are evening gown length!

From Pinterest to Reality {Italian Style Apps}

Today another recipe sharing day, thuthfully I made these a couple weeks ago, but hadn't shared them yet so here we go!
From Pinterest:

Lick the Bowl good via Pinterest

Recipe Diaries(link is not longer there) via Jill Tekin via Pinterest

To Reality:

Both very tasty and easy to make, perfect for Sundays sitting around watching football! My cheese sticks didn't turn out as crispy looking as the ones on Pinterest and they tasted OK--sometimes nothing replaces that fried fat taste! The Pepperoni Puffs are awesome, they didn't reheat well so we will only make them when we can eat all of them And I used my regular muffin tin since that is all I had, and the recipe made 12 with some batter left over.

Pinterest to Reality {Broccoli}

You know how sometimes you do things for your family? Like things you don't like to do but you want them to see you doing it? Well I do not like broccoli, I don't think I ever have; but my hubby loves it. And I don't want to raise a picky eater, so I decided to eat some broccoli. Alos because we got a ton of it from our food co-op and I don't want it to go to waste.
So from Pinterest--the best broccoli of your life!

via Pinterest
To Reality:

I apologize that the original link doesn't work anymore. It was linked to a recipe from the Barefoot Contessa. You basically season and roast the broccoli and serve it with some parmesan. It was OK, not my favorite veggie but I would make this again. And it just so happens we got even more broccoli this week...

From Pinterest to Reality {Halloween Decor}

Although our daytime temperatures have been near 80 most days the calendar says it is fall and it is even close to Halloween. So I decided it is time to get in gear.

From Pinterest:
I was totally inspired by this first picture but we don't have a mantle and I couldn't find the lighted branches. So I turned instead to another pinterest fave--subway art.

SewEllen via Chelsey Miller via Pinterest

eighteen25 via Pinterest

To Reality:
I printed and framed my subway art print--choosing the purple option. We don't ahve a Costco but I got a coupon from Walgreens so it wasn't too bad and Hobby Lobby was having a sale. I made these countdown blocks last Halloween and we put up my hubby's favorite--Peanuts! This time the Great Pumpkin scene! Bring on the candy!!

From Pinterest to Reality {Teacher's Gift}

On a morning quite like this a year ago, we all drove crying to our first day of daycare--OK I was doing the crying. I knew I couldn't hack the stay at home mom thing and stay sane and I really like my job as a middle school teacher and yet I couldn't quite get comfortable with the idea of leaving my baby with someone else. But truthfully, I haven't looked back since that first morning and that is because of Miss Jen. Elle's teacher loves her and cares for her all day long, and Elle loves her back. She has been part of our family and helped us with eating struggles, napping struggles, and now the great sippy cup stalemate. She was even the one who pointed out the ear infection signs I was missing. So I knew I had to honor her somehow. And I have many things pinned to get me started. I kept coming back to these crayon letters.

From Pinterest:

testosteronetimesthree via Pinterest

To Reality:

This craft is actually quite easy to make. And truthfully I made it months ago when crayons were on sale for back to school. I bought a wooden letter and got out my glue gun and exacto knife and went to work. It is a little messy while making it--as you will have crayon shavings everywhere. And I couldn't quite get my finished letter to lay flat in my shadow box--an open frame might work better but I wanted stability. Since I had a black background, I jist wrote on a wooden tag and pinned that in there as well.

From Pinterest to Reality {Pumpkin Pie Smoothie}

It was a rough weekend around our house. We decided that our 15 month old is too old for the bottle and tried to wean her cold turkety, well she showed us. She is currently on strike and won't touch a drop of milk, which she loves, from a sippy cup. It is a stalemate similar to the Cuban Missle Crisis--so far neither side has given in, but it is safe to say we are all miserable. So in an effort to please somebody, I tried these pumpkin pie smoothies for my hubby.

From Pinterest:

RedheadRecipes.com via Kara O'Bryan via Pinterest

To Reality:

Umm, I probably wouldn't make it again. It had a too sweet fruity aftertaste--from what I don't know. It didn't really taste like pumpkin pie to me or to my hubby. Neither of us finished it. But we tried. I think I will stick to some other pumpkin recipes to help me live in the "fall" moment.

From Pinterest to Reality {Another hair style attempt}

I realized this morning that another hair post might be in order(after waking up to my typically messy second day hair). I also realized that my bathroom lighting is atrocious and not owning a full length mirror is an issue. So excuse my horribly lit self portraits!

From Pinterest:

Nordstrom via Ashley McCaffey via Pinterest

To reality: I used by Goody Spin Pins to create a messy bun and added my jeweled headbands. The headbands definitely dress up the messy bun look and make you look pulled together. I bought these jeweled headbands on clearance at Ann Taylor LOFT for my brother's wedding so I am glad I got to use them again! And the compliments from my female students have been rolling in.