Friday Favorites: Lands’ End Boots

I realized we have a thing for Lands’ End boots yesterday when we had a snow fall. Brian lined all of the boots up in front of the fire to dry and I manged to get a quick picture! The kids all have Sno Flurry boots. I have learned and bought them a size bigger than what the kids wear this year. They can put them on themselves and walk in them!! I get the kids the boots each year for Christmas. They don’t see it as a fun present but I watch for a coupon code to buy them from Land’s End. I then can resell them for a nice price since they don’t get worn a lot here in Virginia!

My boots are also Lands’ End boots but they are an older style. What can I say … my feet don’t grow and we don’t get enough snow for me to wear them out! It looks the ones I have are similar to this new Women’s Function Snow Boots though. I love the draw string part of my boots and this style has a draw string too! These boots are so warm and keep my feet dry. Having warm, dry feet is key for me to even think about being out in the snow so I always dig out these boots when there is snow on the ground. I have even been known to wear them into work when I know the parking lot will still be snowing. It isn’t worth the chance of falling in dress shoes so my boots are my go-to winter footwear for sure! 

What is Friday Favorites?

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

What do you think of Lands End Boots? Leave me a comment let me know!

Friday Favorite: Simply Lemonade

About …

All four varieties of Simply Lemonade and Simply Limeade are made with not-from-concentrate juices and pure ingredients. Available in both multi-serve and single-serve carafes, you can enjoy delicious refreshment throughout the day!

Our Thoughts …

We love Simply Lemonade at our house. OK, we love all of the Simply Orange products but the lemonade is my favorite for sure. I love that we can have it as a treat at dinner some nights or I can buy it for a party as I did for the Spa Party I hosted. Another reason we love Simply Lemonade is that it is a great budget friendly price at Sam’s Club every day in the twin pack they sell. I don’t have to wait for a sale to get a great price! We can feel fancy (as Grace would say) any day with a sweet and slight tart lemonade drink that we all enjoy!

Here is a budget friendly tip as you travel this holiday season … Grab bottle (or two!) of Simply Lemonade and put it in a cooler in your car. Instead of paying $1-2 per drink when you stop to eat or take bathroom breaks during trip, use refillable cups for you and the kids to add more Simply Lemonade to the cups and keep traveling!

What is Friday Favorites?

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

Do you love Simply Lemonade at your house? Leave me a comment let me know!

Friday Favorite: Moo Cards

Moo what? Moo Cards! I love these little business cards. I have been longing for a reason to get them so when we decided to head to the Metro Cooking Show in DC this weekend, that was my opportunity!

Why Moo Cards? I love the color pictures and the unique size. I hope that we can hand out a lot of these cards and you will some great food content coming up on Simply Budgeted as a result of these Moo Cards!

With Moo Cards, you can a different picture on the back of every card printed! I picked my favorite food pictures we have taken and Brian helped me narrow it down these nine!

The cupcake is my favorite … what is your favorite?

Oh and this picture show the front of the cards:

I made a logo using the fonts from our blog and then we added our contact information to the bottom. There was a BIG debate on what went on there but you can see we left off a phone number but added our Facebook ID and the primary Twitter account for Simply Budgeted. I am sure everyone will have a different opinion on what should have been on there but we love the way they look.

The funniest reaction so far was my dad. He says these cards aren’t for old people since they are small but honestly the font size on them isn’t that different than my traditional business cards. He then tried to fit them all together like they were a puzzle to make a bigger picture. Sorry dad, I wasn’t that creative when I laid out the backed of the cards!

What is Friday Favorites?

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

What do you think of Moo Cards? Leave me a comment let me know!

Friday Favorite: Bold Rock Virginia Draft Hard Cider

I admit that hard cider is one of my favorite parts of fall and I was happy to discover a new (to us), local hard cider this year! I know hard cider isn’t just for fall but it is a nice fall treat.

Bold Rock Hard Cider  describes the Virginia Draft as a smooth and distinctively hard cider that has supurb drinkability making it perfect anytime anywhere.

 

Some hard ciders have a rough after taste but this hard is so smooth. It is so smooth that you might forget that you are drinking a hard cider not a regular cider. I can tell you that we will be buying this cider again and I hope to find the Bold Rock Virginia Apple hard cider soon. As always, please drink responsibility!

What is Friday Favorites?

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

Do you have a favorite fall drink? Leave me a comment and let me know.

 

Friday Favorites: Reese’s Ice Cream – Pumpkin Shaped

Have you seen the Reese’s Ice Cream – Pumpkin Shaped treats by Good Humor yet? Brian found them at Walmart a few weeks ago. I fell in love with him all over again.

 

The ice cream treats are in the shape of a pumpkin (the decorating in the picture was my addition, it i really isn’t there!)

The crunchy chocolate shell plus the peanut butter ice cream it is so yummy. The pumpkin shape is a great added treat!

What is Friday Favorites?

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

 

What do you think? Would you run out to the store to get these? I hope to see them again before the Halloween season ends!

 

 

Friday Favorite: Muffin Tins for Bead Crafts

This is a freebie favorite … assuming you have muffin tins at your house that is. If not, they are great not only for making muffins but sorting candy and even bead crafts!

Grace wanted a craft at her birthday party so we decided on beaded bracelets and necklaces. I had all of the beads on the kitchen counter all ready to set out on the dining room table for craft time. I looked over and saw the muffin tins drying from the cupcakes I made the night before and knew I was going to thank myself later for not cleaning those pans earlier!

I dumped different beads in the different muffin areas are the girls went to town …

 

The best part was with the two muffin tins there was plenty of room and no fighting over one bowl. Plus I think I found only 4 beads on the floor after they all left!!

What is Friday Favorites?

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

Do you use items around your house during craft time or any other time? Leave me a comment and me know!

Friday Favorite: Betty Crocker Pumpkin Spice Cookie Mix

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

 

Going to Walmart alone is dangerous. Dangerous in that I buy stuff not on my list because I can actually look at where I am walking and am not trying to count the three to make sure I have all of the kids constantly. I saw pumpkin and had stop. I have this problem with fall and the problem is pumpkin food. Anything … well anything besides coffee … and pumpkin makes it even more amazing. I admit I have a problem with pumpkin and that is a start, right?

Look what I found last week …

 

The kids and I had fun one evening when Brian wasn’t home. I had three helpers … OK, they were only helping so they could lick the bowl out.

I totally cheated and bought the Betty Crocker Cream Cheese frosting to go with these cookies. They are so pretty … and so yummy!

Are you a pumpkin junkie like I am? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Friday Favorite: How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

Details …

In each playful spread of this read-aloud bedtime book, parents are ready to put their kids to bed — but these youngsters just happen to be dinosaurs! And though they may stomp and slam their tails a bit, in the end they act a lot like people: they give a big kiss, turn out the light, and whisper “good night.”

Our Thoughts …

Matthew is in a huge dinosaur stage right now. He has rediscovered this book and loves it at bed time. If he is luck, Brian and I both read it to him once at bedtime! He will say “nooooooo” when the questions are asked in the book which makes me smile at his response to understanding the book. The book ends “Good night. Good night, little dinosaur.” If I say the first “good night” he will finish that last pages and it just warms my heart to hear him say that.

This book is a good buy over on Amazon right now so check it out!

We are excite to have this boy bedtime story in our children’s book collection. I now what to add the other books in this series to our collection. Do you have favorite bedtime stories at your house? Leave us a comment and let us know.

Friday Favorites: A School Bus Wait Memory

This isn’t a typical Friday Favorite but I hope you can play along …

Grace rides the school bus. Sophie and Matthew love to wait for the bus with Grace. This morning I was coming up the driveway from dropping off the last of the trash at the street and Sophie says “look mom! It is Matthew’s favorite color.” I could see something on the sidewalk but not what it was so I asked her and she said she didn’t know. To my surprise it was a little red lizard.

 

Well I had to look him up. He is actually a Red Eft which is a young Red Spotted Newt. They are common in this area but like wet areas. I am not sure why he was in our sidewalk and then garden but he was beautiful. The kids loved seeing him and talking about him. It was a good reminder to not touch animals we see outside too.

This morning was a good reminder to take a minute and just wait for the bus and not run out like a crazy mom trying to get Grace on the bus that may or may not be 5 minutes early today.

Friday Favorite: Frosted Zucchini Brownies

Friday Favorites is another almost weekly feature here at Simply Budgeted. The whole point of this feature is to share some of our favorite finds. Anything is game. Food. Cleaning supplies. Kid stuff. Garden favorites. Recipes. Anything that I really like and want to randomly post about.

Reminder/Disclaimer/Whatever: Everything in Friday Favorites is something that we use and bought on our own.

 

A few weeks ago, I started searching for a recipe for Zucchini Brownies. I found one by Mommy I’m Hungry that was inspired by one from blogchef.

So I started to make the recipe … I had written it down and everything and then it didn’t look right to be brownies so I started changing the recipe. This recipe makes a cake-y brownie. If you like a fudge-y brownie you might try the original recipe!

This picture isn’t going to win me any awards but it does show how yummy these brownies are so I hope you keep reading!

Frosted Zucchini Brownies

½ cup vegetable oil
1 ½ cups white sugar
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups zucchini (shredded)
½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
2 eggs

Chocolate Frosting-

6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

¼ cup butter
2 cups confectioners sugar
½ cup 2% milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 inch baking dish with the spray+flour (or flour after spraying). Mix together oil, sugar, eggs, and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. Add flour, ½ cup cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.  Mix in zucchini and walnuts. Spread into the baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes until a tooth pick comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.

In a small saucepan, over low/medium heat melt together the cocoa powder and butter (this took a lot of stirring and I upped the heat some to get it moving along but kept stirring so it didn’t burn!)  Let cool (so you can touch it and not think it is hot). In a medium bowl mix confectioner’s sugar, milk, and vanilla extract. Stir in the chocolate mixture. Pour over the brownies and move the pan around to cover the tops. This icing pours out over the brownies and super yummy. I loved. Brian didn’t. The second time, I used less milk 1/4 cup and it was more of a traditional spreadable icing that Brian liked better. (I still loved the poured version as it reminds me of the icing my mom puts on her Texas Sheet Cake!)

What have you been making with zucchini? Leave us a comment and let us know!