Cooking Challenge- April Results

Another month is almost over and that means checking out how I did on my cooking challenge. This month got a little busy with school wrapping up (papers and finals out the wazoo!), so I focused on trying out pins that I've pinned and haven't done anything with instead of trying new cooking techniques. 

Bacon Wrapped Chicken from Artsy Fartsy Mama

This was Dave and I's favorite dish of the whole month. It was fairly easy to cook and was really good. We'll definitely be cooking this again. I mean bacon AND cream cheese? How can you go wrong?

Easy Green Beans, Chicken and Potatoes from Mama Say What?!

This dish was pretty good, and clearly it was super simple to make. I would say I'd make it again however shortly after consuming this meal Dave and I were both *ahem* indisposed of. I'm assuming probably from all the butter, but I can't be 100% sure.  Either way I'm not risking it and making it again. 

Chicken and Stuffing Casserole from The Seasoned Mom

Dave really liked this, I wasn't so much a fan of it. I thought it was a bit bland but Dave's all about the stuffing (he'd eat Stove Top all day every day). If I did make it again, I'd probably fill up on salad or something and only make it since Dave liked it. 

That's what I tried this month. Did you try out any pins this month?

15 in '15 April Update

It's insane that it's April already. That is all I have to say about that. Here's what I read from my 15 in '15 list in April:

The Thousand Dollar Tan Line

I am a huge Veronica Mars fan. I loved the TV show when it was on and I made Dave buy the movie on demand the moment it became available. The book was right in line with the series (it helps that the writer/creator of the series co-wrote the book) and I really enjoyed it. I'm normally not good with reading mysteries, I want to know whodunnit right away but this time I just read the book faster to figure it out. If you're a fan of the series, this is definitely a must read! Plus, I just found out they released a second book. 

TV Gods

The only way I would be able to read this book would be to purchase it on my Kindle. Before I took the plunge and bought it I decided to read the sample first. TV Gods is supposed to be short stories about different gods (Norse, Egyptian, Greek) inserted into TV shows. It seemed so promising but the two stories I read were terrible so I decided not to waste my money and buy the whole book. I have to say this one I was super disappointed about, I loved the concept of it so much. 

I bought The Glass Castle from Barnes and Noble when it was on sale for bargain book priced, so I have a feeling that will be the next book I read. I also think that I might not have a post for this list next month. I was given a few books from friends to read and I feel like I should read them first. But last year I also took a month or so off and was still done by October! 

Here's the complete list (links will go to the post that I wrote about the book):

1. Sharp Objects
2. TV Gods
3. A Discovery of Witches
4. The Thousand Dollar Tan Line
5. The Serpent of Venice
6. I Don't Know What You Know Me From
7. Big Fish
8. Orange is the New Black
9. American Gods
10. Dead Until Dark
11. The Great Gatsby
12. The Glass Castle
13. Pride and Prejudice
14. Insurgent
15. The Clan of the Cave Bear
16. Paddle Your Own Canoe

I would love to hear about what you read this month!

I'm on Goodreads, if you'd like to add me.

Ladies Who Lunch

This post is up originally over at Life According to Steph who generously let me guest post with her today. I loved the concept of this post so much I wanted to share it with you here as well! Steph is one of my absolute favorite bloggers, she's so awesome most of you have already heard of her, but if you haven't make sure you do! I promise you'll be hooked just as much as I am!

One of my favorite things to be is a lady who lunches. Today another Philly-area blogger, Nicole from Nicole Marica, is joining me for a virtual lunch and we want to hear what you have to say. Please do butt in on the conversation with your opinions and answers by commenting below! And enter to win a $50 Target gift card while you're at it. What better way to spend a Friday?

If we were having lunch at my house, I'd probably serve us... 

Nicole: Realistically? You'd get boxed mac and cheese. Unless I had a heads up then I'd serve something based on your favorite foods or a theme. The way to a person's heart is their stomach!

Steph: It totally is. I think I'd serve spinach mac & cheese cups, a big ass salad, and ice cream sundaes. 

The most recent beauty aid I started using and can already recommend is...

Nicole: Yes to Tomatoes moisturizer. I love the way this stuff smells. I just started using it so I don't know how its going to fare acne clearing wise but it does moisturize very well!

Steph: I use Yes to Cucumbers moisturizer! For years moisturizer was my biggest cause of face rage. I could never find one that works. I've been using this one for over a year and it's great. So I guess I recommend that. Wouldn't it be great if absolutely everything came in trial size so you could test before you buy? I got some trial size Tarte stuff from the Sephora VIB Sale and I'm looking forward to testing it out. I'm not far along to recommend yet. 

However, I'm always in search of the perfect...

Nicole: Face wash that will get rid of all my pimples and even out my skin tone. 

Steph: Aren't we all! I've been using L'Oreal Million Lashes for a year and I think my eyelashes are tired of it. Can that happen? I'm looking for a cheap replacement. 

TV! Right now I'm loving...

Nicole: There are so many...Lip Sync Battle, Sherlock, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones. We'll be here all day if I keep going on. 

Steph: Breaking Bad is on my list. One day I'll get to it. I've not watched much TV recently except for Bloodline on Netflix. And Criminal Minds. I can't quit that even though it's way played out. 

If there was a TV show about my life, I think my role should be played by...

Nicole: I would like to say Emma Stone or Anna Kendrick but I'm pretty sure both girls are way funnier than me. Probably more like someone like Reese Witherspoon without the star power. Any idea who that might be? 

Steph: Hmm...I think Emma or Anna would be good as you! Hell maybe Reese herself is free. We can ask. I'm actually really bad at this question. Is it cheating if I say I want Shannon Doherty to play me as Brenda Walsh? Probably. I'm going to go with Tina Fey because, well, she's Tina Fey.

And my husband's would be...

Nicole: This is a really tough question. He'd have to be really kind, very likable, funny, handsome, and also play off exasperated husband well. Maybe someone like Ryan Reynolds? 

Steph: Ryan Reynolds sounds like a perfect fit. I'm going with Michael Rappaport. He's funny and weird just like MFD. Also I haven't seen him around lately so he's probably not too busy and maybe we could get him for a steal.

But never mind the TV...I'm reading...

Nicole: Right now I'm reading Hausfrau by Jill Alexander Essbaum. I only just started it so I'm holding out judgment but it does jump around a good bit and the beginning is slow. A few friends have raved about it though so I'm going to keep trudging through it. 

Steph: I'm still pissed that there's a book called Hausfrau that was not written by me. Rude! I hate when books are slow and I start to feel like I need to hang in there. That's one of the kisses of death for me. I'm reading The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin, recommended by a few people on the Show Us Your Books linkups.

Something I always see people doing but have no desire to do is...

Nicole: Skydive. No thanks, I prefer not plummeting to my death. 

Steph: Hahaha. You sound like my Mom. Whenever it appears on one of my lists she's like please don't do that. Sorry Nicole and Mom. I'm doing it. I have no desire to ever climb mountains and see photos of myself hanging off the face of a rock cliff.

Via / Via 

But then I think I might like to try...

Nicole: I'm willing to try almost anything once, but if I had to narrow it down, I think hiking up some volcanoes in Hawaii, or diving down a waterfall (safely) would be fun to try.

Steph: Is it possible to dive down a waterfall safely? I'm being serious. That could be my thing for what skydiving is to you! Hiking up a volcano in Hawaii is a good one though. 

I love long vacations, but I'm a big fan of weekend trips too. Some things I have coming up are...

Nicole: I'm trying to convince my husband to do a quick weekend trip to Ohio, I think he's avoiding answering me since we just got back from a weekend trip to Chicago, haha. Also, for my 30th in September, I want to take a day trip to Baltimore. 

Steph: It's nice to live so close to so many things, isn't it? East Coast rules. I'm heading up to NYC for a quick in and out dinner and a show in May, so great to be able to do that. I'm going to go to my aunt's lake house Memorial Day weekend and I think the weekend after because MFD can't go Memorial Day. I also have two girls' weekends in July! 

My packing philosophy for weekend trips is...

Nicole: It starts out with pack smart and small but eventually I end up packing everything. The best laid plans....

Steph: I hear you. For me it depends. If I'm driving I have no problem throwing everything I own in my car and taking off la di dah as I please. When I'm flying, I'm more focused on wearing pants more than once and limiting shoes. 

If I was President, I'd immediately...

Nicole: Hire some really intelligent, experienced people to fix our health care, student loans, the budget, the war, and everything else. No one person can do everything!

Steph: Just co-sign my name to your answer, okay? Oh but first I think I'd institute a better vacation policy and maternity policies so we can really BE a nation that believes in family-first and not just say we are. I'll wait for all the free-enterprise capitalism rules down with government people to come and tell me why I can't do these things. Sue me! This is pretend. I'm making my first move for the people.

Not like we have to pay you to have lunch with us, but a $50 Target gift card is up for grabs. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway



And there you have it folks! 

P.S. I'm not sure there really is a way to safely jump off a waterfall. I guess what I meant by that was jump off of one that is known to have deep waters and plenty of people have thrown themselves off of it before me. 

Good luck in the giveaway!

Helpful Info

I posted this originally two years ago when I first started blogging. It's still good info to have handy, so I thought I would repost! By the way, the way this is written it sounds like a sponsored post. I promise it's not. It's really just me trying to share the wealth of knowledge.

Did you know you can pull your credit report for free once a year? Well, if you didn't you do now.

Source

Annual Credit Report is a website that allows you to pull your credit for free once a year. You won't be able to get your credit score for free, that you'll have to pay for; however you can run a full report from each of the credit reporting agencies free of charge. 

So why is this important? Well, your credit is what determines your interest rates on loans, whether or not a financial institution will lend you money or how much they'll lend you, whether you can get a car or a house and whether or not you can get those things at decent interest rates. Plus, some jobs require good credit in order for you to be considered for a position. Your credit is so important for your day to day life, it's important to make sure that it is accurate. 

The nice thing is the website is fairly easy to use and if you do find some discrepancies on your reports, they (the three credit reporting agencies--Transunion, Experian, and Equifax) all have instructions on what you can do to fix it. There is no reason why you shouldn't take a few minutes out of your day to make sure your report is accurate, it's too important not to. Plus, like I said, it's free with no gimmicks (unlike those ones who claim to be free but make you sign up for 30 days with a credit card) or hidden agendas.

Hopefully this was informative, make sure you pass this link along to family and friends so they can check out their own credit reports! 

Places I Dream About Moving To

Jenn from Much to My Delight recently posted her top 8 places she'd live other than NYC and I really liked the idea so I'm borrowing it. I love where I live right now, it's where I've grown up, where I met Dave and married him, so I don't have any intentions on moving away but I do often dream about setting up a new life somewhere new every once in a while. Here's the places I daydream about moving to:

1. Tennessee

Dave and I honeymooned in Gatlinburg, TN and I fell in love with that state. It kinda helps that I'm obsessed with the notion of the South: southern food, hospitality, comfort, etc. I even talked about longing for TN on the blog, two years ago!

2. NYC

In high school, I swore as soon as I graduated I was going to pack up and move to NYC. I was obsessed with Sex and the City and I was obsessed with city life. Quite frankly, I'm sure if I did, the city would have chewed me up and spit me out. Still, it would be nice to answer the question, what is it like to live in the city? 

3. California

I visited California about 5 years ago with a friend and honestly I haven't stopped thinking about that place since. We traveled up the coastline and everywhere we went the weather was perfect and beautiful. I often dream about moving to CA in the winter. 

4. Turks and Caicos

For my 16th birthday, instead of a sweet 16 party my mom gave me the choice to go to Turks and Caicos which I chose to do. Down there, I learned how to SCUBA dive, and visited a local bar where the owners were Americans who had packed up and moved down there to live a life of rest and relaxation. I decided then and there I wanted to become a SCUBA instructor and move to the islands and live out my life down in the warm, sunny islands. Clearly, that didn't happen but it's still nice to think about where my life would be right now if I had gone in that direction. 

So where do you dream about living?