Happy Halloween Two Thousand and Fifteen!

Love a good chalkboard sign

It doesn't even feel real that it's already time for Halloween! Where did the time go? (Another holiday closer to Christmas!)

It was a pretty chill Halloween for the hubs and I this year. I worked and then came home and we watched the rest of the Clemson game. (8-0!) No little ones yet and there is no trick-or-treating in our neighborhood so nothing to get excited about.

Our Halloween tradition we started last year and we continued this year is to watch Hocus Pocus (duh) and, being the Harry Potter fans that we are, make Butterbeer! It is so easy and so delicious! We visited Harry Potter land last summer (during our spontaneous weekend trip to Orlando where we got engaged! More on that later, promise) and were able to try some bonafide Butterbeer! This recipe tastes pretty darn close...

For the drink:

24 oz cream soda
2 teaspoon vanilla butter nut flavoring

All you do for this is mix the flavoring in with your cream soda.

Next, for the delicious cream topping:

1 7 oz container of marshmallow fluff
1 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon rum extract

Mix together with electric mixer until smooth (and whipped!)

Add the cream topping to the top of your cream soda mixture and enjoy!

(To get a more frozen consistency, freeze cream soda mixture in plastic cup 3-4 hours before adding cream topping.)

What are some Halloween traditions you and your family have?

South Carolina State Fair!

The SC State Fair has been in Columbia the past 12 days! I love it when the Fair comes to town. There is so much excitement in the air and it's another sign that Fall is here! My brother and his girlfriend came down to go with my husband and me. We had so much fun! Elephant rides, pig races, petting zoo, fried food, and freshly squeezed lemonade, what more could one want! 

I love the pig races every year, they are just so cute!! And then there is Swifty the Swimming Pig! She basically leaps into a trough and swims to the other side for her Oreo cookie prize. Cutest. Thing. Ever. 

We also did the petting zoo, twice. Feeding the sheep and goats was a lot more fun than I thought it would be! I always tried to make sure the littlest ones were getting food, those big ones just butt their way in! 

One vendor had the mother-load of fried food. My husband and I split the candy platter - fried Milky Way, fried Resses cup, 2 fried Oreos, and a fried cookie dough bite! Delish! 

Fried oreos

The fair is so much fun during the day, but I think it's the prettiest at night! The lights all come on and everything is so bright and colorful!

How cute are these cuddlin' cows!

Homemade Hot Chocolate

Ahhh… the weather is finally getting cooler. And by cooler I mean 70’s. Fall is my favorite season! I love it when the air gets crisp and I can pull out my cozy sweaters and riding boots. I trade in my vanilla iced coffee for a PSL and the Yankee candles are lit filling our home with warm fall scents. Not to mention the excitement in the air with football games and Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays in the near future!

One thing I can’t get enough of when the air turns colder is a mug of hot chocolate. Mmmmm… who doesn’t love Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa with the mini marshmallows! While the packets of hot chocolate don’t necessary break the bank, I love it when I can recreate my own homemade mix for pennies and I know exactly what goes in it. Courtesy of Martha Stewart by way of Pinterest, I was able to do just that. Three ingredients and 10 minutes later I had three mason jars of hot chocolate mix just in time for fall and winter!

  (I made a funnel from a piece of computer paper to make it easier to transfer the mix from the bowl to the jars). I know, I thought I was clever, too :)

And if you want to make some to give as a gift, here are some cute printable chalkboard labels from Mom 4 Real. She has her own version of the recipe that contains powdered milk and powdered sugar if you want to go that route instead.

Enjoy!

Hello, World!

Welp, I've finally done it. I've started a blog. 

This is something I have wanted to do for a long time, but never thought I could or really should. I mean, who am I to have my own blog? Why would people care about what I have to say? Well, I'm not doing it for "people", I'm doing it for me. When other bloggers say they started their own blog for a creative outlet, they're exactly right! I am a full-time healthcare professional and wear scrubs to work everyday. I look forward to the weekends when I can put together an outfit, try a new make-up look or hairstyle, attempt a new recipe, or decorate my home. 

That is what this blog is to me. A way for me to express my likes and passions for fashion, food, travel, health, home decor - with a little southern flair of course.  Born and raised in the Carolinas (born in North, but South is my home) southern living is what it's all about, and I hope to reflect that right here. 

So, thanks for reading and listening. Grab a glass of lemonade or sweet tea (in a mason jar of course) and come on back sometime!