Book Review: I Brake For Yard Sales

I read I Brake For Yard Sales maybe about two weeks ago. It is written by Laura Spencer. She has been on a bunch of tv shows like Antique Roadshow and Good Morning America and whatnot. Honestly, I had never heard of her until I read the book lol. Oops. Anyway, it was really a cute little book. An easy read. I read it in a matter of less than 10 hours. I think less than 6 even. Lots of pictures and fun little tips!

Likes: I really loved some of her ideas. Loved loved loved some of her decor. Some of her finds were just amazing! She also was a great communicator. Easy to read and follow along. She did not jump all over the place, which was nice. Again, great pictures!

Dislikes: She was very focused on glam and a “clubby” feel. If you haven’t noticed, that is most definitely not the look I am going for. Glam or “clubby” does not really described my lifestyle. Lol! I wish she had shown other styles, but she lives in LA and that is more her style. 

Overall: I really enjoyed the book! She had great ideas and inspired me a little to mix and match with my own decor. I am definitely looking forward to having some fun with my own space! You should definitely check the book out! It is a fun read!

See ya!

S- Strawberry Jelly

Oh my goodness, thank goodness it is Friday right guys? I am so far behind on the challenge, I am sorry. I legitimately have not been home this week except to sleep. If I wasn’t at work, I was celebrating someone’s birthday or with some friends or doing this or that. I have not had a day to stop and just recuperate and refresh. Thankfully, today is that day! So you might see a bombardment of posts to catch up for the challenge today. You have been warned!

Almost two weeks ago I made some strawberry jelly. So stinking yummy! I had never made homemade jelly so this was definitely an experiment. Then earlier this week I made strawberry jelly again but with a twist from the first recipe. I am still figuring out this whole process, but this recipe is actually made in the crockpot. You can find the original recipe here. So easy and so yummy!

So the first time, I did:

2 pounds of strawberries
3 cups of sugar (4 seemed a little much to me)
1/4 cup of lemon juice
some pectin

I cooked it for about four hours in the crockpot. I stirred it a couple of times. But when I was done, I did not quite have the consistency I wanted. So, I threw it in my ninja. hehehe. Blended it a little and then we were good. It was exactly what I was hoping for!

At the beginning….

Sorry about the glare but you can see it is all bubbly and delicious at the end.

 

Yummy!

It made a really good amount. I ended up separating it up and freezing part of it so that it will last longer. I cannot eat that much jelly that quickly otherwise lol.

This week, I switched up the recipe a little. I don’t have pictures because they are essentially the same.
I was going to make peach strawberry jelly but my peaches ended up being no that great. So, instead I did this:

2 pounds of strawberries
3 cups of sugar
lemon juice (I just kind of squirted it in there, I did not measure this time)
half an apple all chopped up.

This batch was honestly better than the first. The apples added this little nuance to it that just made it fantastic! It is also a little sweeter. I did not really get the whole pectin package the first time and so this time, knowing that apples are natural sources of pectin, I went for that instead.

Oh my goodness, so stinking delicious! As more fruits come into season, I will definitely be experimenting more with making jelly. I am going to definitely need to get some more containers though. hehehe.

Have you tried making jelly? Have any favorites or suggestions?

See ya!

L- Love Me Some Ice Cream!

As I may have mentioned, I love ice cream! I could eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The only time I ever refuse ice cream is if I am feeling particularly queasy. But, I love ice cream! I like most flavors! I love adding things, including edible bowls that I can eat them out of. So, when I saw this post on pinterest, I knew I had to try it!

Sugar cookie cups! It was originally used for fruit cups but I figured ice cream would taste just as good. And it did. 🙂

So I took the log of cookie dough partially out of the package and sliced it in circles. I then placed them on an upside down cupcake pan. I only made four because there is only TJ and I. 

I did not push them down around the edge or anything. Just set it on top.

 

I put it in the oven at 350 degrees. I just kind of kept an eye on them, I did not keep track of the time. My bad.

I just waited until they were getting golden. They smelled delicious!

Perfect for one scoop of ice cream! So yummy and so much fun!

Give it a shot!

See ya!