Let's get popping!

Mom's Ridiculously good stove-top popcorn!

Okay once my mom taught me how to make this, I soon started eating this as a snack every other day! I love a huge bowl of this easy treat! And believe me it tastes so much better than bagged popcorn! It is warm, chewy and delightful.

Mom's Popcorn Recipe:

1/3 Cup Popcorn Kernels

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Butter
I usually use about 2 tablesoons

I love unsalted butter for this recipe

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Vegetable Oil

Eye ball this, don't want Popcorn soup, I usually count" One, Two" whatever that measurement is... you can't really mess this up.

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Grab a large deep pot, add vegetable oil, let the vegetable oil heat a little bit , add your popcorn kernels and shake the pot just a little. Put the lid on your pot, once your pot is hot add your kernels (using pot holders), shake the pot once you hear the first couple kernels pop, lift the pot above the flame/heat. You should hear a whole lotting popping and keep shaking lightly. Once you hear the popping stop or lessen to about 2 kernals popping turn off the heat and put it on a different burner than what you were using. Then get a small bowl and add your butter, melt butter and pour on top. I usually add a little salt and then begin devouring the entire bowl! What is great about this recipe is that you can make it exactly how you like it, don't like butter? You don't have to add it, you can switch oils (although it does change the flavor), and it is easy!

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I hope you all try this and enjoy!

lovelovelove

M

-- Cider and Spice

I have tried a few different Apple Spice recipes and unfortunately they have been a little pricey! 

I spend close to $20 for ingredients that may or may not have been natural and packed with sugar.

Yesterday, while my boyfriend and my brother in law watched the Alabama/Auburn game... or should I say the Alabama domination!! Roll Tide Roll!!!!

My sister and I sat, ate pizza, pinned on pinterest and thoroughly enjoyed our time watching the game. and pinning til our fingers hurt. I decided we needed a little something since the boys were drinking their favorite winter lager.

So I picked up this little glass jar, my sister heated it up in a pan and we sipped the perfect blend of cider and spice!

I got mine in the fruits and veggies section of Ralphs, 

which is a Kroger company for any mid-west, southern or east coast readers, 

for $1.99, it made about 3 full coffee mugs. The best part about this blend is that it is 100% juice! Yes it is extra calories but knowing that they are natural calories makes me think it isn't the worst thing for my body, right?

Cider and Spice Knudsen Website

lovelovelove

M

"It's my best thing"

Favorite things:

1.

Sending Cards to people. 

I remember when pen pals used to be the coolest thing, however it didn't go too far, more like passing notes in class then sending across the US of A. I think it is fun to send my friends near and far a little something for them to remember that just because we don't talk everyday, doesn't mean I don't think of them, love them and wish them the best, daily.

Picture credit: http://www.mariahatling.com/

2.
Trader Joe's

I basically love everything in this store, from the creatively designed products, to the prices, to the checker today telling me she thought I was a celebrity based on my style (which, was nothing to write home about, but she made my day!)

Picture Credit: http://image.mapmuse.com/

-- Also these babies,

Picture Credit: Amazon.com

If I fall asleep before I finish this post..sorry...zzz

3.
Travel Bag

My Jessica Simpson Havana Nights Travel bag has been near and far, but most recently from San Diego, to Riverside County to Los Angeles, and to San Marcos.

I live about 45 minutes from work, 1 hour + 25 minutes from my boyfriend, 30 minutes from my best friend and have friends in between, needless to say, I travel A LOT! I use up a lot of gas, keep half of my closet in the trunk of my car and stay at my Boyfriend or Best Friends at least once a week until I find a place of my own.

4.

CND Super Shiney Top Coat

This stuff makes your nail polish look awesome and clearly "super shiney"

*they spelt it that way not me*

5. Old Navy Fall Sales (prices coming soon)

$9.98

&

$35-ish

I hope this colder weather says around for awhile, I love it!!

Lovelovelove

Maya

ps. refer to #2 if none of this makes sense, it kicked it quickly!

-- DIY Hex Nut Bracelet Tutorial

You will need:
Ribbon
Hex Nuts
Braiding Knowledge

*Side Note: Our local Wal-Mart only carries Silver Hex nuts! The Horror!

So I went to Home Depot to find some gold ones...the looks I got for saying the words bracelet and hex nuts in the same sentence at HD were priceless!

Ribbon:
Wal-Mart about 98 cents or some other ridiculous cent price. 

Cut 3 pieces of ribbon to fit your wrist
 (I cut them long enough to wrap the bracelet around my wrist twice) 

Knot the ribbon about 2 inches from the top 

Braid , finish braid, add Hex Nuts and knot

*Yes the colors are different*

The finished product!

Enjoy lovely readers!

Maya

ps. Don't forget to follow me <3

Birchbox

This post will be short and sweet.

Image Credit: alltopstartups.com

Makeup, Hair, Skin 

Deluxe samples

$10
(Shipping and Handling, INCLUDED)

Every month

4-5 samples

High end

Birchbox.com 

Interested?
Comment below with your e-mail!

I have heard so many amazing things about this and I find myself buying TOO much. I am currently on a Project Pan

What is that? - Project Pan: [Praw-ject Pah-n]You know when you have an amazing project that you use all the time? And then you see the dreaded silver pan that holds the project (see below) that my friend is a pan

Image Credit: daisyparade.blogspot.com

Project pan, using what you have until it is GONE. Then buying something new.

I have finished a powder, eye shadow and shampoo (no pans but why not!)

lovelovelove

M

99 Cent Sale!

There are a few reasons I check my favorite blogs daily.
One is to save money honey!

Enter G from http://nouveaucheap.blogspot.com/ 

She spends countless hours researching and distributing prime beauty deals and information. She is amazing! She even organizes each weekly sale by store: Rite Aid, CVS or Walgreens  etc. 

To quote a crazy little blonde stylist, she is Ba-na-nas! 

I started reading her blog last year and have figured out when I need to head to the drugstore to find the exact deal I am looking for, eye shadows, nail care, hair products, shower goodies...

Wet N Wild is known as that teeny bopper makeup line that costs pennies and is worth using about .5 times right? 

Well no more! They have improved every product they have. Their colors are much more pigmented which basically means more vibrant!
My favorites are the Comfort Zone Palette, which I use every day. And on stand by are my wet n wild color icon eye shadow singles in Brulee, and Nutty. After that are my Coastal Scent Palettes.

The great thing about these little babies is the price, the singles are usually $1.99 but from  8/28/11 to 9/24/11   all their $1.99 products are 99 cents! For the list of the products on sale check out this link!

Here is my haul from last night, not soon after my last post I grabbed the boy and we headed to Walgreens.

The pictures are from my phone so they might be a little grainy, I apologize.

Nail Polishes: (L-R) Wild Shine- Tickled Pink, Fast Dry- FuchsiaRama, Everybody Loves Redmond (Top,Bottom and Right) - Megalast - Bite the Bullet, Haze of Love, Under your Spell, Disturbia, and Sugar Coat.  

Mega Last Eye Liners - Black Brown, Charcoal, and Navy.

Idol Eyes Creme Shadow Pencils - Graphite and Pixie 

Eye Shadow Singles: Sugar, Brulee (x2), Penny, Nutty

* My daily eye, Brulee on lid, nutty on crease and a little sugar on the brow bone*
For night time, heavier on the Nutty, I like to add a little Penny to the middle of the lid and blend in your crease. It is beautiful copper color...or color of a penny get it? ;)

lovelovelove

Maya

-- Easy Peasy

--Well I am off!

Off to the Bay Area! I will be traveling by bus visiting Universities and enjoying the bay area with 40+ high school students. I am beyond excited for this trip as it will be a great opportunity to meet the students I work with, have a great time learning about other Universities, and of course!!*** spending time with my co-workers whom I adore!

This past weekend I was trying to sleep a little more as next week I might lose my precious beauty sleep hours. (Poor kids! yikes) In doing so we felt a little more lazy than usual so of course you start craving all the bad eats right?

Well we were and we have been eating pretty healthy so we decided to go a little crazy and make cobbler.

Now we could have bought organic healthy apples and peeled and cored until our fingers hurt.

We also could have measured the cinnamon and sugar and flour evenly.

And we also could have used a butter alternative

Instead we used this

Real Butter, the real deal. Not margarine, not I can't believe its not butter.. B-U-T-T-E-R.

Milk.

Louisana Fish Fry - Cobbler Mix $1.22

And... ta da. $2-3

Directions:
Melt 4tbsp butter and pour into 9x9 baking dish

In bowl mix cobbler mix, 3/4 cup milk until smooth, pour over butter.

Add fruit filling, and mix around a little

Bake 375* for 40-45 minutes.

Enjoy!

*We served this ala mode*

Was it the healthiest?

Nope

Was is AMAZING?

Yeppers

Lovelovelove

The Traveling M