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I was expecting a lot of resistance from my kids when I served this dish, but happily they were on board. They ate it and remarked several times how much they enjoyed it. Success! This would be great alongside a chicken breast. I also plan on adding sauteed mushrooms for next time to add a bit of flavor and bite.

Next up for spaghetti squash will be to make our usual spaghetti sauce, which we make by sauteing diced red bell peppers, diced onions (red or yellow) and sliced mushrooms. Add to that sweet Italian sausage and it is a delicious dinner.

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This soup is absolutely heavenly. The earthiness of the pumpkin, a bit of sweetness from the brown sugar and croutons, and a hint of spicy from a pinch of cayenne pepper. I love this recipe, which I adapted from one I found at Food.com.

The croutons are optional but I really recommend them. They only take a few minutes to prepare, which can be done while the soup is heating up, so give them a try.  Add them right before serving so they don't sit in the soup for too long and become soggy.


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The ratio of this punch is 1 part apple cider, 1 part ginger ale (or sparkling apple cider), and a half part of cranberry juice. Feel free to increase if you are serving a crowd.

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They were delicious, as expected. A few notes:

Homemade nacho sauce. I didn't have nacho sauce on hand so I cubed up some velveeta, about a cup, and threw it in a pan on the stovetop. I added about a tablespoon of milk and a few glugs of hot sauce and stirred until melted. You can always use regular shredded cheese if you prefer.

Corn tortillas vs. tortilla chips. I tried it both ways. The corn tortillas are a bit more fussy as they require baking in the oven, but they produced a prettier crunchwrap. When I tried using tortilla chips, the edges of the chips are sharp edges and they tore up the flour tortillas pretty badly, even though I was trying to be very careful not to do so.

Be sure to warm each flour tortilla in the microwave for a few seconds as you start to make each new wrap. It makes them easier to work with and there is less of a tendency to tear.

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The weather is definitely turning colder here up in the Northern US, but ice cream can still be enjoyed as you are indoors and toasty warm. I slightly adapted a recipe from Lauren's Latest.

The texture of the ice cream wasn't 100% perfect and I am not sure if that is to blame on my ice cream maker or if I used too much of the pie crust pieces in the ice cream. It wasn't quite as creamy as I would have liked. I have reduced the amount of pie crust pieces in half, which is reflected below in the recipe. If you try out the recipe please let me know how it turns out. Enjoy!

Notes: My preference is that this ice cream is best eaten 'soft serve'.

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My little girl is growing up. Violet got to pick her birthday dinner. It was grape punch, cheese pizza, and a yellow cake with chocolate frosting. We also had wings and a 7 Layer Salad for the adults.

For the cake I cut out a number six from parchment paper, sprayed it lightly with baking spray, centered it on the frosted cake and had the kids add the sprinkles. Gently remove the stencil and it is ready to go.

This week I was tagged by Jess at Plucky's Second Thought for a 6 Things About Me post. Thank you for including me Jess! Jess actually picked 8 questions, sneaky girl, so I choose 6 to answer. I don't write personal info on my blog a ton, so here is a little break from the norm.

1. Do you have any pets?  If so, what kind.  If not, what would you like to have? 

Lulu and Sophie, Boston Terriers. They are sisters and sweet dogs, but a bit troublesome. They turned 1 over the Summer. In the past we've had more Boston Terriers, cats, fish, a hamster and a lab.

2. What was your favorite vacation?

I haven't been on many vacations at all, and none that stick out to me now. If I could, I would take trips to Paris, Italy and Ireland.

3. What is your favorite handmade gift you have received? 

Violet & Jack - my reason for living.




4. How do you take your coffee?

Strong with flavored creamer. The latest one I liked was a raspberry cheesecake flavor.

5. What’s your favorite meal ever?

Bagel with cream cheese, lots and lots of smoked salmon, capers, red onion and possibly tomato slices.

6. Favorite TV Show or Movie, ever?  It is so hard to pick just one TV show. I am more into tv shows than movies.


Adventure Time,


Gilmore Girls,


The Office



Under the Tuscan Sun.


7. Who am I tagging?

• Lisa at Creole Contessa
• Cindy at Hun...What's for Dinner?
• Stephanie at Plain Chicken
• Dru at Teenage Cakeland
• Jo and Sue at Jo and Sue
• Jamie at Love Bakes Good Cakes
• Stephanie at Cookin' Cowgirl

8. Here are your questions:

• What was your favorite vacation?
• What would your dream job be?
• How do you take your coffee?
• What’s your favorite meal ever?
• What is your favorite gift you’ve received?
• Favorite TV Show or Movie, ever?