Trick-or-Heat!

Happy Halloween!

I can't believe Halloween is already here! Did anyone go to costume parties this weekend?  I can't wait to see everyone dressed up this week!  Last year looked like this:

Liam was a dragon & Izzy was a punk rock zombie!  Their grandma made the costumes & she is quite the seamstress!! I love that she is able to make such great costumes.  They always turn out better than I can even imagine they will.  Madeline is on the right (one of Izzy's best friends) and her costume is one of my favorite of all time.  She's a paper doll!  She even made a purse and the bow in her hair (and obviously a dress).  Very creative!  My sister and I used to love playing with paper dolls when we were kids.  I remember my favorite one was Princess Diana.  Do they even make those anymore?

I'd love to hear about any unique or elaborate costumes you've worn or seen!

 I finally got my pumpkin carved:

I tried to carve the top to look like curly hair, but everyone says it looks like a flower.  Oh well, close enough.  With Trick-or-Treat night right around the corner, I'm still trying to come up with a really good alternative to candy.  I'd love to have something to pass out to trick-or-treaters that they would actually be excited about getting that isn't candy.  Any thoughts?

Warming Up

Yowza!  What a difference a week makes!  If you are freezing in the midst of the climate change, might I recommend a great way to warm up...WORK OUT!  This weekend, I chose what I consider to be the easiest way to get warm, HOT YOGA!  Hot Yoga is not for everyone and I don't do it all that often, but it felt great to walk into a 100° room and sweat before we even got started.

Suuuuper sweaty!  I love it! 

I also did a little shopping this weekend.  My mom and I stopped by HomeGoods to see if there were any new essentials.  When we passed through the kitchenware section, my mom commented on how heavy the cast iron tea kettles were.  I hear the word 'kettle' and only one thing comes to mind...kettle bell swings!

I also warmed up with a new recipe.  I wasn't sure that it was going to be a hit, but I ended up being a huge fan.  I wish I had leftovers.  I initially got out some extra lean turkey in an attempt to make a clean Italian Wedding Soup recipe.  I was missing some key ingredients, so I just created something new.  My version of a loaded sweet potato:

It looks like a disaster but it tasted phenomenal!  I roasted the sweet potatoes for about 45 minutes at 375 °,  I browned the turkey and added Trader Joe's taco seasoning packet to it for a little heat.  I also sauteed some mushrooms and onions.  Those went on top of the layer of turkey.  Topped that with avocado and then topped the avocado with a dollop of plain greek yogurt.  It was a great combination of flavors.  Next time I make this I will add salsa to the pile-up.