Friday Favorites

Happy Friday to you all!  I’ve been looking forward to this Friday for a few weeks because I’m flying back home for Christmas tonight!!!  I’m headed to the airport after work today and am pumped to spend 11 days with family and friends.  This really is the most wonderful time of the year. 🙂  Don’t you worry though, I’ve been making a TON of Christmas goodies this week and have the pictures loaded on my laptop so that I can bring you new recipes between now and Christmas!  Now I’m off to go finish a corporate tax deadline, finish packing, do a million other things, and then fly away to the land of snow!  Have a fab day and enjoy my favorite things from around the web in this week’s Friday Favorites!

***click on the red text to be led to the sources of my favorites

Favorite Appetizer: Queso Fundido with Chorizo.  Chorizo, peppers, & cheesy goodness.  Yum!

Favorite Fashion: Cozy winter outfit.

Favorite ‘mallow: Homemade Marshmallows.  I’ve heard such wonderful things about homemade marshmallows lately.  Time to see what all of the fuss is about. 🙂

Favorite Wreath: A Candy Cane Wreath!  Adorable and inexpensive.

 

Favorite Breakfast: Monkey Bread Cupcakes.  Wouldn’t these be a fun breakfast for Christmas morning?

Favorite Trees: DIY Glitter Trees.  Any excuse to use glitter is fine by me. 🙂

Favorite Side: Cauliflower, Potato & Cheddar Bake.  This would be wonderful side dish on a cold night.  Hearty, healthy, and tasty.  That’s basically all I’m looking for in a dish. 🙂

Favorite Diet: The Anti Diet.  Not a diet at all.  Why didn’t I share this with you sooner?  It’s something that I completely agree with.  In a society that makes judging yourself easier than loving yourself, it’s time to put the fad diets aside.  Rosie @ The Londoner hit the nail on the head with her guide to living a healthy lifestyle without beating yourself up.  How to know the difference between physical & emotional hunger, how to figure out how hungry you are, learn what food cravings really mean, and much more.  What I really like is the 80/20 rule.  Living a lifestyle where you eat healthy 80% of the time and allow yourself to eat naughtier foods the rest of the time.  Given the amount of butter and sugar I bake with, this has been a good rule of thumb for me.  I LOVE this guide!  And since I’ve stopped dwelling on the number I see on the scale, I love myself more too. 🙂

Favorite Cake: Old Fashioned Gingerbread Cake.  I forget how much I love gingerbread everything until this time of year.  When I saw this recipe for cake, I drooled a little.

Favorite Wall Decor: DIY Festive Plates.  Isn’t this just lovely looking?

Favorite Cookies: Linzer Cookies.  I just love the look of these cookies!  These sweet little cookies would be the perfect addition to a Christmas cookie platter.

Favorite Christmas Sweater: That’s a mighty fine Christmas cardigan you have there.

Favorite Drink: Mulled Apple Cider.  Hot drinks are in high demand right now.  You know what makes this one stand out from the rest?  The addition of pomegranate seeds!

Favorite Food Gifts: Food gifts from all 50 states.  A great guide to giving food gifts that celebrate the state you live in.  I’m not sure that I’ll be giving away Colorado’s racks of lamb for Christmas, but the Iowa blue cheese and South Dakota fry bread sure are tempting!

Favorite Soup: Slowcooker Loaded Potato Soup.   I could really go for a big bowl of this right now.  Did I mention it’s topped with bacon?  Yeah.  It is.

Favorite iPhone Case: Purl Soho’s Cross-Stitch Case.  Who has two thumbs and still doesn’t have an iPhone case?  This girl.  Yes, I’ve had it since this summer and drop it on the daily.  I at least put it on my Christmas list.  In the meantime, I’m just going to admire this one.

Favorite Bark: S’mores Bark.  If you don’t know by now, I love S’mores like crazy.  So this S’mores Bark that is perfect for Christmas makes me reallllly happy!

Favorite Face: Josh had to take a picture for his law firm’s website in the thick of Movember.  What. A. Glorious. Mustache.  In my humble opinion, it is on a Ron Swanson level of greatness.  However, I’m not complaining that it’s gone now….

Favorite Comfort Food: Shepherd’s Pie.  Do you know what’s great about a dish like this (aside from its sheer deliciousness)?  It’s hard to mess up!  You can use a variety of veggies and swap meats and still end up with a comforting meal for your family.  Sounds good, huh?

Favorite Funny: L♥VE this sketch from SNL.  I WISH IT WAS CHRISTMAS TODAY!!!

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