pumpkin goodness and goals:.

'tis the season, right?! for pumpkins, that is!  i am a big fan of pumpkin, but i can't go too overboard since drew doesn't help me eat ANYTHING pumpkin - it's just not his thing, yea, weirdo, i know! i have been anxiously waiting to have some free time to try these pumpkin muffins - my plans were pushed back even further when i realized the canned pumpkin in my cupboard was expired. i found this recipe thanks to Daily Garnish - a great blog that i found for recipes a couple years ago. most of the recipes posted on her blog are easy and all of them are healthy.

per usual, i adapted this recipe to better fit me (and my cupboard), but they turned out great and i am kicking myself for not making a double batch!

pumpkin pecan muffins:.

>> 1.5 cups of whole wheat flour (or flour of your choice)
>> 1 teaspoon baking soda
>> 1/2 teaspoon salt
>> 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
>> 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
>> 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
>> 1/4 teaspoon allspice
>> 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
>> 1/4 cup brown sugar
>> 2 whole eggs
>> 1 cup canned pumpkin (or however you get your pumpkin)
>> 1/2 cup maple syrup
>> 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
>> 1 teaspoon vanilla
>> 1 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts)

preheat the oven to 350 degrees. start by mixing all of the dry ingredients from the flour to the sugar(do not add the chopped pecans, yet). in a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients from eggs to the vanilla. be sure that you are ready to mix in the melted coconut oil as soon as you take it out of the microwave - it hardens pretty quick! add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until well mixed (obvi). add the pecans or walnuts. plop the mixture into your favorite muffin pan (or in my case, the cheapest muffin pan in the world). be sure to spray or grease the pan to make your life easier. bake for around 25 minutes - this may vary depending on the size of your muffins and oven.

that's it! the original recipe calls for walnuts, but i prefer pecans (they were also 1/2 the price of walnuts at Trader Joe's). the original recipe also calls for crystallized ginger - maybe someone can enlighten me, but i CANNOT find crystallized ginger. i have looked at Target and Trader Joe's before i decided it wasn't necessary - i know not very diligent, but i am not a big fan of ginger anyway.

i am slightly bummed that i wasn't able to taste these when they were fresh out of the oven - forgive me, i was very full from an awesome dinner of grilled teryaki chicken and sauteed, garlic-infused asparagus and green beans which was followed up with leftover cheesecake from date night at the Cheesecake Factory (wow). i promise that i did try these before i decided to post about them JUST to make sure they were as good as they sound (you're welcome) and let me know tell you, they are pretty darn good! they are filling, but not heavy like regular muffins. i may have to make this into a loaf of bread next time....

i haven't done or set any goals lately because, well, i haven't just haven't felt compelled. with the transition of seasons, i am feeling a little more motivated!

1. take care of my body:. i am obviously passionate about wellness and taking care of my body, but i need to take extra special care. i have been having back issues off and on for the past 2 months
along with an insane case of plantar faciitis. i resorted to buying a PVC pipe to roll out my IT bands at home, along with constant hip flexor stretches and breaking up my plantar fascia. glamorous
and sexy, i know, but if it is going to keep me on my yoga mat and in the weight room on a regular basis than i will ask drew to rub my feet with a butter knife every night - he truly loves me! :)

also, about this time last year, i was recovering from either my 3rd bout of strep or the stomach flu - remember this post? drew has already fired up our economy size humidifier, but i still need to be REALLY conscious of getting enough sleep, eating right, drinking fluids, the works - here is hoping for a much healthier hibernation season!

2. get myself on new budget - drew is REALLY good at budgeting and moving money. i used to be when i was at my old job, but i have let that slip. we have a big trip to Playa del Carmen this winter
for my brother's destination wedding (SO exciting!). we have the flights taken care of, but we are staying at an (expensive) all-inclusive. also, drew and i are staying a couple extra nights to have a mini-vacation. that is a main reason for getting back on a budget, but there are many other reasons (like, i still have an insane amount of student loans). for instance, every pay day morning, i pay ALL of my bills that are due during that period, put some in my savings and most likely, treat myself to a bottle of wine or something special. on monday, 2 short days after pay day, i wonder where my paycheck went and instantly start planning how i am going to make it through the next 11 days on scraps - getting KINDA tired of it.  to help jump start this whole budgeting thing, i just bought "Pocket Your Dollars" on my iPad. seems counterproductive to BUY a book on budgeting, right? well, from now until October 27th, the e-book is on sale at Amazon for $3.49. $3.49!!! i couldn't resist - plus, the author is local, from Mpls, so even better! i will let you know how this goes.....

3.  i may just be adding this to the list so i can immediately cross it off. i have been wanting to clean out our front hallway which stored all of our camping stuff, our bikes and our accumulation of "Goodwill" things. my girlfriend from college comes over every Monday to watch Teen Mom - do not judge - we have done it since we met our freshman year of college and it makes us feel better about our lives. anyway, for about the past 3 weeks, i had to warn her before she came over 'still haven't gotten around to cleaning up our front hall, good luck climbing over everything on your way in - i suggest stretching before!". drew and i tagteamed the hallway this weekend - i did my part while he played FIFA and he continued while i went yoga - we are so good at compromising. all of our camping stuff is in storage and the Goodwill bags are in my trunk (i promise i drop them off......tomorrow). doesn't it feel so good to get rid of 'junk'?!?!

4. give my blog some love - i would like to figure out how to categorize my posts (mainly, my recipes), so they are easier to find (mainly, for myself). i also have been working with drew on another cool feature - i don't want to give too much away, but it will help you put your own workouts together! i have had several people ask me to put a workout plan together for them - i'll be honest, i have a hard time putting my own workout routine together, but i'll see what i can do! and, i truly love talking about fitness or nutrition so here i just another avenue for it....

ok, that is all for now - geez, i don't post for a month and suddenly i think you want to read 'all about me'?!

i guess i will get back to work and check my ego on the way.....

always striving for more,
dee b.

.:date night in!:.

it's that time of year where every dollar counts, right?

i think it has been that time of year for me ever since....i graduated college. whether you are a recent college grad, pinching pennies to save for Christmas presents or just want to be more mindful of your spending (hello early New Year's resolution), here are a few good ideas for date nights IN!

while drew and i both have full-time jobs, we hold ourselves accountable for living within a budget to pay our bills, etc. well, as most of you probably know, living within a budget can be boring and can mean a lot of nights making your own food, doing your own dishes and probably watching a movie you've already seen, but we always try to get creative so we don't feel the urge to go out and spend money!

here are a few of ideas that we enjoy....


chicken for me, with a small piece of his steak....




steak for him--both are great with wine :)




breakfast for dinner--how fun and SO good!

 




zucchini lasagna--it's always fun to try something that you wouldn't typically make.
think of it as.....exotic???

 




it isn't often that we do crab legs, but when we do, it's for a special occasion
and WAY cheaper than getting it in the restaurant. bonus:. they're insanely easy to make!

 



when was the last time you had grilled cheese??? you can play around with
making it fancy by adding bacon, tomato, avocado. cheap, easy to make
and easy clean up! (yes, that is boxed wine, we keep it classy)





who doesn't love kabobs?! winter, spring or summer,
these are fun to put together and go well with beer or wine!





taco night--tacos are by far my favorite! try to switch it up,
make mexican lasagna or try yout hand at homemade guacamole!
 plus, it gives you an excuse to buy a couple
Coronas or make Margaritas! who can complain about that?





nerd alert:. Scrabble is our guilty pleasure, but it is actually really fun-
i had never played it before we dated! board games can be a fun competition
and if it's your style, you can throw in a few drinks and really make things interesting!



hello romance and s'mores! bonfires are great for playing music,
getting away from technology and just talking to each other!










another guilty pleasure:. how can you go out when you have such a good helper with the dishes?

ok, maybe all these ideas are lame to you, but we really enjoy staying in and keeping things simple (*read: save money*). we also like that we can make our own meals and keep them as healthy (or unhealthy) as we want. don't get me wrong, we have our lazy nights when we go grab Noodles or Chipotle in our sweats or when we want to dress up and go out for dinner at Stella's, but at the end of a busy work week, spending time together is what is most important!

other date night ideas on budget:. keep your eye open for Groupons, Living Social or Crowd Cut deals. on several occasions, we have bought these to make going out more affordable or to try a new restaurant. plus, they also have activities that may be fun to explore together!


any good date ideas that i am missing?! it's winter time and it would be nice to come up with some more ideas for these next few months of hibernating!

always striving for more,
dee b.