Autumn Amelia

Hello everyone!
In the saga of sharing my playlists, it is time for my Christmas Party Playlist.
As I have mentioned, I LOVE making playlists so when it comes to a big holiday like Christmas I don't have just one playlist, I have several.
Today I am going to be sharing my Christmas Party Playlist in the hopes you can use it for your festivities this holiday week.
This is the fun Christmas playlist.
The one with all the upbeat music that is going to get you pumped.
Hence the party title. 😉

Hello everyone!

Happy Valentine's week!

When I think of Valentine flavors I immediately think of chocolate and strawberry.

I thought they would be the perfect flavors for a Valentine cake!

And to really drive the Valentine theme home, let's make it heart-shaped.

I do not have a heart-shaped cake pan so, I created a heart by using a round and square cake.

If you go this route, you will need to double the below recipe.

You will need:

1 and 1/3 Cups of Flour

2/3 Cups of Cocoa Powder

1 and 1/2 Teaspoons of Baking Soda

1 Teaspoon of Baking Powder

1/2 a Teaspoon of Cinnamon

1/2 Teaspoon of Salt

1 and 1/3 Cups of Sugar

2/3 Cups of Brown Sugar

4 Eggs

1/3 Cup of Water

2 Teaspoons of Vanilla

1 Cup of Sour Cream

1/4 Cup of Vegetable Oil
Fresh Strawberries For Filling

Preheat oven to 325o.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

Add both the sugars and whisk until evenly combined.

Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, water and vanilla.

Whisk in the sour cream and vegetable oil.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the sour cream mixture.

Stir until there are no dry streaks of flour remaining, being careful not to overmix.

Grease an 8X8 square metal baking pan.

Line the bottom with parchment paper and dust with cocoa powder.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly.

Tap the pan on your work surface to get rid of any bubbles.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, around 35-40 minutes.
Repeat the recipe and bake in an 8 inch round metal baking pan.

Let cool.

Prepare the strawberry frosting.

You will need:

8 Cups of Powdered Sugar

4 Sticks of Salted Butter, Softened

1/2 a Cup of Pureed Strawberries

Beat the powdered sugar and butter until light and fluffy, around 3-5 minutes.

Slowly add the strawberry puree until you reach your desired consistency.

Add a dot of frosting to your serving tray and add the cooled square cake on top placed on its side to resemble a diamond.

Cut the circle cake in half vertically.

Add one of the halves of the circle cake on the left side of the top point of the square cake, and the other half of the circle cake on the right side of the top point of the square cake.  

Now you have a heart!

Add a thin layer of the strawberry frosting to the bottom half of the cake.
Cut fresh strawberries into thin slices and place on top of the frosting.

Add the top halves to the cake and frost the entire thing.

Let the first layer of frosting set in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Add another layer of frosting and let set once more.

Serve.

Enjoy!

This is the perfect dessert to help you and your loved ones celebrate this week.

The heart shape alone makes it festive enough for the Valentines but, add in the classic flavor pairing of chocolate and strawberries and you can't lose!

What are your Valentine's plans this year?

All my love,

Autumn

Hello everyone!

Valentine's is slowly creeping into our lives and I love it...

No pun intended!

I have always enjoyed Valentine's Day and the opportunity it brings to shower the people in my life with love.

Today I am going to show you how to make simple Cupid's arrow gift boxes to help you give some love.

You will need:

Heart-Shaped Gift Boxes

Scissors

Wood Dowels, I used 3/8 Inch

Assorted Feathers

Hot Glue Gun

Glue Sticks

Fillers

Remove the lids from the heartshaped boxes.

I used pre-colored boxes but, you can get plain papier mache boxes and decorate them individually if your people aren't fans of classic Valentine's colors. 

With the scissors, poke a small hole towards the bottom of each of the boxes.

You will want the hole towards the bottom so the lid will be able to still fit comfortably on the box.

Start small, you can always go bigger but not smaller. 

Work the wooden dowels through the holes until they are just barely through.

Secure the dowels into place with the hot glue.

On the opposite end of the dowels, hot glue feathers on top of one another until you reach your desired fullness.

Add your fillers into the boxes.

I used three-inch boxes for my arrows but, you can use larger if needed.

The three-inch boxes are perfect for holding candy, jewelry, and small toys.

Gift.

Enjoy!

These boxes take no time to create and turn out so fun.

The feathers, the colors, a functional heart-shaped box.

What's not to love?

They are perfect to give smaller gifts in, to decorate a larger gift with or even as just a decoration in your home.
How would you use these fun boxes in your life?

All my love,

Autumn

Hello everyone!

This Saturday is Chinese New Year!

And if you didn't know, Erik and I love to celebrate each year.

To help you get into the spirit, I am going to share our homemade fried rice recipe.

Make it this weekend to celebrate, or any night for a quick, delicious dinner. 

You will need:

3 Cups of Cooled Cooked Rice, We Use Brown Rice

1/2 A Tablespoon of Sesame Oil

1/2 A Tablespoon of Canola Oil

1 and 1/3 Cups of Frozen Peas and Carrots Blend

3 Green Onions Chopped

2 Gloves of Garlic, Minced 

2 Large Eggs

3 Tablespoons of Soy Sauce

Salt and Pepper, To Taste

In a large skillet, heat the sesame and canola oil over medium-high heat.

Once warm, add the pea and carrot blend and green onions, saute for 1 minute.

Add the garlic, and saute for an additional minute.

Push the vegetable mix to one side of the pan.

Add the eggs to the opposite side, cook and scramble.

Add the cooked rice to the pan.

Add soy sauce and stir until well combined. 

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve warm.

Enjoy!

We don't add any additional meat to our rice because one, I'm not a huge fan of meat two, we usually have this on the side of some teriyaki chicken and three, the eggs already add protein to the mix.

If you prefer meat in your rice, cook some diced chicken in the oil in the skillet and remove before sauteing your veggies.

Or add in some pre-cooked cubed ham along with the rice and soy sauce.

This recipe is simple and comes together quickly.

It also makes a good portion of rice.

Perfect to eat over a few days or enjoy on its own in a larger family.

We can't wait to enjoy fried rice this weekend!

Do you do anything for Chinese New Year?

All my love,

Autumn

Hello everyone!

Happy New Year!

The older I have gotten, the less into resolutions I have been.

Resolutions are great, don't get me wrong, but when I don't stick to them I tend to spiral.

So, I don't regularly make resolutions anymore.

I do love me a fresh start and any excuse to organize though. 

As we head into the first full week of the year I thought I'd share a few things I have done or will be doing to help me feel refreshed for the New Year.

Update A Space

We all have a space we spend the majority of our time in.

Maybe it's your desk at work, a desk at home or even your car.

No matter the space, start the year by giving it a little refresh.

Organize the clutter, throw out what you no longer need and add some fun new items that make you happy.

I decorated my desk at my seasonal job with some washi tape, illustrations and quotes.

It took no time at all and made all the difference.

Now my little desk is brighter and a lot more fun.

Enjoy Some Uplifting Content

I love bad TV.

I mean LOVE it.

It's one of the things that helps me turn my brain off.

That being said, I do notice a difference when I binge hours of bad TV rather than intake some good content.

So, turn off that bad TV show, put down that gossip magazine and get some uplifting content in your life.

You know, the stuff that motivates you to do better and be better?

I have loved watching Reese Witherspoon's Shine On series.

It highlights women in different career fields that are making a difference.

You can find it currently on Netflix.

I also love listening to the Awesome with Alison podcast.

She is a girl that lets her freak flag fly while sharing advice on how to live your best life.

You can find it wherever you stream your podcasts.

I have heard amazing things about Rachel Hollis' books Girl, Wash Your Face and Girl, Stop Apologizing.

I haven't had the chance to dive into them just yet but I am excited to devour them this year.

Switch To A Reusable Product

If you are like me, you have at least one thing that will help you go green you keep meaning to do.

For us, it was buying reusable shopping bags.

Every time we go to the store and add another plastic bag to our plastic bag family the guilt would get real...

We finally bit the bullet and used some Christmas cash to invest in a few reusable bags.

I am excited to finally be helping the environment in a small way and to also get a drawer in my kitchen back.

So, whether you have been meaning to buy a reusable water bottle, add a second trash can for recycling or get some of them fancy aluminum straws, invest in it now and feel good that you are doing your part in some small way. 

Schedule Those Appointments

The holidays are officially over which means it's time to get back to the real world.

Boo...

A few of my least favorite things happen during the first part of the year.

Taking down Christmas decorations, my yearly trip to the doctor and tax day...

We try to get these taken care of as soon as possible so we don't have to think about them until the following year.

It's such a simple thing to do but it makes me feel hella accomplished and adult AF.

Schedule your doctor's appointments, schedule your tax appointment and then if you are like me reward yourself by scheduling something fun.

This year I scheduled a stay at my favorite hotel for my birthday.

Now that's one appointment I am not planning on missing.

Clean Out A Cluttered Space

We all have those small areas in our lives that collect clutter like crazy.

Bathroom cabinets, mail cubbies, nightstand drawers.

For us, like most homes in America, it's the dreaded kitchen junk drawer.

These spaces are so small but collect random junk like crazy!

Take a few minutes out of your day and organize that space!
It really doesn't take that long and will make finding things SO much easier.

These are just a few simple ways I am starting the year feeling accomplished.

They are all easy and took me less than an hour to do. 

Do you set New Year's resolutions?

If so, what are some of yours for 2020?

All my love,

Autumn

Hello everyone!

Are y'all ready for a new decade?!

Because it's basically here...

To help us celebrate I made this fun DIY disco ball piñata.

I have made a few piñatas in my day.

They aren't hard but, are a little time-consuming.

Make sure to give yourself a few days to complete this project.

You will need:

36 Inch Balloon

Newspaper

Scissors

Flour

Water

Silver Crepe Paper

Fringer Scissors, Optional

Tape
Silver Ribbon

Start by inflating the balloon to your desired size.

I inflated mine about halfway, 18 inches.

A 36-inch balloon is rather large...

I'm lazy and didn't want to decorate the whole thing but still wanted it to be large enough to make an impact.

You can blow it up to the full size if you prefer.

Cut your newspaper into 1-inch strips.

Cut A LOT because you will need it.

Once your strips are ready to use, create your papier-mache.

Mix 1 part flour to 1 part water until a paste is made, it should be a thick glue-like substance. 

1 and 1/3 cups of each is the amount that worked for me.

You will need to make more or less depending on the size of your balloon.

Dip the strips of newspaper in the paste and slide off any excess with your fingers.
Add the wet strips directly onto the balloon.

To help keep the balloon in place, set it in a box.

Repeat until the balloon is completely covered.

Let dry completely.

I recommend 24 hours but, have gotten away with 12 when I was in a hurry.

Once the first layer is completely dry, apply another layer in the same manner.

Let dry.

Add a third coat to make it extra sturdy.

Let dry.

Once the final layer is completely dry, poke a hole through the papier-mache to deflate the balloon. 

Cut a small flap in the top of the papier-mache, large enough to fit your hand into so you can stuff it with your goodies.

Open the flap and remove the deflated balloon.

Cut long strips of crepe paper.
With the fringe-scissors, fringe one side of the crepe paper leaving about an inch of space at the top to attach to the piñata.

You can fringe the crepe paper with regular scissors as well but, the fringe scissors will save you quite a bit of time.
I'd highly recommend investing in some! 

Starting at the bottom of the piñata, add a layer of the fringed crepe paper.

Use small pieces of tape every few inches to secure into place. 

Continue adding strips of the crepe paper up the piñata until it is entirely covered.

Poke two slits in the top of the piñata and string one end of the silver ribbon through.
Tie the ribbon into a knot on the inside of the piñata.
Repeat with the other ribbon end to create a loop in which to hang the piñata from. 

Open the flap and fill with your goodies.

 Seal the flap with tape.

Hang and enjoy!

I love how this piñata turned out!

The size and metallic silver make it the perfect pop of fun every party needs.

I am planning on using it as decor for our New Years' Eve at home.

It's too pretty (and took too long) to wreck!

Maybe next year?

How are you spending your New Year's Eve?

All my love,

Autumn

From our little fam to yours!

Hello everyone!

Christmas is just a few days away and I can't wait!

It is my favorite holiday.

I thought it would be fun to add a Christmas twist to the popular spring floral crowns and bring them into winter.

And thus this holly crown was born!

You will need:

Holly Stems

Floral Wire

Floral Tape

Wire Cutters

With the wire cutters, cut the holly leaves and berries from the stem, leaving an inch or two of stem at the bottom to wrap around.

With the floral wire, gently measure a crown around the intended wearer's head.
I like to wrap it around twice to create a thicker base to build on.

Cut the wire to size and wrap the ends around the crown wire to secure into place.
Wrap the exposed ends with floral tape.

Add the holly leaves to the crown one at a time by laying them flat against the wire and securing them into place around the stem with floral wire.
Wrap the exposed ends with floral tape to protect your scalp and hair!

Repeat until you have worked your way around the crown or have reached your desired coverage.
Add the berries to the crown with the same method.
I added my berries after every three holly leaves.

Fill in any bare areas with extra leaves or berries.
Wear and enjoy!

Floral crowns are much simpler to make than I originally thought and can be worn for so many different occasions!

I think my nieces would love to wear these holly crowns for all of our Christmas festivities.

I mean, who wouldn't?

What do you think of the floral crown trend?

Love it or hate it?

All my love, 

Autumn

Hello everyone!

Over the weekend my family had its annual progressive dinner.

A progressive dinner is a meal where each course is served at a different house.

The progressive dinner tradition started out with my Dad's family before I was even born!

Now that we are grown we do it within our own little family.

We have four courses; soup, salad, main course and dessert.

This year we started with salad at my sister April's house.

She served it with all the fixings.

And rolls...

Each house always has rolls.

Each house also has a theme and a favor to take home.

Her's was Christmas trees. 

We each left with a beautiful distressed aluminim Christmas tree. 

After her house, we headed to my parent's for soup.

They served ham and bean soup and beef stew.

Have you ever heard of ham and bean soup?

Cause we sure hadn't!

Their theme was the nativity.

They had beautiful nativity themed decorations and we each left with a nativity themed ornament. 

After my parent's, it was off to my sister Heather's house for the main course.

Heather lives the furthest away so we try not to make her drive back and forth too much.
So, Erik and I share their house for dessert.

That way they don't have to drive down and up and then down and up again. 

Before heading to her house we made a quick stop at our house to pick up the trifles we made.

Trifles are not the easiest thing to transport...

I ended up holding them on my lap the entire forty-minute drive and am proud to say they made it!

We arrived at Heather's house to a full-blown Christmas cookout.

It was decorated in red and black gingham, we each got a festive mug to drink out of and they served pulled pork sandwiches with mac and cheese and potato casserole.

SO yummy!

We each were given a gingham stocking filled with candy and a gingham sign that read Merry Christmas.

We also got to take our mugs home.

After the main course, Erik and I pulled out our trifles. 

We brought our own plates and napkins to serve them on.

Our favors were whisks with instant pudding, a play on figgy pudding.

It was such a fun evening and I can't believe another year has come and gone.

I am already counting down the days till next year!

Have you ever attended a progressive dinner?

All my love,

Autumn

Hello everyone!

Today is my family's annual progressive dinner, a Christmas tradition we have done for years.

A progressive dinner is a meal where each course is served at a different house.

This year Erik and I were in charge of dessert.

I always try to come up with somewhat original ideas for our theme.
I thought a play on figgy pudding would be fun.

I have never seen or eaten figgy pudding.

The only reason I know that it exists is because of the song "We wish you a Merry Christmas."

Also, if chocolate is not involved in the dessert my family will riot, myself included. 😉

So, I thought a chocolate trifle would be the way to go.

It's English and includes pudding (like the song!) and I included cake (and brownies!) like an actual figgy pudding. 

I also wanted to include some Christmas flavor for those who were interested so, I decided to make two different trifles.

Chocolate Raspberry Trifle

You will need:

Brownies, Cut into 1-inch squares

Instant Chocolate Pudding

Raspberries

Whipped Cream

Prepare the pudding according to the directions on the box.

Refrigerate until ready to use.

Place half of the brownie pieces on the bottom of a trifle dish.

Add a layer of chocolate pudding on top.

Add a layer of raspberries.

Add a layer of whipped cream.

Repeat the layers.

Brownie, pudding, raspberries and whipped cream.

Chill for one hour before serving.

Enjoy!

Vanilla Orange Cranberry Trifle

You will need:

White Cake, cut into 1-inch squares

12 Ounces of Fresh Cranberries

1 and 1/4 Cups of Sugar

1 Cup of Orange Juice

1 Teaspoon of Orange Zest
Instant Vanilla Pudding
Whipped Cream

Prepare the cranberry filling.

In a medium saucepan, add the cranberries, sugar, orange juice and orange zest.

Cook on medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until it reaches a boil.

Once it has reached a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until all of the cranberries pop, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Set aside to cool and thicken.

Prepare the pudding according to the directions on the box.

Refrigerate until ready to usee.

Place half of the cake pieces on the bottom of a trifle dish.

Add a layer of vanilla pudding on top.

Add a layer of cranberry filling.

Add a layer of whipped cream.

Repeat the layers.

Cake, pudding, cranberry filling, whipped cream.

Chill for one hour before serving.

Enjoy!

I love trifles!
They are easy to make and act as a decoration with all of their pretty layers displayed.
The best part is that you can use all premade ingredients or make it all from scratch if you desire.
I went with homemade cake and brownies and instant pudding for ours.

But, you can use premade cake and brownies or make your pudding from scratch.
It's up to you how simple or sophisticated you want to go!

We usually include favors for each member of the family to take home that goes with the theme of our meal.

This year, I grabbed some fun festive red whisks from Target and stuck a box of instant chocolate pudding inside.

I then added tags that said "We "whisk" you a Merry Christmas!"



and "Oh, bring us some figgy chocolate pudding!" to tie it into the theme.

These were such quick and inexpensive favors.


I am so excited to present these to my family tonight and enjoy another year of progressive dinner together.
What are some of your family's holiday traditions?

All my love,
Autumn