Homemade Butterfingers

I have a serious sweet tooth. It's kind of a problem. When I found this recipe on Pinterest, I knew it was one I had to try for myself. It's originally from this blog.

The great thing about this recipe is that it has only three ingredients: chocolate, peanut butter, and candy corn. You heard me right... CANDY CORN!

Apparently when melted candy corn and peanut butter are mixed together something magical happens.

Ingredients:
1 lb. candy corm
16 oz. peanut butter
16 oz. chocolate candy coating

Melt the candy corn in the microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir and heat again at 15 second intervals until completely melted.

{in case you were wondering, this is what melted candy corn looks like. interesting...}

Stir in peanut butter. I'll warn you; this part takes some elbow grease. I found it helped to mix as much as I could, put in the microwave for 10-15 seconds, then mix again.

{don't let the appearance fool you. it's delish}

Now the recipe said to spread the mixture in a 8x8 dish covered in parchment paper. However, I found it easier to use a rolling pin on wax paper and flatten it out sugar cookie style.

Let cool completely. I stuck mine in the refrigerator for a few minutes to speed up the cooling process. Cut into squares.

Dip each square into melted chocolate. I used Baker's Dipping Chocolate because it's super easy for dippin' stuffs in it.

{i never said it wasn't messy.}

I have no idea how to cover the whole square in chocolate. In order to make sure there is a bit-o-chocolate in every bite, I drizzled extra chocolate over each piece. Big grin, eyebrow wiggle.

I did this by filling a ziploc bag with melted chocolate, cutting the corner out, and going to town. If you're fancy you could use a piping bag. But I'm not fancy.

TA-DAAA!!

I'll be taking these to work tomorrow to prevent scarfing down the whole batch myself.



The Self-Portrait

If you've been around for any period of time you know that Lee Rambo is a fan of the self-portrait. My camera has captured many a head-shot documenting formals, beach trips, and nights with friends. I love loading pictures onto my computer and finding a self-portrait of Lee cheesin' that I didn't know existed. Over the years, these pictures have become some of my favorites and only add to the long list of reasons I love spending time with this boy.

I think this tradition started at my Alpha Omicron Pi pledge formal Fall 2006. I have a self-portrait to document almost every formal we attended in college. These are some of my favorites...

{the one that started it all}

{bus trip to columbus, ga spring 2008}

{he was obviously slacking on his date/boyfriend duties by neglecting to take a picture of me and my lovely friends. instead we got this.}

{10 points for creativity}

{handsome devil.}

Our many beach trips were not left out of the self-portrait club...

{diggin' the hat, dude}

{spring break 2009. not sure who the peace sign photo bomb belongs to.}

...Nor were the Auburn games. WAR EAGLE!!!

{unfortunate finger placement}

{nice job capturing some of our unexpecting tailgate guests}

{8 points for artistic use of space}

Sometimes friends join in on the self-portrait sessions.

{lee and carlie. there are no words.}

And while this last photo isn't technically a self-portrait, I think you'll agree with me on my decision to include it in this post.

{i'm unbelievably happy this picture is in existence. it really does my heart good}

I hope you enjoyed my selection of self-portraits from the one and only Lee Rambo. There are more where these came from and I can assure you there will be more to come. I'm pretty sure Lee has never read my blog, but I hope he knows how happy these pictures make me.

Until next time...

Smoky Corn Chowder

One of my favorite cold-weather meals is my mom's corn chowder. It has a warmth that's good for the soul and a thickness that sticks to the bones. I needed a taste of home on this chilly Sunday in October, and decided corn chowder was just the ticket.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup chopped onion

4 Tbsp margarine

1/4 cup flour

1 1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

4 cups milk

2 cans whole kernel corn, drained

1/2 pkg little smokies sausages, sliced

4 oz Velveeta cheese, cubed

Saute onion in margarine until tender, but not brown.



Stir in flour, salt, and pepper.

Add milk.





Bring to a boil, stirring constantly until thick and bubbly.

Stir in cheese, sausage, and corn.



 Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

This is a very easy recipe and took a total of 30 minutes to prepare. I actually used turkey sausage little smokies this time and it turned out great. I guess that's the nutritionist in me coming out!

.

Encouraging Words

Sometimes we all need words of encouragement; other times we are presented with the opportunity to offer these encouraging words.

As a recent college grad, I often feel like I need encouragement more than I am able to provide it. Like many others, my college graduation brought major transitions and high stress situations. Upon moving away and starting a new job, every day felt like a battle for survival. Just when I would start to relax, I realized I had to wake up and start it all over again the next day. In addition to feeling like an incompetent fool at my first big-girl job, I also struggled with feelings of sadness and loneliness over leaving my friends and family.

Some of the most encouraging words came from my sweet friend, Mallory. While all of my friends offered me support, most were still living in Auburn when I moved to Milledgeville. Mallory, on the other hand, had recently moved to New York City. I was able to confide in her and found such comfort knowing that these feelings were not out of the ordinary. She was able to offer me affirmation and helped me realize that eventually things would get easier...

...and they did.

Over the past few months, other friends have graduated, moved away, started jobs, and started grad school. They have come to me with some of the same concerns I took to Mallory. I find joy in being able to help them through their insecurities by offering them encouragement and hope.

I don't think we ever outgrow needing help from our family and friends. For every good day, there is sure to be a hard day in the future. But the encouragement we receive in the hard times helps us to offer the same comfort to others.

I leave you with this email I recently received entitled "just a little enouragement":

Hey bestiepants.

This is my personal stash of encouragement. I have it in hard copy and carry it in a folder with me everywhere.

2 Timothy 1:7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity and fear but a spirit of power love and self discipline.

Psalm 37:4 delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Isaiah 40:31 they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

2 Corinthians 12:9 my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.

Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

Colossians 3:23-24 whatever I do, I must work at it with all my heart. I am working for the Lord, not for men. I know that I will receive an inheritance from the Lord as my reward. It is the Lord Christ I am serving.

Philippians 3:13-14 but one thing I do; forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus.

2 corinthians 4:17-18 for our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. so we fic our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen. for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Corinthians 3:18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Best friend- print this out and meditate on it daily. These verses are my go to when I'm blue. Trust in His goodness even when things feel dark.
Love you.
Mal

{me and mal- when we were babies}

Holy Cow!

This little guy makes my coffee yummy and puts a smile on my face every morning.



I first saw him on Pioneer Woman and thought he was just the cutest thing. My sweet mom surprised me with a cow creamer of my very own! She found them at Pier One Imports on sale for $3.99! I know what all my friends are getting for Christmas this year. 

I'm just glad the cream pours out of the front-end if ya get my drift.

 Later Gators.

Pardon my absence...

Two days after I started blogging, my computer bit the dust. I'm talking no power what-so-ever. Good news is I now have a plethora of posts filed away in the blog portion of my brain and I'm not anticipating another hiatus any time soon. I'm here to stay.

Over the past couple of weeks I have had constant reminders of my need to rely on God's perfect timing. I tend to try to plan out every detail of my life and get disappointed when things don't go according to my plan. While it's healthy to set goals and look to the future, obsessing over how and when events in my life will transpire can be detrimental. I was served a rather large piece of humble pie recently that reminded me that only God knows what the future holds. I am working on surrendering my worry and trusting in God's perfect timing.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34

On a completely unrelated note, I'm really diggin' this tunage. I think the lyrics are kinda genius and the chorus is just so darn catchy. My fondness for this song may or may not have something to do with Adam Levine. Holla.