School is back in session and I am becoming more and more busy.  Therefore, I am going to take a break from blogging for a while and concentrate on my personal, professional, and educational lives.

Whenever I think of the fall, I think of winter squash, more specifically butternut squash, sweet potatoes and turkey.  We received butternut squash in our co-op box this week.  We love fresh vegetables and we can not eat them fast enough before they go bad; therefore we freeze most of  the ones we receive.  Below is how you do a step by step on how to freeze butternut squash.

1. Turn your oven on to 350F.

2. Cut the stem off of the butternut squash.

3. Cut down the center of the squash.

4. Take a tablespoon and scoop out all of the seeds and pulp.

5. Place on a cookie sheet.

6. Place the cookie sheet into the oven for one hour.

7. Take cookie sheet out of oven, let the squash cool off

8. If you want to puree, take a spoon and scoop out squash into blender and puree (I placed in a food processor).  Then place into ziploc bags and freeze

9. If you want to keep in chunks, take a knife, cut squash into sections, peel off skin, and place back onto the cookie sheet.  Once onto the cookie sheet, place into freeze, freeze chunks.  After a while, place the frozen chunks into a ziploc bag, label and place back into the freezer.  This will allow you to have frozen chunks of butternut squash without them being stuck together.

It is finally September, but the weather still feels like summer.  I can’t wait until I am able to crack out more sweaters and jeans!  I am very much of a jean person.  Big Surprise there!   This outfit was designed to get me into the fall or autumn spirit without making me so utterly hot when outside.

One of my biggest down falls is lack of accessories.  I am still trying to work with them and gain new perspective of using them in outfits.  I bought this necklace at JcPenney’s on the clearance rack.  It definitely adds a little something to the whole outfit.

Shirt: One Clothing via Ross

Sweater: Target

Shorts: EBay

Sandals: Rainbows

Necklace: JcPenney

P.S. This is actually an outfit I wore yesterday!

I have noticed I am wearing a lot of black.  I didn’t even realize until recently that I had that many black items of clothing, but apparently I do.  I continue to try to work my closet to get the most potential out of items; however, I am still struggling trying to get the perfect combination.  I guess that coincides with my difficulty of trying to figure out what is my true style.  I do know I love to be comfortable, no matter what I am wearing.

Cami: Target

Shirt: Old Navy, hand me down from sister

Skirt: TJ Maxx

Cardigan: ANA via Kohls (I do get cold easily)

Shoes: Rebel via Marshalls

I loved RED SKIN POTATOES!  I do not know how to put it any other way.  Growing up my mom would slice them into pieces, place a whole bunch of spices on them and bake them in the oven.  It was the most delicious stuff every and a great break from other vegetables (even though red skin potatoes are mostly starch)!  For my version of the oven roasted red skin potatoes I took two pounds of potatoes, washed, cut and placed into a gallon ziploc bag.  I then added the following:

- 1 package of dry onion soup mix

- 1 teaspoon of Cajun seasoning

- 1/3 cup of olive oil

I mixed all of the ingredients together and placed into a 9 by 13 glass baking dish.  I cooked for 20 minutes and then took a spoon and turned over the potatoes.  I placed the dish back into the oven and cook for an additional twenty minutes.    Finally the potatoes are done and ready to eat!

Note: Next time I will probably not add so much olive oil and use a little bit of Pam Cooking Spray instead! (Man, I feel like an ad!)

I am beginning to work more weekends, so the hubby and I only have one true day together.  It is usually when we go to church and to the farmer’s market.  On Sunday, the hubby and I went to church, followed by a visit to the farmer’s market.  It was our first visit out there and we wanted to see the amount of produce we could get for $22 dollars, $27 if we bought meat. We actually did very well.  We bought three tomatoes, three potatoes, six red potatoes, two cucumbers, two yellow onions, five peaches, half pound of mushrooms, a pint of lima beans or butter beans, a thing of bacon and a thing of country ham.  We actually spent $25 and $8 of it was on the meat.  The rest of the day was spent being lazy and doing stuff around the house!

Shirt: Hanes: CVS: $2.50

Vest: Tulle

Jeans: Guess via Ross

Shoes: MIA via DSW

Earrings: Target

Necklace: I made

As a nurse, I really only live in scrubs and jeans.  This blog was designed to help me improve what I wore and ensure myself that I would get out of sweats on my days off.  By no means did I want to look like the stereotypical mom before I was a mom.  Over the last few months, I have taken on my roles at work and have to go in on my days off.  This causes me to have to wear business casual due to our dress code at work.  The challenge of this is that my hubby and I are on a strict budget to try to pay off all of our debt, except our mortgage; therefore, eliminating a clothing budget.  At times I still struggle with this challenge.

Here is what I came up with for a business meeting at work:

Dress: New York & Co.: I know I got this on sale and it was worth paying a dry cleaning fee

Shirt/Jacket: Gap via Goodwill $3

Belt: Target: Can’t remember how much, I bought it early in my college career and pretty sure I paid full price for it

Shoes: Nine West: $20

Earrings: Target: $8

I know, I know. Fries could never be healthy, but these aren’t actually too bad for you.  The hubby and I are part of a co-op type program with a local farmer, where we receive produce on a weekly basis.  A week or so ago, we received sweet potatoes.  One of my most FAVORITE things in the world are sweet potato fries, so of course, I had to make them myself.

I first preheated the oven to 475 degrees. Then, I cleaned and cut two medium sized sweet potatoes into strips.  Afterward, I placed them into a bowl, mixed with a tablespoon of olive oil, which is way too much, sprinkled garlic powder, rosemary and crushed red pepper into the bowl.  Next, I mixed all of the ingredients together.  Lastly, I placed the fries on top of a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and placed the pan in the oven.  I baked the fries for 13 minutes, flipped them over and baked for another 13 minutes.

Voila!  They are done.  To add some substance, I paired the fries with a small salad.  It was delicious!

A day off is such a wonderful thing and today, I get to spend it with my mom!  YAY!  We, of course, have to go to one of her doctor’s appointments, but I truly enjoy her company.  I needed something versatile for the cool air inside, but the heat wave outside.  This outfit was a pretty good mix.  I have noticed lately that I have been wearing a lot of black, most of the pictures aren’t posted.  It is kind of interesting to see the change in my color palette the last few months.

Shirt: Kohls

Cardigan: Alloy

Jeans: Target

Shoes: Rebel via Marshalls: $20

Most of the clothes in this outfit are too old for me to remember how much I paid for them. However, I am pretty sure that the cardigan was only $7-15, shirt was $5-10 and the jeans were most likely around $10-15.  So at most this outfit was $60.  Also, I really need to beef up my accessories! They could either make or break the outfit!

I will be back in graduate school in a mere few days.  Tea makes me feel calm and collected.  This picture is by TMI Creations is called Morning Mirage and it could be found here.  Even though I am a bit anxious about a new semester, I will be getting into my program classes and am very excited about learning the material.  The best part is that it will help me improve in my current job.    Hope you enjoy!

This outfit would be perfect for mid-afternoon study break, which of course could include tea.

Top: Ruche: The Sweet Scent of Summer Floral Top

Jeans:  Target: Slouchy Skinnies

Clogs: Go Jane: Leatherette Peep Toe Cork Wedge

Necklace: Etsy: ERMorginials: Locket Love-Flight Trio-Royal Blue

Bag: Forever 21: Supple Leatherette Shoulder Bag

P.S. Too bad the shirt/top is almost sold out!