S'mores

A lot of people seem to think that s'mores are a summer thing but I think they are a fall thing. There's nothing better than heat from a fire to warm the cold air. 

I went camping last weekend and well when you camp you need to pack a lot. By using these cookies for s'mores I didn't have to take both graham crackers and chocolate. 

I know it didn't save that much room in my bag but these cookies just taste amazing with a marshmallow in the middle. 

These ones just happen to be dark chocolate but the milk chocolate ones are really good too. 

It's a fun spin on s'mores and the cookies make them extra chocolatey because each cookie has chocolate on it. 

It's just a fun thing to try :)

Pioneer Woman

It's no secret I like the pioneer woman. I post a lot of her recipes that I have tried.

Well today at 6am I woke up and headed out for a three hour drive to eventually meet her at 6pm. It's been a long day.

I rushed to the Barnes and noble to get a wrist band then I went to grab something to eat. And I dug into it to find a sticker still on one of the vegetables.... Yuck! 

Then I decided to go try to find some nail polish in the mall and I went to sephora. Well someone didnt put the lid back on one of the testers and I went to pick it up and purple nail polish went all over my favorite lucchese cowboy boots! I cried right there and I'm pretty sure the irks working there thought I was a nut for crying over a pair of boots. They probably thought I got them at Payless. 

However, I did get it pretty much off with nail polish remover And then I threw on some saddle soap. 

After shot- looks pretty good compared to what it looked like before the clean up.

Oh yeah and I got a cold sore. I haven't had one in months. 

Oh yeah and after I got there my momma and sister decide to be like I can't believe you wore that to meet pioneer woman. 

You tell me this now!?!? Ah 

Is it that bad???

Oh yeah did I mention that the nail polish fiasco of 2013 ruined my favorite jeans?? Shucks it was a bad day! 

I don't know what I was doing looking at purple nail polish anyway. I had no business being there. 

In the end the day wasn't half bad... Just kidding it was great! 

Ree is hilarious but if you have read her book you already know that. I can't believe I met pioneer woman it's practically a blur to me. 

Store Open Baking Ingredients In Jars

I don't like open bags of half used coconut and brown sugar. The same goes with opened boxes of powdered sugar and packages of almond bark and bakers chocolate. I like everything sealed and I also like everything pretty. 

I mostly use mason jars but I also save my marmalade jars for smaller things like cocoa powder. 

It's pretty and organized. 

I also recently rounded up my cupcake wrappers and stacked them in a jar. So pretty! 

I find satisfaction in weird places.. :) 

Southern Party Planning

Puttin' on the Grit's is a guide to southern entertaining. I saw this book. Few years ago at a used book store and I didn't get it. I don't know why. I went back a few days later but it was no where to be found. I finally ordered it online and I can't believe I went all this time without having this book. I love it.

My favorite part of this book would have to be the excuses to have a party. The book lists occasions for each month but it includes fun days most people wouldn't even think of. 

Another thing I like is that the book not only tells you how to be a good host or hostess but also how to be a good guest. 

And of course it includes Awesome tips and recipes! 

The BEST Honey in the World!

I am sick and that can only mean one thing. HONEY. 

I like to think I have tried a lot of honey in my life. I remember going to little farm markets and my sister and cousins would always get those straws full of honey. I would get one and then remember I didn't like honey. 

But it turns out I just hadn't had the right honey. Kind of how you don't know love until you have actually had it. I didn't know honey. 

We Bee Brothers Homestead Honey is the only honey I will eat. Yes, it's Northern honey. The North has some delicious things too! 

http://www.webeebrothers.com/

--- I am a lemon snob. I need fresh lemon in my tea but this morning I couldn't ind any. I ran around looking for the yucky stuff in the bottle but I couldn't find that either. I reluctantly took a sip of my tea with just sugar and honey but wow it was really good! This honey saved my tea.

Reusable Bags

So my friend saw this at Barnes and Noble and picked it up for me. I love it! I first used it when I went to help set up for a party because it was big enough to hold everything I needed and it was pretty distinct and I knew it wouldn't get lost in the chaos. Ever since that day I have been taking it everywhere. 

I thought about the sad day when it would get a hole in it so I went out and bought five more. They are $1.99 and they have all different books but of course this is my favorite :) 

Peanuts and Coke

For all y'all living in a Southern Belle State of Mind somewhere out in no-man's land like I am let me share with you a wonderful southern treat :) 

I had a longggggg hard day and when I got home I decided to treat myself to this coke. Look closely it has peanuts in it! Salty an sweet and so good :) 

It sounds weird to a lot if people I know. They all look at me funny but they are really missing out! You have to try this :)

Pistol Annies

The Pistol Annies episode of Say Yes to the Dress is on and it's got me wondering why I didn't post about them already. 

The Pistol Annies is my favorite band! They have an amazing sound I just can't help but love. And dare I say that their second album may be even better than their first? 

Wait it gets better its just three girls three guitars and three chords! Pretty much every song they write is just three chords and so easy to play! I love playing their music. 

Seriously check then out of you haven't already. I always say I love country music because the boys sing about love and the girls sing about kickin ass. These girls haven't let me down yet. They tell it like it is and I love them for it :) 

While you're at it check out Hippie Annie's solo album called Like a Rose! It's amazing and you might even recognize a song she wrote that was featured on the tv show Nashville! 

Saddle Soap

When I traveled to Boston I got stuck in a blizzard. Wait it gets worse. My trusty Justin boots got salt from the streets on them. I rushed into a restroom and tried to wash it off. The leather looked dried out and my heart sank. When I got home my mom showed me this saddle soap and it is amazing. It fixed my boots and I didn't even put it in right away it was after I got home about a week after the disaster. Gotta love this stuff :)

Glamping with Mary Jane

It finally came! 

When I was growing up my grandparents had a trailer. It was amazing! Anyone who has ever spent any time in a trailer knows that it's a great way of life. 

After they sold the trailer I went years and years without even seeing the camp site we used to be at. 

I just went to see it and my Grandpop has rented cabins at the campground we used to stay at. I am beyond excited and used this as an excuse to order this book I have been wanting online. 

It is better than I expected! 

I really don't want to spoil it for y'all so just trust me its worth every penny it's got everything from picking a trailer to a full blown airstream restoration to how to what tools you'll need for any little bump in the road to recipes and crafts :)

Step-By-Step Cooking

This cookbook is the best! Each recipe is broken down and Pioneer Woman shows pictures of each step to make it even easier. You can't mess these recipes up! And they taste amazing too. 

When I need to make something for someone other than myself I always go to this book because I know it will be good. 

I have tons of cookbooks but this is the only one I use. I just pre-ordered her holiday cookbook that is coming out at the end of October; I can't wait! 

Check this book out it is totally worth it! 

Moon Pies

If you think you love Moon Pies just wait until you try this one. These crunchy peanut butter Moon Pies are almost heaven. Around here they are hard to come by so when I see them I stock up. They too good to describe you really have to try one for yourself. 

I haven't been able to find them in any market. I have only seen them in some stores in Nashville and at Cracker Barrel.

They also sell them online :) 

SO YUMMY! 

These Belles Can Sing

Two of my favorite musicians are Ashley Monroe (member of the fabulous Pistol Annies) and Kacey Musgraves. 

Both girls are incredibly talented and I can listen to their albums on repeat all day long. 

The weird thing is none if my friends have heard of them and I really don't ever hear them on the radio. What a crime! 

Seriously if you don't own these albums get then now! 

Ashley's is only $7 at Walmart and Kacey's is only $10 

Check it out! 

Tervis

I have had my share of travel mugs over the years but our relationships never lasted very long. 

But then one day my momma handed me the best tea I had ever tasted. I asked how she mad it so good and she said a sunkist lemon, organic sugar and good American plastic. 

She loves her tervis... All ten of them.

And now so do I. 

They are MADE IN AMERICA! I shouldn't have to say anything else but just incase y'all need more convincing: they come in all kinds of kinds. 

I have a fiesta one. I love love love fiesta ware so it had to be my first tervis. 

My latest addition was a lodge one: you know like those cast iron pans we all love so much.

But they also have Tommy Bahama, Real Tree, Margaritaville, Duck Dynasty and so many more! 

Y'all Gotta try one of these! 

Oh yeah there's a lifetime warranty!

Yes that is a diner booth in my kitchen and I love it! It's the best decision we ever made.

My Favorite Book

Black Heels to Tractor Wheels may be my favorite book of all time. It is the love story of Ree Drummond aka The Pioneer Woman and her ranching cowboy husband. The book spans from the day they met to her experience of having a first child. 

Black Heels to Tractor Wheel is so good that I slowly rationed out the chapters not wanting it to end. 

When I finished this book I wanted to flip right back to the first page and start over again. I had never laughed out loud while reading a book before and I was not ready for it to end.

If you like love stories, cowboys and cooking (recipes included in the back of the book) this book is for you. If you are being faced with a tough decision in your life or you already have, this is the book for you. Or if you just like to laugh this is the book for you. I cannot imagine anyone not liking this book.

I believe you can read the first few pages on barnesandnoble.com so go check it out. :D 

---> the book is beautiful too! When I took it on a weekend getaway I left the dust jacket at home and when my friends saw the cover of the book they assumed it was my journal. When I found this out I had to open it up and show them the flowered pages inside. They had never seen anything like it.

Visit Pioneer Woman's Blog 

http://thepioneerwoman.com/

It's a State of Mind

It does not matter whether you live North, South, East or West, being a Southern Belle is a state of mind.

When I turned six years old all I wanted for my Birthday was a strand of pearls.

I have been told more than once that I am overdressed and that I "dress too classy." What!? There is no occasion in which, Lilly Pulitzer is not appropriate. "Life's a party. Dress like it."-Lilly Pulitzer.

People starred at me when I showed up to prom in a dress fit for Scarlett O'Hara.

I am often asked how many pairs of cowboy boots I own.

I live in a place where tea comes unsweetened and barbecue sauce costs extra.

I am in a Southern Belle State of Mind just trying to survive.