Soup Inspo because it’s Fall

I know I may be a little late buuut…

Happy fall everyone!

Did you know it’s my favorite time of year? The weather is perfect- I love that midrange of temperatures. It’s the time of year when I get to pull out my forty gazillion jackets and give them enough wear to justify the amount of space they take up in my wardrobe. It’s also campfire season, yet another added bonus. I’m an avid loved of s’mores, marshmallows, and the oh-so-good smokey smell.

You want to know what else I love about the weather getting chilly? The appeal of soup increasing by 100%.

Don’t get me wrong, I adore soup normally however, my love only grows when it’s nippy outside and I’ve got a steaming bowl of yummy in front of me. I could have soup all week.

So, in the spirit of fall, I wanted to share some of my favorite soup recommendations with you guys! I know this it totally different from my regular types of post and is more reminiscent of what you’d find on a lifestyle and cooking blog but I can’t help myself. I simply must share the deliciousness of these soups with the world!

Or at least… the five of you who are out there reading this post!

Tomato Basil

I adore tomato soup.

Strangely enough, as a kid, I hated tomatoes but tomato soup? I could eat that stuff for three meals a day. I had a sort of ritual when I ate them too- I’d eat them with ten saltine crackers and would often crunch up the crackers into the soup itself to give it a little crunch. Now this wasn’t always the best idea as halfway through the cracker chunks would become super mushy but my 7-year-old self would not be deterred and persisted in doing this.

Now, while I’m saying it’s not the best way to eat it, Tomato Basil soup still is kind of the bomb, cracker chunks or no cracker chunks.

Zuppa Toscana

My friend. If you have not had this soup, then I implore you to look up a recipe and try it soon. I didn’t even know this soup existed till I worked at a tea shop here in the deep south and they introduced it as one of our soup specials.

And ya’ll.

It. Is. Immaculate.

It’s creamy, has kale but doesn’t taste like it has kale, has a nice zing of Italian sausage, and smells heavenly. This soup can also be enjoyed with saltines which is definitely an added bonus.  Please give it a shot if you haven’t tried it already.

Southwest Chicken Soup

For those of us who are Mexican food type people. I love this soup because it tastes amazing, especially when you add an ungodly amount of cheese and maybe even some fritos if you’re feeling spunky. This soup is a solid go-to for my family because it can also be an easy crock-pot recipe.

Loaded Potato Soup

Friends, I must admit, my favorite vegetable is actually not a vegetable but a root. But you must admit, potatoes are quite a blessing that frankly I don’t think humanity deserves, but by the grace of God we have ‘em anyways. And I can’t tell you how much I love my starches. And if you love them too, I guarantee you’re going to love this soup. Or if you just love bacon. This is one of the few soups that you can get away with adding obscene amount of bacon too and it’s still good to eat!

This soup is kind of reminiscent of a loaded potato (as the title may suggest) in addition to being super creamy. I’ve had it a couple times and once while I was sick, and it felt amazing on my scratchy throat. Though one thing I can promise you, if you’re a potato girl, you will enjoy this soup both in sickness and in health.

Beef Stew

Okay, yes, technically this is a stew, but they aren’t that different right? At least, according to google… and you’re not calling google a liar, are you?

Either way, this stuff hits the spot during cold weather, and I’d be ashamed to not include it on the list seeing as how growing up, it was my favorite liquid-based meal (I’m just trying to avoid saying “stew and “soup” now if you can’t tell).

Stick this stuff in a crock pot and let it summer over the course of the day and you will come home to the most glorious of smells.

I personally recommend making fresh bread to go with along with this meal, especially if you have a bread machine so you can avoid the hassle of having to time it to where both things are ready and warm at the same time.

Either way though, bread or no bread, I think Beef Stew is one of God’s great blessings and it’s no wonder humanity has been making stews for goodness knows how long.

And I think that’s it! Those are my favorites anyways. I hope I’ve made you thoroughly hungry, so you feel compelled to quench it with steaming bowl of soup. You’re welcome!

See you readers!

Things to Romanticize

A list I began for no reason and will probably continue. I just want to fall in love with the mundane again. It’s all in the little things I suppose.

Car Rides

The sleepy feeling of driving at night with someone you trust. Chill music playing in the background. Street lights whizzing by in the dark. The green glow of the radio controls.

Letters

Pen and ink. The wonderful scratching sound of writing on parchment. Being unnecessarily fancy. Writing in cursive. Talking about the weather and how much you miss them.

Elevator Rides

You feel busy and important but not so much so that you’re above smiling at those who get in the elevator with you. The little compliments you offer your temporary traveling companions. A shared moment of quiet in everyone’s day as the chime sounds after each floor.

Freshly baked bread

The smell filling the house. Soft butter. Soup. Cold, wet weather.

Lightning bugs

The smell of fresh July air. Mason jars. Contests between siblings to see who can catch the most,

Sun Rises

Being up and about before everyone else. Quiet time. Reading as you watch the world wake. A misty blanket which slowly lifts.

Lace curtains

Rays of sunshine streaming through. Patterned shadows being cast on the opposite wall. Quaint and homey.

Dabbling in many different hobbies

Who knows what you’re into this week. Fast paced. Knowing a little bit of everything. Endless possibilities. The joy of learning for the sake of learning.

Hand written notes (the handwriting doesn’t have to be perfect)

Personal. Gratitude for everyone in a small way. Smudged letters that reveal a message that has that person floating the rest of their day.

Moths

Flitting around light. Patterned wings. Night butterflies.

Recommended Drinks for Writing

Admittedly, writing can be hard sometimes and on bad days, a little exhausting. That’s one reason I like to have something to sip on sitting on my desk while I work. It generally helps me focus and takes away an excuse for me to get up and break my writing streak. So, here’s a little list I’ve made of best drinks for writers. Enjoy!

Turmeric Lattes

So, Confession, I really didn’t know what turmeric was until I was searching for good drink options for me to sip on while writing my book. However, upon research, I found that turmeric was a spice, closely related to ginger, that has brain boosting effects. One of the many ways you can consume this spice is by means of a latte which considering how much I love creamy and hot drinks, I’m all for.

Link to a Turmeric Latte Recipe is here

Blue Berry Juice or Blue Berry Smoothies

Second confession, I don’t like blue berries. However, blue berries are filled with polyphenol which is a brain boosting chemical that can aid you when writing. Plus, they’re relatively healthy!

Tea

Specifically ones that help with concentration and focus. This includes Matcha, Peppermint, and Ginger. Or, more broadly, Black and Green Teas.

Coffee

This is a pretty obvious pick considering the nice little caffeine rush coffee offers. Not to mention there’s nothing more comforting than cupping your hands round a warm, steaming mug of coffee as you work on your latest writing project or book.

Chocolate Milk or Hot Chocolate

I really like the science behind this. Did you know that it has been shown that chocolate increase blood flow to your brain? I think this is a very fun fact, especially considering I’m going to be eating and drinking chocolate regardless of whether or not its beneficial to my focus.

Lemonade

Another great option! Lemons have been shown to boost your brain function and lemonade can also help hydrate you much better than say a soft drink or coffee.

Things to do When you Just Don’t feel like Yourself

Is it just me, or are there days where you don’t feel anything? Maybe I’m weird but I feel like some days I’m completely out of touch. I’m uncreative, unpassionate, and, sometimes, unhappy. I don’t feel like myself. I wish I could say this funk passes, but sometimes I can go a solid week just… not feeling myself? Maybe it’s burnout, maybe it’s just emotional bleh, but either way, here are a few things that I do to feel like myself again. Maybe, if you feel this way sometimes perchance, they can help you too?

So, If you’re not feeling like yourself , try some of these things.

Go for a walk or a drive. Roll down the windows and listen to the wind. Get lost in nature. 

Listen to your favorite music. Listen to old music. Listen to your childhood favorites. Get lost in the sound pulsing through your head. 

Exercise real hard for like half an hour to a full hour and then take a looong hot shower or even a bath. The exercise will boost your endorphins and the shower will make you feel satisified and squeaky clean.

Read your favorite book. Remember what it was like reading it for the first time? Get lost with the characters and love them till the end. 

Pick yourself some flowers. Got lost in the way they sweetly smell and brighten up your room. 

Cuddle something. This can be a stuffed animal, a pet, or, if you have a designated cuddle human (apparently that’s what I’m calling significant other’s now?), a person.

Write something. A story. A letter. Anything. Get lost in the words and the way they tumble onto the page. 

Look up at the stars or watch a sunset. Get lost in the colors.

Open a window or something. Fresh air does wonders. I don’t think any candle or air freshener in the world could ever replicate the smell of crisp air.

Collect shiny things, little things that make you smile and put them in a jar. I know this sounds weird, and almost Crow like, but for me personally, I get joy from little things.

Remember, to find yourself, you might have to get lost a little bit, often in the little things. And that’s alright. Perhaps that’s why the little things are there in the first place.

My Personal Movie Bucket List

I’ve had quite a bit of time to think on this due to social distancing. Yay! So here we go if anyone cares. Maybe you can get a little inspiration for your own movie bucket list.

My Movie Bucket List~

1. The Mr Rogers movie 

Mr Rogers is actually something I grew up on (I’m way to young) but but my mother did. And she, in turn, shared it with me. I’ve also listened to his biography audio book which made me love him even more.

2. Knives out. 

A murder msyerty! Why not? I hear its wonderfully twisted. Sign me up!

3. Probably a couple of marvel movies.

Not exactly sure which ones. Ideally, I’d love to watch them in order but we’ll see. But whatever it is, I’d be starting from scratch.

4. The live action Disney movies (minus maybe the lion king because I just really have no desire. Literally looks like a National Geographic documentary)

5. The Harry Potter movies in order. (I’ve watched most of them but only as a kid/middle schooler so I’m sure stuff went over my head and I really want to appreciate the story now that I’m older)

6. Up

Because I wanna cry.

7. The fourth toy story.

This one is sort of killing me because I grew up one Toy Story. Hopefully it’ll come available at our library soon.

And Also because I wanna cry.

8. Frozen 2 if I get the chance, simply for curiosity’s sake. 

9. And maybe the third how to train your dragon because I loved the first, was okay with the second, so I feel like I need to finish them. 

10. And finally, the Disney Star Wars movies, also for curiosity’s sake due to that fact that I grew up watching the earlier ones. 

11. Little Women, by the suggestion of a friend.

12. Inception

13. A Quiet Place

And That pretty much covers it. Keep in mind, this list isn’t in priority order. It’s a lot at this point, but hopefully someday I’ll finish it. 

Insults to Keep up your Sleeve Part 2

Because swearing is boring.

1. You Cold Corndog

Listen, corndogs are kind of iffy anyway. Especially the oven made ones. They’re especially bad when they’re soggy and the hot dog and the breading seem to be two totally separate entities with the bread sliding off.

2. You Crusty Toothpaste Tube

You can thank my brother for the inspiration on this one. I mean, does it REALLY take that much of your precious 12 year old boy time to put the dumb tooth paste cap back on the tube???

3. You Goblin

For if you’re feeling real whimisical.

5. You Spork

Because sporks are supposed to do two things but in actuality does neither of them at all. Often like my siblings.

6. Cough Syrup

Lovely, simply because its off the wall but obviously insulting.

7. You greasy door handle

You can just feel this one.

8. Haggis

A Scottish dish consisting of a sheep’s or calf’s offal mixed with suet, oatmeal, and seasoning and boiled in a bag, traditionally one made from the animal’s stomach. And the perfect insult for a not so savory individual.

9. You Limp Lettuce

Because the joys of Alliteration.

Quarantine Bucket List Week 2

Because me and my friends burned through the previous one super fast.

Quarantine bucket list version 2

You can still complete the tasks on the first list. Besides that, same rules as before! Good luck!

A side note: point value is increasing so if you struggled with the last list you still have a chance. Also, you are welcomed to complete any items on the previous list that you haven’t done. These are just in addition to it. 

Another side note: things are getting harder.  

-find out what Disney princess you are from a quiz and share your results (10 points)

– go somewhere and order a kids meal (and if they offer a toy, take it) (50 points)

-send a member a song that reminds you of them. Tell them it’s their theme song. (20 points)

-Dramatically recite/read something for the group. (40 points)

-make a secret handshake (and if you can send a video of it to the group, do so) (30 points)

-find a news article of something interesting that is unrelated to coronavirus and share it with the group (20 points)

-start a blog, and post every day for about 4 or 5 days (im excluding myself from this one as I already own two blogs that I keep up with)(200 points)

-have a photo shoot complete with props and a pretty background and everything and share your photos (preferably through email as photos take up a lot of storage through text) and NONE of you are allowed to say you can’t do this one because you are all beautifully adorable so I don’t even want to hear it (80 points)

-write a story but this time there’s no prompt, just write one. You can do this more than once as long as it exceeds 600 words. (100 points)

-learn to fold a fitted sheet. It has to be neat, tidy, and stackable. (80’points)

-write a letter to your past self (40 points)

-make a short film. Of any kind. Share it with the group. (100 points)

-similar to above, film and choreograph a fight scene. Add epic music. Share it with the group. (150 points)

-design an outfit of sorts. This can be anything from a dress to a super suit to armor. It doesn’t have to be girly. Just experiment with this art medium. (40 points)

-find a fountain and flip a penny into it to make a wish. (40 points)

-have a picnic if the weathers nice. Take pictures and share it with the group (70 points)

-Surprise me. This can be anything. Give me a shock. I just want to be surprised at what you come up with. (100 points)

-find out what flavor of pop tart you are (20 points)

-send people pictures of your cute pets. I expect cuteness to the max.  (15 points)

-draw something cool with chalk and share it (25 points)

-pull an all nighter and document the process (who knows, maybe you can put it in your blog.). This is going to have a high point value because SLEEP IS IMPORTANT YOU NIGHT OWLS. (170 points)

-invent something (80 points)

-build a fort. (80 points)

-wake up before the sun comes up and send us a picture of the sunrise (100 points)

-share your crappiest (or best) pickup line. (20 points)

-have a “pun-off” with someone. Pick a topic and then go back and forth and see who can come up with the most puns revolving around that topic. (40 points for the winner, 20 for the loser). 

-share an embarrassing/funny story with the group. (40 points)

-make a mystery for someone. Be creative. This can be a series of letters left for someone. A scavenger hunt. A text convo where you leave clues to the person as to your identity.  Get creative. If theres anything I want to stress in this game it’s creativity. (100 points)

-choreograph a dance & send it out to everyone. Others also receive points for learning it. (100 points for all parties who participate in this one).

Quarantine Bucket List Game

Intro to the game:

So, a Quarantine game for our friend group. It’s a bucket list of stuff to do over the course of the quarantine with points assigned to each task. Whoever gets the most points wins a huge pack of toilet paper or something.

-Find a pack of toilet paper (a whopping 100 points. Must have selfie of proof though)

-FaceTime another member of the group and complete a get to know you quiz comprised of at least 10 questions. (You can do this multiple times, just with different people) (40 points)

-prankcall another member of the group (30 points)

– make a trailer for the group (50 points)

-write a poem with this friend group as a prompt. (20 points)

-draw a portrait of another member of the group (no cheating-Stick figures are not allowed. Give full effort. Also, seeing as how there are multiple members in the group, I’m willing to let this be completed multiple times) (30 points)

-try a new recipe (double points if you style it like a baking show) (40 points)

-take the enneagram quiz and share your results. (10 points)

-make a playlist and share it. (15 points)

– write a letter and mail it to another member of the group. Double points if it’s in code and they have to crack. The receiver gets 40 points if they crack it. (Normal letter: 20 points, coded: 40 points. I am willing to let this one be done multiples but to different people.)

-Paint something (25 points)

-sprout a plant (50 points, picture required)

-learn a new skill (can be completed multiple times with proof of new skill, worth 20 points per skill)

-write a short story, involving this friend group (must be at least 600 words, and for the sake of fun, I’m willing to let this be completed multiple times. Point worth 25 points per story)

-bomb a member of the group with memes (10 points)

-leave a “secret package” at one of the others members house. (This one is hard so obviously is gonna be worth a lot. 200 points if you leave it personally, 100 if you mail it or get it there another way.)

-make a music video (25 points)

-give code names to all the members of the group and share it (10 points)

Rules and things to remember:

-You have two weeks. 

-Unless otherwise specified, you can do an item only once. 

-You are allowed to team up with People but only on specific tasks. Don’t just dominate everyone. 

-If you get your family to participate you get 10-20 extra points per family member as long as they aren’t participating in the games. 

-You are in charge of keeping track of your own points so be honest my friends 😉

-I suggest copy and pasting this into your phone notes for future use. 

Here’s the tea ☕

Chamomile-

Amazing for winding down and relaxation. Good to drink before bed. Also helps with anxiety, head aches, and bloating. Recommended for those who are stressed. 

Peppermint-

Helps with bloating as well but also combats nausea. Another perk  includes combating bad breath.  

Chai-

For those with crappy immune systems (haha me). Fights inflammation. Aids digestion.

Black-

Treats anxiety (yay). Helps with weight loss. Also relieves head aches. 

Oolong-

Promotes weight loss & boosts one’s metabolism. It also might decrease your risk of developing type 2 diabetes and protect against certain types of cancer. Good for dental health. 

White-

Good for stress and detoxification. Also promotes weight loss. 

Hibiscus-

Good for high blood pressure and fights respiratory diseases. 

Matcha-

Also good for bad immune systems.  Burns belly fat and is a good detoxifier.