Stairs Before and After

Here is a picture our stairway before...

and here it is after. 

 Not too many changes, just something for the wall and an orchid to boot!  What appears to be just a normal wall hanging above the orchid (through the photos you can't really tell) is really a redone vintage ceiling tile that B and I bought on our 1st wedding anniversary trip to Galena.  Of course I thought it was too expensive to buy, but B said go for it and I'm sure glad he did!  The orchid was an anniversary gift from my parents.  I have always wanted an orchid and finally I have one! 

Homeade Granola Bars

   Here is another great recipe.http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/homemade-chewy-granola-bars-without-corn-syrup 

This time it's homemade granola bars without all the extra stuff that you find in some store bought bars.  ***As a side note, we found that if you want only chocolate chips in your granola bars, you need to let the mix cool otherwise they will turn into chocolate granola bars.  We added flax seeds, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, coconut (for the topping), and chocolate chips.  We chose to wrap our bars in parchment paper, but you can also leave them in the pan as you would for normal bars.  Here

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

This is a delicious pie recipe we tried out this summer.  It was the first pie I had ever made.  I don't have the crust recipe we used, we combined two different recipes from our moms, so I'll let you decide how you want to do your own crust.  Doesn't it just make your mouth water a little bit by just looking at it??

You can find the recipe through the link below.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Strawberry-Rhubarb-Pie/Detail.aspx

Yum, Chocolate Muffins!

Healthy Choc Mini Muffins

(sorry no pictures this time)

2 Eggs
1/2 cup oil
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup broccoli finely grated
1/2 cup zucchini finely grated
1/2 cup white self raising flour
1/2 cup wholemeal SR flour
3Tbsp Cocoa powder 1 teasp baking powder
1 Tblsp low fat milk.

Whisk eggs, oil and sugar together in large bowl. 

Add vegetables, flours, cocoa, baking powder and milk and mix well.
Spoon into greased (or paper lined) mini muffin trays and bake in a moderate oven for 15-20 minutes.

Old Window Turned Dining Room Decor

About 2 years ago I got this old window from my sister-in-law when they got new windows put in their house.  I didn't know quite what I was going to do with it, but I knew I needed to keep it...of course the thrifter in me says that :)
So, once we moved into our house, I decided I was going to repaint it and then put those vinyl letter-sayings you see all over these days in the glass.  It was a super easy project, the only hard part was hanging it up.  So after spray painting it, putting the letters on the glass, and hanging it up; it now resides in our dining room and fits very nicely I think.  How's that for some thrifty decor ?!

2nd Anniversary Trip

I know that  I have not been the best at updating our blog.  I figured that since I just posted, I'll upload some pictures from our anniversary trip to Chicago at the end of June this year.  We took a long weekend in Chicago, saw the Chicago Symphony and just enjoyed some much needed "together time."  

Hawkeye Football and Cozy Weekends

Well, this weekend B and I attended our annual Hawkeye football game.  Since we've graduated we have tried to get to at least one game a season.  We woke up around 6 a.m., got stuff together and were down in IA City by 8 a.m. to meet up with some friends and my sister and her boyfriend.  We tailgated before the game (pictures to follow), drank quite a bit of beer, and had a ton of fun!  That was probably the best part of the day...let's just say the game was not so pretty... 
After the performance by the Hawks this weekend, B and I are thinking that we'll just tailgate before the games now and watch them on TV at home. 
For being the end of September, the weather was sure cold and with the wind there was a definite chill in the air.  Fall is on its way!  Right now I've got apple crisp in the oven and I love the smell of baking apples.  I enjoy summer, spring and winter, however there is something just cozy and special about a nice fall weekend!