Better Than. . .

I've stared to try to make 2 new recipes a week for dinner. I love cooking and I want to be able to have my trial run of different recipes now, so that later in my life when I am even more busy (is that even possible?) then I will be able to make more than chicken, or worse--ramen noodles.
The other day I tried this delicious chicken salad. I put too many onions in it. Seriously--you couldn't go into the kitchen without your eyes watering. So now I know. Trial and Error--that is how you become great!

I also made this treat on Sunday afternoon. YUM!

I'll even put the recipe on here so you can try it--it is so easy and takes less than 30 min from oven pre-heat to mouth.

Salted Toffee-Chocolate Graham Cracker Squares
from Everyday Food and PinkofPerfection Blog
makes 24

13 graham crackers
1 8-ounce bag toffee bits*
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped almonds
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
3/4 cup (4 ounces) bittersweet chocolate, chopped, or chocolate chips
3/4 teaspoon coarse salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Place graham crackers in a single layer on sheet, edges touching. Sprinkle toffee bits and almonds over graham crackers.

In a small saucepan, bring sugar and butter to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and cook at a rapid simmer, swirling pan occasionally, until mixture is syrupy, about 2 minutes. Immediately pour over graham crackers. Bake until sugar topping is bubbling, 12 minutes.

Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle chocolate and salt over graham crackers. With a sharp knife, cut into 2-inch squares. Let cool completely. Store in an airtight container, up to 1 week.

*Note: I just chopped up a few Heath bars. I've heard you can also use Butterfinger for a different take.

Cousin Rachel even said that they tasted better than. . . Chris Pine looked. WOW--that's a complement. :) I'm sure you would have rather been eating them with him rather than me, but thanks for not saying it out loud.

Just one more for the road.

Plus! One for Sara. ;)

Fashion. and Pine.

I love fall! and fall fashion! Taking a leaf from a few of my most stalked blogs, I made a collage of the fall and winter fashions that I want to rock this season.

What fall fashion are you excited to wear this season?

ALSO. Totally unrelated, but I had to put this in. I am in love with Chris Pine. In the words of my cousin Rachel, "He can dunk his oreo in my milk anytime!" Tonight, we were both craving us some Chris Pine (I was craving me some fight scenes of course), so we watched Star Trek. YUM! Perfect ending to a perfect day!

Live Long and Prosper.

I love designing!

For my Materials class we had to make a fabric design. !! How fun is that!? AND we can send it into a website and they will PRINT it out and send us a few yards of our very own fabric. AND THEN, we get to make an ottoman with our fabric!! I am so excited! Here is the design and the color stories that I came up with.

So I did it.
I gave in and started reading these.

Usually I HATE reading, wearing, doing anything that EVERYONE and their dog are also reading, wearing, doing.

Example 1: Twilight. I read it. about a month before the whole world went Twilight crazy. Yes, I still like it, but I would like it a whole lot more if only a few people knew about it.

Example 2: Those crocheted headbands. They are cute! Yes, but I will never own one because the whole town has one.

There are many more examples, and yes, maybe I am rude to wish Twilight and Stephenie Meyer didn't get so famous. Yes, maybe I'm missing out on the "new style" because of my stubbornness. BUT I like being different. I LIKE being unique and having a unique style. But I also like good things. Good books, good music, good clothes. And good things have a tendency to become obsessively popular. I guess for now I will have to just suck it up though because I'm in love.

These books are AWESOME! really. i'm not just saying that cause everyone thinks they're cool. i promise. I am amazed by Suzanne Collins' imagination and ideas. Plus--she makes you fall in love with the characters from the first page. Which to me means you are a good writer. Now I'm so in love with the characters though that I want to marry one of them and be best friends with the other.

Too bad they are fictional.

Rain! and Fashion!

YAY! Finally some rain!! And now the leaves are starting to fall off the trees and crunch beneath my feet! I am a happy girl.

ALSO. In a few weeks I am going to this.

A group of students and professors from USU Interior Design have enrolled and have made a dress out of Humanscale. I am SO excited. It's a HUGE deal in Salt Lake--over 11oo people are expected to be there. It's a great way for me to network and make new friends in the Interior Design Major.