What's Up Wednesday :: September 2015

It's the last Wednesday of the month, that means it's time for our What's Up Wednesday Link Up!

Link up with  me, Sheaffer & Shay the LAST Wednesday of each month so we can read about What's Up with YOU!

Here we go!

What We’re Eating this week.....

Monday - Pulled Pork Sandwiches & Broccoli Slaw
Tuesday- Baked Santa Fe Tacos

 Wednesday - Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
Thursday- Leftovers
Friday - Friday Night Pizza Night!
Saturday- Beer & Sausage at our friends Oktoberfest Block Party!
Sunday- Chicken Tortilla Soup


I also bake a treat each week with the girls.
 This week we are making Pumpkin Bread! This is one of the most popular recipes on my blog!

Pumpkin Bread Recipe {HERE}

Every year on October 1st, I make pumpkin bread to welcome my favorite month, October!
Even though Fall officially started last week, here in California it is still 90 degrees, so I always wait until October 1st to bust out my Fall decor and I wait until then to start making all my favorite pumpkin treats.

This weekend I will also be making my Pumpkin Brownies to bring to Oktoberest!

Recipe {HERE}

What I'm Reminiscing about.....
 Since September is Claire's birthday month, I have been reminiscing about her as a baby...thanks to Time Hop!
Baby Claire!
She was always so smiley :)

 Whenever it's one of my kids birthday months, I always love looking back on their birthday parties that I've thrown for them.
Here is a walk down memory lane with Claire's Birthday Parties!
1st Birthday - Ice Cream Cone Theme
2nd Birthday - Ladybug Theme
3rd Birthday - Cowgirl Party (this is one of my Top 3 favorite parties ever)
4th Birthday - Candy Shoppe Theme
5th Birthday - Tangled Theme
6th Birthday - Mermaid Swim Party

 What I'm loving.....

Rodan + Fields Reverse Regimen!
Did you spend too much time in the sun this summer?
 Do you have sun damage, age spots or pregnancy melasma? I can help!!  
 I love seeing before & after pics when people use Rodan + Fields products! How awesome are these Reverse Results from Erin? She used Reverse for 6 months & now uses redefine.

 The after picture is foundation free, with just our mineral peptide powder! Reverse does just what it says...reverses sun damage, gets rid of melasma (mask of pregnancy), age spots & sun spots and helps lighten freckles. Reverse also helps reverse the signs of aging, fine lines & wrinkles. 
Did you know most aging is caused by sun damage?
 I am so thankful for R+ F products and how they have helped change my skin, sun damage & got rid of my pregnancy melasma! 

 I am also so incredibly thankful for business side of Rodan + Fields. It is something I said I would never do...so glad I ignored my fears & jumped in. I have met incredible people & it has given me so many amazing opportunities, both financially & friendship wise. We have a lot of specials going on this month for new customers and for people who want to join the business! 
All new preferred customers who will get get $20 cash back, 10% off your order, free shipping AND a FREE EYE cream (which is currently sold out!) 
 
If you join my team, corporate will send you a free box of Acute Care and/or cash back!
 All our products come with a 60 day 100% money back guarantee, so you have nothing to lose. 

We have products for ALL skin types...fine lines, wrinkles, acne, sun damage & sensitive skin! 
Take this 30 second questionnaire {HERE} to find out what products are best for YOUR skin!
Email me or  to claim this deal or if you have questions! 
melissa_larson17@yahoo.com

What We've been up to.....
 September was another busy month!
Our month started out with all 3 kids getting sick with a random fever/tummy issues.
We had to postpone our Back to School Feast by a couple days, but we had it & it was a blast:

We had Claire's 7th Birthday Tea Party:
 
It was such a sweet party!
  I was also in Austin a week and a half ago for our Rodan + Fields conference....so much fun!

We also celebrated my nephew Jack's 3rd birthday at a Trash/Dump Truck Party!
Our weekends have been busy with soccer games for the girls!

Sad, dead grass because of the California drought :(

What I'm Dreading.....

 I'm dreading running 12 miles this weekend in the heat...the weather has been so hot this month, it makes it hard to go on long runs when it's in the 90s.  My 1/2 marathon is in 2.5 weeks and this weekend I have to run 12 miles, then I will taper off for the last 2 weeks. I did 11 miles on Sunday & I am not looking forward to running 12, but....you gotta do what you gotta do.

What I'm Working On.....
Running.
Lots and lots of running. Ha!

I'm also working on getting my house organized...the first month back to school is always CRAZY.
It takes me about a month to get back into the routine of going back to work, grading papers, doing homework with the girls, taking them to soccer & dance, etc.

Now that we are a month into school, I am feeling good about our routine, but my house is so unorganized...need to work on cleaning out stuff!

What I'm Excited About.....
 I'm excited about Kevin's work project being done this weekend!!!
He has been working 80+ hours a week since mid July working on a major project (basically like his Thesis) It is due in a few days...I am SOOOOOOO excited to have him home and not working such long hours! All of us miss him!

What I'm Watching........
 About a month ago, I decided to start watching Grey's Anatomy. I had never seen it before & several people told me I would love it. Because Kevin has been working so much, at night, I started watching it....I am finishing Season 6 as I type this.

Yes, that's right...I have watched 6 seasons in a month....so embarrassing.....but it's SO good!!! Ahhh!!! I cry almost every episode!

Kevin and I are still watching House of Cards, but we haven't watched it since the end of July since he has been working so much. We are on Season 2...I can't wait to start watching it again next week!

What I'm Reading.....
I've only read 1.5  books this month 
I finished this book:

Sweet Girl

And, I started reading this book:
An Abundance of Katherine's

I haven't finished it yet.
I would like to blame that on being busy with being a mom, teaching, training for a 1/2 marathon, etc...but the REAL reason I haven't finished it is that when I have down time at night when the kids are in bed, I would rather binge watch Grey's Anatomy. Ha!
Just keeping it real :)

What I'm Listening to.....
I am still loving Today's Hits on Pandora when I do my running!
I am loving Cool for the Summer by Demi Lovato.

What I'm Wearing.....
Since it's Back to School...I am wearing lots of skirts & dresses since the weather is still in the 90s. Ugh!

  Skirt // Tank // Shoes // Earrings // Bracelets

 Here are some of my outfits I wore when I was in Austin:

 Tank {Stitch Fix} // Skirt


 Going to dinner & 6th St Oufit:

Shirt // Jeans // Booties // Cross body Purse

Our gala evening at Convention:

Dress // Shoes // Necklace (use code mellarsonxoxo to get started!)
 
What I’m doing this weekend.....

The girls have soccer games, Kate has a birthday party & I hope we can watch football because Kevin will be done with his project by Sunday!

 I am also going to decorate our house for Fall this weekend since the weather is dropping to the 80s :)

What I'm Looking Forward to next month.....
We have a lot of fun things planned in October...running the Nike Women's 1/2 Marathon in San Francisco, going to Disneyland, my Grammy's 104th Birthday & of course Halloween!
I've always wanted to go to Disney during Halloween Time...I can't wait!

October is going to be an awesome month!
 

What else is new.....
Kate started a hip hop dance class. She did ballet when she was 3, but that doesn't really count ;)
So, dance is new to her...she has been asking for the past 6 months if she can take a dance class and one of the local studios has a Taylor Swift Dance Class...all the songs they dance to are Taylor Swift.

 Kate is loving it!

Question of the month is:
What is your favorite Halloween Tradition?
For the past 5 years since we have lived in this house, we have had a Halloween Party.
We invite friends over for appetizers & Taco Soup and then we all go Trick or Treating around our neighborhood. It is so fun! I look forward to it every Halloween.

Here are my past Halloween Parties:

2011

2012
2013
2014 

+++++++++++++

If you are new to my blog, thanks for stopping by!

Feel free to follow along! 

You can find me on Bloglovin, Facebook & Instagram

Can't wait to read about What's up with all of YOU!

Baked Santa Fe Tacos

I don't know about you, but in our house we eat a lot of Mexican Food. 

Taco Tuesday is in full swing at our house...we have some sort of Taco on Tuesdays.

My girls LOVE tacos/burritos...they would eat that every night for dinner if I let them. 

I love the traditional taco, but I also love making Baked Tacos! 

Here is one of my favorite Baked Taco Recipes....

Baked Santa Fe Tacos!

{I also make these in the summer months using zucchini & squash instead of taco shells. You can find my Santa Fe Zucchini Boats recipe HERE}

Here is what you need:

- 1 lb of Ground Turkey (I use Jennie-O Lean) or Ground Beef

- Packet of Taco Seasoning

- Can of Black Beans, drained

- Can of Corn, drained

- 2 cups of Salsa (I used Chi-Chi's Medium Salsa)

- 2 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese 

-Taco Shells

Directions:

Brown your Ground Turkey (or Ground Beef)

After your have cooked the meat, add the taco seasoning (and water) according to the taco seasoning directions.

Drain your corn & black beans:

Add the corn, black beans & 2 cups of salsa to the mixture:

Let simmer for 15-20 minutes

When the meat mixture is done simmering, add the mixture to taco shells & place in baking dish:

 Sprinkle cheese on top of tacos:

**NOTE...this will make 10-12 baked tacos (depending on how much of the mixture you use per taco. I only assemble & bake the amount we are going to eat that night because these don't save for the next day, the shells get soggy. So, I save the leftover meat mixture & then when we have it for leftovers later that week, I assemble them again & bake them.** 

Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes (until cheese is melted)

 You can eat these without putting garnishes on them, but I like to add goodies!

I add taco sauce, diced tomato, shredded lettuce, sour cream & guacamole. Kevin & the girls also add olives.

These are super simple to make & delicious.

 Enjoy!

Disclosure: This post was written as part of my participation in the Hormel Foods Extended Family Blogger Program. While Hormel Foods provides me material and necessary resources to complete various activities, the thoughts and statements in this post are my own.

P.S. Don't forget that tomorrow is our monthly "What's Up Wednesday" Link Up!

The bonus question for September is:

"What is your favorite Halloween Tradition?"

See you back here tomorrow for the link up!

Can't wait to see what's up with YOU!