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DSM Activities & Events 9/5-9/11

 

Make sure to take a look at my calendar of activities and events on the right hand corner of the page!

1. College Football!

NFL Football also starts this week! 🙂

  • Nebraska vs. Southern Miss in Lincoln @ 5 pm on the Big Ten Network
  • Iowa vs. Missouri State in Iowa City @ 11 am on the Big Ten Network
  • Iowa State has an off week this week!

 

2. Latino Heritage Festival

When: Saturday 10 am – 11 pm and Sunday 10 am – 6 pm

Where and What: At the Simon Estes Theater. Music, dancing, costumes that represent the Latino Heritage. There will also be food, exhibitors, artwork and kids activities including breaking pinatas! For more information check out the official site here.

3. Puppy Up! Dog Walk

When: Saturday 9 am – 1 pm

Where and What: This is a great event for the whole family, including your furry friend! The proceeds for this walk go to cancer research in dogs. The walk will take place at Gray’s Lake Park. It’s $25 and you can either register at the walk or at the official site here.

4. Make and Take Craft 

When: Saturday 10:30 am – 4 pm

Where and What: Come to the children’s area at the Johnston Library to complete a craft! Come anytime between 10:30 and 4 pm. No registration needed!

5. Renaissance Fare 

When: Saturday 10 am – 6 pm and Sunday 10 am – 6 pm

Where and What: If you missed it last weekend, you need to get out to Sleepy Hollow Sports Park where the Renaissance Fare is being held! Lots of food, entertainment, and activities. There is surely something for everyone!

6. Fall Antique Jamboree

When: Sunday 8 – 4 pm

Where and What: Located in Valley Junction and it is FREE! Lots of antique dealers from all over including furniture, quilts, glassware, stoneware, toys and much more! There will also be food vendors available.

7. Pumpkinville Corn Maze

When: Daily mid July through October 31st, 10 am – 8 pm

Where and What: Are you itching to get a head start on fall activities? The Pumpkinville Corn Maze in Mitchellville is open! The pumpkin patch is not quite open yet, but this would be a fun activity to do get prepared for fall and Halloween! Check out their website here.

PLAN AHEAD … 

1. Day out with Thomas the Tank Engine

When: September 14 & 15 and September 20-22

Where: Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad & Museum

What: Take a ride on Thomas and meet Sir Topham Hatt! Tickets are on sale now and may sell out so purchase soon! Check out the official website here for more information and to purchase tickets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Random Goodness

It’s been a bit since I have posted so I have lots or randomness to share!

1. Iowa State Fair and Alan Jackson Concert

I went to the final day at the Iowa State Fair Sunday (kid-less and husband-less) and had so much fun! We spent most of our time at the Iowa Craft Beer tent, but we did leave to check out all of the award winning animals too. I tried the famous Shrimp Corn Dog which was amazing! I also got a cup of chocolate chip cookies, had some chili/cheese fries and an apple cookie. Needless to say I was NOT feeling well on Monday!

The Alan Jackson concert was also great! My cousin, Kristin and I saw Alan Jackson last year in Cedar Rapids. We decided to go see him again (maybe this will become a yearly tradition?!)  Gary Allan opened up for him, which I had never seen in concert and he was also great. Kristin and I had a lot of fun dancing and singing along. The night ended with an awesome fireworks display at the grandstand. Perfect way to end the 2013 Iowa State Fair.

2. I like Kombucha 

I have tried Kombucha several times and  have not been too impressed, but I was at Whole Foods the other day and decided to pick up another bottle.

Guava Goodness is the one that won me over! If you are not a fan of Kombucha yet, give Guava Goodness a chance because it yummy! It also gave me a boost of energy and is probably a bit healthier then another cup of coffee. I know there are health benefits of Kombucha, but not sure of them all. I also know it’s pretty easy to make. I definitely need to look into this further!

3. Pumpkin Apple Muffins 

Because of the cooler weather last week, I was getting super excited for fall stuff, BUT of course this week it has been between 90-100 degrees out again! URGH! Anyways, I made these Monday morning for my very special guests! They turned out great! You can find the original recipe here.

I made some alterations which you can follow below!

Ingredients

  • 2 cups white whole wheat flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 cup Sunflower Oil
  • 2/3 cup maple syrup
  • 1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
  • 2/3 cup almond milk
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup hot water
  • 2 cups apples, chopped

I omitted the streusel topping all together 

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Line muffin tin with paper liners
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
  4. Add the oil, maple syrup, milk, pumpkin, and vanilla to the dry ingredients.
  5. Fold in the hot water and the apples until evenly distributed.
  6. Spoon batter into muffins tins.
  7. Bake 20-25 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center of muffin comes out clean.
  8. Remove to wire rack to cool.

4. My baby got his first haircut last week 🙁 

Yepp, his baby mullet is no longer!

He did an okay job at first sitting in the chair with his cape, but shortly got antsy. No screaming and crying though! Overall, we were pretty happy with the experience!

Doesn’t he look like such a big boy?!?

5. Go to Pier 1 Imports

One of my favorite places to shop is Pier 1 Imports. I love shopping for different decor items for the home. During the fall they always come out with some really cute things! It can be dangerous for me to go in there. Christmas is especially dangerous when they have all of their ornaments and all other sorts of Christmas goodness!

I signed up for their e-mail alerts and this week they sent me a coupon for $5 off $25 or more OR $10 off $40 or more! If you go to their website here, on the front page they have these coupons available for you too! They also have some great sales going on, so go get a head start on your fall and Halloween shopping NOW!

What do you know about Kombucha? What’s you favorite flavor?

Happy Hump Day!

Happy Hump Day! Yes, it’s Wednesday! We have made it through half of the week and I am looking forward to the weekend.

Have you made it out to the Iowa State Fair yet? If you have not, you have only 5 days left to check it out! You do not want to miss the “one and only”.

This week has been gorgeous out. The weather is hinting towards Fall and it is getting me more and more excited. Yesterday, I opened up our whole house and it felt so nice to get some fresh air. Monte is also enjoying the nice weather. He has been playing outside a lot!

If you look verrrry closely … Monte is down underneath the willow tree playing. He loves it under there!

Yesterday I worked on some Pinterest projects around the house. One project I have been working on since Memorial Day! I HAVE to get it done soon! I will definitely share them, when they are finished.

I also did some baking and cooking. I made Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins and Greek Marinated Chicken. They both turned out great!

I started with the muffins. I have been craving some baked goods in the morning, so I found this recipe to see if it would curb that craving. It is also healthier! So far, it has worked! They are delish!

The original recipe for the Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins can be found here. But, below are the small changes I made!

Ingredients:
2.5 cups old fashioned oats

1 cup plain low fat greek yogurt

2 eggs

1/2 cup honey

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 TBSP ground flax seed

1 tsp vanilla

2 ripe bananas

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray tin with non-stick cooking spray or line 12 muffin tins with silicone or foil liners.
2. Place the oats in the food processor and pulse for about 10 seconds.  Add remaining ingredients to the food processor.

3. Process until everything is mixed together and oats are smooth.

4. Divide batter among cupcake liners, and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

I started by taking the oats and flax seed and placed the ingredients in my Vitamix (which I LOVE).

I pulsed it until it was a flour mixture.

Then I added all the ingredients INCLUDING dried cranberries! This made 18 large muffins!

I also made the Greek Marinated Chicken. I made a few changes to the recipe, which you can find below but the original recipe can be found  here.

I used Greek plain yogurt and I used only about 1 1/2 pounds of chicken. The recipe called for 3 1/2 – 4 lbs of chicken, but while I was making the marinade, I felt that if I added more chicken you would not be able to taste much flavor. I also did not marinade for 30 minutes in the fridge. I took everything, mixed it really well in a large bowl and made sure the chicken was coated. I then placed the chicken directly into a 9×13 baking dish and placed it into the oven.

Boy was I right! I am glad I only used 1 1/2 lbs of chicken because the flavor was wonderful! Our house smelled amazing too! We even had a little leftover, so I can put in a Flat Out with baby spinach and a laughing cow wedge! I definitely recommend this recipe!

What new recipes have you tried this week?

Unique Beer, Cooking & Baking

The Iowa State Fair has begun! If you don’t live in the area, you may not be familiar with the Iowa State Fair, but it is the Mother of all fairs. It’s almost like a holiday! We are going on Saturday with Monte and then going another day without Monte to enjoy adult activities. I will make sure to post ALL about it!

This week has been a pretty laid back week. Nothing too much going on and Travis was home basically every night (which is unusual). He usually works until about 9ish or later 3-4 times a week.

It’s been so nice out and in the evening has been getting to about mid 60’s. It makes me REALLY want fall here! If you do not know, I LOVE fall! I love everything about it, not just because my birthday happens to land in October BUT I love the smell, atmosphere, and college football (Nebraska, of course!). Anyways, I was craving a pumpkin beer. So I called two different local beer stores to ask if they had any type of pumpkin or fall seasonal beer available. Beer Crazy had a Pumpkin Ale! So, we took a family outing to get some beer 🙂

Beer Crazy is a pretty neat local store. They sell all sorts of beers by the bottle. They also sell supplies to brew your own beer at home, which my father and Travis have done a few times. If you live near by, you should check them out!

Not only did we pick up Rogue Pumpkin Ale but we also found a Rogue Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Ale! Boy, was that different! I enjoyed the Pumpkin Ale, but the Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Ale was a little dark for my tasting.

 

Wednesday afternoon was so nice, not extremely hot and I needed to get some exercise in (I have been slacking the past few weeks). I decided to take Monte with me and go rollerblading. We have a bike trailer that turns into a jogging stroller. I have taken Monte a few times and he really enjoys it. It’s great for me to get out and burn some calories and he gets some fresh air.

I ended up burning 294 calories in 32 minutes! Wow! I took a picture of it with my Polar watch (which I LOVE) but it came out blurry. If you do not have a Polar watch you NEED to get one!

Afterwards, I developed a bunch of energy that I needed to burn (because I didn’t burn enough energy rollerblading??), so I started cooking and baking!

I made two new recipes which turned out delish!!

The first was Sweet Potato Salad from Momables which you can find here.

It’s a “kid” recipe, but I made it for all of us. Monte is a huge fan of sweet potatoes and loved this! I paired it with black beans and we put it into tortillas and ate “Sweet Potato Burritos”. I also omitted the mayo because I did not have any and also to make it a bit healthier. If needed you can add some more Greek yogurt to make it more creamy.

I also made Vegan Chocolate Cranberry Zucchini Bread (wow! what a title!). The recipe can be found here.

It was sooo good and tasted just like chocolate cake. After I made it, I noticed you could sub applesauce instead of the oil which would make it even healthier! I always forget applesauce can be subbed for things!

Overall, it’s been a good week! Looking forward to the weekend and making an appearance at Iowa State Fair!

Are you going to the Iowa State Fair? What things do you look forward to doing while there?