Happy Friday, everyone! How’s 2016 treating you so far?
This week we said goodbye to Ben’s parent’s who came to visit after Christmas, so the house was quiet and, to be honest, a little lonely. I busied myself with taking down our Christmas decorations and continuing to declutter and donate. Once you start getting rid of things, it’s hard to stop – which is a good thing, in my opinion!
We’ve got zero plans for the weekend, which I haven’t been able to say in about three months, so I’m not sure what we’ll get into. I must admit that as soon as January 2nd hit, I started dreaming of days spent at the zoo, long walks, and WARM WEATHER. It’s going to be a long couple of months, that’s for sure! We’re still trying to decide where to go for spring break. Have you booked anything exciting?
Well wherever you are and whatever you do have a wonderful weekend and in the meantime please enjoy my favorite finds from around the web and beyond in this week’s Friday Favorites!
Favorite craving: Sticky Garlic Noodles. I am face planting in a big bowl of this goodness as fast as humanly possible, aka tonight. I’ve already got everything on hand. Cannot wait!
Favorite funny: 18 Truths for People Who Love Wine. For better or worse, I can relate to almost every single one of these photos. #WINEME
Favorite sip: Cold Brew Caramel Frappuccino. You must check this recipe out, if for nothing else than to snag the “caramel” recipe. So brilliant.
Favorite read: Fates and Furies. One of my top goals for 2016 is to read more. As someone who used to get made fun of in school for reading so much, the fact that I now only read on vacation is ridiculous. This week I started Fates and Furies and, while it took me a while to get into this author’s writing style, I can’t wait to devour the second half of the book this weekend. What’s your latest favorite read?
Favorite fake out: Spicy Thai Peanut Chicken and Sweet Potato Noodle Stir Fry. Thai food is my jam and I’ve been swapping out regular rice/noodles for sweet potato rice/noodles lately, so this dish is a complete home run in my book. Love the clean ingredient list too!
Favorite spot. I can’t decide which style I’d go with for my dream of dream homes – old victorian, Pacific northwest-inspired craftsman, log cabin (totally addicted to the Epic Log Homes show!) or colonial – but no matter what style we land on, whenever that happens (preferably in Charleston,) it must have a porch like this. Sigh!
Favorite game day: BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger Nachos. Already reserving a spot on the Super Bowl snack table for a huge platter of these nachos. WOW.
Favorite homemade: Homemade Cough Remedy. Have you ever looked at the ingredient list on a bottle of cough syrup? Food dye and corn syrup. Gross! Not that I want the chance to try this homemade remedy out, but when/if I need it, I’m making my own cough syrup!
Favorite comfort: Chili Relleno Chicken Soup. Do you not just want to face plant into a big bowl of this soup? Great twist on the classic.
Favorite style. Ummm, can I please be you?
Favorite upgrade: Ideas for Creating the Perfect Playroom. We recently decided to convert our upstairs loft (which until this week held a lazy boy recliner, TV stand, and miniature TV (?)) into a playroom for Lincoln. Bonus 1: we get to declutter a bit of our downstairs. Bonus 2: he now has toys to play with while we get ready in the morning. Can’t wait to dig into these great ideas to help us transform the space into one he’ll love!
Favorite video: Alton Brown’s Diet Plan. Even if you’re not trying to lose weight, Alton Brown’s review of how he’s currently eating is a good reminder as to what to focus on in the food department.
Favorite fun: Large Rustic Clothespin. How FUN are these?? I have no idea where I’d put them but I think I’m going to buy a set and figure it out later. :)
Favorite travel: The 25 Best Places to Go In 2016. My parents just booked their spring break trip which has me itching to go somewhere too. This is a great list to pick from!
Favorite create: Koala Crate (<< affiliate link.) I sort of abruptly realized that Lincoln is at an organized craft activity age a few months ago (he’s almost 2.5,) so I signed up for these monthly crafts boxes called Koala Crates. Each month a new “crate” is delivered with a bunch of themed activities (like this one below is focused on learning colors.) We totally look forward to them arriving and perhaps the biggest perk of all? I don’t have to surf Pinterest for ideas or beat myself up for not being creative enough to think of something for him to do on my own!
Favorite indulge: Hot Gruyere and White Wine Chicken Dip. Because why. the heck. not. :)
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Have a great weekend!
I made that Hot Gruyere and White Wine Chicken Dip for Christmas and man oh man it is amazing!!!!!! Definitely worth making!
Oh my gosh! I think I repinned everything on your list. I am almost finished reading I Am Pilgrim and am LOVING IT!!!!!!!!!
So I totally made the garlic sticky noodles not once, but TWICE this weekend! I tried it the first time with bahn pho rice noodles and then with zucchini noodles and both were great. My fiance slurped down 3rd helpings of both. Thanks for the great share!
Oooo love the zucchini noodles idea – I’ll definitely have to try that!
I made the sticky garlic noodles for lunch using organic brown rice & quinoa penne….put them on top of a big bed of spinach just to get the spinach in, very good! Going to make the spicy thai peanut chicken & sweet potato noodle stir fry tonight! Can’t wait!
Random note: have you had anyone else mention the new site has shockwave issues, or goes slow? I am an IGE recipe fanatic and it seems to be causing me problems (one of which is I am not incredibly patient, but it’s worth it to wait to load) :)
Hi Denise! Nooo, I’m so sorry to hear about the site trouble! I haven’t heard about the Shockwave issue but I’ve had a few people tell me the site is a bit slower now, and we are continuing to investigate why this could be. Do you want to shoot me an email when you have a second so I could learn more about the Shockwave issue? kristin@iowagirleats.com. Thank you so much for letting me know!
Use the over-sized clothespins to hang large sheets of butcher paper for Lincoln to color on. Just have to make sure he knows the difference between the paper and the walls!!
Fates and Furies was President Obama’s favorite book of the year; I read it in an interview.
I grew up on homemade cough syrup. My grandma made it. It was anise flavored and black as night. She kept it in a jar over her gas range so it was always slightly warm. I’m not sure what was in it but it kicked whatever cough you had right out and you slept like a log.
That. Is. AWESOME. Would seriously love to know what’s in there, wouldn’t you?
I always love your Friday Favorites! Some great ideas here, like usual. Those nachos have my name on them. I am currently reading Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave. So far, so good. The book I read over the holidays that I loved was A Man Called Ove: A Novel by Fredrik Backman. Happy Friday – enjoy your weekend.
I just got a spiralizer for Christmas, and that thai peanut and sweet potato stir fry looks UH-MAZING. Everything about that is my favorite.
That GRUYERE AND WHITE WINE CHICKEN DIP! Oh my.
Staci
http://www.missbloodymary.com
That cheese and wine dip looks soooo good that I want to make it and not share. If you haven’t ever been to Wilmington, NC, you should head this way for Spring break. You could see where a lot of famous movies and tv shows are/were filmed and enjoy some of that Charleston type southern charm…or go to Maine. We got married there and ate lobster mac and cheese on our trip and I have been dying to go back! All the lobster is so worth the trip.
We went Isla Mujeres last March and had a great vacation. You fly into Cancun so flights are decently affordable with plenty of options but it is nothing like “Cancun Spring Break” :) Take a ferry out to the island when you arrive and there is no need to leave the island until you fly home. No need for a car either – rent a golf cart for the week and you’re set.