Did she say CHOCOLATE?

 

Sometimes the most interesting places are tucked right in front of you. You just have to look! On Tuesday, Mr. Sailor had the morning off. I had to drop off a hat I made for someone at a local coffee shop I have never been to. I love coffee, if you don't know, so I was excited to explore a new coffee shop. However, we discovered something way cooler than the coffee shop.

Next door to the shop, there was an unassuming place with a name that made me go, "whoa."

Wholesale Candy Outlet.

Of course, I had to twist Sailor's arm REALLY HARD to get him to go in. Just kidding, he almost beat me to the door. Just kidding, I tripped him so I could get there first. Just kidding, that's mean.

The point is, we went in. And I'm so glad we did! The place specializes in distributing fine chocolates to local sellers. The owner (who we met) travels all over the US and world to sample specialty sweets. They even make some of their own chocolates and all their fudge in house. Awesome!!


We chatted with the owner while browsing their selection. It turns out, his family is from the same small town that our families are from! What a small world.

In the end, I could not resist getting some chocolate. We got two Belgium truffles and scarfed them right away. The two chocolate bars we got actually made it home.

This milk chocolate is made in the US but tastes like the most fahahahaaaancy imported candy I've ever had. It was buttery, smooth, and had a depth of flavor I have never tasted in a milk chocolate. The label did not list any gluten-containing ingredients, but if you are really really sensitive to gluten, I would call the company.

This mini bar did not have any ingredients listed on it, but I felt fairly confidant that it would be okay. It was a dark chocolate bitter-bar with coffee flavoring. Ohmylanta guys. It was like a nice dark roast cuppa joe married cocoa. Loved it. So did Sailor!

Find the E. Guittard 38% Milk Chocolate here

Because I love Spongebob. No regrets.

Stay sweet guys!
Yours,
Carolyn

Being a Big Girl Blogger

I have had blogs since I was a freshman in High School. Scratch that. I had a Xanga account when I was in middle school back in 2004 or 2005. So, blogging and whatnot is not a new trick for me. I love writing and talking and meeting new people, so I jumped on the bandwagon early. It's a great outlet for me to do the things I love!

That said, I am by noooo means a blogging expert. As a matter of fact, I'm a total noob when it comes to maintaining a fun, fresh, professional crafty blog. I have peeked back at some of my old blog posts on other platforms and gone, "Yikes. What a whiny, unprofessional twirp! Uuugggh. That was me."

Insert face-palm here.

So I decided that I needed to start seriously addressing my past blogging fails. I got out my planner.

Seriously, this is so stupid simple I don't know why I didn't do it before. I use this planner to write out meal plans for the week anyways, so I just started writing plans for upcoming blog posts as well. Hello sanity!! Hello organization!! Hello getting more posts out in a timely manner!!

One of the main problems of my old blogs was the lack of exciting content. I'd post updates about whatever craft project I was doing, maybe about my mood that day, and call it good. Uhm....okay, that was fine...but there was nothing else. All the blogs I enjoy to read may have a specific topic they work off of, but they also post about other things. Interesting things! Things I want to read!

I thought, gee....why don't I do that, too?

Rocket science. I tell you.

Speaking of quality posts... I started looking at what my favorite bloggers do.

Again, this should have been so obvious to me. But the best way to learn about something is to examine the practices put to use by experts. What do the best bloggers do? What don't they do? I started really looking at my favorite blogs and taking note of the things I like about them.

As follows is a short list of my blogging idols and a few reasons why I love what they do...in no particular order:

Neon Fresh

Roo writes such funky-fresh awesome-tastic posts. I can't get enough. The products she features in her sponsored posts are all kinds of awesome. Her take on parenting, her Christian values, and sass are incredibly relatable to me. She is so professional while still being 90's gangsta that it's scary. I love it, and it gives me hope for my highly-unprofessional sassiness.

Little Miss Momma
I have only just started reading this blog, and I already love it. Her site has beautifully streamlined navigation, colorful photos, and her 'voice' of her writing is fantastic. She just did a post about her family's Christmas decor. Buuhhh. I want to be her best friend.

Future Girl
This girl. Just. This girl. Her posts are fun, her crafts are dope, and she wrote her own blogging platform. Uhhhh....wow. Love it. She is super accomplished, and incredibly clever. She has been writing her blog for eight years. It is really insightful to be able to view the journey she has gone on through her blog. Inspiration!!

What bloggers inspire you?

An unrelated Arlo photo!!

Gluten Free: Gluten Free Cafe Chicken Noodle Soup

 I was not going to write a review about this soup, but one bite and I changed my mind. Completely.

I'm talking about Gluten Free Cafe Chicken Noodle Soup

I got one can of this soup as a part of a care package from the hospital when I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. I didn't think much of it because I was so super excited about the rest of the stuff in the care package.

As I have mentioned, the last few weeks up here in the Northlands have been bitter cold. Monday night was no exception. After I finished up tweaking yesterday's post, I realized it was after 6pm and I hadn't eaten. Uhhh....oops.

So I pulled out this can of soup and thought to myself, "Yes. Warm. I don't care what it tastes like. It'll be warm."

Fast-forward ten minutes or so, and I'm headed back, soup in hand, to Monday Night Football with Sailor. I take my first bite and.....whoa.

Did I read the label wrong?? Those are rice noodles?? How?! What?! They taste and feel just like their wheaty cousins....is this real life?

I want to lick the screen.

 Look at those noodles, guys. So good.

There were plenty of pieces of chicken, celery, and carrots. The broth was so good, I wanted to lick the bowl. Then the pan. Then dig the can out of the trash and lick it. Not really, but pretty close.

After the first bite, I trotted my lil self back into the kitchen to take some pictures of the glorious stuff before I scarfed it down. I knew I needed to share my new-found love!!

My favorite soup bowl. Scored it for a dollah at a flea market. Woot woot!!

All gone!!

If you can't find it in your local grocery store, I know Amazon has some good deals on it. If you like soup, and you do gluten free, I'm telling you, this is the stuff!!

Stay warm friends!!

Yours cozily,
Carolyn

Deck the Hall with All Our Tractors!

Deck the halls with all our tractors!
Falalalalaaaalalalalaaaa!

Though this is our second Christmas since we have been married, it's a big happy first for us. We got a real tree!! Last year around the holidays, I was still having major gut pain. I had been just diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis after being in the hospital overnight on my 21st birthday. No, I'm not looking for sympathy. You don't have to call the waaaahhh-mabulance. I just want to make a point how much more happy and lovely this Christmas is compared to last year.

I love real trees. Most of my childhood, we had a fake tree. Which was probably a good thing, because my sister and I would have probably wanted to love and cuddle the real tree and been in a constant state of stickiness. Good choice, Ma and Daddy! When we did start getting real trees, however, I knew there was no going back for me. The magical festive spirit surrounding tromping to the tree farm and arguing over the 'perfect' tree for hours is something I loooovveee.

And there's the smell of pine.

So fresh. So clean. So.....winter. The only other smell that makes me all giddy-festive feeling is cinnamon.

I might need to go pour some cinnamon all over the tree after I write this...

Despite the fact that we are not living by the most spectacular tree farm of all times anymore (aka, William's Tree Farm), I was really excited about going out to get our tree. It has been soooooo coooolllddd the past few weeks here, we opted to just grab our tannenbaum at a parking lot tree lot. Tromping through the woods is no fun when you can't feel your face. ("But that's part of the magi-" "You don't understand how cold it is here.")

Maybe I'm a nerd, but I was totally stoaked. I was channeling all the posh New York City tree lot images in my head. Which, really makes no sense, because I am not a city person. Maybe it was more of a "Christmas Story" motif I was feeling.

We set out bundled to the eyeballs, armed with my camera, to make some Christmas-in-a-somewhat-small-city magic! It was slap-in-the-face cold. Eight degrees with windchill at -5. Yuuummm. So, I didn't really want to take time to set up a good photo. Enjoy the two blurry images I captured:

Christmas magic, yo.

Let's not dwell on my lack-of-camera-skills. On to the ornaments.

As you may have noticed, I am obsessed branding and color coordination and marketing and whatnot. I stray from this obsession somewhat when it comes to decorating the Christmas tree.

Christmas is all about remembering. We remember our Savior's miraculous birth, we remember our blessings, and we remember cherished traditions. While the perfectly decked rooms in Better Homes and Gardens this month make me want to paint every piece of furniture I own to match the season, I think it is so much better to have meaningful, memory-filled decor.

Sailor and I both grew up on farms. As kids, we both had tractors. Sailor was a bit more....rough on his toys and thus many of them are no longer around. I was nicer to my toys, so one Christmas when we were dating, I gave him my old ones. Now that we are married, our combined tractor collection is impressive. They are displayed all over our kitchen and living room. Being the adorable fellow he is, Sailor decided we should hang them on the tree.

A few of my fave tractors we have on the tree. The lower left is mine from when I was a kid!

Another tradition I cherish is the reading of T'was the Night Before Christmas. My parents got four copies of this beautifully illustrated edition of the book. My mom, my dad, my sister, and I each have a copy. On the inside cover we write the date it was read and who read it. It's so fun to go back and see who read it where.

You can find copies of this lovely book here. It's the original text as it was published in 1823, with stunning new illustrations. Puh-ree-tee!!

I know Santa isn't really the true meaning of Christmas, but this book makes my heart smile.

My lil fluffeh helper!

Can't go wrong with Disney, in my mind. These are ones my Grandma has given me over the years. She is the Christmas ornament queen. That box Arlo was standing by? Yeah. She gave that to me when I was one or two years old. Every year she gave me a few more ornaments to add to the box. Some old, some new. 

When I was little, I had a small tree in my room that I got to decorate however I wanted. It made me feel like such a grown up to take down my box of ornaments and my little tree. I would string up the lights and start greeting all my favorite little decorations. I loved them so much! I remember sneaking into my box of ornaments during non-Christmas months and pulling some of them out to play.

These tiny, hand-crocheted animals were given to me by my great uncle on my father's side. Uncle Warren worked on the family farm during the growing season, and traveled the world during the winter. He brought these back from a trip he took to China in the early 90's. They are my absolute favorite ornaments. They had names, personalities, and ridiculous voices that I gave to them. I have so many fond memories of playing with them at Christmas time.

Roosty, the rooster

Hobby, the horse.

El, the elephant

 My names were so clever. I know you are jealous.

Seal. Yeah, I guess my well of creativity ran dry here.

Love the tinsel they used on them.

My Christmas village. Dat windmill!!

Proportions. Yeeeaahh...

My type of Christmas village. None of that crazy, light-up porcelain schtuff. I'd break it. I'm not really sure who gave me this set, but I love it. And the whole rustic-homemade look is totally in right now so....bonus points for me...?

What are you guys doing for decorating? Have some childhood faves or cool traditions?

Yours well-decoratedly,
Carolyn

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Merry Monday!

Normally, I write the bulk of my blog posts over the weekend and schedule the posts to go live throughout the week. This weekend was a little....special. Maybe I was lazy. Maybe Sailor experienced a flat-tire escapade that threw a major cup-of-crazy into this weekend. Maybe decorating the tree was too fun. Maybe I went on a mega-cleaning spree.

Hint: All of them are true.

So here's my too little too late Monday-night blogy post-a-doodle! Check out the lovely snow I woke up to see!! And yeah, our house seriously is that color. Orange with green trim. Good thing it's only a rental?

And yeah. Those might be three deflated pumpkins on our stoop. #thisisreallife? #nomakeup? #whydidn'tIrealizethosewerestillthere?

-facepalm-

It adds character. That's what I'm going with.

Alrighty loves!! Hope your Monday was as magical as mine!! Look at all the stuff I mailed out today! Magic, yo. I should have taken a pic of all the stuff I got as well. The maillady really packed it in. Doesn't matter that one of the larger things was for whoever lived here before. (Yo, Kaye, if for some reason you are reading this, I have a stack of your mail).

Yours derpily,
Carolyn

On the Needles Teaser

A little teaser of what I've been working on the past couple of weeks. Can't post big pics yet, it's too close to Christmas!!! Can you handle the suspense?? I hardly can. Tee-hee!

Happy Sunday!

Yours sneakily,
Carolyn

Gluten Free: Betty Crocker G-Free Devil's Food Cake (Cupcake Style, yo!)

Hello friends. Today, I have a very important topic to bring to you all. It's one that I find very relevant to so many of my comrades-in-bad-guts. Holla at me Celiacs! This one is fo' Y'ALL!! -ahem- Yes, so on to the important topic:

That's right. Cupcakes. And not just any cupcakes, oh no. I'm talking supah chocolate, mega easy, gluten free cupcakes. Please note that I did not say healthy. Because....these aren't. There's a whole stick of butter involved in this glorious dozen of cakies.

 But come on. Look at them. Is your mouth watering? It should be. Because seriously, these cupcakes are vury niiiice.

On Thursday I made a decision. Over Thanksgiving I had purchased a box of Betty Crocker's Gluten Free Devil Food Cake Mix with the intent to make it as my birthday cake. Well, as you know, my mother and sister tag-teamed to provide me with awesome brownies on Turkey Day. So, the unused mix came home with me. As well as a jar of double mega heart attack chocolate frosting. Which is really bad.

Throughout this week, I've been...uhh....sampling the chocolate frosting to make sure it hasn't gone bad. I may...or...may not...have eaten over half the jar. Maybe I have self-control issues, okay? It was gluten free. -pouting-

Anyways, I decided enough was enough on Thursday and that I had to make the devil food cake or suffer the wrath of my bowels after eating the entire jar of frosting in one week. Since I've had enough bowel-wrath for one lifetime, I opted to do some baking.

Annnnd, lemme tell you: I'm really glad I did. Since my diagnosis, baking has been a major source of anxiety for me. I love to cook, and the thought of having to sort of re-learn all the awesome skills passed on to me by my grandmothers and aunts and mom was a little....terrifying. I know, I know. There are so many tutorials out there for g-free baking and blah blah blah it's so much easier than conventional baking and blurhgblahbluuuhhh. I know. I KNOW. But, there is something satisfying about kneading a yeasty, gluteny bread dough that just cannot be replaced with the sometimes-paste-like g-free doughs. It's something I have to deal with. And I am doing so by taking baby-steps into the world of g-free baking.

Aka, using mixes.

Normally, I'm pretty violently against baking mixes. But on my gluten free endeavours, I am not. Here's why:
-They are easy.
-G-free ingredients are PRICEY. If I'm going to drop big dollas on some baking goods, I want to know that it will be tasty. I'm not ready to get all experimental up in here.
-If I know which mixes I like, it is easy to tell friends and family what to make me if I come over. G-free cooking is daunting enough for me. I want to make it easy for people to make things I can eat for me, if they want to cook for me.

So, my thoughts on Betty Crocker's Gluten Free Devil Food Cake Mix :
Ease of preparation: *****
Five stars. Very simple. Just like regular cake mix.
Bang for your buck: ***Three stars. It was about $7/box. Which only made 12 cupcakes. I probably could have scrimped on the batter and made 15-16, but I didn't want to do two batches.
Flavor: ****
Four stars. Very chocolatey and niiice. My standard for five stars is the Tastefully Simple Brownie Mix. It's that good.
Consistency: ****
Four stars. Not gritty, but still had that minor 'gluten free flour aftertaste.' I judge this on whether or not a gluten eater can tell it's different. These cakies are just a tiny bit chewy, but still super amazing.
Overall: ****Four stars. I definitely would recommend this mix. It is rich, and certainly not the most healthy dessert option, but good for a little splurge. I paired it with Betty Crocker Rich & Creamy Chocolate Frosting (which is gluten free as well)

You should have PLENTY of frosting in one can for 12 cupcakes. I swear I won't tell if you need to...uh...sample half the jar before icing them.

If your grocery store does not sell the g-free Betty Crocker mixes, I know you can buy them on Amazon. Crazy, right? They have a super cool deal where you can get six boxes at once for a mega discount. Really cool if you are going to do a bunch of g-free holiday baking!!

Alrighty, dumplings. I have waaayyy too much crafting to do. Talk to you later loves!!
Yours sweetly,
Carolyn