If you are reading this you will probably notice this is released WAY before New Years Eve. Mostly because I would like to take 2 weeks off from blogging (Officially since I have been on mini hiatus through out the year) and spend some time with my little family since it will be the first one for my son!
New Years Resolutions are tricky. You have the typical I want to save money or I want to lose weight. Where everyone goes hard on making these goals happen while falling off the wagon so to speak at the end of January. Typically I do not really set goals or haven’t done really resolutions in a very very long time. Not that I can remember anyways. This year I want to do something different though. I want to try to set myself up for success BEFORE the new year begins and have a solid, sustainable plan. I would like to do some things so that if I slack I can make life a bit easier and not have to worry about slacking off.
First what I am doing is laying out a plan. Not in my planner per-say but in my content creation scribbler. This is where I go through with the help of a calender and write out all the dates for specific things ie: All the days in a month down the page for streaming so I can accurately keep track of my streams and how long I stream. I wrote out all of the dates blogs will release so every single Tuesday and Saturday so that I can just fill in the title and how many words are in each (With the goal being a 1000 minimum for each). I also will be writing every Monday and Friday for the different youtube videos that I would like to be putting out as well too. This way I can see dates that are upcoming and figure out if they are around a holiday, Do I want to do something before or use that subject for it, whatever the case might be. I have an agenda but I mostly us this for other goals and things. My scribbler is something that I carry over from year to year!
Blogs, I would like to pre-write 25 at least. I know this seems daunting however I would like to write a book (Another blog subject!) and if i can get a bunch of blogs written before hand I can just schedule them as the time comes. And if a subject is more relavant than another I can switch them around. Not to mention if we hopefully get pregnant with baby number 2 next year that is a whole new batch of blogs so if I am able to do something ahead of time on subjects that won’t be changing ie: Types of food I like, I want to write a book, What I keep track of when trying to lose weight etc, It can help me keep busy and not snack in the mean time! Though if I post a review or something that wont be schedule I will just post them as it happens. Reviews are a lot longer than these by about 500 words so for me to post them willy nilly it really wont be an issue! Just as long as I have seen the movie or show I want to review!
I want to write a book. I have a bit of a start by researching types of mythical creatures but overall I would like to start with a mini series of short stories. Where each book focuses on a types of mythical creatures, so an example would be perhaps like classics ie: vampires and werewolves and witches. And so on. These short stories will be anywhere from 7500-10,000 words each with approximately 5 stories in each book. My goal would be to start with writing one of these books. If I get more bonus. To achieve this I will be scheduling in some writing time each week so that I can just write. The key is being disciplined enough to actually write when I schedule it. I would ultimately like to write a series simular to Harry Potter but I feel like starting with these would be kind of neat and work on my creativity as well too.
And one of the last goals I have and certainly not least, Losing weight. I want to continue to lose weight. I feel like it is extremely harder for me to lose weight right now especially since giving birth to my son. But I would much rather be my current weight as the max weigth with baby number 2 than gain as much as I did with my son. That was a lot of weight and I know it will probably be much harder this time around while caring for him and pregnant. I feel like I am in a good place where I am not really smoking as much weed which is a huge success. Obviously I indulge a bit over the holidays but we will be right back at it though. If I want to lose weight I cannot smoke as much weed as I have been. I self sabotage myself so much that I need to learn to not do that anymore. Truth be told, I feel a lot better though since slowing down the smoking since I am not completely eating a weeks worth of calories by bingeing in an hour!
Overall time will tell if I stick to these resolutions, The major thing I think will be if and when we move back home. I am looking forward to having out own house again, our own space and privacy. I would like to be able to paint and decorate our house and have a bedroom where I don’t have to crawl out of bed but I can walk around the entire thing. I would like to be a drive away from my parents even If I don’t end up going there often because I am lay the possibility will still be there again and that is exciting!
Do you make resolutions for the new year?
Did you use to and don’t now?
Let me know in the commented below! I’m curious!
-StaySeeJ08
Monthly Archives: December 2020
My Favorite Foods
If you are no stranger to my previous blogs especially on weight loss you will find out this will be no shocker my favorite foods are nearly all junk food. I am pretty unhealthy in terms of food as there is many food groups I barely even touch. However like anyone I do have some favorite foods. Most of them I am sure you have heard of and perhaps there may be a few new ones in there that you haven’t, or ones that you also share a love for too!
Chocolate has always been a love of mine. In fact, it was so bad that I used to get patches of dry skin behind my elbows and behind my knees that would tell my parents if I was sneaking too much around the holidays. I love anything from a Terry’s Chocolate Orange to Cadbury Cream Eggs. There really isnt a whole lot of chocolate I wont eat however there are some specific criteria that I do not enjoy. I am not a fan of coconut in chocolate and as far as nuts go in it, it really depends. I can go for a Hersheys Almond bar. They are great. Even a good chocolate with peanuts I can go for. However I don’t normally choose a chocolate with nuts in it unless maybe it is M&M’s peanut or perhaps chocolate covered almonds too. I can also do without gooey and fruity treats too. My mom loves Cherry Blossoms. With the goo and cherries in them. I cannot stand those. It is the texture of them and I just cannot stomach it. As much as I love chocolate I will decline. And of course there is the weird Quality Street chocolates with the gooey flavors inside I also can do without those!
Garlic Fingers is for sure one of my top 3 things that I enjoy and probably something I miss tremendously here in Quebec since there really is no where to get any. Mind you, My culinary skills are up to par and I am able to make pia dough from scratch it still isn’t the same though. I miss being able to order out and enjoy it. My mom used to even make a few mini pans of it growing up so all we had to do was add cheese and put it in the oven. I normally just make it when I feel like it now though I don’t think I put enough love into it because it never really quite tastes the same. It always is edible however sometimes it is just extraordinary and other times it is just good. Or maybe it tastes better when my mom made it because I wasn’t putting in the effort to put it together.
Kraft Dinner has been a staple in my life since I can remember and to be fair, though I now have a child, and will probably not be making it for them as much, It still will be something that I love and enjoy for the rest of my life. Mind you if I ever became lactose intolerant I would probably have it a whole lot less I just would weight the risk when having it though! I love all the kinds of kraft dinner even the store brand extra creamy and white cheddar too. The only thing is that it can take a different cooking style if it is the store brand. It’s something I make many different ways as well. Sometimes I add more milk, other times I add more butter, some times I even dont add milk or butter and vice versa too! Sometimes we add hot dogs in or bacon bits and sometimes real shredded stuff too!
Potato Pancakes are something my mom made when I was a kid and I loved them so much it was typically the meal I choose for my Birthday meal year after year. They are super simple to make and they are always awesome. My mom and I would eat these the same, With a bit of salt and pepper and some butter. Since it was basically a type of hash brown. My dad on the other hand would eat them like french fries he would put ketchup on them. And lastly my sister which is super weird would put syrup on them! why or how it worked or tasted I have no idea. I couldn’t stomach thinking about putting syrup on potato pancakes. Her theory was they were pancakes after all.
Log Cabin Potatoes are something we only ever ate at Christmas time. Though, when my grandfather was alive sometimes he would treat us by making them on thanksgiving as well too which made them delicious though. These were mashed potatoes that were rolled into logs. They are then put in the fridge for a day so they can really harden up and by harden I don’t mean they get hard but they kind of get stuck together. After that you roll them in an egg and water mix and roll them in crushed corn flakes. After this you then deep fry them in oil. Before we would deep fry them once, and then a second closer to supper however everyone was eating scattered since you could only deep fry so many of them. Instead now we deep fry them and put them in the fridge. Afterwards we just put them in the oven to preheat them and they normally get crispy again and saves on the fat and everyone can eat them all at once together too.
Nuggets and Fries I think most people can agree is the staple of many children and low and behold it is something myself as a 30 something year old love too. I’m not super picky on kinds but man would I love the dinosaur nuggets though they are amaing. Other than that I like to bake my friend in the oven. We dont have a deep fryer and i always put it in a lot more though. My boyfriend is someone who follows the instructions on the box however anytime I do that I always find that they are never in long enough and the fries are pretty much always floppy with no crisp. Maybe for kids but not for me. I normally leave them in 40 minutes or so unless shoestring fries because they burn super fast compared to others.
As you can tell those are my favorite foods, And after reading this you may be asking yourself if I really am a 30-something year old woman or if I am an under 12 year old child. What can I say though, these are my favorites and I cannot wait to enjoy them, 1st being the Log Cabin Potatoes coming up at Christmas!
What are your favorite foods? Are they from when you were a child or are they advanced as you grew up and tried new things? Let me know in the comments below!!
-StaySeeJ08
Things We Want For Our New House!
It comes as no surprise if you are a regular reader of the blog that I am more than excited to move back home to Nova Scotia. Mostly because we rent right now and cannot wait til we buy and have our own property again. There isn’t a whole lot on our list of demands when searching for a house but there is a few non-negotiable here. Especially where this will be our hopefully forever home and we won’t be moving again after this.
My boyfriend has one major request. That would be he either wants a garage or he wants a place to build a garage. All we had before was 2 sheds and now in our currently rental we have nothing. He wants a place he can tinker around or store his bike if he wants too. A place to put all his tools and what not too. For me it really doesn’t effect me about a garage or not but for him it is for sure a major deal breaker. If a property does not have a garage either, that will hopefully be reflected in the price. That way in the future he would be able to build one too.
For me, I am way more picky. I would like the house to have at least 1.5 bathrooms. In our old house we had a master bathroom and a half bathroom upstairs. No second shower or anything but there was a second toilet and sink which was great. If my boyfriend was getting ready for work he would be able to shave or wash his face instead of taking up the bathroom. Also if you needed to use the bathroom and someone was in the shower you would be able to do that without intruding on the person washing up. This was huge and we never really noticed the difference til we move to this rental where the bathroom is so small you can barely even move around. If you are sitting on the toilet you are only able to open the door a crack unless you turn around because there is so little space. I wouldn’t mind if we had just one shower and bath but I know for sure there best be two toilets in the new home! Along the lines I would like to also have a deep bathtub. Ultimately I would like to have a bathtub that I can lay down in and have my knees be under the water. I am not super tall so this might not be a hard task however the bathtub that we have no it gets the job done, don’t get me wrong, but I would like something that is a bit deeper. As far as jets or anything I really could care less since apparently they are a lot more pain in the butt than they are worth.
The backyard is something we are slightly both picky about. If the backyard has a fence that would be huge bonus points. We had a fenced in yard when we owned a house before and going to a house where you cannot have a fence and if you do it is a pain in the butt since you cannot take it with you when you move and you have to sell it. I would like a fenced in yard so that Sheldon can run around and enjoy the freedom. He cannot be let off a lease or he would run and run and run. So a fenced in backyard is for sure a bonus, if the yard doesn’t have one though we will just put one in so that really isnt a deal breaker.
Privacy is huge for us. our last home we lived somewhere that everyone could see in your backyard. There was no privacy what so ever and our rental home here is no different. When you stand on your back deck you can see at least 8 other homes. We do not want this. Ideally, we would like to have a house where we don’t see anyone. Total privacy but not in the sense that you have to drive to a neighbor, but just so that you don’t see them. They are close enough that if something happened you can go there but far enough that you don’t have to see them when they do things. We want it to also be a big back yard as we would like to put in a pool eventually, my spouse would love a hot tub but for me I could care less. We also want to build a nice fire pit for some entertaining hopefully when covid is over with. We want our back yard to be like a hidden oasis. I know it sounds nutty. We do not want to be house poor and forced to live just at our house but we want a space that is so nice we wont want to go anywhere else.
As far as inside goes, I would like a big kitchen. And big to us is really not what you may think. Our kitchen now in our rental is so small you can’t even stand together cooking. We want something where you can have a few people around and much more counter space as well. We went from a big open concept kitchen to this super small one and we both do not like it. So something open or even just a bigger space would be great. if it has a dining room area that would be a bonus for us but by no means a deal breaker though. And as far as bedroom I would love it to have 4+ since we would like to have 3 kids. Master bedroom would be ours and each child would have their own. However if there was a den that could be turned into a bedroom eventually that would also work out great as well too. Though I have no idea where we would be putting out computers and things though, that is all up in the air! Paint colors or flooring is not really a deal breaker either as we will be changing it if we do not like them.
Overall I feel like we are a bit more picky this time around instead of when we first bought a house. Mostly because of the fact that this will be our forever house. I will not want to move anywhere after this. I want to be here for the rest of my life tweeking and working on it so that we have a home anyone would love to be in.
What are somethings you want in your dream house?
What are your deal breakers?
Let me know in the comments below! Maybe I can add to my list too!
-StaySeeJ08
10th Anniversary With My Boyfriend!
I can’t believe I am writing this and he hasn’t kick me away yet, Because between you and I, I can be a pretty nasty person if you rub me the wrong way! Before I really get into the story of this which I am sure you guys are going to know that I am dated by how we met and honestly, you would be right. I am slightly old. I am pretty open about that.
My boyfriend and I met on Plenty of Fish. The Original dating site from way back when which I am sure is still live and being used today. He is from Quebec and I am from Nova Scotia. He moved to Halifax due to his job. He was basically only in the city for maybe a month or two when we connected online. He said the thing that had really stuck out for him was in my profile I had something along the lines of “I have a job, I don’t want your money, and I don’t want to give you mine”. This was directly because of my previous relationship and how he basically took all my flipping stuff!
We ended up talking for a bit online, I think we even talked on the phone once as well too. Before we met we never video chatted which was slightly against my rules though because I always like to see a person before meeting up because you know.. Creeps! When we did end up meeting he picked me up at my parents house, Yes, I was still living with them. He needed a winter coat and only was at one of the two bigger malls in the city so I brought him to the other. I feel like it was a good time but pretty laid back. How much can you really learn from a person in a few hours. I was planning on going downtown since I was a “Bar Star” At the time so he got some of his friends and ended up going a well! After that the rest kind of happened.
He wanted to start things a little earlier however I was really nervous because my last relationship I rushed and it went super bad. I wanted to make sure we knew one another first. He was extremely patient with me and waited til we knew one another for a while.
How we became a couple is kind of a funny story. During October, November and December we just hung around, chatted, spent a lot of time together. I was only working part time in my career so this was a lot easier to just stay over night at his place instead of him getting up early or staying up late and bringing me to and from his place (Which he did a lot in the beginning!). We went to movies and dinners and did the bar scene too! Well, in December he went back to Quebec so that he could see his friends and what not. His parents travel south for the winter since Quebec can be very harsh with how cold it can be. He was getting my Christmas present there as I had given him his before hand. In the process he said he was doing brunch with a girl he knew from school. I was pissed. Low key triggered by this. I barely texted him all day. When he did end up talking through text he asked why I was distant and I said it was because I was upset he went to brunch with some other girl, and I asked him how he would feel if I was to go to brunch with another guy? He understood where I was coming from then. And in that moment he asked me if I would be his girlfriend, which obviously I said YES!
After being in an abusive relationship before from when I was 18-20. I didn’t know any other type of love. I didn’t think I could be loved and I didn’t think I even deserved it. My dad asked if I was being treated right which obviously I said I was. Being with my boyfriend was so strange to me. He picked me up at my house. I didn’t have to take the bus to him like I did every time with my ex. He took me out to dinners and paid. And the dinners were not just McDonald’s but actual restaurants too. Same with the movies, he also paid. It felt so weird to have someone take care of me.
Looking back it is crazy to think that a lot of the first 5 years of our relationship he was away due to his job traveling and what not. We had gotten a cat together and a dog soon after I moved in. I got my license so that I could drive to and from his house and not rely on him being able to pick me up. We did the bar scene where we would party and by we I mean i would and he would be the designated driver since he knew cab rides to my house after were about 35-40 dollars which I always went back because I had a friend who would go with me and I wouldn’t leave her hanging. We did the minor traveling back and forth every year to Quebec in the summer so we could see his family as well too. We had a house before moving here and renting this one and soon will have another one again.
And we have a FREAKING SON TOGETHER! Like a tiny human of half me and half him together in this world. If relationships have taught me anything, I need to be more kind and not as rude. I act and react before thinking about saying something a little bit nicer. I know I can be a very challenging individual to love and I would like to say my last relationship was to blame but it really isn’t (At least not all the way) as I was a cranky kid too!
Regardless, I cannot believe that we are here celebrating it and I am looking forward to enjoying an evening together as we normally do, ordering some food in, eating some junk, watching some movies, and picking up some Krispy Kremes as well, since it wouldn’t be an anniversary in Quebec with out it! Here is to another 10 years that will fly by also too!
-StaySeeJ08
Christmas Traditions
I’m not even sure where to begin since there are so many traditions that my family has had and ones that I wanted to start with my son (And future kids!). To keep things simple we can talk about the ones I grew up with and then move on to ones that are new to bring into my Son’s life! And if I want to continue it with him I will mention that as well too!
My Family Christmas Party
This is something that was started so long ago and somehow it always falls off on my Uncle or my Mom to throw the party. however maybe when we buy a new home we will take it on! This is just my dad’s side of the family however there is sometimes my Nanny (Mom’s mom) Who comes as well since my grampie passed away. Though with Covid this year there is no party (Not that I am happy but I don’t feel bad about missing out since there is nothing to miss!)
Annual Tree Hunt
Before, when I was younger we used to get a tree for ourselves, Now we go and get a tree for friends of ours. This is when we go about an hour or so drive to a pot luck dinner. It is a bunch of friends of the family and my grandparents used to bring my mom and siblings to this, then my mom brought my siblings and I to it, And now (Well next year) I will be bringing my son to it! Everyone goes to a tree lot to chop down their tree (If they still have a real one!) And then we all go back for a potluck dinner with everyone. Again, Another thing Covid has cancelled.
Christmas Eve
This can be quite a busy day for us. We started the day mid afternoon by stopping at my mom’s friend from high school. Usually chatting for a little bit. Afterwards we would all go to my Aunt’s house, Well Great Aunt. They would make rappie pie. Which is like a weird acadian dish with potatoes and chicken pieces and stock, with bacon sprinkled on the top baked. The consistency was like boogers from your nose when you had a bad cold. Simply yucky and I cant even try it. My boyfriend loves it but screw that noise. Yuck. After my Aunt’s house we would go back to my parents house. That’s where we would prep for the evening. Normally my Dad has his brothers (Who live close) to come over. Normally they would wait til my parents were ready to put us to bed to come over and get us all excited since only one of them understood the concept of time. Now that we are older we just hang out at my mom and dad’s for a bit. When we were a kid we would go to bed and now as adults we go to our parents friends, Brenda and Juniors. Sadly Junior passed away a few years ago but we still head over and shoot some pool for a bit before hitting the hay. Oh, And dont forget to leave out milk and cookies for Santa and carrots for the reindeer as well too! Sometimes if we got them from school we would even leave reindeer feed for them to find their way to our house (This was normally glitter with oatmeal or what not so that you threw it on your lawn and Santa would know that there is children in the home!). We also always read the Night Before Christmas. We had the Hallmark version from way back when and it was a pop up.. I checked amaon and it was 300 dollars so needless to say I got a nice version that was a very small portion of that price. Maybe some day I will snag that version but until then the new book will do!
Christmas Day
When I was younger we would take turns going from my grandparents house to my parents for dinner. We would make Log Cabin Potatoes and by we I mean either my dad or my Grampie. Now that I am moved away though I make them for my house and my brother makes them for his, (I’ll share the recipe at the end of this post). Since my Grampie passed however, My dad normally makes them at home and we pick my grandmother up and go to my parents for dinner. My sister and her 2 kids will sleep over at their house since they dont have a Christmas tree due to her and her husbands religious beliefs but we all still celebrate the meal and exchange of gifts together. I know my parents would love for my family to also stay over there but I can say once we buy a new home next year I do not think we will be since there is barely enough room or beds let alone we have our own tree in our home that we will be opening gifts under. Not to mention I just enjoy sleeping in my own flipping bed! We typically ate around mid afternoon so that by supper time we could be in our own homes and relaxing in our food coma.
Boxing Day
Boxing day is pretty fun for my family as well. We typically go to my Dad’s oldest brothers house. We go about mid morning for a visit and for him to showcase all the things him and my aunt exchanged or got for Christmas. We are kind of pranksters and while he shows us things we really get him to give us the “full package” so to speak by taking everything out of their boxes or bags even if they are in an orgional box. We make the typical “Oooooo” and “Awwww” for the items and if my Uncle tries to tell us he doesnt want to do it we give him grief about it and he gives us grief back and it’s all in good fun! Even being away from home living in a different province if the time is right I will video chat with them for a bit and we will still pull the same tricks from a different province too!
Most of the traditions that I had done as a child I want to continue with my son, and future kids too. One in particular that I never had as a child I would like to start with him would be the pajama box on Christmas Eve. This is where they receive a gift of new jammies, and as they get older they would get some hot chocolate, maybe some popcorn, or a treat, That way they can have a nice movie and unwind before bed. I don’t think my Uncles would be making their way over since they have their own grand kids and what not already. And we won’t be doing the pool thing while our children are young since the evening wasn’t met for children. It was just for the adults. Though we may swing by though to say hello! Another I would like to do also when my children get older is to hide the pickle on the Christmas tree. Whoever finds the pickle gets a special gift. Something silly to match the little game. Elf on a shelf will also be happening however that is a bit away til my Son and future children understand what they are too!
As you can see, there really is many traditions that I had as a child and I am sure there will be many more for me to find out about and decide if they are right for our family!
What are some of your Christmas or Holiday traditions?
I would love to hear them.
-StaySeeJ08
Holiday Baking + Recipes!
As the holidays are fast approaching and I am sure they are well welcomed this year due to 2020 not being the most pleasant of years to date in my life time anyways, I think most can agree that holiday baking is one of the things we all look forward to the most. There is probably some recipes that have been handed down that you may make yourself or you just wait for a loved one to make. For me I think I kind of wing it but I also have some recipes that I make that my mom has made too! Let’s dive in shall we!
Pretzels. Pretzels. Pretzels. This is a staple for my holiday baking. I love to make chocolate bark. Normally I use chocolate wafers for this however this year due to the virus I decided to get milk chocolate since it was at my local grocery store. I always start with a layer of pretzel on the bottom and melt whatever I am using, whether it is chocolate or the chocolate wafers (Which are cheaper if you are looking to save money!). I typically make two kinds, the first one I chuck some holiday M&Ms so red and green, so it adds a bit of color, sometimes I swirl different colors on it as well like white chocolate in there. The 1st is more about salty and sweet than anything so I try to keep it simple. The second one I did this year was a peppermint one. To do that I just lined pretzels on a tray with melted milk chocolate and put some candy canes on the top. Normally they are crushed but this time I just put them hole and would break them as they would be cut, and then I took girl guide mint cookies and cut those into pieces to put on the top as well! It seemed to work well and they look great too!
Next I make peanut butter balls. Funny enough, my mom called me the other day asking for the recipe and I really don’t have one. But for the sake of this I will do my best here.
2 Cups of Peanut butter
3/4 cup of butter/margerine
3-5 cups of icing sugar (Til the mixture becomes clay? It should not stick to your finger if you touch the mixture)
1-2 cups of Rice Krispies (Depending on how crunchy you would like your balls to be!)
For Dipping
Dark Chocolate
Vegetable oil OR paraffin wax
Sea Salt (Optional)
Start with the peanut butter and margarine/butter and melt it in a pot.
Once everything is melted and mixed start adding icing sugar, You will know when you have enough when the mixture will no longer be sticky. It will almost form kind of a ball or clumps. When it starts to get this way slowly add icing sugar as to not add too much that you are unable to incorporate it in. The point is when you start to make the balls the dough/mixture will not stick to your hands because the icing sugar will be there to keep it not sticky.
Once you hit this stage it should be a bit tough to even stir to be honest, and you can start adding rice krispies to your mixture/dough. You can add as little or as much as you like.
(My mom does this step backwards where she will add the rice krispies before the icing sugar and it just turns out fine I suppose. For me I like this way as it really makes things blended and not clumpy).
Once you have everything combined, start to roll the mixture into balls and put them on a tray with some sort of protective layer like foil, or parchment paper or wax paper. (Remember they have to be dipped in chocolate so bigger is not always better!)
Once you have them rolled throw them in the fridge.
Melt your chocolate on a double broiler on low heat. I use a touch of vegetable oil when the chocolate is melted just to slightly thin it out and make it easier to coat. After you dip the chocolates you can sprinkle some sea salt over the top (Flakes or rock). I didn’t do this as there was none in the house but it is possible to do!
Next I make a whipped shortbread cookie. This is by no means my recipe nor is it a family one or anything. It is one my mom uses from a Companys Coming cookbook. Im sure you know someone who has this book as there are legit SO MANY different collections. The recipe that I use is here:
Whipped ShortBread Cookies
1lb Butter (2 Cups)
1 Cup Icing Sugar
1\2 Cup of Cornstarch
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
3 Cups Flour
Beat all ingredients until it looks like whopped cream. Drop by the teaspoon on cookie sheet. Bake at 350f for 10 minutes. Add chopped red or green cherries on top before baking.
I think this can really go any way you wish. I dont do the cherries however I do roll them into balls. Then I use a fork to push it down too, since if you dont do this they will not level out on their own! This year I also dipped them into red sugar and sprinkles before pressing them down with a fork too. It really depends you also could probably roll them out and use cookie cutters too if you wanted to also! Use your imagination!
And lastly but certainly not least, My world famous Bits and Bites mix! Okay, Maybe they arent world famous (Yet) And they are a knock off of the recipe on the box of Crispex but I have dont the same modified recipe since I was a kid. This was one of the first things for baking that I was able to do since I loved them so much my mom let me take the reins. This is how I made it this year, Obviously things are inter changable and optional. Ill write what I put in and what I have put in also so you can build your own mix!
1 Box Crispex Cereal
1 Box Cheese Nibs
1 Box Swiss Cheese Crackers
Pretzels (To your liking)
Peanuts (To Your Liking)
1 Box Cheese Bits
Sauce
1 Cup Butter\Margerine
1 Small Bottle Worsherchire Sauce
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
(I put a lot of each, Way more Onion Powder than Garlic Powder as I find it makes the mix a touch sweet, however if you find baking that you didnt add enough you can always shake some more of which ever you want as it is baking since you have to mix every 15 minutes)
Preheat oven at approx 325f, Once all the ingredients are added and the sauce mixed in. Place on a deep dish baking tray. Not small but enough that it can be easily mixed without making a mess too. Baked for 45 minutes stirring every 15. I also taste along the way to check flavors normally trying a piece of each I put in just to be sure coating is good.
Things that I have seen added are:
– Different types of nuts
– Gold Fish Crackers
– Cheerios
– Popcorn (popped obviously after by adding it.. Do not add this to the oven for obvious reasons.. HAHA)
And that is the extent of my baking this year! I may make more when we hopefully move back home but right now it is basically myself and the boyfriend eating things and I didn’t want us to have so much stuff. Also have to save a few recipes for next years blog post too! Can’t spoil it all! If y9ou found this helpful or you have slight variations let me know! I am always curious about what people add for their recipes too!
-StaySeeJ08
December Update
December is a month I am looking forward to the most this year. Why you may ask, Because it means that HOPEFULLY next year I will be on my way back to Nova Scotia and away from Quebec. This province is actually a different country INSIDE of Canada. A blog in the future will be coming out about that though. Not to mention my favorite holiday is also in December which after is my Birthday month! More blogs coming as well for the holidays I just have to really think about them and type them up this week! Now that my house is decorated and things as well too!
I’m quitting weed. Ok. Let’s not get too crazy here. I’m not really quitting but I am drastically cutting back. That is for sure. The reality of weed and me is that when I smoke I get lazy, as in I’ll stop the stream earlier than I would like, not helping me grow or be consistent. I already stream at a peek hour in the evening which is not ideal for someone who wants to grow or see any type of improvement since so many heavy hitters are also on as well. I am ending the stream after an hour which I am not happy about doing since it doesn’t really get people who know the stream to really get involved too! Not to mention I then beat myself up about it because I know ending a stream early is not helping any thing I am looking to achieve. I also have no self control high. I literally will eat and eat and eat til I feel like crap and do it all again the next time. From here on out no more high streams and only smoking on Friday and Saturday. However when I see results with pounds being gone I’m sure it may be even less. Though there will be a special time when I probably have a puff or so on stream it just wont be in the way of my goals for the channel too! Not to mention it doesn’t help my weight AT ALL either!
Stream schedule will be adding back Sundays as an art stream. I used to do those every Sunday morning last year as part of an emote re-creation wall. Then the year was over and I didn’t know what to do. I’m bringing this back in part for myself. I miss crafting and art. So by putting it in the stream I’m a little forced to do it. Mentally I think it will help me have a creative outlet while being cooped up inside due to Covid.
Blog direction will be steering away from streams or streaming subjects. The support I received from the weight loss struggles has been overwhelming, not to mention after nearly a year of blogging, it made me realize that obviously streaming topics were complete misses. I’ll be keeping it to a more personal and open subject, just life to parenting to my opinion too. Sure maybe streaming subjects will pop up from time to time but it won’t be anytime soon! I think we will also be trying to re-vamp the blog a bit and make it more personal. To really lean away from the whole streaming section. Make it more appealing and more interesting for people to want to read it. Not to mention I have to think of a catchy name for the blog as well too. Which can be challenging in itself since it can sometimes make or break a blog! I want it to be captivating and capture what the blog is really about! And obviously a touch of humor too!
YouTube will be changing in part with the weed thing. I can’t record baked beauty if I’m barely smoking weed maybe once I get a handle on my eating I will bring it back, but for now a mini break. I have 2 video ideas for uploads in January. it will be still Monday and Fridays. Mondays will be the crafting or creating section but sped up and put to music like a satisfying video. Friday’s will be a stream highlight video. Both should be fairly easy to edit. I need to really manage my time and think about how I can not spend a lot of time editing one video. I need to really think about ways to not spend a long time on a video, when I spend a long time on a video I find myself being extremely lazy and unmotivated to keep going.
Content Overall I think will be taking a major step forward with planning the next year to be successful. I really am trying to plan my blogs and videos so that I don’t miss anything and I can be consistent. I am my own biggest critique. When I plan big things and I dont do them right or I slack I then spiral and slack even more about it. I need to set myself up for success and I think with me planning and having a clearer mind it will really help in the long run for sure!
Crafting and Me time as much as I didn’t want to schedule this I think adding it back into the streams will be great. I really enjoyed when we did the emote artwork on my channel every Sunday morning. Mind you, with a baby they will be in the evenings but I think it will be a great way to have a little creative moments and self care for myself to start the week. Sometimes I find myself getting lazy when it comes to things that I enjoy. I don’t have to do a full stream of it but if we just hung around with members of my community and did artwork and what not I think that will be a great start to some good growth and pulling in viewers who just want to relax without game play.
The reality is I say all these things I just hope I can really stick to them! I have a good feeling that this could be a good month and here is hoping I keep the momentum going though! I need to remember that if I slip up though to not be so hard on myself and when or if it happens not to let the one day snow ball! That is a downfall I have where I let one slip up continue and I shouldn’t be like that!
See you at the end of the month for another update! And prep your belly’s for some sweet blogs this month!
-StaySeeJ08
Stacey J. Girard 