High Five for Friday!

It's another High Five for Friday!! This was a busy week of homework and studying. I had one test this week and I'll have another on Monday. I think Mike and I are finally settled in here and have a good routine going. Mike has made several friends in his gunsmithing program and I have enjoyed meeting them and getting to know them. I joined the gun club this week so I can do the club activities with Mike. Next weekend we're going to a gun museum. Here are the great things that happened this week:

1. Last week Mike and I went on a drive down a scenic highway. This is just a sneak peek, I'll have a full post next week with LOTS of pictures.

2. We received two packages on Monday!! One from my parents and one from Mike's parents. I LOVE getting those packages! It's a great reminder of home.

3. This happened! We got a harness and leach for Pantera in one of our care packages. He now enjoys going on daily walks and I enjoy it too!

4. I discovered a new website this week. Please tell me if I'm just way behind on this, but I had to share it with you. It's called Bourbon and Boots and looks similar to Etsy, but with way less vendors and a Southern twist. My favorites are this, this, and this.

5. Only 13 days until the Collins Crew arrives in Colorado!!!!!!! My mom, dad, and brothers will be visiting for a whole week in March. I CAN'T wait!!

I don't have a million hours of homework this weekend! I just want to relax, have some fun, and get my craft on!! Happy weekend everyone!

What I Wore Wednesday: Purple Plaid

Hello and happy Wednesday! Hope your week is going good so far! Today I'm linking up with the Pleated Poppy for What I Wore Wednesday. The weather has been pretty nice lately and I'm loving it, so I decided to venture outside to take these outfit photos. In the past, I've asked Mike to take the pictures for these outfit posts, but he was at school and I got a tripod for Christmas so I knew I could take them on my own. I just didn't want to look like a weirdo taking pictures of myself in the front yard. So I checked out front and didn't see anyone around. I took my tripod and camera outside and got everything all set up. It was a little windy that day so my hair kept going crazy in a bunch of the pictures, but I was in no rush and just took my time. After a little while I started getting that feeling I'm not alone. To my horror, I notice a neighbor lady across the street in her front yard watching me! Needless to say, I wrapped things up pretty quickly after that. Maybe next time I'll take pictures from the backyard!

This is a very comfortable outfit for going to school or running errands. It's casual, but still put together. The shirt is lightweight and perfect for the weather, which was in the 60s that day.

Shirt - American Eagle

Jeans - American Eagle Boot Cut

Boots - JCPenney

Earrings - Amy Lowe Designs

Pinterest Recipe Review: Blueberry Breakfast Cake

Time for another Pinterest recipe review. I've always thought of myself as a baker. I think it's fun, relaxing, and a form of creativity. However, I must admit that most of my baking has come from boxes - cake mixes, cookie mixes, muffins, etc. Box mixes are great, don't get me wrong. They save time, are easy, taste great, and usually really hard to mess up. However, since we've moved and I've had a little extra time, I have really been enjoying making recipes from scratch. Learning to adjust to baking at a higher altitude has been a little challenging, but so far nothing has turned out completely ruined. This blueberry breakfast cake is delicious! I made it early one morning so Mike and I could enjoy it warm, and then had it for the rest of the week as well. It's really moist and I love the fresh blueberries! The recipe is easy to follow and doesn't call for any unusual ingredients. I think the only ingredient we didn't already have was buttermilk, however, the recipe gives you a way to make buttermilk by the cup using regular milk and vinegar! I thought this was awesome because I didn't have to spend money on an ingredient that I only needed half a cup of. So try out this recipe. I highly recommend it!!!

You can find the recipe HERE.

Tour Trinidad

This weekend the weather was finally warm enough for Mike and I to take a walk around town. It's something we've been wanting to do for the past couple weekends, but it's always been too cold! However, this weekend the weather was in the 60s and it was wonderful! We walked from our house down to Main Street and then down another popular road called Commercial Street. We checked out the different shops and restaurants as went and talked to some super nice people at the local archery shop. They even gave us some suggestions about other things we can do on the weekends. After we'd walked for a little while we stopped for lunch at a place I'd been eyeing for a while. It's called The Cafe and it's super cute inside! It's wooden floors throughout, but the entry has a decorative checkered pattern. It's decorated with strung lights and other rustic charm. The food is similar to Panera with different sandwiches and salads. I can't wait to go back! After lunch we took our time and walked back home. It was a really great afternoon.

Trinidad was a mining town until recently. From what I've heard from the locals, the mines closed about three years ago. The two monuments are dedicated to the miners and are located on Main Street.

This is The Bell Block business complex. When you walk inside there are several offices for doctors, accounting, etc. On the bottom floor there is a Mexican restaurant called Mission by the Bell. Mike and I have eaten there once so far and it was really good. My favorite restaurant in Florida has got to be Tijuana Flats, which I would categorize as Mexican-American food. The Mexican food here in Trinidad is real Mexican food (with the exception to Taco Bell). A little different than what I'm used to, but really good!

The Bella Luna Pizzeria is where we have eaten out at the most so far here in Trinidad. I think we've been there three or four times. It has a nice atmosphere and delicious pizza!

This is The Cafe we ate lunch at this weekend. It has a nice outside sitting area too, but we went ahead and ate inside.

The brick building is the local fire department and the building next to it is city hall.

So that's the little tour of what Main Street and Commercial Street look like. It's so different to be able to walk from our house to so many shops and restaurants. I can't wait for the weather to stay warm so we can do this more often. As Mike and I visit more areas of Trinidad I'll try to do more tours!

High Five for Friday

Happy Valentine's Day!!! Another week has already gone by! Mike and I were saying earlier this week how quickly time is going lately. Here's the highlights of my week...

1. I started working on my first quilt this week. I haven't done very much so far, but it's still exciting and I hope to work on it more this weekend.

2. I've been watching the Olympics every night. I'm addicted!!!

3. I started a workout routine this week. In the past I haven't been very good at sticking with it, so I'm hoping this time I really will!

4. I made some strawberry chocolate chip cookies this week for Mike to take to his friends at school. They were pink for Valentine's Day :)

5. Mike and I are celebrating Valentine's Day at home this year. We're making Bang Bang Shrimp like they do at Bonefish! It's one of my favorites and I can't wait. We're also making a super cute dessert I found on Pinterest of a little heart shaped pie. The recipe calls for cherry filling, but we'ere going to make it with strawberries instead.

Have a great weekend!

This post is linked up with Lauren Elizabeth's High Five for Friday.

What I Wore Wednesday

Happy Wednesday! I'm linking up with Pleated Poppy for What I Wore Wednesday. The outfit below is a super comfy one I wore on the weekend for running errands and doing a few things around the house.

The leggings are fleece lined and ridiculously warm! They were a Christmas present from my in-laws and I really like them. The jacket was also a Christmas present from my mom and dad. I love that the base color is gray, but if you look up-close there are a ton of colors throughout.

I've also been loving this necklace. My Aunt Teresa and Uncle Mark got it for me for Christmas! It goes with every outfit.

These are the hair bows I've been making a ton of. They are so cute!!!

Tips & Tricks for Cleaning Make-Up Brushes

It is really important to clean your make-up brushes on a regular basis because they hold tons of germs and can get "clogged-up" by the product you're using. I've read several articles on the subject and I'm just here to tell you what I think works best. There are several opinions as to how often you should clean your brushes. I like to clean mine once a month. I feel like by the end of a month's time you can see product in the brushes and they could use a nice cleaning. Also, your brushes will take some time to dry, so don't wash them if you need to use them later in the day. Do this after you have applied your make-up for the day or on a weekend day when you don't need to go anywhere wearing make-up.

I like to lay out a dish towel and use two bowls of warm water to get started.

In one bowl you need to use a cleaning agent. There are many products designed just for cleaning make-up brushes, however, shampoo works just as good. It is best to use a clarifying shampoo or baby shampoo if you have it (these shampoos will clean well while still being very gentle on your brushes). Otherwise whatever shampoo you wash your hair with will work just fine! Squirt a bit into one bowl and swish it around to mix well with the water.

Next, take one brush at a time and first place it into your shampoo water bowl. If you wear as much make-up as I do, you will see your water start changing colors. I usually like to start with my least "dirty" brushes first, such as an eye shadow brush and save the foundation brush for last.

If needed, gently rub into the brush hairs with your fingers to really get a deep clean. Once you are satisfied your brush is product free, place it in the bowl of just water to rinse it off. Continue these last two steps with the remainder of your brushes.

I like to lay my brushes on a dish towel to dry just until they aren't drippy anymore.

Then I move the brushes to a jar to finish drying upright. This way they don't get a weird squished shape from laying flat and seem to dry to bit faster than laying down.

I also like to take this opportunity to empty out my entire make-up bag and give everything a nice wiping down. I like to use either a make-up remover wipe or a Clorox/Lysol wipe to clean the inside of my make-up bags and also to clean the make-up containers. You can also take this time to go through the make-up you have in your bag. If I find a couple things I haven't used during the month, I usually take them out and store them elsewhere for the time being. I like my make-up bag to only have the items I use regularly.

All done! Your bag should now be nice and clean and well organized! Please leave a comment if you have any questions.

High Five for Friday - Weather Edition

Since Mike and I have moved to Colorado I haven't walked outside without a heavy jacket and gloves unless it's been 60 degrees or above. Needless to say, I usually appear a little over dressed compared to the native Coloradans. This week has been the coldest since we've moved. The natives have actually put jackets on and move quickly about campus to get of the cold! So I had to step it up a notch. This week has been long underwear, multiple layers, gloves, hats, etc. If it's for warmth, you name it, and I probably wore it this week. I'm glad it's Friday and I can wear pajamas, drink hot chocolate, and watch the Olympics this weekend!

Highlights of the Week:

1. Monday it snowed!

2. Tuesday it snowed!

3. Wednesday Mike and I wrote a happy birthday snow message to my G-pa!

4. It was 3 degrees at one o'clock in the afternoon...not okay!

5. Thursday morning when we woke up this is what my weather app told me. I don't know how we left the house.

Linking up with Lauren Elizabeth for High Five for Friday. Have a great weekend everyone!

Pinterest Recipe Review: Slow Cooker Chicken Caesar Sandwiches

Since Mike and I have moved, I've been trying out way more recipes than I did at home. Most of the recipes I've found on Pinterest. So I thought it might be fun to review a few of them to let you know what I think and also to share them so you can try them too!

A couple weeks ago I stumbled across this recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Caesar Sandwiches. I was interested in this recipe for a couple reasons. One being that it was mostly prepared in the crock pot. I hardly ever use the crock pot, but really would like to start using it more often. Another reason is I love anything chicken caesar!  The recipe directions were straight forward and easy to follow. Also, this recipe doesn't call for an overwhelming amount of ingredients and didn't do anything super complicated which was nice. The sandwiches turned out great and tasted wonderful. I will definitely be saving this recipe to make again!

Click here for the recipe!