Adventures in Cooking #2

Okay peeps... I have been doing good on my goals- been journaling, haven't sewn anything quite yet, the wedding album is ALMOST done (going to have it ready by our 1 year anniversary next month!) and yes... I have cooked another NEW recipe. So here we go, yum :)

This is from the cookbook that Lori Massey (the fabulous designer behind our Save the Dates) gave me as a wedding gift - so very thoughtful! I made Poppyseed Chicken Casserole and Logan said it may just be his favorite dish I have ever made... wow :)

Okay Ingredients:
1 Can mushroom soup
8 ounces sour cream
1 can celery soup
6 chicken breasts- cooked and diced
2 packages Lipton mushroom flavored instant rice, cooked
1 roll Ritz crackers, crushed
1 stick butter, melted
2 T. poppyseeds

Still learning how to time everything JUST right, but I knew I should cook the chicken breasts first. (Also- I cut the entire recipe in 1/2 since its just Logan and I...but I wish I would have done the entire thing b/c we would have had killer leftovers!) Remember when doing the chicken- use a little bit of olive oil and no spices... we just want plain chicken.

Diced...means chopped into little squares :) So do that then set aside.

Instant rice is MY LANGUAGE haha... it wont take long, so start it when the chicken is almost done. Once you are done with the rice- pour it into a glass casserole dish as the bottom layer. (Keep in mind if you are doing the full recipe, you should use a 9x12 casserole dish- not the one pictured above)



Mix the soups, sour cream, and chicken breasts (diced) together. Then pour it over the rice as the second layer.





Crush up the Ritz crackers w/ your hands and put them into a small bowl.



Mix crushed crackers, melted butter (not hard- do it in the microwave), and poppyseeds together. Then sprinkle the mixture over the top as the final layer/ topping!



Cook 20 minutes in oven, uncovered at 350 degrees and you are done!!!




Phew! Just in time for the month of September :)

HAPPY OCTOBER TOMORROW!!!!! It is my favorite month of the year + my anniversary! Anyone have fun Fall plans I should be jealous of? :)

PS I am such a bandwagon girl...but today I DID indeed try the pumpkin spiced latte at Starbucks and WOW am I in love!

Wishful Wardrobe: Feeling Fancy

So next week we have another round of our STELLAR 30/30 Employee Discount ... Last time I went they introduced the Gucci Guilty fragrance and I loved it! Currently I wear Daisy by Marc Jacobs and I am ready for a new scent... I have worn it for 2 years now and wanted something a little sexier and more sophisticated. Last time Gucci Guilty (since it was new) wasn't on our vendor list so I am crossing my fingers it will be this time. (They announce the particpating vendors on Tuesday!)

Confession...that little bottle of perfume LITERALLY is the reason for this inspiration board. It made me want to dress up, but not too fancy (b/c thats not my style) and step it up a few notches! Hope you like it :)

Feeling Fancy! by abbymisegades featuring gold jewelry

My Life in Tweets- Second Edition

So this Twitter thing...its weird. On one hand its fun to look back over them and you can sort of remember what you have done over the past few months that maybe you wouldnt have remembered if you didn't write it down- a bunch of typical, ordinary, daily things. In that sense, it really does make me appreciate the little things. I no longer feel like I havent "accomplished" anything or done anything "cool" over the summer.

On the OTHER hand, its creepy. I have a confession: b/c I follow so many celebrities, they are starting to appear in my dreams and we (as in me and the celebrity) are doing activities together that they are tweeting about. Example: Ali and Roberto (Bachelorette winning couple)- I cant tell you how many times I have woken up thinking we really are friends b/c I know what they do on an almost daily basis. Kind of sad that I don't even know that about some of my besties! So those are my thoughts currently on Twitter... still going to participate, but sort of on the fence.


Okay so here are some recent tweets- I will write their story above each image :)


This summer I had a huge marketing meeting about the big "Reorganization" in which I lost CUSP :( and acquired Bergdorf Goodman (not a bad trade!) At the meeting they passed out Neiman Marcus cookies and waters...except they looked like THIS haha! I mean wow- even the cookies have a shopping bag and that's the prettiest water packaging I have ever seen!





I finally participated in our 30/30 shopping discount and bought stuff for me ;) I am investing (quite slowly) in replacing my Walgreens makeup with some nicer brands. I got some "All About Eyes" from Clinique, some Laura Mercier powder, and then got Logan some cologne that he loves!





I was sick (still don't know what I had- some virus) where I literally ate the below for 5 straight days. I felt miserable, missed a wedding, but I sure do miss my loose fitting clothes afterwards haha!




We made a road trip to College Station to move the Cochrans into their new HUGE grown up home :) I got to eat at WINGS 'N MORE and its kind of brutal even typing this b/c my stomach is growling/ craving it right now... soooo bad!




We also celebrated Kent's White Coat Ceremony - part of starting Med School...AND his birthday at Blue Baker (another one of my fave CS hot spots!)

Painting w/ a Twist was awesome! Went w/ my "Breakfast Club" and we had a ball. My pic is the second from the left... matches our dining room and now resides there on an easel. This is a really fun girls night- BYOB and a teacher who literally could walk a kindergartner through how to recreate the chosen painting for the evening. Try it!

I cannot believe I am even going to write this...but this weekend I think I FINALLY admitted that I am burnt out of sushi...thats what I get for eating it 2x/ week for the entire summer. However, I think my debit card and husband will be thankful.

Katy started teaching high school Spanish at Shepton and is loving it! She is the cutest teacher ever... and I need to get a pic of her new "Grown Up" hairdo... she chopped it all off! Its super cute.

This is a picture of a military dude.... I mean, my husband!?!?!? What did they do? Luckily it is grown out, I am no longer scared or intimidated by Frenchy, and he knows where NOT to get his hair cut next time :)

Some cute (within the budget) purchases! $4 socks and a $4 headband from Forever. In Love and wear both of them all the time :)

Jayne's Bachelorette Party in a nutshell. Guess where we were? Yes, Austin on 6th... and we had props/ songs that went along with each location's theme...so clever and fun!

Just some sweet eye candy of my honey and I after throwing the cutest couples shower cookout EVER yesterday! 92 degrees on September 19th... wow. Wasn't planning on that, but still a success!

This weekend we are off to Richmond, Indiana so I can celebrate one of my besties walk down the aisle and become Mrs. Jayne McCabe!!! Can't wait to see her hometown and what creative things she has in store.

Tah Tah for now,

AM

My nieces and nephews!

Okay so even though Katy won't be having little ones anytime soon, when I married into the Misegades familia of 5... I inherited 6 nieces and nephews and little did we know, that Erin was pregnant with #7 at our wedding! I love them all SO much and it makes me kind of excited to have little Logans someday... (focus on SOMEday...)

I got to meet sweet Eleanor (NORA) Rebekah in August and my goodness, I am biased, but I think you would all agree that she is about the most precious thing in the world! I am a very proud Aunt Abby :) And the cool thing is.. since I was officially a part of the family for this one, I really am feeling more like and Aunt and less like a "Poser" haha!

look how tee-tiny she is next to my basketball-playing hubby!

her smiles will melt your heart! And check out the cutest big brother ever- Seth!

AND of course my other nieces and nephews...gotta show them off too!

Bonjour Isaac clan!!! Ryan, Kailyn, and Sophia... they currently live in France and from what I hear, are becoming QUITE the pros at speaking French... I am jealous :)

Then of course Harper and Griffin in Vegas... they couldn't be cuter! Got to spend great time with them in May! Harper is a future actress in the making (has the best personality ever) and Griffin is awesome at belting Rascall Flatts (or rather, Flasal Flatts)... so we have the fame genes in that family!

Wishful Wardrobe

I have been introduced to this website called POLYVORE through my new gig with Bergdorf Goodman. I have played around with it today and think its super cool... still figuring it all out!

I am going to start doing "Wishful Wardrobe" posts when I am in a shopping mood and don't exactly have the wallet to support my craving. I mean heck, I work on marketing one of the most expensive stores in the US- I look at overpriced merchandise every day for my job- talk about temptation and shopping envy!

Anyways I think its hilarious that the temperatures in Dallas have dropped to 75 and its pouring rain and everyone is giddy b/c they feel like FALL is finally here and its time for pumpkin spiced lattes and Christmas music... I am excited for Fall, but not convinced that Fall WEATHER is officially here... So gals, don't whip out your sweaters and Uggs quite yet.

I am going to do my first "Wishful Wardrobe" on a look that I feel is cute and transitional from Summer to Fall... I only wish I could afford it all ;) Take a gander at my "funky fall" daydream and check out Polyvore to start making your own collages!

My Funky Fall by abbymisegades featuring victorian bracelets