Hello all, and happy first Friday of November.
November…Really? November??? I must be getting old, because I can still remember my mom lamenting that the days seem to go by faster and faster the older you get. And it’s sad to say, but it’s true. Buy why is that? Maybe because things become more mundane? More normal? Or because we’ve passed by those big milestones you KNOW you can’t wait to hit, like getting the driver’s license, graduating college, having the first baby.
Now, at my age, it’s all about retirement funds and working less so you can live more. I think the only thing we can truly count on is taking advantage of the time we have, and truly showing gratitude by making the very most of it.
Speaking of time, don’t forget this weekend is the end of Daylight Savings and that means you set your clocks BACK an hour on Saturday night. I can never remember which is which. And apparently, Massachusetts is tired of trying to recall as well and is leading the charge in abolishing DST altogether. Weigh in friends…good idea or not?
Last weekend I was in gorgeous Park City, Utah, or more specifically Deer Valley, hosting our 5th Better Blog Retreat (5 years!!!) with some amazingly smart bloggers who made me realize…man, after 6 years of blogging, I still have a lot to learn. It’s no wonder though. Things are ALWAYS changing in the online world. I mean, just think…when I started blogging those mere 6 years ago, print was considered dead, Instagram and Pinterest didn’t even exist, and Food Network still had cooking shows instead of game shows.
from left: me, The Melea Show, Completely Delicious, Dinner then Dessert, The Modern Proper, I am Baker, Lexi’s Clean Kitchen, Simply Recipes, Chelsea’s Messy Apron, Two Peas and Their Pod, The Recipe Critic, Skinnytaste.
If anyone then had mentioned the words algorithm, conversion rate optimization, or commenting pods to me, they would have received a blank stare. In fact, I doubt if half of you readers even know what those are. Nor should you. But for anyone running an online business can tell you, in our world RPM doesn’t have to do with how fast your car engine is running, RPM is what your ad revenue per thousand impressions is (impressions = page views), and how you make a living. And if they don’t know, they better host their own retreat and learn from the smarties!
Huge thanks to our sponsors who made this years retreat one not to be forgotten: Kroger & Smith’s Marketplace, La Brea Bakery, Land O’Lakes, Resorts West (the home we rented was stuuuuuning!) and Deer Valley Resort plus amazing meals in Park City at Riverhorse on Main (my lobster and scallops shown at top were AMAZING!) and J&G Grill at St. Regis where Chef Rachel blew us all away with her Wild Woman feast for the eyes—literally concluding our dinner with a flaming chocolate eye ball dessert all in the Halloween spirit.
Whew, long winded way to say…my, time goes by fast, and things…things are always changing.
Besides all that, I am SO EXCITED TO REVEAL…well, wait. I think I’ll share my good news next week because this is getting a tad long winded, and I know you guys want to get into those Friday Fave links. So without further ado, let’s dig in to this week’s list of Friday Faves!
This just warms my heart…
I saw some pretty stellar Halloween costumes, but these deserve a special mention:
This guy is AMAZING! He shows how to take a challenging condition and add humor to create grace. Just wow.
These Big Little Guys totally nailed it. So, so good!
And this Stranger Things fan made me LOL! But seriously, did you already binge out on season 2? I gotta get on it!
How Kristen Bell practices self-care. I am totally going to start doing this!
And if you’re a fan of Chrissy Teigen, you need to watch this. (and I found out she and my husband have the SAME late night eats craving!! It’s like we’re family!!!)
Who’s ready for The Lion King remake and the fact that Bey is going to be in it!
Your complete list of TV and movies coming to Netflix this month.
This cabin looks insane! But what if you’re not a morning person?
Speaking of mornings, here are 6 things to do before dinner every night for a better morning.
BOOKMARK THIS –> The best tips for the perfect pie.
and…
BOOKMARK THIS –> Homemade cream of chicken soup. All real, all day.
How you should clean your cast-iron skillet.
This crockpot beef stew = get it DONE!
Creamy pumpkin marinara. Say whaaaat? Say YES!
Can you imagine getting paid to essentially eat ice cream for a living? Um, hello dream job!
You had me at grilled cheese croutons. #nomnomnom
And I’m making this soup in my Instant Pot as soon as it’s humanly possible.
Get over that stubborn cold with this smoothie.
This hummus is like a meal in one!
5 comfort foods I want to cozy up with:
- Sausage and Kale Spaghetti Pie
- Crispy Garlic Roasted Potatoes
- Creamy Blue Cheese Mac
- Mini Meatball Pasta Bake
- Potato Chip Chocolate Chip Blondies
Santa baby, this is what I want for Christmas, please.
I am 100% not Not NOT okay with this, Amazon!
Speaking of Target, here are 8 Target beauty products you need right now.
The cutest holiday wrapping paper.
Obsessed with this pretty travel mug. #marbleeverything
Loving this pretty gingham top. How cute are those sleeves?
Liking this stylish and cozy sweater dress.
Because you can never have too many little black dresses.
Such a pretty coat (great price too)!
Okay friends, happy November, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
As always, thank you for reading and supporting companies I partner with, which allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you. All opinions are always my own.
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kemparaju
There is a reason why I bought a Mac, it was not to be one of the cool kids that wanted the best of the best. No it was because of the music production I do on it. Hours and hours sitting in front of my Mac copying, pasting, moving, deleting, hour after hour just beating on my Mac in a endless assault to get my work done. That is the key part, my work. I work from home, it is great, but even if it is from home it is still work and it still needs to get done. So my Mac, I have it because it is fast, gets the job done and comes back for more.
But what happens when it doesn’t want to do those things anymore?
I move around massive amounts of information and yes even on the almighty Mac this can cause a problem after a while. Things fragment, programs get corrupted issues come up. My light speed Mac slows down to a crawl and all of the sudden I simply can not get any work done. Because I work from home there is no IT guy to call and ask to come fix it. No instead I have to figure out what is wrong. I am lucky, I did, but not after trying everything under the sun first and wasting countless hours looking for one program that can do what I needed instead of ten programs. One program to lead them all….okay that was a lame Lord of the rings reference, but that program was/is Detox My Mac. A simple to use program that did not just fix my issues, it put my Mac on overdrive again. A few clicks and my Mac was clean and ready to rock and roll again.
Read more here:- http://detox-my-mac.com?vhbshygdf398432
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Tejaswini
Such an awesome post…I really like the food and it looks very very creative and I can imagine the excited & happy moments you have been spent while making them. Thanks for sharing all the things.
mansi desai
hi,
wow such a nice food for us so thanks for this posting ,
this very nice posting for me as well as this is very delicious for me ,
thanks for this posting ,
regards,
mansi desai
Sean Mahan
Love your friday favorites! Especially those comfort foods you shared, I feel like I have to try them all. Thanks!
Jessica Orika
Can you imagine getting paid to essentially eat ice cream for a living? I certainly can and I will!!! This is why I always look forward to Friday faves. Thanks for not failing to share this.
Kristin IGE
Thank you for the link, my fabulous friend!! Hope we get to duke it out in ping pong again SOON! :D
Claire P
Amazing video I loved it and looking forward to more of your Friday Faves very interesting blog i loved it thanks a lot for sharing this with us.
Ana
I look forward to Friday Faves every week. The video of the gentleman asking for help with his tie was so heartwarming. I’m am for doing away with daylight savings altogether. It was one of the things I loved about living in Arizona. Have a great weekend!
Kari
Wow, those glass cabins look amazing!
Denise
Thank you so much for two recipe shout outs! Hoping you as well as your readers love our loaded hummus as well as that creamy and dreamy blue cheese Mac!
I just purchased a carbon steel pan and used a great trick for treating it that I read in Cooking light. After washing all the wax off, place on the stove, with canola oil, salt and the peels from a couple russet potatoes. Cook, stirring the entire time over medium heat for about 8 minutes. Skins get crispy and while cooking that mixture together it removes any extra wax, treats the pan and creates a natural non stick finish. I love it so much that I am going to get two more!
Kathi
Boy I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall during your blogging conversations! Especially Pinterest! Whats going on with them?
Jose Uthuppan
Nice video on the cast iron skillet cleaning with only salt, water, and scrub (bon appetite). Always used soap before which I was never comfortable with. Use of SALT was a revelation.
thx,
jose