Hello Thursday! One day til the weekend and that makes me happy!
Today I am teaming up with Rack Room Shoes to share 3 pairs of boots I picked out for myself and the kids. All boots at Rack Room Shoes are currently on sale right now and
Rack Room always offers buy one pair get 50% off the second pair. This is great to shop for the whole family or even buy a few Christmas gifts.
It is next to impossible to get a picture of the kids together so I photographed them separately.
I can't even get over how grown up my little man is looking.
They go with everything. He even wears his to church sometimes too. Plus he says the are comfy and comfortable matters with kids!
Frances Moon picked out these boots. My lady is boot obsessed these days. If you do decide to order these boots please note they run on the small side. I actually ordered 2 sizes up for Frances.
Here's a little secret. I am not a huge fan of pumpkin pie, pecan pie or any other common Thanksgiving Desserts. They just are not my favorite, there are so many other things I would rather eat for dessert. Last year I was flipping thru my beloved Southern Living and came across this Pumpkin Tart recipe and promptly tore it out and decided it needed to happen for Thanksgiving. I made it last year and realized I never shared the recipe with you guys. Perfect timing with Thanksgiving next week if you are still looking for a dessert idea.
This tart knocked my socks off. Every single aspect of it is delicious but the almond toffee and homemade whipped cream take it to another level. I actually doubled the toffee part of the recipe we liked it so much. I will making it again this year and probably many years to come. This can be made ahead of time. I made ours a day ahead last year.
Enjoy!
|| P U M P K I N T A R T W I T H T O F F E E A L M O N D S ||
via Southern Living
TART
1/2 (14.1-oz.) package refrigerated piecrusts
3/4 cupgranulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoonsall-purpose flour
2 teaspoonspumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoonground cloves
3 cupscanned pumpkin
1/2 cupblackstrap molasses
6 tablespoonsbutter, melted
4 large eggs
1 (12-oz.) can evaporated milk
ALMOND TOFFEE
1/2 cupfirmly packed light brown sugar
4 tablespoonsbutter
1 cupslivered almonds
Vegetable cooking spray
Parchment paper
WHIPPED CREAM
2 1/2 cupsheavy cream
1/4 teaspoonpumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
Preparation
1. Prepare Tart: Preheat oven to 350°. Fit piecrust into a 9-inch deep-dish tart or quiche pan with removable bottom; press into fluted edges. Whisk together granulated sugar and next 3 ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk together pumpkin and next 2 ingredients in a separate bowl. Whisk pumpkin mixture into sugar mixture. Add eggs, 1 at a time, whisking until blended after each addition. Whisk in evaporated milk, and pour into crust.
2. Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and chill 8 to 24 hours.
3. Prepare Almond Toffee: Cook brown sugar and 4 Tbsp. butter in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly, until bubbly. Add almonds, and cook, stirring constantly, 2 minutes or until golden. Pour mixture onto lightly greased (with cooking spray) parchment paper; cool completely. Break into pieces.
4. Prepare Whipped Cream: Beat cream and 1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice at medium-high speed with an electric mixer until foamy; gradually add powdered sugar, beating until soft peaks form. Top tart with whipped cream; sprinkle with toffee.
I wanted to share that Gigi New York has graciously offered 20% off their site til Sunday with code NATALIE20. This is a great time to buy Christmas Gifts or a treat for yourself if you are looking for a new purse:)
The code can be used on the two purses I helped to design and anything else on the site!
It is that time of year to start ordering Christmas Cards! I have to admit I love Holiday Cards. I get so excited when I go to get the mail and there are Holiday Cards in our mail box. I love seeing pictures of my friends and their children that I don't get to see on a regular basis.
Time and time again I always find my favorites on Minted. I especially love their Foil Collection.
The past two years I have done cards from the foil collection.
Right now you can use code CHEERS for 15% off + free recipient addressing on your card!
Our card from last year:)
I rounded up my 10 favorite foil designs on Minted but there are so many more fabulous options!
and best part is Minted has graciously offered one reader the chance to win $125 to use on their site! Just leave a comment with your email address and favorite greeting card or what you would use the $125 towards! Contest ends Friday 11/20 at 5pm.
Every year we have a tradition where my parents treat all the grand kids to Holiday jammies. We always order them early so the kids can enjoy them for awhile. Although my kids wear theirs all year long- they love holiday pj's! Hanna Andersson Pj's are our favorite. The quality is excellent and they wash and wear really well. Below is what we picked out for this year. The boys all got blue with Santa Claus and Frances got a red and green zip up pair.
I also treated the kids to some slippers. Sterling had out grown his old ones and Frances never had a pair. Of course if her big brother was getting a pair she wanted a pair too. These both light up and the kids love them. They would make a great Christmas gift too!
Melissa and Doug have a great selection of these giant stuffed animals- HERE
These are great gifts to leave out under the tree. Sterling has already informed me he wants the dolphin and boxer this year.
I wanted to share a few gift ideas for the kids.
These are all gifts for the most part that we own and love and the kids play with frequently. I love getting personal recommendations from people about what toys are their kids favorites. So these below are ours.
I bought this nativity set last year as a treat for the kids from "Fred" our elf. I set it out Thanksgiving night and they loved it. It really is such a great nativity set. I like that it is wooden and kid friendly.
We have a friend who has this and it is so cute. I put this on Frances Moon's Christmas list. She is a purse lover and I love that you can personalize it.
So true story I saw a kid drawing on one of these at the doctor's office and I asked his mom where it was from thinking it was going to be far more expensive than it was. I ordered Sterling one and he loves it. It is great at his age for practicing wririntg and just doodling.
This is great for travel or play at home. Both Sterling and Frances love play houses. This one is great because it comes with the people and furniture. You don't have to purchase them separately.
We have the Simon Game and wood blocks and use them often. Sterling also has the pirate costume, he loves to dress up. Nordstrom has such a great toy selection right now. Don't forget they will price match and offer free shipping.
