Mamma Mia!

Oh my, I have a new favorite movie!

If there is one thing that I love about black friday, it's the cheap dvds!

So, when I saw this for $3.99 I had to get it!

I know I'm a little late to see it, but to make up for it, I've watched it twice this past weekend! ; )

I've gotta say this movie was better than I expected and now I *really* want the soundtrack to it!

Such a CUTE and FUN movie!

What about you?

Watch any good movies, lately?


(honey, honey...) ; )

Friday favorite...

Mexican Chicken soup

Ingredients
1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons taco seasoning mix
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup water
3 (14 ounce) cans chicken broth 1 cup diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese 1 cup crushed tortilla chips
1 avocado - peeled, pitted and diced

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lay chicken breasts onto a baking sheet and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon taco seasoning mix. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, cool and shred or cut into strips.
While the chicken is cooking, heat oil in a stockpot and cook the onions and celery until soft. Stir in the water and chicken broth. Season with cumin, black pepper and remaining taco seasoning mix. Simmer for 30 minutes for the flavors to mingle. Add the tomatoes, cilantro and chicken, simmer for 5 more minutes. Serve hot topped with avocado, shredded cheese and crushed tortilla chips.


Recipe found here.


Enjoy!

Friday Favorite...

If you know anything about me you know I'm a cosmetics junkie and am NOT in denial of that.

So, I'm always in search of something new and preferably affordable!


Here's my recent fave...

LOVE this stuff!

If you haven't tried it, you should!

What's your fave beauty product right now?

A little inspiration...

Image via gingerella

Friday Favorite...

I am a shoe girl and I saw these cuties and just had to have them!

How cute would they be at Christmas?! : )

I wanted something cute and fun to dress up an outfit I was wearing. and I thought these were perfect!!






Normally, I'm a bit of a plain jane but I'm trying to step out of my comfort zone a bit these days and liven my wardrobe up!




Hmmm....I think I just might need to get them in the gray too!

cute, cute, cute!


Happy Friday! : )

Halloween 2010

Maddie as "twig" the fairy.

Hope you had a great trick or treat! : )

Friday Favorite...

I am so lovin' the Candycane cocoa by Stephen's right now!





Have you ever had it?

Oh my, it's soooo delish!

Who can resist hot chocolate with itty bitty bits of peppermint in it?


If you haven't tried it, please do!

I promise it's good and it's perfect for the chillier temps ahead!

What's your fave thing to indulge in when the temps drop?

Lullaby...

XOXO, my sweet Maddie girl.

A week from today...

I'll be here for a PostSecret event!

Have you ever been to one?

If so, how did you like it?

Lastly, have you ever sent in a secret? : )

Friday Favorite...

Instead of doing a song every Friday, I'm just gonna start posting something I love on Fridays, whether it be a song or a new lip gloss I can't live without. : )

This Friday I'm gonna post a favorite of Maddie's though,I love it too!.

It's a cute little song and always makes me smile when I hear it.

Happy Friday!

Old friends. . .

When I was a little girl, my dad was in the Army.

So in turn, that means we moved ALOT.

During this time, I went to a total of 11 different schools, lived in 5 different states and even in Germany for a bit.

Needless to say, I'm thankful for those experience NOW but then, not so much.

It was hard to leave old friends and make new ones all over again.

Now that I'm older, I think it's pretty awesome to have friends that live all over the place and recently through the wonder that is facebook, I was able to reconnect with two of them!


It was sooo fun to see them both again.

They are just as sweet and as beautiful as I remembered them in high school, in fact I think even more so.

I calculated the years and it had been 17 years since we'd last seen each other.

Can you say NERVOUS?!?!? Because I was! : )

But, like I'd hoped, as soon as we started talking I was instantly at ease. Made me even wonder why I had initially been anxious. We vowed to not let so much time to escape us again and hope that soon we can plan another visit.




Here is the only pic I have of us, not the greatest of me but could they be any cuter?! : )

How about you, have you been able to reconnect with any long, lost friends lately?

Fave song Friday...

I figured a Fave song Friday post would be a great way to start blogging again, so enjoy! : )

Ummm....Hi!

You may or may not, remember me...

My name is Stephanie and I have a little blog called "The Huntley Home".

Well, "The Huntley Home" has been a wee bit busy lately and life has gotten in the way, as usual and well, the blog writing slacked BIG TIME.


Though, I have missed it and missed you! : )

Our summer has been pretty good so far, lots of swimming, a few trips to the lake, some sleeping in, a lotta fireworks and a broken arm for Miss Maddie.

Yes, my sweet girl had her frist trip to the ER, actually her first visit ever to the hospital (except her birth, of course!) a few weeks ago.

How lucky are we, that in 10 yrs, she's never had an ER visit?!?

Anyhow, she was wearing these...

Stumbled over these...

and ended up with this...

Let me tell, there was a lot of thought and consideration put into the color of that cast too! She's wearing it like a badge of honor and it's now covered with signatures via black sharpie. : )

The coolest part is that it's waterproof and she can swim and bathe with it on! 

So, it really hasn't slowed her down much at all.

Hope your summer is off to good start and since I've been a wee bit slack, here's a few summer songs to make up the last couple of Fave Song Fridays that I've missed.

 

xoxo,

Fave song Friday...

Just a little Colbie Caillat today.

Hope you have an awesome Friday!

Congratulations to. . .

Heather!!

She won the $40 gift card to Wal-mart!

Thanks to everyone who participated and I'm excited to tell you that I will have another giveaway VERY soon! : )

Fave Song Friday...

Happy Friday!!

Swiffer SweeperVac review and a $40 Walmart giftcard GIVEAWAY!

I was recently given the opportunity through Proctor & Gamble and My BlogSpark to try out a Swiffer SweeperVac and I gotta say, I do believe it's my new favorite thing!

We have hardwood floors all through out our home and though, I love the look of them, it can be a daunting task to keep them clean.

Until now...

After receiving the Swiffer SweeperVac, Maddie and I put it to the test. The kit we received included small vials of hair, dirt, crumbs and pet food and I was amazed at the ease that the Swiffer Sweepvac picked each item up.
It was VERY easy to assemble and even easier to use! It's also incredibly lightweight and goes from room to room with ease.

The Swiffer SweeperVac also has a textured Swiffer Dry Sweeping Cloth to trap and lock fine dirt and dust and it has a powerful cordless vacuum for grabbing larger pieces of debris.
The best part is we actually even enjoyed using it!

Maddie, who's 10, actually wants to vaccuum for me, now.

Now, that's enough to make you go and get one right now, isn't it?!? : )



Truly, I think it's worth it's weight in gold.
 


So, I'm saying buh-bye to. . .

and hello to my new bff. . . ; )

And guess what?!?!?

Those fine folks at Proctor & Gamble and My BlogSpark are giving you the opportunity to get your very own Swiffer SweeperVac.  I have been given the chance to offer one of my readers a $40 gift card to Wal-mart to purchase their very own Swiffer SweeperVac.

Do they rock or what?!?  : )

Ok, so here's how to enter...

1. Leave me a comment and tell me where you’d like to send their broom and dustpan on a permanent vacation.

2. Become a follower of my blog, or let me know that you already are.

3. Facebook, blog, or tweet about this giveaway and link it back to me.

Please, please, please make sure to leave a seperate comment for each entry!

Giveaway will end on June 12, 2010 at 12:01 a.m.
One winner with a valid entry will be selected at random.
Be sure to leave me your email addres or have it available on your blogger profile.

Good luck!!!




Disclaimer: The Swiffer SweeperVac, refills, and Walmart gift card to give away were all provided by P&G through MyBlogSpark. I was provided with my own Swiffer SweeperVac and refills.

Fave Song Friday...

Welcome to June, folks!

Love this song by LaRoux, it's super fun and guaranteed to be stuck in your head the rest of the day. : )

Fave Song Friday...

We're going a little country today.

I love the simple message in this song and think it's completely true.


Happy Friday!!

Me minus 40...

Some of you may have already seen this picture but I'm so stinkin' proud of myself that I wanted to share here too.

I never thought I could do this a year ago, and I have and I want to keep going and going...

Here I am, in the goodwill dressing room, mind you! LOL

(I'm telling y'all, goodwill is my new favorite place!)

I don't have a full length mirror at home so, I took full advantage of this one and let me tell ya, it's not an easy take to take a self body shot! 

Hence, the weird angle. LOL

I still have a ways to go but I am getting there and I've never felt better both physically and emotionally.  : )

Thanks for sharing in this journey with me! <3

Fave Song Friday...

Initially, I had a different song in mind for this week but I have just fallen in love with this song and Selena Gomez. So, I did a little switcharoo.

How cute is she?!?!

Happy Friday, peeps! : )

A new seat in town...

Check out my latest "revamp" and unfortunately I can't find a before pic anywhere. : (

So, here's a similar chair that I found on craiglist.

I found mine at Goodwill for $10.00 but mine was the same finish and all.

and here's what I did with some antique white paint, mocha glaze and a sanding block!

a little close up of some of the distressing...


 

the spindles



and one of the arms.

Nothing like trying to give something a perfect paint job and the sanding it back off!

This one I'm keeping for me, I needed a new computer chair and I just love old banker's chairs!

(and i'm so sorry for the terrible quality of pics, some days it just so much easier to use my phone.)

Now, I'm off to the next project...

Here's a sneak peek at what I'm currently working on...

(*hint* they are gonna go in my bedroom!)


I'm linking this to The Shabby Nest's Frugal Friday linky!

Also, linking this to...




and






Be sure to check out all the other ideas!

I'm soo excited...

and I just can't hide it...!


(cue the pointer sisters) LOL

Anyhow, the reason for my excitement is that I just sold my first piece that I refinished myself!!

WOO HOO!!


It was just a mirror but still, I'll take it!!

It's so validating when someone actually wants to spend their hard earned money on something I did.

I've sold lots of little things, but no furniture yet so hence, the excitement.

Seriously, you couldn't have wiped the smile off of my face yesterday when I found out! : )

So far, I have had the *best* time with the booth, it's been a blast to shop for it. I try to think outside of the box when I see things and also try to remember that just because it's not *my* taste that someone else might not love it and vice versa.

 Goodwill has become my new bff. LOVE Goodwill! Seriously.

I've found some really, really cool things in there! 

Yesterday when I went to restock it some, Connie (the owner) and I chatted for a bit and she told me this was her 3rd store and that she has been doing this since 1976.

She and her husband do this full time and have the best time doing it.

Umm...hello! I think I may have found my dream job. : )


I seriously enjoy every minute that I get to spend devoted to my 50 sq ft.

Who knows, maybe one day, I can do this gig full time. : )

Here's a more updated pic, a few more odds and ends and I still want to get my own walls up.

Any thrifty suggestions about walls?

 Hope you have a fabulous week!

Fave song Friday...

John Mayer, need i say more??? : )