five on friday

I'm linking up with Darci and the girls again this week with some of my favorites from the week!

ONE: Marley Lilly monogrammed leather cuff bracelet.  I need one of these.  I came across these the other day on Pinterest and fell in love. When I went to their website, I found all of the other colors available.  What a hard decision.  I really like the mint, orange, silver mocha, and so many more!



 

 

 

 

TWO: Sunshine box/basket.  I have seen these on Pinterest and other blogs and I just love the concept of sending someone a little "sunshine" to put a smile on their face.  I recently had a friend who was in definite need of one of these so with a little help from friends, we came up with lots of fun yellow things for the basket.  Here were some of the things we started with.  The yellow bag on the right had Burt's Bees hand cream, a yellow nail file, yellow Essie nail polish and Juicy Fruit gum. 

 

 

My friend, Beth, created that super cute sunshine printable for me to add a little extra cheer.  You should definitely check out her Etsy shop if you want to send someone a little sunshine, or if you're in the market for invitations, fun printables, and even Christmas cards!   

 

 

Here it is all finished.  Some of the things we added to the things you saw above were golden Oreos, a Hallmark blooming expression and Burt's Bees lip balm.

 

THREE: White Chicken Chili.  I went to a friend's Christmas pajama party one year and she served the best white chicken chili I have ever eaten.  I actually think it was the first time I had ever had white chicken chili.  I got her recipe and I have been making it ever since.  This past weekend my MOPS group had a family chili cook-off and I brought the white chicken chili.  And guess what?!?  I WON!!

 

I forgot to take a picture of my chili, but this one looked the most like mine and when I checked the recipe, it was very similar.

White Chicken Chili

1lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (or smaller)
1 med. onion chopped
1-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cans (15 1/2 ounces each) great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth
2 cans (4 ounces each) chopped green chilis
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (we add more sometimes)
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream

In a large saucepan, saute chicken, onions and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add beans, broth, chilies and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered for 30 min. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream and whipping cream. Serve immediately. (7 servings)

FOUR: Lark bake shoppe and café.  For any of you locals, this is a must try!  I always feel bad promoting other bakeries since Jason's family is in the bakery business, but this is a different type of bakery so I guess it's ok.  I got a salted caramel dulce de leche cupcake and it was SO good.  We'll definitely visit again soon!.

 

FIVE:  Upside down Christmas trees.  What in the world?  I stumbled on these when I was searching for a new Christmas tree the other day and I thought it was so strange.  Is it a new trend?  I'm not sure I could get into this look, but I googled it and found tons of images of other people who apparently like the look.  I'm not sure I'll be getting into this trend anytime soon!

 Happy Friday!