Mandii's Muse

Can you believe that tomorrow is December?! Where did November go? I have plans to put my buffalo plaid flannel sheets on tomorrow, but it is supposed to be 60 on Sunday here in Western PA, so I might hold off on that. Haha! Here are a few of my favorites from this week! P.S. I am writing this from my iPad, so the pictures won’t be formatted the way I want the to. Ugh!  My first favorite is these Praline Pecans from Costco. You guys! These are so good! They are actually cheaper than regular pecans, and they have the topping already on them! My parents and I may or may not have bought two of these. We will use them in baking too. We’ll just cut back on some of the sugar since these are already topped.  My next favorite is watching TV by the Christmas trees. I watched Rudolph by the Christmas tree we have downstairs. Then, I went upstairs and watched the Duke game by the tree upstairs. So relaxing. It just happened to be my dad’s birthday when both of those were on, so he...

I shared my Wedesday before Thanksgiving over on InstaStories, but in case you missed it I thought I would share it here as well!  My mom and I had a nail appointment, so we finished that, and grabbed lunch at our favorite hot dog shop. Even though we were going to consume 4,000 calories the following day, they still tasted delicious. That evening, my poor Dukies were handed their first loss. The final score was much closer than this photo, but I for one, did not expect to go undefeated this season, and truthfully I didn't expect to win this game. Gonzaga is scary good, y'all. This Thanksgiving break should be named the ice cream break. We recently got a new ice cream maker and I have been having fun trying out some new recipes. I've made vanilla, butter pecan, and chocolate almond so far. For Christmas Eve, I think I am going to make peppermint ice cream. I've made it before and it is to die for!  As usual, we didn't have any food for Than...

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving, and have ushered in the holiday season in grand fashion. It seems so strange that Thanksgiving has passed and we are on our way to Christmas. This season is definitely my all time favorite. I love the magic that this season brings. Did anyone score any good deals for Black Friday? I'm more of a cyber Monday kind of gal, so I am probably doing that as you read this right now! I will probably split this into two posts, because while I was busy during the break, I also just relaxed a lot too. Here is how I spent part of my Thanksgiving break. Here was my Tuesday before Thanksgiving! My parents and I have a tradition of going to Kraynaks. I've spoken about this store before, but during Christmas and Easter they have a section of their store decorated with trees, and other seasonal items, and you can walk through and look at them. They also have Santa and the Easter bunny there and you can get your picture with them as well. My parents...

I hope you are finishing preparing for Thanksgiving tomorrow. Follow along on my Instagram today, and I will take you along on a little adventure I have planned. I'm @mandiiduke I'll be posting to stories, and photos! Hope you enjoy! This is from a few years ago, but this year's plate will look just as good! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and try not to eat too much!

Today, we are taking a look back at November 2015's post on Favorite stocking stuffers! I think that this post still rings true today. I know that I like to fill stockings with simple things. Especially things that you need, but won't buy for yourself. Christmas makes those "boring" things, fun to open! What are some of your favorite things to put in a stocking? Drop me a comment below!

We can never have too much coffee or tea in our lives right? I wish I could sit down and have a cup of coffee with all of my readers. This is something I hope to do on the regular. This is where I can talk to you about ideas, and you can give me feedback. Or we can talk about shows I've been loving, sports I've been watching etc. First up, I'm starting to plan my posts for the upcoming Holiday season. Is there anything you would like to see me write about? Recipes, long wearing makeup, decorations? Let me know! Second, does anyone watch Chicago Fire? Guys, these last two episodes have been GUT WRENCHING! Poor Kelly Severide. I mean, Taylor Kinney has been absolutely BRILLIANT with his acting. And I'm just saying, if they need anyone to give him a hug, (Either Taylor or Severide,) I volunteer as tribute. (wink, wink!) Thirdly, what has been your favorite Hallmark movie so far? It is really hard to choose. I downloaded the app, and the only downside is that Hallmark...

I hope you weekend was relaxing and enjoyable! Mine was pretty relaxing, and chilly! I'm still getting used to the colder weather. Will we have an "Indian summer?" That's yet to be determined! My church had a Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday. Think of it as a trial run to the big day. It was nice to fellowship with our church family outside of Sunday. Mom and I spend the morning in the kitchen. I made a chocolate fudge cake, and my mom made sweet potato casserole. Then, I made my Brunch Egg Casserole for Sunday's breakfast. I think both are going to be on the menu for Christmas! (I like to practice my recipes for Christmas early, get all the kinks worked out for a smooth baking come Christmas! Sunday I went to church and afterwards, I practiced with the ladies for our Christmas Cantata. This was our first Sunday without using the backing tracks, and I think we did pretty good. It can only go up from here right? Please keep our ladies in your prayers for us to ...

It is Friday, we are in the swing of the Holiday season, and the weather is turning chilly. Now is the time to put the iced coffees away, and tap into the hot drinks. This weekend is a busy one. There are a few craft shows my mom and I want to hit up on Saturday, and then that night is our church's Thanksgiving dinner. We signed up to make food, I'm making a dessert, and she's making sweet potatoes. I don't know why I always sign up to bake something-I usually don't have the patience to bake. It is so precise. Cooking is more my cup of tea, I can throw a little of this and a little of that in and be set. Haha! I love this time of year. I love the traditions, the food, the family time, all of it! Anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's stick with this Friday's Favorites! My first favorite was seeing this sweet deer outside of my chiropractor's office. Maybe she wanted to get an adjustment too! Next was getting to vote! It is a right that I ...

With the election being held today, I want to share with you something that I wrote that has been on my heart.  I want to title this "What I wish America knew," because I think some of us have forgotten. We have forgot what a privilege and honor it is to live in this country.  Ask any military member or veteran, who have seen horrible things overseas which country they would rather live in. I bet 99% of them say the USA. If you want to protest, or burn our flag, you have the right to do so. You're protected bY the constitution. Doing so doesn't solve anything, but you have a right to do it. If you don’t like our President, that’s ok! The office still needs to be respected though.  If our country is so bad, why are countless people coming across our borders either legally or illegally to get to our country? Imagine protesting an elected official in a foreign country. There is a good chance you would get mamed or killed because you had a voice. America is...

I wanted to share my reading list with you all today! I have such a wide range of titles to read, but I seriously can’t wait to dive on in! The book on top is what I am currently reading. I love Karen Kingsbury books, and I have fallen in love with the Baxter family. There is another set of books based on the one character in the Above the Line series that I am reading, so I am going to have to add about 5 more books to my list. Haha! The next three are a new author for me, but it takes place in the low country of South Carolina that I love so much. The one takes place in Pawleys Island, and the other two take place in Charleston. I would love to move to the Carolinas one day, so these will hold me off until that day. I plan to start The Christmas Pearl on December 1. The Max Lucado book is one that I am excited to read. I love his writing style, and his devotionals and other books, so I am excited to read this work of his that is Christian based, but not of a “motivational” book. The...

It’s Friday! Hallelujah! Is anyone on Halloween candy overload? We never get trick or treaters, so we don’t have a need to buy any candy. Here are a few of my favorites for the week! My hairdresser is a saint and magician. She didn’t have any power, so my dad and I both got our haircuts via flashlights and lanterns. This is my hair air dried, in the darkness. It  finished drying on the way home.   Also, how is it November already?! Seriously! Not going to lie though, I’m loving the Hallmark Christmas movies already!! Another favorite are Karen Kingsbury books. I have the Above the Line series, and I have fallen in love with the Baxter family. I took this picture to keep in my phone for reference when I go shopping so I know what books I need to get to keep reading. However my “to read” list is quite long, but I will read them all eventually. I mean, reading is way better than spending time on our phones and iPads right?!  I think this weekend my mom and I ...