Easy as Pie!

If you're in need of a Thanksgiving dessert to impress your family this Thursday, you're in luck! This is the third time that I have made an apple pie using this recipe. The first two were perfect, but the third came out a little tart- nothing that can't be balanced out with some vanilla ice cream! I combined two recipes into this one and used a store-bought crust (who has time to make a crust from scratch?!). 

Ingredients

• Refrigerated pie crusts (I used the Wal-Mart brand and in my unprofessional opinion, it's better than Pillsbury)
• ½ cup of butter (I used one stick of salted butter and it tasted just fine!)
• 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup of water
• ½ cup of white sugar
• ½ cup of packed light brown sugar
• ¾ teaspoon of ground cinnamon (I didn't actually measure, I just sprinkled in what I wanted)
• ⅛ teaspoon of nutmeg (again, I didn't measure)
• 6 or 7 Granny Smith apples- peeled, cored, and sliced

And a 9 inch pie dish!

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 425° F
2. Let your refrigerated pie crust sit out and soften 10-15 minutes before you’re ready to use them.
3. Melt your butter in a saucepan. Mix in flour. Add water, white and brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat and let it simmer while you're getting your crust ready.
4. Place the bottom crust in your dish, firmly press it down, and fill it with apples
5. Gently pour the butter mixture over the apples
6. For your top crust, you have two options! You may take the second crust and place it right over the top, pinching the edges and cutting slits in it; OR you may weave it into a lattice top pie crust! I’ll insert videos for both J
7. Cover the edge of your crust with aluminum foil so it doesn’t burn!
8. Bake your pie at 425° F for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350° F and continue baking 35 to 45 minutes. At 35 minutes I take the foil off the edges and then continue to check it to make sure it doesn't get too crispy!

This pie turned out flawless the first time I made it in June!

Crust

 

DIY Crate Nightstand

Nathan and I live on base so we have limited space. I've been using a teeny table as a nightstand for two years and it was basically me stacking my clock, iPad, books, phone, glasses, and chapstick in a Jenga tower. I've been on the lookout for something more spacious, but inexpensive and compact, and finally decided to just make my own!

The crates are from Jo-Ann's, but you can find them at any craft store! Never EVER pay full price for these things, people. Craft stores always have coupons! They retail around $13, but you can almost always find a 40% off coupon for Michael's, Hobby Lobby, and Jo-Ann's. (Hint: Download the Retail-Me-Not app or pull up the store's website on your smartphone and they can scan any coupon from your phone)

**When you buy your crates, make sure you find two that stack well together! Some of them are a little wobbly!**

The wood stain I used is from Wal-Mart. It is Miniwax in the shade "English Chestnut 223" and it retails for less than $5. I used about half of an 8 oz can! To apply the stain, I used a four pack of $0.97 foam brushes from Wal-Mart's craft section. They worked wonderfully and the different sizes came in handy.

I stained the outside of the crates one day, and the inside + crevices the next. On the third day, I stacked them together! They still have a strong paint smell, so you may want to leave them outside to air out a bit!

It was cold and rainy this week so I had to suffer through the smell of staining them inside!

Use a little wood glue or some small screws to keep them stable. Honestly, mine are surviving just stacked on top of each other, but I wouldn't recommend it if you're going to be making them into a shelf for elsewhere in your house! :) All in all, you could knock this project out in a day and for under $20!

I had a little supervision while placing the nightstand in our bedroom.

Hello, November

Does anyone know where October went? I could have sworn I was purchasing Halloween decorations yesterday, not taking them down! I'm thankful the time is passing quickly though, because this means Nathan has been gone another month. We're now 59 days into this deployment!

October was an exciting month. For me, it meant pumpkin spice lattes and pumpkin patches. 

Emma, Amaiya, and I at Scott Pumpkin Patch!

Over on the other side of the world, Nathan flew out to another base and back. I'd prefer for his feet to stay nice and somewhat safe on the ground, but at least we get to see a few pictures!

Nathan isn't one to brag about himself, but that's why he has me to do it for him. This past week he received the wing's Warrior of the Month award. If you're unfamiliar with the Air Force's structure, winning a wing level award is a pretty sweet accomplishment! He also racked up his second Command Chief coin- again, something else that's hard to come by. So proud of my hardworking husband!

One small plus to Nathan being gone for the holidays is that I get to have fun decorating themed care packages. Halloween was our first "holiday" apart. While everyone else was out taking their kids trick-or-treating and dressing up, I watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer and stuffed my face with mini candy bars. I made sure Nathan didn't miss out on the festivities, though! His package included lots of snacks and candy, as well as cake-in-a-jar! (You bake cake in mason jars and then can them so they stay fresh!) 

The Halloween confetti cakes before they went in the oven!

No package would be complete without a handmade card!

Last but not least, Kuzco is a silly as ever. Please enjoy this video of him picking a fight with a piece of Halloween candy. And as always, thank you all for your continued love and support!