50+ Stocking Stuffers for Men

Tis the season.. I found this link on Pintrest, and decided to share...because guys can be hard to shop for.

Stocking Stuffers for Men:

1. Cologne – samples work best because they are smaller and cheaper
2. Soap – handmade beer or manly soap is nice
3. Undies
4. Socks
5. chocolate or other candy
6. chocolate covered bacon, pretzels, or other food items
7. Bottle opener, bottle opener ring
8. Beanie/knit hat
9. Gloves
10. Holiday ornament
11. Key Chain
12. Phone case
13. Money clip
14. Wallet
15. A cheesy movie from the clearance bin (hello Chuck Norris)
16. Mini lego kits (like race cars, lego men, key chains, etc.)
17. Silly putty or other slimy substance
18. Deck of cards or other card games (like Uno)
19. Silly toys – parachute men, poppers, wind up animals, sticky hands, mini etch-a-sketch, etc.
20. Shot glass
21. Key covers
22. Ear buds
23. Mini bottles of booze
24. Ties
25. Cufflinks
26. Manly bath products or bath favorites
27. Pocket knife
28. Mini tools or weapons – what male doesn’t love a Nerf gun?
29. Batteries
30. A book, graphic novel, or magazine
31. $5 giftcards – one of my favorites, fast food or coffee works great
32. Gum or mints
33. Chapstick – my husband always steals mine or complains about chapped lips
34. Hand or boot warmers – found some at Target, 2 for $1
35. Hand or cuticle cream
36. Computer decals
37. Car air fresheners
38. For the love of your life: Massage oil
39. For the love of your life: sexy undies for you
40. For the love of your life: Other bedroom goodies
41. Special cigar
42. Matches or lighter
43. Batteries
44. Coffee samples
45. Patches, stickers, or pins of a sports team, band, or company, etc.
46. Coffee cup or mug
47. Nail clippers and tweezers
48. Razors and other shaving accessories
49. Boot or hat cleaning or weathering spray
50. Pens or pencils
51. Bandanas
52. Mini specialty food items – mustard, hot sauce, nutella, etc.
53. Belt buckles

Have a guy in your life with a hobby or interest? Is he a student? There are other trinkets your can fill his stocking with as well:

• Memory cards
• USB Stick/flash drive
• Ear guages/plugs
• Film
• Camera filters or accessories
• Craft/hobby supplies
• Kitchen utensils/trinkets – a special knife, measuring spoons, something the cook might enjoy
• Quarters for laundry

"Crack" Potatoes

So I'm posting yet another Pintrest find :)  I made these last week for our Thanksgiving/Birthday Potluck at work and they were a big hit!! I am always nervous when trying a new recipe for the first time.. (and especially when I'm up baking them at 5:15am the morning of our food day!!) But they seemed easy enough not to be able to screw up.  I assembled everything, threw them in the oven and headed off to shower and get ready for work.  Everyone loved them, and I decided to post the recipe here as well for others to enjoy!  

Crack Potatoes

 

2 (16oz) containers sour cream

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

2 (3oz) bags real bacon bits

2 packages Ranch Dip mix

1 large (28 - 30oz) bag frozen hash brown potatoes - shredded kind

Combine first 4 ingredients, mix in hash browns. Spread into a 9x13 pan. Bake at 400 for 45-60 minutes.

 

Recipe from Plain Chicken

What's for Dinner Wednesday

Pizza Pasta Casserole

2 lbs ground beef
1 large onion chopped
1 clove garlic minced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 (26 once) jars spaghetti sauce
16 ounces rotini pasta, cooked and drained
5 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
8 ounces sliced pepperoni

Brown ground beef, onion, and garlic in oil. Drain. Stir in pasta, spaghetti sauce, and 3 cups cheese. Place mixture in 2 greased 9x13 pans. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Top with pepperoni. Cover and freeze or bake uncovered at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until heated through.

From Freezer Meals for Us

(I cut this recipe in half, just for the 2 of us!!)

A Visit from Mom!

So my mom came to visit the weekend of 10-29 to 11-2 Here's a little recap of the fun we had..

Saturday 10/29 I had to work so my mom planned to arrive in KC about the time I was to get off work.  She planned it so perfectly that she was waiting outside my work, when I walked out for the night...I was so surprised to see her!  We got back to our house, made dinner and stayed up late talking about anything everything and catching up.

Sunday 10/30 Was a day of fun.  After our morning grocery shop, we headed home to carve pumpkins.  I started with a Pintrest creation a "Mumkin"

A gauze wrapped pumkin to replicate a mummy.

(Next time though I am going to follow the directions and use cheesecloth instead of gauze..and use glow in the dark paint! Live and Learn)   :)

Next on the agenda we headed to Stone Pillary Vineyard and Winery for some sampling and a tour

It was a cute little place with over 14 wines to sample.  I tried almost everything except the dry reds. I tried the sweet reds and didn't enjoy them (I am a sweet white/riesling girl.)

  My favorite from the day turned out to be the "Seyval" a smooth fruity off dry wine with citrus and hints of apple.

We were going to take a tour only to realize it's not a great time of year for it.  Most of the grapes onsight had been harvested and well... this is the production room. :( Not a lot to see.  After our tour we went home and carved our 2 remaining pumpkins.

I was a little nervous watching him hack the top off the pumpkins. The weekend before at training he  sliced his finger open real good and needed 3 stitches!!  (And he wonders why I have a fear of big knives!!)

We finally got the tops off and started scooping the goo out

Applying the pattern

And the finished product..a cat and Dracula

We worked up quite the appetite carving pumpkins and headed to a local barbecue joint called Johnny's.  My mom heard about this place on the Food Network show Diners, Drive In's and Dives so we decided to go check it out.  Afterall no trip to KC is complete without a barbecue run.  :)  My mom and I both had the Pulled Pork sandwich and it was amazing!! Add in a basket of onion rings and french fries and we were happy campers.

 

Back at the house it finally got dark enough to throw a candle in our pumpkins.  Here is my cat

...And the Dracula and the Mumkin

One of our other projects included assembly of an Ikea HEMNES sofa table my mom brought down for us. I am my father's daughter and am pretty good at assembling things with some help from my mom we got it done in no time.

 

And the finished product.  It filled a nice gap we had behind the couch.  And it will be perfect for seasonal decor and storage.  Thanks Mom and Dad!!

Tuesday 11/1 Concert Day  The real reason for my mom's trip :)  (Seeing me was just a bonus!!)  :)  Reckless Kelly was performing at the Bottleneck in Lawrence, KS so we went up for the night

We started our evening at Free State Brewing Company enjoying some beverages and dinner before the show.

We then headed over to the Bottleneck where the Reckless tour bus was right outside the front door

The marquee outside

Willy and Cody Braun (brothers)

David Abeyta and Willy

A good night had by all to top off a great weekend.  Thanks mom for coming to visit we really enjoyed having you.

Taco Soup

My boss made this for our last food day and it was FANTASTIC!!

Taco Soup

1lb Cooked Hamburger

1 Can Beef Broth

1 Can Northern Beans

1 Can Corn

1 Can Rotel (I used mild)

1 pkt Taco Seasoning

1 pkt Dry Ranch Seasoning

Mix all ingrediants together in large pot or crock pot

Cook for 1 hr to heat through. 

Serve with Tortilla chips, cheese, sour cream, etc...

Currently...

Currently...

Loving.... My new DROID Bionic phone (bye bye BB!) faster internet surfing, fall colors, new fall shows, stories from my husband about his day, my Ikea HEMNES sofa table my mom brought down, Honey Pear Cider and Autumn Sunset Scentsy's, Daylight Savings time, light while going to work, waking up all snug in my bed, 2 years of married life, the cheesecake I bought for our anniversary, fall mantle decor

Excited for... Thanksgiving week at work (short week) Veterans Day on Friday (short day at work) Going home at Christmas, seeing my brothers new house that he has stripped down and rebuilt

Worried... No worries.

Creating....  Fall yarn wreath, Ikea sofa table, recipes from Pintrest, picking paint for our 1/2 bath

Hating... Driving home in the dark, dry skin, going to bed with cold feet until the sheets warm up, howling winds (40mph+)  road construction, people's driving lately 

Wondering... A little curious??

Craving... Peanut Butter Cups (leftover from Halloween) Hearty/warm meals, pasta

Hoping... ??? 

Watching.... From Netflix in the past month: Captain America, Bridesmaids, Bad Teacher, Peep World, Four Rooms

DVR:  Dexter, Hung, Walking Dead, Kendra, Quintuplets by Surprise, RHOA

Listening... Wind outside, thunder, rain hitting the windows, leaves rustling, the fire crackle 

Looking forward to... More family time around the holidays, weekend date for our 2nd Anniversary