Happily Ever Mock

Archives for September 2017

Kid Style- Halloween 2017

Happy Friday Friends, and Happy ALMOST October! October is one of our favorite months around here. The weather is starting to cool off, so it is definitely time to start pulling our our Halloween decorations and clothes. Of course now that Hallie is a year older, we are adding to our Festive Halloween wardrobe! Here’s what I have found for this year.

Bow/Cat Tee/ Monster PJs/ Cat Sweater/ Skirt/ Monster Slippers/ Cat Leggings

Of course I have some more kitty cat items I have my eye on! I just can’t help indulging in Hallie’s love of cats! Stay tuned for those soon! If you need me this weekend, you can find me devouring all things Pumpkin Spice! Have a great weekend!

 

 

Shop Share- Ashlilium

Halloween preparation mode is in full swing here at the Mock household. If you have been following us for a while, you know how much we love putting together the perfect costume. I like to pull pieces together from our favorite small shops and do a few DIY projects, I think it makes the holiday more fun! 

I started collecting pieces for this year’s costume and knew I had to head to Ashlilium for the final touch.

The shop owner Ashley makes the most adorable crowns and headbands to complete every ensemble. She has everything from Moana crowns to bunny ears. Bonus, she also accepts custom orders so the sky is your limit when it comes to creating the perfect costume!

Ashley was so sweet to offer my readers a chance to win their very own Unicorn headband.  To enter the giveaway, head to Instagram and follow the directions there. Also don’t forget to go give Ashlilium some love and head to her shop to grab a crown or place your custom order today.

Fall Bucket List- 2017

It’s Finally Fall! We are also lucky enough to have cool weather coming this week to Texas which means we can finally start ticking things off of our Fall Bucket List! Here’s what’s on it.

We actually had the Balloon Festival over the weekend! We went to the evening glow, so the lighting wasn’t great for photos, but we did manage one:

What’s on your bucket list for Fall? Do you have any fun Family Traditions?

Kid Style- Fall 2017

It still doesn’t feel like Fall here in Dallas, but the end of Summer is finally in sight! Today I am sharing some of the gems I got to complete Hallie’s Fall wardrobe.

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Hallie was thrilled to find this little Wizard of Oz dress. Now we are on the hunt for a perfect pair of Ruby Slippers to match.

We snagged a couple June and January cardigans in the Fall release and can’t wait to wear this mint one in our Fall Family photos. If you want to grab one for your little one, be sure to use this link for 15% off of your first purchase.

I can’t wait to grab the tutu dress in a few more colors because they are on sale right now!

Then of course we finished off her wardrobe additions with some knee highs and sparkly tights and shoes.

What are your must have wardrobe staples for Fall?

Currently- September 2017

Hi Friends and Happy Monday! I sure hope everyone had a fantastic weekend.  We spent our weekend with family and even attended the Fall Festival at our Church.

Besides that, I thought I would give you a little sneak peek at what else we have been up to:

Reading:

Hallie and I just finished up Charlotte’s Web and are on to Stuart Little.  She is also LOVING Say Zoop, an interactive book by the same author as Press Here. 

As for me, I haven’t picked anything up since the middle of the Summer.  I read The Woman in Cabin 10 and it was fantastic! Looking into books to grab at our next Library visit! Any recommendations?

Watching:

I am SO pumped for Fall TV.  Dancing with the Stars starts tonight and I couldn’t be more excited! We will also be watching How to Get Away With Murder and binge watching Jane the Virgin on Netflix! Who else watches it? We are on Season 2!

Drinking:

This Pumpkin Praline Coffee from Community Coffee. I am all about the Pumpkin Spice!

Eating:

This time of year we always have something baking, and right now I am DIGGING these Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Cookies.  They are so moist and delicious!

  • Ingredients
    •   1/2 cup of unsalted butter (room temp)
    • 1 8 oz. block of cream cheese
    • 1 cup sugar
    • 1/2 cup brown sugar
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 3/4 ts salt
    • 1 ts baking soda
    • 2 cups flour
    • 1 12 oz bag chocolate chips
  • Steps
    • Mix butter, cream cheese, sugar and brown sugar
    • Add in all other ingredients one at a time mixing well after each addition
    • Roll into 1 inch balls and pat flat.
    • Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper
    • Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes or until browned
  • Notes
    • Mine took about 14 minutes
    • They will start to brown but look fairly gooey still. No worries, they will set as they cool

Praying For:

If you don’t already know, Christopher and I are opening our own T-shirt shop.  Things have been moving fairly slowly.  My prayers are that we find the right people to help us build out our shop so that we can open very soon!

Working on:

Constantly working on growing our blog and instagram. We love connecting with all of you! If you like what you read/see please feel free to share! 🙂

Looking Forward to:

All things Fall! Pumpkin Patch, trick or treating, fall recipes and spending time with family and friends! Oh and cool weather! We so need it to cool off here in Dallas!

Loving for Mommy:

I know I shared these already, but on the off chance you missed it, these Old Navy Crop Pants are life!

Wishlist for Mommy:

This Gap Pullover sweater.

Loving for Hallie:

These Unicorn Pajamas from Carters.  Hallie just loves them and she looks too cute in them!

Wishlist for Hallie: 

This precious Old Navy Polka-dot Dress

What have you guys been up to? What are you loving? Have a great week!

Mom Style- Fall 2017

We are still desperately waiting for Fall here in Texas! So today I am sharing some pieces I love for transitioning Mom’s Summer wardrobe into Fall. I am all about layers and comfort! 

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I got those cute crop pants in a few colors, and the fabric is so breathable, and even better, they are on SALE! You also can’t go wrong with some ankle booties and a cute cardigan for layering! Raglans are perfect for running errands or watching football on Sundays, and I just love this one from Gap.

Also, have you heard about my love affair with Mint Standard clothing? If not, head back to this post! Kelley’s line is so perfect for the busy Mom on the go, and she is offering one of my readers a dress of their choice! Just follow the rafflecopter below.

What are your favorite Fall wardrobe staples?


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Fall Playlist 2017

It might not feel like Fall here in Texas yet, but we are getting in the mood anyway by lighting all the Fall scented candles, buying pieces for our Fall wardrobe and listening to some great Autumn themed tunes! Hallie of course insisted on something from Trolls, and Dancing in September seemed very fitting! What are you guys listening to right now? How are you getting in the mood for Fall?

Mushroom Garlic Chicken

There’s nothing better than a one skillet meal.  Especially when it tastes like this one!

Ingredients:

  • 8 pieces of chicken (I used a mixture of breasts and thighs
  • Salt and Pepper
  • 2 Cups of Chicken Broth
  • 2 TBS minced garlic
  • 1 ts red pepper flakes
  • 1 ts fresh or dried Rosemary
  •  olive oil
  • 16 ounces of mushrooms, sliced
  • 2/3 cup of diced green onions
  • 4 TBS butter
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • about 3 TBS fresh chopped parsley to top
  • (optional…but trust me you will want it for the sauce) A baguette for dipping

1.  Slice or pound chicken to about 1 inch thickness and sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides, set aside

2. In a small bowl combine chicken broth, garlic, red pepper, green onions and rosemary.  Mix well and set aside.

3. Heat oven to 375 degrees

4. In a large deep (oven safe) skillet heat about 3 TBS olive oil.  Cook mushrooms over medium-high heat. Cook until well browned then remove to a large dish. Keep warm.

5. Add another 2 TBS of olive oil to skillet and brown on both sides for 3 minutes.  (I did this 4 pieces at a time as to not crowd the skillet) Remove to large dish with mushrooms and keep warm. (You will continue cooking chicken in the oven)

6. Reduce skillet heat to medium and add the chicken broth mixture.  Stir vigorously while scraping the bottom of the pan for any stuck browned pieces.  Cook for about 5 minutes.

7. Remove skillet from heat and add in the butter and the cream.

8. Add the chicken and mushrooms back in and mix.

9. Cook in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.

10. Top with parsley and serve.

I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we did! I was soaking my baguette in the sauce it was so good!

 

Friday Happenings- There’s a chance there’s tomato sauce in my hair

Happy Friday all! I am thanking God for Friday more than usual today, as this week has been crazy!

Just to give you a taste, I had my hair freshly colored yesterday. I came home to no nap, full toddler meltdown mode while I was trying to make dinner. I was making my favorite Hearty Bolognese sauce and putting out toddler fires left and right.  I went to open a can of crushed tomatoes and our can opener missed several sections along the edges.  So there I was going over and over the same spots to no avail. Toddler screaming as my blood starts to boil with hatred toward the can opener… So finally I tried to puncture it myself, splashing tomato sauce everywhere…including my brand new hairdo!  Awesome. As you might know, one way to keep your color looking intact after a dye job is to go a few days before washing it again. I rinsed the tomato sauce off with water, but there’s a chance it’s still in my hair.  In other news, we need a new can opener.

Since my mishap yesterday, I have been binge eating this delicious coffee cake. You definitely need to try it! It’s the perfect Fall treat to pair with coffee.

Cinnamon Coffee Cake

Ingredients:

For the Cake:

  • 1 1/2 Cups Flour
  • 1/2 Cup sugar
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Grease and Flour 9×13 baking dish. Mix dry ingredients first and add in wet ingredients.  Spread into pan.  It will seem thin, but don’t worry, it puffs up.

For the Topping:

Ingredients:

  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 cup melted butter (cooled)
  • confectioners sugar for dusting

Mix dry ingredients then add in butter.  Crumble over cake mixture.

Bake for 20 minutes turning pan halfway through. Cool and dust with confectioners sugar.

So if you need me this weekend, I will be bingeing on this coffee cake and shopping the June and January Fall drop! We are in it for all the twirl skirts and cardigans!! To get 15% off your first order follow this link! The drop starts at 9pm EST so set your alarms! Things go quickly!

Have a happy weekend folks!

Hallieisms- September 2017

I swear as this kid ages she just gets funnier and funnier! I have a whole new hilarious batch of Hallieisms coming at you tonight!

If I recall something from a while ago she’ll tell me “You have a good remembery Mom!”

Christopher has a few songs that he’ll sing to Hallie before bed. One of the her favorites is Time after Time. One night before bed he told her to go give me a hug and a kiss. She jumped at me nearly knocking me off the bed. When I pointed this out to her she starts Singing “If you fall I will catch you, I will be waiting, Time after Time!”

She calls mashed potatoes  “Smashed potatoes”- she’s not wrong…

One day before Preschool I told her she was getting too big and to stop growing up. Her response was ” I have to grow up mom! Preschool is waiting for me!”

She named a sheep at her friends house “Friendless”…

One day my father in law had been working in the garage. He had been filling up some piece of machinery with gas and must have gotten some on himself because when he came in he asked Christopher and I if we could smell the gas on him. Hallie responded with “oh sorry! That was me! I tooted in your room!”

Christopher has the tendency to call bad drivers “Bub bub”. Hallie has started to catch on to this as we were driving the other day and there was a crazy driver weaving in and out of lanes. I said “Gosh this guy is crazy! He’s going to hurt someone!” First Hallie responds with “Don’t worry Mom, I’ll Spit on him!” I laugh it off and then the guy cuts me off! I am sure I probably muttered an expletive, and Hallie yells “BUB BUB! STOP IT!”

The night before preschool she told me “Sorry I growed up!” – it’s okay baby I forgive you…just slow down!


On a cloudy day she told me “The sun is playing hide and seek”

The morning of my migration from Blogger to WordPress I informed Christopher “It’s Migration day!” Hallie hugged me and said “Merry Christmas Mom” -in all fairness it did feel a bit like Christmas.

This is how my animal loving girl  justifies eating animals “We’re eating Mean chickens!” or “That was a mean pig”- looking at her bacon

I was making dinner and Hallie exclaims “Oh good tacos! Princesses love tacos!”- I had to have some fun with this one!


Watching Trolls and One of the characters says “Stupid” Hallie gasps! “Mom! They can’t say Stupid!” You’re right baby. She continues “They Can’t say stupid and they can’t say shit!” – oops! And the parenting award goes to me!

We have a mini Aussie, Stella. One thing about the breed is they generally dock their tails. One day She told Stella “Someday when you get bigger you’ll grow a tail like Bach” -My father in laws German Shepherd Poodle Mix.

“Mom what are Firemen for?” They save people who are in trouble. If they didn’t do it, who else would? “Mom! Wonder Woman can! She’s a Super Hero!”

I just love how funny this age is! It counteracts the “Threenager Moments!” What funny things have your kids been saying?