Shout Out: Speed Dial

So this weekend a friend of mine showed me a really cool app for Google Chrome. Google Chrome is my favorite web browser and I don't like to use anything else. He showed me an awesome app called Speed Dial. (link here) This app allows you to make your browser page look like this!

You get to totally customize how this looks.

The options page looks like this. 

     The top two drop down menu's allow you to choose the number of rows and columns that you want. The bar below that allows you to choose distance between buttons. Then you can choose the background image or background color. It was so much fun to set up!

     To set a button simple click on it and it will bring up a set dial menu like this. 

The "Title" allows you to put a title above each picture but I choose not to do this in order to make it look cleaner. The "URL" is where you put the website that you want to link to. Then you can find a picture online to set as the image for the button. Choose something that will make it obvious as to what that button is. For example, use a logo for the website like I did with Hulu and YouTube. 

I absolutely love using this. It makes my web surfing so much easier. I never forget any of the things that I regularly check and it is so much easier than using the bookmarks. Give this a try and your internet will be OrganizedForReal!

Update: Condo after pictures!

   So after Saturday and Sunday of unpacking this is what our first home looks like! We have done a lot since then but there will be more posts to come on that!

Our living room before...

And after! The living room turned out great! Since this picture we have curtains up and hopefully soon we can start putting pictures on the walls!

Here are our computers (mine on the left, Graham's on the right). Graham spent 2 hours putting my desk together! Thank you hunny! I love it!

Another view of the living room facing our front door.

Here's my awesome kitchen. It's the smallest kitchen that I've ever had but I still make amazing food in it! The electric stove hasn't treated me too badly! I tried to set something (not the food) on fire but that's a story for another time!

And remember that boring, ugly bathroom?

 Isn't it pretty now?

Like I said we still have a lot of work to do but it's our home! Stay tuned for more tips and tricks that I am using and you can be OrganizedForReal!

Update: Unpacking

     So now, I had to figure out how to unpack all this stuff! Luckily we had all weekend to work on it. And I had the help of Graham and his mom, Mary was sooooo much help! 

She'd probably kill me for putting this picture on here but it's the only picture I took of her helping! Sorry Mary!

Mary rocked the kitchen! She said that she didn't really do anything but she helped so much! She worked and worked on the rack in the toaster oven (I don't think I had ever cleaned it because I thought it was beyond help when it was at Graham's apartment) until it shined!!! She unpacked basically all the kitchen for me. Soon I will start posting about some of the cool organizing ideas that I am using in the condo including the kitchen!

Graham worked hard on moving things around in the living room so that I could clean before we set things up since I didn't get a chance to clean before we moved. 

We didn't even lose any of the legs for the couches!!! Yeah!!!!

See? A lot more stuff went into the guest bedroom as we went!

Look! We have closets!!! I am so excited about that! From this picture it looks like Graham was going to get half of the closet but I hadn't hung any of my stuff up yet! He has about a sixth of it now. What can I say? I have a lot of clothes! I also can't wait to share what I did with my shoes with you!

Time to put clothes in the dressers! Can't wait until we have the other dressers for the guest bedroom so then we can put all our clothes away, I still have some in baskets. 

That's all the pictures I have for unpacking, tomorrow you get to see the final reveal! We still have a lot to do but it will give you an idea of how we have the condo set up!

Update: Moving pictures

     So I've put it off for long enough. Do you want to see some pictures of our move? I was planning on taking picture of the condo after I cleaned and before we moved furniture in but then there was a change of plans. I got one picture before we moved in. Here is the wall where our front door is. Isn't it awesome??? We love this wall! Sorry about the spots on the camera lens!

     So I was at work on a Friday and Graham called and said "We are moving... now." We had planned on moving the next day but there was rain in the forecast and rain it did, all weekend and into the next week! It took us about 2 and a half hours to move everything out of the house and into the condo. So here is the tour of the condo after everything was moved in with boxes everywhere. Luckily I had pretty much marked all of the boxes with what room they went in so that it would be easy to unpack. 

Here is the kitchen from the dining room with all of the boxes waiting to be put in the kitchen.

Doesn't look too chaotic right?  

Well, this is the view from the dining room of the living room. Still not too bad...

And then boom, that's where all the stuff is! 

So much stuff!

While I was working on organized boxes, Graham did the touchups in the master bedroom, with the unassembled bed in there and everything! 

He didn't know that I took this picture.

Say hi to the camera Graham!

Here is the guest bedroom, we put extra boxes that didnt have a place in here since we don't have the furniture yet. This room eventually got so full that you couldn't get into it very well. Lol!

So much stuff!

Then from the hallway, this was the view of the living room. I honestly had no idea where to start!

Come back tomorrow for the unpacking pictures!

Recipe: UV Bombsicle

     So a couple nights ago my husband came home with a new kind of alcohol that a friend had suggested, UV Blue. It is blue raspberry vodka. I had no idea how to drink it besides straight up so I went to the UV website, www.uvvodka.com. The first recipe that was listed for UV Blue sounded the best so we decided to give it a try. What to do you have when you put UV Blue and lemonade together?

Take 1 part UV Blue to 3 parts lemonade. Shake with ice.

We made 1/3 cup UV Blue and 1 cup lemonade.

This made the perfect amount for 2 martini glasses! I was just that lucky with the amounts, Graham was impressed. 

Isn't it pretty? And it tastes like candy! So good!

Try it out!

Recipe: Amazing Nutella Brownies

     So here at the Hull's we have a new favorite dessert. Nutella brownies anyone? You are going to be shocked when you hear how easy these are to make. 

1 cup nutella 
10 Tbsp flour
2 eggs

Mix. Pour into greased 8x8 pan. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes! 

     THE END!!! That's it! Can that be any easier? And they are amazing! I ask my husband to describe them in one word. He said "Not overwhelming." That's making me laugh so hard right now! That's two words but we will take it anyway. He explained that you would think they are going to be really rich but they really aren't, which is true. But they are still really good! Tonight was the second time that I have made them and I decided that tonight I would sprinkle a few chocolate chips on top and we both liked it better this way. Don't they look amazing? I couldn't help but cut us each a piece and then I remembered I needed a picture!

     So if you need a simple dessert to throw together quickly, grab 3 ingredients or 4 if you want the chocolate chips too. Mix it together and enjoy! 

Life Update: New Hair!

So I just got back from the salon and I love my hair so I thought I would share my new color and style with you! 

Ok, so maybe not the best pictures but what do you think? I went a little darker and I brought my bangs back! And if you'll notice, you get a sneak peek of the condo!!!

Freebies: Since the Move

     Hello everyone! Today is the day the I am finally going to get back into blogging! I've missed it but things have just been too crazy! There is still a lot to do in the condo but hopefully i will have more pictures of that up soon. But I thought today I would fill you in on the awesome freebies that I've gotten!
     I've gotten seven different things in the last couple weeks including 2 full size items! I just realized that I forgot to take a picture of one product that I received! I'll just tell you a little about it cause I don't really feel like taking another picture. Lol! Anyway, I received a full size tube of living proof prime style extender. It is supposed to help you hold your style longer so I will see if that works soon. Not today though because I have a hair appointment in a couple hours. So then here is a picture of all of the other freebies I received before I opened the packaging...

I received samples from Nescafe, Emergen-C, Gucci, Scotchgard, Cepacol and Ovaltine! The sample from Gucci was a sample of perfume on a towelette, it smelled really good! And my hubby opened the box that the Scotchgard came in because he wondered what was in the box. I guess that's what happens when your husband gets to the mail first! It came with a 2 dollar coupon! I was excited to get this product as I need to spray my boots before winter!  Then once I opened everything this is what I had!

     I received 2 samples of Ovaltine with a $1.00 off coupon. I received a new product, Nescafe Mementos in Mocha and Caramel Latte with a $1.00 off coupon. The next thing I received was new Cepacol Sensations Hydra with a $1.00 coupon as well. Finally I received 2 sample packs of Emergen-C in Super Orange and Acai Berry flavors with a $1.00 off coupon! So not only did I receive 7 different products but I also received $6.00 dollars worth of coupons to use if I choose to buy the product! And be sure to check out my post about how to get these freebies yourself and you can get FreebiesForReal! 

Update: Still alive

     I know, I know! It's been almost a week since my super quick update! I'm actually sitting in the airport waiting for a friend to come home so I thought that I would check in quick. 
     So we are completely moved into the condo, none of our stuff is in our other house. It took a while to get to this point but I'm glad that we are. We have a lot unpacked and still some more to go. I have the kitchen, living room, bathroom and master bedroom all unpacked (except for clean laundry that I finished moving yesterday!) We still need to hang pictures and decorations, hang curtains (which needs done badly, someone (not me) is a little paranoid without them up) and move the guest bedroom furniture from my parents house. I got tired of unpacking but I finally did some more last night and I got a lot done. 
     I will get pictures on here soon, I promise. It's been kind weird, I haven't really had the desire to post anything lately, just been too busy with life. I want to post about the condo and I also want to post about some of the awesome freebies that I have gotten lately. Maybe this weekend things will slow down, I doubt it but maybe. Then I will try to get on here and at least post about the condo so that way you can see pictures! I am sure you are just dying to see it right? Well, I think I have rambled enough, my friend should be landing soon. Until next time, stay OrganizedForReal!

Super Quick Update: Condo!!!

     Hey everyone! This is just a super quick post to tell you that I am writing this from our new condo!!!! I've got lots of pictures to post soon but there is a lot to unpack still. Can't wait to show you! Until then stay OrganizedForReal my friends!!!

Life Update: Painting

     Hey guys! I know, I know, my last post was on Saturday. Things are definitely crazy around here with packing and getting things ready for the condo. I got most of the kitchen packed yesterday except for food. We have all the holes in the walls spackled and we put foam around the air conditioner. We also choose colors for walls and got paint as well as light switch covers and things like that. Today is no different, still crazy. Today I am going to start painting. We will see how it goes. Just wanted to give you a quick update so that you know I am still around. I have other things that I would like to post but I just can't seem to find the time. I don't think I posted this weeks meal plan, sorry about that. I got out of the grocery store for 15 dollars this week!!! I also want to write about a couple other freebies that I received in the mail recently. I'll try to share pictures of the progress at the condo when I can but now I've got to head out to paint. So until then, stay OrganizedForReal!

Life update: Condo

     So guess what we finally got to see last night? Our condo!!!! Yeah!!!! So excited! So I decided to post some pictures so that you can see what it looks like. Mind you these pictures don't look very great because of the lighting. It was dark outside. We are going to go back to the condo in a little bit to look at it in the daylight. 

I think Graham was pretty excited to be there! Graham is standing in the dining room, the kitchen is to the right and the door on the left goes to our balcony, with a view of the pool!

Then here is our tiny but pretty kitchen. We may actually keep that wall color. And look at the track lights on the ceiling! Aren't they awesome! Love them!

Then of course there is the other side of the kitchen. It is a nice frig that is pretty new. Then, cue the doomed music, dun dun dun, an electric stove. This is my new challenge! We will see how it goes, I guess! 

Here is the view of our living room from our dining room. It's nice and big with a big closet by the door. I am so excited about closet space!

Here is a closer up view of the entrance. Then on the left you see the little hallway to the bedrooms and bathroom.

Here is the guest bedroom. Apparently i forgot to take a picture of it! But it is basically the same as this one but a little bigger and flipped the other way.

Then here is our bathroom from the hallway.

And the bathroom closet and shower. The closet is really deep which is awesome!

Then standing in hallway out of the bathroom here is the living room again,

along with the seller and the Cracker!

     We are so excited to be able to get in there and really make this our first home together! We can't move in yet but the seller said we can take nails out, spackle and paint. Yeah!!!!

So what do you think? Do you like it? I can't wait to show you our progress as this journey continues, keep checking back for more updates!

Tip of the Day: Running Errands

     Sometimes you feel like there are too many places that you need to run and not nearly enough time to do it all right? Well the best thing you can do is group all of your errands together and run them all at one time. 
     You may need to go to the bank, get groceries, run to the post office, fill the car with gas, wash the car, pick up meds at the pharmacy and the list goes on and on. Some of these you may need to take care of once a month, others once or twice a week.
     But why not make a list of your errands and set a specific time to run them all? This way it will not only save you gas by making an efficient route to accomplish them all but it will save your valuable time as well. 
     For myself, I have really benefited by doing this because I can run all of my errands on Monday morning and then forget about them for the rest of the week! Try it out and tell me what you think. Then you can Organize RunYourErrandsForReal!

Recipe: White Chili

     Today fall has definitely shown its cold and windy face. I was so glad that I had soup planned for tonight. I made white chili, my mom's recipe (thanks again mom!). You'll remember that I had made the chicken for this last week but due to some circumstances I couldn't make it. But today was the perfect soup day so I didn't mind! 

Here is the recipe for it! 

2 whole boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 onion chopped

1 ½ tsp garlic powder

2 cans great northern beans, drained and rinsed

1 can chicken broth or 16 frozen homemade chicken broth cubes

2 cans chopped green chiles

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp oregano

½ tsp pepper

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

1 cup sour cream

½ cup heavy whipping cream

Saute first 3. Add ingredients through cayenne. Cook 30 minutes. Take off heat and add sour cream and whipping cream.

I mean, can this be any easier? This also makes for great leftovers because the flavors really marry. So go ahead, put this on your meal plan for next week, you won't regret it!  

Food Prep For the Week of Oct 1, 2012

     Ok, so I know that was Monday but things have been crazy around here to say the least! I'm trying to pack, I've been sick, we haven't been able to see the condo yet and the list goes on. But I wanted to fill you in on my prep for this weeks food. This week was pretty simple because I have planned quick easy food using stuff I already had so there was less to move. So two weeks ago I got out of the grocery store with less than 40 dollars of groceries and I thought that I had done well but this week was even better! I only spent a little more than 20 dollars for the whole week!!! Awesome!
     For this week there wasn't really much prep that I could do but I wanted to share with you what I did for the burgers that we will be having this weekend. I didn't want the ground beef sitting in the frig all week so I went ahead and froze it but before I did that I decided put it in the freezer, I would go ahead and season the meat and make it into patties.I made three because graham will want 2 and I will want one. And that is actually how many buns we have left in the freezer so it works out great!

So I just used salt, garlic pepper, Italian seasoning and sweet and zesty BBQ.

Then I mixed it up and formed it into 3 patties. Then I went ahead and wrapped them individually using the wrapping that they came in. Now when I take them out of the freezer I don't have to worry about them sticking together. They will also thaw faster since they are smaller. 

Do this and you will be ready to MakeBurgersForReal!

Freebies: Garnier Fructis and Lipton

     Yesterday I got 2 more freebies! I love going to the mail and finding free stuff! When I was little a family friend would always send me shoes in the mailbox. They sent me so many shoes that I thought that shoes can from the mailbox! I wish they still did!!!

So, yesterday I received two freebies in the mail! 

And inside this is what there was...

     It is a sample of Garnier Fructis Fall Fight Shampoo and Conditioner. It also came with a coupon for $1.00 off any Garnier Fructis product. Then I got a sample of Lipton Iced Green Tea Mix. It is from their tea and honey product line. It is mango pineapple flavor. Can't wait to try them! Would you like to see me do reviews of samples that I get or products that I use? Leave me your comments below and let me know!

Tip of the Day: Labeling Cords and Chargers

     Today we live in the age of technology. For every gizmo and gadget we have two or three cords. We have a charger for the house, a charger for the car, headphones and a cord to hook up to our computer. None of them seem to be the same as another either.
     So how can you organize the chaos? Label, label, label!!!
     I have seen many labeling techniques when it comes to cords. I have seen people write a label on bread bag ties using a permanent marker. I have also seen labels from a label maker wrapped around them. This is some that I have yet to do but need to!
     Don't forget to label the cords for your computer or entertainment center as well. This way when you go to the power strip you can easily unplug the exact cord that you want. If all the cords are labeled this also makes it easy to move your computer or entertainment center to a different location. Do this and you'll be OrganizedForReal!

Tip of The Day: Weekly Meal Plan

    Is the term "weekly meal plan" an inspiration or does it make you cring? I'll admit, at first,I thought it would be a daunting task but now I don't know how I lived without it! I found myself in the rut of not knowing what to cook so it was just easier to go out or order in. But I noticed that I was not feeling very good because I was not eating well and I wanted to have better meals for my husband. So I decided I would try making a meal plan for the week and see how it worked and like I said, now I don't know how I did without it.
     The first week was the hardest, I didn't know what I wanted to make. So I decided to start a list of meals that I make. I also looked though some cookbooks and online to find new recipes I wanted to try. Here is what week one looked like...

Monday-

Lunch- Stromboli

Supper- Chinese

Tuesday-

Lunch- Red Beans and Rice

Supper- Turkey and Ham Wraps

Queso and Chips

Wednesday-

Lunch- Red Beans and Rice

Supper- Capresse chicken and pasta

Thursday-

Lunch- Leftover Capresse Chicken and pasta

Supper- Vernicelli with sausage and spinach

Friday-

Lunch- Leftover vernicelli with sausage and spinach

Supper- Cedar Rapids

Saturday-

Lunch- With Nieces Out

Supper- Make with Nieces

Sunday-

Lunch- Eat out

Supper- Leftovers

     For the lunches I only have to figure out what I would eat as my husband has to eat out for lunch. I normally eat leftovers, which I love for lunch. Then for supper I looked at my days activities to see how much time and energy I would have to cook. On days where I am gone until 5, I want something that will either be ready when I get home or take very little effort to prepare. 

     I also have to figure in meals to use leftovers. If there are more leftovers beyond this. I freeze them and plan them into next weeks meal plan. I also make sure I include when we will be eating out on the meal plan. 

     When I am making the meal plan, I try to make sure that I plan for a wide variety of foods. I make sure that I don't have the same meat too many times in one week or too many pasta or rice dishes etc.
     When I am trying to think of meals to make, I rally try to look at what I will have a partial package of and try to use it in another meal. For instance, I made a beef roast one night and then used the leftover beef in beef stroganoff the next night. I also froze the beef broth for later use. This way I make sure that I don't have wasted food and thus wasted money.
     As you have noticed, now I am going to post my new meal plan every Sunday or Monday. Monday Meal Plan- genius!
     Because I have my weekly meal plan and use my Master Grocery List I can get groceries once a week on my errand day! This way I can be OrganizedForReal!!!