The quickest and easiest holiday appetizer!

Monday, October 29, 2018
This post is sponsored by Frank's Red Hot but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.



So, we all know how the end of the year goes... Halloween is over and the madness begins! There's Friendsgiving, Thanksgiving, Holiday parties, Christmas Eve, Christmas, Work Parties, Gift Exchanges, you name it! Weekend after weekend there is something to plan and prep for. Between getting yourself ready, making sure the babysitter has the kids under control, and trying to remember the white elephant gift, you really don't have much time to throw "an appetizer to share" together. You quickly run by the store and grab the last of the picked over dips and not only are you late... but no one even eats the dip! If you're sick of this, you're totally in the right place! I recently came across Frank's Red Hot delicious wings at Walmart and they are the PERFECT thing to bring to any holiday party! 



When it comes to the taste of Buffalo sauce, Frank's is the only way to go. Frank's RedHot Cayenne Pepper Sauce was used as the secret ingredient for the first ever Buffalo Wings in Buffalo, New York. The amazing flavor started the craze that has led to consumers obsession with all things Buffalo-flavor. I just think that is so cool! Frank's RedHot is the reason we have so many delicious buffalo-flavored dishes today! We absolutely love all of the Frank's RedHot sauces and constantly keep them stocked up in the fridge, so you can only imagine my excitement when I saw they sell their own wings now! Not only are they priced perfectly, but they are so convenient for anyone that wants a tasty snack throughout the day, someone who needs a delish appetizer to bring to a holiday party, or the dedicated game day fan that needs to refuel during halftime. They are packaged already coated in delicious sauce and are ready to be thrown in the microwave or into the oven. They're done in just a few minutes if you choose the microwave and the smell alone will have you drooling! The Kickin' BBQ is definitely my favorite flavor with original coming in at a close second. I loved that the wings had the perfect amount of sauce and great quality meat. 



My favorite way to eat these wings is with ranch and Frank's RedHot Original sauce mixed on the side. It's the perfect flavor combo with the original wings. Frank's RedHot also has several other dipping sauces that you will fall in love with such as buffalo wings sauce, sweet chili sauce, Chili 'N Lime Hot Sauce, Stingin' Honey Garlic Sauce, and Xtra Hot Sauce! 


If you have a grocery section in your Walmart, RUN over and grab some of these wings from the frozen section. My local Walmart made sure to have plenty on hand since these will easily become a game day/holiday party appetizer and snack favorite! While you're there pick up some of their sauces, trust me, you can never have too much buffalo flavor!



I'm so excited that I feel prepared for any last minute parties or anytime I forget to bring something because my freezer is stocked with Frank's RedHot delicious wings! What flavor are you looking forward to trying... Buffalo, Kickin' BBQ,  or original?? 




Let me know your favorite!
All my love,
Aleigh Joy
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A Spooktacular Kids Halloween Party

Saturday, October 13, 2018

Today we threw a little Halloween party for kiddos and their mamas. It was so much fun to get together and let the kids play and the moms get some real conversation in, ha! But in all seriousness, I think play dates are so fun for both moms and kids. I used to have weekly play dates with my best friends in Utah and we all loved it. I looked forward to it each week because I craved that social interaction with other women. I love using any excuse out there to get together with other moms and give Oaks and Cam the opportunity to interact with other kids sooo a Halloween Party definitely seemed in order ;) 

I wasn't planning on doing this until a couple weeks ago when I walked by the dollar section at Target and saw all the adorable stuff. Honestly, I got most of the decor from the dollar store or the dollar section at Target! The dollar store is probably the best kept secret when it comes to party and holiday decorations. They always have festive decor for only $1, tons of serving dishes, lots of colors of plastic tablecloths, they even have costumes! The rest of it was from miscellaneous stores like Michael's, Hobby Lobby, Handmade, or things I already had. For lunch we had regular chili, white chicken chili, mac n cheese, Halloween Pretzels, salad, caramel apple dip with green apples, and some tortilla chips and Fritos for the chilis. For the activities we let the kiddos run around all they want and the trampoline was a huge hit. But, we also made lollipop ghosts with tootsie pops, napkins, and string. I also set out some coloring pages and crayons, and the dollar store had these cute foam projects but they didn't come with anything to stick them together so people just took those home haha. The last activity was cookie decorating! If you have an Albertsons near by they have the BEST sugar cookies, I bought a few packs of those, store bought frosting, and some festive sprinkles. 


The banners and witch hats are from the dollar section at Target. The felt kitties are from the dollar store. The spider web runners are from Target as well as the magic potion wood sign, the geometric white pumpkin, the black boo bowls, and the metal buckets. The black roses, vases, orange twig branches, bats, and spider web bowls are from the dollar store. 











The ceramic boo pumpkins are from the dollar store


Half of the paper fans are pre made from hobby lobby and the other ones I made with scrapbook paper. It's really easy and there's tons of tutorials on pinterest! The little ghosts are from Michael's. The chalkboard is really old but I think was from Hobby Lobby. The balloons are from the dollar store as well as the black spider webs.







The little pumpkin lanterns are from the dollar store and the Happy Halloween tape is from Target.






If you're planning on throwing a Halloween party or just need some festive inspiration, I hope this helped! Let me know if you have any more questions about anything! You can also find both of the chili recipes here and here. Happy Halloween everyone!

All my love,
Aleigh Joy
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Blanket Ladder DIY

Wednesday, October 3, 2018

Are you ready for the easiest and cutest DIY everrr?? I have been wanting a blanket ladder for a while now. I think they are so cute and such a fun way to decorate and store blankets. I started to look on different websites to see how much it would cost me to buy one and it was absurd! I'm talking hundreds of dollars! And then the cheaper local ones I found were horrible quality or super tiny. That's when I got the idea to make one myself. I'm sure the guys at Home Depot hate me because I'm totally the girl that walks in like "heyyy I have this DIY project I want to do... can you show me how to do it??" Haha but they're always so patient and give great (and cheap) options. So, with the help of my trusty lumber Home Depot guys, this blanket ladder came to life at a whopping $8!! Can you believe that? And if you already have stain, it'll be even cheaper! I didn't take step by step photos because I honestly trust that you'll be able to figure it out based off what I'm saying. Well... hopefully haha. But seriously, it is THAT easy. 



Materials Needed:
(2) 2x4's cut to 76in (if you ask, they'll cut it for you)
(1) 1x3 cut into 4 14in pieces (again ask them to cut it)
1 small can of your choice in color of stain (i did the grey wash)
1 old rag
A drill
LONG screws. Guys, I can't find the box anywhere but I used wood screws and they were probably 6-8ish inches? Maybe a little longer. I'll update this if I find them. But, basically it needs to go into the side of the ladder and through the "steps" of the ladder so it needs to be quite long. 


How To:
Alright so obviously first go to Home Depot and get your wood. I didn't look for the most perfect pieces because I like the "rustic" look. When you get home use a rag to stain your wood. I found that two coats was perfect for the look I was going for. Let that dry completely. Alright, now you need to assemble your ladder. The best method I found was sticking the bottom of your ladder's legs flat up against a wall as if it was standing up so you can make sure they are at the exact length they would be if standing up. That way you can get your "steps" to be screwed in evenly. I put each wood step at 15.2 inches. Then I literally just took the drill and a screw and drilled them together. I went through the outside of the ladder and into the step. Since you wont actually be stepping on it, it just needs to hold together enough for decor to be held on it. Guys, that's literally it. I can't believe how easy it was! It was completed start to finish in a few hours and looks so cute. The blanket is from Cariloha, the sign is from Hobby Lobby, and the bucket is my mother in law's until I find one similar haha.

(If you look close you can see where I drilled the screw in this photo)



I hope you guys liked this DIY! Let me know if you have any questions!

All my love,
Aleigh Joy
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