The Best Drink EVER.

If you are reading this, you must finish reading, and then make this drink. It is seriously delicious. Who needs hot chocolate when you have this? I found this recipe on Pinterest, so I'll post the link at the bottom. However I did make a couple adjustments. It's called a butterbeer latte, but there is no beer or coffee in it. So don't be fooled :) obviously the butterbeer references the famous Harry Potter drink. So here it is
2 tbsp butter
2 heaping tbsp brown sugar
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2-1 tsp cinnamon
Put the butter in a pan and brown it. Watch very carefully because brown butter can turn to black butter very quickly. Once you have brown butter turn down the heat to medium low, add the brown sugar and whisk until evenly combined. Let that heat up for a minute and add the milk. Heat until it reaches your desirable drinking temperature, add the vanilla and cinnamon, and pour into a mug. You'll thank me ;)

http://haydenrodgers.tumblr.com/post/8261727464/master-haydens-butterbeer-latte-recipe-so-its

I Have Successfully Finished My First Week....

...of Real Estate school :) Only 4 more to go and I will officially be licensed. :) Well, after I take the test that's scheduled after the course is finished. But you know. :) I might as well tell you why I decided to be a bit ambitious and take these classes.

1. My mom is a real estate agent. She loves her work.
2. She could always use a little extra help. Bwahaha in a good way.
3. I am off-track at college. Basically, there are three "tracks". Each one goes for about 4 months. As a student you are assigned two of the three. I have fall/spring. Which means I don't have to go to school from January to April :)
4. I am still taking online classes. (That really has nothing to do with real estate school.)
5. Real estate can make you good money if you can do it well and do it correctly.
6. I would be able to work around my own school schedule, unlike a part time job with strict scheduling.
7. Great back-up plan for a job since a Bachelor's in Psych doesn't get you much these days.

I can't think of any other reasons...but I'd say that is a pretty good list. :) Needless to say, having class Monday through Thursday from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. poops me out.

Yes my hair is still long and luscious. It's just pulled into a bun. Don't freak. :)

Business is Booming. Almost.

 I finally got my Etsy shop up and running! :D It's buttonsbowsandbling.etsy.com! Check it out! Don't forget that if you don't have an iPhone, I am still totally willing to make you a case if possible! So don't be discouraged when you only see iPhones. Just message me with which phone you have and I will see what I can do! :D Here's a couple that I made today :)

I have a new hobby, and a new best friend...

Hello my fellow bloggers. I must say that I have had a fabulous weekend. It started when I finished all of my homework for my online classes on Friday (usually everything is due on Saturday), so I conquered procrastination, but not without motives. My family planned a trip to Salt Lake City for the weekend, and I certainly didn't want to do homework while I could be shopping. Who would? Then Saturday morning we woke up early and drove the 3 hours to Salt Lake. I've always been a bargain shopper, and I love great deals and sales, so first we went to Nordstrom Rack. I love that store, because I absolutely love Nordstrom. And Nordstrom Rack is all of Nordstrom's end of season stuff that has been discounted a supreme amount. Sometimes they also have stuff that only the Rack sells, but I'm not usually interested. Anyway, I found...my new best friend...in that store...His name is...

NEW LEATHER JACKET! :D

Isn't he beautiful?! I found him...and I had to have him. He also has an asymmetrical zipper, which is something I've wanted forever. And who knew a cow could smell so wonderful?! With that said, I also got a plain white shirt and a summery citrus colored tank top (both obviously not wonderful enough for a picture, but I will thank myself some day for buying them). I know he will pair wonderfully with my spiky shoes that I purchased a few months ago...they are also quite beautiful and one of my favorite pairs of shoes so they go together like peanut butter and ladies. (Talladega Nights. If you didn't catch that last quote.) Here is a picture of those beauties.

Yes. They will be perfect together. 

In other news....

I have...a new hobby. 

Called.

Making these phone covers. They fit iPhone 4 and 4S. I can probably do other phone covers if asked. Just request it if you're interested. I am probably going to sell them on Etsy. I will post a link later when I complete more. Some of them have already sold. I'll explain below in the captions. If you are interested in any of these, or have a request and want one specially made, contact me. :) I'll put the estimated prices for each below. While some may look similar in color or style, each is one-of-a-kind, and I plan on keeping it that way, so no one will have your exact phone cover. :) I plan on having them posted for sale within the next week or two. For now, this will just be my gallery. :) 

These five. The close ups are down below.

This one has turquoise paper overlaid with
white lace, coral colored buttons of different
sizes and shades, a tulle flower with a button
center, and a rhinestone surrounded camera hole.
Estimated cost: $20.

This one has pink and black patterned paper wrapped
with tulle, flat backed white "pearls", rhinestones, both in between
the pearls and surrounding the camera hole, a tulle bow, tied around
a "Love" trinket.
Estimated cost: $20.

Pink paper wrapped with tulle, rhinestones, swarovski crystals,
 and a tulle flower with a button/rhinestone center, with
swarovski crystals glued to different parts of the tulle.
Estimated cost: $20.

This one had turquoise paper, lace overlay, flat
backed pearls, rose tinted swarovski crystals, and two
plastic flowers.
Estimated cost: $30. 

Pink paper, lace overlay, swarovski crystals, some not
tinted and some rose tinted, rhinestones around the camera
hole, two flowers.
Not for sale, already sold.

Black and white paper, wrapped with tulle, two silk flowers,
rhinestones, and flat backed pearls.
Not for sale, already sold.

Large off white fabric flower, vintage paper, lace overlay,
pink flat backed pearls, acrylic rhinestones, and a lace skirt.
Not for sale, defected.

 I would love feedback on these. Please, if you have the time, give me your opinions. :) 

The Greatest Thing I've Ever Accomplished...Well...Maybe.

I'm super excited. I've just completed my newest crafting project, and it is AMAZING!!! :D The background of this project came from inspiration from eBay, you know, my very favorite website. I used to buy these super bedazzled blingy iPhone covers off of there. They were fine and dandy for a couple weeks, but after a while they got dingy and rhinestones kept falling off and so I finally ended up taking them off. Then the other day I was perusing on eBay, looking for a new cover. I found a few, but nothing that I absolutely loved. Well, let me rephrase. Nothing that I absolutely loved that was a decent price. A lot of them are handmade, but honestly, the labor costs are NOT worth $75. That's ridiculous. So.......................I MADE MY OWN! And it's so beautiful. (If you can't tell I'm super proud of this.) Now for the unveiling....
Drum roll please....
Now stop because drum rolls are annoying.

Overview. The Swarovski crystals surround the flat-back pearls and are
dispersed evenly in the triangle of other embellishments. 

This is a view angled toward the bottom. 

This view is angled at the top of the cover, almost upside down.

How cute is that?! And these pictures don't even do it justice. It looks even better in person. To me, the pictures make the cover look a little darker than the actual cover. This cover has a lace background, with flat back pearls, large acrylic rhinestones, Swarovski  crystals, plastic roses, and a large fabric flower. I am definitely willing to make and sell more of these for those that are interested. Contact me if you are interested and we can talk about it! :)

Let Us Catch Up

Hey everyone! It'd been quite a whole since I posted so I figured I would catch up on everything! Yesterday I had the wonderful pleasure of getting my wisdom teeth pulled. To be completely honest, I was terrified. However, once I got in there, they hooked me up to the IV to sedate me. Now from what I've read, sedation puts you into an altered state of consciousness and most people don't even remember the procedure. I, however, was still quite aware of my surroundings and just felt a little sleepy. So it was an interesting experience. All went well though, since I was blessed with only two wisdom teeth, both on the same side. It is a little unpleasant when the pain killers wear off, but with them I can hardly feel a thing! I guess I just got lucky :) I haven't swollen up yet either and I hope it stays that way. My beautiful friend Holly also brought me a delicious Jamba Juice and daffodils, which was so sweet! You can see the daffodils at the bottom of this post. So that's all for the wisdom teeth. I hope to continue recovering quickly. A few days ago, my grandpa asked me what I would like for my birthday since it is coming up on the 27th. I suggested some books for my Nook so he, being the kindest grandpa there is, sent me an E-gift card for Barnes and Noble. How awesome is that?! So I've spent my days recovering reading "Divergent" and I must say I am really loving it! It is part of a series of three books I believe. So, I would recommend it from what I have read so far. Anyway, I best be off for now. Hopefully I get better at blogging. Hahaha goodnight my lovely viewers!

The Bedtime Protein Shake

Hello again! I just thought I'd share an easy way to make a delicious protein shake! I usually make protein shakes with two different types of protein. One is whey protein, which is perfect when you need protein relatively quickly (pre- or post-workout), and casein, which is very slowly released, making it perfect for bedtime or sometimes in between meals. So knowing the difference between the two is pretty important so that each shake meets your own needs. I highly suggest that you research different types of proteins before you start drinking them up. I'd like to take the time to credit my dad with my knowledge about proteins. :) (He's a pretty smart guy.) Ok, so onto the shake! Every night before bed I make myself a casein protein shake. This helps feed my muscles throughout the night (since it releases slowly), keeping them from breaking down, especially since I will be going without food for the next 8 hours while I sleep. To make this shake, you need the following ingredients (feel free to make any modifications if you are opposed):

1 banana, the browner the better!
1/2 to 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk
1 scoop of casein protein
A dash of cinnamon
Ice

If you would like to cut calories, I suggest using half a banana. You will still have the banana taste, but it cuts out about 50 calories. I also prefer browning bananas over the greener ones. When they start to brown, like the one above, they begin to taste sweeter, and break down a little easier. I find that the greener ones taste grassy, which makes your shake taste like grass, which is not delicious. Blend the above ingredients in a blender until well mixed. Remember, the more liquid you add, the thinner the shake will be. Depending on your preference of shake thickness, you may want to add less almond milk.

Please, forgive the dorkiness.
 I just love these so much that I feel obligated to take pictures with them.
Just kidding. :) 

Well-ah! You have a delicious midnight snack that is good for you! If you make it exactly the way it is listed above, the calorie count comes out to about 250 calories, give or take a few depending on your banana size. Play with this recipe a bit. It may not be the perfect consistency the first time. Casein is naturally very thick. You can make a shake for before or after your workouts by using this same recipe and swapping the casein powder for whey protein powder (or another faster-releasing protein), and cutting down on the liquid (whey is not as thick as casein). Now you no longer have to do the "stir with a spoon" method of protein. Take a little extra time to blend and you will thoroughly enjoy your protein. :)