Over 100 PG-13 Horror Movies

We're creeping up on Halloween season. I love me some horror movies, but I don't really watch R-Rated movies. I've compiled a list of PG-13 horror movies that I've enjoyed, some of them a dozen or more times! I have included a couple of R-Rated movies that are rated R for the scares -Hellllooo Conjuring Universe- but would be PG-13 otherwise. 

In no particular order...

The Ring 2002 - This was the first movie I thought of. It was 100% the scariest movie ever at the time it was released!

The Ring Two 2003- Not as scary as the first, but still a good watch! 

Arachnophobia 1990- Still as creepy as when I first saw it in the theater as an 11 year old!

 
Poltergeist 1982- I first saw this when I was four. Nightmares for months! It still has good creep factor.

 
Poltergeist 2015- A really good remake. I love that it's not word for word the same as the original. 

Cry Wolf 2005- Not many people have seen this one, but it was a favorite of mine for years.

 
Disturbia 2007- Shia LaBeouf, when he was young and adorable, adds some laughs to this one. 

Countdown 2019- Makes you a little creeped out about what you download to your phone. 

His House 2020- Loved this unique take on the haunted house movie.

 
The Conjuring 2013- So good. So scary.

The Conjuring II 2016- Another great Conjuring movie. 

The Conjuring III 2021- Not as scary as others in the universe, but good. 

Annabelle 2014- Yikes. 

Annabelle: Creation 2017- Creepy Doll. Creepy kids. What more to say? 

Annabelle: Coming Home 2019- If you're following the Conjuring story, you don't wanna miss this one. 

The Nun 2018- This one was SCARY! And it ties into the other stories so well! 

La Llorona 2019- Loosely part of the Conjuring world. Not as scary as the others, but eerie! 

Prom Night 2008- Cheesy but fun.

 
Carriers 2009- Classic world-ending virus story. 

Insidious 2010- Scary good. 

Insidious: Chapter 2 2013- Continuation of the story in the first movie.

 
Insidious: Chapter 3 2015- Prequel to the first movie. 

Insidious: The Last Key 2018- Not terribly scary, but rounds out the story. 

The Babadook 2014- Creepy for sure! 

The Visit 2015- If you're scared of old people, this will especially freak you out.

 
Winchester 2018- Not terribly scary or historically accurate, but a good watch. 

Darkness Falls 2003- Having a kid who was scared to death of the Tooth Fairy made me not watch this for several years after it came out! 

The Forest 2016- Nice creep factor. Makes you wonder what really happened. 

Boogeyman 2005- Not scary enough for me to want to watch the sequels, but decent.

The Uninvited 2009- I really like this one! 

World War Z 2013- Zombies and Brad Pitt.

Haunting of Molly Hartley 2008- Used to be one of my favorites!

The Boy 2016- Dolls sure are creepy! 

The Boy II 2020- Just as good as the first. 

The Haunting in Connecticut 2009- Based VERY loosely off a true story. A good watch. 

The Messengers 2007- Birds are scary. 

The Final Girls 2015- One of my favorite movies. Comedy horror. Great film.

 
Mama 2013- Tim Burton looking ghosts. Decent scares. 

1408 2007- Weird and creepy. 

The Possession 2012- A Jewish spin on a demonic possession. 

The Last Exorcism 2010- Found footage film. Pretty scary. 

The Woman in Black 2012- Classic haunted house story. Definitely recommend.

The Woman in Black II 2015- Not as good as the first, but still worth the watch. 

1922 2017- Slow moving, but a good story with some rats and ghosts.

 

The New Daughter 2009- Creature horror.

Ouija 2014- Made my kids mad that they pronounced "Ouija" wrong. Haha

Ouija: origin of evil 2016- Better than the first one! 

An American Haunting 2006- Old fashioned ghost story with a twist.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark 2019- I wasn't sure if they'd do the book justice, but this was a really fun, creepy movie. 

The Skeleton Key 2005- Voodoo is horrifying!

Cloverfield 2008- Found footage craziness. 

10 Cloverfield Lane 2016- In the Cloverfield world but not a sequel. Really liked it!! I did not like the third in the series so I left it off the list. 

A Quiet Place 2018- Don't eat or check your phone during this movie. It'll be too loud! 

A Quiet Place II 2021- Glad they made a sequel. Also Netflix has a knockoff Quiet Place and it's trash. 

The Others 2001- Classic spookiness. I think of this movie often because of all the doors in my house.

Night of the Living Dead 1968- Must watch zombie flick. Ties well into current issues. 

Truth or Dare 2018- Creepy good but not fabulous. 

The Sixth Sense 1999- Is there anyone out there who hasn't seen this film? 

The Bye Bye Man 2017-  Lots of plot holes, but still has some jumps. 

Slender Man 2018- I didn't really know much about Slender Man before watching the movie. It's got some frightening scenes. 

When a Stranger Calls 1979- Classic urban legend story. 

When a Stranger Calls 2006- Not as good as the original, but still some nerve-wracking scenes. 

Split 2016- Loved this. I know it's part of a series, but it's great as a stand alone. 

White Noise 2005- Intense. I don't want to know what's in white noise. Haha

The Grudge 2004- Ugghh... the shower scene. 

Hush 2016- This is a heart-racing one. 

I am Legend 2007- So many references to this with the vaccine situation right now. 

Veronica 2017- It was on several lists as the scariest movie ever. It was good, but it wasn't the scariest. Has subtitles. 

The Vast of Night 2020- Enjoyed this one. Retro vibe, good story. 

#Alive 2020- Zombie movie set in Korea. Has subtitles. 

Psycho 1960- We watch this at least once a year! 

The Birds 1963- Have I mentioned birds are scary? 

The Exorcism of Emily Rose 2005- The only bad thing is it tells you she dies right at the beginning. 

Lights Out 2016- The opening scene is SO scary! 

Sinister 2012- Super dark and horrifying. I wasn't a fan of the sequel though. 

The Unholy 2021- Decent religious horror story. 

Escape Room 2019- My daughter and I got ID'd to watch this movie in the theater? 

The New Mutants 2020- I know it's in the X-Men universe, but it definitely holds its own. 

The Unborn 2009- Worrisome spirit possession. Aren't they all worrisome? 

The Rite 2011- Religious horror flick.

Devil 2010- M. Night Shyamalan. Of course there's a twist.

House on the End of the Street 2012- Creepy house. Creepy dude. 

Flatliners 2017- Remake of the R-Rated Kevin Bacon film of the same name.

 
The Cave 2005- Creatures. In a cave. 

Cat's Eye 1985- Three disturbing tales with a cat linking them all together. 

The Vatican Tapes 2015- Another priests fight a demon possession flick. 

Now for a few not-scary but fun Halloween movies:

Hocus Pocus 1993- A must watch every Halloween season! 

Practical Magic 1998- Such a beloved witch movie. 

Ghostbusters 1984- Who ya gonna call? 

Ghostbusters 2016- Hilarious remake.

ET 1982- ET phone home. Don't forget the Reese's Pieces while watching this one! 

Goosebumps 2015- I was surprised at how much I liked this. 

Goosebumps II 2018- Halloween fun! 

The Witches 1990- Much more frightening than the remake, plus it has the nostalgia factor.

 
Fun Size 2012- Halloween night shenanigans.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer 1992- Vampires and teenagers. Luke Perry.

The Addams Family 1991- If you haven't watched this in a while, bust it out for Halloween! 

Beetlejuice 1988- Funny, creepy, a classic. 

Teen Witch 1989- I used to be able to quote this whole movie. 

Hubie Halloween 2020- If you like 1990's Adam Sandler movies, you'll laugh your head off at this one. 

Bewitched 2005- Fun and cheesy. 

Have a great movie night! I'm excited to see what new horror flicks will be coming out this fall!

Instant Pot Funfetti Healthy Dessert

This is a low fat, low sugar, Weight Watchers friendly (3 purple points for 1/6th of the dessert!), and super adorable cheesecake! I hesitate to call it a cheesecake because there's no cream cheese in it, but it looks like a cheesecake and tastes pretty dang close!  It's high in protein and is super easy to make.

Spray a 7" push spring form pan with cooking spray.

Beat together: 

3 eggs

1/4 c. granulated stevia

1 tsp almond extract 

Add and beat: 

32 oz container plain fat free Greek yogurt (if there is visible liquid, drain it off the top of the container first)

1 small box sugar free cheesecake flavored pudding mix

1/4 c dry yellow cake mix

Gently stir in:

3 TBSP sprinkles

Pour into prepared springform pan. 

Place water in Instant Pot liner until it's just under where trivet will reach. Cover full pan with a paper towel and then tin foil, using the tin foil to keep the paper towel off the batter. Place on trivet with handles and lower into Instant Pot. Cook on high pressure for 35 minutes. Once done, turn off heat, release pressure, but leave in Instant Pot for at least 10 minutes. 

Carefully remove from Instant Pot, sprinkle with more sprinkles while still warm, cover with a paper towel and refrigerate overnight. 

Dried Apple Pie

This is such a delicious pie recipe from pioneer times and a great way to use dried apples!

Soak 2 cups dried apples in water overnight in the fridge (or somewhere cool). Drain the water and mix with 1/2 c. sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon (you can use pumpkin pie spice in place of the cinnamon for some extra flavor!)

Place apples into a prepared pie crust. I prefer to use an all butter recipe crust. Dot apples with 3 T butter. Cover with top crust, seal the edges and make a few slashes in the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until golden brown. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or topped with cheddar cheese! 

A Holiday Miracle

At the beginning of the Christmas season I had a meltdown. I was tired of all my bah humbug grinchy family members ruining my Christmas cheer year and year. The kids and I had been fighting about them not wanting to go to Thanksgiving dinner and they were already being brats about Christmas. My husband was moping around about the holidays. I haven't had as much energy, physically or mentally, since I had major surgery in July. School was very homework heavy this semester and I was just feeling generally overwhelmed with the stresses of being a mom and caregiver. I couldn't take any more fighting over something like the holidays. This should be the happiest time of the year. It used to be. I needed it to be again.

I wanted to go to a small town Christmas festival early in the season and my suggestion was being met with complaints and grumbling. My kids said no way. My husband said he'd go if I went, but he didn't want to. After the month long fight over Thanksgiving and the complaints I was already hearing about Christmas, I had enough. "FINE! I AM DONE. I'M NOT MAKING ANYONE DO ANYTHING CHRISTMASSY. IF PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO DO CHRISTMAS THINGS I'M NOT MAKING YOU DO THEM. I'M NOT FORCING YOU. I'M NOT GOING WITHOUT YOU. I'M JUST DONE." I may have shed a tear or two. After years and years of being the queen of Christmas, with three kids and a husband who hate the holidays, I finally broke. My Christmas spirit was gone.

Something happened to my family after I had my outburst. They all decided we should go to the Christmas festival. I was pouting and not even dressed and they told me I should get ready. We went and no one complained about anything, even though there wasn't as much to do as I had hoped. We stood in long lines out in the cold, and no one said an single negative thing. They even agreed to get our picture taken with Santa for the first time since they were little.

But it wasn't just that night. They were enthusiastic about taking Christmas card pictures. They laughed and posed and had fun with it. Alyssa spent the evening helping me pick out the picture to use as our Christmas card and choosing which card design to order.

My husband has watched many Christmas movies with me this month. He wore silly socks  to our family party even though he doesn't like attention.

Alyssa came home from her dad's house for our family Christmas party. She wore a Christmas sweater and socialized the whole night, which is very unlike her.

We've watched Christmas movies, listened to Christmas music, made gingerbread houses and my family hasn't complained at all. Alyssa has asked to do things I hadn't even planned this year, like going on a Christmas light scavenger hunt last night.

Caleb didn't want to go look at lights with us and I was disappointed, but I wasn't going to say anything about it since they've been so good all month. Alyssa jumped on his case and told him he had to go. He said, "Alyssa, you don't even like Christmas." She responded, "I know, but I'm really trying to this year.". I got a tear in my eye and told her, "Christmas is magical and life is hard. We should look for any magic we can find in this world." She said, "You're not wrong." and yelled at her brother to get in the car.

We drove around for hours last night, listening to Christmas music and trying to find all the hard things on Alyssa's list (Mrs. Claus and the Grinch escaped us). We all had fun and we laughed and laughed.

I have truly seen the magic of Christmas and giving in my family this year. They could see I was struggling because life IS hard and I needed the happiness of the holidays and positive family time. They gave that to me. I think they needed it too, especially Alyssa. As my kids are getting older, family time is the most precious gift in the world to me. My heart has grown three times its normal size this December. There have been no stresses this week, only JOY. I'm looking forward to Christmas eve festivities tonight and opening presents tomorrow morning with all three of my kids. I'm feeling Christmas excitement like I haven't felt in years. It's a holiday miracle!

Instant Pot Sweet Italian Soup

(may contain aff links)

My husband said this is the best meal I've ever made in the Instant Pot and I use my Instant Pot almost daily! It was super good! This could be made on the stove top as well. 

Grilled chicken, diced
Seeds of Change quinoa & brown rice pouch (I buy mine at Costco)
Can diced tomatoes w/sweet onion
2 cans water
Diced yellow bell pepper
Diced red onion
Italian seasoning 

Cook at high pressure for 6 minutes. You can quick or natural release. Serve with feta cheese.

To cook on a stove top, just simmer until peppers and onion are soft. 

Cherry Cream Pie

Having a cherry tree in my yard means I often have canned cherries on my shelf. I needed a last minute dessert for Father's Day dinner tonight and this cherry pie came out amazing! I will be making it again, for sure!

Cherry Cream Pie

1 quart canned cherries, drained or fresh cherries, pitted

homemade or store-bought graham cracker crust

Cream:
3/4 c. sugar
1/3 c. flour
dash salt
1/2 tsp corn starch
2 eggs
1/2 c. sour cream

Topping:
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. flour
1/4 c. cold butter

Pour the cherries into the pie pan lined with graham cracker crust. Mix your cream ingredients well.  Pour over cherries, moving cherries around as needed to allow the cream mixture to settle in. For topping, cut butter into the sugar and flour until it resembles crumbs. Sprinkle topping over cherries and cream.  Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until top is golden brown.  If edges of graham cracker crust start to darken, cover edges with tin foil. Serve warm with ice cream.

J-E-L-L-O

My kids now call me the "Crazy Jello Lady" and people at church sing the Jello song to me when I pass because I happened to be featured on a fun KSL news segment about Jello in Utah last month!  You can watch it HERE!  It was a lot of fun!  This is the Jello salad recipe I make more than any other.  It's so delicious!

Overnight Jello Salad

1 small pkg vanilla pudding (not instant)
1 small pkg orange jello
12 oz carton of cool whip (extra creamy, if possible)
1 can mandarin oranges, drained
1 can pineapple tidbits, drained
2-3 bananas, sliced

Cook pudding according to package directions using water instead of milk. Add the dry jello powder and boil until dissolved. Cover and let set overnight. In the morning, whip jello-pudding mixture and cool whip in a large bowl together. Fold in fruit. Let chill.

Mental Illness Through the Eyes of a 16 Year Old Girl

Mental illness is not beautiful.  It's not romantic. Depression isn't just being sad.  I don't know what sad feels like. Anxiety isn't just being nervous.  Bipolar isn't just mood swings. Self harm isn't just attention seeking.

Depression is feeling empty, numb, hopeless. It's staring at the ceiling at 4 am with burning eyes because your thoughts won't stop telling you that you're better off dead.

It's not getting out of bed for days because you don't see the point. It's leaving piles of homework in the corner because you lack any motivation. It's being told you're selfish and lazy when really you want so desperately to be able to go outside and hang our with friends but your depression keeps you in your basement all day.

Anxiety is not being able to pay for your food at a restaurant.  It's the constant feeling of almost falling off a cliff. It's having panic attacks in the middle of class. Hiding in the bathroom as your chest doesn't allow you to breathe and the tears don't stop. You can't speak or stand and you can physically feel the walls caving in around you. It's the feeling someone would get when they're just about to take the most important test of their lives, only instead of a test, it's just asking for a takeout box.

Bipolar Disorder isn't just an over-emotional girl on her period. It's wanting to kill yourself for days as you suffer a rock-bottom depression and then all of a sudden you're so high you can't see yourself ever coming down. Mania is terrifying, not happy.  It's laughing at the most dire situations. It's loud and chaotic. It's like spinning around in circles as fast as you can and not being able to stop, only to stumble into a pit and plummet back to that crippling depression. It's not being able to trust your emotions because you only feel in extremes.

Self harm is ugly. There's no one who is kissing your scars. It's feeling so bad about yourself and who your illness has made you become that the self hatred boils over, spilling out into hysterical crying and the urge to destroy yourself. Or feeling so numb and empty that you bleed to feel something again. It's pain. It's stinging. It's fear. It's regret. It's shame. And it's not being able to stop even when you want to.

None of these things are beautiful. They're ugly. They're destruction. They're chaos. They make you forget what it ever felt like to be happy. Mental illness consumes you. It is hell.

But if not for these illnesses taking over my life, I wouldn't be the artist I am. No one would be able to feel the emotion radiating off of my paintings. I would lose my creativity. To create is to survive. And the only things that is beautiful out of any of this is what I am now able to create. The most important thing I've ever learned is how to take all of the pain and negativity and channel it into a piece of artwork. Out of my suffering I have created beauty.

My paintings may be sloppy and dark, and difficult to understand, but they are beautiful and they are me.
____________________

A note from her mom:

I've been surrounded by mental illnesses most of my life, but it is so different to watch your babies struggle. Even though I can understand what someone with a mental illness is going through, I can't truly understand how it feels to them.  In our home I have worked hard to completely normalize mental illnesses.  In fact, my daughter will mockingly call me "neurotypical", meaning I'm one of the only people in our family without a diagnosed mental disorder.  I'm the odd-ball, which also means I'm the caregiver and carry a lot of stress due to doctor's appointments, medications, psychiatrist's appointments, counseling appointments and the day-to-day of helping those who are not-so-neurotypical. It's an exhausting life.  

This piece titled "A Beautiful Mess" was written by my daughter last year, which was a low point in her life.  She has since made a lot of progress, thanks largely to finding a good bipolar medication, but she still struggles daily. I tease her all the time about being so high maintenance.  I am very proud of her for finding healthy outlets to cope, such as painting and writing and I'm even more proud that she is allowing me to share her thoughts with the world. Please, parents, make your home a safe place for your teenagers to share their feelings with you, no matter how dark they may be.

2016: A Year in Picture Review

2016 was a year of MAGIC!

When I chose magic as my word of the year for 2016, I had no idea what would transpire, but it truly was a magical year.  Here are a few of the amazing things that happened last year!

We visited the ice castles in Midway!

It was our first time and WOW!  Beautiful!

I hosted a 1950s themed dinner party.  Everyone dressed up, the food was perfect and we all had so much fun!

This will be a tradition for sure.

We went bobsledding in Park City!  It was crazy, but so fun!

I attended my first blogging conference.

I met so many fabulous ladies and really had an incredible time!

We went to our first Utah Jazz game and got to go down on the court to high-five the players as they came out.  I'm not really a sports person, but Caleb and my husband really had a great time!

I built a craft room!  Ok, I hired someone to build it, but it's pink and girly and has a chandelier!

I threw myself the most amazing pink princess party for my birthday.  This was such a magical event!

We went to Lava Hot Springs for the first time.

So much fun!

Our annual trip to Yuba Lake was as great as ever!

We saw Lita Ford, Ratt, Warrant, Dokken and Bret Michaels in concert!  Bret Michaels was a blast!  He checked Poison off my concert bucket list!

Costa Rica!!!

Visiting Costa Rica had been a goal of mine since I was a little kid.

I got to spend two amazing weeks there!  I can't wait to go back again!

Weezer was another band on my concert bucket list.  CHECK!

They played with Panic! at the Disco, which is a favorite of Alyssa's.

It was a summer of concerts!  We also saw Kansas and Lynyrd Skynyrd!

Alyssa is a great concert buddy!

Crystal Pepsi made a limited time comeback in 2016!

I can't even tell you how many I drank!

I flew to Virginia for the first time for a

Pinups for Patriots conference!

I joined this fun organization in 2016 and really love it, even though I'm slow to get things going!

We attended the Modern Marine Expo at Quantico.

NYC!  We toured the beautiful historic library and attended a Thank You for your Service documentary showing and reception on the USS Intrepid.  So cool!

We took the family to the Witchapalooza dinner theater for the first time in October.

I had always wanted to go!  So fun!

I entered a Halloween-themed pinup competition.

A weekend at Bear Lake with these fabulous ladies was just what I needed!

This is also going to become a tradition.

My husband and I celebrated our (early) anniversary at the Roof Restaurant and the Anniversary Inn... both incredible places!

I did an hour-long podcast interview for the new Pinups and Patriots show.

The very same week I had an article published on Time Magazine's Motto website!

I couldn't include photos of all the time I've spent with fellow veteran's wives/caregivers over the last year, but this photo sums it up!  This was a Wounded Warrior Project activity.  We decided we needed to match in our pink castle dresses... you know, as people do.

Over the last couple of years, most media interviews I've done have been very heavy, dealing with veteran's and caregiver's issues.  It was so much fun to do a Jello interview!  Yes, Jello!  So random.  Take a minute to watch it.  You'll see what a crazy Jello lady I am!

We spent a fun night on Fremont Street in Vegas listened to live music and watching the light show!

My first cruise was fabulous!

Holding a baby panther in Mexico was seriously a highlight of my life!  It was the most amazing experience!  What's really adorable is when people ask my husband what his favorite part of our vacation was, he says it was watching me hold the baby panther because I was so, so happy!

It was cold and rainy during our California trip, but the kids rode the ferris wheel on Balboa Island and we all had a lot of fun playing in the arcade together.  I got beat at air hockey by one of my kids for the first time.  It was so nice having some good old fashioned family fun time.

I can't wait to see what JOY 2017 brings!

Pinups and Patriots Podcast

Motto article

A Brief History of Jello

2017: The Best is Yet to Come!

It's New Year's Day!  I've been pondering on my goals and my word for 2017 over the last couple of weeks.  I've decided my word of the year will be JOY!  Last year my word was MAGIC and so many magical things happened! I held a baby panther!!! You can't get much more magical than that! This year I want pure JOY in my life!

Each year there are so many things I want to improve on.  This year I feel like I have a mix of big goals I want to accomplish and maintaining I need to do:

Spiritual-  Spiritual comes first on my list because God is number one in my life.  My spiritual goal for 2017 is once again to attend the temple at least four times during the year.  I think the first step in this goal is to find a good friend to go with me.  I'm not motivated to go all by myself. 

Physical-  My physical goal is to focus on a healthier lifestyle.  I want to avoid eating out as much as possible, go to water aerobics at least once a week and cut most soda pop out of my life.  

Intellectual-  My intellectual goal for the year is to complete 4-5 classes at the local community college in 2017 and get straight As in all my classes.  I've enrolled in two fashion design classes and start school in a week!  I'm pretty nervous, but also excited for this new adventure!  

Emotional-  My emotional goal is to continue to attend support group meetings and Relief Society meetings, even though I'm going to be busier with school.  I need the emotional support that comes from these types of meetings. 

Social-  My social goal for 2017 is to socialize more as a couple.  My husband is not a fan of socializing. At all. Under any circumstances.  I miss hanging out with other couples, so I'm setting a goal for more double dates and couple parties.  

Financial-   My financial goal is to make and sell 50 skirts and/or aprons this year... This one seems a little overwhelming to me, but I think I can do it!

Adventure-  It wouldn't be a New Year's resolution list for me without a travel goal!  My goal is once again to visit at least one state I've never been to before.  I also plan to go on a couple of camping trips!  We didn't take our camper out one single time last year, so I need to clean the dust off and go have some camping fun!

What about you?  Have you made any goals for the new year?

PTSD awareness isn't just about suicide.

I shared this on facebook a couple of months ago, but thought Veteran's Day was an appropriate  time to share it here as well.



   

 Watch it on YouTube here.

Instant Pot Italian Chicken

I've seen several versions of this chicken, both Instant Pot and stove top and I decided I wanted to try it.  When your kids say, "Good job, Mom!" before they've even tasted it you know dinner is a hit!

Instant Pot Italian Chicken

2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts

olive oil

Italian seasoning

garlic salt

1/2 c. chicken broth

1 c. cream

5-6 oz parmesan cheese

1 c. chopped spinach

1/2 c. sun dried tomatoes

2 TBSP cream cheese

8 oz sliced mushrooms

Slice chicken breasts in half to make them thinner.  Coat with garlic oil and sprinkled both sides with seasonings.  Cook chicken breasts in your Instant Pot two at a time on saute until lightly browned.  After chicken is browned, remove all chicken. Add broth to IP and stir to remove brown bits from the bottom.  Add chicken back into pot and high pressure for 10 minutes.  Quick release the pressure and remove chicken from pot.

Add remaining ingredients to pot.  Simmer and stir on saute until mushrooms are slightly softened.  

To serve, place chicken on top of cooked pasta and top with sauce.  Yum!

No Spend September

A couple of months ago I decided to try going a full week without spending any money. No groceries. No household items. No eating out. Nothing. I think my kids were more frustrated with it than I was... or I should say Alyssa was frustrated.  She likes to talk me into french fries here, ice cream there and I always give in because it gives me one-on-one time with my lovely, spoiled 16 year old. The week was difficult for the whole family. My husband loves to eat out and I love to wander around thrift stores and craft stores. A week without spending may not seem like much to some people, but for us it was huge!

I feel like I've spent a ton of money over the summer between our big vacation and back to school shopping. Over $400 for school fees alone! For two kids at public school! That's not even counting school clothes or supplies. Soon the holiday season will be full blown upon us and more money will float right out the window. I decided I need to do a No Spend September as kind of a financial cleanse in between two very expensive seasons.

The rules I'm setting for myself are:

1- No shopping in person or online for anything, with the exception of basic groceries and household supplies. I'm giving myself a $400 budget for these items.

2- No eating out, with the exception of date night once a week and lunch with friends one time during the month. No movies or other entertainment expenses outside date night. I'm giving myself a $100 budget for this. 

3- No rationalizing that something is a "good deal" that I just can't pass up. 

4- No wandering around stores when I am bored. The same goes for browsing online.

Are you up doing a No Spend September challenge?

What rules would you set for yourself?

Autumn Jam with an Instant Pot Shortcut

This jam is amazing!  I love all homemade jam, but this one really stands out.  We don't eat a lot of jam at our house and I make several batches a year, which means I always have tons of extras.   I whipped up a batch of this jam a couple of days ago and we've already gone through two jars, so I made my second batch today!  I have apple, plum and pear trees all ready to be picked at the same time and who knew mixing the fruits all together would be so yummy??

Do you have an Instant Pot?  I use mine every single day... usually multiple times a day!  I decided to use the Instant Pot to shortcut my jam making and it did a great job!  It saved time, saved dirty dishes, saved space on my stove AND allowed me to make jam without standing over a hot stove right next to a boiling canner in August!

 Autumn Jam

tiny apple chunks compared
to the size of the other fruits

6 c. mixed apples, pears & plums
(Apples peeled, cored and finely chopped. Pears peeled and cored. Plums, pits removed, no need to peel.)

1/2 c. apple juice
2 TBSP lemon juice

1 pkg powdered pectin
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
6 c. sugar

Instant Pot Directions:

(traditional directions follow)

ready to pressurize
I used more pears & plums
than apples

Chop your fruit directly into the IP liner, filling it to the six cup mark.  Add apple juice and lemon juice.  Press manual and choose high pressure for 1 minute. Once the timer beeps do a quick release of pressure.  Remove lid.  Turn IP to saute on high heat.  Stir in pectin and pumpkin pie spice.  Use a potato masher if there are any big chunks of fruit to mash up.  Once mixture reaches a boil, which should be right away, add sugar.  Cook and stir until mixture comes back to a boil and time for 1 minute.  Remove liner from pot.  Fill hot jars and process for 15 minutes.

Traditional Stove Top Directions:

Mix fruit, apple juice and lemon juice in a large pot.  Simmer for about 10 minutes or until fruit is soft.  Use a potato masher if needed to mash up the hot fruit.  Stir in pectin and pumpkin pie spice and bring to a rolling boil.   Once mixture reaches a boil, add sugar.  Cook and stir until mixture returns to a boil and time for 1 minute.  Remove from heat.  Fill hot jars and process for 15 minutes.

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