a Jiffy muffin mix

I've always loved Jiffy muffin mixes. They're cheap, delicious, and easy to make. Plus, the packaging looks all cute and vintage. In college my roommates and I frequently bought them to make muffins on Sunday mornings. Oatmeal is by far the best flavor for breakfast but the corn muffins are perfect alongside a homemade bowl of chili.

Earlier this week I had some bananas that were going bad, but I didn't want to go through the process of making banana bread. Then I  had the idea to liven up my regular Jiffy oatmeal muffin mix with the bananas and chocolate chips. They turned out great! I think next time I make chili I'll experiment with adding cheddar cheese and jalapenos to a corn muffin mix. Yum!  

Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Jiffy Muffins
2 Jiffy oatmeal muffin mixes
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
2 sliced bananas
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Add all the ingredients into a medium size bowl. Mix the ingredients with a fork, smashing the bananas as you go. Cook at 400 degrees for 13-15 min. Makes 12 muffins.

Wednesday Wisdom: Kathi Goertzen

Photo by Mike Siegel/The Seattle Times, 2008

Monday afternoon legendary Seattle news anchor Kathi Goertzen passed away after a 14 year battle with brain tumors. She was only 54.

What I admire most about Kathi was her honesty--her willingness to openly share the reality of a very personal battle. Instead of retreating, Kathi stood out. She continued to fill her anchor chair at KOMO 4 News next to her longtime co-anchor and dear friend, Dan Lewis, until her body rendered her unable.

Many lack the strength and humility to expose their true selves to the world. Kathi was not among the many. She was exceptional in every way. I grew up watching her, Dan Lewis, and Steve Pool report the evening news. With the effervescent rise of technology and social media, I fear future generations will lack the same opportunity to trust and relate to their local journalists the same way I did.

Victoria Martinsen, a lifelong friend of Kathi and the Goertzen family, told Kathi before she passed: "You've done a wonderful job with your life." I don't think any of us can hope for better praise than that.

Seattle Time's article - Longtime TV anchorwoman Kathi Goertzen dies after battle with tumors

The Liebster Award!

Last Thursday I found the sweetest comment on my blog post. Darling Ali W. told me that not only did she love my little blog but that I'd won the Liebster Award! Say what?!

 

The Liebster Award is for blogs that have 200 followers or less. The word "Liebster" is German for kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, valued, cute, pleasant, endearing and welcome. It's a great opportunity to meet other bloggers and gain more followers. Such a great idea, right?

The rules for accepting the award are as follows:

1. Each person must post 11 things about themselves.

2. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you. 

3. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag with the award.  

3. Choose 11 bloggers (with less then 200 followers) and tag them in your post.

4. Go to their page and tell them about the award (social networks accepted).

5. If you have not done so already, follow the tagger and visit at least three nominees. Spread the love! And remember, no tag backs!

One - 11 random things about me

1. As a kid I never liked summer. I know, weird right? I'm still not a big fan. 

2. Daphne Du Maurier is my favorite author.

3. Utah State University, my alma matter, is very close to my heart.

4. I'm currently interning at The Everygirl.

5. My name is Clarissa and I'm a Pinterestaholic.

6. Baseball is my favorite sport. Go Mariners! Go Cubs!

7. I almost had to repeat kindergarten. My teacher thought I wasn't mature because sometimes I talked baby talk. Pretty sure I graduated high school and college at the top of my class.

8. I'm constantly torn between bold, bright colors or subdued hues when it comes to home decor.

9. My high school bestie and I have been friends for 10+ years!

10. I love reading The New York Times.

11. My nicknames include: Riss, Rissy, Rissana, Cha-Cha Racehorse, and Girlie.

Two - my answers to Ali's questions

1. Your favorite place to go in the world is: Logan, UT

2. Something weird about you that most people don’t know: I have a strange fascination with ducks.

3. Something you collected when you were little: Books. That's probably a weird thing to collect but I was a prolific reader growing up. I still love to read and love buying books.

4. If you could visit anywhere in the world, you would go to: Boston, England, and Italy.

5. Your perfect day would include: a meal at Benihana's, camping with my family and friends, and shopping

6. The most embarrassing moment of your life: Being told at a youth dance that I was flashing everyone.

7. Cooking or baking: Baking! I love, love, love to bake. Cooking just isn't as fun.

8. Biggest pet peeve: People who lie.

9. Something you LOVED as a kid: Pioneers. I dressed up and pretended to trek across the plains (my backyard). I also read endlessly about the Oregon Trail, Mormon pioneers, Abraham Lincoln etc.

10. Your favorite item of clothing at the moment: My blue and white striped Gap dress I scored for $12! It's super cute and super comfortable.

11. What you always do before you go to sleep: Brush my teeth and take my medicine. Super exciting.

Three - Q/A for the winners

1. First childhood memory:

2. Favorite book:

3. Favorite chick-flick:

4. What do you do to relax?

5. One of the items on your bucket list:

6. Salty or sweet:

7. Dream vacation:

8. Who would play you in a movie?

9. What is one of your biggest fears?

10. Favorite beauty product:

11. Best piece of advice you've ever received: 

Four - the award winners (you should start following their blogs and mine too please!)

Expecting the Unexpected

Daydreamer

A Move Begins

Champagne Reveries

This and That

New on U 

Perched

Little Miss Holls

On the Adventure 

The Real World is Weird

Send By Owl

Happy Tuesday!

Polka Dot Persuasion

This fall it's all about polka dots! J.Crew's Fall/Winter 2012 Lookbook set the tone and rightly so. Kate Spade has also unveiled it's fair share of polka dot inspired pieces, but like J.Crew, they fall in the category of unattainable when it comes to my grad school student budget. Luckily, other more affordable retailers are following suit. Hooray! 

I've already scooped up a boatneck sweater and tank from Old Navy, top from Forever 21, and a dress from Land's End Canvas that looks strikingly similar to the J.Crew dress I've included above. It was a major summer sale steal at only $27 (originally $130)!

Obviously the collection above are my dream purchases. Below you'll find more affordable options that I'm currently coveting or have already purchased. Have you embraced the polka dot persuasion?

The 25 Most Fashionable Films of All Time

Today, I stumbled upon Vanity Fair's photo essay of The 25 Most Fashionable Films of All Time. While the images are fantastic, as you'll see below, I was completely charmed and impressed with the intimate, colorful copy that accompanied each photograph. The caliber of writing is superb and reveals thought provoking details about each movie, its iconic actors, and the clothing that is as relevant and poignant as the movie's storyline. Costume designers are indeed remarkable artists whose confections possess the power to reveal the souls of characters.

Here's a portion of the feature introduction to spark your interest:

"Since the beginning of movies, the clothes that characters wear have been part of the draw and thrill. Well-designed costumes not only concealed the physical flaws of actors and actresses, they delineated character and added texture to a scene...the presence of models and beauties doesn’t necessarily make a film fashionable...there are those movies distinguished by a totemic piece of clothing." READ MORE

Audrey Hepburn - Breakfast at Tiffany's

Marlene Dietrich - Morocco

The Best of Everything

Faye Dunaway - Bonnie and Clyde

Mia Farrow & Robert Redford - The Great Gatsby

Richard Gere - American Gigiolo

Jimmy Stewart & Katherine Hepburn - The Philadelphia Story

Audrey Hepburn - Roman Holiday

wednesday wisdom: to be normal

I completely identify with this quote. I battle clinical depression, and during my bad days and tough weeks this is exactly how I feel. It takes all I have in me to get up in the morning, put clothes on, go to work, go to class, make dinner etc. To be normal.

Living with depression I have times when I lack the necessary psychological, emotional, and physical strength to face the day. Getting out of bed feels like the equivalent of scaling Mount Everest. I know it sounds bizarre and weak to some but this is often my reality. I'm not being lazy or feeling sorry for myself. Those who really know me can attest to my work ethic and character.

Since I moved to Chicago last September my biggest struggle has been to get out on the weekends, meet people, and make it to church every Sunday. After surviving the week I often crash. It's really frustrating. There are weekends where I succeed in doing something in the city, making it to church, and seeing friends but it's sporadic at best. The energy and strength to be consistent are what I'm trying to find. I'm grateful for tomorrows.

Photograph by Sati Faulks

iphone covers

I don't have an iphone. T-Mobile keeps letting me down. While droid land has been an ok place to live, the lush iphone landscape has been calling my name for quite some time. My contract is up in November and I will most definitely be switching providers.

What I'm really looking forward to is buying a fabulous iphone cover. Ridiculous. I know. They're all so cute I might just have to buy two! Which one is your favorite?

kate spade polka dots // keep calm and carry on // cath kidston hampton rose // abstract chevron // kate spade note to self // yellow circles