Weekend Whereabouts!

Friday:

Shopping with K, new dress for $15, "last day of summer break" swim party at D's, hanging with my extended family, asleep by 10!

Saturday:

Up at 10, showered, dressed, packed and out the door by 11, in Athens by 12, doing updo's for 3.5 hrs.

I had about 2.5 hrs to waste and still needed to touch up my makeup and change clothes, so I meet up with M who was already at the venue with BIL/groomsman.

So we: sat in the car, did our makeup, I changed and fixed my hair. then we sat around the chapel and watched the bridal party take pictures and I was blowing up L's phone because he was running late and not answering. And then finally the wedding started.

It was a beautiful and amazing wedding. I don't know two people more meant for each other than Beau and Nikki. It was only the second wedding Hubby and I have gone to since our own so even though I was mad a L for being late it was still very surreal to sit there with my husband. And it was very nice not to have to get on the dance floor and pretend like I cared to catch the bouquet!

The reception was really nice as well. The food was delicious even if I did eat something that I thought was spinach artichoke dip but then turned out to be bacon blue cheese dip (barffff) and L went home early cause he wasn't feeling good.

 I didn't get home til after 12 and went straight to bed. It was a long and exhausting day but all in all it was wonderful.

The one picture I have of the happy couple taken back in Oct 2010

Sunday:

L still not feeling good, I went to church and lunch with K and my parents. Went back to parents to do K's hair, caught up with Mom, got back home at 4:30 and soon after drama unfolded (more on that later), dinner, L went to bed at 10 and I'm sitting here watching tv and blogging and getting excited about my first day back at work tomorrow.

This weekend was full of ups and downs. Filled with family, friends, and the joining of two lives forever and I'm so glad I was a part of it!

Hope Y'all had an equally great and blessed weekend!

LOVE

Love is in the air... Headed home from Athens and my amazingly beautiful friends' wedding! Congrats Beau and Nikki! Love Y'all :-)

(details to come tmrw)

Inspirational Thursdays

New weekly series based on my Thursday morning bible study.

This weeks scripture- Ecclesiastes 2

¹⁰ "I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;
   I refused my heart no pleasure.
My heart took delight in all my labor,
   and this was the reward for all my toil.
¹¹ Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
   and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
   nothing was gained under the sun. "

²⁶ "To the person who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. "

What I got from this:

It doesn't matter how much you acquire in your life, your still going to die the same as a poor man. It's how you live your life that counts. You can't take it with you.

I maybe a tiny portion of his story but I'm still a portion.

What I'm Loving Wednesdays

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

I'm Loving... What I'm Loving Wednesdays

Have I meationed this is probably one of my favorite post that I do, especially if I'm having a rough week.

 Even though it makes it hard to find things I love it also reminds me about the small things in life that truely make me happy!

I'm Loving... that I'm going into work tmrw to fill out the rest of my paper work so I can go back next week!

I'm Loving... that I got two of my sister addicted to Pinterest. haha now I'm not alone!

I'm Loving... my Bible study on Thursday mornings. It's really nice to finally find group of Godly women to spend some time with each week!

I'm Loving... that two of my good friends are getting married this weekend!

This is a reaccuring theme this week, that's how excited I am!

I'm Loving... that "George" is flying in tmrw from SD for the wedding.

Haven't seen him since March!

I'm Loving... that I'm over half way to my MK goal this month!

I'm Loving... that I get to see one of my favorite clients tmrw.

I'm Loving... my IPad that the hubby got me 2 weeks ago!

I'm really not that materialist but it really is awsome!

I'm Loving... that me and Hubby have spent alot of quality time together in the past week!

even though I hardly saw him this past weekend

And as always... I'm Loving... my wonderful Husband!

On our 5 year Anniversary, 2010

What's For Dinner Tuesday

What's For Dinner Tonight 7-26-11

Well technically I picked up Sonic after my meeting but I made this last night and was going to eat leftovers tonight but didn't feel like it.

This is a recipe I make often because hubby loves it and it's full of veggies! I'm still trying to perfect this recipe and add a little more flavor (last night I realized I forgot to season the eggplant and add salt and pepper to the ricotta mixture). But that's why I love to cook is to try new techniques and figure out the secrets behind what makes a recipe work! My little secret to this recipe is using tomato paste instead of sauce.

Eggplant Parmesan

2 medium eggplants

3 oz tomato paste

2 large eggs

1 cup parmesan cheese

4oz Ricotta cheese

2 cups mozzarella cheese

Salt and pepper

Italian seasoning

Pre-heat oven  to 350. Slice eggplant 1/4 of an inch thick, I use a mandolin. Mix ricotta, eggs, half of parmesan, Italian seasoning and salt and pepper in a separate bowl. I do not pre-cook my eggplant, that;s the reason I use tomato paste because of the water in the eggplant would make it too watery. the next steps are just layering each ingredient one after another in any order you choose, I usually go sauce, eggplant, ricotta, eggplant, sauce, mozzarella, eggplant, ricotta, etc... the last layer i usually do eggplant ricotta, sauce, and then the rest of the parmesan. Cover with lid or foil and bake for 1hr. This time I used my round corning ware opposed to my usual rectangular Pyrex so I should have cooked it longer, but it turned out well.

 Like I said before I'm always changing up recipes til I perfect it so feel free to add or change to your desires. I've added mushrooms and leftover rotisserie chicken before. Next time I will be peeling the eggplant and see if I like that better. I also just found this recipe and think I might try this sauce cause I always like a little spice!

Sorry forgot to take a picture before we dug in :-)



Weekend Whereabouts!

A weekend full of my 4 favorite F's: Fun, Family, Food, and Friends!

L headed to Athens Friday afternoon for our friend's Bachelor party weekend, so I headed to sis M's house for a girls night, since BIL would be in Athens too.  M and J just moved in last weekend so they are still trying to get the house order and K, M, and I love to decorate so after dinner we spend 3 hours between Target and Walmart shopping.

Saturday we got up, did some decorating and headed to meet our parents for lunch. After lunch they all headed to the mall to do some more house shopping and I headed back to the house to do some baking. I had my units Cadillac Cookout at my Director's house later that night and was making a special cake for her.

M is not much of a cook like me (even though she has every small appliance you need thanks to wedding gifts) so trying to bake a cake at her house and not having all my gadgets was difficult to say the least. But I think it turned out ok.

Pink Cadillac



My first attempt at Cake Pops, they were a hit!

At 6 I headed to C's house for the cookout, L was meeting me there cause he came from the lake. We had a great night eating, playing volleyball and hanging out with great friends celebrating C and her amazing accomplishment of earning her first Pink Cadillac. (with our help of course)! I stayed an hour after the party helping clean up and chatting. We had so much fun I didn't get any picture but I know someone did so I'll post some later (I use to be so good a taking pictures, I need to get back in the habit)

Saturday also happened to be me and L's 6 year dating anniversary and 9 month wedding anniversary. So after I finally got home at 11 we laid on the couch to watch Little Fockers but the dvd kept skipping so we ended up watching Medea Goes to Jail, and headed to bed.

Sunday we got up and meet the family at church and then went to dinner at our normal Sunday lunch place, Smokin' Poboys! Usually we go to my parents and hang out after lunch but it was a busy weekend so L and I headed home for our old married couple day: nap, tv, dinner, more tv, L heading to bed early and I stay up watch more tv and blog! 

I'm still working on these weekend whereabouts post, cause sometimes they get a little boring and long!

We got another hectic week ahead of us but it all going to come to a great conclusion at our great couple friends' wedding!

Semi Wordless Wednesday

So I'm joining this new craze a little late but I have one thing to say...

Hey, my name is Rachel and I'm addicted to Pinterest!

In a little over a week I've added close to 200 pins :-)

Anyway here are some of the things I'm obsessed over!




Story of my life :-)

 

Source: weheartit.com via Rachel on Pinterest




The perfect back/side door area!

 

Source: houseofturquoise.com via Rachel on Pinterest




So looking forward to Fall to wear my black polish :-)

 

Source: westside55.tumblr.com via Rachel on Pinterest




These have "Girls Night" written all over them!

 

Source: betchacanteatjustone.wordpress.com via Rachel on Pinterest



Thinking about this or something like it



Source: betchacanteatjustone.wordpress.com via Rachel on Pinterest

Source: browse.deviantart.com via Rachel on Pinterest



I want a place like this in the N.GA mountains



Source: cognacandcoffee.tumblr.com via Rachel on Pinterest




I NEED to find this ring!

 

Source: tumblr.com via Rachel on Pinterest



Trying this with the Sistas this weekend!



Source: heynicenails.com via Rachel on Pinterest



This will definitely be in our future home!



Source: etsy.com via Rachel on Pinterest

What's For Dinner Tuesday

What's For Dinner Tonight 7-19-11

I realized that I have yet to put a pasta dish on here, which is surprising cause I eat pasta all the time. But come to think of it I can't remember the last time I had pasta. It's usually a go to meal for me, I always have a box in my pantry and I throw what every I have on hand in it. Tonight I actually planned this out cause I had to run to the store cause we were running low on veggies and cheese, and what's pasta with out any of those!

Pasta Primavera is any pasta dish with pasta and fresh veg.

Pasta Primavera



These are the freshest mushrooms I've ever found at a store, it was like they were straight from the farm.
Those sun-dried tomatoes I got from the Asian food market are amazing!

1 Chicken Breast

1 Medium Zucchini

4 Sun Dried Tomatoes

1 4oz container of Mushrooms

1 tbsp of Oil

6oz of Pasta

1tsp of Flour

Roasted Garlic

Seasons of choice

Parmesan cheese

Mozzarella cheese

1 tbsp of Cream cheese

I put the chicken on the stove top to help it defrost.

 Put water on to boil and cook pasta according to directions on box. I used whole wheat egg noddles. Add oil to a pan add mushrooms and zucchini and allow to cook down. At the half way point add tomatoes, flour and seasoning and allow to cook the rest of the way. Cook the chicken anyway you would like, I used left over buffalo chicken that I had in the freezer.

While everything is cooking in a separate bowl add garlic, cheeses and Italian seasonings. whisk together with about 1/2 cup of the pasta water, keep stirring til cheese is melted and garlic is dissolved.

Once the pasta/chicken/veggies are done stir everything together in the bowl with sauce and sprinkle with parmesan. Serve with toasted garlic bread.



What is Normal?

I saw this the other day and at first I was confused but by the end I total got it!



I'm proud to say I am not normal... I am WEIRD!

I believe in Jesus Christ the son of God;

I believe that Faith and Family come before anything else especially my career;

I believe in commitment and that families do stay together;

I believe that I will be rich in life/love, married for the rest of my life and spiritual filled;

I believe that I am loving, giving and open minded;

I believe that I can change the world!

So... are you normal or weird?

What's For Dinner Tuesday

What's For Dinner Tonight 7-12-11

Chorizo Hot Pockets

6 Pilsbury Grand Biscuits, uncooked

3 slices of Pepper Jack cheese

6 oz of Ground Chorizi , uncooked

Egg wash

Flour for dusting

I've worked with alot of chorizo and this is probably the best one. I found it at Kroger.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out biscuits til they are about 6inches wide/ or the size of your hand, use flour to prevent sticking to board or pin. Cut the cheese in fours. In the middle of one half of the biscuit place 2 pieces of cheese and about 1oz of chorizo. Brush edges with egg wash and fold over and seal edges together. I like to fold mine over, roll it up and bring the two edges together and seal. (hope that makes sense, you can tell in the picture) Brush the sides and top with egg wash. Bake for 18-20mins. (I've found out it need longer than the biscuit directions)

These are probably one of the best things I've made in a while. Again this recipe came about by Hubby not being home Friday night  and trying to find something in the fridge just for myself. It turned out better than expected! And it's super easy and quick, makes a great Tuesday night dinner!

At a Crossroads

Do you ever have doubts running through your head at night that you can't sleep. This is a reacquiring thing that is happening to be lately. I think alot has to do with the situation we are in financially. Doubts of whether you made the right decision.

I have recently took a leap of faith my quiting my job to be a full time housewife and MK consultant. It's nice to be home and spend time with the hubby but we have definitely hit a rough patch with fiances since that happened. I wasn't making a lot of money at my previous job, I never thought my paycheck was making a big difference with bills.

One of the main reasons I quite my job was because the hours I was working and the hour L works are completely opposite. We hardly ever saw each other and I was never home at night to cook dinner and I was always so tired that it was a huge chore for me to clean and do the laundry. My marriage isn't stuck in the caveman days were the wife stays home and cleans and cooks all day but both L and I were raised with our moms being home most of the time and we definitely want that for our (future) family.

So I'm at a crossroads... our future is on hold for now until hubby does all the paper work, tests, training, etc he needs to do and we don't know how long it's going to take, so I really mean on hold.   We are hopefully going to be renting a house from my aunt, (she has to buy it first) it really is the best option in case L has to leave before our new lease would be up, I won't have to worry about covering bills all by myself. So for now I start back my old job in about a week even though I really don't want to. I'm also trying to come to the realization that going back is not a failure of my leap that I took, it's just something that has to happen at this point and that I'm not giving up on my dreams. And I just have to try to put everything in God's hands and know that he will lead us where we need to go in his own time. That's the hardest part for this control freak who wants to be in charge of everything when it comes to her life/future. I just need to remember one thing...

Source: weheartit.com via Lauren on Pinterest

Hello My Name Is...Slacker!

Ok, I've been slacking a little bit this week but I need to get my butt in gear!

I have so many things I need/want to do over the next week or so... cause you see I'm having to go back to work so I won't have as much free time.

I'm going to miss sleeping in, staying up late, hanging by the pool, doing spur of the moment things, doing whatever I want with every minute of the day, not having to answer to anyone (except the hubs when I don't make dinner). Oh how nice it's been to be a housewife/self-employed over the past few months! Hopefully this full time job won't last long.

But I am excited to go back to my girls at Ulta, I have missed them and my clients!

What I'm Loving Wednesdays

Happy Wednesday Y'all!

I'm Loving... that I've seen D 3 times this week and I get to see her tmrw too!

I'm Loving... hearing camp stories from MO, it brings me back!

(the funniest one: one girl slept walked over to her bed and

slept there half the night and tried to steal her pillow)

I'm Loving... that I have my bible study in the morning!

I'm Loving... that I was crafty today and am almost finished with my $5 basket. (pics to come)

I'm Loving... that I finally learned how to make a button for my blog.

I'm Loving... the new design/colors of my blog.

I'm Loving... hopefully hubby will finish my desk this weekend.

I'm Loving... that I might get to go tubing this weekend with sis!

I'm Loving... that my bf JP is coming home from the beach tmrw!

(even though she will probably be working for a week straight, I know we will hang out soon)

and as always... I'm Loving... My sweet hubby!



Weekend Whereabouts!

Happy Independence Day!

Friday night was spent with my sister D. We went to Assi Market and got some sushi and walked around the market. If you've never mean it's a great Asian market but it has the same produce you would buy at a regular grocery store but for a really good price. I found the cutest snow cone maker that I bought for my niece. (I had a Snoopy one when I was her age) Then headed back to her place and made snow cones and went swimming.

Saturday was spent with L driving to the Ga/Ala state line to get fireworks (since you can't buy decent ones here in GA) and I stayed home and watched movies and somewhat got a few things accomplished.

Sunday we slept in and then headed back to my sister for some quality family time, more snow cones, swimming and doing some hair. (I was supposed to do my mom's but she was late as usual so after an hr of waiting I went ahead and got in the pool)

Monday morning was spent my getting annoyed by my mom cause once again she was over an 1.5 late. We where supposed to be at my old neighborhood by 2, but we didn't get there til 4! I spent the first 14 years of my life in this neighborhood and every 4th from before I was born we do the same thing. small parade, cook-out, swim and just hang out. When we were younger and lived across the street it was definitely more fun. We  would play flashlight tag, shoot off bottle rockets, and make homemade ice cream. But we have all grown up and some of us moved away. I'm went mainly because it's tradition.

Land I only  stayed for a little bit, then heading to our "normal" weekend hang out, The Creek. We (I) had a few drinks, watched a movie (Hall Pass, pretty funny) and shot off  our over $200 worth of illegal fireworks. (but of course I forgot to take pictures til about half way through) besides L burning a hole in his shirt and me burning my boob (I think I might have a scar to remember this 4th) with bottle rockets, it was alot of fun.

L's burnt shirt, it's sideways but you get the point.
 I'm not goint to put up a pic of my boob...Your Welcome!

Hope Y'all had a fun and safe 4th of July!

Best one of the night

What If...

I'm not usual one of those people who wonders "what if" but I find it fun to go down that road ever now and then.

I was in the car with my twin sister M a couple of months ago, she is in the process of buying her first house with her husband J. Just a little back ground my parents started my sisters and I in private school in Monroe when we were in the 6th grade. That was in 1996, ever since they decided to do that they were trying to sell our house in Snellville, it took on and off for over 5 years to do so, in the mean time we would drive around Walton Co pretty much every Sunday after church looking at houses, dad breaking into letting himself into vacant houses and getting lost on back roads.

Well there was this one house that M and I absolutely loved, I don't remember why my parents didn't buy it, I'm sure mom had a reason. but anyway back to the point. Megan and I were talking about what if we had bought that house, how would our lives be different. Well I know that I probably wouldn't have meet my husband and some really amazing friends. See this "dream" house was on the Conyers side if Monroe compared to the house my parents bought and currently live in which is kinda on the Winder/Loganville side. So when I started college and was living at home I went to Loganville to find a job instead of Conyers. I found a job at a local Italian restaurant waiting tables and there in the kitchen of that tiny family owned restaurant I met the love of my life.

I don't believe in love at first sight, I believe love takes a longer look (L says otherwise but that's his story and this is mine) but I had a feeling very early in L and I's relationship that he was going to be someone special.  I fully believe God puts people in your life for a reason, he makes things happen so your life will go as he has planned it and whether your listen to his callings or not that's up to you, but I'm so glad I did. I love my husband with every ounce of my being, without him and his love I wouldn't be the person I am today, and I know he feels the same.

Do you ever think about that movie Sliding Doors and think where your life would be if you had missed/caught a train or worked in a different restaurant/ city?