Okay. So I'm going to the BEACH this afternoon!!!

That's right. You heard me correctly! I'm headed to Fort Walton around 4:00pm this afternoon. Seeing as I haven't been to the beach in, let's see....ummm....about 3 years, I'm ecstatic! I absolutely cannot wait to get up early in the morning, hit the beach, then the waves, then go for a walk or two...you know the drill. Ahh...and then the afternoon naps that will go down! So stoked!!

The reason behind the beach trip is Aimee's Bachelorette Party. We're going to dedicate Saturday night to celebrating her upcoming marraige to Tyler. I'm sure there'll be lots of giggling and good seafood! :)

If I wasn't at work right now, I'd make one of these salads for our lunch each day on the trip:

Sauteed Corn and Black Bean Salad

Sautee kernels from 3 ears of corn in 2 T of butter until they start to brown slightly in spots. Remove from heat and toss with:


A can of drained black beans
1 sliced avocado
2 T chopped green onions
Juice of two limes and
A handful of roughly chopped cilantro


Serve chilled

I love this.



On my mind...

• So, today's the very first day of summer.
• It's raining.
• That shouldn't happen, right?
• I'm very excited about this weekend.
• One of my highschool classmates is getting married.
• It is sure to be the largest wedding I'll ever attend.
• We're talking there is probably going to be a country star performing at the reception.
• Yep. That big. :)
• That being said, I'm also looking forward to my 'me' night tonight.
• I'll have dinner with the family and then watch Pretty Little Liars and catch up on last night's Bachelorette.
• Feelings or thoughts about these two shows anyone?
• I hope that Hannah and Caleb get back together on PLL. And my favorite bachelor on the Bachelorette is definitely JP. That shaved head's where it's at!
• Have you ever seen the show Harper's Island?
• It's a 13 episode mini-show that Jacob found on Netflix.
• I'd highly recommend it! Whomever plays Jimmy makes me swoon!
• By the way, it's a show about a serial killer.
• Speaking of killers, why don't they go ahead and put Casey Anthony on death row? She killed her daughter. End of story. Quit wasting tax payers' money on the drawn out trial.
• I can't wait until our house is finished!! (They put up new sheetrock today!)
• I picked out my bedroom colors.
• Oh yeah...here goes: the floors are a dark hardwood, the trim is white, the walls are going to be hydrangea blossom blue, and the ceiling (yes! painted ceilings!!) is going to be eggnogg yellow.
• It'll be ballin'.
• Plus, I miss my mattress.
• And having my clothes in an actual closet.
• I'm ready for my room to quit looking like a boutique.
• I like clutter tucked away.
• Don't you?

Vidalia Onion Dip

Okay, I am sharing this recipe A.) because it's aboslutely incredible!!! and B.) because I don't want to forget how to make it!!

Karen Roeder (if you've ever had the pleasure of meeting her, you know she can whip up some really GOOD eats) brought this to a shower I went to last night, and it was incredible!!

Vidalia Onion Dip

1 large Vidalia Onion finely chopped

3 packages of softened cream cheese

1/2 cup of mayonnaise

2 cups of shredded parmesan cheese

-mix all of the ingredients together

-put in a glass baking dish

-leave in oven for 15 minutes on 420 degrees

Yep. I'm serious. It's THAT easy. And trust me...it's soooo worth the minimal effort!!

Guess what?

I've got FREE tickets to see Cats tonight!!!

Yep. Not even joking. I'm beginning to think I'm a lucky lucky girl.

I'll be seeing this tonight:

Be very jealous!!

Well, guess what?

I had another SPECTACULAR weekend!! This summer is proving to be one of the best ones yet!! And trust me, I wasn't so sure in the beginning that this summer would hold as much joy as it has. Ya know, when you've been invited to 13 weddings in one summer, your brain tends to want to explode! But, never fear!! This summer, even with all the weddings, showers, and specific plans made for me every weekend, has been absolutely ballin' so far.

Friday after work I went to visit with Catherine and Lane. He is one of the most beautiful babies I have ever seen! Even though he cried for the better part of the time I was there, I really enjoyed getting to spend time with him and Cat. Catherine is one of my very best friends. She's a year older than me, and she's always been like a big sister. She's been there thru all of my major milestones, and I've been there with her thru all of her major ones too (i.e. her wedding, birth of her firstborn, etc.). It was great getting to see them.

After I left Cat's, I went to dinner at Tin Top (chicken and Jo's...so delicious!) with Mom, Dad, Delana, and Greg. We saw a few people we know, and after having looooong discussions with them and each other, we piled back into Greg's truck to go riding. You have to understand, when there's nothing else going on, our family likes to get in the car and ride. We are people watchers, AND we love driving around looking at people's houses. Ya know, just figuring out where people live, seeing who's made aesthetic changes, etc. (Thank you, small town living!) When we got home, I messed around on the computer and settled in for a loooooong night of sleep. :)

Saturday morning, I woke up and immediately put on my swimsuit, walked next door to Delana and Greg's and layed out. After spraying myself down with sunscreen, I got my float in the pool and grabbed my latest read (Matters of the Heart). It was a very relaxing 4 hours. After fixing myself some lunch, I got ready for the evening's festivities: Megan and Greg's wedding. Ben, Hannah, and Jacob met me at my Gran's, then we headed to Kudzu Cove for the big event! The wedding was outdoors and very pretty. Megan looked absolutely gorgeous! It was fun for Jacob because he got to have an impromptu mini reunion with a lot of people from high school. After getting hot and sweaty dancing at the reception, we decided to call it a night.

Sunday morning, Jacob and I went to church, and then had Taziki's. If you've never been to a Taziki's before, I suggest that you find the nearest one and make it happen!! One thing I love about Jacob is that he has a very adventurous palette. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Greek food. Jacob, that handsome man, also loves it too. (As a matter of fact, we dream of honeymooning in Greece!) After  a delicious lunch, I dropped Jacob off so he could head to work, and I ran to Target to pick up a few supplies for the week. When I got home, I gave myself a mani/pedi and then had dinner with the fam at Gran's. Sunday evening was spent catching up on the last four episodes of Gossip Girl. I want Chuck and Blair to be together SOOOO badly!! I already can't wait until next season!!

Here's to hoping this weekend will be as great as the last!!

I went shopping this afternoon and got some GREAT stuff at Gap.

I was in need of shorts for the summer (read: I don't have any shorts!!), and I needed a couple of more cardigans. Cause who can ever have enough cardigans? Right? haha

Here's my loot:

I got 3 cardigans (navy, brown, green), a tank top, a dress, and two pairs of linen shorts (brown and orange) for only $100!! You can assume that I was insanely pumped about my steals. And you better believe those orange shorts will be seeing some action at some Auburn football games this fall!

If I lived in my own home...

...I'd definitely fix this for dinner tonight:

Lemony Shrimp with white beans and couscous

Serves 4
Hands-On Time: 20m
Total Time: 20m


Ingredients

• 1 10-ounce box couscous (1 1/2 cups)

• kosher salt and black pepper

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 2 cloves garlic, chopped

• 4 scallions, chopped

• 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

• 1 15.5-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed

• 1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley

• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice


Directions


1. In a saucepan, bring 2 cups water to a boil.

2. Stir in the couscous and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cover and let sit off heat for 5 minutes; fluff with a fork before serving.

3. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

4. Add the garlic and scallions and cook for 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring, until they begin to turn pink, about 3 minutes.

5. Stir in the beans, parsley, lemon juice, remaining 2 tablespoons butter, 1 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.

6. Cook until heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve with the couscous.

 

Red Sangria

Serves 1
Hands-On Time: 05m
Total Time: 05m


Ingredients

• 4 ounces medium-bodied red wine (such as Shiraz)

• 1/2 ounce brandy

• 4 ounces fresh orange juice

• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon sugar

• 1 slice orange

• 1 slice lemon

• ice


Directions


1. In a shaker, mix together the red wine, brandy, orange juice, lemon juice, and sugar. Shake or stir.

2. Serve over ice and garnish with a slice of orange and lemon.

I mean, those both look easy enough, right?

I've been on this HUGE Sangria kick lately.

The best I've found? Either Reese Covington's or Jackson's in Birmingham.

New Tastes

I have found that my taste buds have been more adventurous as of late. Is that just a part of growing up? Who knows! I get pretty excited about trying new foods now, where as in the past, I was SUPER picky. (Jacob still thinks I'm pretty picky now just because I won't eat mayonnaise or anything on a bone. I digress.) Last night, Gran came home from Sam's with a jar of pickled okra (or okry as she likes to refer to it! :) Precious, right?). She asked if I wanted to eat some with her, and I decided, 'Hey! Why not? The worst that can happen is that I have to spit it out.' Well, I absolutely LOVED it!! I can't wait to get home tonight and have some after it's been refrigerated.  And guess what? Just like pickles, pickled okra is suuuuuper low in fat. Score!!

If you've never had pickled okra, I definitely suggest that you take the plunge and try it!

Weekend Update

This weekend was JUST what I wanted out of a fun but relaxing weekend. I had something planned for just about every single second, and I still managed to get in some 'me' time. And that's important, right? I believe we'd all agree.

So without further ado...my weekend,

Friday after work, I got to come home for a few hours and just relax. *If I tell you something you must promise not to make fun of me and to only laugh at me this one time. Mmmk? I am an avid The Sims 3 fan. I've been playing The Sims since I was 12. Something about it just interests me. I love designing homes and creating families. Well, I just bought an expansion pack, The Sims 3 Generations, on Thursday. Enough nerdiness now.* So, I played around with my new expansion pack for The Sims 3 and really just vegged out. Jacob came around 7 to pick me up, and we went to Lowe's to get a gift card, then continued on to his parents house in Albertville. We dropped off a gift for Haley's (Jacob's little step sister) graduation and visited with his parents for a little while. I love getting to catch up with them, especially because they're leaving at the end of the summer and moving to Nottingham, England. After a little chit-chat and catch up, we met Ben (Jacob's best friend) and his wife, Hannah, for dinner at Los Arcos. It was a great meal that turned into 2 hours of us catching up and laughing over TONS of chips and salsa. It was incredible. I slept well that night, and that doesn't happen too often for me.

Saturday morning, I woke up bright and early to get ready for a baby shower. My oldest cousin, Derek, and his wife, Sumer, are having a baby in August. I'm very excited about meeting Rylan Michael, my new cousin! Sumer got a lot of great things at the shower. My favorite gift of the morning had to have been the one from my Uncle Stinson and his girlfriend, Molley. They got little Rylan wakeboarding shorts, clothes, and other paraphanelia. I didn't know they made wakeboarding gear for babies. Well, they do! And it's absolutely precious.

After the baby shower, I came back home to eat lunch and veg out a little more. I played, you guessed it, The Sims 3 again. *It's a great game. You should seriously try it out!* Jacob picked me up at 2:30, and we headed to the Roeder's house to hang with a few people before the couples shower for Jake (Jacob's other best friend) and his soon to be adorable wife, Anna Arp. Well, when we got out of the car at the Roeder's, I heard a LOUD HISSING noise coming from my tire. Low and behold, there was a HUGE bolt stuck in my tire. Jacob went directly into 'man mode' and drove my car 5 minutes down the road so that his brother-in-law could help him change my tire. While they were out working in the garage, I visited with Jacob's sister, Ashley, and his neice, Corbyn. Corbyn is absolutely adorable. I can't spend enough time with her...seriously!! And she looks JUST like her Uncle Jacob :) It's a great glimpse at what my kids will probably look like. After the tire was changed and Jacob was cleaned up, we headed back to the shower to hang with Roeder, KK, Hannah, Ben, Cooley, and Jake..just sipping on margaritas and catching up. When the rest of the shower guests arrived, we ate, Jake and Anna opened presents, and we all got to hang out and catch up. You have to understand that this group of boys have been friends since they were little. I feel pretty dang special and priviledged to be a part of it all.

Sunday, I went to a tea for Aimee and Tyler. I swear, she had a million gifts. Okay...maybe not a million...but quite a few. It just really showed me how blessed we all are with a wonderful support group of family and friends. It also showed me how different we all are, and yet we all manage to get along. The group just works, and that makes me proud. :) After the tea on Sunday, I had dinner with the fam and we all just hung out. Then my parents and I went to check on the progress of our house. We now have a new roof, walls, and sheetrock!! :) It's the most exciting thing!! I feel like we may be in our house sooner rather than later now. Score!!! Right?

This next weekend, we are going to Megan and Greg's wedding, so I am already expecting the weekend to be just as GREAT as this weekend was.

Okay, so I think I am going to stop doing my daily meal posts on the blog. I mean, I've accomplished exactly what I wanted (stopping my addiction to Coca Cola Classics...I haven't had a single one since April 27th!!), and just to be honest, the blog almost seems like a chore to me now.

 

Not good.

 

I had typed up this whole LOOOOONG blog post about my weekend earlier, but blogger decided not to save the draft :( 

 

I promise to get that one out to you soon soon SOON!

What I Ate Thursday, June 2nd
*I drank 5 bottles of water throughout the day.*
11:25am- sandwich (flatbread (oatmeal), 2 slices of swiss cheese, pepperonis, spicy mustard, seasoning salt), handful of potato chips
3:00pm- handful of jellybeans
6:00pm- mac & cheese, water, hotdogs, baked beans, tomatoes, carrots

What I Ate, Wednesday June 1st
6:45am- bottle of water
9:00am- bottle of water, handful of veggie crackers
11:00am- *had Mama's for lunch* slice of pepperoni pizza, slice of supreme pizza, Sprite
1:30pm- bottle of water
3:00pm- bottle of water
5:00pm- *Dee, Haley, and I ate El Camino* water w/ lemon, rice, chips & salsa, 1/2 a cheese quesadilla
7:30pm- 2 Dove chocolates

I'm currently soooooo obsessed with this song...

...and you will be too, shortly. :)



What I Ate Tuesday, May 31st
*I drank 4 bottles of water throughout the day.*
11:30am- sandwich (flatbread (oatmeal), spicy mustard, seasoning salt, pepperonis), handful of crackers, bottle of water
3:00pm- hanful of jelly beans
5:30pm- mac & cheese, cornbread, fried potatoes, Sprite
7:45pm- Sprite