Coffeee

Happy Friday! This day could not come quick enough. The past few weeks have been a little crazy at work and traffic has been horrible so I'm excited for a weekend with few plans. My plans do include seeing Harry Potter!! So excited! I wanted to see it last night, but I'm getting to old for midnight showings and we had our Thanksgiving feast with our small group (so fun! but I took zero pics).

I've been wanting a Keurig for well, a long time. It was on my wedding registry, but I didn't get it- not that I can blame anyone since they are quite pricey! So, I stuck with my normal coffee pot, but it's kind of annoying since Mike doesn't drink coffee. Recently, my parents were in LA and their hotel had a one cup brewer that used 'pods' instead of the little cups like Keurig so my mom went on a mission to find one. She found them and bought me one as well!

Wayyy cheaper than a Keurig and the coffee is delish! Thanks Mama! I decided to branch out on my creamer as well and have tried two different ones. The first one I tried was White Chocolate Rasberry...oh my goodness so good! Two of my favorite things added to my coffee? Yes, please!

And this week I'm drinking Gingerbread coffee, delicious as well!

I'm thinking possibly peppermint or eggnog next week? Any suggestions?

Have a fabulous weekend!

Happy Birthday!

Happy 235th birthday Marines!

And to my favorite Marine...

:)

6 Years...

6 years ago today, Mike and I became "official". I would say started dating but I don't use that because we had a long distance relationship for 4 years and dates were only once or twice a year when he came home on leave.

We met freshman year of high school in band (yep that's right), but obviously didn't "date" until after graduation.

Tonight we are going to our high school's football game with 3 of my best friends (and yes we were all in band together) and our husbands/boyfriends. How appropriate we are going back to the place that started it all :)

So for a little walk down memory lane...

This was prom Jr. year- look how young we are haha!

This was our one year anniversay. He sent 12 dozen roses (yes that's 144 roses!) and Julie and Katie set them up all over the apartment for me before I got home.

The first time he came home from Japan... head been gone 7 months.

Our 2nd Christmas together. He usually came home at Christmas and we would get dressed up and go out for a really fancy dinner.

Christmas 2006 (don't mind my bangs we had been running around outside with my little cousins)

About an hour before we got engaged, at the aquarium in Okinawa!

Christmas 2007- we were engaged this year.

New Years football game, he looks thrilled.

The night before we became Mr. and Mrs. !

September 20, 2008

(I missed posting about our 2 year anniversary because I was sick all weekend. Not fun. )

I can't believe its been 6 years haha I really am starting to feel old. It's been a wild ride and I wouldn' trade it for anything.

I love you, boo :)

GNI

Recently, Sheila [The Adventures of Ordy and Joon] started hosting a Girls Night In a couple of times a month at her place. It's been really fun meeting new girls and getting to spend some time chatting, eating, doing crafts and watching Glee or Dancing with the Stars (never gonna happen with Mike haha). Our first craft was making a wreath with ribbon. I made a festive fall wreath and I love it! Here are some crappy iPhone pics but they'll have to do. Check out Sheila's blog for better pictures of the night and plus she's super crafty and is always posting fun things.

Horrible picture, but I wanted to show Katie's wreath as well because I'm obsessed with that color!

2 rants for the day

1. Mike and went to pick up pizza for dinner last night and stopped at the gas station to fill up my car and the hubs wanted to buy a lotto ticket. So he hands me the cash money and I go in to grab the ticket. I didn't even bring my purse in the car because he was driving, but no big deal I've done this a few times. So, I go in and ask the guy for five power ball tickets.


He says, "Okay, are you 18"?

I laugh and say "Yeah".

He says, "Do you have your ID"?

Are you kidding me? I say, "No"

Him "Oh, sorry, I can't sell it to you"

Me, "Um, okay I'll just send my HUSBAND in then"



Mike laughs at me, I hand him the cash, he goes in and comes out 2 seconds later laughing. The guy didn't even ask for his ID. Seriously?! I know I look young and I can understand I probably don't look like I'm 21, but 18?! What makes it worse is that on my 18th birthday I went to buy a lotto ticket. [I was on a track trip in the middle of no where North Carolina] I tell the lady that it's my 18th birthday does she want to see my ID. She looks at me like I'm retarded and was like "No, I don't care here's your ticket"




PS I'm 24.



2. It was announced yesterday that my alma mater would be getting a football team in 2014. Hooray!

I was reading an article about it this morning and then I scrolled through some of the comments and saw this one:

(Sorry its blurry) Is that a joke?! People are idiots!

Best Monday!

Do those words even go together? They do today! My bff, Julie, informed me she's pregnant! I could not be more thrilled for her and Dan! Mike and I are definitely not ready for a baby, but I won't lie I'm a little jealous [in a good way]. I can't wait to spoil that kid rotten!

I feel like every time I turn around someone else is pregnant. I guess that's just the stage of life we're in now. First, it was everyone getting married and now comes babies!

What a way to start the week! And here are random pictures from the past month or so...

Michael and I on his birthday

Braves Game!
Amazing seats!
Matt Diaz!
Brian Jordan [played for the Braves]
We went with our good friends Erik and Megan! Literally the hottest day all summer!

This past Friday night we went to see my cousin play football in his first varsity game. He's #20, can you tell that's his Dad standing next to him?

Weddings

The beginning of the summer I felt like all I did was wedding related activities. Don't get me wrong I love weddings, but I think we attended 4 (I was in one of them), and I went to or hosted around 9 showers and bachelorette parties. Busy.

This is at my bff Julie's wedding. Don't mind my hair, it's gross and would not stay curled for anything!
Julie and Dan! Mike and Ricky, haha I love this one

Alison, Me and Sarah

Katie and I at Erin and Trent's wedding!

If you can't tell these are my sisters :) Heather, me and Ashley

My love :)

I have declared myself a professional wedding attendant.

Flower girl- 2 times

Bridesmaid- 2 times

Maid of Honor- 1 time

Matron of Honor- 2 times

Bride- 1 time duh

Just sayin'

Gross

I was stuck behind this truck the other day in traffic...

I'm all down for Mexi food, it's definitely my favorite, but mayo with lime??! SICK!

Mayo= gross

Mayo+lime juice= nasty

Beef Jerkey

Jk not really beef, it's vegan! It's the give away I won over at I Can't Believe It's Not Dead ! We broke open the box and I made Mike try some (he's not at all into NOT eating meat, so big step for him) He will probably hate me for this, but whatever the 3 people who read this have probably seen him being a lot sillier than this:

He actually didn't hate it! We ate a few pieces along with our dinner. The texture was something to get used to, but it was pretty good!

This last picture is just how he rolls...

Happy Thursday!

July 4th Weekend

We had a busy weekend planned, but the second half the weekend was ruined by a wretched virus Michael caught. Friday and Saturday were great. One of my bff's got married, so Friday night was the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. The dinner was at a mexican restaurant and to our surprise it was karaoke night... definitely made for some interesting dinner music! Just imagine being in smallish/slightly rural / slightly red neck town... yeah you get the picture. Saturday was the wedding and everything went perfectly! The bride was beautiful and we had a lot fun! Unfortunately, I have no pictures on my camera because one, Michael hates taking pictures and two, I was in the wedding so that was defintely not a priority. I'll have to steal some pictures from my Mom and post them.

Sunday we had plans to go to my parents and hang out at the pool and then head over to Michael's family for a big party they were having complete with roman candle wars. Sadly, like I said, M ended up with a horrible virus and it got worse as the day went on. So our 4th was a disappointment, but that's okay- so goes life. My Mom said "just wait until you have kids, you'll miss all kinds of holidays!" Haha true! M and I both had Monday off and he was still feeling a little out of it. For the past month we've been car shopping for me. I was driving a 1990 (yes that's correct) Honda Accord and I was working on my 3rd summer with AC. <-- Not fun when you live in Georgia and you sit in traffic for 1-1.5 hours a day. We weren't having much luck, but Monday M found a car and we went to the dealership to test drive it and 3.5 hours later left with a new car! Okay, not brand new, but new to me. Here is my new ride:

Not the best picture, I snapped it with my iPhone right after when we went to dinner with my parents. It a 2008 Ford Fusion and I love it! Seems like we got it right in time... the high tomorrow is 100° !!

Hope everyone had a great 4th of July! [even though I'm slightly bitter that we didn't get to celebrate :) ]

Baby Cohen

Praying for Brent and Megan today...

Foood!

Um, side note before I start: Where the heck did June go?! I sound old for saying that, but jeez I cannot believe it’s July (tomorrow)!

On to a tasty recipe- if you like shrimp, which I do… which is why I made it last night. We also love tomatoes, which is also included in this. [Sorry Elizabeth, this one is not for you ;) ]


Shrimp Scampi Pasta Bake (came up with that creative combo on my own)

It’s a little bit time consuming, but perfect for two people to prepare!

The main part of this is The Barefoot Contessa’s Baked Shimp Scampi. I cut the original recipe in half, so I went ahead and changed it here:

Ingredients:
• 1 pound shrimp in the shell (I bought already peeled)
• 1.5 tablespoons good olive oil
• 2 tablespoons dry white wine (original amount, but hey I like wine)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (I used Earth Balance butter, which is vegan. I’m not vegan, but it’s a small step towards being healthier)
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic (two cloves, or more if you love garlic)
• 1/4 cup minced shallots (original amount, but I went with it)
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves (original amount)
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves (original amount)
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (original amount)
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (original amount)
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (original amount)
• 1 extra-large egg yolk (original amount)
• 2/3 cup panko (Japanese dried bread flakes) *Half this, but I don’t know the correct measurement
• Pasta
• Tomatoes or any other veggie you prefer

Okay, okay so I halved the shrimp and the butter… whatever!


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
First, boil water and throw in your favorite pasta- I used half a box of Farfalle.

Peel, devein, and takes tales off of shrimp. Place the shrimp in a mixing bowl and toss gently with the olive oil, wine, salt and pepper. Allow to sit at room temperature while you make the butter and garlic mixture.
In a small bowl, mash the softened butter with the garlic, shallots, parsley, rosemary, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolk, panko, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper until combined.
Drain pasta and pour into bottom of a 9X13 dish. Arrange shrimp evenly over the pasta and pour remaining marinade over top. Spread the butter mixture evenly over the top (I used my hands and spatula). Then place diced tomatoes or other veg (I think artichoke hearts would be delish, but I’m pretty obsessed so…) over that. Sprinkle with shredded parmesan cheese (I had some in the fridge, this is optional) and place in preheated oven for about 15 mins. Delish!


*Only thing I would suggest to do differently that I did last night is toss the pasta with a little bit of olive oil before putting in the dish.

There ya go! I think it's offical- I'm not good at posting recipes ha! I feel like they're all over the place, sorry!

Lesson for the day

So I walk into the bathroom at work at oh, 10:30 this morning and look in the mirror and I have mascara smeared right under my lower lashes. Ew! (Thanks to my women co-workers who could have pointed this out ha!)

Okay, so I didn't quite look like this creeper. It was more of a dot almost in the corner.

So the now for the lesson:

A. Take a longer look in the mirror after I put make up on, or

B. Put my make up on at home not in my car in the dark parking deck at work

I'll probably go with A.

She works hard for the money...

Two reasons I love work:

This is where I work...

It's so pretty. And that lake, there are tables all around it and a path that circles it. After I eat I go walk around the lake and enjoy the sun and the view.

2. I get to wear "grown up" clothes. My last job we could wear whatever we wanted, and by whatever I mean shorts and tshirts. And while that has its perks, I like dressing my age. (And Fridays we get to wear jeans, which is a nice little break from heals!)

(Oh, and #3, I'm actually using that degree I got 2 years ago!!)

TV

Series endings seems to be the popular topic as of late so I figured I'd join in and give my two cents. Warning: Possible Spoiler Alert.



LOST: I started watching Lost 4 years ago, I think (Alison is that right?). Our friends Alison and Ricky got some of us watching it the summer they got married. (When Mike moved back to the states and we got married I basically forced him to start at the beginning and catch up -we had friends over every week to watch it). Since then I have been a devoted follower and the writers didn't dissapoint. This season, however, I wasn't as thrilled with. Some episodes were great, some were eh. Sunday night we had our friends over for the finale. I wasn't thrilled with it, but I must say they did a great job of appealing to their female viewers haha! I wanted to know a little more about the island, but I do like that they ended it with everyone back together. Now that I've had time to think about it more I guess it makes some sense. Maybe they left it a little open ended for people to come up with their own conclusions - just another reason why the show was so great. I mean look at the hype and web sites its generated with people vehemently discussing, week after week, all of the possibilities of the island and what in the heck was going on. Over all, fabulous series.



The Pacific: This is the spin off of Band of Brothers - only it follows 3 Marines in The Pacific (clearly). My husband was a Marine stationed in the Pacific and my Grandpa island hopped through out WW2, so this series held a speical place with us. It was definitely quite different from BOB, but we expected that since character development wouldn't be the same - so many people died that they couldn't follow a whole company like they did with Easy Company. Anyway, great series check it out if you haven't already.



24: Mike and I are big fans, however we didn't watch this season. He had a class on Monday nights so we were going to watch it online, but life is busy ha! Season 4 was the best, but we own every season so when this one comes out on DVD we'll buy and watch it. Thanks so someone's status update last night on Facebook the ending was ruined, but I guess I shouldn't have expected to make it until December (usually when the season comes out on dvd) without hearing something.

American Idol: I missed last week (because we were camping - post on that later) but I was glad to hear that the final 2 are my favs: Lee and Crystal. Finale tonight and tomorrow night! Crystal has been my fav from the beginning, but I will be okay with either of them winning.

Burn Notice: It's not ending, actually it starts next month. We have recently borrowed the first season, and now the second, from a friend and we love it! We started the second season last night and watched 3 episodes in a row. Not sure why I'm a little obsessed, but it may have to do with Michael Westen's character - hilarious (or at least to me).

We talked about cancelling our cable now that Lost and The Pacific are over. Gasp, I know. But it will save us money and during the summer we really don't watch much. We also have netflix so we're usually watching a movie anyway. Although I will miss Kendra and the Kardashians... another post for another day.

Moms and Pedis

A little late to be posting on Mother's Day, but I'm still getting used to the new job and not getting home until later in the evenings.

Sunday Mike's mom drove down from his grandparents house in North Georgia. (Side note: Mike's Grandma was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and sent home on hospice with maybe a few months to live.) She needed a little break and we wanted to celebrate Mother's Day with her as well as my Mom. We had a big lunch at my parents and my sister Ashley, her husband and his parents and siblings came over too. My parents built the game corn hole, which is really fun if you've never played, so we played a few games of that. Later Ashley and I took my mom and Mike's mom to get pedicures, so relaxing! Mike's mom always gets just a neutral color and my sister ended up convincing her to get turquoise, her favorite color!

Our toes after! Unfortunately, the picture doesn't show how Barbie hot pink my toes actually are haha!

In other news, my job is going great and I really like it (other than trying to figure out word press- I hate you word press!)

I have next Monday-Thursday off and whaddya know it's supposed to rain all week! So much for hitting up the beach and getting tan!

Happy Friday everyone!

Exciting news, Cinco & Jerky

Exciting news: Today was my last day at my job, or should I say my last job! And I'm starting my new job tomorrow. A little crazy, but originally we were supposed to be taking a little vaca to see Mike's mom (she lives on the beach) but his Grandma was diagnosed with cancer last week and not given very long to live. So, his mom is down here in Georgia helping out his Grandpa. In my now previous job, I assisted a produce salesman which basically meant I pushed a lot of papers. Not quite what I spent 4 years in school to do. I'm thankful that I had a job for the last 2 years because a lot of people didn't, however, I was ready to move on. I will now be working for Mike's cousins who own their own business. I guess technically I'll be office manager, but I will have some opportunity (which could turn into a BIG opportunity) to use my degree (marketing and pr)! So I'm super excited! Wish me luck!

Cinco: Yesterday a couple of the girls I work with went to the mexican place down the street for lunch. And this is who we saw...

*Torie and I
That's right, the most interesting man on earth. Awesome. (Sorry I'm so blurry, it was taken with my iPhone)

Jerky: Elizabeth giving away some Primal Spirit Foods Jerky! Head over to her page and check it out, yum!!