My favorite month

Hello April. 

Are you guys glad it's April?  I am. Not only does April usually mean the beginning of good, warm weather and Easter (sometimes), but it's my birthday month!!!  [get ready to send happy wishes my way on the 4th!]

While 24 is still young, I do realize that I am aging (at what seems like an increasingly rapid rate....).  Here's a few ways you can tell if the same thing is happening to you:

• You're watching the news and you realize the newscaster is probably your age.  When did I grow up enough to be old enough to be a newscaster?!
• You realize your mom isn't 40 anymore.  There must have been an age where learning people's ages is cool- at that point in my life, my mom was going on 40.  Now when someone asks, "How old is your mom?" (not really sure when this happens... but it can come up in conversation.) I think in my head, "Oh about forty...well, she was forty when I was (say) 8...now I'm 24... so now my mom is __?! Wait, when did that happen?!"   (Love you mom!)
• At 8 you thought 40 was old.  At 24 you don't think your mom is old at all!  The age for "old" drastically increases as you approach it. 
• Your friends' younger brothers and sisters are graduating high school.... or college. And you think "that can't be... you're still "little"!!!"
• You congratulate a high school classmate on the birth of his new baby. (Insert: when did we become old enough to have kids?!)  He asks when you're going to have one yourself.  You say "when all of this school is finally over.... maybe by the time our 10 year reunion rolls around."  Then you think... "10 year reunion... that's....only 4 years away?!!"

I think you get my drift.  Growing up happens so fast.

This makes me realize that I need to spend my days enjoying them and making the most of them - not complaining about them.  I need a huge sign (probably on the ceiling above our bed so that I see it before I declare a day "bad") that reads:

"This is the day the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it." - Psalm 118:24

Well, even though it's my birthday month and you all should be sending me beautiful gifts (just kidding... sort of... no really!), I'm sharing with you instead!  Here is this month's printable calendar- get it "April showers."

click HERE to download and print your own!

High Five for Friday

1. I got my husband back on Saturday!  I mentioned on last Friday's post he was getting to come home early from his work in Augusta. I do enjoy some "me-time" every now and then, but 2 weeks of just me and the dog was getting lonely. Thankfully I have awesome friends who kept me company (also see #2)!  It's absolutely wonderful to have him home.  [A post updating you all on his job situation is coming shortly.]
2. My parents came to visit me last weekend!  We enjoyed a nice weekend shopping and going to the Cheesecake Factory (yum)!

3. Picked this up this past weekend with intentions of putting it on top of a solid colored polish. But it made for a quicker mani to wear it alone, and I like it.

4.  Confession: I have a skirt obsession. A pencil skirt-skirt obsession.  I think it's because they just always fit.  You can't go wrong with a pencil skirt. So when I pile my arms high with items to try on, the pencil skirt always fits,... and nearly always makes it's way home.  Until now I only had so many skirt hangers (all of which also came home from the store with me with purchase of the skirt). They were all mix-matched and would leave little crimp marks on my skirts after they had been hung up for a while. Then I had a separate pile of skirts that had no hangers at all.  So I finally bit the bullet and got some skirt hangers.  I researched around (mostly on Amazon) until I found some well reviewed ones. And ordered a few sets. They. are. awesome. And I love that you can hang them from each other to save on closet space!

5.  This week was the last week of anatomy cadaver lab!  After identifying all of the structures, blood vessels, and nerves in the head and neck (including removal and study of the brain) I am happy to say that dissection is over. While it was a great learning experience, I am so glad to finally be done. Yay to no longer smelling like formaldehyde!

High Five For Friday

Happy Friday everyone! Welcome to the end of the week.  I for one thought it would never get here (see #5).  Here are this week's highlights:

1. Last weekend Heidi came to visit for a "girl's weekend."  We had a great time baking and decorating sugar cookies. I love that we share similar hobbies that we can enjoy together!  We also chose a chick-flick to watch for movie-night - October Baby, which happened to be filmed here in Alabama.  It was a great movie (not just for the ladies) and definitely worth your while - so go watch it this weekend if you have Netflix!

2.  Tuesday I went thrifting with my friend Kelsey.  It's something I like to do every once in a while... sift through other peoples' junk.  And it's always a win when you find a pair of barely worn Gap jeans for 5 bucks, like Kelsey did.

3.  We've had a pretty relaxed couple of weeks in school (for a change), which has been SO nice. My friends and I took the opportunity of a "free night" to spend some extra non-school related time together.  We met at Iguana Grill for some delicious Mexican food with a couple of our significant others.  My whole class is really great, but I am so thankful to have met this group of amazing girls.  I think it's awesome that in such a short amount of time we've become close friends who could call on each other for anything. They are great. And pretty good lookin' too, huh?

4.  Because of #1 (thanks Heidi!) and #5 I've been watching Switched at Birth (on Netflix as well).  It is a really good show about to girls who were (obviously) switched at birth.  They find this out in the first episode then the whole series is about how they deal with knowing about this and how their lives/worlds basically collide.  The best part is that one girl is deaf while the other is a "hearing person."  They seem to do a great job depicting her disability with lots of sign language conversations throughout the episodes as she interacts with other deaf people and hearing people.  Most shows depict perfect little families. I like the "realness" this show brings to the table.

5.  Jesse has been out of town for work since my post of us going to Augusta (he stayed there).  I tried not to let on that I was home alone for 2 weeks... not the kind of info I like to put out on the interwebs.  But I got the best news of the week last night, he is coming home tomorrow (instead of sometime next week)!  I. am. SO. excited! (See that...capitalization, underlined, italicized, and bolded - that's how excited I am!)  This is the longest we've been apart since... forever. And two weeks is a long time, my friend.

My parents are coming up today to keep me company as well.  (I feel so loved.)  I"ll be hanging out with them this weekend. Spending one more relaxing weekend before classes start back in hand-core mode. What are your weekend plans?

Augusta

This past weekend  Two weekends ago (late post...as usual) we went to Augusta, GA.  The main reason was for Jesse's work, but I tagged along and we made the absolute best of it!  It was our first time in Augusta, so beforehand I researched some things to do. I've realized through the years that when we go places we eat. A lot.  It's our thing to do.  Plus there were not many things "to do" there (that we were willing to pay for- museums, etc.).

When we go places I love to find local restaurants.  I feel like you get the full experience of the town that way.  Thanks to urbanspoon.com I chose a place for dinner on Friday night that quickly became my most favorite restaurant ever - The Bee's Knees.  It's just off the River Walk (more about that in a minute) and has such an awesome atmosphere. At night when you walk in you immediately notice the exposed brick walls through the dim lighting and are seated at a table with a open flame to set the dining mood. It's a tapas restaurant, which means that while they do have larger entrees you can order, their ideal meal is a group of smaller dishes that are shared among the table.  Jesse and I share our food all the time anyway, so we enjoyed choosing several smaller dishes - that way we got to taste more of what they have to offer.

I also loved their philosophy of supporting their local farmers.  Their passion really shines through in their food.  So, what did we order?  Of course, I took pictures to share with you!

Round one: Citrus-Ginger Salad and Flounder Sashimi Carpaccio.

I also learned that I like Sangria while there!

Round two:  Veggie Egg Rolls with Pineapple Sweet & Sour Sauce, and Blue Crab Cakes with Remoulade sauces.

(Excuse the wasabi that somehow got smashed under the wine glass. We're classy like that.)

Round three: Honey-Almond Creme Brulee

This was more like what our view was like for the evening.

Everything was absolutely de-li-cious!  Although the servings were small it was fun to get to try a variety of dishes and everything was done to perfection.  The egg rolls were probably our favorite. They were packed with cabbage, carrots, and other veggies that were really well seasoned. We make egg rolls at home sometimes, which always involve ground pork or another meat, but these were so tasty we didn't miss the meat at all.  This was the first Creme Brulee I've had and I loved the rich custard-like bottom with the caramelized top layer combination. 

On Saturday, we slept late and started the day with lunch at a local burger joint, Farmhaus. They also emphasize local food products and put their own special touch onto nearly everything they serve.  You could choose one of six burgers on the menu or build your own burger with options for patties (beef, turkey, veggie), sauces, cheeses, buns, and other toppings.  We each built a burger and got sides of fries with feta dipping sauce and fried dill pickles.  The burgers were huge and SO good. The best turkey burger I've had to date.  Farmhaus was definitely the place to be.  We arrived just in time before the line was out the door, and it stayed that way until after we were finished eating.

We tried to walk off some of our lunch by strolling down the River Walk. It was a beautiful day to do so.  The River Walk was charming as it wound back and forth along the Savannah.  We soaked up some of the first warm rays of sunshine we've experienced in a while.

One thing I planned ahead of time was a local chocolate tasting.  It was a fundraiser for a nature park nearby.  We walked their trail that winds over top of a marshy area. We did ruin our dinner, as there were many chocolates to taste, but I never complain about chocolate. 

The next morning we returned to the Bees Knees one more time for brunch, and I am so glad that we did because I got to eat the most incredible french toast of my life. Cue the angels as you view this image:

The bread was thick, but it was so fluffy! The strawberry compote warranted no additional syrup. They were perfection. That is all.

So as you can see, we pretty much ate our way through Augusta. It was a great way to end my spring break - relaxed and with a full belly. :)   Augusta is worth visiting, and if you happen to be there I [obviously] recommend all of the places we experienced.

High Five for Friday

Right now I'm sitting at a hotel desk in Georgia, reaping the "benefits" of husband's business trip.  (By reaping, I really mean I'm sitting here with the Today Show playing in the background while husband is gone to do business and I'm trying to study, but wound up on blogger...but we will get to do some exploring together later.)

This week has been my spring break, which has been wonderful.  What special things have I done?  Not much.  And I've enjoyed not having much to do.  I've also enjoyed spending the morning in my pj's savoring sips of coffee instead of chugging it before I run out the door (or dumping it all over the counter as I try to ring my thermos for an even  "faster" breakfast-on-the-go).

Moving on to this week's High Five:

1. In last week's high five I told you I was headed to Atlanta for an optometry convention called SECO. We had a great time starting with the student party, which included a photo booth and some pretty drinks. We got some useful tips on communication at the student lunch the next day, and then explored the exhibition hall where we played with some equipment and snagged some freebies. That night was rounded out with a Better Than Ezra concert at The Tabernacle (oh, and mini beignets... can't forget those).

 

2. We ended our first-weekend-of-spring-break-celebration by swinging by IKEA on our way out of Atlanta. It was my first time, and I fell in love.  It's a store that is an experience all it's own.  We stopped at their cafe for breakfast then followed the crowd through the winding aisles of their showroom, which has rooms (or sometimes entire apartments) set up as if someone lives there. You write down items you like on your way through then collect them in the warehouse on your way out.  I made a list upon entering of things I should keep an eye out for (in hopes of not getting too distracted by all the home-goodness before me), but wound up with a bag full of items - only one of which was crossed off the list. But most things are so cheap there = hard to resist things like a watering can (what?! yes, I seriously bought one. you will see it soon).

3. We went home on Monday, mostly to go to our long-awaited dentist appointments. But we had a little time to play outside at Jesse's parent's house.  Maggie loves being there. She runs around so fast and sniffs at the clean air that blows scents in from far away. We hung out on the backyard swing and hammock for a while, soaking in the sunshine that came out.  Marilyn fed us well, of course, with a yummy lasagna and a specially-made apple pie.

4. We rediscovered Tropical Smoothie this week with a "Get Up and Goji".  We had hoped to grab dessert from a local donut shop, but they were closed so we decided to get a smoothie instead.  We will try again on the donuts, but we certainly enjoyed the perfectly blended smoothie.

5.  As soon as Jesse returns we will be off to explore Augusta! Possible chocolate tasting may ensue!

Enjoy your weekend!

From Our Kitchen - a recap

We've been trying a few new meals lately.  Most of which were found via Pinterest.  I love trying new recipes, but I'm always a little skeptical of how it will turn out.  People pin everything they see on Pinterest, sometimes without even reading a recipe to know if it's actually worth making. In other words, just because it's a popular pin doesn't mean it's a great recipe.  However, I have pinned my share of recipes and am now trying to weed through them. I am also working on reorganizing my recipe binder and making it more uniform looking, so I have typed up the recipes we like in a simple format with an image. You can print these by clicking the corresponding link under each description below.
I thought about sharing some of these as step-by-step instructionals like I have before, but the ladies from each of these blogs do a better job of that with better images than I can, so their links are also below each image.
Here are those that we've tried lately:

Chicken Tikka Marsala

(original recipe found here)

(printable version here)

I decided to be adventurous a few weeks ago and "whip up" some Indian food at home.  I also tried my hand at the naan mentioned in the post - some of which turned out okay. The chicken was delicious. This meal is packed with flavor and some kick (reduce the amount of jalapeno if you're not a spicy fan.) You must marinate this - it makes all the difference!  We cooked rice to go along with this.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

(original recipe post found here)

(printable version here)

This one will definitely make it into our regular series of meals.  It was quick to prep (even though I took the time to pound out the chicken breast halves to all be fairly even). I'm always looking for a new way to cook chicken, because let's face it, it can get boring. The panko breadcrumbs are what give this meal a special touch, so make sure you have those on hand. We served the sauce on the side. Since it is toasted breadcrumbs on top, this meal does not make the best leftovers - so make this for a crowd, or just reduce the amount of ingredients. These are all ingredients you probably have on hand anyway, so it's easy to modify for less.

Hawaiian Roll Ham Sandwiches

(original recipe post here)

(printable version here)

I'm sure you've seen these before somewhere. I made these this past weekend for Sunday lunch with Matt and Heidi. They were tasty, but once you see the amount of butter that goes on these, you'll know why I won't be regularly making them.  However, I'm sure I could change it some to help reduce clogged arteries. A few things to note: 1) there are lots of onions involved, but even if you don't like onions (Jesse) you may still like this dish. The onions are finely chopped and cooked until soft,  to bring out their sweetness which pairs really well with the sweet bead and other ingredients. 2) If I make this again I'll probably reduce the amount of cheese on top because my slices were kind of thick and it was a bit heavy. 3) You must use the Hawaiian sweet rolls - they make this dish.  (The bread always makes the sandwich no matter what you have going on inside.)

Apple Yogurt Cake

(original recipe post here)

(my printable version here)

This one is seriously as delicious as it looks. Make it for your family when they visit (like I did) or make it for yourself to eat all week, because the longer it sits the better it gets!  I did make several modifications for this as I was making it (fingers were crossed that it would come out okay).  There was just too much oil and sugar in the original recipe for me to be okay with serving this for breakfast, so my printable version has my rendition.

Give one of these a try and let me know how you liked it, or if you changed anything!
Have you tried any new recipes lately that you would make again?  Share a link to the recipe in the comments section.

High Five for Friday

A quick High Five for Friday for you, as I head off for #5:

1.  Another wonderful weekend visit from Matt and Heidi, which consisted of a girl's outing to the mall, some delicious banana pudding at Miss Myra's BBQ, a game night with with community group folks, and a couple of new recipes (coming soon)!

2.  I got the sweetest surprise in the mail this week:  a book of copies of my grandmother's letters to her grandchildren. They were sent by my uncle along with a photo collage of my parents and their children through the years and a poem written by my dad.  It definitely made my week and made me cry. (Sweet tears.)

3.  I made a purchase from Etsy a couple of weeks ago and got my package this week - a few earring findings to make my own earrings. Sorry no picture. Trust me, they are cute!

4. Today begins my spring break! Woo hoo! It is much needed.

5. Headed out with the girls today to Atlanta for an optometry conference. Should be lots of fun!