NEW

I know I have been back and forth on this whole blog. Diligent and constant for a while, then a vanishing act followed by an apology and a promise to return. Its been a back and forth battle. I've done some blogging  that I just haven't published  and will work on getting those out to my limited readers.

There's been an inner turmoil that I've voiced before, not having direction and purpose for my little site here. It is hard since I had a goal in mind when I created this but as life moved me beyond the kitchen I feel like there is so much more to write about.

I finally sat decided that I needed a revamp. New name, New template, New direction. While trying to come up with some thing clever and catchy like so many of the blogs I stalk read I decided to go back to what I know.

Here is the back story:

My love introduced me to this wonderful band while we were dating. I fell in love with their music while falling in love with my man.There was a song that captured my feelings while experiencing the greatest LOVE I never knew possible. When we started planning our wedding I knew I wanted to walk down the isle to some thing that had special meaning and this song just kept playing in my head and I KNEW it was THE song.

Listen while you read

I'm so glad I didn't run when it looked like love - especially because it looked like love from the very beginning and to be honest it scared me a little but in the midst of fear there was a peace that I knew I'd regret not seeing where this would lead. BEST decision of my LIFE!

Falling in Love opened my eyes to a new level of LOVE, the beauty, depth and vastness of it all. I now see LOVE all around me, its so much more than chocolates, flowers, diamonds and wedding dresses. While love is waiting to be found it is something you have to choose to see. Its a daily choice that you make.

So while I take the advice of all my blogging friends, I'll write about life - no limits, no organized topics.

Welcome to my life!

Menu Monday

Hard to believe its Monday again and time to link up with Orgjunkie! I was off yesterday and got a grocery shopping trip worked into my day and was able to really feel prepared for the week ahead. Sticking to a budget has been easier than expected. Last night I spent $50 for the week. I know I know - how much do I think it takes to feed 2 people but really it can add up fast. Also when you shop at random you spend more and always end up heading back to the store for that forgotten ingredient or what ever is missing to complete the entire meal. Here's what I bought and what our menu looks like this week.

Monday - Chicken ($5) I marinated it with left over marinade from last weeks pork chops. I had a can or corn and a package of yellow rice in the cupboard.

Tuesday - Pasta ($2). I have a jar of vodka sauce in the cupboard. I'm adding in Ham ($5) and frozen peas ($2)

Wednesday - Turkey meat loaf- ground turkey ($5) paired with boxed scalloped potatoes from the cupboard.

Thursday will be a late night at work so the Hub's will be on his own or eating left overs.

Friday - I'll be headed out with the girls for a friends bachelorette party! Cant wait to dance the night away and celebrate this exciting time!

No exactly the most healthy or freshest meals but they will fill the belly and maintain our calorie conscious diet. As you can see we have lots of food in the cupboards which is funny because when I don't meal plan I open them up and think that "we don't have anything for dinner!" turns out there was food there all along!

What do you have in your cupboard? Bet with a little planning you could put the stuff in there to use and create a simple yet delicious and cost friendly meal or two.

Menu Monday

Another week is here I don't know about you but last week flew by! I'm linking up again with I'm an Organizing Junkie to post our weekly menu. Here is what we are planning this week.

Monday - Jennie O burgers, Corn on the cob and french fries (left over from Friday when the hubs surprised me with a movie & Dinner date)

Tuesday - Taco Tuesday, a tradition we started a while ago but have not been to lately because we have a connect group we go to from church but this week we had a Sunday brunch. Check them out and see if you have a location near you. We love it and $4.99 for two tacos, chips and a drink? Cant beat it!

Wednesday - Mom's Chicken pot pie, a childhood favorite that I've been craving. Give it a try and I guarantee you'll love it too!

Thursday - We've been invited to dinner at a friends - cant wait!

Friday - I'm closing at work so the hubs will be on his own.

This week breakfast is bagels and lunch is cold cuts, yogurt and rice cakes.

Not too much cooking but seeing as I have a busy week ahead of me its nice to know that the meals are planned. I also find it less stressful to plan ahead so the Hubs can help out too! I've been faithfully logging my meals and keeping track of my calories. Meal planning is definitely helping track $$ and lbs!

Whats your menu look like this week?

All great things must come to an end

First of all don't laugh!

We all watch TV and have had a show that we connected with in a way we cant describe.
Example - Friends, there was tons of hoopla when it ended. Personally for me  there have been shows I watched usually via boxed sets in a marathon weekend were the entire number of seasons was crammed in to a short period of time that included lots of food, no sleep, no shower and never changing out of pajamas.

But there is one show I grew with over time. Faithfully watching each week and connecting with in a way I never intended. I know I am a few weeks late but today I finally sat down and watched the tribute and finale of One Tree Hill.

The show began when I was 20 and at home after taking a year off of college. It then saw me thru 2 years of college, 2 years living with my parents (a 3 month stint of living in Rochester) and then 4 years here in Florida. While there have been those marathon weekends to recap seasons passed in the company of great friends and sisters, I've also watched it week to week, as it became an ingrained part of my weekly routine.

They started Team's. Team Brooke & Team Payton were the first (at least as I like to remember it)! Then it went to Laguna beach Team Kristin & Team Lauren (Small world: Steven from Laguna became Chase on OTH) way before Team Edward and Team Jacob!

Here is one reason I love the show

I wont do into depth as to the who what and when of the show because if you watched it you know and if you didn't then my words would not do it justice. So Ill leave you with a compilation video of my favorite song that I used to listen to over and over again

Menu Monday

In my attempt to blog more consistently I'm linking up with a few other blogs I enjoy reading. While I've been doing my own version of posting my weekly dinner menu's I'm linking up with Menu Plan Monday, go on over and check her out!


Monday - Grilled Chicken and Vegetables (peppers, zucchini & Squash)
Tuesday - Grilled Pork Chops, Roasted Ranch Red potatoes & Asparagus
Wednesday - Late night . . . well 10ish, crazy since this is my "new late night" compared to my "Old" one being 2am!
Thursday - Grilled pizza
Friday - Jennie O turkey burgers & Corn on the cob.

Breakfast - Blue berry muffins - one batch made and these should last us the week.

All recipes are variations of things I've read on line or made in the past. Let me know if you'd like to know how they turned out or how they were made and I will post.

This week I spent $65 on grocery's. These meals should all make enough for dinner and lunch the next day. In planning our meals I am trying to accomplish 3 things.

1. Be frugal with our grocery budget. Changing job locations has its perks and its sacrifices. I did have to take a pay cut to have the luxury of seeing the Mr every day - def worth it! While we are still more than able to maintain our financial goals, I do want to make sure that we make the adjustment to spend less.

2. Buy fresh. When I went into the grocery store I wanted to see how much I could buy from the "out side isle". Have you heard of this method of shopping? Next time you go try it! The best stuff lines the out side isle of the store like the bakery, produce, dairy, meat & deli. I was able to do most of my shopping there - what did i but from the inside? Marinade & muffin mix both of which I bought to make life easier. I could have made them both from scratch but I just didn't have the time. Also I had everything I needed for the grilled pizza at home ( soft tortilla shells, mozzarella & Pizza sauce, just added the left over veggies from Monday)

3. Be fit using My Fitness Pal - I'll be logging my meals to see where my calories come from each day. I don't usually work out but this is the first step for me and the plan it to work more Dog walks and Yoga time in.

Whats your menu look like this week?

I'm Back

I've been out of the blogging circle for a while now - well my own blogging, I've still been known to stalk a blog or 7. The main reason being that my computer when kapoey and blogging became quite the hassle when turning your computer on took upwards of 15 minutes. The power cord kept me on a tight leash and after all that there were times where it just froze and all my hard work was null and void. It was depressing and i found not blogging or dealing with that hunk of metal was easier than a battle with dang thing.

I also struggled with what to write - see my 1 year post. Taking some time off helped me to reignite the desire to write as well as compile some ideas to get back in the blogging rhythm.

All that said - I'm back so be on the look out for some fun posts!

Valentine's Day Bridal Shower

My BFF is getting married next month and we threw her a shower last weekend with a lovely Valentines day theme. Her wedding colors are Black & Red and with the time of year it all worked out perfectly!

It also turns out Im completley and utterly addicted to pintrest! just about all of the recipies I made were found there.  

The food table.

We served lasagna, salad & Bread with these Caprese bites!

My BFF's name is Lindsay and growing up my Dad always called Lindzer Trarts Lindsay Tarts so I made these. They were easy to make and fun too - I'll be adding them to my Christmas cookie list!

these lil bites of goodness tasted great but looked nothing like the picture I was after!

 Now these were so easy to make and so delish! Strawberry cheese cake bites- ahhh I could eat the entire plate myself! Ill def be making these again in the future!

Heres is the happy couple!

 cake table - if you look close you see these - Marsh mellow pops. Fun idea and pretty & tasty!

I admit I was a little stressed out about how the shower would come together but in the end it was a success!