Spring Break

I will be MIA for the next week or so because I am heading to FLORIDA! Hallelujah! Not only do I need a much needed rest from work but this white body is needing some SUN!
Originally hubs and I were going to fly down Tuesday of next week but then some friends decided to head to Clearwater this weekend...the same place Coy's parents have a house and our own destination! It has worked out that I am going down today with my friends and then meeting up with Coy and his family when he flies down on Tuesday! The best of both worlds! (and as a little added fyi...this is the longest the hubs will have been apart since we have been married - almost 2 years!!).
Even though I have been to Clearwater several times with Coy's family and used to also vacation with my family there one of my most memorable trips was spring break 2006. It was my senior of college. It was some of the most fun I've had. Five guys, eight girls...and so many great memories!
Because I am heading out on my own little spring break this next week I thought it was only appropriate to reminisce on my last spring break in Clearwater. My last official spring break. Ever.

So, here are some memories from that one week in the spring of 2006. A week where we didn't have a care in the world. A week in which we charged almost everything on our credit cards and were still paying this trip off two years later. One last week to soak up being in college, being able to be around best friends day in and day out, and a week to make memories that will never be forgotten!

 Excited to have another spring break with this one!

One of my favorite pictures from the whole trip!

Happy Spring Break 2012!

Sweet & Sour Sausage Stir Fry

This recipe was so easy and actually reallllllly good! It is also fairly healthy, especially with little or no rice! I even shared it with my sister and she made it for her family, who also approved!
The recipe calls for sausage, more specifically kielbasa. Just as a tip I like to use Turkey Kielbasa...it has an excellent flavor and is much better for you!
Here you go...

Ingredients:
8 oz can pineapple chunks
1 pkg (12 oz) frozen stir fry vegetables
1 TB olive oil
1 pkg kielbasa
1 TB cornstarch (I used flour because I had no corn starch on hand)
1/3 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
1 TB brown sugar
2 1/2 cups instant brown rice

Directions:
- Cook rice according to package
- Drain pineapple and set juice aside
- Saute vegetables until crisp
- Add sausauge and pineapple chunks and cook until heated through
- While this is cooking combine pineapple juice, cornstarch (or flour), water, soy sauce, and brown sugar.
- Stir this sauce mixture into the sausage mixture.
- Bring to boil and cook and stir for 1 minute, or until sauce is thickened. (my sauce didn't actually thicken until I removed it from the heat for a few minutes).
- Serve over rice.

Weekend Successes and Failures

- The Hoosiers made it to the Sweet Sixteen.
- The Hoosiers lost in their game against Kentucky.
- While Coy was playing softball one of his teammates hit a fly ball which landed right on the hood of my car. There is currently a big, huge dent which we are trying to get fixed because it is in an odd spot.
- I watched the Hunger Games, which was a-m-a-z-i-n-g! Seriously, one of the best book to movies I have ever seen!
- I completed week one of Couch to 5k and started week 2!
- I got Kate Furnivall's new book release, The White Pearl in the mail and am pumped to read this next week in Florida!
- I started briefly packing for Florida (I leave in T minus 3 days!)
- Coy and I took my parents to Steer Inn where we indulged on the best tenderloin sandwich I have ever had! (oh - and this was the second time we had been there in a week).
- I slept in a little extra on Saturday.


All in all it was a great weekend!

Celebrating Saint Patrick

Last weekend was a full weekend.
Friday I spent the day and evening with my nieces and nephews and my sister. I was originally going to watch all six kids but one of my sisters plans fell through so we decided just to watch them together!
I love being with these kids and can't get enough of them! They are getting so big and I just want them to stop growing up! For now, at least these two are still babies. They are going to be best friends one day...and they are well on their way.

Saturday I headed to Louisville with a group of friends to celebrate birthdays and of course St. Patrick's Day. (You might remember Bergie's birthday mentioned here). It was also another friends birthday from college and it is always a good time to celebrate the both of them!

We headed down Saturday morning and spent the afternoon at Fourth Street Live. It was perfect weather and the streets were crazy with fans everywhere for the NCAA tourney games.

 If you have never been here, I would highly recommend it!

 One of the birthday girls!

Adi drove up from Nashville making the weekend complete. There is nothing

more fun then when the three of us get together! Love them!

After an afternoon 'nap' back at the hotel we ordered pizza and crammed into the room to watch the IU/VCU game (luckily the Hoosiers pulled through or else we would have had a very unhappy crowd).

We headed back to Fourth Street for the rest of the night!

All Nashvillians at one time together!

 I'm obsessed with this picture. Ha.

It was such a fun night...but also a quiet reminder that I'm not as young as I used to be! We ended the night with seven adults crammed into a hotel room. (The three above in a king bed, one couple on the floor, and one couple on a pull out couch). Even though my body has aged at least our sleeping arrangement was college style.

In other news I have started Couch to 5k this week. I just completed my final 'run' for the week and am hoping to see this one through!



Annoyed.

Last night I went and met some friends briefly after work at Scotty's Brewhouse. It was a great time spent outside on the deck in the sun. However, this relaxing atmosphere was stolen from me when I returned to my car 5 MINUTES late for my parking meter and OF COURSE I had a ticket! The ticket is only $25 but I'm so annoyed that within a 5 minute window of my meter running out and getting back to me car a cop had time to stop, check, and then write a ticket!
Here's what I'm currently about to take care of:

Weekend Rundown

This ended up being a nonstop weekend. These types of weekends leave little room to catch up on sleep, but it was great weekend nonetheless!
On Friday night we celebrated with Eve on her 1st birthday! She was seriously so precious and not quite so sure about her cake at first, but finally decided to dig in!

 In case you didn't notice...her bow matches her cake!

The weather was great this weekend. On Saturday Coy and I walked to a little local place for breakfast and it was SO good! One of the perks of living where we do is that we have several places to eat, coffee shops, and cute stores within walking distance! On Friday afternoon my mom, sister, and I actually took a walk to Starbucks and even suckered my mom to buy us dresses at a local store.

Our Saturday breakfast was followed by giving Murphy a bath. Usually I am the one to give the dogs baths but because of Coy's constant complaining about Murph's smell he was the lucky one this weekend and despite popular belief he loves these dogs and I think even liked giving the bath this time.

Sunday was full of another birthday party! This time we celebrated our nephew Judah's 2nd birthday! Halfway through his dinner of taco salad he was falling asleep in his highchair. Unfortunately I missed getting any photos of this. Luckily once he got his cake he got his second wind, which lasted the rest of the evening!

Happy Tuesday!

Happy Birthday Bergie!

Today one of my besties joins the great world of 28! Happy birthday Christy!!

In honor of this great occassion I decided to compile a list of some of my favorite memories with her. (These are in no certain order).

- Spring Break 2006 and singning Nelly's Grillz at the top of our lungs the entire week.

- Also spring break 2006 playing with the ceramic seagulls, breaking them on accident, glueing them back together, and taking a million pictures of the whole process.

- While living in Nashville going out to eat and people would always put us on one check aka people always thought we were a lesbian couple. 

-  Driving you to Belmont in Nashville and dropping you off and using Sophie as the reason you had to find another way home.

- Going to that party in Lenox Village and having to take a taxi home.

- New York. Everything about it.

- Punching you. Getting punched back. And always leaving and getting bruises. (weird, I know).

- All of our drives down to Nashville to visit Adi and usually talking the entire way nonstop.

- Dressing up with you like a slot machine and the three blind mice.

- Tubing this summer at the Cliffs and watching you be the first to fly off the tube and go soaring into the air.

- Helping you move your queen sized mattress over your balcony and into your room. +

- New Years Eve 2007

- Our Chicago trip last fall.

- You, me, and Adi tanning at the beach because it was thunderstorming three years ago.

This list could go on and on and on. So instead I'll just say happy birthday to one of the best people I know! I am proud to call you my friend. Although sometimes friend doesn't even seem like a word that gives justice to who you are. You make me laugh constantly, build me up, often bring me back to reality, and I know I can always count on you no matter what!

I love all of our memories and can't wait to make a million more over the next 28+ years!

 Never noticed these two pictures were so similar!

 One of my favorite pictures of all time!

Work Day Breakfast Ideas

While trying to eat healthy it has been difficult to find quick and easy things for breakfast. This has been especially difficult for hubs since he needs a little extra in the morning to help him make it through until lunch. Here are two that I have made that have been large successes because they are good, filling, quick, and fairly healthy!

Egg Muffins
I found this amazing idea on Pintrest and it worked out great.
Using a muffin pan crack one egg into each muffin hole. (Make sure you spray lightly so you can get the egg out after it is cooked!) This idea worked out great because it helped the egg fill the area of the actual muffin and we weren't left with a lot of bread and no egg.

Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes.

After this has cooled, I made an egg mcmuffin sandwich of sorts: low calorie wheat english muffin and half a slice of cheese. I then wrapped them up individually and froze them. (I left a few out in the fridge that I knew we would eat in the next few days and then froze the rest). When you are ready to eat put in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.

Fruit Smoothie:

1 cup frozen mixed berries (I have been using tropical fruit, which has been amazing)

1/2 banana

1/2 apple juice

1/4 cup light vanilla yogurt (you can also use silken tofu - but yogurt is easier for me)

Mix in a blender. I make this the night before and put in a cup of thermos for the next morning! This is so good and it is even filling the hubs up in the morning!

Nutritional information: 288 calories; 3 g fat ( 0 g sat , 0 g mono ); 0 mg cholesterol; 62 g carbohydrates; 0 g added sugars; 6 g protein; 7 g fiber; 33 mg sodium; 539 mg potassium.