Wordless Wednesday: Cupcakes make everything better!

Weekend Recap

For a relaxing weekend, we certainly did a lot. On Friday I had a doctors appointment in the morning and then worked from home the rest of the day. Friday night we went on a date night. We were both craving some pizza and so we headed to Lou Malnati's. It was delicious as always. Afterwards we just headed home and relaxed the rest of the night.

On Saturday we got up and headed out to grab some breakfast. After breakfast I headed to my salon to get my hair cut and colored. I got rid of my highlights and warmed everything up for Fall. I love how it came out.

After the salon Michael and I headed out to have some lunch, do some shopping and go see a movie. We went to one of Michael's favorites, Buffalo Wild Wings, for lunch. Since he was taking me to my movie I let him pick whatever he wanted for lunch. After lunch we did some shopping. I had some good luck at DSW and found a couple pairs of cute shoes.

After shopping we headed to the movies to see The Help. I was so excited to see it. The theater was packed, every seat was full. The movie was excellent. The book was better, but that's how it always is. Michael really liked it as well. Just like the book, I laughed, cried and was totally touched by the story. It's a modern day To Kill a Mockingbird. I highly recommend it.

After the movie we headed home to relax for a little while. We ended up going out to dinner with Michael's parents. We all had a taste for sushi so we headed to a place Michael and I had never been to but they had. It was really good. After dinner, we headed home and just relaxed.

Today we woke up and my husby got right downstairs to make us some breakfast. He made us some very yummy french toast, hash browns and sausage. He's the best.

After breakfast we did a few things around the house, showered and got ready. We headed down to my parents house to hang out. We hadn't seen them since the 4th of July so we wanted to get together. My parents made a really yummy lunch for us and we just relaxed and visited. Luckily we have lots of things coming up so we'll get to see them more often. 

After we left my parents we came home and relaxed. We hadn't seen our nephew Jacob all weekend so we texted Rich and Tif to see if we could come over and see him. We went over and played with him for a little while and we decided to go out to eat. Jacob really enjoyed his cream cheese roll!

We had fun hanging out with them and Jacob of course. After dinner we headed home and we are just relaxing and watching some tv. We have a busy week ahead so hopefully it goes by fast. Have a good week everyone!

Our week in pictures: 8/7 - 8/13

Sunday, August 7: I got a mani/pedi, the color this week is OPI's Mrs O'Leary's BBQ.

Monday, August 8: I might subscribe to too many magazines, my pile is getting out of control!

Tuesday, August 9: Michael sent me a cute picture while I was at work of Porkchop hanging out with Dad
while he was working in the garage.

Wednesday, August 10: Yay for the first of 3 Old Navy packages that I have coming arriving this week!

Thursday, August 11: I tried a new food truck today with yummy little baked empanadas. They were delish!

Friday, August 12: Lou Malnati's pizza date night with my husby!

Saturday, August 13: My hair is ready for Fall, good-bye highlights, hello warm red!

This week I'm...

Loving: This cooler weather! I hope it sticks around through October.

Disliking: That I got slammed with seasonal allergies out of nowhere.

Craving: All things Fall.

Hoping: Things continue going according to plan.

Reading: I'm trying to make a dent in the pile of 20 or more magazines I have sitting on my kitchen table.

Watching: I'm hoping I can get Michael to take me to see The Help this weekend.

Listening to: The sound of football returning to our weekends.

Looking forward to: A relaxing weekend, I could use it after the week I've had.

Hearing buzz about: The market crash, the rebound, the crash, then rebound.

Family Favorite Recipe: Homemade Marshmallows

Everything homemade is always better and marshmallows are no different. Michael made this recipe for the first time last year and they were delicious. We decided to make them again a few weeks ago to make s'mores bars and s'mores pops. They're very easy to make, they're just very messy. You won't be sorry you made them though, they are so yummy!

Ingredients
3 packages unflavored gelatin

• 1 cup ice cold water, divided
• 12 ounces granulated sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• Nonstick spray
• 
  
• Directions
• Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water. Have the whisk attachment standing by.

In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat.

Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add the vanilla during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows.

Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use.

When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

You can just eat the marshmallows, use them in s'mores, put them in hot cocoa, make s'mores bars. The last time we made these marshmallows we put a stick in them, dipped them in milk chocolate and rolled them in graham cracker crumbs. They were delicious!

Wordless Wednesday: Hanging out in the garage with Dada

New recipe: Zucchini Bread

Michael's Mom gave him a slice of zucchini bread to bring home the other day along with a zucchini from her garden. After eating the zucchini bread, I really wanted to make my own. I found this great recipe and it was absolutely delicious! It tasted just like my Mom's recipe, which come to find out it's almost identical to her recipe! Even Michael liked it and he hates zucchini. This recipe comes together in just a few minutes and it makes 2 loaves. I froze one to have as a treat sometime this Fall or Winter.

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour

1tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

3 tsp ground cinnamon

3 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

2 1/4 cups sugar

3 tsps vanilla

2 cups grated zucchini

1 cup chopped pecans (you can use walnuts as well)

Instructions

1. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees

2. Cream together eggs, oil, vanilla and sugar in a large bowl

3. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon together. Add to creamed mixture

4. Stir in zucchini and pecans until well combined

5. Pour batter into prepared pans

6. Bake for 45 - 60 minutes, or until tester in the center comes out clean

7. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes

8. Enjoy!

Menu Planning Monday

Monday: Hash brown turkey tenderloins (this didn't make it to the table last week)

Tuesday: Homemade pizza night

Wednesday: Pierogis

Thursday: Either BLT's or something on the grill

Friday: Take out/go out

Weekend Recap

We had such a nice weekend. On Friday after work we headed over to Rich and Tif's. We ordered in some pizza and just hung out and played with Jacob of course. We headed out shortly after Jacob went to bed and came home to relax and then hit the hay.

On Saturday we were up and out early. We headed to breakfast and then did a bunch of shopping. we hit up Hobby Lobby and Michaels where I got an early start to some Fall decor shopping. I had some good coupons that were going to expire so I got a great deal on some Fall garlands and a few other decorations.

After hitting up the craft stores we headed to the grocery store to just get it done so we didn't have to do any shopping today. We got our groceries for the week and headed home. While putting the groceries away we realized our pantry and fridge really needed to be cleaned out, so we had an impromptu cleaning and organizing spree. We relaxed most of the afternoon and Michael even got a nap in. 

Saturday night Michael was heading with the boys to Ken's for a poker night and I headed to Rich and Tif's for a girls craft night. Me, Tif and her Mom worked on some crafts for our niece who will be making her arrival very soon. We worked on painting letters to put her name on the wall and a bow holder. Everything came out really cute. I'll let Tif give the full reveal on her blog once the nursery is done. The picture below is one of letters and pink elephant I painted.

We had a lot of fun just talking all night and crafting. We got everything done at around 11:30 and the boys were done playing shortly there after. We headed home and pretty much crashed. We don't see midnight too often around here!

Today I slept in until 9 which never happens. I was woken up by my wonderful husband opening the drapes to let the sun in while carrying breakfast. Definitely not a bad way to be woken up! We had breakfast in bed and just relaxed for a couple hours. We were feeling a little lazy and a storm rolled in so we just cuddled up and watched some tv. We finally crawled out of bed around 11, took showers and got ready. I headed out for a manicure and pedicure, which is always nice and relaxing. 

After getting my nails done we had some lunch and then headed out to a birthday party for Michael's Great Uncle, Al, who is celebrating his 94th year. He's been having a rough time the past couple of months so they thought it would really do him some good to see his family. They had about 30 or 40 people there and he was very surprised. We visited with family and of course sang Happy Birthday to the guest of honor. After the party we headed home to relax and Michael got started on Sunday dinner. He made us a yummy meatloaf, potatoes, corn on the cob and biscuits. 

We are just going to relax the rest of the night. Another great weekend in the books. I hope all of you had a great weekend and I hope we have a quick week so we can do this all over again!

Our week in pictures: 7/31 - 8/6

Sunday, July 31: Mmmm...homemade pizza!

Monday, August 1: I baked some zucchini bread and it was delicious! Recipe to come next week.

Tuesday, August 2: Manicure day, it's OPI's Cha-Ching-Cherry this week.

Wednesday, August 3: I got some fun, new shoes for Fall. Best part was they were only $20!

Thursday, August 4: A Thursday night date night at Bonefish with my Husby!

Friday, August 5: I have a big conference coming up in a couple of months in San Francisco. These are the cute trolley cars were using for centerpieces. And they are filled with delicious Ghirardelli chocolates!

Saturday, August 6: Fall decor shopping has begun!

This week I'm...

Loving: That I got all of my workouts in this week.
Disliking: Waiting...it has become my nemesis.
Craving: A slice of the delicious zucchini bread I made this week, yum!
Hoping: That everything goes according to plan for once.
Reading: I finished Summer and the City: A Carrie Diaries Novel by Candace Bushnell and Uncharted TerriTORI by Tori Spelling this week. I need to find a new book for next week, any suggestions?
Watching: The temperatures go down a bit. I'm loving seeing 80's and not 90's in the 10-day forecast.
Listening to: Good news being delivered, I was pleasantly surprised.
Looking forward to: Lake Geneva in September, we're officially booked!
Hearing buzz about: We use to have 2 moons? That's crazy talk!

What I'm Reading...

A stolen life by Jaycee Dugard

This was an incredible story and I'm so glad that Jaycee had the courage to write it. It is amazing how she writes in such detail of her time in captivity with her kidnappers. It was almost like a fictional story, as her life seems like such an impossibility. Unfortunately, it is possible, and everyone needs to hear her story. I did not find this book as difficult to read as I had anticipated. It was so compelling I could barely put it down and read the whole thing in 2 days. Her style of narrating the past and interjecting her current reflections on what happened is quite genius. This story does touch on the misery that her kidnapper subjected her to but most of the book is about her feelings in captivity and how it affected her thought process. I cried at the part when she was reunited with her mom. How wonderful that her mother never gave up hope. I'm amazed at how far Jaycee has come along as an individual and as a writer in such a short period of time with only a 5th grade education. Her poise during her ordeal is just inspiring. I highly recommend this read!

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

The Help is one of those books that has been hyped up like you wouldn't believe as soon as it was published. So, naturally, I put it off for years waiting to see if the hype died down. It didn't (what with the movie coming out soon and everything), so I talked myself into reading it telling myself "Maybe this book absolutely deserves the hype" while not really believing it. I am now kicking myself repeatedly for putting this amazing book on hold for so long. I absolutely loved The Help. I am still in awe of Stockett's story-telling gift and this incredible tale of three amazing women in Jackson, Mississippi in the early days of the US Civil Rights Movement. The Help follows fresh-out-of-college Skeeter, who returns home from Ole Miss only to feel disillusioned by the life she comes back to; Aibileen, a black maid, who loves and raises a white child but is searching for something more; and Minny, who is Aibileen's best friend and who just must speak her mind. All of the characters are so revealing and believable, and the story is full of humor, poignancy, and humanity. The Help is an unputdownable, stunning debut novel, and a must-read for all who love a good story.

Summer and the City: A Carrie Diaries Novel by Candace Bushnell

After reading a few more serious toned books, I wanted a change of pace with some good old chick-lit. Summer and the City is Candace Busnell's follow-up to last year's, The Carrie Diaries. It's a prequel of sorts to Sex and the City. I really liked The Carrie Diaries and I thought this was even better. In Summer and the City, we are taken on Carrie's whirlwind adventures in her new city, New York. In true Carrie style, when she arrives in New York, things do not go as planned. Her adventurous life leads us to meet the girls she becomes lifelong friends with: Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte. Every Sex and the City fan has known these characters for such a long time, but we hadn't experienced their beginnings together until this book. If you are looking for a fun, entertaining and lighthearted book to read this summer you need to pick up Summer and the City.

Uncharted TerriTORI by Tori Spelling

This is the 3rd installment of Tori Spelling's collection of short stories. I have enjoyed this one as much as the first two, STORItelling and Mommywood. If you are expecting a Pullitzer Prize winning novel you are going to be sorely disappointed, but if you are looking for a light hearted beach read you are good to go! I love how honest she is about herself, but what I love even more is her ability to relate to you just like she's a regular person or even your best girlfriend, through her writing. She is a great author who, just like the rest of us, is just trying to figure out the best path in life. While her problems may be different, this book has the ability to demonstrate that we all have our own unique struggles and challenges in life.

Wordless Wednesday: Fun, new shoes brighten any day!

Family Favorite Recipe: Cucumber Tomato Salad

My mom has been making this salad as long as I can remember. It's one of the things I look forward to the most once veggies start ripening in the garden. It's really simple, but so delicious! It's the perfect side for any Summer meal. 

Ingredients

1 cucumber

1 large tomato or 15 grape tomatoes

2 green onions

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sugar

1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash Table Blend
Pinch of salt
Fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions

1. Dice cucumbers, tomatoes and green onions

2. Add olive oil, sugar, salt, pepper and red wine vinegar.

3. Let sit at least 1 hour

4. Enjoy!

Menu Planning Monday

Monday: Hash brown turkey tenderloins

Tuesday: Zucchini Boats

Wednesday: Salad night

Thursday: BLT's

Friday: Take out/Go out