I've taken a little bit of a break from thinking about my Pinterest party this week, and with our upcoming family getaway to Destin, I've been more in vacation mode. Hubs and I love roadtrips and spending time together just the two of us, so we thought it would be fun to plan one. When it comes to vacations, we are usually tight wads (i.e. waiting until November to take them because rates are so much cheaper, driving instead of flying, etc...although that's not always the case). Why even take a vacation at all? Working 40 hours a week can get stressful (especially for Hubs), and when you do it 52 weeks a year without a break, it takes a toll on your mind, attitude and overall well-being. Getting away is a huge relief, plus it makes you appreciate coming home.
The other day, I ran across a list of the top 100 places to visit in the US on MSNBC's Travel page, and it got me thinking about all of the places I would like to visit, both in the US and around the world. Some of these things will more-than-likely never happen, but it doesn't stop me from dreaming that one day Corey & I will be walking among the lions and tigers during an African safari or standing on the mountain that Jesus ascended into Heaven upon. Wouldn't that be awesome?
(This really was written on Friday, but I didn't get it posted until just after midnight :) )Everyone has a little somethin' somethin' they love to partake in, all the while knowing they probably shouldn't be doing it. One of mine, obviously, is chocolate. I'm well aware it could be expanding my waistline, but do I care enough to give it up? Absolutely not. Same with fried chicken. Sorry, but I'm from Southeastern Oklahoma and I worked at a fried chicken joint for 3 years in high school, and I don't plan to EVER stop eating it...with NON FAT-FREE Ranch dressing.. I will just have to offset it by continuing to run and go to the gym. I've said this before: It's ridiculous what we have to do to not weigh 500 lbs...but on the other hand, don't be asking me to give up my chocolate or fried chicken. Ain't happenin. :)
Another one of my favorite guilty pleasures is shallow reality TV shows. I'm also aware that I could be using my valuable time for doing good in this too-far-gone-world, but do I choose to use those few hours a week doing something that would make a difference? Or do I spend it in front of the TV with my cell phone ready to text my fellow avid TV-watchers to say "OMG did you just see that?!" No DVR for me. They must be watched in real time so the following morning at work, we can all have a powwow to dissect what exactly happened. Case in point: Bachelor Pad. All this show is is a bunch of dramatic, confrontational people thrown into a house together and told they can sleep together. This show is not promoting good in the world...I would definitely say it's sending the wrong message! But is it hilarious to watch these people make fools of themselves? Of course!
Another guilty pleasure? Shopping. We have been saving for our house for quite some time now, and I cannot tell you when the last time was I bought myself a new shirt! It has been absolutely killing me. I know that the money I'm spending could be going to a greater cause...maybe feeding starving children in Africa or sponsoring a child in Argentina. But that pair of shoes would look SO cute with that dress! And that Coach bag is on sale?! I. Must. Have. Them. All. A few shirts have been in a weekly rotating trend for a while now. People at work are probably starting to notice. :)That's all I have for now. Have a great weekend!
<3
In honor of today being opening day for the new outlet mall in OKC, I thought I would share with you my favorite outlet stores. I have been to several different outlet malls, all in different states of course, and I tend to gravitate towards the same stores in each one. I won't be able to enjoy the new outlet mall (only about 20 minutes away from me) for a few months though. It will take everything I have to not drive up there and drop our entire down payment for our house in the Coach store, Guess, Kitchen outlet, and all of the other stores. We're going to Destin in November, so I am telling Corey that I must have some new clothes by then :) I can't wait to go shopping again!! With that being said...
Out of all of the stores at the OKC Outlets, my # 5 favorite is:
Out of all of the stores at the OKC Outlets, my # 5 favorite is:
Please don't ever make me choose between chocolate & Auntie Anne's pretzels. What's a "mall" experience without a good, soft, cheese-covered pretzel? And I've never been to an outlet mall without getting some specialty chocolate. Come to think of it, I've never been anywhere without getting chocolate. Yum.
# 4: Another tie! This time between Corningware/Kitchen Collection
As you know, I love to bake and cook, so anything new and different I can find for my kitchen, I'll take it! I never leave an outlet mall without going into a kitchen store. In fact, Corey & I got our Calphalon pots & pans from an outlet shop in Colorado on our honeymoon.
# 3: Nine West
The most comfortable dressy shoes I have came from Nine West in Allen, TX. I <3 them. Since our new closet will have 6 shelves to fill up with shoes, I better get on it!
# 2: Coach
Enough said.
And my FAVORITE outlet store EVER is..........
I love their shoes, clothes, swim suits, purses, jewelry, sunglasses, absolutely everything. I would never spend the money that they try to charge in places like Dillard's & Macy's (same w/ Coach), but the prices in their outlet stores simply cannot be beat. I heart them. Sometime between September 2 & November 5, I will be dropping a large sum of moolah into this store. :)Not to worry, though. Corey will spend his time in Levi's getting some jeans I'm sure; and in Bose listening to the sound system we won't be able to afford b/c of my spending sprees in Guess & Coach. I'm just glad we don't have to make a 3 hour drive to Allen, TX to go to an outlet mall! I'm happy to support the Oklahoma economy! Woo hoo! Now let's go shopping! Oh, wait.....we have a house to close on first. Darn it.
Currently, our backyard looks like a red clay desert. It's a pretty good size, too. But my favorite part is that it's a blank palette; it has so much potential. It is definitely big enough for an in-ground pool later on, and I mean WAY later on, but I feel like I need to draw up a blueprint now; figure out what I want to do with the rest of the space. That way it will all fit right together about 10 or 15 years from now :)
Here's basically what we have to work with (I'm standing in the yard taking the picture, so it doesn't reflect the entire space)
If you have any ideas you would like to share, just leave them in the comments! I'm sure I'll be looking for some when next spring gets a little closer :)
Here's basically what we have to work with (I'm standing in the yard taking the picture, so it doesn't reflect the entire space)
And here are some ideas that will probably never come to fruition, but you never know :)
Today, I thought it would be fun to tell you about a few of our favorite things, along with some interesting factoids about us that you may or may not have known. :) Let's get started!
Fresh bread & an awesome spice/herb/oil mixture for dipping; artichoke spinach dip; salad with the most amazing ranch dressing I've ever had; chicken alfredo lasagna; spinach artichoke pizza; spicy chicken fettucini; chicken canneloni; manicotti; tomato florentine soup; the OREO MOUNTAIN. Excuse me while I go run 3 miles to prepare for our next date night here, which is in T-minus 1 day :)
My favorite fantasy vacation destination: TAHITI! It seems to be in its own little world; maybe not equipped with the most advanced of technologies, yet it offers so much more. Perfect weather year-round, stunning views of hills/mountains & the ocean, overwater bungalows, cocktails on the beach: what more could you ask for? Well...if you ask Corey.....
Apparently, my sweet husband likes blizzards and subzero temperatures better because he would rather vacation some place like Alaska. Boo.
Apparently, my sweet husband likes blizzards and subzero temperatures better because he would rather vacation some place like Alaska. Boo.
Give me this 30-day streak of 100 degree heat anyday over the ridiculous snow & ice. I am just not a fan of having to wear 5 layers of clothes to walk out and get the mail. Besides...I can't have a tiny sports car and drive around in that mess. Corey, on the other hand, likes the cold climates better because it gives him an excuse to do donuts in his 4x4 truck in a Sam's parking lot until it gets stuck and he has to have help digging himself out (remember this Jonathan?)
We do, however, agree on our favorite date night restaurant (which we can be seen stuffing our faces at any given day of any given week): ZIO'S!
Fresh bread & an awesome spice/herb/oil mixture for dipping; artichoke spinach dip; salad with the most amazing ranch dressing I've ever had; chicken alfredo lasagna; spinach artichoke pizza; spicy chicken fettucini; chicken canneloni; manicotti; tomato florentine soup; the OREO MOUNTAIN. Excuse me while I go run 3 miles to prepare for our next date night here, which is in T-minus 1 day :)
Here are some of my personal favorite recipes that I promised:
This chocolate chip cookie recipe was recently published in the OEC News magazine, which reaches over 40,000 people (You can read the story that goes along with it here: http://www.okcoop.org/community/archive/2011/June.pdf, scroll down to page 11).
Dad's Chocolate Chip Cookies
This chocolate chip cookie recipe was recently published in the OEC News magazine, which reaches over 40,000 people (You can read the story that goes along with it here: http://www.okcoop.org/community/archive/2011/June.pdf, scroll down to page 11).
Dad's Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 C. Sugar
- 1 C. Brown sugar
- 2/3 C. Butter (softened)
- 2/3 C. Shortening
- 2 Tsp. Vanilla extract
- 2 Eggs
- 1 Tsp. Baking soda
- 1 Tsp. Salt
- 3 C. Flour
- 2 C. Chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In large mixing bowl, combine sugar, brown sugar, butter, shortening, eggs & vanilla extract. Mis for 3-4 min. until all ingredients are blended well. Add salt & baking soda. Slowly add flour. Continue to mix for another 3-4 min. Stir in chocolate chips. Form dough into 1 to 1 1/2 in. rounds and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8-9 min. Let cool & store in air-tight container
The following cake has won first place in a dessert contest at work. Keep in mind I work with several ladies whose passions are baking (one even has 2 published cookbooks!). My grandma gave this recipe to me out of a Paula Deen magazine. It's easy to change up too, if you like different candy bars. With that being said, here is the :
Butterfinger Cake
Ingredients:
- 1 box Devil's Food cake mix (and ingredients for it)
- 1 jar Caramel topping
- 1 can Sweetened condensed milk
- 1 large tub Cool Whip
- 6 Butterfinger bars, crushed
Prepare cake according to package directions. Let cool. Once it has reached room temperature, poke several holes all over the top of the cake with the end of a wooden spoon. Mix sweetened condensed milk & caramel together and pour over the cake, making sure it reaches all of the holes. Add 3 crushed Butterfinger bars to the top. Chill well. After cake has chilled completely, spread cool whip over the top & sprinkle crushed Butterfinger bar on top of the cool whip. Voila!
This also works well if you replace the caramel topping with warm peanut butter and replace the Butterfinger with crumbled Reese's. :)
Lastly...
Country Apple Dumplings made with Mountain Dew
Ingredients:
- 2 large Granny Smith apples, peeled & cored
- 2 (10 oz.) cans refrigerated crescent roll dough
- 1 C. Butter (2 sticks)
- 1 1/2 C. white sugar
- 1 Tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 Tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 (12 oz) can or bottle of Mountain Dew
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. Cut each apple into 8 wedges & set aside. Separate crescent roll dough into triangles. Roll each apple wedge in crescent roll dough, starting at the largest end. Pinch to seal & place in baking dish. Melt butter in saucepan & stir in sugar, cinnamon & vanilla. Once thickened, pour over dumplings. Pour Mountain Dew over dumplings. Bake 35 to 45 min. or until golden brown.
My awesome co-worker Patti Rogers introduced me to these dumplings and they are to die for! Super easy to make, too.
I'll leave you with some more of our favorite things. Till next time <3!
Okay, so maybe those are just some of my favorites. :)
Here are some of Corey's:
