Rainy Weekend

What a rainy weekend we had!  Like, it rained every second of the day on both Saturday and Sunday.  No fun with a 2.5 year old, but we made the best of it and got some things done around the house.  Lots of lounging this weekend :)

I had a mani and pedi Friday after work, bought some new running shoes (my first pair of Brooks!), and had girls night at my fav Mexican restaurant (thanks to the hubs for my night off) :)

Saturday I hit up Lululemon for their free Saturday community class (who can say no to a free Barre class) and cute workout gear!
 

We took a family trip to Kroger for our weekly shopping and then went to Pet Smart for some free entertainment. Hadley LOVES seeing all the animals, especially the kitty cats this weekend.

Saturday night we had date night and Brandon wouldn't tell me where we were going. I thought I had it figured out, but I was wrong. We ended up at Northshore Brasserie, and it was amazing!  We had a really fun time and completely stuffed ourselves :) 

Sunday we went to church and did a bazillion loads of laundry. I also did some spring cleaning and listed some things on eBay. Out with the old, in with the new.

What's on the menu this week?

 

Spinach Berry Salad (spinach, strawberries, blueberries, toasted almonds, feta, grilled chicken, raspberry vinaigrette).

Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (Skinnytaste.com)

Slow Cooker Vegetable Soup

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia with quinoa and roasted broccoli

 

 

Breakfast on Friday night - Pancakes and Omelets

 

 

Here is a sweet little clip of Hadley waking up this past weekend....love her!

 

 

 

Happy Monday all!!

Spring has sprung

We are loving seeing all the flowers in bloom at our casa this month - we didn't move in until mid-May last year so it's very exciting seeing this all for the first time!

 

 

Our veggie/herb garden is coming right along, somethings are already sprouting.  We had to put a fence around it because we noticed a little critter had already dug a few things out!

I told Brandon last week I had noticed a bird hanging out in the door bucket on the front door.  He looked in there on Sunday and found this nest, filled with eggs....

 

 

Saturday din din at Chuy's!

 

 

Push Pop lover

A couple new recipes

 Here are a couple new favorites, both from Skinnytaste.com. 

Fiesta Bean Salad

via Skinnytaste.com

Ingredients

 

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 tbsp fresh lime juice

1 tbsp extra virgin olive

1 tsp cumin

pinch crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon salt

15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

1/4 cup minced red onion, finely diced

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

1 medium avocado, diced

Directions
In a large bowl, combine the garlic, lime juice, oil, cumin, crushed red pepper, and salt.  Add the black beans, chickpeas, tomato, onion and cilantro; mix well. When ready to eat, gently mix in avocado and serve right away.

 

 

 

Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps

via Skinnytaste.com

Ingredients

 

8 oz skinless, boneless chicken thighs, ground (I used ground chicken breast)

1/4 cup water chestnuts, chopped fine

1/4 cup dried shiitake mushrooms (I omitted this, didn't have)

1 tbsp soy sauce (I used gluten free)

1/4 tsp dark soy sauce

1/2 tsp oyster sauce

1 1/2 tsp sesame oil

1 tbsp rice wine or dry sherry

1⁄2 tsp sugar

freshly ground white pepper, to taste

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

6 iceberg lettuce leaves, rinsed

2 tbsp diced scallions

For the Spicy Hoisin Dipping Sauces

 

4 tbsp hoisin sauce
1/2 tsp chili sauce (I used Sriracha)
1 tbsp warm water

Directions
Place mushrooms in hot water to soften a few minutes. Remove stems and chop fine (I didn't add this ingredient).  Combine soy sauces, oyster sauce, 1/2 tsp sesame oil, rice wine, sugar, and pepper in a bowl.

Combine ground chicken, softened mushrooms and water chestnuts into a bowl. Pour over chicken; toss. Let marinate for 15 minutes.

Mix Spicy Hoisin Dipping Sauce ingredients in another bowl. Set aside.

Heat remaining sesame oil in a wok or skillet over high heat. Add garlic; cook until golden, about 10 seconds. Add chicken mixture; stir fry until browned, breaking the chicken up as it cooks, about 4-5 minutes.

To serve, spoon1/4 cup of the chicken into each lettuce leaf. Garnish with scallions and a spoon a little Spicy Hoisin Dipping Sauce onto each one.  I also served mine with brown rice on the side. 

Boston

I am still in shock and so deeply saddened about the tragedy that perspired at the Boston Marathon.  Having just been a part of such a joyful and uplifting half marathon this month, I can't understand why anyone would do such a thing. 

I was having a 'bad day' yesterday...case of the Mondays and typical work related stuff.  After hearing the news about Boston yesterday, I felt guilty about my 'fake' problems. I sat and prayed for all the innocent victims, their families, the first responders, and for all those involved.  Such a senseless and cruel act of violence that I just cannot comprehend.  I don't understand why things like this happen. 

This morning I was reading my daily devotional and it reminded me that God is in control and He has a purpose for everything...

 

Today I will be thankful and live by faith.  Today I will pray for Boston.

Master's Weekend

We had a super fun weekend...I'm sad it's over.  We had dinner with my dad and stepmom who were in town for the weekend on Friday night.  Complete with banana pudding which Hadley loved! 

Saturday we had a little Master's get-together at our house, complete with spiked Arnold Palmers for the big kids and green jello with pineapple for the kiddies. I made a banana pudding poke cake I found on Pinterest - it was so, so good!  I didn't take very many pictures but here are a few....

Prepping
 

Mmmm



Cruisin'

How do you get 5 kids to look at the camera at the same time? I don't know either!
 

Riley getting some love from Aiden!



Adam Scott = Easy on the eyes

Party menu:  Buffalo Chicken Dip and Carrots/Roasted Red Pepper Hummus for apps, BBQ Pork and BBQ chicken sandwiches, Hot dogs, Garden Pasta Salad with Feta, Fruit Salad with Honey Lime Dressing, Chips, and Banana Poke Cake.

My sister was also in town and we had lunch with her and my mom on Sunday afternoon. I way over cooked for the party on Saturday - love me some leftovers!

We got Hadley this awesome Radio Flyer Steer & Stroll Trike - I'm so thankful Brandon is good at putting things together :)  You can remove the handle when she gets better at steering. She looks so stinking cute on this!

I'm still recovering from running the half marathon weekend...my poor right foot and right knee.  I did find out last week I have a hallux abducto valgus deformity (a bunion - I know, ewww), likely worsened by wearing high heels/pointy toes and running. So I thought some Tory Burch sandals were in order :) I lurve them!  It's literally been killing me not to be able to run. Hopefully this week!

A lot of people have asked me about my Green Monster recipe so I thought I would share my recipe...It does not taste healthy at all! :)

2 cups fresh spinach

½ cup unsweetened almond milk
½ cup pineapple juice
1 frozen banana
Fruit (I buy the frozen fruit in the freezer section and add any other random fresh fruit I have on hand)

If you want to get fancy you can add...

A little bit of almond butter (or peanut butter) - a little goes a long way, or

Some ground flax seed (for the fiber and omega-3s)

Just throw it all in the blender until smooth. The frozen banana and frozen fruit give it the perfect smoothie consistency (no ice needed). Enjoy!


Have a great week friends!

Half Marathon Weekend

Half Marathon weekend finally arrived this past weekend....we had the most amazing weather the entire weekend, and we soaked up as much sunshine and fun as we could!

Saturday we went to the park and planted in our little acre garden (finally!).  Hadley loved playing in the dirt. She cried when we were finished planting our seeds because she wanted her vegetables - tried to explain in will be a couple months before we can eat them :) We planted squash, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers, green onion, beans, cucumbers, cilantro, basil, and carrots. I am excited to see what actually grows as I don't have the greenest thumb.

We went to Mellow Mushroom for some carb-loading with friends that were running the half on Saturday evening....Sophie and Hadley go to Nanny's together and Hadley was beyond excited for this dinner ALL week.  She must have asked me 6,000 times on Friday and Saturday when we were going to go to dinner with Sophie :)

Sunday was race day!  Here are a few pics of the race!  Brandon and I ran together and finished the half in 1:57 (8:57/mile).  My goal was 2 hours so I was so excited I finished with 3 minutes to spare!  I finished 169/1344 females and 547/2433 overall.  It was the most amazing experience, running with so many people and accomplishing my goal...we finished on the 50 yard line at Neyland Stadium which was awesome...I was overcome with emotion running into the stadium.  I am so glad I did it and can't wait for the next! 



Knoxville News Sentinel pic

Before!



Look at all the TVA runners! (my husband's work)

After!

 

We had a birthday party Sunday afternoon and then went out for Mexican afterwards...such a fun, fun weekend!  Only 4.5 more days till the weekend!

Easter Weekend

We had such a fun Easter weekend, full of egg dying, easter bucket treats, a birthday party, a wonderful Easter service, delicious lunch with Brandon's family, and topped off by an unexpected date night on Sunday (Hadley spent last night at the Skeen's house)...I was not very good about getting pics this weekend, but here are a few from home...

I am excited for this week! Spring temps, a mid-week sushi date night at Nama, gearing up for our half marathon on Sunday morning, and planning for our Masters party the following weekend.

On the menu this week...Skinny Stuffed Pepper Soup, Crockpot Chicken Fajitas, and Skinny Spinach Lasagna Rolls.  YUM!

Have a great week friends!