Fish River Time

I arrived back at work this week after having a nice four day weekend. Jonathan and I needed a break from central Alabama and decided to head to the Gulf Coast before football season started. We thought we would head to the beach and get a steal on a condo, but those thoughts ceased quickly as we started to realize many places were not discounting prices. I thought there would be tremendous deals, but none that worked within our budget.

Luckily for us Jonathan’s parents have a beautiful place on the water and we decided to pay them a visit. We haven’t been there since Easter and after a few discussions it was a no-brainer… we were going to see them!

We arrived late Wednesday evening and awoke the next day well rested, with gorgeous sunshine, house full of food, and family to keep us company. I laid on the pier all day reading while Jonathan threw the bumper to Dax in the water. You seriously would not find a dog who liked to swim more than our dog! This is an old one where actually able to get him to rest on the raft!

Friday was a different day. Jonathan and his dad went to play golf and I had an appointment to go to the spa at the Grand Hotel. If you have never been or seen this gorgeous hotel and resort I suggest you check it out here. After the boys were done with golf, the hubs and I met for lunch and an afternoon by the pool. I borrowed this image from Lake Wood’s website, because all the images I took could not capture this brand new pool. It has a lazy river, water fountain, three loop slide, and lake that backs up to the pool. There are views from every angle here and I wish I could have rested under the umbrella all weekend.

We spent the rest of the weekend spending time with family on Fish River, good food, and tons of laughs. I did spend a few hours with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law picking out (and actually buying) fabric. I will show them to you eventually, but I think I am going to wait until they are finished. All in all I am so glad we went and look forward to taking it easy this weekend before football season and hot tailgates begin. Goodness knows that will have us travelling to Auburn every weekend very soon!

Oh, I and I almost forogt! Dax said he's beat and no one is to disturb him until Thursday! I don't think he got out of the water on Saturday except to go to the restroom. (so thoughtful of him) Anyways, he sends his best from the bed.

Guest Bathroom

It's been a pretty boring week/weekend around here. Saturday evening was the highlight of our night when the hubs and I broke free to go hear a band play with a few of our friends. Needless to say we both had to take a nap that afternoon to "prepare" ourselves but we had a great time just the same. It was nice getting out, but I found myself totally preplexed when we arrived at the bar. I was looking around at all the people and kept asking Jonathan, "are these kids really allowed to be here?" His response was, "yes dear, 21 stays the same and we are always getting older." SO TRUE!!

I spent some time today catching up on all your blogs and daily happenings. I have felt pretty out of the loop lately (please forgive me). I came across Julianne's bathroom makeover and I had to leave a shout out for her. She and her hubby are a lot like me and Jonathan. They are setting up house and have been married about the same time. I just love the guest bathroom makeover she did on a budget!

It got me thinking about our own guest bathroom (pictured above) and makes me want to get cracking soon. Budget I can handle, but can I handle me? Sometimes I get really indecisive when it comes to picking things out. I can't make up my mind and this is when the procrastination steps in. Hopefully some of these before and after images will get me moving.

Before...

 After...

Before...

After... 

Before...

After... 

Before... 

After... 

Before... 

After... 

In order; 1:Apt Therapy, 2:HouseCalls, 3:DesignSponge, 4,5: dyinetwork

Always a Battle

So I have always tried to watch what I eat. Sometimes I "watch" the bad food go straight from my plate and into my mounth. I think for the most part women do this more frequently than men, but I could be wrong. Most women I know are constantly aware of their weight, figure, picture comparisons, etc. It only gets harder from here I am sure, and as I approach 26 it is certainly not getting any easier.

Nearly two weeks ago the hubs and I decided to start eating healthy and light meals. We have baked and grilled chicken and/or fish every night for dinner. We have also added salads, steamed veggies, sauteed spinach.. you name it we are trying it. So far Jonathan has lost 6 pounds and me zero!

It sort of reminds me of the commercials for Slimquick (or something like that) when the woman says they stop drinking cokes and the husband drops 10 pounds and she loses 1 pound. OR they give up bread and he melts away and she loses 3 pounds. hahaha! I am not trying to lose a drastic amount by any means, but we need to be healthier. Some of the things we were putting into our mouths are down right terrible and soooo unhealthy. Please know I am really happy for my husband and his efforts, but it's hard to not be a little bitter. Is this just me being an ugly jealous person?

Since this is week 2 and I am open to any really healthy recipes you can suggest or post. I want to cook healthy without having to sacrifice flavor. Any other tips for cutting down the fat, calories, and bad carbs?
 

Delightful Finds

Glad to be back online! Crazy how being that disconnected from the online community would have you thinking you were missing your shirt or something. Well, maybe not that bad, but I felt as if I was going to burst if our internet wasn't up soon. I have a few photos I wanted to share with you from the past couple of days.

I get really annoyed when doing laundry. Jonathan is great because he folds (says I don't fold t-shirts the right way) and I iron and wash. I figured if I spent so much time running in and out of here that I might as well add a few things to spruce it up.

It doesn't seem like much but having cute baskets (catch all traps) and a laundry sign just makes me happy. It's still a chore, but making it pretty makes me feel better.

After taking on the laundry room I started mixing things up around the house. These three apothecary bottles belonged to Jonathan's grandparents and I love how the morning light adds a spark of color to our kitchen table. Don't they just pop?

Last but not least I spent $10 at Ross on this awesome horse! I LOVE stark white accessories and when I saw it I debated for 10 mintes on whether or not to buy it. I decided against it. Do you have those purchases that you always wish you would have picked up and didn't? Well it was meant to be because when I went back the next day they still had it! Jonathan asked, "what are we going to do with THAT?" I had to tell him awesome it is and that it's going in our guest room. Typical husband comment could not rain on this parade, because I showed it to everyone at work before taking it home. They agreed, it was awesome.

These black frames will go on the wall one of these days, but the horse will keep them company until then.

On a funny note, my mom sent me this You Tube Video. I normally don't post stuff like this, but it was too cute. I gotta give some props to the Swagger Wagon and excellent marketing strategy from Toyota, because this is a work of art.

Enjoy!

Gonna be alright

Hey sweet bloggers! I have so much to post about, but unfortunately Team Nelson is having technical difficulties. Our internet has been down for almost a week! We have made numerous phone calls with our local cable company and one unsuccessful visit. It is so frustrating for me and there comes a point when the cable people don't get to speak to the "nice one" (me) and they get to speak with the "not-so-nice one" (hubby dearest). I have to admit that I love it when he takes over and deals with their excuses and shinanigans. Please tell this has happened to you? I feel completely disconnected from my favorite blogs and posting. I have a lot to share from last weekend and will probably have an extremely long post the next time.

On a happy note, I have some picutres I want to share with you. I have window treatments on my mind and have been looking for inspirations all over the web and past issues of Domino (oh, how I miss you). I wanted to share a few of these beauties and hope y'all enjoy them too. If you have any inspiring posts or websites to suggest feel free to comment away.

(image 1Coastal Living, 2-6 Domino)
Until next time,

My Planner

I have always had a day planner. I am a product of an engineer father and super-organized mother. Growing up my parents created calendar cupboards lined up with their four children's activities. Each child had the inside of a kitchen cabinet door. If you opened it up to get a bowl or a plate you may find my cheerleading and soccer schedule. Oh, you want a coffee cup? You will also find Thomas' karate, cross country, and boy scout agenda's taped to the inside of the next door.

I was given my first planner when I turned 16. It was an olive green sport planner from Franklin Covey. I suppose my dad figured with me driving 45 minutes to school and such a busy schedule that I would need to keep track of my own stuff. Maybe he was hoping to lighten his own load, but it certainly worked for me...
because I have owned one ever since.

I am going to call out "nerd alert" because I love writing in my planner. (And yes, I sometimes will write things I have already done, just to cross it off and feel accomplished.) I love ordering new inserts every year and getting to pick out which ones will get me motivated for the upcoming calendar year. I get super excited when they come in the mail and getting to write everything out fresh. New birthdays in their appropriate months, updating the addresses, adding football schedules, trips planned, etc. New inserts sort of feels like a new start. It's a clean slate full of possibilities perhaps?

I am on my second binder, which is still from Franklin Covey. (The first one was so great, why mess up a good thing?) This one is the same "classic" size, but is red and looks like crocodile skin. It's pretty big and houses way more than I'd like to admit. I do not have the day-by day inserts, but have traded it out to a week at a glance... found here.

I suppose we all have our quirks and things that keep us put together. I even think a person who seems unorganized probably has a way of managing their mess, which I like to refer to as "controlled chaos". You know those people who have everything thrown about and if you move one thing it actually messes up their way of being "organized"? Hahaha I guess organization is in the eye of the beholder. What is your quirk and how do you stay organized?

It will be a relaxing weekend at home and a possible laundry room makeover! Have a wonderful sunny weekend everyone!

Color me blue and give me some pie

Hey there! I had a great weekend, because Jonathan and I hosted a birthday surprise party for one of our friends. I didn't take any pictures, which is because I was running around my house getting drinks, cleaning up, visiting with friends, and serving tons of food. We had about 25 guests and it goes without saying we had a truckload of food (21 lbs of meat to be exact). I would like to point out that this would happen when you send two men in their late 20's to buy food for the party. Their (cute) way of thinking was averaging how many pounds of meat could be eaten per person? Seriously, I did not make this up...

On that note I would like for you to have a sweet Tuesday and check out this blueberry pie recipe. My mother-in-law makes this pie and I LOVE it!! It is a great summer pie because it is served cold and blueberries are in season.

~German Blueberry Pie~
2/3 cup sugar
1 pkg pecan sandies (minus 5 cookies for hungry husband)
1 stick butter (real)
1- 8oz cream cheese softened (full fat... sorry ladies)
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 pint fresh blueberries

In a large mixing bowl crumble pecan sandies & blend with enough melted butter to hold together (you may not use the entire stick because you still want a little bit of a crumble to the mixture).

Press into large pie pan. Add cream cheese and sugar into bowl and then add eggs one @ a time, mixing well. Next, add vanilla.

Pour into pie shell. Sprinkle blueberries over top & allow to sink into custard. Please note you will probably not use all the custard.

Bake 350* x 25 minutes until set. (I have to bake longer) Cool, chill several hours or overnight.

Say hello to helper number 1

Helper number 2 (right at my feet and he is hoping I will drop some food)

And voila! A pie perfect for summer! I hope you will love eating it and it's a great dish to serve for friends or family after a weekend dinner.

Until next time,