thoughts for thursday...

First of all, Blogger is giving me a lot of grief today, so this will not be my prettiest post ever...please forgive.

And moving on...I love Jennifer Aniston. Always have, always will. According to her hair and the Today show (my primary source for health and beauty tips...and news for that matter) the "shag" is back in. This brings me great joy because I HATE blow-drying my hair! Especially in the summertime. Unfortunately, my hair is kinda crazy, so my shag is more of a frizzy wave, but whatever. It's getting longer, so maybe it'll look cuter the longer it gets! :)



Have y'all ever used Mario Badescu skin care products? I picked up this drying lotion the other day, and it's wonderful! Literally dries those nasty spots up over-night...or maybe over two nights! I also got a gentle exfoliate, and I'm loving it too! Even better, it's almond and honey scented...mmm.



Good news - I'm finally back on the work-out wagon! I've been going to a step-aerobics type class with my mom, and I'm loving it! I love having someone to go with because it keeps me accountable. I'm planning on mixing in some Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred in the near future...ouch. Wish me luck...homegirl is TOUGH.



BUT I gotta keep with it because swimsuit season is quickly approaching! I certainly don't want to be a blubber booty if we happen to go on vacation...




Ahhh, a girl can DREAM...



Hopefully Blogger will go back to normal soon, so I can post some pictures and recipes I've been wanting to share.

All images via Google Images; I couldn't insert a hyper-link either...shocking.



Happy Thursday!!!

Remember when it was Valentine's Day...

Last weekend, my mom & her bestie decided to host a Valentine party for some of their favorite couples...AKA their kids & their spouses!

We were told to dress up & get ready for some fun! So that's exactly what we did.

KB & Nicole even came to celebrate :)

My sweet parents...you like my dad's tux/t-shirt combo? Classic!

We started with a little "cocktail hour"...

And an appetizer of chocolate covered strawberries...what Valentine party is complete without those? None, I tell you.

Mom & Lisa decorated everything so sweetly for us love-birds. Here's the "parents" table...

And the "kids" table...

The besties even doubled as our servers! Natalie was a server too, but she was way too busy socializing with her favorite Valentines for pictures!

We were only missing one couple...Austin & Connie. The night would have been perfect if they could have been there, but Galveston isn't exactly a quick weekend trip away from Abilene. Especially when you're in Med School...apparently they keep those MD's-in-training pretty busy!

The dinner was DELISH, but the company was even better! A BIG "thank you" to the Lisas for making us feel special & loved every day of the year! We are blessed beyond measure to have such wonderful parents!

<3<3<3<3<3

Rob & I don't really go all out for Valentine's Day anymore, so we kept things low key this year & just had an in-house date. I made my (our) favorite salad...

Spring lettuce mix, goat cheese, dried cranberries & candied pecans.

We also had homemade gluten free lasagna...

YUMMY!

Rob was sweet & brought me roses, we exchanged cards & topped the night off with a movie! It definitely wasn't extravagant or anything, but I wouldn't have it any other way. There's nothing I enjoy more than just simply spending time with the one I love!

Tuesday shopping...

When I got off work this afternoon, it was about 80 degrees, so I was wanting to get out and enjoy it....and what better way to do that than a little shopping?

I might have a problem.

First I went to Michael's in search of cute cupcake topper supplies, but I got seriously distracted by the dollar aisle. I got those orange reusable gift bags and tags...which, of course, made me think of a certain boy mom blogger! I also got the "G" notecards because I always need them for "thank-yous" and "thinking-of-yous."

Michael's also got me thinking about a friend of mine who has had a rough few days, so I decided I'd try to lift her spirits a little! Not tooting my own horn here, just wanted to show how easy {and inexpensive} it can be to brighten someone's day. Hope she loves her little goodie pail of happiness!

Then I went to Ross. Always a dangerous place in the kitchen department for me. This little green trivet jumped out at me and said "LEXI!," so I got it for her. SURPRISE, bestie! Hope you like it :) I got one for myself too...because besties always have to match, right?

Also at Ross...this crystal decanter set with glasses. Rob has been wanting one of these since he first saw it at a friend's house, so I decided to get it for him since it was a whopping $9.99! Happy belated lover's day, Bobert!

Who can resist 50% off Valentine candy? Not me.

So PCOS {ugh} has left me with some unwanted, blonde peach fuzz on my jaw line {TMI?}, so when I saw the Smooth Away at Target, I decided I'd give it ago. I reaaaaally didn't want to wax, so I figured I'd gamble the $4 and try it. I'm happy to announce that it actually worked! YAY! Fuzz be gone.

Ulta has an awesome bonus going on right now, so I stopped by there as well. I bought the 2 nail-polishes and eyeliner on the left {spent $18} and got everything to the right for free! Yippee! A cute bag, 2 brush sets, compact, lipstick, polish, blush, 2 quad-eyeshadows, lip gloss duo, 2 eyeliner duos and mascara. Can't beat that.

All in all, I'd say Tuesday shopping was a great success, but it's a good thing this doesn't happen every Tuesday ;)

Love, Love.

weekend ramblings.

We had another fabulous weekend that I'll share soon! My brother and his new wife came in town, and we had a great time with them...as always. I just love being with my family!

*****

With the help of my parents, Rob and I got our other house ready for closing today. We decided to save ourselves some bucks and do some of the repairs that needed to be done ourselves, so we spent the afternoon working. I didn't mind it, though...the weather was perfect and the company was great! We close on it later this week, and I am so relieved it is sold, but I will miss that sweet little house. We have a lot of memories there.

Isn't it adorable?

I got my first pair of Tom's for Christmas last year, and I have been wearing them pretty much none stop since then. I know they aren't the cutest shoes ever, but they are SO comfy, and I love that they go for a good cause. Well, I've decided that I need another pair to give my others a rest every now and then. I want these babies so bad, but they're out of my size! AHHH! Is there anywhere else I can order them??

Did y'all watch the Grammy's tonight? Rob and I had a little movie date, (I now want to go to heaven the beach because we watched Couples Retreat) so I didn't watch, but I got all the updates on Twitter and was sure to Google the best and worst dressed. People really blow me away with the things they wear. When you have that much dinero (and fashion advising) how could you not look fab? I don't get it. Also, did Christina Aguilera seriously fall? Poor girl has had a rough week!

*****

Are y'all celebrating the day of love tomorrow??

We'll be celebrating, but things are pretty low key now that we're old married folks. Waiting in a restaurant for 3 hours and buying each other over priced candy has seriously lost it's appeal over the years. Don't get me wrong, I'm not one of these bitter-Valentine-haters...I still have pink and red sprinkled throughout our house for the occasion! :)

*****

It's about time to lie my tired head, but I'll be back with updates soon!

Happy Heart Day, my little bloggy Valentines!

XOXOXO

a cozy recipe!

On our first snow day, I made this "Southwest Chicken"....or at least that's what I'm calling it because I can't think of anything better to call it. It turned out pretty tasty if I do say so myself, and it was SO EASY! Doesn't get any better than that!

Southwest Chicken

1 package (1-2 lbs) frozen chicken (rinsed)

1 16 oz. jar of your favorite salsa

1 can of corn (drained)

1 can of black beans (drained & rinsed)

1/3 cup tequila (optional)

juice of 2 limes

Place the frozen chicken in your slow cooker and top with the jar of salsa. Fill the salsa jar just under half way with water and shake to get all of the salsa, pour that over the chicken as well. Set your slow cooker on low, and let it cook for about 4 hours.

After 4 hours, add in the remainder of the ingredients and stir together. Cook on low for about 4 hours longer. When the chicken is cooked through, shred it with 2 forks. Mix the chicken back in, and add more water/salsa/broth if you need additional moisture.

We put ours in corn tortillas and topped with sour cream and cheese, but this would be great in enchiladas or a mexican casserole type thing too!

Variations:

I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but you could use whatever you have on hand...thighs, bone-in breasts....whatever! I would recommend removing any skin though.

Your chicken doesn't have to be frozen...just cut the time in half it is thawed. You could also cook this on high for about half the time, but I like to set it in the morning and let it cook all day. Smells divine.

Our salsa was pretty flavorful, (On the Border, yum!) so I didn't need to add any salt, pepper, or additional seasonings, but you may decide you want to!

I had some tequila on hand, so I added it, but you don't have to. It just adds a little zip to the chicken.

We are having a little Super Bowl shindig at our house, so I need to figure out what to make! Do y'all have any good appetizer recommendations for me?? I'd love to hear from you :)

getting there!

As promised, here's a little update on our house progress!

The front living room...still have some wall space to fill, but it's coming along...

I love our new tripod lamp from World Market and the armoire is from my parents' house! We are going to replace those footstools with a coffee table at some point...

And now I want new throw pillows. They're too bright and don't really go with the rest of the room.

I put together this little project yesterday! I need to move the E up just a hair, but just pretend, okay? ;-) I'm happy with the way it turned out, though. It's an inexpensive way to fill up a large wall...thank you 50% off Hobby Lobby sales!

Here's the dining room...obviously. I was worried about our tall table fitting under the low chandelier, but it looks pretty good!

I love this little hutch! Full of dishes my parents' gifted us with when I got the "Jackson" house.

And this case holds my grandmother's china. So sentimental.

There's a tricky corner in our kitchen with no cabinets or anything. It's not quite big enough for a little breakfast table, and that would look funny to me anyway because of the island/bar. Anyway, my brother had a desk in his apartment that he and Nicole weren't going to use in their house, so I put dibs on it! It fits so perfectly in the corner. I got that cute cork board at Home Goods (that places is AMAZING), and I need to hang the little key holder on the desk underneath it.

I may decide to paint the desk in the future, but for now, I have enough projects on my hands!

Moving right along...

Here's the hall bathroom (AKA my bathroom)

Can I just tell you how difficult it is to find a long shower curtain? Good grief. I ended up having to order that one because I couldn't find a single curtain in Abilene longer than 75 inches. I needed one that was about 86. It's nothing fancy, but it works!

I need to figure out what else to put in these little shelves.

And frames to fill, oy.

I'll keep the pictures coming as we get more done around here! As you can see, we've got a ways to go, but it's definitely feeling more "homey" every day :)

Snowy Days...

Rob started getting a little antsy in the house yesterday, so we decided to walk down to the Roan's house for some human interaction. We got all bundled up and ventured out into the 15 degree weather! Brrrr....

Don't worry, they live less than a mile away...it was a short walk!

Rob and Aaron decided they wanted to built a snowman, but the snow was really powdery and dry, so it didn't work out too well for them. Don't worry, they're going to try again tomorrow! Yep, that's right...snow day number THREE tomorrow! I don't think that the restaurant I work for has ever been closed for 3 days straight...craziness!

We walked back home that afternoon to get things ready for a little slumber party. Aaron, Keathley, Mike, Lexi & Wes all came over to hang out, eat dinner and play games. The Roans walked back home that night, but everyone else spent the night...we felt like a bunch of kids!

There was even dancing...

And the boys made snow cream...

We hung out around the house this morning and just watched movies. Everyone went home after lunch time, and we decided we should check on our old house just to make sure everything was okay. Well, we got out on the road, and it was BAD. Rob's truck isn't 4WD, so we did not feel safe to drive all that way, so we went to see his grandparents instead. They only live about a mile away, and it took about 10 minutes to get there. After we got home, we decided that we'll just stay here until the roads thaw out! Walking only for us :)

I've never seen such huge icicles here!

I've gotten some things done around here, so I'll be posting house updates soon. I've also been doing some cooking! Yesterday I made Southwest Chicken in the slow cooker...at Lexi's request, I'll have that recipe coming soon too. This morning I made baked apple cinnamon oatmeal, and I made chili for frito pies this evening. Yum, I love some good comfort food!

Being cooped up isn't all that bad to me :) I certainly don't mind hanging out with Rob and drinking cider all day!

Hope you all are cozy!

Be back soon.