Brandon's Home!! {& Sandfest 2013}

Happy Monday, friends! Things are lookin' up around here! Brandon is finally finished with the classroom part of his work training, and after a total of ten weeks in Oklahoma {including our first two wedding anniversaries} and sixteen weeks in Dallas I'm SO thankful!

Now on to our weekend...

On Saturday we drove down to Port Aransas and spent the afternoon at Sandfest. The amount of time and attention to detail that was put into these sandcastles was impressive!

P.S. I'm thinking that one day when my dad retires we're going to find him on a beach building sandcastles, too. And Dad, from what I heard nationals is in Florida, so if you when you make it we'll come watch!

Friday {almost Saturday}'s Letters

{Mom and I, Our shopping day, Fresh tomatoes, My nine-pound BFF}

Dear Mom, I so enjoyed our shopping day last weekend. It was just what I needed! Dear anyone who's reading this, I'm convinced that there's no better form of therapy than a weekend of being spoiled by your parents! There's just something about getting cooked for, shopped for, and being sent home with a bag of goodies that makes you feel warm and cozy inside. Dear tomato plant, I have no idea how or why you are still growing, but I'm definitely not going to complain! The only problem is that I can't eat your tomatoes fast enough! Dear P, Thank you so much for keeping me company while B was gone. I am convinced that you are the cutest and sweetest and most lovable little dog in the whole world. Dear B, Right now you are driving home from Oklahoma for the last time. Thank. Goodness. I am so happy that all of this training is behind us! I feel like it's time we take a deep breath, relax, and enjoy life. One way or another we're going to make that happen! Dear Kayla and Diane, I can't wait to be reunited with you two next weekend! I already know it's going to go by way too fast. Maybe we should just not sleep Friday night so we can get the most out of our time together. Just kidding! Sort of. Dear readers, I'm considering taking part in a blog challenge I read about last week where I'd be committing myself to blogging every single day in the month of May. Hmmm... What do you think??

What better reason to celebrate?

A few weeks ago Brandon surprised me and made us dinner reservations at the Republic of Texas, a restaurant I've been wanting to go to ever since we moved here. It's at the top of the Omni hotel right on the water, and the view alone was amazing!

After we were seated that evening our waiter introduced himself and asked, "Are you two celebrating something special?"

As Brandon and I glanced at each other he smiled and said, "We're celebrating life!"

It was a perfect evening, and the food was delicious!

Thanks, B for sharing your pork chops that night 

and for always finding a reason to celebrate!

As Dory would say...

"Hey there, Mr. Grumpy Gills. When life gets you down do you wanna know what you've gotta do?

Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming. 

What do we do? We swim, swim, swim." 

-Dory, Finding Nemo

{via}

Hello, friends! Some of you know I've been feeling pretty down lately. The past few weeks have been tough, but with the love and support of my family and closest friends I'm pushing through. To those of you who have taken the time to listen or gone out of your way to make me smile, thank you. Your kindness means more than you know.

I'm going to do my best to start writing on a regular basis again. It's something I enjoy, and it helps me to focus on the happy things in life. I hope you'll stick with me as I get back into my routine!

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

You're Invited!

Today we're linking up for a surprise baby shower honoring my friend Tiffany! Congrats, Tiffany!!
You know how happy I am for you!

~~~

For the shower I made 'Baby' Bacon-Jalapeno Cheese Balls. Of course, the same recipe can be used to make one large cheese ball, but for this occasion I felt baby ones were appropriate! 

{I got the recipe from my mom, and she found it here.}

Ingredients:

6 slices of bacon

1/4 cup chopped pecans

8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 garlic clove, mined (I used garlic powder)

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1 pinch cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon lime juice

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

2 jalapenos (ribs and seeds removed), finely chopped

crackers for serving

Directions:

Fry bacon in large skillet over medium heat, until crispy. Allow bacon to cool, then crumble and divide in half.

Preheat oven to 350 F, then spread pecans on baking sheet and toast for 5-7 minutes.

In a medium bowl stir together cream cheese, cheddar cheese, parsley, garlic, cumin, cayenne, lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, half of chopped jalapenos and half of crumbled bacon until well combined.

On a plate stir together toasted pecans, remaining chopped jalapenos and remaining crumbled bacon until evenly distributed. 

Shape cream cheese mixture into baby cheese balls and roll in pecan mixture until evenly coated. (Cream cheese mixture will be sticky. It's easiest to shape if your hands are a little wet.)

Cover cheese balls and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

I hope you enjoy your shower, Tiffany! 

You're going to be an amazing mom, and I can't wait until we get to meet little Elliott!!

~~~

Below you can hop around and see all of the yummy treats made by the hostesses!