This weekend was so great. I spent a ton of time with my family. Sunday was the official family bbq and the weather cleared up towards the end of the evening which was lovely. I made a No Bake Peanut Butter Tart and it was super easy to make and was delicious. Mom made a sugar cookie flag and it was adorable. I spent a lot of time with Ben, Adam, and Rachel and we played beer pong (well I played with vodka). It was a lot of fun.





















And then on Monday we went to mom's friend's house for a bbq. They live right on the lake (and I'll be house sitting for them soon). They have a beautiful home and we all had a lot of fun.



Tonight I baked new treats for Mr. Scottie B. I made Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies. The recipe calls for all chocolate chips, but I did half white chocolate and half milk chocolate. Also the recipe says it makes 12-15 cookies, but I made them a little smaller and got a full two dozen. Mom tried one and said they were delicious, so they'll be in the mail tomorrow.



I have a little bit of laundry to do and TONS of packing before my trip to New York (we leave very early Thursday morning). I guess I better get it done. I'll of course be sure to take tons of photos of my trip and will keep my twitter updated with my adventures! Hope your Memorial Day was filled with joy and love!

Saturday.

I started my Saturday morning with Ethan! Rachel brought him by for the day. We walked over to Victor Allen to get a coffee. While we walked over Ethan spelled his name. I asked him "Ethan how old are you?" and he responded "3! I THINK!". It was so cute. He also tells him on his next birthday he will be 6, close enough. When we got back to the house we played with Lego.

Then Mom, Dad, Ben, Ethan, and I all got ready and headed to Brat Fest. The weather was a little overcast but thankfully not raining. We all had a brat (Mom and I had veggie brats). They tasted great and all the profits are donated to charity. We walked over to the rides and games. Uncle Ben took Ethan down the slide and Dad took him on the teacups. I'm not a fan of carnival rides, mostly I'm unsure how safe they are (since they put them up in like a day). I got my funnel cake and Ethan got an ice cream (reward for good behavior).

We came home and I made Ethan take a nap. I made some no-bake cookies (recipe post coming soon) while he slept. Rachel came to pick Ethan up but he was still sleeping. It was getting late and it was dinner time so Adam came over... then Ben, Courtney, and Lola followed. So it ended up being an impromptu family dinner. The sun came out for a bit and it was a lovely evening.

This morning Mom and I got up and went to church. We attend Black Hawk Church and love it. The music is always great and the message is always great. I signed up to start volunteering on Sundays and I'm really excited. Now we're home. We made some tuna melts for lunch. I'm going to run up to Target to pick up some last minute things for today.

Looks like I will be heading to see Mr. SB tomorrow for the day :)

Here are photos from yesterday

FDF

Good morning! It's Saturday morning and this is the first weekend in quite a while that I haven't been in Chicago. It's kind of strange. And yes that means I won't be seeing Mr. Scottie B. this weekend (or next weekend). But my Memorial Day weekend has started out wonderfully. Each Friday (as long as we are all in town) Mom, Dad, myself, and sometimes Ben do FDF. Also known as "Family Dinner Friday" (or you can replace that Family with Free, haha). We do our best to pick a different place each Friday to try something new around Madison. So last night Mom, Dad, Ben, Courtney, Lola, and I went to Monty's Blue Plate Diner! It's in the cutest neighborhood. They have TONS of vegan and vegetarian friendly items and the atmosphere is family friendly and so fun. The entire staff was friendly, including our server and the server who took a few photos for us. I ate the 'Sheldon' (tofu, tomatoes, & sauerkraut on rye) and some of the others had walnut burgers (so good) and potato zucchini pancakes. We share dessert, Banana Cream Pie and Apple Pie. Both desserts were to die for. Everything was delicious. We all gave the restaurant a thumbs up and say GO!

After dinner I headed down to Brat Fest to meet up with Adriana and friends. The weather was getting gloomy (and rainy). So we had one beer and then went to Coliseum Bar. I'm looking forward to actually walking around Brat Fest today. They have rides, brats, beer, fair food (funnel cake here I come), and concerts.

I'm watching Ethan today and I'm looking forward to spending time with him. It feels like forever since I've seen him. I'll be sure to take tons of photos. What's everyone doing for Memorial Day?

Cookies, a Movie, and Wine

Yesterday was gloomy and rainy out all day. When I got off work I went straight to the gym, which helps me to actually go. I ran three miles and did a Kettlebell workout. Which is one of my favorite workouts!

When I got home I was so excited to bake treats. I had been looking through cooking/baking blogs all day and felt to motivated. What I ended up making was Oatmeal Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies. Recipe found via Joy the Baker Blog. Her recipes are easy to follow and all of them look so amazing. With the recipe instead of using all milk chocolate chips, I did half white chocolate (because white chocolate is my favorite). Definitely take Joy's advice and cook them for about ten minutes (just the smallest bit underdone). I also recommend having a glass...or two of wine while baking. I haven't packed any up to send to Mr. Scottie B. yet, but I will be (he's a lucky boy).

After I got done baking I hung out with Ben and Courtney for a while. I wore this awesome vintage jumpsuit that's comfortable and an easy outfit. Everyone giggled at my outfit and told me I looked silly. But I love it!!! So then we headed to the movie theater and saw Hangover Part 2 at midnight. We were the first people in the theater and we had so much fun. Adrianna and Justin met up with us and as usual we all laughed a lot and we were louder than we should have been. The movie was SO funny, I enjoyed it.

I didn't go into work today (shhh). I spent the day cleaning, organizing, and doing laundry. I cleaned out my closet and got rid of a lot of things I wasn't wearing anymore. Feels good to have all my clothes clean and organized! YAY.

I spent the rest of my evening watching a few movies and being lazy. I snacked a lot today and didn't make it to the gym. But sometimes you just gotta have days like that :) (or at least I do).

Hope your day was great also!

On a Monday Afternoon

So far this week...
I had a great day at work yesterday! I got so much done and felt so productive. After I got off work I was planning on going to the gym, but the weather was so great I couldn't go bring myself to go inside.

So my momma and I went on a great walk with the pups. The border collie is Dallas (yes for the Dallas Cowboys). She never has to be on a leash and is turning into quite a grumpy old lady, haha. But she's such an awesome dog. Molly is the yellow lab. She's quite large and a little over a year old. She always has so much energy and just wants everyone to love her. She's so good with Ethan and will let him climb all over her (he mostly puts her in headlocks, its hilarious).

I wore one of my new dresses from the Vintage Bazaar and mom took photos of me so I could show it off. It's actually just the tiniest bit big. But I think I'll find a great belt to wear with it and I may take it in a little bit. It's the perfect summer dress, I'm stoked!





















The weather today was lovely (again). I had another great day at work (yay). I got back to the gym after being sick last week and it felt wonderful. I had an amazing work out. I made some dinner and now watching The Biggest Loser finale.

My goals for today was to get to the gym (check), clean out my closet (not tonight, dang), post to my blog (check :), and paint my nails (after I post this I will be). I feel good about what I got done today! What did you get accomplished today?

On a Sunday Afternoon...

After thinking that all week I would not be going to Chicago, I ended up there. I took the bus into the city (as usual). I met up Mr. Scottie B. and friends and we went to the White Sox game (vs. Dodgers). The Dodgers lost and I've officially decided that I am bad luck. The game was great. The weather was pretty nice and got a few free beers.

After the game we stopped at Starbucks to enjoy a coffee. We stop at Starbucks pretty often. Mr. Scottie B. and I really enjoy coffee and Starbucks normally has quality coffee.

We headed back downtown after the game and met up with Brooke (a lovely Navy Lady friend of Mr. SB's). We ate sushi (best idea ever) and Brooke climbed into a basket. It was fun. The boys then headed to Hubbard State Cigar and us girls went shopping. I decided to stay the night (which was not part of my original plan) and go to church in the morning with Mr. Scottie B. But I did not have anything to wear, so I had to buy a dress ;)

After trying on a million dresses I found one. We all met back up at the Navy Pier. The boys had cigars and wine. We sat by the lake and then walked the pier. We wandered through downtown and took the late train back to the base. I stayed at the Gateway Inn which is inexpensive and the rooms are always nice.

Here are a TON of photos from Saturday.





















Sunday morning I got up and went to church on base. Mr. Scottie B. is part of the Navy Choir and had a solo during the service. He's quite talented and it was terrific. After, we took the train to Lake Forest. I've decided that it's the cutest little town ever. We ate brunch at South Gate Cafe. The food and mimosa's were delicious. We grabbed a coffee at Starbucks and then sat in the grass in the town courtyard. It was sunny and perfect out then suddenly there was a downpour. The rain drops were huge and we stood in the rain till I made us take cover to protect my camera and belongings. And as quickly as the rain started, it stopped. So we spent the rest of the afternoon wandering through Lake Forest waiting for the train.

Mr. Scottie B. walked me to the blue line and then I headed home. It stormed on the bus ride home and I do not like storms.

Photos from Sunday











It was a wonderful weekend in Chicago. I had so much fun.