Ha! I'm a Mrs....

Well, my big day has came & went.  

I married my best friend & had an awesome wedding!  

But with most great things, 

it didn't come without it's obstacles. 

That is when you realize just how awesome 

the people in your life truly are!

We were on a budget, a quite tight one.  

We knew what was important to us &

we were fine without the rest.  

My motto has been that through it all, 

s long as we were married on the beach, 

that was all I really cared about.  

Everyone & everything was second next to marrying my honey!  

There were people that wanted to be there, 

but things happen & situations are just that. 

We definitely had a great party with everyone 

once we got back...save that for another day!

Most things all fell into place exactly where needed.  

We have amazing family & friends 

who would do anything for us.  

To see everyone at our wedding, 

all pulling together & getting things done.  

All of them making sure our (my...lol) day 

was everything we wanted 

really made me realize how truly loved we are.  

OUR family, the blood , the chosen & the "new", 

gave us the best gift of all, being there to support us.  

With out them, my vision would have never been seen. 

Girls Weekend...Sometimes it's just necessary!

This past weekend, my friends & I went away for my

Bachelorette party 

 Some "Brides to be" are excited about 

getting all dressed up,

going out dancing, 

wearing a tacky veil 

& having strangers suck candy off their shirt.  

NOT this Bride!
Being in my mid-thirties (ouch.....that hurt a little), 

I am just too old for the 
"Traditional Bachelorette Party"  
I have been with my fiance for 13 years, 
my so called "freedom" has been long gone 
& I am just fine with that.  

We rented an awesome log house in the woods, 
in Maryland and had a very relaxing 
Labor Day Weekend. 

Thankfully we saw no bears.

One of my good friends from High School is a 

Pure Romance consultant.

She did a demo & that was a great time!

I highly suggest it for a Bachelorette Party.

Nothing like starting off the night with some naughty things. 

Plus it definitely helps lighten the mood.

I'd rather check out things to spice it up in the bedroom, than be grind-ed on by some stranger in a banana hammock 

& tube socks...but that's just me!

The guys from Magic Mike were the only strippers we needed!

It played continuously on the TV in the game room, lol

We had a "feast" the guys would've been jealous of...

Ham BBQ

Pulled Beef

Candied Keilbasa

Pasta Salad

Ziti

Coleslaw

3 Bean Salad

Cheesy Potatoes w/Bacon

Fruit Salad

Beer Bread w/dips

Guacamole & chips

S'mores Cupcakes

and 

"Stripper" Cake...hee hee

I had the party I wanted.

We reminisced about our wild days in our 20's, 

discussed our grown-up relationships & 

had a great time without having to worry about

changing diapers, making dinner & cleaning the house.  

I'd say it's exactly what everyone needed! 

Deep Fried Oreos

A few weekends ago we went camping with my future brother in law & his family.  We had 5 kids under the age of 9, which can be a bit of a challenge.  Lucky for us, we were only about 45 minutes from home. Kids these days aren't always "thrilled" to be in the great outdoors.  As a kid, my parents took us camping all the time.  We always found ways to occupy ourselves, even if we didn't want to.  Our next camping adventure, I will be sure to come up with some ideas for the kiddos.

My future BIL brought his deep fryer, he is an avid outdoors man so he has all kinds of camping gadgets.

Well, I heard deep fryer & thought.....DEEP FRIED OREOS!!! 

Yes, that is excatly what every bride to be should be thinking about, LOL! So I grabbed the rest of the pancake batter & a few packs of Oreos and hoped this would be doable.  Not only were they doable...they were down right delicious!

  

I simply made batter & to be honest, I had no idea how much batter was there, I just added water.

Then we dipped the Oreo cookies into the batter

Then put them in the deep fryer at 300 degrees for about 2-4 minutes.  

*Note---Make sure you put them in one at a time.

They are done when they are golden brown. 

All we were missing was the powdered sugar!

Next time you have some fresh oil in the deep fryer try these out. 

An easy crowd pleaser for sure!

Sweet & Spicy Pork

It's been so humid here that the thought of the stove, oven or grill just makes me sweat!
I have been trying to utilize my Crock Pot on those hot & sticky summer days.

Recently I have discovered an AWESOME sauce at Costco, 

Robert Rothschild Farm Roasted Pineapple & Habanero Sauce

It is great on everything I have tried it on.  

Shrimp, chicken, pork......it's all good!

With it being another hot one out there, I decided to bust out the crock pot and experiment!

Ingredients:
Pineapples in juice or syrup
2 lb pork tenderloin
Pineapple & Habanero sauce

 I started out with a can of pineapple slices in heavy syrup, I would have preferred juice.  Oh well
I placed pineapples at the bottom of the pot

Next I added the pork loins, each one was about 1 lb.

Then I poured in the syrup from the pineapple. 

I added a small can of pineapple chunks with juice & 

a few jalapenos with about a half cup of the juice from the jar of jalapenos.

I cooked the pork for 3 hours on low, then I put it on high for about 2 more hours.

They don't take very long to cook because they were only 1 pound each.

I tasted it without the sauce & it was sweet with the slightest hint of the jalapeno. 

Mason ended up eating it with BBQ sauce, so it's kid friendly 

before the pineapple & habanero sauce.

Next time I want to spice up the meat while it is cooking.   

I'm thinking I need to  add fresh jalapeno & definitely use pineapple JUICE.

I really suggest you make this Roasted Pineapple & Habanero Sauce 

part of your summer meals, you won't regret it. 

Have a great day & hang in there,  Friday is almost here!

At the pool with my 2 year old...

As we all know, no one can ever fully know what to expect with a toddler.

And being a first time mom, I had no idea our trips to the pool would be so different this year.  

Last year Mason was all about being held in the water, kicking away.  

This year, I felt like it took everything in me to coax this boy just close enough so I could put my legs in.  

Mind you, it is about 90 degrees & all I have been thinking about is breaking in my awesome 

new bathing suit from Lands End.

FYI-If you have a large chest, this is the bathing suit top for you!!!

It comes in cup sizes & has under-wire for extra support.

I don't like spending my day adjusting myself, hoping that one of the girls doesn't pop out.

http://www.landsend.com/products/womens-beach-living-adjustable-scoopneck-tankini-top/id_231497

Ok, back to the pool...
After today, I have learned that my trips to the pool will be MUCH different from now on
and I've learned that I am NOT a fan of "baby" pools.

Why you ask?

#1 Pee       We all know it happens. I witnessed my own kid take a #2 while wading around the 1 ft pee bath.  It definitely didn't make me feel better when a 4 yr old not wearing a swim diaper makes direct eye contact with me & says "I peed".  Thanks for the confirmation!

#2 Bugs     I am not a fan of them.  Living or dead.  Usually the ones in the little pool are in buggy heaven. 

I am not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing. Creeps me out either way!

#3 Toys      I feel like I had to carefully investigate which toys Mason would like to play with.  All the while explaining to him that those boats & trucks weren't his, but I would be sure to get his very own next time.

#4 Parents    Some parents pay no attention to their children.  Maybe me being a first time mom, I am a little more observant than necessary.  But if your kid is throwing stuff & snatching things out of the other kids hands, maybe it's time for some discipline?

I felt like such a rookie!  

How did I know that trucks are just as cool cruising around the pool, as they are in dirt...

Pretend fishies are great & it is ok for the kids to squirt each other with water guns...

Back to basics, good 'ol fashion fun...I like it!

With a plan for tomorrows trip to the pool,
here is hoping that Mason warms up to the idea of the pool.

Memorial Day Weekend

Summer is almost here!  

I am hoping that Mother Nature is done playing games & stops the temperatures going down into the 30's.

The low here tonight is 39 degrees......not cool! 

With Memorial Day coming up this weekend to kick off Summer 2013, 

what better time to share some festive, easy ways to show you patriotism!
Here are a few ways to decorate around the house.

Have a Happy and Safe Memorial Day Weekend...

Thank a Service Man or Woman for what they have done for us!

There goes my brain again.....catch it!

I have been meaning to come on & share some ideas.  I just cannot seem to find the time.

Friday was supposed be the day! Dad was off, so I could finally make my way back to my "office".  

Then Mason decided that he wanted Daddy AND Mummy to go to the park.

How could I say no to that???  

So off to the park we went.  Afterwards we had lunch & went home to take naps.  

Not a productive day, but definitely a well over due family day!

Since then we have been busy, busy!  I had a relaxing Mother's Day & an amazing dinner. 

I am a  very lucky lady

Besides our very active 2 year old son, our wedding has been taking a lot of my time.
Choosing to "Tie the Knot" on our vacation has been a bit more planning than I thought. Thanks to my BFF in California, who has had her own vision of my wedding day, we have got to amp it up a bit.  

She is right though, it's my wedding day! 

Here is what I've been working on for our ceremony at the beach

I love this for the aisle.

A special tribute to our boy Mason

Mason jars used as vases with flowers for the aisle

My best friend's husband is making a pergola, similar to this one, for us to 

stand in front of while we exchange our vowels.

He is a master prop maker from LA....I can't wait to see what he comes up with

So there are a few of the things I have been up to in planning our wedding.  Our ceremony is going to be short & sweet.  Crossing our fingers, the rain doesn't ruin my plans!

I have a bit of a hectic weekend coming up, but there is some quiet time in my future, at my future in-laws.  

I will have some things to share soon! Have a fabulous week!

Photos From:

Pergola

http://www.stylemepretty.com/gallery/picture/644128/

Benches

http://www.intimateweddings.com/blog/wedding-benches-latest-trend-in-outdoor-seating/