Keep Calm and Garden On

I love new projects! I decided to start my own herb garden after I threw away the last basil, thyme and cilantro I had bought from the grocery store and barely used before it all went bad. Such a waste of money and a big pet peeve. My solution? Plant an herb garden! Florida weather is perfect for it. I went with pots because it if it does get to chilly outside I can always bring them in for a few weeks.

I chose 8 of my favorites: Thyme, flat leaf parsley, basil, chives, lavender, mint, rosemary and cilantro. I really don't use lavender and mint but couldn't resist. They smell so good! I found a nice little recipe for lavender honey ice-cream I intend to make so it serves a purpose :-)

Everything is growing just wonderfully except for my chives... they're acting a little sketchy. So I'm waiting them out...

Found these super cute antique spoons for all the pots on Etsy!

And of course no garden of mine wouldn't be complete without a Pittsburgh Steelers garden gnome!

My first trimming of basil. I got so much! I was pumped. Made bruschetta and a ravioli bolognese last night using it.

What I've Been Up To

Well, I can definitely say I have really enjoyed the past few weeks.

I had a great trip home to Atlanta to visit my family and friends...

My parent's are AMAZING cooks so we went definitely got spoiled why we were there... spring rolls, fried rice, sausage cranberry pastries.... MMM making my mouth water just thinking about it! Can't wait to see the whole family again in September.

Then, I had my first of many visits in Florida from friends and family.

One of my best girlfriends Nicole came down to visit for a long weekend. It was her first time seeing our new place. We had the ultimate girls weekend. A Britney Spears concert in Orlando (Front Row!), a wine and movie night on the couch, a dinner at Roy's, and a day at the beach finished with cheese fondue. Pretty awesome. I was sad to see her go but so happy see made the trip down!

A few short days after Nicole left, my BFF and her boyfriend Caleb arrived! Their visit was a lot more chill but still so enjoyable. We had a lot of fun doing a low country boil one night which I topped off with a gluten free pineapple upside-down cake for dessert, went to Clearwater for lunch and little sun, and also out to a nice dinner and drinks another night. And even better, Michael took the week off from riding to chill at home with us too!

Easy to say it's been a crazy few weeks. And this afternoon, my Uncle, Aunt and baby cousins fly into Orlando for a Florida family vacation for the week. I say baby cousins, but they really aren't babies any more. Sad. I'm so excited to see them! Can't wait! We're gonna have a lot of fun in Daytona. I'll be commuting to and from because I've take off work so much lately, I'll probably have a lot to catch up on in the office but really wish I could beach bum it with them the whole week.

A Few of My Favorite Things: July

So everyone is always posting their favorite things at the moment and I decided to join on the band wagon with a monthly post of what I'm loving in the moment.

1. Talenti Gelato - also known as - Heaven on Earth. Michael and I can't seem to keep these in the fridge! His favorite is the mint chip and I LOVE LOVE LOVE their Belgium Milk Chocolate. I kid you not when I say it is the smoothest, most delectable, creamy goodness ever. And, it's really healthy as far as ice cream is concerned. It's always nice when you read the ingredients you're familiar with everything in it. Plus, it's GF so that's good for me!

2. Reebok's Reeflex After I'm done enjoying a little bit of gelato I sometimes go on a little walk through the neighborhood to make myself feel a bit better. We're into the light-weight shoe craze. I also have a pair of Nike Free's and I love those too but out of boredom we decided to weigh the two and these actually were a tad bit lighter so that's why it made the cut for the blog vs. the Frees.

3. Colored Denim So you see them everywhere now. Of course, I had to buy myself a pair. I opted got these lil Hudson cuties from Revolve Clothing (my favorite online store). They are super comfy.

4. Which brings me to my 4th favorite: www.revolveclothing.com. It's my go-t0 for all clothes. Their shipping is amazing, I usually receive everything in 2-3 business days. Even better, shipping is free! And another thing I love about them, there are many, is that they will price match everything. Bloomingdale's actually had the Hudson shorts $20 cheaper but charged for shipping. So I emailed Revolve's customer service and told them about it and they gave me Bloomingdales's price + the free shipping! Woohoo

5. Coconut Water This Florida heat and humidity can be killer. I've fallen in love with coconut water and drink it regularly for its electrolytes. It's refreshing and a change every once in a while from plain ole boring water.

Last but certainly not least, Slatkin & Co Candles from Bath & Body Works. I know what you're thinking... Yankee Candle are the best or maybe you prefer Gold Canyon. I bought Yankee Candles religiously for years. Until I saw these candles and their fun scents. Currently, I'm burning/obsessing over Pink Sangria and Peach Bellini. I know, sounds amazing, right?! They probably suckered me in by naming them after alchoholic beverages. And the jars aren't big and obnoxious so you can stick the candles everywhere. Go and sniff the candles out and give them a try.

Hallelujah!

SO excited that I can buy ALL of these at Publix now!!

That is all. Bye bye now.

A Must Read

I finally bought The Help by Kathryn Stockett last week and I am LOVING it! Just a little over the halfway marker and it just keeps getting better! Although the last chapter wasn't the most pleasant reading, very unexpected... If you want to know what I'm talking about go out and get the book! Or order it on Amazon like I did! Here's the link! The Help on Amazon.com

30 Minute Meal

No, not like Rachel Ray. Better Homes & Gardens take the credit for this recipe that I have been meaning to share for quite some time. I've been cooking this oldie but goodie since I bought the cook-mag in 2007. Michael loves it. If you guys ever see any of their Special Interest Publications I recommend purchasing them because I always find awesome recipes in them.

This is a perfect go-to recipe when you want something quick and easy that isn't going to make you feel guilty after eating. Personally, Michael and I LOVE anything that has balsamic on it so I double that part of the recipe. Finishing off the dish with the fresh tomato really adds a nice cool and refreshing feel to the meal.

I took my own photo originally, but the presentation didn't do the recipe justice.

Balsamic Chicken and Vegetables

Start to Finish: 30 Minutes

Makes 4 servings

1/4 cup bottled Italian salad dressing (I prefer Kraft Zesty Italian)

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (or 4... it won't hurt hehe)

1 tablespoon honey

1/8 t0 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound chicken breast tenderloins

10 ounces fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces

1 cup purchased shredded carrot

1 small tomato, seeded and chopped

1. In a small bowl, stir together salad dressing, balsamic vinegar, honey and crushed red pepper. Set aside.

2. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook for 5 to 6 minutes or until chicken is tender and no longer pink, turning once. Add half of the dressing mixture to the skillet; turn to coat chicken. Transfer chicken to a serving platter; cover and keep warm.

3. Add asparagus and carrot to skillet. Cook and stir for 3 to 4 minutes or until asparagus is crisp-tender; transfer to the serving platter.

4. Stir remaining dressing mixture; add to skillet. Cook and stir for 1 minute, scraping up browned bits from bottom of skillet. Drizzle dressing mixture over chicken and vegetables. Sprinkle with tomato.

Hope y'all enjoy! Let me know when you give it a try!!

Proud to be an American

I was so happy that after the Budd's Creek MX race Michael and I were able to spend some time in Washington, DC. It was a great experience showing MB our Nation's capital. Sometimes I forget that he has only lived in the US for 10 years and he isn't really familiar with DC, its monuments or history.

Of course, the highlight of the trip for me (being I'd already been to DC 3x) was getting dinner Saturday night at this AWESOME restaurant called Founding Farmers. It's always a good sign when you walk into a restaurant at 9:30 pm and it's still poppin'. For this place, poppin' is probably an understatement. It was PACKED with a long wait list and the food was crazy good! Happy I made a reservation weeks in advanced.

After dinner even though we were both practically walking zombies we managed to head to the Lincoln Memorial/Washington Monument to see them lit up at night.

So, one of my favorite things about these two places is that it always reminds me of that scene in Forest Gump the movie, when Forest is at the podium and then Jenny goes running through the Reflecting Pool and then they run and meet each other in the middle of it. I was pretty bummed when we got here and the pool was empty because it was under construction. I was so deliriously tired I would have probably reenacted it all for shits and giggles.

Michael's favorite part of our trip was not seeing the actual White House, but seeing the spotter on the rooftop of the White House checking us all out with his sniper rifle... Boys and guns... a boy after my own Father's heart.

Us walking around checking out the Smithsonian Museums.

Put the Hope Diamond on my wishlist. #Diamondsareagirlsbestfriend

I definitely feel blessed that we have the opportunity to travel to fun places like this all the time. Even more blessed that my husband puts up with/fuels the fire to the tourist inside of me :-)

Our next stop will be in August when we go to NYC after a race we have in Syracuse, NY. We've never been to the Big Apple so we can't wait to check it out!