Bachelorette Salad

This is my favorite salad of all time! I named it “Bachelorette Salad” because in my bachelorette days when I was living alone with the puppy dogs I would have this *almost* every night for dinner. (I also had it for lunch on many occasions.)

(Yes, I am one of those people who occasionally get “stuck” on something and have it obsessively.)

This salad has stood the test of time and I never get sick of it! When Honey is out of town I have it. A Lot. And when he is home, we have it to accompany our dinner on many nights. It is so simple & delicious! 

Here’s what you need:

• Spinach
• Cherry Tomatoes
• Cucumber
• Dried Cranberries
• Hearts of Palm*
• Slivered Almonds
• Shelled Pumpkin Seeds
• Crazy Jane’s**
• Olive Oil
• Balsamic Vinegar

* When buying Hearts of Palm (and any other preserved item) try to get them in glass jars, not aluminum cans. Aluminum cans are lined with BPA-filled plastic! UGH! I get my Hearts of Palm from Trader Joes when I can.

**Crazy Jane’s is the name my family has lovingly given this spice mix. The actual name is Jane's Krazy Mixed-Up Seasonings (see pic below) but when you’re in my kitchen you’ll only hear it referred to as Crazy Jane’s!

Put the following in your salad bowl: spinach, tomatoes (I cut mine in half), and cucumber (sliced).

Then sprinkle with Crazy Jane’s – you’ll want this to stick to your “wet” ingredients.

Next add the dried cranberries, slivered almonds and shelled pumpkin seeds, and then dress your salad with equal parts olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I use about a teaspoon of each on mine.

Finally slice and top with Heart of Palm – my most favorite embellishment ever! 

Now, if you’re NOT pregnant, pour a glass of wine, sit down and enjoy! You can add anything else as a topper to this salad – I’ve had grilled chicken and shrimp on several occasions to make it more of a meal.

Bon Appetite!

The Newlywed Game

I have two posts today because I discovered a super fun link up I had to join in on! Today I am also linking up with Jess over at The Pretty Physicist for “The Newlywed Game”!

Here are the questions Jess asked us to share with our significant others and the answers Honey and I gave!
 

What do you think my best quality is?

He Said: That I am always supportive of him

She Said: That he always seeks to understand what I need

What would be your ideal date with me?

He Said: Going downtown, staying in a nice hotel, having a limo pick us up and take us to a nice dinner, then a small music venue to hear one of our favorite artists, then to a dessert café afterwards

She Said: To kayak or hike to a beautiful remote place where there is no one but us and a gorgeous view and having a beautiful  and delicious picnic already set up (‘Bachelor’ style!) for us to share as we take in the view

 (Do we know each other or what – we each defined a date that the other person would LOVE!)

A night out

Kayaking Amelia Island, FL

What was your first impression of me?

He Said: That I was fun, wanted to have a good time, and just went with the flow. He also said that I was very beautiful!

She Said:  That he was handsome, so much fun, and uninhibited. He wanted to make me laugh and make sure I had fun no matter what!

Our first date weekend

What is your favorite memory of us?

He Said: Our first trip together to go skiing in Colorado. We learned a lot about each other that week and had such a good time being together!

She Said: The moment he told me he loved me. We were at a concert for one of our favorites, surrounded by thousands of people, and he just turned to me and said, “I have to tell you something right now, I love you”. He told me later that night that he just couldn’t wait another second – he had to tell me right then!

What do you see for us in the future?

We actually said the same thing for this one since we’ve talked about the future a lot together. We can sum it up in two words: Family – we’re expecting our first little one in June and are so thrilled to start our family! Family is very important to us both and we're so excited to start our own! Adventure – being an Army family our future is not clearly defined like it is for many couples. We don’t know a lot about the future and what it will hold but we do know that we are in for one awesome adventure!

So What Wednesday

Today I am linking up with Shannon over at Life After I "Dew" for another edition of “So What Wednesday”!

This week I'm saying:

So what if… We only have one million things to do before our little bambino arrives. Between cleaning out the baby’s future closet to finding spots for the things we had in storage in the baby’s future nursery to projects we want to finish in the house and in the yard… we made an actual list. And it ain’t pretty.

So what if… I was completely appalled to enter a smoking restaurant this week. We found a mediterranean restaurant in our small town and were excited to try it out. Only when we arrived and went inside people were – gasp – smoking inside the restaurant! Turns out they’re a smoking establishment. What? It’s 2012! We don’t do that anymore! Or so I thought… (We did not stay but we did get dinner to go... And it was DELICIOUS!)

So what if… Someone in our neighborhood clearly can’t keep her two yorkies on her property. Twice in the last two weeks two different little girls have come knocking on my door to ask if I know whose dogs they are holding. Fortunately both times they found the owner – once she was driving around looking for her lost dogs and the second time the girls found her by knocking on doors. Lady – get a collar, get a better system, get a freaking clue!

So what if… The last two times we had friends over I prepared the same thing? Not for the same people, no I’m not that bad, we had different sets of friends over but I wanted to make something good and warm-weather-ish and easy for a group. Turns out I have a tried and true dinner that just so happens to fit that description so Honey and I had it twice in two weeks!

What are you saying SO WHAT to this week? Happy Wednesday!

Hutch

 Would you believe that this piece of furniture traveled all the way to our home from my childhood bedroom? Would you believe that before that it traveled all the way from France to be mine?

My mom found this great piece of furniture when I was a little girl and we were creating my “big girl room”. It really was a beautiful bedroom to grow up in and I always felt like a princess in it! 

Well my mom purchased the hutch from a furniture dealer and placed it in my room to hold all of my most favorite treasures. I love that she got such a functional timeless piece that has traveled with me over the years always holding my favorite things.

Now situated in our breakfast room it displays many of the dishes and pieces that Honey and I received as wedding gifts. Having them on display not only allows us to see these beautiful items and reflect on the loved ones who gave us each one but also to see what we have and use what we have!

I love entertaining and having these pieces handy is so great!

I have always loved this hutch and am thankful that my mom snatched it up for me so many years ago!

Deployment Countdown

Ugh. It’s inevitable. With the military there are deployments.

As a military wife you live your life between deployments and non-deployments. You plan what you want to do together when they’re home and you do what you have to when they’re gone.

Fortunately for us, Honey’s deployments are short compared to what many families face – having their soldier gone for a year or more. (I can’t even imagine!!)  

For me deployments come with two kinds of countdowns: the countdown until he leaves and then the countdown until he comes home.

Before he leaves, I count down – this many weeks until he leaves, this many weekends left until he leaves, this many nights until he leaves… During this time I start thinking of anything I want to do with him before he leaves, or anything we need to talk about, or anyplace we need to go… All the “last-minutes” that we’re going to have.

When he deploys, Honey can email and call every day which makes the days so much better! But you don’t have that face-to-face time that is so important. So I try to soak it all in before he leaves.

After he has deployed, I start the countdown until until he comes home! Like many military wives I have “deployment projects”. You know those things you’ve been meaning to do. Stuff that is just easier to do on days when you don’t have to stop at 5 pm and start getting dinner organized... 

Since practically every deployment day is like that, I line up my deployment projects and get to work! This time around I’m mostly focused on the things I need to do to prepare for Baby Snowden’s arrival.

This deployment will be busy – I’ll be doing some traveling and seeing some old friends – and going to Atlanta to work in the main office as I usually do when Honey is out of town for a while.

But for now, I’m in the deployment countdown until Honey leaves.   I’m constantly thinking of what I want to fit in with him – going to his favorite restaurants, going to see a movie, long talks during dinner, making his favorite treats, sitting on the back porch together, snuggling on a lazy Saturday morning… 

And then he’ll leave. He’ll deploy. And the countdown starts all over again.

Babymoon

Babymoon. I highly recommend it!

The excitement of Baby Snowden’s arrival has reached an all time high around our house and with that Honey and I also have a lengthy to-do list. Our Babymoon allowed us to relax…get away…reconnect… and just BE. 

So what’d we do? Where’d we go? We went to Amelia Island, FL. We had never been there before, the plane ride was one hour and ten minutes – can’t beat that when you’re expecting – and there is lots and lots to do there!

Here is our Babymoon in pictures, enjoy!

We were on the island by 11 AM having a wonderful lunch!

Bump Pic before Thursday night dinner!

Our first dinner night at Brett's - great view of the sunset!

We toured Ft Clinch - my Army Major made a great tour guide!

We kayaked Lawson Creek - so beautiful!

We discovered this railroad track bridge

Happy Honey!

Mama-to-be enjoying the peace

Bump Pic before St Patty's Day Dinner!

Sunday Dinner at PLAE @ Amelia Plantation

Bump pic!

We watched a gorgeous sun rise on Monday morning

 On Monday, our last full day of vacation, Honey planned an amazing day for us over on Cumberland Island. They only allow 6 people per day to come to the island as day guests of the historic Greyfield Inn - formerly a private residence owned by the Carnegie Family. The island is filled with wild horses, historic sites, and only a handful of (WEALTHY) private residences. It was a day we will never forget!

On the ferry to Cumberland Island

We were day guests of the Greyfield Inn

I was so excited to catch my first glimpse of the wild horses!

We bicycled roads that looked like this

...and this...

There was no one else on this expansive stretch of beach!

We toured the ruins of the original Carnegie Mansion

I couldn't get enough of these wild creatures!

Couldn't talk Honey into letting us bring one home...

After this pic I was almost nose to nose with this one!

Greyfield Inn front porch

Greyfield Inn front walk

Formal living room

Colorful library!

Sitting Room

Saying bye to Cumberland Island - what a great day there!

Bump Pic before Monday night dinner!

We had dinner at the Ritz Carlton, 2 doors down from our condo

Honey called it a prom pose, I called it a bump pic!

We had such a wonderful time!! We can't wait to go back and take our little family with us. I highly recommend Amelia Island with a day trip to Cumberland Island as a great get-away!!


Thank you sweet Honey for a wonderful Babymoon!!