Blogtember: Creative Writing Day

Thursday, September 19: Creative writing day: write a (very short) fictional story that starts with this sentence: "To say I was dreading the dinner party would be the understatement of the century."

To say I was dreading the dinner party was the understatement of the century. I really had no desire to run into Michael again, and I knew he would be there. He's Stacy's brother-in-law, and, no matter how awkward it's going to be, I can't bail on Stacy, my best friend in the entire world's, good-bye party dinner. Ugh, another reason to dread this dinner party. I don't want to be saying good-bye to my best friend. Her husband, Aaron, got a job in California in the entertainment industry in a big-wig position, and he couldn't very well leave her behind. Although, selfishly,  I'd be okay if he did.

There's a big chance Michael will bring his new girl friend to this dinner party, too, and I have no desire to make nice with a 20 year old college girl. Michael is 33. What he's doing with this 20 year old, I have no idea. Well, I have some ideas, but I'd rather not think about those.

See, Michael and I have a past, if you couldn't tell. We met through Stacy and Aaron, and ended up dating for 2 years. Most of that time, I now know, he was a big time cheater. What actually ended our relationship, was a girl named Tiffany contacting me and telling me she was pregnant, and that Michael was the father. Can you imagine what a delight that message was?

This dinner party won't be the first time we've seen one another since we broke up, though. We saw each other at Aaron and Stacy's wedding a year ago. And, of course, I was the maid of honor, and Michael was the best man. It made an exciting night a bit awkward, to say the least. Especially when he tried to get me to go back to his hotel room at the end of the night....

I pretty much despise Michael, for a lot of things. Wasting my time, destroying my trust in him, and any other guy for that matter, and for making things really tense with Stacy and Aaron for a while, which only made me feel guilty. 

Nevertheless, I'm going to go to this dinner party, and be there for my best friend. I'm just not sure how I'll make it through seeing him, and "celebrating" my best friend leaving....

Buffalo Chicken Salad Sandwich Recipe

I hope you're ready for another edition of What's Cooking? Wednesday!

This week I have a really easy and really yum lunch idea for you! MG and myself are buffalo sauce fanatics, so any time we can get buffalo anything, we will eat it.

When I saw this recipe for buffalo chicken salad on Pinterest (and that it was healthy!) I knew I had to try it!

{via} because my picture wasn't nearly as good as the original pic

What You Need:

-5 oz plain Greek yogurt

-2 cans (12 oz each) chicken breast

-1/3 cup Frank's Red Hot Wings buffalo sauce

-2 celery stalks, chopped finely

-some cilantro, minced (original recipe says 1/2 cup)

-2 oz blue cheese crumbles

-1/2 tsp garlic powder

-1/4 tsp garlic powder

--Imagine two cans of chicken in that pic-->

What You Do:

1. In a large bowl, stir together the greek yogurt, buffalo sauce, garlic powder and black pepper until mixed smoothly.

2. Add in the chicken breast, celery and cilantro. Mix together well.

 3. Add in the blue cheese crumbles and mix through.

 4. Cover and refrigerate until you're ready to use it. Or, like I did, dole them out into small Tupperware containers to use for lunch portions (to add to bread during lunch so it doesn't get soggy).

The sandwich is SUPER yum and gives you that awesome buffalo flavor. The greek yogurt takes the place of mayo and you can't even tell. And the blue cheese is a yummy treat when you bite into it! Definitely an easy and delicious lunch idea!

Link up below with your own recipe, or some that you've seen on Pinterest that you want to make!

Blogtember: Relive a Memory

Tuesday, September 17: A memory you would love to relive.

This post will probably not come as much of a surprise to you all, but the memory I would love to relive is when MG proposed. I still play it out in my head, but I would love to actually go through it again. I was hoping he was going to do it during the weekend that he ended up proposing, so I had been on the lookout for a proposal. After a bit, I figured it wasn't happening, let my guard down and put my investigator hat away. And BAM, that's when he did it.

It all happened so fast, and I was so surprised and overwhelmed that I don't vividly remember the whole thing. I DO, however, remember saying "Oh my God" and "shut up" through his entire proposal. So, if I could relive it, I would shut MYSELF up, and really focus on what he was saying.

But, even if I did nothing differently, I'd love to go through it again. It was a moment I had waited my whole life for, and one I had looked forward to happening with MG, so when it came, it was SO exciting and overwhelming.
I still have this picture as one of the backgrounds on my computer, and when all of my screens are minimized, and this one happens to pop up, it makes me smile every time:

I was saying "shut up" or "Oh my God" here...lol

There are tons of other moments I would love to relive, but this one is my most recent favorite, and I would relive it again in a heartbeat!

Weekend Recap

This weekend was fun-filled, mixed with a bit of drama...

Friday night MG and I were both pretty beat from the work week so we decided to grab dinner locally and eat outside since the weather was stunning out. I had two glasses of wine with dinner, which meant that when we got back home that night and sat down on the couch to watch tv, I fell asleep. #oldladyproblems

Saturday my friend Emily had a bridal shower brunch in the morning so I went to that and avoided the girl who's created all of the drama in my life (and she pretended that I don't exist). The shower was great--lots of time to mingle, and the bride had requested that all of the presents come un-wrapped so that she would have more time to socialize with all of us. She ended up opening presents for a bit, which was fun (and went by fast since there was no wrapping paper). There was TONS of yummy food and drinks, too.

I did a few errands that afternoon, including getting a new pair of sunglasses. MG was sweet enough to buy them for me--love that guy!

Later that night I drove him to his friends' place so they could watch college football, and then got ready to go out for Emily's bachelorette in Georgetown that night. I headed over to my friend Jackie's place beforehand to hang out and have a couple glasses of wine before meeting everyone else out.

The bachelorette party was a lot of fun, too. I love love love the girl who is getting married--she's one of the sweetest and funniest people I know (not to mention she's also helped me BIG TIME with my own wedding planning). I just adore her.

And then I find out that drama bride is talking crap about me because a group of 4 guys was talking to me at the bar. In fact, they were asking about what we were all there for, and then asked if I was single and I said no, that I was engaged. So, it's not as if I took my ring off of my finger and said "nope, I'm single!!" Not to mention, the same guys were talking to the bachelorette's sister as well. But, it's only a problem when I do it.

And then I see that SHE is talking to some random guy. But, it's ok when she does it, right? Ugh, enough on her. 

I had a nice night celebrating that sweet friend. And then I felt like terrible terrible crap the next day haha. Unfortunately I had to drive out to Leesburg (about an hour away) for my hair consultation. I did NOT want to drive, at all, let alone 2 hours that day, but I did, and now I have my hair person for my wedding day.

And then this morning I got the best news of all!

My friend Bree is ENGAGED! Her fiance popped the question yesterday at a winery and I'm SOOOOOOO happy for them! Yay for more friends getting married, and another person to plan a wedding with!! So excited for you, Bree! Love you!

And with that happy note, I'm off to see my kiddos and get this Monday started!

 

Friday, September 13: A self portrait

This should probably be a scary face since today is Friday the 13th, but instead, I give you this... (sorry Instagram friends, you've already seen this one)...

Me and my own personal pillow pet. Except mine breaths, eats and poops. And spends the majority of the day sleeping. I may be a little jealous of that one.

Slightly more messy than a regular ol' pillow pet, but much more snuggly and fun!

Happy Friday! 

Blogtember: Blogging's Impact on Me

Thursday, September 12: Discuss ways that blogging or social media has changed you.

I started my blog as a kind of creative outlet for myself. I've always enjoyed writing, and at my job the only writing I do is reports and other things related to school and kids. Nothing too creative, and certainly not personally related. So, I think from that standpoint, blogging gave me a way to get some of my creativity, thoughts, etc out.

The unexpected part of blogging that has had a HUGE impact, is the support network and bonds that are formed through blogging. When I went through my long distance relationship breakup, the outpouring of love, kind words and support was overwhelming. Hearing that others had gone through what I was going through, only to find happiness on the other end, made me believe that I would be ok and have my happy ending eventually, too.

Since I've recently been dealing with my wedding drama, you guys have all been there to let me vent about it, support me, and let me know that I'm not crazy in that whole situation. That alone makes the whole thing better for me.

Not only have people been there to help pick me up when I'm down, but when I got engaged, the outpouring of love and excitement made me that much more happy and excited. I have this HUGE group of people to share such happy times in my life with, and that's pretty freaking awesome!

I've discovered new friendships that I otherwise never would have made, like with P!nky for example. We lived right around the corner from one another, and never would have known it without blogging. We became good friends over the past almost 2 years, and just this past weekend I was at her wedding and she'll be at mine in April.

Blogging has brought a lot of blessings into my life. The creative part is cool, and I love that, but my favorite part is the relationships and connections that I've made with so many of you. I can only hope that that continues and grows as I continue to blog.

Chicken Orzo Skillet Meal Recipe and link up idea

I'm thinking of doing a link up for recipes on Wednesdays. It could be something that you've made and want to share, or it could be something delicious that you found on Pinterest that you want to share!

Let me know what you guys think about the idea, and I might start a link up for us all to participate in and share some yummy recipes!

Now, getting back to business....

I'm here with another great recipe that I got from my good blog buddy, Shari at The Daily Dish. I've gotten SO MANY great recipes from her and her blog, and I love that she lets me share them with you whenever I try a new one! If you haven't checked out her blog, go do it...and make sure you have something to wipe your face with, because you WILL drool!

What You Need:

-1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small cubes

-12 oz uncooked orzo

-2 tomatoes, chopped

-3 cups baby spinach (or one salad bag of baby spinach)

-juice from 1 lemon

-1 tsp olive oil

-1/2 cup white wine

-1/2 tsp garlic powder

-1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

-2 tsp tomato paste

-feta cheese crumbles for topping

-1/4 cup reserved cooking water from the orzo

What You Do:

1. Cook the orzo according to package instructions. Drain and set aside (remember to reserve that 1/4 cup of cooking water)

2. Season the chicken with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and the chicken. Saute the chicken until it's cooked through. And remove it from the pan.

3. In the same skillet, add in the reserved cooking water, tomatoes, tomato paste, red pepper flakes, and a little bit of salt and pepper. Cook for approximately 2 minutes.

4. Add the orzo, chicken, wine and spinach to the skillet and mix until the spinach has wilted (this may require you to put a lid on the skillet for a little bit).

5. Add in the lemon juice, and stir. 

6. Add the feta cheese, mix, and serve.

Enjoy!

Thank you, Shari, for another yummy recipe!