And so it begins...

...school that is.

Already up to my elbows in this:




But luckily, I have this AWESOME desk to get my study on.  It's huge.  Which is good, because I have a lot of stuff I dump on it.



And lots of fruits and veggies to snack on:




4 ears of corn
1 head of lettuce
4 tomatoes
2 small heads of broccoli
8 bananas
12 plums
6 peaches
3 pears
2 bunches of black grapes (I think I might have to try out frozen grapes!)
1 cantaloupe
quart of strawberries


Other than school, I haven't been up to a whole lot.  Oh, except taking a lot of pictures of Hunter:





(Love this last one, he was laying in the sun coming in through the window.)

But that's nothing new. ;)



Though I did go see The Help yesterday.



I LOVED it.  I think it was because I knew a lot of what was coming and the characters were so well played!  I'm a huge Emma Stone fan.  I would still highly recommend reading the book but because they had to leave a lot out and changed one or two things.  That being said, I think they did a great job with the movie and developing the characters which were so much like how I imagined them!

So the plan for tonight is to watch the new RHONJ episode and try to get to bed somewhat early so I can hit the ground running tomorrow!

Instagrammin'

I bought some new kicks today.  Usually, I go for function over beauty, but after pair after pair of blue and white I wanted some pink in my step!


So hot, right?


This past week, I've gotten a chance to make some recipes I'd bookmarked a while ago.

Including:


Easy Baked Parmesan Asiago Tilapia rounded out with corn on the cob, green beans and potato wedges.  The hubbs isn't a huge fish fan, but he LOVED this.  (Now if only I could smother green vegetables with butter and cheese and get him to eat those!)


30 Minute Lemon Brown Sugar Chicken  I've already made it 3 times.  Recently, I baked up some crispy eggplant that came out so crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside!

Crispy Baked Eggplant


eggplant, sliced into 1/2-3/4" slices
cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
panko breadcrumbs
1 tsp sea salt

Preheat oven to 450*.  Combine eggs and salt.  Coat eggplant slices with cornstarch.  Dip into eggs then panko bread crumbs.  Lay on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.


I'm always late to the party.  But I joined instagram and am totally hooked.


Flowers from the hubbs.


Sadly, we can't make it to this, but the poster was so cool.


Hunter and his new toy.  I don't know who's more entertained, him or me.


Let's call it a tie.


If your dog ever rips out the stuffing of a toy a day later, try sewing water bottle(s) inside.  They love the crackling noise!


Snacks.  I <3 pretzels and mustard.


The tastiest amaretto cheesecake I've ever had!  Thank you Sarah!!


Oh, good thing I have pink sunglasses to go with the aforementioned shoes...


A little biker, a lot girly.


Remember when we went to Galveston beach for the day?  Instagrammed.

Uno mas:

The first iris to (ever!) bloom in my yard this spring.  I dashed out in the rain because I knew it would make for something gorgeous.

Have a lovely week!

Accomplished.

One post in all of July!??  Guess I've been living the summer of a kid again... but I promise that August will bring great things!

Well, it's taken a lot.

The goal I set back in oh... January.  I accomplished it.


I was able to exercise 5 times a week for all of July!!  The happy face stickers represent the days of exercise... anything from a 30 minute walk, to hiking, to bodypump or circuit training with friends.

There were a lot of early mornings.  I never used to work out in the morning but now it's becoming my preference.  I feel like I'm well on my way to a great habit.




I hiked the foothills quite a bit and took in views of the Boise valley.










Two of the gals (and our 4 dogs all together) I went hiking with.  Can you spot Hunter??

In other news, we've had a family of golden eagles take residence on our roof... and fence.



I don't mind the co-habitation, but sometimes they leave dead mice on the driveway.  Eeeeeewww.  No thanks.

I know I haven't mentioned much of my dirtbike in a while.  Being sore from workouts makes it tough to ride.  But I mastered a hill...


It's not as wimpy as it looks, I promise!

I rode up and back down (surprisingly, going up is the scary part!) and lived!



I was so happy to meet up with Sara and our high school gal pals Kyla and Laura for a night out at P.F. Changs.

In the kitchen, I've been relying on my crockpot, especially Sunday afternoons.









Simply Delicious Pork Roast
(from a Crock-Pot(R) )

6 boneless pork chops
4 medium golden delicious apples, cored and sliced (I used granny smith)
3 tbs packed brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

1. Place pork in bottom of crock-pot (I always spray mine down with some olive oil).  Cover with apple slices,
2. Combine brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl, sprinkle over apples.  Cover; cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.



I had two half-frozen pork chops so I roughly halved the following recipe, plus threw in a few strips of bacon (hey, it's pork too right??) for good measure.  It was a perfect dinner for two!

Kitchen Diaries

Hello, accidental blog vacation!

I hope everyone has been enjoying their summer as I have.  The camera has been largely neglected, save for pictures of good food that I have (mostly) made.

What have I been doing all July?

-enjoying fireworks from July 4th
-playing tennis (don't get the wrong idea-- my had eye coordination is sub-par) and getting a good workout!
-waking up early to swim at the gym pool with my hubbs
-waking up early to attend my favorite 6 am body pump
-tubing the Boise river
-well on my way to achieve the goal I set in January to exercise 5 days a week
-enjoying the sun
-eating copious amounts of blueberries, strawberries and cherries
-completing the HUGE project of turning our garage from a storage space into an actual usable garage


Yeah.  And making tasty food.  We even had our good friends over for taco night!  While I didn't take a single photo, rest assured there was quite the spread of both ground beef AND fish tacos.

But for the food I did document:


Maple syrup roasted chicken.   SO simple.  You need:

1 whole chicken, washed, patted dry, drizzled with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper
baby carrrots
maple syrup

Spray your roasting pan, add carrots to the bottom and roast for 30 minutes breast side down.  Flip your bird over and GENEROUSLY coat with maple syrup.  Bake for about 55 minutes (depending on your altitude) then remove and cover with tin foil for at least another 10 minutes.

I should have checked my carrots a little more carefully since they got a little... blackened overdone, but I ate them anyway and they were delicious.


Teriaki-pineapple broiled salmon with roasted zucchini and broccoli.  (This was the first time I tried roasted broccoli and it was NOT my thing.  I'll stick to steamed from now on.)


Curry chicken salad

Throw in a bowl and mix:
4 tbs mayo or greek yogurt (I did half and half)
2 tsp curry
1 c. cooked chicken (I used canned)
1-2 tbs dried cranberries or rasins
1 tbs sliced almonds
s & p to taste

We did enjoy a tasty (and cheap! they let you order half portions) lunch at Ono Cafe (if you live in Boise GOOOO already!)


I had the roasted pig with coconut rice and stir fried vegetables.


On July 4th, we enjoyed a rather patriotic breakfast of strawberry blueberry pancakes.


Eggs and toast should always be accompanied with a side of beets.


As should homemade hamburgers and potato wedges.


Chocolate and white chocolate covered strawberries... just because it's summer and I love my husband.


Tart frozen yogurt with berries always completes a satisfying meal.

Best of all, I finally joined a produce co-op!


Look at all I got for $15!!

2 mangoes
8 bananas
12 plums
6 nectarines
1 golden melon
3 tomatoes
pack of baby carrots
head of lettuce
head of cauliflower
purple kale
green onions

No excuses for not to eating my veggies!