Are you Lovin' It??

Cause i am lovin' that the Bachelorette is back!! Especially since most of my other shows ended for the summer!! Last night's episode was good....actually i thought it was really good!

The first group date....another pool party. Interesting mix of guys....definitely a few that i was interested to "get to know" more about. Oh wait a second...what is this??? A new date idea?? (if you can really call a one girl/8 guy ratio a date!) Abc scores some creativity points for that one....i liked the whole scavenger hunt idea! Biggest stand out on the pool party turned scavenger hunt date is that i don't like Wes as much as i thought. Actually i just don't like him at all after what i saw last night. He seems "shady" for lack of a better word! He seems disrespectful and my impression after last night and the way he acted is that his intentions are no where near what they should be. Glad to see she kinda picked up on it but hopefully she will see right through it soon and send him and his geee-tar packin'!

Up next...the 1 on 1! And with Jake!! I was a little too excited when i heard he was the guy for the 1 on 1 date! He is just so darn cute but i was wondering if they would be a good fit for each other. Ummm yeah.....i had a perma-grin right along with her! They were adorable.....loved their date, loved how giddy she seemed, and loved them together!!! Something about the two of them just makes me smile! =) It will be fun to see it play out......i just hope he doesn't end up getting hurt.

The second group date was ok. Definitely got to see some of the guys personalities come out a little more! I think first impression rose guy (can't remember his name) has some anger management issues. I get that you don't like Juan (i don't either but i'll get to that in a minute) but geez dude....take a chill pill. I couldn't quite grasp why he got so worked up about anything Juan did! And yes....my thoughts on Juan. Don't like him at all. He rubs me the wrong way. He seems incredibly fake and like he would say whatever he thinks she wants to hear. And a little too cocky for my taste too. Won't be sad at all to see him go! Anyway~moving on! My other fave, Kiptyn, did not disappoint last night. They are really cute together and seem to really get along well! I would have loved to see him get the rose on the date....the whole run into the water in the speedo was sorta silly to me and i hardly think it deserved the rose! Come on Jill!! Give Kiptyn the rose!! ;)

And of course the cocktail party and rose ceremony! The whole vote for who you want to see go home thing is kind of lame~they need to drop that next season! But of course i wasn't surprised that Juan got the most votes! I'm sure if Wes didn't already have a rose he would have been the lucky winner and would have been just as deserving. My favorite moment of the cocktail party~sir nudity from Alabama. Someone should have clued him in that this was a cocktail party in a cali mansion, not a frat party. But it made for some great laughs! I wasn't really surprised by her choices in the rose ceremony~i think there are a few more that she needs to weed out before it will be harder to guess!

As always i am looking forward to next week and looking forward to hearing what you guys are thinking!! Who are your favorites right now?? What are some funnies that have stood out to you?? Can't wait to hear from you~my fellow bachelor/ette fans!!

Menu Plan Monday

This week's menu plan is short! We are leaving on friday to go out of town for a little over a week so i am only planning for a few days!! And as i'm sure you all know, when you are planning and getting ready for a family trip there is so much to do so my meals are pretty simple!! We will be headed to texas to visit family and celebrate the boys' birthdays with family and friends there!! Colby and Brayden are over the moon with excitement.....they will have 2 parties.....one at chuck e cheese with John's family and our friends in his hometown and then a pool party with my family and all of our friends where i grew up!! We are so blessed to have the opportunity to go visit with everyone and can't wait to get there and spend time with them!! In the meantime here is what we will be filling our tummies with this week....

Monday~ We went to a pool party and bbq with some friends!! I made tortellini salad and it is soooo good!!

Tuesday~ Crockpot BBQ Chicken w/ corn & bread-n-butter

Wednesday~ Shake n Bake Chicken w/ wild rice & broccoli

Thursday~ Chicken Nuggets w/ mac-n-cheese & mixed veggies! (i'm sure you've noticed this is a staple dinner around this house!! The boys are always excited when we have this!!)

Fri-Sun~ OUT OF TOWN!!! YAY!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful long weekend full of friends, family and remembrance! Head on over to orgjunkie.com and be inspired!! So many menus and recipes to browse thru.....you wont be disappointed!

Tortellini Salad

This stuff is delicious! I {heart} cheese tortellini, artichoke and feta cheese so mix them all together with other yummies and i'm sold!!

Salad: 1~20oz pkg cheese tortellini
1/2 C chopped walnuts
1~8 oz jar artichokes-diced
1 C tomato-diced
1 C crumbled feta
1/2 C sliced black olives

Dressing: 1/2 C olive oil
1/4 C white wine vinegar
1/4 C green onion-chopped
3 cloves garlic-minced
1 tsp dried dill
1 Tbsp dried basil

Cook tortellini as directed on package. Drain and run under cool water to prevent sticking. Let cool. Add walnuts, artichoke, tomato, olives & feta. In a separate bowl mix all dressing ingredients together. Toss the dressing in with the salad and ENJOY!!

*i always find that it is better if you make it the day before and let it sit in the fridge over night!*

Honor

Memorial Day is upon us and this is one holiday that evokes so many emotions for me. Honor. Pride. Sadness. Optimism. Awe. And the list could go on and on. Tears fill my eyes when i take time to consider how blessed i am to live in this amazing country!

So many men and women pledge their lives to defend this great country. To defend my rights, our freedoms. I am filled with optimism when i look into the young faces of new sailors, airmen, and soldiers who have so selflessly signed on that dotted line to protect me and my family. I stand in awe of the many, many sacrifices that are made day in and day out by every American service member and their families. I am saddened when remembering the somber truth that lives have been lost in the fight to defend our freedom.....lives lost for you and for me. I am filled with pride to be an American! To live in the land of the free because of these brave men and women! I am honored to have grown up with 2 parents who served in the United States Air Force. And i am humbled that God has chosen me and called me to serve as a US Navy wife. I am so proud to say that my best friend, my lover, my husband is one of the brave. One of those who is selflessly fulfilling his God given calling in this life to serve this great country.


It is my prayer that as we all enjoy family and friends this holiday weekend at bbq's and picnics, parades and get togethers, that we would pause to remember those who have lost their lives in the line of duty. Who have given the ultimate sacrifice so that we can continue to enjoy the freedoms we have that are all too easy to take for granted. I cherish this country and the blessing it is to be a citizen of such a great nation. And this weekend i will remember in prayer all the lives lost and those who have been left behind.....may God pour out his comfort and love on all the family and friends who remember a loved one lost this weekend. And may He protect all of those who are serving around the world today and keep them from harm's way! I am truly proud to be an American....God Bless this Great Nation!!! Happy Memorial Day!!

Its that time again!

That's right folks.....The Bachelorette!!!

Wowsers.....30 guys! Can you imagine??!! And surprisingly there were actually quite a few who were decent!! And the previews promise a dramatic season....especially for dudes! I was surprised at the tears and drama in the previews~i expect it from chicks but am definitely looking forward to seeing what it is all about with the dudes!! =) Hubby watched it with me last night and was quite comical with his commentary on all the guys! So here are the thoughts that have stuck after watching last night.....

*Foot dude was creepy. I was surprised she kept him-someone definitely needs to let her in on his over the top foot weirdness!

*Did anyone else catch that one of the guys got out of the limo and called her "hottub harris"??? Seriously?? And if one more guy brought up jason i might have had to scream....you have very limited time w/ her so why in the world would you waste it talking about jason or last season??!!

*And how about Billbro (or however you spell it), the fitness model! ha! I don't even know where to start.....i'll just say that he gave us a few good laughs!!

*Loved the English man's accent and cracked up that they felt the need to use captions. ha!

*Ed (one of the surprise 5) looks soooo much like a friend of ours from Washington that its almost kinda creepy! But if Ed is as good a guy as our friend than Jill is in luck!!

And now for my faves! Like i said already, alot of the guys seemed pretty decent but there are 3 that really stuck out to me after last night! I really liked Jake the pilot, Wes the country singer and Kiptyn the cutie(i don't remember what he does!)!! They all three were good looking and seemed very genuine! I'm excited to see how everything plays out....she definitely has some quality guys to get to know! What are everyone else's thoughts?? Can't wait to chat each week as the season unfolds!! =)

Menu Plan Monday

Ok...so life has been crazy the last few weeks. There have been so many unexpected things that have come up that have made having any sort of routine impossible, which tends to stress me out cause i don't like not being in control! But alas....God is working on me in this department, that is for sure, and little by little i am learning to let go and hand control over to HIM but it sure isn't easy and i still have a long way to go!! Needless to say i did not do a menu plan last week.....this week is crazy as we are getting ready to go out of town next week and i am soooo far behind on everything because of the craziness of the last few weeks...you get my drift. YIKES!! But i am determined to stick to my menu this week!! So here it is...

Monday~ Eat out!

Tuesday~ Cheesy Chicken Bundles, Green Beans, & Mashed Potatoes

Wednesday~ Crockpot BBQ Chicken, corn, & bread-n-butter

Thursday~ Cornbread Casserole

Friday~ Grill Out - Burgers, Hotdogs, Baked Beans & Asparagus

Saturday~ Grilled Sausage w/ Baked Zucchini & Potatoes

Sunday~ Mini Pigs in a Blanket w/ Broccoli, Carrots & Ranch

Don't forget to head over to orgjunkie.com to check out all the other menu planning going on! There is never a shortage of ideas and recipes that do not disappoint!!

What a Day!

Well, as you already know i didn't get around to the picture post i wanted to last week so that is still to come! But i just have to share what a special Mother's Day i had!! Words can't say how blessed i feel to be the woman God chose to be these lil men's Mommy! They bring so much joy and happiness while challenging me in so many ways and all of it is so beautiful to me!


My day started with the two cutest boys ever waking me up (@8...score!) and lavishing me with hugs and cuddles! Then they gave me the gifts they made me with a little assistance from Daddy thru the week.....so sweet and better than any gift money could buy!! John passed on a card and instead wrote me a letter telling me how much i mean to him and what it means to him to have me as the mother of his children....he couldn't have done any better. His words mean so much to me and it is such a blessing to know that he feels the way he does! He also got me a dvd that i had mentioned a while back and never dreamed that he even payed any attention to but alas he surprised me! What a man! It certainly wasn't anything fancy but the thought that went into it is worth more than any fancy gift to me!! The only downer was that Colby is stillllll sick so we didn't get to go to church as a family. =( So John stayed home and off to church i went where i was so blessed by the worship, message, and fellowship. Seriously ya'll......our church family rocks!

After a couple of hours of down time w/ my 3 favorite men i was off for coffee, pedicures, and shopping with a couple of great Mommy friends! We had such a good time....God has been so faithful to bring amazing women into my life that i am incredibly blessed to call my friends! After our pampering and lots of laughs i was on my way home with pretty piggies, a new shirt and a new pair of flip flops in tow! Let me just tell ya....there is something about a pedicure and a cute new pair of flip flops that makes my heart happy!!

I truly couldn't have asked for a better day and i am more and more grateful all the time for these two little men who have blessed me with the best job title ever....a Mommy!

ps...my menu plan monday post will hopefully be up later today or tonight....or maybe tomorrow....who knows! Things are a little up in the air today and i have to keep ya guessin' ya know! ;)

Menu Plan Monday

Ok....so i seriously can't believe anybody still comes to this blog and reads it. But i love those of you who do and i promise i am going to start posting a little more! Things have just been unexpectedly crazy the last few weeks! I miss posting and have lots of pictures to share so i am planning on doing a picture post later this week and getting back into the hang of posting!

And now for our menu plan for the week! I just cant begin to tell you how much doing this weekly menu plan has helped me out!!! It really just blows my mind how something so simple can make such a huge difference!

Monday ~ Soup & Crackers (the boys are coughing and running fevers so we are taking it easy tonight!)

Tuesday ~ Taquitos w/ guacamole and sour cream, Spanish Rice and Pinto Beans-Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

Wednesday ~ Crockpot Cowboy Stew

Thursday ~ Shake-n-Bake Chicken w/Wild Rice & Broccoli

Friday ~ Cornbread Casserole (this is one of Colby's favorites and i felt so bad when i made it for some friends last week and didn't have any for him so i am making it for us this week!)

Saturday ~ BBQ Chicken w/ Baked Zucchini & Red Potatoes

Sunday ~ Chicken Nuggets w/ Mac n Cheese & Mix Veggies-Happy Mothers Day!! (we are going out for lunch after church and then i will be spending the afternoon w/ some girlfriends so i wanted something simple and this just happens to be the boys FAVE!!)

There ya have it!! And yes...i am making shake-n-bake! Don't judge! ha! I love that stuff and it is sooo stinkin' simple!! Be sure to head over to orgjunkie.com and check out all menu planning goin' on!! ;)