The Wedding Location

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Well ladies and gents it’s official; we chose a location for our wedding and it only took us 10ish months.

I knew planning a wedding would be tough, but I hope it gets easier from here on out. For us the big problem is that our families are centered about 1.5 hours apart, which is just far enough to make it really hard to pick a location. Do you choose something equidistant? 45 minutes is still a fairly long ride, especially for a DD. Do you choose one town and make the other family drive? But then how do you choose one side or the other? And you will upset a person with any of these options, that’s just a fact of the matter. I wish someone told me to be prepared for that one.

In the end money and hotel location made all the difference. The local Elk’s Club is perfect for our budget, and so close to downtown, hotels, and major highways. And added plus is that is it beautiful! I really wanted to avoid places that had fancy chandeliers and designed carpets, because I was afraid they would contrast with the feel of the wedding that I want (rustic). Besides I didn’t want my wedding to feel just like 10,000 other weddings that are held at those kinds of venues. This place is like a blank canvas, with super high, white ceilings that have pot lights and a basic carpet floor. Decorating is probably the part I am most excited about. I even created a whole Pinterest board for it already.Now that, that is out of the way I really hope the rest of the planning goes smoothly. There is still 13 more months to go so there’s plenty of time for a big catastrophe. I suppose we will have to wait and see.

Barbecue Grilled Chicken Salad

By Jessica

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I have a pretty huge obsession with barbeque, I mean who wouldn’t? It’s saucy, for one you can change it up however you like, a little sweeter, a bit more of a vinegar bite, or bring on the heat. Plus it’s super versatile. I mean you don’t just have to use it in conjunction with the grill. I have slathered it on grilled cheese, and even baked with it.

This time around I wanted to lighten it up with salad. I love salad, but Chuck isn’t as sold as I am on the stuff, and prefers somethingheartier, so most of the time our salads are pretty loaded down (example 1, 2, & 3) with an abundance of vegetables, cheeses, croutons, and meat sides, remember it’s all about compromise.

I have been making this salad for years, and I’m sure that

it is nothing new to you guys after all, the concept is pretty basic. It’s getting the ratios down that takes time. I think I finally have it; the perfect balance of ingredients.

I personally think it’s so well balanced that dressing isn’t even necessary. There are so many flavorful, creamy components that it would be just overkill. However I know not everyone feels that way, so a light drizzle of olive oil might be in order.

Barbecue Grilled Chicken Salad

Prep time: 1 hour

Cook time: 10 mins

Total time: 1 hour 10 mins

Serves: Serves 4

Ingredients

1/2 cup BBQ Sauce
3 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 cups chopped romaine lettuce
3 cups baby spinach
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 medium cucumber, chopped
1 cup sliced carrots
1/4 cup chopped red onion
3/4 cup frozen corn, defrosted
1 avocado, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/3 cup blue cheese crumbles

Instructions

Trim the chicken of fat and place in a covered bowl with about barbecue sauce to marinade, at least half an hour.
Cook on a preheated grill for 4-5 minutes a side, or until the juices run clear, basting with sauce regularly.
Meanwhile toss all vegetables together in a large bowl and top with avocado and blue cheese.
When the chicken is done, and cooled cut it into bite size pieces and top the salad.
Serve immediately with your choice of dressings.

Your First Week Back to School Meal Plan

By Jessica

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I’m not in school any more, but I have some friends and
cousins whose kiddies are getting ready to pack themselves up and head back.
That first week can be stressful, everyone is trying to adjust to the new
schedule, and it’s hard, that part I remember.

I thought I could help those of you who are going to be
thrown head first into it by putting together a super easy 7 day dinner meal
plan. This post tells you what to cook and when, with links to all the recipes.. Everything can be cooked in under 30 minutes
and feeds a family of four.

I know it’s awesome.

I added some suggestions and tricks under each recipe so be
sure to read through those before you get started.

Sunday – One Pan Chicken Pot Pie

Swap out the Chive biscuits in this one for the premade kind
that you can just unwrap and place on top. Also you can swap the celery, and
carrot for frozen mixed vegetables that you can stir in when you add the frozen peas,
less chopping and lots of time saving.

Monday – Crock Pot Korean Beef w/ Rice

You can trade the individual sauce ingredients (soy, sesame,
etc.) for a premade sauce or marinade like hoisin sauce or teryiaki if you would like, but this one is already pretty easy. Also make some extra rice for Wednesday’s recipe.

Tuesday – South West Meatball Skillet

Don’t have all the necessary spices? Just grab a packet of Southwest
taco or fajita seasoning instead. Super easy.

Wednesday – Shrimp Fried Rice

To keep costs down make extra rice on Monday and use that
for this recipe, instead of the instant rice.

Thursday – Steak Salad w/ Dijon Vinaigrette
Cooking steak only takes a few minutes, and you can buy a couple bags of salad, and serve this with a baked potato or side of crusty bread for a complete meal, then serve the leftover bread on Friday with the soup.

Friday – Minestrone Soup w/ Bread
This recipe is super versatile so here you can use frozen vegetables instead of chopping the celery and carrot. Just add it in with the spinach and you are all set.

Saturday – Tomato Sausage & Bean Stew
There’s really no corners to cut with this one, it’s already so easy.

These are just some ideas I have had, but they are a lot of
work, so I don’t want to dive into them if you guys don’t find them useful.

Clifftop & Indian Ladder Trails

By Jessica

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HI EVERYONE!!!! Hi Hi
HI!Hi

Brody here!

I’m taking over moms blog for the day because she is busy packing up for our camping trip this weekend. I’m stoked to have four whole days of freedom; I just hope I don’t get into the bees like last year, my nose hurt for days!

Any way I want to tell you about a nice little hike me and the family did last weekend. Mom heard of this hike on her friend’s blog and decided that we should try it out. It wasn’t too far from our house and it was pretty.

I had a lot of fun scaring the bejesus out of my mom by jumping the stone walls at the lookouts. We went on a Sunday and there were A LOT of people. People don’t bother me because I have learned that while we are walking or running we are on a mission, and there’s no time to stop and play, or chase squirrels. There’s too much of the world to see for those kinds of things. However mom and dad kept stopping to read these stupid historical signs, they are dorks sometimes I swear.

The trail is super easy, and most of the treacherous parts have been made easy with steel or stone stairs. We finished the whole thing in a couple of hours. The water falls are just as cool as the views. I can see why the natives went through all the effort to get to them. I really think everyone in the area should check it out it’s a lot of fun.

Well that’s all for now, I have to make sure that Mom packs my hiking bag for the trip.

Have a good weekend!Oh PS: My mom want to tell you all to head over to The Charming Blog to check out her first contributor post. Thanks!

Brody

Garden Updates and Panzanella

By Jessica

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The garden has been on overdrive. I have been freezing more
beans than I think we can eat this year (yessss!), and the tomatoes are turning
bright colors of red and gold.

There is nothing better than fresh garden tomatoes, they are
so incredibly sweet and have so much flavor. One of my tomato plants has
actually outgrown its cage and I had to add some wooden stakes to keep it
upright. It has gotten so bushy I can’t even begin to prune it. I am not the
only one I know with this problem, so I’m thinking it must be the year of the
tomato around here.

I recently had to pull all of my arugula and lettuce mix,
since a lot of it went to seed while we were on vacation a couple weeks ago. I
think I’m going to do a late summer radish crop or maybe some other cold
weather veggies, I will have to look at what my options are. My peas are
reaching the end of days with the heat, so I’m going to pull them soon and get
ready for a fall crop of peas. Maybe this time around I’ll be able to store some
for winter, Chuck it pretty good about eating them before I can get them
stored.

In the mean time let’s talk about one of my favorite meals
with these garden treats. This year I have been loving these wonder bowls,
but also a simple classic panzanella. A nice warm panzanella with fresh garden
produce and a big glass of white wine and you have one happy camper over here.

Simple Early Season Panzanella

3 cups day-old crusty bread, cubed

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

4 medium tomatoes, chopped into 1-2 inch pieces

3 cups arugula

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tbsp diced red onion

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

Fresh ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. On a large cookie sheet toss
bread with1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and toast for 5-6 minutes, tossing
once. Remove from heat, and set aside. In a large bowl add all other
ingredients and toss to combine. Add the bread, and toss again. Serve immediately.

Serves 4-6

The Wedding Location

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