Day 4 - Thankful for natural beauty

The perfection of nature never ceases to amaze me...

[caption id="attachment_331" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Naturally amazing"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_330" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Monarch"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_323" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Monarch 2"][/caption]

Day 4 - Thankful for Friends, Part II

My turn!  Rose got the blue screen of death this morning when she tried to start her computer, so you won't be hearing from her (most likely) today.  So I'm going to post about the fact that I am thankful for her, and for her friendship and overall delightfulness.  And for pointing out that my skirt was tucked into my underpants when we were like 10 years old (see the "about" page if you are confused on this).  Here's Rose after a lovely day of gem mining - isn't she wonderful?

Honestly, "Minettes" was basically the most creative way of putting "Women" on a bathroom door.

Day 3 - Thankful for friends

Today I feel blessed to have wonderful friends. I'm thankful for Jenny, my bestest friend in the whole world. Everyday she reminds me of the power of friendship and brightens my life with laughter and love. Here's one of the many examples when Jenny has made me smile and appreciate the simpleness and complexity that is  friendship.

[caption id="attachment_315" align="aligncenter" width="384" caption="Jenny's first riding lesson :-)"][/caption]

Day 3 - Thankful for Home

Yes, I realize that it's 1 am and I'm not exactly asleep yet.  Mainly because I'm too excited to sleep.  Because...my parents are coming today and staying for the weekend!   So, in honor of them, I'm posting the following picture of the house I grew up in.  I'm thankful for home, and for the people who made me who I am today.  Can't wait, can't wait, can't wait.

Addicted to Love

And photography.  Clearly.  If you read any of the posts as of late, that's pretty obvious.  So why not combine the two?  Ah, wedding photography.  The overly mushy romantic in me just LOVES it.  Yes, I wear t-shirts all the time.  Yes, I prefer jeans to high heels.  But there's something about that white dress that gets me every time.  And the flowers.  And the idea that every pot has its lid (yes, I just said that). 

Is there anything better than the way two people in love look at each other?  Nope. 

One of my dearest friends, Monica B, is an amazing wedding photographer in Atlanta.  And she let me come help her shoot two weddings over the past year.  I've learned SO much.  One of the things I learned is that I'm dying for a new (and infinitely better) camera, but I've also learned that I'm addicted to this.  Here's a little sample of the first wedding that I photographed...

How amazing are these shoes?  I wish I could pull these babies off... 

 

There's nothing more adorable than the first dance.  Added bonus - the bride totally changed into THIS gown after the ceremony.  After watching way too many episodes of Say Yes to the Dress, I find myself believing that one wedding dress is maybe not enough.

Baked Popcorn Chicken

Don't worry...we didn't forget about posting delicious recipes!  I was talking to my Gram today on the phone, which inspired me to post a recipe that she sent me via snail mail when I first moved down here.  She cut it out of a newspaper at home (not sure which one - sorry) and I made it immediately.  So yummy, and fun to eat too!  All the fun of a chicken nugget, without the fried-ness.  They have a little zip to them too, thanks to the addition of the Dijon mustard.  This is perfect for an easy weeknight meal, or to have during a football game on Sunday.

cooking spray (an olive oil spray works best for this)

2 large egg whites

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard (honey mustard works too - great twist!)

half teaspoon salt

2 cups panko breadcrumbs

1 and a half pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast (cut into 1 inch cubes)

Spray a large baking sheet with the cooking spray.  Mix the egg whites, mustard and salt in a bowl.  Put the breadcrumbs in another separate bowl.  Take a few of the chicken pieces at a time and toss them in the mustard mixture to coat, and then toss them in the breadcrumbs.  Place the chicken pieces on the baking sheet, and make sure that they are not touching if possible.  When all the chicken pieces are on the sheet, spray the top of the chicken lightly with more of the cooking spray (this will give it great color and some crunch).  Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.  Using a spatula, flip the chicken over after these 15 minutes are up.  Continue to bake until golden brown for another 5 to 10 minutes.

Day 2 - Thankful for Travel

I was going through some old pictures, and I couldn't help resisting posting one of my favorites from a trip Rose and I took to Cali in 2007.  I'm thankful for the opportunity that we had to go on this trip and the memories that we made!

 This was taken at the pier in Monterey...man, this makes me want to go back.  Like yesterday.  Prepare yourselves for (probably many) more pictures from this trip.