Aqua Decor, Clean Kitchen & Peach Cherry Bourbon Chicken

I recently went through and d-cluttered my tiny kitchen, and bought a pineapple, and I thought it looked so nice I would share it here on my blog. It's funny, because if anyone asks me what my favorite color is, I will say yellow, because I like what it represents, yet in reality, I am always drawn to the cool color aqua.

In this particular picture, I had gotten up early, made my breakfast and was enjoying the cool breeze floating in through the window on my left. A nice treat during this very hot Oregon summer.

Mugs & Bowl: Fiesta Ware // Bird Butter Dish: World Market // Utensil Pitcher: Home Goods

After d-cluttering, I was feeling rather homemaker-ish so I decided to take a crack at cooking something different than the usual. Earlier this summer I tried making the Pioneer Woman's Peach Whiskey Chicken. Well, as per usual, Joel and I didn't follow the recipe to a tee, and it just didn't turn out quite right. So on this day, I though I would try it again, but instead I just used the idea of the sauce and did my own thing.

Here's what I did: We bought frozen chicken drumsticks, and baked them in our slow cooker for a few hours on high heat. Once they were cooked, I threw them on our indoor grill to crisp them up a bit.

For the sauce I just mixed together: honey bbq sauce, honey, peach preserves, and Cherry Reserve Bourbon (Sorry, this girl doesn't measure when she experiments). Just mix it and taste until it tastes how you like. Then I brushed the glaze on the chicken, and done! It was soo good!

I try to be Martha Stewart-y, but I just don't quite make the cut. This is a bag mix salad. Probably fancier than I would make myself, however. I believe it was called the "Summer Salad". I always add onions though!

Well, at least my husband liked it! I will probably be making it again!
What's your favorite chicken or salad recipe?
Happy Tuesday!

Rogue Farms Summer Concert Series

This summer, Rogue Ales & Spirits Farms is putting on free concert on Sundays!

Lucky for us, The Rogue Farms is super close to where we live. Last Sunday we went for a drive to check it out. We have lived close for so long now, and yet this is the first time we had been to check it out!

Hops for days...

I need this truck!

The lady in front of us in line for food & drinks was wearing socks with her flip flops, like a true Oregonian, so naturally I took a picture.

We found a spot in the shade and sat down to relax and enjoy some music.
Joel got the Hazelnut Brown Nectar. It was so good! It was sweet and desert like.
I got the mead which was excellent. Very light and fruity. I also tried a cider which is always good.
We shared a chicken wrap with jalepeno slaw, which was delicious!

Beautiful Oregon weather and countryside, great music, and great food & drink!
It was a delightful afternoon!

How are you enjoying the start of your summer?
Happy Friday!!

Birthday Celebration 2

And the birthday celebrations continued onto the day before my birthday...

Since my birthday was on a Monday this year, My Husband totally spoiled me on Sunday. He made me breakfast in bed. My favorite: biscuits and gravy complete with bacon, fresh fruit and coffee.

He had to go to a football meeting, but I had to write lesson plans, so he made sure to leave me with mimosas to help me relax while I got work done. It was very relaxing! I got a lot of work done for school and dance team and I had a pleasant time doing it. I felt very productive when I had finished.

The surprises continued when Joel got home and told me to be ready to go to dinner in a couple hours. When it came time to go he started stressing out about getting there on time, and he wouldn't tell me where we were going. I kept trying to get him to tell me but he kept it a secret! The surprise was he was taking me to one of my favorite stores, World Market, to pick out a present! 

The store was closing earlier than Joel originally thought (that's why he was stressed) so I didn't have a ton of time to look, but Joel helped me narrow things down quickly. We picked out some string lights for the backyard that we don't currently have, haha. We're hoping to move soon somewhere with even the tiniest of back yards. We cannot go another summer with no outdoor space! We don't even have a little patio or anything right now & we're going stir crazy!

      

These lights had me browsing through my yard pinterest board, day dreaming of a backyard oasis :)

We also picked out a bottle of fancy champagne. We don't really know anything about it, we just picked it because the bottle was pretty ;)

We decided to go to Outback for dinner. I had a blackberry peach mojito and the grilled Mahi. We also had our first "bloomin' onion"...definitely not my favorite appetizer,  but my mojito and dinner were delicious!

We sat outside in the covered patio and we had it all to ourselves for most of our meal. It was really nice and relaxing.

Me, basking in my birthday glory, day dreaming about dining on my own back patio this summer.

Hoping we can make it happen!

I have the best husband in the world!

Happy Thursday ;)

Fashion Friday: Pink House Cafe

Last Sunday, Joel surprised me by suggesting we go to one of my favorite little cafes, "The Pink House Cafe" to celebrate my teaching position moving to full time for next year. It was a beautiful spring day.

The inside is decorated very cute with old pictures and paintings. It's the perfect place to go for coffee and dessert.

I had a pink lemonade and chicken curry salad with fruit and a delicious slice of olive bread.

I've been trying to make an effort lately to make outfits from items of clothing that I've owned for a while but don't wear very often, so everything I'm wearing is old, aside from the wallet I just bought from Charming Charlie. I actually have had the heels since my senior year in high school!

Happy Friday everyone!

Easter Sunday

Hi lovelies! I'm sorry I am soo behind on blogging! Over the next week I'm going to catch up!

I hope you all had a lovely Easter weekend. I had 2 Easter brunches this weekend, and I am kicking myself that I didn't take more pictures of my family!! I didn't take any!

These are the only little Easter decorations I have. I got the banner from Target and the bunny and eggs were gifts from my mom :)

I am loving all of the cherry blossoms this spring!!

Easter brunch number one was at my Cousin's home. There were lots of goodies! I made a dump cake from the pioneer woman. I didn't take a picture of it because it wasn't very pretty but it was sure tasty! I made the cherry and pineapple one but instead of white cake mix I used cherry chip cake mix. It is super easy to make, but one tip I have if you make it is to make sure you cover every inch of the cake mix with butter! It only bakes where there's butter and I didn't realize that so I had to add butter and then it baked a little uneven.

We made some crafts that my Aunt discovered on Pinterest. Her sample in the top picture turned out really well.

Mine, well it was more of a Pinterest fail haha ;)

On actual Easter we had a brunch at my parents' house. My mom used her special place mats that she bought in the Caribbean when she got to go on a cruise with my dad.

My mom and my youngest brother cooked. I wish I had taken a picture of the cream cheese stuffed chocolate dipped strawberries my brother made!

My nephew had his very first Easter basket. As you can see he's a busy little boy ;)

My sister-in-law put a very soft, personalized bunny in his basket. So cute!

What I wore: Dress: Old Navy (old) // Cardigan: Old Navy (old) // Rain Booties: ASOS (old, similar) // Bracelet: Charming Charlie

I did manage to get a picture of Joel & I. Unfortunately it was after it started storming! It was raining and thundering so we took a picture under the covered deck.

My mom & I made a quick shopping trip to our favorite shopping area, bridgeport village, Friday after I got done teaching and I got the bracelet at Charming Charlie. It was so cute I couldn't leave without it!

I couldn't go home without snapping a picture of this little cutie :)

I love that we celebrate Jesus' resurrection in the Spring. It's a reminder that we can be made new again through Christ because of his ultimate sacrifice. He gave his life in exchange for ours, so that we may be forgiven our transgressions and be made clean in Christ. New life comes in the spring, and new life comes through Christ at any time.

I hope you all had a Lovely Easter.
Happy Monday!

Wine Tasting

This last weekend I went wine tasting with my cousins and our guys. We went to the Willamette Valley Vineyards tasting room. I only took one picture of the room and I really wish I had taken more. I have never been to the Willamette Vineyards before and their tasting room was so beautiful. There is a firepit in the middle of the room with couches around it and there is a grand piano in one corner, and behind me in this picture is windowed doors going to outdoor patio seating with a beautiful view. I definitely would like to go back for a date night or a girls night! After our wine tasting we each bought a bottle or two, and ordered some appetizers to enjoy the beautiful venue.

lips: Maybelline in Plumb Perfect // Eyes: Wet 'n Wild in Walking on Eggshells

My lovely cousins & me on the outdoor patio. I'm the oldest...I didn't get the height gene ;)

I snapped this picture of my hubby with the pretty view in the background.

What I Wore: // Cardigan: Target // Top: Victoria's Secret (similar) // Leggings: Publik // Booties: Payless Shoes (old) //  // Necklace: 1 year anniversary gift from Hubby :) //

I love this picture of my hubby & me. It was a fun outing and the fall weather made for some beautiful pictures.

Happy Monday!