Friday, May 5, 2023

Happy Oaks Day (the day before the Derby!

Happy Cinco de mayo! We don’t capitalize months in Spanish, but I am not sure about capitalizing it in the phrase “Cinco de mayo”!

Are you having Mexican food tonight? This day really just commemorates the battle at Puebla and we make a bigger deal out of it in the U.S. than they do in Mexico.

It’s time to link up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Favorites!

A couple of favorite recipes I tried last weekend that I want to share. Also, as some of you moms are getting excited/nervous about all the free time stretching out in front of you this summer, I think these would be great to do with kids.

The Yummiest Banana Bread – I found myself with 6 very over ripe bananas and I think that is what contributed to this being the best (I know I have said it before, but I really mean it now) banana bread I have ever made. I gave a loaf to my friend Elizabeth and she immediately texted me asking how I made it so moist. She had to have the recipe.

Buttermilk Pancakes – I like to treat my college kids sometimes and made these on Saturday. I put mini chocolate chips on top – I don’t mix it in with the batter because I think they sink or the ratio turns out wrong. These were the most delicious pancakes I have ever made. I also love my electric non-stick griddle that enables me to make 4-6 at a time depending on size.

But, wait you say – you have found really good box mixes. Nope! Don’t even go there. These recipes take maybe 5 more minutes but you control the ingredients and you know there are things you cannot pronounce on the ingredients list of the box mix. With the leftover buttermilk, make mashed potatoes for my KFC Copycat Bowl that I got from Andrea, I think. I couldn’t find her post about it.

Reminders:

Tomorrow is The Kentucky Derby and the big race occurs at 6:57 p.m.

King Charles’ Coronation can be watched starting at 6:00 a.m. Eastern time. Will you be sipping tea and eating scones in your p.j.’s with a big hat as your accessory?

I am so happy to have my favorite hairspray again from Amazon! It wasn’t available for a while and I settled but then I checked and it’s back!

And, trying a new detangler and I really like it and the smell.

I figured out how to dust my decorative rocks… I dumped them out on a towel and rubbed. I cleaned the vases, too. They look so much better.

Tuesday was a favorite this week because I took one of my two remaining personal days! I got very cheap tickets to the horse races at Churchill Downs and Erica and I took a personal day and I invited my niece Brooke. We started the day with brunch at Gralehaus, which is the absolute cutest and has great food.

Soon to be college graduate and RN starting in June – so lovely and fun to be with!

We all got a breakfast sandwich on a homemade biscuit and it was delish. I am so glad we ate before the track because food was super expensive and many of the food and drink stands were cash only? So weird.

The garden behind Gralehaus:

The weather forecast was looking dicey – more clouds and wind than preferable. I ended up sticking with my original outfit and the only thing new was my $11 Amazon fascinator. I did take a sweater but only needed it at the very end. We really lucked out as it was super sunny and I was appropriately dressed all day. I was also very comfy in last year’s Amazon sandals. I do look like I’m wearing Granny’s nightgown, but whatever.

Some outfits as we headed in:

There was everything from jeans to a full on Derby Day ‘fit with pretty heels, dresses, and hats.

Our first drink was the Oaks Lily:

We were able to snag a box on the railing at the finish line! I guess there are advantages to getting there early in the day. I have never had such good seats!

I picked a winner in every single race until the last one. I didn’t bet a lot of money but I won anywhere from $2-6 each race! But, I have to tell you this or I am a bad person. In the last race we stayed for (the second to last of the day), we were walking out to cash out our tickets and we saw a horse lying down on the track. So, something happened after the race was over – the horse may have had a heart condition or hurt his leg. They immediately brought out a big tarp like tent thing and a truck came on the track and of course that only meant one thing. We later heard that another horse died after the 5th race. Two horses died! We felt like such bad people for betting after that. This is why Tom is not a fan of horse racing or really anything that involves humans taking advantage of animals. He hates the circus. So I know this is controversial, but I had to share that. I know people will come back and say that thoroughbred horses are treated like kings, but to me it sounds like they were pushed too hard and I used this as a form of diversion.

Anyway, it was a great day until the end when that happened.

Wednesday night was the great steamboat race down at Marine Sales and Service where we keep our boat. Tom, Ernie, and I went.

Ernie waiting on Tom to drop a scrap:

It was so nice to be out in the sun on a weeknight and we saw lots of people we hadn’t seen in a while, so that was really nice.

Next week is Teacher Appreciation Week and they have us dressing in themes like the kids do at Spirit Week. Monday is “Dress like you are in summer mode”. I will try to do them all because it will make deciding what to wear easy.

Remember that my favorite thing to get as a teacher is a handwritten heartfelt note from a parent or a student. I save them all. As far as gifts go, I think I most appreciate a gift card. I spend my own money throughout the year on little things that are just not worth trying to get reimbursed for so if you do go the gift route, don’t think a gift card is lame. But, again, a card or note is really my favorite.

Happy, happy Friday and did I mention I am off today? This is a day we worked in the summer to have today off – a flexible PD day. It is Oaks so many teachers were taking it off years ago and that is why they decided to make it one of our flex PD days. Also, it’s college move out day so I will be going to campus to help provide more space with my car and then trying to get a couple of people who shall not be named to unpack and organize when they get home now that finals are over.

Thanks for reading!

Amy

Thursday, May 4, 2023

It’s time once again to link up with Kellyann and Jill for Fashion Files…

First, we have my Thursday night Honors Night outfit. I did not wear this to school. This is a Knox Rose Target dress from last year and Target shoes new with tags from one of my consignment stores. They are surprisingly comfortable and I hope to wear them to a wedding this month.

Friday I wore jeans, sneakers, my Costco white Lucky brand sweater with jockey earrings because we were getting closer to Derby.

Saturday for brunch at Wild Eggs with Elizabeth I wore my MIA clog sandals with very old Versona pants that I got for maybe $8 and my Old Navy gauzy blouse that I got new with tags at my consignment store. I have on the same jockey earrings.

Monday for school it turned cold again – imagine that! I wore my horse sweater (another opportunity!), Matilda Jane pants that matched one of the horses – yay!, and my Olukai mules.

Now, let’s talk about a recent Aerie order I placed. I saw a deal where you could use the app and get 30% off, so I did. I believe everything was already on sale to begin with. I ordered three items.

I got this “Shell Yeah” t-shirt that I thought was funny and I am trying it on with the original reason for my order – cream denim cut offs. I thought cream would be great to have. they have elastic in the back just like toddler shorts. Yippee!

And, finally hot pink lounge shorts. I had just gotten a spray tan the day before.

The shorts were a little big but I rolled down the waist and I love the seams and the vibrant color.

I have just been so impressed with Aerie’s quality and how things wash. All 3 are keepers.

I have my eye on these after several Vionic recommendations from you all!

What have you been wearing lately? Purchasing lately?

Amy

Wednesday, May 2, 2023

I promise that after today I will try not to talk about my new bathroom! I know you are tired of hearing about it! I am tired of hearing myself talk about it! I always say this in class: “I know you are tired of me review this, but believe me when I say, that I am more tired of reviewing this than you are of hearing me review it”.

The back story: I had a house with three bathrooms. When we first bought it, it only had two bathrooms on the main floor. One was added about 12 years ago in our basement. It was the best one in the house and we seriously had guests go down and use it because it was the best. The two main floor bathrooms were sad, sad, sad.

The main bathroom/hall bathroom of the house:

Notice the bottom of the pedestal sink was no longer attached because of some plumbing issues before we demo’ed it. This bathroom is so small I could hardly take a photo.

The other bathroom was really only used by Tom and sometimes it was my nocturnal bathroom. It was even smaller than the hall bath and I really couldn’t take a photo of it:

I just got cold chills looking at this pic. It was part of our primary bedroom which is now the new primary bathroom.

We combined both bathrooms to make the new hall bath:

Tom hung a hook and a towel bar Sunday:

I put this stool in here for now and it might have a plant on it, but there is no window and therefore no light.

Tom ordered another backlit mirror like in the primary and hung it on Sunday:

I found the blush feathers at Hobby Lobby and the glass vessel at HomeGoods:

It is not “done”. We need to hang some wall art – and I would like to use a personal photography for some of the wall decor – and we are possibly going to add a small piece of furniture for storage but I kind of don’t want to because I like the open space. I am going to add a cool looking basket for towels when I can find one I like. I have not bought towels yet, either, because I haven’t found what I want yet. I also want to add a patterned rug in front of the vanity.

Tom is super picky about house stuff. He cares deeply about everything like tile, grout color, vanity, toilet, baseboards, fixtures, doors, etc. He lets me pick paint color and decor. This bathroom is my bougie dreams come to life. He thinks I am “moving in” to this bathroom and leaving him to the primary all by himself. Nope! I still love the primary, but it definitely has a different vibe.

If you need me, I will be in the bathroom,

Amy

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Another month has come and gone and I recorded my spending again. This will be my fourth month – wow! I am sure I missed a few odds and ends and I know I didn’t record all of my Amazon purchases. That is due to the fact that some of them were returned and I didn’t do a great job with tallying. I will do an Amazon Lately post soon.

This includes some Spring Break spending from April 1 – 9 so we “treated ourselves” a bit, but still did pretty well.

April 1 – $117 Trader Joe’s , $59.99 Sun Tan City month of April (ended up spray tanning 4 times)

April 2 – $34 Tickets to college play (I always give my kids money for this and I went along, too. I like to support the college theatre program. They weren’t in it, but wanted to support it and they invited me!, $55 dinner at Upland Brewing Company with friends

April 3 – $18 Derby earrings, $20 movie tickets – Tom and I saw Champions on Spring Break

April 4 – $40 Clothes Mentor (two pairs of shoes and a blouse), $0 Dinner at La Bodeguita (our friend picked up the tab and we bought his baseball game ticket), $61 baseball tickets

April 5 – $60 Lunch at Bardstown Bourbon Company

April 6 – $233 Kroger (Easter and out of a lot of staples)

April 7 – $30 HH with Elizabeth at Kaelin’s 80/20

April 8 – $30 Keeneland, $30 pizza (Domino’s delivery)

April 9 – $0 Spend Day

April 10 – $69 Walgreen’s toiletries that college kids needed before heading back – probably spent too much but they wait until the last minute and say “oh yeah, I need” and we still buy these things for them because their jobs are student right now.

April 11 – $0 Spend Day

April 12 – $15 Happy Hour with Beth at Boombozz – discovered they have a great and cheap happy hour!

April 13 – $111 Kroger, $120 hair, $36 pedicure, $26 Dollar Tree (stuff for school)

April 14-$25 Mojito Happy Hour with Heather, $39 Jasmine Asian take out for dinner (had not had Chinese food in forever!)

April 15 – $48 Silvio’s Italian before Prom

April 16 – $12 coffee shop (I was on my own and read a book and it was lovely!)

April 17 – $110 Kroger pick up (pretty close to my last pick up but needed lots of staples that I didn’t account for)

April 18 – $0 Spend Day

April 19 – $0 Spend Day

April 20 – $40 Derby open house boutique purchases (some were impulse but I was supporting a friend’s boutique and her Derby event), $40 Louvino happy hour and dinner with Heather

April 21 – $4 emergency breakfast for Amy (out of meal prep and out of energy!), Tom and I had to eat a quick meal before Jack’s guitar gig. We chose a taqueria called Panchito’s and it was $24.33

April 22 – $150 Target (bathroom decor and re-stocking toiletries), $51 Hobby Lobby, $59 TJ Maxx, $77 Kroger pick up (ended up returning about $50 of this – decor for bathroom)

April 23 – $20 Pauls’ Fruit Market, $30 Kroger (a few forgotten things), $33 Rooster’s Sunday Funday with Tom

April 24 – $0 Spend Day

April 25 – $0 Spend Day

April 26 – $0 Sun Tan City, $0 Sassy Fox Consignment (dropped off a few more items and found out I made $34 already – + $34, $107 Kroger

April 27 – $0 Spend Day

April 28 – $24 Happy Hour at Boombozz

April 29 – $24 Brunch with Elizabeth, $60 market at shopping center where we had brunch (bought macaroons, a candle, and two cocktail shrubs)

April 30 – did $150 in returns at UPS, Target, and TJ Maxx (lots from bathroom design) and spent $150 at Homegoods, $65 gas

Summary: April was a fast and busy month and included Spring Break and the completion of our hall bath. It was also a very social month for me.

But, I continue to meal prep all of my breakfasts during the week and to cook almost every night. I am surprised that I was able to have 7 No Spend Days this month. I continue to do most of my Kroger pick ups during the week to free up the weekends. I have really been working on less food waste and getting creative with what needs to be used up in the fridge. I have also been working hard on contentment in my closet.

Totals:

$0 Spend Days: 7

Kroger: $558 (Wow- way down, but did have a big Costco run that I didn’t include – oops)

Trader Joe’s: $117

Paul’s Fruit Market: $20

Amy’s Happy Hours: $94 – not bad, but I would like to have people come to my patio more in May

Meals Out: Spring Break: $55 Upland Brewing Co. with our friends, $60 Bardstown Bourbon Company, $0 La Bodeguita de Mima (our friend picked up tab), $40 Silvio’s before Prom, $24 Taqueria Panchiol’s, $33 Rooster’s Sunday Funday, $40 LouVino, $24 Wild Eggs (8 times eating out and that includes breakfast, lunch, or dinner and these are Amy with Tom or Amy with a friend) Do not feel bad for Tom as he eats lunch out 5 days a week and we don’t even want to talk about that. I gave up on trying to get him to bring his lunch!

Take Out: $30 Domino’s Pizza, $39 Jasmine Asian Bistro (two times!)

Well, that’s a wrap on April! I didn’t tally clothing and accessories, but I think I’m still doing really well on that front, too. A post will be coming soon on a few things that I have snagged!

Thanks for reading!

Amy

Monday, May 1, 2023

Happy May!

It’s also Derby week so the excitement is in the air around here! Many people don’t work this week – or they just pretend to.

Here is my post last year with some recipes if you have a party or just like recipes:

https://coffeeandcocktailsatthecasa.com/2022/05/04/kentucky-derby-recipes/

Let’s go back to Thursday as I link up with Sarah and Holly for Hello Monday…

So, do you know who Jack Harlow is? If you have a teen they know who he is! He is from Louisville but didn’t go to my high school – he went to a high school where one of my besties teaches. His brother, however, did go to my school and was an amazing Spanish student that I got to teach for 2 years!

Anyway, I had just gotten a text from my friend with a picture of her with him so I knew he was in town and guess what…had a new album dropping the next day.

I’m teaching away (or trying to) and I hear a stampede of kids running and screaming outisde my door. Then, actually thankfully for social media my students started telling me theat they were getting messages that Jack was at my school walking through the courtyard during 3rd lunch! My class and I have 1st lunch. Sadly, my class didn’t get to see him, but as you can imagine the rest of the day that was all the kids could talk about.

I had to come back that night for Senior Honors Night and wore this:

My view:

I didn’t eat dinner until I got home and it was a zucchini lasagna bowl. Tom had to eat it alone.

Friday after school Erica and I went to the little shopping center nearby with the cute beaded jockey earrings. She didn’t get the ones below but loved them. I already have two pairs so I had to stop there. She found two other pairs to match her outfits for next week.

Then, we headed over to Boombozz for happy hour.

You can buy the green chili jam that comes with the nachos so I did!

I made cream cheese with green chili jam for Tom for a little before dinner snack.

One college kid came home to study for finals in a more quiet environment. Classes are done and now they just have finals, projects, and papers to turn in.

Saturday morning I got up pretty early because I had gone to bed so early. And, I had a list a mile long of things I had to accomplish and errands I had to run. I got some of them done that could be done at home and then I chose fun because I already had plans to meet Elizabeth for brunch at Wild Eggs. She has her throat polyp surgery Wednesday so I wanted to see her before then. I made her a little care package of some tea and soups and soft foods and I baked two loaves of banana bread and gave her one.

I just always get the farmer’s market skillet!

Then, we walked around a little market and I gor macarons, a candle I had been wanting, and some cocktail or mocktail shrubs. Do you know what that is? It is a fruit juice and vinegar combo that you add to cocktails or mocktails and the vinegar is really good for you. It tastes a little like kombucha. I got a blueberry lemon shrub and a cranberry apple shrub. It is a bottle of liquid – not a plant!

Then, Tom had charged the boat battery and washed the boat and we did a trial run.

It was pretty cold. I had on pants and a sweatshirt. The above photo is pretty special to me. When the vet told us in January that Ernie had internal bleeding, was anemic and most likely had tumors on his spleen one of my first thoughts was that he wouldn’t get to see another summer of doing what he loves. I am tearing up again thinking about it. I am sorry I keep talking about it lately but I think I get emotional with the changing of the seasons and the milestones that come wtih each of them.

Like I said recently, Ernie continues to be the same ol’ guy with just showing the signs of aging – stiffness sometimes after exercise. He continues to eat kibble, Arthrisoothe pellets (4 a day), chicken, green beans, carrots, and pumpkin.

My favorite house on the river:

We only stayed out about an hour. When we got home I made this:

I took my new candle and my shrub’tail to the patio.

I relaxed for a bit and then made myself go do a couple of the errands while putting off the rest until yesterday.

Jack then came home and brought much of his dorm stuff. We ate dinner and watched Ted Lasso. I attempted steamed cod with cajun, broccoli, and steak fries (homemade). I think the fish was not very cod because it was frozen and I probably rushed the defrosting process.

Sunday I make 8 breakfast burritos, lunch for Erica and I for Monday, did the dishes, laundry, floors, gathered up all the returns I needed to make – ugh – my friend Heather always has a car full of returns and I could not live like that. I hate returns but when doing house decor it is a necessary evil I guess.

I started a new email account this weekend with gmail and have changed my blog email to that address, too. I actually really liked “declaring email bankruptcy” since every time you make a purchase you are forever on someone’s email list! I guess I am a little worried that one of my “lost emails” will be important but I feel that they would have another way to get ahold of me.

What were your weekend highlights?

I hope you had many,

Amy

Saturday, April 29

Happy Saturday! Happy second to the last day of April! Today I am here for a rare Saturday post to link up with Jennifer for her “Share 4 Somethings”. If you are a regular reader, there will be some repeats of thoughts and photos!

Loved

This month I have loved my view from my little deck outside of my mudroom. I love my Amazon anti-gravity lounger with sunshade and this almost immediately relaxes me. I have watched less tv and read more books from this spot.

When it rains and when I need more shade, I come down to my covered patio with ceiling fans. I have not spruced up either space yet with pillows, candles, and decor. I need to get on that.

Learned

I learned how important it is to immediately come home and love on my Ernie. At the end of our after school walks I let him off lease in our yard and he does the best roll and back scratch in the grass. We had such a scare with him on January 26 when the vet told us he would not be long for this world. We brought him home and loved on him even more and that is still our plan. He seems back to normal but stiff from age from time to time.

I am continuing to learn to be content and happy with my closet. I am wearing mostly old things with a few consignment or new finds thrown in.

I am learning to be a better shopper and continuing to return things that aren’t a 10/10 for me.

If you have multiple returns, you can edit your photo with your return code to say what the item is.

Read

I read these books this month. Marlowe Banks was my least favorite and moved a bit slow. But, I liked them all!

Ate

I ate mostly at home.

Burrito bowl:

Zucchini lasagna bowl:

Big Mac Bowl:

Greek bowl with Greek potatoes:

And, for lunch I bring the same as the dinner for Erica and I and she does the same.

Doritos Tacos Loco Salad:

Erica’s Slender Kitchen Beef Bulgogi Bowl:

I am eating pretty well from Monday to Friday…unless there is cake, donuts, cookies, offered to me at school. Darned sweet tooth!

Can you share 4 somethings? Can you share 1 something?

Make the most of your Saturday!

Amy

Friday, April 28, 2023

Happy Friday! It’s time to link up with Andrea and Erika to share our favorites from the week.

But, first, I have a confession. I have been locked out/haven’t had my personal email for a week. I have my school email, of course, and that’s quite enough. Here is the long and short of it…I have kept my bellsouth.net email for far too long. Apparently it is part of yahoo, or Currently by AT&T and I also no longer have AT&T internet, cable, or cell phones in my home. So, I have not figured out how to get access back! I have actually been thinking it was time to switch email accounts and to really just declare “email bankruptcy” due to all the junk email I get. If you have suggestions, let me know!

I love a mimosa and I wanted to include this as a favorite. They are just so good and I think you can order one any time of day!

That face is a favorite! This was our Sunday Funday. He really does go along with most of my schemes.

I did it! I ordered a Lume trial kit and I really like it! I didn’t choose the best scents, maybe? I chose toasted coconut, baby powder (I smell like a bit of a diaper change – albeit a clean one), tangerine and cool cucumber. Has anyone else used it? Erica used it in Panama (the country) and said she never once stunk.

Some meals were favorites this week…

Big Mac bowl!

Burrito bowl!

A Greek bowl for lunch!

My new Urban Outfitters egg spoon rest!

My new Urban Outfitters shower curtain!

Here is how I boil eggs. I boil them, then I put ice cubes in the pan and shake, shake, shake.

I immediately peel and it works like a charm!

I ordered an $11 Amazon fascinator and I love it. A fascinator is much easier to wear than a giant Derby hat. It is on a headband.

This scent is to die for and I wish I hadn’t waited so long. There is really nothing “masculine” about it. You can find it at Target.

I also still love this one from Target! It smells so good!

Trying out Native face wash and I think I really like it!

And, this smells amazing.

Boujie new products for my new bathroom is the name of the game here…

So, sorry for the material goods being my faves this week!

What were yours?

Amy

Thursday, April 27. 2023

I really have a lot to share today – not sure if it’s all good, but I continue my streak of mostly not repeating school outfits in an effort to be content and see that I have plenty for this season! I am linking up with Jill and Kellyann for Fashion Files.

Not that you asked, but I continue to struggle with temperatures in my classroom along with footwear. I was so cold Monday at school that I seriously couldn’t get warm until dinner time at home. And, the hard cement floors are just brutal on your legs and feet.

I think this was last Thursday – I wore my new consignment hot pink short sleeved blouse, my old LulaRoe pencil skirt, a JC Penney Liz Claiborne knit cardigan and my patent Birks. I will say that my feet were happy – Birks get more and more comfortable over time. I also wore my hot pink Gucci bee earrings. The whole outfit was built around the earrings!

Thursday night I changed into my Target black gauzy dress, my MIA dupe clog sandals from Amazon, and my silk scarf headband with my Derby earrings to go to a boutique Derby open house and to dinner wtih my friend Heather.

Friday I wore jeans, butterfly blouse, old consignment cardigan and my black Amazon Essentials flip flops part of the day and my waterproof rain clogs part of the day because it was a rainy dreary day.

Friday night I changed into this to wear to dinner and a little music gig of Jack’s. I have on my Old Navy chambray blouse, my Wit and Wisdom flares from Nordstrom and my gold clogs. The flares are petite and almost too long with the clogs. Or, maybe they are too long!

This is my cold weather Saturday exercise/errand uniform that I don’t think I have ever shown. I like to wear my 7/8 pocketed leggings, a black long sleeved (I have two to choose from), and my black fleece vest. This time I threw on a black and white gingham headband.

I bought Hobby Lobby plastic sandals!

I have been loving my Kur illuminating nail concealer. It is so easy to do myself and it stays looking nice for about 5 days.

Saturday night I wore this to our friends’ house for dinner. It’s Derby season so you gotta take advantage of the ability to wear a sweater. It was a cold weekend!

Sunday I wore the same leggings and vest and added my bright blue sweater and Derby earrings. Again, I gotta get my wear out of the earrings!

Monday, it was time for school. I wore my paisley palazzo pants that are seriously 10 years old. This is how to feel like you are wearing pajamas at work. I wore an old thin black blouse and my hot pink blazer. It was very cold outside and the temp in my classroom was crazy cold. I wished I had gloves is how cold it was. I never get cold!

The cold drove my outfit for Tuesday – I repeated Sunday’s outfit but with black pants. I wore Hokas part of the day (legs and feet hurt) and then switched to black flats.

Hoping it warms back up soon, because I want to talk flip flops! I bought the gold Amazon Essentials and then added black and leopard! They were either $11 or $13 each and I think they are more comfortable than J.Crew, but look like J. Crew. Flip flops are my summer uniform shoe. You can “class up” a simple outfit with a little nicer looking flip flop.

I honestly don’t know who these pale Flintstone feet belong to and I am also not sure why I am showing you. They do run true to size. – the flip flops, that is.

Gold:

Leopard:

Black:

I still also have my new patent black Reefs:

So, that’s about it!

Do you have a favorite?

What have you been wearing?

Amy

P.S. – I took the final sale J.Crew white bathing suit to my tailor because it was too big and she told me it would be about $80 to re-size/make it smaller. So, I will take the loss; I took it to my consignment shop. Ironically, I had made $34 already so that was the exact price of the bathing suit. I kept the money there for use when I find something I want to buy so that it feels like I got it for free!

Wednesday, April 26, 2023

I am linking up with Sheaffer and Shay for the What’s Up Wednesday because it’s the last Wednesday of the month – wow, April, you went by quickly!

What We’re Eating…

I am on a Greek bowl kick again. This time I added some roasted broccoli to the typical cauliflower rice, tomatoes, cucumbers, chicken, and homemade tzatziki sauce. I didn’t have any feta, but it’s still so delicious to me.

I also made burger bowls this week. Again, this never gets old. I made a copy cat Big Mac special sauce using non-fat plain Greek yogurt.

I continue to get many of my recipes from Slender Kitchen. If you read my Costco haul post yesterday, you will see I am trying to get back to a more strict WW plan. I am tracking on my app and trying to eat better after some recent indulgences.

If you have any food or meal suggestions, let me know. I am ready to switch to more of my warm weather favorites after winter comfort foods!

What I’m Loving…

This was a splurge, but I thought it was so cute. It’s an egg spoon rest from the Urban Outfitters website. I ordered my hall bath shower curtain from them and saw this. No regrets! Did you know that Urban Outfitters has more than clothes?

She has not arrived yet, but here she is…

The first design I ordered from Amazon seemed cheap so I went back to the drawing board.

So, I hope I will be loving it when it arrives.

What I’ve Been Up To…

Picking out decor for my new hall bath! Hallelujah!

What I’m Working On…

Working on my vision for this bathroom with touches of pink. I picked up this handsoap.

I thought about pulling out the green of the shower curtain, but I decided to return this rug. It’s Opal House from Target if you like it!

Possible feathers and wall art:

Pink candles from TJ Maxx:

What I’m Excited About …

-A second bathroom on our main floor – we have a bathroom in the basement..

-College kids moving home – thus the need for the bathroom completion! They are in their last week of classes and next week is finals week. I really can’t believe we are three years of college down at this point. Next year they will be seniors. We continue to love and feel grateful for them choosing a small, liberal arts college close to home. They have both talked about the opportunities they have gotten and the fact that being close to home has been a benefit. It may not be right for everyone, but I think it was good for them to choose the same college (never rooming together, though) and a small college. Don’t overlook the private colleges because they can offer competitive scholarships and maybe need your kids more than the big schools!

-The end of my 29th year of school!

What I’m Watching/Reading …

This is really cute! I am enjoying it!

As for tv, I am watching Below Deck, Summer House, Real Housewives of New Jersey, Mrs. Maisel with my kids, Ted Lasso with Tom and the kids, and that’s about it. I am definitely reading more than tv watching in this season.

What I’m Wearing …

We went from this simple Target gauzy dress with Derby earrings on Thursday night for the 80 degree weather to

Sunday Funday’s sweater, fleece vest, leggings, and Derby earrings for the 40 degree weather!

What I’m Doing This Weekend …

There will be coffee and my candle! I am using my Volcano candle since it’s spring. I hope to make some more decor decisions as a few more things I have ordered come in, go to a local shopping center Spring open house, spend time with my friend Elizabeth, and not sure what else is coming up. Elizabeth has to have a polyp removed from her vocal cord in a week and won’t be able to talk for 7-10 days after that, so we have to talk now. I feel so bad for her. I really don’t think I could do that. Could you?

So, what’s up with you on this Wednesday?

Amy

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

I definitely have a love/hate relationship with Costco. I have sent Tom the last several times to get our paper products, dog food, and his protein shakes. But, I had cleared out freezer space and we were missing some of our freezer staples and I needed to go.

I bought these noodles again – it had been a long time so I hope I still like them. They are zero points on WW and you can use them however you would use a normal noodle in Italian dishes or you can use them with a Thai or teriyaki sauce. 6 packets come inside the box with about two servings each packet.

I prefer Boar’s Head deli turkey, but this is also pretty good. I like to make a wrap or a roll up with laughing cow cheese or mustard and a low carb tortilla.

Trying these for the first time – You can use them as a bun or toast them.

I made an open face sandwich in the air fryer and I liked it pretty well. It got kind of soggy, but I think it’s because I didn’t eat it right away. These are one WW point each.

I really like these and can’t find them at my Kroger, but they do have a smaller pack at Whole Foods. They are one WW point each.

I really like this brand of liquid egg whites more than other brands I have tried. 6 cartons come inside the box.

Regular old eggs:

They stopped carrying my chicken strips that were the best pre-cooked I had every had. I will not eat them if they are slimy. These looked very similar so I am giving them a shot. This is a great shortcut for any of my dishes that require chicken and I ideally would always have them on hand. You can cut the package apart and freeze one.

I have been using a lot of cucumbers lately in my Greek bowls and my salads.

This is the best frozen cauliflower rice. Fresh is not good in my opinion. Kroger’s frozen is in really big chunks. This is nice and fine and I really like it. 5 packages are within the big bag. I let the rice defrost on paper towels to get a lot of the moisture out and then I cook the beep out of it with a bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a skillet on the stove. I use this in place of regular rice in any of my dishes where rice would be the base.

We want to eat more fish!

A bag of frozen chicken breasts in the freezer helps us when we boil chicken for Ernie or have a dish that requires chicken.

And, that’s it for food items! I did a really good job of avoiding temptations this time!

Are you a Costco person?

Amy