monday shopping haul

Well today I had to say goodbye to my favorite pair of leggings. They ripped right down the leg. Sigh. So since Jon and I recently came into a bit of funny money and I was all sad about my leggings (they were my favorite pair after all!) I cheered myself up with a bit of shopping at Target! First off, I got a ruffle front basic black cardigan. I had been needing a new black cardigan and this fit the bill. Next is this adorable sweater! I love the militaryesque feel of it! Next, I got these cowboy boots! I have been wanting a pair for a while and they were on sale, so I decided to go for it!
Also, The Best of Martha Stewart Halloween Handbook is out! I love all things Halloween and I love Martha's crafts. Squee!!!

Sausage Potato Casserole

I don't have a picture of this one, but all three of us really liked this recipe!!!! A note: I doubled this recipe and used one can of cream of mushroom soup and one of cream of mushroom soup with roasted garlic. It was really tasty!

Sausage Potato Casserole

1 lb breakfast sausage

3 cups sliced potatoes

1 can cream of mushroom soup

3/4 cup milk

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 onion, chopped

Brown the sausage. Mix the soup, milk, onion, and spices. Slice potatoes. In a 9x13 pan layer 1/2 the potatoes, 1/2 the sausage, 1/2 the soup mix. Do a second layer. Cover and bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees. After an hour, uncover and top with cheese. Bake another 15 minutes. Done!

One Taco Ring to Rule Them All

I had seen the taco ring everywhere on the internet and wanted to give it a try. I found a few recipes and didn't like what they said, so I went off on my own tangent to make my own version. I wanted a side dish, so I decided to try a mexican rice. Once again, I had seen several recipes, but none that were really what I wanted, so I made up my own. Jon, Josh and I really like both of these dishes.

Taco Ring

1 lb ground beef/turkey

1/4 onion, chopped

2 packages refrigerated crescent rolls

1/2 pack taco seasoning

1/2 cup water

toppings (lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, etc)

Brown meat and onions. Add taco seasoning and water and mix. Lay first packages of rolls out in a circle, with fat ends in the center. It should look like a sun when you are done. Lay the second pack in between two of the previous rolls, still with the fat end in the center. Spoon meat onto rolls and pull skinny/pointy end over meat and seal the ends. Bake until crescent rolls are golden brown.

Mexican Rice

2 cups minute rice

2 cups water

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 cup salsa

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Mix all except cheese and bake at 400 degrees fro 35 minutes. Spread cheese on the top and bake until cheese is melted.

peaches and lace

I may have a bit of a problem. A peach problem. I can't stop eating them!!!! They are so yummy! Fresh only though, no canned peaches for this lady!!

So on to something not a total side note, I am super excited about making my new wedding projects! Thanks to www.heygorg.com for the stellar wedding ideas! I so cannot wait to see her wedding!!! It's a week after mine and I know her's is going to be so beautiful! Just check out her site and you will fall in love!

Anywho, I got lace to make the lace covered vases, which I will be putting candles in instead of flowers.

I also got enough lace to make a version of the lace seating chart pictured below. I'm going to put lace strips in black 8x10 picture frames and use them to hold the reserved signs for the family tables. It will look a little like this.

Cute right! And the serve another purpose! After the wedding, I'm going to hang them in my hallway and use them to hold/display pictures! I've been wanting to do a photo wall for a while and I think this is a great way to do it!!! I can't wait to get on these projects!!!! All I need to get is the glass containers and black picture frames.

couples shower

Well this weekend has been a great mix of getting stuff done and lazing about. Yesterday, we went and got ties and shirts for the wedding. While we were out shopping, we found that game over t-shirt with the picture of the bride and groom on the front. I was so excited! Jon said he'll wear it the day of the wedding. After being out and about we came home for lunch and played a game of Sorry!. Josh won of course. He always wins when we play board games. For an 8 year old, he is really quite good at them!! Last night, we went to our couples shower at Jon's mom's house. It was a lot of fun. I may have drunk too much vodka for my own good! Jon's aunt Rachel got us the best cake!!!


Is that not awesome!!! Not to mention that it was way yummy too! Josh was so excited! He kept asking when we were going to cut the cake so he could play with the action figures! He's been playing with them ever since!! Thanks to everyone who planned and came to the shower!

Last minute wedding must have!

If you are planning a wedding, you must visit http://www.heygorg.com !

It is an awesome site with gorgeous images and ideas!!! I know I'm less than a month out, but I just found this lace covered vase idea and now I HAVE to have them in my centerpieces!!!!

Aren't they awesome! Not that I'd mind those Anthropologie cups either, but I'm a realistic kind of girl and I think I'll stick to the vases. I think they'll add that touch that has been missing. Now I just have to make them!

One Month!!!!!

One month from today, I will be a Mrs.!!!!!!! I'm so excited! I can't believe it's so close!!! We are getting the last minute details done at this point. This weekend we are going to buy shirts for Jon and Josh and ties for all the guys. I also want to decide on our programs this weekend, and I need to email the photog the final info. I also started my "final" checklist that I'm going to use when I pack the car to head up the day before. I hope I haven't forgotten anything!!! I'm just in shock that the wedding is so close!!! Where did the last year go?! In honor of the month away mark, here are some gorgeous wedding pictures from weheartit.com

roswell that ends well

I had forgotten how much I loved the show Roswell. Anyone else out there?? Season 1 is on Itunes and I got a couple episodes. Love!

Anywho, that's all I've been up to today, other than work that is. Sigh. It's just me and the cats tonight, so we're chilling out with some Itunes. Sorry there's no epic update, just another day in wonderland.

these boots are made for walking

Today I got some very promising news that I hope I will be able to tell you all about soon. If you never here of it again, it didn't happen, but hopefully, I will have some exciting news for you soon!

I went to Target today and they finally have their boots out! I have been wanting a pair of ankle boots ever since last winter and they had the best pair so I snapped them up!

Aren't they adorable! I love the ruffle down the side!! I really want a pair of cowboy boots and Target has a really cute pair that I now have my eyes on. They didn't have my size, so I'm going to be stalking Target's shoe sections until they do! Other than that, today has consisted of a monster headache. I'm going to sign off here and attempt to ignore the throbbing in my head.

lazing on a sunday afternoooooon!

Jon and I haven't been up to much today. A big thanks to Sonnie and Phil for our wedding present! A deep freezer!! I have been wanting one for a while b/c I use a lot of frozen goods and our fridge freezer is constantly full! Other than that, Jon and I have been lazing about doing laundry, watching Cowboy Bebop, and playing Mass Effect.

I hope everyone has a fabulously lazy Sunday afternoon!

wasabi ranch dipping sauce

Hello my internet pepes! Not much to report here! We've just been spending the day recovering. Indeed, a nap was taken! I wanted to post my favorite new dipping sauce, Wasabi Ranch!!! I love this sauce. Try it out! One thing I wanted to mention is that if you dno't like it at first, try eating a few more bites. Both Jon and I weren't sure that we liked it on the first bite, but once you have a couple bites, your taste buds adjust to the mix of cool ranch with spicy wasabi, and it is amazing!! I like this with fried green beans, french fries, chicken tenders, and things of that nature. Something that holds its own with taste, but isn't too flavorful. I hope you like it!

Wasabi Ranch Dipping Sauce

1 tbsp ranch dressing

1/4 tsp wasabi horseradish sauce

This will make enough for one person, maybe 2 if you're not dipping much. Increase the amount of wasabi horseradish sauce depending on how spicy you want it. I've found that the above ratio allows the cool of the ranch to take front and center, but keep the kick of the wasabi in the background.

A License and a Luau

Oh what a day Friday was! Actually, our Friday bled into our Saturday! I haven't stayed up so late in a very long time!!! WE had such a good time though! Ok first off, we got our marriage license! It was so funny b/c they gave us a pamphlet about STD's and HIV!!! And you had to sign to say you received it! I'm sitting there wondering who marry's someone if they don't know they're sexual history! Or at least that they have been tested!! Eesh!

Anywho, after the getting of the marriage license, we went home and finished getting ready for the luau! We had so much fun! Everybody ended up coming, plus Zach ended up stopping by and staying the night!! Jon had a great birthday party!!! I am so bummed though, I didn't get any pictures of Dustin and Amber! They both came, but I must not have had my camera out!! :( We ended staying up till around 3am! It's been so long since I was up that late!! The suck part is, now I can't sleep. My internal clock has woken me up and there is no more sleeping for me! I definitely see a nap in my future!

Friday...er...Thursday!

I kept thinking it was Friday today! I guess that's because... I have tomorrow off! I'm going to have quite a day too! I have to get everything ready for the party, then Jon and I are going to get our marriage license!!! And then of course, we have the party! Methinks it shall be a good day! Tonight, I came home and Jon and I had dinner at his mom and Phil's. Then we went tot he store. It's kinda refreshing that we don't have to go grocery shopping again this weekend. I actually get a weekend! A whole one! I don't know what we'll do!

*YAWN*

Oh man, I'm bushed. Sorry this post is so short. I'll make sure to update on Saturday, b/c honestly, I probably won't be able to tomorrow.

Oh and side note, I finished rereading the Harry Potter series. Every time I reread it, I'm amazed at how much I love it. It's just such an amazing series. I'm all ready or the movie on November 19th!!! I'm a little sad about their only being 2 movies left though! I won't be able to look forward to anything Harry Potter anymore! At least I'll be able to read the books and watch the movies as many times as I want!

*shiver* Oh I can't wait!

Tuesday, my love

Woowee!! I had a lovely evening! Jon came up and we had our final pre-marital counseling with Pastor Joe. It was so good getting to know Pastor Joe. Jon and I both feel sad that we aren't going to see him again any time soon. We went to BW3's for dinner and then hung out for a bit watching Gilligan's Island.

I am super excited for Jon's party on Friday! I've downloaded a bunch of great luauesque songs. I'm seriously debating getting a limbo stick. This week, I've been working on the menu, and this is what I've come up with.

1. Meatball kabobs in BW3's Asian Zing sauce

2. Chicken kabobs in teriyaki sauce

3. baked beans

4. veggie kabobs

5. cake!

6. beer!

I've also been throwing around these two appetizer ideas

1. ham wrapped around crushed pineapple and cream cheese

2. ham, pineapple, and cherry kabobs

Of course, the real excitement is that we are going to get our marriage license on Friday!!! Squee!!!!! I can't believe we will be married in 37 days! I'm so excited!!!

After today, I am more than ready for fall to get here! I'm so very over this excessive heat. I've been dreaming of things like this:

Dear Fall,

You can come anytime! And please, stick around for a while! I dearly love you! You are my favorite season!

Sincerely,

Sarah

Our new bathroom!

Ok so I take horrid pictures, but you should get a basic idea of what our bathroom looks like now! Everything is white and bamboo. It's like a spa! Well at least, I think it does! I'm looking forward to bubble baths by candlelight!

Photo Heavy

Well ladies and gents, I am typing this from my brand new computer!!! Yes I finally bit the bullet and got mahsself a new typin' machine! It is glorious I must say. I new my old computer was slow and totally messed up, but I didn't realize how long it had been running slow! This thing is super fast! I don't remember the last time I was on a computer that ran this fast! Love!

Not much to report today. I got home last night and Jon and I just ran some errands and hung around the house. Today, we went out to lunch with his family and then we cleaned our bathroom and put all our new stuff in it. It is beautiful! I'm going to post pictures of that in another post b/c it isn't completely done! However, since I am now able top post pictures again (god bless this wonderful new computer) I am going to now give you a photo heavy post to catch you up. Without further ado, here are some photo recaps!

My Bridal Shower!!!!!



My Twilight Mini-Bachelorette Party!

Learned How to Shoot A Gun!

My Bachelorette Party!