In the Valley of the Sun with the Wednesdays...

I cannot wait to see some of these ladies tonight!  Hip Hip Hooray!!!!

Four Years Ago Today....

...Blake took me on a date that changed everything.

After a reunion at Lauren Brown's first annual Thanksgiving Party, Blake apparently felt some sparks.  :)  He said we had a particularly long hug.  I can't seem to recall that hug, but he was definitely the cutest guy at the party. 

Blake moved to Austin that winter and called a few weeks later to see if I wanted to have dinner.  We went to Hyde Park Bar and Grill and on to the Blanton Museum afterwards.  I was pretty oblivious that I was on a date, and thought I was Blake's tour guide for his stint in Austin.  He still stands by the fact that he was pretty clear about it being a date.  Jury is still out.  We kept hanging out that semester when he wasn't at the race track and I wasn't busying studying.  I drug him to countless sorority events and let him re-live college during my final semester at UT.  Always a good sport.  :)

After a couple of months in Austin, we knew we had something special.  Long distance was unavoidable and we thought we were up for giving it a try.  We said goodbye here, only to find ourselves coming back to the city we started dating in four years later!



Separated by way too many miles, we did a lot of this....

And had a lot of long distance dates ....

That finally led to this....

Which led to this.....

 And I couldn't be happier. 

Four years ago, the last thing I expected was to start dating my future husband.  Burned and discouraged about dating, I had swarn it off, ready to head to Phoenix for a new start.  God had other plans.  He carefully prepared us for marriage.  It felt painfully slow and at times was extremely hard.  But now, looking back I see incredible purpose in His timing.  Ahh to rest in the fact that God is sovereign over all.  Praise Him for his providence. 

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner: Kale & White Bean Chicken Soup

Photo taken from Realsimple.com

I had this one on the menu a few weeks back and never got around to making it.  I whipped up a pot before church on Sunday and we enjoyed it to unwind our weekend and get ready for the week.  It feels like soup season is nearing an end here in Texas, but if you are still enjoying some chilly weather, give this one a shot! 

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 stalks celery, sliced or if you don't have that available you can use the kale stems for crunch
1 large onion, chopped
kosher salt and black pepper
1 32 oz container of chicken broth
4 C water
2 15.5-ounce cans cannellini beans, rinsed  (Can also use Northern)
1 cup small soup pasta, such as tubettini, ditalini, or orzo (4 ounces)  - I used spiral whole wheat pasta
1 bunch kale, thick stems discarded and leaves torn into 2-inch pieces (8 cups)
2.5 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 cup shaved Parmesan (2 ounces), plus 1 piece rind (optional)
Juice of 1 lemon
2 Chicken Breasts

Directions
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.
Add the garlic, celery (or chopped stalk), onion, 1 ½ teaspoons salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 4 to 6 minutes.
Add the beans, pasta, kale, rosemary, 4 cups of broth and 4 cups water, and Parmesan rind.  Cover and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer until the pasta and kale are tender, 4 to 5 minutes.
Cook chicken (I boiled mine) and chop into bite sized pieces.
Remove the Parmesan rind. Stir in the chicken, lemon juice and sprinkle with the shaved Parmesan before serving. Serve with bread.

**Inspired, Modified & Adapted from Real Simple

Menu Plan Monday

No Menu Plan Monday this week since I'm on the road for work. I've give you a full recap of all the things I got to enjoy out to eat this week when I get back.

**UPDATE**

Flights and conference in Minneapolis were canceled due to 18" of snow!  Here is our tentative menu for the week - still might be traveling the later part of the week though.....

Monday:  Pecan Crusted Chicken over salad
Tuesday:  Asian lettuce wraps
Wednesday:  GC group!
Thursday:  Grilled chicken, tomato/mozzerella salad and green beans
Friday:  Catherine & Joe's rehearsal dinner

Have a great week!

Happy Birthday Mom!

You are an amazing woman.  Still to this day, I look up to you and admire you.  You are my dearest friend and I'm so grateful for our special relationship.  You are incredibly beautiful inside and out - eventhough you don't always believe us when we tell you that.  You're smart, talented, caring and incredibly hardworking.  You are a woman of God.

I am so happy to be able to be with you today.  Hoping you feel loved, celebrated and so special today! 

Happy Birthday Mom!  I love you!

Can you believe all these birthdays in one week!?