New Kids on the Block had a Bunch of Hits...

Is everyone else as excited about summer being here as I am? The other night the Mr. and I were driving over to a friends house and the most exciting thing happened on the drive over! I saw lightning bugs! I got so excited and started concentrating on the trees and bushes on the sides of the road and they were just flashing away! I LOVE lightning bugs. They are so quintessentially southern and summer. I love warm evenings spent sitting on the porch drinking lemonade, I love summer barbecues and dresses, I just LOVE summer! 

Sunday we took our little fluff ball to the dog park, he had so much fun and wanted to play with all the biggest dogs there, enter a huge alaskan malamute/german shepard, this thing looked like a wolf! 

Poor Carlos wasn't even tall enough to give him a sniff hello, but he kept running around next to him trying to be his friend. so cute... After the dog park we went to my in-laws house to relax in their backyard. I love sitting under big trees in the grass and working on my tan. Hello Summer I love you.  

Carlos just loves running around outside!

Summa Lovas

Leaving you with a little summer gift..... It just puts me in a summer mood. Raise your hand if you know every word! haha! 

 xoxo
The Mrs.

Carnival and a Quarter Century Crisis

 SOOO. It's my birthday weekend! YAY! I turn 25 tomorrow. On a Monday which means I have to work. LAME. Plus 25 is a big deal. 5 more years and I'm 30... 30!! 

HELLO quarter century crisis. 

So my wonderful Mr. being as amazing as he his, helped me to recapture my youth by taking me on a double date with our great friends Ben and Heather to a Carnival! We ate yummy fried food (deep fried Oreos YUM), rode rides, played games and got to watch fireworks. What an amazing Birthday weekend. Thanks babe! 

 Every Girls dream romantic ride. 

 Riding the Ferris Wheel. It was a lot taller than I thought it would be. I was a little scared...

See how tall?!

John, me, Heather, Ben

 Riding the swings!

John got some yummy Thai Chicken, and he an Ben were twinning in their Camo shorts. Loves it. #Besties. 

We had such a great time and this was such a perfect way to start our summer! Can't wait to see what else this Summer has in store for us! Bring it on.

xoxo

The Mrs. 

Memorial Day in VA

This Memorial day was extra fun because my parents came up from Florida to visit John and I! They got to see our new condo, and we got to show them around our new hometown! We did so much while they were here and it was so fun getting to show them where I'm living! We also got to go to Arlington National Cemetery which is where my Dad's father and grandfather are both buried. It has been a long time since I have been to my grandpas grave but it was so good to go. He is right on the side of a hill close to a yummy blackberry tree. He was a Captain in the US Army. You might be able to tell from the picture below, but I am actually named after him and my mothers father, they were both named Leslie. One of the many reasons I love my name! 

This is us at my grandpas grave

The flags in front of all the graves were so beautiful. It really makes you appreciate how many people have served in wars and what a selfless act it is to protect your country.

After the cemetery we worked up quite the appetite and went to the Metro 29 diner in Arlington. It was so good! They had amazing food! I got a root-beer float and silver dollar pancakes with home fries. John got an omelet and a blueberry muffin that was the size of my face! We also went on a driving tour of my Dads childhood neighborhood and even found the house he lived in till he was 6! This was so cool because I've never been to any of these places before!

 Sunday Afternoon we went to Great Falls National Park. It was beautiful and it is so close to our house! We loved it and Carlos even got to go too!

Monday I got to take my Mom and Dad to the Udvar Hazy Air and Space Museum. Their most recent acquisition is the space shuttle Discovery! We got to see the Blackbird, one of the Concords, a PanAm plane, and all sorts of other amazing aircrafts. It was a lot of fun! My favorite part was of course the Discovery. My friend Christyn and I actually tried to see this shuttle launch but it was delayed due to weather the day we went. So it was really neat getting to see it up close since the last time I had seen it was in Cape Canaveral on the Launch Pad!

We took some family pictures by the potomac on Sunday as well. I love my family and am so grateful that they came to visit! 

 We also ate lots of yummy food over the weekend, I made my yummy crab cakes, recipe can be found here, and we went out to Willard's BBQ, if you live in VA and haven't eaten here you are missing out, and I made my yummy Broccoli salad. I will post the recipe in a separate post! Hope everyone else had an awesome Memorial Day weekend too!

Let the Summer begin!

xoxo

The Mrs. 

Send Something Good Reveal!

So one of my best friends Gentri Lee started this amazing project called Send Something Good, formerly the package pals. It is basically bloggers getting to know each other and sending each other packages from all over the country/world! I missed out on the first round but was determined to get in on it the second time! I had so much fun shopping for my blogger Amanda. She is a graphic designer/screen printer. She loves dragons, trying out new recipes, and has an adorable dog! I wanted to give her a good mix of some local and personalized things along with some things she would like! And check out her amazing blog here!

- Cinnomon Strusseul Candle made in Maryland - I want to eat it... in fact there is a warning on the outside of their candles not too they smell so good!
- Virginia boiled peanuts! They are a specialty here in local taverns.
- Essie nail polish, what girl doesn't like to have painted toes?
- A really pretty scarf
- A book with secret family recipes written inside!
- Polka dot socks, because socks are awesome and so are polka dots
- Reese no bake bars. YUM.
- A book ( I forgot to take a picture) because she, like me, loves to read!
- Dragon toy for her dog. My Dog carlos has a smaller version of it and it's one of his favorites.

I hope Amanda enjoyed her package as much as I loved putting it together! 

Now on to my stuff! Kylie was my secret package sender and you can visit her blog here to find out just how amazing she is! 

 Isn't it pretty?? I got these adorable books, some lip gloss, nail polish, amazing smelling cherry blossom lotion, sparkly nail polish (in the exact color I had been eyeing literally 2 nights before) , a Grand Canyon keychain! (I already have our mail key on it!) And the most amazing hand crafter earrings and hair pieces! She also sent a card a few days later that had some amazing recipes written on paint swatches, how clever is that?! I am so always going to use those as recipe cards now! 

Are these not the most adorable things ever? I LOVE them. They make my inner Blair Waldorf beam with happiness! This project was amazing and I'm so glad I got the change to participate and can't wait to do it again next time!

xoxo

The Mrs.

Tag your it!

Well this must be the adult version of tag. Instead of actually running around trying to catch one another, we just sit at our computers and electronically "tag" each other in posts. I'm in. haha! A while ago ( maybe like a month) my bestie bri tagged me in this post going around. I am finally feeling bored enough and don't have anything to blog about to respond so here we go.

11 random things about me:
1. I really love garlic. On anything.
2. My favorite drink is Dr Pepper, followed closely by pom juice and ginger ale mixed together
3. I am a mac geek, and apple addict
4. I love to garden
5. I really like to eat cheese for dessert when we go to fancy restaurants
6. When I get really worked up or passionate/mad I start talking in a southern accent
7. I have 14 nieces and nephews with 2 more on the way
8. Costco is my favorite place to eat lunch
9. I hate doing dishes
10. I really dislike the color red
11. I love umbrellas


1. Where are you at right now?
I'm at home in my quaint little condo.
2. What is your favorite thing about your current job?
My paycheck..... and having my own office. Work and I are in a fight right now...
3. Would you rather... Have free gas for the rest of your life or be exempt from speeding tickets for the next 5 years?
Free gas please, than I could drive the most baller car ever and not feel bad paying $80 bucks to fill up.
4. What is your favorite joke?
What did the tractor say to the plow?
..... pull me closer John Deer.......
Never gets old! One of the kids I used to nanny told that to me when he was 5!
5. How often have you checked your phone today?
Probably half way to a million.
6. Would you rather go on an African Safari or sail through French Polynesia?
Oh I do love the water, but I think an African Safari would just be so fun!
7. Fitness class or at-home DVD?
Fitness class - ZUMBA!
8. What one political policy do you have a strong opinion about? What is that opinion?
I don't really care for politics most of the time and I really don't get involved over debates. I think that in general I feel like the government should probably require drug tests before handing out free stuff, I feel like they should probably reinstate the space program because lets be real at the rate we create plastic on a daily basis we are going to need a new planet eventually... but other than that I just try to mind my own business.
9. What is one thing you would change about your wedding? If not married, what is one thing you will make sure to include in your wedding?
I would try and remember more of it! Maybe have a longer gap between the wedding part and the reception part. Everything went so fast. Also I would have eaten food at my reception, cause it looks darn good in the pictures. 
10. Favorite appetizer? Dessert?
Favorite appetizer = mozzarella sticks
Favorite dessert = chocolate lava cakes or anything similar
11. What is your dream job?
Working at Disney 


Well there you have it. I completed this round of tag. I am not going to tag anyone else, probably cause I am the slowest runner on the playground, or because I'm already late sitting here blogging when I'm supposed to be going to zumba class. either way! Tag to anyone who wants to do it!


xoxo


The Mrs.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

(My Momma and I attending cooking school onboard the Ms Eurodam)

My mom is one of the most creative, driven, smartest, nicest, caring, amazing people ever. When my sister and I were kids she really tried to instill in us a love of cooking, knowledge of ingredients, spices things like that. I am ashamed to admit that for most of my tween/teen years, I shunned learning cooking skills from her. However in college I realized that cooking was fun, and if you were a good cook, then all the boys in your Ward would want to come over. Before I knew what had happened I had a culinary emphasis for a minor! Boy did I wish I had payed more attention to my mom when I was 14! 

Now cooking is something that my Mom, Sister and I all love to share with each other. It brings us closer together and we are always taking pictures of our meals and texting them to each other. 

My mom recently sent me a package that had several cookbooks in it. One was called Slow Cooker Revolution. It has 60 slow cooker recipes in it! So of course I had to try one right away! I love using my slow cooker, especially on Sundays because it is so wonderful to come home to a house that smells delicious after 3 hours of church in the middle of the day! 

I hope you enjoy this easy and delicious soup. It was especially tasty today as it's been really cloudy and rainy out here in VA. We missed the super moon last night due to cloud cover. BOO! But thats besides the point. Enjoy the soup!

Ingredients:

8 ounces bacon (about 8 slices) chopped

1 onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 tsp minced fresh thyme, or 1/2 tsp dried

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

3 lbs russet potatoes (about 6 medium spuds) peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, plus extra for topping your soup

1/2 c heavy cream

salt and pepper

3 scallions, sliced thin

Directions:

1. Cook bacon in 12-inch skillet over medium heat until crispt, 5 to 7 min. Transfer bacon to paper towel-lined plate and refrigerate until serving time. Drain all but 2 tbsp of bacon fat. Leave that in the skillet. 

2. add onion, garlic, and thyme to fat in the skillet and cook over medium heat until onion is softened and golden, about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for another minute. Slowly whisk in 1 cup broth, scraping any browned bits, transfer to slow cooker.

3. Stir remaining 3 cups broth and potatoes into slow cooker, cover and cook until potatoes are tender, 4 to 6 hours on low.

4. Transfer 2 cups cooked potatoes to a bowl and mash smooth. Stir cheddar into soup until evenly melted, then stir in mashed potatoes and cream. Let soup sit until heated evenly again.

5. You can microwave your bacon to heat it up again, or just leave it out while your mashing your potatoes etc and then crumble it. Season your soup with salt and pepper to taste and put bacon, extra cheddar and scallions on top to garnish.

xoxo

The Mrs. 

Do the Derby

 Well many people in the Nation will recognize today as Cinco De Mayo. However here in the South, we recognize that it's the first Saturday in May, aka Derby Day! I may have been raised in the Tropics, but I am a tad bit obsessed with Southern Culture. 

I secretly wish that we all had southern drawls and wore sun dresses and hats every day. And that the worst thing going on in town was that Sally Mae was caught kissin' Paul behind the garden gate. A girl can dream right? 

Anyway my obsession with Southern culture probably comes from my love of good down home food, manners, and southern fashion. The Kentucky Derby is a historic event that showcases all of these things. 

Just some fun facts for the day:

- The first Kentucky Derby was held May 17th, 1875

- The first winning horse was named Aristides

- It is estimated that more than 10,000 parties are held in Louisville during "Derby Week"

- The track is approximately 1.25 miles long

- Mint Juleps are the drink of choice

  

 What would your Derby hat 

look like?

I love tea sandwiches. My favorites are cucumber and cream cheese and chicken salad. Hope you enjoy this recipe for my mamma's chicken salad. 

Ingredients:

1 rotisserie chicken (Costco for $5!!) or 2 cooked chicken breasts

2 stalks of celery

1 green apple

1 tbs mayonnaise

1 tbs greek yogurt

1 or 2 scallions/green onions/chives 

onion powder

fresh ground black pepper

garlic powder

dried parsley

1. Shred chicken or cut into small chunks. 

2. Dice green apple, scallions, and celery into small bite size pieces and combine with chicken, mayonnaise, greek yogurt.

3. Season to taste with black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and dried parsley

*Best if served on White bread, or fresh water rolls

Happy Derby Day!


xoxo
The Mrs.