Adam turns 30!

So a couple of weeks ago Adam, my husband, turned 30! He was a little nervous about it for awhile but now that it's here and gone he's completely cool rocking the fact that he is no longer in his twenties! I mean he's got a smoking hot young wife, what else could he want!?..... just kidding! So, to celebrate we went to Florida! My parents have this awesome time share deal where we end up getting great deals on our vacations as well, so we decided to take advantage and take a short little trip to the Sunshine State. Since we booked a two bedroom condo we thought it would be nice to share our trip with another couple so we took our good friends Jason and Kristy. We had a blast! Yes, the drive was long, and yes, I got car sick part of the way, but it was all worth it!

The first day there we decided to just relax and check out one of the many outlet malls and go to eat at Adam and I's favorite pizza place, Uno's, which we sadly do not have in Nashville. It was just as good as I remember if not better. If you have ever had the chance to eat here you know exactly what I'm talking about! Their pizza's have the best crust ever. They also have our favorite dessert which is a chocolate chip cookie baked into a personal pizza pan and served with copious amounts of vanilla bean ice cream, whip cream and chocolate sauce! YUM!

Once we got back to the hotel we decided that we and our food babies wanted to relax in the hot tub! Since we had hit Wal-Mart up earlier I already had my wine cooling in the fridge! The perfect ending to our day!

The next day was Adam's birthday so we were bound to do something fun and we all decided to head to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. Adam was the only one who had been there before and we were all so excited to explore it together!

We started with Islands of Adventure which was smart because they had a lot more rides! The Hulk was our first ride and probably my favorite! With its twists and turns it had my heart pumping and I was laughing because I looked over at Kristy who never even opened her eyes!

Next we hit up the Spiderman ride! SO MUCH FUN! I am not usually a fan of 3D rides but this took it to a whole other level. I was dodging bricks and enemies. It was like they were reaching out to grab me, it was so fun!!! Just walking around the park was fun! Just seeing all the little details in every different area of the park was cool. My favorite even though there was only a water ride was the Jurassic Park area! It was cool to hear all the noises and to feel like you were in the jungle!

After Jurassic Park we headed to the NEW HARRY POTTER WORLD! Now, Adam and I have never read the books or seen the movies so we didn't really think we would be that into it, but it was so so cool!!! It was so detailed! I've seen the movie trailers and it looked just like it! I was actually inspired to read the books! I can't wait to start!

After we had seen all of Islands of Adventure we headed over to Universal! It was so neat! It felt like we were on a movie set! We even got to see the Back to the Future car!!!

At Universal we got to ride the new Simpson's ride and the E.T. ride. Adam and I also hit up The Mummy which was amazing! Another 3D ride that blew me away! I hope we definitely make another trip back soon! So much fun! After a day of walking around it was time to go back to hotel so Adam could watch The Vikings game and the rest of us could rest our feet in the hot tub! I slept so good that night!

The next day was our last:( We decided to just take a day and relax. Kristy and I even got to schedule hour massages in our room which felt amazing! We got to hang out around the pool and even have races down the dueling water slides. We decided to take some paddle boats out on the lake as well!

That night we wanted to check out Benihana the Japanese Steak House right down the road. It was so delicious! Nothing like some fresh Japanese food and some late night hot tub action to make our ending to our vacation perfect!

What are some of your favorite vacation spots?!

Slip Slidin' Away!

Think slip n slides are just for kids?..... Think again my friends its for a group of young adults who have had enough liquid courage to throw on a bathing suit and throw themselves down a slippery slope! Which is so fun... until you wake up the next morning and you realize that your entire body hurts and you may have a bruised rib!

For Labor Day a group of us decided to have a big cookout and do a slip n slide. In my back yard we have a little hill that worked just perfect. A week before the event I was looking up how to make a slip n slide which sounds silly because you would think that its really easy. Which it is but there were some tips like, don't use tent stakes, that came in very handy. There were also so tips on what to use besides water to make in slippery, which I chose Blueberry scented kids Bubble Bath! It worked great!

This day was full of laughs, food, drinks and friends and you just can't ask for much more!

Even Abby had fun!

New Recipes!

Hello... do you guys remember me!? I realize I have been absent for over a month now and I have no excuses except complete laziness. However, I have been doing some fun things, have been going to new places and cooking new things and enjoying free concerts, so I have plenty to tell you about!

So, I love to go out to eat but as much as I love to do that I love to cook too! Sometimes its so hard to find time and the motivation with Adam and I's crazy schedule, because honestly who likes to cook for just themselves. However in the last month I have had some time to try some new recipes. The first one I tried was a Grilled Chicken with a toasted almond and mandarin orange relish with a side of quinoa pilaf! It was not only delicious but super healthy and easy to make! I don't need to tell you how to grill chicken so I'm going to leave that part of the recipe out, so I will start with the toasted almond and mandarin orange relish. All you have to do is buy a pack of sliced almonds and put them on a baking sheet and turn the oven to 350. Put them in for about 10 min and the almonds are done. Now chop up some green onion. Mix the almonds, mandarin orange slices with very little juice, and the green onions and you are finished. It should be 2 parts mandarin orange to 1 part almonds and just add green onions to taste. Now put in a little bowl and keep refrigerated. On to the quinoa pilaf. Do you know what quinoa is? Its a whole grain full of protein and fiber and has the taste of a mix between rice and pasta. Its super easy to make and is so good and good for you! However much you want to make just use two parts water to one part quinoa. I usually use 1 cup quinoa for Adam and I and always have a some left over. I start by placing one cup quinoa into a pot and add two cups of water. I bring to a boil and add a bouillon cube for taste. If you don't have a bouillon cube you can substitute chicken stock for some of the water. Once the water is at a bowl lower the heat and put a lid on your pot. Let simmer for about 15-20 min stirring occasionally. Once the quinoa is done you can eat it just like that or you can add ingredients like green onion, sauteed chopped yellow onion, or carrots. It's up to you and what you like! Here are the results!

Talk about delicious!

The next thing I attempted was inspired by the show The Biggest Loser. Bob and Jillian are always talking about substitutions you can make with the things you eat that are better choices. Last season they made mashed cauliflower instead of mash potatoes. Now, if you don't like cauliflower you are not going to like this dish. However, if you do you will love it! I find it delicious and it is so much lighter than mashed potatoes. Anyway, all you have to do is steam the cauliflower (I usually use a whole head ), then beat the cauliflower like you would if you were making mashed potatoes. You can stop hear and add salt and butter to taste, but for me I need to make them a little more creamy. On top of beating them I use an actually potato masher and mash them up by hand.

Then I tend to add about a tsp of butter and a little salt and you are good to go! Eat and enjoy! The first time I made this, this was all that was left!

The last recipe that I have tried was my favorite of all it was, Grilled Eggplant and Tomato Stacks. Here it is!

Ingredients

U.S.

Metric

Conversion chart

• 2 teaspoon(s) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon(s) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 (3/4-1 pound) medium eggplant, cut into 6 rounds about 1/2 inch thick
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) coarse salt, divided
• 6 teaspoon(s) prepared pesto
• 2 large beefsteak tomatoes, each cut into 3 slices about 3/4 inch thick
• 4 ounce(s) fresh mozzarella, cut into 6 thin slices
• 6 fresh basil leaves
• 1 tablespoon(s) balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) freshly ground pepper

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Directions

1. Preheat grill to medium-high or place a grill pan over medium-high heat until hot.
2. Use 2 teaspoons oil to brush both sides of eggplant slices; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Grill the eggplant slices for 5 minutes. Turn; continue grilling until tender and marked with grill lines, 3 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to a large platter.
3. Spread each eggplant slice with 1 teaspoon pesto. Top with a slice of tomato, a slice of mozzarella, and a basil leaf.
4. Drizzle vinegar and the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over the towers; sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper.

One of the best things I have ever eaten! So light and fresh! Only 145 calories and I paired it again with some quinoa! Tell me about some of your favorite recipes!