Be the Change You Want to See in the World

Therapy has taught me so many things. I have learned so much about myself in the past 4 years, and I've changed whole-heartedly for the better. Before I was 30, I used some very unhealthy coping mechanisms just to put one foot in front of the other. I was disconnected from my emotional intelligence, I never listened to my gut. Because I was so disengaged from my emotional intelligence, I didn't understand people. I didn't understand why they behaved the way they did, why they made decisions the way they did, or what made them tick. Looking back, I was a 30 year old child wandering the world, completely in the dark about the true nature of people.

Blueberry Peach Crisp

This recipe is brought to you today by my insatiable hunger for summer fruit. If I could bathe myself in summer peaches, watermelons, raspberries and really, all berries, etc- I would. 

Just ask the hubby. I'm literally obsessed with fruit in the summer. Every summer.

6 Years

Warning- Picture heavy post.

Cancun: Part Dos

Happy Wednesday!

It's not so happy for me. True to form, vacation has caught up with me. I have fallen victim to a nasty fall cold. Right now, I'm a sniffly, snotty, stuffed up hot mess. Really, I'm just glad I didn't catch this cold on the way to Mexico. Talk about miserable. But today, it's resting and reading. And trying to find a way to breathe. 

So let's continue talking about the belated honeymoon. What better time to show pictures of me looking my best when I'm the complete polar opposite of that today? I'll take my cheering up where I can get it! The hubby and I booked what the resort called a "mini" session with a professional photographer while we were in Mexico. Basically, we got to spend about 30 minutes with a photographer and we weren't obligated to buy anything. A full session was an hour, and I wasn't about to spend an hour of my vacation with a  photographer. We ended up being super pleased with the mini session. The photographer took about 80 prints and we left with 40, totally satisfied. The pictures turned out wonderfully. Along with the 40 prints, we also got 6- 5x7's and 2- 11x17s. I can't wait to find frames for all my photos and hang them up. Without further adieu, here's a look at how a few of them turned out-

I just love the black and white. Can't help myself. It's so artsy and wonderful. Plus, the photographer knew all the best locations to take pictures at the resort (duh, that's her job!). This was taken in a rustic Mexican-inspired gazebo on the property. 

This was one of the hubby's favorite pictures. 

We ended up getting a couple of photos of us as individuals. Mainly because the hubby loved this photo, and I really loved a few of him by himself. Good presents for family :)

I went with a lot of black and white, but don't fret- here comes color!

I got a few comments from family that this photo was their favorite. I have to admit, the more I look at it, the more I like it.

This was my favorite of the hubby by himself. He just looks so handsome :)

So, let me tell you about shooting pictures on the beach. Without sunglasses. It's freaking hard. The wind is blowing in your eyes and the sun is beating into them. It was extremely difficult for me to keep my eyes open wide without them watering. All I could think of was an episode of "America's Next Top Model" years ago when one of the girls claimed she had "vampire" eyes and therefore couldn't shoot in the sun. She said her eyes would water if she tried to open them. I remember at the time thinking, "Suck it up! It can't be that hard!". Well, it is. I learned a lesson in empathy during this beach shoot. 

I just love the background in all these pictures. 

Here's another favorite among my friends and family. This one is near the top of the list of my favorites. It's just a perfect picture. 

And these 2 pictures, to me, are just perfect. I love them. We had the bottom picture printed in 11x17. Once I find a frame, I think I'm going to hang it in our bedroom. Our bedroom is one room I haven't completed decor in, and it's badly needing wall art. Cancun pictures to the rescue!

I love this picture. The hubby is a much better "head to toe" model than me, exhibited by my goofy face in the picture. I don't care though, it's such a cool shot. 

I'm just so pleased with how all the pictures turned out. It was worth the wait, in my opinion. So was the trip, for that matter.

Ok, I'm done showing pictures from Mexico! Since I came down with this cold yesterday, I haven't had as much time to prepare posts as I would have liked, but I'm on it. Friday, to wrap up this Mexican fiesta, I'm going to post my favorite Mexican recipes. Monday will be the start of new food posts, so I'm hoping I have a lovely, sunny weekend to prepare. 

Have a great day everyone!

Cherry Pie Bars

Today is a big day.

It's the hubby's and I's 5th anniversary today! 

We cheated last night and went out for a couple of beers, even though we are going out today. We were sitting in our local brewery, talking brewing beer with the guy that makes the beer. The hubby was lively and engaged (he loves talking about brewing beer, and has no one to talk to about it around here), and even got to sample a couple of beers that the brewery hasn't finished yet. He was getting so excited over beer, and he was just so happy. It's moments like these that make my heart overflow, and I realize there's nowhere else I'd rather be.

Yes, I'm 2700 miles from home, my family, my friends, living in the boondocks on the Ohio-Kentucky border. But I love it! I'd follow that man anywhere. He could tell me we were moving to Cameroon and I'd probably say, "Ok!". 

I take that back-I'm not sure about Cameroon :)

But seriously, we did discuss our marriage over craft beers. Not every couple makes it to their 5th anniversary, and for that, we are grateful. I won't sit here and tell you that everyday is easy, because it's not. No matter what, there are 2 separate and distinct people living in my house and sometimes, sometimes they are going to clash. That's life. That's marriage. For better or worse, right? How in the world are you going to know when the better times are when you've never experienced the worse? How are you going to trust that person and know that they are strong enough to help you through if you haven't come through on the other side of a crisis? The hubby and I've had our share of hard times, and you know what? For that, I'm grateful as well. We make a great team, and I feel I could make it through anything with him at my side. 

I'll climb down off my marriage soapbox now. It's jut a topic that makes my blood boil, what with the younger generation treating marriage like Kim Kardashian. Going into a marriage with the thought in their heads, "You know what? If this doesn't work out, I can just get a divorce!". Uh, kids, if that thought is in your head, perhaps you should contemplate the marriage a bit longer before taking the plunge. Girls these days though, all they seem to care about is the white dress, the ring, walking down the aisle, and having their day in the sun. Not one thought about the day after the wedding. Or the next 18,262 days after that.

What do you know? Almost went off on my soapbox again! Let's talk about these bars now, shall we?

You are going to want to make these bars. They are amaze-balls. The hubby doesn't like cherry pie, and even he went gaga over these bars. They are the perfect portable version of cherry pie. Yummy, gooey cherry pie filling baked over chewy, almond sugar cookie with a creamy vanilla drizzle over the top. It doesn't get much better. 

One tip- After I baked these, I knew they were going to be hard to get out of the pan. I meant to put them in the fridge for 20 minutes before cutting them, but accidentally left them overnight. This completely changed the texture of the bars. If you are going to go this route, be sure and take the bars out of the fridge right away. The bars will keep at room temp that way. However, the bars are darn good cold too, so you could store these in the fridge if that's your preference. 

The hubby and I were going to go out to dinner at a fancy restaurant tonight, however we completely scrapped that plan over beers last night. I know, I know, what kind of a foodie am I anyway? I'm turning down the chance for absolutely hands-down amazing food? Call me crazy. We decided to head to Huntington, WV and go for a run, to the mall, and to our favorite bar for margaritas and tacos. This plan fits us much better :)

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Ingredients (makes 16-20 bars):

1 cup butter softened

2 cups granulated sugar

4 eggs, room temp

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp almond extract

3 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 (21 oz) can cherry pie filling

1 cup powdered sugar

2-3 tbsp vanilla coffee creamer

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350º. Grease a 9x13 pan. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar for 1-2 minutes with a hand mixer, or until light and fluffy. Mix in eggs. Mix in vanilla and almond extract.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet. Mix until combined.

4. Spread 3/4 of dough into pan. Spread cherry filling on top of dough. Drop spoonfuls of remaining dough on top of cherry filling. Bake in preheated oven 35-40 minutes, or until bars are lightly browned on top. Remove from oven, and allow to cool for 60 minutes in the pan. 

5. In a small bowl, whisk powdered sugar and creamer together until you get a good "drizzling" texture. Drizzle the glaze over the bars. Allow the glaze to set for 30 minutes. Slice into bars, and serve immediately. Store in an airtight container.

Printable Recipe

Recipe adapted from The Recipe Critic. 

If you liked this recipe, you might enjoy these-

Lemon Blueberry Crumb Bars

Vanilla Bean Custard Bars

Raspberry Crumb Bars

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Treasure Box Tuesdays

Garden Update: End of June

Happy Sunday!

Let's jump right in shall we?

Now, I just commented on one of my friends blogs, telling them I had no confessions to make. I lied. I do. My confession? I have a secret, guilty pleasure in watching the reality TV show, "Wife Swap". Love that show! This week's episode met all my requirements for good reality TV- Pseudo-celebrities (Speidi), childish behavior by adults, and girls with blowouts and stilettos beings forced to sit in the rain. The swap this week was between reality TV royalty, Heidi and Spencer Pratt, and Olympic swimmer, Amanda Beard. To lay down the basics, Heidi and Spencer live in Southern California with a huge house, no kids, 4 tiny dogs, no jobs, house and garden staff, and huge spending habits. Amanda Beard, in comparison, lives a very normal life in Seattle, Washington, complete with kids, a normal house, yard work, fishing in the rain, and real jobs. I was really impressed with how down-to-Earth Amanda Beard was. She's just a normal, hardworking woman trying to raise her kids with good values. Her husband seems like a great partner, and together they make a great team. Heidi and Spencer, on the other hand, disgusted me. Neither of them have jobs, yet Heidi spends all day shopping and Spencer spends all day polishing his crystal collection. That, and they are constantly going out. For every meal. Spencer takes Amanda Beard out to eat, and orders half the menu. WTH? Their spending reminded me of the Kardashians- obscene when there are so many people suffering in this country.

What really interested me was when the couples turned the tables (a classic Wife Swap moment). Amanda made Spencer stay in and cook a meal, and all he could do was complain about bored he was, how crappy the food was, and how staying home was "absolute hell". I was appalled. I can't imagine what these people would think of my life, which I consider "heavenly". I've come to love staying home to make dinner and getting my hands dirty outside. It's therapeutic. I've found almost any activity outside brings me closer to nature, closer to where people were meant to be. It brings me peace and tranquility in a way that shopping, drinking, partying, and the "One-Up Game" never did. 

I've said my piece. Moving on to pictures of my garden! The first picture is a picture of the day we planted the herb garden, while the second picture is of the crazy thing today. It's out of control!

The mint is the most crazy. Mom was sooooo right. 

The mint escaping its box. I'm going to have go cut those vines, it's intruding on the thyme.

Basil is coming out of my ears! A huge bowl full, plus more to harvest. In addition, that's a little pile of extra herbs I'm drying out to add to the compost.

Vacuumed-sealed 2 bags of pesto this week.

I harvested the cilantro till it died. Now, I've planted new seedlings that are popping up extremely well. Baby cilantro :)

Planted some lavender. I think I'm going to start making my own organic bug spray.

Tomato plants. I decided to combine them into one picture :) I mean, the post is already pretty pic-heavy. 

My Charlie Brown Christmas tree. I don't think this plant will be saved. But, I'm learning a lot about tomato plants!

If only these would ripen before the plant dies. I don't think it's going to happen. Boooo.

More tiny tomato plants. I don't think these are going to take either. Sigh. 

Enough sad looking tomato plants. My jalapeño plant is doing well. It has blossoms and even tiny fruit forming!

The cucumber has attached its self to the trellis. Exactly what it's supposed to do.

And, it's blossoming!

Green bell pepper, taking off.

Zucchini blossoms.

Lettuce and chard.

And what garden post would be complete without my friends who join me in the garden? Here's a couple of gold finches that came calling.

A lady cardinal munching away.

Incoming hummer! Love this shot :)

The woodpeckers are one of the few birds who don't care if I'm outside with them. They'll eat anyway.

I heart woodpeckers. Look at that little face!

I hope everyone is having an excellent weekend, I know I am. I got tons of fresh veggies at the farmer's market yesterday, had breakfast and coffee with my girlfriend afterwards, a Netflix afternoon with the hubby, and then date night last night! Pizza and beer at the local brewery, and then ice cream from the local Dari Creme. The hubby and I are coming up on 5 years of marriage next month, and yet sometimes we still feel like young kids that just met. While I'd never say marriage is easy, it has been the best thing that ever happened to me. Events have transpired this week (I'm not going to get into them) that have made me eternally grateful to have that man firmly planted at my side. True love is a beautiful thing :)

Have a great day everyone!

New Wheels!

The hubby bought me a new car! A 2013 Nissan Sentra, to be exact.

I'm so darn excited, this is my first new car! I've had my last car since my junior year of college, which has been about 10 years. Wow, I can't believe it's been that long. Alas, all good things come to an end. And the old Sentra seems to aging exponentially now that it's at the end of its life. A new car has been needed for awhile, a family has to have some sense of dependency.

I've never had a car that I loved as much as the second car that I owned. It was a 91' Toyota Celica, and it was my car soul mate. I proudly named her "The Bat Mobile". I totaled The Bat Mobile my junior year of college, but I'm still not over that car. I compare every car to that one. But all that was before I had a car with built-in navigation, a rear-view camera, blue-tooth capability, and really, really good air-conditioning...

Shiny, new headlights...

Lots of trunk space...

The camera got wet (torrential down-pours here!), but I got a nice shot of the rear-view camera for backing up...

There is something to be said for that new car smell...

Anyhoo, I just took the new car for a spin (just now!), and I'm in love. Car love!

I hope everyone's having a fantastic Thursday. One day closer to the weekend :)