September 2015

as i briefly mentioned in this post, august had some really good moments and some bad ones too. in fact, it was a pretty exhausting month overall! but all’s well that ends well, and that’s what’s important. i’m growing and changing and learning all the time, and boy, life keeps me on my toes! i’m kinda hoping that i’ll only remember the happy moments of the month since none of the bad ones were captured in photos, thank the lord [although let’s be real. i don’t think ryan or i will ever forget that one fight we got in at the rangers game. ;) the good news is, we were able to get past it and can look back and laugh…]. but don’t be fooled into thinking those bad moments don’t exist because full disclosure: they totally DO. and sometimes, you’re just glad a month is over so you can start fresh. but to focus on the positive, here were some of the lovelies of august:

{kneading flatbread for this masterpiece: falafel-spiced heirloom tomatoes and chickpeas on homemade flatbread with a yogurt-mint sauce. so good.}

{i’m really good at stalling when it’s time to clean the house. and also, central market. it’s always such a zoo but i love it so.}

{for ryan’s birthday. i thought that brown packing paper would be great wrapping paper. FALSE. it’s really thick and that made it hard to wrap, and scotch tape doesn’t stick to it, in case you were wondering. for dinner, i made roasted cornish game hens with wild rice and stir-fried green beans & red peppers, plus a spinach salad with berries and fresh dill.}

{happy birthday to this good looking fella!}

{making a wish}

{after a series of questions in which i subtly steered him away from white cake with white icing ;), he decided on an oreo ice cream cake [with white cake]. so i sandwiched a layer of cookies ‘n cream ice cream between layers of a great white cake that i had found the recipe for online and frosted it with a sweetened fresh whipped cream. easy and delish!}

{the weekend after ryan’s bday, we drove down to austin to visit his brother mykle, his sister-in-law stephanie, his nephew dylan and niece masyn. here i am roadtrippin’ with my boo. :) and frank in the back!}

{so i never thought i’d be the shooting type, but we went to the gun range and it was actually really fun. maybe i’m a texan after all.} ;)

{isn’t baby masyn just the cutest thing??}

{mykle and stephanie were nice enough to take us out to top golf. we had an absolute blast.}

{…and then, a couple days later, we went to top golf in dallas with mike and priscilla on a double date before priscilla left for med school. apparently it was the week to go to top golf with the brothers and their girls, and they’re both awesome couples so we were thrilled about that!}

{i like him a little.}

{charcuterie + cheese board at bolsa with some of my favorite people. aaaand country club locker rooms have great lighting, FYI.} ;)

{on the left, the makings of a human logo: a crane, a drone, a whole camera crew and some choreographer assistants, golf tees and flags, a policeman hired to be a crossing guard, 175 employees + fans, 175 t-shirts and hats, coffee and donuts, a church field, and early release on friday. #BAM. it was a production, literally. and on the right, the grilled avocado salad from snappy salads is sooooo good.}

{this darling.}

{loving on some shiner!}

{you can give me alllllll the cuddles, shiner. plus my new hair [it’s not that different, i know, but it’s me we’re talking about… and i DID start parting it on the other side!]}

{on the left: i have the most adorable grandmothers who love to travel together. they just got back from portugal, and my mom recently made this book for them of their trip last year to poland, germany, and the czech republic. i’m glad they have each other as travel companions. and on the right: found this picture from church confirmation when i was at home… i think we were 15?! what a great group of girls this was.}