These days...

  We have been settling into our move and adjusting to our new jobs. We are loving the area and it's been fun taking rides around, doing day trips and exploring. Here are some of my favorite photos from a day of driving around.  Can you believe that these were taken only a few weeks ago? 

While neglecting this blog, I've been putting my skills to work on a class webpage that has kept me pretty busy. I love the new school but I am so filled with ideas that it's hard to stop working sometimes!

Check back for more updates :)

Happy Halloween!

It is strange to see snow around in October!

Happy Halloween!

A fun lake day

Summer, please don't ever end. 

A Week Off

We made it through the move!

Moving is not pretty, but we were very lucky because our movers were awesome and packed and loaded everything quickly and very carefully. Max has been a trooper! He was quite confused to see the apartment bare, but didn't mind going to camp or sleeping on the air mattress.

 Our stuff is in storage for the time being, since we don't move into our new place until the end of the month. We are staying at my parent's for now, and enjoyed a week totally off. J doesn't start his new job until Monday, and it was so, so nice to relax together!

We did some beach-going:

Some outlet-shopping:

Some pool-lounging:

And some golfing:

We've also enjoyed some nights out with old friends and family!

It was great to have time off together and it's been nice easing into the transition by staying with family. Many of you reading are my personal friends and family and I wanted to say THANK YOU for bearing with me during the job search and moving process. It was quite stressful at times and your encouragement went a long way!

It's been hard to think about much else but this move, but now that it's happened, I want to get back to the focus of this blog, which is really about finding at least one thing each day that is inspiring and uplifting...about relishing small moments that make life special.

Have a great Saturday!

Instant Inspiration

source

Snuggle Weather

Rabbit, rabbit! Hello, August!

Summer weather can turn on a dime. It was sunny and beautiful today and now it's hailing and lightning like crazy! After a long day of packing, it's making me want to get cozy on the couch like these guys!

or maybe this guy:

photos: pinterest

We found an apartment in a town that we are really happy with and the move is happening this week (eek!!) We will be staying with my parents for a few weeks until the apartment is available. It will be a busy/ sad/ exciting week of packing, cleaning and saying good-byes. Tonight we're headed to a new restaurant with some friends. My posts might be quick but I will keep the updates coming. There won't be any recipes this week, but I might squeeze in some restaurant reviews. Hope your week is off to a great start!

Dinner in the Park

To celebrate our anniversary yesterday, we decided to pack up dinner and take it to our favorite park to eat. We've spent lots of time there- at the dog park, training for half marathons, planning our wedding and listening to concerts. I wrote about it in my favorite place post here.

I also decided it was a great time to take a family photo because:

1. I got a new tripod

2. My facebook profile picture is from our honeymoon

3. To commemorate a special day

Clearly, these are not in order of importance. Here it is:

My friend Meghan had given me the Betty Crocker Cookbook for Women: The Complete Guide to Women's Health and Wellness at Every Stage of Life (that is a mouthful!) as a gift a while back, and I decided to make the Calypso Shrimp with Black Bean Citrus Salsa yesterday. It was a big hit and perfect for a summer's night. Try it!

Shrimp and Marinade

2	teaspoons grated orange peel
1/4	cup orange juice
1/2	teaspoon seasoned salt
4	cloves garlic, finely chopped
1	lb uncooked large shrimp (21 to 30), peeled, deveined
1	tablespoon canola oil

Salsa

1	can (15 oz) Progresso® black beans, drained, rinsed
1	medium orange, peeled, divided into segments, membrane removed and cut in half
1/4	cup Old El Paso® Thick 'n Chunky salsa
2	tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1	teaspoon grated lime peel
2	cloves garlic, finely chopped 1In 8-inch square (2-quart) glass baking dish, mix orange peel, orange juice, seasoned salt and 4 cloves chopped garlic. Add shrimp; turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate up to 2 hours to marinate. 2In medium bowl, mix all salsa ingredients. Cover; let stand until ready to serve (or refrigerate if longer than 30 minutes). 3In 10-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Drain shrimp; discard marinade. Cook shrimp in oil 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until shrimp are pink. 4Among 4 dinner plates, divide salsa. Arrange shrimp around salsa. I packed ours right into serving-sized tupperware.