Weekend Update

Oh hi there, neglected blog.  I promise to become a more regular blogger one of these days...

This weekend was both busy and relaxing all at once. 

Saturday morning we visited with my parents and my grandma ,who was in town from Florida.  As usual when my parents are here, Ryan and I dragged them from room to room soliciting advice on everything from frame sizes to bookcase construction to furniture placement.  (I'm pretty blessed to have an interior decorator mom and extremely handy dad and husband!) 

The rest of the afternoon consisted of running errands to Home Goods and Home Depot.  (To all of my MBA friends at Home Depot-- we had the most helpful, friendly experience ever.  I know it must be all of your hard work at the corporate office!) 

That night we met up with our dear friends, Maggie and Tim (also an employee of the big orange box!) to devour burgers and shakes at Flip Burger. (Yes, for the second time this week.  Yes, we have a problem...)

Though Saturday was fun and relaxing, Sunday was the type of productive day that, though busy, is also energizing and extremely satisfying.  After church and a quick trip the grocery store, we got down to business. 

For me, getting down to business meant taking down my winter decor, redecorating the vacated spaces, serving as Ryan's construction assistant (more on this later), prepping meals for the week, and cooking dinner. 

In what I may later deem an overzealous effort, I am attempting three new Pinterest recipes this week: Mexican Chicken Casserole, Slow Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken, and Zucchini, Black Bean, and Rice Skillet.  To make my week easier (and it more likely that I cook during the week), I went ahead and sliced, diced, and prepped everything I need for the meals this week:

Throughout the day, I was on call as Ryan's construction assistant, as he started building the bookshelves I've been wanting for our bedroom today.  (Back in January, we met with my mom and put together a design plan for our room.  Look for the "before" pictures soon!)  Check out my skills on the table saw!

Here's the progress of the bookshelves so far:

(Our black lab, Katie is right there to help.  Always.)



Finally, I got started on my first Pinterest recipe of the week.  First up? The Mexican Chicken Casserole. We have small group on Mondays, so I needed a recipe that produced yummy leftovers for tomorrow night. The recipe took about 45 minutes of hands-on time (which was a little longer than I expected) and then 30 minutes of cook time.

The result? Served on a plate, the dish looks like a yellow and white pile of mush (forgot to snap a photo!). However, it tastes delicious and is a low-calorie Cooking Light meal. Ryan loved it.

Consensus? Let's keep this one in the rotation.

Look for posts on the master bedroom before pictures, Pinterest recipe recaps, and my pillow sewing project soon.  Have a great week!