Deck the halls!

With all the wedding "hoop-la" last year, I didn't put up any Christmas decorations. This year, having just bought a new house, I've decided to decorate with FULL force. Here's our mantle... Ain't she a beaut??

Happy Halloween

Love,

Mr. and Mrs. B :)

A dinner by MR. B!

My life is pretty nuts at the moment! The company I work for is going through a merger, so my days are filled with phone calls, online trainings, and ENDLESS emails! Pair that with trying to workout and keep up with a house, two dogs, and a husband; needless to say, I'm spent by 5:00! I am trying to delegate and ask for help, so 1 or 2 nights a week, I have tasked Mr. B with cooking dinner! Sometimes I let him figure it out on his own, or I give him a recipe and say "Go!", like I did last night.

Recipe comes to you via Pinterest, by way of Gina's Skinnytaste (http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/02/turkey-chili-taco-soup.html). One of my new favorite sites! Her recipes are simple and delicious! I love that most of them contain things I usually have on hand in my kitchen!

Turkey Chili Taco Soup

Servings: 9 Size: 1-1/4 cups
Calories: 199 • Fat: 1.4 g • Carb: 29.7 g • Fiber: 7.0 g  • Protein: 19.5 g

• 1.3 lbs 99% lean ground turkey
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 10 oz can Rotel tomatoes with green chilies
• 15 oz canned or frozen corn, drained
• 15 oz kidney beans, drained
• 8 oz tomato sauce
• 16 oz fat free re fried beans
• 1 packet taco seasoning (you can use 40& less sodium)
• 2 1/2 cups fat free low sodium chicken broth

In a large pot, brown turkey on medium heat, breaking up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. When cooked through, add onions and pepper and cook 2-3 minutes. Add tomatoes, corn, beans, tomato sauce, re fried beans, taco seasoning and chicken broth. Bring to a boil and simmer about 10-15 minutes.

Tinka update!

We all think our "kids" are the best, but when they actually win prizes, it really sweetens the pot! This weekend, my little Tinka-Binka was in her first "pageant", ok it was a pet contest... Tomato, Tomaaaatoe! I registered her online only in the "Best Costume" category a few weeks prior, but when we got there, the host asked us to join a few of the other categories as well.

There 5 categories:
Biggest, Smallest, Best Costume, Owner/Pet Look-alike, and Best Trick

We participated in Best Costume, Best Trick and Owner/Pet Look-alike. No... Not because Tinka and I physically look alike, but because we were matching!!

Tinka chickened out in the Trick category and we got blown away in the costume category by a Sheltie in motorcycle gear! But... we won for the Look-alike category :) Finally, my obsession with matching turned out to be good for something!

Right before Tinka made her debut

Pageant Queens!

All tuckered out from her 15 minutes of fame...

First 5K!!!

This past Saturday, I completed my first EVER 5K race! At the end of July, Dennis and I began a new quest to become more fit. We joined the gym and haven't looked back since! 

I have myself on a strict schedule of 3 days of running between 2-3 miles (using the Couch-to-5K app on my Iphone) and 2-3 days of either Turbo Kick (a cardio kickboxing class) or Zumba (aerobic dance). 

The 5K we (my sister-in-law, Jenny, and I and several of her friends) completed, was called the "Mud and Muck" Race. They were a super fun bunch!  The proceeds of the race went to benefit Harvesters. We ran the trail at Unity Village in Lee's Summit, plus they added a disgusting "mud pit". Which I chose not to partake in... As you can see in the picture below. 

Although I didn't go through the mud pit, my team greeted me at the finish line with a giant hug! So, I got a little muddy :)

The back of the team tank tops! I dubbed myself "Meatball", as in MEATBALL PROBLEMS!!!! 

The front of the team tank. The team name was "The Real Housewives/Husbands of Lee's Summit", but seeing as we live in Waldo, mine was a little different! 

We all had so much fun, we plan to do another 5K together in October! Can't wait!!!

Trash The Dress!

Well, I'm sure there are many ladies out there who wonder to themselves; "what the heck do you do with your wedding dress once the wedding is over?!". I pondered this exact question for several months and finally decided to do something I saw on a T.V. show before I got married... A "Trash the Dress" photo shoot! My photographer, Mike Freeland and his team at Freeland Photography( freelandphotography.com), were happy (ecstatic is more the word) to oblige me in my request. This was a first for their studio. 

I worked with Tiffany Buckley, who has been involved in ALL of the photographic aspects of my wedding. She shot my bridal formal and was the second shooter for both our wedding and engagement pictures. She is just sensational! Her creativity astounds me and she never disappoints when it comes to capturing my personality in our sessions! 

These photos were taken at the Little Blue River in Grandview, MO (Dennis' home town. Bulldogs for LIFE!) It really is such an under-utilized area... I had no idea how beautiful it really is!

My mother is dying right now!! I didn't tell her about the shoot... I took my dress to the cleaners FIRST thing the next morning! She'll never know, right?!

Love this picture :) My husband is such a beefcake... 

New Ink

On July 14th (my half birthday), I rewarded myself for losing a total of 110 pounds with a fabulous tattoo :) Courtesy of Alex from Irezumi on Wornall!

"Mai pui" means "Never again" in Italian.
I got this as a constant reminder of  what I "never again" want to be!

Later that night, Dennis and I headed to Westport for the Food Truck Festival-Burger edition. We were pretty disappointed. By the time we got there, almost everyone had sold out of food. We ended up with some mediocre gyros from Rockin' Moroccan and cupcakes from 3 Women and an Oven (that were delicious, but very hard to eat! I was a total mess!!!). We then ventured to the Riot Room to hear a friend's band play. Here's how the conversation between Dennis and I went:

Me: "Hey you want to go see Chris' band play at Riot Room?"
Den: "Yeah, sure."
::Walk up to pay for tickets::
Me: "Oh yeah, I should probably tell you... They're like a screaming death metal band!"
Den: "Meh... Whatever!"

Here I am at the show... "Captain Hardcore", herself!

Copy Cat Jose Pepper's Cheese Crisp Salad with Tomatillo Ranch dressing

This is my absolute favorite thing to get a Jose Pepper's! A salad at a Mexican restaurant, you ask? Yes, I know it's weird! But it has all my delicious favorites rolled into one amazing salad!

BEHOLD...

Shear deliciousness :)

Here's what you'll need for the salad:
(This is for 1 serving)

-1/4 cup shredded monterrey jack cheese
-1 large flour tortilla

-1/2 cup of Spanish rice. I made my own (recipe below), but you can use any kind of pre-made brand, if you don't have time to cook a batch.
-1/2 cup Romaine lettuce
-2 oz Chili Lime marinaded chicken strips from Trader Joe's (or any other kind you like)
-1/4 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
-1/4 cup pico de gallo. I made my own (recipe below), but you can use any prepared brand
-1/4 feta cheese

1. Pre-heat your oven to 375
2. Place your tortilla in a cereal bowl and top with cheese. Bake for 5-7 minutes, or until tortilla is golden brown. This creates the "bowl" for your salad.
3. While tortilla bowl is cooking, heat chicken and black beans in a medium sized pan on medium-high heat. Only until warm.
4. Assemble your salad. Mine was as follows: rice, lettuce, chicken/bean mixture, pico, and cheese.

Let's talk dressing! I went the easy route and used a pre-made salsa verde and bottled ranch and mixed them together. But there are lots of recipes out there to make your own from scratch.

Spanish brown rice
-2 cups uncooked Minute brown rice
-1 3/4 cups water
-1 can summer corn
-2 tablespoons Spanish Garden's taco seasoning
-1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
-1/4 tablespoon chili powder
-1/4 tablespoon salt

Mix all ingredients and bake at 375 for about 30 minutes, or until rice is tender

Homemade Pico De Gallo
-1 large, ripe tomato
-1 medium white onion
-1/4 cup cilantro
-1 lime
-salt
-garlic powder

1. Chop onion into chucks, add to food processor with cilantro. Pulse until onion is minced
2. Dice tomato into bite-sized chucks
3. In a bowl, combine tomato, onion and cilantro.
4. Squeeze lime juice over ingredients and season with garlic powder and salt to taste.

Festa Italiana!

Jen and I enjoying some delicious frozen Bellinis!

Last weekend was Unico's annual Italian Festival in Zona Rosa. Every year it seems to get bigger and bigger with more things to see and do! This year, we took Casey and Jennifer; as they had never been. I think this quote sums up their experience..."Now I know what it feels like to be in New Jersey!"

I think they had fun... They said it was "people watching" at it's best!

"Cartoon" Lori and Jen :)

Nail Madness 2

Next week we are headed to Jamaica for our friends', Bryan and Ann's, wedding. Well, you can't go to the beach without a proper mani/pedi!

I mulled over tons of my Pinterest findings, finally settling on white with silver and gold glitter. The picture above is the inspiration from Pinterest, the bottom is my actual foot :)

We bought a house!!!

We are SO excited to announce that, as of Friday, we are officially HOMEOWNERS!! We purchased a beautiful house just off Ward Parkway on a very quiet cul-de-sac. We have spent many hours preparing for our big move on Saturday the 26th; including painting almost EVERY room of the house!

I think home ownership looks good on us! What do you think????

2 down, 5 to go!

Congrats to Sarah and Stephen! They tied the knot on Saturday night(the 2nd of SEVEN weddings Dennis and I will attend this year)! They had a beautiful ceremony and reception at the Hawthorne House in Parkville! They have been planning for this day for a little over a year from their home in Denver, but have recently moved to Boise for Stephen's job. Kudos to you both, that would be too much stress for me, but you all pulled it off amazingly!!! 

Congrats, Mr. and Mrs. Wortmann!!

This Saturday, our dear friends, Alli and Jeff tied the knot!! They have been dating for 11 YEARS (high school sweethearts)!! They had a lovely and fun filled ceremony and an even more exciting reception! Dennis and I drank like two little fishes, and danced the night away with all our friends. It was a great time! So happy for the both of them!!  

Den and I PRE reception. Yes, we are both wearing purple! We don't match, we GO... As I always say!

Trend Watch: Nail Madness!!

My new fav trend for nails?? The "Accent Nail"! You paint all your nails the same color with the exception of 1 or 2; the others are your accent nails! I've seen cheetah print, zebra, flowers, crystals... you name it! I went simple and opted for silver glitter! Might do something more funky next time.

Time for a change!

My new haircut!! Courtesy of the FABULOUS Beth Black at En Vogue Salon in Leawood. We cut almost 5 inches of hair off and added some caramel belliage highlights! I feel amazing! I was so ready for something new :)

The Newest Member of the Barnes Family...

This is Tinka! We adopted her from Wayside Waifs last night.

Lusting HARD for...

The new Spring collection from Christian Louboutin! I DIE!!!!!!

So...

WE GOT MARRIED!!!!!!