Wonderfully Relaxing

So, our long weekend was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!! JD and I took Asher up to my parents cabin in Forest Lakes for the first time. If you dont know where that is, it's ok, I didnt either until my dad bought the cabin. It's about a half hour outside of Payson, right at the rim. It is so nice and relaxing out there. We watched my dad and JD play in the corn hole tournament at the restaurant, played horseshoes, cooked lots of yummy food, went in the hot tub, and of course had fun with our favorite boy ever, Mr. Snuggles! The weather is soooo much cooler up there and we got to bust out our winter clothes again, yay yay! Asher loved it and was the cutest bundled up snow bunny, minus the snow haha.

It was so nice to spend time with my family. We had my grandparents, my parents, and our little family of three all together. We were missing my sister and her fiance because they had to work. They will be able to come up with us for 4th of July though. It will be insane! We will have like 15 people at the cabin for the big weekend! My dad's birthday is July 5th so we always have a HUGE party at the cabin that weekend. I just got home and I seriously cant wait to go back!!! Here are some pics of our fabulous weekend getaway.......

Ready to play in the cold weather!

My happy boy

The cutest baby EVER

Playtime with Great Grandpa

Even more playtime with Daddy

He loves the stop hitting yourself game! haha

Our little family

Once we got home and got all unpacked, AKA a nightmare with all of Asher's stuff, I decided to try some new recipes. By new I mean I have had them for years but since I just recently started cooking, it is the first time I have gotten around to trying them! One was so good my husband and I stuff as much as we could into our mouths! The other was so gross, yuck. And I would like to point out that it was not my fault that it was nasty. It was the dressing that went on it, it was sooo tangy because the recipe called for so much rice wine vinegar that you couldn't taste anything else. Anywho, back to the fantabulous recipe.....it was turkey lettuce wraps. They were so yummy and so light that you felt full but not stuffed, perfect! I wish I knew where I got this recipe so I could give them a shout out but like I said, I got it so long ago that I have no idea. And I made some changes to fit our personal likes, I'll note them for you but try whatever you want. Well here it is, try this healthy easy dinner anytime!

Five-Spice Turkey & Lettuce Wraps

Makes 4 servings at 285 cals

Ingredients

         1/2 cup water

         1/2 cup instant brown rice

         2 teaspoons sesame oil

         1 pound 93%-lean ground turkey

         1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

         1 large red bell pepper, finely diced

         1 8-ounce can water chestnuts, rinsed and chopped

         1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

         2 tablespoons hoisin sauce, (see Note)

         1 teaspoon five-spice powder, (see Note)

         1/2 teaspoon salt

         2 heads Boston lettuce, leaves separated

         1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs, such as cilantro, basil, mint and/or chives

         1 large carrot, shredded

*In my recipe I did not use the red bell pepper, garlic and wine seasoning by melting

pot instead of the five-spice powder, iceburg lettuce instead of the boston lettuce, and

of course basil as my herb because my hubby and I just cant get enough basil or

pesto

All the ingredients

PREPARATION

Bring water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add rice; reduce heat to low, cover and

cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add turkey and

ginger; cook, crumbling with a wooden spoon, until the turkey is cooked through,

about 6 minutes. 

Stir in the cooked rice, bell pepper, water chestnuts, broth, hoisin

sauce, five-spice powder and salt; cook until heated through, about 1 minute.

To serve, spoon portions of the turkey mixture into lettuce leaves, top with herbs and

carrot and roll into wraps.

Here is the final product!

It is so light, healthy, and yummy in the tummy!

TIPS & NOTES

Make Ahead Tip: Prepare the filling (through Step 2), cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day. Serve cold or reheat in the microwave.

Notes: Hoisin sauce is a spicy, sweet sauce made from soybeans, chiles, garlic and spices. It will keep in the refrigerator for at least a year.

Often a blend of cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, star anise and Szechuan peppercorns, five-spice powder was originally considered a cure-all miracle blend encompassing the five elements (sour, bitter, sweet, pungent, salty). Look for it in the supermarket spice section.

I hope you all enjoy it and just wanted to show you some pics of my mini chef and his first time in his highchair! He loves helping mommy in the kitchen!!!

Camera Sadness

I went to the lake last Thursday and had an amazing time! I love being out in the sun, getting my tan on, and just relaxing. I love going to the lake, but let me tell you, I HATE the water. I don't know if I had a horrible experience with water when I was young or what but I have a huge complex about it. I hate any large body of water, a lake, the ocean, even a really big pool at night. It's just being in the water, not by the water. So its hard when for people to understand when I tell them I love the beach. I just don't like going into the water, but everything else is divine! Come on, Im from California, how could I not like the beach? 

Anywho, back to my lake story. I was having a great time when somehow water splashed into the boat and my bag was sitting right there! NOOOOOO! I grabbed my stuff out as fast as I could and dried everything off. My camera was the only thing that I was worried about because thankfully, my brand new iphone was somewhere else. I didn't turn the camera on and waited till the next day so that it would hopefully dry out. This was not the case. My camera will not turn on or do anything at all. Im so sad and have been minus my buddy for a week now. This is why I have not been able to post anymore personal pics. I am going to my cabin this weekend for the glorious holiday and will hopefully have time to get a new one when I get home. I will just have to steal my mom's this weekend until then! I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend and is able to spend time with the people they love most! Oh and PS, be careful :) 

Asher is so sad too that there are no more pictures of him till I get a new camera!

Feathers are here to stay

Feather extensions are all the rage right now! Seriously, yesterday while I was at work at Hair Do Salon, about 40 people came in to get them put in their hair. They come in just about every color and you can add as many as you want. They are amazing and we don't even have to use heat to put them in. We use a small metal bead that matches your hair color. Then, we clamp a piece for your real hair and the feather together. It takes only a few minutes and lasts for a few weeks to two months, depending on how you take of them. You don't want to be the last person without them do you?

Feather are not just for your hair. They have been popping up everywhere lately. I have seen them in weddings, on shoes, clothing patterns, and even as decor in the home. Feathers are fun, flowy, and bohemian. They add a touch of nature to whatever you use them for. Love them long time! Check out all these awesome uses for them......

Really, why wouldn't you?

A bunch of single feathers in different places

Here are quite a few chunky feathers in one spot 

Gwyneth goes wild for feathers

AMAZING feather earrings

Love these ones too

Stripes and feathers.....what's better then that?

via Forever 21

This is a good choice if you don't actually want them attached to your hair

Fabulous peacock shoes. Im obsessed with the vibrant color

One of my friends needs to through a masquerade ball ASAP!

Is this too much for my everyday life.....NO :)

Must get this clutch

Seriously this dress is to die for!!!

Bohemian perfection

Such a fun wedding bouquet 

I never thought about using them as a chandelier

I am buying this wallpaper today!

Isn't this feather wreath a cute idea for Easter?

So incase you missed it, I talked about how obsessed I am with the color pink here. I am also OBSESSED with Christmas. My husband probably wants to kill himself every November 1st because is the day we being to start the festivities! I make him put up the lights on the house and we pull out the Christmas tree. Yes I know, Thanksgiving isn't even here yet at this time but there is no holiday that will ever compare, sorry. This pink feather tree might have to make an appearance at the Corlis house this year!

All pics via pinterest

From Ordinary to Extraordinary

I have been in a very crafty mood lately. I have no idea why all of the sudden, every once in awhile, I decide to try to make new things. This the first time, since I had Asher, that my craftiness has stuck so my ideas have been leaning more towards the baby area. There are so many options to start with, binkies, blankets, wipe cases, etc. Of course I can also never turn down an awesome house project. Those are absolutely my favorite and I am sad that I have no finished one in a very long time. Incase you didn’t catch that, I said I haven’t finished a project, but I have started quite a few. I have decided this summer is going to be the time for me to finish all those random crafts I have sitting around my house and even accomplish some new ones. Here are some pictures of the projects I am loving right now. They take ordinary objects and turn then into extraordinary masterpieces! I can find a use for everyone of these in my house, but can’t do them all. I don’t know which ones to start so give me your input please!

An amazing tray out of a shabby chic frame

This is a great idea for an office or work/craft room

A simple mason jar turned into a soap dispenser

I never thought I would want a gardening tool inside my house but now I do!

I am obsessed with this idea. I want to do a red shutter to hold my Christmas cards

Lettuce that is transformed into a stamp

Ok this isn't a craft I have to make but it is still an awesome idea for my bracelets 

Um yes please! Not quite sure how to cut the bottom of the bottles though

I love that you can hide that ugly garage door button with this gorgeous idea

Perfect for my patio and another simple use of mason jars

I want to do this for Asher's books so they are easy to get from one room to the next while we play

Cute end tables

I would literally die if I could accomplish this chandelier coffee table!!!

I want to try this and turn MY old baby crib into a couch

Beautiful plates with candle sticks/vases = fabulous tiered platter

All pictures are from my Pinterest