fun weekend & what's cookin' this week

My, what a busy weekend!  Saturday Sarah and I hit up the Jenks Church Arts & Crafts show where we both picked up some pretty cute finds.  We also headed to downtown Jenks and did a little bit of antique shopping...love downtown Jenks!

Once I got home myMichael and I headed down to the Harley Davidson store here in Tulsa.  MyMichael has wanted a bike for years.  He really wanted one when we lived in Dallas and I just wasn't too keen on that idea w/ the crazy traffic and all.  Since being back in Tulsa {4 years} we have gone a couple of times and looked.  You see, he is the more financial savvy, "is this a good idea", one in our relationship and has talked himself out of getting one multiple times.  When it came up again about a month ago I was curious to see if he would actually go through with it!  As of Thursday afternoon he had talked himself out of it...as of Friday morning it was back on the table but we were just going to "look" on Saturday.  Well, he finally pulled the trigger and got himself a bike!  He got a 2011 Harley Davidson Sportster Nightster.  Here is an extremely blurry iphone pic of us ringing the bell {when you buy a bike you have to ring the bell}.

To say the least, he is a very happy guy right now!  I'm kind of excited as well...I've never been on a bike.  He's going to get good and comfortable and then we will look at a different seat for both of us to ride!

Mother's Day is always fun.  This year I had a Prairie Hive photo shoot, for our online magazine, in the afternoon, so we did Mother's Day dinner.  KJ {my sister} was in town, so we both cooked dinner which was a blast...and a mess.  I managed to overflow a pitcher and she dumped my salt bowl over onto the floor.  I made Cherry Pepper Chicken {get the recipe here}, rice, and roasted brussel sprouts, and she made the stuffed peppers.  Friday night I made some sugar cookies, so for dessert we made ice cream sandwiches with them.  Summer Berries ice cream filling, rolled in sprinkles.  Yummy!

I am way behind on all things food for this week.  Usually Sunday is my grocery/menu planning day, but that didn't happen.  So, here goes...I want to try making an Indian dish in the crock pot.  I found a recipe that I am tweaking, so we will see how that turns out. 

Indian Beef Korma w/ Basmati Rice & Garlic Naan

Chicken Quesadillas

BBQ Chicken & Grilled Vegetables

Grilled Pizza

Hope everyone else had a fabulous weekend!  Oh, and how about this muggy weather.....already!?!?!?

snow time!

we have snow, and the most snow....ever in tulsa!  it is quite amazing at the amount.  no, if you live up north you wouldn't think 13"+ is all that much, but here it is a ton!  it literally shut the entire city down.

i grew up going skiing, so i love the snow.  as soon as i hear we are getting some, i immediately want to go sledding and have fun in it.  but, the key to having fun in the snow is bundling up in the correct winter clothes!  you can't go out in your regular clothes and expect to have fun and stay warm.  not gonna happen.  so, here is my gear for playing in the snow...

sweater leggings

long underwear top & bottom

wool sock liners

thick wool socks

waterproof ski pants

long sleeve shirt

fleece hoodie

scarf

down coat

beanie

glove liners

waterproof ski gloves

waterproof boots

yea, it's a lot, but it is sooo worth it!  we were outside yesterday for close to 4 hours and my body wasn't cold at all.  even if you never go skiing, you would benefit from having these items at least once or twice a year in oklahoma.  it might even make you like snow a little more!

the north face boots below are fabulous.  they are super warm and waterproof.  they also have a funny story.  back when we lived in dallas, one christmas mymichael's dad asked him what i would like for christmas.  mymichael told him that i would like a pair of hiking boots.  really?  hiking boots?  when he told me this, i was a little bit confused.  you see, hiking boots would NOT be the first thing that i would ask for!  boots, sure, but hiking?  i don't think so.  but, since mymichael had already told him that, i decided to go with it.  instead of getting plain hiking boots, i decided on some good winter "hiking" boots.  and i'm glad i did.  even though they aren't worn all the time, they still come in super handy during these times!

my boys...

now, once you get on all those layers, you may look like the michelin man, but that's okay, right?

oscar

mak

mymichael

a huge chunk of ice and snow!

i think oscar likes the snow!

i'm hoping we have no leaks in the roof...

sledding fun.  if you are in tulsa and want some serious sledding, head to 111th & yale.  there is a huge retention pond.  i wouldn't suggest for young kiddos...it's pretty steep!  dad, me, & mymichael getting ready to head down

it was freaking cold...18 degrees!

the "slopes"

happy snow days!

it's raspberry pickin' time!

early saturday morning our family headed out to hand pick raspberries and boy was it fun! we did this 2 years ago, missed it last year, so this year we put mymichael in charge of getting us all there.

cedar bluff raspberries is located in sapulpa right off the creek turnpike {click here for directions...under creek county}. an adorable grandma and grandpa provide you with a bucket and show you to the raspberry bushes. they are $6 a quart and are the best raspberries you have ever had. they look & taste completely different from the ones you will find in the stores. they are only in season for a couple of weeks, so if you are interested you need to hurry! here are some pictures from our saturday morning harvest...

don't let the "keep out" sign scare you...the couple is as sweet as can be!

starbucks + raspberries = yummy!

this is what is left on the bush after you pick the berry

mymichael was a pickin' machine!

don't they look fake?

the ones in the grocery store look NOTHING like this

after you get done picking, they take you into their kitchen to measure how much you picked.  between 6 of us we picked 17 quarts {5 of those quarts are pictured above and they went home with mymichael and me}!  and if you are lucky you will get a homemade sugar cookie as you leave.  this would be a super fun time with some kiddos.  i would suggest going early in the morning b/c it did warm up fast!  also, these are super easy to freeze...you lay them out on a cookie sheet, put them in the freezer until they are individually frozen, then put them in baggies. 

another great way to eat them is with chocolate mousse:

1 container of ff cool whip

1/2 cup chocolate syrup

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

1tsp. vanilla

stir together.

i served it in the individual graham cracker pie crusts and topped the chocolate mousse with a bunch of raspberries.  super yummy!

on the farm

we have spent the past 3 weekends at the farm.  between my youngest cousins high school graduation, memorial day, and another cousins wedding, we have stayed busy.  here is what's going on, on the farm...

graduating seniors!

great-grandma with her great-grandbaby....they like each other a little!

one of grandpa's cows had twin calves!

dax, the farm dog, checking out one of the new additions

working on the 100 year old farmhouse, replacing the wood framing around the windows

country breakfasts at the farmhouse

mak and oscar playing with dax

lounging in the sun

getting too much sun

ouch! 

***health announcement***please remember to wear sunscreen!  mymichael got my back side sprayed, but somehow we missed my front side.  i have NEVER been this burnt before.

staring at beautiful scenery all around {sorry for the blurriness...}

how can you resist that face?

oscar had fun...but he was ready to go home!  the farm life is tough....

don't leave me, please! =)

our summer has been wonderfully relaxing so far...how about yours?