July is one of my favorite months! It starts off with my birthday on the 3rd and fireworks and ends with our wedding anniversary on the 22nd. I don't mind the heat of July (even pregnant). I enjoy the pool, hanging out outside, and even taking naps on the porch!
My Birthday Blueberry Pie
This is a Warren Family recipe that is one of my favorite desserts with a bowl of vanilla ice cream.
For my birthday date Frank and I went to eat dinner at McEwen's (and dessert at Flight) and then took a walk down to the River. It was a beautiful evening in the mid 70's and we enjoyed walking around and reading all the signs about Memphis history. Above is a plaque we saw on the side of an old building. It made me laugh out loud!
For my birthday I had asked for something to help me coupon. I was expecting a book of some sort with tips/tricks, but instead my sister-in-law, Brandy, made this awesome couponing system for me! She is somewhat of an extreme couponer herself and has saved their family a lot of money this way.
Brandy even cut out hundreds of coupons for me! Everything is so organized, detailed, and easy to use. She also wrote me several pages on "how-to's" of couponing from her own experience which has been so helpful.
My Birthday Blueberry Pie
This is a Warren Family recipe that is one of my favorite desserts with a bowl of vanilla ice cream.
- Box of Flako Pie Crust
- 2 Cups of fresh blueberries
- 1/2 Cup of flour
- 1 Cup of sugar
- Nutmeg
- 1 Tbl lemon juice
- 2 Tbl butter
- Preheat oven to 375 deg
- Spray pie pan and place the bottom crust in pan
- Mix flour and sugar together in bowl
- Add the blueberries into the dry mixture and pour into the pie pan
- Sprinkle with nutmeg and lemon juice
- Dot with butter
- Cover pie with top crust
- Seal and crimp the edges
- Cut slits to release steam and sprinkle crust with sugar
- Bake at 375 for 40 min or until done
For my birthday date Frank and I went to eat dinner at McEwen's (and dessert at Flight) and then took a walk down to the River. It was a beautiful evening in the mid 70's and we enjoyed walking around and reading all the signs about Memphis history. Above is a plaque we saw on the side of an old building. It made me laugh out loud!
For my birthday I had asked for something to help me coupon. I was expecting a book of some sort with tips/tricks, but instead my sister-in-law, Brandy, made this awesome couponing system for me! She is somewhat of an extreme couponer herself and has saved their family a lot of money this way.
Brandy even cut out hundreds of coupons for me! Everything is so organized, detailed, and easy to use. She also wrote me several pages on "how-to's" of couponing from her own experience which has been so helpful.
After doing a little more couponing myself I made a list of the deals at CVS and went on my first big couponing trip. I SAVED $74.25 AND GOT $13 of EXTRA BUCKS (which is basically cash).
It's not much to brag about now, but I'm starting my "stockpile" of items. It's like having a store in your house! Most everything on that shelf I got for over 50% off and some even for free!
Brandy is so creative and crafty, you must check out her etsy store in the link below! She does everything from sewing, custom invitations, jewelry, clothes, and more!
Frank's birthday present to me was Phase 1 of our landscaping. We went together to The Stockyard to pick up the plants and trees.
Frank spent 11 straight hours (with a short lunch break on the porch) on a hot 4th of July working in the yard. **He really does love me** One of the neighbors asked how much he would charge to come to yard work in his yard...Frank said, "This is work is priceless, it's for my wife's birthday." LOL
Working on the final product
I now have fresh rosemary, basil, and mint in my front yard! The dried rosemary in my cabinet doesn't hold a candle to the real deal. Looking forward to making a balsalmic rosemary pork tenderloin this week!
Guest House Update:
July has been a productive month starting with gutting the upstairs, filling up a huge dumpster, cleaning up the back yard, and building the exterior wall and roof over the stairs.
Frank has been working day...
and night...
but always finds time to play!
Back to work...now on the roof
View from the top
Yes, that is all sweat!
Guest House status as of 7/31/13
All that hard work gives Benjamin an appetite!
Benjamin after dinner and me at 24 weeks pregnant
Who has the bigger bump? At least my bellybutton doesn't stick out that far yet : )
Target Popcorn: Helping mom's run errands since 1995
Love these kiddos! They always have fun hanging out each week. Our newest addition to the gang is Corrie Ann (on the left). We are about to add two more babies to the mix in Sept and Nov - then we can have enough for a basketball team!
My what a difference a year can make!
My cousin Meredith was in town for work and came over for dinner. Even though Benjamin was having a hard day she was able to make him smile! So sweet!
She and her husband Jared are in the process of adoption through Bethany. She is also very crafty (it runs in my family) and is selling purses on her etsy store to help raise money for their adoption.
Check it out! http://www.etsy.com/shop/leftfielddesign
Hanging out at the neighbors pool on the 4th of July
As we prepare for Hannah's arrival we decided to transition Benjamin to a toddler bed. I was concerned about how he would do with this new freedom. After only a couple of morning "training" sessions to stay in his bed until I come to get him...he figured it out! Now if he wakes up early he will just play in his bed until we come and get him up. We can only hope that Hannah will be this easy on us!
Playing in the sprinkler as we wait for daddy to come home
Waiting...watching...daddy's home!
Playing in a box with Pops
Benjamin now recognizes CMOM and gets really excited when we turn into the parking lot.
Nana and Aunt Michele took Benjamin to CMOM and got to witness his awesome dancing moves! He gets so dizzy at the end he falls over - LOL.
One of Benjamin's favorite toys right now is his car track. He finally figured out how to place the car on top and press the button. He does it over and over and over...and over.
His towers are getting a lot taller!
Benjamin helping with dinner
He also enjoys helping me do the laundry. Any time he sees clothing on the floor (whether clean or dirty) he will go put it in our hamper. He loves to unload the hamper into the washer and close the door.
Working hard on "coloring inside the circles"
Benjamin Masterpieces - It's silly, but it makes me so proud : )
Benjamin has taken a new interest in looking at family pictures. His favorite book right now is a scrapbook I made with pictures of Frank and I growing up (below)
What a wonderful past 7 years it has been since I married my best friend!
We had a delicious dinner at Felicia Suzanne's Downtown. We would highly recommend it - Maybe the most we have ever spent on dinner but we had a great time celebrating and planning our 10 year anniversary trip!
I made this slideshow for Frank of pictures of some of my favorite moments over the past 7 years of marriage.
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