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Well hello there Friday! There is nothing….I say NOTHING better than a Friday with a three day weekend following. Can I get an amen? Well Fridays around these parts tend to be in fives and about favorite things…so here we go!

1. Favorite sound- Kitten purrs. You guys. I can’t even. This little kitten has the cutest purr on the entire planet. She is just a little snuggle muffin (most of the time) and she will just purr and purr and purr.

2. Blog Lovin’ – not the website, actual lovin – I got this tweet from Jana over at The Townhouse Pioneer and it basically made my Wednesday. If you haven’t checked her blog out yet, I don’t know what you are waiting for!? This girl is hilarious, has a great taste in music, appreciates a good beer, and is living the pioneer life like a  boss. If only I could do half of the shit she does. One day….one day.

3. Favorite purchase – I had to stop by TJ Maxx on Monday night to get Gracie a new dog bed. While I was there….it was only right that I look around. I mean, I am pretty sure it is against the law to go to TJ Maxx and not browse every single department. Right? Don’t fight it. Just go with it.

So I found myself a pair of Under Armour shorts that are cut awesome for my legs….and a pair of Roxy flip flops. If these flip flops don’t scream “high school Nadine” I don’t know what does. Seriously, I used to wear a lot of Roxy shit in high school and college. I thought they would be perfect for the beach and casual fast outings.

4. Favorite song- Bitch by Meredith Brooks – Who didn’t sing along to this song at the top of their lungs?!?! Ultimate girl’s night song if you ask me.

Have you ever wondered what your dogs do all day when you are at work? Or what they do when you aren’t looking?

Sometimes I find myself staring outside into our back yard for quite some time, just watching Gracie and Mac wander about. I always think about what it is that they are sniffing, what they think they found, or what is going on in Gracie’s mind as she basks in the sun.

Sometimes when I look outside, I will find Mac perched on his throne.

My favorite thing to see, which happens 90% of the time I look out….is the dogs cuddled together on the deck or out in the yard. Best puppy food – https://goodpuppyfood.com. They are almost always together and I love to see it!

They are pretty funny inside too! You will often find Gracie sniffing around the kitchen to see if I dropped anything while cooking. Or Mac trying to climb into the pantry and get treats.

Mac thinks that all drinks are his and fair game. It is seriously the cutest thing to watch him try to drink out of my water glass.

Yup, I can watch them do funny things all day.

Dog funnies, because why not?!

–Why do songs and commercials insist on having sirens?!? I mean my heart legit stops for a minute and I begin panicking immediately. It never fails. Then I am like….stupid song!!!

–I forgot to mention two weeks ago when we went to the Black Jacket Symphony concert, I was carded to make sure I was 21 to get in. Chris was all like, “Ummm why did they card her?” His dad was like “Because they think she is a kid.” YES!!!!!!!!!!

–Sometimes you gotta go off roading to avoid traffic. Or, at least that is what I did yesterday. I drove through a muddy/grassy median after realizing that I-59 was completely stopped. I felt like a bad-ass rebel, too! Take that traffic!!!!!

–Speaking of commuting, I will sacrifice my safety to spare an extra 10 minutes. You know that moment in your commute when you are driving around a super sketchy part and you hit the lock button on your doors and hope that no one walking the streets heard it? Yup, that is me every afternoon on my way home. BUT I get home TEN minutes earlier going that way. Ain’t nobody got time to be safe.

–The other day a co-worker asked me to witness a document. I haven’t signed my name to anything in…months? I had to pause and focus to sign my name correctly. Wow.

–I am way more excited than any 30 year old should be about Mario Kart 8 coming out. Chris and I have been counting down for months. MONTHS. We are probably going to go to the midnight release..and have Mario Kart party at our house that weekend. Let me know if you want to join!

Fair warning:

And now…some confessions in ecards:

A few weeks ago, we were really craving pasta and I wanted something quick and easy since it was a weeknight. I mean, who doesn’t love pasta? While this isn’t the “healthiest” meal idea i have ever posted…it was certainly delicious. It is all about portions and balance, people!

What You Need:

chicken breasts (I used rotisserie chicken because it is easy!! I just pulled off the white meat and boom. Done.)

1 box of rigatoni noodles

2 teaspoons crushed red pepper

2 teaspoons of minced garlic

pinch of salt

pink of black pepper (a pinch is about 1/8 teaspoon)

1 cup marinara sauce

3/4 cup Alfredo sauce

olive oil

What You Do:

1. Cook noodles according to package instructions

2. Heat oil in a pan on medium heat.

3. Add red pepper, black pepper, salt and garlic. Let heat for about one minute.

4. Add chicken and saute to coat/flavor the meat.

5. Add marinara and Alfredo sauce and bring to a simmer. Make sure to cook long enough for the sauce to thicken some and the chicken to be heated through.

6. Turn off heat, toss cooked rigatoni noodles to mix.

Notes: You can garnish this with a little extra red pepper on top. The dish certainly has a kick to it, you could make it without the red pepper…then garnish with red pepper at the end for only the people who like spice. Also, feel free to add some vegetables to this if you like. I think peas or green beans would taste delicious. Or even some pancetta.

We have made this recipe twice now, and the first time I made it as above the second time I only added red pepper to my dish, as it was too spicy for Chris the first time.

I sprinkled a little Italian cheese mixture over top and served it with a slice homemade garlic bread.

Friday: I made a super delicious protein smoothie on Friday morning. It was one scoop of chocolate protein powder, 2 tablespoons of PB2, one cup of unsweetened vanilla almond milk, a small banana and one tablespoon of flax seed. It tasted like a Reese peanut butter in a cup!

For lunch, the “Friday Lunch Club” met at Urban Cookhouse where I proceeded to order a Very Berry Salad with smoked turkey. It was delicious. I might have also ordered a side of broccoli salad because it was leg day and I was extra hungry.

Friday after work I stopped by Petsmart to pick up some more kitten food. Apparently we adopted a piglet that happens to look like a kitten. When I got in line, this guy in front of me literally had over 100 cans of dog food. There was a lot more still in his cart when I took this picture!!! I fear this will be me one day. As I want to adopt all the kittens and puppies. Whatever, he seemed so happy.

We just hung around the house Friday evening and watched Surviving Jack and The Big Bang Theory. Sadly, I heard that Surviving Jack was cancelled for next season. This makes me super sad for two reasons: 1. Stabler 2. Stabler. Just kidding….2:90’s music, clothes, hair. I hate when my shows get cancelled.

Saturday – I spent a few hours Saturday morning doing my weekly cleaning. I also got my father’s day present ordered, and a few things done around the house. Then Chris and I headed downtown to World of Beer to grab a drink. I had a craving for some Wells Banana Bread Beer. Freaking delicious as always. I was just said that they ran out of it on tap and I had to order it in the bottle. I like all beers on tap better than in a bottle…but what can you do!?!

After, we drove to Chris’s parents house where they had a birthday dinner for Chris. It is always good seeing family and hanging out. The food was delicious!

Sunday – I meal planned and went grocery shopping. We watched No Strings Attached because it was on TV. I love a cute little love story. The rest o the day basically looked like this:

and this:

Some of this:

And most definitely this:

This week I will be finishing up week 2 of month 2 of Body Beast. I think it is almost time to be going up in weights again for a few sets that I do. Mostly for biceps and leg days. Yesterday when I was unloading the groceries I carried a 15 lb bag of dog food and a huge bag of cat litter (not sure how many pounds?) at the same time up the stairs with no struggle. Heck yes! Also, on Saturday when we were sitting at WOB I had a dress on and Chris looked down and said “Your legs look  smaller.” Two non-scale victories in one weekend? I will take it!

I hope that everyone had a great weekend! Mine was too short, but what can you do?