Beer Battered Shrimp Tacos

They're just as amazing as the name sounds. I don't completely remember the recipe (I lost my notecard!) but I think I figured it out, at least it was close. My cousin Ashley taught us about these taco treats when we were roommates last summer. Basically you thaw & remove the tail of the shrimp (I bought pre-cooked, de-veined shrimp just to makes things a bit easier). Then dredge them in a batter of beer, flour, garlic and a little black pepper. Finally, coat them in flour (you can sprinkle more garlic here too) and fry, fry away!

Here's the crucial part. Eat these tacos with mayonnaise. Yes, you read that correctly. I was completely skeptical when I first got those instructions too. Just.Try.One. Lay your shrimp in a corn tortilla, drizzle mayo and salsa on top. 

So what's your favorite "weird" taco topping? Or rather, what odd taco toppings have you tried? It's not a topping, but I did try lengua last summer. With a different cousin. I have some strange cousins.

Big Gold Bling

What's not to love about this chunky gold chain? I've been visiting this eye-catcher every lunch break this week at the American Cancer Society Discovery Shop. And now for $12, its alllll mine!

Bought it today. Wearing it today. That's when you know its money well spent. But I am looking forward to pairing it with a black crew neck tee...

A Little Brickwork

We've had this dirt patch/path leading up to our front door that's been one of those welcome home eyesores. 

On our move-in weekend my cousin & brothers went to town demolishing a brick almost bbq structure. So we've also had a pile of brick on the side yard & another pile in the backyard. Are you putting it all together now? 

I didn't do the greatest job, but its much better than a section of dirt. It doesn't really work as a walkway because I didn't level the dirt underneath. I literally just plopped bricks and brick crumbles ontop of the dirt. Eventually we would like to have this all be a solid walk-way connecting to the driveway, but for now it works! And it was quite nice to make such a big visual difference without having to run to the hardware or home improvement store. I think they're starting to recognize us down there. The neighborhood taco truck even knows who we are now.

Cowboy Caviar

This past weekend was full of parties! We celebrated Cody's birthday (which is really today!) and I also had a summer BBQ for work. Food prepping for a crowd can be a little tricky and long-winded. But I managed to find something easy and impressively yummy--Cowboy Caviar (found here through Pinterest). I combined all but the avocado the night before the BBQ to lighten my 'day of' to-do list.

In addition to the obvious ingredients (corn, tomato, black beans & avocado) the recipe calls for green onion, garlic salt and Tapatio. I also added lime, just because it seemed necessary! It was amazingly refreshing and everyone seemed to enjoy it. Plus, it's almost a meal on its own. And since we now have our own avocado tree I think this concoction will become a staple! Still waiting for ours to grow some more and ripen....

Gray is my Happy Color!

Picked up a new rug (finally!) for the bathroom. Walmart to the rescue! I think I like the absence of an 'accent' color too. Gray, white and black, it just feels simple and clean.

Tanner has taken a liking to it too, he naps there. Guess that means its here to stay! I cannot tell you the relief I feel when I see it fuzz-free in the morning and still fuzz-free when I get home.  A little thing, I know but isn't it the little things that tend to make all the difference??

Sleep Tight

I bit the bullet, chose a color and outfitted our bed! I actually went to Ikea with an entirely different scheme in mind, but when I saw this green striped duvet--I had a course correction. 

Please don't mind the wrinkles, I wasn't about to waste time ironing it. It's actually smoothed itself out quite a bit, possibly from me laying down on it with my spread of magazines...The buttons were such a nice surprise on the pillow cases! It definitely reads more green in real life, but still very soothing for a bedroomy feel. 

If you feel the need to re-create--here's what I got! :) The green velvet pillow is a cover that fit perfectly onto one of my throw pillows from the couch, so I didn't have to buy any more pillows. Speaking of which the small gold pillow came from one of those bed-in-a-bag sets I bought on overstock a while back.I've noticed I am quite the pillow hoarder. It's taken some adjustment to have 'only' those 6 pillows on the bed as pictured above. I usually stick two more euro's in the mix. But let me just say, there is nothing like sweet new bedding to encourage me to sleep in a little! I even reached past the 8 o'clock hour this weekend! Woohoo!

Fortunate Furniture Finds

A little update on our new furniture pieces as promised! First, I've gratefully inherited my grandparents china cabinet. It's a beautiful, solidly crafted vintage piece that I am so excited to have in our home. My grandparents bought it shortly after their wedding, meaning its about 50 years old! It's the perfect size (literally, it wouldn't have fit if it was a hair larger) for the little nook-ish corner in our dining area. 

And no, the painting from Ross is not going to live there permanently--just wanted to get it off the floor! There are some pretty serious reflections in the glass here, but bear with me while I take a moment to show off ;)

Re-locating much of my glassware opened up a whole cabinet in the kitchen, so now I have a pantry cabinet! Woohoo! Much less clutter on our bookcase/open-air pantry now. I am still playing around with how to arrange/how much to put into the china cabinet. But Pinterest will come in handy for that, I'm sure!

Definitely needs some re-arranging/simplifying/de-cluttering. But for now its been nice to see a lot of my favorite items all together (especially the colored pieces). I've got quite a mixture of Coca-cola, wedding gifts and pieces from Cody's and my own grandmother's pieces.

Our next addition is not so petite, and to Cody's disappointment--not so sturdily built (its partially particle board--oops!). But for $60 off craigslist I still think it was a good buy. I mean, what could be worse than cardboard boxes?! At least we can get all of our (ok just mine) clothes out of boxes and put away. 

It's pretty massive. Barely fit down the hallway and through the door. And it's set up inside to be used for a computer...so some tweaking is needed. But again, better than cardboard boxes. And I know the scale of our furniture is all off in our bedroom, I can see David Bromstad cringing at my furniture placement. Just got to keep scooting things around til the room flows a bit more. The smaller dresser/secretary to the bottom left of the second to last photo has since been moved out to the garage--not sure what to do with that piece quite yet.

So there they are! I am happy to have our belongings more at home now too. One big happy family, and wow do I have a lot of stuff. I think a round or two of giving away is in order too!

Four years ago....

July Clothing Allowance

I'm pretty sure I bought this in July. Honestly it could have been August 1st. But I'm not sure. So we'll just count this for July because it's still early August and I didn't shop at all in July. Ok, lie--I bought a 75th Anniversary for the Golden Gate Bridge with my cousins when we spent the day on Pier 39. Anywho...I scooped up these pieces from The American Cancer Society store. It's a khaki blazer ($6, Target brand--Mossimo follows me) and a faintly printed blue floral scarf ($3). 

I also picked up these magazines ($1 each) & Ansel Adams photo booklet ($3). I really loved the prints on the back of the Cook's magazines and I'm a sucker for Ansel Adams Yosemite photos. 

Plus, the Yosemite mini-book has 4 great shots of Half Dome in different seasons, it was a must buy. And its just in time for our anniversary on Thursday! Probably won't have those photos framed in time, but I still have good intentions and high expectations :)

Magazines & Nail Polish

I have quite a few update posts in need of serious organization. Every spare moment has been spent working on something or another, and I keep jumping from one project to the next so it doesn't feel like any one thing is finished. I did manage to carve out some time get my nails done and read magazines though! Sometimes wet nail polish is the only thing that forces me to be still for a bit.

I'm sort of boring and predictable when it comes to nail polish (usually red toenails, clear fingernails). I admire those of you who can go bold and do patterns and crackle and turquoise. This is about as loud as it gets, and I kinda like it! Of course as I'm writing this, my fingernails are all chipped and less-than-fantastic. Naturally. But, I've scheduled a date with myself, the couch and my laptop so I can get our new furniture (!!!) and new bedding (I CHOSE A COLOR!!!!!!) out in the open ASAP. And I found my way back to my $20 per month shopping budget too :)