Bites of My Life

It’s always hard to jump back into the week after a really great weekend. This weekend was a really great one. I spent the past three days at the lake with some of my best college friends. We’ve been "lake ratz” for the past three years, with confident plans to resume next year as well. It’s one of my favorite traditions as well as the perfect way to kick off summer. The weekend has consistently fallen on my birthday which is just an added bonus.

Spent the first day of my 26th year, starting to pack and prep for my move and ended with an impromptu birthday dinner with mom and dad (we are celebrating Friday!). Mom made two of my favorites. This salmon and this salad. Finished the day with The Bachelorette because I am unashamedly loving Alabama Hannah’s season!

-Last Monday was the epitome of living in Oklahoma. The day went something like this: weathermen predicting severe weather, the entire state cleaning out their storm shelters and parking their cars in every open garage, businesses shutting down, all for nothing to happen. Yes after staying home from work and “taking shelter” at my parents, all we got was rain…
-Can’t wait to start Save the Plums. Thanks to Ellen for the early bday gift!
-Shared how I prep then freeze Perfect CCCs when I’m making cookies in advance on instagram stories last week. All the tips are saved in my highlights!
-The Best Breakfast Casserole made it’s appearance at the lake this weekend. Always a crowd pleaser and always great for a bigger crowd.
-Oklahoma has been dumped on the past few weeks. We rolled up to our rental to find a foot of water covering the road leading up to the house and the ramp to the dock halfway under water. Don’t think for a minute this stopped us from wading through it to enjoy time on the dock.
-Coffee (tea) and cards before the days got started.
-Lake food is the best food, but it also makes me not want to eat it for another year. So many chips and beers consumed….
-We had a table on the deck of our rental that fit all 14 of us around it. We spent each night after dinner circled around this table playing rounds of picolo and playing song after song.
-The packing has begun, but first I’m having a garage sale to purge my belongings.

Annie

Bites of My Life

In preps for my move to Dallas, I’m donating, selling and throwing away or recycling everything in sight. I feel like I do a good job at seasonally cleaning things out, but it’s amazing how one can still accumulate so much over the span of just a few years. It’s interesting to see what can hold so much importance at one time in your life, but then one day it has no relevance. I guess it’s also just a realization that I’m moving from a 1,600 square foot house to 650 square foot apartment... I have Marie Kondo on my shoulder whispering “this doesn’t spark joy.” My purging is leading me to hold a garage sale in a couple weeks. If you are local, swing by!

Switching gears. I got home yesterday from a bachelorette party in Destin, Florida. A place I haven’t been since sophomore year spring break. Despite my memories of this beach town reminding me of drinking green apple Smirnoff Ice (for pleasure not as a dare), we had such a good weekend being back celebrating Bailey at the beach!

-Exhibit A of things that do not spark joy anymore - my extensive magazine collection. I had every issue of Bon Appetit saved from 2015. While I loved them at one time, they will be better used recycled into something more useful.
-I’m getting burnt out on my workouts, so I spent my mornings last week doing Melissa Wood Health’s online workouts paired with a 3 mile walk around my neighborhood. MWH’s goal is to create long lean lines in her 30 minute workouts.
-This recipe easily just got added into my usual rotation. I bought this red lentil pasta with no clear idea what I was going to do with it. Found this Half Baked Harvest recipe and it has magical powers that hides the fact that you are eating pasta made from lentils.
-Who else celebrated #NationalChocolateChipDay with Perfect CCC’s?
-Woke up Friday in Destin, Florida for my old friend Bailey’s bachelorette weekend. We walked down 30A to a cute beach cafe called Camille’s for a juice and avocado toast. The toast was just sourdough with mashed avo, salt, pepper and olive oil, but was so good.
-Beach besties!
-Golden hour in Destin.
-If you find me on a beach you can find me with a piña colada in hand!
-I Do donuts for a beach bachelorette breakfast!
-Not a cloud in the sky the entire weekend at the beach!
-Almost finished with this book after starting it on my plane ride to Destin. A coming-of-age book perfect for most 20-something girls. Purchase a copy here if you need a quick relatable read!
-If it’s green, it went in this salad. I was craving all the lettuce and veggies after a weekend of White Claws, Goldfish and pizza…

Annie

Bites of My Life

Fun fact, this is my 300th “bites of my life” post. 3-0-0 woah!

I had a great week which included a quick trip to Dallas to find an apartment (spoiler I found one!!), and early birthday party, a graduation party for one of my college besties and then all day Sunday spent with family and more importantly mom!

-Lemon Bar smoothie to kick off the week. Recipe by one of my new favorite instagram follows @weeknightbite!
-DIY flavored La Croix with the help of fruity essential oils.
-An OG TAB recipe post. These thai cashew lettuce wraps are always a crowd please and so easy.
-Down and back trip to Dallas on Thursday to go apartment shopping. I found the cutest place in walking distance to this delicious salad.
-I’ve spend the past year and half volunteering and serving on the young professionals board for a local non-profit, Cleats For Kids. Overwhelmed by their amazing staff who gifted me this cake for my upcoming move. I’m so inspired by them and the work they do.
-When half of your best friends all have birthday’s in May, you throw yourselves a joint birthday party!
-Patio hangs with my new little koala bff Hallie!
-No better smell or taste than homemade bread. This batch was gifted, but excited to learn from my sweet friend Teri so I can take bread making to Dallas!
-Crispy smashed potatoes for Mother’s day alongside smoked brisket by dad and this salad.

Annie

Bites of My Life

Wahhhh May how did this happen??? The end of April ended swiftly with lots of April showers. OKC was flooded last week with all of the rain. May came in full force with a ton of exciting news and happenings. Most exciting being I’m officially an aunt x2! Sister and John welcomed sweet baby Hallie to our fam on Friday! The same day I got the news that I got a job in Dallas (more details to come)!! It was an emotional day to say the least. Last week also included trying a new spot, a home tour, happy hour with mom and dad, drinks with girl friends, and a high school friends graduation party!

-New TJs product alert! Huge thumbs up for the jerk flavored plantain chips. Average consensus on the watermelon jerky. A+ on the packaging, B+ on the actual taste.
-This after dinner snack is on serious repeat. I’ve been craving a dessert element after a meal a lot lately. I’m trying to combat that by doing a spoonful of almond butter, chia seeds, coconut flakes, gogi berries and cacao nibs. I fill up a little soy sauce bowl I have with a sprinkle of each and it helps trick me into thinking I’m getting a sweet treat.
-New food and drink menu is officially out at The Jones! Let me highly recommend the saturn cocktail!
-Ate this incredibly easy stir fry for dinners all last week. Just shaved brussels, red onion, mushrooms and kale, sautéed in ghee with coconut aminos and sesame seeds.
-Orange skies at 9pm means nader season in Oklahoma. We didn’t have an actual tornado, but some crazy storms left the sky looking like it!
-Eclectic new spot in town, which will hands down be my go to until I move. Tried Red Rooster with mom and dad Thursday night.
-We added another baby girl to our family on Friday. Big sis Elle is proud to announce her baby sister, Hallie Margaret Krenger.
-Brandy ice’s with Aunt Chloe to celebrate being aunts x2!
-Woke up at 5:45 on Saturday. These very early weekend mornings are starting to become a thing…anyway I took advantage of the time and overripe bananas to make a vegan banana bread. I winged it and the bread turned out alright. Still enjoyed it with a thick layer of almond butter on the top.
-Bootie call at the Quail Creek Home Tour.
-Back to Red Rooster for their cheeseboard I was coveting, but couldn’t sell mom and dad on. Thank goodness I invested in friends who invest in cheeseboards with me.
-Home with Hallie!

Annie