Taste of Tuesday: Chicken Stir-Fry

Sorry, another Asian recipe from me. A couple weeks ago it was Sweet n Sour chicken but this is really what goes on in my house and that wok I got from our wedding gets good use!

I cook stir-frys almost every week because it's easy, healthy and inexpensive to make. I kind of just made up this recipe and it can be adjusted to your liking.You can use any meat - chicken, shrimp, beef - along with any combination of frozen or fresh veggies so it's very flexible.

You will also need some oil or olive oil and soy sauce (I use low-sodium).

I used frozen stir-fry veggies this week because it's quicker than chopping up a ton of stuff.

Recommended meat:

Chicken breast cut into chunks

Recommended veggies:

Broccoli

Carrots

Zucchini

Mushrooms

Onion 

Green Pepper

Cook chicken with a little olive oil in a wok or large non-stick pot until no longer pink.  

Add in veggies, cover the pot and cook for about 10 minutes (with frozen veggies). More for fresh veggies.

I also happened to have a can of water chestnuts so I threw those in.

Season to taste with black pepper, all purpose seasonings and coat with soy sauce. Cover the pot and let everything finishing cooking.

Joining Jessica and Ashley for Taste of Tuesday.

 

What quick and healthy meals do you cook for dinner?

Weekend Fun & Celebrations

Monday we meet again, unwillingly, after another fun weekend for the books!

Friday: We did date night and went downtown for sushi and to check out some of the houses decorated for Halloween. After dinner we met up with some friends for a couple beers. Our friend showed up dressed as a PBR beer (his favorite) and won 2nd place.

Saturday: I went to the gym and did my usual errands before going to an engagement party. Champagne and Fireball were given to the soon-to-be bride and groom. We had a fun night celebrating with friends.

Sunday: Brunch plans with a friend got cancelled so K and I decided to go for brunch to my favorite little spot downtown for chicken and waffles. 

Joining Sami for Weekend Shenanigans.

How was your weekend?

Happy Fall Friday!

Thankfully this week flew by for me and the weekend is here so that I'm grateful for. 

After saying goodbye to my parents on Monday (who had been here visiting for 2 weeks), I started some fun new projects to occupy my brain & I'm pretty stoked about both:

#1 My long overdue blog redesign is underway and will be here next month!

#2 K and I booked our trip to Savannah, GA for my 30th bday in December :-)

So other than that, here's what I've been doing...

~ K brought home this pretty pumpkin to surprise me so I guess we'll be doing some pumpkin carving action this weekend.

~ Black nails with a little sparkle for some Halloween spirit.

~ More bathroom redecorating going on in the B household...Picked up this pretty shell wall art from Marshalls for the master bathroom. My love for the beach has now become apparent in all 3 bathrooms. yikes!

~ Snagged this jumbo bottle of wine for $7.99 from Publix sooo my Thursday night was spent hanging out with that glass and the TV. No worries in the world.

~ Yesterday was the first "sweater" day in FL, so I dusted off my comfy granny slippers from VS last night and lounged around with my glass of wine.

Cheers to the weekend!

Joining Darci and Lauren for Five on Friday.

Hope you had a great week too!

Got any pumpkin carving tips for me?

Neutral Fashion Trends For Fall

My closet used to be 95% black, white and denim so this summer I stepped out the box and bought a bunch of bright colors - pink, mint, etc. 

I also neutral and beige clothing so I put together a little collage of some neutral fall trends that I'm loving this year.

Express Watches · Express Leather Jackets · MICHAEL Michael Kors Clutches

Most of the items are from Express which is more in my shopping price range but a girl can dream :-) I also love Express because there's always a coupon out there to help you save money. Promo code 1986 is valid now until Sun Oct 27 to get:

$15 off your $30 purchase, $30 off your $75 purchase or $60 off your $150 at Express.com with promo code 1986

What are you loving for Fall and where do you shop?

Halloween Party Food Ideas

I just ran across this linkup and decided I had to join. I love looking at all the festive Halloween party ideas on Pinterest and wish I could be that creative. Here's a few food ideas that I'd love to recreate someday.

Spooky Pigs in Blanket

Spiders on stuffed eggs

Eeyeball dip

Vampire Cookies

Bloody Shots

Joining Helene and Sarah for their Halloween Linkup.

What's your favorite Halloween appetizer or dessert?

Taste of Tuesday: Fall-Off-The-Bone Ribs

Ingredients: 

1 Rack of  Spare Ribs (cut individually)

1 cup BBQ sauce (I like Sweet Baby Rays)
1 Tsp All Purpose Seasoning

Salt & Pepper (to taste)

Directions: 

Boil the ribs in seasoned water for 45 minutes until tender.

You can use salt, pepper and any other seasonings to flavor the water in the pot.

Drain and coat with BBQ sauce.

Cook on the grill for 15-20 minutes until tender & baste with the remainder of the BBQ.

It's really that easy; just takes about 1 hour total to cook. 

Joining Jessica and Ashley for Taste of Tuesday. 

 

What your favorite BBQ recipe?

Beach Weekend Getaway

I'm so glad we were able to take advantage of the sunny/warm weather this weekend before it starts to get cold. 

My parents have been in town visiting for the past two weeks so we planned a quick weekend beach trip and rented a condo out in Cocoa Beach.

On Friday we headed out to the beach and got settled into our condo which had a decent view of the water. Later that night we went out to a Tiki bar and restaurant for some seafood and tropical drinks. 

On Saturday, Kate and her hubby met us at the resort and we had a great time walking on the beach and lounging at the pool. The weather was perfect (80's) and we enjoyed some live music on the pool deck. Fun times!

After being in the sun for several hours (and several cold beers), we all went to a Mexican restaurants with my parents for happy hour and dinner before Kate and H headed back home. 

On Sunday we walked around the Cocoa Beach Pier and then packed up and headed home. I did some last minute errands with my mom before they head back to Trinidad today. K grilled a ton of ribs for dinner and we just hung around for their last night. 

(Recipe to come soon)

I'm sad to see my parents leave today but after entertaining for 2 weeks, I'm very slightly exhausted.

Joining Sami for Weekend Shenanigans.

How was your weekend?

H54F

Thankful Friday is here! Although I had a nice week with my parents visiting. We are heading out to the beach this weekend to get one last beach day in before the cold weather comes our way.

#1: I was pleasantly surprised to find out I won Stephanie's blog giveaway from The Fusion Chronicles. She mailed out a shiny gift card to Red Lobster.

#2: My company announcemed that our Holiday party will be at Epcot this year. So excited!

#3: My new iPhone 5s arrived yesterday and I'm in love. The thing is super fast and the fingerprint feature is pretty cool.

#4: Went golfing with my team yesterday (first attempt at golf) and I wasn't too bad. Was able to hit the ball but not very far.

#5: Japananese hibachi dinner last night with the 'rents. We go there every time they visit.

Linking up with Lauren for H54F and Darcie for Five on Friday.

Any big plans for the weeked?

Beach Bathroom Redecorating

My latest home project is redecorating our guest bathroom with a beach theme. I love starfish, shells and all the colors associated with the coast or beach.

I put together a collage on Polyvore for some inspiration:

Beach Bathroom by martinis-bikinis featuring a mercury glass jar

I'm very far from being an interior designer but a girl can try. Here's my progress so far:

It's a work in progress.

Where's your favorite place to buy affordable home decor?

Time For a Redesign

Hello ladies!

So my 1 year blogiversay is coming up and I'm ready to have my little space redesigned to something that matches my vision a little better.

I need you to point me in the right direction. Who designed your blog? Who do you recommend? I'm looking for affordable, elegant, flexible, creative and can have it done in a two weeks! Yikes, I shouldn't have wait until the last minute.

Thanks so much!

Sweater Season is Here

I'm loving patterned sweaters this year and thinking of purchasing a few as we get closer to winter. Here's a few casual styles that I love for work or going out with friends.

Forever 21 Crewnecks & Scoopnecks · Forever 21 Sweaters

Most of these sweaters are from Forever 21 but Express.com has 40% off sweaters going on now.

Where do you shop for affordable but cute sweaters?

Weekend with Family

Hope everyone had a great weekend. Mine was pretty low key and relaxing ~ much needed.

~ On Friday we picked up my parents from the airport & took them out for dinner & drinks.

~ On Saturday, I went to the gym quickly while my mom shopped and then I met up with her to do some shopping too. Found some pretty blouses on sale for upcoming work events.

~ My in-laws came in town Saturday evening so both families could see eachother. We went out for Italian dinner at Carrabas (one of my favorite restaurants)

~ Later hung out by the fire at home with K, my parents and some wine. 

~ Sunday morning, we did some errands and then went out to lunch with both parents. 

~ I attempted to decorate for Halloween. And by decorate, I mean just put these 3 things by the front door.

~ Sunday evening was spent grilling out and watching football.

Joinging Sami for Weekend Shenanigans.

How was your weekend?

Finally Fall in Sunny Florida

The weekend is finally here! I'm excited to have my parents visiting this weekend so we'll be entertaining and taking them around Central FL.

1. Love my new blouse from Express. I wore it out to the Special Olympics Benefit last weekend. Express seriously has the best sales and if you're signed up for their mailing list, they send out a ton of coupons.

2. The weather is starting to cool down and finally feels somewhat like fall here in Florida. Sad summer is over but excited to use our fire-pit more often and pull out those cute sweaters that have been in hiding.

3. Yummy Chicken Stirfry dinner made by yours truly. Not to be confused with the Sweet and Sour Chicken recipe I shared earlier this week.

4. Have you tried UFO Pumpkin beer? So delicious! I love this beer and Shocktop's Pumpkin Wheat because neither of them are too sweet.

5. Sephora has the Beauty Fall Special going on this week. Simply enter your email address and take a tumble to find out if you win free samples, free shipping or 10% of your next purchase. I won free shipping which I'm waiting to use on payday ;-)

Joining Lauren for High Five For Friday.

What Fall shopping deals/specials are you digging?

Things I Love About Fall

 Honestly, the thing I'm loving the most this year is the pumpkin beer. Lush? Maybe ;-)

Cute Scarves and Boots

Costume parties
Guess who I went as for Halloween one year?

Giving out candy to trick-or-treaters.
Does that sound creepy? I honestly like doing this just to meet new people in the neighborhood and chat with our neighbors. The kids costumes are cute too.

Hanging out and drinking wine by the firepit

Thanksgiving!
Family and endless desserts.

Funny Halloween Costumes

 

What are you dressing up as for Halloween this year?