@ the Chop Shop

Is summer speeding past you like it is around here? I though we'd have nice relaxing days at home, but that has yet to happen. My sister is getting married this weekend, so I'm sure time will continue to fly by at record speeds for now. By next week, hopefully our pool will be finished and I'll spend a lazy day by the pool eating popsicles.  It's good to have a dream, right?

Between summer camps, summer school, wedding plans, pool building supervision and much more this month, there has been very little time for scrapbooking. I was able to put a couple of pages together a couple of weeks ago and I just now had time to edit pictures of them.

This layout has a selfie (is it a selfie it it has more than one person in it?!) taken while our family was trying out a new restaurant in downtown Chandler. The restaurant had great sandwiches and salads and Ward says great lemonade too.

This was a quick page to put together and it felt really good to be playing with paper. I love using a few label stickers together for a quick journaling spot!

Layout Supplies /// Hello There Scrapbook Circle Kit

New Scrapbook Circle Creative Team

We've had so many things going on around here this summer and I hope to do an update soon. One thing has been pouring through creative team applications for the new 2014 - 2105 team at Scrapbook Circle. 

I'm excited to announce our new team today!

It's always exciting to add new members to our team and I'm excited to see what the new term brings!

iPhone!

Through a lucky series of events (non-smart phone breaking, dad's old iPhone having a button break), Audrey became the proud owner of a new iPhone 5s. This was not our plan, but when the Apple store was trading in an old iPhone plus giving us an $80 credit to the store and a new iPhone, how could we refuse?

Of course, I had to document this. Audrey also somehow scored a free $40 case from the AT&T store after she and Ward spent a crazy amount of time there getting her account set up. I think the worker was trying to make up for the frustrating time in the store. The free case did help ease the pain.

So now Audrey has a pretty cool phone and I'm excited for her!

This layout is based on the June Scrapbook Circle sketch that was designed by Diana Fisher. I loved the single photo option for this page plus all of the layering with tags.  If you want more info on the sketch and to find out how to play along for your chance to win a cool prize, stop by the Scrapbook Circle blog for details.

Layout Supplies /// Hello There June Kit /// Sweet Treats Add-on

What We Ate >>> May 30

Summer is officially in full swing around here! With Memorial Day and kids out of school last week, we kept busy and even did some cooking. Here's a look at a few things we had for dinner last week.

Monday - Memorial Day BBQ : Burgers and Grilled Corn

Our friends invited several families over for swimming and a bring your own meat + side to share dinner.  Our friends have a ridiculously awesome grill that a friend custom built for them. It was huge and easily held food for 6 families all at the same time.

I mixed up some turkey + beef burgers to take to dinner.

Turkey + Beef Burgers

1 pound lean organic ground turkey breast
1 pound lean organic lean ground beef
1 yellow onion, diced and sautéed
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 Tbls Olive Oil
2 Tbls Balsamic Vinegar
Salt & Pepper
Siracha Hot Sauce

Mix everything together and form into 1/4 cup sized patties. Grill and enjoy!

Grilled Corn >>> We also took some fresh sweet corn that we picked up at a local food stand that morning. We pulled the husks back, took out the silk and then pulled the husks back up over the corn. We soaked the corn in a big bowl of water for 30 minutes before tossing the corn onto the grill. Delicious!

Tuesday: Shrimp Tacos

Tacos are a favorite around here and to mix things up, I cooked up some shrimp as a filling.

Honey Lime Shrimp for Tacos

20 Frozen Shrimp
2 Tbls Olive Oil
1/2 Onion, diced
1 garlic clove, diced
3 Tbls Honey
2 Tbls Lime Juice

Cook the olive oil, garlic and onion until the onion becomes translucent in a pan on the stove. Then add the frozen shrimp and cook for 4 - 5 minutes until the shrimp is warmed through. Remove from the heat and toss in the honey and lime juice.

Serve the shrimp in tacos along with some homemade salsa, diced avocado, pinto beans, cheese and sour cream.

Wednesday: Carnita Tacos

We has all of the taco fixings left over from the night before, so I figured that we may as well eat them! I used this Crock Pot Carnita recipe a month ago and froze the leftovers. For dinner on Wednesday, I thawed the meat in a pan on the stove and served it up with the tortillas, avocados, salsa and sour cream.

Thursday: Pei Wei Takeout

We went to a friends' house for dinner and did Pei Wei takeout. We ate poolside before jumping in to cool ourselves off.

Hope something we ate will inspire a meal for you!

San Diego Field Trip

A couple of weeks ago I was able to go on a field trip to San Diego with Max and the 5th and 6th graders at his school. It was a whirlwind 48 hours and we had a fantastic time together. We boarded a chartered bus at 10:00 p.m. and drove 6.5 hours overnight. It's pretty impossible to get much good sleep on an overnight bus ride, but the kids were quiet and at least got some rest.

Our first activity once we arrived was to go out on a boat for a "lab at sea." It was a three hour adventure where the kids got to cast out a net and pull in a bunch of sea life. They got to hold and learn about halibut, lobster, shrimp, crabs and stingrays. We also saw a grey whale up close and dolphins swam right by our boat.  Very cool. Then it was a stop for breakfast at a diner and then off to spend the rest of the day at Sea World.

After several hours at Sea World, we headed to a park near a beach for a grilled burger dinner. We then did a driving tour of downtown San Diego before heading to our hotel for the night. The kids all stayed in rooms with just kids, so it was an adventure for them. It felt so good the lay down in bed. 

The next morning we enjoyed breakfast burritos on the beach while we watched seals. One of the boys in my group had never left Arizona and this was his first time at the beach! I think I may have been more excited for him that he was for himself. I text his mom pictures all day since I knew she'd want to see his first experience at the beach.

We then stopped at Scripps Aquarium and then the beach again (this time we could put our feet in) and enjoyed a pizza lunch before getting back on the bus to head home.

This was seriously the best field trip ever. It was run by a company that the school contracted with to run the trip and they did a fabulous job. The only thing they need to improve on was the quality (or lack thereof) of the motel. It was pretty sketchy. We weren't at the motel for long, so it was all good.

I'm thankful I was able to go on this super cool trip with Max and share these memories with him.

Layout Supplies /// Scrapbook Circle June Hello There Kit  /// Take Note June Add-on

Project Life >>> May 2014 Part One

Can you believe that May is almost over? Time truly is flying by. It's going to be Christmas before we know it. Since I can't stop time from speeding by, I'm happy to be documenting what we are up to around our house in my Project Life album.

Mother's Day ///Woman of the Year Banquet Mother's Day Tea /// One the Musical /// Bride's Dress Shipping with my Sister

Mother's Day /// Chandler Children's Choir Concert /// San Diego Field Trip

Insert page with more Mother's Day Photos

Back of the insert page with Paybill from Once

Summer is in full swing around here. School ended last week and we are now attempting to keep the kids busy. It's already too hot to play outside during most of the day, so we are hopeful that our pool will be finished sometime this summer so we can enjoy it!

What We Ate - April 24

What We Ate is a weekly feature on my blog where I share what we are eating for our family dinners each night. We all have to eat, right? I figure I may as well share what we are eating and will hopefully inspire some ned ideas for you.

Okay, this was another crazy schedule week, so we didn't get to have consistent dinners at home every night. But I still have a few things to share about our meal with you this week.

Monday - Lacrosse Awards Banquet

We went to an awards banquet where we enjoyed steak, salad and baked potatoes. My assignment was baked potatoes, so no recipe to share for that.

Tuesday - In-n-Out Burger

My friend Jennie and I took our kids to pack meals at Feed My Starving Children right after school and returned home about 6:00 p.m. and then we needed to go to the Apple Store for a phone repair. It was a full night and I hadn't planned a meal, so when In-n-Out Burger was nearby, so we stopped in for dinner. In my attempt to make it somewhat healthier, I ordered my burger protein style so that it can wrapped in lettuce instead of the bun.

Tuesday Breakfast - Sautéed Vegetables with an Over Easy Egg

This has been my breakfast for several days and I'm loving it! I love that the day is starting off packed with veggies and protein. I dice up 3 sweet potatoes and 2 zucchini along with half an onion and cook in a little coconut oil until softened and it lasts for at least three or four meals.

Wednesday - Skinny Orange Chicken and Spicy Cauliflower Stir Fry

Yay, I finally cooked this week! I made the same orange chicken that I made a couple of weeks ago plus a new recipes that I noticed that Pioneer Woman posted using cauliflower. Both were delicious. We just layered them together in a bowl.

Thursday - End of School Year BBQ Celebration with Friends

We went over to our friends' house for dinner where we grilled up a bunch of turkey and chicken sausage along with chips & hummus, watermelon and grilled bell peppers.

Why didn't I take a picture of the bell peppers? Perhaps because that were so good that they didn't last long. If you are looking for a delicious side next time you grill, you should give them a try.

Grilled Red Bell Peppers with Feta, Tomatoes and Basil

Slice bell peppers in half and remove the seeds. Place the curved outside edge of the pepper on the grill and heat until the pepper starts to soften. Then flip the pepper over and sprinkle the inside with some feta, diced grape tomatoes and chopped basil and continue heating on the grill until the cheese softens. Enjoy!

There you have it, another week. We survived the last week of school. Now summer break begins!