We're basically movie stars

A few weeks after booked out videographer for the wedding, they e-mailed to ask if we would be willing to be guinea pigs for a new service they were going to offer ... Save the Date videos. After a mild freakout complete with happy dancing calmly talking it over with Aaron, I accepted.

Click HERE to see our special video!

A massive thank you to Rachel and John at Dewberry Wedding Cinema ... we had such a blast exploring Orr Family Farms with you. We are absolutely in LOVE with the video.

Only 71 days to go!

Love!!

A post on healthy living

Tonight, I went to my yoga class. It was incredibly challenging, with a lot of core work. 

Tonight, when I got home... Aaron and I had this for dinner.

It's all about balance.

Namaste.

The (almost) Meeks take Dallas

The original title of this post was going to be OU/TX 2014 ... but after the dismal outcome, I decided to focus on the happier parts of our adventure. Namely, a visit to Ikea and eating good food.

If we're being honest, Ikea is the main draw for me going to OU/TX. Being really honest, and its a combination of Ikea, In-N-Out Burger, and Fletcher's corn dogs. Just keeping it real.

1. Ikea

Behold, Ikea.

 Ikea is glorious.  I know some people think its cheap, and poor quality or whatever ... but I can literally wander the aisles picking up impossibly named glassware, admiring tiny tiny tea cups, wishing I had need for perfectly gauzy 92" window treatments and longing for giant prints of super quirky art prints. Aaron, prefers not to. But this trip, we discovered what he does love about Ikea.

The room set-ups.

We found one room set-up in particular that we both loved. Meet our almost dream kitchen eat in dining area and pantry/utility space, Lidingo (technically not the right name as the "o" has those weird dots above it).

Yes please.

That sink. I just. I need it.

Basically, the only thing that left us not so impressed were the dark countertops and the dark flooring which divided us as a couple. Lidingo ... we're comin' for you. With your soft-touch drawers and cabinets, glass-fronted cabinet doors, adorable cart, seating for a large family and especially you, double farmhouse sink ... we love you.

Also, Aaron found this day-bed that he loved. We may need to make this ours as well.

Basically, perfect for napping.

2. In-N-Out Burger

I mean ... does this need an explanation? Aaron decided while there that he would really enjoy being the person who chops the potatoes with the potato-chopper machine. So, there's that. Everyone needs a fall-back profession, right? Give me an original cheeseburger and a bucket of those fries ... and I'm a happy happy lady.

Also, I'm no fool. There is absolutely no way I'd let a picture of me literally smashing a cheeseburger into my mouth on here. It was a virtual inhalation of burger and fries. It happened, and that is all you need to know.

3. Fletcher's Corn Dogs

If you have never had a Fletcher's Corn Dog ... you are doing yourself a disservice by not being at the next Texas State Fair. For realsies. These things are in-cre-di-ble. Like, you need a minute or two to eat one in perfect silence, so that you can truly enjoy them. The first year we made the mistake of eating a regular corn-dog before the game, having not been able to locate a Fletcher's stand. We finally wandered upon one after the game, waited in line for nearly 40 minutes, and knew we had made the best decision of our lives the instant the breading touched our taste-buds. This year, it was our first stop.

Oh yeah, and we actually went to the game. Oh, well. Better luck next year .... PLEASE.

Love!!

Creamy Chicken Taquitos

Fun facts about this meal...

1 - We ate it tonight.
2 - It is an amalgamation of several different "cheesycreamedchickencrispycilantrotaquito" recipes I've tried on Pinterest ... to which I picked and chose my favorite bits to include in my recipe. Disclaimer -  the no shredded cheese was a divine accident.
3 - Apparently, one of the reasons Aaron wanted to date me was the fact that someone told him I was a good cook. However, when we first started dating, he made sure to let me know which food things he would not be eating. The following items were/are on his list - anything creamy (I mean, seriously. No.), casseroles (um, no.), things with unnecessary chicken (i.e., pizza, most pastas, and some chicken dishes in general), most vegetables, and guacamole (more for me, I say). This dish, which has 1) chicken and 2) cream cheese has now become one of his favorites. I showed him. You're welcome, dear.

Anywho - on to the recipe.

So, I forgot to take a picture again. This is what they look like though. Forgive me? Ok, good.

What you need:
Chicken (we like Bare Chicken breasts, at Target)
1 block room temp reduced fat cream cheese
4 or 5 big flour tortillas, cut in half
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
Juice of 1 lime
Small handful cilantro (the grocery store was sold out, so I used freeze dried)
Dash of kosher salt

What you do:
Pre-heat your oven to 425 and spray a baking sheet with Pam - I like the olive oil kind.
Boil the chicken in a little salt, cumin, and chili powder for 20 minutes. After it cools, shred (not chunk) it.
While the chicken is cooling, combine all other ingredients (other than tortillas, duh) in a medium sized bowl.
When the chicken is cooled, throw it in the bowl too.
Put a really large spoonful on your halved tortillas ... about 1/3 of the way onto the tortilla... tuck and roll the mixture into a taquito shape.
Baked your taquitos for 15-20 minutes depending on how crispy you want them.
Enjoy!!

After trial and error, I finally discovered the 1/2 tortilla method. Per Aaron's review - "it makes them more manageable." Also, it makes them crispier, and I don't feel so bad about eating as many. Because, they're smaller. So .... its not as bad, right?

Most of the original  recipes use 1 cup of shredded cheese. Tonight, I accidentally forgot to add it and didn't realize until I was already two bites in to my taquito. I promise, you won't miss it. But if you want cheesier taquitos, put one cup of shredded cheese in there.

I hope you love these as much as we do. For real, they are so good.

Love!!

Update

Book honeymoon.

A reminder.

Amen.

Love!!

Wedding Update ....Update.

For real. When I feel like I'm letting people down, I get stuff done. Apparently, I would rather whoop up on myself than procrastinate. After week(s) of sacrificing lunches .... let's be real, I just ate faster ... I've made progress! Don't worry, I can hear your shouts of affirmation and clapping from afar.

1. Dress fittings. Which is mildly terrifying. I feel like once this starts, I must maintain. Not gain. Not lose. Not shift. Maintain. In order to do this, I made the commitment to switch to Baked Cheetos instead of real Cheetos. So far, I'm not too disappointed. Scheduled! Although I'm kind of worried that I've kicked off the weekly meal plan with garlic knots. And I've already scheduled a Greek House date with Aaron for tomorrow. And we're having taco night at some point this week. But ... I have maintained my commitment to eat only baked cheetos.

2. Think of wedding songs. Like, all of them. We have our first dance song picked out - but that's about it. Underlined because we've only done part of this ... which earns an underline, not a strike through. I diiiiid pick a walking down the aisle song that I'm really proud of, and I've signed my name in blood promised my mom I would keep it a secret until I actually walk the walk. 

3. Pick a cake-ist. Duh. This was hands down the best part of planning. Hands. Down. Y'all ... the cake is gonna be good. Goooooo-huh-duh. You're welcome in advance.

4. Contact a florist.  So thrilled to be working with Juniper Designs. Alison,  the owner and designer, is fantastic and I know she totally got our vision. I'm beyond pumped to see what she creates for us!!

5. CRAFT NIGHT. This one, I'm totally looking forward to. Mom and I have had a blast finding ideas on Pinterest (what did brides do before this?!) and now we are ready to bring them to life.... Yeah. This is still happening. Stay tuned!

6. Pick out something for the guys to wear. No one likes a group of naked men standing at the altar. Or if they do, they are going to be sorely disappointed... And we still have naked guys. We doooooo have a time picked to look at stuff. But unless we get on it, you'll be looking at a completely different kind of stuff (sorry, Mom).

7. Finalize wedding invitations. We made progress ... and stalled out..... yeah. Yeah. 

8. FOOD. Because... FOOD. Again, we've made progress... but not completed. I've made contact with caterers, and we have a loooooooose time of tastings (oh buddy) but we haven't nailed anything down yet.

9. Figure out how to have my hair done ... I have a feeling that "lion-chic" doesn't translate well to wedding photos.... Who are we kidding? I haven't done this yet.

Progress, y'all! Planning a wedding is basically a job. But the reward will be sooooooo worth it.

In related news ... I've ordered several exciting things for the wedding, and every time an order comes in ... it's basically like Christmas. This is so fun.

Love!!