life, according to my iphone

[weekend catch up over breakfast]

this weekend looks to be a pretty great one...first, i get to see an old friend (who i absolutely adore) for my first massage therapy appointment. then, T and i are whipping up a delicious fall-themed dinner with his parents, we get to see rob + heather for a brief trip to dallas, and a dear friend gets to say 'i do' to her one and only. it's a weekend filled with some pretty great people in our life. here's to hoping yours is filled with those you love too. 

[boba's person; cravings recipes]

[decisions, decisions; keeping busy]

[an intense game; comfort food, revised]

[such a hunk; post-storm sunshine]

[mexican pizza and nachos]

[mojito pie, yum; family dinner]

[show and tell with wine; girls night dessert]

[varying cocktail hours]

[mid-yoga distractions; family brunch]

[late night snacking; mid-swing bliss]

[fresh perspective; jungle gym king]

[birthday celebration for T; comfort food, revisited]

[neon workouts; impromptu vet appt for my sweet wolf]

cookout

[my nephew's gecko cake]

last weekend, we celebrated T and my nephew's birthdays. it was T's last year in his twenties, and our nephew's fifth birthday. so, how'd we celebrate? with a cookout, loads of water balloons, a slip 'n slide, and some amazing family + friends in attendance.  

[mid water balloon fight]

it was our nephew's (and niece's) first time with slip 'n slide and water balloons. i'm not completely sure they got either, but i know they had a blast. :)

the food was insanely delicious. several of our friends brought dishes that paired well with our theme. but, my favorite dish of all was T's brisket...i still have dreams about it!

[all the glorious sides]

[porch lounging while a storm rolls through]

we sang happy birthday, snacked on birthday treats, and played with my nephew and niece before they went home. one of my favorite moments from the day was when i overheard my nephew say to his dad, "this was the best birthday ever". 

then, the rest of the gang stuck around for mojitos, corn hole, giant jenga, and a little firepit action...

[little charlie had to be in the photo]

thanks to our tribe, T had a pretty killer birthday surrounded by some of his favorite people...i don't think i've seen him laugh that hard in quite some time. so i'd say it was the perfect celebration for my mr clean. 

fall season

fall is officially here and it seems the weather agrees. it's finally cooled down to the 60s, and i am absolutely loving it. all of the savory dinners, and sweet fall-themed treats...what's not to adore? 

here's what i'm most excited about for my favorite season:

• take a road trip out to explore a local corn maze
• whip up this, an old childhood favorite
• now that T's bike is fixed up (thanks again michael!), take more bike rides out to enjoy the changing winds, gorgeous leaves, and halloween-themed homes
• keep our toes warm by the fire pit with jammy red wines
• spend a couple of weekends away camping with T and the pups
• whip up my own batch of autumn sangria with granny smith apples, blood oranges, plums, blackberries, and cinnamon sticks
• have a b-rate horror film marathon with a couple of goosebumps movies mixed in...by the way, does anyone remember are you afraid of the dark?
• try out another indulgent pasta recipe from scratch
• take a sunset ferris wheel ride cozied up to my love

shades of blue

for some time now (as in years and months in the making), i've been working on getting more comfortable in my own skin. whether that is improving my inner dialogue (which is my harshest critic), or shifting my perspective from how my body looks to what it actually does. so much of what would play mentally would be based off of how i felt i should look. but, i realized over time, our bodies are so much more capable than how they look. so, i've been working on building strength...simple as that. not for any competition, not to make a big comparison of "how much i've changed" via social media, but to make improvements because i wanted/needed to. 

somewhere along the way though, it finally clicked that the inner dialogue and views i had needed to stop. compassion for others is nothing if yourself is not included. 

not to say it's perfect, or that i'm not still working on it...but i am starting to feel, ever so slightly, a positive change. 

cositas

[getting my ramen fix]

can you believe we are nearly half way through september? it feels like time is flying by faster than usual this month for some reason. probably because i'm noticing the amount of daylight is shrinking ever so slowly, and the air is starting to get that wonderful chill to it. before i know it, i'll start to eye my scarves and layers with serious intent, and crave deliciously filling soups and stews. 

happy hump day!

[my mom, she's pretty cute]

[friyay wine tasting]

[mid-swing excitement]

[recipe work]

[mural in progress]

red rock canyon

a couple of weekends back, T and i loaded the pups into the car and set out for a day hike out at red rock canyon. after getting a few recommendations on trails from the park guide, we set out for the rough horsetail nature trail. 

[my beefcake]

the trail itself was beautiful. each bridge led to vibrant, green trails filled with horsetail plants - which if you haven't seen them, they look like long, lean bamboo-like plants. put against the bright red canyon it was simply stunning. 

sadly, the streams throughout the trails were all but dried up so the pups couldn't be off leash (our two boys may be lab mixes, but they cannot resist any water anywhere). but, from what we could tell, when the rains come in, they make for quite the playground for a couple of mischievous fur-covered boys. 

this natural pool was not only cool to look at, but provided the perfect surround-sound acoustics. i'm not exactly sure the pups liked it as much as we did. however, that may be because i pulled a pup mom move in not letting them swim here (stagnant water is a no go for me). 

[checking out hidden ridges and climbing walls]

[x marks the spot]

then, T found a break in the trail where we found ourselves overlooking the area we just hiked through. because of the red rock and, at times, sparse vegetation, it felt a little like we were on a mini mars!  

[always looking to be as close to the edge as possible, these two]

[the top of the pool we just saw]

after hiking at the top for awhile, it was easy to see how you could get lost up there. everything started to look far too similar and was mildly disorienting. it was cool, but once we started to feel turned around up there, we realized we needed to find our way back. 

after, we drove through some of the main (read: more crowded) areas, snacked on some lunch, and headed back home. ready for a hot shower, loads more water, and a nap (or two).