"Couple Friends"

I know, I know... more beach pictures. I am so in love with the beach and am more-so incredibly thankful that God has blessed us with friends who know & love Him. "Couple friends" at that! Andrew and I haven't really had many couple friends up until this point. These women not only get what it means to be married, but they get what it is like to be a wife of a medical student. Even better, we're all nurses! How much better could it get?

Tillamook Factory ~cheese & ice cream~

Rockaway Beach ~frisbee, waves, & sand~

Canon Beach ~picnic, starfish & sunsets~

Back to Portland for Pizza, Portlandia episodes, & delicious peanut butter chocolate chip cookes. Good times.

The whole group!

 

Loving Momma! Christine & Sam
PS- this is Christine's blog  (Apartment 46)

Brandon & Catherine

Sand Man!

My favorite workout buddy!

Seriously, how cute is this kid!?

Christine to the rescue...

 Tillamook Cheese Factory! Yum!

Thank you Andrew for ruining the picture...

Beach Scenes

 A post full of pictures! I took so many photos on our beach trip last weekend that I decided to dedicate this post solely to scenic photos and another one to friends & fun/people pictures (here & here). So, enjoy the Oregon Coast (Cannon Beach). The photos don't even do the sunset justice, it was so beyond beautiful.

 "You rule over the surging sea when it's waves mount up, you still them."

Psalm 89:9

Thank you Lord for your beautiful creation!

Healthy Chicken Salad with Greek Yogurt

{Photo via Plum Pie}

"I wish there was a low-fat or no-fat alternative to using mayo in chicken salad (besides using low fat mayo)."  ~me talking to Andrew last week

Then... I found it while not even looking! Use Non-Fat Plain Greek Yogurt! Duh! Why didn't I think of that before?

I made it. I ate it. I felt good about it. I want more! 

Healthy Chicken Salad

• Use cooked or canned chicken
• Add cranberries, celery, grape halves, & apple chunks
• Mix a few spoonfuls of non-fat plain greek yogurt with a spoonful of honey
• Add yogurt/honey mixture into chicken mixture
• Season with a dash of pepper & salt if you wish
• Eat and feel great about it!

Fabric Flowers

 I'm in love with my re-vamped wreath! Just in time for Valentines Day, this used-to-be xmas wreath is now fitting for Spring as well! What do you think?

{Pinterest}

Oregon Coast Day Trip Snippit

Does this look like a great time or what? This was my Saturday.... and it was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G 

Sunny, clear skies, 60 degrees on the Oregon coast in early February? A free Saturday that we all have off (med school friends and spouses)? That's a rare site!

I'll tell you (and show you) more about it later this week...

No time to blog right now, I'm busy working my stretch at work these next few days, but I promise that I have some awesome photos to share very soon!

Happy Monday folks! I hope you enjoyed the weekend as much as I did. 

PS- this is where "pre-blogging" comes in handy. The next 2 day's worth are pre-blogged from last week. Is that cheating in the blogging world? You don't think I am seriously up at 6am every week day to write a blog post right? That would be slightly ridiculous. 

S'more Cakes

 Aren't these great? At least I think they are. This was something I randomly created out of a desire for something sweet (after a killer Zumba session) and a lack of frosting ingredients. Afterword... I googled "campfire cupcakes" and it turns out there are multiple similar creations. Here's the skivvy on what these treats include & how to make them. 

S'more Cakes

• 1 box brownie mix (place in cupcake holders). Bake like normal brownies.
• Place marshmallow on top and bake for 3-4 more minutes
• Use spoon to flatten marshmallows (see below photo)
• Broil for 1 more minute or until lightly browned
• Place graham crackers on top
• Enjoy and eat S'more!

How amazing are these scallop shell hor'dourve plates?

They're my new favorite and I use them for everything. I even try to make them work for dinner portions sometimes. I just use a few at a time. That's how much I love them...  Check out more here.

This is another one of Beyond Jordan Studio's creations (except I got the last of this color- but there are more options).

Feel free to become a follower of Beyond Jordan's facebook page for updates!

Delicious, quick, & adorable! 

And now we have far too many cupcakes to figure out how to disperse...

Awkwards & Awesomes

 

This photo has nothing to do with this post, but how adorable is this house!?! Reminds me of the show Full House. I'd like to move in right now (house in NW Portland near 23rd st).

Awkward/ "Bummer Dude"

• Finding out that the Hubs and I can't take our summer dream vacation (Alaskan Cruise)... It's a long story. But, we're now hunting for inexpensive vaca options anywhere in the US. Any favorite spots? 
• Being sick this week. Ick. 
• Finding an overdue electricity bill in a random shelf in our apartment... oops! 
•  Realizing that I haven't crafted in nearly 2 weeks! What!?? Ok, I chose doing house work instead. Probably a good choice.
• Having no motivation to cook fancy meals besides the usual mexican food (my friends know... mexi food seriously makes up 70% of my food intake).  Problem? Eh...
• Working in a different role at my job for the first time in ~7wks... Whew! It's nice to be working with whole families again (mom's & their babies & Dad's, etc...). Just took me a while to get back in the swing of things. {I've been in our expanded care nursery with the sick babies every shift for a long time! I love it there, but it's nice to keep up on my adult skills too.}

I think this is awesome.... you may think it's awkward

• Successfully inserting a catheter!!! You have no idea how excited I was.... As was my patient. Ok, I admit, I'm AWFUL with inserting catheters. I just have not been successful at them. Maybe it's because I'm dealing with women who have just given birth (Sorry Dad & those who can't handle medical stuff. Stop reading this point here). Things are a little bit different down in that direction while & after being pregnant. The target is very difficult to see. Sometimes worse is elderly GYN patients... Anatomy changes... Ok, enough, you get the picture. After inserting successfully on the 1st attempt, my patient said, "Whew, I didn't think you were going to get it! I'm so relieved!" I told her that I was equally relieved.... didn't think I would either. Honesty is the best policy- after performing the procedure that is!

Awesome/ Exciting

• Getting my vacation request granted. Now we just need to chose somewhere to vacation!
• Andrew surprising me with tickets to Wicked in March. Can't wait!
• A clean house... mmmmh love it. 
• Finding a quilting shop that has lessons. I'm thinking about taking a class. 
• Getting my nails done with Shellac. Once gone Shellac, there's no going back!
• Miscellaneous friend dates (Renee, Alex, Katie, Kaitlyn.... LOVED seeing you guys).
• Keeping up with my goal of not buying clothes for 3 months. 1 month down and no cravings!
• Flirting with my hubs. I hope when we're 50 we can still flirt with each other here and there... He sure makes me smile. 
• Watching Andrew play soccer with his med school indoor soccer team. It is especially enjoyable when he plays keeper and dances to the music. That's my man!

 

Happy Thursday & thanks for stopping by!

Have I Ever Mentioned...

 Have I ever mentioned that I unicycle? Yes... you heard me. Unicycle.  In my time off, I'm a part of a circus that travels around the North West... Ok, not entirely true. BUT, I do unicycle!  You know when you're at a new gathering and you have to introduce yourself and say one unique thing about yourself? This is my go-to answer. Thanks to my friend Tyson (pictured above), I learned how to perform this circus trick my junior year of college. When bored from studying or needing a little kick of adrenaline... or when needing a few moments to laugh historically at myself, we (my roomie, Mary, and I) unicycled! Good times!

My university, PLU, even has a unicycle club. I know.... You're thinking, 'Awesome! I want to be in that club!' Trust me, you do! I only wish that I didn't have such long hours for my nursing degree or else I'd have been there every week! 

My favorite times & funniest times took place when we unicycled to church. Sometimes there were 4 of us all in a line! Ah... so much fun. We'd get the strangest looks! A great conversation starter for sure! AND, let me tell you... it's such a great work out! Whew! 

Once I reached sophomore year of high school, I thought that I'd never learn a new "trick." Being a gymnast for much of my young life meant focusing and training on mastering that next new trick. Learning to unicycle gave me hope, rejuvenated me, and inspired me to learn new things! It also taught me to laugh at myself again. 

I haven't been on the cycle in quite a few months, but I'm hoping to hop back in the saddle shortly!

 {Here is a video of me unicycling with friends in a pinwheel}