One Year

I'm excited to be back at blogging.  It's been exactly one year since I posted here.  There are a lot of reasons I took a year off, and it wasn't entirely planned.  I would love to tell you more about that, but not just yet.  I made a list of the top ten things that happened this year.

1. Today is our 3rd anniversary!  Woohoo!  I love you David!

2. It's almost been a year since we MOVED!  It was a LONG process due to many different life changing events happening at once, but we finally finished!

3. I started a new job!  This year I made a huge transition, high school teacher to middle school teacher.  There are things I love about both, but the world of 8th grade social studies stuck to me like glue, and I loved it.  And those sweet adorable kids.

4. Husband passed the bar!! Woohoo, real lawyer status!  He also started a new job.

5. Husband and I did a lot of renovations on my grandma's house.  It took a lot of energy and time, but we got it done!  We also revisited the last four decades through wallpaper, it was an adventure.

6. We went to a lot of UGA games... GO DAWGS!

7. Husband and I bought a truck!  Merry Christmas to David!

8. We took a couple vacations this year.  We took our new truck on a winter vacay to Asheville.  It was a much needed and refreshing break.  And at the end of the school year, we went to St. Simons for a few days for some sunshine!

9. I went to Washington, D.C. with my parents for my spring break!  We had a great time!  We did a lot of walking, taking in the monuments. David and I are headed back later this summer.  We have had a lot of fun planning our trip, now we are just ready for it to get here!

10. I joined a special new little family called OrangeTheory Fitness, and it has been an awesome new beginning.  More on that another time!

I hope you will continue following my at SimplyIndecisive.  I look forward to sharing some new things to you!

Low Carb Love!

The trees are finally blossoming outside my window, and the weather has been perfect for almost a whole week!  Hazel and I have spent a lot of time outside this weekend.  This particular weekend has been long, relaxing, and refreshing.

 The other day, my phone informed me that I had hit capacity in my photo albums.  I told David this, and he was shocked at how many picture I had.  To which I replied, "It isn't normal to take 10-15 pictures of your dog a day?"  To say I'm obsessed with my precious puppy, would be an understatement.  Below is the precious face she made at me that got her an afternoon walk :)

 I've mentioned another obsession of mine of the blog before, and that is any/ALL of Gina's recipes at Skinnytaste!  In fact, I have attempted to pre-order her cookbook, which I'm pretty sure hasn't even started printing yet!  As soon as she posted this recipe for Cauliflower "Fried" Rice, I knew I had to try it!  I did not vary from her recipe at all, and it turned out perfectly!  Below of some pictures of my final product.  Follow the link above for the recipe!

 To me, it tasted just like fried rice.  Now, I do love me some cauliflower, but I thought all of the flavors came together perfectly to hide it's taste.

 I can't wait to try some other "rice" recipes.  This is low carb love at it's finest!

What else do you do with cauliflower?

Have an amazing week!

tomorrow

This face is exactly why I don't want to go to work tomorrow...

Can't you just see her saying, "Mama, please stay home with me!"

I want to say "yes" so badly.

 Hope y'all had a wonderful thanksgiving break!  We sure did!  I have so much to be thankful for.  I ate lots of turkey and relaxed.  The break was truly wonderful.  My dad carved a beautiful turkey, and we got to enjoy sometime with family.  Well, David studied A LOT.

I made candy wreaths with my mama, grandma, aunt, and cousins.  They turned out to be so cute!  David and I brought home three!  I really enjoyed making them.

I was able to snap this shot of Hazel during Thanksgiving supper.  She just wanted to know what was going on!  I just can't get enough of her adorable face!

Hazel got some quality snuggle time in with one of her favorite people--my grandma.  And made herself at home on my mama's couch :)

David and I got our Christmas tree and already put it up!  I start Christmas in mid-November, so he didn't have any trouble convincing me to get a tree early!

We are looking forward to the Christmas season!

I hope your Monday is amazing!

#H54Friday

It's the weekend again!  I'm now officially on Thanksgiving break!

And I couldn't be happier.  Seriously, it is much needed.

Last week my students put on a mock trial.  I was the judge and it was so much fun.  It was the hardest I have seen them work all year, and I was very impressed.

Other than spending time with David, the best part of my day is coming home to see Hazel.  I just can't help how much I love this dog.  With David studying all of the time, it's just me and her.  We've become attached.  When I come home, it's just me and her.  If I take a shower, she waits outside the door.  If I cook dinner, she lays by my feet.  We're two peas in a pod.

David and I spent our last date night at the Radio City Rockettes!  They were amazing!  Their outfits were beautiful, and they danced perfectly!  We also had awesome seats, which was a major plus!  It was fun to do something different than our normal dinner and a Redbox!

I had LOTS of grading to get done before Thanksgiving break starts.  The boys in my class think they are hilarious... and well, this did make me laugh.

Can't wait to see the DAWGS destroy Kentucky tonight!

Last night, me and Hazel went for a walk on North Campus and by the stadium.  It was really fun!

I hope your weekend is off to a great start!

#H54F

TGIF! Today, I'm linking up with Lauren for High Five for Friday!

1. I got my first issue of Cooking Light magazine this week and have really enjoyed looking though it.  I have so many ideas for new and healthy recipes now!

2. This week, one of my students surprised me with candy!  It was such a sweet gesture.  She brought in cupcakes  for the whole class and sugar free peanut butter cups for me!  It made my day.

3. My little snuggly puppy has been extra sweet lately.  I think it's because she knew bath day was coming soon, and she wanted to postpone it.  We have always known how much Hazel loves tv, but recently, we saw a commercial that really got her going.  It had golden retrievers in it. She goes crazy pacing  back and forth in front of the tv!

4. I discovered sugar free BBQ sauce this week!  Thank you Paula Deen for making my life a whole lot better!

5. Celebrating the UGA v. Florida football game tomorrow in St. Simons, GA!  We are having a blast so far--walking the beach, playing volleyball, and enjoying friends.  I found a group of ZTA's (my sorority) on the beach!  It was cool to see them and know we have a lot in common. David and I have also had time to squeeze in some fresh seafood!

How was your week?

more on fall break + high five for friday

This week I'm going to be linking up with Lauren Elizabeth at High Five for Friday!  It's been a long time since I've participated in this one, but I'm excited to start doing it again!

1. Fall break was very busy.  I got a lot done!  I desperately needed a break from the 106 moody teenagers I deal with daily.  I was able to get a lot of household things done that I have been putting off and visit family!  I had a great passenger for all of my travels...

2. Our first stop was to see my grandma.  We were able to spend the entire afternoon with her!  My aunt came over, and we helped her put a pumpkin together.  It was really cute!  That night, my dad took my grandma and I to see the Barefoot Contessa!  It was a really neat show.  I enjoyed listening to her talk about her love for cooking and tips.

3. Hazel has had quite the exhausting week.  She has played hard.  She plays especially hard with my sister's dog Margo.  We went over late one night and let the two puppies play around.  It was really fun.  When I got back to Athens, David and I went to a beautiful wedding at the Melting Point!  We had such a great time!

4. The next morning, David ran in a half marathon!  It was a great morning for it!  I drank some Dunkin' coffee while he trotted along.  Hazel got to go as well, and again, wore her out!  However, we managed to get a family photo!

She smiled, don't you think?  These few days back have been stressful reminders of why I needed this break in the first place!  But my little bulldawg is getting me through!  Can't wait to snuggle with her all weekend!

5. And best for last!  Today is my beautiful mama's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY to an amazing woman!  I love you so much mama!

it's fall y'all!

It's finally feeling like fall around here!  I have been fall break this week.  Hence my absence from the blog!  To kick off my fall break, David and I took Hazel to an apple festival in North Georgia!  We try to go up there every year around this time, but this was her first trip.  She had a big time.  Hazel quite literally slept ALL day to recover from all of the excitement.

On our way, we stopped at Burt's Farm to find a pumpkin.  And not only did we find a pretty pumpkin, but also some butternut squash!  We decided to get a couple since we love butternut squash soup.  As expected, farm fresh butternut squash soup is yummy!

Later in the day, we went apple picking!  We picked 1 peck of apples.  It was really fun to pick them from trees ourselves.  I whipped up several loaves of apple bread for David to enjoy this week while I was gone and also to take to my family!  At the festival, Hazel made a lot of friends.  I picked out an adorable candle in a mason jar from Ellijay Candle Company.  They are made with soy and burn 45-50 hours.  I smelled all of the scents while David let some kids play with Hazel.  Then, I made David smell all of the scents all over again.  We chose Egyptian Amber.  I highly recommend you check them out.  Our house smells amazing!

We are kicking fall of right with all of these yummy recipes!  I hope you will check the soup and bread out.  We are excited about fall being here, because now eating soup feels perfect.  Sitting on the porch with Hazel is pleasant, and she enjoys standing in a breeze.

hazel's 1st birthday + dog treat recipe

Our little princess is celebrating her 1st birthday today!

David and I continually find ourselves declaring that bringing Hazel into our lives was the best decision we have made since being married.  We got her just before Christmas this past year.  She was much smaller then, and her hair was sort of straight!  If you want to see some pictures from when we brought her home for the first time, click HERE!

Our mini goldendoodle comes in just under 30 pounds.  She loves to curl up in our laps or snuggle all night.  David jokes that she has to be close enough to us to feel our heart beat at all times.  Hazel is sweet, loving, and brilliant.  We have given her so many nicknames, but most popular--Hazey, Hazette, Hazel Bunch and Baby Girl.  We are so blessed to have this precious puppy in our lives.

So of course, I had to throw a small party for my special little one!

For quite sometime I've been wanting to attempt homemade dog treats.  But I ran out of time to get to the grocery store for some of the recipes I found online.  I knew I wanted to use peanut butter, one of Hazel's favorites.  And I came up with something that she LOVED!

Frozen Peanut Butter Dog Treat

 1/2 cup JIF peanut butter

1/3 cup 0% Fage Greek yogurt

Melt peanut butter for 45 seconds, until creamy.

Mix in greek yogurt until consistent.  

Put a little flour on your hands and ball the mixture up.

Place in cupcake wrappers and freeze overnight.

Now, let your pup enjoy!

David's parents came over to join in the puppy fun too.  Hazel got many new toys at her birthday celebration, and she was VERY happy!  Except for when I put her hat on... she wasn't a fan of that.  But she loves her new flamingo!

Happy Monday! Love Hazey!