Post Easter!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend!

I grabbed some cute wooden decor from JoAnn Fabrics, so I had a fun time painting them! I gathered up some more of my Easter and Spring decorations and put them out around the house.

I couldn't remember the last time I dyed Easter eggs! It was so much fun as a kid, so I thought it would be fun to do it this Easter. 

You can't forget about the Easter candy!  :)

I also grabbed these amazingly beautiful orchids from Kroger. Aren't they incredible? They are called Indigo Mystique orchids.

This past Saturday, I helped volunteer at a fundraising event at Sweet Frog (frozen yogurt) for Young Williams Animal Center! We saw some adorable dogs and had so many wonderful, gracious people donate money. Sweet Frog was extremely generous because 25% of people's purchases was going to Young Williams Animal Center!

Boomer

Rocket

Of course, I had to help myself to some delicious Sweet Frog! My weakness is the cake batter flavor!

Our tulips in the front yard are finally blooming!

Question Time!

*How did you celebrate this Easter?

*What is your favorite Easter candy?

Catching Up!

Hey y'all! Happy Tuesday! 

My bestie was in town this past week, so I here is a little catch up post! Ashley, Nathan, and I were all able to spend a lot of time trying new restaurants, shopping, playing games, and just hanging out!

St. Patrick's Day was a blast! Ashley, Nathan and I were decked out in our green and our St. Patty's Day accessories! Of course, we had to enjoy some Green Beer!

We ended up heading downtown where the atmosphere was filled with live music and fun energy!

Haha, you can hear Nathan at the end wanting to hear more actual Irish music!

After a little shopping and hanging out, we headed over to The Square Room. We had tickets for a premiere table to first eat dinner and then enjoy a show by the band Four Leaf Peat.

 Our dinner was catered by Cafe 4! The service and food by Cafe 4 & The Square Room was exemplary! I highly recommend both Cafe 4 and the Square Room!

Our appetizer was Irish soda bread with smoked salmon

For the main course, there were three options to choose from. Nathan had the corned beaf & cabbage, Ashley had the bangers & mash, and I had the shepherd's pie!

The shepherd's pie was perfection! I think it is definitely on the top five list of my favorite meals ever!

Lastly, we each had dessert! Our desserts each consisted of three chocolate shot glasses filled with Irish cream mousse, Irish green mint mousse, and a double chocolate Mousse.

Shortly after dinner, the band Four Leaf Peat performed! The music was incredible! 

If you enjoy Irish music, check them out! They were amazing! Four Leaf Peat

A celtic dancer joined the band for a few of the songs! She did a remarkable job! 

Nathan, Ashley and I really enjoyed the dinner and the show! I will certainly be looking for other events at the Square Room again! Also, I look forward to going to Cafe 4 for more of their fantastic food!

I introduced Ashley to the French Market during a previous visit, so of course she is addicted to crepes like me! We HAD to stop and grab a crepe, or two!  ;p

On Saturday, we had some friends come over for dinner and games!

Ashley taught me how to make her delicious Chicken Buffalo dip! The dip was definitely a hit, and was devoured quickly. 

Our friend Jamie introduced us to a new drink called Jewelers Hammer. The drink is simple - vodka, white grape juice, and lime juice! Yum!!

On Sunday, the three of us checked out the Art Museum downtown! KMA - the Knoxville Museum of Art.

I love art and the art museum in Knoxville is actually free! How can you not check it out?! There were truly some mesmerizing pieces!

The Cheesecake Factory was also on our list. I LOVE The Cheesecake Factory. Usually when I go for lunch, I never have enough room for the cheesecake. This trip, we had an appetizer and then had our slices of cheesecake! I had the 30th Anniversary chocolate cake cheesecake. 

Oh. My. Gosh. It was scrumptious!

I had to share the adorable picture that Ashley took of Nathan and me!  :)

I had an incredible time hanging out with my bestie for (almost) a week. It was much needed! I'm glad that Nathan was also able to have some time off and enjoy Ashley's visit here to Tennessee!

Now, it is back to reality! Time to get ready for Easter next!!

Question Time!

* What did you do for St. Patrick's Day?

* Do you enjoy visiting Art Museums?

* What is your favorite choice of cheesecake, or dessert?

Hey Y'all!

Y'all...I made air fried chicken...and it was DELICIOUS!

Fried chicken is a staple here in the South! It's a southernly sin if you haven't made fried chicken! 

The air fryer made cooking up fried chicken extremely easy.

I wanted to make sure the chicken legs had a good flavor, so I picked out a ranch packet and coconut flour to roll them in before cooking. 

After tossing the chicken into the basket of the air fryer they cooked for 20 minutes on 360 degrees, then I flipped them over and cooked for another 25 minutes.

WOW! I don't think words can express just how delicious the chicken was! 

I could eat this fried chicken everyday! The flavor was on point! The breading from the ranch packet and coconut flour was crispy, not greasy at all, and the chicken came right off the bone.

Nathan's reaction trying the chicken was priceless. Haha, I definitely got praised for the amazing food! He and I both agree that it was perfection!  :)

I'm still Spring cleaning, so while checking out a store called "At Home," I found these kitchen organizers - a corner shelf and undershelf basket. They were each $5.99, not too expensive, so I picked them out and brought them home to try out! I'm pleased with the difference they actually make in my tupperware cabinet!

Corner shelf:

 Undershelf basket:

Before:

After:

Much better, don't you agree?? 

 Saturday, I had a DAR Chapter meeting! I love the adorable St. Patrick's Day goodies that were around for our meeting. 

Our special guests at the meeting, were Ralph and Rebecca Martin who presented us a program about their ancestors, Robert and Mary Young, and the Battle of Kings Mountain in 1780.

Check out more information on the Battle of Kings Mountain:

Battle of Kings Mountain

I have officially begun volunteering at Young Williams Animal Center! I ran over to Young Williams Animal Center for a couple hours to volunteer this past weekend. It was a slow day while I was there, so I got to spend my time playing with the sweetest dogs!

Bailey

Chevelle

After running errands this morning, I was able to volunteer some more! This time, I got to spend two hours fawning over Stanley! He is the cutest and sweetest little dog! We went for a "walk" and then I stayed with him and gave him love. He appreciated the cuddle session. Hanging out with these awesome dogs is like free therapy! I love it! Good news about Chevelle! She was adopted!! :) 

The weather still has been incredibly amazing!

My magnolia tree is blooming even more! Everywhere I go now, I see more and more trees/plants blooming! Spring and Fall are definitely my favorite seasons, especially here in Tennessee!

Question Time:

* Do you or have you done any research on your ancestors?

* Are you more of a dog person or cat person?

* Which season is your favorite?

Out and About!

HAPPY FRIDAY Y'ALL!!

Spring is officially here! I have been obsessed with being outside now that it is warmer! I love seeing flowers and trees practically blossoming overnight. The forsythias are one of my favorites to see bloom each Spring. They are the bright yellow flowering shrubs.

I've been pretty busy this past week, and I am so glad it is Friday! I hope to get a lot of Spring cleaning done this weekend! I have more DIY projects on my list, so I hope to find some time to work on them as well! In the meantime, I wanted to update y'all on this past week!

My daffodil bloomed!

The Japanese Magnolia in the backyard will be blooming soon enough!

I grabbed out my sandals!! This weekend will be dedicated a lot to bringing out the rest of my warm weather clothing & shoes!!

I have been constantly out and about this past week. After running some errands earlier this week, I stopped for a drink at Starbucks and sat outside on the patio to relax and read.

Being outside so much, makes me want to garden and spruce up the backyard. Anytime I am at a store, I check out their Spring outdoor decor.

Of course, Hobby Lobby is a favorite store of mine. A lot of their Spring decor was on sale, so I picked up a duck statue to put in our backyard. He's so cute! He now resides next to the Japanese Magnolia tree.   :)

While out and about, I stopped at the Juice Bar. It was my first time trying it out, and was recommended the Blue Chocolatta. The smoothie consisted of: cocoa powder, almond butter, blueberries, banana, and coconut milk. I hadn't had any breakfast yet, so the smoothie was perfect for a meal replacement. I went with the 24 oz, however, I wish I had gone with the 16 oz because it was so filling! I can't wait to go back and try more of their smoothies and juices!

This past Tuesday was our DAR Chapter's event at the Red Cross building to honor our Vietnam Veterans - Chapter 1078, as well as their families. We held a pinning and certificate ceremony and reception for 159 Vietnam Veterans. I cannot express enough, my gratitude for all of our Veterans and current servicemen and women.

Picture taken by Holly Matthews

Picture taken by Holly Matthews

I'm extremely happy to announce that I am now a volunteer at Young Williams Animal Center! This past Wednesday was my volunteer orientation. If you know me well, you know that I adore animals. It will be so rewarding to be able to help out as often as I can for a cause I support.

If you would like to learn more about how you can help Young Williams Animal Center, check out their website: YWAC

I hope you guys have a wonderful and safe weekend! 

Question Time:

* What are your favorite flowers/plants to see each Spring?

* Have you been to the Juice Bar or somewhere similar? If so, what is your favorite smoothie or juice?

* Do you volunteer or support a specific cause?