Biloxi

Though I forgot to bring the camera around for the majority of our trip, I did remember to stash it in our bag one morning before doing a little sight seeing in downtown Biloxi. The area was small, but ridiculously charming. We grabbed brunch in a little cafe' where we shared chicory coffee and beignets. It was like New Orleans without the crowds!

Thankfully, I had my phone handy to snap a few pictures on the other days.

^^An Osborn vacation is not complete without a trip to the candy store. I didn't pick up any candy on this trip, but I did learn that I reaaaaally don't like truffles...like, at all.

^^Before we left I heard some pretty terrible things about Biloxi's beaches. Since the coast here is surrounded by barrier islands, the beaches are really different than other areas of the gulf. There really aren't any waves and the water isn't clear unless you want to take a ferry out to the beaches on the islands. While I definitely missed those things, one thing I loved about the Biloxi beach was that the sandbars went out forever! You see those little heads bobbing way out there in the distance? Yea, they're SITTING DOWN. There are no waves to knock them over so they're just hanging out. Next time we go I plan to bring my own little lounger, which I will park 100 feet out and nap for an entire day.

It was such a fun trip! Kudos to my brother for landing in such a hidden gem of a place. I hope he stays forever.

some new favorites

So we didn't make the fireworks. I know, I know, we're lame. We decided to hide out from the crowds in the comfort of our living room eating sweets and playing games with friends instead. A decision I don't regret AT ALL. I hear there were lots of technical complications anyway, and who wants to sit through that?
Not I.

TODAY IS PAINTING DAY!!!!
And I am planning to desecrate our blah brown walls with paint samples! Yip yip! While I am so stoked to finally get rid of the brown, Tanner is in full-on cringe mode over everything. Yesterday he asked if we could just paint the samples onto poster board and hold them up to the walls...yeaaa I don't think we're gonna do that. Sorry bud. It's time to bite the bullet.

Before jumping into my painting clothes, I decided to try a new workout this morning. Swimming! After my first cup of coffee and a banana, I headed over to our neighborhood pool to swim a few laps. The pool was gloriously deserted that early in the morning, and while I'm certain my technique was all kinds of wrong, it was such a nice change of pace from running and workout videos and it was FUN. I'm pretty sure I'll be going back for more tomorrow.

After swimming I was starving, and decided to try my hand at a breakfast drink instead of my usual eggs or yogurt. I'm usually not a huge fan of drinking my calories, but this my shake was so tasty and incredibly filling (at least so far). Here is the recipe I followed:

• One small banana
• 1 tbsp PB2 powder
• 1 tbsp PB2 chocolate powder
• 1 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1 cup crushed ice
• 2 tbsp nonfat, plain greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp ground chia seeds
• 1 tbsp ground flax seeds

Food prep was super easy (just throwing it all in the blender) and clean up was quick! I will definitely be making this bad boy again as well as some other recipes from around the web. Peanut Butter Fingers has a ton of smoothie/shake recipes and they all sound ridiculously yummy. I'll be trying out that Key Lime Pie Protein Smoothie soon.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July!

It is beautiful outside and I am feeling incredibly grateful for all we've been given. 

We are celebrating today with lots of yummy food and drink, good company, Taylor Swift (because she reminds me of America), and a city-wide firework show (if we can stay up that late #imamawmaw). I hope you all enjoy your day and take a moment to remember those who struggled and sacrificed so that we could by free.

PS--I'm swooning over this sweet pup and patriotic porch. It's inspiring me to step up my Americana decorating next year. I'm thinking I can start in April and really get some bang for my buck. Get ready--it's gonna be everywhere. 

home again

We're back! Biloxi was wonderful. We explored, gambled, ate more than we should, and enjoyed each others company for 4 fabulous days. Stella and Griffin have been unconscious since we walked through the door last night, which I'm taking to mean they had a busy, fun-filled holiday as well. Good stuff.

Today we're getting things back to normal around here--buying groceries, putting away laundry, and settling back into our summer routine.

the city is a changin'

Waco, I'm so proud! Our little city is all a buzz with new, exciting plans to revitalize the downtown riverfront, and let me just say they are some pretty fabulous plans! I love this place and all it's little quirks, but I am so glad to see it growing! Waco is a pretty exciting place to be right now, and I can't wait to see how things develop in the coming years.

Check out the photos and video of what's in store for Waco! And try to ignore the creep-o announcer man and weird movie trailer music in the background. Not sure what they were thinking there.