Morning Glory Muffins

Andrew and I are both on a post-vacation health kick. We always eat relatively healthy, and rarely eat out. But this week, we wanted to kick it up a notch. Sunday, we went grocery shopping and made a meal plan for the week that would keep us on track.

I've been wanting to make these muffins for a while now. I used to make them pretty frequently, and they're so simple and really filling. I got the recipe from my mom, it is from her With Love & Butter cookbook (which also has the best blueberry muffin recipe)!

I had yet to make these for Andrew, and I was pretty sure he'd like them. Plus they would be easy for him to bring to work as a snack. I'm already thinking of a few substitutions I can make to lighten these up even more. Next week, I think I'll try making them again, but substitute whole wheat flour and use apple sauce rather than oil. If they turn out, I'll modify the recipe for you :-)

**********

Morning Glory Muffins 

From With Love & Butter

Ingredients

2 cups flour

1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups coarsly grated carrot, packed

1 cup corsely grated apple (including peel)

1/2 cup raisins (I don't like raisins, so I left them out)

1/2 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut

1/2 sliced almonds

3 eggs

1/3 cup mild tasting oil (I used vegetable)

6 tablespoons thawed apple juice concentrate

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

              Preheat the oven to 375* with the rack in the center position, line a muffin tin with 10 liners.

                

Mix the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add carrot, apple, raisins, coconut, and almonds and toss with your fingertips until all the fruit and nuts are covered with flour.

Blend the eggs, oil, apple juice concentrate, and vanilla in a bowl or blender and pour on top of everything else. Mix until combined. Mound the batter into the 10 muffin cups. These muffins are quite dense and don't rise very much, so you will need to shape them above the rim with an ice cream scoop or your hand (I used an ice cream scoop).

Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan and bake another 10 to 15 minutes or until the muffins no longer look gooey inside.

*In the past, I've found storing these in a Tubberware or freezer bags makes them get a little sticky, or soggy on top. So this time, I put them in a Pyrex pan and covered them with foil and it worked great.

**********

Although these muffins were fun to make, the best part was photographing them for the blog! I think I've found my favorite thing to photograph, FOOD! I shouldn't be surprised really... So anyways, that explains why there are nearly 50 pictures for this recipe, I was just having too much fun :) Hopefully you enjoyed looking at them.

I definitely recommend giving this recipe a try, these muffins are delicious and relatively guilt free.  They're perfect by themselves, or warmed up with a little honey, I've even crumbled part of one over some fresh fruit and yogurt.

I hope you're all having a great day!

Cabo Markets

When we were in Cabo, I loved browsing the various vendors and flea markets. I especially loved the pottery. I could have bought soooo much stuff, but Andrew kept my spending under control. I also had to worry about getting everything home in one piece, so I knew I couldn't go too overboard! Maybe it's the 5 year old in me, but I always love to buy a little souvenir on each of my vacations. I think it's nice to have a little something as reminder of past adventures.

When we went into town, we'd spend some time strolling through the market, usually in search of street tacos and a cold cerveza. I loved photographing the colorful bowls, plates, blankets and miscellaneous trinkets. It was fun to play with the settings on my camera and try to capture the bold colors and feel of the market.

My favorite pieces were the bowls, but I fell in love with a few spoon rests and wall geckos too. There were so many beautiful colors and patterns, it was hard to decide which one I wanted to bring home with me. We ended up purchasing a couple brightly colored bowls, which you'll probably see in future blogs posts. As well as a little skull we thought would be a fun addition to our fall/Halloween decor. It's also my tradition to buy a Christmas ornament on each of my vacations, and I found the perfect little globe that will be a great reminder of our first vacation together.

Our Cabo San Lucas Vacation

Hello friends! I've missed you! 

We had a great time in Cabo! I can't believe we're already home and back to work. It was so nice to relax and unplug for a while. Just what we both needed.

waiting to board our catamaran for a snorkeling adventure! 

This cute little guy would ride into the marina on the back of fishing boats hoping for treats!

We stayed at Riu Santa Fe, it is an all inclusive resort. They have two great pools and it's right on the beach!

watching Andrew surf at Cerritos Beach

my new favorite picture of Andrew

Taking a water taxi out to Lovers Beach and looking at the famous Arch

impressive waves on Divorce Beach

enjoying the sunset on our last night

It's amazing how quickly a week will pass when you're on a tropical vacation! There are many highlights from our trip, it's hard to pick my favorite. On our first full day, we ventured into town to check out the marina and walk around. It was HOT so we ended up walking to the beach and swimming for a while. Our second day, we spent at our resort enjoying the pool and free drinks. But we soon realized, one day of sitting around is about all that we can handle! We both love being active, so we planned some fun activities to keep us busy the rest of the week.

One of my favorite days was our snorkeling cruise. We sailed on a catamaran to a cove to go snorkeling, and the trip included drinks and lunch. I loved being able to sail for a few hours, it reminded me of my trip sailing through the Caribbean a few years ago. The snorkeling was actually really good too, my favorite were the polka dot fish! Despite reapplying sunscreen multiple times, we both ended up a little sunburned that day. 

Another highlight was the day we rented a car and drove up the coast to a well known surfing beach, Cerritos. Andrew rented a surfboard and I played with my zoom lens and took pictures of him. When Andrew was done, we headed for Todos Santos to see THE Hotel California. We're big Eagles fans in our family, so it was really fun to see that. We had lunch and margaritas in the restaurant there, before walking around town a little bit. 

We went into town almost everyday. Just to walk around, enjoy some street tacos, and sip margaritas. It was nice to get away from the resort for a bit each day. We were really surprised at how dead Cabo seemed to be. It was like a ghost town. We asked around and found out that many locals travel during this time of year since it is so hot there. (Probably why we got such a great deal for our trip). Even our resort felt empty, which was surprising. Towards the end of our week there, it seemed like a lot more guests were arriving, so I think we picked the slowest week of the year to visit. It was actually kind of nice though, we could always find a lounge chair at the pool or seat at the bar. I'm sure sometimes the pool area can feel like a Vegas pool party, so I was happy it wasn't like that during our visit. 

Overall, it was a great trip, but I'm glad to be home. We missed Louis SO much! I was so excited to see him when we got back. It was nice getting home Saturday, so we had a full day to do laundry, grocery shop, watch football and get ready to face the real world again. 

I hope you all had a great week and enjoyed the guest posts while I was away! I'm so lucky to have such great blog friends to cover for me :) 

An Old Soul

I've always felt like I could have lived in another time. I have an old soul, and appreciate things with a history. I love finding little treasures that tell a story, or learning about my family history. I was inspired to write this post the other day when I heard a Louis Armstrong song. Sometimes I think it would be so fun to live in another time, see how different things were back then. I thought it would be fun to list some of the reasons I consider myself to be an old soul. 

// I love old music like Frank Sinatra and Etta James //

// I love the movie Midnight In Paris. I can relate to the idea of wishing you were from another time, and wanting to get a glimpse into the way people lived back then. //

// Sometimes when Andrew isn't home, I put on my Bing Crosby or Frank Sinatra Pandora station and cook dinner with a glass of wine. //

// I recently discovered my love of jazz //

// I hold on to everything I can from my family. My favorite pieces of furniture were my Grams, I have an old CD compilation that was my Granpa's, and vintage broaches I remember playing with as a girl from my Grandma Norene. //

// I was an Art History minor in college. I love learning about art, especially the stories being told in the paintings. //

// I am obsessed with Europe because of the history there. The Vatican and beautiful chapels throughout Italy, and the amazing museums in Paris. It's like a glimpse into the past. // 

// I love tradition, especially around the holidays. I look forward to carrying the traditions I've grown up with on to my family someday. //

// I love browsing flea markets and searching for items that have a history. //

// I love museums //

// My favorite movie is White Christmas //

// Nothing beats getting a hand written note in the mail //

// I believe in writing thank you cards //

// I really want to learn how to make the perfect pie crust (Mom, I need a lesson) I think it's an important skill for any lady //

Such a random post for you on this lovely Friday! I hope you enjoyed getting a little glimpse into this old soul :) 

*********

Our Mexican Vacation is coming to an end, we'll be home tomorrow. It's been so nice to relax and spend time with Andrew! But we miss Louis, and are ready to come home. I hope you enjoyed the guest posts this week. Thank you SO much to Erica, Erin, Kasey, and 'The Lane' for taking the time to write such great posts! 

I hope you all have had a wonderful week! I'll see you all Monday with pictures and stories of our vacation!

Guest Post: Lane @ Life of the Lane

Everyone loves that sweet, Southern charm, and my dear friend from Life of the Lane is just that. We recently "met" in blogland, and I'm so lucky to now call her a friend. She was gracious enough to write a guest post for me while I'm away, so I'll let her tell you a little more about herself...

**********

Hi y'all -  I am 'the lane' behind 'life of the lane' and could not be more excited to be guest blogging today for my sweet blogger friend Theresa here today!

I am pretty new to the blogging world, and love love love connecting with new bloggers. While Theresa and I don't live close to each other at all, we have started a sweet (e)mail friendship and I look forward to every email and comment left by this sweet girl!

So when she asked me to guest post while she has her toes in the sand (not jealous at all!!!) of course I said, absolutely!

I thought I would introduce myself to you (her sweet readers) and give you a little (250 word) story of my life today:

I was born in Dallas, Texas, almost a Thanksgiving Baby, but I decided to cook a little longer! When I was almost 7 my mom remarried and we transplanted our family to Germany for the next 13 years of my life. My sister and I grew up going to German schools, but our parents were sure we never forgot our Texas roots or accent! My first two years of college were spent in Barcelona, Spain… it didn’t take me long to realize that was not where I wanted to spend my 20's or finish my education. So as a junior I transferred to Baylor University- where I graduated on time and with a handful of friends I will have for life. Fast-forward a few years: I'm living in Dallas again, surrounded by family and close friends, and I am blessed with my dream job of working for a non-profit from my home office. I am a certified yoga instructor, you can find me on my yoga mat almost every day- I love a good sweaty vinyasa flow. And last but not least there is a handsome cowboy that I like to call my boyfriend who works and lives on a working cattle ranch in Oklahoma. 

And because words only say so much... 

Here are a few pictures to go along with the story told above:

My immediate family- sister, mamma, and me - love 'em to pieces!

These are my bestest of friends the night before the lucky lady in the middle tied the knot!

This picture was taken the day I finished my yoga teacher training..I love it simply because it will forever be a favorite memory and plus this pose is called 'wild thing'! 

Me and my handsome cowboy- enjoying a few cold ones after a home game win last year!

Now you know a little bit more about me... I would so love for you to stop by my blog and introduce yourself:)

Or  you can just follow along here, here and here for more adventures in my little life!! 

Big (really big) thank you again to Theresa for asking me to guest blog- I am totally honored! 

Hope the beach is treating you well- please have a Margarita... (or 5!!) for me- Cheers!

**********

Isn't she the cutest? I hope her love for yoga rubs off on me! I've been wanting to incorporate yoga into my fitness routine. Maybe someday she'll come visit and teach me a few things ;-) 

I hope you'll head over to her blog and say hello. She often posts of her time spent at her cowboy's ranch, I always love reading those because they remind me of home. 

I hope ya'll are having a great week!