Cornhole Anyone?

Back in June, we were scrambling to figure out what to get my Dad for Father’s Day. My parents were coming in town to visit  that weekend to celebrate.  It wasn’t until the very last minute that we came up with an idea…  What if we made him a Cornhole Board set for the backyard? It’d be perfect.  So, off to Lowe’s we all went (Dad included!) and we loaded up with wood and 2x4’s.  Sweet husband worked his wood-working magic in the garage and low-and-behold, we had ourselves two Cornhole boards just a few hours later!

That sparked the beginning of the fun… 

Next, we ended up making ourselves a set.

Then, my husband took them to an outdoor work event, and a few of his co-workers loved them! They placed orders for their own sets.

After that, we thought… well we should probably provide bean bags to go with these boards. So, I got an early Christmas present: A sewing machine!

Finally, I made my sweet 2 year old cousin a “mini-board” set for his birthday.  He mostly loved throwing the bean bags, but the boards were so tiny that people loved them, too. Of course, I think it helped that they were green & gold! Sic ‘em.  

Oh, and he is REALLY into cars and trucks, so he loved driving them up and down the white stripe on the board. Not only is it a cornhole board, but a road too! It’s multi-functional, who knew!? (P.S. How adorable is E all dressed up in his Baylor gear?!)

Okay, let’s take a break from the boards and see pictures from Ethan’s tailgate birthday party that was SO.MUCH.FUN. Shall we?

So fun…. I wish my birthday was in the Fall so I could have a tailgate birthday party, too! Happy 2nd Birthday E!

 

Alrighty, back to the Cornhole boards….

New to the game? Click here to learn all about the game & the rules.

We’re currently taking orders if anyone is interested in a Cornhole Board set with bean bags included.  We can custom paint or stain your boards.  And, your bean bag color options are endless!

Please leave a message if you’re interested! Be sure to leave your email address, so I can contact you with more information. 

Thanksgiving!

When we flew out to Chicago on the morning of Thanksgiving Day, I was so excited about sitting in the airport to wait for our flight while watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.... except for once we arrived, I quickly realized that NONE of the tv's in the airport were showing the parade that morning.

Big time bummer. I guess I did have unrealistic expectations.  I still love reminiscing on Thanksgiving mornings growing up as a little girl.  I would always sleep in the living room at my Grandmommy's house with my cousins, then wake up and sit at the table in her kitchen watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade while eating delicious Pillsbury Orange Rolls. YUM!

So, since I didn't get to watch the parade at the airport, Kyle and I sat in the airport and talked about Thanksgiving Day traditions and the fun that it always was growing up as a kid. Anyone else have traditions on Thanksgiving Day?

Once we arrived in Chicago, we enjoyed lots of fun, food & family time.  It was such a great trip and was so refreshing!

Too bad I left our real camera at home. Here are a few phone pics for a glimpse into our weekend!

Our amazing Thanksgiving tablescape designed by my very talented Mother-in-law!

 Complete with the traditional chocolate turkeys! Find them below?

We watched lots of football, ate yummy food, stayed warm by the fire & enjoyed each other!

After Thanksgiving dinner, we made homemade Turkey Pot Pies with all the leftovers. The recipe my Mother-in-law made was originally from The Pioneer Woman.  (See below!)

So, go get all those leftovers out of the fridge and make yourself one for dinner.
You won't regret it.  It's delicious!

Leftover Turkey Pot Pie
1 pie crust (1/2 of Perfect Pie Crust recipe)
1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup finely diced onion
1/2 cup finely diced carrot
1/2 cup finely diced celery
2 cups leftover turkey, light and dark, diced or shredded (or both!)
1/4 cup flour
2 to 3 cups low-sodium chicken or turkey broth (more if needed!)
splash of white wine (optional)
3/4 cup heavy cream
Frozen peas (optional)
Fresh thyme, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Melt butter in a skillet or dutch oven. Add onion, carrots, and celery, and cook until translucent (a couple of minutes.)
3. Add turkey and stir. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir. Cook over medium heat for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly.
4. Pour in chicken or turkey broth, stirring constantly. Splash in wine (you can leave this out if you’d like.) Pour in cream. (May add frozen peas at this point if you’d like.)
5. Bring to a slow boil and allow mixture to cook and thicken for a few minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste (do not underseason), and fresh or dried thyme to taste. Do one final taste at the end and add what it needs.
6. Pour mixture into a casserole dish or deep pie pan.
7. Roll out crust so that it’s about 1 inch larger than the pan you’re using. Place the crust on top of the pot pie mixture, and press crust into the sides of the dish. Cut vents in the top of the crust.
8. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until very golden and bubbly and the crust is done. Allow to cool for a little bit before serving. Serve with a large spoon.
Delicious!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

Richmond & D.C. Weekend

At the beginning of October, Kyle was the best man in a wedding in Richmond, Virginia…. so we did what we do best: packed up our carry-on’s. Then, jumped on a plane and headed to the New England area!

We have been overly blessed to take fun trips like this one.  Traveling is one of our favorite things to do together, and we cherish every bit of it!

The wedding was at a plantation outside of Richmond – it was beautiful and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect. Below is the ONLY picture I have from the wedding. Thanks Blake for posing with us!
I’m kicking myself for not bringing the camera.


The next day, we drove to D.C. to watch the 2011 Heisman trophy winner, Robert Griffin III play for the Washington Redskins. And, of COURSE we proudly wore out Baylor gear!




The next few days we explored Washington D.C. which was so fun. We saw most of the tourist attractions (historical monuments & museums) and we enjoyed eating at some really fun recommended restaurants around D.C., Georgetown & Old Town Alexandria. 





While we were at the Lincoln Memorial, we acted like we were 7 year olds. No joke. Ha… and so did all the 8th graders who followed suit after we left.


(Sorry Abe for setting this trend! Although, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit at the Lincoln Memorial.)

After a little fun, we decided we needed to be serious for a bit, so we visited the Arlington National Cemetery where we watched the changing of the Guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  These guards are incredible. They stand guarding the tomb during the worst weather and continue to represent our country with dignity & honor. 


Thanks to EVERYONE who recommended a restaurant in the area. We LOVED trying them out!
In D.C.- Founding Farmers, Ben’s Chili Bowl
In Georgetown- Filomena, Pizzaria Paradizo, Baked & Wired, Tryst
In Alexandria- Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub, Starbucks

(At Filomena.  An authentic Italian restaurant in Georgetown.  This little lady makes homemade cheese ravioli-which we tried & was out.of.this.world yummy!)

Ben’s Chili Bowl.  An interesting experience. Glad we can say we’ve been there!


At Tryst: a great coffee shop that had live music and a great atmosphere.



The last night, Kyle wanted to try out the Fresh Fish Market.  It was really cool… just a little fishy!



I wish we had pictures from the other places we ate at. Some of the best coffee, chaider and pumpkin spiced cupcake came from Baked & Wired in Georgetown.. that place was SO.GOOD.  And, Founding Farmers was a delicious lunch- we just had to wait awhile for a table to open up!
We’d definitely recommend any of these places if you’re traveling to the DC area.  Definitely visit the historical parts of DC, but save enough time to see the surrounding areas. I just loved walking around Georgetown & Old Town Alexandria.


Towards the end of our trip, we traveled back to the airport to fly out of Richmond. We stopped at Mount Vernon to see George Washington’s House!




What a fun adventure!