Summer storms, time with friends, good eats, & awesome music

Okay, first I need to apologize for the photos. 

1. I am by no means a photographer. 

2. These photos are from my cheap cell phone...bare with me, haha!

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1 & 2. Storm that came through last week--these storms during the summer months help me to get through summertime in the Mojave desert. Seriously, if we had more of them, I would enjoy the summer months more. Heck, I may even look forward to them! I'm more of a Fall & Springtime type of person. Supposedly rain is not in this week's forecast but having lived in this area for quite some time now, I've come to the conclusion that weather is slightly unpredictable in these parts. So, there is still hope!

3-6. Mad Hatter tea party for Ms. Kandice Avila's 1st birthday. OMG, what a cute little girl! Made an awesome lemon cheesecake, however I failed to take any pics of it :/

7. Only the best pot roast ever. Usually this is a winter meal but the husband & I had a terrible craving.

8. My first attempt at potato pancakes. They were delicious--greasy but heck-a delicious. I'm surprised at how easy they are to make! 

9. If you are ever in the Morongo Basin & are looking for great food, live music and a little rowdiness, Pappy & Harriet's is the place to be. We LOVE Pappy's--they have the BEST pork chops & steak. They cook them outside over a pit of mesquite. Can't get a better pork chop or steak. Seriously. Also, they have the Shadow Mountain Band (pictured above). They play some awesome bluegrass! 

Have an awesome week!!

Celebrating An Old Friend's 26th Bday

In February I got a chance to reunite with an old friend--we've known each other for 10 years and I never once got to celebrate her birthday with her. I was super excited to be a part of the celebration this year--Happy 26th Randi!

She enjoyed herself and I was stoked to finally be able to celebrate with her. Randi is in the Air Force so she travels A LOT and has never really stayed in one place for very long.

We are hoping that she is finally happy here in the desert and will make this home for good.

Mom's Birthday

I wanted to take my mom out to breakfast to celebrate her birthday and she chose to eat at a local family cafe called "C&S Coffee Shop" We ♥ this place! They are super sweet, the service is awesome and they are rather inexpensive.

Look at this face!

He was sunbathing in the middle of our dirt road. I nearly ran him over on my way home--I'm glad too! I would be devastated if I hurt him.

He's harmless.

I walked right up to him when I was trying to get him off the road and he didn't even move a muscle, lol.

It was a pretty good day ♥

Thanks Mom, for having a birthday!

Coffee & a Birthday

Tomorrow is my mom's birthday...

I'm off work in the morning so here's the plan--

1. Breakfast @ C&S Family Coffee Shop @ 9:90 am to chit chat, and give her a little gift

2. Class at 12 pm

3. Drive down to the lower desert for work at GCDC until 7ish

4. Drive home and go to bed

These photos are not mine--honestly, I don't know where I got them. 

I promise I'm not taking credit for them!

It's going to be a long day but but I'm looking forward to coffee with the fam in the morning!

And hopefully I don't wake up with a dang headache again :(

I promise I'll take my camera and try to take loads of photos--but I can't promise I won't have an accident again and drop it.

I'm just too clumsy to make promises of posting the photos, lol.

What do you do for your mom on her birthday?

Do you have a special tradition?

TGIF & Weekend Blessings

T.G.I.F!

Tomorrow is pay day...YES!

So, after I go to the bank to pay a few bills--as one of our student workers says, "I don't want to be a big kid anymore"--I plan to take my mom and Caity to our favorite used book store in town, "The Cactus Wren."

My mom's b-day is on the 28th this month and I'm hoping to get some ideas on what to give her. I'm clueless--and she won't tell me what she wants. Well, she wants a Leif Garrett movie from the 70's which I plan to purchase via ebay, but that's not much of a gift. Especially for my mom--I want to get her something EPIC (but affordable). After the bookstore we want to check out the new vintage clothing store in town. After that, it's off to the candy shop that I haven't been to yet. Imagine that. Anyway...and then we'll probably check out the farmer's market since neither of us have ventured there either. Geez we're lame sheltered.

I'm also working on a upcycled T-shirt project...and I hope to finish that this weekend. It's going to be a very busy, very productive weekend. BRING. IT. ON.

On another note:

Here's what the husband & I did for dinner last night.

I really need to work on my transitions...

I skip around from topic to topic sometimes. I hope you don't think I'm schizophrenic.

We've recently made a habit of eating dinner in front of the computer so we can watch Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations.

LOVE this show.

This is how I like to eat Teryaki anything...all mixed up in a bowl with extra sauce.

Cory likes to eat his veggies separate from everything else...or like to eat his chicken or meat separate. I'm not sure which it is, but he doesn't mix any of them.

It was delicious.

Hopefully I'll remember to take my camera along on my adventures this weekend with my sis & mom so I can share them with you.

Until then, have a super awesome weekend!