Hey y’all & happy Wednesday! I’m very excited to share another one of my weekly recaps with you & hope you are all doing well. Things seem to be looking up as the country is looking at and taking action to slowly start opening up restaurants, shops, and more. I personally feel as if it is a little too soon, but we shall see what happens and have faith that it is in God’s hands. My thoughts & prayers are with you all and I hope that we can continue to regain our strength together through these hard times.

Alrighty now grab your coffee, tea, or wine (😉) and get to reading!

When I wrapped up last week’s recap, I told y’all I would be spending the rest of my day relaxing & conquering some chores around the apartment and I did just that. After some cleaning, I enjoyed a very relaxing bath filled with Bath & Body Works Rose Bath Milk (which makes your skin silky smooth) & enjoyed a very sweet smelling, Hazelnut candle.

For dinner, I whipped together my Easy Pasta Salad recipe. This time I used Barilla rotini noodles since the grocery stores have been so scarce in noodles lately and they tasted just as good. I will most likely start making this a permanent change as the Barilla noodles are a more nutrient dense option. For those of you thinking this looks scrumptious, don’t forget to click on the link I’ve provided to check out the recipe so you can give it a try as well. 😋

I got into bed early Wednesday evening with a decaf coffee & a great book. I’m about half way through “Own Your Everyday” by Jordan Lee Dooley and continue to love it even more each time I read it. If you struggle with finding your purpose, perfectionism, or the pressure to prove yourself, this book would be great for you. If you give it a read or have any other books to suggest, please comment below. I’d love to hear your thoughts & suggestions. ❤️

I woke up bright & early Thursday morning to enjoy a yummy breakfast before my walk. I had a slice of whole wheat toast with peanut butter & Nutella, a side of bananas & strawberries, and a cup of coffee.

I made my way to the trails for another beautiful & sunny 2.54 miles walk at the Kickerillo-Mischer Preserve.

Once I wrapped up my walk, I made my way to my parents house to soak up some more sunshine. I haven’t been able to tan my skin or hop in a pool since our honeymoon in November, so it felt amazing to spend some time outdoors doing something a little different. I can’t wait for our apartment pool to open back up for some fun Summer days!

Jordan and I got to spend a couple of hours with Mila on Thursday evening, which was so nice because we missed her dearly. On our way home after saying our “goodbye for now,” we stopped by Rudy’s BBQ to pick up some dinner. I ordered a sliced turkey sandwich with their “sissy sauce” & Jordan enjoyed their jalapeño sausage with their regular bbq sauce.

I was feeling pretty sleepy on Friday morning, so my sweet husband got up to make me coffee and brought to me in bed. It’s the little things that can bring so much joy to my heart & make me realize even more so how thankful I am for him.

Once I got about half of the coffee into my system, I got my booty out of bed & made us both some yummy breakfast. I of course enjoyed an egg bagel & I made Jordan a scrambled egg sandwich with cheese.

Jordan & I enjoyed a very relaxing day followed by another fun at-home date night. We each had a drink on our outdoor patio while Jordan grilled some delicious smelling burgers.

We got some pre-seasoned burger patties from H-E-B (that Jordan grilled to perfection) & paired them with Hawaiian buns. I also made some homemade sweet potato fries. The fries tasted delicious, but I slightly over-cooked some of them. Still trying to get the hang of air frying lol.

After dinner, we played a couple rounds of Phase 10 & called it a night. We have had such a great time together throughout this quarantine and I am beyond thankful that we have been blessed with good health and the opportunity for this quality time. It’s crazy to sit back and think about how quickly life passes us by and yet we’ve been given this opportunity to spend more one on one time with our spouses & families over the last 6 weeks than we have in years. My heart breaks for the hurt we have all endured, but it is also so thankful for the positives we have been blessed with.

We spent most of Saturday relaxing as well. I made some cheesy scrambled eggs and paired them with some toasted Hawaiian buns for breakfast. They were delicious and kind of tasted like kolaches!

On Saturday evening, we went over to some of our good friend’s house for a dinner & game night. Jordan grilled some H-E-B seasoned Southwest Chipotle chicken & jalapeño poppers while I made some Mac n’ Cheese & corn for the sides. It was so good!! We finished the night playing Phase 10 & Keys to the Castle. It was such a fun & much needed night!

I decided to try something different this past Sunday by taking my version of a Sabbath day. I spent the entire day off of my phone, I rested, I read so much of my book, I didn’t worry about chores or work needing done, and just simply enjoyed my day. In the late afternoon, Jordan and I spent some time outdoors to see our neighbors & enjoy the sunshine. My favorite day of the week is Sunday & taking the day for pure peace & joy made me love it even more.

We had some cooler weather on Monday morning here in Houston, which made my 4 mile walk even more enjoyable. I listened to instrumental music & embraced the beautiful scenery while I got some movement in. I also had the privilege to see this gorgeous hawk up close. It was sitting on a tree branch looking around until it spread its wings to fly across the water. I love all of the beautiful birds & other creatures I see during my walks here at the park.

We enjoyed another evening outside together while grilling dinner. Huk had a great time as well!

Monday evening, we ate some delicious chicken thighs (seasoned with Rufus Teague’s & Worcestershire sauce), grilled okra, Mac n’ Cheese, and Ranch Style Beans. Talk about some comfort food!

I woke up Tuesday morning feeling ultra lazy & tired. I had no desire to go to the park or even cook myself breakfast, so I stopped by Whataburger to grab a bacon, egg, and cheese taquito to enjoy on my outdoor patio. It was a very dreary day with rain coming off & on, so I put Harry Potter on the TV, lit a candle, and worked on getting some chores done around the apartment.

Jordan and I made his amazing Stuffed Bell Pepper recipe & I whipped together some of my favorite rice & bean mix (I’ll share that recipe soon!) for dinner on Tuesday evening. It was so delicious & filling. I could eat those stuffed peppers on repeat. You’ve got to give them a try!

I woke up bright & early this morning to a thunderstorm, which meant I couldn’t go to the trails again today… I decided to get a little more sleep & made myself an egg bagel & coffee to enjoy for lunch while I wrote today’s recap. I have been using Country Crock’s Plant Butter lately you mix things up & it is just as good as the Melt butter I typically use.

Well that’s all folks! Today is my father’s birthday, so I’m about to get myself ready to head to my parents & celebrate the day with them. I hope you all have a great rest of your week. I can’t wait to be back to write again next week!

XOXO, Paige.