Bites of My Life

Read, eat, workout, work, more work, staycation post-vacation, and the first of the Halloween celebrations. Keep reading if you want the details of my lazy recap sentence.

-My current lineup. Boom Town, Hey Ladies, and Bread & Wine (for the second time). I’m struggling to get through Boom Town and Hey Ladies so I added in one of my faves to help re-inspire my reading.
-This healthy little tostada stack was actually the victim of a clean out the fridge meal. Crisp 2 Siete tortillas in a little coconut oil. Top each with smashed black beans and some almond milk cheese. Stack the two tortillas and heat in the oven to melt the cheese. Top with tomato, chopped bell pepper, some lettuce, more cheese and salsa.
-After work walk with my best girl!
-One of my favorite events of the year is the chili cook-off that happens downtown OKC every year. Haggled The Jones Assembly into participating this year. We didn’t take a win, but getting to sample multiple chilis for lunch was worth it!
-Checked-in to the Avid and immediately checked out the snack selection. Props to Avid for the great snack options and complimentary chocolate bar.
-Fun little staycation Friday night. More on this coming later this week.
-French toast!
-A batch of Pumpkin Bread to kick off the holiday baking season.

Annie

Web bite: Need a last minute Halloween costume idea? Here’s three!

Last Minute Halloween Costumes

Halloween. I love it. I always have. I used to plan my Halloween costumes a year in advanced. I wish I were kidding. Some of my costume claim to fames include when I was a cup of hot chocolate, a present, a flower in a flower pot, candy corn…I clearly have a thing for inanimate objects as costumes. See a few more here.

Inspired by the past few years, I’m giving you three ideas for last minute costumes. Because yes, all three costumes shown below came together in about a day. They are also all food related. No surprise here.

French Toast

How to:
Black and white striped shirt
Red silk neck scarf
Black felt beret
Bread
String

Toast one or a couple pieces of toast. Let sit out for a few hours to get stale. Using a hot glue gun, glue the toast to a long piece of string. Let dry then tie behind your neck to act as a necklace.

Pig in a Blanket

How to:
Pink dress
Pig ears, nose and tail (buy this one today to have it in time for halloween!)
Blanket

Put on your dress, ears, tail and nose, wrap your self up in a blanket and enjoy the most comfortable costume ever. Optional, but suggested, make actual pigs in a blanket and bring to whatever halloween party you are headed to!

Cookie Monster

How to:
Blue dress
Blue skinny feather boa
Light brown and dark brown felt
safety pins
Headband
1, medium size foam ball
Hot glue
Black paint

Cut big circles from the light brown felt to act as the cookies. Cut small odd shaped circles from the dark brown to act as the chocolate chips. Hot glue the “chocolate chips” to the “cookies.” Safety pin the cookies to your blue dress. Using a serrated knife, cut your foam ball in half. Paint cookie monster shaped eyes onto the foam ball halves. Hot glue blue boa to your headband. Once the eyes have dried. hot glue them to your boa headband. Use the remaining boa to tie around your wrists. Put it all together and you have yourself a cookie monster! Optional, carry around a jar of Perfect CCCs!

If you take a bite of any of these costumes, tag me on social media so I can see!

Annie

Bites of My Life

Back from a perfect girls trip to California and I’m already counting down until I go back. 5 months to be exact, in case you were wondering. No birthday or bachelorette to celebrate just a good ole girls trip.

“I should move here.” Something I say after just about every trip I go on, my dad says it too me to. I did it once, hi DC! I had only been to southern California one other time, both times now to Newport Beach. Looks like NP is trying to show off for me…

-Cold temps are here in OKC! My last week of the “fall reset” I was participating in called for pumpkin overnight oats, but I had to opt for warm pumpkin oats over cold with the cooler temperatures. I did low sugar maple instant oatmeal with a spoonful of pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice and chia seeds mixed in.
-INSANE matcha from the new Woodshed Tea that just opened in the city. Order it with oat milk and ask for a sample of their oat milk matcha cold brew. Equally insane.
-Headed to sunny southern California for a long weekend girls trip. Highlight of the trip was seeing my long lost bestie gal that left me for LA in June.
-First morning in Newport had to be fueled properly. The Bueno Bowl from Alta Coffee was muy delicioso!
-Boat, drink, eat repeat. The outline for our southern California girls trip!
-Cheese from a tub still deserves to be styled.
-Scout spotted in Newport! My favorite brand making an appearance on our trip to keep our boat ride drinks cold and cool in style. I quickly jumped on this photo opp!
-Sunset rooftop drinks at Lido House with a RHOC celeb sighting. Trip accomplished.
-Sweet finish to a super sweet trip!

Annie

I’m working on some travel posts recapping my recent trips. Until then, let’s time travel to my visit to Newport Beach two years ago.

Bites of My Life

Last week I played babysitter, fashion blogger, travel blogger, food blogger, dog watcher, house-sitter, on top of my everyday marketer, foodie and friend. I’m not tooting my own horn, just acknowledging the many hats I’ve been wearing lately. And let me be honest, I’m really trying to hone in on how I can take off a few hats.

My motto for the last 3 months of the year is no. YUP. I’m saying no, no, no to anything extra I don’t need to add to my plate. More on all of this at another time, but even though I thought I loved being busy and multi-tasking. I don’t. What do you say more often? Yes or no?

-Halloween vibes for breakfast. Last year, I wasn’t so keen on the pumpkin RXbars. This year they seem more pumpkin-y and more delicious. Anyone else?
-Little reading date with my girl! We sat like this and read about 15 books for an hour. She must of heard about my reading goal for 2018;)
-Got to play fashion blogger for the night at a Lululemon event promoting their extensive outerwear this season. We got personal shopping attention and got to go home with our favorite piece we tried on. This bomber is now my second skin.
-The first Avid Hotel in the entire world - in OKC! Fun morning last week at the grand opening for this new business concept hotel. More to come with Avid in a couple weeks.
-There has been quite a bit of love around my Perfect CCC’s recently. I’m so glad people beside myself are enjoying making them, but you really don’t know how cool it is to see other’s making a recipe you came up with and loving them as much as you. If you happen to make a batch of Perfect CCC’s, post them on instagram and tag me in it to see!
-Eggs and greens in bed for a restful start to Saturday. Photo bomb by my roommate for the week.
-Prettiest wedding for The Lemon’s inside the most epic wedding tent.
-I think we danced for 4 hours straight at #WhenLifeGivesYouLemons.
-Stuffed sweet potatoes on deck for the last week of the Fall Reset. My week is short and busy so for dinners I’m trying to clean out the fridge, but focusing on good and prepared lunches!

Annie

Extra bite: I’ve been listening to the Girls Night podcast by Stephanie May Wilson this past week. Stephanie and a girlfriend cover topics like dating, friendships, well-being and Jesus. I find myself saying YES! and PREACH IT GIRL, so many times while listening. SMayWilson is bringing the truth and I want you to hear it!

Bites of My Life

I mentioned last week that October is going to be a busy but fun month. Kicked off the fall festivities over the weekend with the big annual OU/Texas game. Everyone clears out of Oklahoma to head southbound to battle the Longhorns at the Cotton Bowl which takes place each year during the Texas State Fair. I’ve been going for years, but my friends and I couldn’t help but dwell that the weekend gets better with age. Home from the weekend and ready to tackle another jam packed week and weekend. Less than 3 months left of 2018, here’s to savoring the moments before the year is gone!

-Wine in our grocery baskets: a new site for all Oklahomans. Last Monday marked the change of our alcohol laws in OK. We welcomed wine in grocery stores and cold beer in liquor stores with wide open arms. A stock up of two buck chuck was necessary to celebrate the change!
-Absolutely loved this meal from the Fall Reset I’m doing —> Cider Chicken: Chicken thighs, brussels sprouts and apples with a grainy mustard and apple cider sauce.
-Best day of the month is when my Bon Appetit magazine shows up in my mailbox!
-Homemade Chicken Vermicelli cooked up by my roomie’s boyfriend! We have started a routine of 1 out of the 3 of us cooking dinner once a week and rotating.
-Hey Ladies! I’m still reading over here and I’m really excited about this one I picked up last week!
-Rolled into Dallas for OU/Texas weekend around lunchtime on Friday. Steered my girlfriends to True Food Kitchen for lunch. I love it, they loved it. Antioxidant tea and the Seasonal Ingredient Salad for me!
-Fletcher’s Corny Dog for breakfast is an OU/Texas tradition!
-Corny dogs and fair beers had us tickled apparently.
-Nitrogen Ice Cream? Who’s had it? Cold and sweet finish to a hot (literally) and sour (game loss) day!

Annie

Web bite for the week: read this if you too pretend you are living inside a romantic comedy.