Ricky and I's Engagement

Finally, the blog post you have ALL been waiting for!  It's been a whirlwind of a week so I'm just now getting a chance to sit down and put into my own words just how amazing it has been.  I should have wrote this while he was here because I'm already crying just thinking about it and him and how much I miss him.  But here goes.

Ricky got on a bus Thursday morning at 6 AM at Camp Shelby in Mississippi and drove all day to get to Claremore.  He finally got there about 7:30 that evening and I drove up there to pick him up.  That evening we just went home and relaxed.  We knew we had a busy four days ahead of us (I just didn't know quite how busy yet).

Friday morning I headed off to work while Ricky left to run a bunch of errands.  He just wouldn't tell me what all the errands were.  See I already knew he had some surprises for me that evening, I just wasn't expecting all that he had in store.  All Ricky told me was to be ready by 6:30 and that was when the limo was coming.  So we got ready and the limo arrived and let me tell you I have never ridden in something so fancy! (That just sounded totally small town hick haha) We climbed into the limo and inside was a bouquet of orange lilies and roses and also a long box (These were for our anniversary).  As the driver headed to the Melting Pot for dinner I opened the box and inside was a beautiful bracelet.  We also enjoyed some champagne that he had put in there.  Once we got into the restaurant and were seated, there was another bouquet of spring mix flowers at the table (These were for my birthday) We enjoyed our wonderful dinner and after the last course the waitress brought out another plate with strawberries shaped as a heart and in the middle it said "I Love you" and had a small box next to it.  At this point my heart was pounding because I thought it was the ring and I had told Ricky that I didn't want a cheesy engagement haha.  So he opens the box and says, "Are you ready?!" I nervously replied , "umm, yes'".  So he opening it and inside was a pair of diamond earrings.  He said my face was priceless, it went from total excitement to a little mad. hahaha If you don't know Ricky very well you don't know how he loves surprises and if he thinks you are on to something he will do things to totally throw you off.  He was doing a very good job at this point.  See I didn't know a proposal was coming, I was really hoping he would but I had no concrete hints to tell me it was really happening.

The re-enactment

So after dinner we walk out of the restaurant (it was freezing by the way) and he was just like, "Let's go walk around".  I was like ok and he seemed to be on a mission haha.  So we walked a little ways down the walk there at the Riverwalk and then he stopped and told me to put the flowers down (the ones from the restaurant).  So I sat them down and he gets on one knee and says, "Jessica, I have wanted to ask you this for quite some time.  Will you marry me?"  Or it went something like that, I was freaking out a little (in a good way of course).  I think I said yes before he could even get all of the words out.  Then I started crying and I could see flash photography going off all around us.  After much hugging and crying (from my part) and kissing, Ricky turned around and goes, "There's Shane.  He's been taking pictures." But Shane didn't get really good pictures in action so we re-enacted it.  Following more pictures we climbed back into the limo and Ricky was talking to the driver.  I knew we were headed somewhere else but didn't know where.  And really I didn't care. I had this gorgeous ring on my finger and the man of my dreams next to me.  So I was furiously texting all these people and well just starring at my ring haha.  We finally pulled up to Dave and Busters and Ricky said "We are waiting on Shane to come in and take more pictures.  So he came in and took some more and then we headed inside.  I didn't know what we were doing there and really I didn't care.  I was on cloud 9.  We head inside and there is a whole room of all the people I love.  It was a surprise engagement party!!!  The most shocking of all was that my parents were there!  I lost it when I saw my mom, I had talked to her about 4 times that day and had NO idea they were on their way to Tulsa to surprise me.  Everyone had known he was going to propose like a month before it even happened.  After mingling with everyone for awhile a bunch of us climbed into the limo and took it for a joyride.

Newly engaged couple!!

My evening was wonderful and I couldn't have imagined a better, more romantic engagement.  The next day we spend the whole time with his and my parents.  My parents were staying the weekend with them.  Ricky and I were already talking wedding stuff.  We had a lot to figure out in the next three days.  So we talked dates and I even called a few venues to see if we could come by Monday to look around.

Monday we took engagement pictures (Ricky and his mom had already set this up) which turned out great!  We also drove around to four different venues and I think we have picked one.  My parents are coming up next weekend so we are going to look at it and hopefully we can book it!!!

My beautiful ring :)

Ricky ended up getting to stay a couple extra days, well in the evenings at least.  So we just spent that time together and I took him back to Claremore Friday morning.  Not knowing when I'll see him again.  But at least I have a wedding to keep me busy :)

This has turned into a REALLY long blog and I could say SOOOO much more.  But I'll stop here for now.  I'll keep you updated with planning and how I'm managing life without Ricky for now.  Thanks all for reading!!!

One more day!

Tomorrow I finally get to see Ricky!!! He will finally be home after nearly a month.  The last couple of weeks have been super hectic.  But this last weekend I went shopping for a dress to wear Friday night.  We are celebrating our anniversary (which was March 2nd) and my birthday (which is April 5th).  So I'm really excited and he says he has all kinds of surprises for me.  Let me tell you what I know as of now....

Ricky gets in tomorrow night around 9 or 10 (they are driving a charter bus all the way from Mississippi and leaving at 6 in the morning).  Then Friday night we are going out to dinner to the Melting Pot (hence the need for a new dress) and I'm not sure what else he has planned.  Saturday we are spending most of the day with his parents and we are taking pictures.  Sunday we are going to church then dinner with the Robertson's (not sure if this is still happening but I assume so).  Then Monday I took off work and if the weather is nice we might go out for a picnic :)  He has to report back to Claremore Tuesday morning.

So I'm super excited for our weekend!  We are trying to cram as many things as possible into those short 4 days.  I didn't have time to try a new recipe this week, but I'll get back on that as soon as life slows down haha.

Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta

Two recipes in one week!  I'm crazy I tell ya!  But to start off with I was STARVING while cooking so for a snack I had some of these Special K Cracker Chips.  They taste a lot like PopChips, but really aren't quite as good.  Popchips just have more of a crunch whereas these are more like a cracker.  Although I will definitely be finishing this box :)  Not tonight of course.

Tonight I made this AMAZING dish that for some reason I feel guilty for eating even though it was fairly decent for you.

What you need:

• 1 tsp. oil
• 1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 clove garlic (I used garlic salt)
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 1/2 tub Philadelphia Original Cooking Creme
• 1 cup pasta (your choice)
• 1 Tbsp. Grated Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

1.  Heat oil in large skillet on medium heat.

2.  Add chicken, garlic, and vegetables; cook and stir 7 to 8 minutes or until chicken is done and vegetables are crisp-tender

3. Add cooking creme; cook 2-3 more min or until heated through, stir frequently

4.  Stir in pasta. Sprinkle with Parmesan.

Like I mentioned before, this dish was excellent!  I used spaghetti noodles simply because I had cooked them the night before and wanted to use them up.  I also put too many noodles in it, but didn't realize this until I had looked back at the recipe.  But oh well.  This tasted like fettuccine alfredo, really it did....I think that's why I feel guilty for eating it because my brain processed alfredo = bad for you!  But this is a lightened version and there are lots of variations you can use.

Variations:

• Add as many different vegetables as you want and as many as you want
• Use whole wheat pasta (much healthier for you than regular pasta)
• Use shrimp instead of chicken

So I hope you all try this, it really is phenomenal!  I would love to hear your variations or what you thought in general.  

Cilantro Lime Shrimp

I know you have all been waiting in anticipation for my first recipe!  And here it is!!  Tonight I tried Cilantro Lime Shrimp that I found online.

I cut the original recipe in half and it still made a ton of food!  Ok, so bear with  me.  I am definitely not a professional cook and really don't even know some of the basics to cooking.  So I am hoping to learn as I go, and any advice would be awesome!

What you will need:

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 lb. shrimp, shelled and deveined (I used pre cooked frozed)
• 3 cloves crushed garlic
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
• 1/2 lime
• salt and pepper to taste

I chose to serve this over brown rice with a side of steamed broccoli

1.  Heat a large frying pan on medium-high heat

2.  Add oil to the pan and when it's hot add the shrimp ( I didn't thaw my shrimp very well so I had to drain the excess water out first)

3.  When the shrimp is cooked on one side, turn over and add garlic (again I messed this up and should have chopped up the garlic, instead I just let the flavor soak into the shrimp and took it out)

4.  Saute another minute or two until the shrimp is cooked, be careful not to overcook..  

5.  Remove from heat and squeez lime all over shrimp and toss with cilantro.

I cooked the brown rice and broccoli separate and then put them all on a plate together.  

Overall, I thought it was pretty good.  The shrimp had good flavor with the lime and garlic and paired with the brown rice was super filling.  Over all this meal was 8 points plus (only half of the shrimp recipe) if you follow the Weight Watchers system! It only took maybe a total time of 20 minutes for the entire meal.  Plus I have 1/2 of the shrimp to eat for tomorrow!

Another week down

Another week down until Ricky comes back home!!!  I have had a really busy week and am looking forward to Sunday when I can just sit on my couch and do nothing haha.  But before that can happen I am having a fabulous fun weekend with my girls AGAIN!

Before we get to my weekend plans, let me tell you about this amazing surprise I got this week!  Ricky called me about 3:00 Wednesday afternoon and said "I have good news." And I quickly responded, "Your deployment has been cancelled and you get to come home?!" He said, "No, but they are opening up the base and you can come down here tonight if you would like."  Well of course I wasn't going to say no to that.  So the second 5:00 hit the clock on my computer I was out of that office, didn't even go home, stopped to get gas and was on my way to Camp Gruber.  It's not too far down there, a little over an hour.  But with Tulsa 5:00 traffic and stopping in Muskogee to pick us up some dinner from Arby's I didn't get there till about 6:30.  Being on a military was strange, I've never been on one so I was just reflecting to any military type of movie I've seen and it was surreal to see some of this in real life. The hundreds of soldiers, military vehicles, barracks, and guns....lots of guns.  But I got to see where he was staying (only for another day) and witness what Camp Gruber was all about.  I only got to stay a couple of hours but it was just enough to get my fill with him.  They are headed to Mississippi today to do more training but are still scheduled to come back to Oklahoma March 24th....only 12 days left!

Now onto this weekend.  My good friend Betty finally got to move into her house (remember we went to help her paint a couple of months ago).  So we are headed to Guthrie for another girls weekend!  Who knows what kind of shenanigans we will get into :)

It's almost halfway though the month so I thought I would do a check-up on my goals, and honestly most of them aren't going quite as planned.  I was going to try a new recipe Wednesday and post it on here, but well I got to go see Ricky instead and didn't have another evening to try it.  So I'll have to do two recipes next week.  Weight loss is going good though, that's the only plus.  LEED studying hasn't even started yet...just can't get motivated.  And Project 365 is going great!  It's so fun to put a picture a day up.  It's fun to look back on what I have been doing since Ricky left.  I'll give a full update on my goals at the end of the month.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

Love at first sight

Warning....this will be a sappy post.  So if you don't like to read those kinds of things, stop reading now.  :)

Today is Ricky and I's 1 year anniversary.  Exactly one year ago today I met him for the very first time.  For those of you who don't know, we met on an online dating site.  We chatted for awhile on the phone and finally decided to meet up.  So we went on our first date to Melting Pot (pretty fancy huh?!).  I remember the waitress ask us what we were celebrating and we replied with we were just on a date.  And she said "how long have you been dating?" And we were (well I was) embarrassed to say it was our first date.  HA! So it would be fun to go back (I'm trying to get Ricky to take me there again on his 4 day pass) and see if that same waitress is there.  It was instant chemistry and I just couldn't get enough of him :)  Over the last year we have done so many amazing things together.  Just to name a few of the highlights:

1.  Branson
2.  Bedlam football (and even sat by each other at the game)
3.  Hawaii
4.  Thunder game
5.  Dallas trip complete with Cowboys game
6.  OSU Homecoming (ask him, he'll say he enjoyed Walkarounds) haha

When we first started dating we kept talking about all these things we wanted to do together.  So we decided to make a list which is still currently on my phone.  We haven't complete all of the items but we will get to them eventually :)

I could list the many reasons why I love this man, but no one really wants to read those, so I'll spare all the details.  Lets just say it would take me awhile to complete it.  But I will say that I am one lucky woman.  I am so happy that I was able to find a genuine gentleman that still opens the door for me and always tells me how much he loves me.  So Happy Anniversary Ricky!  Sadly we won't be together for the actual day since he is at training nor will be probably be next year either since he will still be deployed haha.  Maybe someday we will get to celebrate on the actual day :)  But no worries, he has promised to go above and beyond on his pass in a couple weeks :)

March Goals

I seriously can't believe March is already here.  It seems like it was just Christmas!  But in the light of new beginnings and the start of new things, I decided to make some goals for myself for the month of March.

1.  Menu planning - this will go hand in hand with #2, but I want to do a blog at least once a week giving step by step instructions on a new recipe that I try.  It will also help me manage my food better

2.  Get down to 180 - here we go again with me putting my weight issues for the whole world to see.  I still have mixed feelings about it, but it helps me to be more accountable.  I started back at the gym yesterday and am looking forward to getting this weight off.

3.  Start studying for my LEED exam - I have until April 30th to take the exam, and well I haven't even started studying for this.  I told myself once Ricky left I would start, well now he's gone so I need to keep my word.

4.  Continue Project 365 - I have already started and am already on day 3! woo-hoo!  You can check out those pics ON FACEBOOK HERE.

That's all I can think of right now.  Weight loss is my main concern at the present time.  Getting into a good routine without Ricky here.  Although it will be disturbed for a few days when he comes home March 24th :)  Can't wait to see that man :) I miss him already!

In a new update!  I purchased my very first bedroom suite Saturday and am in the process of getting it all put together.  I'll update pics soon.