Month: July 2015

Recap of 28 While 28

Posted on by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

birthday list, merelynne

Tomorrow is the big day – the big 2-9. I can’t believe I’m turning another year older. Pretty soon I’m going to stop aging all together. …I had a great grandmother do that. She just stopped telling people her age and after a few years no one knew (or was willing to say out loud) her true age. That’s going to me be… I’m going to be 29 forever.  Well not forever… but I’m going to work on staying ageless.

Here’s a recap of my 28 while 28 list, let’s see how I did.

Here’s what I accomplished:

Continue kicking butt to become a CFP
Get better taking and processing photos
Travel to…anywhere and everywhere
Grow merelynne.com by 50% this year
Take exams for work to become licensed
Do a fun Christmas photoshoot with J, me and the pups
Pay down more bills
Worry and Stress less
Have the time of my life
Stay with my healthier lifestyle
Help someone in need
Go to lake as much as possible
Get involved with CrossFit…again
Decorate our new house

What I failed at and need to keep working on:

Redesign merelynne.com
Create a beautiful workspace at home
Finally create our engagement (and now wedding) journal
Somehow manage the crazy pups so I can do a photoshoot of them
Go to 28 concerts/shows/plays/etc.
Launch my new calendar line that I am obsessed with
Start an e-newsletter for my calendar and merelynne.com
Mother/Daughters’ trip
Put a little blue in my hair for a short while
Stop drinking soda
Host a Christmas party
10 DIY projects
Girls’ weekend
Make a t-shirt quilt out of my Sorority shirts

So I succeed on about 50% of my list…. that’s not really a passing score, but I’ll still take it.  I got a few DIY projects done, but not 10.  I wasn’t able to go on a girls’ weekend because I ended up sick and had to skip out.  I didn’t host a Christmas party, but we went to two so I feel like that’s still a success in some way.  I also didn’t fully redesign my blog, but I updated it.  See?  I wasn’t a complete failure – haha!  I was pretty busy this year and I made a lot of memories.  It was a win-win.

Fried Chicken Salad and America

Posted on by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

lake

For the 4th of July J and I got out of the house for a little while.  We drove about 30 minutes out of town to find the best fishing spot.  After we wondered around for a bit we discovered this (new to us) creek.  As you can tell… I caught the only fish of the day, a baby catfish.

4th of july 4th of july fried chicken salad

I prepared a yummy picnic for us.  I made a tasty, like melt in your mouth, fried chicken salad.  It was perfect for a day out by the lake.  It a no fuss, no mess lunch.  Just what we needed!

After we fished, we headed over to my parents where J grilled some pork steaks for everyone.  Then him and my Dad disappeared for almost an hour to find some jaw-dropping fireworks.  They showed back up with J’s truck bed full, I mean overflowing of massive fireworks.

Bud

J and my Dad designed the perfect show that blew the neighbors’ out of the water.  We even let Bud come sit outside with us and he did great.  He wasn’t scared at all!  He just laid next to the truck and kept his eyes on J the whole time.  We laughed, we were in awe, and it was overall a great night.

IMG_4494 Untitled design (1)

Now I want to share with you the recipe for my oh-so-yummy fried chicken salad.  Here’s what you need for a perfect snack by the water:

4 cups of fried chicken, diced*.
3/4 cup of mayo
1/4 cup of mustard
3 green onions, diced
1 teaspoon italian seasoning
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
pinch of salt and pepper

*I found it easier if the chicken is cold when you cut it.  That way the skin stays on the meat.

Mix the mayo, mustard, onions, italian seasoning, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper in a medium-sized bowl.  Add the chicken and toss to coat.  Set it aside for about 25-30 minutes so the flavors can meld together.

fried chicken salad

I made the fried chicken salad and then went ahead slicing the yummy bread I brought just for the sandwiches.  I decided not to pre-make the sandwiches before we left.  My bread was a bit soft and I didn’t want it turn mushy before we could eat it.  So I brought paper plates and tongs with us to build the fried chicken sandwiches.

I have to say that I out did myself this time around.  J loved them!  So much so he ended up having one the next day at 10am!  Perhaps it was because I overslept and didn’t feel like making breakfast, but I’m going to say it’s because they were that good!

fried chicken salad

Recipe adapted from Southern At Heart.

Party Like It’s the 4th

Posted on by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

Well that was an unintentional break from posting.  Sorry about that!  I have some really good posts in the works, but it’s just hard to get it all done.  To be honest, it’s been a very hard week over here.  I took an unexpected week off work (well really only 3 days thanks to already being off yesterday and today because of the holiday) and had to go the doctor a few times.  I finally feeling a little better, but it’s still a struggle most days.

J has been really good to me, too.  Unexpected flowers, date nights and just being there for me.  He really wants to get out of the house tomorrow and it just be the two of us.  So I’m planning on making lunch to go, a little dessert and some yummy snacks for a quick picnic.  We’re thinking of going fishing and just enjoy being together.  We’re probably going to hit up a fireworks stand on our way home to get a few to light.  It’s going to be a nice, relaxing day – just the two of us.

4th of july

I hope your 4th of July is filled with family, fireworks and great food – the 3F’s!