Storage

is important.  Especially, when you live in a one bedroom apartment.  Living here does keep me in check with the amount of stuff we keep.  I clean out often, and ultimately try to maintain what we really need.  Also, I am always moving things around and try to get the most use out of the space we are working with. 
For example, my scarves have lived in a little brown ottoman since college.  It is impossible to see all of them because they are on top of each other, and they don't get the opportunity to "air out."  I was thinking of ways to fix this, and I remembered having what is known as an accordion hat rack and or mug rack hanging in my room when I was little.  It held all of my dress-up purses.  I called my mom and asked her if she remembered what I was talking about, and if they still had one.  She in turn consulted with my dad, and the answer turned out to be no.  So, my next option was to hit the antique stores/flea markets.  I went one day after work to one of our local shops.  I kept my eyes on all of the walls, because I figured if they had them, they would be hanging up.  Sure enough, I spotted one, way up high out of reach.  I asked the man behind the counter to help me, and we he pulled it down I noted that the price was $2.  Score!  (The others I had seen on e-bay were anywhere from $4-7.)  I paid for it, and came straight home to hang it up.

Not only is my brown ottoman available for storage again, but the scarves add color along with texture to our bedroom.  Which is very desirable according to my interior design friend.

I call that easy wall art.

 

My thoughts on athletic wear

A few weeks back, I hit the ground running.  Literally.  I have finally started running consistently again, and I love it.  I sleep better, have a better appetite, focus more at work, and overall just feel better about my body.  Also, I'm enjoying the fact that I am running for nothing else other than simply running.  In the past, I have either run in conjunction with my swim training (back in the day) or been training for a long distance race.  I don't think I'll be signing up for any races any time soon either.  It is nice to know that if I miss a day due to life's unpredictable occurrences, that I will be okay.  One slight problem did occur when I started back though - shin splints.  Yuck, whenever I get those I know it is time for a new pair of shoes.  I did some research, took Casey's advice among others, and settled on Reebok's latest line of running shoes called ReebokRealflex.  I know, I know, I've never associated Reebok shoes with running...but take my word for it.  These shoes are great!  Shin splints gone, and these shoes move with my feet.  They do not have to be "broken" in one bit. 
Now, I have been a faithful New Balance, Asics, and Addias running shoe junkie over the years, but the Reebok's are my favorite so far...just my opinion.

I also bought pink insoles that offer more support.  Basically, they just extend the life of the shoes and help out with shin splints.  I can really feel the difference.

Casey's had his a few weeks longer than me, and has been very pleased with them.

By the way, how many of you enjoy wearing Nike running shorts?  I wear them often, but recently bought my first pair of Soffe shorts, and I like them equally as much if not more than the Nike.  I feel like I have more room to move in them, and they are way cheaper!

And there you have it, my thoughts on shoes and shorts. 

 What kind of shoes do you exercise in?

A weekend to remember

While growing up, memories can often run together.  Don't get me wrong, I remember many distinct things about my childhood.  However, in this adult stage of life, we have to intentionally set up times to spend with friends and family.  There is nothing wrong with this system; it is just a fact of life, and we have learned how to adjust to it ever since graduating.  This past weekend, we hosted my brothers Stephen (on left) and Aaron (right) for some good food, music, and fellowship.  We had a great time together, and I think I can speak for all of us when I say that it is a weekend we will always store up in our treasured memories.     

We hung out at our apartment complex's pool for a good number of hours on Friday and Saturday.

Aaron minus his head.  FYI, Aaron is affectionatly known in our family as the Beau-kid.  When he was little we starting calling him Air-beau and over time it evolved into Beau-kid.  There you have it, a Leininger family history lesson.

According to Stephen, that one hurt.

Casey joined us when he got home from work Friday evening.

I was kept cool by the splashing.

A running start is necessary.  The lifeguard in me had to be reined in.

They did some resting.

Jumped again.

And repeat.  Aaron moved the fastest by far - each and every time. 

We enjoyed good drinks along with super.  To be clear, Aaron had his first non-alcoholic strawberry daiquiri.

I can't believe I didn't take any pictures on Saturday night.  Casey played at a local restaurant called Caliente, and lots of great people came!  I was so wrapped up in talking with people, I did not snap one single photo.  Oops...

On Sunday morning, I made not so mini-cini's and Beau-kid made his famous frambled eggs.  (He cracks them right into the frying pan, so they start out looking like fried eggs, but then he scrambles them up = frambled. 

Cresent rolls make great cinnimon rolls.

Steve-o caught up on his social networking, and supervised those of us hard at work in the kitchen.  Stephen also read Pioneer Woman's entire cook book.  He is now a fan, for more reasons than just eating her food now.

  Casey slept in, because let's me honest, playing guitar, singing really well for several hours the night before will take it out of ya.

All and all, we had a fabulous weekend, and Casey and I were sad to see the boys go.

But that just means that they will have to come back! 

I have channeled Pioneer Woman for 1 week

Hello faithful readers,

I hope this post finds you staying cool, and relaxing this weekend.  I am way behind on posting recipes, but I promise I have been cooking quite frequently.  Particularly, from Pioneer Woman's cookbook, and by that I mean I have exclusively been cooking from her cookbook this past week.   

Last night we had company for dinner and I made her blackberry (or whatever fruit you want to put in it) cobbler.  It was simple to make, and good, and I used blueberries. 

 Before baking.

After baking.

Ingredients:

1/4 pound (1 stick) butter, melted

1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar

1 cup self-rising flour

1 cup milk

2 cups fresh (or frozen) blackberries, or blueberries, peaches, raspberries, etc.

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 3-quart baking dish with butter.

2.  Place the stick of butter in a microwave-safe dish.  Heat in a microwave for 30-45 seconds, until melted. 

3.  In a medium bowl, whisk 1 cup of the sugar with the flour and milk.

4. Whisk in the melted butter.

5. Rinse the blackberries and pat them dry.

6. Pour the batter into the baking dish.  Sprinkle the blackberries evenly over the top of the batter.

7.  Sprinkle 1/4 cup sugar over the blackberries.

8. Bake for 1 hour, or until golden brown and bubbly.  When 10 minutes of cooking time remain, sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar over the top.  (I skipped this step because I completely forgot about it).

Serve with ice cream or whipped cream or both!  

I also made blueberry muffins with chocolate chips.  Mmm, these will get ya goin' in the morning fa sho! (The only food this week that is not copyrighted by PW).

I made her chicken spaghetti. Delish!

Creamy Rosemary Potatoes. Divine.

And of course, with lots of cooking comes a multitude of dirty dishes.  I couldn't bring myself to take a picture of the dirty dishes though - I was tired of looking at them.

Clean dishes = a moment to savor for ever and ever amen.

(We don't usually wash wooden utensils - we know the rules.  It sounds like I'm blame shifting here, but Casey admits that he forgot about the rules).

This weekend I have resorted to us eating leftovers and cereal.  However, this morning Casey and I went for a run and found ourselves to be very hungary afterwards.  We headed downtown to a local dining attraction for breakfast - Southbound Bagal.  Friends, if you are ever in Hattiesburg, and you love coffee, and you love bagels, you need to eat at Southbound.  For those who are familiar with City Bagel in Starkville (Dad), it is much like that.

Chocolate chip bagel with cream cheese.  It doesn't get much better than that.  I'll run for this any day.

Ok, enough about food.