Recommended with Greek Baked Chicken

I love a well cooked chicken.  Flavorful, tender, and juicy or crispy, crunchy, and hot.  Caleb cooked me my first seared chicken, and it's a unanimous favorite.  Thighs seared in butter with garlic clothes and dusted with salt and pepper.  It's such a simple recipe, but when I first had it, I was so impressed!  What is this wonder you've prepared?!

I typically don't bake.  I have a bad habit of accidentally burning myself, and putting any limbs into an oven makes me turn the other way, but emboldened by the Herb + Citrus Chicken masterpiece I made this winter, I decided it might be worth it to try a few things from this NY Times piece.

DIY to Try?

I found this Tea Garden in a Box idea on Martha Stewart's website.  I like it so much!  Herbs to supplement your tea or to create your own blends, how cool is this?  I've wished of having my own herb garden someday, but I hadn't even considered using the herbs for tea.  Have you ever made your own?

Personality Test, Part III: What I've Gotten From My Parents

My parents were a Yankee air traffic controller who rarely lost his cool and an artist at heart/counselor/3rd grade teacher who loves sci-fi and fantasy.   I think it's super cool how I can see a blend of my parents' personalities in who I am along with a heavy dose of originality...
 

This is one of our favorite family pictures with one of the awesome professors at my college graduation.

My Birthday in Atlanta!

My first birthday in Atlanta, my first birthday as a wife, and my first time being 26!

My birthday was this past Sunday, on the 17th, and I planned out everything to ensure I/we got the most out of the day.  Caleb and I kicked it off with breakfast in bed with the most recent episode of Legend of Korra.  When we finished breakfast, we walked down to the Georgia Aquarium and spent about 2 and a half hours enjoying everything there.  (They let you in for free on your birthday!)  I love aquariums, and Caleb does, too.  It's so great to find something we both like so much!

My favorite part was spending 20 minutes in front of the whale shark/manta ray tank.  The aquarium had the doors to their ballroom open, which was a rare treat.  There weren't many people in there, so there were times when we had the exhibit to ourselves.  Manta rays are my favorite animal, and it was amazing to see them in person!  I had no idea they could get so big!  Some were doing back flips in the water like they were dancing.  It was just a completely magical experience.

This is a little video of our trip.

Personality Test, Part II: Myers-Briggs

I wrote a short while ago about learning what an ambivert is.  That got me thinking more about personality tests, so I took some more!

When I took the Myers-Briggs test in 2007, I was an INFJ.  I've learned that it's one of the rarer combos, and knowing that made me feel pretty dang special, but I know that I've gone through a lot of changes since freshman year of college, so I had to know for certain: am I still a special INFJ?  Or am I Something Different!  (Dun dun dun!)

To get the most accurate assessment which would still be free, I completed 4 online tests.  One, two, three, and four.  However, as the lengthy intro on website number four states, none of these are the real test (the not free one), and the most accurate assessment comes only from that test.

 

Recommended for Celebrating

How do you like to celebrate your birthday?

Now that I have a husband, I've found that I want extra focus on me for my birthday (2 days!).  I swear this is a new development.  Put into action, I've decided that I'll be choosing the dinner menus for the week before my birthday.  I want to be sure that we have macaroni and cheese and that I make myself an artichoke (a very special treat).

For the actual day, I already have plans for us to go to the aquarium.  In the evening, either Caleb and I will have dinner at Sufi's or, if my girlfriends are able to meet up, we're going to hang out somewhere and I'll bake and bring some lemon cake cookies!

These lemon cake cookies.  Oh my gosh.

My mom made them for one of her Bible study groups last year, and I could not stop eating them.  They are so soft and that perfect bright blend of sweet lemon.  I'm not sure where my mom got the recipe from; it's all over the internet, and for good reason.  It's also very, very easy.  Definitely a keeper.

Recommended for celebrating...

Umbrella shopping

Tell me about your umbrella.

I know that one's umbrella isn't the best window into their soul, but they can say a lot about a person.  When I had a psychedelic, huge, striped umbrella, well I don't know what people thought about me.    It sure kept my dry in the rain, but it was cumbersome and not my style.

A few years later, my mom gave me one of those clear bubble umbrellas trimmed in lime green, and I loved it.  It was so fun, it let me see where I was going, and it kept my upper half dry even when the wind whipped the rain around.

Both umbrellas have since bit the dust, so I had to get myself a new one.  I wanted to find one that fit my style, not just any regular Wal-mart umbrella.  I hit the internet and I found a few good ones!  some are strange or interesting, but some are really cute.

Personality Test, Part I: Extrovert or Introvert?

Do you like taking personality tests?  I always have.  To be frank, I link learning more about myself, and I think I'm kind of cool.  I also felt super special to have earned the rare title of INFJ when I took the Myers-Briggs test in Psych 101.

To get straight to the point, do you know what an ambivert is?  I didn't until this year, and when I learned the definition, my personality made much more sense.  I have moments when I love people and when I come alive in large parties.  There are also times when I get life from solitude.  Until this year, I thought I was equal part extrovert and introvert, but it turns out, I'm category #3!

Check out this test to see where you stand.  My main score was ambivert (3.45), and I scored a 3.0 in engagement and a 3.9 in assertiveness.

Reccommended with My New Favorite Sandwich

The BLTCE.

Bacon, lettuce, tomato, cheese, and egg grilled sandwich.

I saw the idea while browsing through Pinterest, and knew it would be a winner.  Millie's tried it, too, and we're all big fans.  I realized yesterday that I've had some left over tomato and lettuce in the fridge for a while, and I sure don't want those to spoil, so Caleb and I are having BLTCEs tonight, too!  They are so savory and hot and crispy and exciting.

If you want the recipe, here it is, but we just wing it when we make these, and we use sharp cheddar.

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Recommended while you lick your fingers after eating your sandwich...

Happy August, My Birthday Month!

Happy August everyone!

We're getting closer to Christmas, and we're very close to my birthday (August 17th)!

I hope you are all having great summers.  This is the busiest one I've ever had!  I never realized that warm weekends fill up so quickly until I had my weekdays filled by a full-time job.

Looking ahead at August, I have the Georgia Aquarium coming to me (you get in free on your birthday!), and you are more than welcome to join.  Caleb and I will be visiting Scott's Antique Market this Saturday, new episodes of Doctor Who start on August 23rd, and my Bible study will decide which series to do next.  September and October have their own presents, too, and I'm very excited to tell you about them later.

For the rest of your summer, may I recommend this excellent new-to-me song.  Great for road trips and for listening to at work.

"The Breach" by Dustin Tebbutt