by Mandi | personal, quotes and toasts
Today we wish a Happy Birthday to our sweet Jenn! So much has changed since her last birthday – she is now the proud mama of two beautiful children!
As you all know, Jenn has been out on maternity leave with her new beautiful girl and we want to take today to introduce you to Decker Darling. She is just the sweetest.
The pictures below are from a family shoot Jenn took with the lovely and talented Schultzes – you can see the full blog post here.
We just love this family! Happy, Happy Birthday Jenn!
In honor of the love that a baby brings to a family, we have a few quotes to share with you today.
by Mandi | creative tips, personal
So… the engagement pictures have been taken! I loved taking the pictures and am so unbelievably happy with how they turned out! I will tell you though – there was a lot of prep that went into making sure things went smoothly that day and I wanted to share a few tips that will help you when you are going to take engagement photos!
1. Choose your photographer and book at least 3 months in advance.
Ok – 3 months is a minimum when choosing your photographer. The fabulous lady I decided to go with, Crystal Stokes, is booked out a year from now. A year… that is crazy, so find who you like and get on their schedule. I looked at styles of photography, price points and the personality of the photographer and made a quick decision! I believe that this is one of those “you will just know” situations. I saw one of her photos and booked her – I mean look at that photo! Here is that photo and the rest of the photos from that night can be seen here
2. Hire a make-up artist.
So, I would have not guessed this, but make-up artists book out just as quickly as photographers. I went with Erin Ashley – and guess what, she is booked out a year from now as well. She is amazing at what she does. I could never get my makeup to look that amazing for photographs. Wedding make-up artists work with photographers each week and know how to apply lashes, eyeshadow, blush, bronzer and all the rest to fit your style and how it will look in pictures.
3. Coordinate your outfits.
Choosing outfits is very important for your engagement shots. I suggest having two outfits so every picture doesn’t look the same. We chose a casual outfit with jeans and one that was a little more dressy. I took into consideration the season and what it would look like outside as well as where we would be. Think of fall vs. spring and a field vs. an uptown setting – dress for your location. Finally – make sure your outfits coordinate… choose similar colors and styles for each outfit change. Here are a few images I took and sent to a friend when I was deciding on what to wear… shirts for The Mister, my necklace and which jean jacket to wear!
4. Choose a location.
Choose a place that is of importance to you. I wanted a place that was a little more personal and so we chose to go to my parents lake house. While you can choose two locations, a good photographer will be able to work around one location and give you various backgrounds and settings.
5. Determine the time of day you want.
I love the warmth of sunset. I believe it gives you sun and light that you just can not get any other time of the day, so I decided to choose the end of the day. Another option would be sunrise – the sun is off to your side and not direct above you. No one looks good in direct sunlight – it just isn’t good – don’t do it! 🙂
6. Have and idea of pictures you want.
This will help you and will help the photographer – giving a direction of what you want and where to take the photoshoot. Examples are:
- Individual shots
- photos of your ring
- photos on a road
- up close shots or shots in the distance
More than anything – have fun! This will show in your photos! Enjoy the moment and make amazing memories with your love!
Here are some of my favorites form the day – just some – I loved them all! You can see a full blog post with more images here.
Does anyone else have any photo tips? I have bridals and my wedding to go!
by Mandi | recipes
So, I love trying new recipes and I LOVE bang bang shrimp. I read a few recipes, and decided to take a stab at the recipes myself! This was so easy you guys and most of the ingredients you will already have at home. We added a side of frozen asian vegetables from Trader Joe’s and had a pretty amazing meal!
Ok first up is the bang bang shrimp. I call it this because it is similar to the amazing shrimp at Bonefish Grill… However, I just made a dish based on what I thought would taste amazing… and, it did!
Make At Home Bang Bang Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1 lb peeled and cooked shrimp (I used frozen shrimp from Trader Joes)
- 3/4 cup corn starch
- 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder (I added a little over – we love garlic)
- 2 teaspoons pepper
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons garlic
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 1/4 cup Sweet Thai Chili Sauce (you can get this at any grocery store)
- 1/4 cup Sriracha
- Dash of red pepper flakes (optional)
Directions
- Heat oil in large frying pan on your stove top to 350 degrees – (you will need enough oil to fry the shrimp).
- In a medium size bowl, mix the cornstarch and all dry ingredients
- In a second medium bowl, mix the mayo, chili sauce and Sriracha. (We added red pepper flakes to this as well to add more spice)
- Coat the shrimp with the corn starch mixture and fry shrimp for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown.
- Drain shrimp on paper towel and let cool for 5 minutes
- Coat the shrimp in the mayo/chili/sriracha mixture and serve immediately.
Next up – my take on homemade Fried Rice!
Make At Home Fried Rice
Ingredients
- Cooked Rice (I made enough for 6 servings)
- soy sauce to taste
- toasted sesame oil to taste
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2-5 tablespoon canola oil
- 1/2 of a Shallot
- 1 can peas and carrots
- 1 egg
Directions
- Cook your rice beforehand. I cooked mine to be a little more dry than normal.
- Heat oil in frying pan and scramble one egg.
- Remove egg, wipe out the pan and reheat oil in frying pan and add in rice and chopped shallot. Cook for 5 minute on medium heat.
- Add butter and salt and pepper to taste.
- Add in drained can of peas and carrots and scrambled egg a mix well.
- Add soy sauce to taste – I used enough to make the color look like I imagine fried rice to look!
- Add toasted sesame oil. This is one of my most favorite seasonings to cook with, but it has a VERY distinct taste! I would add and taste to see how much you would like to add.
- I let it simmer for another 10 minutes.
- Serve and Enjoy!
This was such an easy meal and we both LOVED it! Let me know if you try it and what you think!
