Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Our Anniversary Trip!


Jeremy and I just celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary on April 16th. For our one year anniversary, we didn't get to take a trip because we were busy trying to remodel the house we had just bought and get ready for Rylee's arrival. So this year, we knew it was a must to take a trip! Originally, we were thinking of going away to Florida or California for a week or so but when it came down to it, I wanted to stay closer and keep it at a weekend trip because I wasn't so sure about being away from Rylee for that long just yet. So we packed our bags and headed to Canyon Lake, TX to stay at Canyon Lakeview Resort. It's right on the water and has a boat ramp on the property. There were deer there that would walk right up to you and eat out of your hand, as you can see in the photo below. It was such a nice getaway. I wanted to share some of the places we ate at and places we went so if you're ever in that area you can stop in and enjoy them too!









The water at this particular lake is blue. It's SO beautiful! We went exploring around the property and found a cliff that reminded me so much of Hawaii. Just to give you an example, the photo on the left is Hawaii and the one on the right is Canyon Lake. 









We left on Thursday and stayed in New Braunsfels for the night. We ate at Adobe Verde, which is a Mexican restaurant in downtown Gruene. First, let me say, I want to move to Gruene. It is SUCH a cute town. Adobe Verde was delicious! We both had the Adobe Tacos which is chicken or beef fajita meat on a flour tortilla with cheese, beans, avocado and a salsa. It's grilled until crispy and served with rice & beans. SO delicious. I highly recommend this place. After we ate there we went bowling... SO FUN! Haha.


The next day, we spent the morning and early afternoon exploring Gruene. They have these huge Oak trees all throughout the streets that are just breathtaking.  We had lunch at the Gristmill, which is a very well known place. Jeremy had the chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes and I had a burger. Let me tell you, it was one of best burgers I've ever eaten. And I am a burger snob. It's my favorite food. It was very juicy,  seasoned well and cooked perfectly. The restaurant over looks the Guadalupe River. The photo to the left was our view from the table. It's such a neat place and the atmosphere was great! We spent the rest of the afternoon walking around and shopping. 






That evening we drove to Canyon Lake where we were spending the rest of the weekend. We had dinner at the Italian Garden, which we didn't really care for. Saturday morning we ate at Old Sattler Baking Co. which was so gross. I was so hopeful that it was going to be good because it looked like a cute little cafe from the outside but once we got inside I just knew it wasn't going to be tasty. I do not recommend it AT ALL. That afternoon we drove back into New Braunsfels to visit the Farmers Market and shop at the circle. On our way back, we stopped and ate a cool joint on the river called Lone Star Float & Grill. I had chicken strips & fries and Jeremy had the pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw. Both were delicious. We sat out on the patio overlooking the river. Such a neat place! That evening we went to the other side of the Lake from where we were staying and ate at a place called Lucky's. A local had told us about it and so we tried it out. I had the pulled pork tacos and O-M-G... They were SOOOO good. I wish there was a Lucky's close by my house! I highly recommend this place.


We rode horses Saturday evening along the shore of the Lake. Such a cool experience. I hope that if you are ever in that part of the state you can check out some of the places we enjoyed! Below are the addresses for the restaurants that we liked!


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Adobe Verde- 1724 Hunter Road Gruene, Texas

 The Gristmill- 1287 Gruene Road New Braunfels, TX

Lone Star Grill- 7430 River Road  New Braunfels, TX

Lucky's- 18100 Farm to Market 306  Canyon Lake, TX







Friday, April 13, 2012

Welch Family!

Let me start off by saying... I LOVE THIS FAMILY! Mrs. Jill has been my saving grace when it comes to leaving my Rylee in the nursery. She loves my little girl and that puts my mind at ease when I am leaving her in there on Sundays. They are such a fun family! Katherine is so beautiful and the sweetest 12 year old I think I have ever met! Doug and Jill are some great people and if you don't know them, then you're missing out! We shot these out at Tom Bass Park in Pearland and it was a blast. Here is a little preview... Enjoy!











For info on sessions and pricing, email me at larissafloyd@yahoo.com

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Recipe of the week: Tomato Basil Soup

I have an obsession with la Madeline's tomato basil soup. We don't have one on my side of town so I hardly ever get to eat it. There's nothing quite like a big bowl of it with a sandwich. My husband doesn't like for me to cook soup when the weather is warm. I, however, eat it all year round. I asked him if he would mind having this soup for dinner one night this week so I could share it with yall here on the blog. Of course, he agreed. :) So here it is... It's easy and SO delicious!

What you need:

1 can whole peeled tomatoes
1 cup tomato juice
1/2-1 cup of heavy cream (add as much as you prefer.)
2 tablespoons of butter
3 tablespoons chopped basil
Salt & Pepper to taste

What you do:

Combine can of tomatoes & tomato juice in large pot. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Take your basil, stack it on top of each other, roll it up and chop it into ribbons. PLEASE do not take scissors and cut it up. Chopping releases the natural flavors and oils in the basil. Cutting it up doesn't release these like chopping does.



Take the tomatoes that have been simmering, throw them in your blender and toss in the basil. Puree until smooth. Return to pot.

Add heavy cream, butter, salt and pepper. Cover and let simmer for another 30 minutes.

We enjoyed ours with a grilled cheese but it also pairs well with a salad, cold sandwich and maybe some croutons on top of the soup. Leave me some feedback if you try this one out! 
Enjoy!

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Michael Carnell: Senior!

Last Friday, I headed out to League City to do Michael's senior session and his sister, Candace's, engagement shoot. It was a busy day but a lot of fun! Michael has a super cool truck that we wanted to incorporate so we headed down to the pond in the neighborhood he lives in and shot some there then we went over to Challenger Park to grab a few more photos. It was a beautiful day. Here is a sneak peak at our session! Enjoy!





For info on sessions & pricing, please email me at larissafloyd@yahoo.com

Monday, April 9, 2012

Candace & Brant: Engaged!

Candace and I grew up together in the youth at church. She has always been one of my good friends. She moved away to go to school in Nacogdoches, TX and that is where she met her fiance! They are such a cute couple and you can just see the love they have for each other when they smile at one another. We were talking about having arguments and they said that they had never had a fight. Brant said "She just doesn't make me mad." I thought that was just the sweetest thing. This is a preview of their session we did on Friday. We had a lot of fun! Enjoy!








For info on sessions and pricing please contact me at larissafloyd@yahoo.com 

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Recipe of the week: Chicken Salad!

This recipe is my take on my mother in law's chicken salad. I made a few changes to it to make it my own and it is so delicious. I made a big bowl of it last night and when Jeremy got home late last night from work (I was already in bed) he ate most of it. There isn't even enough left for a sandwich!! Haha. It really is just so yummy!

What you need:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
3-4 sweet pickles
1 hard boiled egg
1/4-1/2 cup miracle whip (Make it to your liking. We like ours a little bit dryer than some people so I hold back on the mayo.)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
Salt & Pepper

What you do:

Season your chicken on both sides with salt, pepper and cayenne. Roast in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes or until the juices run clear. When it's done, shred it up or cut into bite size pieces. I throw mine in the food processor and pulse a few times to give it a shredded texture without having to actually shred it by hand.

Chop your egg and pickles. Combine chicken, egg, mayo, salt & pepper in a bowl and mix thoroughly. 

Eat on toasted bread or with ritz crackers. I always have mine with a slice of tomato. So yummy!

Enjoy!

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Senior Session: Tabitha Hawthorne

This was such a fun shoot! We had originally planned to do the photos last Thursday but it rained so we rescheduled for Monday. The weather couldn't of been more perfect! It was slightly overcast which gave us the soft lighting we were looking for. We went downtown to a park called The Heritage Society. It's so beautiful. Tons of oak trees and old houses with adorable porches.

Tabitha is quite the young lady. She is an excellent basketball player and has recieved a scholarship to play at Lee University in the fall. She designed and sells tshirts with "Rescue the girls" on it. The proceeds go to ending the sex trafficking of women. I think back to when I was her age and what was on my mind. I was thinking about graduating, my boyfriend, what I was going to do over the summer and all the normal teenage things that go thru a senior-in-high-school's mind. I definitely was not thinking about what was going on in the world around me. But Tabitha is. Her heart is burdened for the young women being sold into sex trafficking. This young lady is going to change the world. If you want to purchase a tshirt that she designed you can visit her site at www.rescuethegirls.org

Enjoy!










For info on sessions, email me at larissafloyd@yahoo.com