• about 1 bell pepper chopped (about a cup after you've chopped it)- i use green and yellow or red - do a combo of some sort but definitely include green (a poblano pepper would probably be good too)
• 1 med sweet onion chopped (about a cup and a half)
• about 3 cloves garlic, minced  - or about 2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
• 4 cans of beans - i usually do a combo of kidney, black and pinto - REMEMBER that canned kidney beans at the regular grocery store have high fructose corn syrup in them - the canned kidney beans at whole foods are the only ones that don't.  I also am pretty sure that the Publix "Greenwise" brand doesn't have sugar added but double check me on that. 
• 2 cans diced tomatoes - again - i use diced and not stewed because stewed tomatoes have sugar added.  Make sure to get the plain diced tomatoes and not the ones with garlic or Italian seasoning added.  For this recipe I like to use one can of regular diced tomatoes and 1 can of petite diced tomatoes - the difference in size really makes a difference in the chili
• 2 1/2 tablespoons cumin
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• a few dashes of ground red pepper - I like alot so I probably use about 1/2 teaspoon or so
• salt and black pepper to taste. 
• dried oregano - maybe 2 teaspoons - i don't know cause I never measure anything when I make stuff up - the oregano is important - brings out flavors in mexican stuff.  don't skip it even tho you're not used to using it in chili. 
• 1/4 teaspoon stevia or other sweetener - stevia is very concentrated so if using something else you will probably use much more
• 1-2 teaspoons cocoa powder (optional)

Wednesday's workout was a 4 mile run with an all Jay-Z mix.  I did a shuffle of the MTV Unplugged Album and the Blueprint 3 album.  

That MTV album is super awesome and I highly recommend it.  Jay-Z is someone that I never really got in to back in the day.... I was always into the old school gangster rap like Tupac and Bone and the "booty" rap stuff like Kilo and Raheem.  Jay-Z fell in a completely different category of rap in my opinion.  But since I've been with Eric, he has exposed me to alot of Jay-Z and I like his stuff.  Eric says his "Black" album was his best but I haven't listened to that one much.  Also, in case you've been living under a rock and didn't know about Jay-Z's best selling book that came out last year, you should check that out too.  It's called Decoded.  

Thursday night I did group fitness classes - BodyStep and BodyPump - so no music to report there.  

I hope everyone has an awesome weekend.  RTR! 

This weekend was the opening weekend of college football.  For many southerners, this particular Saturday is like Christmas morning.  If you don't live in the south or you aren't a college football fan, you just don't get it.  And that's fine.  But I thank God I was born here and that I was raised a football fan.  There is nothing more exciting than the energy in the air on that first weekend in September.  This weekend marks the beginning of the whirlwind that is the college football season.  We live for it all year, it flies by like the blink of an eye, and just like that it's over and the non-football depression sets in! 

I've decided to start posting my run mixes on my blog.  Sometimes I shuffle, sometimes I create playlists, sometimes I pick one artist for the whole run, sometimes I shuffle within one genre - it always depends on my mood.  But I'm always looking for good workout mixes and I know other runners are too.  

Tonight I did 4.2 miles mostly on hills.  Would've liked to do more but there was a storm coming and it's getting dark much faster this time of year.  I love late summer/early fall runs when a storm is brewing.  It's windy and cool and the air feels electric.  Plus there's always that thought that the bottom might fall out any minute so you run faster trying to get the run in and get back home. A few leaves have started falling and they were blowing and rustling around and there was an eerie, cloudy darkness.  It was killer.  I made it back just before the rain started!

Tonight was REALLY random! ha!  But here it is....

Ryan Adams - Dance All Night 

Rolling Stones - Sweet Virginia

Limp Bizkit - Rollin'

Live - Selling the Drama

Kid Rock - Bullgod

Jimi Hendrix - Purple Haze

Beatles - Come Together

Michael Jackson - Smooth Criminal

Prince - Seven

Neil Diamond - Amazed

Lady Gaga - Hair

Elton John - All The Girls Love Alice

Billy Joel - You May Be Right

Hanson - A Minute Without You (don't laugh - I used to FREAKING LOVE Hanson and I always smile when they shuffle onto my iPod)

Wow.  So much has been going on.  I hate writing these all-encompassing posts where I throw a million things into one because I haven't posted in so long.  But oh well...here goes....

Wedding planning is in full swing.  We have gotten SO much done...mostly to the credit of our fabulous wedding planner, Kerri Kelley!  All of the big things have been sorted out (ie venue, band, cake, food, decor, etc).  We just have to fill in all the little details.  Unless, of course, it turns out that our venue might not actually exist when our wedding date rolls around.  But I don't want to talk about that right now.  You can read all about THAT fiasco here if you're interested.  I will say this though... we chose B&A for our venue because it's historic, it's in the heart of this city that we love so much, and because it's the ONLY place we could find that had the feel we wanted and that would accommodate everything we envisioned for that day.  I have no idea what we will do if it closes.  

Moving on... it's been an incredibly busy summer with the wedding planning, a family vacation, family reunion, beach trip with friends, and of course...work.  My job has been unusually stressful this summer.  So much so that I've had a few little breakdowns about it.  I won't get into all that here...I just ask that you send positive vibes my way, or prayers or whatever you'd like - I need all the positivity I can get right now!  Arrgghhh there's so much I want to say here but know it's in my best interest not to.  

Eric and Garland played the annual Birmingham Chicks Rockfest this summer.  It was an awesome show and I got some great pics.  I really hope they play more gigs this fall.  Here is a link to that album! 

Anyhoo, my parents were kind and generous enough to take us with them to their house in the Bahamas again this summer.  It was such a wonderful trip.  We fished, we snorkeled, we lobstered, we saw a Junkanoo parade...it was great!  There are so many things I love about the islands of the Bahamas.  But most of all I love how distinctly different the islands are from one another.  If you've only visited the touristy parts of the Bahamas you've got no idea what you're missing.  Each island has it's own little culture and unique qualities.  My parents' house is in an area that's like a very small town...everyone knows everyone.  The people are so wonderful and they've made some great friends there which makes visiting even more special.  You can click here to see the whole album but I've posted some of my faves here.....

**Disclaimer - I look horrid in most of these because I didn't wear any makeup most of the time we were there and I barely came out of a swimsuit....  

Other random thoughts before I go:

1. I've become quite the NASCAR fan and I make no apologies for it.  When you learn alot about it, you realize it's actually really interesting.  I am college educated, I have a masters degree and, yes, I like to watch cars go around and around.  Wheee! 
2. I know I probably say this every August but....I don't think I've ever been MORE ready for football season.  OMG.  The agony of this last week is torture. 
3. Eric got sick every time we traveled this summer.  I never get sick and often brag about the fact that I haven't taken antibiotics or had a single shot since 2005.  But every time he gets sick I get a touch of whatever he's got and it's getting old.  We are about to start working on that boy's immune system.  I'm pumping him full of immune boosting stuff every time we travel from now on.  I ain't about to spend my honeymoon nursing Mr. Sickly!  
4. We saw the final Harry Potter film and, overall, I was pleased with it.  Very sad to see it all end though.  Eric loved the films and really wishes he had read the books now.  I'm still trying to get him to read them.  We'll see.  He does good to read a complete Sports Illustrated magazine. 
5. I haven't laid in the tanning bed since February when I had a little pre-cancer spot burned off of my face.  That was enough.  I realized I had done enough damage to my skin and I had to stop tanning.  I made it through the entire summer using sunless tanner and wearing SPF 30 every time I was in the sun.  It was weird and I felt SO PALE at first but I feel so much better and I like the thought of having nice skin when I'm older and not looking wrinkly and leathery! 
6. Pinterest was an incredible invention and I'm totally hooked. 
7. I took Eric back to my home town a few weeks ago to meet and hang out with some of my old school peeps!  It was great.  I love that town and feel that growing up there had a huge impact on who I am today!  I hope to get down there more this fall.  

I guess that's about it for an update.  New recipes coming soon I PROMISE! 

So I have no idea where to begin with this whole engagement story.  There are alot of things I’ve been promising meaning to blog about but, alas, this trumps all of that.  I love my blog and I wish so badly I could keep up with it better.  I wish I could work part time and cook, clean, take pictures, and blog the rest of the week.  Those are the things I enjoy the most and I have so little time for them these days.  Okay, sorry, back on track....

Eric and I have been talking (daydreaming) about our wedding for a while now.  From the day we “knew” I was sorta planning in my head.  But I also knew that it would take time to save for the ring.  I can’t tell you how many times I wanted to say, “I don’t even really need a ring...not a big one.....really.”  

As most of you know, marriage was something that really wasn’t on my radar for a long time. Ha.  But the concept holds so much more meaning for me now than I ever thought it would.  It’s like this.... after a while Eric became SO MUCH MORE to me than just a boyfriend.  There was this person, with whom I had this amazingly deep connection, and I wanted a way to express, to show to others, how much he meant to me...how much I loved him...how serious this was.  We had these common dreams and goals and values...and a dog...and we lived together....he was more than a boyfriend...he was my partner, my soul mate, my other half...all those cheesy things that really sound hokey until you actually find THE person that fits that description!  I began to realize that the petty things I USED to worry about in relationships were now nonexistent - this was different, mature, deeper, more meaningful, more honest and vulnerable, EASIER, calmer.  Those old relationship worries (being lied to, being cheated on, getting hurt, being taken advantage of) seemed so stupid and insignificant...I began to worry about his safety and his happiness.  I started fearing car accidents instead of hot blonde chicks!  It was a deeper understanding, a trust and honesty that I just KNEW was right.  Forever.  Period.  For the first time in my life I knew what it felt like to put someone else’s happiness above my own.  It was a transformative thing for me. 

So here we are, 2 years into this whole thing, both wanting so badly to take that next step.  A part of me felt that, maybe, possibly, the proposal was coming soon...but I wasn’t really sure!  Eric made comments many times throughout the past year about how badly he wanted to do it...but there was alot in his way.  I knew that.  And I just felt blessed and lucky to have him....but it didn’t stop me from daydreaming wildly about when he WOULD finally do it :) 

So I had a birthday recently.  I think God and everybody expected he’d propose on my birthday.  I was a nervous, shaky, sweaty wreck the whole day not knowing if it was coming and trying desperately to stop my imagination from running wild. But the weekend came and went and nothing.  I wasn’t disappointed...I knew the day would come eventually...but I had so expected it so there was alot of emotion with that.  Anyhoo... I later find out that is EXACTLY when he wanted to do it but the ring hadn’t come in yet..haha...so I wasn’t completely crazy! 

So last friday rolls around.  It’s a normal day.  I get up, I go to work, work is crazy, I go to the gym, come home, fix dinner, etc.  Eric and I had decided to stay in Friday night because we had such a busy day planned on saturday.  We finished up dinner and I kept asking him what he wanted to do...watch a movie, play some records, empty the DVR? He was all indecisive and said, “well why don’t you go shower and then we’ll decide.”  I immediately knew something was up because it’s a friday night and we’re not going anywhere...he normally wouldn’t care when I shower.  But I guess he didn’t want to propose with me still in my sweaty gym clothes!  Other odd things...he normally comes in and opens a beer on friday afternoons...I was shocked that he was drinking a diet coke when it was 100 degrees outside and we didn’t have plans to go anywhere.  He normally would have had a beer.  Also, he was not on his computer downloading music or playing in iTunes like he normally would be when I got home.  Just little things that he normally would’ve been doing on any normal lazy friday night.  I’m sure my overactive, anxious, proposal-seeking brain was LOOKING for oddities...but whatever :)

So I get up and get in the shower and my thoughts start running wild.  I kept audibly saying to myself... “stop doing this...you’ll be disappointed if nothing is going on...chill out..take deep breaths...just let it happen...” but of course my brain did not listen.  

[on a side note...I’ve always known I was a little...anxious...and that I had a very overactive brain...but GOOD GOD...it’s been in overdrive with all of this.  Maybe I should see someone about that...ha!!!]

Okay moving on...so I’m in the shower, having this talk with myself, trying not to freak out.  I finish my shower, turn off the water, peel back the shower curtain....and there I see....a card...sitting on the counter.  My knees buckled...my heart started racing and I just kept saying to myself... “oh my god, this is it, this is IT.”  God my heart is racing now just reliving it.  Ha. So I get out, grab the card and read.  The wording in the card is all about our life, our hearts beating as one, our world... and he underlined the words “our” “shared” “us” ...I’m seeing a theme here.... At the bottom of the card he writes: 

“I love you with all of me, every breath, every fiber, every thought, every movement...EVERYTHING!” 

I finish reading the card and I’m, of course, freaking out.  I get up and go to the door, not knowing what I’m going to find on the other side.  I open it and walk out and the house is dark except for candlelight.  Eric is standing in the hallway.  I say (with a cracking voice, while shaking all over) “thank you for my sweet card....”  He said, “why don’t you go get dressed and come back in here,” (keep in mind I’m in a towel and still dripping wet).  Now, normally, on a lazy friday night, I’d go put on PJ pants and a t-shirt so I look at him like... “what should I put on” and  he says “not PJs, just something casual.”  So the house is dark, I don’t know what’s about to happen...I mean, I have an idea but I’m still doing that thing where I’m trying not to freak out....talking to myself all the way to the closet... “it could just be a romantic night, maybe he’s just being sweet, don’t freak out, don’t freak out, calm down, breathe, don’t pass out....”  I’m shaking and my heart is POUNDING.  POUNDING.  Can I stress that enough?  

I look at my t-shirts...and yes...I’m going to admit it...I initially grab an Alabama Crimson Tide t-shirt.  What a great story that would be?  Right?  But I decide I won’t do that to him and I put on an Amos Lee t-shirt and a pair of khaki shorts.  Hair is wet.  Not a stitch of makeup on.  I walk into the living room.  The song I Gotta Know by Jackopierce is playing.  Because they are super meaningful to us, I will include the lyrics here:

Well I know that I ain't right

Show me anything that's black or white

And I'll show how good the light might look on you

But there's one thing you've got to know

Before this whole thing spins out of control

If you're with me, then you get me all the way

I Gotta Know

That you're with me

Before I cross that line

You Gotta Know

You're the one thing I can't leave behind

Well I know that I've been bad

I've got no answers for the breaks in my past

And I've burned more bridges than I've stumbled cross

Girl there's one thing you've got to know

Before this whole thing spins out of control

If you're with me, then you get me all the way

I Gotta Know

That you're with me

Before I cross that line

You Gotta Know

You're the one thing I can't leave behind

I don't know if you’ve ever been held in love like mine

You've got to know you're the one thing I can't leave behind

I can't leave behind

Okay so he grabs me and we slow dance to the song.  The entire time we are dancing I can feel my chest POUNDING against his and I’m shaking and I’m sorta embarrassed because I know he feels it and I just want to relax and enjoy it.  The song finishes and he says something along the lines of  “I don’t know if I could tell you the exact moment that I knew that I loved you, but as soon as I knew it, I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you...[picks up iPhone].....I have a do-list in my phone...and I put something on it a long time ago...other things have been on the list and they have all been checked off, but there’s one thing left ...and it’s not time to check it off just yet...but I want you to see what it is...”  And he hands me the phone to click on the list to open it up...I’m shaking so bad I almost click on the wrong thing...I click ...there’s only 1 thing on the list...it was entered a year and a half ago....and it says 

LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER WITH KATIE! 

...then he slowly gets down on one knee and pulls out a ring box, opens it and look up and says “will you be my happily ever after?”  I started crying, he started crying, I just grabbed him and we stood there for what seems like forever before I even looked down at the ring.  It was perfect.  I started to feel like I was going to faint for a minute so I sat down.  I just couldn’t believe it had finally happened...all the emotion leading up to it...I couldn’t believe it was real.  I don’t think my heart stopped pounding until the next day.  And even then...every time I told the story I got all flustered again.  We sat down and talked for a bit, cried some more, listened to music...just took in the moment.  I’m glad it happened the way it did.  It wasn’t a big event, I wasn’t all dressed up, I wasn’t expecting it...at all.  I love that it was here, I love that it was intimate and special and there weren’t alot of people around.  I love that it was just us. (I also love that the iPhone was incorporated...being the dorks we are!  LOL!  And that he used a Jackopierce song!) 

So that’s the story folks.  With all the obsessive dot-dot-dot-ing and ridiculous amount of detail that only I can give you! :) I am thrilled to start this next phase of our life together.  We have a very clear vision for what we want on our wedding day and what we want the overall feel to be...but I won’t give away any surprises here!  I would like to say, for the record, that Eric and I talk alot about, not only the kind of wedding we want, but what we want our marriage to be like.  I think that’s one of the reasons we work so well together...that and our AWESOME communication skills!!!! Booyah!!!!!  But seriously, our commitment to each other, our marriage, our connection, our communication...these things are our number 1 priority and I think that’s why we work so well!  

On that note I’m gonna wrap it up...the last thing you all need is me telling you, for the zillionth time, how much I love Eric!!!