Turquoise Thursday: Outside Entertaining

It's summertime.

I can't believe it is summertime! We have a covered deck at our house that is perfect for grilling. Now if I can just stay home longer enough, we can have a little party out there.

We registered at Pottery Barn for our wedding. I crossed my fingers so hard that someone would be a good friend and buy me these beautiful turquoise plates.

And they came through. I didn't register for the whole set, but I did receive eight of these Cambria Turquoise Dinner Plates. 

And another eight of these turquoise dessert plates. Wouldn't a cupcake look so pretty on that plate.

Now if I was going get a few things to add to my little porch I think these would work. 

How pretty is this turquoise patio rug. Of course found on Etsy.

I could also sit at my turquoise French Bistro Steel Table. It is even on sale! Two of my blogging friends have been telling me I must get to Target as they have some great turquoise patio chairs. Where is your favorite place to entertain during the summer?

This gal is a proud farmer and I like make-up

Trust me the two can go together.

I think one of the reasons why I love my life so much is I truly get to do something I am passionate about every day - farm, play with cattle, speak about agriculture, the list goes on. I found it funny last night when two of my Twitter friends, who are both agriculture girls, @LBelleoftheBlog and @jenlynndewey started chatting (tweeting) about our love for make-up, because frankly that is another passion of mine. I love make-up.

Laura - LBelleoftheBlog has recently moved to an area of the country that MAC make-up stores aren't that prevalent. Kind of like my no MAC stores in Iowa situation. She started to tweet about the MAC products that fortunately the mailman had delivered. Jennifer - jenlynndewey quickly joined in on the conversation. And it turned into what our new favorite make-up products are.

Jennifer is oohing over this Kat Von D Eye Shadow Palette.

My own recent make-up MAC purchases. I am loving this new Pro Longwear Lip Creme called Postively Dashing. It stayed on through the afternoon, burgers, guacamole, and sangria. Perfect for girls that don't have time to be touching up their make-up all the time. The eyeshadow is called Antiqued - kind of a red/brown/coppery color, and then Studio Fix Foundation. 

The thing is that we have spent plenty of time around livestock, pastures and crops, and yet we still like to have a little girly side. Maybe no matter how much you smell like a cow you can't hide you inner fashionista.

I changed by Crystal Cattle Facebook page profile picture today. I love these agriculture banners that Bella Spur has created. Check out this album to choose your own agriculture banner. Maybe they can make me one that say proud to be a farmer that love make-up!

Corn Report: It is out of the ground!

Another season of watching the corn grow. 

I am excited to start blogging again about the corn. Especially, since the Boy and I have our own field. This is also a little scary because it costs a lot of money to buy all the seed, fertilizer, rent the equipment (we call these input costs). We definitely need to have a good crop to cover all these initial costs.

We are farming just over a 100 acres this year. There are 1.3 acres in a football field to give you some perspective. 

The corn was planted a few weeks ago, but it took a really long time for it to finally pop its little head out of the ground. Who would have ever thought I would be so excited when the Boy texted me last week that the corn hard arrived.

Each week I will take a photo of the corn to show how much it grows. And trust me it grows really fast. There is a little saying "knee high by Fourth of July," last year the corn exceeded these expectations. It has been fun to see the green tint appearing in all the Iowa fields.

p.s. check out my new running shoes! And please don't judge my white legs. This was literally the first day (other than the honeymoon) that I have been able to wear shorts. Plus, this Canadian girl doesn't tan very well. 

As the Boy like to say we are outstanding in our field ;) It has been a great year for planting corn. According to Monday's USDA-NASS weekly Crop Progress report 90% of the nation's corn has been planted. That well ahead of last year's schedule when only 56% of the corn was planted at this time last year.

Be sure to tune in each week for more pictures and corn facts. Also, if you want to go back and read last year's post check out the Watching Corn Grow tab. And if you have any questions that you would like answered through the summer you can find my email under the About tab. 

Hunk of Meat Monday: Shrimp, Feta, Tomato Pasta

Absolutely delicious

Yes, the picture is a little
out of focus, but it is delicious

Tonight I pulled an old recipe out of my book. I found this Real Simple Roasted Tomatoes With Shrimp and Feta recipe last year when I first got on Pinterest, and it became a weekly staple of mine last summer. I was on the road all of last week, and ate way too many fast food meals. As soon as I got home I knew I wanted to cook, and I knew it wanted to be really good.

Real Simple Recipe with my modifications:

You'll need -
5 large tomatoes, cut into chunks. I love using Roma tomatoes
3 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic
kosher salt and pepper - I use the regular stuff
1 1/2 pounds of medium shrimp, peeled and deveined - I buy the already cooked stuff. If I use a pound we usually have enough for supper for two and lunch leftovers
2 tablespoons of lemon juice - I have forgotten this before and it still turns out great!
1 cup of Feta cheese
Oregano

Spaghetti or Crusty bread

For our wedding we got a Pampered Chef dutch over, which was perfect for cooking this meal in. However, any baking dish will work.

1. Preheat over to 450 degrees F.
2. Place tomatoes, olive oil and garlic in baking dish.
3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, stir and bake for 20 minutes.
4. Remove baking dish and add shrimp and lemon juice. I also sprinkle in some oregano. Sprinkle the Feta on top.
5. Return to the oven and bake for another 10 minutes.
6. Serve over crusty bread or spaghetti

Make sure you tune in later this week because I am going to share an awesome common Canadian square recipe and don't forget to visit Beyer Beware for more Hunk of Meat Monday recipes.

Turquoise Thursday: iPhone Gadgets

Being a geek in style

My phone and iPad are always with me. Working, blogging, connecting with friends keeps a computer or my iPhone with a good majority of the day. So I figure why not make your iPhone a cute accessory. 

I love this turquoise and cow iPhone case. You can buy this image as a piece of artwork, and as a laptop skin as well. Thank you Pinterest for this great find. 

I think this turquoise and pink Chervon iPhone case is really cute. You can find all kinds of different covers on Etsy. 

Maybe you want a little more sparkle in your life? I am pretty sure this would result in a lot of glitter being left behind in my jean pocket or purse. Does anyone have one of these glitter iPhone cases? Do they hold up. 

These Kate Spade iPhone wristlets are pretty genius. The perfect way to carry your phone, a credit card, I.D. and a little cash. 

Do you have a fun iPhone case? I think I need to upgrade mine pretty soon.