Quick (Cinco de Mayo) weekend in review (& pictures) + What I'm Cooking

D's parents came to visit it us for the weekend.  The weather was absolutely perfect despite the Weather Channel making me nervous all week; I couldn't have asked for a better result.  They brought Allen Brother steaks (AMAZING! Like better than Ruth Chris, amazing!)  We grilled asparagus and I made one of my favorite salads, Mixed Greens with Grapefruit and Cranberries (from an earlier post).  This meal was by far the best thing I've eaten in FOREVER!  Sorry, no pictures of our meal.  We were too busy stuffing our faces.

Later that evening the women played the men in euchre (best of 5 games) and we WON! That's 2-0 for the ladies!

Today, D and I focused on putting in some more sweat equity into our backyard.  His parents also brought us a variety of fantastic flowers from their beautiful backyard.  Here are some of the irises that didn't quite make it during transport but are blooming beautifully on my kitchen counter.

We decided to go to Lowe's to find a weeping tree and additional flowers.  While there, we think we finally found a light fixture for above our dining table:

It's perfect!

After 2 trips, we had plenty of bags of soil, a Snow Fountain Weeping Cherry Tree, lilies and additional flowering ground cover.

Our little helper, Luna

It was brutally hot outside but it's not called "Sweat Equity" for nothing.  D and I both got a bit burnt.  Here's some of the progress we made.

Just need new mulch

We originally had a poorly-kept coy pond in that area but decided to take it out and fill it in instead.  I think it was a good decision and will hopefully keep the mosquitoes at bay.

Once we called it a day on the yard work, we decided to celebrate Cinco de Mayo (a day late).  I made fresh guacamole from scratch.  We added that to grilled, blackened chicken tacos and served that along with grilled Mexican corn on the cob (sweet white Indiana corn on the cob smeared with mayonnaise and drizzled with chili powder and topped off with cilantro.  It usually calls for Cojita cheese or grated Parmesan but I didn't have any on hand.)

Guacamole 

2 large avocados, cut into small cubes

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered

1/4 medium white onion, chopped

1 medium jalapeno, diced small

1-1/2 TBSP cilantro, roughly chopped

1 lime, juiced

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

Combine all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and stir.  I like to smash some of the avocado pieces but also leave some chunks.  

D says this is the meal he could eat everyday.  What a wonderful end to a truly fulfilling weekend.  Hope you all enjoyed your Cinco de Mayo weekend!