Sometimes being an adult sucks. Bills, not sleeping until noon, working, bills.

Sometimes being an adult rocks. Your own house, time, money, life.

For example: adulting is fun when you buy your first house. Adulting is fun when you get to pick the vacations you go on, how you decorate your house and what time you go to bed. And, if you're like me, you go to bed at 8pm, so being an adult didn't change much there.

But sometimes being an adult sucks. Gone are the careless days of your dad doing your taxes, being carpooled to the 6th grade, complete with a lunch packed by your mom or your mom handing you $20 whole dollars to spend at the movies on Friday.

It's amazing what I took for granted in the 7th grade when my mom was ironing my clothes and making me pb&js.

Do you remember coming home from school and feeling stressed because you didn't read a book that was due. Now, here I am dying to have time to go home and read a book. Or when your biggest problem was when your mom forgot to wash your favorite skirt for school and you couldn't convince her that even though you wore a school uniform, that one, was different and you had to have it.

The good things about being an adult:

• Last night I drank wine because I wanted too. And it wasn't illegal. 
• I went shopping this weekend and didn't have to ask my mom for money. 
• I stayed up late and no-one told me to go to bed, expect my inner voice, but I shushed him. 
• I'm married. 
• I have a great job. 

The bad things:

• Today I created a spreadsheet outlining our monthly bills. That is like the least fun thing I've ever had to do. It's hard balancing 10 different bills, 10 different due dates and 10 different log ins to pay them. Sure auto-bill pay is cool, but bills in general are not. Hence a spreadsheet.
• Taking out the garbage. This stinks.... 
• Grocery shopping. Sometimes this is fun. But I usually do this on Sundays after church when I'm starving and the rest of the Denver-metro area is trying to get the same tomato I'm trying to get. 
• Shoveling snow. Guys, Denver got 12 inches of snow this weekend. While it makes staying in a watching movies perfect, it requires a lot of shoveling so your dog can go to the bathroom. 
• Getting gas. Yuck. My dad used to do this for me. 
• Paying bills. What is worse than having to send money to people you don't even know. See #1 above. 
• Ironing your clothes. My mom used to iron all my clothes, even my underwear. Let that sink in. She used to iron my sheets! What was I thinking moving out? Now ironing is my job. Thank goodness for the invention of the steamer. 
• Getting out of bed. Is this hard for everyone? I'm literally dead in the morning. I just cannot be bothered with getting ready for work some days. 
• Doing the dishes. even though I have a new dishwasher (whoo hoo adulting!) I hate putting dishes in it. It's the pits. 

It is a constant battle on Sundays trying to find the perfect cookie recipe for the week. I know what you're thinking, Come on Kristen, you're pathetic if that's your battle. #worldpeace #nodonaldtrump #theperfectselfie #byekardashes

Okay, okay, but hear me out. Paleo desserts are my thing. I love them. Adam loves them. And, when Sunday rolls around and we're meal planning for the week, Adam inevitably asks what paleo dessert I'm making.

Speaking of -- Isn't meal planning the worst? It's like packing. We sit there on Sunday and pick dinners for the entire week. I do this for 3 reasons; (1) weeks are so busy and it makes life easier if I know what I'm making, (2) it makes the grocery store trip much easier, (3) it saves us money. But -- it sucks.

How the heck am I supposed to know what I'm going to want to eat on Thursday, on Sunday.That's crazy. That's like saying I am for sure going to want to wear the black maxi on Saturday by the beach instead of the white romper. It's a ridiculous goal. It is definitely the major plight that comes with meal planning. Cost efficiency v. cravings. It's the eternal struggle. PS. Adam hates rompers so it wouldn't be the romper by the beach.

Anyways.

The part that gets me past all that --- is the meal planning for sweets. I always try to make at least one type of sweet for Adam. It makes all the boring meals a little better. And hey, sometimes the sweets craving is too much to handle. I can attest. I find it better to eat a mini paleo lemon nugget then stuff my face with the thin mints I have hiding in the pantry. I guess better is relative for everyone.


But hey, I cant blame Adam for wanting sweets, I make good desserts! This week was no different. These little paleo lemon cookie nuggets are exactly what the doctor ordered. They're sweet, a little tangy and perfect for a mid-day sugar craving. Ps. there are practically no ingredients. You're welcome.

Let's do this.

Ingredients:

• 1 heaping cup cashew butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• pinch sea salt

How to make: 

1. Preheat oven to 350. 
2. In a food processor, combine all the ingredients until smooth. If the batter seems too runny, just stick it in the fridge for a minute. 
3. Use a cookie scoop to form cookies and drop onto a lined baking sheet 
4. Bake for 12 minutes. 
5. Let these cool completely before removing them from the baking sheet. (They will feel soft -- they'll harden, promise). 
6. Enjoy! 

My phone is kind of my life. Not like actually my life, but I love it. Currently my phone has 6,734 photos and 80 videos. 6,735, I just took a picture of my coffee cup.

If you looked at my phone, you'd think I have 7 kids, 13 dogs, that I live in 4 different states and that I'm putting together a book of random screenshots and recipes. You'd see 17 identical pictures of tulips that I made Adam retake because the stems didn't look right. You'd see Tomas' first steps, Isabel's videos she makes for "Uncle Adam and Aunt Kris" and you'd see the first picture of baby Caroline and baby Blakely.

If my phone crashed today I'd be out about 10 blog posts and I'd probably cry over my lost pictures. Well, not probably, I for sure would. Thank goodness for the cloud. I'm not really sure what it does, but I know it's up there watching over my pictures.


Another thing you'll notice about my phone, there isn't 1 notification, unread email, message or voicemail. Call it the ocd in me, but I cannot handle those little red 1's. They make me crazy.

99% of these I've shared with my best friends. I'm either tagging them on Instagram or sending them screenshots. Some are inappropriate, but I'm sharing a few of the ones that aren't below!

There are a few things I cannot get enough of lately. You might call them a bit of an obsession, but I call it good old infatuation.

• Henry James. Today is his 7th birthday! Seven. Some people would say I'm too young to have a seven year old dog, but I just laugh and say thanks. He's my little gentleman and today he's taking a trip to Petsmart to pick out all the toys. Happy Birthday Henry!

• The People v. OJ Simpson. Back before the Kardashes were anyone more than four little kids with a non-famous/non-practicing attorney father. Adam and I are only two episodes in, but we're pretty enthralled. I love it because I was only 6 when this happened. I vaguely remember sitting in my kitchen watching this white Blazer drive on busy freeways. So, as realistic or non-realistic as this is, I love it. 
• Chicken and White wine. I asked Adam what I can't get enough of lately and this is his response. He said chicken because every meal I've made this week was chicken something and white wine because duh. I can't totally disagree, but I plan Pinterest. When I was meal planning Sunday everything I looked for that looked good was chicken. Sooooo sue me. 
• Blogging. I've kind of been lacking on this, due entirely to lack of motivation. But in the last couple days I've had some random spurt of motivation and am pumped for some future posts. Get excited people. 
• Home Projects. I want to spend all my time at either home, Home Depot or The Container Store. I have no many ideas for different places in our house, furniture ideas, ect. I want to start planting everything pretty in my backyard. I want to buy some new furniture. I'm so proud of this house of ours. 
• Babies. Baby Caroline and Baby Blakely. Plus everyone else in my life that is having babies. I'm obsessed with being an aunt. Don't worry this isn't a baby announcement. I'm just obsessed with everyone elses kid. 
• Not listening to my alarm. This is another Adam suggestion. Guys, I agree with this. I've had the hardest time getting out of bed this week. The alarm goes off and I completely ignore it. What is happening, I'm usually such a morning person. 
• Snapchat. No shame, I love it. I watch it all the time. I watch it before bed, when I wake up, when I'm at work I love it. Follow me --- kgrace01. Whats your snap name?!

Jewelry is a girls best accessory. Jewelry that gets delivered to your front door once a month to wear at your leisure is a girls best best friend. 

Rocksbox is the monthly subscription box where you literally get beautiful pieces of jewelry delivered to your house once a month. You get to wear the jewelry as much as you want and then when you're ready for a new piece, you send it back! 

The best part? If you love it, you can buy it and at a discount! 

I started getting Rocksbox last month and let me tell you, it's the best subscription box I've ever gotten. I've gotten cool subscription boxes before but the thing I like about this subscription box is that it's useful. I mean, as much as I love mini bottles of random face cream that I'll never order, this is jewelry that I'll wear.  

The four pieces I got this month are so pretty I do not want to return them! But, I really want to show you all the beautiful jewelry Rocksbox has to offer, so I'll send it back...eventually. Guys, I have literally have this first Rocksbox for over a month, I don't want to return it! I wear these necklaces allllllll the time. 

Another cool part? When you sign up, you make a profile for yourself, answer some questions and then your stylist pairs the perfect jewelry for you. I cannot wait to show you the cool pieces I got this month! 

You probably wonder why I'm bragging about awesome jewelry. Well it's because I have awesome news for you!

If you go to Rocksbox.com you can get ONE MONTH FREE if you use promo code kgrace01xoxo  - I mean.... how rad is that. 

One month of free jewelry. Share it with your mom, sister, friends -- do it! 

People, that doesn't happen every day. What are you still doing here? Go, run to Rocksbox and sign up! I promise you will not be disappointed! 

This goes back to Easter weekend. If you missed my story (& delicious cookie recipe) go check it out, I promise, Adams continued hilarity will not disappoint.

Once we got Directv figured out and the cookies made, it was time to focus on dinner.

To start this story, let's go back a bit. My mom has always made rack of lamb on Easter. Instead of the usual ham, my family's "usual" Easter dinner is rack of lamb. When I was little I used to call it lamb legs, which is a bit concerning, but delicious none-the-less.

When we figured out we would be staying home for Easter, I knew I needed to make it special, for Adam and I both. Rack of lamb it was. My mama sent the recipe and I was off to the market to buy a rack of lamb.

Adam and I went in to the market, ordered one rack of lamb and headed to the checkout. $80 later. $80. Eighty dollars. Is that shocking to anyone else? Adam declared that the pressure was on and that we should become best friends with Tony at the market to avoid having to finance our rack of lamb.

I called my mama, got the technique and thought I was prepared for rack of lamb. I read the recipe, got my meat thermometer out, made the rub and I was ready.

The meat thermometer hit the "recommended temperature" and when I checked, the meat was raw. I called my mom. "Keep cooking it."

15 minutes later, the rack of lamb was still raw. I called my mom. "Keep cooking it."

10 minutes later, it was done and SO delicious.

I wish I could describe the flavor. It's legit the best thing I've ever eaten ever. Besides the carrot cake I made for dessert. Wow. Rack of lamb is the most delicious and here's the recipe. PS - - this recipe is for 2 racks of lamb, so either cut the ingredient in half or be prepared to throw some away.

Ingredients:

• 2 racks of lamb
• salt and pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 

How to Make: 

1. Position the oven rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 475 degrees. 
2. Season the lamb with salt and pepper. 
3. Combine the garlic, parsley, thyme and breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl. 
4. Moisten the mixture with enough olive oil to make the mixture hold tighter. 
5. Heat a large dry skillet over high heat. Put the lamb, meat side down, in the skillet. With tongs, hold the lamb against the skillet for a minute to give it a nice brown curst. 
6. Turn the meat to sear it on all sides for a total of 4 minutes. Remove the meat from the skillet and paint the meaty side of the rack with the mustard. 
7. Roll the meat in the herb mixture to coat it. Sear and coat the second rack the same way. 
8. Transfer the racks of lamb to the roasting pan just large enough to hold them. 
9. Cover the rib bones with strips of foil so they don't burn. 
10. Roast until medium rare, 20 to 25 minutes (125 internal temperature). 
11. If you want it crispier, broil for 2-4 minutes. 
12. Let racks rest for 5 minutes before carving. 

"I'm upset." Let's be honest, that's never the way you want a phone conversation to start. Coti was calling to tell me she was upset I wasn't coming into Arizona for an engagement party for mutual friends of ours.

Now, let me explain. We had planned on coming but in the busyness and expense of life, Adam and I decided we couldn't make it. I apologized to Coti and moved on. Next came the phone call from my mom, "I wish you were coming." Well, as much as I wanted to go to the party, I stood firm.

Then, last Monday, Whitney called, baby Blakely had arrived. 6 pounds, 8 ounces and 20 inches long. The long awaited arrival and she was here.

Then it hit me, not only will I not see my family until July, nor see Blakley until June and miss the engagement party of two very close friends, I decided to venture to Southwest.com to see what they had to offer. $11.20 later, I was booked on a flight to Arizona for 18 hours.


Needless to say, it was a whirlwind.. and a wonderful whirlwind at that.

3:35 am: The morning had started.

4:30 am: I was en route to the airport.

7:00 am: One americano from Cartel coffee and Coti's fiance, Matt picked me up. I walked into Coti's house and her room and as she woke up she just stared at me. Breakfast and multiple cups of coffee later, we were in route to surprise my parents.



10:00 am: "What the hell are you doing here/?" was my moms response followed by big hugs and another cup of coffee.

11:30 am: Time to go meet baby Blakley. How wonderful to see your best friend becoming a mom. It was an hour spent taking pictures, cooing and enjoying time with the girls.



2:00 pm: Time to surprise dad. Back to the house we went. A couple hours spent enjoying the afternoon with my family. Tom, Camila and Tomás stopped by and we just enjoyed each other company. I'm so lucky for such a great family.


6:00 pm: Time to celebrate the engagement of two very good friends of mine and their love. What a wonderful celebration watching two families come together. It brings tears to my eyes thinking about their love. I cant wait to watch them get married. 4 glasses of wine later it was time to head to the airport.



9:00 pm and a flight delay. If flight delays when the airport is shutting down isn't the worst thing I'm not sure what is. I met some ladies who were there at a makeup convention selling towels that take your makeup off. I wish i was lying. A full convention devoted to makeup removal towels. I need a career change.

11:45 pm: Two more glasses of wine and I was almost on my way.

I made it home eventually after a whirlwind 18 hours. While I don't always recommend one day travels I always recommend spending more time with family and friends, that is something you'll never regret.

This story goes back to Easter Sunday. It was a gorgeous Sunday afternoon. It was 70 degrees in Colorado and we had just gotten home from a great church service.

Granted, we got lost on the way to church -- the church we've been going to for about 3 months. One thing I've learned, in my almost 11 months of marriage, is that if your husband wants to drive to church and "go this way" you don't butt in and tell him that "that way" is the wrong way.

That is, until you're stuck in a neighborhood and have to google maps your way to church. And then when you get there, you're late and have to stand. But, anyways, it was Easter Sunday and it was great.

We got home from church and I was in the mood for baking. I found this recipe for Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies. Oh, and did I mention that they're paleo! Whoop whoop! I was going to bake and Adam was going to wait for Directv.

Did I forget to mention that out TV had been out since Thursday? Apparently 17 inches of snow not only damages a gutter, but it causes the gutter to drop on the satellite and knock it out. Just so happened that our TV went out during March Madness. So, there we were with the Elite 8 looming and no TV.

Anways, back to the cookies. I ran to the store to get fresh blueberries when Directv called. "Ms. Kristen, we can't make it today, we're rescheduling to next Saturday." I didn't even respond, I just called Adam and he called. I won't go into details because this story is from Easter Sunday and there were a few too many expletives to repeat. Needless to say, Directv showed up around 4pm and we were back to watching March Madness.

Okay, sorry, I'm rambling, back to the cookies. Blueberry. Paleo. Cheesecake. Cookies. Done & done. These cookies take a hot minute to make and bake but they are so worth it. Plus they are purple. Score.

This recipe is from Physical Kitchness. Have you guys met Chrissa? She's the blogger behind Physical Kitchness. I haven't met her either, but I think we should be friends.  She blogs the most delicioussssss recipes ever. They're all so different and delicious. I love her and her recipes. This one is no exception. Go show her some love. In the meantime -- the recipe.

Ingredients: 

• ½ cup raw almonds + 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice 
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup coconut flour 
• ½ cup almond flour 
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ cup coconut oil 
• 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons raw honey 
• ¼ cup almond milk 
• 1 large egg 
• 1 cup blackberries 
• 2 tablespoons water 
• ¾ teaspoon arrowroot powder 

How to Make: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Boil 3 cups water in a small pot and add in ½ cup raw almonds. Let boil for roughly 10 minutes. This ensures the almonds will soften before pureeing. You can always soak the almonds in water overnight to skip this step. 
3. Drain the almonds and place them into a food processor. Add ½ cup of water, lemon juice, and salt. Puree until creamy, about 2 minutes.
4.  Combine the coconut flour, almond flour, and baking soda into a large bowl. Add the almond puree, coconut oil, raw honey, almond milk, and egg to the bowl. Mix well until a wet dough forms.
5. Meanwhile, add 2 tablespoons water to a pot and 1 cup blackberries. Heat the water on medium/high and let the blackberries soften until they break down, squishing them with the back or a fork or spoon. 
6. Turn off the heat once the blackberries have morphed into a runny jam, then whisk in the arrowroot powder to thicken the mixture 
7. Let the mixture cool slightly, then take large spoonfuls of the blackberry jam and add it to the dough, carefully swirling it in but not mixing in well. 
8. Using your hands, take a small scoop of the dough and gently form into a ball shape. The dough will be fairly wet. 
9. Place the ball on a parchment-lined baking sheet and gently flatten slightly. 
10. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes and let cool before serving. 
11. Enjoy!

Happy Wednesday people! Cheers to delicious cookies and hump-days.

1. Sunshine, warmth and more sunshine. It has been deadly cold here and there are still like 5 inches of snow on the ground. I'm ready for the heat. 
2. I'm so excited to start fixing up our backyard. We've been in this house for a little over a month, hooray! and it's time to start fixing up the yard. Bring on the tulips, fix the rose bushes and plant whatever other fun things the garden store tells me to buy. Wait, this bullet point makes me sound so old. Spend Saturdays in the yard. Oh boy, on to #3. 
3. Outdoor bars (see, I'm still young and hip). I want to sit on a patio, eat chips and salsa in the sunshine and drink beer. Oh, and I want to be in either short sleeves or shorts. That sounds heavenly. 
4. I'm going to pack up all my winter clothes. Even though thats not safe in Colorado until like mid-July and even then you still have to keep a jacket out. But, I'm going to put away my huge winter coats. 
5. I'm going to read more books. That doesn't have anything to do with spring, but I'm excited for more books. P.S. I need some good recs for books, go! 
6. I'm going to San Diego for Coti's Bachelorette partayyyyyy. If drinking with your best friends on a yacht in San Diego doesn't scream spring (& fun!) then I don't know what does. 
7. I'm going to start taking "fashion" pictures for my blog. Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. But I'm going to try and I'm going to document all the good, bad and ugly.