Fun Filled Weekend...

This weekend was supposed to be a relaxing weekend where we wouldn't do much.  I guess we should have known that the weekend wouldn't be relaxing but it was amazing to say the least!  The most exciting part of this weekend was that Joe FINALLY asked his groomsmen to be in his wedding party!  It took him some time, but with save the dates going out it was about time for him to ask :)  I am super excited to see their grooms gifts and will post both the grooms gifts and bridesmaid gifts on the next post! So now, for the actual events of the weekend...

We also ordered Thank You notes for the wedding this weekend.  One thing that I would suggest to everyone, is if you are creative, use Vista Print.  They have already made designs, but they also have blank designs where you can upload your own design.  I love doing creative stuff, so I was obviously going to try to design my own.  After making the save the dates and saving a TON of money, I knew we would try to do the rest.  Thank you notes don't have to be intricate, so we took it upon ourselves to design our own.  After it was all said and done, we got 250 thank you notes for right at 50$!  Can't beat that deal!  I'll let you know how they look!

Friday night was actually a relaxing evening where we cooked dinner at home and cleaned the house a bit.  After dinner we relaxing until Meredith and Andy came to visit.  It was so good seeing them even though it was for just a little bit!  We called it an early night because we knew it would be an early morning.

Hanging out with my favorite little girl!

Saturday morning, Joe was supposed to play tennis so we got up early and headed to Kennesaw.  Of course, after driving 45 minutes, it was raining so the matches were pushed back to Sunday morning.  It was nice that they were canceled because then we headed home and changed before heading to GT for the game.  We parked at 8th street and started the walk to the stadium making plenty of stops along the way.  First stop was a surprise stop running into Casey, a college friend of mine that was in town for music midtown!  It was so random and awesome seeing him even if it was for about 0.2 seconds!  After that we stopped by the swim team tailgate for a bit and chatted with swimmers (the senior class is the last class I know) before heading to Joe's parents tailgate.  There we at yummy Biscuits & More and relaxed for a bit before braving the trek in the rain to the bridge to see Ilia and Barnes.  Of course it was pouring but we hung out there for a bit before getting some tickets for cheap and heading to the game!  We were super hard core and sat through the rain cheering our Jackets on for the first half of the game!  It rained the whole entire time, so at half time we made the executive decision to walk to Rocky Mountain to finish up watching the game.  After the long trek back we made it to Rocky Mountain, soaked, and excited to see Tech starting off the second half much better than the first!  It rained so hard that our rain jackets started absorbing water because they were so wet!  Needless to say we were happy to be inside, but even there it was freezing.  We cheered on the Jackets to victory then headed home for a warm, long nap!  After nap time, Tareq and Reza came over and we headed to Ivy for a bit before going to Waffle House for a late night snack.  It was a low key night, but fun to not do anything too crazy.

Tech Game!!!!

Sunday morning came quick, and Joe headed out to play tennis while I cleaned the house and made desert.  My parents were driving down from Greenville to see our house for the first time so we wanted it to be perfect!  After some cleaning, I went and swam for the first time in FOREVER and survived a full 1650 yard swim!  To say the least it was much easier than the open water swim Ag talked me into while I was up in Chicago a while back.  I got home just in time to buzz my parents in, then we had fun catching up, showing them our house, and baking desert for dinner.  They also brought us 7 huge plants to put in our house and on our rooftop that we are so excited to place around the house!  Some while go on the rooftop while others will stay inside until next spring!  We have placed them in our desired spots and we are very happy with the color and homeyness it adds to our place!  Around 4, Joe's parents came down to have dinner at our place and we had an amazing time up on the rooftop grilling out, watching the Falcons, and just spending time with our famillies. Before we knew it, it was time for my parents to go back to Greenville and Joe's parents to go home.  It was a perfect end to the weekend and I am so glad that my parents finally got to see our new home!  Below, you will find the amazing new desert I made, which is a combination of cookie dough and cheesecake and is super easy to make!  Now it is time to pack since I hit the road early in the morning and travel up to Chicago and Baltimore next week!  Enjoy the desert!

Family dinner with my parents and future in-laws!

Just watching the Falcons Game!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars

Crust:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 325°. Butter a 9″-square baking pan. Line pan with parchment paper, leaving enough to extend over the sides. Butter the parchment paper.
Combine graham cracker crumbs and butter until crumbs are moistened. Stir in chocolate chips.
Press crust mixture into bottom of pan and 1 inch up sides. Bake for 6 minutes. Set pan on wire rack to cool.

Cookie Dough:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used miniature)

Using an electric mixer , mix butter, brown sugar, sugar, salt, and vanilla extract at medium speed until smooth. Decrease mixer speed to low and add flour. Mix just until incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips. Shape into teaspoon size balls. Chill while making cheesecake filling.

Filling:
10 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar just until smooth. Add egg and vanilla extract, beating just until blended.
Pour batter into baked crust. Drop cookie dough balls over the top of the filling.
Bake about 30 minutes, or until set but still wobbly in center. Transfer to wire rack to cool.

For chocolate topping, melt 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips in a double boiler or in the microwave (I melted them in a ziplock bag in the microwave). Add about 1/2 tablespoon of butter if necessary to make chocolate smooth. Drizzle over top of bars. Once the pan feels cool to the touch, chill the bars completely in the fridge overnight before cutting.

Using the edges of the parchment paper, remove bars from pan. Cut into bars and serve.

YUMMY DESERT!