Jessica Merchant's Blog, page 58

July 7, 2024

A Week In The Life, Vol 28.

What a week!!

We had such an amazing 4th of July week over here!!

Started out with the water bounce house in the backyard! Pandemic purchase still going strong.

This little bubba boy!

Then we went to Kennywood with a bunch of cousins!!

It was such an amazing day!

Weather was hot but breezy. It wasn’t too crowded. Everyone had a blast, got along and it was the best day!

In the splash zone!

They were soaked.

Cutest!

Cutest again.

This was our crew minus one. It was SO fun.

Had to finish the day with some ice cream!

Soft serve, always.

End of day exhaustion.

Next up, 4th of july! I made this on the fly and am recreating it for you this week. YOU NEED IT.

These kids live for our family parties just like I do.

This was also my contribution.

So good.

A little rainy and overcast but still so fun.

These two are having a blast together this summer.

Being BFFs most of the time!

Don’t worry, we still fawn all over this one too.

Max and Emilia helped with dinner too!

Red white and blue!!

Home to watch fire works!

Forgot they don’t go off until like 10pm.

We could see them for hours!

Here’s what else we did!

Went to see Despicable Me 4.

New shades for running!

Cross country fun run.

It was HOT.

Tomato toast season!

I also make the best sandwiches for Eddie every weekend.

We also went to the baseball game!

Anyone remember this shirt from when Max wore it when he was 2?!

We had so much fun!

Fave baby boy.

PNC park is the prettiest.

Fun with friends!

And back to real life this week!

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Published on July 07, 2024 17:18

July 6, 2024

Currently Crushing On.

currently crushing on

Happy weekend!

This week on the blog I shared these queso hot dogs. And a ton of 4th of July recipes that are perfect for the summer! There’s also a new summer fridays post.

And here’s everything I read in June!

You can find my summer entertaining favorites here as well as some 4th of July favorites!

There’s a new weekly menu and a peek at a week in our life.

You can join The Everyday Dinners cookbook club right here! If you have a copy of the bookrequest to join the group. If not, get one here!  Ready to start on fall! It is such a wonderful community and an amazing place for recipe ideas.

xoxoxo

WHAT I’M LOVING THIS WEEK

Watermelon lemonade sounds divine.

Best street corn pasta salad! Yum.

Strawberry coconut cake. Gorgeous.

A perfect tomato tart.

Melon caprese salad is a beauty.

Can’t beat an ice cream sandwich.

Garlic parm chicken skewers. Craving these.

Gorgeous fruit pizza.

Red white and blue layered drinks! Love.

Need a blueberry dutch baby this weekend.

OMG. These parmesan garlic wings!

Lemon zucchini pasta. Delish.

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Published on July 06, 2024 03:30

July 5, 2024

Summer Fridays, Vol 6.

summer fridays

Hello, perfect summer friday!

EATING

My old bay crab mac and cheese. Our favorite peach bruschetta. And this summer stone fruit couscous salad!

DRINKING

My summer tequila fruit punch. And a classic orange crush!

MAKING

My BLT chopped salad with feta, corn and avocado. Super old recipe, but one of the most popular!

BAKING

My triple berry cream cheese coffee cake. And my summer tomato pie!

CRAVING

This oreo peanut butter pie. And my chimichurri cheese fries.

GRILLING

My grilled vegetable orzo salad. And these smoky grilled chicken nachos! Also, marinated grilled peppers with burrata and grilled sweet potatoes. YUM.

LISTENING

To this summer pool nights playlist. It’s so good.

READING

Starting Jackpot Summer this weekend. Here’s my summer reading list if you need inspo.

WEARING

This maxi dress on repeat. Oh my gosh, it is SO comfortable. I also can’t get over this shorts set that looks identical to the varley one. I adore it.

SHOPPING

I just bought another Tineco mop as a gift for someone. I cannot even express how amazing this has been working in my house, on all the floors. It’s life changing! Also just got these cooling towels. Also just grabbed these deodorant wipes to store in our summer bag! They are individually wrapped which I love.

SHARING

My summer essentials here and the kids summer favorites here. A few highlights include this jumpsuit, the thirsty stone coasters I have for our deck (love!), these frozen double walled glasses and my fave sunglasses going on like six years now.

LOVING

If you have kids and don’t have a turkish towel with you at all times, you must! It’s so thin and lightweight, can roll up tightly and more importantly, dries ridiculously fast. I’ve had this one for a million years but I also recently grabbed this six pack on amazon and have been using them nonstop. Also, I must praise the longchamp le pliage tote for the hundredth time. I’ve talked about this for years but nothing beats this tote, especially with kids. I love that it zips. I took it to an amusement park all day and it fits so much. I have the giant one that I’ve used for traveling since 2013. Last week I mentioned the tiny one. They are on the pricey side, but truly last forever.

CELEBRATING

We’re still in full blown 4th of July mode over here! Celebrating all weekend with some fun activities!

summer fridays

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Published on July 05, 2024 03:30

July 3, 2024

What I Read In June 2024.

june reads

Here’s everything I read in this first month of summer! Lots of great ones.

I shared my giant summer reading list a few weeks ago – you can find it here!

Let me know what you’re reading below!

I do have a book of the month membership – I love it so much. That’s where I got a few books from this month. I get so many of my new releases and debut author books there. You can sign up for one here.

All of these books are linked through bookshop (if available!) and I highly suggest shopping through there because it will support your local indie bookstore. You can choose the local bookstore to support! I support Penguin Books when I buy which is my fave here in Pittsburgh.

WHAT I READ IN JUNE 2024Swan Song – 5 stars

I can’t! I can’t believe I’m already talking about Elin’s final summer novel. I obviously loved it. We’re following the police chief (who has a role in a few other novels, but this is a stand alone book) who is seconds away from retiring when drama strikes on the island! It’s true, classic Elin and such a good read. Also, the ending. I wanted to bawl my eyes out! Now that I’ve read it, I think I might listen to the audio version too.

Summer Romance – 5 stars

I LOVE the first few books of this author and I couldn’t wait to read this. It didn’t disappoint!! Huge huge fan and I loved it. I love that her books usually have slightly older (read: 30s, haha) female characters. This story is no different and follows Ali who is recently divorced and meets a guy in the park when her dog pees on him. This was such a heart warming, cute, loving story and I loved Ethan as a character so much.

A Happier Life – 4 stars

Oh how I loved this one too! Again, another book I was majorly looking forward to. This is sort of historical fiction as it’s told in dual timelines of present day and 1976. We follow Keaton who decides to get her grandparents’ house ready for sale, but there is some mystery involved in their lives. This is so heartwarming and sweet and I just loved it! Also how dreamy is the name Sunset Lane? I want to live there.

The Paris Novel – 4.5 stars

Another great one. I adored the premise of this. The story is about Stella and when her mother dies, the only inheritance she has is a plane ticket to Paris. She ends up going and having such an amazing adventure. As expected, the food description is out of this world and I could practically taste it. This was such a good escape for me and I loved the vivid imagery and descriptions. Highly recommend!!

The Midnight Feast – 4.5 stars

I was highly anticipating this book as well. It did not disappoint! It may be my favorite of her books?! The story is about a murder at a resort on the summer solstice and there are SO MANY TWISTS!!! I couldn’t put it down and was in suspense the entire time. This is also told in dual timelines with many characters. But it’s done so well and it isn’t confusing. The ending is so good.

The Next Mrs Parrish – 3.5 stars

Ugh, I am unsure how I feel about this. So I didn’t love the first book because the characters are just SO terrible, but when I saw that this was coming out, I couldn’t stop thinking about it! I had to know what happened. You definitely need to read the first book before this. This story continues to follow those characters – Amber and her marriage to Jackson, Daphne and it does get a little twisty but nothing crazy. The characters are so unlikeable and I hate hate hate the storylines having to do with the kids.

(This is not sponsored but there are a few bookshop and/or affiliate links above! Thank you for reading!)

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Published on July 03, 2024 19:25

Your 4th of July Recipe Guide!

Sharing my 4th of July recipe guide, with 60+ delicious recipes to make for the most fun summer holiday! Snacks, apps, stuff to grill, burgers, salads, desserts, drinks and more. You can find everything you need right here!

The 4th is going to be extraordinarily delicious!

We’ve got salads and dips and tons of red, white and blue. Of course burgers and hot dogs with pasta salad sides and corn. All the best of the best! Cocktails and mocktails and everything you need to make this weekend off-the-charts incredible.

I love to do a classic BBQ menu with lots of red white and blue desserts and apps. Berries are so fabulous right now that it makes it easy! Lots of my favorite summer recipes are on this list and you can’t go wrong with any of them.

What are your plans for the 4th this year? Let me know what you’re making below.

4th of July Recipe Guide – 60+ Recipes for the 4th of July

10 minutes best grilled bruschetta 

Chimichurri grilled feta

We adore this peach burrata crostini. It’s so good. (more…)

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Published on July 03, 2024 03:30

July 2, 2024

Tuesday Things.

tuesday things

1. Yesterday I dropped (and by dropped, I mean basically threw) an entire blender full of cilantro lime dressing across my kitchen. OMG. I have never seen such a mess. I think I will find green splatters for the rest of my life?!

2. Need this mexican street corn pasta salad!

3. I live for when the month starts on a MONDAY. So good.

4. Recently got the airpods pro max headphones and whoa – they are so heavy, I feel like a brick is sitting on my head. Give me your best light headphones rec!

5. The only way to cut a sandwich.

6. TV things!! Watched A Family Affair and I actually thought it was cute and funny and liked it!

7. All the types of pizza that we need to know.

8. We also watched the olympic trials ALL weekend, we have been having so much fun! The kids are super excited for the olympics. Swimming, gymnastics, running!

9. How to read words on the internet. This is excellent.

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Published on July 02, 2024 03:30

July 1, 2024

Tortilla Crunch & Queso Hot Dogs.

These queso hot dogs are such a fun twist on the classic hot dog! Grilled hot dogs with melty cheese, jalapeno peppers, tomatoes, scallions and crushed tortilla chips are a dreamy summer dinner.

Sweet sweet summertime! 

tortilla crunch queso hot dogs

These queso hot dogs are a summertime dream. Grilled hot dogs topped with melty cheese, chopped tomatoes, jalapenos, green onions and a crunchy tortilla chip shower. 

Wowza!

tortilla crunch queso hot dogs

It’s no secret that I love a good hot dog. I LIVE for the perfect hot dog in the summer. I’m fine with one. 

If I have the chance to have another in the summer, I go full-on hot dog bar. There is nothing better.

tortilla crunch queso hot dogs

Hot dogs, All the toppings. Lots of cheese. 

It speaks to my soul!!! 

tortilla crunch queso hot dogs

It always feels FUNNY to post a “recipe” for a hot dog. We all know this isn’t really a recipe. A hot dog is not a recipe.

Even if it has flaming hot cheetos!

In this case, grill it, pop it in a toasty bun, drizzle it with your favorite melty queso and top it with jalapenos, tomatoes, scallions and crushed tortilla chips. 

Yum yum yum. 

tortilla crunch queso hot dogs

This is embarrassingly easy, but it’s fun! I use my classic queso recipe and have it ready to go as soon as the hot dogs come off the grill. You can make that queso and keep it warm in a tiny slow cooker. That way, your guests can drizzle it on their hot dogs or buns or even tortilla chips on the side! 

tortilla crunch queso hot dogs

And let’s be real – you don’t even have to make your own queso. Yes, I love my recipe. But if I’m in a pinch, I’ll grab the tub of queso from costco (it’s so good!) and throw that in a slow cooker. 

Who can resist these?! (more…)

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Published on July 01, 2024 03:30

June 30, 2024

A Week In The Life, Vol 27.

I love this last week of June!

This is what we did!

Emilia had tennis camp all week! She’s done this camp three years in a row and loves it so much. It’s super fun.

Beating the heat in the water bounce house.

We made some frozen lavender lemonade too! Recipe is in my next book!

Looking so old!

Him too.

This is the sourdough sandwich bread I make!

Cousin cuddles!

This was SO fun. The kids had a blast.

Hehehe.

Perfect tennis weather!

And the cutest tea party after.

I can’t!

Sprinkles in strawberry tea.

My favorite girl.

So tall!

Made the kids grilled cheese on my sourdough!

All my herbs + plants are going wild because of the heat, watering and rain.

Emilia’s dogs. Not even kidding.

Cross country is slowly starting up again with some fun runs!

Love it.

Um how is he suddenly 12 years old?

LOVES Max. Calls for him to come get him out of his crib every morning.

The built in BFFs.

Took a little adventure for burgers and mini golf.

Finally have a Shake Shack and my life is complete.

How am I so lucky!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is what happens when Eddie orders the kids ice cream. Double scoops.

I mean!

Ice cream + watching the olympic trials all weekend!

And the coolest rainbow.

How stunning are my aunt’s hydrangeas?!

Swimming fun!

We got to cuddle baby Lucy too!!!

Just having our own olympic trials over here!

Wheeeee!

Jordan loves the water more than anyone!

And now we’re into the second half of the year! HOW!!??

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Published on June 30, 2024 19:02

Jessica Merchant's Blog

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