Welcome to another Monthly Scoop post – May 2020! May was a fun month loaded with SO many good things. From yummy recipes, to Mother’s Day, a couple birthdays celebrated, garden updates and monthly favorites, we’ve got a lot to cover! 

Garden/Greenhouse Updates

During the month of May, we started seeing warmer temperatures and greener grass – mowing season is upon us! That also means that the garden/greenhouse updates with my Mom are back in full swing as she masters keeping 40-50 plant varieties alive! You all seem to love it as much as we do, so we’re excited to keep it all coming your way! From garden/greenhouse updates to fun garden posts that we’re putting together, my Mom and I love sharing all of this with you! PS: if you missed out on the “How to Bring Your Dead Planters Back to Life” post, check it out here!

Even though my Mom has a stellar green thumb – I’m just proud of myself for keeping my plants on my back deck alive so far. I’m learning! Meanwhile, she’s been going crazy harvesting different kinds of kale, lettuces, radishes, and herbs. Make sure you’re following along on Instagram to get the inside scoop on all the garden updates!

I’ll have to say, though, it’s become one of my new favorite things in the morning to grab my watering can and go out and water all of my plants. Just taking a few minutes to relax, listen to the birds chirp and spend some time getting ready for the day is so fulfilling!

May Happenings

The month of May really was a busy one for us! With everything going on currently, the hospital wasn’t able to tell me until 2 weeks before if my surgery was still going to be scheduled or moved again. With that, I had to kick my booty into gear to get all of my June recipes/content done before hand so I can still send out goodies to you when I’m recovering!

May also has Mother’s Day – if you missed my Mother’s Day Gift Guide, check it out! You can still use these fun ideas for birthdays too :). Then, we had John’s (my husband) and my Mom’s birthday back to back with Memorial Day Weekend! Whew! It ended up being a fun weekend full of good food, fishing and movies. One night we had steaks with scallops simmered in a white wine garlic cream sauce (pure YUM! Should I do a recipe on this?? Tell me in the comments below!) and the next night kept it low-key with my Ultimate Grilled Cheese and Homemade Tomato Soup while watching The Lone Survivor – what a great movie/reminder for Memorial Day Weekend.

AND – John let me cut his hair! Only took me a couple hours, but not too shabby for someone who has never cut hair before! Haha!

May Recipes

Recipes whipped up this past month started to see a little bit more color – I think that comes from my inspiration of all the beautiful flowers growing and delicious fresh fruits! Experimenting visually with different colors and textures when I’m photographing recipes is something I love to do. Not only are the pictures fun, but also creating these recipes in your own kitchen! As always, I strived to create fun, delicious recipes with easily accessible ingredients that you feel comfortable making in your own kitchen. Click on your favorite recipe below and get to cookin’! If you make any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you! Shoot me an email, post a comment or share on social media tagging @kjandcompany or using #kjandcompany!

Monthly Favorites

1. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’m in LOVE with a few of my current favorites/must have’s from Aerie! They’ve really been doing an awesome job when it comes to comfort and wearability. Here are my current favorite items from them:
   • The Desert Sweater – I have this in several colors (whoops) and it’s one of my favorite go-to’s! You can throw it on over a pair of leggings or pair it with jeans to dress it up a bit.
   • Corded Oversized Sweatshirt – talk about comfort! Every time I wore this my mom said she wanted it, so it ended up being a part of her Mother’s Day gift!
   • The Boyfriend T-Shirt – picture the most comfortable over-size tee that’s been washed hundreds of times to make it ultra soft: that’s what you get in this t-shirt! It’s definitely a new staple for summer! Wear it long to cover your booty or tie a fun knot in the front.
   • Leggings – these leggings have quickly become a closet staple for me. They are SO comfortable. Perfect for working from home, lounging, running errands or light workouts. Major bonus: they work great for getting pedicures because you can actually roll them up your leg! They’re that stretchy! I may have collected a few colors…
   • Bike Shorts – I was hesitant to jump on the bike short train, but these ones are pure gold. Why? Well, quite simply, they don’t make your legs feel or look like sausages! You know what I mean? They have the perfect amount of stretch and are great for every day wear or workouts.
   • No-Show Undies – I was pleasantly surprised by these! They really are seamless, no-show and buttery-soft.
2. Amazon Back Massager – Ok, so here’s the deal, I kept seeing this back massager all over social media and finally ordered it – HOLY SMOKES it is SO worth it! Hands-down best Amazon purchase! I’m looking forward to using this during my surgery recovery. My parents loved it too!
3. Cookbooks – I snagged a couple new cookbooks this past month and love them! The Magnolia Table, which isn’t a new release but I never got it, has been so fun to read through and relate to. And What’s Gaby Cooking new cookbook, Eat What You Want is so fun!
4. Duck Dynasty – So John has been listening to the Unashamed with Phil Robertson Podcast (which is golden!) and that got us into binge-watching all of Duck Dynasty. I forgot how funny, light-hearted and down-home-good this show is!
5. Magnolia – did you know that Magnolia sells items on their website that are separate from what they sell on Target? I sure didn’t! I found a fun terracota serving board and pie plate that I’m excited to use for photos.
6. Crate & Barrel Glasses – to be honest, I orginally ordered these glasses to use for pictures, but both John and I have fallen in love with them! They are just a good-shaped glass.

Next Month

June is going to be a recovery month for me coming out of surgery, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t going to have lots of goodies in it! There will be fun, new recipes and posts to still look forward to. Make sure you’re following along on Instagram because we are doing the first ever Home Cook Takeover Week! This will be the first week of June to take time to really highlight the amazing homecooks out there making it work in their own kitchens! Use the hashtag #thehomecooktakeoverweek to show us how you are rocking it in your own kitchen! 

KJ