Monday, June 29, 2009

rainy days

I love rainy days. And when they come in the summertime, they are extra special to me. I love the sweet smell of summer rain as it approaches, and the fertile smell it leaves behind.

This morning I had the pleasure of waking to a rainy day. A stormy day, in fact. The wind chimes swayed in the window, their deep tones accompanying the approaching storm. The trees bent and swayed and the too long grass in the backyard rippled in the wind. And as our quiet home slumbered, I watched lightening play along the horizon and heard thunder grumbling in the distance. As coffee brewed in the kitchen, I waited for the rain to come and refresh my town, and me along with it.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Yep, It's summer!

I just got this off the NOAA website:

TodayHotHi 100 °F
TonightPartlyCloudyLo 70 °F
FridayHotHi 99 °F
FridayNightMostlyClearLo 74 °F
SaturdayHotHi 100 °F
SaturdayNightMostlyClearLo 75 °F

They failed to mention the humidity...

So today I am thankful for:

  • air conditioned homes, cars and offices
  • snow cone stands
  • iced tea
  • sprinklers
  • swimming pools
  • lakes
  • and...the promise of FALL!!

~@my

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Virgil's Father's Day Meal

In our little family we like to make special meals for special days. Stephen ALWAYS picks chorizo and eggs for his Birthday breakfast. This year, I chose Virgil's Father's Day meal based on the fact that all three of us love Indian food and that I saw what looked like an awesome recipe for Chicken Tikka Masala over on the Pioneer Woman's blog. Turns out it was a DANGED awesome recipe. I also made Naan...which also DANGED good!



Here it is all plated up:



Here is the Chicken Tikka Masala recipe from Pioneer Woman's website.

And here is the Naan recipe I used.

yum

~ @my

Saturday, June 20, 2009

simply. The. BEST.

I just love how the best tasting things come from simple recipes. My sister, Carla, makes these brownies. They are simple. easy. Delicious! No extra chunks of chocolate or copious amounts of nuts needed. Simple chocolate heaven! I won't tell you how many of these I ate one night in December of 2008. :)

Carla's Brownie Recipe

3/4 butter, melted
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs
3/4 c. flour
1/2 c. cocoa
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder


Mix butter, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl. Add in the eggs and mix well. Mix all the dry ingredients into a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients to egg mixture and mix well. Spread into an 8 inch square pan. Bake at 350 for 40 to 45 minutes or until brownies pull away from the side of the pan.


~ @my



Thursday, June 18, 2009

Thrift List

I'm in the mood for thrifting. I've never done much Thrift Store/Garage Sale/Flea Market shopping, but that is all about to change. And here is what I'm out to get...and I wanna get em CHEAP. If they're are rusty or scratched, I'm going to redo them. In funky colors.

In no particular order ~

I want to find a plain, wooden queen size headboard to paint for Stephen's room.

I want a vintage circle plant holder for my back patio. Something like this:



And, I want a single one for my living room. Something like this:



I'm also hoping to find a vintage kitchen stool like this:


And here are some other misc items I'm hoping to stumble upon:

Yellow and green depression glass:



And I'd love to find some vintage sheets and tableclothes:




And a milk glass cake stand (or 2!):



Wish me luck!

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Cooking with Dad

My husband makes THE BEST Chicken Enchiladas. Period. I'll match his up to anyone's. PERIOD! :)

He and Ste are in the kitchen making up a batch right now. Let me tell you, the smell is Heavenly!

I sneeked in and took a picture. Two genius cooks at work!





Gotta go taste test the sauce! ~@my

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Thank you Kristen!!


Awww...Kristen - You're a sweet - E! "You like me! You really like me!!" Name that oscar winner...

Anyhooch - thank you for the super sweet award. It makes me feel all good, and well...liked! :)

Anyone stopping by, be sure to check out Kristen's blog - Scrappin' My Bliss.

You won't be disappointed!

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Vacation Pictures

We started out in Memphis and enjoyed Blues music on Beale Street:




The next day we drove to a Tennessee State park:





That night Stephen went to his very first Drive-In movie:



And then we headed for Pensacola...and the BEACH!







~@my

Sunday, June 7, 2009

We're home!

We made it home at about 7:30 p.m. yesterday. We savored sleeping in our own beds. It is always good to come home.

Sharing one minute from our vacation at the beach:

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Guess what we had for supper?



The guys went Deep Sea fishing early Wednesday morning. I slept in. Then read. Then surfed the internet. Then took a nap! Ahhhhh.....vacation!

Then the guys picked me up and we took their catch to Fisherman's Wharf Restaurant in Destin where they cooked up the catch and we feasted on it! The restaurant fried some, grilled some and blackened some. The blackened and grilled were my favorites. Ste and V liked the blackened the most too.

I HEART vacation!!

~ @my

Monday, June 1, 2009

Boiled Peanuts

Today we drove from Memphis to Pensacola. We started seeing roadside stands advertising boiled peanuts when got into the southern part of Mississippi. By the time we got to Alabama, we could no longer resist. We pulled over and Virgil bought some boiled peanuts while Ste and I stayed in the truck. He came back with a bag and said, "Well, I guarantee you've never had peanuts like this before!" I was thinking, "They're peanuts. How different could it be?" Then I reached my hand into the bag and came up with a wet glop that looked like a peanut shell...but it was soggy and dripping. I opened the "shell" popped the two nuts in my mouth and I LOVE THEM! Gloppy mess and all...the nuts are like, I don't know, umm BEANS! Stephen says they are like mashed potatoes. Either way, a fun and unique experience for us.

We're used to our peanuts roasted!