bloom

9 month's and counting....

2011-08-03T22:17:00.000-04:00

**Side note...i wrote this about a month ago but never posted it....oops...

I cannot believe D is 9 months!! It has gone by way to fast and I pray most days that time would sloooow down. This age is a lot of fun but very exhausting. D is all about moving and pulling up on stuff. He does not like to be confined in his pack-n-play which is so difficult since I need to get things done around the house during the day. So therefore we are in the process of changing a guest room into a playroom. It is carpeted so it will be perfect for D to crawl around in without me worrying about him falling on the hardwoods or near the fireplace.

Here are some 9 month happenings:

~ pulling up on anything and everything
~ starting clapping (about 9 1/2 months)
~ crawling on all fours
~ started eating blueberries, cheerios, shredded cheese, sliced bananas
~ size 3 diapers
~ wearing some 9 month stuff although it's starting to get tight. 12 month clothes are a little big right now but there's nothing in between
~ loves swimming
~ takes 2 naps, one in the morning and one in the afternoon

out of the garden pizza

2011-07-01T22:27:00.000-04:00

this is one of our favorite dinners to make. it is super easy and you can make it based on what's fresh in your garden.... or fridge! Our tomatoes aren't quite ready to eat yet but our basil is growing like crazy. We could have made some homemade pesto but Trader Joe's makes it so easy for you!

Ingredients:

~ 1 package of martha white pizza crust (follow directions on the back for cooking time and temperature)
~ 1 tomato, sliced
~ handful of basil leaves, washed and dried
~ fresh mozzarella, sliced about 1/2 inch or less
~ pesto for the sauce
~ little bit of olive oil for the dough

Step-by-Step (NKOTB anyone?!)

~ follow directions on back of package. Basically you mix the package with hot water (1/2 cup I think) then roll into a ball of dough, brush with olive oil and let sit for about 5 minutes.
~ After 5 minutes press dough out onto pizza pan, cookie sheet whatever you use to cook pizza.
~ Prick the dough with a fork all over and place in oven for 5 minutes.
~ take pan out and "dress" your pie!

We used pesto out of a jar for the sauce but you could use whatever you like.
We then layered tomato's, basil and fresh mozzarella on the top.
Cook for about 10 minutes.....

yum! Enjoy

kitchen sink granola

2011-06-13T13:42:00.001-04:00

so in cleaning out the kitchen cabinets to make room for D's shelf....yes..he is 9 months old and now has his own shelf, I came across some half filled bags/containers/boxes of dried fruits and nuts. I buy dried fruits to have as a snack and then after a few days of my "eating healthy" kick I forget they are up there. I also had some rolled oats leftover from this recipe. So I googled { i heart google} homemade granola and found my inspiration for my kitchen sink granola. I call it kitchen sink granola b/c well it's basically something you can make from anything under your kitchen sink....ok not literally since most everything under the kitchen sink is some sort of cleaning product but you get the point.

cleaning out the cabinets


Davis' ever growing shelf


Ingredients for the granola

ingredients:

④ cups rolled oats

② cups sweetened (or unsweetened) shredded coconut

② cups sliced almonds ( all I had was whole almonds so I chopped them a bit)

¾ cup vegetable oil

½ cup of honey

1½ cup diced dried apricots

① cup dried cherries

① cup dried cranberries

① bag chocolate chips

① cup raisins

① cup sunflower seeds

** recipe I followed called for ① cup dried figs and ① cup roasted, salted cashews but I didn't have any. It also did not call for chocolate but everything is better with chocolate :)

directions:

⑴ preheat the oven to 350 degrees

⑵ toss the oats, coconut, and almonds together in a large bowl

⑶ whisk together the oil and honey in a small bowl

(4) pour the liquids over the oat mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until all the oats and nuts are coated

(5) pour onto a 13 by 18 by 1-inch pan

⑹ bake, stirring occasionally with a spatula until the mixture turns a nice, even, golden brown, about 45 minutes

⑺ remove the granola from the oven and allow to cool, stirring occasionally. Add the remaining ingredietns. store the cooled granola in an airtight container.

share {because it makes A LOT!}and enjoy!!

......and it is delicious topped with greek yogurt and fresh fruit!

inspiration from here

Mango Salsa

2011-05-16T21:15:00.000-04:00

Super easy Mango Salsa....

ingredients:

~ 1 mango, peeled, pitted and diced
~ 1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped {tissues needed - i always tear up with onions :)}
~ 1 jalapeno chile, minced {i left out the seeds, but if you like it HOT leave them in}
~ 1 small cucumber, peeled and diced
~ 3 Tbsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
~ 3 Tbsp fresh lime juice
~ salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Throw everything in a bowl and mix!

recipe from here

Davis' Baptism!

2011-05-11T21:43:00.000-04:00

Davis was baptized on May 1, 2011 at Peachtree Road United Methodist Church in Atlanta, Ga.
His grandad, (Thomas' dad), Rev. Tommy Martin baptized him. It was such a special day and we were so glad so many of our family and close friends were there. Davis wore a gown that his uncle Matt wore when he was baptized. We had a luncheon after the service to celebrate the big day and Davis slept through most of it! I think he was exhausted from the busy morning :)


Thomas, Tommy, Davis, me


Flo, Linda, Matt, Grace, Tommy, Davis, me, Thomas, Mary

Kelly, Leah, Josh, Anne, Steve, me, Davis, Thomas

me, Thomas, Davis and Lois


me, Thomas, Davis and Martha

Claire, Liza and Allen

Josh, Kelly, Davis and Leah

6 months!

2011-04-27T19:08:00.000-04:00

We can't believe that Davis is already 6 months old! {Actually as I write this he is 7 1/2 months old so shhhh} Time has flown by and all those strangers that told you "they grow up so fast", "next thing you know he will be in college" are actually right. And I find myself saying those same things to pregnant moms who are probably thinking "thanks Debbie Downer". On one hand it is sad to see them grow up but on the other hand it is fun to watch them learn new things and start to do more than poop and sleep.

Above is the face that Davis make 90% of the time. He always looks concerned about something. If Davis could write a bio/resume I think this is what he would have to say:

My name is Williams Davis Martin but you can call me Davis. I weigh almost 18 pounds I have been alive for 223 days or if it's easier for you 7 months and 11 days. I like math. I have counted one tooth but feel others coming in. I usually feel my other teeth coming in late at night and I like to let my mom and dad know they are coming in.

I like to take long walks around the neighborhood or Chastain Park. Other forms of exercise I like are bouncing in my bouncy seat, crawling around the rug in the living room, rolling around in my room and rocking in my chair. I love to read. Some of my favorite books are: Llama Llama Red Pajama, Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, really anything by Mo Willems because he gets me, Tumble Bumble, and..... the Bible :) I love music and love when my dad plays the guitar and sings to me. My favorite songs/bands are Vampire Weekend (this was the first band I "heard" while in my mom's tummy and they aren't as scary sounding as their name implies), Isty Bitsy Spider, There's a Hold in My Bucket, Baby Monkey and anything by Baby Einstein.


Reading with my mom


listening to dad play the guitar

me and mom at music class

I have two dogs that I love to pet and by pet I mean pull their fur by hand fulls. Baxter stays away from me most of the time but Georgia loves to lick me. Here is a picture of me and my dogs.

This is Georgia and she is probably trying to lick my face


This is Baxter and I'm not sure what he is doing but I look scared

I love to eat! I haven't met a food yet that I didn't like. I know my mom works hard to make my food so I put on a happy face especially when eating peas and carrots.
Some of my favorites are:

sweet potato

corn

peas

green beans

papaya

mango

pears with apricots

banana

avocado

yellow squash

pineapple

Foods I don't like are:
carrots


eating some papaya

Toys! I love toys. Especially ones that squeak and play music. For Easter I got Sophie the giraffe and love to hear her squeak.

I also like to play with mommy's necklaces. Maybe I'll get her one of these for Mother's Day.

Chewbeads Necklace

Here are some other tidbits of what I've been up to:

wearing 9 month clothes

size 3 diapers

sleep from 8:30ish to 7:00ish

like to squeal and scream

sleep through storms

has to sleep to "white noise"

love to sleep on my stomach

have I mentioned I like to sleep?

take two naps a day, one in the morning and one after lunch

traveled to the big cities of Albany and Macon

going to meet Mickey and Minnie this summer

ready to go swimming

like to be barefoot

don't like having my "tooth" brushed

can't wait to eat birthday cake in 4 1/2 months!


Davis - 2 weeks old


Davis at 7 months

mom and me on Easter

Dad and me on Easter

Easter Sunday

Easter lunch leftovers: Recipe #2

2011-04-27T16:06:00.000-04:00

So we had a lot of extra food from Easter so here is a leftover recipe for the asparagus and rosemary potatoes.

Asparagus and cheese omelet, turkey bacon and rosemary potatoes..Breakfast for dinner is always good

Ingredients

{1} leftover asparagus
{2} 4 eggs
{3} cheese
{4} bacon or turkey bacon
{5}leftover rosemary potatoes (basically fingerling potatoes roasted in olive oil and fresh rosemary)
{6} fresh fruit

Make an omelet. Stir in the asparagus (step 8 if you are following the steps) and cheese. :)

Heat turkey bacon in the skillet after you make the omelet, heat up the leftover potatoes and cut up some fresh fruit.

Enjoy!

Easter lunch leftovers: Recipe #1

2011-04-27T15:38:00.000-04:00

Our Easter roast was delish but what to do with the leftovers.....

Quick and easy beef tacos:

{1} shredded beef from leftover roast
{2} shredded cheese
{3} can of Rotel
{4} lettuce
{5} tortillas

Mix the Rotel and leftover meat in a saucepan on low heat till warm. Fill your tortillas with cheese, lettuce and any other topping.

Voila!

these are a few of my favorite things....

2011-03-28T23:21:00.003-04:00

so I haven't done a good job of keeping this blog up. I had all intentions of blogging ~~daily~~...~~weekly~~...monthly....yeah that isn't happening. So here it goes.

I love reading other blogs and seeing what some of their "favorite things" are. Favorite Things Oprah style, although I doubt anyone will have a heart attack reading my list. These are some things that I'm loving right now, little things that bring me joy :)

First up: Nail Polish. I love Essie nail polish. It dries super quick, all the colors are pretty, it's cheap and I am super excited that CVS and Target now carry it. These are some of my fav's:

Ballet Slippers

Escapades


St. Lucia Lilac

My next obsession is Chobani Yogurt, the pomegranate one! Delish. There are pomegranate seeds at the bottom.

Two words. Flip Flops. Another two words. Tory Burch. My husband knows my shoe obsession with Tory B. and has brought me a pair back two times after going on bachelor party weekends. (One of those weekends being the time we moved into the parsonage, when I was 7 months pregnant.....just saying....so yeah I deserved them) So if you or anyone you know is having a bachelor party feel free to invite Thomas. Maybe I'll get another pair out of it!

Nerd Alert......This next thing has made my life a lot easier. Making Davis' baby food is super easy with the help of a steamer basket I got from World Market for $4. Why did I not have one of these before? Ok back to fun stuff

Website's that offer deals of 40-90% off top quality goods. I've included a link to the ones I know of....via my invite page. If you purchase something I get credit and then you invite someone and if they use your link you get credit...but you don't have to use my link....but feel free to :)

Totsy http://www.totsy.com/join/leslienmartin

Zulily http://www.zulily.com/invite/lmartin162
Gilt Groupe http://www.gilt.com/invite/leslienmartin
One Kings Lane
https://www.onekingslane.com/invite/LeslieMartin46
The Mini Social
https://www.theminisocial.com/myaccount.php?invitation=59621

Do you know of any other good sites like this?!

Music:
I know Florence + The Machine has been around for a while but I am just now listening to her stuff and {love} it.

Another musician I have stumbled upon recently is Bon Iver. He has a new album coming out in June and a tour for July. Fingers crossed he will come to ATL.

And lastly King of Pops. Being pregnant last summer was pretty rough but one good thing about it was getting in the car and heading to "the corner" to get a KOP. Below is their mission statement....pulled from their website.

Mission: To provide an ecologically responsible, fresh, all natural frozen treat in a fun neighborhood environment.
Our goal is to be a waste free company. All of our fruit waste goes to community gardens; most other supplies are recycled. We strive to throw away less than one bag of trash per week.

Thomas and I giving props to our pops - I just came up with that so don't steal it


Me and Davis enjoying a KOP


Davis dreaming of the day when he can have a KOP

If you are still reading this :) what are some of your favorite things...........

Davis is 6 months!!! Will follow with a 6 month update....

For your furry friends..Homemade Peanut Butter and Banana Dog Treats

2011-03-16T17:48:00.000-04:00

{not pictured - parsley}

ingredients:
~ 1 banana, peeled
~ 1 cup oat flour
~ 2/3 cup rolled oats
~ 1/2 cup dried parsley
~ 3 tablespoons peanut butter
~ 1 egg, beaten

directions:
{1} preheat oven to 300. Put banana in a large bowl and use a spoon to mash it thoroughly. Add oat flour, oats, parsley, peanut butter and egg and stir well to combine. Set aside for 5 mintues.
{2} Roll mixture into 24 balls, using about 1 tablespoon dough for each; transfer to a large parchment paper-lined sheet tray. Use heel of hand to press each ball into a coin sized shape.
{3} Bake until firm and deep golden brown on the bottom, 40 to 45 minutes. Set aside to cool completely.

Georgia couldn't wait for them to cool

Easy Black Bean Burger Recipe

2011-03-12T14:47:00.000-05:00

Black Bean Burgers:

This is a super easy meal with only 6 ingredients.{plus bread and any toppings}

~ 1 can black beans -drained and rinsed
~ 1/2 cup finely chopped green, yellow or red pepper
~ 1/2 cup onion finely chopped
~ 1 egg
~ 1tablespoon chili powder
~ 1/2 cup plain bread crumbs

uno - mash the black beans with a fork
dos - add the finely chopped pepper and onion
tres - mix egg and chili powder together and add to the mixture
cuatro - add the bread crumbs
cinco - form into 4 patties and cook for 8 minutes each side in a lightly oiled pan on low to med heat

{hint hint}: after I formed the patties I placed them in a dish in the fridge so they could firm up a bit before cooking them. They stayed together pretty well.

We served these with our staple side: sweet potato fries and a pecan feta salad.

Yogurt-Marinated Chicken with Mushrooms and Sweet Potatoes!

2011-02-09T18:56:00.002-05:00

Can I tell you how much I love Real Simple?! I find some of the best recipes from that magazine. I wanted to try this one because we had some sweet potatoes left over from this recipe and it just sounded good..... and the picture in the magazine looked good!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt and black pepper
4 4-ounce chicken cutlets
1/4 cup walnuts
2/3 cup quinoa, rinsed well (**Quinoa is one of my new favorite foods. It is a great way to get some protein)
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon plus 3 teaspoons olive oil
1 large sweet potato, peeled and thinly sliced
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded
1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, halved if large
2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar

- In a medium bowl, mix together the yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Add the chicken and turn to coat. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.

- Heat oven to 450. Spread walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and toast, tossing occasionally, until fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes. Let cool and coarsely chop.
- Meanwhile, cook the quinoa according to the package directions, Fold in the walnuts, parsley, 2 teaspoons of the oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.

- Divide the potato, mushrooms, and thyme between 2 rimmed baking sheets; toss with 1 tablespoon of the remaining oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Roast, rotating the sheets once, until tender, 13 to 15 minutes. Drizzle with the vinegar and toss gently.

- Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil in a large cast-iron or other nonstick skillet over medium heat. Wipe the excess marinade off the chicken and cook until golden brown and cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Serve with the quinoa and vegetables.

Recipe from Real Simple, February 2011

my next project

2011-02-01T14:53:00.000-05:00

after painting the nursery with horizontal stripes I think I can now conquer the Chevron Stripe! I need some art on my walls and I don't really want to buy pre-made art so here is my inspiration project.

image from here
the blog I got this image/idea from is great, it's called MakeUnderMyLife, check it out!

Kahlua Souffles

2011-02-01T14:00:00.001-05:00

I bought some ramekins a few years ago at Pier 1 and I have never used them. So that is the first reason why I chose this recipe. The second reason is that it calls for Kahlua! I found this recipe in the Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade Cooking 2 Cookbook.

ingredients:

1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1/2 cup Kahlua
5 eggs
1 package (8-ounce) cream cheese, cubed
Unsalted Butter (used to butter the ramekins)
Sugar ( used to sugar the ramekins)
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
1 teaspoon instant coffee crystals or espresso powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small saucepan, combine chocolate morsels and Kahlua. Heat over very low heat until chocolate is melted, stirring to blend. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Place eggs in blender and blend well. With the blender on, slowly pour cooled chocolate mixture through lid opening. Add cream cheese, a few cubes at a time, and blend until smooth.
Pour into 6 buttered and sugared 6-ounce ramekins or ovenproof custard cups. Place ramekins on a baking sheet.

Bake for 20 minutes or until edges are set but centers are still slightly soft. Combine powdered sugar and coffee crystals. As soon as souffles are done, remove from oven, place each on a dessert plate, and sift some sugar mixture through sieve over each souffle. Serve immediately.

where is the sun?

2011-01-26T11:40:00.001-05:00

days like today are tough. it's raining out so no walks. we are trapped inside. ok, it's not that bad but i do start to go stir crazy. there are only so many books I can read to D before he gets bored, so many times I can stand to hear/watch the Baby Noah video and so many times I can sing baby monkey.

I always wonder what other moms/dads do while they are at home with an infant. I need ideas!!! I'm still not comfortable going out with D alone to Target or the grocery store. I'm scared of being "that mom" with the screaming baby. He isn't old enough to enjoy the kid museums yet, or the zoo.
We are still getting used to a routine and I know it will take a while.

I am thankful that I do get to stay home with Davis don't get me wrong. (I feel that this post was written by Debbie Downer. )

In other news I do enjoy changing dirty diapers......is there something wrong with that?!

there is chocolate in it!!!

2011-01-24T10:00:00.000-05:00

i found this recipe in Real Simple - january 2011. It is easy and delicious! Anything that calls for chocolate is going to be good though :)

Slow-Cooker Vegetarian Chili with Sweet Potatoes

1 medium red onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, choppped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder (i may or may not have added a little more!)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 28-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
1 15.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed
1 15.5-ounce can kidney beans, rinsed
1 medium sweet potato (about 8 ounces), peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
Sour Cream
Sliced Scallions
Sliced Radishes
Tortilla Chips

In a 4 to 6 quart slow cooker (crock-pot) combine the onion, bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, cocoa, cinnamon, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add the tomatoes (and their liquid), beans, sweet potato and 1 cup water.
Cover and cook until the sweet potatoes are tender and the chili has thickened, on low for 7 to 8 hours, or on high for 4 to 5 hours.
Serve the chili with the sour cream, scallions, radishes, and tortilla chips.

Enjoy!!

oh to be a kid again...

2011-01-13T19:11:00.001-05:00

or a kid at heart. i would love this in our home.

photo and more about this {amazing} house can be found here

snow daze

2011-01-12T00:42:00.001-05:00

so ATL got ~~some~~ a lot of snow. it was beautiful. i enjoyed watching it fall from out the front windows.
i was giddy to know that T had a snow day{s}. being home, having no where to be really makes you think about life and what is most important. yes we have gone a little stir crazy but it's been fun staying in, watching movies, being creative with meals {eating the food in the freezer with freezer burn = not so creative} taking D out in the snow in his snowsuit, watching the dogs try to run over the ice.
i could get used to this.

me and davis

can you spot georgia?

baxter checking everything out

T coming home from hunting for our dinner

If i had one hour in one store......

2011-01-04T14:14:00.002-05:00

this is what I would snatch up.

i {love} anthropologie.

Coats by Anthropologie
Clutches by Anthropologie

organize: day 2

2011-01-03T11:37:00.000-05:00

i have a problem....with magazines. I subscribe to 8 magazines. Eight. And I don't have the time to read through half of them. My goal is to keep only the issues for January of this year and to give away the ones from last year. I always say I am going to start a notebook with pages I tear out with recipes I want to try, fashion tips, home decor ideas or articles about parenting I think will come in handy later on. So that is my goal for this year. In the meantime I need to start a bag of magazines for Thomas to take in to work.

magazines I subscribe to:

instyle - i've been reading instyle since....highschool
people stylewatch - love People so this is even better. Combines two things: gossip and fashion. Love reading these at the beach/pool
coastal living - i love the beach and this mag. is everything beach - clothes, food, home furnishings/decor, lifestyle, travel
southern living - my mom always gives this magazine to me as a gift every year. Can't go wrong with this mag. Great southern recipes and highlights on travel spots in the south
atlanta magazine - keeps us up-to-date with all the happenings in the ATL. new restaurants/bars, shops, people, concerts
real simple - LOVE this one. Has everything. always enjoy trying recipes out of this one
southwest georgia living - keeps me connected to my hometown Albany.
parents - this is a new one as of this year. I need all the help I can get

so if you have any recommendations on some good magazines.......let me know :)

organize: day 1

2011-01-02T11:38:00.002-05:00

today i tackle..... my closet

simple living - living simple

2011-01-01T15:08:00.000-05:00

january 1:

so here we go, another year, another list of things we plan to quit.start.learn.create.forget. I've got the usual. Loose the baby weight, eat healthy, save money, live simple. These next few weeks I hope to be able to say I'm sticking to these goals. I've already thrown out all the sweets we had left over from Christmas. Check. I had a salad for lunch. Check. I haven't bought anything today. Check. And living simple will hopefully be my new motto for this year. My new "job" doesn't pay ~~very much~~ anything so this year will be a challenge, a fun challenge.

goals for 2011:

learn to sew
learn to make baby food (with the help of my "push" gift)
not to drop out of my photography classes
to bring out my musical abilities in music classes with Davis
exercise ~~daily~~ weekly :)
be more spontaneous

hope you have a blessed start to your new year

lm

Happy New Year's....Eve

2010-12-31T19:25:00.001-05:00

image

my new year's resolution is to update this blog.....stay tuned

Mint-Infused Hot Chocolate

2010-01-24T21:24:00.003-05:00

Try this low-fat, non-dairy hot chocolate...you will love it!!

Ingredients:

1 mint green tea bag (decaf or regular)
1/4 boiling water
3/4 unsweetened almond milk
2 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp light or amber organic agave nectar
Sprigs of mint, for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

Place tea bag in a cup. Pour water over it to make tea essence, letting steep for about 2 minutes. Squeeze tea bag and remove from cup.
Meanwhile, heat almond milk over medium heat in a small saucepan until very hot, but not boiling. Add to tea essence, then stir in cocoa powder and agave nectar. Mix with a spoon until all the cocoa powder has dissolved. Garnish with a sprig of mint, if desired.

Enjoy!!!

I got this recipe from Clean Eating - Jan/Feb issue of 2009.

La Nouvelle-Orléans

2010-01-05T23:41:00.004-05:00

Thomas and I are in New Orleans for the week for a conference on Evangelism. Before the first meeting tonight we had a chance to walk around New Orleans and it definitely was interesting. Bourbon Street was kinda sketchy, not gonna lie! I can't wait till "free time" tomorrow to walk around and explore and take pictures of the buildings here. I love seeing all the fleurs-de-lis incorporated into the buildings. They even use a fleur-de-lis as the O in Fox news here?! Classic!

Our room has one of those iPod docks and I have been very pleased with the shuffle selection. Playlist for the night:
1. Sufjan Stevens: Angels We Have Heard on High
2. Miles Davis: Flamenco Sketches
3. Peter Bjorn and John: Young Folks
4. Wilco : Sunken Treasure
5. Vampire Weekend : A-Punk
6. Trinity Vineyard : Prayer of St. Thomas Aquinas
7. Rolling Stones : You Can't Always Get What You Want

So yeah, kinda random but pretty good mix.

Goodnight from The Big Easy.... gym will come early in the a.m. but I HAVE to work off the beignet(s) ☺ I ate at Cafe du Monde! Yum!

mErRy ChRiSTmAs!!!!

2009-12-25T23:35:00.015-05:00

(take 1, 2 and 3 (out of 50!!) of our Christmas card picture :)

we hope you and your family had a blessed Christmas!

things we did today:

slept till 10:30!!! (well, just me....thomas is an early riser)
ate a WoNdErFuL breakfast made by Chef GTM
i-chat with my family
watched Christmas movies
went on a walk
watched more Christmas movies
ate a WoNdERfUl dinner!
watched even more Christmas movies

listening to baxter and georgia snoring on the couch

it's been a good day!!

slice of goodness

2009-12-21T21:50:00.007-05:00

thomas and I ate at a wonderful restaurant this weekend and decided to "try" and re-create what I ordered. I definitely think we were beat by The-Hil but hey we tried, using our "kroger" ingredients!

ingredients:
pizza crust - we used Martha White Pizza Crust Mix
mushrooms
honey glazed shallots
fontina cheese
parsley

ingredients for honey glazed shallots:
2 shallots, peeled
5 tablespoons sunflower oil
2 inch piece fresh ginger finely grated
5 tablesoons clear honey

Directions for Honey glazed Shallots:
Bring a pan of water to the boil.
As soon at it hits boiling, turn off and add the whole, peeled shallots. Steep for 4-5 mins.
Drain and refresh under cold water. Allow to cool and drain completely.
Add oil to a wok and bring to smoking. Add shallots and toss for 3-4 mins, or until they caramelize. Add ginger and honey. Toss until shallots are coated.

Directions for Pizza:

make pizza dough/crust according to package or whatever type pizza crust/mix you use

layer on the fontina cheese, honey glazed shallots, mushrooms and parsely.

wait for 10 looooonnngg mintutes and ENJOY!!

seren...be.. right around the corner!

2009-12-10T16:10:00.003-05:00

So this year for Christmas Thomas and I decided to give each other a weekend away...together. We are going here!! Can't wait! Serenbe is a 1,000 acre community located 30 minutes from Atlanta. I love to eat and try new places so I'm excited about eating at The Hil and the Farmhouse. I will be sure to post some pictures from this trip! Check out their website to learn more.

Hi my name is......

2009-12-10T16:08:00.002-05:00

I'm new to this blogging world...I tried it a few months back but then deleted what I posted. I have a feeling I will do that again...but here is to hoping!