One of my goals for 2010 was to blog more often and to blog things from our every day life. So far this year, I would give myself a C on this. Not fantastic, but not an epic fail either. I got the “blog more often” thing down (still not as much as I would like). I’ve even blogged some more meaningful things, but I have been slacking in the every day life category. The good news is (I know you were worried) that I’ve still been taking photos of some of my very favorite things. You’ll have to forgive me. These are out of order and from lots of different things throughout the year. This spans February until yesterday.
Some people hate the things they grew up being forced to eat, but I find comfort in those things. Growing up poor for most of my childhood when I lived with my Grandma, we ate A LOT of “soup beans”, fried potatoes, and cornbread. Along with other delicacies like bologna sandwiches on white bread, wilted lettuce (yes…that’s bacon grease poured over perfectly healthy lettuce), fried chicken (when we could afford it), greens picked straight out of our back yard and cooked with (you guessed it) bacon grease, pizza bread (aka spaghetti sauce spread over white bread and put in the oven to toast) etc. etc. As gross as they may sound, I still find myself craving these things today, along with my new favorites sushi, seafood, Japanese, etc. etc. I can remember stepping off the school bus and smelling the grease from the fried potatoes immediately. I always loved this smell. I would run down our driveway and rush through the door. This was usually served along side a big pot of soup beans or skillet full of fried chicken. My stomach growls thinking about it. You can imagine my excitement when I learned I COULD cook soup beans without soaking them over night and putting them in a crock pot all day. Thanks to the Pioneer Woman, I realized I can decide I want soup beans and have them ready in a few hours. Yes…I realize most of you probably already knew this. Why didn’t any one let me in on this piece of goodness? Keish…I know this is making you hungry just looking at it isn’t it?!?
This year I also had my first experience of making cupcakes. I had been craving yellow cake with chocolate icing and decided to give it a whirl. I am decent at cooking, but horrible at baking. I love to play with recipes and make them my own. I haven’t really figured out how to do that with baking. So, straight out of the box these came. That’s “semi-homemade” though…right? Now, I did try my hand at making the icing….definitely an F for presentation, but an A for yumminess! The Pioneer Woman swore this would be a nice thick icing, but it ran every where! I am sure this is error on my part. Hers really did turn out thick.
My favorite tree at our house. Isn’t it beautiful in the spring? We thought the ice storm from a couple years ago had destroyed it, but it held strong.
This has already changed so much in a month, but here’s where my toosh is planted the majority of days. It is now filled with more packaging materials, more candy, different inspiration on my board, more letters from clients, and post it notes every where.
Now here’s the real deal. My cupcakes are nothing. I forgot to take a picture of this BEFORE I bit in. One of my absolute favorite places in, well probably the world, is Babycakes Cupcakes in Lexington. I walk in and am instantly filled with joy. The smell of sweet cupcake batter and icing consumes every part of my soul. Then to be greeted with the warmest smile from Tricia (the cute and spunky owner and baker) is just “icing on the cake”. This one was, I believe, the hot cocoa flavor. Oh me, oh my…it was divine.
One of my favorite things about summer are all the plants we have around our house and our garden. We currently have a vegetable garden full of zucchini, green beans, cucumber, peppers, lettuce, and broccoli. Then else where in our yard you’ll find several tomato plants, watermelon, a blue berry bush, and a blackberry bush. Not to mention our beautiful plants that we got to come back this year!!! Yay! I have two beautiful rose bushes that have the sweetest smell and the biggest roses and now a beautiful hydrangea bush. We have so many plans for our yard. I can’t wait to get closer and closer to what we envision!
Finally…my yummy lunch from yesterday. It looked so pretty I just had to take a picture. You see tomatoes, feta cheese, fresh and dry basil, olive oil, cracked pepper, garlic powder, and salt. Oh I can’t wait for our tomatoes to come in so I can have this all the time! yum yum yum!
Peace and much much love,
Cilla
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