Pretty party for a pretty lady

I had a fun and mimosa filled afternoon.....today was Dawn's lingerie party at Taverna. This was my first time at Taverna and I have to give them thumbs up. My food was pretty good, only one small complaint. I ordered Eggs Benedict with crab meat, and while I ate until I was stuffed I wasn't super happy with the crab. The crab was slightly cold and it really stood out since the egg and sauce were warm. I don't have anything to compare it against because it was my first time ordering it with crab instead of ham. Our waiter was attentive and funny and let us sit there for a few hours while we ate, drank, talked, drank, open gifts, drank, and then took pictures. After our brunch, Sarah and I did a little shopping along 2nd street. There are a lot of cool shop's with modern furniture and fixtures, unfortunately there is a big price tag for all of those items.

Dawn opening gifts
Group of gals

Eggs Benedict with crab

There were little bags full of chocolate goodies with these fantastic stickers.... This sticker was made for me.

Sarah, Dawn and me


Light fixture at one of the shops

Sarah... yes, I made her pose for the camera at one of the shops
to cute
God... I am such a ham

Labor Day Weekend


My Labor day weekend was spent doing a little of everything. I worked a little, I painted a little, I hung curtains, I cleaned, I cooked, I laughed, I spent time with friends, I cooked even more for the boys, I hung out at a lake house, I sat in Lake Buchanan and enjoyed the sun, I played with my dogs, I watched a little reality TV, I saw Tropic Thunder, I forgot I put a bottle of wine in the freezer to get it cold faster, then I forgot about it, I found out that I really like Nicole's avocado and tomatillo salsa/dip, and was annoyed by the acorns falling from the tree onto the roof above the bedroom. :o) Whew! I was busy!




Here are some pictures...

Almost done!! The brisket was fantastic,,,, juicy and tender

Cute little shell I found on the beach

The store of Lake Buchanan

Nick playing the guitar

Jim smoking/grilling our first HUGE brisket. I think our brisket was around 8-9 pounds.

Using my empty glass to take a picture using a different view

Nick looking for the lost washer (the game piece, not the big mechanical device we use to wash our clothes :o) )
Checking the draft boards the next day

Dock by the lake

Chris and Jim
Lindsey and Chris

Jim's fantasy football draft board

The "den" before... more after pictures in a different post

The ladies over for dinner

Yummy Rolled Chicken Breasts.... recipe to follow in a different post
Roasted pork loin... came out a bit dry but not terrible

Picture from the past

During the garage sale at my Dad's house, I came across his high school year books. I couldn't help myself, I needed to take a picture of his high school picture. Look at all of that hair!!! He has been bald since I can remember! :)

Spending time with the family

We spent time with the hubby's side of the family a few weekends ago. We enjoyed lunch at Cracker Barrel then went swimming. Cracker Barrel has fantastic comfort food. YUMMMMM! The boys enjoyed swimming more than the adults on this day. We were all stuffed from lunch and didn't feel like swimming. But I don't think the boys cared that they had the pool all to themselves :)


Dawson, Jamie, and Caden

Ryan with his water gun,,, splashing his uncle Jim

Ryan the new Scuba Steve

Shhhhhhh! Don't tell Chewie and Taylor that I was kissing on another doggie :)

Jimmy under water

Takin a big ol' breath

Watch out,,,, a future football star!
Buster, the in-law's dog

Orange Cake. Jim is a huge fan of his mom's orange cake.

Of course I have to take his word for it :)

Stuffed Mushroom Caps



Last week Jim had an early softball game, so that meant that I was on my own for dinner. I decided to make stuffed mushroom caps. I am not a fan of mushrooms, but for some reason I can look past my dislike for mushrooms when it is stuffed with a yummy filling. I didn't really have a recipe, but I really enjoyed my meal! I paired the mushrooms with a nice salad.





Stuffed Mushroom Caps



1 portabella mushroom caps, with the weird gill things scraped out and stem removed. (I am sure there is a technical term for the soft brown stuff under the cap, but they look like gills, so I am going to continue to call them gills)

1/2 brick softened cream cheese

1/2 chopped red bell pepper

1/2 chopped onion

1 garlic clove smashed and chopped

4 marinated artichokes, chopped

1/3 cup bread crumbs

1/3 cup parmesean cheese

dash salt

dash pepper

dash cayenne pepper

Saute the red bell pepper, onion, and garlic until soft. Add the artichokes to heat through. Once cooked, then add mixture to cream cheese, bread crumbs, parmesean cheese and spices. Once mixed together, add it to the mushroom cap. Drizzle with olive oil, and cook for 15-20 minutes in 350 degree oven.