Wordless Wednesday: Good Advice!

13 Years And 20 Lbs Ago...

I was recently watching a videotape of my wedding from 13 years ago. It's been awhile since I watched it and I had forgotten that the priest had referred to marriage as a stew.

Well, the first 5 years of my marriage was a very bad stew. An awful, yucky, send it back to the kitchen, check please! kind of stew.

But then around the 5th or 6th year things began to turn around. I had quit my job so I could focus on raising kids and that helped tremendously in reducing the stress and resentment that I had felt. Plus, my husband was slowly returning to his pre-military self. (I'm not knocking the military--it's been very good to us--but basic training can really do a number on someone's personality.)

So now we're living and enjoying life together the way we should've been 13 years ago. I think we finally have a marriage that's comparable to a warm, rich, flavorful, hearty, healthy and satisfying stew.

Happy Anniversary, WD!

My Kind Of Holiday

I'm on a mini vacation in Little Rock this week. My sister has lots of fun things planned for us: shopping, movies, climbing Pinnacle mountain (ummm, we'll see about that one), games and crafts with the boys, and giant potatoes (check that one off the list already--we had Jason's Deli last night and yum).

Right now I'm in the middle of enjoying a cup of coffee out on the balcony but I would be remiss if I didn't let everyone know that today is National Lazy Day. Finally, a valid excuse as to why I'm still in my pj's at 10:30 a.m.

So have a great day everyone. Don't work too hard. And don't forget to stock up on marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate to celebrate tomorrow's excuse to eat junk food holiday--National S'mores Day!

Wordless Wednesday: Scenes From My Sister's Wedding

Take 12!

The last time we made a trip to the barber shop, I was flipping through an old National Geographic while the boys got their hair cut. In the magazine there was a photographer who took an old picture of an Indian chief and recreated the photo with one of the chief's descendants.

I thought that maybe I could give that a try. I found a photo of my dad, taken in the 1940s, and loosely recreated it using my 8 year old son. It's not a perfect duplicate by any means. I didn't get the background right or the brand of overalls, the light was coming from the wrong direction and my son's flannel shirt should have been buttoned up all the way, but come on, look what I had to deal with!

Boo!

Last month we headed up to Eureka Springs, AR for my sister's wedding. It was her second so it didn't come with all the fanfare, hoopla and tradition that tends to overshadow weddings. It was small, informal and very Angie. Just what she wanted.

It took place at the famous Crescent Hotel--if you watch the Travel channel during October they seem to always feature the Crescent during their Haunted Hotels program. But I stayed at the historic Basin Park Hotel which has its own ghost stories. I kept an open mind--expected cold pockets of air to float over me, looked for ghostly apparitions in windows, waited for the radio to spontaneously start playing We've Only Just Begun but nope, no ghosts.

I loved the Basin. The rooms were cute. The food from the Balcony Bar and Restaurant was great. And being able to step out of the hotel and walk over to the Mud Street Cafe for a decadent cherry mocha was a definite plus. Maybe Angie and Billy will bring me along for their first anniversary if they decide to go back next year? I'm pretty sure I could scare the ghosts away...

Rice Pancakes

Now this takes me back. This is something my mom would make whenever she had leftover rice from dinner. It's sweet, simple and soothing. Comfort food at it's best.

But you know what the problem is trying to get a recipe from your mom for a dish she's been making for 40 years? There is no exact recipe! She's all "start with some leftover rice" and "just add a little flour" and "you'll need a lot of sugar" and I'm all "I need measurements!"

So after a few experiments I think I've figured it out.


Rice Pancakes

3 cups cooked rice
1 egg
2 TBS flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 TBS butter

Mix together rice, egg, flour and sugar. Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat. Spoon rice mixture into hot skillet and brown each side for 3-4 minutes.