Friday, July 15, 2011

…We are getting there

Summer is FINALLY drawing to a close… I have been a working woman again now for two full weeks and aside from the office having no a/c almost this entire month, I am really enjoying myself!

This is about what it feels like in the office everyday!7.511

I have started to get the hang of the computer system and am starting to be able to really fly through applications when someone calls in. Honestly I am thrilled to just get up with an actual purpose for my day now… No more trying to find something to do around the house (although I will always do that) now I get up early have breakfast, coffee, and a shower and hit the road before I would have even been awake last month!

This week also marked the beginning of the end… as my countdowns begin to dwindle. The first of which was Jamie coming to town to take her first medical school board. She came in on Wednesday and got up bright and early on Thursday to go take the test (almost next door to my office, convenient for directions!) and left Friday morning. I love having her here… it is fun to have some familiarity in town!

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She will be back next week (in 6 days) to take her second test… and then we are hitting the road for our FIRST ANNUAL FAMILY VACATION! (a mere 8 days away!!!)

Jamie, Jamie D. and I (sadly Jess-tin can’t attend… we may have to take a picture and pretend he’s there for Jamie D’s sake hahaha)  are hitting Myrtle Beach for a full week… AND THEN the moment we have all been waiting for….

JUSTIN’S HOMECOMING! We are so close to the end of this patrol! (exactly 2 weeks from today, Justin will be at home where he belongs!)

As my countdowns end, I realize that it is a true mark of “growing up” when we countdown to the end of SUMMER… but a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do! Can’t wait for the beach and especially for Justin to get back… we’re almost to the finish line!

Stay tuned!

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

…Loud and Proud

It’s amazing the difference a year makes… I can’t believe that in the past year I have gone from a single “girl” to a married “woman”…from living in Alabama where I grew up and lived my whole life to now living and working in South Carolina… from never imagining I’d even date let alone marry someone in the military to being the wife of a man in the Coast Guard. In the past year I have made friends, lost friends, seen joy and sorrow… rejoiced and had heart break…

But today is the anniversary of a day of GREAT Rejoicing… Exactly one year ago today Justin asked me to be his wife… and although he can’t be here with me to celebrate(he’s still on patrol till the 29th)—I thought I would share some thoughts about how I feel about him and how we have grown over the past year with ya’ll (cause heck—I know that the people who care about us most are the only ones reading this mess hahaha!)

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Thank you for asking me to be your wife one year ago today... You changed my life for the better and I do not thank you enough for being the wonderful man that you are! I am so thankful and blessed to have you in my life everyday for the rest of mine! God truly has blessed us more than we are worthy of and I am thankful to see Him in you on  a daily basis! I am proud to be legally bound to you ;) and would choose you again and again... From the first time I ever said YES to a year ago... All the days in between and after--- I will shout it from the rooftops and always and forevers you will be the one I choose to spend my days with! Ask me any ole time, promise I'll say yes again ;)

Love you more now than I did then!!--so much more than you know!

"and I thought I loved you then..." ;)

You are my one and only!

Lou

Friday, July 1, 2011

…First Day

Today was my FIRST DAY back to work in over 6 months!!! Felt great to have a reason to get up in the morning and—to quote the great Marshall Eriksen “have a reason to put on pants in the morning”—go to work!!!

Ok so I may not look this fly but… you know-a girl can dream hahahatumblr_lkuzywnzAp1qgotnuo1_500_large

I had a good day, got up and made some blue berry muffins and coffee, and my lunch to take with me ;) then got ready with the outfit I had picked out the night before!

It was good, didn't really get to do much there were problems with the computer training system, so I have to wait till Tuesday (After my THREE DAY WEEKEND WHOO WHOO!!!) to actually start the 3 day program. So instead I read a bunch of random literature on company benefits such as…maternity/paternity leave (not that this is pertinent information… don’t go getting your hopes up out there… it was just out there and an available two page read…k? K!-glad we got that straight!), sick leave, fitness discounts (which are only available in IN where the HQ is located...so helpful hahaha!) and the employee referral program (which is how I got the job via Jamie D. he’s gonna get a hefty bonus after I am with the company for a certain amount of time… like a finders fee hahaha!), etc. etc. Tried to familiarize myself with their antiquated email system (it sure ain’t no Gmail— but once I figure it out I will be able to wiz through it in no time!). Organized the desk... you know busy work and a Type A’s dream hahaha!

Hopefully by Tuesday the IT people will have it working and I will be able to start doing actual learning instead of looking busy and twiddling my thumbs, but hey at least I am drawing a paycheck to twiddle now— that’s WAY more than I was doing sittin my hind parts on the couch!

Hope ya’ll have a good weekend!!!

Thursday, June 23, 2011

…Guess that’s a license to shop?

I have officially been offered the position I interviewed for at Springleaf Financial Services!!!!

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My title will be Financial Representative and I will be starting next Friday, July 1…(I know you think that’s weird… but it’s so that I will be in for all the new bonuses for the first of the month.) But who’s gonna complain—work a day and then have a 3 day weekend—SWEET!

So I guess I need to beef up my wardrobe a little bit!!!!(off the clearance rack of course hahaha) I am pumped!

Stay tuned…I’ll keep you posted!

Monday, June 13, 2011

…The Tony Awards Reviewed

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Who watches them? I do every year… are you surprised… I didn’t think so… I know I am an award show junkie, but at least the Tony’s has a back story… I grew up a dancer and SWORE that I would be a Rockette and or dance on Broadway (that is until I learned that 1. I would never be 5’7—a requirement for the Rockettes and 2.HATED tap—a prerequisite for basically all things Broadway (I was more into Ballet)) therefore watching the Tony’s is my way of living out the dream to an extent.

The new shows this season look OUTSTANDING—it would be a DREAM to live in the hub of all of that culture and be able to attend those shows on a regular basis. The winner of Best musical—The Book of Mormon had a small feature and looked HYSTERICAL, I can’t wait till it starts touring (we all know I won’t be making it to NYC to see it!)

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This year Neil Patrick Harris was the host and did an EXCELLENT job! If you missed it, and or the show on the whole… NPH did a wrap-up rap at the end of the show that was SOOO GOOD! He had writers doing it as the show was going on with things that people said as they accepted their awards and while the performances were happening and such... the whole thing ended with him saying go see a "mother ---- Broadway show!"  he bleeped himself out with a little screech (like you might hear in a rap song on the radio) into the mic and then dropped the mic threw his hands in the air and walked off stage! EPIC!  TOTALLY BAD A$$! Don’t worry I am posting it for you to see…

Move over Busta Rhymes! NPH is TAKING OVER!

 

See ya’ll next time!

Monday, June 6, 2011

…Speaking Terms

As some of you may know, Justin left for patrol on Mother’s Day and will be gone until the end of July.

This is the DALLAS (aka Justin’s “Office” and Home away from Home)boat

 

This is us on the day that he left… some of you may remember it from the first day of the Year in Pictures.jus leaving

We mainly communicate via email (if you want to send him an email contact me and I can give you his info) But this weekend they have been in Guantanamo Bay for a few days, and we have been able to talk on the phone EVERY DAY and even on Skype once!

Guantanamo Bay is in Cuba (incase you didn’t know)

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It was so good to be able to actually talk again instead of just email! I can’t wait to have him back home!! We are almost half way there!

Monday, May 23, 2011

…I found a new time Drainer

Pinterest

Have you heard of Pinterest yet? Well if you haven’t you are in the dark! But Let me enlighten you cause it is GREAT!

What is it? Pinterest is like a virtual bulletin board where you can “pin” (or in computer terms bookmark) your “ideas” (in computer terms again…websites) to your bulletin board… it’s really THAT SIMPLE!

Here is a screen shot of some of my pins…

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What do you use it for? So lets say you REALLY like Shoes… (cause let’s face it… I have a shoe problem!) and you are always stumbling upon a pair here and a pair there that you would love to be able to find again. You should have a board called “Shoes” and Pin each pair! What? you also just love clothes? or Interior decorating? Or you are planning a wedding or party… you can have a board for EACH thing you are interested in!!!

You don’t really browse the internet that much? Don’t worry… Other people do the work for you! You’d be SHOCKED at how many of the people that you are already following on Twitter or Facebook are members of Pinterest. You can then choose to follow their boards… either all of them or just the ones that have things that you are interested in as well! SO COOL… then their stuff will show on your home page and you can “repin” it and add it to your own boards!

 

So that’s seriously all there is to it… but it can consume your life! There are so many awesome DIY ideas, ways to design your home, fun new outfits, ways to wear your hair… the ideas that are up there are endless!!!

Check it out! I am in LOVE hahaha

I have already made plans to make 3 crafts I found on there AND am planning my photo wall with a tutorial that I found up there as well!

HAPPY PINNING!

Oh and PS: if you are a pinner already and want to follow me feel free! Leslie@betterthanasitcom

Leave your Pinterest name in a comment and I will check your boards out too!!!!

Sunday, May 15, 2011

…We’re working out

So while the guys are gone Samantha (one of the other Coast Guard wives) and I have decided that we are going to start working out at the gym that Justin and I have been members of since January (he and I only went sporadically)

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  We are going FOUR days a week and doing a rotation of abs and arms then abs and legs… don’t worry I made a spread sheet!

  I am already starting to feel like I have more energy—Yeah my muscles are sore and whatnot but the elliptical machine is getting easier each day! By the end of the 12 weeks that the guys are gone—We are gonna be machines!

Well maybe hahaha

Sunday, May 8, 2011

…A Year in Pictures

  I decided that I would accept the challenge to take a picture every day for an entire year (no matter how mundane) and post it for the world's enjoyment (or mocking). Now with the iPhone reminder set and on repeat...here goes nothing--Check back frequently my life is an open book (well maybe shutter.)

 

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Check back daily for new pictures here!

Friday, May 6, 2011

...BLOG HOPPIN'

Looking for new followers and some new OUTSTANDING blogs to follow yourself? Check out this blog hop! (If you are finding me through the blog hop please leave a comment so I can follow back!!)



It’s Sizzling Week 6 of Finding New Friends Weekend Blog Hop hosted by Shelly from My Saving Game and Jeannette from The Adventures of J-Man and MillerBug! We are finding some fabulous blogs through this hop and having a great time getting to know so many of you!

So thank you for linking up again this week to those of you who are hop veterans and welcome to those who are new!

...I won, I Won!

Well sort of… My friend Mandy at AtlantaMilitaryMom gifted me one of her “Tender 8” Burger King Crown Cards, allowing me to test out the new tenders (For FREE!)

Who doesn’t love FREE FOOD!?

Justin and I went today to pick some up (20 of them, as well as large fries for each of us!) and we were pleasantly surprised! As a non-fan of Burger King growing up I thought that the tenders would be yucky, but I’ll be danged if Burger King hasn’t stepped it up over the past 15 or so years (probably helped that it wasn’t a run down one too.)

As for the official review?

Here is what we got for $10.21!!! (only .21 from the change holder in the car, out of our pocket)


 

Review


  1. Great price… only $4.99 for 20!

  2. Great size…PERFECT for dipping

  3. Great flavor…most importantly (for the 400 lb girl that lives inside of me) these were crispy on the outside, with a really nice batter flavor and had moist white meat on the inside!
Overall we were TOTALLY satisfied with our lunch today… and I dare say that we will most likely return and purchase them on our own dime in the future!

Now…what is in it for you? Head over to AtlantaMilitaryMom and check out her GIVEAWAY to get your own FREE FOOD! (It’s running until the 20th of this month) Good Luck!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

…It’s Facebook Official!

Better Than a Sitcom and Facebook are officially friends! And you can be next!!! Head over and “Like” the page!!!
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You can stay tuned in to all the things that are going on over here AND it will show up on your news feed (or stalker feed as I like to call it ;) )
Can’t wait to see you all there!!!! (PS: don’t be afraid to tell your friends!)

…CINCO DE MAYO!

Who doesn’t LOVE a good margarita?! Thank you Cinco de Mayo for being a GREAT holiday in which we are given an excuse to eat Mexican food and drink margaritas… I am sure that this is what we will be doing tonight!

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So everyone EAT, DRINK, and be MERRY! (and be safe!)
What are your plans today?!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

…Weddings Weddings Everywhere!

I know that many of you probably got caught up in the ROYAL WEDDING just as I did… I absolutely LOVED all of the fashion and the anticipation of seeing Kate’s dress! Here are some of the highlights (in my humble opinion)

Becks  and Posh

THE BEST (next to the royal couple of course!)
ARE YOU FORREAL?! check out her heels..7 inches! and she is 5 MONTHS PREGNANT! And let’s be honest… He’s just pretty!

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Chelsy Davy

Granted her hair isn’t rocking, but the outfit is FANTASTIC! But I guess with Harry as a boyfriend, crazy hair is probably par for the course!!

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Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie

Mock all you will, I REALLY liked Eugenie’s whole outfit and even the Hat on Beatrice… you go girls!

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Tara Palmer-Tomkinson

WELL DONE! and the Shoes! I could DIE!

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Wills and Kate

Not sure the whole Wills thing (apparently it’s a nickname-weird English folks!) But look how STUNNING they both look!
Don’t kid yourself-it’s not because he was a Royal it’s because she fell for a man in uniform…Don’t we all Kate?! Don’t we all!

Prince-William-and-Kate-Middleton-Royal-Wedding


On another Wedding note (maybe a step down the ladder in fame) I was fortunate enough to work a wedding in town today because of a sweet recommendation from my own wedding photographer. It too was BEAUTIFUL--

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photobook

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Thanks to April Kulhmann for the sweet recommendation, and The fabulous Kevin Elliott Wangon for the opportunity! Can’t wait to work with you again!

Monday, April 25, 2011

…Secrets, Secrets

You know the old adage… “Secrets, Secrets are no fun…” Well I usually finish it with ‘unless I am a part of one’ which I am pretty sure is NOT correct :) but that is ok because I only keep them in matters of life and death, and when I am trying to surprise people!

Thus we land on Justin’s Birthday (and Easter) Weekend…

Justin had duty (he’s in the Coast Guard) on Friday night, so Jamie and I decided how great would it be for them (she and Jamie D,) to come down and be here when he got home on Saturday morning. So in true form she and I planned out the ENTIRE weekend and were up cooking pancakes and already packed for the beach when he got home at 9am! He was SOOOOOOOO excited! (although he called us all punks for keeping it from him)

2011 Easter Weekend-1

For his birthday dinner Jamie made THE BEST CHEESECAKE EVER! (a secret family recipe or I would share it with you)

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His birthday wasn’t until Monday, but it was still a celebration weekend… because it was ALSO EASTER!! We decided to try another church in town and really enjoyed it! Then we took classic "Easter Sunday Family Portraits” and even made our own BIG Easter lunch (aren’t we grown?!) I’ll leave you with some more of our “family” and ask…

What are your favorite Easter/Birthday traditions?

EASTER 2011

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Justin’s Birthday

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Saturday, April 16, 2011

…I’m an amateur!

I have conceded… I am not an expert! I know, I know, you are shocked… but it’s true… I have been avoiding the ominous “Linky Party” for a few months now because to be quite honest… I DON’T KNOW HOW

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I found this… THE BARGIN HOOT… she is AMAZING! she gives step by step instructions on how to set up and host your own linky party, and even post to someone else's…

 

SO

With that being said, and in light of yesterday’s post on DWTS… I bring you…

 

MY VERY FIRST LINKY PARTY

(isn’t it nice to see me grow ;) )

So how do you “link up?” It’s easy… just click on the little blue rectangular button that says add your link here. (It’s at the bottom of all the rest of AWESOME TV SHOWS and kinda small) You’ll get directions after you click it.

Don’t forget to link directly to the specific post you want to share. (AKA about your favorite TV show) I didn’t understand how to do it correctly when I first started sharing at link parties (thus why this is my first!). If you need help feel free to ask! I’d LOVE to help with what I can! HAPPY LINKY-ING

Friday, April 15, 2011

…Dancing with the Stars

I don’t know if you are watching this show… or even know this about me but I grew up dancing, and I still LOVE every single thing about it! If I could still be doing it (aka be on this show or any of the others-So you think you can dance to name one…) I would LOVE IT! These people are absolutely living the dream!
Mark and Chelsea Have put together two dances so far this season that I have absolutely DROOLED over!
The Jive
I Write Sins Not Tragedies

The Viennese Waltz
Hedwig’s Theme

For the Finale of classical week…
Macy’s Stars of Dance
Swan Lake

All I have to say is that I didn’t know that this show could get better… they keep combining my favorite things great music, from great bands and movies with even better choreography! I am so excited to see what happens with the rest of the season!

On another note… check out the link to the BLOC HOP for the weekend! You might just find a few new friends!
Have a good one! We are hittin the Ball Field…news about that later!

Thursday, April 7, 2011

…Did you miss the ACMs?

  ACM-2011
  Well technically so did we, but thanks to this new modern marvel we call DVR and the fact that Wednesday night television SUCKS we decided to watch it a few days after the fact! Lucky for you… I also decided to highlight what you missed :) (How great of me I KNOW!)
  Unfortunately for some unknown reason the ambiguous THEY don’t do red carpet coverage on TV for the ACMs… you have to tune in online (dumb!) so I don’t have a highlight reel for that, but I do have the best of the best performances---
Carrie Underwood and Steven Tyler
You know how I LOVE Carrie! And how can you not sing along to Walk this Way?! (Brings me back to High School dance team!) My girl nails it again—you can’t negate it she ROCKS! (and looks DANG good doin it!)

Zac Brown Band and James Taylor
This is a POWERHOUSE combo! This song is chillingly good and I’m not sure there is much left to say!

Darius Rucker
Tears in everyone’s eyes by the end of this… such a sweet tribute. I love how the Country Music Family is always giving back!

Taylor Swift
Just because I HATE mean people too! Not really a big fan of Taylor but her music is growing as she gets older… and her set was cute… well done.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

…More on Gardening

As promised… an update on what MY flowers and plants actually look like…

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  Please observe that for some reason I got CURSED with a PURPLE bloom (the color of DOOM) in the middle of my Ranunculus! It was absolutely NOT purchased in that color… so I am not sure what happened— but I suspect foul play!

  We repotted the others this weekend and I am hoping to find a basket or pot or something cute to put those ugly yellow buckets in… but that will be for another day.

  So far I haven’t killed any of them yet, but the Iris, and the Caladiums are a bit droopy :(

  LUCKILY… Sweet Joann Sent us a care package today with a few gardening tools in it… to help bloom my garden and maybe my green thumb too!

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Monday, April 4, 2011

…I’m learning to be all thumbs

 

Our First Home Finished1

  A couple of weekends ago I decided that I needed some ambiance on my back porch… so Justin and I set forth to the store in search of the perfect porch company.

  Now something you may not know about me is that I am sadly a PLANT KILLER!! (dun dun dunnnnnn) So I was REALLY worried about which ones to get.

  I only wanted leafy plants (cause I figured I could handle that) but the selection on the pretty leaves was slim and I only found one that I loved so I was FORCED to buy some flowers! (of course I made sure they were not going to be pink or purple—I may have told the Wal-Mart worker that I would return them if they came up in either of the two.)

Here are my choices…

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  1. Ranunculus- These are my all time FAVORITE flower (with a close second being Peonies) these were an addition when Joann and Tommy came into town. I was SO excited!
  2. Caladiums- This was my first pick… I LOVE the pretty leaves!
  3. Calla Lilies- This guy was all by himself and I thought I might get a discount on him… but no he was just misplaced!
  4. Bearded Iris- This was the most of the uncertainty…I have seen these in every color and I was buying a yellow one BY DARN MINE BETTER BLOOM YELLOW!

DISCLAIMER: These are not the pictures from my actual plants…I will update you once I have fully bloomed plants…Here’s hoping I develop a green thumb

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Monday, March 28, 2011

…Did you know Pyrex could Shatter like that?!

Justin’s parents got to come to town this weekend!!!!
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Justin and I were sooooo excited and we planned an ACTION PACKED weekend for them, complete with home cooked meals (keeping in line with what we gave up for Lent this year)
It seems a shame that they had to drive so far (Eufaula, AL to Summerville, SC is about 6.5 hours) to only spend the weekend but we had fun none the less!
Friday
As soon as they got here and settled in on Friday afternoon, The three of us went on a little ride around Summerville, just so they could see our digs.
Justin was still at work, pulling the late shift, so it was up to us to get ready for dinner. You know me, I already had the full menu for the weekend planned out… first up, Beth Moore and croissants. It was DELICIOUS (if I do say so myself) as usual!
Saturday
I got up early Saturday morning to make one of my favorites Breakfast Casserole! It was a hit and I already want more! We quickly cleaned up and packed a cooler and headed downtown…
Sweet Jo-mama and Justin before we walked through the market
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Tommy and Joann outside the market.
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Last weekend while Jamie and Jamie were here they suggested that we take a carriage ride and it was SUCH a great idea! It was about an hour long and we learned so much about Charleston’s history.
Our tour guide Gibbs
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His “Lovely assistant” Ryan
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After the tour we left and went to a the Charleston Waterfront Park and Pier and had a picnic (the into picture with the fountain was taken there as well), it was quite relaxing…
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We were planning on cooking out but the weather killed that idea, so we made a quick side trip to the ship yard so Joann and Tommy could see the Dallas (Justin’s ship/office ;) )
Dallas
Joann wanted to make her famous banana pudding for dessert so we decided to swing by Wal-Mart to pick up the ingredients as well as the gas tank for the grill, and boy am I glad we did!!! THEY HAD RANUNCULUS (one of my top two favorite flowers) ! For a mere $3.50 a pop! Jo-mama was super sweet and got us some (instead of the Gerber Daisies she had planned) as a house warming gift to go on our porch….
AREN’T THEY BEAUTIFUL!!!
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We potted them while Justin prepared some yummy lasagna… and then a tragedy occurred… If you recall I’ve already made TWO dishes (that happens to be how many 9x13’s we have) requiring a large casserole dish. Well being that we are not heifers, we only ate half of each so I was pulling them out of the fridge to consolidate (I know you see where this is going)
One of our dishes is from our set we got as a wedding gift
9x13pyrex
The other WAS a beautiful blue color that we had to cover in foil and stack on top but equally useful!
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In the transport from the fridge to the counter the blue one slid off the top of the stack and onto the floor. Resulting in the following:
***REENACTMENT! REENACTMENT!***
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Imagine it MUCH worse and all over the floor… with the remains of the WONDERFUL breakfast casserole meeting its demise in the shards of the Pyrex! TRAGEDY! OH THE HORROR! It all happened in slow motion… Joann tried to reach for it across the counter, Justin didn't register and turn around in time and I just couldn’t make it to the counter… All I could hear ringing in my ears were the famous words of Fred Holmes (My Daddy if you didn’t know) “Two hands for beginners” as he shakes his head.
Oh well life goes on… we own a broom!
Sunday
Sunday we did some easy omelets made to order for breakfast and had a great day just getting everything ready for them to go home. We did a little R and R. While Joann and I traded recipes the men did some around the house honey-dos.
For lunch Justin made a marinade for the steaks (we were gifted for Christmas from Omaha Steaks…GREAT GIFT!) that we were grilling for lunch and we put those together with a fantastic homemade mac and cheese and some grilled corn on the cob.
We had a great weekend catching up and showing the ‘rents around our new town… Can’t wait for our next round of company!
PS: Feel free to email me if you want any of the recipes mentioned in this post. I’d LOVE to help you bring out your internal Betty Crocker ;)