Books, Books, Books

I've always been an avid reader. I think it may be genetic. My mother and her sister always had a book they were reading, a book they just read, and the next book to be read near them. As I child my mother read to us every night. I still remember "Rebecca of Sunnybook Farm" and "The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew" being read aloud to me. One of the more exciting things for a reader is to find a book so good, it can't be put down. Hours each day must be spent in the book. Once finished, that book must be shared with friends. In the last few days, "Room" was that book. Written by Emma Donoghue, it describes the world of a 5 year old boy who has spent his entire life in an 11' X 11" foot room with his mother. What could be a depressing story is creative and endearing. Though not usually the description of my typical read, it was great. "Jack"'s mother makes a life for him where he is happy and thriving. When their lives are changed, it is remarkable to see the whole world as a brand new experience from "Jack"'s perspective. His mother's struggle is very honest. The book keeps you wanting to know how their lives will play out, and how beautiful the mother-son bond is between them.

If you get the opportunity, buy it or borrow it. I hope you are as drawn in to "Room" as much as I was. Let me know what you think.

Tequila Lime Chicken

Tonight was Tequila Lime Chicken from  a Barefoot Contessa Recipe along with a Corn, Black Bean and Tomato Salad from Giada. Both of these turned out great, if I do say so myself.

The chicken was marinated overnight in Gold Tequila, fresh lime juice, chopped jalepeno, garlic, fresh orange juice and chili powder. Since Bruce is our resident grill expert, he got to participate and grilled them to perfection.

The salad included the corn, black beans, onion, tomato, jicama, cayanne and paprika. It is dressed with a sauce of lemon juice, lime juice, zests, olive oil and agave nectar. This was especially fun to make because I'd never used jicama or agave nectar before. Definitely a recipe I will make again, and Bruce gives it two thumbs up, he loved this stuff, he was eating it while the chicken grilled!

I felt like the sunflowers would be a fine plating for this dish, and brought out the plates, sunflower napkins and even the sunflower goblets. I'm a firm believer that pretty dishes make any meal better.

It's exciting for me to know that there are actually some of you reading these posts. I've heard that some of you weren't able to post feedback, so hopefully I've fixed that. For those that have asked, I got both of these recipes off of Foodnetwork.com.

My sister-in-law will be visiting us next week, so the planning for next weeks meal has already started. Not sure yet what it will be......any suggestions?

Yummy Pot Roast

For this weeks dinner I tried a new pot roast recipe from Ina Garten. After browning the dredged roast and removing from the pan, onions, carrots and fennel are sauteed in the same pot. Then red wine, chicken broth, garlic, salt, pepper and a little cognac are added. Back in goes the roast with a bundle of rosemary and thyme, to cook for 3-4 hours. Once the roast is cooked and removed to the cutting board, half of the remaining liquid and vegetables are pureed in the cuisinart, then added to the pot with a little flour and butter

to make a yummy sauce. It was a tasty change from my usual simple pot roast and one we both liked, it is definitely one I'll do again.

A Rock Chalk Weekend

For Sara's birthday gift, we took a trip to a KU basketball game over the weekend. It was a blast to meet up with family and friends, to see the refurbished field house, and to go to a winning game. Can't you just feel the excitement in building as you see the signs going to the basketball floor?Sara and I loaded up on new KU shirts, jackets, jewelry, socks, plaques, etc. Here we are in our new hoodies, just before leaving for the game. So excited, and we weren't even at the Fieldhouse yet!

We also got to see snow while we were in Kansas. Here with are with our friend Sallie, in our rental car convertible, surrounded by snow. Thank goodness it had warmed up.

The game was terrific, the crowd was loud and excited and best of all we beat Iowa State easily. On the scoreboard you can even see Bill Self shaking the loosing coaches hands. It just doesn't get much better, unless ......

you see Wayne Simien in the halls and he has his picture taken with you! It just kept getting better and better.

Sara and I both had a great time, saw best friends and our best team. I'm happy to have the best person to share it with in my daughter.

Top Number One, All Done

The first quilt top of 2011 is finished. I'm not usually a "scrappy" quilter, but I saw this pattern and loved the idea of taking all these small peices and playing with the colors to make the pattern. I had all of the fabric left from various civil war era quilts I had made, so all I needed to purchase was two yards for the sashing. The pattern name is Barn Raising, it came from a pattern I found at "Quiltville". It measures 100" by 100". This top is probably the most time consuming one I've made, but I loved the whole process. I think I learned a little bit more about patience along the way, too :). Now I just need to make the binding and the back and get it off to Jody, my long-armer.

My 30 Year Old!!

Wednesday was Sara's 30th birthday! Since everyone was working, we postponed our celebration to Friday. During the day Peyton and I went and did some shopping. With his past history of gift selection for his mama I was a little hesitant (this is the child who picked the giant Santa hat!!). However, he marched into the "PussyCat Boutique" with me, made a bee-line to the jewelry counter and with much deliberation chose a really cute pair of earrings! A pair of Miss Me jeans caught his eye after that, score another one for the big guy. As we headed to the counter to pay, one last item caught his eye - THE SHOES. In his mind they were a must have for his mama! 6 inch heels, suede, animal print - well what good Grandma could say no to that? We got back to the house where the little guy whipped up some cupcakes, wrapped his presents (grandma only helped a little bit), and waited for the birthday girl. She was so delighted when he ran up with his presents yelling "Happy Birthday"!!!!! Of course Sara love the gifts, the earrings were put on immediately, jean tried on, and shoes placed back in the box for return :)!!

I can't believe my daughter is 30. Time has gone so fast. When I think of you, Sara, I see

My baby girl who could charm an entire grocery store with her smile
A three year old bumblebee doing her first recital
The six-year-old big sister making sure her brother didn't fall off the teeter-totter
My ten year old diagnosed with terminal cancer, who proved the doctors wrong
A beautiful ballerina in white, dancing to the music from "Forest Gump"
My little girl driving off to Lawrence High on her first day in her new car
Boldness as you step on the stage for the "Miss Lawrence Teen" pageant as if you had been doing this all your life
I see your back heading in to your dorm as we drop you off at KU
Our house filled with girls, laughter, dance and cell phones when you and all of the Crimson Girls stay with us
Your bravery as we drive your little Eclipse to Tucson, so you can begin your life in Arizona
Your passion for little boy, before you even saw him.

I love you with all my heart, dear daughter. Through your joys, sorrows, successes and struggles you have shown your strength. You are indeed small but mighty. You have a huge heart. XOXO

First Dinner of February

It is windy and turning cold (for Arizona) outside tonight, so it was the perfect time to try out these recipes. Below is a picture of the Jalepeno Cheddar Cornbread I made. It turned out amazing! The first time I've ever made cornbread from scratch. It has jalepenos, butter, sharp cheddar, butter, cornbread and more butter. Thank you Ina Garten for another fabulous result! I also made a chicken corn chili recipe. My first time for a chicken chili and it was pretty amazing, too! Even the DH says so. Lots of shredded chicken, corn, white beans, onions, jalepenos (it was a hot chili night!), and spiced tomatos. Thanks to my good friend Trish for the recipe.

I even think my photography is improving a bit. I find myself planning what dishes to use for each meal to get the best picture!