Menu Planning Monday: Happy Spring and Welcome April

WOW can you believe it's April this week?? I can't! Oh, the proverbial time flying away, etc, etc...

Anyway, here's the plan for this week.

Dinners:

Monday: Parmesan Crusted Chicken with White Wine Sauce (from Allrecipes.com from iPhone app=no link)

Thursday: Chicken Caesar Salad

Weekend: Grilled Chicken Kabobs with Broccoli Rice Goodness

Travel Thursdays: Downtown Asheville Dining

Asheville is in Western North Carolina, right in the heart of the Carolina mountains. Scott and I visit at least twice a year, mainly because his grandparents live near Asheville, but also because we just love the area! We have been during all seasons, at Christmas time, Apple Festival, Thanksgiving and the ensuing shopping madness, gorgeous fall leaf season, summer....well, you get the idea.

There's no shortage of restaurants, cafes, coffee houses, and food shops in downtown! Here's our short-list of favorites!

*Bouchon, French bistro.

We discovered Bouchon on our last visit to Asheville, and I was so excited to find this wonderful, authentic French restaurant! French cuisine might scare some away, but give it a try! I had the Beef Burgundy and Scott had the Steak Frites. The Steak Frites was the best I have ever had! Their crepes are also very good and we tried the dessert crepes with strawberries! Located on Lexington Avenue, parking on the street. And, this restaurant is owned by a "real Frenchman"...a plus in my book! The atmosphere is great...sting lights, exposed brick walls, close tables...all give an authentic French cafe flair. The owner also can be seen walking around his restaurant, greeting visitors and his regulars. Tres bien!

Mmmm....dessert crepes!

*The Chocolate Fetish, gourmet chocolate shop

This is a must-do whenever we are in the area...even if we don't spend time downtown, we will drive in and go the the Fetish. They hand-craft European truffles and chocolates right there in their shop. If you look past the sparkling display cases you can catch a glimpse of marble-topped work tables in the back room. My favorite truffle they make is Velvet Sin. It is the absolute best thing you will ever put into your mouth. It tastes sinful and heavenly all at the same time! Others to try are Ancient Pleasures, dark chocolate infused with Cayenne pepper; Wine and Roses, red wine, chocolate with a candied rose petal on top; Dragon's Kiss, infused with a touch of wasabi with sesame seeds sprinkled on top; and Grand Mariner, with a hint of that famous liqueur.

*Salsas Mexican Caribbean, Latin restaurant

We stumbled upon this tiny restaurant for lunch one day while wandering around Asheville. This is not your typical Tex-Mex fare that you might be used to! The ingredients are fresh and colorful and the savory smell is wonderful! They are open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week and are located in Patton Avenue. They make unique salsas in-house; try the Mango and Roasted Pepper! I had the Fire Roasted Chicken Quesadella, the ancho on the side, and it was great! The portions are large too!

*Bistro 1896, American cuisine

We stopped here once for a Sunday brunch with the "kids" (our college group) and everyone loved the food! There was something on the menu for all tastes, from French toast to omelets to shrimp and grits. We had been on a retreat at the near-by Lake Lure area and stopped in downtown on the way back home. I don't remember what I had to eat, but I do remember everyone being happy with their meal! That's pretty good when there's 15 people dining together! The ambiance of the restaurant is laid-back, but not too casual and has an eclectic feel. The walls feature local artists who use the city as their inspiration.

They have a cool lounge area that we waited in before we were seated!

So what about you? Any places that you have discovered? Where do you like to eat when you travel to Asheville?

From Me, To You

Rachel of RachelJones Photography, started this nifty little fun thing! I responded to her blog post, so now I will pass this on to YOU!

The first five people to respond to this post (from my blog and/or FB) will get something made by me.

This offer does have some restrictions so please read carefully:
- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make.
- What I create will be just for YOU.
- It will be done this year (2009).
- It will be something made my own two hands.
- It might be a mix CD, a knitted scarf, stack of cards, a poem, baked goods, an original photograph....the possibilites are infinite.

In return, all you need to do is post this on your blog or facebook and make 5 things for 5 other people. Pass it on!

Menu Planning [Tuesday]: March 16-22

I had a nice, long, 4-day weekend, so that's why I have not posted in a while, and you are getting your reader barraged by posts today! Here's this week's Menu Plan!

Breakfasts:

~Oatmeal

~Bananas

~Fruit Parfaits

Lunches:

~Lean Cusines

~Apple with low-fat peanut butter

Dinners:

~Grilled chicken kabobs with brown rice

~Spaghetti with meatsauce

~Grilled steak and potatoes

Creative? Nope...I was in a funk this weekend because of the rain and my brain just was not functioning correctly. I am very happy to see sunshine outside, even if I am stuck in my cube all day...

Survey Time! Couple's 25 Questions

This is kind of like the 25 things - except they are pre-decided questions, and they're about you and your spouse, not just you. Come on, play along - inquiring minds want to know! ;-) Once you've been tagged, send it back to the person who tagged you, and all those you want to do it as well!!To do yours: copy and paste to your notes/new note. Highlight these answers and replace with your own. Do your tagging, and post!!

♥ What are your middle names? Marie and David...I get really annoyed when people ask me that question.

♥ How long have you been together? Married for over 7 years, but together for almost 12

♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating? Well, we've actually known each other since childhood, but we became closer friends in high school, then really close friends. After getting really close, it was a couple months before we were "official". I was about to start my Senior year in high school and Scott was about to start at Samford.

♥ Who asked who out? We hung out a ton together, and with other people. The first "official" date that we consider, was when he took me to see The Sound of Music at the Alabama Theater and dinner at Salvatore's (the nice restaurant they used to have), right before he left for Africa for the summer.

♥ How old are each of you? 30 and 29

♥ Whose siblings do/did you see the most? Mine, definitely.

♥ Do you have any children together? Nope

♥ What about pets? Not anymore...RIP Katie Belle. Hopefully another cat in a year or so.

♥ Did you go to the same school? Yep. Scott was 2 classes older than me.

♥ Are you from the same home town? HAHA! I have to LOL this one... I have lived here all my life, but Scott was born in Buffalo, NY, lived in San Diego, then moved here when he was about 8 years old, and has been here ever since. So, basically, that makes him from Birmingham too! ;)

♥ Who is the smartest? Scott, for sure

♥ Who is the most sensitive? I am, I guess, since I'm a girl. But Scott is sensitive toward me, in a good way.

♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple? Chez Lulu's and Jim n' Nicks

♥ Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple? Paris, France

♥ Who has the craziest exes? Well, neither if us really have "exes", and none are crazy...

♥ Who has the worst temper? We don't ever really lose it with each other...but, I used to have a fairly bad temper

♥ Who does the cooking? Me, duh, but Scott holds his own in the kitchen right beside me. He does have exclusive control over the grill tho

♥ Who is more social? Scott, because he can go into any type of social setting and be comfortable. I usually have to battle some insecurities...

♥ Who is the neat-freak? Hmmm...well it depends on where you are looking. I'm neat at work, but Scott definitely is not. My car is for sure a wreak, but he's pretty OCD about his car. The house falls somewhere in the middle.

♥ Who is the more stubborn? Scott?

♥ Who hogs the bed? He hogs the space in the bed, but I usually hog the covers

♥ Who wakes up earlier? Neither of us...we both sleep until the last possible minute. Usually tho, I'm out the door before he is, since his commute to work is about 5 minutes.

♥ Where was your first date? Oh, well, see above for the answer

♥ Do you get flowers often? Not as often as I used to. ;) But Scott always brings roses to my office himself for Valentine's Day!

♥ How do you spend the holidays? Running around to family stuff, but Christmas Eve is always at church, then Christmas morning is just our time.

♥ Who is more jealous? ?? Both if us?

♥ How long did it take to get serious? Well, I knew by Christmas of my Senior year in high school that I was going to marry him, but he says he knew he wanted to marry me before that! So, pretty quickly, I'd say...especially being so young!

♥ Who eats more? Uh, really? Scott? Depends on what we are eating! ;) I win if it's something chocolate!

♥ Who does/did the laundry? Both of us, whoever can get to it...usually he'll wash and dry and leave the baskets full of clean clothes around, so I'll fold and put away

♥ Who’s better with the computer? Scott is, for sure.

Confessions of a Charm School Teacher

As alluded to in my previous posts late last week, I am teaching a class called "Life Skills" at John Roberts Powers in the Galleria Towers, every other Saturday. JRP is a talent and modelling agency, so they place kids and teens (mostly) in a lot of print ads and TV commercials. They teach runway modelling, do photo shoots, teach acting and dance. The class I teach goes over basic etiquette, fashion tips, makeup, health, etc. So, that's basically like the old-school Charm School.

Emily Post

What is Charm School, you ask? You may be unfamiliar with this idea. But, "back in the day" a lot of young women really didn't go to college after they finished high school. They got married, had babies and kept house. Think, June Cleaver. However, if you were privileged, you might go to Charm School as a young woman, before you were married. In Charm School you learned all sorts of useful information about how to throw fabulous dinner parties for your one-day important husband's colleagues. You learned what to do with a 25-piece placesetting of silver. You learned how to build a wardrobe, including what the rules were about matching your hats and gloves with you handbag. Overall, how to be a charming woman and wife.


Fast-forward to the 21st century, and we have young girls wanting to be Hannah Montana and crushing on the Jonas Brothers. Girls with eating disorders. I'm talking about 9 year olds worried about getting fat so they starve themselves. 11 year olds with fake nails and highlights in their hair. Stores like Libby Lou that dress 8 year olds like Brittany Spears and teach them how to shake their booty. (Thank GOD that place has gone out of business! At least in our mall it has.)

I guess in my day we had Madonna and the New Kids on the Block, but everything seems hyped up that much more.

So where does that leave Christian young women? If they really follow Jesus, how can they follow the culture too? Y'all know that I'm no prude, and I definitely won't advocate dressing in those much-feared "missionary dresses", going without make up, and never listening to secular music. I even have fake nails. I love my acrylics, and actually I'm about to get rid of them, but only because I'm trying to save money. I've never dyed my hair, but I'm blessed with pretty good natural highlights. Although, I do keep finding stray grey hairs, so I'm not far away from needing to color.

But I digress. I have this opportunity to teach something that I love, namely etiquette, but also an opportunity to influence young women in a positive way. Wait, you love etiquette? you ask? Yes. I'm just weird like that. I study old etiquette books for fun, and yes, I DO know what to do with a 25-piece placesetting of silver, thank you very much. AND why your hat and gloves should match. Nevermind that it's fairly useless information.

Sorry, digressing again. JRP has no curriculum for this class, or, rather, they did, but the last instructor took the manual with her and never returned it. They have given me carte blanche to teach what I want, I have only a basic outline of general subjects to go through. Like I said, a great opportunity to influence young women. Hopefully I can teach them something about inner beauty, not just the outer looks and behavior. Because I believe one of the reasons to be concerned with teaching etiquette and manners is that it reflects who you are on the inside, and if you are a Christ-follower, it reflects Him. Are we not called to love, peace, patience, kindness, goodness? Having "good manners" means that you are treating others kindly, with respect, and etiquette is merely a tool to help you do that. But, I have to translate this for a secular setting, for ages 4-19.

So, more to come about my adventures as a "Charm School" teacher, as I'm sure that I'll have interesting and funny stories. But for now, let me hear from you. If you have daughters, how do you instill godly values? What do you think about manners? Any tips on teaching really young kids manners?

Yes, I have 3 Blogs

Hey, so I just wrote a small blog post over at the Compass College Ministry blog, so, check it out, and let's talk about it...yo.

Left-Over Wednesdays: Breakfast Casserole

Breakfast Casserole

This is a dish that I learned at Saks, Inc., when I was a working chef. We would usually throw in breakfast meat leftover from service and any veggies that needed to be used up. Feel free to add other veggies, meats, different cheeses! This type of dish is also known as a strata, because of the layers of ingredients.

1 loaf white sandwich bread

1 tube sausage, cooked, drained and crumbled

3-4 Roma tomatoes, diced

1 bunch green onion, sliced thin

1 dozen large eggs, beaten

3-4 cups milk

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Tear or cut bread into small pieces and place in 9X11 baking dish.

2. Layer sausage, and handful or two of cheese and vegetables on top of the bread.

3. Whisk eggs, milk and salt and pepper together in a separate bowl until well blended. Pour over bread, meat and vegetables. Press mixture down so that all bread is soaked and other ingredients are well-covered with egg mixture. Add additional milk if necessary.

4. Top with remaining cheese and bake approximately 1 hour, or until casserole is firm.

Menu-Planning Monday: March 9-15: Happy Spring Break!

Spring Break! Yeah! Party!

Er, not really...I haven't had a true spring break since, well, probably high school. And I was the party animal, let me tell you.

The sarcasm is dripping today, probably due to the lack of an extra hour of sleep...puts me in a mood. I'm not sure what kind of mood, but it puts me there. So, I sacrifice my sleep so the farmers of America can farm for an extra hour in the evening. Wait, what?

Let's get back to the subject at hand.

Breakfasts: (can we say: stuck-in-a-rut?)

~oatmeal packets

~bananas

~fruit/yogurt parfaits

Lunches:

~Lean Cuisines

~apples/low-fat peanut butter (the Jif brand is pretty good)

Dinners:

~Easy Beef Tips with Noodles from Allrecipes.com *I've had some sirloin tips in the freezer, meaning to use them

~Grilled chicken kabobs with rice

~Breakfast for dinner, backup plan/extra dinner

We may go out of town Friday-Sunday this week with some students, still trying to decide/find somewhere to stay.

Miss Manners?

Anyone who knows me in real life, knows that I like etiquette. Not that I'm like a stuffy old lady, but I like things that are proper, I like china and silver and setting a pretty table, I like hand-written notes and hand-addressed envelopes. *I think I read too much Jane Austen when I was young.* I read ettiquette books for fun, and collect old copies of Emily Post, Amy Vanderbilt and the like. The older, more antiquated the "rules", the better!

So, I have had the opportunity arise to teach ettiquette and poise classes at John Roberts Powers group starting tomorrow! I am really excited! I will update next week on how tomorrow's classes go. Pray for me, as this will be quite "off the cuff", at least for tomorrow's sessions, and the first session is for 4-7 year olds. Yikes! Those that know me in real life also know that I'm not big on little kids, but I think I have some ideas to help make it fun for both of us. The kids I will be teaching are in modeling and acting, so they should, hopefully, know how to be attentive and will be receptive.

Here's some thoughts that I will might be developing:
* What do you think ettiquette is? Why do you think it's important?
* Why should you be concerned with the "proper" things to do?
* What is self-confidence and what does it have to do with manners?
* The "Golden Rule" and what it means for your everyday life
* Acting "like a lady (or gentleman)": an old-fashioned idea for a post-modern world

Left-Over Wednesdays: Espresso Pots de Creme

Espresso Pots de Creme

Ooo lala! Little heavenly, creamy, pots of chocolately goodness...I first had a pot de creme at Chez Lulu, my absolute favouite restaurant in Birmingham. This is pronounced, "po [long o] de crem". Good way to practice your French accent. This is basically a cream custard, baked in the traditional water bath, served chilled. I like to accent with a couple of strawberry slices and fresh whipped cream. The recipe is simple, just be careful when incorporating the eggs, or they will curdle and you'll end up with lumpy pots. Nobody wants that! This recipe is adapted from gourmetleauth.com. Photos here are my own.

2 cups heavy whipping cream, chilled

1 1/2 tablespoons strong brewed coffee or espresso

5 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, broken into pieces

6 large egg yolks, room temperature

2 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

pinch salt

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Position oven rack to the center.

2. Heat the cream in a sauce pan over medium heat to just scalding. Add coffee and stir well. Remove from heat and add chocolate pieces, stirring occasionally with a whisk to incorporate chocolate with cream until completely smooth.

3. In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks, sugar, vanilla and salt, until well blended.

4. Temper the egg mixture with about 1/4 cup of the chocolate mixture, whisking the chocolate very slowly into the eggs. Gradually add all of the chocolate to the eggs.

5. Place 6 small, oven-proof cups in a large roasting pan (souffle cups, ramekins, etc. As you see in my photos I use small espresso cups) that hold approximately 3/4 cup each. Divide the mixture evenly in the small cups, keeping the edges clean. Pour hot water into roasting pan so that the water comes at least half-way up the side of the small cups. Tent foil over the entire pan and place in oven.

6. Bake approximately 25 minutes, or until custard is set around the edges, and the middle is not very jiggly. Remove cups from pan and let chill in refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving.

7. Serve with whipped cream and sliced strawberries.

Oh, Just Another Survey

I can't help it...I was tagged by Natalie on Facebook, so I gotta do it...

This is a survey for all of you married folk. Fill it out & don't forget to tag other married couples on your friend list. Don't forget to tag back the person that sent it to you.

1) When was your wedding day? November 3, 2001

2) What day of the week was it? Saturday

3) Did you get married in a church? yes

4) How many in your wedding party? 22, I think

5) Where was your reception? Church kids' area. AKA The Garage and Parking Deck

6) How many guests were invited to your wedding? 800+

7) How long did you wait to Tie The Knot after your proposal? 21 months=waaayyy too long!

8) Who did you hire as your photographer? Mark Lawley Photography

9) Did you have a DJ or a band? no, Herb Owen MC'ed the reception and played our "mix tape" CDs we burned with all our favorite music

10) Did your father walk you down the aisle? yes

11) What color were the bridesmaid dresses & groomsmen vests? BM=burgundy GM=black

12) What was your first song? we didn't dance since the reception was at church, but if we could've it would've been "Dreaming My Dreams" by the Cranberries

13) How long did it take to plan the wedding? all 21 months of our engagement....yes, I was that bride

14) What type of limo did you get? none, Scott surprised me with a vintage Rolls Royce

15) Where did you go for your Bachelorette/Bachelor Party? didn't have one, closest thing was my lingerie "after party" at Rachel Callahan's with all my bridesmaids and some other close friends

16) What type of wedding gown/tux did you two wear? My gown was made by Angelique and was a corset-style, Victorian gown with cathedral train and extra-cathedral veil. His tux was classic cut, black with ivory vest and tie.

17) How was the weather? Perfect, cool but not cold

18) Where did you go on your Honeymoon? We were planning on Paris, but then the 9-11 attacks happened, so we changed last minute, going to North Carolina. We spent about a week in the Asheville area in the mountains, and another week on the Outer Banks, in Manteo.

19) What was your favorite part of your wedding day? Taking communion together during the ceremony.

20) How long have you been married? 7 years

21) What was the worst part of your wedding day? The stress of a florist who wrote down the wrong day and almost didn't pull off the florals.

22) Did you see your husband before the ceremony? No

23) What kind of flowers were in your bouquet? Roses, in all fall colors

24) What were your "something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue? My old=my ring and my great-grandmother's hankie pinned under my skirt. All the women in my family have carried this hankie! My new=my dress. My borrowed=the poofy slip under my gown, borrowed from Scott's sister, Heather. My blue=my undies

25) Did you light a unity candle? no

26) Did you cry during your wedding? No, I was too excited.

27) Where did you buy your wedding gown? Bridal Bliss, after going to every dress shop in Alabama...literally.

28) What flavor was your wedding cake? Chocolate! We didn't have a groom's cake because we had a dessert reception, and I don't like white cake. The icing was ivory though, and the design matched my gown.

28) Did you smash cake in each other's face or were you "nice"? No, I threatened Scott with his life if he stuffed that in my face.

29) Did you freeze the top layer of your cake and eat it on your first wedding anniversary? Yes. It was actually great! The key is multiple, alternating layers of foil and plastic wrap, sealed in Tupperware.

30) When did you open your wedding gifts? Well, you see, we were gone on our honeymoon for over 2 weeks, so mom and Abby opened them while we were gone. At first I was mad, but it did save me a lot of hassle.

31) Did you have a bridal shower? I had a Southern Living at Home/Tupperware shower (thanks Aunt Sandy), a couples' around the house shower (thanks Mawmaw and Aunt Marsha), a lingerie shower (thanks Rachel and 'Maids) and a HUGE tea. We were very, very blessed and received more stuff than we needed!

32) The night before your wedding, did you sleep much? Yes, and my best friend and MOH, Stephanie, spent the night one last time with me!

33) Did your bridal party deck out the get away car? No, I threatened them with their lives and Becky, my director, did too! Scott took his car to the hotel earlier that day anyway.

34) Anything special about the day/time of year you were married? I always wanted a fall wedding, but it's the height of football season. Our wedding day was also Alabama's homecoming. I also wanted a super-formal wedding at night, so we were married at 7 PM.

35) Words of wisdom? Follow God first, submit to His leadership together.

Sorry I don't have any pics to post here too...those were days of the advent of digital, so all of mine are prints from film. Crazy, I know.

Menu Planning Mondays, errr, Tuesday, March 3-8

Menu planning has not been going so well lately. Last week the menu plan was a bust starting on Monday! That's discouraging! Now, this week, I'm a day late...le sigh...but I'm doing it anyway.

Breakfasts:

~oatmeal

~strawberry/blueberry parfait

~banana

~coffee

Lunches:

~Lean Cuisine

~apple with peanut butter

~sandwich on whole wheat

Snacks:

~LIFE cereal

~100 calories crackers

Dinners:

1. Skillet Lasagna from Cook's Country/salad (*new recipe to try*)

2. Bruchetta baked chicken breasts/garlic-rubbed bread

Now, to make that shopping list...

Blizzard of 2009!

Well, it happens about once every 10 years...snow in Birmingham! Measureable snow that is. It has flurried, sleeted, etc off and on during the winter months, but seriously, it was the year 2000 when we last had a good snow shower. We have waited all winter anxiously for our snowy dreams to come true, and the weather waited until March 1st!

Here's some pics from our fun snow event in Birmingham!

Our little house in the snow!

The shed in our backyard looked a lot cooler covered in snow!

The big magnolia in our front yard

The Smith Farm in Bluff Park

Snow-covered pansies at church

We went downtown so Rachel could take some photos. This is the Jefferson County Courthouse and Linn Park.

Linn Park looking toward the BJCC and Art Museum

Snowy Scottie! You can see how hard the wind was blowing the snow around!

City Hall and Linn Park fountain

Me and Rach...we were quickly getting covered in snow!

Rach, doin her thing. This shows how hard it was snowing! This is REALLY alot for Birmingham!