~ Football & Pansies ~

A few weeks ago we took a trip to Ann Arbor to visit "The Big House" -- the football stadium at the University of Michigan.

My husband is a huge Michigan fan, so by default, I am now too.  

A fan by marriage.

{Jessica, the Buckeye that you are, I won't feel bad if you stop reading this post now!  And if Luke is around, you'd better close the browser!}

We were allowed to tour the team's locker room that day, and wander around the field.  Such a fun experience! 

At a gift shop we bought a Michigan stepping stone for my flower garden.  Just needed to find some pretty yellow flowers to plant around it.

My mom, not knowing that I was in the market for some yellow-lovelies, surprised me with a basket of beautiful yellow pansies the other day!!!

Last night I got everything planted and arranged.

Hello, Michigan!!!

I love how it turned out! :)

Everything else is blooming around the yard right now too.  Seems like it was a really long winter this year, but I am so thankful to see a steady stream of sun and colorful flowers again!

A couple more weeks and hopefully we'll be past the night time frost threats and I'll be able to get the rest of my flower beds all spruced up and filled with flowers. 

Have you planted anything yet?

Weekend - Part 2

After a delicious breakfast at Wolfgang's, my sweet husband took me to the art museum to see their special exhibit:

Diana: a Celebration

It was wonderful.

Parts of it made me cry.

 Her wedding dress, with it's 25 foot train.

The tiara, full of sparkling diamonds.

The wedding processional.

The funeral.

Her favorite dresses.

Pictures in poverty, pictures in disease...
they were pictures of beauty.

Her life seemed to be tragedy and beauty wrapped into one.

They didn't allow any pictures inside the exhibit, but I still left with many images imprinted in my memory.  Learning more about Diana left me very excited for the upcoming marriage of Kate & William.  Definitely looking forward to watching that to TV (along with millions of other people, I'm sure). 

We left the museum and watched ice skaters on the pond. 



It was one of those weekends that you're still thinking about long after it's over.

Have you had any special weekends lately?

PS:  Check out Lisa Leonard's giveaway!

Weekend - Part 1

Some weekends are set aside for special things.

Treats.  Memories.  Pictures.  Laughter.

Special things.

One snowy weekend this winter, my husband took me out for a special day,  helping to break up the winter blues. 

Breakfast at Wolfgang's.  Yes, that was a treat. 

He had been there times before, but it was a first for me. 

But believe-you-me, it definitely won't be my last!

High tables.  Delicious coffee.  Happy people.  Amazing food. 

I was in love.

We shared a grilled cinnamon roll, which was different than any cinnamon roll I'd ever had.  Made fresh in their bakery, and apparently in high-demand because there was one on nearly every table around us. 

Ohhh, so good.

And although we failed to get pictures, the rest of our breakfast was absolutely delicious.  Huge, but delicious!

I hope to visit this quaint little place again sometime soon.  

You're guaranteed to leave with a big smile on your face.

Sweet Yummies

Guess I’m just a few days behind on posting about Valentine’s Day, ‘huh?  We celebrated over the weekend since we both had to work on Monday, but it was nice and relaxing and we always love an excuse to have some “date” time!  

We walked around downtown, got our wedding rings cleaned, ate Rock Shrimp at the only place in town you can get it, and talked.  Always lots of talking.  We’re really good at that.  Probably one of the many reasons we’re best friends.  I love dates with my husband!

For our VDay breakfast I made Baked Butter Pecan French Toast, which was a new recipe for me but it ended up being delicious!  The fact it was super easy to make certainly didn’t hurt anything either!

Served with some fruit and bacon, we had us a top-notch breakfast! 

There were also some little presents, including these Mr. & Mrs. mugs from Dayspring, and some of M’s favorite tea from Aveda.  Don’t forget to enter my giveaway to win a gift certificate for Dayspring and maybe you can get a set of mugs for yourself! 

And in case you’re looking for a sweet-little-something to make for breakfast this weekend, here’s the recipe for that French Toast (we cut the recipe in half and it made about 4-5 servings).

Baked Butter Pecan French Toast

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1 loaf French bread, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices
6 eggs, beaten
1 2/3 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Maple syrup

Heat oven to 350°F (175°C).

Combine brown sugar, butter and honey in 1-quart saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until sugar melts (2 to 3 minutes). Pour into a greased 13x9-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with pecans. Top with half of bread slices.

Combine eggs, milk and vanilla in large bowl; beat until well mixed. Dip remaining bread slices in egg mixture on one side only. Place over bread in the pan, dipped-side down. Pour remaining egg mixture over bread slices.  Sprinkle with a couple extra tablespoons of brown sugar and some additional pecans, if desired.

Combine sugar and pumpkin pie spice in small bowl; sprinkle over top. Cover; refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

Bake, uncovered, for 50 to 55 minutes or until golden brown and knife inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes. Invert each serving when you scoop it onto the plate.  Serve with maple syrup, if desired.

Go Blue!

Did everybody have a good holiday weekend?

A friend gave us tickets to the University of Michigan football game on Saturday. It was a blustery day, but the perfect weather to kick off the new season of college football!

As a thank-you for the tickets, I made some “Michigan” cookies for my friend. . .

. . . complete with Maize & Blue M&M’s

It has literally been years since I’ve made cut-out cookies. . .

. . .  I had to check the internet for a good recipe

 because I don’t even have one of my own.

The rest of the weekend we spent cleaning the house and did lots of rearranging and nitty-gritty work that doesn’t usually get done. It felt so good to get stuff accomplished and the house looks great!  After all that work, we may or may not have had to resort to fish sticks and tater tots for supper, but hey, the house is clean!

Did you have any fun this weekend?

Knights and Fair Maidens

Last weekend hubby & I went to a Renaissance Faire.

There were many interesting people there:

A Juggler & Fire-eater:

We drank soda:

Cream soda, which was absolutely delicious!

And we had a wonderful time.

My Happy Place

I love quiet Saturday mornings when I can sneak off to Panera with my husband and enjoy wonderful coversation over moist Asiago bagels and endless cups of Hazelnut coffee.  That time together becomes the happiest memory of the week.  No distractions.  Just us and our aromatic coffee. 
And when I am thrust back in the weekday rush of work & life, I think about my Saturday morning... and I smile.

Date Nights

The busier life becomes the more important our "dates" are to us.  Dates don't always have to be of the traditional variety...just happy time with the two of us together.

These are some of ours that have happened recently:

Chinese take-out & Kung Fu Panda

Popcorn and a movie on the couch at 4:00 AM because I couldn’t sleep.

(Yes, he really got up with me and popped up some popcorn. What a guy!)

Highschool performance of “Annie” and Mexican for dinner!

Dark Cherry Mochas @ Starbucks

Have YOU had any fun dates lately?

February 13th

I just realized I never did my post-Valentine’s-day-post!

So last Saturday my Dearly Beloved decided to take me out for a fun Valentine’s day celebration. We ran a couple errands and then headed downtown to get our rings shined up at our favorite jeweler. We browsed while the rings were getting cleaned, and I stumbled across a Claddagh ring that I found exquisite – sterling silver with filigreed bands on either side of the Claddagh. It was love at first site. And jeweler slipped it on my finger and it was a perfect fit. My dear husband kissed me and said it would be my Valentine’s gift. Awwww. He makes me melt.

We then wandered around to the diamond section and I fell in love again… with a ring that (with tax) would cost over $28,000.00. Yes, you read that right. Once again, it was a perfect fit when I tried it on, but I’m afraid it will forever remain in the jeweler’s case, far from my reach. It was over three carats of diamonds in a beautifully romantic white gold vintage setting. Not gaudy at all, but timeless and amazingly gorgeous. *sigh*

I happily wear my Claddagh, given to me with much love by my Dearly Beloved. It’s never about the price tag – it’s about the heart behind it. And his heart is golden.

We then headed over to the theater where we watched the movie (yes, you guessed it) Valentine’s Day. I wasn’t hugely impressed, but it’s always a treat when I can get him to go see a chick-flick with me. Besides, Jennifer Garner and those dimples of hers are simply adorable and that’s all there is to it!

Red Lobster was our restaurant of choice for dinner, and though we had a long wait, the tender taste of the flaky cheddar biscuits was worth every minute. We sat at the bar as we waited for a table, and for the first time in my life I splurged and ate dessert before my dinner. I felt like such a rebel. But it was soooo good! The cookie was chocolate filled and oh-so-chewy-gooey and topped with ice cream and more chocolate. Combine this with a cup of delicious coffee and I was in taste-bud bliss.

My husband tackled crab legs for dinner with so much vigor that I couldn’t resist a picture. I’m glad he has the chance to enjoy meals like that when we dine out, because I’m not brave enough to make them at home.

It was such a lovely day that it even made the snow seem not quite so cold.

Sentimental Things

Valentine’s Day

I’m such a Romantic at heart.
*sigh*

Valentine’s day has held a sappy little spot in my heart for as long as I can remember. My dream since youth was to have a Valentine’s Day wedding with roses and hearts galore. Seeing as Prince Charming was still a long ways off and had not yet displayed his royal face onto my horizon, I began writing a letter to him every year on that special day. Letters of waiting, longing, wondering, and hoping. Letters to confirm to him that I was waiting for my One-and-Only, my true love, my soul-mate, my Beloved. Extra entries filled more pages, written on special occasions, holidays, and of course, every Valentine’s day.

Fast forward the time clock a few years to February 14th, 2008, when Mike took me to a movie, dinner, and a Casting Crown’s concert. We were “just friends”, but a couple months later, we realized that had been our very first date.

There are no pictures from that evening, just a pile of memories that make me all warm inside when I think about them. It will probably always stand out as my favorite Valentine’s Day, because that day was the beginning of our love story.

October 4th, 2008 –
Our Wedding Day

In traditional fashion, Mike & I exchanged wedding gifts that evening. His gift to me was a Bible matching his, with my new name engraved on the cover. It was perfect! My gift to him was a leather journal, filled with letters to my love, overflowing with years of waiting for that moment, waiting for that man.

Our wedding did not fall on Valentine’s Day like I had hoped for so long, but in the end, it did not matter. Our flowers were Roses, the colors were red & white, and it was still Valentine’s Day in my heart.

Well, that is my Valentine’s Day story! I’m going to put a MckLinky at the bottom of this post in case any of you blog about your stories and want to share the link. I’d love to read them!