He is risen!... And the bread did too!

Easter is a very important time in the Christian faith! We are all reminded that God sent His son Jesus to die on the cross to save us from our sins so we can spend eternity in Heaven. What a joy and a blessing that is!

When I was a kid, Easter Sunday afternoon was always spent at either Mammaw’s or Grandmother’s hunting eggs and eating a scrumptious meal. If we were at Mammaw’s, she would make a caramel cake; and if we were at Grandmother’s, she would make the best homemade rolls. The Easter staple at my house: fried green tomatoes!!

This was the second holiday we chose to spend all by ourselves as a married couple. Best Buy was actually closed on Sunday, but we had just made the trek home a couple weekends before and decided to lay low for the weekend. Of course I whipped up a fabulous meal to celebrate the occasion! We bought one of those boneless hams we love; and I cooked fresh peas, stuffed eggs, homemade bread, and my famous fried green tomatoes! They’re famous in our house at least!

I made my first trip of the year to the farmer’s market a week or two before Easter in search of my favorite vegetable. I’m not going to debate anyone who says tomatoes are a fruit. This is my blog. Today they are a vegetable. :) Lo and behold, they had one left! I snatched it up before the lady beside me could even lay eyes on it!

And what’s Easter in this day and age without the proper candy? We had Robin’s Eggs and Reese’s Pieces Eggs to boot!








Dessert was a week late getting fixed, but still worth every bite! Nutter Butter-Banana Pudding Trifle…MMMMM!!

3 cups milk
3 large eggs
¾ cup sugar
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
2 tbsp butter
2 tsp vanilla extract
5 medium-size ripe bananas
1 (1-lb) package Nutter Butters
1 (8-oz) bowl whipped topping
Garnishes: Nutter Butters, dried banana chips, fresh mint sprigs

Whisk together first 4 ingredients in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, whisking constantly, 15 to 20 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla until butter is melted.

Fill a large bowl with ice. Place saucepan in ice, and let stand, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes or until mixture is thoroughly chilled.

Meanwhile, cut bananas into ¼-inch slices. (Don’t cut too early or they’ll start turning brown.) Break cookies into thirds.

Spoon half of pudding mixture into a 3-qt. bowl or pitcher. Top with bananas and cookies. Spoon remaining pudding mixture over bananas and cookies. Top with whipped topping. Cover and chill 2 to 24 hours. Garnish, if desired.






Banana Pudding before...





... Banana Pudding after!!


Can you believe something I made actually turned out REALLY pretty??!!!

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

Just a few short years ago, the only holiday I attempted special food for was Christmas. Mom and I usually make cookies and other confections together. One year, the kitchen counter was lined from one end to the other with snowman bowls and cookie jars full of sugary goodness! And there was that one Fourth of July when Jennifer and Leah came to the apartment to hang out by the pool, and I spent the better portion of a day making pulled pork bbq sandwiches. Other days, the thought might run through my mind how much fun it would be to “theme-cook”, but I’d always find something else to occupy my time.

Now, in my newfound excitement for food, I look for reasons to cook something special! Sometimes it pans out, sometimes it doesn’t. Thanksgiving was the bomb-diggity, and Valentine’s Day was seven shades of awesome! However, I never made Halloween treats or Bubba’s favorite banana pancakes for national pancake week in February. (How bout another trip to the PHOP, Justin?!) But, I was not about to let St. Paddy’s Day pass me by!

I searched my trusty websites for Irish-inspired dishes, and came across a chocolate cupcake recipe. Perfect! I can try my hand at cupcakes, which I’ve been dying to do, and I can display them on a prized wedding gift! And of course Kyle was very excited at my need for one can of Guinness (that left him three to watch slide down the glass in creamy, wavy satisfaction). I will say I never would have paired beer with chocolate, but these cupcakes were delicious! The icing was just divine!

¾ cup unsweetened cocoa, plus more for dusting finished cupcakes
2 cups sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch fine salt
1 bottle stout beer (recommended: Guinness)
1 stick butter, melted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
¾ cup sour cream
1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, softened at room temperature
¾ to 1 cup heavy cream
1 (1-lb) box confectioners’ sugar
Food coloring of your choice, optional

Preheat oven to 350°. In large mixing bowl, whisk together cocoa, sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt. In medium mixing bowl, combine the stout, melted butter, and vanilla. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Mix in sour cream until thoroughly combined and smooth. Gradually mix dry ingredients into wet mixture. Lightly grease 24 muffin cups. Fill each cup about ¾ of the way full. Bake for 25 minutes or until risen, nicely domed, and set in the middle but still soft and tender. Cool before turning out.

For the icing:
In medium bowl with a hand mixer, beat cream cheese on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in heavy cream. On low speed, slowly mix in confectioners’ sugar until incorporated and smooth. Stir in a couple drops food coloring. Repeat until you’re happy with the color. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use. Icing can be made several hours ahead and kept covered and chilled.

Top each cupcake with a heap of frosting and dust with cocoa.

Wastin' Time

And here we are playing catch-up again! There just doesn’t seem to be enough time for those things we really WANT to do after we do all we NEED to do. But who am I kidding? Do I ever do all I NEED to do? My CPA exam grades and messy kitchen can attest to that!

One day I’ll get it all together! Ha! My husband sent me a text earlier asking how my day was going. My reply? “Pretty good I reckon. I approved a payment request this morning, read a few chapters in Deuteronomy, and found a really interesting blog written by a cattle rancher’s wife in Oklahoma. She was featured in Southern Living.” Exciting, I know... But just the way I like it!

Now if I could just read all the boring stuff I’m supposed to be reading (Regulation study book) and still have time for all the fun things I enjoy reading (Bible, Disney blogs, Southern Living, recipe sites and magazines, FB statuses, etc.), plus cooking, gardening, jogging, blogging, and curling up on the couch with the hubs… I’d call it a frabjous day!! Callooh! Callay! :)

Kiss My Shrimp & Grits!

I am so excited about this new dish! Last week my friend Mollie asked me to find her a shrimp and grits recipe. As soon as I got home from church that night I went to the sources. I looked through all my cookbooks and a few trusty on-line recipe sites, and found 12 recipes! I narrowed the search down to three and decided to do something I’ve never done before. I took what I loved from all three recipes and made up my own! I was very excited to see how it would turn out, and am here to tell you it was fine! I even called Mom and told her it was good enough to warrant an hour and a half drive, but they better hurry or I would have it eaten by the time they got here!

I’m so proud of it, I even entered the recipe in the 2010 recipe contest at Mississippi Magazine!

1 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp salt
3 cups water
1 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
6 slices bacon, chopped
1 lb. raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
Pepper and parsley to garnish

Bring whipping cream, butter, salt, and water to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low, and whisk in grits. Cook until thickened, whisking often. Stir in cheese until melted, set aside and keep warm.

Cook bacon over medium-high heat until crisp; remove bacon from pan. Cook shrimp in bacon grease over medium-high heat until almost pink, stirring occasionally. Add lemon juice and garlic and cook a few more minutes. Stir in bacon.

Stir shrimp mixture into grits mixture and serve. Garnish with pepper and parsley.





Mollie, this one’s for you babe! Hope you enjoy!

Happy Valentine's Day!

And last, but certainly not least was our first Valentine’s Day! By far the best V-day I’ve ever had! It all started Friday the 12th. We woke up to nearly three inches of snow! It was so beautiful, and I could not believe we got so much! And of course we did what every 26- and 30-year-old kid should do… we built a snowman! And named him Jack!

And we walked around the neighborhood admiring God’s beauty…

And we enjoyed just being together :) …

Saturday was the day we actually celebrated Valentine’s with a wonderful home-cooked supper! Kyle grilled us a steak and I made shrimp-stuffed potatoes, which were nothing more than twice baked potatoes with shrimp added to the mix. Recipe courtesy of Paula Deen!

3 large Idaho potatoes
vegetable oil for coating
4 tbsp butter
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 cup grated Monterey Jack
1 cup sour cream
salt and pepper
1 lb shrimp, peeled and sautéed
paprika

First, let me say I wanted the fresh shrimp David gets from the coast. But since we haven’t been home since Christmas and may not go back til Spring Break, I had to settle for the frozen shrimp ring at the grocery store. Not too bad, I have to admit. Even though the shrimp was already cooked, I sautéed it anyway with paprika, cayenne pepper, and lemon pepper to give it some flavor. Second, I know I’ve told you I pick up the pre-shredded cheese mixes for convenience, but this time I decided to go all out. I bought a block each of the cheddar and Monterey Jack and used a cheese grater we got as a wedding gift. Oh my gosh! To get excited over a cheese grater is probably a bit nutty, but that thing was awesome! I may start venturing out with specialty cheese as our budget allows since I can now grate with ease. And of course wine pairings! :)

Now for the recipe. Preheat oven to 350°. Wash potatoes, dry them, and gently prick them with a fork on all sides. Coat each potato with vegetable oil, place on foil covered pan, and bake for approximately 1 hour. Place butter in large bowl. Remove potatoes from oven and slice each one in half. Gently scoop out potato and place in bowl. Using mixer on high speed, mix potatoes, butter, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Fold shrimp and both cheeses into mixture. Gently stuff mixture back into potato shells, making sure not to break them. Pile mixture as high as you can on top of potato shells. Sprinkle each potato with paprika for color. Bake in oven for approximately 20 to 30 minutes until browned on top.

Very tasty!

I decorated the table all pretty and romantic…

And for dessert we had champagne with strawberries and sugared chocolate beignets!

This was my facebook status that night: “In honor of the Daytona 500, we’re drinking cold beer. In honor of St. Valentine’s Day, we’re eating steak, potatoes, and chocolate. In honor of the Saints winning the Super Bowl, our chocolate is Sugared Chocolate Beignets. And in honor of Black History Month and my husband graduating from an HBCU this summer, we’re jammin’ out to The Temptations! I think we have all our bases covered!! :)”

Super awesome Valentine’s Day with my husband! Don’t know how we’ll ever top this first one!

Who Dat Say Dey Gonna Beat Dem Saints?

Next on our busy agenda, was the Super Bowl, which inevitably became the kickoff to “Lomb-ardi Gras”! Hell froze over on Sunday, February 7, 2010, with the New Orleans Saints winning their first ever Super Bowl in the franchise’s history. Who Dat!

We didn’t do anything at all in celebration, except for recording the entire game. Kyle refused to call in sick for work, which I thought was utterly terrible considering how long he’s been a Saints fan, so I watched the game at home alone and then watched it again when he got home from work! I didn’t see the point in fussing over a meal when he couldn’t be there to enjoy it, so I will leave you with this article written by Mark Lorando that printed in the Times-Picayune the week before the game…

Dear Miami,

The Saints are coming. And so are we, their loyal, long-suffering and slightly discombobulated Super Bowl-bound fans.

While there’s still time to prepare – although a few hard-core Who Dats will begin trickling in Monday, most of us won’t arrive until Thursday or Friday – we thought we’d give you a heads-up about what you should expect.

First things first: You need more beer.

Yeah, we know. You ordered extra. You think you have more than any group of humans could possibly consume in one week. Trust us. You don’t.

New Orleans was a drinking town long before the Saints drove us to drink. But it turns out beer tastes better when you’re winning. (Who knew?) So let’s just say we’re thirsty for more than a championship; adjust your stockpiles accordingly.

And look. When we ask you for a go-cup, be nice to us. We don’t even know what “open container law” means. Is that anything like “last call”?

It’s carnival season in New Orleans (that’s Mardi Gras to you), and we’ll be taking the celebration on the road. So don’t be startled if you walk past us and we throw stuff at you; that’s just our way of saying hello.

Oh, and sorry in advance about those beads we leave dangling from your palm trees. We just can’t help ourselves.

February is also crawfish season, and you can be sure that more than one enterprising tailgater will figure out a way to transport a couple sacks of live mudbugs and a boiling pot to Miami.

When the dude in the ‘Who Dat’ T-shirt asks if you want to suck da head and pinch da tail, resist the urge to punch him. He’s not propositioning you. He’s inviting you to dinner.

And if you see a big Cajun guy who looks exactly like an old Saints quarterback walking around town in a dress… don’t ask. It’s a long story.

We know that crowd control is a major concern for any Super Bowl host city. Our advice? Put away the riot gear.

Reason No. 1: Indianapolis is going to lose, and their fans are way too dull to start a riot.

Reason No. 2: New Orleans showed the world on Sunday that we know how to throw a victory party. We don’t burn cars. We dance on them.

Reason No. 3: Even if we did lose, which we won’t, leaving the stadium would be like leaving a funeral, and our typical response to that is to have a parade.

Speaking of which: If you happen to see a brass band roll by, followed by a line of folks waving their handkerchiefs, you’re not supposed to just stand there and watch. As our own Irma Thomas would say, get your backfield in motion.

And hey, Mister DJ! Yes, we know you’ve already played that stupid Ying Yang Twins song 10 times tonight, but indulge us just one more time.

To us, “Halftime (Stand Up and Get Crunk)” isn’t just a song; it’s 576 points of good memories. It’s the sound of a Drew Brees touchdown pass to Devery Henderson, a Pierre Thomas dive for first down on 4th-and-1, a Garrett Hartley field goal sailing through the uprights in overtime.

It’s what a championship sounds like. You may get sick of hearing it. We won’t. Encore, dammit.

Inside Sun Life Stadium, you may find your ears ringing more than usual. We’re louder than other fans. Seven thousand of ours sound like 70,000 of theirs.

Don’t believe us? Ask the 12th man in the Vikings huddle.

Some people think it’s just the Dome that heightens our volume. But you’re about to discover a little secret: We can scream loud enough to make your head explode, indoors or out.

It’s not the roof, It’s the heart.

Well, OK, and the beer.

Don’t be surprised if there are more Saints fans outside the stadium than inside. A lot of us are coming just to say we were part of history, even if we can’t witness it up close. The Saints are family to us, and you know how it is with family: We want to be there for them, whether they really need us or not.

Because we know our presence will mean something to them, whether they can see us or not.

Come to think of it, seeing as how you’re taking us in for the week, we pretty much regard you as family, too. So we’re warning you now: If you’re within hugging distance, you’re fair game.

Hugging strangers is a proud Who Dat tradition, right up there with crying when we win.

Most sports fans cry when their teams lose. Not us. We’ve been losing gracefully and with good humor for 43 years. Tragedy and disappointment don’t faze us. It’s success that makes us go to pieces.

Hurricane Katrina? We got that under control. The Saints in the Super Bowl? SOMEBODY CALL A PARAMEDIC!!!

So anyway, don’t let the tears of joy freak you out. We’re just… disoriented.

OK. Let’s review:

Order more beer. Throw me something, mister. Suck da heads. Wear da dress. Stand up. Get crunk. Hug it out. Protect your eardrums. Pass the Kleenex. Hoist the trophy.

See you at the victory party.

Faithfully yours,

The Who Dat Nation

GEAUX SAINTS!!!!

Free Vacation?

January saw unseasonably cold temperatures in Mississippi, and Jackson was no different. With below-freezing temps and the forecast of rain, people started getting antsy about the weather. No real snow to speak of, but the busted water lines in downtown Jackson caused just as much a stir! It was the Monday before Martin Luther King holiday. I was running late as usual, and stressed about all the things I needed to get done, again as usual. I have to interject a warning here. I hung out with and was “one of the” boys for a very long time, and I still have a bit of crudity to my ways. I was so frustrated that morning, and I remember texting Kyle on my way in to work telling him I’d give my left nut for a day off. He told me he loved me! Thank you, God, for sending me a man that gets me!

Anyway, at 11:45 that morning our agency received an email that Governor Haley Barbour had declared Jackson a state of emergency. Apparently our building and many others downtown had lost water. Specifically our email stated, “State offices in Jackson will close at noon, and non-essential state employees in Jackson may go home.” Now I wasn’t sure which was funnier, that I was a non-essential employee or that I got to go home on a random Monday at noon! Either way, I was ecstatic, and thanked God the whole way home for hearing my cry (as un-lady like as it was) and for my afternoon off.

Well my afternoon turned into four wonderful, productive days! And to make it even better, Kyle didn’t have school because the water crisis affected Jackson State too! I did, however, feel bad for the folks living in the downtown area. I tried not to brag too much about my time off because some were having to choose between flushing and showering.

I made the most of it though, cleaning and organizing and whittling down the perpetual thank-you note list. And of course, I did a little cooking! I tried my hand at homemade cinnamon rolls, which turned out scrumptiously good! A bit heavy, but will definitely make again.

2 cups sifted all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ cup vegetable oil
¾ cup buttermilk
1 stick butter, softened
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup milk


Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in medium bowl and mix well. Stir in vegetable oil. Add buttermilk and stir just until blended. Knead dough on lightly floured surface until smooth. Roll dough into 15 x 8-inch rectangle. Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease 9-inch round baking pan. Spread butter over dough. Combine granulated sugar and cinnamon in small bowl and mix well. Sprinkle over butter. Roll up rectangle, jelly roll fashion, starting from one long side. Pinch seam to seal. Cut roll into 1½-inch slices. Arrange slices, cut side up, in prepared baking pan. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Pour milk over top. Serve hot.

Trust me on the milk! It’s divine!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

With all the hustle and bustle from the wedding, holidays, school, and work, Kyle and I both got run down… and wound up with strep. Not a fun way to spend Christmas and the week between it and New Years, but hey, at least we were together. And at least we managed to make it back home from Louisville even though both of us were running fever and had no business operating a vehicle! We were miserable for a few days and completely out of energy the rest. The worst I’ve been sick since I had the flu about 5 years ago. Mom and Dad both offered to come see after us. I told them as long as one of us could stand up long enough to fix the soup we would be ok. And we survived! By New Years we were feeling better, but still not up to celebrating my 30th birthday in style. We decided to go out for a special dinner to celebrate the occasion nonetheless. Wanna know what we decided to do?! We had a very nice romantic dinner… at Sonic… in our pajamas! It was great! :)

Run, Run Rudolph!

For our first Christmas we went back to our usual mad dash Christmas rush. I have been blessed with a very large family and I try to see as many as possible over the holidays, even if it runs me ragged, which it usually does. We had 8 places to go this year, and by the grace of God we made all 8! Luckily they are all in the Louisville/Kosciusko area. If the family was more spread out, it would be impossible to see them all. Christmas is my favorite time of year! Partly because people are generally in a happy mood, partly because it’s time off work and with the fam, and partly because you’re expected to eat yummy, calorie-enriched, sugar coated goodies every day all day long! A new one I tried out this year… White Chocolate Cookies ‘n’ Cream Fudge!

1 cup sugar
¾ cup butter
1 (5-oz) can evaporated milk
2 (12-oz) packages white chocolate morsels
1 (7-oz) jar marshmallow cream
3 cups coarsely crushed Oreos (about 25 cookies), divided
Pinch of salt

Line a greased 9” square pan with aluminum foil; set aside. Combine first 3 ingredients in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil; cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; add white chocolate morsels, marshmallow cream, 2 cups crushed cookies, and salt. Stir until morsels melt. Pour fudge into prepared pan. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup cookies over fudge, gently pressing cookies into fudge. Cover and chill until firm (about 1 to 2 hours). Lift uncut fudge in aluminum foil from pan; remove foil, and cut fudge into squares.

Yum yum delicious!! You just can’t go wrong with Oreos and white chocolate!

Our first married Christmas was pretty special though! Nothing exciting happened really, it was just nice for us to be together, and be able to spend it with all our family even if we were jumping around from place to place like hot potatoes!

Disney Days

Next on our crazy schedule was our honeymoon. We had a blast going back to the most magical place on earth… Walt Disney World! We flew, which I highly recommend, and spent a week at Disney’s All Star Movies Resort. We saw parades, fireworks, and characters galore, and ate some really great food! Other than breakfast, which was always at the food court, we tried restaurants neither of us had ever eaten at.

Friday was T-Rex Café at Downtown Disney. It’s just like Rainforest Café only a prehistoric setting, and had a to-die-for chocolate brownie ice cream dessert called the Chocolate Extinction!

Saturday was the Hollywood Brown Derby at Hollywood Studios. I’ve actually eaten there before with Mom, but we were limited to reservation times because of the fireworks show we were going to see. It wasn’t quite as good as I remembered it being, but they did bring us champagne and strawberries to congratulate us on our marriage!

Sunday was Liberty Tree Tavern at Magic Kingdom. It’s housed in Liberty Tree Square, and has a patriotic feel and awesome down-home food! We had roast turkey and stuffing (what Southerners would call dressing) and apple cobbler, to name a few things. Divine!

Monday was The Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom. Another one I have eaten at with Mom, David, Justin, and Rhyne, but again not many options for that day because we wanted to see the night parade, and I felt it was good enough that Kyle needed the experience. It was even better than I remembered! It’s buffet character dining with Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, and Tigger. Kyle had his magical moment that night. He made Tigger laugh!

Tuesday we met my friend Traci for lunch at Flame Tree Barbeque in Animal Kingdom, and had a great bbq sandwich and equally great visit with her! Traci and I were good friends on the college program, and I always try to meet up with her when I come to town. Tuesday night we went to the Boardwalk and ate at Big River Grille and Brewing Works. They have awesome hamburgers and the best light beer I’ve ever tasted! Later that night we met up with my friend Rick and his wife Erica for a chat. Enjoyed getting to meet Erica and catch up with Rick, another close friend who I hadn’t seen since we left the college program.

Wednesday we ate lunch at Yak & Yeti at Animal Kingdom, not realizing it was just like Rainforest Café and T-Rex Café but with an Asian flare. It was at the base of Mt. Everest, decorated with Nepalese touches, and had a really cool atmosphere. We got that same chocolate brownie dessert, only this time it was called Chocolate Brownie Sundae for 2. Not near as cool of a name as the other two restaurants have, but equally delicious! Wednesday’s supper was back at the hotel food court. We met up with one of my former college program roommates, Rachel. Always a blast hanging out with her!

Thursday was our last day and only day at Epcot, and we had the best meal of the trip at Teppan Edo in the Japan pavilion. It was hibachi-style cooking, and the food was incredible! By far my favorite meal of the trip! It cost us 2 table service meals on our dining plan to have dinner there, preferred seating for the Candlelight Processional, and preferred viewing for IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth (the fireworks show), but was well worth it! The Candlelight Processional was a truly wonderful and spiritually rewarding way to end our honeymoon! The whole night was just perfect, as was the whole trip! I’m so glad Kyle likes Walt Disney World just as much as I do!

The Feast

Next up, our first Thanksgiving. For those that don’t know, Kyle is a student at Jackson State University and part-time employee at Best Buy. Working at Best Buy means he must face the dreaded Black Friday madness. He had to report to work at 2 AM Friday morning after Thanksgiving for crowd control in the parking lot, and work until 3 PM that afternoon in his regular home theater department. Craziness I tell you! So we did the unthinkable and didn’t go anywhere to be with our families, who all live an hour and a half away, for the holiday. We actually relaxed for a change! I got up Thanksgiving Day and cooked breakfast and a huge lunch which we ate on for days! Breakfast was homemade blueberry muffins, courtesy of Paula Deen. She says, “They’re the best damn blueberry muffins you’ll ever eat!” So far, I totally agree!

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
½ cup sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 egg, slightly beaten
¾ cup whole milk
1-1/2 cups fresh blueberries
½ cup granulated brown sugar or white sugar

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour 12 muffin cups. In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and the ½ cup of sugar. In another bowl, combine butter, egg, and milk and blend well. Pour wet ingredients into flour mixture and, with a spatula, stir until just combined. Do not beat or over-mix; it’s okay if there are lumps in the batter. Gently fold blueberries into batter. Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling each cup about 2/3 full. Bake for 10 minutes and remove from oven. Sprinkle tops of muffins with the granulated brown or white sugar and return muffins to oven to bake for an additional 10 to 20 minutes, until tops are golden brown and toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool for about 10 minutes in the pan before turning the muffins out.

Lunch was a massive spread of ham, sweet potato casserole, corn casserole, peas, fried green tomatoes, homemade wheat bread, pecan pie, and sweet potato pie. The ham we bought and the sweet potato pie was given to us by my Grandmother and Grandaddy, but the rest was made right there in our kitchen! We also had summer sausage, cheese, and crackers to snack on while I cooked. It was delicious! I will tell you part of me felt rather guilty cooking that huge meal for just the two of us. There are so many people out there that don’t have the luxury of a home-cooked meal or the luxury of a meal period. God bless the food banks, soup kitchens, and churches all over this great country that do their part to take care of the needy. While it doesn’t make up for our lack of compassion for those that did without this holiday season, I will tell you we didn’t waste a drop of that food. We ate it for nearly a week until every bit of it was gone!

Cinderella and Prince Charming

First, the wedding. It was incredible and amazing and everything I could have ever dreamed of! The flowers were gorgeous, the food was delicious, and the cakes were oh-my-gosh-to-die-for! And the people! We had so many family and friends (nearly 200) come by to celebrate with us and wish us well on our new journey together! I’m not sure I will ever be able to describe the special feeling that rushed over me that day. It was truly a fairytale wedding and I felt like a beautiful princess!

Thanks to Wright Griffis from Philadelphia, MS, we had 1100 pictures! He did an amazing job, and I was very pleased. This one is my favorite!

That Special Touch in Pearl, MS made both cakes. I’m sure I just heard a resounding AHHH from everyone reading this that was at the reception to taste them. That Special Touch is unbeatable in the Jackson area! Just in case you’re wondering, the bride’s cake was butter cake with cream cheese icing and the groom’s cake was Bailey’s Irish Cream! William Box (also from That Special Touch, he may own it but I’m not 100% sure) did the flowers. They were absolutely beautiful! I kept staring at my bouquet saying “Ohhh how pretty!” I didn’t wind up with any good pics from the food tables, but we got lots of compliments on them, too. Catering by George’s from Reservoir Pointe was in charge of the food/tables/linens, and they did an impeccable job! I’m telling you the day was absolutely perfect in my eyes! A dream wedding!

And we're back!

Well, the time has come for my blogging hiatus to be complete… at least until the next one! Ha! The past 3 months have been wonderfully exciting and eventful! We had our wedding, first Thanksgiving, honeymoon, first Christmas, first sickness, my 30th birthday which coincided with our first New Years Eve, a random unexpected vacation, an awesome Super Bowl, and equally awesome first Valentine’s Day (complete with snow)! We have been busy!