God is good.

I can’t believe another year has gone by. Seriously. What is happening?  This year has been full of ups and downs, but there is one thing I am fully confident saying…God is good. The more intimately I seek our Father, the more I learn that not only is He good, but His plan for my life is truly marvelous.

It’s been three years without Emma. Sometimes it feels like just yesterday that she was here.  Sometimes it feels like ten years have gone by without her. I still don’t understand why she died, but I don’t have to. What I do understand is that God knows that sometimes my heart is filled with sadness and sorrow with her loss. It’s in those times that He amazes me and fills my heart with joy. That joy has come in many different forms, but I’ll share the one that stands out.

Before I chose my wedding gown, it was important to me that my daddy have input. I narrowed it down to two gowns and let him have the final say. He, of course, couldn’t decide. So, we spent lots of time at Patsy’s that day. During the time that we were going back and forth between gowns, there was a trunk show going on for a jewelry and veil designer. We spoke with her, and she offered to custom make my veil and a brooch for me to wear with my gown. After giving us the total estimated bill to do all of these things, I told my parents, let’s just think about it, never expecting them to OK the order. We left the salon and went to lunch. During lunch, I was talking about other options for veils and jewelry and my dad interrupted me and said, “I want to do this for you. I want you have these things for your wedding day and pass down in our family.” I once again, like so many times in my life, was blown away by the generosity of my parents. Fast forward a few months… I got the call from Patsy’s that my veil and brooch had arrived. I think I broke every law to get there as fast as I could. These pieces were so special to me, and I wanted to see them. I looked at the veil first. It was perfect. Gorgeous, elegant and simple, just how I wanted it. As I opened the box to the brooch, the sales assistant was telling me that the jewelry designer names all of her pieces with women’s names. Low and behold, the name of the piece that was made for me was named Emma. (This was about 6 months after Emma died.) We HAD NO IDEA that she would name my piece Emma.  I immediately broke down into tears. I think the sales lady thought I was disappointed. I had to try to explain to her that Emma was my dog’s name, which I think made me look even crazier. God knew then and now that this simple thing would bring me so much joy. I wore my brooch on my wedding day and wear on special occasions feeling like she is with me.

 

My cup runneth over with the grace and love and humor and amazement that flows from our God. Even in the small things of our crazy lives, He is ever-present and I am forever grateful.

We miss you Emma Lou!

Thrills and Grills

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before, but if you know Lane, then you know that he’s probably the biggest Ranger’s fan there is. Seriously. I can ask him any question about anything Rangers or baseball related and he immediately has an answer. I honestly don’t know where he gets all of this information because it’s not like he researches the Rangers all day. I’m pretty sure he works. And, for the record, he’s not just a fair weather fan… He’s loved the Rangers since he was a little boy and continued to love them through the long dry spell.

Friday, April 1st was Ranger’s opening day this year. We were able to go several years ago and had no problem getting tickets. Well, apparently after you go to the World Series, your opening day tickets seem to be a little more in demand.  Go figure. Even after putting both of our names in the lottery for tickets, we still weren’t awarded any. We also weren’t going to be able to purchase tickets from ebay or stubhub because we’re trying to really cut back on our spending, so while he never said anything, I know Lane was kind of sad. I wanted SO badly to get tickets for him. I knew it would mean the world to him and I tried several outlets, but they were just all too expensive.

Then on the Tuesday before the game, angels, in the form our dear friends Jill and Jonathan appeared. Jill bought tickets for Jonathan for his birthday, but unfortunately, at the last minute J was asked to attend the game with clients and they weren’t able to use the seats that they bought, so they just GAVE them to us. Jill is quite possibly one of the most giving and thoughtful people I know. I am blown away by her selflessness and generosity. I know that if I ever asked her to do anything, she would be there in a heartbeat to do it. She is always surprising her friends with little gifts. This gift of tickets was certainly a surprise , but definitely not small at all.

I was in tears. Lane was in tears beyond excited. We are forever grateful to Jill and Jonathan for this opportunity. It meant the world to us and hopefully someday we’ll be able to pay them back!

So, of course we were going to take advantage of the day. We made a packing list and grocery run the night before and at 10 a.m. on Friday we were loaded and ready to go. We had such a great time. We were able to tailgate before the game and then go in for all of the opening ceremonies. It was a blast!

In the parking lot, tailgating before the game.

mmmm….sausage, wrapped in a tortilla with some grilled onions, BBQ sauce and mustard. Breakfast of champions!

The view from our seats. Amazing.

So, at this point, I definitely got a little mist in my eyes. Marching onto the field holding a giant American Flag were all kinds service men and women. I sat there and thought to myself, “Here I am, taking the day off of work, sitting the stands ready to watch a baseball game with a beer in my hands and these people are fighting for my freedom to do that.”  It just blew me away. I am able to sit in these stands because of them.

Oh, and I have a secret crush on the Texas Rangers. The other ones. You know, the cowboy hats, jeans, boots and guns? The Texas Rangers Law Enforcement Officers.

And, no Rangers Home Opener would be complete without George W. and Laura. I have read both of their books and am in love with them. I really wanted to give them both hugs, but I’m sure I would have gotten arrested for that.

During the National Anthem a MASSIVE bomber flew over. It was so stinking close. And loud. And awesome.

And, to top off a great day, the Rangers WON! Yay! We are so excited about this season. Thanks again to Jill and Jonathan, without whom this wonderful day wouldn’t have happened. We are forever grateful for your friendship!

          

Oh, and for the grills part of this post. (Sometimes I forget that this is a food blog.)

While we didn’t cook these at the ballpark, we totally could have. They were DELICIOUS! You can do any combo of meat/cheese that you want, but this is just what we had on hand.

Grilled Pesto Sandwiches

4 slices thick, crusty bread brushed in olive oil

4 slices muenster cheese

6 slices salami

4 slices turkey (we used Boar’s Head Honey Maple Coat turkey)

2 T. of Pesto, divided

4 sundried tomatoes, sliced

2 t. Mayo, divided

Heat grill to medium high heat. Place one slice of cheese on each piece of bread. This will act as the glue to hold it all together as it melts.  Then, layer the salami and turkey on each sandwich. Add 1 T. of pesto, the sundried tomatoes and 1 t. of mayo to each. Close the sandwiches and grill over indirect flame for about 4 minutes a side, or until cheese is melty and gooey and good. Slice in half and enjoy the best darn sandwich ever!

Babies! and Anniversaries! and Weddings, oh my!

Yes, I’m just going to roll all of this into one post…so hang on to your britches, it’s going to be a long’un.

The month of March has just flown by for us but it has been filled with wonderful, wonderful things. 

BABIES: We started the month out babysitting my friend Jodi’s precious twin boys, Jensen and Noah. It took some convincing on my part to get Lane to babysit with me, but once we were there, I’m pretty sure he loved it!

The boys were napping when we arrived and Jodi said that they were both feeling bad, so we were a little worried that we would be with sad, crying babies all night. It was actually quite the opposite. Those little boys were just as sweet as they could be. We fed them, loved on them, played with them and had so much fun!

(sorry for the crappy cell phone pics)

We watched the boys play bumper cars and thoroughly enjoyed it!Jensen is stealthy in his walker! He would follow Lane to and from the kitchen without hitting a single wall.

Jensen and Lane became best buddies!

Sick little Noah just needed some love from both of us!

Anniversary: The following weekend, we celebrated our second wedding anniversary! I’m conflicted because, while it feels like yesterday that we were just walking down the aisle, it also feels like the two years should actually be ten.

We were able to celebrate this year with a STAYcation. Thanks to a generous birthday gift from my best friend, Mary C., we spent the night in a suite at the wonderful Stoneleigh Hotel in Dallas. It also included dinner at their fabulous restaurant, Bolla. We checked in and had crazy good drinks and snacks on the patio.

On the patio at the Stoneleigh.

 

Duck confit spring rolls and pomme frites.

We went back to our room and got ready for dinner. It was fun to get dressed up and know that we’d  have a nice dinner coming our way. It was a great weekend. We fall more in love every single day. I didn’t know that my heart could get much bigger! I am so thankful to have an amazing partner, best friend and boyfriend all rolled into one! Here’s to another 60 years!

Weddings: Finally, the month of March is coming to a conclusion and there was no better way I can think to spend it, than in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico celebrating the wedding of our dear friends Ashleigh and Raymond.

When we first heard that the wedding was going to be in Cabo, we almost certainly knew we wouldn’t be able to go. We’ve really had to tighten our purse strings this year and a vacation to Mexico was certainly not in the budget. Fortunately, we both have unbelievably wonderful parents and they were able to bless us with opportunity to go. Lane hated the thought of missing his best friend’s wedding, and I hated the thought of Lane going on a vacation without me, so we are truly forever grateful for our parents intervening. It is beyond me how generous those four people can be. We are so lucky and hope to one day be as generous as they are.

The weather was perfect and there’s nothing like waking up to the sights, sounds and smells of the ocean. We stayed at the Riu Palace in Cabo. Neither of us have ever been to an All-Inclusive resort so we loved the idea of free drinks anytime we wanted!

When we arrived, we were able to spend a little time on the beach with the whole group.

The view of half of the resort from the lobby bar.

The view from our beach…the southernmost tip of the Baja Peninsula.

Sweet baby Jack. Raymond and Ashleigh’s son.

 

Boy time on the beach.

That night, we got ready and attended Ray and Ashleigh’s rehearsal dinner. It was held a Mexican restaurant on property. We were greeted at the door with Margaritas…what else could be better?

 

Obligatory shot before dinner. This view will never get old.

 

The next day we woke up, went to the pool and then got ready for the wedding. It was a HOT day, but perfectly sunny and beautiful. The ceremony was set up on the beach with the archway looking directly at the Baja tip.

The wedding was beautiful. The bride was beautiful. The ceremony was beautiful. It was a really special moment that definitely left a few tears in my eyes. The officiant  had a great message. It particularly stuck out to me when he was talking about the rings. He said that the ring is something to be so proud of. Because that ring is an outward symbol that says you are someone’s husband or wife. It says that you are proud to be a spouse and that someone is proud to call you their spouse. He said it a little more eloquently, obviously, but I loved it. I always like looking at Lane’s hand with his wedding ring on it. It makes me feel great knowing that when other people see him, they know, because of the ring he’s wearing, that he’s proud to be called a husband and that he’s proud that I’m his wife.

The ceremony was short and sweet (just how we Baptists like it!) There were lots of onlookers and they cheered when the happy couple kissed!

After the wedding, we put our swimsuits back on and enjoyed a day in the sun!! Thank you Raymond and Ashleigh for including us in your big day!

Our last full day in Cabo, we decided to go deep sea fishing. It’s something that Lane loves to do and I’ve never done before. We’ve always heard that the fishing in Cabo is supposed to be amazing, so we couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

I’ll fast forward through all of the gritty details and say that we were highly disappointed in the captain and the charter. They were too lazy to take us out to fish for marlin or tuna and ended up only fishing for mackerel just off the shore line. We caught one fish. One. If it weren’t for the other sea life we saw, I would probably have thrown a fit. But, it was all made worth it for three reasons…Whales, dolphins and sea lions (seals…what’s the difference?). We saw some seals/sea lions as we were leaving the marina, but the best part came when we were, what felt like, surrounded by GIANT whales. We saw a baby and a mama that were probably 20 feet from our boat.

At one point, there were dolphins chasing our boat!

And, as we were coming back into the harbor, a little old man sea lion/seal (still don’t know the difference even after googling it) hopped up on the back of our boat and wanted to take the extra bait off of our hands. He was precious. I really wanted to pet him and possibly take him home with me. He and Knox would be best buds, I’m sure of it.

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Oh, and here’s our one measly fish that the guide caught and let Lane reel in.

A few pictures from the boat:

Pretending to fish.

Lane’s friend David came all the way from Baghdad for the wedding.

Early morning on the boat.

The bait that we drove an hour for….

Amy and Aaron, who we were so glad to spend time with.

We returned to the resort in time to hang out. After a long nap by the pool, we decided that we need a little something different than what the hotel buffet had to offer us. Amy and Aaron researched a local restaurant that had great reviews on TripAdvisor.com and we decided to tag along with them. We were so glad we  did! It ended up being one of the best meals I’ve had in a long time. The restaurant was called Pancho’s, but never fear, there is no flag to raise here. It is known for its wide variety of tequila. Lane and Aaron sampled some tequila, which I’m learning is similar to wine in the way that it’s aged and processed. It was served in what looked like champagne glasses and they sipped on it for the flavor. Amy and I had a bacon wrapped tuna steak that looked like a nice baseball cut of filet mignon. It was MUY DELIICOUSO. The “special pepper sauce” that it was served with should be served in that same tequila sipping glass because I could drink it all. night. long.

The waiter pouring the very special tequila.

While we were sad to leave the beautiful view from our hotel, we were happy to be home in our own bed with our buddy. I came home with some awesome cankles. I mean, we’re talking elephant sized feet and ankles. Apparently I had a bad reaction to the sun (fell asleep on the boat while we were fishing) and it caused my legs to swell up! Who knew! Oh well, it’s given me an excuse to down some benadryl and keep my feet propped up. Live and learn!

whew. I literally just sighed out loud. This post is over. If you’re still reading, I salute you.  Time really does fly when you’re having fun. We are so thankful for the friends and family we are surrounded by that have provided us such amazing opportunities. This was definitely a March to remember.

New to the rotation..

I’m always looking for something new to add to our dinner rotations. We really try to stick to ground turkey, organic chicken breasts and fish during the week. Sometimes, though, I feel like I’ve run out of options for those three proteins. So, of course, when I need inspiration, I look to Annie’s Eats. It’s my g0-to food blog and I haven’t made a single thing from her blog that isn’t fabulous. I came across this recipe and knew it would for us. I had all of the ingredients on hand and so it seems like the stars just aligned for this recipe.

I didn’t change anything, so here’s the link to the recipe. No need for me to re-post.

Chicken with Artichokes in a White Wine Sauce from Annie's Eats

Sew Sweet

I bought the candy molds a loooonnnng time ago. I was waiting for the perfect occasion to make the precious little button candies. Finally, I couldn’t take it any longer. If these things were going to get used, then I was going to have to make it happen. It worked out that it was my turn to host Cocktails and Cupcakes, so I couldn’t think of a better time than then! The theme would be Sew Sweet and we would all wear our cute Anthropolgie aprons! (I had high hopes of setting up my sewing machine and having the girls sew something, but, alas, time got away from me.)

Of course, it was a wonderful night. We were sad to miss Erin and Mary C., but Jovi and Macee K. were able to fill the void. We ordered pizza from our FAVORITE LA Gourmet Pizza. (Shout out to Rafic, the precious delivery driver who drove out of the way to deliver to us because he recognized our names from when we used to live down there. He’s the best!)

I decided to make Red Velvet cupcakes. I felt like they were classic and festive enough for the occasion. They were delicious and oohhhh SEW cute!

I couldn’t have such a cute themed party and not decorate just a little bit! Thanks to knitting needles, yarn and some different sized hurricanes, it turned out pretty cute!

 

Jill found some really cute chalkboard wine glasses, that were perfect for C&C! We came up with some great nicknames for the night!

We had a great night, as usual. I am amazingly blessed to have such wonderful friends!

Finally, the recipe!
Red Velvet Cupcakes from Annie’s Eats

Ingredients:
For the cake:
2½ cups cake flour
1½ cups sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tbsp. cocoa powder (I would increase to 2-3 T. I think they needed a little more cocoa flavor.)
1 tsp. salt
2 large eggs
1½ cups vegetable oil (I used half vegetable, half canola, only because I ran out of vegetable oil! Couldn’t tell a difference!)
1 cup buttermilk
2 tbsp. (1 oz.) liquid red food coloring *
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. distilled white vinegar

For the frosting:*
8 oz. cream cheese
5 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Line cupcake pans with paper liners.  In a medium bowl, combine the cake flour, sugar, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt; whisk to blend.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the eggs, vegetable oil, buttermilk, food coloring, vanilla and vinegar.  Beat on medium speed until well blended.  Mix in the dry ingredients on low speed and beat until smooth, about 2 minutes. * Be careful with the food coloring. It will stain everything it touches!

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared liners.  Bake, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 18 minutes.  Let cool in the pans 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, combine the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer.  Beat on medium-high speed until well combined and smooth, about 2-3 minutes.  Mix in the vanilla extract.  Gradually beat in the confectioners’ sugar until totally incorporated, increase the speed and then beat until smooth.  Frost cooled cupcakes as desired. (I used a large, unlabeled star tip to frost these cupcakes.)

This is Annie’s hint, and I followed it. Definitely plan on making extra if you’re going to pipe the frosting.*If you are big on frosting as I am, you may want to increase the quantities by 50%.  That is what I typically do for a batch of 24 cupcakes.  I usually end up with some left over, but I would rather have too much frosting than not enough!