the Springs

Saturday, a few of us from our Young Married's group from Church headed out to DeLeon Springs. It's a natural springs that looks like a gigantic pool with a waterfall that flows into the river. A Cool 72 degrees! DeLeon Springs is also known for their Old Sugar Mill Restaurant. They have all you can eat pancakes, white flour and buckwheat (so yummy), and you can add pretty much whatever you want to it. The fun part is, that you make your own pancakes on the table right in front of you. It's like those Japanese Restaurants, only you do it yourself.


So, after we ate all that we could possibly stuff into our face, we stepped on out to the springs. We ignored the 30 minute rule, not swimming right after you eat, and jumped into the water. Well...some of us jumped and the rest slowly descended into the water.


Cohen was not liking it at first. But then we placed him in his floaty and he didn't want to get out.


After about an hour, we all decided to get our tan on, but God decided to turn on the shower and soaked us all. We then called it a day.

We topped off the night, with a date night, and slept rather nicely.

Monkeying Around

Today Cohen's Friends and their Mommies decided to get together and take a swing on over to Monkey Joe's. It's this indoor room which has all kinds of inflatables. I found out about it recently and was eager to go.


Cohen has gotten to that age where he likes to climb and jump, so, I thought this would be perfect for him. What's even better is that parents are FREE!!! And it only cost us $6. There is also a couple of sections for children 3 and under.

But once Cohen discovered the bigger bounce houses. He was all over those. Now the little man is peacefull sleeping away.

Sorting Clothes

Today was a very productive day. It started out with a great workout from my new friend, Fit Tv. Then this afternoon Cohen and I headed over to a friend's house to sort some clothes to give to the homeless. And I even found a few things. While we were doing do. Cohen decided he wanted to hang out with the ladies in the pool. Afterwards we checked out some sheep and headed home. Now everyone is in bed and I'm enjoying some peace and quiet.

Our Father's Day

This Father's Day started out a little rocky. Jay and I were not feeling well. But I was determined to make this a wonderful day, since last father's had, I pretty much had just given birth, and don't remember a thing. So, while my mom helped me prepare everything, Cohen made a seat out of Uncle Mike, who got an unexpected leave for 4 days!! Can we say, Great Father's Day Gift!!

For dinner I made some Beer Can Chicken, Mashed Red Skin Potatoes, and a lovely Salad. We topped dinner off with a Berry Cobbler while we watched '7 Pounds'.


Pat's Beer Can Grilled Chicken

Ingredients

Beer Can Chicken Rub:

nocoupons

• 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 2 tablespoons onion powder
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder

For the Chicken:

nocoupons

• 4 pounds chicken, washed and dried
• Vegetable oil
• Beer Can Chicken Rub
• 1 (12-ounce) can beer

Directions

For the chicken rub:

In a small bowl mix all the ingredients together and use for the grilled chicken. You can store extra rub mixture in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

For the chicken:

Preheat your grill to medium-high heat.

Rub the chicken and its cavity down with the vegetable oil. Season the chicken with rub mixture, remembering to season the cavity. Pour out 1/4 of the beer and sit the chicken on top of the beer can. Place the chicken in the center of the hot grill and cover. Cook the chicken for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until an instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees F. Once cooked, cover loosely with foil and let rest for 10 minutes before carving.

Slow Berry Cobbler

Ingredients

Filling:

• 1 (10-ounce) bag frozen strawberries
• 1 (10-ounce) bag frozen blueberries
• 1 (10-ounce) bag frozen raspberries
• 1/3 to 2/3 cup sugar, depending on your level of preferred sweetness
• 1/2 cup baking mix

Topping:

• 2 1/4 cups baking mix
• 1/4 cup sugar, plus 1/4 cup
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions

Spray the insert of a slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, toss together all the frozen fruit, sugar and 1/2 cup baking mix. Transfer the fruit to the slow cooker. In another large mixing bowl, stir together 2 1/4 cups baking mix, 1/4 cup sugar, melted butter and milk with a wooden spoon. With your hands, drop bits of dough on top of the fruit in the slow cooker. In a small mixing bowl, stir together the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and ground cinnamon. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar on top of the dough and place the lid on the slow cooker. Turn the power onto high and slow cook for 3 to 4 hours until the topping has puffed and the fruit is bubbling.

Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Roxy's Refreshing Summer Salad



Ingredients: 5 c. fresh baby spinach, washed and dried thoroughly 1/3 c. fresh grapefruit pieces 1/3 c. mandarin oranges 1/2 c. of dried cranberries 1/2 c. lightly candied pecans raspberry vinaigrette (Trader Joe's brand recommended)

Directions: -In large bowl, combine spinach, grapefruit, oranges, cranberries, and pecans. -Lightly drizzle some raspberry vinaigrette on top. -Toss to combine and serve immediately



It ended as a wonderful day with great memories!

Sun, Sand, and Rockstardom

Whew! I'm finally able to post about our weekend. It was a super busy weekend and a lot of fun.

Saturday morning to afternoon we celebrated our friend, Doug's, birthday! We headed out to Jetty Park in Cape Canaveral. We were really stoked because it would be Cohen's first trip to the beach! I couldn't wait till I could see his reaction. And I still don't know what he thinks about the beach and the ocean. It, of course, was nap time, and he didn't really show any kind of emotion. Oh well. We are heading out to the beach next month. Maybe he will be a little more up for it.

After the beach, we got ready to go celebrate our friend, Christie's, birthday! Man, two parties in one day! Crazy. She had a themed birthday party. So, we all dressed up as Rockstars and got our Rock Band on.
It was a great evening and to say I was tired by the end of the night would be an understatement.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to the love of my life!



And to my Daddio!

Summer!

Happy 1st Day of Summer! Yay!

I would like to spend my summer lying in a hammock

with my love, watching the sun go down.

Going Green

...and photography business related.

I was browsing the web wanting to find some Eco-Friendly CD cases to send to my potential clients. And I came across Sustainable Group. They sell environmentally friendly office products. And they just so happen to have some CD Sleeves. Just what I was looking for.

They have a couple of different kinds.

A single CD sleeve with or without a hole in the center.

And they also have a 2 disc case. I'm interested in both. We will just see which one tickles my fancy when it comes time to order some. I also like that they have labels you can use to cover the CD. You just have to download the template and can customize it to your needs. I am super stoked about this product.

Mall Playground

I had to run some errands today and one of them happened to be the Mall. So, we took a pit stop at the play area so Cohen could run off some steam and take a long nap when he got home. I love this little boy.

Editing into the Night

This week has been crazy already! A friend of the family asked me to photograph her boys for a Father's Day gift for their dad (her husband). So, on Monday we met up and took photos for about 2 hours. I haven't photographed kids yet, besides my own son, so I was nervous. And not having a professional camera, yet, made me even more nervous. But i was excited all the same.

I have to give props to children photographers. Their attention spans (the children) are so short. You have to be on your toes the whole time. It was good practice and really got me thinking. Props Props Props. That's what I'll be bringing...nothing cheesy though.

Overall, I think we got some good shots and hopefully Michelle can find some she can use.

Then Tuesday, in between watching Cohen, I was editing away. Here are just a few I took.


I'm still getting use to Photoshop. And its only PS Elements. Not the CS4. One day.

Thai Pork and Vegetable Curry

Wow!! I haven't done this in a long time.

Ingredients

• 1-1/3 cups dried orzo (about 8 ounces)
• 12 ounces pork tenderloin or lean boneless pork
• 2 tablespoons cooking oil
• 8 ounces green beans, bias-sliced into 1 1/2-inch pieces (2 cups)*
• 1 red sweet pepper, cut into thin bite-size strips
• 2 green onions, bias-sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 14-ounce can unsweetened lite coconut milk
• 4 teaspoons bottled curry paste
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons lime juice

Directions

1. Cook orzo according to package directions. Drain and keep warm. Thinly slice pork into bite-size pieces.

2. Pour 1 tablespoon of the oil into a large nonstick skillet. Preheat over medium-high heat. Add pork; cook and stir about 4 minutes or until no pink remains. Remove from skillet.

3. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to skillet. Add green beans; cook and stir for 3 minutes. Add sweet pepper and green onions; cook and stir about 2 minutes more or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Add coconut milk, curry paste, and sugar. Reduce heat to low, stirring until combined. Stir in cooked pork and lime juice; heat through. Serve over hot orzo.

4. Makes 4 servings

5. *Note: A 9-ounce package of frozen cut green beans, thawed, can be substituted for the fresh beans. Add them to the skillet along with the sweet pepper and onions; cook as directed.

Georgia, Sweet Georgia

Wow. I haven't blogged in quite sometime.

This past weekend we went to go see my brother for his Turning Blue Ceremony and Graduation. It had been over 3 months since we had seen him. It was so nice to see him and catch up. He's still the same, but definitely has matured some. It was great to know he has found what he wants to do.

Thursday was the Turning Blue Ceremony where they got these blue cords put around their shoulder. This was a huge accomplishment and relief. It meant he had passed boot camp and he didn't have to fear getting down and giving 20 out in public.

Friday was the actual Graduation Ceremony. It unfortunately rained all weekend so the ceremony was moved inside. But it was neat to watch, even though it wasn't as showy as it would have been outside.

Now my bro is off to jump school and then special forces training. This will last approximately 1.5 to 2.5 years depending on what specialty he chooses. Currently he is shooting for Medic, which is the longest program, and the one my mom would prefer over the rest. That way, he won't have to go off to war right away.

We topped off the weekend with a visit with our friends, The Tyndale's, in Atlanta.

We had a wonderful time, but are so happy to be home.

My 1 Year Old

He's growing up so fast.

I love him so much.