My Other Blog

I just thought I'd post about my other blog: Southern Mamalogue.  That one is more about my family and daily life. It was originally intended to keep our long distance family in touch, but I would love to share it with everyone.  I would love to read any comments ya'll might have.

Winter Wonderland

Yet another cold snap.... it has me reminiscing of my real winter experience.  When Colin and I were falling head over heals in love with each other, I moved to Canada for a year.  What an experience!  I wouldn't trade it for the world.  It was a leap of faith that showed my love, it was a way to understand Colin's Canadian background, to experience the world he lived in, it was an experience of living in a different country and making lots of new friends.  Although we've ended up down south, I can completely relate to him and where he comes from because I've experienced it and met the people behind the stories.  We really lived it up that year and packed in so much fun in such and amazing place and such a short time.  
Taking a walk around his parent's land. It was a beautiful day and we trekked for about 2 to 3 hours.

Skating (with my own ice skates... who would have thunk it.... this little southern girl has her very own ice skates) on a pond at the ski resort after a day on the slopes.

At the top of the hill. This was the coldest I've ever experienced. It was -45 at the top that day. The snow was up to our hips... you sure didn't want to step out of your skiis. The next day they closed the hill because it was -61!!!

Colin and I after a wonderful Scandinavian spa treatment. We actually jumped into a river that evening as part of the treatment. Our friend who went with us had to break a layer of ice that had formed on top of the river. Now remember, rivers run... do you know how cold it has to be to freeze running water!?! I guess that makes us kin to the Polar Bear Club.

Skating on the Ottawa Canal, the longest outdoor skating in the world. I had never skated on natural, ungroomed ice before. It certainly has its own challenges. This is what I would do for exercise some days when Colin went to work.

Right Now...

I am sitting "Indian Style" in the corner of my couch...all of my pillows and my favorite blanket around me.

I am aching to hold one of my babies... Drew is napping and Emma is too. I want so badly to pick her up, but I know I shouldn't because she is already so spoiled.

My cookies are cooling and I am about to decorate them and then take pictures of them (because I love to do that)

I am thinking of how quickly maternity leave is flying by and how I want it to last forever

I am wearing jeans and a long sleeve t-shirt... something I wouldn't be able to wear if I were at work

I am enjoying the silence

I am thinking about my mother and how she is now with my dad, my aunt, and my grandmother

I am thankful for this day, just the way that it is. I am also thankful for my family's health and happiness.

I feel blessed

Gifts

 

"Your talent is God's gift to you.  What you do with it is your gift back to God"

  ~anonymous

I just thought of this which I read years ago as I was looking around at other blogs and all of the amazing talent that is floating around out there. I have been so fascinated by these blogs and I just get lost in them. There is so much out there. I love the creative, whimsical, and spunky personalities....

....which reminds me of another quote:

"What lies behind us and what lies in front of us pales in comparison to what lies within us." ~Emerson

What a world I could get lost in! Well done bloggers!

"You've Got To Know When To Fold 'Em"

UGH!

Inspire Me Thursday - Fold

File' Gumbo

This week, Inspire Me Thursday's topic was soup.  Well, living in Louisiana as long as I did, I couldn't just do soup.... I got inspired to make gumbo and I wanted to share the joys of preparing this wonderful dish with everyone.  Now I've never contributed to Inspire Me Thursday before, but because of my love for cooking, Soup really got me.  I had to contribute.  

Preparing food is so much more than following a recipe to me.  It's loving and nourishing my family, it's following traditions, and it's building memories.  So I'll share some stories and traditions with whomever will read this.

Gumbo:

It's not just "a stew originating from Louisiana."  It's a staple of the Louisiana kitchen, it's a way of distinguishing the the Creole and New Orleans culture, it's a social event, it's a way of life, it's what LSU decided to call it's yearbook for crying out loud!

Now, the scariest part about preparing Gumbo happens at the very beginning.  The roux!  My sister says that it's like playing "chicken."  You have to cook the roux to a chocolatey brown color to achieve that rich gumbo flavor, but you can't burn it.  Well, of course, that color and flavor that you are looking for happens only a split moment before the roux burns.  How far do you take it.... how far will you push your roux to get the richest flavor?  Marcelle Beinvennu, the author of the cookbook "Who's Your Mama, Are You Catholic, and Can You Make A Roux?" says that her father said that you cook a roux for Gumbo as long as it takes you to drink two beers.  Well she says that since she doesn't really drink beer but loves music, she cooks it as long as it takes her to listen to two full length albums.

If you can make it past the roux, you are home free.  It's time consuming, but the rest of it is relatively easy.  You throw in all of your ingredients, let them cook for a few hours, and voila! Enjoy!

The Roux when it's still friendly

This is the roux after I've put the vegetables in (the "holy trinity" as they call it in Louisiana... celery, onion, and bell pepper)

And finally... the finished product complete with wine

Inspire Me Thursday - Soup

Letter From the Editor

Ok... am I the only one who can't wait until my favorite magazine comes in the mail?  I think not.  We know how it goes... we're too busy to wait by the mailbox for it, but you do have it in the back of your mind when your favorite magazine should be coming or when it should be hitting the stands.  

Now, something that might be different about me is that the first thing that I do is flip straight to the letter from the editor and the short blurbs about contributing writers and photographers.  I absolutely love that.  I find it fascinating to read the thoughts of the people that write and polish these brilliant articles that I love so much.  I find the articles sooo much more interesting when I see the inside perspective of someone who was involved with it's process.  I also love to read about the things that happened while creating the articles or shooting the pictures.  

Well, just a little thing I wanted to share.  Next time you get your favorite magazine, take a minute to read what the people who created it have to say.  You'll be surprised how much more interesting it makes the magazine.