Night out with the Navy...sort of

To me, music is an emotion. I don't just hear music...I feel it. I usually don't get all weepy on my blog, so I apologize for the mushiness. But music is an extension of my soul, and having the gift of music is very precious to me. To those of you who don't play an instrument or aren't musically inclined, then you may think I'm crazy. But trust me, it's true.

Friday night, as we sat behind the stage of the Nashville Symphony, my heart was fluttering with excitement. We were so close to the musicians that I felt I was a part of the show. Had I brought my French Horn with me, I would have played right along with them. Oh, the French Horns were amazing, and the first chair player had a lengthy solo that nearly brought me to my feet. Sadly, no one clapped for her solo, but I was quietly going nuts in my chair.

This particular Pops Series show featured the U.S. Navy Men's Glee Club in honor of Veterans Day. The men sang beautifully, and during their a cappella performance of Ave Maria, I think a small tear crept into my right eye. The acoustics at Schermerhorn Symphony Center will blow you away...literally. The show was very entertaining with a mix of patriotic tunes, sea shanties, and a couple of Broadway show tunes. I'm sorry to report that they did not sing "Love Lift Us Up where We Belong," which to me, is the best song ever related to the Navy. MAYO-NAISE!





The rest of our weekend was filled with a whole mess of excitement. Saturday my Nonnie had us over for lunch to eat some of her homemade vegetable soup and cornbread. Y'all, her cornbread is the WORLD'S BEST.

Sunday we finally tackled the kudzu in our back yard. After about an hour of tearing, chopping, cutting, and ripping, the back yard was full of vines and yard waste. Some of the vines were 30 feet long...I'm not kidding. And as usual, we had no plan for disposing of all of it. So what did we do? Well, we drug all of it to the "way back" which is the Blair Witch-esque kind of creepy part of our yard. I'm so afraid that those vines are going to take root and start growing again.

Big Orange Anniversary

The traditional gift for a first anniversary is paper. Do tickets to a ballgame count? What about cards? Because we did buy each other a card.

Sherri & Keith were kind enough to hook us up with tickets to the UT Homecoming game, and we spent the weekend with them in Knoxville. It was an awesome way to celebrate 365 days of being happily married! Sherri refused to wear orange to the game (understandably), but the rest of us got decked out and enjoyed the true Tennessee Volunteer experience. We hung out at a few bars on The Strip, watched UT beat the crap out of The Ragin Cajuns, and ended up playing pool in the Old City after the game.

Ziplock + Jack Daniels + Sock = Drink at a college ballgame

After coming home on Sunday, Sean and I enjoyed a relaxing afternoon and had a candlelight dinner. Nothing says "I love you" like 1.80 lbs of red meat and year-old cake.

I should probably offer an explanation as to why I bought such a ridiculous and over-the-top steak...While we were honeymooning in Florence (Italy, not Alabama), a local lady named Emmanuella took us out for a night on the town. We had dinner at her favorite restaurant, Osteria del Porcellino. She ordered a giant T-bone for the three of us along with lots and LOTS of red wine. It was such a treat for us to be there with her, and we had an excellent time until we had to send her home drunk in a cab. Anyhow, I thought a T-bone for our anniversary dinner would be a throw-back to that special night we shared in Florence.

Year-old cake still tastes delicious!

A picture of the Porcellino - we sat in the left corner by the window

Crock Pot Glory

Now that the fall weather has finally arrived, I decided it was time for a hearty meal to warm up our bones and stick to our ribs. A few weeks ago I was perusing the Food Network website and came across a variety of crock pot recipes...and these aren't your momma's crock pot recipes. My mom only used the crock pot for 2 things: mini BBQ weenies for parties, and pot roast. So you can imagine my excitement when I discovered crock pot recipes for Sweet and Sour Pork, Chipotle-Lime Chicken, and Chicken with Rosemary, Apples and Onions.

I chose Slow Cooker Chicken with Rosemary, Apples and Onions. I'm ashamed to say it's a Robin Miller recipe, and we all know how much I loathe her...but she gained an ounce of redemption with this meal.

Here's the deal: You dump all these yummy ingredients into an electric bowl and walk away. Six hours later, you have dinner. Why am I not doing this every day? Well, I'll tell you why...I'm away from home for a lot longer than six hours. To make the crock pot meal work for me, I had to scurry home on my lunch break, dump in the fixin's, and rush back to work. Still, it saved me loads of time in the end. When I came home after working out, dinner was ready and waiting.

The minute I opened my back door, my mouth started watering from the aroma of rosemary, apple, and onion that had been steeping for hours. What an amazing blend of flavor! I would have never in a million years paired apples and onions, but y'all, it works. The chicken was so tender that it was falling off the bone as I served up the dish. Sean and I deemed this recipe a definite keeper.

Slow Cooker Chicken with Rosemary, Apples, and Onions

2 cups sliced onions
2 apples, peeled, cored and sliced
2 pounds cut up chicken pieces (with bone), with or without skin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 Cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup cream of celery soup

*a couple of notes before you begin: use more S&P if you need to (I did), make sure the rosemary is FRESH and not from a jar.

Let's begin...Arrange onion and apple slices in bottom of slow cooker. Place chicken pieces (I used thighs) on top and season all over with salt and black pepper. (I also added garlic powder.) Sprinkle chopped rosemary over chicken.

In a medium bowl, whisk together chicken broth and soup. Pour mixture over chicken. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH for 3-4 hours.

Serve chicken, sauce, apples, and onions over rice. (I enjoy Uncle Ben's 90 Second brown rice, or instant 5 minute brown rice is also a speedy choice.)

The raw ingredients...

7 hours later...yummo

Halloween Party-ness

Sean and me in our costumes

The full Rainbow Brite getup complete with her horse, Starlite

Sunday, 2:45 p.m: I've only been awake for a few hours. Man alive, I gave myself a big scare in the mirror this morning! Makeup was smeared everywhere, stale breath, dirty hair...I looked just like an old fashioned hooker. This can only mean one thing: It must have been a good party! We have a lot of beer left over, so y'all come on down and help us kill it before we have to return the keg.

Many many thanks to my very best friends who helped coordinate the whole thing. And thanks to everyone who came out for a night of silly fun. I hope everyone enjoyed it. The costumes were fabulous! Every single person in attendance was wearing a costume, and each one was impressive.

Some highlights from the evening include: Dancing to Soulja Boy, getting a visit from a creepy opossum (no, seriously - it was a REAL opossum - not a costume!), Keith's "Wendy's Man" braids bobbling on his head whenever he yelled, and Sean accidentally stabbing Story with the fire poker...even though I'm pretty sure she deserved it.

***Special Addition*** My favorite recipe from the party was Nikki's homemade cheese ball. Y'all must make this - it's delicious! Nikki says it's really easy to make, too. Just mix up some dried beef (you know those little beef things that come in a jar?), some scallions, pimentos, green and black olives, cream cheese and garlic salt. Probably mix the dry ingredients in a food processor to get them all chopped up real good. Meanwhile, let your cream cheese be softening. Once the cheese is good and ready, start folding in all the copped up bits of stuff and form it into a ball.

Paul and Sarah as Dwight and Angela from "The Office"

Story and Richard as Judy and Elroy Jetson

Some girls I don't know dressed as a Lego and bottle of Cherry Coke - she made the whole Coke bottle herself!

Chad and Sherri as Lil John and a geisha

Our decorations

Jolene, Crystal, Kate and me doing the Soulja Boy dance

Crystal and Bobby as Strawberry Shortcake and The Geico Caveman

Keith as The Wendy's Guy

Me as Rainbow Brite...bein' all sassy!

Sean and Me - he makes a cute doctor!

Sean Turns 29!!!

Sean turned 29 on Sunday, and we made this weekend one heck of a birthday celebration! After all, this is his last year of being young so he had to do something wild and crazy. (Ok, maybe it wasn't the most wild and crazy time ever, but it was a lot more than we usually do...)

Sherri and Keith met us for dinner Saturday night for a bit of an early celebration. Sean got a birthday shot of Single Barrel Jack Daniels from Keith, and I think that's when all the fun began...Unfortunately, Sherri and Keith had another party to attend, so they bailed on us. Sean and I headed off by ourselves to Big Bang, a new bar on Broadway right across from all the Honkey Tonks. Big Bang is a dueling piano bar, and it really is the neatest thing since sliced bread. The piano players encourage audience participation and singing along, so there's no way you could ever get bored here. We sang our fair share of "oldies but goodies," my favorites being the Journey tunes, And we also snuck in a few dances. I really wish I had a video to share with you because I'm not doing this place justice. There's just no way for me to capture all the excitement and energy you find when you visit in person.

Just know we had so much fun that we had to take a cab home.


Sunday morning was a Birthday Brunch with Sean's mom, stepdad, and brother Trevor. We ate an amazing spread of food at Ellendale's ranging from waffles to omlets to eggplant Parmesan to pizza. We were in hog heaven, and after stuffing ourselves it was time for Sean to open his presents. I was so nervous that he wouldn't like his new guitar, but thankfully he seemed to be really excited about it. Sean has quite an ear for music, and he can harmonize without ever being trained. I think he's going learn quickly - he's already been practicing "Ode to Joy" every day. I love hearing the chords ring out through the house (even if they aren't always perfect). His favorite chord so far is E7...it must be an easy one. The guitar is an acoustic Epiphone, and it's really beautiful and has a great tone. I found a picture even though it may not be the exact model.

Bonnie and Ed gave him a Home Depot gift card, and he got a squirrel-proof bird feeder from Trevor. For those of you who don't already know, our back yard is somewhat of a squirrel playground. They must love that we don't have dogs, so they frolic and play, and sometimes take naps on our deck. We really do enjoy them (except for when they ate all my tulip bulbs), and it will be fun trying to watch them hack into that bird feeder. Sean also got a gift card from my mom and Jimmy, and a new CD from Amanda.

Oh, and GOOD NEWS - Sean bought a new camera with his birthday money. Rest assured, I will steal it often and take pictures for the blog.

Roll Tide

Mimi, Jimmy, Mom, Papa and Sean hangin' out in the living room

Jimmy and Mimi watching the game
Just Papa
Mimi and me
Sean gets an early birthday present!
Sean, me, and Bandit
Emily, here are pictures of our clean upstairs! We set up Clint's dresser in our guest room.

"I wonder if the Asians' diet has something to do with their brains?" - Mimi

My Mimi sure is a special woman. I wish you could all be here with me today to meet her.

Having family over for Saturday lunch is quite a chore...They've been here going on 3 hours now, and I'm just about spent. I'm glad that Mimi and Papa (even though he won't remember) got a chance to finally see our house. We've lived here almost 2 years now - I can't believe it. But our family isn't big on gatherings, which is why it's taken me so long to extend an invitation to them. We're strictly a 'holidays' family; only see each other on Thanksgiving and Christmas. And you know what? That's just about enough for me.

After checking our calendars, we decided that today would work best. Then I realized it was the Tennesse-Alabama game, so I invited mom and Jimmy to come over, too. We watched the game and enjoyed a spread of white beans, cornbread and BBQ. Ok, some of us watched the game. (I confess, I only saw a couple of plays and that was purely accidental.) Mom tried to make a coconut pie for dessert. I say "tried" because it's the saddest lookin' pie I ever saw. When we served it up on the plates, it was so runny that Sean offered straws to everyone. It was still good -- runny sugar doesn't taset any different.

I'm all caught up on the family gossip now, and all I want to do is take a nap. It's perfect weather outside, the windows are open, and football is on in the background. Something about this combination makes me incredibly sleepy. Well, that and all the cornbread and beans.

Worst Recipe Ever

I should have known better than to trust one of Robin Miller's recipes. She's hardly a chef, and it's obvious that she's just Food Network filler. Anthony Bourdain would be so disappointed in me if he ever found out about this...But Sean and I were desperate for something to watch on TV last weekend, and we came across her stupid show and her stupid recipe: Roasted Miso Salmon with Lemon and Cilantro with Rosemary Roasted Yukons.

I'm always looking for ways to jazz up the same ole entrees. Salmon is one of our favorite fish (probably because it's more fatty), but I haven't been very creative with the tastes. I don't like dill, so usually my salmon is pan seared with some Spanish flavors, a little caynne and chili powder for heat, and served over a black bean and corn salsa. It's good, but it's getting old. Robin had a creative twist on salmon that seemed like something we would enjoy. Sean asked me to put the dish down on our weekly menu, and so I did.
Warning: DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME

Roasted Miso Salmon with Lemon and Cilantro with Rosemary Roasted Yukons
Cooking spray
6 salmon fillets (about 5 ounces each)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon rice wine (mirin)
1 tablespoon miso paste
4 Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 2-inch chunks
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons freshly chopped rosemary leaves
1/4 cup freshly chopped cilantro leaves
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a large roasting pan with cooking spray. Season salmon with salt and black pepper and place in roasting pan. In a small bowl, whisk together lemon juice, rice wine and miso paste. Brush mixture all over salmon in pan.

In a large bowl, combine potatoes, oil, garlic, rosemary, and salt and black pepper to taste. Toss to coat potatoes. Arrange potatoes alongside salmon (or on a separate baking sheet if there's not enough room).
Roast salmon and potatoes 20 to 25 minutes, until fish and potatoes are fork-tender.
Serve 4 of the salmon fillets with the cilantro sprinkled over top and all of the potatoes on the side. Reserve remaining salmon for salad.

The problem here is that the cook times are WAY off. I should have known better just from looking at it. I feel like I've been duped, like I've fallen into some kind of Food Network trap. But like I said, I knew better than to believe that potatoes would roast at 400F for 20 minutes. I'm not very happy with the network or with Robin Miller right now. Robin failed to mention that, once completed, the salmon will be overcooked and the potatoes will still be crunchy. Even after putting the potatoes back into the oven (sans salmon) and cooking them for an extra 20 minutes, they still weren't "roasted."She pretty much ruined our dinner last night.

I threw the recipe away this morning. Next time I'll use my own skillz when making Asian-inspired Salmon.