he cooks she cooks

penne with shrimp, feta and spring vegetables

great easy meal from everyday food by martha stewart april 2008 edition

what you need: salt and ground pepper, 12 ounces of penne rigate (we used whole wheat), 1 pound asparagus (trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces), 1 pound peeled and deveined frozen shrimp thawed, 8 ounces snow peas cut in half, 3 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 2 garlic cloves (minced), 1 package of feta and a fourth of cup of mint leaves

directions: 1. in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook peene 5 mins less than package says, add asparagus and cook 3 mins, add shrimp and snow peas and cook 2 mins. reserve a half cup of pasta water: drain pasta mixture and return to pot.

2.to pasta mixture, add oil, lemon juice, garlic, and a fourth cup reserved pasta water. season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine. gently mix in feta and mint; adjust to desired consistency with some pasta water as needed. serve immediately.

jeff cutting the aspragus
finished product ready in 25 mins

jeff put some cayenne pepper on his

it was so yummy and yes i ate my veggies~

wild sweet orange

I forgot the add the accordian picture!

wild sweet orange

last night jeff and i went to a CD release party for wild sweet orange. if you don't know who they are you should look them up. they have been around for a while and are finally getting some exposure. they were on David Letterman recently and had a song feautred on grey's anatomy. i really enjoy them and especially loved the accordian!

handmade and in our home: 2

ok so my favorite jewelry is the topic today. most of you know i love jewelry, however fused glass has got to be at the top of my list. not just any fused glass ,mind you, but fused glass pendants made by my friend jeanne lee. i met jeanne when i was living in charleston. i would see her all over town and it was obvious that we enjoyed the same activities. i saw her at the farmer's market first and bought one of her pendants, then i saw her at the gym, then i saw her at my church and we finally talked and became friends. so the story goes. over serveral years i have purchased many of her pendants, some may say too many. below is my collection of which i love and wear often. please check out her website www.trinitytreasures.org .jeanne is very talented and has been blessed by always putting God first. she is a true inspiration and beautiful inside and out.

handmade and in our home : 1

I've decided to do a series of posts called handmade and in our home. I want to do this to show you my love for handmade goods and the many talented artists that make them. This first post is very special to me because my nanny made these beautiful quilts. My father says he can remember her having friends over and working on these quilts for hours.

This one stays on my guest bed. I feel honored to have it in my home.
This is a picture of the lady whose hands made the quilts and the man who loved her. My grandparents Nanny and Paw Paw.


They do not make them any more,
For quilts are cheaper at the store
Than woman's labor, though a wife
Men think the cheapest thing in life.
But now and then a quilt is spread
Upon quaint old walnut bed,
A crazy quilt of those days
That I am old enough to praise.

Some woman sewed these points and squares
Into a pattern like life's cares.
Here is a velvet that was stong,
The poplin that she wore so long,
A fragment from her daughter's dress,
Like her, a vanished loveliness;
Old patches of such things as these,
Old garments and old memories.

And what is life? A crazy quilt;
Sorrow and joy, and grace and guilt,
With here and there a square of blue
For some old happiness we knew;
And so the hand of time will take
The fragments of our lives and make,
Out of life's remnants, as they fall,
A thing of beauty, after all.

Douglas Malloch

sips n strokes

This week I went to sips n strokes with a few of my friends. We had a blast! So basically you have a canvas, a teacher and whatever drinks you want to bring. Everyone is working on the same picture, however you can change colors/techniques and get your creative juices flowing. Google sips n strokes to see if there is one in your area. It is definately a fun girls night out.

Sunday and Ficher

ficher has difficulty sitting still!

lovely summer days at the lake

Summertime fun at Smith Lake. Jeff and I are making some of our best memories spending time with his sister, brother-in-law, brother and his new fiance. We have so much fun with them. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the 5th of July.

Planting

I'm working on my GREEN thumb!

Veggies

Mama is worried that I don't feed Jeff enough vegetables so she brought these beautiful ones over to us the other day. She purchased all of these from a local farmers market, except the peppers daddy grew those. I think it is great that she supports local farming. My fair trade mama. Aren't they beautiful?

My Buddy Noam

Here is the newest edition to our artsy fartsy walls. Most of you know this guy . My parents painted this for us. We decided to hang him over our breakfast table so he can be close to us while we are chowing down. He loves to hang out with you when you are eating. That's my buddy.