Soakin' it Up

The sun isn't everything I'm soaking up this week... there'll be plenty of time for that in Scottsdale. I'm savoring every minute with friends and family because in one week I will be reunited with my lover boy in Scottsdale. EEEEEEEE!! But the transition is bittersweet {heavy on the sweet though}. For the next six months {roughly} I will be out in the "wild blue yonder" away from family and close friends but as long as I'm with my man, I'm ok. My mom and I will be making the 23 hour trek across five states on Saturday and would greatly appreciate your prayers for our safe travel.

Until I leave, I will be drowning in luggage and large plastic storage containers...

So long folks!

Roasted Romas

If someone made me say my favorite food, I would say tomatoes. I like them roasted, sliced with S & P, baked, pureed in soups and sauces... the possibilities are endless! I have been drawn to them ever since I was a baby girl and my favorite way to eat them is right off the vine in the summertime {at Grandmomma and Grandaddy's}. It's springtime though, so I'm making the most of their intense flavor by roasting them.

This is a very simple and quick recipe. It's inspired by Julia Child's and Ina Garten's provencal tomatoes.  To serve four, preheat your oven to 375 and slice three roma tomatoes lengthwise and core out the juicy insides. Toss them in olive oil, salt and pepper, and a minced garlic clove. Let the tomatoes marinate while you work on the cheese mixture.

In a separate bowl, combine a mixture of any italian cheeses you like with Italian style breadcrumbs. I would say use 2/3 cup of cheese and 1/3 cup of breadcrumbs. I used parmesan and romano. Place tomatoes in the baking dish and fill them to the brim with cheese mixture. Pour the leftover olive oil and garlic on top of each tomato. {This helps the cheese brown.}

Bake them for about 20 minutes and if you have fresh basil {or parsley} on hand, chop some up and sprinkle it on top of the tomatoes as they come out of the oven, and if you're like me and you don't... just use dried. Serve these immediately.

Bon Appetit!

Humbled

Good Morning!

Can you tell it was morning time when we snapped this picture? Squinty eyes, my splotchy day-after-the-beach-no-makeup skin...I thought this photo was fitting for the greeting AND for the title of my post... and not just because I am humbled by looking at a picture of myself in the morning. Courtney, on the other hand, rolls out of bed and looks like she has makeup on... she's one of those natural beauties.

This was before a 10k race that Court and I set out to run last Saturday morning {in Fairhope} that she was perfectly able to finish and I was not. You may be thinking to yourself, "But you just ran a marathon and you couldn't even finish 6.2 miles?" Well, that's what I was thinking to as I pushed through those first three miles with COMPARTMENT SYNDROME in my left shin. It's a deadening of the nerve and muscle to the left of your tibia and basically feels like a very intense charlie horse and you lose the ability to move your foot {all of this knowledge~ compliments of Dr. Carter~ my father}. And by mile THREE, I started to blackout and sat down just before I almost fainted. You talk about embarrassing... I probably knew 1/3 of the people running the race. And even more humbling was the lecture I got from Dr. Dad about how if I had kept on running he would be performing surgery on me in hopes that I would still be able to move my foot normal again... After learning that, I was thankful my body decided to shut down and faint! So I had to walk {with shame} the rest of the race. Talk about being "humbled" to the max {as a runner}.

And while we're on the subject of being humbled... I am honored {and my cheeks are a little rosier than normal} that one of my dearest friends from college, Kaitlin, gave me this blog award.

So with this award, I'm supposed to give you 7 facts about myself... and once again, the title of this post rings true because I don't have anything astounding to say but these will have to do:

1} While we're on the topic, I've been running since I was 6 yrs. old. You could find me running with my Dad every afternoon {that I didn't have ballet} and on the weekends I was running in local races. I still have all my little ribbons and miniature trophies!

2} I was a ballerina for seven years and I have to admit that I still get my pointe shoes out and dance around the house once on a blue moon... And if I find a large room with wall to wall mirrors, I get the urge to do grande jete's until I strain my hamstring! {and it only takes about three!}

3} Last offseason, I got inspired by the movie Julie and Julia and cooked about 150 recipes from Julia Child's cookbook, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking." I haven't even come CLOSE to "mastering" it but it did help ease my fear and intimidation with cooking. {And no lie, I would slave in the kitchen for hours. It was rewarding, but not easy my friends.}

4} If you start from the moment he "asked me out" in the eighth grade until now, I have been with my husband for 10 and 1/2 years. I would say he's a keeper! 

5} I thoroughly enjoy good food... whether it's a country buffet or a five star gourmet meal. I am not a picky eater by any means but I am "particular" about my food... I prefer certain textures, flavor combinations, and things of that nature, but if you take the time to make it for me, I will love it! I know how preparing dishes for other people is the greatest joy of cooking!

6} My dream job is to be a stay-at-home Mom/Sally Homeaker. I love babies and anything domestic! {But I'm still debating on whether I would enjoy sewing or not though... the idea of being able to sew clothes for my little ones and make things for my future home sounds great, but the stark reality of it I'm not sure about. I used to make the boys sew my pillows in Home Ec!}

7} The majority of clothes in my closet are from JCrew... and if they don't say JCrew on the tag, they say Nike. I have a slight obsession with workout wear and in the summertime while normal girls wear sundresses and flowy tops, I wear sport tank tops and running shorts. It's just so comfortable {and cute, to me}! Sometimes I'm afraid Stacy and Clinton {from What Not to Wear} are going to come kidnap me and throw away all my workout clothes!

So there you have it... Thank you Kaitlin for this award! I am, well, "humbled."

I now want to present this award to.......................

My dear friend Megan @ She's a Fly Girl

Her blog is so stinkin' cute and always uplifting. Congrats Meg! You're a "Versatile Blogger!"

and Morgan Paige @ In the Arms of Love

Even though I don't know her personally, by reading her blog I can tell she is a beautiful person. Congrats Morgan! You're also a "Versatile Blogger"!

Thanks for reading folks! I hope you're enjoying this beautiful spring weather!

A Magical Week

The last time we made the trip to Disney World I was 7, Julie was 6, and Jessica was 4... and Aaron, well he hadn't showed up yet {believe it or not} This time around, I am 23, Julie {now 22} was in Charleston with friends, and Jessica is 20. We missed not having Jules with us but this was her last "hoorah" with all her friends before they all part ways and we didn't blame her one bit.  Aaron was basically there via phone, but I really can't wait for him to see it with his own eyes.

This trip to Disney was just as magical as I remember it being all those years ago... We were still starstruck by all the characters!

...even the "plant" ones!

We happened to be there during Epcot's Garden and Flower Festival so needless to say... I was in heaven. These flowers WILL be in my yard one day.

We were "big enough" to ride all the roller coasters we wanted and as much as Mom and Dad loved to watch us enjoy the park when we were little ones, I think they thoroughly enjoyed having fun with us as "big girls".

We visited all four parks and I really don't know which one was my favorite... but I will show you the highlights from all of them.

The Magic Kingdom was well, magical. The castle, the parades, Tomorrowland, Space Mountain, the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse... it was definitely the perfect way to start out the trip.

This was one of our favorite movies growing up and I used to DREAM of living in their treehouse. The kitchen was always my favorite part of the house... imagine that.

I think we rode almost every ride in Magic Kingdom... even some of the "kiddie" rides just so we could rest our legs!

We rode the Space Mountain rollercoaster twice... It was definitely my favorite ride in the park.

Did I mention how much we enjoyed the food? The ice cream bars, lollipops, caramel apples... It was every {big} kids dream!

The parades gave me chillbumps...

and I must say... I have never seen an electrical parade.

Our first day in the park was a dream to say the least and the night ended with a bang!

The next day was spent in the Animal Kingdom where we went on an African Safari, got completely drenched in a water ride, saw Mt. Everest and the largest "tree" I've ever laid eyes on.

Mom LOVED the bird show.

The next day we went to France, Italy, Germany, Canada, London, and America at Epcot of course. Epcot may have been one of my favorite parks because I loved seeing all of their staged countries. And I didn't take hardly any pictures that day... probably because I was so enthralled!

Bri and Joe came to Disney World for their honeymoon and they have the picture above framed... I bet they weren't thinking then that they would be taking their children back at THEIR ages!

Well I did take one of this Asian country and I couldn't even tell you which one it was... Asia really doesn't interest me much {However, my heart breaks for the Japanese people right now}.

Paris was my favorite of course and I did make time to stop and eat a crepe! I know, this picture's a framer.

Moving on...

While at Epcot, we toured the Princess magical butterfly garden... As a little girl, I would go outside on pretty spring afternoons and catch butterflies with my net. Then, Dad would kill them with a pin and I would add them to my collection. {I know, the killing part sounds terrible come to think of it but for some reason, I didn't think anything of it!} I loved my butterflies and showed off my collection to anyone I thought was even remotely interested.

We made our way through MGM {or Hollywood Studios, I should now call it} and I didn't take a single picture but just know we had fun! :)

I know I'm a "big girl" now and I know I've changed a LOT since I was 7, but all the excitement and wonder was still there... I don't think Disney World will ever lose it's "magical" effect on me! 

TTFN! Ta Ta For Now!