Dr. Ben Carson's visit to Tallahassee

Absolute craziness, but so much fun. No matter what political affiliation you are, a visit from a candidate is exciting. Thank you, Dr. Carson for stopping by our little city. BTW, that's Kim Mazerac in the pic too.

Book Club PWAT night!

Our book club had our "rejected book" meeting at Painting with a Twist tonight. I love this club and I love this painting!

One awesome birthday weekend!

This year, George decided to make my birthday extra special as it was a big one, the big 4-0. It all started on Thursday night, when he and the kids gave me my presents the night before my birthday to start off the weekend with a bang. They spoiled me with my favorite things -  fig tree for planting, Grantchester DVDs for watching, a cookbook for reading, and a basket of Garden & Gun's handpicked southern goodies for cooking and eating. I have to admit, I couldn't have been more surprised or happier. 

On my actual birthday (the 1st), I took off work and George took me to Thomasville where I visited my favorite store, The Bookshelf, and got some beautiful coloring books for adults. George and I went to the Q Cafe, but because he was still suffering symptoms of the stomach flu that had moved through our house, I got no pictures and we cut our visit short to go home and rest for the evening. 

The celebration continued that night at the University Center Club where George had made reservations for the Steak and Lobster Dinner. 

We had a fantastic dinner and I went home with balloons and great memories with my family. 

Finally, tonight, George took me to Aprons again for a Cajun-inspired post-birthday/pre-Mother's Day Brunch. The brunch was a four-course meal of Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict, Guava Barbecue Shrimp with Manchego Cheese Grits, Oil Poached Rack of Lamb with Mint Jam, and New Orleans Beignets. 

In all, George and the kids made my 40th so special, and I'll never forget how they made me feel. Best birthday yet!

Don't lock your knees...and other good stuff

The last time I posted was before Thanksgiving, so before I continue any farther, let me say that I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving. I did not post before Thanksgiving because I was sick with a virus that was making its way around (Megan had it too), and for several days, I couldn't do much of anything.

Along with illness, our entire community was suffering the week before Thanksgiving. The shooting at Strozier Library on FSU campus was a stressful event for all of us (one of Danny's karate senseis was studying on the second floor that night and was thankfully not hurt), and caused all patrol staffing to be called in. This was only to be surpassed by the attack and murder of Leon County Sheriff's Deputy Chris Smith. George's squad donated their time to conduct traffic control during the funeral, and spent close to 6 hours standing in the rain.

Our Thanksgiving was quiet and early, as George had to work that afternoon. And, as I'm not a shopper, the rest of the Black Friday weekend was quiet too. Nothing much happened other than work and school until this past Friday, when the kids and I ventured to Thomasville to attend The Bookshelf's Holiday Open House and Cookie Tasting (pictures are from their facebook site).

We walked the streets of Thomasville a bit, and it was beautiful. I had to get a picture of my silly kids with the beautiful backdrop.

 

It was a short trip, but by the time we got home, we were all tired and ready for bed.

 

Saturday morning, we got up and ready for karate a little earlier, as Danny and I took a card and flowers to the hospital for one of George's former officers who had been mauled by a dog earlier on the week. She's doing well, but while we were there, Danny fainted in the hospital room. After a treatment of Gatorade and increased air conditioning, he was good to go, but not quite up to karate. I took him home and picked up Megan for our regular mother/daughter massage time at Better Living Day Spa and Paisley Cafe.

 

After our pampering, we picked up Danny (now feeling few ill effects), and we went to the mall to shop for the child we adopted with the Salvation Army angel tree program. After 20 minutes shopping at Claire's, I was done with people, and we left just in time to see two young men being arrested in the parking lot. Danny's comment was, "I don't ever want to know the feeling of being arrested." That's my boy!

 

The rest of the weekend was spent cleaning and decorating for Christmas. Neither Megan nor I felt too hot on Sunday, so we relaxed in the morning. Danny and I took Harley for a walk and were followed home by an Australian Shephard looking a lot like the one in this picture.

 

 

His name is Brodie, and he got out of his back yard a few days earlier and had been roaming. After a cup of food and a 3 hr search for his owner, the owner finally called on his way back from Valdosta airport. He had left the dog outside while he was gone for a few days. Grrrr. Some people should not own dogs.

 

In all, we've had a quiet but busy couple of weeks, and Danny has learned a few things along the way. 1. He learned that he doesn't want to be arrested. (Yea!) 2. He learned what a responsible dog owner does and does not do with his dog. 3. Most importantly, he learned not to lock his knees when standing.



Small Town Saturday Afternoon

After all that partying and Greek food, we needed a low-key day, so the next day, we headed to Thomasville to spend Saturday afternoon eating and shopping at our favorite places.  First stop was Moonspin Pizza.

Moonspin's all natural philosophy ensures that your pizza will always be fresh and delicious. Let me stop here to tell you that George took all of the pictures, so he isn't in any of the "action shots." George got his one and only picture in the mirror - proof he was there.

I did ask...

We all love Moonspin, and the kids were so happy.

After pizza, we were off to The Bookshelf, my favorite bookstore. two I'd been awaiting were released that week, and I couldn't wait to go. While I shopped, the kids played chess at the store's seating area.

I was also excited to see that my pick, This Is Where I Leave You, was on the customer recommendation shelf.

We moved on to Relish, my second favorite store,

 

and the only one where you can drink a glass of wine while you browse.

How can you go wrong with that? Some of our usual stops were skipped this time, either because of a private event (Sweet Grass Dairy Cheese Shop) or because we didn't need another sign about the south (Loli's). We made two more stops before our afternoon ended. The first was to Savannah Moon Bakery for some key lime cookies for later; the second to The Scoop to get the kids some ice cream.

In all, it was a nice, quiet trip to a small town main street that we love.  

Family Fun in T-ville

In May, on my birthday weekend, George and the kids took me to Thomasville for some family fun. Our first stop was Liam's for Saturday brunch.

Liam's serves seriously good food in a down-to-earth atmosphere, and we all enjoyed the gourmet meal - even the kids who both got specially made omelets. It was also super hero Saturday, so we felt right at home with our fellow nerds/comic book fans.

Our next stop was one of my favorite places in Thomasville, The Bookshelf. While I perused the shelves for something special, George and Danny played a game of chess on the local board.

We all love the store, and we could have spent the rest of the afternoon there. However, no visit to Thomasville is ever complete for me without visiting two of my favorite shops, Relish (the best Le Creuset store ever!) and Sweet Grass Dairy Cheese Shop.

If we have time, we always stop at the Dairy for a cheese board and a glass of wine (or Mexican coke for the kids). Leaders of the local slow food movement, we've been visiting the dairy since they raised the goats for their famous chevre. Now, they just focus on the cheese making, and we all enjoy tasting the flavors they pair. Megan and Danny are quickly becoming connoisseurs of cheese and good food in general.

In all, it was a great birthday weekend. Thank you, George, Megan, and Danny, for the wonderful time!

A new adventure

Last week, the kids embarked on a new adventure, the public library!

Now before you judge, let me explain. While we went to the library a handful of times when Megan and Zachary were very young, we had not been since as the school media centers and our own voluminous home library more than accomodated their reading needs. After a short discussion about what the library is and what purpose it serves in the community, George took Megan and Danny to two different branches on Friday. They got their own cards and everything!  I am hoping this is the beginning of a new reading adventure for this summer and beyond.  

My newest find...

Last week, on a late evening trip to Publix, George convinced me to buy a new cookbook, The Shamrock and Peach.

That night I embarked on a journey from Northern Ireland (Ulster) to the American South (Atlanta). The story and recipes are so compelling that I had to do some more research - in other words, I am in love with this book. Judith McLoughlin, Irish chef and caterer based out of Roswell, Georgia, runs a small shop called the Ulster Kitchen, where she sells Irish linen goods and teaches cookery. She also has a food blog called The Shamrock and Peach where she posts recipes and informational tidbits. Check is out - this is good stuff!

I Read Banned Books

For her birthday, Danny gave Megan a bracelet of banned teen book titles made by Carolyn Forsman.

The main reason for this is the fact that it includes The Adventures of Captain Underpants as one of the books in the bracelet. I like it because it includes To Kill a Mockingbird, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland, Blubber, etc. Whatever the reason, this bracelet is perfect for Megan, and I hope she enjoys all of the books as she reads them.

Our marathon day

Today was a marathon day. I woke up to George coming home from work, and as he was going to sleep, we were getting ready for the day. We ate a quick breakfast,

and then hit the road for karate.

After karate, while Danny changed in the car, we headed to Coon Bottom for Cousin Ashley's baby shower. One thing I know, Colton (the baby) is going to have one good life with such a loving family. Here are a few pics from the shower:

Once the shower was over, we headed back to town for our Mother/Daughter book club meeting. We had a great time discussing The White Giraffe and eating African dumplings. Here are some more shots from the afternoon:

We had to leave right on time from there to go to Mom and Dad Creamer's House for a visit/cookout. The combination of Gran Gran visiting this weekend, Mom's birthday yesterday (Happy Birthday again, Mom!) and George's birthday tomorrow was a great reason to celebrate. I got a few good shots in of the guys cooking and talking,

of the older cousins together (Carolyn and Harriett that is),

of Gran Gran and cousin David talking about her family history,

some outside shots of the kids,

and some general playing around.

After dinner, we packed the van up and headed home so George could get ready for work. Whew, I'm tired!