A nice Spring Day

Today we went to Prairie Gardens, a local garden shop and found all kinds of goodies. The house has really been turning into something to be proud of. My first bulb has flowered outside and my tulips are coming up like crazy. I am so excited. I actually have some kind of green thumb. Today we got some greenery for the house and a tree to go by the fireplace. The ficus is a very nice shape and adds a lot of life to the room. Thanks for looking!

Picture Wall in the Hallway to the Bedrooms


New greenery around the fireplace and mantle

Refinished console table with new decorations

A laugh for today

Saw this earlier today and thought it was hilarious. Check out ShoeboxBlog.com for more funnies.

A Day in Nashville Country

Today my Mom brought us around Nashville and the surrounding area to some of the local favorite haunts. For Brunch, we headed to the Loveless Cafe. This is the place famous for BISCUITS. Bobby Flay from Food Network has even had a throw-down with their biscuit lady. This place was great for a hearty lunch! This is a must-do for anyone going to Nashville!

Right down the road from Loveless is the Natchez Trace Parkway. This is basically a huge bridge in the middle of nowhere. It holds a road that was once a Pony Express Trail and now goes all the way down to Natchez, Mississippi.

After some shopping on the side, we headed down South to Arrington and found Arrington Vineyards. This is a vineyard that is fairly new to the area and is partly owned by Kix Brooks of Brooks and Dunn. We did a wine sampling of 11 different wines and even had rasberry wine-infused truffles.
We brought home the award-winning Syrah and the truffles, of course. Mom came home with the Sweet Liberty.

It was nice to spend the day with my Mom. We don't get to do that often. Thanks, Mom! Heading home tomorrow. Till then...

Happy Easter!

This has been going around for a week or so and I thought I would post it for all to see. We are heading down south to see my family for Easter and won't be back until early next week.
Hope you had a nice start to spring. Happy Easter!

Yummy Cupcakes

Tonight I made homemade chocolate cupcakes with pink icing. They turned out divine!
I may have a new calling as cupcake diva. :)
If you have any sites for good cupcakes, send them my way!

Recipe (from recipezaar.com):

Ingredients

1/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1/2 cup boiling water

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1. In a small bowl add the boiling water to the cocoa slowly while stirring to prevent lumps until smooth. Let cool to room temperature.

2. In a bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.

3. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat until smooth. Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture and beat until incorporated. Add the cocoa mixture and stir until smooth.

4. Evenly fill the muffin cups with the batter and bake for about 17-20 minutes or until risen, springy to the touch, and a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.

And the verdict is...

I had my final appointment today with my specialist and he seems to think I have a clean bill of health. I am to stop taking all of the meds I have been succumbed to since January and live life again. This is way GOOD news. If I don't hear the word infection for the rest of my life, I will be all good. So yay!
Today we starting our paper mache volcanoes in class. The kids were nuts. They had the mixture all over themselves and each other but had a ton of fun. It is great to see them getting to do some kind of crafts. I love seeing their creativity. It is definitely what I live for as a teacher. They make me proud!

Happy Saint Patty's Day!

Hope you had a green day! Today I made the traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage for dinner. It turned out very good. I even made potatoes and carrots to go with. The Irish came out in me. It was nice to make such a traditional meal.



This weekend was jam packed full of good food and family. Friday night we went out for a date night. We started out at Ko Fusion for dinner. It is a local sushi place. I have only had sushi 3 times now, but I am a fan of the crab and avocado types. They are very yummy!



We then went to Campus town and had desert at Moonstruck Cafe, which has the best Peanut Butter Milkshakes in town. Hands down. I also had the cutest little chocolate truffle.. It was called a Choco Lab and it was in the shape of a dog. Very cute.

After Moonstruck, we met up with Josh and Audra to see the movie Vantage Point. It is a movie based all on the characters point of views. The movie was very intriguing and kept us on our toes the whole time. You should see it!

Saturday, we had a wedding to go to. It was my two co-workers getting married. So we had a blast hanging out with everyone on a Saturday night. The wedding was beautiful. The food was outstanding and the company was warm. It was nice to be a part of their big day.

Sunday, we drove a mere 3 1/2 hours to Percy for Grandpa's 80th birthday party. We had the event at the Bed and Breakfast in town and even took turns getting pictures taken. Here are two of my favorites:

This week I am doing paper mache volcanoes with my classes to end the Quarter. We will then end the year with Space. Love it! Today was a day full of Green and it went well. Here is to a good week! Till next time...

It got me Captain...

Well, I finally got it. The flu has been going around like nobody's business and it finally snuck up on me and threw me down a flight of stairs a few hundred times. I feel like death!

Under weird circumstances, I had to go into work this morning, but was able to get a sub for the afternoon. I spent it sleeping only to have Tyler wake me up when he got home at 5. To say the least, I needed the rest.

My day has consisted of sleep, sniffles, and fever.... I can only hope tomorrow is less of the same.

This flu season has been something else. My students have been dropping like flies. Schools have even been closing due to lack of attendance. That's when you know it is bad. And to think people bother to get the flu shot and then it goes and mutates on us!

We have been relatively busy lately. We visited with our family this past weekend and helped to move in my brother and his wife into their new home. It is a beautiful place. I am really proud of him.

We are looking forward to heading down South for Easter and staying with my parents for a few days. The bulbs in the garage are starting to sprout, so we know Spring is in the air. This time change has really thrown us for a loop. How have you done with it?

Thanks for checking in!