Happy Birthday to my Sweet Husband!!

Happy Birthday Darlin'! Thank you Leon & Hedy for bringing sweet Ben into the world 26 years ago.  I feel so very blessed to have such an amazing person with whom to spend my life.  I am so glad he decided that Belmont wasn't right for him 6 years ago and decided to venture a little further down South to Oxford and meet the girl of his dreams :)  I will not make this a corny post, Ben knows all the reasons why I love him.  Ben, I hope you are having a wonderful birthday!  I hope your ready for chicken spaghetti and peach cobbler. LOVE YOU!

My Birthday Boy

Good Monday Y'all!

Tomato Bacon Pasta

This is our absolute favorite meal in the summer.  I should thank my friend Emily for introducing us to delicious dish, Thanks Emily!  Summer is the season for tomatoes and this recipe is one sure way to get your Lycopene!

3 tbsp. olive oil                        

2 medium to large onions, chopped   

3 cloves garlic, crushed      

5 lg tomatoes (about 3 lbs) peeled, seeded, & chopped

1/2 lb linguine, cooked & drained

2 tsp. salt

1tbsp. Italian seasoning

1/2 lb bacon

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

4 tbsp. finely chopped parsley

Fry the bacon until crisp: drain on paper towels ans set aside. Pour out all of the fat,except for 1 tablespoon. Add the olive oil to this and when hot, add the onions. Saute for 5 min. Add the garlic and tomatoes. Simmer for a few minutes. Then add the salt,italian seasoning and pepper. Simmer for 1/2 hour stirring occasionally. Add the parsley. Simmer for 5 minutes. Crumble the bacon and stir it in.  To serve, top paste with sauce and grated parmesean cheese.

To peel tomatoes dip briefly in boiling water and cool in ice water. Peels will slip off.

I tried to be all fancy with this one. Ha.

Are You Ready?

I am!  I am so excited about football season. It's now less than 2 months away and I'm giddy.  Football season is by far my favorite time of the year.  Here's a little video of the Saturday's to come..

The Grove

HOTTY TODDY Y'ALL!!

We Never Miss a Meal

July 4th weekend was a blast. Why did it have to go so fast? We got to spend time with my best friend and her husband Friday night. We ate dinner and played a really fun game called Funglish. I had never heard of it but it we really enjoyed it and will be one to purchase soon. I am usually super tired on Friday nights from the long week, but whenever we hang out with them we always end up staying well past our welcome and this time was no different. After the game, Anna & I settled on the couch while the guys eagerly played Xbox. Before we knew it, it was past 1 a.m. Theres always so much to say when we're together. Love spending time with those two. Saturday, we had a lunch date with Ben's sister and her family who just recently moved to Memphis. Huey's never disappoints and Nate, their 3 year old, sang us "Jesus Loves the Little Children." Precious. That afternoon we headed to a family friends house for a BBQ, washers tournament, swimming, and fireworks. The food was delicious, the fireworks were incredible, and my parents won the washers tournament. Pretty impressive. We spent the early afternoon on the 4th in my parent's pool out of the heat. They whipped up some yummy BBQ with all the sides. Late that afternoon, we headed down to Oxford to eat once again at another BBQ some college friends were hosting. We capped off the night with a fireworks show that the city and Ole Miss put on at OU Stadium. It was set to music being played by the symphony. It was one of the best shows I have seen in awhile. Monday, we headed back to Birmingham. Of course, that couldn't happen without some excitement, right? I woke up Monday with terrible stomach cramps along with a horrible headache and dizziness. I drank almost an entire bottle of Pepto on the ride home. It was one LONG trip. I only felt worse as the night went on...fever and a cold sweat included. I took the next day off to recuperate and I am super happy to be eating again.

It seems as though July will be one exciting month for us. Ben started his new job this week and is really enjoying being back in the working world. He celebrates a birthday this month. I am a BIG birthday person so I am probably a little more excited about this than him and how can he get very excited when this birthday will push him closer to 30 than to 20? YIKES. 4 of my very best friends are coming for a very fun weekend next weekend. I am excited to share a city that I am really loving with them. I am now a member of a seriously fun Bunco group. We had our first "date" last night and it was a blast. Looking forward to the next...I'm hosting! Ben's parents will also be paying us a visit sometime this month. My sister celebrates a birthday and we get to cap it off with a wedding weekend in Oxford!

Stay cool y'all!

Happy Birthday America!

Fourth of July weekend is here, finally! I have always loved the 4th but this year with the long weekend makes me love it even more.

We are heading up to Mississippi for the weekend to visit my family and friends AND Ben's sister and her family just recently moved to Memphis so we will get to see them as well. We have a lot planned to do! I am looking forward to having a good time and relaxing. I hope all of you do the same. I'll have a recap of our weekend sometime next week. Everyone have a safe, but fun weekend!

Hooray Fireworks and cold beer!