Biedenharn Portraits–Part II

As promised, I’m back today with the second half of our annual spring photo shoot.  I think I told y’all last time that we had some company with us this year.  My brother’s baby, Caroline, joined in the fun.

It was quite a challenge to have all four monkeys smiling not crying and looking in the general direction of the camera at the same time, but we managed.

It didn’t help matters that Ty, the one kid who was old enough to know better, was constantly crossing his eyes and sticking out his tongue.  I wanted to wring his neck!

Despite all of the whining and complaining she did this day, I managed to get tons of good pictures of Lucy.

Take a look at this handsome young man!  It’s been 6 years since I first took Ty to the Biedenharn gardens.  He was just shy of 4 years old then.  My, how he’s changed! Scroll down to see for yourself.

Wasn’t he a cutie patootie?

I definitely use the nickel Coke machine to bribe the monkeys to smile.  Lucy chose Diet Coke, you know, “Just for the taste of it.”

Clink, clink, clink!  Here’s to another year of beautiful portraits.

Cheers!

Lindsey

Biedenharn Portraits–Part I

 

Ahhh… Spring!

I’ve sort of a tradition going on in the spring.  When the temperatures rise and the flowers begin to bloom, I try to take my monkeys to the beautiful gardens at the Biedenharn Coca-Cola museum.  If you’ve never been, you should go – tulips, azaleas, hydrangeas, pansies – they are stunning!  (Although, seeing the gorgeous grounds always make my own yard seem like some kind of abandoned wilderness.)

Of course, this was Tacy Mae’s first trip to the gardens.  Unfortunately, our photo session coincided with her nap time.  To put it mildly, she was a bit grumpy, but que sera sera, right?  We dealt with it.  Consequently, I have very few pictures of Tacy smiling.

No need for a lot of words today.  I’ll let my adorable monkeys do the talking…

I have a few more pictures to share with y’all including cousin Caroline, so be sure to check back soon.

Lindsey

Kicks on Route 66

As promised I have some pictures from Lucy’s dance recital to share today. 

No one was more excited about the recital this year than Miss Lucy Lee.  For weeks, she counted down the days until the recital.

The theme for the recital was “Get your kicks on Route 66.”  In keeping with the theme, the first half of the show pointed to Jesus as the “One Way” to eternal life.  All of the classes did ballet dances to Christian music.  Lucy’s class song was Jesus Loves Me.

Part 2 of the recital was a bit more fast paced mix of jazz and tap numbers - all with car themed music of course.  Lucy danced to “Riding on the Freeway.”

The way things worked out, there were only 6 girls in Lucy’s class this year.  I was pumped about that!  Less dancers on stage meant a better view of my pretty girl. 

And pretty she was!  Lucy was super excited to wear makeup on stage.  Eyes, lips, cheeks – she got the works.  But of course she doesn’t need a drop of that stuff to be beautiful.

All of the girls were to wear their hair up in buns, which was a difficult task considering Lucy’s short bob.  But given enough bobby pins and hairspray, anything is possible, right?

As exciting as the show was, Tacy Mae just couldn’t hold out ‘til the end.

Being little has its advantages.  Lucy got to be front and center during the final curtain call.

Bye bye, Miss Lucy.  See ya’ next year!

Lindsey

Randomness from the Creek

 

Hi, y’all!  It just occurred to me that it has been about two weeks since I last posted, so I figured I better get typing.

Our family stayed busy last week with a dance recital (Lucy), a birthday (the Tool Man), and braces (Ty.)  I hope to share some pictures of these events soon. 

This week has been full of activity too.  Business meetings, hair appointments, school, birthday parties…  I’m also planning to take the monkeys to the Biedenharn Museum for their annual photo shoot, weather permitting.  It’ll be Tacy Mae’s first time over there, so it ought to be an exhausting interesting day.  Not to mention I’ll have an extra kiddo too – Cousin Caroline – who is only 4 months older than Tacy.  Thankfully, my mom will be helping me corral kids.  Still, I expect plenty of shenanigans.

I’ve been working on my baking skills too.  There’s nothing quite like the smell of fresh bread in the oven, don’t ya think?  Last night we enjoyed hot Buttery Sourdough Buns, and this morning I prepared a batch of fluffy Sourdough Waffles.  Yummo!

Perhaps the best thing happening around here is the change of seasons.  Spring is finally here!  Woo hoo!  It’s definitely my favorite time of year with the longer days and the warmer temps.  (Not to mention the fact that I can kick the monkeys outside for the better part of the day.)  Yesterday I actually noticed the first buds on my rose bushes!  I’m hoping that the freezing temperatures are all behind us now.  This is the South, doggone it!  Enough of the cold!

The Tool Man took advantage of the beautiful weather last week by doing some dirt work in our yard, chopping down “trash” trees, and planting some beautiful Leland Cypress trees.  Now we have our sights set on breaking ground in the garden.  I can’t wait to pick those first veggies!

Our hens are enjoying the changing seasons too, roaming around the yard foraging for bugs and grubs.  Thanks to some artificial light, they have faithfully supplied us with an abundance of eggs all winter.  At one point I had over 75 eggs in my refrigerator!  We usually collect about a dozen eggs every day from our 15 hens. 

Recently we started letting the ladies free range in our yard.  Hey, as long as they stay out of my garage, I don’t care where the chickens spend their time.  The only problem with their free ranging is that they don’t always lay in the coop.  In fact, I pulled 10 eggs out of the dog’s house yesterday.  I wonder in what other secret places they’ve been laying.  Hmm…

I always feel so “farmer-ish” when I go out to collect the eggs - like I should be wearing an apron and humming “Old McDonald.”  Here my little helper assists me in gathering the precious treasures.

For the most part, we have a good relationship with our chickens.  We love them and vice versa.

For the most part…

There’s an exception to every rule, right?

Meet Rusty the rooster.

I snapped this picture of him while he was in mid crow.  When he crows it sounds just like he’s yelling, “Who just laid an egg?”  Lol.  (FYI: If you think dawn is the only time of day roosters crow, you’re wrong.  Rusty is vocal all day long.)

Rusty has gotten rather feisty lately.  Quite the little guard rooster is he.

That’s good if you’re a hen.

Not so good if you’re a chicken farmer.

Rusty will go out of his way to run you down.  I won’t collect eggs unless he’s at a safe distance.  The Tool Man is bit braver than me, and he’s got the scratches to prove it.  If Rusty doesn’t watch his step, he could be the focal point of our Easter BBQ.

Next week promises to be full of excitement too.

I’m headed to Canton for a weekend of flea market fun!  Yippee!!  Can you tell I’m a little excited?  I’m hoping I’ll score some great finds – particularly for Lucy Lee’s room.  Poor thing!  She’s nearly five years old, and her sorry mama still hasn’t completed her room.  One day, baby, one day.

Well, that’s all for now.  Talk to y’all later.

Lindsey

Sour Attitude

About three weeks ago I had a crazy idea.

A really crazy idea.

I decided I needed something else to do in my “spare” time.

Like eat bread.

Fresh bread.

Homemade bread.

Sourdough bread!

For some time now, I’ve been curious about sourdough “starter.”  I’d seen it called for in recipes, but I had no idea what it was or where it came from or even what it looked like!

Hmm… time for a little research.  Thanks to the wonder that is the internet, I educated myself on the ins and outs of making sourdough starter. Then, I plunged headlong into making a starter of my very own.  (See, I told you it was a crazy idea.)

I decided I wanted to do it the most basic way possible.

Flour + Water.

That was it.

I fed my magical mixture of goo more flour and water twice a day for the next three weeks, and finally…success!  I had grown my own culture of yeast.

Let the baking begin!

I chose to begin by baking a country-style sourdough round.

With a dark, crispy crust on the outside…

…and a moist, soft, chewy texture on the inside.

What about the flavor?

Well, thanks to the slow, overnight fermentation, the taste was fabulously acidic.  Delightfully tangy, just like sourdough should be.

Yum!  I can’t wait to try more recipes with my beloved starter.  I’m thinking I’ll make rolls next.

Lindsey

P.S.  If any of my friends would like some starter, y’all know where to find me.  I’ve got plenty to share.