MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR

December 24, 2010 - Victoria, Minnesota

DINNER AT JACQUES IMO'S

K has been having a bad week (I know... it's only Monday) so I took her to one of my favorite restaurants, JACQUES IMO'S!  K has never eaten there so she didn't really know what to expect.  We got there at 6 and there was already a 30-45 minute wait.  K was shocked there was a wait on a Monday.  But yes folks, it's that good!  We ended up foregoing the wait and grabbing a table in the bar area.

A friendly waiter took care of us and explained the menu to K.  I ordered the Eggplant Pirogue and K ordered the Crab Meat Stuffed Catfish.  Our waiter brought out some garlic cornbread and spinach salads with a fried oyster on top and worcester raspberry vinaigrette house dressing.

Then our main courses came out.  Here is mine...

This is K's...

We only ate about half of our entrees and barely touched our sides of greens, stewed cabbage, shoestring fries, and potato salad.  Our waiter, buttering us up for a good tip, brought us two small cheesecake squares. He said that nobody ever has room for dessert but he still wants his patrons to know how good it is.  Sorry no pics of the cheesecake, but it didn't pose long enough ;). We had a great time and K has already picked her meal out for next time (Shrimp & Alligator Cheesecake).

IT'S FINALS WEEK & THE CAR IS A-OKAY

J and I both started school again this past August. J is working towards his Masters in Accounting/CPA at the University of New Orleans and I am working towards a Post-Baccalaureate degree in Homeland Security at Tulane.  Finals week during our undergrad days consisted of a lot of stress and pulling all nighters.  Luckily, things have changed since then. We still have the stress but the all nighters are a thing of the past.  Look what happens when you are studious and stay on top of your workload!

A couple of months ago we sold my Lexus to the CarMax in Jackson, Mississippi. The car had been giving me problems for years. Problems that even $5,000+ worth of repairs did not fix. I was not the least bit sad to see my untrustworthy friend go. J and I decided we would try being a one car couple for the near future so imagine our concern when his Isuzu started having issues.  The car was not consistently starting, especially in cold temperatures.  After eliminating the battery and spark plugs as the cause, J took a study break on Saturday and replaced the starter.  Voila!  Problem solved!  The Isuzu has started on the first try ever since, even in 40 degree weather.  I would like to say that I helped in someway...  does getting him a glass of ice water count?  I am so thankful to have a husband who can fix cars!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING Y'ALL

The year was 1621 when the Native Americans and Pilgrims of Plymouth, Massachusetts gathered together in celebration and friendship. 389 years later… J, my brother Kyle and I continued the yummy tradition. I prepped some of the food Wednesday evening but still had to wake up early on Thursday to get things into the oven and crockpot. By 2:30 that afternoon Thanksgiving dinner was served. We gobbled down turkey, cornbread dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, biscuits and pumpkin chiffon pie for dessert! I was slightly disappointed in my cooking skills this year. While I’m much better than my pre-marriage days, this meal was not my best. The turkey was very Griswold family-esque, drier than a burnt bush, and my homemade cornbread dressing would have lost to Stove Top in a taste test. Luckily, J and Kyle were so hungry they didn’t seem to mind.

Saturday, November 27th, we had a group of friends over to watch the LSU vs. Arkansas game. That group included one of my best friends from high school and college, Miss Kiersten Rogers! She was in town for the holidays visiting from Denver, Colorado. It was wonderful to see her and I was sad she had to leave so soon. Despite the Tigers 31-23 loss, it was a great night. I suppose Coach Les Miles’ luck and magic had to run out sometime and a 10-2 season sure ain’t bad! It was nearly 1am before we finished the umpteenth round of the game Taboo and the last guest left for home.

J and I had such a special Thanksgiving weekend with family and friends. We are both so thankful for the blessings God continues to give us. We hope you and your family had a happy turkey day too!

 

J'S 29TH BIRTHDAY

Joshua Blair turned 29 on November 12th!  Can't believe that next year will be the big 3-0!  To celebrate his special day we headed an hour and a half East to Biloxi, Mississippi.  I had booked a room for the evening at the Beau Rivage.  After stuffing ourselves on crab legs at the buffet, we caught a Blues Traveler concert.  I had never seen them live before but J had in college.  After the concert we met up with my brother Kyle who had driven over from Pensacola, Florida.  The gambling ensued, mostly roulette, into the wee hours of the evening.  Kyle was the only lucky one to come out on top.  As the saying goes, gambling is the sure way of getting nothing for something.  Before we knew it, check-out time had arrived and the 3 of us piled into our cars and headed back to NOLA.  It was wonderful to have Kyle stay with us for the rest of the weekend.  We went to the movies and saw The Social Network (loved it!), had dinner at Theo's Neighborhood Pizza (very yummy!), and ran around City Park with Bayou.  It was a fun filled birthday weekend for J!