My Inspiration

I'm such a follower. It makes me sick somedays.  But I'm obsessed. Hopelessly, helplessly, Obsessed.

And why not. Ree is me. Just the complete opposite. Opposite as in I spent my first days thinking that everyone rode their 4-wheeler to check the mail. Cattle-drives were a normal tradition on Thanksgiving day. Everyone was homeschooled. Now I am in a big city. In a little apartment. Living with only one person. And I love it. Being married is so fun. I love exploring a the new city. Yet, there is still a part of me that longs for the tractors and cows and the hub-bub of living with ten or more people at any even time.

So I have an idol. Reading her blogs takes me back home for ten minutes each day. Reading her food makes me dream about the days when I could cook absolutely anything and it would be devoured within minutes.

Let me tell you some funny things about this picture:

• It was taken at 12:16 in the morning
• It was how Paul and I spend our first Valentine's Day together
• We had stood in line for over six hours at this point
• It was taken at 12:16 in the morning
• Ree looks fabulous
• I look tired
• It was taken at 12:16 in the morning
• We drove over an hour to get there
• So we drove over an hour to get back home
• It was taken at 12:16 in the morning
• My husband smiled the whole time and never complained
• I'd never seen so many crazy ladies in all of my life
• It was 12:16 in the morning. 

Okay, I did it.

Ahh, I did it. I crossovered. I am now one of "those." I can't believe it. I don't have kids, I don't have hobbies, I do have a job and I do have people to talk to. Why in the world then am I writing a blog? Good question.

It feels good. Weird to say. I like typing into cyberspace. And this blog does have a mission. I'm hoping to chronicle past events and keep everybody on the up-and-up about happenings in the family. Since moving to Texas I've realized how much I miss the fam and things going on in the farm. Don't get me wrong; I love being in Texas with my new hubs and taking in this big, new exciting city together is so much fun. But sometimes I crave the windy roads, the open space, the familiar. So hear goes my stab at trying to write down funny things that have happened and laughing at the new ones to come along.

Macaroni and Cheese as a side dish....

Who knew??? Just one of the many thing I have learned since marrying my fabulous husband is this: Mac and cheese (more specifically, Velveeta shells and cheese) is not meant to be a meal in  and of itself. Apparently, it is the perfect compliment to anything fried, roasted or grilled. Our wonderful meal of rump-roast and potatoes was not complete until the mac and cheese was cooked. And I didn't complain. What makes it so good? Such a staple?

I wish I would have known this information growing up. I can't tell you how many lunches were spent boiling water, pouring noodles out of that blue Kraft box and then the (daunting) task of getting the perfect milk-to-butter-powdered-cheese sauce. I still get nervous that it isn't going to turn out and be too dry. Or, even worse, too runny and therefore too diluted to be considered macaroni and cheese. Such pressure!

When I say staple. I mean staple. It held our family together sometimes. I can't imagine what it would have been like to not hear "there is macaroni and cheese (or a bowl of cereal)" every time one of my siblings or I would exclaim "there is nothing to eat in this house." Seriously, there was ALWAYS mac and cheese in the pantry; four shelfs up, on the left, right when you walk in. To this day, I guarantee there are some boxes of cheesy noodles in there.