We all scream for ice cream!

Last night I had the pleasure of organizing an Ice Cream Social out at Gateway's Campus.  It was so much fun, and I think the kids out there really enjoyed having a "normal" night eating some good ice cream with their pals.  We had four big tubs: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry swirl, neopolitan, chocolate syrup, caramel syrup, strawberry syrup, whipped cream, nuts, sprinkles, cherries, and Oreos - a sundae delight!  I may have found my missed career as an ice cream lady, because I had a blast scooping bowls and bowls of it... all with my latex gloves on, in true "lunch lady" fashion. 

Not to get on a soap box or anything, but I feel so strongly about getting involved with your community.  I hear friends say all the time, I just can't afford to give to charity right now.  My thought is that there are so many ways to give: money, time, prayer, service, etc.  Everyone can carve out a few hours every month to volunteer or serve on a Junior Board... and you know what?  It doesn't cost a dime, but it's worth so much because you're bettering the lives of someone else.  My ice cream social took 3 hours max last night, and 25 kids got to have a wonderful, fun-filled evening!  There are tons of charities and nonprofit agencies here in Birmingham where you can find your passion and serve.  Visit the Nonprofit Resource Center at www.nrca.info or the United Way website at www.uwca.org to find an agency that you can really get excited about.  Hands on Birmingham keeps a running list of volunteer opportunities in the area, if you feel you cannot commit to just one agency - http://www.handsonbirmingham.org.  As Leigh Anne Tuohy says in The Blind Side... "you can thank me later."  (Love her!) 

Please keep the people of Haiti in your prayers.  Mr. and Mrs. Smith were just down there for our honeymoon six short months ago, and the people down there are awesome.  I'm sure they are devastated and need our prayers more so that ever before! 

Birthday Weekend

The Smith's enjoyed a wonderful birthday weekend - full of relaxing, good food, and family visits.  We're sure the family visits were really to visit the newest addition... Cooper the Puppy.  Yep!  After much deliberation, Puppy has officially been named Cooper.  (Special thanks to Sister and Sister's Fiance for their assistance Friday night!) 

Mr. Smith's family took us to a fabulous dinner at Bonefish Grill on Saturday night, and afterwards we all came back to our home for cake.  Not just any cake, mind you, but Snowman Cake.  Mr. Smith's grandmother made him these special winter-y creations for his birthdays growing up, and every year I always hear about the awesome Snowman Cakes.  This year I decided to bravely gone where no KitchenAid mixer in the Smith home has gone before... the creation of a Snowman Cake.  I must admit, it was my version of homemade (thanks, Pillsbury) and not "from scratch" like grandmother's version, but still really, really good.  And it took a really, really long time to do, but I had fun and the result was applauded by Mr. Smith.  I mean... who could ask for more?  A Snowman Cake and a black lab puppy?  Sounds to me like a perfect birthday party. 

Snowman Cake!

Apparently Mr. Smith and Cooper were so exhausted from the festivities, that this was their main position all weekend:

On the couch, stretched out, and either watching football or snoozing.  And yes, Cooper sleeps on his back like that, curled up next to Dadddy.  Precious thing.  Both of them.

Happy Birthday Mr. Smith!

Mr. Smith's birthday is tomorrow, and I've been seriously deliberating on what to get him.  With our birthdays right after Christmas, it's always hard to give gifts!  :)  Not to get them though, right?  Mr. Smith has wanted a puppy since we have been together, but there was always a reason not to get one.  We already have our "special" cat, Abby, so it's not like we are pet-less people.  I finally decided to bite the bullet and surprise him with a black lab puppy for his birthday!  Because of the weather and National Championship game, I went ahead and headed over to the Greater Birmingham Humane Society yesterday at lunch.  It's really close to where I work, and I strolled the precious puppy displays for quite some time.  This little guy just stuck out to me, and thankfuly we hit it off in the "Adoption Room."  He seemed so sweet, so laidback, so angelic.  What a ruse!  He is quite the rascal upon getting him home! 

I love surprising people with gifts.  It's probably one of my Top Three things in life to do.  So when Mr. Smith got home from work yesterday and strolled in like usual, there was me and Puppy waiting on him.  I really do wish I had taken pictures of his face, because it was priceless.  He was quite baffled, and just kept saying "Really?  I mean, really?"  So cute.  He was like a little kid on Christmas!  Mission accomplished! 

Now comes the debate on what to name this precious thing, because right now he is being called "Puppy."  As in, "Puppy, please don't eat my new Pottery Barn bathroom rug.  Puppy, stop chasing Abby.  NO PUPPY NO - DO NOT TEE TEE IN THE FLOOR!!!"  (Please note this is usually me doing this, because I am the "bad" parent and Mr. Smith wants to be the "good" parent.)

I like the name "Ingram" for obvious reasons :  Mark Ingram is my hero.  I love him, his athletic prowess, his Heisman Trophy, his National Championship and most of all his sweet and humbling demeanor.  I feel like we could be friends.  Mark... if you're listening, facebook me.  Mr. Smith came up with a few suggestions of his own:  Wyatt, Max, Attila (that one got quickly vetoed) and we also like Cody.  For Mt. Cody of the Crimson Tide, of course.  We will keep you posted on this charmer's name...  as for now, please keep Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Abby and Puppy in your prayers for their sanity and patience. 

"Puppy"

Learning tricks with Daddy.

Being adopted into a loving home is so exhausting!

Yes, Martin, he is still breathing. 

Hi Mom!  When are you going to stop taking pictures of me?

Roll Tide Roll!

Anyone who knows Mr. and Mrs. Smith knows that we are Crimson Tide football fans... and that might be putting it lightly.  I love my team, and I ride the emotional rollercoaster with them every football season.  This year has literally been a dream come true for every Alabama, young and old.  You see, being an Alabama fan means that every season - regardless of your team or coach - you know that this will be the year of the National Championship.  That this year will be the lucky #13.  And you tumble down the rollercoaster when the reality comes home that this is not the year... but we'll get them next year!  Next year will be the one!  (Alabama fans... you know this is so true!) 

However... we are here.  Tonight is the night for our chance at #13.  And we're good.  So good that we've won the SEC Championship and my Mark Ingram has won his rightful Heisman Trophy.(Yes - my Mark Ingram - I've campaigned for him since the first game of the season when he showed his athletic prowess.  I also believe deep down I'm the reason he won the Heisman Trophy.  Me and my power of positive thinking, right?)   We are going for the Triple Crown this season, people.  THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME!!! 

I've gotten about a million of these emails, but will share the excitement of fellow Bama fans:

ROLL TIDE!

Global Warming?!?!?

Okay, so it's freezing outside.  As in, below 25 degrees.  Yes, I know it's January, but this is Alabama.  God's country, some might say.  And I've never seen it this cold.  Bundle up everyone! 

So last night, I watched "The Biggest Loser" on NBC for the first time ever.  Where have I been?  How could I not have known this show would bring me a mix of laughter and tears in one concise hour?  I'm obsessed.  These people are amazing, and it's truly a humbling show to watch.  You go Biggest Loser people!  By George, I was so pumped that I started working out during the show.  Yep - sit ups, biceps curls, leg lifts... the whole lot.  I'll admit I'm a little sore today, but feel it's worth it.  What a great show! 

Monday night was a great girls' night watching The Bachelor.  I literally wince while watching that show, because it's like, seriously ladies?  C'mon - pull yourself together.  However, it makes for great entertainment and comedic good times with the girls. 

I'm still getting my New Year's Resolutions together, and plan on posting them soon so I can be held accountable.  At church on Sunday, Rev. Turner told us that her three resolutions were:

1.  Choose Love

2.  Practice Forgiveness

3.  Bring Hope

As Christians we're not only given a New Year to ring in our goals, but also direction from our Heavenly Father to practice these three things on a daily basis anyway.  I'll be incorporating these three resolutions into my everyday activities.  No one said they would be easy, but I'm challenging myself to not judge, to not automatically point the finger, and to not spit out the first sassy words that come to my mind (Me?  Sassy?  No way!), but to Choose Love first and foremost. 

Toodles!

Baby It's Cold Outside...

Good morning!  I hope everyone is warm and toasty wherever they are reading this!  Mr. and Mrs. Smith spent a very relaxing New Year's weekend together, which went something along the lines of Mr. Smith watching EVERY. SINGLE. FOOTBALL. GAME. on television, while Mrs. Smith cleaned, organized, and other "wifely" duties like that.  Mr. Smith did take a break on Saturday to go to his beloved Boligee for hunting, and I got the chance to make a big batch of homemade potato soup.  It really should be called "Patience Potato Soup" because it is a little time consuming and the result is not immediate.  However, it is delicious and also very economically friendly to the 'ol budget.  :)  Which I love, of course. 

Homemade (Patience) Potato Soup

You can really make as much or as little as you want, because the ingredients are flexible. 

Ingredients

• 
  
  Red skin potatoes - peeled and cut into about half-inch blocks (Most economical to buy one of those 3 lb. bags of potatoes.  I peeled mine while watching "20 Years of the Duggar Family" on TLC and the process flew by!)
  
  
• 
  
  Medium Onion - chopped - about a cup
  
  
• 
  
  2 - 3 Cans of Chicken Broth (depending on how much you want; if you use 3 lbs. of potatoes, I suggest using 3 cans)
  
  
• 
  
  Half-and-Half - about 2 cups
  
  
• 
  
  Shredded Cheddar Cheese  - about 3 cups (I used both Medium and Sharp cheddar cheeses)
  
  
• 
  
  Salt - about a teaspoon
  
  
• 
  
  Pepper - about a teaspoon
  
  
• 
  
  Crock Pot
  
  Directions

• Put potatoes, onion, salt, and chicken broth into crock pot and let cook for about 6 hours on low.  (You read that right - 6 hours.  Told you it took patience!)  You can also do it on High for 3 hours, whatever it takes to get the potatoes tender.
• After the 6 hours, pour in about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of Half-and-Half and Pepper and stir together.  Cook on High for about 15 minutes.
• Take Cover off of Crock Pot and let stand about 5 minutes.
• Stir in Cheese until melted. 
• Serve with Crumpled Bacon, Bread, etc.
• Refrigerate Leftovers.

The great thing about this recipe is that it is basically fool-proof and so delicious on a cold day like today. 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone!  Thinking back, 2009 was such a big year for Mr. and Mrs. Smith:  finishing graduate school, new jobs, getting married... wow!  Never a dull moment.  I'm excited to see what 2010 has in store for everyone.  Mr. and Mrs. Smith have had a rather uneventful New Year's weekend.  To be honest, we've been absolutely lazy bums.  It's glorious. 

I know you're probably tired of reading about Rufus, but that dang squirrel has evaded us once more.  During our low-key New Year's Eve fondue dinner (which is such an easy and delicious-in-my-belly meal), we heard the trap close in the attic.  RUFUS!  Mr. Smith barreled through the hall to search the attic, and low and behold, this is what we found:

An EMPTY squirrel trap.  The peanut butter crackers (which were in the middle of the trap) are gone, and the trap is completely closed on the both sides.  Dang you Rufus. 

After closer inspection, we found that Rufus did enjoy his peanut butter crackers, as he left traces of peanut butter on the side of the trap:

It's a little blurry, but you can witness the peanut butter bandit, like we did. 

Signing off for now... I'm making a new homemade potato soup recipe in the crock pot... will post recipe if it's everything I've dreamt of and more. :) 

Happy New Year!