Afternoon Walk at Dog Park

This is a great park called Dog Park located in Town and Country. They have a museum on the property dedicated to dogs and a nice trail that you can walk along. Of course my dog is afraid of everything so he did not accompany me on the walk, but it was nice and I snapped a few pictures as I went.

A Moment of Play at Dinner

Now normally I do not like playing at the dinner table but tonight it was fun to watch Michael and Greg as they enjoyed some playtime after dinner. Michael was being goofy yet again playing with the limes from dinner :-)

New Jackets

Yay!
Greg got Michael and I new Fall jackets.
We were in desperate need of something to keep us warm.
Mine was a complete surprise and was the peacoat that I had been looking at during a prior shopping trip.
Michael picked out his at the store with his friends but Greg surprised him as well when he pulled up to the shop and bought it for him.
We are both very happy...and warm...now :-)


Michael in his new jacket

At the end of the day

After a long day, I cherish moments like this when we both take a break and just sit and have some wine and crackers and talk. It is such a great feeling when you truly find your perfect partner and everything just falls into place.




P.S. In case you were wondering the cheeses on those crackers are quite yummy....the white one is Chardonnay Cheddar and the red one is Cabernet Cheddar.

Fall Walk

It was such a gorgeous morning today that I decided to stop at the park to drink my tea and enjoy the beauty around me. The leaves are beginning to change and I just love all the colors on the trees.

There is a small park down the street from us with a hand dug cave that was made in the 1850's. During the Civil War the townspeople would hide there when soldiers came through. Greg and I are going for a walk there this weekend and I will post pictures.
I took a few of these at the park but I did not walk down to the cave alone.

I am going for a walk today or tomorrow so check back for more Fall pictures soon.

Flowers

My neighbor, Glynda, brought me some beautiful flowers from her garden today. I fell in love with these when I saw them in her garden when we first moved in. I am saving the seeds to plant in the spring so next year I will have some too.

Recipe: Spicy Chicken Tostadas

As many of you know, Greg and I both love to cook. We are quite a great team in the kitchen. We plan our meals a week ahead and each night we cook together, have some fun, share some laughs, and then enjoy a great meal.

We are always trying new recipes and a lot of friends often ask for some of our recipes so I thought I would share them on here. I will make a section just for recipes on here and update it regularly, but for now I will just post them here.

This is a great casual meal that we make.
I posted this one for you Tawnee :-)


Spicy Chicken Tostadas:

1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
1/4 Cup Minced Red Onion
6 oz. Grilled Chicken Breast
3 Medium Tomatoes Seeded and Diced
1 Garlic Clove Minced
2 Tablespoons Fresh Cilantro Chopped
1/2 Teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
4 Cups Mixed Iceberg / Romaine Lettuces Chopped
1/2 Cup Finely Chopped Red Bell Pepper
4 Tablespoons Fresh Lemon Juice (more if you like)
8 Hard Tortillas
1 Cup Refried Beans
1/2 Wheel Queso Fresco Crumbled
1 Cup Fresh Salsa

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 10-inch skillet heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook 3 minutes stirring occasionally. Add chicken, tomatoes, garlic, cilantro and Old Bay seasoning and cook 3 to 5 minutes or until mixture is thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally. Remove skillet from heat; cover and keep warm.

In a medium bowl toss lettuce, bell pepper, and lemon juice.

Place tortillas on a cookie sheet and heat in oven about 5 minutes or until warm and crisp.

Spread Refried Beans over each Tortilla.
Sprinkle with Lettuce Mixture.
Top with Chicken Mixture.
Sprinkle Crumbled Queso Fresco on top.
Add Salsa to taste.

We have made them a few times and they are yummy. We usually have them with a side of Spanish Rice and Grilled Pineapple (will post this recipe later). Sangria is a great accompaniment.

Enjoy!

Balloon Glow at Forest Park

Each year they hold The Great Forest Park Balloon Race in St. Louis. The night before the race all the hot air balloons are grounded at the park and they light them up at dusk. You can walk right up to the balloons. I had never been up close to a hot air balloon. It was very neat. It was difficult to get pictures but here are a few.











Picture moment :-)



This is the giant Energizer Bunny Balloon. It is the largest one there and you can stand under it and touch the balloon. We kissed under the bunny :-)



This one was really cool also. The balloon was a huge bag of popcorn.

Pirate Festival

Aaaarrrggghhh!

It is time for the Annual Pirate Festival in Missouri and you know that we are not about to miss a day with pirates. The food was good, the entertainment was great and overall it was a wonderful day. Here are some pictures from our day at the festival.





Pirates Ye Be Warned.



Taking a break for a picture moment :-)



This is 3 Pints Gone performing. They were quite entertaining.



Where Pirates go to play.



I got locked in jail....



Then thrown into the stockade....



Luckily, Greg came along with his bow and arrow and rescued me....



Just in time to see the Chuvani bellydancing show.



This was the best Pirate at the festival. His mannerisms, speech, and walk were just like Jack Sparrow (who is my favorite pirate). He was very entertaining.



We finished off the day with a hilarious comedy performance by the Scallywags. These guys were great and definitely made fans out of us.

We had a great time and are looking forward to going back next year. We would love for friends and family to go with us next year so let us know if you are interested.

Aaaarrrrgggghhh!

mmmmm.....Yummy!

My Dad and Vicki got us a waffle maker for one of our housewarming gifts. We made yummy waffles today with strawberry syrup, whip cream, and fresh strawberries. They were delicious.

mmmmmm!

Labor Day at Castlewood Park

Today we went to Castlewood State Park for a hike. We took the River Scene Trail which was beautiful.

We walked along the river and then through this tunnel that goes under the train track.



We then walked to the top of the bluffs where we had a gorgeous view of the surrounding area and the river down below.









We stopped for a snack and then hit the trail again. It was a great day.

Our New Home

After a long, long drive we finally made it to our new home in Missouri.

It has an adorable walk way with a nice size front porch and we have two huge trees in the front yard that I love.




Now comes the fun part....unpacking ;-)

Time To Go

We decided not to worry about getting an early start today and enjoyed tea and coffee with Kelly and Brian in the morning while being entertained by Amelia. Amelia got to meet Spike for the first time and they quickly became friends.






We are not sure what time Michael finally went to sleep last night but assume it must have been late since he fell back asleep on the staircase on his way downstairs in the morning.





We had a wonderful time visiting and wish we could have stayed longer. But with two overloaded vehicles and the moving truck arriving the next day we had to say goodbye and get back on the road.