Profound Healing

I am almost finished reading a book; actually I should say that I am savoring a book. Profound Healing: The Power of Acceptance on the Path to Wellness is not just a book about a lady with cancer, and not just a book about health. It's a book about how to live your life in the way that gives you the most wellness. You can pick up a used copy for a good price.

The Movie Was Wonderful!

I loved it!

So, our eagerly anticipated date night last Saturday night went off without a hitch. One of the pluses of being newly Empty Nesters is that you can just go and do whenever you want. We decided that not only would we go see the eagerly anticipated movie, but that we would make an event out of the night.

There is a fairly new restaurant that I had been to several times with work friends. The food is very fresh and hip and up to the minute. I decided to take my sweetie there before the movie so he could experience the neat ambiance and try the delicious fusion cooking. We settle in, (no wait!), and already he is impressed with the place. The restaurant itself is very modern and interesting. Sweetie quickly glances over the sushi menu and moves on (ha - no surprise since I married a meat and potatoes man) and settles on beef and peppers. We order an egg drop soup that was to-die-for; one of the creamiest egg drops I have ever had. It was without that thin, slightly greasy texture you get with some egg drop soups. The entire meal was delicious and a great start to a date night. If you are ever in East Tennessee be sure to check out one of the local Stir Fry Cafe's. I have been to all but one of them and they are consistently wonderful.

We drove just a hop, skip and a jump over to the movie theater. This theater is a destination unto itself with 18 huge movie screens and an IMAX. The lobby has a food court in it! The theater seats are plush and comfy; they gently rock back and forth and the arm rests have cup holders in them. Speaking of arm rests, they also raise in case one wants to snuggle up to their date. If you are ever in Knoxville you should take in a movie at the Pinnacle 18; you will not regret it.

Down to the meat (no pun intended - ha!) of the matter! I loved this movie! Meryl Streep was absolutely amazing in this role; she became Julia Child! Stanley Tucci should also be commended for his supporting role as Paul Child, Julia's husband. Julie and Julia was a sweet, funny and enjoyable movie. I enjoyed the story of a young lady finding herself through the experience of making her way through Julia's cookbook. The sweet stories of loving relationships was a bonus; I was not expecting these pearls. Amy Adams was adorable as Julie; she played the part perfectly. This is a bit of a chick flick but I think you would find it enjoyable. It is perfect for a date night or with girlfriends or a mother-adult daughter outing. The one thing that surprised me about Julia Child, as portrayed in the movie, is that she and Paul were quite the rabbits (wink wink). Nora Ephron did a good job transitioning the movie back and forth between Julie and Julia; it was seamless! The movie did not disappoint and I would recommend it to anyone. I rate it 2 spatulas up!

We ended our evening with a trip to Calhoun's for coffee and dessert. Our waitress was darling and we enjoyed discussing the movie.

All of the anticipation leading up to the movie was not wasted. A big thank you of my own to Julie and Julia. Go see this movie or be sure to rent it later on. Oh, and invite me over to go with you!

Anticipation: Julie & Julia - The Movie

I am one of those people that has a problem paying full price for a movie ticket when I know I can see the same movie for a dollar in a few short months. Are you one of these people too? I think part of it is that most movies out these days just don't excite me.

All that changes August 7th. That's the day that Julia & Julia comes out in theaters. I am so excited about this movie! I can't decide what has me captivated more. Is it that it is a movie with roots in cooking? Is it that one of my all time favorite actresses, Meryl Streep, is in it? Is it that a blogger has her blog up on the big screen? For me it is all that and more!

To be honest, I am most excited about learning more about Julia Child. The trailer shows glimpses into her personal life and from what I have heard, Julia was a character.

It seems to me that it has been awhile since a good "chick flick" has been out. I shudder to think of the men across America that are living in dread at this very moment because they know they will have 2 hours of chick flick coming their way in August. Suck it up boys; football is right around the corner! My own sweet husband has mentioned that he can't wait to take me to the movie. What a sweetie!

So, come this August I will be shelling out some gosh awful sum of money to see a movie at the -gasp- movie theater! I am sure I will sneak snacks and bottled water into the movie my over sized purse.

So, are you going to go see the movie? Will you wait until it comes out on DVD? Julia's birthday is August 15th. I think I will celebrate that day by making something out of her Mastering the Art of French Cooking cookbook. How awesome to have the movie premiere one week before her birthday.

And with that I will just say, in honor of Julia, Bon Appetit!

Pecan Pie Muffins

I thought you might enjoy a little gem of a recipe. This came from a friend of mine whose daughter won a blue ribbon at the fair! I have played with the ingredient amounts as you will read below. The picture shown is when I was experimenting with different sized muffin tins so please excuse the un - uniformity! This recipe is great for a brunch. I prefer them best after they have had time to rest. In my opinion they just aren't as tasty right out of the oven. Enjoy!

Pecan Pie Muffins

2 c. Brown sugar, packed
1 c. Flour
2 c. Pecans, chopped (I load my batter down with more!)
1 1/3 sticks. butter, melted (original recipe called for cups)
4 lg Eggs, beaten

Combine brown sugar, flour & pecans; set aside.
Combine butter & eggs; mix well. Stir in flour mixture until moistened.
Fill mini muffin cups 2/3 full.
Bake 350º for 15-20 minutes or until done. (the best ones of mine took 17 minutes)
Remove from pans & cool on wire racks.

If you don't remove them from the pan they get cement hard once the sugar cools.

On a personal note, thank you to all of you that have written notes during my blogger leave of absence. I confess that my break away from the blogging world was longer than I thought it would be. I will be blogging now and then; as the spirit moves me so to speak.

Spring Sprucing and Cleaning

Hi Everyone! I hope you all are having a wonderful spring. The buds here sure are looking pretty. I snapped a couple of pictures today of one of my favorite spring trees (pictured above). I love the color! The temps are finally staying up warm enough in the day to suit me and the cool nights make for good sleeping.


I am a devoted Tasha Tudor fan. I thought I would share one of her books with you. Even though this book has "spring" in the title it really isn't about the season spring. However, I love the illustrations and the book seems festive to me for this time of the year. You can click on the pictures and they will enlarge.




We had one leather recliner in our family room. Talk about comfortable!! Mmmm, what a delight! Hubby and I would take turns sitting in it and finally a couple of weeks ago I went to the furniture store and ordered another one. It came last week and here it is! These two recliners are huge and really too big to have two side by side but these face the TV and we love them so that is what it is all about right? We do feel like our grandparents now; nestling in the recliners at the end of the day. Our grandparents were smart huh?


And finally you can see a little bit of what I have been up to also. Ugh. Spring cleaning time!!! I do love getting everything clean top to bottom inside and out. This year I have someone helping me and she is a godsend. I am so tickled that we will have everything spic and span this week.

Baby son is on his way back from Europe as I type. The week has gone very fast! I am so glad that he will be coming home but so happy that he has had this wonderful experience.

I hope you all are enjoying Spring as much as I am.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you ~

"May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields..."

Irish Blessing

Come sit out on my front porch with me and we will have shortbread and tea. In case you are interested, the china pattern is Belleek from Ireland. I only have a few pieces but each one is adorable. Such a dainty china; and so sweet to me.

What a Difference a Day Makes!

Photo removed at teenager request :)

What a difference a day makes! Pictured above is my "baby", my high school senior. This photo was taken yesterday morning at about 9:30 am on my back breezeway before I took him to the airport. This morning at 9:30 am I got a call from this precious child of mine from Milan, Italy where he was standing in the middle of a plaza looking at a huge cathedral; according to him.

I have been the type of Mother that let my children go and do and explore probably more than I should have. Their father is a captain for a major airline and has flown both domestically and internationally. From the age of 1 month I have had my children on airplanes. We have moved several times and experienced different cultures. Thanks in part to living in Texas for 6 years, along with one of the most gifted Spanish teachers ever, he speaks fluent Spanish.

This trip that my son is on is a little bit different than his usual outings. He went on a 9 day trip to Europe with 8 other friends from high school. There are some adults going and this was a guided tour thingy. They will go to Italy, Spain and Monaco; how exciting!

I warned him about the delicious ice cream, pastries and breads in Europe. I tend to gain about 10 pounds just thinking about them! When he called this morning he said that I was right about the ice cream and he had already had three servings! That's my boy! We love our food.

I raised my children to be very independent. They were doing their own laundry by age 8, making their own beds, etc. As morbid as it sounds, I wanted them to be able to function in case something happened to their father or myself. Of course, with independence I have had to let go faster or sooner than I wanted to at times. However, I could not be prouder of my children. They are able to conduct themselves in all sorts of situations and are already contributing members of society holding down jobs, going to school, etc. Apologies for the shameless bragging.

Thanks for letting me share a bit of my life with you today.