At Considerable Cost

  Last night, I hosted our moms' group monthly gathering.   It was a crafting night, accompanied by conversation and margaritas.   In addition to margaritas of the pitcher variety, I served my Margarita Bars, a recipe I originally created for publication on Bourbon and Boots .  The site is focused on retail now, so I'm publishing that post here.   These are such a refreshing summertime treat and it is easy to leave the tequila out for an alcohol-free option! "I think I'm going to order a margarita."   I grinned as I said it, perched on the edge of a bar stool in the bar of Tampico's Restaurant in New Iberia, Louisiana.    I was there for Happy Hour with two fellow teachers: Joey, who is now my husband, and Mike, who was the band director.   "Well, o...kay," said Mike.   "I'll alert the media." "No, Mike, you don't understand," I said, leaning in to whisper, "I've never had a margarita before. ...

Sleeping children: few things are sweeter.   These pictures of my sweeties deserved their own post.   The beauty of napping after swimming:

Amongst my major flaws is my resistance to popular things just because they are popular.   Any endorsement by a large majority is enough to turn me off anything.   New York Times Bestseller's List?  It's going to take some recommendations by people whose literary opinions I trust for me to read a book with that distinction.   Number one at the box office?   Again, it's going to take a trusted actor, director, screenwriter or reviews from trusted sources for me to approach the ticket window.  Everyone's doing it?   Then, I'm definitely NOT. The major drawback when we first toured our current home was that it has a floor plan which is very common in our town.   It was a stumbling block for me.  As an adult, I've learned to consider my strong opinions in light of this flaw.   So, for instance, a common floor plan is not a reason to ignore a home that offers everything we needed at a good price. Over the past ...

 This post has absolutely nothing to do with football stadiums or sports spectator seating. Our new home has one flaw.   It can get hot.   Really hot.   Last winter, we rarely had to run the central heat, except for maybe a cycle or two first thing in the morning to take away the chill.   Yea for the winter utility bills!  Oh, wait a minute.   This is Texas, so that really only affects two--maybe three--utility bills? We have no mature trees anywhere near our home, so our large roof just soaks in the heat.   Thermal curtains are on the front windows for the morning heat (when our door handle gets too hot to touch) and solar screens are on the kitchen windows, on the back of the house, where the evening sun comes bearing down.   I complained about our lack of trees to a friend from Louisiana.   She told me the new neighborhoods cleared all the trees and people had cut down trees because of all t...

The drought is getting to me.   Deadness, dryness, stressed plants and trees, oppressive heat (and I grew up in south La., so I know oppressiveness in climate), triple digit temperatures as the norm... It just seems so endless right now.   I worry about farmers who just want to make a living and hold on to what is usually family land and a way of life that has been passed down through generations.   My children are outdoor children and they are getting a little cabin-feverish.   Okay, a lot.   Plus, I hate to add up the amount of money we've spent on Happy Hour 1/2 price drinks at Sonic this summer. So my thoughts are going even more passionately toward that place where they usually tend to wander around August and September: that first crisp fall day.   One of the most glorious days in existence.   On that first crisp fall day, I shall: Walk with a spring in my step. Let my children pick anything they want ...

Like everyone else, I can say my parents weren't perfect and my childhood was not idyllic, but I had a great childhood.   There were many things that made it so and I think part of it was because my parents were older (although they would not be considered so today). In our neighbor's garden.   Mama once pulled back the leaves of similar plants in this garden and found a copperhead snake coiled.   The garden was planted by an elderly gentleman who worked and lived on the neighboring farm.   He was always called Preacher.   He called the snake a pilot snake.   He told Mama that in a few weeks a rattle snake would come through, on the same path.   Sure enough, he showed Mama the dead rattlesnake a few weeks later.   Mama did a little research and found out that copperheads and rattlers often den together.   The copperhead often goes out a few weeks before and the rattler will follow the same path...

Why run through the sprinkler when you can sit? This morning was not as oppressively hot as what has become normal lately.   The kids actually wanted to stay outside and play like they used to do.  C's "googles"--one of my headbands