7 days to go...

until ballet lessons begin!

Last week, Nana called to tell Caroline that she was sending money for her ballet shoes and ice cream. Well in true Nana style, she actually sent money for the leotard, skirt, tights, shoes, matching scrunchy for a bun, AND ice cream! Caroline was so proud to have her own big-girl cash to pay with.

Here she is decked out head-to-toe in her lavender and pink ballet ensemble. I was treated to a ballet performance after snapping this pic.

Isn't she the sweetest and prettiest ballerina ever?

Buns are required in the studio, and I think her little one is adorable.

Stay tuned for photos from her first day of class!

Savory Cheesecakes

During the weekends, Brian and I love to watch the cooking shows on PBS. This past Saturday, Brian was watching a Jacques Pepin show when he called me over to the TV. "These look awesome. I want to try these," he said. Pepin and his daughter were making mini cheesecakes with blue cheese. They looked delicious, so last night I whipped up a batch for us. Turns out, they are beyond yummy. BTW, the recipe can be found here.

Here are the cheesecakes ready to go into the oven. The recipe calls for a slice of bread processed into bread crumbs, but I actually used a baguette for the crumbs. I also substituted parmesan cheese in one of the cups, since blue cheese in on the do-not-eat list for preggos.

Fresh out of the oven, they look great...but will they stick to the cups? Pepin used 3/4 C souffle molds for his cheesecakes. I used 1C ramekins, so even though mine puffed nicely, they didn't puff over the top of the cups like his did.

Voila! It unmolded perfectly. This is a blue cheese one. In the 10 minutes of cool-down time, the cheesecakes pulled away from the sides of the ramekins completely. I didn't even need to loosen the sides with a butter knife. I simply inverted the cups and the cheesecakes came right out.

My parm cheesecake was delish, though I can't wait to devour one made with my favorite blue cheese.

Added bonus:

leftover baguette + leftover cream cheese + jam = scrumptious breakfast today

Yummy

Fresh pears from my aunt's tree... I'll definitely be coming up with a fun way to use these.

Family Pics

Here's a sneak peek from our Saturday photo session with Laura Beltran of Watermelon Photography. It was 107-degrees, and Jackson was less than thrilled about having to stay still for photos, but Laura was really patient and upbeat. I can't wait to see all of them.

www.watermelon-photography.com

Dad's 60th

Two weekends ago, we celebrated Dad's 60th birthday. He didn't want a big party, but we wanted to do something a little different than our standard birthday dinner at one of our houses, so we headed out to Lake Lavon and ate burgers and catfish at the Harbor House. Then we headed back to Mom and Dad's for chocolate pie and presents.

I must admit this photo does not do the fish justice. These were seriously monster fish that hang out by the restaurant...they are fed all day long by patrons of the burger joint.

Caroline tossing hot dog bun to the already gigantic fish.

Caroline and Grandmama

Um, let's hope that gift isn't breakable...

Oh phew...it's a tent.

Dad's new therma pad.

Three men, one tent.

The tent passed the grandkid test, so it must be a keeper!