Seriously I didn't need the help...

Can I just say that this doesn't work! No matter what he may think, he can not help with the laundry.

That has been the story of my weekend. Saban has been sick so he follows me around everywhere and has to try to get into everything that I am doing, so needless to say I haven't gotten much done.

Keith comes homes tonight... hopefully... and I am so glad! Maybe Saban can follow him around for a little while. I plan on heading to church here in a little while then I have to come home and work on my peach cobbler for my supper club tonight. Hopefully I will remember to take some pictures and I can share the recipe with you if it is any good.

Just a little update...

Well not much has been going on over here... I have been keeping myself busy training with work and staying very busy in the afternoon keeping the house organized, getting errands ran, and trying to run a few miles a day or at least get into the gym for something! I worked too hard to stop hitting the gym now!

Work has been going great! I am almost done with my training and should be up and running by myself by next week. The people have been great. The bank is pretty small, so there are only 11 of us total and everyone has been so nice! They have already invited me out for drinks on Thursday after our monthly meeting! It is so nice to be able to get out of the house for a few hours a day and have face to face conversations with people!

This weekend will be pretty slow around here. It is looking like Keith will be working all weekend, so I will be alone during the day. I am still trying to decide if I might take a drive up to see the little guy over the weekend since my parents will be up there. We have our supper club on Sunday night and I am in charge of the dessert, so I am just not sure if I want to get up really early and drive back Sunday morning in order to have enough time to make it. Guess I should just save my trip up there until the 4th of July when Keith can do the driving!

Alright well I must get back to the housework so I don't waste the whole afternoon sitting here watching the Food Network and reading blogs which I have been known to do!

Recap from the Weekend!

Well we are back in Texas after way to long of a drive, but we did have a wonderful time!!! I am so full of wonderful LA food and we had such a blast visiting with friends and family!

Friday when we arrived after almost 7 hours in the car, Keith's mom had homemade red beans and rice and some Popeye's Fried Chicken waiting for us! Oh it was soooo good! It had been almost 11 months since I had either of those and it was such a treat. After such a great dinner, we decided to do a little driving around town as we had not seen much of the Covington/Mandeville area as Keith's parents have only been living there about 2 months and are last trip was such a quick one. Keith's parents live near both the Tchefuncte River and the northshore of Lake Ponchartrain so there are great views and lakefront restaurants all over! It was so nice to see such a wonderful area of LA and the weather was so wonderful that it made it even better!

Saturday while the boys played golf, myself and the MIL did a little shopping at where else, Ann Taylor Loft! I found a dress that I just love, but I am hoping it is going to go on sale soon and I can get it a little cheaper. Unfortunately a $70 dress is not exactly in the budget right now :(. Saturday afternoon, we went to a wonderful restaurant right on the Tchefuncte River called Friends Coastal Cafe. The food was great and with the wonderful weather, we were able to sit outside on the patio and watch all the boats go by.
This is Keith after a great meal of some wonderful LA fried seafood. He was a very happy camper! Can you see the nice view of the River back behind him??? There are some huge houses back there and supposedly one of them belongs to John Goodman! We couldn't figure out which one, but any of them are definitely fit for a movie star. After dinner, we headed to a bar on Lake Ponchartrain called The Barley Oak. It had 50 beers on tap, which basically made Keith look like a kid in a candy store! Oh how he loves trying different beers!

Sunday after a trip to church, it was time for brunch for the MIL's 50th birthday! All of the family but one of her brother's who lives in TN were able to attend and we went to a great restaurant right on Lake Ponchartrain called Rip's on the Lake. The food was just amazing, and I wish I would have taken a picture of it! I had Eggs Champagne which was Eggs Benedict, but instead of hollandaise sauce it was covered with Crawfish Ettoufee!!! Soooo GOOD! Keith had Shrimp and Grits which is another LA classic dish. You know I couldn't help but stick my fork into his dish just a few times! Here are a few pictures from brunch

The Birthday Girl with her birthday Bread Pudding (delicious by the way... we all got to try some!) You can't see them, but she is wearing our present to her which were a set of Mignon Faget Fleur De Lis earrings and the Mignon Faget linking Fleur de Lis bracelet (two of my favorites that are currently also on my wish list!)

The FIL and MIL after brunch. It was raining so we weren't able to take any pictures on the Lake.

Me and the Hubs after eating such a great meal!

Here is the view we had from the restaurant. Can you see those dark clouds on the horizon??? They got some heavy rain shortly after we left. But still it was just so nice out there I couldn't help but take a picture.

I had an early day at work today and had to be there for 7:30! It was not easy getting up after so many hours in the car in only a few short days, but I did it. I went straight to the gym after work cause I knew if I didn't I would probably never get there. It was such a nice day that after doing a little stretching and warming up, I hit the trail right by the gym and enjoyed the beautiful day!

Now I am off to take care of a few things around the house... the one drawback from being out of town, so much laundry and household chores to take care of once you return!!

Just A Note...

Well I have been having a great week at the new job and am really enjoying it! I have enjoyed the people I have met there and all that I have already learned in my training. I can't wait to actually get started at the job! There will be more updates to come on it!

Tomorrow we are going to be leaving for the weekend in LA and I can't wait for a little bit of the great food! It is my MIL's 50th birthday this weekend, so I will hopefully have a few new pictures to share from the events.


But until I have those pictures, how about a nice little picture of my favorite smiling little guy!

The Best French Toast

French Toast

Courtesy of Alton Brown C/O FoodNetwork.com

Ingredients
1 cup half-and-half
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons honey, warmed in microwave for 20 seconds
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 (1/2-inch) slices day-old or stale country loaf, brioche or challah bread
4 tablespoons butter

Directions
In medium size mixing bowl, whisk together the half-and-half, eggs, honey, and salt. You may do this the night before. When ready to cook, pour custard mixture into a pie pan and set aside.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Dip bread into mixture, allow to soak for 30 seconds on each side, and then remove to a cooling rack that is sitting in a sheet pan, and allow to sit for 1 to 2 minutes.

Over medium-low heat, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a 10-inch nonstick saute pan. Place 2 slices of bread at a time into the pan and cook until golden brown, approximately 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove from pan and place on rack in oven for 5 minutes. Repeat with all 8 slices. Serve immediately with maple syrup, whipped cream or fruit

Last Day...

Of unemployment that is! Tomorrow morning I will start my training at the bank and am very excited to have a reason to get dressed in the morning and to get out of this house. I don't have much planned for the day so it should be nice and relaxing.

I have already taken the weekly trip to the grocery store and I must say that I am very proud of myself! I only spend 65 bucks and I saved 39.09 which was a savings of around 35%! I shop at Brookshire's and they have really good loyalty savings, so if you shop the sales you can really save some money. My best purchase today was 4 for $12 coke zero and Oscar Meyer lunch meat 2 for $4 and I had 2 75 cent coupons! So I guess I am getting better at my coupon and deal shopping abilities!

Tonight we are having "Brinner" or breakfast for dinner for all of you non-Scrub watching readers! I will be using my favorite french toast recipe and I will definitely be sharing it tomorrow IF I remember to take pictures! I try my best to not post recipes without pictures, but sometimes we are just too hungry for me to take the time!

Happy Mother's Day and Happy Birthday!!

I just wanted to wish a Happy Mother's Day to both my mom and to Keith's mom. They are two of the most wonderful women I have ever met and raised some wonderful children if I do say so myself! Personally I don't know how my mom put up with me and my brother and I definitely don't know how Keith's mom put up with two boys!!!!!

If you know my mom, this picture sums her up completely! She is CRAZY! My mom teaches kindergarten and has for about the last 17 years. After being around those kindergartner's she definitely doesn't act her age! There is never a dull moment if my mom is around as she can't sit still for more than 5 minutes. Love you Mom!

Here is Keith with his Mom and Dad (I couldn't find a picture of just her or him and her). Keith's mom has lived in a house full of boys since Keith was born 26 years ago! I don't know how she has done it, but she is definitely a great woman for putting up with all of those boys for so long. Maybe one day, she will have a little granddaughter to spoil rotten, I know she would love that! Love you Ms Ronda!

Today is also my Big Brother's birthday! Today Shawn turns 29! Man, he's getting old!!! My brother and I have a great relationship and are pretty close. He is a physical therapist and loves his job, his family, Cane's and Nebraska Football! I love going up to his house and not only hanging out with him and his wife, but also his little guy! Love you Shawn and Happy Birthday!!!

This is him with his little guy. As you can see the little guy likes to match his daddy with his collared shirt.