Merle Fest

I am so, very behind on my blog!  Clay and I went to Merle Fest earlier this month.  It was both of our first times going and we had a blast.  It literally rained from the second we got there until after we left.  We fortunately came prepared and stayed warm and dry except for our feet (even though we both wore boots). 

 We decided that we now like Chatham County Line (pictured below).  They have an old style of singing where they get closer or farther away from the mike or switch positions with each other to get the desired sound.  It was pretty awesome!

 Pictured below is the Avett Brothers!  This was my first time seeing them in concert.  They were really good but I was a tiny bit disappointed that they didn't play my favorite song, Beaches.  They did play a good mix of their old stuff and new though.

Going on Seven

Can you believe that little Alexa is already 6 years old?  I titled this, "Going on Seven," because before I know it, she will be 7!

On Alexa's actual birthday, April 16th, I was lucky enough to be able to bring her cupcakes and juice to her classroom to celebrate.  It was the first time visiting her school and as most elementary schools are, it was super cute.

As I approached her classroom, the birthday girl was standing in the hallway, waiting for me with her little birthday crown on.  She was uber excited!  I walked in and Alexa's teacher said, "Hi, I"m Mrs. Williams!  Thank you for bringing cupcakes!" in a very stereotypical, sing-song, kindergarten teacher kind of way.  It was so funny.  I couldn't help but to think that she probably has to medicate herself to get through the day and still sound that amazingly pleasant and calm.

Several hugs and kisses and embarrassing shows of affection later, I left her class on cloud nine.  I love my sweet Alexa!

Sunday was the birthday party.  Erin hosted the Hello Kitty themed event at a park in K-nap.  Erin bought and made all of these cute decorations.  Unfortunately, the wind was so bad that we could barely get the tablecloths to stay on the tables let alone the hanging decorations.  It was still cute though.  I made Hello Kitty cake pops and Clay was our hot dog/hamburger chef!  Alexa had a ton of fun playing with her little friends and visiting with family.

A confession

Hi.  My name is Megan Bolton and I have never roasted a whole chicken...until tonight!

What can I say?  I am spoiled rotten by having a husband who is practically a gourmet chef.  When a whole chicken is on the menu, I am the sous chef, chopping and assisting.  Now that Clay is in school and finals are approaching, I am proud to say that I have been cooking up a storm.  I finally decided to tackle a roasted chicken.

I chose an easy recipe for rosemary chicken on Pinterest and got to work.  The only thing that I could not bring myself to do was remove the giblets!  EW!  I intended to...but took one look and knew that Clay was better suited for the job.  They weren't even in a bag like a turkey!

So I took the chicken out after the recommended time, stuck the thermometer in and it shot up to about 200 degrees!  Chicken is only supposed to get to 165.  (My oven always overcooks stuff...I am usually good about preventing this)  So, I prefaced Clay's chicken carving by saying that it might be a little dry.  I made a joke as he cut into it that it might go, "poofffff," like the Christmas Vacation Turkey.  Watch the first 35 seconds of this video to see what I'm taking about...  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Spmqbs8YCW8

Anyway, Clay cut the chicken up...it was a bit more difficult to get the legs off and find a peace of breast meat, but nothing was said about it.  We ate and it was a little dry but still yummy.  Then I went back and was poking around the chicken carcase and said, "I found the breast!"  I had cooked the stinkin chicken upside down!!!!  The breasts were on the bottom!  Come to find out, Clay had been thinking the whole time that I had overcooked it so much that I had cooked the breasts away like the Christmas Vaca turkey!!!  He didn't want to say anything because he didn't want to make me feel bad :)

Needless to say, I will not be making that mistake again.  At least I know that my husband loves me enough not to criticize my ignorant ways :)

A little yellow to brighten things up

I went to Cline's Antiques in search of a little plant stand to put near our front door.  I wanted to add a pop of color and a little height to our entrance.  This may look like an ordinary stand but it has a few unique qualities. It is primitive in a way, but not in others.  The drawer bottom was actually cardboard when I got it.  Joe helped me put a wooden bottom in the drawer when I refinished it.  Also, there are metal rods for support that give it a uniqueness.  You will probably be able to see those better in the "after" picture since I didn't paint them.

The first picture is of the stand at Cline's and the second is after I cleaned it up.  It looked like someone had stained it reddish.

As you can see, I chose a vibrant yellow paint!  Finally!  A color!  Clay actually helped me pick it out.  Let me just give you a run-down of my selection process.  I chose paint sample cards, picked a leaf off of a succulent, chose which color went best with the green succulent, then put all of those samples against my brick house to choose the best.  What a process!  Nothing is ever simple with me.

I planted a variety of succulent plants in the drawer.  I wanted a nice overflowing look which I think I've achieved. 

 

Nugget digs a hole

Ok, so the title is a little deceiving.  Nugget just found a hole that was only superficially covered and dug in it :)  We have this "dent" in our yard where a tree used to be a long time ago.  Anytime I have dirt left over from any project I'm working on, I dump it in the "dent" to eventually fill it in.

The other day, I was working in the yard and look over to see Nugget dig, dig, digging away.  I go over to investigate and I find this hole at the side of the "dent."  My best guess is that it is a hole where a root used to be or another animal dug it.  I stuck a stick in there and it went down and then over about 2 feet!  Pretty long hole!

Enjoy the video of my super smart and talented dog!

House-number-post Facelift

It was finally time to give my pathetic little number sign a face lift.  It was chipping, the flowers were sad, and the mulch had faded.  I had planned to simply re-paint the post, spray paint the numbers black, and put a bottomless pot around the post.  I also knew I wanted to use a brick border and create a symmetrical plot on the other side of the driveway.  

Of course every project that I take on is more involved than I originally think.  The old post ended up being loose and rotten.  I pushed lightly on it and it pretty much just broke off.  Then I had to excavate the cement that had been holding it in, only to find another piece of cement buried from yet another old post (which I pried out with a hole-tamper).  Then I dug a 20'' hole with broken post hole diggers for the new post.

Let's pause here.  Can I just give props to my dad who dug all the holes with a post hole digger for our horse fence for about an acre pasture?!?!?  I repeat..an acre...dug by hand...with post hole diggers!  After digging this one hole by myself...I could barely lift my arms!  Wow!

Ok, so then I prepped the beautiful new post: primed, painted, attached newly painted numbers.  Then I put it in the ground, mixed up cement, poured cement and voila.  The other side was hard too because I had to dig up all the grass in that area.  Let's just say I got a good workout  :)

Enjoy my before and after pictures!!!

 

A Birthday to Remember

This is a little late, but better late than never.  Erin and I celebrated yet another birthday recently.  This being Erin's 30th, we wanted to take her out somewhere nice.  Let me start by saying that somehow Erin and I ended up wearing the same color scheme AND gave each other the same gift:  a massage!  What are the chances of that...on top of sharing a birthday?  Anyway, we went to Roosters for dinner (one of Clay and my favorite places) and then went to Heist Brewery where I had my first green beer (in celebration of St. Patrick's day).  Then we had a cute cake that Erin brought when we got home.

 

Clay also got me a cake!  He ordered it from the Chocolateir on Union St. Concord...it was beyond amazing! He had the baker add almond extract to the cake and the frosting was deliciously buttery.  You know me so well, Clay.  The flowers were eatable too :)  Clay also got me hostas, peonies, and fabric scissors.  Even though my age is forgettable (I am having trouble keeping up with how old I am now) my birthday was very unforgettable :)

On top of that, the girls at work brought yummy sweets in, got me several helium birthday balloons, and filled my car FULL of balloons!!!!!!  Dr. Mike brought us all out to eat too!  I had several calls from family and friends as well as cards!  I am so blessed to have so many people in my life that love me!!