Family time

My aunt and uncle from California were here in Oklahoma visiting for a few days and we took a little trip to Turner Falls.  Yes, the same place where I had my excellent adventure last week. It was another gorgeous day and we all enjoyed the pretty views. 

Left to right: Dwain (my dad), Mary (my mom), 

Aunt Ruby and Uncle Carl (my dad's brother)

On our way back we stopped for lunch at the Chickasaw Cultural Center in Sulphur. The grounds are beautifully landscaped and the food was delicious. All but one of us chose the traditional Indian taco meal which came with a side dish, dessert and drink for only $6. And it was way more food than any of us could eat - a real bargain. My uncle has heart issues and wasn't quite up to touring the facility but I fully intend to go back again soon to check it out. And yes, I'll be sure to let my family know where I am. ;)

That evening we all went out for dinner. David was in Minnesota so he couldn't join us but Chris and Kadi did. We had a nice meal at a local 50s-style diner. Several had the catfish which is one of their specialties. I was still pretty full from lunch so I opted for the fried green tomatoes appetizer as my meal. I love fried green tomatoes and theirs are quite good. 

I then took Chris and Kadi back to their house and went over to visit awhile longer. Uncle Carl and Aunt Ruby stayed in the mobile home which had been my grandma's. It's a short distance behind my parents' house and one of my cousins owns it, keeping it for a weekend place for them (they live in the city) and for visiting relatives. One of my cousins and his wife were there by the time I arrived and another one came a bit later with his son. My parents were there, too, of course. We all visited until nearly 9:30 when we decided we'd better let them get some rest since they were leaving very early the next morning. It was a short visit but it's always good to spend time with family. 

May Grocery Haul

Lisa and I did our May grocery shopping last week. I was exhausted when I got home which may account for the fact that I forgot to turn the phone sideways to film my grocery haul. Or at least that's what I'm going to blame it on.




Before we started shopping we dropped off our recycling and met Lisa's best friend, Audrey, for lunch. Then we did our monthly marathon shopping.

We started out at Sprouts, which is new to Norman. There were some good sales which we took advantage of.

Sprouts

• organic milk (2 cartons)
• organic cheese
• organic frozen waffle fries (2)
• organic oven fries
• organic crinkle fries
• organic frozen sweet cherries (2)
• organic cereal
• organic tortilla chips
• organic artichokes (2)
• organic asparagus 
• organic tomatoes (2 clusters)
• organic green bell pepper
• organic red bell pepper
• organic lemons (3)
• organic strawberries

Homeland

• gallon of vinegar
• cologne for David (I had no idea they carried it but it was even 30% off.)
• Bon Maman preserves (2 jars)
• red pepper jelly
• mayonnaise (2 jars)
• frozen raw Gulf shrimp
• Pine Sol
• shampoo
• organic potatoes (5#)
• organic onions (3#)

Dodson's 

• organic raisin bran (2 boxes)
• organic mild salsa
• peach salsa
• Tillamook sharp cheddar cheese
• organic, nitrate-free beef hot dogs
• organic ketchup
• peppermints (forgot to show in video)
• organic chicken breasts

Natural Grocers

• organic cranberry juice
• organic chocolate, chocolate chip ice cream
• organic salt and vinegar chips
• organic corn tortillas
• organic flour tortillas
• organic provolone cheese
• organic colby cheese
• all natural whole chicken
• organic turkey lunchmeat (2 pkgs)
• zucchini
• yellow squash
• green onions
• mandarin oranges
• black olives (two cans)
• diced tomatoes (two cartons)
• organic avocado
• green chilis
• organic coconut oil
• organic broccoli
• organic bananas

Cellar

• red wine (3 bottles)
• Coole Swan
• champagne
• sweet tea vodka (made in Oklahoma)

Forward Foods

• spaghetti
• macaroni
• baguette 

As always, we had a wonderful time together. I feel so fortunate to have a daughter who is also a friend. You can read her version of the day here and I encourage you to do so. She wrote a lot more detail but I'm writing this in a bit of a hurry. I do want to share a picture before I close, however:

That's my Prius on the right but that gorgeous sports car to the left is a Tesla. When we came out of the store it was parked next to us and we both had to take a picture (Lisa got a better view of it which is on her grocery post). I joked that it was the expensive hippie car next to the moderately priced hippie car.

So that's it for this month's grocery haul. I'll no doubt pick up a few items here and there but for the most part this was my shopping for the month. How do you do your grocery shopping? Do you post grocery hauls? Leave me a comment - I love to hear how others buy their groceries.

A perfect day

I'm not sure what I did to deserve such a wonderful family. They totally spoiled me yesterday for Mother's Day. Flowers, lunch out, thoughtful gifts and my first pedicure - I couldn't ask for a better day...or a better family. 

Beautiful organic tulips from Lisa and Justin, a pretty serving dish with fleur de lis design and a couple of reusable glasses with straws from Chris and Kadi, and sweet cards from David, my parents and the kids. 

My sweet son paid for my first ever pedicure. Kadi, her mom, and her sisters all got pedicures, too. It was lots of fun to do it together and isn't that peace sign cute?

While we were getting pedicures David pushed baby Mia (Kadi's baby sister) in her stroller around and around the parking lot. It was a gorgeous day and the stroller has speakers and a place to plug in your phone so David played music for her to lull her to sleep. 

I am truly blessed. 

Dee's Excellent Adventure

I'm not entirely certain what possessed me. It wasn't boredom - I'm not sure I've ever been truly bored in my whole life. I wasn't upset and running away from anything. I'm alone a lot so it wasn't the need for space or privacy.

Perhaps I needed to do something unexpected...unpredictable. Something that was just for me and didn't take anyone else into consideration first. If David is home I don't even step outside for a moment without telling him, just out of simple courtesy.

Whatever the motivation (and I'm still pondering that), yesterday I took a little road trip and I didn't tell anyone. It wasn't a major trip like when Roz and I took our "Thelma and Louise" trip to New Orleans. I was gone less than three hours and back home finishing up my usual Monday household chores and preparing dinner long before David got home. In fact, if I hadn't told him he never would have known. Well, until he read this blog post.

So where did I go? Well, Sunday morning during the announcement time at the beginning of our church worship service, amidst all the usual reminders of upcoming events, a woman got up to say that if we wanted a chance to see God's handiwork we should take a drive to Turner Falls because it was absolutely gorgeous right now. I love scenic drives and murmured to David that we ought to do that. He was rather non-committal and I suppose that's when my plan began to take shape.

I could have talked David into taking the drive with me. He'll do most anything I ask but for that very reason I try not to take advantage of his good nature. I thought about asking my daughter or my parents if they'd like to go along but ultimately I decided to go alone and not to tell anyone until afterwards. I dropped Kadi (Chris' girlfriend) off at work and then I took off for Turner Falls.

It's only about 40 miles away. It was an absolutely perfect day. Warm and sunny with a light breeze. I enjoy listening to audio books in the car and had recently started Pat Conroy's "South of Broad". As I listened to the narrator's gentle Southern cadence, I took careful notice of the beauty I was driving through.

Spring has taken her own sweet time this year but was an absolute showoff yesterday. Thick, green grass blanketed the roadside and bright patches of wildflowers almost took my breath away. Queen Anne's Lace, Black-eyed Susans, and Indian Paintbrush, plus many more I cannot name. More than once the beauty I beheld nearly brought me to tears.

I didn't actually enter the Turner Falls park because of the $12 admission fee. I was only planning to stay a short time and not utilize any of the facilities. But I drove on past the entrance and stopped at a point which overlooks the falls. This is the sight which greeted me:

I was alone at first and took a few pictures. Soon, other cars pulled into the lookout area and the moment was over. I got back in my car and headed back. I stopped for lunch at the Sonic drive-in in Davis and then drove home. 

As soon as David got home I told him of my little adventure. He was rather surprised. He wasn't upset but he did voice his concern that if something had happened to me no one knew where I was. I suppose that's a valid point, although I did have my cell phone with me. It's not something I'm likely to ever do again without telling him first but I can't honestly say I regret it. Maybe someday I'll figure out what truly prompted this act...or maybe it will always be a bit of a mystery. Regardless, it was a special day and not something I'm likely to forget any time soon. 

The Gifts of Friendship

Sometimes I get discouraged by the actions of certain folks but then I'm reminded of the many wonderful friends I have and how much they care about and appreciate me. I think the good Lord knew I needed a few of those reminders recently and I've been overwhelmed by the love and generosity of friends in recent weeks. 

Some of our dearest friends happen to live in New Orleans and our recent trip was filled with so many happy times. While we were there, three different friends presented me with gifts for absolutely no other reason but genuine love and generosity. 

Knowing my obsession love for giraffes, Christine gave me this charming book. 

Beth gave me this fan which came in handy on warm evenings 

while wearing layers of wench garb (did you know that corsets are HOT?).

Cindy gave me this bracelet because she said it just looked like me.

And then a couple of days ago, Wendy, one of my long-time blog 

and newsletter readers sent me these page markers 

and darling book mark. Obviously she knows me, too. 

More than the gifts themselves, what really touched me was the fact that these friends "get" me and took the time and effort to share something special. Thank you to each of these dear friends. You've made me feel loved and I treasure each of these gifts. More importantly, I cherish each of you. 

Swamp People on nitrous

I had been dreading it. I took an extra blood pressure pill. I meditated in the waiting room. I asked if could listen to music during the procedure. I accepted the offer of nitrous. And then I proceeded to watch Swamp People on the ceiling and listen to Van Morrison via earbud in my left ear while my dentist did his work. I'm telling you, folks, that was the most *interesting* dental visit ever. 

And have you ever had flowers delivered to you while getting dental work done? I have. My sweet husband had these delivered to the room where my tooth was being drilled:

I'll bet everyone in the office will be talking about that one for awhile. I think I'll keep him. And this note:

My parents took me to my appointment since I wasn't sure how I'd react to the gas and if I'd be safe to drive home. They both had hair appointments around the same time but they still had to wait quite awhile for me. It's really nice to have family who will do things like that for you. 

And the best part? I didn't actually need a crown. After the dentist removed the old filling and the small area of decay it turns out I had a significant amount of good tooth structure left. He put in a temporary filling and I'll go back later this month for a permanent onlay procedure. I hope Swamp People is on again. 

Getting crowned

No, not that kind. Unfortunately. I'll be getting my first dental crown today. Have I mentioned my distaste for dental appointments? Sigh...