Go Bananas. B-A-N-A-N-A-S

What's the equation for going bananas? Let's do the math.

2x

Plus 1x

Plus 3x

Equals= one crazy lady!

Now granted the picture of the couch above isn't tee-tee, it was taken after I had cleaned it. The puppies have learned a new trick, but like most tricks, practice makes perfect and their aim needs some help. But they managed to get a few trickles on the couch. So, I had the best day yesterday. But it did come out and didn't do any permanent damage. Granted I was spitting mad, but I can't stay mad because then they do this:

They come and curl up in your lap, and look so darn cute that you forget that 30 minutes prior you are cussing them out and wishing that you had an electrical fence for them to pee on.

Dear puppies: I appreciate the fact that you like your home enough to care to claim it in the name of Dachshunds everywhere, but let's leave that to the outside perimeter of the house. Thank you. Now I won't have to kill you.

Now on to the good kind of going bananas. Every week, I am a sweet little wife and bake banana bread for my sweetie for him to take to work with him everyday. So when he gets out of the woods, he has a nice little snack on the way home and banana bread is all that he requests, so that's what he gets! I tried a new recipe this time.

It is a recipe that uses cream cheese in the bread. How can you possibly go wrong with cream cheese? You can't. It was super yummy and makes two loaves, which I like. Because with Joseph and his work partner, Gary, they can go through some banana bread in one week. And this recipe makes enough!

Here is the recipe. It is from The All New Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook. This book is so fabulous. So fabulous in fact, that when I borrowed it from my cousin, Stacey, she never got it back. I had to order another one to give to her because I couldn't part with this book.

Cream Cheese-Banana-Nut Bread

• 
  
  3/4 cup butter, softened
• 
  
  1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
• 
  
  2 cups sugar
• 
  
  2 large eggs
• 
  
  3 cups all-purpose flour
• 
  
  1/2 tsp baking powder
• 
  
  1/2 tsp baking soda
• 
  
  1/2 tsp salt
• 
  
  3 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 
  
  1 cup chopped pecans, toasted
• 
  
  1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until blended after each addition.

Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; gradually add to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in mashed bananas, pecans, and vanilla. Spoon batter into 2 greased and floured 8x4 inch loaf pans.

Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until a long wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean and sides pull away from pan, shielding with aluminum foil the last 15 minutes to prevent browning, if necessary. Cool bread in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool 30 minutes on wire racks before slicing. Yield: 2 loaves.

And because most women like to know what they are eating, I will include the nutritional information.

Per 1/2 inch slice: Calories 221; Fat 11.3g; Protein 3g; Carb 28.1g; Fiber 1.1g; Chol 37mg; Sodium 95mg

So, go bananas! But in a good way, unlike me!!

I'm Not Fat, I'm Just Big Boned

Hey everyone. It's me, Oscar again. Boy am I upset! It all started yesterday morning. I was perfectly happy. I was asleep in the bed when mom came in and got me all excited. She asked if I wanted to go for a ride. Did she even have to ask me that? Of course!! So I jumped up and ran to the door. Mom can be so slow sometimes! We hopped in the car and away we went. The ride was going good at first. We were going in the right direction. I thought that we were going to the park for a little walk and maybe some harrassment of squirrels and ducks. But we turned. Uh-oh. I didn't like where we were going. Then we pulled in. My worst fear was realized. We were at the place where they torture sweet dogs like me, the Vet's office. I was poked and stabbed with metal objects. Then the doctor got on to mom. Ha ha. She's in trouble. No wait. They were talking about me. So what if I weigh 21.6 pounds? I'm big boned. Then I heard the doctor say something strange. What's a diet? No more treats? Exercise? Surely they weren't talking about me. I mean, mom could stand to lose a few pounds herself.  Finally we left. Thank goodness that was over. I hope I never have to go back there again. Yes, I teased the pups when they had to go a few weeks ago due to the unfortunate diamond earring swallowing. I should have kept my mouth shut.

So this morning, I got up, went outside, and came back in ready to eat. I was so looking forward to stealing a few bites of this:

Yum, puppy chow. This is the stuff. So delicious and fatty. But when I got to the bowl, it wasn't there. I saw mom go to the pantry and get a bag of food. It was something I have never seen before. It didn't look like my usual food (Like I ever eat that. I let the puppies eat my food and then sneak in and eat their food. The parentals are none the wiser.) This is what she comes out with.

This can't be good. Weight reduction food? Yuck. And I only get ONE, yes, one cup a day. Are they trying to kill me? Mom put the food down and I tried to be a good soldier.

I choked it on down. I can't believe that the puppies actually wanted to come eat this with me. Are they crazy? But I ate it and even smacked my lips for mom so she wouldn't feel bad.

Enough was enough. That stuff was gross so I went and washed it down with some water.

I see where mom has gotten me some new treats. I will have to take precautions because if they are anything like my new food, they are disguisting.

After the torture this morning, I went to the couch to recover.

Ahhhh.....the couch. My blanket. I was getting ready to do some major snoozing. But like anything, my little buddies wanted in on my prime real estate.

Oh well, they are warm. So I will go with it. That is about it. I am getting tired and need to sleep for about 6 hours. So if you will excuse me, gotta go. Oh- one more thing. If you are able to swing by my house, could you please bring me some bacon? I am starving!!

Wedding Photo Shoot

Ursula got some pictures from our photoshoot posted. You can see them by following this link to her website:

Ursula Page Photography Blog » Ashley + Joseph: 2 Years Later [Thomasville, GA Wedding Photographer]

I thought they turned out great. Granted I could have majorly used a tan, my hair done, and a few less lbs. but all in all, they look great!

We had so much fun doing it and Ursula and all the photographers that were there for the shoot were so wonderful and friendly. If you want to take a look at some of our Christmas card photos that Ursula took back in October, follow this link:

Ursula Page Photography Blog » The Best Reason for Pictures [Thomasville, GA Portrait Photographer]

So if you are in the Thomasville area, and need some fabulous pictures, contact Ursula!!

Exploring Where No Woman Has Gone Before....The Man Cave

This is my gorgeous hubby, Joseph.

He is like most men and needs an escape at the end of the day. He works hard and doesn't get much down time. That is why we converted the guest bedroom into this:

On any given afternoon/evening this is where you will find Joseph. He has a laptop desk at the couch where he can do his work and watch his American Loggers show in peace from me. When he isn't working, he is back there playing his PS3 NCAA 2010 Football game. (of course he is the head coach for none other than UGA and takes it quite seriously. He even has a manly Vera Bradley notebook to keep his stats in!) He has a large 42 inch flat screen, surround sound, and even an extra TV for when he is either watching a game or playing a game, he can have another game going behind him on the extra tv. Men and their toys! It might be a bit much, but he deserves what little space he can have to get away to!

Yesterday, we traveled down to my parents and we got to go to my father's man cave. His "campground" down at the creek.

 

It is new and improved since the last time I posted pictures. He now has......running water!!

   

Joseph, Jack, and I sat down with daddy while he cooked us some lunch.

The boys anxiously awaited for him to finish cooking.

Finally it was time to eat and go back home to enjoy the yummy steaks.

 

After lunch, we took the puppies outside for them to enjoy getting to run around without having to be on a tie out. They really had a blast. They ran and ran and ran. And played and played and played.

That last picture looks pretty intense, but they were just playing around and I just happend to get a good action shot.

Brutus did his part to make sure to drive Jack crazy after we left. Jack will be busy for days trying to reclaim his "territory".

All in all, we had a wonderful day. I'm sure that each man has their own special place that they escape to from us girls. Whether it be inside or out!

What's in a Name?

Ever wonder why our dogs have the names they do? I like to know the method to the madness, so here goes the down low on the name game.

Here is my first baby, Oscar Paige Purvis Bryan.

He was born on December 10, 2001. (He shares his birthday with his favorite Uncle, my brother Brad) I'm sure you can guess where his name came from. Oscar Meyer! He was my first weenie dog, and I didn't even name him. My cousin, Gary Wayne actually gave him his name. I brought him home and couldn't decide on a name. GW always called him Oscar and I refused to let him be named something so obvious. But like most things, you say it enough, and it was his name. Now, where does Paige come from? Well, Paige is my middle name. And if you have (or know) a dachshund, you probably know that when they go outside, they are unaware of anything around them that they don't want to be aware of. Like me calling for Oscar to come inside. When I still lived at home with Oscar, and my dad would let him out, he would always yell for Oscar and call him Oscar Paige. I guess because he was so hard headed! So now whenever he is being bad, I call him Oscar Paige.

Now the other babies. Here is Oscar Junior:

He got his name from......none other than Oscar himself. Before we ever picked up the new puppies, I could tell that he just had that "Oscar" quality all from a photograph that the breeder sent to us. Then when he arrived, I knew that Brock was not his name, like we intended, but Junior or JR as he is called. All because he and Oscar are truly kindred spirits, as Ann-with-an-"e" of Green Gables would say.

They both like to eat and they both love to sleep. They even look alike and act just alike.

Now on to Brutus.

He is the outcast of the group. He doesn't really care to sleep ALL day. (he is still a dachshund and can nap with the best of them) He is the guard dog, the alpha male, the crazy one of the bunch. But how did he get his name? It is actually from a movie that I forced Joseph to watch. It is the greatest Disney movie ever produced.

Image from imdb.com, courtesy of Disney

The Ugly Dachshund is the movie. It came out in 1966. For those who haven't seen it, it is about a married couple who have one dachshund. It goes through her giving birth to her baby dachshunds and the Great Dane who is snuck in by the husband. The Great Dane's name is Brutus. That is where Brutus gets his name because Joseph fell in love with the name. (for some trivia, the Great Dane that played Brutus was also the star in Swiss Family Robinson as one of the Great Danes.)

So there is the down low on how our Dapper Dachshunds got their names!

As Rachel Would Say...Yum-O

Last night I was feeling kinda blah, so I decided to make Joseph a little treat. I try to make him something special at least once a week. Last week it was banana bread to take to work. This week I decided to make him something with ice cream, since I haven't bought any ice cream or popsicles in ages. Bring on the Turtle Cake!! I'm sure that this recipe has several names, but that's just what I call it! You will need: Ice cream sandwiches, cool whip (or make your own, I was too lazy yesterday!), caramel sauce, pecans, and hot fudge sauce. That's it. Easy, peasy. 

Begin by placing a layer of sandwiches on the bottom of your dish. Cover the sandwiches liberally with caramel sauce. Sprinkle with chopped pecans. Then cover with whip cream. Layer another level of sandwiches. Cover with fudge sauce. (I couldn't find any other than the Magic Shell stuff, so I had to omit that step). Cover with whip cream. Decorate with remaining caramel and fudge sauce. Sprinkle with pecans. Wah-Lah, a very easy and tasty dessert!!

I have to issue a warning about this dessert, though. It is very, very yummy and very hard to stop eating!! And like anything that we eat around here, this is what we deal with:

The babies were hoping that Daddy would have an accident and drop some ice cream on the floor. The hopefullness is written all over their faces!!

Just Shoot Me!

Well, the camera has arrived, and of course I have no idea how to use the thing. I guess I will have to get to reading the 200+ page manual. Super fun. But I did get it out and play with it just a little bit today. My new lens just got here, so I will put that one on and play around with it. But here are a few pictures that I took today!

Oscar

Brutus

JR

Hydrangea Sprout

Blueberry Bush

Blueberry Bush reverse focus

Miss Pinkie

Granted, these aren't the best pictures, but I thought I did pretty good for operating a camera with so many buttons and things to learn about. So hopefully I can practice up and take some really great photos! Happy shooting, ya'll!