Outdoor Adventures: St. Marks Lighthouse

Another weekend, another outdoor (ok, birding) adventure! This weekend we chose to head down to St. Marks to go to the wildlife refuge/lighthouse. David and I got into a little argument over St. Marks. I swore that we had gone there before after we went to Wakulla Springs and he swore that we didn't. Well, I guess that we never did because David didn't recognize anything when we got there, so David won that argument. I must have dreamed it...

 I love St. Marks. It is so "Florida" to me. Sure, Florida has great beaches that millions flock to every year, but it is places like St. Marks that make me love the coast. Places that feel a bit more"local" and have that true Florida flavor.

And what would a trip be to St. Marks without a few lighthouse shots?

 I did of course get some bird pictures! We didn't see anything too exciting.

I took a picture of some grackles. Don't they look so much prettier when they aren't in their "normal" setting? AKA eating out of the garbage/dumpster or stealing food off your plate when you are dining outside?

The little Red-Shouldered Blackbird singing his heart out. I have never seen so many of these in my life than I did on Saturday!

In other wildlife spottings...

Lots of blue crabs

A gross rat

Wish we had seen this...but we didn't. I had this on my camera from our most recent trip to Blountstown and it was too good not share :-)

Well, that about sums up the trip to St. Marks. I know there were four gentlemen who were glad that we made it back home and released them from doggy jail!

Check That Off the List

I'm sure you all were waiting with baited breath to see if I spotted my painted bunting. Just wanted to let you know that I did and it was a sucessfull trip :-)

These birds were just gorgeous and I am glad that David was able to find me some to look at. Thanks David and Fort Pulaski!

Hope you all had an equally satisfying weekend and got some of your items checked off your list as well!

Wait- It's June Already?

Where did May go? 2013 is clicking away like a champ! Here is a little recap of things from the past month.

First off, Brandon GRADUATED from high school! How is that even possible?

I am sooo proud of that young man. He was the Salutatorian of his class (he takes after me, because I was for my class as well). So I will take all the credit for that one. Ha! No really- he is such a hard working, smart, good kid and I love that boy. Congratulations Brandon! It was so much fun getting to celebrate him and this major milestone in his life.

Someone else celebrated a milestone in May. My sweet, sweet mom had a birthday!

Like our matching outfits? :-/

I got to travel with David's mom and two of his sisters to Atlanta to attend the Living Proof Live event with Beth Moore.

I'm so glad they invited me to go. I had a great time and got a great word from God while I was there. If you ever have the chance to attend one of these events- do it!

My brother took me on a fishing excursion on the Chipola River.

My tomato plant is rocking it's socks off with 'maters. And other backyard related happenings. Lots of flowers, lots of birds, and lots of ball throwing going on out there!

New life abounding with the birth/hatching of my resident house finch that decided that my geranium was the perfect place for her nest. I've been keeping an eye on these four little guys.

When I checked on them this past Sunday, they had finally made their debut.

I can't wait to watch them grow and finally leave their nest. Did you know that a group of house finches is known as a "development"? Just a fun fact for you. Ha!

Guess it is now confession time. I have a new hobby. And that new hobby is ornithology to sound all fancy. But in reality, it's just bird watching. And guess what? I don't care if that makes me a nerd, because I love it and find it fascinating and fun. And thankfully David was taught at an early age to love the study of birds by his Aunt Sybil. She would take him around to look at birds all the time. He pulled out his old field guide of birds that she had given him and what did he find?

He spotted an Eastern Phoebe at my family's farm back in 1991. I'm sure Aunt Sybil had taken him out there to the farm because we used to have an albino hawk out there that all the local bird enthusiasts would come and watch all the time.

So, I have a partner in crime who doesn't mind me watching my birdies all the time. We even have a date this weekend with a painted bunting at Ft. Pulaski in Savannah. And I can't wait! He has seen several of them there (they aren't normally found in my area) and I hope that I can get a glimpse of one too!

Image via Great Florida Birding Trail

I added the picture, just so you can see why I am excited. How gorgeous is that bird?

Ok...that's enough about my bird nerd self....

That about sums up the month of May. I'm sure June will be gone before we know it as well!

Return of the Mack

It's funny how things in life can remind you of memories long forgotten. When I heard that Target was going to be carrying a Sam and Libby line of shoes- that immediately made me think of one person- my friend Becki. I knew that only she could appreciate this fact. I didn't even know that this brand of shoes was even still around! Granted, I am liking what I am seeing. They have some cute sandals in this Target line. A far cry from my younger days.

Image via Target

 Back in the day, Becki and I knew that we could rock some Sam and Libby shoes. We probably had every color they made between the two of us. Every Sunday, it was matching your S&Ls with your dress. That's just what was up. I mean, see the picture below. They are pretty sweet. Ha!

Image via

It made me think of another brand of shoe, long forgotten, but proudly sported by me and my friends back in the day. In my early middle school days, it was all about the Eastlands. And bet your bottom dollar that your laces had better be tied up like below. If not- you were sooo not cool.

Image via

I would actually sport some of those again today. These other ones that I also had- um, yeah. Not so much.

Image via



Then of course in my later middle school days, it went from Converse shoes and plaid (the Nirvana/grunge era), to Timberlands (both the yellow and the leather kind). It's been kinda funny to watch the clothing trends cycle through. My mom always talked about when bell bottoms came back in style again and her generation. Now I am old enough (eek!) to see some fashion trends from my younger days come back around. Can I get a "day glow" shout out? Not to mention all the old school floral print shirts and shorts that are hot stuff these days. Let's hope the bicycle shorts, skorts, and silk shirts never see the light of day. And the day these bad boys come back in style- I'm out.   

Image via

 And yes- I had several pairs of jeans with zippers at the bottom and plenty of bows on them. Sigh. But I am happy that good ole Sam and Libby are making a comeback!

(Return of the Mack) it is

(Return of the Mack) come on
(Return of the Mack) oh my God
(You know that I'll be back) here I am
(Return of the Mack) once again
(Return of the Mack) pump up the world
(Return of the Mack) watch my flow
(You know that I'll be back) here I go

PS- Thanks Mark Morrison for some epic lyrics. lol

Easy Weeknight Meal ~ Mexican Lasagna

This recipe isn't the most healthy recipe out there, I'm pretty sure. But man, it's a yummy one! I made this on Saturday for David in honor of Cinco de Mayo. It was the first time I had made it and it was so good, I made another one for myself yesterday to enjoy.

It's a recipe from Southern Living. Here are the ingredients, my modifications are in blue:

• 1/2 pound ground mild pork sausage (1 pound)
• 1/2 pound ground beef (1 pound)
• 1 (15-ounce) (21 ounce) can jalapeno ranch-style pinto beans, drained
• 2/3 cup canned diced tomatoes and green chiles aka Rotel (Used whole can)
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of celery soup
• 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 (10-ounce) can enchilada sauce
• 9 (6-inch) corn tortillas
• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Cheddar cheese (I found a package that had the two cheeses mixed together, so I used that)
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (omitted)
• 1 medium avocado, chopped
• Shredded lettuce
• Jalapenos, sliced
• Sour Cream

 Notes: I upped the meat content only because that is how the meat is sold, same goes with the can of beans and I had no other plans to use it any other way. If there is some magic jalapeno ranch-style beans out there- they aren't sold at Publix and definitely not at my poor, little Harvey's close to my house!

 

The recipe is really, really simple and quick to do!

 

First up -brown your meat and drain.

While that is browning, mix up the following in a sauce pan.

Cook soups and enchilada sauce until everything is warmed through and incorporated together. Place aside.

 After meat has been browned and drained, add the following ingredients:

 

Add both cans to the meat (I did drain the pinto beans just a little to get some of the chili sauce off, but that is optional). Then add the garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Simmer a few minutes until heated through.

 

Now it's time to assemble!

Spoon a thin layer of the soup mixture on the bottom of your pan. Then layer tortillas, 1/2 meat sauce, 1/2 soup sauce, and top with cheese.

 

Keep adding layers until you fill your casserole dish. Top with cheese. Then bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Then it's time to enjoy! Add your favorite toppings and you have a wonderful Mexican dish that tastes way better than most things you can get at a legit Mexican restaurant.