topsail island 2015 - part 1

last summer ryan and i took a trip to topsail island, north carolina with my mom.  we had such a great time, so we decided to do it again this year.  this past week we drove down to north carolina to visit family friends who have a beach house in the town of surf city on topsail island.

topsail island is such a quaint little island.  it's so quiet and peaceful.  our friends have a beautiful beach house and the ocean is just a few steps from their front door, and the sound is right in their back yard.

the weather was gorgeous while we were in north carolina this past week.  it was super hot (high 90s every day with one day over 100 degrees)!  the ocean water was so warm it felt like bath water.  we really enjoyed visiting our friends and spending time with my mom.  it was such a nice getaway and we had a great time!

love, laurie

father's day 2015

yesterday we got together with our families to celebrate father's day and ryan's dad's birthday.  we had a cookout at our house for lunch with a build-your-own burger bar, corn on the cob, an assortment of different types of salads, and chocolate cake topped with chocolate-covered strawberries.  we really enjoyed celebrating father's day with our families.  we are so grateful for our wonderful fathers and all that they do for us.

love, laurie

happy father's day!

happy father's day to our two wonderful dads!

thank you for all that you do for us.

we love you both so very much!

fun links

happy friday!  here are a few fun links i found around the internet recently:

1. i could go for a slice of this strawberry cookies and cream cake . . . yum!

2. ten bug-repelling plants for your yard

3. a fun pizza slice pool float

4. how to avoid wrist pain in yoga

5. a cat library?  yes, please!  sign me up!

6. these watermelon popsicles are so cute and look so refreshing for summer

7. i want a set of these porcelain ice cream cone bowls for homemade ice cream

8. ever wonder how they come up with the abbreviations for airports?  here are the codes behind airport codes

9. what does your favorite cereal say about you?  take the cereal personality test.  (i am a cheerios girl all the way . . . except for that part about the dog, let's change that to cat!)

have a fabulous weekend!

love, laurie

happy birthday!

happy birthday today to ryan's dad!

happy anniversary!

happy anniversary today to ryan's mom and dad!

cornmeal pancakes with rhubarb sauce

one of our co-workers grows rhubarb like crazy at her house.  since she doesn't know what to do with all of it, she often gives us some to take home.  we are grateful since you can't beat homegrown rhubarb!  we have put our co-worker's rhubarb to good use in lots of things like strawberry rhubarb crumble and rhubarb macaroon pie.  over the weekend, we made a rhubarb sauce to put on top of pancakes.  the tart rhubarb becomes sweet and delicious in this sauce.  it is perfect over any pancakes or waffles, or even spread on a slice of toast.  it went really well with our cornmeal pancakes.  such a great combination!

cornmeal pancakes with rhubarb sauce
prep time: 5 minutes
cooking time: 10 minutes
yields: 2 servings

pancake ingredients:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons salted butter, melted

sauce ingredients:
1 lb. rhubarb
3/4 cup granulated sugar

directions:
to make the pancakes, in a large bowl whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and baking soda.  whisk in the buttermilk, vanilla, and eggs.  stir in the melted butter.  heat a lightly buttered griddle or frying pan on medium heat.  pour 1/4 cup of batter onto the griddle for each pancake.  cook for 3 minutes until small bubbles begin to form.  flip the pancakes when they start to bubble, then cook for 3 minutes, until they are golden brown and cooked throughout.  serve warm topped with rhubarb sauce.  to make the sauce, combine the rhubarb and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat.  bring to a simmer and cook until tender.  cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened (about 5-7 minutes).  *note: this recipe will make extra rhubarb sauce.

enjoy!

love, laurie

dance recital

i mentioned before that i got back into ballet classes this year.  i have really enjoyed taking lessons and having an opportunity to dance again these past few months.  it has been so good for both my mind and my body.  dance (particularly ballet) is in my blood.

over the weekend my studio had its annual spring dance recital and i was trilled to be a part of it.  i danced in two numbers, one was a ballet pointe dance to the phantom of the opera and the other was cinderella (where i got to dance the role of cinderella)!  it was the first time i have performed on stage in about nine years.  it was a blast and i had such a great time!

it was fun to be able to work on another show with ryan, who ran the sound board for the recital.  here are a few photos ryan took during the show.  (please excuse the poor quality of the photos, ryan was multitasking, and the combination of the theatre lights and moving dancers made the pictures a bit blurry.)

^ryan took a few photos of my costumes at home.  i loved the purple and black coloring of our costumes for the phantom of the opera ballet.^

^the cinderella dance was comprised of several different songs, starting with servant cinderella and transforming to princess cinderella in the middle of the dance right on stage.  we created a tearaway costume which made a really cool effect for the costume change onstage.^

^at the end of the recital, my dance teacher gave me a bouquet of six white roses.  it was so sweet of her and it meant so much to me!^

love, laurie