WONDERFUL WEDDING PLANNING

We got so much accomplished this week, I'm ecstatic! I didn't take any pictures, honestly, I had to concentrate, take notes, and have free hands at all times to look at samples, price sheets, or taste food. We did the tasting for the reception at the Petroleum Club. The visual presentation and the flavors of the our choices were exquisite. I'm so happy about the food. The executive Chef talked with us and we tweaked a few things according to his suggestions. We're waiting to get the exact wording of his signature dishes. He and the event coordinator at the Club are going to a Chef's convention in Las Vegas in February, they suggested we come back as they might have have some awesome new dishes for us to try. HOW FUN.

We set up most everything for the bridal luncheon. It will be at Southern Trace Country Club. The drive in to the club is beautiful with tasteful homes, extensive seasonal plantings, and oozes Southern charm. The boys will be playing golf there that day and also have a lunch after their round is over.

Our wedding planner has a baker that does a Louisiana version of the California "Couture Cookies". We are picking a cookie for the ladies and for the men...maybe a golf ball cookie. Below is the invitation we think we'll use for the bridal luncheon. Mint Julep Paperie, where we are getting all invites and printing, is going to market in February. Denelle, our great bridal consultant at the store, knows what we are looking for and might have something for us to fall more in love with. Below is the invite we love, we would do the letters in a hot pink. The luncheon colors will be pink and green.

There are so many things to tell, that I'll save for later. Sorry I don't have pictures, other then what I can find online. More to come...glad to be home!!

Sorry

I apologize for not posting. I'm flying to Shreveport for a week of wedding planning. There is always so much to do, home wise, before I leave that consumes all my time. But I'm excited about the wedding plans that are coming together and glad we can cross a few more items off the list. Stay warm....we've all had the "Artic Freeze". Shreveport had snow yesterday, Hattiesburg MS, an hour north of me had snow also. We just had rain. Temperature is to drop to 27 degrees tonight which is unusually cold for us.

Here's to you, Marlin Miller

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The sculptures are a gift to the people of the Coast. So many Mississippians came to help Miller's hometown of Fort Walton Beach, Fla., when it was hit by Hurricane Ivan in 2004 that he wanted to repay the favor after Hurricane Katrina targeted South Mississippi. He planned to load up his family and chain saws and help Coast residents recover, but "we just never really had the opportunity."
Instead he is creating treasures on the beach.

"We still have to remove the bark on the trees," he said, and paint them with a protective sealant. The dolphin and herons are carved out of cypress trees, which will probably stay lighter than the oak trees but will also need to be sprayed every year for termites. "The cypress ones are going to have to be treated for sure," said Miller, and he thought he might offer to pay for that service.
The work became a family project, with Miller's son Preston and daughter Samantha each working with him for a day. They heard a thousand horns from appreciative drivers while they worked.
"I've sold hundreds of wood carvings in your area," he said, to people from the Biloxi area who often drive to his galleries in Destin and those who buy his sculptures at the Peter Anderson Festival and Spring Fest in Ocean Springs.

Carving

New Katrina sculptures, by Marlin Miller, Part 1, Dec. 8-9, 2007
Marlin Miller, an award-winning wood sculptor from Fort Walton Beach, Fla., visited Biloxi to create more works of art from the standing dead tree trunks along Beach Boulevard. During his initial two days of work, Miller sculpted four trees, creating a dolphin, egrets and a seahorse. The dolphin and egrets are on west beach, just east of Rodenberg Avenue, and the seahorse is a couple blocks west of the Biloxi Lighthouse. The works complement previous sculptures by an award-winning Mississippi-born wood sculptor. Click on individual images to enlarge.
To see a video interview with Marlin and see him at work, click here.


For background on Miller's project in Biloxi, click here.

THE MAN WHO WON'T WEAR PANTS

I'd like to share a Katrina story... a story about a little town, it's surrounding community, and the people struggling against a challenge that may not end for another decade....a story about the man who will not wear pants...




This is Eddie Favre, cousin to Brett Favre of Green Bay Packer fame, crusty yet sincere character, newlywed, Mayor of Bay St Louis, MS, and the infamous "man who refuses to wear pants". When President Bush first came to our area to survey the Katrina damage...Eddie had on the only thing he owned. Months later, President Bush spoke at St Stanislaus College Prep in January 2006, many people were aghast that the Mayor of Bay St Louis, Eddie Favre was in shorts again. President Bush even commented in his speech that day: " I arrive here at this important school and he's got short pants on. Eddie, I like a man who sticks to his guns." Eddie has attended numerous Senate Hearings, a White House Gala, and his own wedding 8 months ago....dressed in shorts.

You see, Eddie, like all most everyone else is his little town and the surrounding county, lost everything but the clothes on his back when Katrina hit. In Eddie's case, he had on flip flops, a t-shirt, and shorts. The town itself and all it's infrastructure was completely gone. And like so many of the heroes here, Eddie and the local police, firemen, and townspeople spent the next days and weeks searching, seeking out, and rescuing all of the trapped and stranded souls that could not help themselves. There was no Coast Guard here, no Fema, no Red Cross, no National Guard for at least 2 weeks. Volunteers would come eventually, along with all the other help but in the initial aftermath, it was just us. We were cut off from the world. We heard and saw the helicopters overheard constantly but they didn't land or drop anything. It was just us. Helping ourselves and each other.

So Eddie decided that he needed to send a message. When President Bush made his initial visit to Bay St Louis, many local and state officials offered to give Eddie pants and better clothes for the photo op. But Eddie refused. He felt that it would send the message that everything was OK and it was certainly not OK. It was far, far from normal. So Eddie vowed to his people, to all of us, that he would continue to wear shorts until things were back to normal. He became a symbol of the continuing desperate needs of a community, a symbol to all of us to stay courageous and dedicated to our goals and this beautiful area we love.

We have come a long way, but there is still such much to do. It is estimated that the entire Coast won't be whole again until another 15 years. We give our undying thanks to the thousands of volunteers that have come from all over our country and world. You have given us your time and money.

These volunteers are still here, still giving and still sacrificing their own jobs, families, and lives. We will never forget what you have done for us and are still doing.

And Eddie stills wears shorts.

You can read about Eddie and my beloved Gulf Coast here: http://www.smliving.net/

I've been shopping

I had to go pick up my new glasses in Gulfport and had to pass by my "new favorite" store": Home Decor & Gifts. This is one of those little shops that is so chock full of Fabulous Fluff Stuff that your head spins, your heart races and you get weak in the knees. It takes at least 2 hours to look at all the treasures. And, oh, the LAMPS. The owner or whoever goes to Market to buy for this store is torturing me. I asked today for them to please call me when they decide to put the LAMPS on sale. It will only be 15% but it will help. I picked out the pair I just have to have.

I knew that they might have their beautiful Christmas ornaments on sale.

They were 50 % off and I had to buy all the aqua goodies that were left. They had 9 of each of these 3 ornaments. The tassels are beautiful.

I pick up these cute pink and brown soft items for gifts. Luggage tags for moi and daughter.

This salad set is from WILD EYE DESIGNS and it is perfect for my "Dine on the Bayou" dishes by artist Susan Lumpkin. While talking with the girls that wrapped up my treasures, they told me the owner just opened up a new store in Pass Christian that has furniture, LAMPS, and other temptations. Unfortunately (or fortunately) I was driving my 2 seater and couldn't bear to stop at the new store just in case something had my name on it. But I will soon.

FOR ONE FABULOUS MOM

New Orleans Cuisine: Creole Gumbo and All That Jazz by Howard Mitcham

I promised the Mrs. that I would share my crab meat casserole/spread. It takes me awhile to write recipes because I lost all my beloved culinary bibles to Katrina. Since they were all stored in an under cabinet, they were ruined with the nasty, foul water that overtook my home. A few of my favorites that I used often were "The Joy of Cooking" & "Creole Gumbo and All That Jazz". This book is heralded as the premier seafood cookbook for this area. Not only does it teach, it has great stories and factual historical tidbits and a lot of crazy tales. I've got to just order these online.

My crab meat recipe came from this book. I've made it so many times, sometimes tweaking it a bit and it is still delicious. It can be served as a spread or as a meal. I've served it many times along with a marinated flank steak, surf and turf style to stretch the meal. Either way, it's a hit.

Start with fresh white "special" lump crab meat. We are lucky to be able to get this in my area. I used the larger container, not sure of the ounce size. It costs around $24 here. Make sure to check for any leftover shell. Mix with one package of really soft cream cheese, 1/2 cup of mayonnaise, 4-5 chopped stalks of green onion, salt, 1/2 cup of Monterrey jack cheddar mix shredded cheese, and 1/2 cup of chopped & TOASTED pecans. Mix well, put in a baking dish. I sprinkle a little bit of the cheese on top. Bake for about 10-15 minutes at 375 degrees. Crab meat should not be baked or cooked too long, just make sure it's hot and bubbly. Then serve. Enjoy!

Palm Tree Dress Invitation

I'm excited about the Bridal Luncheon coming together. Daughter has a vision of preppy pink and green....how about these cute invitation? You like?

Palm Tree Dress Invitation

Mother of the Bride

It's time to get back to wedding planning. We totally forgot about planning the entire month of December which is a good thing. Having a break from a huge project allows me to come back full of new energy and enthusiasm. Here' the latest dress that my daughter emailed to me. She knows my exact st lye. This is Adrianna Papell which comes in petites. I have 2 of her suits and loved them. The little jacket is perfect for Mass, Holy Trinity has super cold air conditioning. I love the 3/4 length sleeves. Then for the trolley ride from Holy Trinity to the Petroleum Club in the 90 plus temperatures, jacket could come off. It's amazing how easily a lady can "sweat" in our tropical weather.

I think this dress is adorable. Perfect for me, minus the menopausal, Katrina-depressed poundage that I'm working to get rid of. But we'll still be looking.

SEARED SCALLOPS

Oh how I love scallops. Bay scallops or sea scallops, either one is fine with me. Scallops rank a B+ on the nutritional analysis chart, they don't get an A because they are slightly high in cholesterol. But they are low in calories, high in essential nutrients, and low in fats. But don't add the calories and fat in the cooking process.

This is how I've learned to cook them simply. Use a large flat pan, drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil and heat on high. Salt and pepper one side of the scallop.

Place scallop, salt and pepper side down, wiggle slightly so scallop does not stick. Sear for about 2 minutes, salt and pepper that side.

Flip scallop over, another 2 minutes. The scallops should have a nice golden brown crust.

They're done. I put mine on a bed of spinach fettuccine, and served with sauteed baby carrots, broccoli, and shallots.

Really yummy!

Anyone else have a good scallop recipe to share?

Been busy

Happy New Year to All...I've been absent for a while, I know. Had lots of company, meals, family home, decorations to take down and put away, etc. But things are getting back to status quo and I have to say that this is the first new year beginning in a few years that I have a feeling of happiness, hope, and a feeling that life really might be OK. I have not had these feelings in a while, especially going into the New Year. This is my new grandson with his Saints jersey on. He was here for a few minutes before he had to make the 6 hour drive to his new home with his new parents. We had a difficult time taking his picture. But he can been seen herehttp://davidandelizabeth2008.blogspot.com/