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Mudbugs

Posted on June 21, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment

We are always looking for delicious ways to eat crawfish. Last week, I tried out an idea I had for some crawfish pasta. It was delicious!

I sauteed minced garlic, basil, and green onions in a pan with some olive oil, then added my crawfish. I was using pre-cooked crawfish from a previous crawfish boil, so it was already seasoned and everything; I didn’t add much on that front. Once everything was warm, I added a (mostly drained) can of diced tomatoes with onion and garlic.

All the while, I was cooking linguine in another pan. Once it was almost completely cooked, I drained it and added it to an 8×8 baking dish.

I topped the linguine with the sauce, making sure it was covered well.

I added some feta and grated Parmesan to the dish and stuck it in the oven.

I baked it about 25 minutes, or until the cheese was just starting to melt.

It would have been perfect with some bread, but I didn’t think of that until after my weekly grocery store trip. This guy didn’t seem to mind!

Uncategorized

Slumber Party Like it’s 1999

Posted on June 20, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment

It’s really refreshing to reconnect with old friends. I’m not talking friends who are old–I’m talking friends who’ve been around a while–we’re over a quarter of a century now! Crazy!

LC’s beach bash was this weekend, and she likened it to a fifth grade slumber party. I’d say that was about right. We went to the beach, played in the pool, surfed, played board games, and ate (and ate, and ate). We’re a bunch of big kids. It was a blast!

LC, B, and I headed to the beach Friday afternoon before Ness and Auntie Heather got there. The water was awesome, and we were pumped about renting surf boards for Saturday.

So, that’s what we did. Saturday morning, we got the boards and headed to the water.

We did the beach thing until it was time to eat again. I managed to order a calzone that could have fed the entire table, and pretty much everyone else did the same (although not necessarily a calzone). We did a lot of sharing and needed some to-go boxes.

We headed back to the pool for the afternoon and discussed the science linking one’s height to the buoyancy of a noodle. ~~Nerds~~. Yeah, we’re really cool.

We had a great dinner overlooking the water before heading back to the condo for some dance lessons and laughs.

By the way, if anyone needs an all-time guesser for Pictionary, I’m your gal. Draw-er? Not so much. Too bad I don’t have a photo of that “dog” to share.

decorating/Mr. Gray/organization/tips

A Diamond in the Rough

Posted on June 19, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment

For the most part, our home is organized and tidy. One place this didn’t apply? My jewelry.

Ahhh!

Luckily, with a few scrap pieces of wood, some spray paint, and a few hooks, Mr. Gray was able to fix me up.

The total cost of this project was five dollars! That’s it. We had the wooden rod; Mr. Gray just cut it down. We had the pink spray paint from previous projects. The hooks were three dollars, and the pink organizing tray was a dollar.

After we spray painted everything, Mr. Gray put the hooks in the jewelry spot in my closet, and I started getting things put away.

I found tons of jewelry I didn’t even remember I had. How sad is that? It’s all accessible now, though.

blessings/faith/friends/living/love

New Creation

Posted on June 18, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 2 Comments

My small town roots are a common theme around here. This weekend, I got to reconnect with many of the people I grew up with; I’ve know these ladies all my life–very literally. I had a blast, but I also found it a little challenging.

Let me explain: I’m not who I was. I strive to be myself, to be independent and sure-spoken without being demanding and ugly about it. I have grown and changed, but it was so easy to slip back into an old role. It comes back to me being bold and stepping out in my faith. I’m not who I was, not because of me, but because of Him. I want to share that transformation.

I want to be who I am without forgetting who I was. I’ve learned a lot and grown a lot through who I was; I can’t forget that part. I need those lessons to be the wife, mother, and friend I aim to be today. Now my goal is to change my legacy. To shape my role in my friendships into who I am striving to be on a daily basis now.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

2 Corinthians 5:17

Our trip was a blast, and I’ll share more, but this was on my heart.

moon/Mr. Gray/photos/wedding

Must Be a Full Moon

Posted on June 14, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment

The night we got married, a full moon graced our reception. I don’t know that I noticed it until the photographer pointed it out and had a shot planned for us to capture it.

The night of Such and DD’s wedding, there was also a full moon. I didn’t have my camera, and my phone wasn’t going to do it justice. Now, I’m no almanac, but I’d be willing to bet that five years and 357 days later, that was the same full moon that was at our wedding. Pretty cool, huh?

“… it will be established forever like the moon, the faithful witness in the sky.”

Psalm 89:37

anniversary/Apple/computer/Mac/wedding

Procrastinate No More… Until Next Time

Posted on June 13, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 2 Comments

Back in March or so, our computer ate our wedding photo DVD. Yes, you read that right. It ate the label, ruined the DVD drive on our MacBook, and the wedding DVD (complete with over 1000 photos) is ruined as well.

Wow.

Since I knew our computer was just ordered last summer, I procrastinated on scheduling a Genius Bar appointment. I was certain I ordered the new computer last July. I had a year of Apple Care, I’d go in and get it taken care of in plenty of time.

Photo by Sledd Weddings

Then came our anniversary weekend. I wanted some wedding photos for a post, and I was looking at posts from the past to see which photos I had already used. What I found was the realization that our computer was actually ordered last June–June 4th to be exact. My saving grace? The email had a June 11th through 13th delivery window. I thought maybe I had a chance. I called Apple. No dice on the phone, but they told me to go to the Genius Bar for a better idea of what I was working with.

I scheduled a Genius Bar appointment headed to San Antonio to attempt to save a little money on this project (through Apple over the phone, they quoted me $700! AHH!). They looked up my official Apple Care end date, and it was the 8th. I found all this out on the 9th. Yeah.

My Genius, Juan, had the techs take everything apart, clean it out, and test it. If the optical drive had worked, done deal. Free. Sadly, it didn’t. He gave me a few options (all much better deals than Apple’s proposed $700), and I decided to leave my computer with them for 3 to 5 days for repair.

I got a call less than 24 hours later to tell me my MacBook was ready.

Also, I emailed my photographer to see about replacing the wedding photos; in less than 24 hours, I had those in hand, too. Customer service is a fabulous thing.

Moral of the story: Macs are awesome (this is not my first story of great customer service). Oh, and don’t wait until the last minute to fix something that’s broken.

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Apple. I just swear by Apple products for my own personal technological well-being.

music/tips

Sing to Me

Posted on June 12, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 1 Comment

I’m not much of a music person. I have the occasional song that speaks to me, but, most of the time, you can find my radio tuned to KLOVE with the volume barely audible.

I’ve also been known to put a worship song on repeat and leave it when it catches my heart (I usually have to ask someone what it is or Google the lyrics so I can download it).

In lieu of television during the day, Baby Gray and I listen to Pandora. Usually it’s on Elmo’s station or something else he’s requested. Lately, though, I’ve found myself taking a few more chances than usual on what I’m listening to. I like mellow, guitar- or piano-heavy tunes. I read this piece from MizBoo on Pioneer Woman‘s site earlier this year, and I’ve started checking out some of these artists as well as others.

Just to show you all (ahem… THill, brandnewjacob, Mal) that I know some artists’ names, I’m going to share some of the stuff I’m lovin’ right now:

Source: store.thefamilyrecords.com via Mrs. on Pinterest

Source: johnmayer.shop.musictoday.com via Mrs. on Pinterest

Source: thefray.com via Mrs. on Pinterest

Source: thepioneerwoman.com via Mrs. on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Mrs. on Pinterest

Yes, I posted the correct The Fray album. That’s how with-it I am. You know you want to listen to my music.

crafts/dinner/hair

Out on a Whim

Posted on June 11, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment

In a pinch for a cute “little something” for my hair Saturday, I left a bit of a mess before we headed to dinner.

It’s unlike me to leave things out while we’re gone, but it’s not unlike me to bring an idea to fruition on a whim.

I needed something for my hair, so I quickly grabbed a bobby pin, my glue gun, and two buttons that came with some of Mr. Gray’s shirts.

It was the perfect addition to my outfit; it was free; and it took less than five minutes to create!

anniversary/Mr. Gray/wedding

The Sixth Year in the Sixth Month

Posted on June 10, 2012 by Mrs Gray / 0 Comment

Today is our sixth anniversary. I can’t believe it’s been six years since our perfect wedding day!

Photo by Mary Sledd of Sledd Weddings

I was thinking about our wedding presents to each other this morning as I put on the diamond necklace Mr. Gray gave me (I didn’t just wear it because it’s our anniversary; I wear it often). I got him a TV. I couldn’t help but think of how different our priorities are now.

Most days, I would throw our TV in the trash can if I could get away with it. Then, when we were 20 and 21, it was something that symbolized time together. We still have that TV; it’s in our bedroom, where the only person who watches it is Baby Gray on occasion while we get ready. It reminds me of how far we’ve come.

That’s the thing about getting married when you’re young. You get a chance to grow and learn together. You get to shape each other’s lives. We have been at least four different people together: teenagers, college students, young married adults, and parents–that’s not counting all the small changes that come within those.

God provided an amazing man for me to spend my life with. I’m happy to grow and change many more times with him by my side.