Ohmigod!
Between Snowpocalypse and the kind of rain that practically required a raft to get around, it’s been one heck of a winter in the Pacific Northwest! Small wonder that there are many of us longing for warm, sunny days! And for me, this is what summer looks like:
What parts of summer are your faves?
Stay warm and dry!
Happy Mash-Up Monday,
Melia
Welcome to Photo Friday!
This is one of my fave pictures of me and Bennett Charles, my very bestest kitty ever. (Ssshhh! Don’t tell the other two!) As with most great things in life, time passes too quickly. He’s sixteen this year. (I know, I know! He doesn’t look a day over eight, huh?) Hard to believe, but true…
So, caption this for me, would you? Ready? Go!
Hugs and a happy weekend to you! And thanks bunches for stopping by!!
~Melia
Welcome to Food and Wine Wednesday!
With summer quickly coming to a close, so too, does our warm weather and the outdoor concerts that play throughout our part of the world. These concerts have become a bit of a tradition for Mr. A and me, and a great way to inject some mid-week fun into our lives. (Cuz there are never enough of those, right?)
One of the dilemmas we’ve had was figuring out what to eat. (Oh, how I love having a First World problem!) Warm afternoon…cool drinks..light food. Wasn’t this the perfect plate to share?
Pretty. Delicious. And definitely something we’ll have again. And we might not bother to wait until next summer, either. (We’re such rebels! 😉 )
What’s your favorite cheese and fruit pairing? Please share!
Happy eating,
Melia
Welcome to Travel Bug Tuesday!
Yellowstone National Park was such a wonder! While it’s most famous for Old Faithful, it’s chock full of geysers and wildlife and gorgeous scenery. What I found fascinating was the Mud Volcano area of the park.
Mud volcano. Now, be honest. How many of you even knew such a thing existed? Well, there’s some information here, if you want to learn more about it. I just thought the idea was cool!
Up until this visit, my idea of a volcano involved fire and lava, not mud. Fascinating what tidbits of information comes from getting out into the world, huh? There’s nothing like it!
Happy travels,
Melia
Welcome back to Mash-up Monday!
Last week’s post was on the guys I’d . . . um . . . observed at this year’s CrossFit summer games. And while I’d toyed with the idea of a CrossFit hero, there’s a part of me that believes a CrossFit heroine would be a better fit! Check these out.
The competitors were incredibly inspiring!
I dunno about you, but it seems to me a kickass CrossFit heroine could be an interesting story character in a romance novel, too. What do you think?
Have a happy week,
Melia
Welcome to Mash-Up Monday!
This summer I had a much-needed break from reality when I made a road trip to one of the CrossFit games in my part of the world. I spent a couple of days surrounded by incredibly fit dudes who made me wonder just how much time they spent at the gym. Don’t believe me? Take a look!
Should one of the heroes in a future story involve a CrossFit-like hero? Maybe. But first,check in next Monday and see how the women did!
Have an awesome week,
Melia
My gardening thumb is practically lethal. Which was why I love going to our county fair to admire the entries in the gardening contests. (I think there’s a fancier name for them, but whatevs.)
Here’s a sample of some of this year’s entries:
Aren’t they pretty?
Is your thumb green, black, or somewhere in between?
~Melia
Nothing says summer more than outdoor activities like hiking, camping, and fishing, right? I love to hike. Camping (my version) is a lot of fun. But fishing? That was the LAST thing on my list of things to do over the summer.
But, several years ago, I’m not sure what bug bit me in the butt (say THAT five times fast!), but I decided I wanted to try my hand at fishing. Why not? After all, bears fished all the time, lived off their catch. Logic dictated I could do it, too. Heh. Besides, have you seen the price of fish at the grocery store? I figured I could stock my freezer for the price of a fishing license.
With that in mind, I talked one of my best dude friends at The Male Observation Lab into taking me. The morning was sunny gorgeous, and the temperature was just right – not too hot, not too cold – the way Goldilocks would’ve ordered it! And after a couple of hours of throwing my line in (is that even appropriate lingo?) I caught my very first fish ever! Check it out:
Okay, so it wasn’t very impressive, but I was still thrilled! And, no, I didn’t catch enough to justify the cost of the fishing license. As a matter of fact, that was the only fish I’d caught that morning – and I had to throw it back. Something about it not being very edible.
Ah, well. At least it was an experience. . ..
Have you fished? Do you remember your first time? Please share!
~Melia
One of the joys of summer is the chance for dudes to play with their grill. Right? 
Which means we ladies get to chill with an ice cold beverage in hand – BONUS!
Here’s how you make it happen:
1. Search through freezer for package of sirloin that you swore you just saw. Find it half an hour later, WAAAY back there, past the frozen blackberries (Two years old? How’d I miss that?), chicken bones for soup stock (enough for a cauldron), and a freezer-burned package of ground beef (that was promptly tossed).
2. Set package on a plate and place in fridge.
3. Remove package from fridge because, HELLO, you need it tonight, which means you need to marinate it this morning so the flavors have a chance to marry.
(Don’t know if this is a technical cooking term, but that’s what I call it. What can I say? I write romance!)
4. Babysit the package while it’s thawing in the microwave. Coz you KNOW the minute you walk away it’ll start cooking. *Nods sagely*
5. When half-thawed, remove meat from package and slice into strips.
6. Place strips in a bowl and add salt, pepper, olive oil, and rosemary from the handy plants on the window sill. (Be warned: if you don’t use the rosemary, you’ll walk in one morning and find they’ve taken over the entire kitchen. Yep, they grow FAST!)
7. Place beef mixture in plastic zip lock bag so that, you guessed it, the flavors can marry!
8. Remove some ten to twelve hours later (hey, it’s the construction season!) and skewer.
9. Hand plate of skewered meat to The Grilling Dude.
10. Let him cook the danged things and get all the credit for the meal.
Huh.
I think we’ll go to a steakhouse next time. . ..
~Melia
