LADDventure

Wordless Wednesday - Wildfire

Bloody Mary BBQ Chicken

It is still prime grillin' season, and I have an easy summertime supper for you.  There is no need to even put this one into standard recipe form, because it's so easy.  It might sound like a strange combo, but it is super tasty!

Defrost whatever kind of chicken you have in the freezer. Skinless boneless breasts work just as well as drumsticks.

Stick the chicken in a ziploc bag, and marinate it in your favorite Bloody Mary mix for a few hours or even overnight.  I'm partial to ZingZang, but even if you don't drink Bloody Mary's (in which case, we can't be friends), any Bloody Mary mix will do because it's just about the seasoning, and the acid of the tomato juice tenderizing the chicken. 

Cook on the grill, brushing with your favorite BBQ sauce as it cooks. (I have no idea how long this takes.  Ask Mr. Ladd)  Sweet Baby Ray's tends to always be in our pantry.  No need to get fancy and try to make your own unless you want to, but you're on your own with that one.

Serve with anything you think goes good with BBQ chicken.  In my house that's sweet corn on the cob, potato salad, and quite likely a cold beer.  Enjoy!

All In

As an adult, I usually don't "go swimming" the same way I used to as a kid.  I float in a raft in my pool, diligently working on my tan.  I might even wade in up to my shoulders on a hot day, but rarely do I get my hair and face wet anymore.  I typically avoid dunking my head underwater.  I don't practice handstands.  I don't dive in.  Instead of cannon-balling into the pool, coming up refreshed and drippy, I carefully pile my hair on top of my head and balance my sunglasses on my face, never fully submitting to the water.

I was offered a teaching job this weekend, and I thought about it for a long minute.  It was tempting, because I'm no longer feeling completely burnt out from the classroom, and missing it in so many ways.  I crunched numbers, and fudged schedules, and tried to rationalize that I might be able to make full time teaching, while writing a book actually work.  I even started to think that maybe going back in less than a week, unexpectedly, was no big deal.

But then I realized that I've been approaching my writing career these days just like swimming.  I've been in, but not really all in.  I've taken the leap, and I'm treading water, but I'm not really swimming.  Yesterday, I realized that so much of what appealed to me about going back to teaching right now is the safety - the comfort of the familiar.  I know how to be a teacher.  I usually feel competent, and it's flattering to be asked to come back.  I'm comfortable and assured in a classroom, but being an author is different.  I'm about a quarter of the way through the rough draft of the book, and this sitting in front of a computer, pouring out my opinions and thoughts one clunky sentence at a time, this writing a book business is new and uncomfortable.  I've realized I'm afraid in many ways to give 100% of my blood, sweat, and tears to this book project, because it means 100% of me will be out there, for critique & examination.  Afraid to expect too much success, because it might be hard work.  Afraid to get my hands dirty and my face wet and just completely lose myself in this book.

Something dawned on me as I weighed my options...I will probably never regret using this window of opportunity to the fullest, and giving writing a book my all, but I will most certainly regret being too timid to dive in completely, giving only half of myself, and being disappointed with the outcome.  So I turned down the teaching idea, and am refocusing on writing.  I'm all in - unwilling to let fear or uncertainty force me back to the edge of the pool, clinging and sputtering.  At the end of this project, I want to come out of the pool with lungs burning from the effort, eyes raw with happy exhaustion, holding a book that I wrote and am proud of in my pruned fingers.

Wordless Wednesday - Nap

Five Minute Friday - Belong

Traveling back to Wisconsin always leaves me with questions of home.  Where is home now?  Which state do I call home?  This time back it felt different and strange and uncomfortable in some ways.  Where do I truly belong?  But then I spend a day with this guy and I know that he is home.  We are high school sweethearts so we share hometown memories, favorite places, and all the ridiculousness and loveliness that is "back home."  We store up our mutual experiences and the life we've created in a big us box.  When I'm feeling a little torn between the two worlds, I come home to him and know I'm right where I belong, sharing life with this guy I've been lucky enough to love for over half of mine.

Most Fridays, I link up with Lisa-Jo Baker for Five Minute Fridays, where we write for 5 minutes unedited on a one word prompt and hit publish.  Join us.

Thankful Thursday - Meal Memories

Memories often revolve around food for me, great meals shared with good friends or family.  So, I am dedicating this edition of Thankful Thursday to some incredible meals I've had this past week with incredible people that I'm oh so grateful for...

1.  Frank's Diner with the Sharkey's (pictured above) You might remember Vicki from this post.  I heart her.  She and her lovely husband hosted me in Kenosha the last two nights of my WI stay, and insisted I experience Frank's, of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives fame.  I'm so glad they did.  It was possibly the best Eggs Benedict and Bloody Mary I had ever tasted, and it was by far the best meal I've ever eaten in an entertaining lunch car where everyone speaks their mind.

2.  Villa D'Carlo the night before for pizza and beer definitely did not disappoint.  It was a beautiful night so we sat outside under colorful umbrellas with a view of Lake Michigan.  All the classic cars drove by that come out of the woodwork on a Midwest summer night.  Good pizza is by far one of the things I miss most since we moved so far from Chicago, and Carl's pizza did not disappoint.  It hit the spot, and I'm sure Vicki and Brian were sick of my sighs and yummy noises.

 3.  I stayed with my sister-in-law Emily, while my brother David was gone for a show too.  They eat mostly vegan, so they always have some creative, healthy goodness for me when I'm there.  Emily introduced me to many things including Archer Farms Spicy Six Grain tortilla chips from Target (and Mr. Clean all purpose cleaner with Gain.  I know it's not food, but holy entire house smelling like fresh laundry!)  But the most unexpectedly delicious combo was a toasted croissant, smeared with hummus and avocado, then drizzled with honey and sprinkled with sea salt.  Sounds so weird, but it was tasty!

4.  Wilson's Coffee, of which I bought two pounds to bring home.  Nothing like it.

5.  Seven Sisters danish pastry from Larsen's Bakery for breakfast at the in-laws more times than I care to admit.

Ok, now I'm hungry so I'm going to go make some lunch.  What are some unforgettable meals or treats that you are still remembering?

Wisconsin Wednesday

July 3rd - 13th, I was back in the motherland.  This trip to Wisconsin was difficult at times.  There was a lack of sleep and lots of running around, trying to fit in time with everyone who we miss so much.  Things are changing and coming to an end, and there were tough conversations and messy situations. 

Sometimes it's hard going home because it can feel less and less like home each time, but then we spend a day on a boat in Lake Michigan, seeing a new side of the city where we grew up, or I sit on the front porch of our first home, watching my niece draw with sidewalk chalk on wet pavement, and it feels just right.  There were lovely moments, people, sounds, and tastes I miss. This trip was all of that.  I'm still catching up on laundry and writing, but glad for the items crossed off the summer bucket list and memories made.  

There was catching up with friends we miss dearly...

 

Family & Fireworks on the 4th of July...

Some were big fans of the pyrotechnics....

Others not so much

Midwest sunsets after perfect summer days

 

 Cool summer nights, rainy days, and sidewalk chalk

Until next time Wisconsin...love you.

S'Mores and Summer

This weekend was about as hot as it gets here in Arizona, so we lived in the pool.  We hosted a pool party/early 4th of July BBQ on Saturday, where the s'more bites were the easy hit of the afternoon with no need to stand around a blazing fire.

Here's the recipe:
Break graham crackers in half.
Put a marshmallow on each half graham cracker.
Put them in the 375 degree oven on a cookie sheet for about 3 minutes.
Take out of the oven, and promptly plop a Hershey Kiss in the middle of the marshmallow while it's still all melty.

Delish, simple, and seriously 3 dozen of them were gone before the guests were.

On Sunday we finally crawled out of the pool, pruned and a bit sunburned, after spending another day in the water with friends who had come over to help us finish leftover beer and burgers.  It was the best kind of summer weekend, and in the Phoenix area, where summer is long and uncomfortable, it got me thinking of other ways to make the most out of the season.  A trip to Wisconsin this week will help.  Lake Michigan, fireworks, friends, family, and much cooler temps make for good summer memories.  So here are some other ways I am determined to enjoy summer to the fullest.  It's here for a while, so I might as well make the best of it.

Summer Bucket List 

Make rhubarb dessert of some sort

Host a pool party

Head to the mountains and go camping

Eat S'mores

Have a girl's pool day

Go for early morning/late night walk

Sit under the porch during a monsoon

Join a gym  

Take a road trip

Organize my teaching supplies

Read a magazine cover to cover

Go to the beach

Spend a day on a boat

Swim at night

Watch fireworks

Draw with sidewalk chalk 

Watch National Lampoon's Summer Vacation  

Dig in the dirt

Drink an Italian Greyhound cocktail

Catch fire flies

Drive up to Flagstaff for the day

Buy new sunglasses

Pack a picnic

Spend an entire day with a good book

Drink a beer at a baseball game

What's on your summer bucket list?