blakey cooks!

to continue on with my ode to blakey birthday week...

a couple of weeks ago, blakey cooked dinner for us!  & it was really good.

we got a mini deep fryer for our wedding.  i did register for it, although i wasn't really sure if we'd ever use it.  but it was cute.  & cuisinart.  so i added it to the list.

well, blakey wanted to use the deep fryer.  so he picked up a bag of louisiana seasoned shrimp fry, breaded some shrimp, & fried away.  they were quite tasty!

{what fried isn't tasty, right?  but i was really proud of him.}

add a little cajun roasted red potatoes & homemade coleslaw, & you have yourself a good southern meal.

you're the best, byrds.

2 more days until your BIRTHDAY!!

love love,

kjp.

study study study.

blakey takes step 3 {the third set of tests to become a board certified doctor} today & tomorrow.  so we spent all weekend studying.

sounds lame, right. 

not for us!  friday night, we hung out at barnes - one of my favorite past times.  when i was in college, you could find me more often than not studying at barnes.  i always looked forward to the day i would be there reading a book for fun.  the time has come!

saturday was a gorgeous day!  the high was in the low 80s with some big clouds & a little breeze.  so we headed to moe's patio!  {although we do LOVE moe's, it was also one of the only places we could find with a patio & wi-fi.  now we love it more.}  i got to sit on a patio with my husband, drink a beer, & wear jeans & a long-sleeved shirt on a july afternoon!  i love alabama.

we hope you had a wonderful weekend too!

by the way, it's blakey's birthday week!  the big 2-8.  he's so old :)

love love,

kjp.

happy coffee cake!

a happy friday to you! 

if you're in the area, stop by urban & have a piece of the blueberry coffee cake i made!  it is pretty fabulous. 

& you can enjoy these beautiful flowers from jones valley farms.

hope you have a most wonderful weekend!

love love,

kjp.

thankful thursday # 25.

if i had to name one meal as my favorite meal in the whole world, it would be my grandmother's biscuits & gravy.

{from my recent trip to oklahoma}

probably like you, i am positive my grandma is the best cook in the world.  i remember going to grandma & grandpa's house and eating a huge spread of food each time she cooked.  from fabulous biscuits & gravy and breakfast sausage to fried catfish & chow chow to green beans from her garden with little pieces of bacon to her pecan pie {THE best pecan pie in the world} to a beautiful barbie birthday cake with homemade ice cream & probably a cookie or two because the cake & ice cream just weren't enough.

she is the best.  & my grandpa is amazing too... especially because he believes she is the best as well.

today, i am thankful for them.

& i'm thankful for our chef at work making his rendition of biscuits & gravy yesterday morning, reminding me of my grandma & grandpa.  his, of course, was not my grandma's, but it was really good.

{i had to take a bite before i could take a picture.}

today, i hope you can think of something for which you are thankful.

love love,

kjp.

a little bit of rain.

a couple weeks ago, blakey & i went to our favorite rooftop bar in birmy, above, & watched a thunderstorm roll in. 

it was perfect.

we watched the lightning all around the city.  & felt the cold front breeze through the skies.

{my awful attempt at taking a picture of lightning.

not successful.

but fun.}

it rains a lot here in the summer.  it would be fair to call it a "rainy season".  chance of rain every day.  one of my friends learned that apparently most people in birmy don't have a built in sprinkler system, they don't even normally have to water the grass.  it rains that much.  

how foreign does that sound to anyone from oklahoma or texas?!

it hasn't rained quite that much this year.  but it is supposed to this weekend.  {meaning a chance above 50% & a cold front!}  i am super excited.

oklahomans, i hope you enjoyed your rain yesterday!  & that the 100+ temps {for days & days & days} are survivable.

love love,

kjp.

street art, as they call it.

the loft building blakey & i live in is extremely artsy.  we must be the least hip people who live here.  {especially since i just used the word "hip".} 

in fact, our artist neighbors taught us about "street art".  what is street art, you ask?  well, one might call it graffiti.  but tags {ie cleverly written names} are not included in the definition.  so graffiti pictures.  

our stairway is filled with street art.  it is quite impressive, actually.  kind of obnoxious, but impressive. 

welcome to our artful world of downtown birmingham!

love love,

kjp.