Drew's 26TH Birthday

Yesterday was our son Drew's, 26th Birthday!   Drew is our baby!  And there are a few years between he and his sisters.  Gennifer and Erika were almost 6 and 8 when he was born.  They thought we brought them home their very own live baby doll!  We all doted on him.  And now, just like that, he is 26!  I don't know where the years have gone?  I only took a few photos, as I was busy preparing dinner and all.  I always ask the kids what they would like for their birthday dinner.  He asked for steak.  We had both rib eye, and T-Bone steaks, with sauteed mushrooms.  Baked potatoes, sweet kale salad, tamales and dinner rolls.  It was really delicious.  But I didn't take any photos.  None of our kids were ever big cake lovers.  So I always tried different things for their birthdays.  One year, I did a glazed donut tower.  I made lots and lots of cookie pizzas.  Brownie sundaes, banana splits, etc.  This year, I made a candy bar ice cream pie, in a graham cracker crust!  I had seen it on Pioneer Woman last weekend.  It looked so good!  And boy, was it ever!!!
Here is Drew blowing out his candles.

I wanted to make the  homemade caramel sauce to drizzle over it, but no one wanted to wait.  I used a container of Breyer's Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.  Let it soften.  Meanwhile, I chopped up several different candy bars, like Reese's Cups, Hershey bars, Kit Kats, and Malted Milk Balls.  Then just folded into the softened ice cream, and spooned it into a graham cracker crust, and then shaved some chocolate on top, and put it back into the freezer for a couple of hours.  Delicious!  I will certainly make this again.  This is his beautiful girlfriend Christine.  Drew is a musician, and he was playing a new guitar that he recently purchased.

We have all been so sick here at our house.  And it has been a relentless flu virus.  No one was feeling 100%, so Gennifer and her family decided it best to stay home.  They have luckily managed to avoid this flu, and wanted to continue doing so.  My Mom came out, since she was also getting over the same bug.  I didn't get any good photos with the rest of us in them.  We did take some on our phones, and post to IG.
But we had a nice celebration, and a good meal.  Happy Birthday Drew!  I can't believe you are 26!!!
Just a little of this and that...the other day, I was in the kitchen, and noticed something out of the corner of my eye.  It was a huge flock of Cedar Wax Wings, that had stopped to take a bath in the front planter.  My camera happened to be out, but my cell phone was closer, so I first took photos with my cell phone.  There  had to have been 100 of them!  Then I grabbed my camera, and took as many as I could fire off.  But unfortunately, I only got a few of them.

I am a big bird lover, and I especially love these beautiful Wax Wings!  They usually come through briefly in March.  Always in a huge flock.  They stay a few days, and then off they go.  I have never managed to get any good shots of them.  This time though, they were so close!  I love their little masked eyes.  They have a golden yellow underside, and a slash of orange on their wings.  As well as a bright band of yellow near their tail.  Such handsome birds.
Speaking of birds that I happen to love.  I made a new valance for my kitchen window.  I had seen this printed burlap at Joann's the other day and loved it.

I do however, wish that the chickens were printed the opposite way, on the length of the fabric, rather than the width.  So I just made it with the width of fabric.

Soon, we will be making some cosmetic changes to the kitchen.  I want to paint the cabinets in a creamy white.  Leaving some of the cupboard faces off, for open shelving.  New hardware after painting, and then  I want to put a Farm House, apron front sink in, and get new counter tops and appliances.  That will make a big change in there I think!
I have a long, galley style kitchen.  With very little counter space.  I don't know how I have made it work so long, as much as I love to cook.  It is really a one person kitchen!  When I removed the kitchen table from this room, I put two comfy chairs in their place, and it is a nice spot for someone to sit and visit with me while I cook.
Christopher from next door came over, and immediately kicked his shoes off, and sat down next to the plate of snacks that my Mom and I were munching on.  What a hoot he is!

The other day, I bought a new Keurig.  I have had probably four of them.  Love them for a few weeks, then they stop working correctly.  They barely spurt out water, and even running vinegar through them does not help.  I said never again!  And then I noticed they were on sale at Kohl's.  They were 33% off, and I had a 30% off coupon.  So I got one more.  Last chance!  After doing some research, I found out that you should only use bottled or filtered water.  No tap.  Not ever.  We have very hard water, so I am assuming that has been the problem.  If this one breaks, I will march it back to the store and demand a refund!  

No more boring black either!!!  So far, we are loving having one again.  

I have spent very little time on my computer.  I just haven't felt good.  But I will catch up. And I will be back again soon.  Promise.

XO  Kris