Embrace The Current Season

Gabrielle Blair said, "Embrace the current season of your life."  OK, Gabrielle, here goes!  It's almost officially Summer on the calendar, and I am pleased to say that so far, Summer has been on her best behavior.  Mild temps, mostly in the 80s, and those have been welcome!  But the local weather man says Summer is about to bust out some mid-to-upper 90s foolishness later this week.

You know what, Summer?  That's ok.  Bring your hotness.  I will embrace it.  I can't say that I won't oftentimes be embracing it inside in the air conditioning, but I will embrace it all the same.

I will live life, savor it, cherish it, and not wish away the precious days that Summer brings.  Even if they are hot and uncomfortable, those days are still important.

So, here's a little photography of life lately.  On the cusp of Summer.



















Just a few shots I took with this:




It's an old Minolta film lens that Brian found in our local Goodwill for $7.07!!  A 50 mm f/1.7 prime.  I have been wanting it, and was going to eventually order it.  For $150!  But instead, I got it for seven bucks!!  This one is in mint condition, with clean glass and just a small bit of cosmetic wear.  We just could not believe our luck.  I shoot Sony.  No, I'm not a Nikon or Canon girl.  I'm a Sony girl.  I have a Sony dSLR, and since Sony bought Minolta back in 2006, I can use all the old Minolta film lenses on my Sony dSLR.  I think this is super-duper cool, because there's just a different quality to film lenses that is really amazing.  The coating on these lenses was optimized for film, which just gives it a different look and feel.  But they're still usable on a digital camera, so it's like the best of both worlds!  Amazing, vibrant color reproduction and sharpness.  I have a Sony 50 mm f/1.8 that performs beautifully, so I am ecstatic to have two amazing "nifty fifties" in my arsenal.  I also have an old Minolta 24 mm prime, which is excellent as well.  Oh, and I'm not a zoom lens girl, either.  I shoot only primes.  I love the lightweight, small size of primes and the wider aperture capabilities.  They are sharp and excellent in low light.

I am looking forward to embracing the rest of this season.

Grits Cafe

Brian and I went out to eat at Grits Cafe in Forsyth to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary. We have eaten there before, and it tends to be one of those "it's a special occasion" places to eat. The food, atmosphere and service are so amazing, I thought Grits Cafe deserved its own blog post.

It's Southern cuisine "with flair," so that means they prepare foods that are definitely rooted in Southern recipes, but they somehow reinvent the food to take on new, scrumptious characteristics. From their website:

"Grits Café’s menu focus is traditional southern food, not exactly like Mom used to make, adding creativity and flair by fusing old and new ideas. Many appetizers and entrees spotlight local produce, seafood and cheeses, with a touch of Cajun, Southwest and Asian influence thrown in to keep things interesting. The flavors are trendy and unique, and closely rival the artistic detail paid to the presentation of each plate. The wine list features a number of handcrafted boutique wines produced in limited quantities, many not readily available in other areas of the country."

Yum.

Here are a few pics from our special night at this special place.

The view from our table, looking back towards the entrance:



The menu:



Pretty table vignette:



My handsome anniversary date:



This Diet Coke is fancy.



Awwww...



Grits Fritters. Shutcho mouth.



Caesar Salad with Grits croutons. What-what!



Cheddar and white peppercorn biscuits. Ridonk.



And this. This is the Praline Chicken. So seriously amazing. It's one of the best things I've ever eaten. Anywhere. Anytime. In all my 35 years. The description: Pecan coated, stuffed with forest mushrooms and spinach, with a goat cheese potato croquette.
It's beyond comprehension. Just look at it.



Seriously, LOOK at it.



Brian snapped this pic of me. I was a little Praline Chicken drunk.



We had mentioned to our server (the amazing Annie) that it was our anniversary, so she surprised us with this special anniversary dessert, on the house!





Bye-bye chocolates they gave us.



Outside view.





Amazing food, amazing service, amazing date with my amazing husband. If you get the chance to go, GO! Grits Cafe is a pure delight.

We Came, We Saw, We Christmased

Just now getting to posting our Christmas pictures! We had a fun weekend with family. Headed down to Mama and Daddy's house for Christmas Eve chili and hot dogs, then came back home and returned to their house for Christmas Day. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of Christmas Weekend!

On Christmas Eve, before we left, Brian and I opened our gifts to each other. He got me a Fujifilm Instax 7S!! I really wanted one, so this was awesome!!






And I got him a lighted cover for the Kindle he got a few weeks ago! He loved it!





Then, on to Mama and Daddy's!



I had lots of time to try out my new Instax! (I'll post another time and show the pictures I got from it!)











Christmas Eve chili in a pot that belonged to our Maw. Made us feel her sweet spirit there with us.





This is such a good movie. You should watch it. Brian got his own copy! Yay!

































We had a wonderful Christmas. Hope you and your family did, too!