Of Pots & Turtles

Life has been a surprising paradox this past week. In some ways, it seems as if we've doing this together forever as our routines and habits have begun settle in. In other ways, however, there are still things on a daily basis that I find trouble comprehending. Like waking up to some ridiculously handsome man kissing me goodbye as he leaves for work every morning, or seeing the name Amber Blackwood and having the vague feeling that I've met her before! :) 

And of course, we're still having fun making our way through all our "firsts." For example, one of the first things on the task list was a much needed grocery shopping trip. The amount of things in the refrigerator that were either nearing or past their expiration date was slightly disconcerting! In any event, everything we could possibly need in the way of shopping is no more than 10-15 minutes away, and ever so conveniently, there happens to be a Publix just down the road from us. All in all it was a rather large shopping trip, stocking up on staples and planning for future dinners. My sweet husband surprised me with a subscription to E-meals, which for those of you who don't know, generates a weekly meal plan and shopping list based on the store of your choice. I can't help but feel that I'm cheating somehow by using it, but it certainly does make my job easier! So there I was, navigating the veritable labyrinth of the Publix shopping aisles, working off of two lists, feeling (and looking, I'm sure!) like the complete amateur I was. Thankfully, due to the gracious help of several kind sales associates, I was managing nicely, when I heard the thunder and lightning. Soon the rain was pounding on the roof of the store, and one lightning bolt later, we had lost power! The generators kicked in soon enough, but it was barely enough light to illuminate the very perimeter of the store - the aisles themselves were dark and shadowy. Not about to let a little thunderstorm stop me, I continued bravely on, despite not being able to see very well. The power was back on within the half hour, just as I was finishing up and Austin had come to meet me and help with the check out. As we gathered up the groceries and headed home to unload, I warned him that half the things in our bags I had grabbed in the dark, and to adjust his culinary expectations accordingly! So far, dinners have been going well - let's hope it continues!

Yes, Mom, that is macaroni and cheese! I promise, it's actually for a 

recipe - one box of it, anyway. They were buy one, get one after all! :)

Other shopping trips this week included one large excursion to Target to finish off my registry with the very few items I still needed, thanks to the amazing generosity of our friends and family. Two hours, two very large shopping carts full and one flustered sales associate later, I was headed back home with my treasures. My biggest purchase, and the one I was most excited about, was my new set of cookware. Making dinner up until that point had always been an adventure - hoping each time that Austin's bachelor pad kitchen supplies would see me through. It had been going fairly well until we got to spaghetti night. Yeah, you kind of need a stock-pot to boil anything pasta related, so that was what originally necessitated my Target run. Needless to say, I am very happy with my new pots and pans!

We'll see if the "non-stick" proves true or not!

It was on my return from Target and as I was unloading the car that I happened upon yet another member of the St. John's apartment community. Granted, he's a little different than most, and he did look very out of place lounging there in the middle of the sidewalk, but I'm sure he was just on an excursion from his normal residence near the pond...

At the very first, Mr. Turtle startled the heck out of me! The long grass in front of the sidewalk completely obscured his shell, so all I could see was his large head and long neck, fully extended upward and crooked over, rather like a cobra as he surveyed his surroundings. For a fleeting moment, I actually did think he was some hideously large snake, and actually said out loud, "Holy crap! If that's a snake, I'm going to run screaming bloody murder in the opposite direction!" Thankfully, it was just a turtle, albeit a very large one, and although I knew he wasn't going to ruthlessly attack me at any moment, I still gave him a ridiculously wide berth as I skirted around him on the way back to the apartment. I'm sure we'll meet again at some point, but for now, I hope my reptilian friend safely finds his way back home!