Birthday #9 is COMPLETE

We concluded the celebration with gourmet lemon cupcakes - I wish I had made them - with purple, glitter candles!

Praise the Lord for the Ladybug - today we celebrate her!

Aquarium Pictures

Georgia Aquarium

Ladybug & Pots are right there in the middle!

The Ladybug touching a seastar.

The Ladybug reaching for a SHARK!

The Mall of Georgia

When you live in Smalltown, GA, just outside of Atlanta, you have the perfect balance of small town living and anything you could want or need just an hour away. One of our favorite things to do is to visit the Mall of Georgia - it is truly a destination...not to mention the fact that Master Chef Mom's favorite restaurant (On the Border) is located just outside.

Here are some pictures from our most recent visit:

Next time you come to visit, we will take you to visit the Mall of Georgia!

The Ladybug is 9

Today the Ladybug turns 9 - I can't believe it! Where does the time go? We could never have imagined what a wonderful gift God brought into our lives on that hot July night in Hattiesburg, Mississippi? Since that day, our lives have never been the same...that darling baby with the strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes is becoming a little lady right in front of our eyes!

We will be celebrating with a trip to the Georgia Aquarium (www.georgiaaquairum.org) - we can't wait. Check back later for pictures!

  What a great day!

Heavy Drinkers

At the Ladybug Cafe, we are heavy drinkers! When we moved from Texas to Smalltown, GA, Gran said that she thought it might be time to get rid of the stadium cups...I cannot imagine living without stadium cups. When I go places and they are serving drinks in 8 oz glasses, I am not sure what to do - except refill my glass, numerous times. When you come to the Ladybug Cafe, there are 8 oz glasses, if that is what you prefer, but if you really need a drink, we have a wide variety of stadium cups that all come with a story!! So, while all of us should be drinking more water and less Coke Zero - or whatever :) it is that we need to get us through the day - here are a few beverages that we mix-up to keep us going and beat the heat!

Lemonade Iced Tea (adapted from Southern Living Magazine)
6 cups water
4 family size tea bags
1 cup sugar
1 can frozen lemonade concentrate
Additional ice and water

Boil the 6 cups of water, insert tea bags and remove from heat. Steep for 10 minutes. Add 1 cup of sugar to the "hot" tea, stir to dissolve the sugar. In a one gallon pitcher, add ice and can of frozen lemonade concentrate. Pour the tea and sugar mixture into the ice and lemonade concentrate. Mix. Add additional water to fill the pitcher.

Pampered Chef Punch (from Diane - my wonderful Texas Friend)
6 cups cranberry juice (I use diet or lite), chilled
4 cups Sprite (I use diet store brand), chilled
1 can frozen pineapple, orange, banana concentrate (I use whatever my grocer has that is close)

Combine, stir, and ENJOY!! I am not sure if this really is a Pampered Chef recipe, but I think I had it for the first time at Diane's house for a PC party - so fun and delicious!!

Homemade Starbucks Passion Iced Tea (from Gran)
TAZO brand passion tea at Target
Simply Lemonade
Truvia sweetner
Ice and water

Gran just sent this to me - I haven't tried it, but it looks DELISH! Here is the link to the recipe and details: http://vickidesigner.com/2012/05/21/homemade-starbucks-passion-tea-lemonade/

Happy Drinking!

Ladybug & Kit: Turning 9

On Thursday, the Ladybug and Kit (the American Girl) will turn 9 yrs old. We love these girls - each with "yellow hair and blue eyes."

This is the beginning of the celebrating - notice Pots trying to get in on the fun!!

Happy 9th Birthday Girls!!

Happy Birthday to BBQ Pit Boss Dad!

Today in The Ladybug Cafe, we are celebrating BBQ Pit Boss Dad's birthday! He is...., well, today we are celebrating him :) !! As part of the celebration, we are making peanut butter banana icebox pie - we will let you know how it goes.