Life is just a bowl of cherries...or at least family night is

Y'all, I thought I'd be blogging about Christmas in July right about now. You see, in this house, I'm famous for my theme nights. I'm not popular for them, but I'm known for them. Christmas in July (setting out selected Christmas items, cooking a winter meal, and watching a Christmas movie) is the big annual event, at least for me. Unfortunately, Mr. Jones does not like pictures from the event. Probably because I make us wear Christmas pajamas. In July. It makes me happy, what can I say? Well, this year I ended up with ONE photo and it's blurry, so I'm going to tell you about another theme night. We've actually had several recently...one that really stands out is my Pride and Prejudice night. We watched the movie and I named food after the characters (like Mr. Darcy's stuffed olives...get it? 'cause he's stuffy?) Anyway, this one here was a recent cute one too...

Graham is really into board games this summer and received several for his birthday. One of my favorites is High Ho Cherry-O. So, for a recent family night we played that game and HAD to have something cherry themed. There are few cherry dishes I enjoy, but one of them is a childhood favorite, Cherry Salad (a lovely dessert with an unfortunate name). Everytime I eat this dish, I think  of my birthdays as a kid and my sister. I remember the two of us making fajitas and cherry salad for just about every birthday for the longest time. I don't know why fajitas had to be with cherry salad, but they just complimented each other so nicely (as I think my sis and I do). Well we would EAT UP some cherry salad and fajitas, and I knew it was the perfect companion for the High Ho Cherry-O family night. Here's the recipe if you'd like to make it...

Cherry Salad

1 large tub cool whip
1 cup sugar
2-8 oz. pkgs. of cream cheese
1 t. vanilla
1 can of cherry pie filling
3-4 bananas, sliced

Begin by sitting out your cream cheese to soften. You definitely don't want lumpy cherry salad! Then combine your cream cheese and sugar in a mixing bowl and mix until smooth. No lumps! Slowly add in your cool whip a little at a time. Once all mixed together, add your vanilla and mix until everything is blended together. Go ahead and taste this because this is the best part.

Now what you're gonna do is add a generous layer of your cream cheese/cool whip mixture into the bottom of a large bowl. Add some bananas on top and then some cherry pie filling. Keep repeating this tri-layering technique until all ingredients are gone.

Make your top layer the cream cheese mixture...I am telling you, this is some good stuff. Yumm-o!

Playing High Ho Cherry-O is an optional serving suggestion!

TURKquoise and CAICOS

We are back to reality now. Mr. Jones and I traveled to Turks and Caicos (aka Caribbean Paradise) for our 5th wedding anniversary. In so many ways five years is nothing...a drop in the bucket...so small. But in other ways, it's gigantic...life changing...everything. Five years have brought love, happiness, falling in and letting go, trying new things and losing others, two little boys and my life as I currently know it. When you think of that way and see it through my eyes, it's a big deal...at least to me.

Going on this trip, I had a lot of time to relax and think. And you have not appreciated time to think until you are on a beach listening to the waves staring at the most beautiful water ever. It brings a peace like none other. Well my mind being what it is, my thoughts started at how pretty everything was...from the white sand and shells to the multitude of colors that was the reef and fish not far from my hotel, all the way down to my toes painted in "Turkqoise and Caicos" polish (did I buy it because of the name?...maybe...). Well then my thoughts started to evolve as they tend to do and I started asking myself,  "How is all this beauty like my own life?" At first glance it's not. I mean if you could see the pile up of toys beside my feet, it is anything but tranquil. The hum of the dishwasher is not exactly parallel to the swish of the wind through the coconut trees. But when I dig deeper, this paradise that I speak of and my little home are the same. God designed both intimately.  Joy, contentment, passion, and beauty surround me. The forgiveness, acceptance, and faithfulness that I receive from my husband...the purity and humility of my children...the safety and warmth of the walls around me. Once again, God is showing me what I have. Although it is much easier to look at one as bliss and the other as responsibility, God focused my eyes and reminded me of Philippians 4:12 "I know what it is to be in need and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." Kind of reminds me of the ebb and flow of that beautiful water I was staring at earlier.

So, as I said, we are back to reality now. I am going to work hard on reminding myself what a gift it all is. So thankful for the five years of reality with Mr. Jones and can't wait to see what the next 5 hold.

An enchanting evening...

As you've probably heard, Nora Ephron recently passed away. She was a fabulous writer and director of some of my favorite movies (and probably some of yours too). In memory of Nora Ephron, we had a "You've Got Mail" movie "date" last night. We even ordered Chinese food in since that felt New Yorky to me. If you've never seen the movie, it is a quirky little number that is an awesome chick flick (or a perfect film to rope your husband into watching a few dozen times, as in my case). As many of my friends so often hear, I love to quote random movies, and several that I quote are Nora Ephron films. My favorites are "You've Got Mail" and "Mixed Nuts" (another random film, but seriously entertaining). I remember the first time I watched "You've Got Mail"...isn't that silly that I have that memory? I rented it as a freshman in high school (I'm really quite young) and I remember working on a science project and thinking that I can't wait to have the kind of cutesy love that this couple has in the film. I loved how everyone described things as enchanting in the movie, and I loved Tom Hanks' 'regular' guy attitude, and I loved the daisies in all the green vases in Meg Ryan's apartment (there is actually a replica sitting on my desk now as I type this...I'm a dork, what can I say).  Well, I'm grown now and thankfully not working on any homework, but I am thankful that I have my big screen-worthy romance. And I'm thankful to Nora Ephron for her awesome work.