Weekend, etc. etc. etc.

Is a blog without pictures like a cheeseburger without ketchup?

...like a salad without croutons?

...like a caking without ICING???

I have failed you lately. I have been a giant photo-taking slacker. All the fun things I've done in the past few weeks, all of the glorious food I've eaten, and no photos to share. And then, to top it all off - when I went to take pictures of the food I was cooking last night, my battery in my camera died. And I didn't have my backup battery on the charger. Can you ever forgive me? If you do, I will post a recipe for fajitas. Not good enough? How about fajitas and spanish rice? Fine. I will post a recipe today for fajitas and spanish rice, sans pictures (slacker), and then tomorrow or Wednesday, I will post a recipe with pictures. I'm not sure for what yet, but I am thinking chili (the red version). Deal?

I love having conversations with myself.

I had a busy weekend this weekend - and ended up not cooking at all until Sunday night. First of all, I had to work on Friday (gasp!), and then we attended a bonfire/dinner party at a friends house where I ate bbq chicken on the smoker, stuffed mushrooms (I must get the recipe for this...they weren't your typical stuffed mushrooms - they tasted like pizza), BLT salad, crab salad, and fresh fruit/veggies. And beer. And I didn't have to cook any of it. It was a sort of repayment for Steve and I having them over the week before for a deck party, in which I cooked pulled bbq pork, pasta salad (the vinegar-y kind), coleslaw (the creamy kind), fresh veggies, chips (I didn't make these, I bought them), and beer (I didn't make this either, I bought it). And I don't have pictures of either party. We will talk a little more about my deck later though.

Saturday, Steve surprised me with tickets to the last MN Wild hockey game of the season, because  he is the sweetest man alive, and I had mentioned in passing that I didn't get a chance to see a Wild game live this season and the season was almost over. So we went down Saturday afternoon and came back Sunday afternoon. I just love St. Paul, don't you? Sunday before we left we ate at the Great Waters Brewery (where I had a delicious grilled cheese with tomatoes and bacon) and then wandered around downtown St. Paul for a while. It was a beautiful day and (as always) we had a great time.

Sunday we hit the grocery store on the way home, and enjoyed our evening cooking together and hanging out on the deck. I have always loved sitting outside on my deck, but recently (before our infamous deck party that I didn't take pictures of) we added a bunch of super comfy patio furniture and one of those made-for-the-deck fire pits...and now you can't get me off the deck. That is all I want to do. I don't care if it is 35 degrees outside, I will be out there in 52 layers and a blanket, sitting by the fire. As a matter of fact - last night, after we ate dinner outside, we curled up in the love seat next to the fire...and both fell asleep. I woke up because I had a dream that my blanket was on fire, but in reality, the fire was long gone and my nose was almost frozen off. But it was still awesome because this spring has been totally kick ass and there is nothing like being outside without having to deal with mosquitoes! It is suppose to rain (boo! but yay! for my mom who has been working long hours due to fire season), but when it gets nice again I will have another party I will take some pictures of my beloved deck for you to see!