1.)  Leaves on the Ground

I don’t care if they are wet, dry, crumbled, big, small, yellow, red, or orange, in a big pile or scattered about; fallen leaves beg [me] for a picture to be taken.  The more texture the better, too.

George Eliot said it best, “Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.”

2.) Ethnic Foods in my Belly

I had Cuban for the first time ever, the other day, and despite the inappropriate touching of the rock-climbing waitress, on the part of our almost six year old son, the experience was solid (like a rock).   See what I did there?  Rock-climbing waitress and solid like a rock?  Yeah, I’m totally hilarious like that, but I digress.  Ahem.

My other favorite, lately, is Thai.  Holy Moly, give me a big bowl of Green Curry with that perfectly cooked Jasmine rice, and I will do anything for you.  Except that.  Yes, that!  Except for you, Michael.  I’d totally do that for you.   I really should digress, again.  Ahem.

Honorable mentions go out to my new favorite dish, Burrito al Carbon, at Fajitas, and the Hot & Sour soup from the Chinese takey-outy place.

3.)Boots on my Foots

My last and current obsession is BOOTS.  I have been pining for a pair cowboy boots for a while now.  I need to just go ahead, bite the bullet, and order them.  But, I’m waiting to see Santa brings them (or I’m waiting to see if “Santa” is going to bring them!)  For now I have these boots.  I wore them when I shot the wedding of one of my GCA coworkers this past weekend.  That’s when I decided:  I. Need. MORE. Boots.  I need a pair of short, brown leather boots  and a pair of knit top ankle boots and a pair of Uggs (or Fuggs, because I really don’t care if they are actually the name brand, but I would totally prefer it) and while I’m at it I definitely think two pairs of cowboy boots are better than one and I choose THESE!  Because, duh, they are AWESOME!

Recently I was asked to shoot an engagement session for one of the cutest couples ever, Katie & Destin.   We mulled over different ideas for various locations, but we finally ended up in a little historic town, called Tate, not too far from where we live.    Actually, we started out at Dawsonville’s City Hall (which is also the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame, because, that’s how we roll around here.)   I love to shoot there because there are a few backdrops that make me really happy.  I’ve had photo-shoots there with our kids, Zumba babe – Maggie, and Erica & Dusty.    Recently I came full circle with Erica & Dusty by shooting them from engagement to marriage to pending parenthood to first portraits of their adorable baby boy.  I honestly hope to do the same with Katie & Destin!

Often my clients will ask me what they should wear; I tell them to stay away from too many conflicting patters and offer some suggestions about colors.  Katie was spot on in her choices for their photo shoot.  She went with rich autumn colors and accessorized PERFECTLY!  I loved that she chose to wear an animal print scarf  and beautiful lacy dangling earrings.  When we take our family portraits, later this month, I will definitely go with classic accessories like scarves and jewelery to add depth and contrast.

I also visited Katie & Destin, at their home, and photographed them with a couple other awesome accessories—their beautiful fur-babies, Koda and Pixie.  And, still, Katie chose a beautiful scarf to compliment her outfit.  Seriously, I cannot wait to shoot their wedding on 4/20/12!

Everyone in our family loves to bike.  For Benny’s birthday, in September, we upgraded him to a 26″, 7 speed bike.  Previously he had a one-speed kids bike that was hard for him to ride in our hilly neighborhood.  Now, though, he and Mikey like to ride around our ‘hood and town together.   Davey is exclusively riding his two wheel kids bike(with training wheels) instead of his tricycle that he was practically attached to the pedals of every time he went outside to ride in the cul-de-sac.  We are all full-fledged riders now.  I think Olivia is next in the upgrade department, but Christmas is right around the corner, right?

Now what I really need is a bike rack for my van so that we can all go down to the The Big Creek Greenway a couple towns over.  I’ve dreamed of all of us going down to the Greenway for many years now, and now that Davey and Benny can ride, well, it’s time.  We went down a few times when we lived in GA (Part I), with Mo and her kids, and it was always such fun.

Friendly PSA:  Don’t forget to wear your helmets, kids!

******

A couple summers ago I rode my bike a lot for exercise, but lately I tend to get my bike riding time in with the Les Mills spin class called RPM.  I haven’t gone in a couple weeks and always feel bad when I don’t, which goes to show that is is a such a work-out!  This week I am going to strive to get into my favorite RPM class with my favorite RPM instructor Krystin.  I also want to get my hands on a heart rate monitor so that I know exactly how the work out is affecting me.

That said, this week marks my one year anniversary at my gym, Bodyplex.  My body has definitely reaped the benefits of weekly exercise, but I still have such a long way to go.  One thing’s for certain—I love that going to they gym is a part of my life!  Here’s to the next year and continued fitness and health!

[This is a sponsored post, but all sentiments are my own.]

I got a big huge pork loin from Costco and when I came home I cut off the ends into roasts and the middle was cut into loin chops.  I used one of my favorite kitchen tools—the Foodsaver my mom gave me years ago—and froze the other loin and the chops for later use.   That’s four meals from one loin, and I only paid $14.37 for it.   Broken down that is about $3.60 per cut of meat for FOUR MEALS for a family of six.   Amazing!

Last night I made *my* version of the Spice Rubbed Pork Loin BLT Sliders with Dijon Remoulade!   Of course, I didn’t have any Dijon Mustard so I used regular yellow mustard and it was perfectly fine.  I also didn’t have Thyme, but I had a mix of herbs (to be added to oil for bread-dipping) that included Thyme, so I used that in the spice rub for the pork loin.

While I roasted the loin at 400 degrees for about an hour, I prepped everything else.   I sliced up the tomatoes,  washed the lettuce, fried up the bacon, and made the remoulade.

The important thing to know about pork is that it is so easy to overcook it.  So, at 60 minutes I took it out and checked it with a handy-dandy meat thermometer.  Once it read 145 degrees, after being inserted in the middle of the roast, I knew it was done (I actually checked the temperature at 50 minutes first.)   It’s crucial to let it rest, and after it thoroughly did I sliced it into thin little cuts for the slider assembly.  While it rested, I also got the Hawaiian rolls ready.  They just needed a few minutes in the oven, at 300 degrees, to get all perfect and nom-nom-nommy.

Then it was time for the assembly line of yumminess…

SERIOUSLY!!!!!!

The whole roast disappeared as I kept making the sliders and they kept being eater.

Everyone asked, “Mama, when are you going to make these next?!”

For sure….soon!!

Spice Rubbed Pork Loin BLT Sliders with Dijon Remoulade

Recipe from Pork Be Inspired!

Ingredients:

Remoulade:

Combine all ingredients in small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Spice-Rubbed Pork Loin:

Preheat the oven to 400 degree F. Combine the cumin, smoked paprika, thyme, salt, and pepper together in a small bowl. Rub all over the loin. Place on a rack in a small roasting pan. Roast for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350  degree F. Continue roasting until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the roast registers 145 degree F, 50 to 60 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before carving.

Serve:

Carve roast crosswise into thin slices. Divide slices into 24 portions. Spread each roll with remoulade. Fill with equal amounts of the pork and arugula. Top with a tomato round and 2 pieces of bacon. Serve warm.

Makes: 24 sliders, 12 serving

Now, for the winner of the $50.00 Costco Giveaway:

As generated by Random.org, the lucky winner is:  Kim T. of “Live from the 205″!  Congrats, Kim!!!

This post is the second post that is part of a campaign with The National Pork Board and The Motherhood.  All opinions are always my own!