Sunday, July 5, 2009

4th of July and a Premio Meme Award

We celebrated the 4th of July the way we like it - quietly with good friends. This year was no exception! We aren't party people and we aren't really fond of huge crowds, so we tend not to join in the public celebrations of this day.

Instead, we had a delicious dinner with our friends, whom we hadn't seen in quite a few months. We don't live far from each other, but life got so busy for all of us - too busy really. There needs to be more time for good friends!

Daniel hard at work in the kitchen.
Do you remember these?
Well, yesterday I made a sweet potato salad (a Moroccan recipe) that used preserved lemons and it was beyond delicious! We could not stop eating and I was tempted to lick the bowl at the end...
All of us (except Daniel, the photographer) at the dinner table. Daniel made his unbelievably tender barbecued chicken - oh, so good!
No celebration would be complete without dessert! Just a day before, I had come across a peach pie recipe at The Sassy Radish and just had to try it. We tried to make the pie patriotic - can you see the eagle Daniel decorated it with?Oh my, it was heavenly! (Guess what we had for breakfast this morning?) Our friends had made and brought a dessert of biscuits, banana pudding and fresh fruit, which was oh so good! There can never be enough dessert, right?!
We all loved the evening. Winslow got loved on by the girls and we got to enjoy some of our very dearest friends. And what better way to celebrate all of this than with good food (can you tell I love to eat?!?).

Now, to the Premio Meme Award I was honored with by the talented Suzi of Art With a Touch of Whimsy. Thank you so much, Suzi!!! The rules of this award state that I am to share 7 facts about myself and then pass the award on to 7 others. So, here I go...

1. I came to the US by myself to study when I was 19 years old. On my first day in this wonderful country 24 years ago, I met Daniel -- and the rest is history.

2. I got married twice to the same wonderful man - first time in the US in July 19 years ago and then again less than a month later in Germany. Can you imagine planning two weddings?

3. Together, we've lived on two different continents and in five different states in the US, Texas, California, Michigan, New Mexico and Georgia.

4. I am a total scaredy-cat, but then again I've done things like ride mules down the Grand Canyon (anything like that Daniel has to talk me into...)

5. We've had some unusual pets in our years together, such as Archibald, our iguana and Charlie, a chinchilla.

6. I started going gray when I was only 15 years old. I used to pull out the gray hair until there were too many... Then, in my 20's, I colored my hair for a few years, but now I enjoy my short silver hair.

7. As a teenager (I had never been to the States at that point nor did I have plans to come here), my absolute favorite books were Gone with the Wind, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Uncle Tom's Cabin - and now I actually live in the South.

Whew, that was hard! Good thing it was just seven things - I really had to labor to come up with something semi-interesting...

Ok, now I get to pass this award on to seven of you (I didn't realize that restriction -- I already have a list of 15). There are so many of you I'd like to give this to (all of you, really), but I am going to choose seven whose blogs are newer to me and whom I'd like to know more about.

Diane of Diane's Mixed Art
Lady P of Madly Creative
David of SparkleMirror Kiln-Fired Art
Annika of Illustrasjon I Soon
Kelly of Thom's Daughter
Diantha of Living Your Potential
Tessa of An Aerial Armadillo

(If I've left you a comment saying you have an award waiting for you and you do NOT see your name above, scroll on down to the previous post.)

Alright, thanks for hanging in there with me with such a lengthy post! I hope you are all having a most wonderful weekend!!

21 comments:

  1. Hello, dear Silke!

    Congratulations on this award!

    I'm like you, I prefer smaller dinners with a few good friends over huge parties, too! The food in your photos looks absolutely delicious!

    When you have a moment, please stop by my blog to pick up an award from me. (It seems to be award season in Blogland!)
    :0)
    Hugs,
    Angela

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  2. How funny that we share # 2 in common! I married my wonderful husband twice too! My visa (I'm Canadian) didn't come in time for our big wedding with family and friends so we did it anyway but didn't sign the papers. We got legally married shortly after. :o)
    We also share #4 in common! I'm a big ol' scaredy cat too ;o)

    Congrats on winning the We Blog Artist's giveaway! Lucky you!

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  3. Hey Darling , I think you need to post the sweet potato salad recipe it sounds awesome!!

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  4. It was fun reading the 7 facts about you. I love your short grey hair also.

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  5. Thank you so much Silke...
    What a lovely holiday/birthday blog treat!
    Now that you have my mouth watering over that sweet potatoe salad and those desserts...
    I'm off to make plain 'ol potato salad (sigh) for a bbq with my sister.

    Happy weekend,
    Kelly

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  6. Silke the stories are wonderful.

    I love the pictures and what a beautiful family. The food looks awesome.

    I want some of that potato salad now please.

    Love Renee xoxoxo

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  7. Oh thank you for the blog award AND i am loving the photos of the feast for the holiday. must make me some of those lemon pickles and then have you post the morrocan sweet potato salad recipe
    i love the story of you and Daniel
    and that you made it to the SOuth
    amazing how life works, ain't it?

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  8. Silke, you really have to share that sweet potato salad recipe, you know!!
    Your feast looks scrumptious!!

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  9. Silke, thank you so very much for the award! I hope to do it justice but you have set the bar very high! I loved your 7 things!

    And I join everyone else in asking for your Moroccan recipe! Sounds divine along with everything else! Your photos seemed to invite us all to join you...your graciousness is so evident!

    Thank you again, Silke. I do appreciate this award! xo diantha

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  10. Hi Silke! Thank you so much for your award! Loved reading about your seven things. And love your wonderful pictures. Everything looks so good. I really appreciate the award, thank you again.
    Hugs Annika ;)

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  11. it looks like you had a great celebration with your friends....and your desserts look heavenly (i agree, they always taste much better for breakfast!). i left a comment for you on yesterday's post....thanks again for the lovely award....i'm going to add it to my sidebar on my blog! :)

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  12. Hello Silke. This is a lovely post - what a super family celebration - you all look so happy and that food looks scrumptious! Funny that you show those preserved lemons - I'd been contemplating a recipe that called for them this weekend! Think I'll try it now! Fab hair you have too - wish I'd let my hair go grey like that (I'm still colouring!).
    Caroline
    PS I married my husband twice too!

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  13. oh what a wonderful holiday!!! and spending time with family and friends is what it's all about!!! these photos are wonderful!!! and the food looks yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmy!!!

    Hugs
    Diana

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  14. Raina said...
    Isn't this your second award this week? I wish you get many more Congratulations!

    The food looks great and I am sure it was great tasting. I wish I was there to celebrate with you:-) Isn't greatto celebrate with friends?

    I can relate to preferring to celibrate with a small group of friends. It feels more intimate for me.

    I didn't know you met Daniel on your first day in the US. You hit the jackpot rightaway:-)
    Big hug

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  15. Hello Silke,
    It seems a heawenly meal you and your husbond made, uhhhm..

    Congratulations with your award sweet, and thanks for the story "of your life".
    Hugs Dorthe

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  16. Oy, that peach pie looks delicious!!!

    thanks for sharing your facts... I love them!

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  17. Hi Silke! Thanks so much for this award. It is really an honor as I admire your work so much! I loved reading your 7 facts. I would not call anyone a scaredy cat that enters a foreign country at the age of 19 all by herself! You are one brave woman!I am so glad our blog paths crossed! Hugs, Diane

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  18. Oh man...that looks so good! Ym! And i cant believe you met your husband on your very first day in a new country! Now that's luck!~

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  19. Hello Silke! And another thank you for this wonderful award!

    A) Oooooo, I love those lemons... any chance of getting that Moroccan potato salad recipe? I WOULD HAVE licked the bowl (in private, of course).

    B)Wonderful photo at the dinner table... what a satisfying picture! Too bad Daniel wasn't in the pic... maybe invest in a tripod? ;)

    C) Oh, you told me you were baking a pie, but now that I see it I'm getting very very hungry.

    D) Wonderful happy ending with the trip to America and meeting Daniel... Ahhhh

    E) Scaredy-Cat? I would NEVER ride a mule into the Grand Canyon... what does that make me!?

    F) Silver hair -- runs rampant in our family... I just want it to hurry up in me... I am slowly turning, and I would LOVE to have total silver.

    Thanks Silke... very satisfying post!
    David

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  20. Silke! I've just noticed that I'm one of the recipients of the Premio Meme Award. Oh, gosh! Thank you so much - I'm truly honoured that you'd include me amongst all those lovely bloggers you mentioned.

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  21. I ran across your sweet blog when I was googling a sweet potato recipe. Would love to have yours. It sounds divine. Hope you are having a sweet weekend. ~ Lynn

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