Lemon Berry Trifle

The 4th has come and gone, but there's still Labor Day!  And it's summer folks!  Festive desserts like this are good any day when the weather is hot!  You may have seen the Lemon Berry Trifle here.  It's one of my favorites!

The true name is Blueberry Lemon Trifle, but I like all berries, so I switched it up!

Ingredients:

1 package of yellow cake mix
1 (3 oz.) package instant lemon pudding mix
4 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed and drained well (I used one package of blueberries, one package of raspberries and one package of strawberries)
1 (12 oz.) container non-dairy whipped topping

You will also need butter/oil, eggs and sugar so you can bake the cake and make the lemon pudding.

Directions:
1. Prepare the cake according to package directions and cool.  (I do this a day in advance, so it's ready when I want to put the trifle together)

2. Prepare the lemon pudding according to package directions (including adding egg yokes and sugar and boiling on the stove) and refrigerate for 1 hour.  (An hour is a long time when you're ready to put this thing together, so I use that time to wash and cut my berries or prepare a day in advance, so it's really chilled!)

3. Prepare those berries!

 4. Fold the entire container of whipped topping into the chilled pudding.

5. Cut the cake into 1-inch cubes.

6. Place a layer of cake cubes on the bottom of a trifle bowl or similar glass container with straight sides.  Spoon a layer of pudding over the cake cubes, then a layer of berries.  Repeat process until all ingredients are used, ending with the pudding.

7. Refrigerate for several hours before serving.

And ENJOY!  This thing is so light and delicious!  It's heaven dancing on your tongue!

 

The 1st EVER, 4th Annual American Brew-A-Que

Happy July 4th!  Happy Birthday America!  Happy day of rest and reflection for how thankful we are to live in this country!

For the past 3 years, we've taken July 4th to travel to Chez Craig and celebrate the American Brew-A-Que with Todd, Candice and friends!  There's always a brewery tour (except for last year when it was so dang hot and Candice was about to pop Paisley out and the Brew-A-Que could be cancelled at a moment's notice), a good ole American cookout and a corn hole tournament complete with the winning couple taking home the Golden Hole!  A prize one is to cherish for a lifetime!

Since Todd, Candice and Paisley moved to Texas and we love the Brew-A-Que so dang much, we hosted it this year.  What an undertaking!  Candice, you win the prize for best party thrower EVER!  I don't know how you did it and sometimes with parties on back-to-back weekends!

Thank goodness my husband is a kid at heart and got excited!  Shopping for decorations was so much fun since he was ALL in!  Of course, we had to have the spray-painted American Brew-A-Que sign and the Corn Hole Bracket.  We don't have any tools, so thank you Todd for your help building the Golden Hole, which I had so much fun spray painting!  We spent all day on the actual 4th, preparing for the party.

By the time Saturday got here, I was ready for fun!

First stop was Lonerider Brewing Company.  The tour was only about 20 minutes and our tour guide stunk to high heaven and seemed to be a little hungover himself, but it was a pretty standard brewery tour!  We were able to sample some of the brews.  My favorite- Shotgun Betty!

Next, we made our way to the house, where the final preparations were put in place and friends started arriving.  Kevin fired up the grill and we all ate and enjoyed each others company!

Then the official Corn Hole Tournament started.  Kevin gathered everyone around and made a fantastic speech acknowledging our forefathers (Todd and Candice of T & C Productions) for their hard work over the years.  We stated the official tournament rules and then the games began!

Before the final championship, we took a break for dessert...The Lemon Berry Trifle made it's 2nd appearance!

Then it was back to the street for the final game.

"SAND BAGGIN" won it all, however, Kevin reported to me that "Da Sweat", who changed their name mid-tournament to "We Didn't Marry Them For Their Cornhole Skills", won, so I "engraved" the wrong name on the Golden Hole.  Luckily, "SAND BAGGIN" was okay with a cross-out and I "engraved" their name underneath!  I think it's fitting since they'll know until the end of time who they beat to win the Golden Hole!

The party pretty much wound down after that and by the time the last folks left, we were EXHAUSTED!  Thank you Lauren, Tina and Jamie for your help cleaning the kitchen!  That was such a help since we left everything else until Sunday to clean!  

We've rested up now, so it's safe to say I'm already anticipating 2014- The 1st Ever- 5th Annual American Brew-A-Que!  Won't you join us?

Change

In the middle of March, I was told that my contract with Saint Mary's School would not be renewed.  I spent the next 2 months applying tirelessly to anything and everything I could find, knowing that on June 30th, I would be out of a job.  Well, I don't know what it is about visiting lighthouses, but the trip in 2012 was when I got the call that I'd been hired at Saint Mary's.  This year, we had just gotten home from Southport, when I got the call.  It was actually May 29th and the call came from the NCSU Rec Department saying I had gotten the job as the Administrative Support Specialist.  I put in my two weeks notice that Friday and started with NCSU on June 17th.  But, we'll get to that later!

Not knowing that a job offer was coming, Kevin and I scheduled an impromptu trip via Amtrak up to Washington, DC to see a Nationals game.  Kevin had to be in Fairfax, VA for work the remaining part of the week, so we jumped up a day early, caught the game, spent the night...and then I took the train home and he took the metro over to Fairfax.

I've never ridden an Amtrak before, so this was quite the experience.  I'd explain it as one step up from a greyhound bus!  There were some grimy people on there, but it wasn't so bad and the price was RIGHT!  We watched two movies on the way up: Zero Dark Thirty and Argo.  They were GREAT and kept us occupied as the towns slipped away on our way to DC.

Once we arrived in Union Station, we jumped on the Metro and rode down to the Pentagon, to our hotel.  We dropped our bags and headed out once more to arrive at the Navy Yard for the Nationals Game.  We were early and that was great!  We were able to eat and enjoy the park before it got too crowded!

Then it was back to our hotel to crash.

The next morning, we got up and ready, packed our bags and headed to the National Archives stop on the metro.  We dropped our bags at the National Gallery of Art and walked as fast as we could to the White House.  It was quite the trek, but we made it, snapped a photo and then made a bee-line for lunch!

"Hey Obama"

Then it was time to get our bags and head back to Union Station for the my train home.  The ride back was fine for me.  I read the entire time and it made the hours just fly by.

I'm so glad we planned the little overnight trip!  It was a perfect break before I started a new job, especially because I didn't take any time off in-between.  It was a super quick trip!  I was on the train longer than I was in DC.

My first week at NCSU was a doozy!  I was sick as a dog on day 1 and didn't feel like myself until the following Monday.  Everyone was super nice and understanding that I was under the weather.  And now that I'm about to finish week 3, I can say I'm starting to settle down and get a handle on what I'll be doing and the folks I'll be working with!

It's sad that we worry so much because God's got it all handled!  I truly believe he had the position at NCSU picked out for me from the start and orchestrated it all to fall into place!  I complain a lot about my luck, but the timing of my NCSU job is perfection!  In that regard, I'm the luckiest girl ever!  God is faithful! 
I'll always be a Pirate, but I may have to incorporate a little more red and black into my wardrobe!  Go Pack!