Introducing Our First Batch of Homemade Ice Cream

First, we'd like to thank our friend Allison and her friend's aunt Liz for the ice cream machine that has brought so much joy to Atticus and Christopher's life. The ice cream machine was in Liz' storage and was never used and still in the box. Thank you Liz for giving such a nice gift to strangers. And thank you Allison for the mention and kind delivery. Atticus will deliver some ice cream to you soon.

Images

1} Jones Orchard Blueberries made all the difference.

2} The official name we chose for our blueberry ice cream ~ Memphis BluesBerry. *

3} Atticus is enjoying the small bowl of ice cream shown in image 5.

4} Atticus would have been happy with eating from the metal tub instead.

5} I usually serve ice cream to him in this tiny bowl with a tiny spoon to make it look generous.

*Our quick custom label was inspired by the Haagen-Dazs ice cream label but uses the shape of the acoustic guitar mirrored in 2 directions. For the recipe, we just altered the standard recipe off the ice cream machine box.

Photos/graphics by Sophorn

A Fruitful Visit to Jones Orchard

Ever since our neighbors Brett and Sharon mentioned how much fun their son had picking {and eating while picking} blueberries, we instantly put it on our family must-do list. We made a quick trip up to Jones Orchard in Millington recently for many reasons. 1} Atticus loves, loves fruit. 2} Atticus wanted to make blueberry ice cream with our new ice cream machine. 3} We had to buy gifts for Christopher’s Dad and our neighbor Ms. Judy.

That weekend we could only pick blackberries but were able to buy blueberries at the market. We also left with red plums, green plums, and peaches. I hate to use corny phrases, but our trip was really fruitful.

Those blackberries shown above are actual size! The green plums were sweet not sour and perfect for pickling.

As the temperatures will be much cooler now and into the weekend, it will be a great outing for your holiday weekend. We'll share our photos of our blueberry ice cream in the next posting revealing the ice cream name/label we created.

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Jones Orchard Market and Kitchen
7170 Highway 51 North
Millington, TN
ph +1.901.873.3150

Web / Hours

Photos by Sophorn.

Felicia Suzanne's Courtyard Dinner Party

So many times have I passed by this courtyard walking down Main Street admiring the space that, in my mind, rivaled any pocket park in New York City or patio in New Orleans. I knew the food was spectactular but was dying for an opportunity to experience dining outdoors in this charming patio space. The opportunity soon came with friend and neighbor Diana proclaiming she needed a birthday outing with the girls. We both agreed Felicia Suzanne's courtyard was a perfect setting. Happy Birthday Diana!

I wasn't sure why I ordered a hot soup in the summer while eating outdoors, but when our server said "sweet corn with bacon," I couldn't resist. I also ordered the BLFGT {Bacon Lettuce Fried Green Tomato} Salad like almost every other person at the table. Both dishes were wonderful.

The other dishes ordered are shown below.

We {along with other guests by the fountain} dined under a canopy of trees and lights that became more charming as the sun set. I had waited for a special occasion to make this visit, but I'm not sure I'll need that excuse next time.

Felicia Suzanne
Downtown Memphis Brinkley Plaza
80 Monroe Ave, Suite L-1
Memphis, TN 38103
ph +1.901.523.0877
Project Green Fork Certified

Open Tuesday to Saturday at 5pm. Friday lunch 11:30am to 1:30pm.

Web / Menu / Twitter / Facebook

Photos/graphics by Sophorn.

Thank You PostCards ~ Habitat for Hope / Test 1

Habitat for Hope requested a postcard option that was an extension of the brochure design previously posted a few months ago. One of the images used in the brochure had the HFH logo and the word "Hope" sitting on top of the grass. The image above zooms in on the grass and logo. It carries the use of the green "blade" and sepia tone in here as well. The graphic on this postcard test signifies the generosity given to HFH has literally lifted and supported Habitat for Hope.

Option 1 above shows the blade hovering with the logo. Option 2 below makes the blade more grounded as if growing from the ground. In both options, the back of the postcard continues the blade for the address label and leaves white space necessary for the mailing codes and a handwritten note.

Postcard is 4 x 6 full bleed to be printed on recyled matte cardstock.

Trolley Tour Excitement

Don't forget the South Main Trolley Tour is tonight. Atticus is very excited since he knows he'll get to ride the trolley and possibly see his favorite trolley driver Mr. Cory. Here's a sneak peek into his birthday present progress ~ a graphic I made of his favorite color trolley that I'll iron on a t-shirt for him. {I can't decide whether it should be purple on a white shirt or white on a purple shirt.} If you see us tonight, say hello. Trolley rides are free tonight from 6 to 9pm.

June Rock 'n' Romp at Mud Island River Park

We had already planned on taking Atticus this summer to the Mud Island River Park for his first visit ever, so when Rock 'n' Romp took over the River Park this past weekend, we were there. Thank goodness for the water to entertain the kids and to cool them off, but with Atticus making me tag along with him in the fountains the entire time, I hardly had time to enjoy the live music or my cute little bbq sandwich. This also meant I had plenty of photos of Atticus' sheer happiness playing in the water but no real photos of Rock 'n' Romp. Luckily, board member and photographer Chip Chockley took care of those shots. See them here. {By the way, it was really great to meet Chip, Stacey Greenberg, and Melissa Sweazy in person while we were there.}

The next Rock 'n' Romp is August 21 at the Levitt Shell.

Mud Island River Park
125 North Front Street
Memphis, TN 38103
Ph +1.800.507.6507 or 901.576.7241
Open Tuesday to Sunday 10am to 6pm.

Web / Twitter / Facebook / Events / 2010 Concert Schedule

Photos and graphic by Sophorn.

Kid-Friendly Gourmet Dinner ~ Recap

I had not planned on posting a recap of our gourmet dinner on Valentine's Day until I started craving the watercress salad and chocolate creme brulee this week. It was proven to be kid friendly since Atticus ate everything but the French onion soup. The salad's most delicious ingredient was the blood orange, and the chocolate creme brulee was excellent using dark chocolate chips and topped with roasted hazelnuts. Needless to say, we all thoroughly enjoyed the dessert.

Atticus sat fairly still for almost the entire dinner sometimes joining in the conversation. {Photo above: He is listening attentively to his Uncle Charles.} Below is the entire menu with links to the recipes. I was able to find ingredients to make everything but the ricotta cheese puffs.

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Appetizers
Perfect French Bread - Toasted
Brie Cheese puff pastry drizzled with honey and almonds
Savory Goat Ricotta Cheese Puffs

Soup
French Onion Soup

Salad
Watercress Endive Salad with Blood Oranges and Pomegranates

Main Course
Roast Chicken with Tarragon Sauce

Dessert
Crème Brulee Trio

Sole Memphis recipe

Fave Find: Perfect Gift for Women in Architecture or Construction

Love these bags from artist/designer David Shock but I loved them even more when I found out that the orange mesh is construction site fencing reused from construction sites. I just purchased one as a gift to a woman in architecture I know who is also heavily passionate about sustainable design. Purchase yours through the etsy shop here.

Ornj bags comes in various sizes and handle configurations.

Found via bon appetit. Photos from ornj bags website. Graphic, independent of ornj logo, by Sophorn.

Happy Poppy's Day

According to Atticus, his favorite thing about Poppy is that he races him to the kitchen to get a vitamin every morning" {Christopher always lets him win by a narrow gap} but my favorite thing that Christopher does for Atticus {and me} is keeping him entertained when we're eating out. Among many various activities, Atticus learns to hang a spoon on his nose in the photo above. Happy Poppy's Day, Poppy!

Photo by Sophorn. Layout inspiration from Asian Bees Photography.

Felicia Suzanne's ~ Dinner Party Sneak Peek

BLFGT Salad /Crispy Applewood Smoked Bacon, Baby Greens tossed in a Classic Remoulade Sauce, layered with Fried Green Tomatoes / You may commence the drooling now. This was the dish that 4 of us ordered. Stay tuned for the full posting on our dinner party last night in their fabulous patio, but in the meantime, visit Felicia Suzanne's this weekend for fine dishes using local ingredients. They are now Project Green Fork Certified.

Felicia Suzanne
Downtown Memphis Brinkley Plaza
80 Monroe Ave, Suite L-1
Memphis, TN 38103
ph +1.901.523.0877
Open Tuesday to Saturday at 5pm. Friday lunch 11:30am to 1:30pm.

Web / Menu / Twitter / Facebook

Photo by Sophorn.

Ways My Dad Inspires Me

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In honor of Father's Day and my dad traveling back to Cambodia to go on his second mission trip just days from now, I wanted to make a list of inspirations I've composed just from my dad's actions, not just growing up, but even now.

~Let what you do speak for itself.
~Never wait on someone else to fix the problem you can fix.
~Be resourceful and never wasteful especially with time.
~Be humble. Never look to take the credit.
~Listen to your instincts. It's probably God talking.
~Let family and friends be the destination of your travels not just things or places.
~Never use inconvenience as an excuse, especially when it means helping someone other than yourself.

Thank you Dad for inspiring me to be better everyday. I will pray for you and Mommy in your travels. We'll see you when you get back home ready to give lots of hugs and kisses.

I took the photo above when we visited Cambodia as a family in 2005. Humble beginnings keep me grateful.

Levitt Shell Free Concert Series ~ Family Favorite

There are plenty of opportunities for families to enjoy live music free in Memphis, and the Levitt Shell free concert series is one of our favorites. The recent Sunday night performance from singer/songwriter Steve Poltz was not one of the kid focused shows, but he quickly responded to the energetic young crowd running in front of him by getting the kids jump-dancing to the next song. Front stage roaming space and free entertainment occupying the kids while the parents enjoy their gourmet picnic and wine ~ it doesn't get better than that.

See the last week in the spring concert schedule starting tonight with The Iguanas. See schedule details here.

In photos above: Atticus invited his friend Helen to come along and was pleasantly surprised to see his other friends Katye and Luna there. {Linda, now you can see the chasing that went on, which literally was throughout the whole night.}

Photos by Sophorn

Tasted ~ Makeda's Homemade Butter Cookies

The same day we tasted the Trolley Stop Market, we tasted Makeda's Cookies since it was right next to the last east end trolley stop on Madison. I was also drawn by their eye-catching sign shown above. Later, I find out that the Trolley Stop Market actually stocks Makeda's cookies too. It was the perfect treat for our walk home.

Tasted ~ 5 cookies for $5.50
{1} Butter Cookie with Sprinkles ~ Sprinkles always makes it a hit with Atticus
{2} Butter Cookie with M&M's ~ Wait M&M's is always the hit
{3} Plain Butter Cookie
{4} Chocolate Chip Cookie
{5} Sugar Cookie


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Makeda's Cookies
3 Bakery Locations
1329 Madison Ave / 2370 Airways Blvd. / 5729 LaGrange Rd.
Memphis, TN
info@makedascookies.com / Web / Menu

Photos by Sophorn

New Artwork by Atticus

We always make cards for people to add that personal touch, and Atticus has just started helping this year. Here is the birthday card he made for his good friend Helen. He started by writing Helen's name, but in frustation, he knew the letters were unreadable and unacceptable to him, so he turned those mangled letters into abstract art. I was quite impressed. Happy Birthday Helen!

{ Atticus & Helen }

Shop Local + Tasted ~ Trolley Stop Market

The newest source of local food and ingredients in Memphis is the Trolley Stop Market, quite literally in front of a trolley stop ~the Orleans stop in downtown’s Edge district. They invite people to ride the trolley and stop on by to eat, shop, or do both. Living in Cooper-Young, we still took the trolley challenge. I hauled Atticus in a stroller with 2 reusable market bags leisurely walking 2 ½ miles to the east end of the Madison trolley line, which is 5 minutes by car but almost an hour our pace. {Atticus diverted us to every sprinkler we passed.}




Less than 5 minutes later {3 trolley stops} we arrived at the market right around lunch, right before the large lunch crowd. I really had a hard time deciding whether to order breakfast or lunch, but since Atticus wanted pizza with bacon as a topping, I thought it could satisfy the craving for both. {In the photo above, I spell out the letters to the word "bacon," and he quickly finds it on the menu.}

From Jillbilly’s pizza kitchen, we ordered the small pizza with bacon and basil and, as you can see, the small is BIG, as they had alerted us. Atticus served us up the slices and ended up eating much more than I’ve ever seen him eat.





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Fresh Produce Straight from the farm





We grabbed a few tomatoes and too few peaches since the peaches didn't last through the weekend. They were extraordinarily sweet and just the right "snack" size for Atticus.



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In addition to the fresh produce and organic products from vendors we also find at the Memphis Farmer’s market, I was pleased to see unexpected items such as laundry detergent and handmade gift products since we had to shop for upcoming {and belated} birthdays. We were intrigued with the wooden scoops that could be used for the laundry detergent.



Atticus, more intriqued with fitting two together, refused to hold just one scoop for the photo.


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Mama Y Wawa We went back and forth on what hair clips might be big hits for girls 8 and under, but in the end, Atticus made some pretty good choices.

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Other items I will keep in mind for future gifts were the ReHy bottles used as soap dispensers or drink bottles depending on the cap you get and the ceramic egg cups in the lovely vintage colors. We also noticed a floral shop that staffs a floral designer and stationary goods to complete the gift giving package.


In the future, they hope to have live music performances further assuring that this will NOT be any ordinary grocery shopping experience. ///

Trolley Stop Market
Owners Keith and Jill Forrester of Whitton Farms
{Downtown Edge District}
704 Madison Avenue
Memphis, TN
Ph +1.901.526.1361

Open Monday to Friday 7am to 9pm / Saturday 8am to 9pm

Web in progress / Facebook / Menu

Related Review from Eat Local Memphis
{Thanks for the shout-out Thomas. Very entertaining review as always.}

Photos by Sophorn.