It had been a long Track and Field Day at Lutheran Central. I followed my class around the football field all morning where some outstanding parents volunteered to make it a wonderful day for the students. Then I ended up being the All-Time pitcher at the softball field where I must have bended over 300 times to pick up a ball. Also, Kayti Adams and Sarah Burke were there and I am pretty sure that Sarah saved my life. I was whining about a drink of 💧 water and a moment later Kayti said, “You had better go see my sister.” Lo and behold, she presented me with a cold bottle of water. The kids were like baby birds with their mouth open as I shared an 🧊 ice cold drink with them. We are all eternally grateful.

Heidi and I came into town for dinner before Jude’s baseball game and tried Blake’s… Closed for vacation. We drove to Frankenburger…Closes at 7:00 and we were too late. We end up at Blondie’s and I wasn’t feeling pizza 🍕. Right about this time, the evening took a turn for the better.⬆️

My colleague, Suzanne Bolte, was working and first, she recommended a Hawaii Five Ale from the Destihl Brewing Company in Normal, Illinois.

It is a blonde ale with pineapple 🍍, 🍑 peach, 🥥 coconut, 🥭 mango and guava. Tasty!!!

After that, the Life-changing conversation of ordering the 🥗 salad that will from this time on be referred to as “The Suzanne” occurred.

It is their grilled chicken 🥗 salad; however, the chicken 🍗 is tossed around in a sweet chili 🌶 sauce that makes the dish. Add bacon 🥓, 🧀 cheese, croutons if you wish and Ranch dressing and it is “da 💣 bomb!”

I felt so good afterward because I came close to ordering the Bavarian pretzel 🥨 or a 🍕 pizza. Both are delicious there, I just didn’t want the gluten at this point.

Best t-shirt in the restaurant goes to Tim Robinson. It says, “ I like fishing and maybe three people.”

In conclusion, next time you dine at Blondie’s, ask for “The Suzanne!”

P.S. I won’t be satisfied until Mason Fleetwood puts this on the chalk board and orders new menus. 😂

So, yes, there were also some wonderful 🐓 chicken tenderloins, however, the 🫑 peppers were what it was all about.

The girls, Sophie and Heidi, just sliced these up and added them on after the fact. Turns out, they were phenomenal. A little 🫒 olive oil and Dominant One was all it took to make the Big Leagues. And I suppose, the Kingsford charcoal and chunk of 🍎 apple 🪵 wood was also a factor.

Not to mention, asparagus from Nina Hackman’s garden box. This summer cooking thing is looking up!

We are already planning tomorrow’s chicken quesadillas with the leftover chicken. Boom!!! 💥

The Upland Pump House in Columbus has a brunch that is totally worth the visit. Rae, Lawyer, Kiley and Lawson were coming from Nashville and the Pump House was the perfect place to meet.

The location along the White River and their brunch make this a great experience on a warm May morning. The Red Devil art was a bonus that I had not seen on previous visits and it took me back to a few fishing trips to Canada.

The Egg Sandwich on an Everything Bagel, peppered 🥓 bacon, cheese and Tomato 🍅 Jam. It was quite good.

A cauliflower crust from Wal-Mart, Hormel Microwave 🥓 Bacon, diced orange pepper, pineapple 🍍, Mozzarella cheese, and Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce.

It was an unusual Friday night as we stayed in for dinner. Heidi custom made her own pizza as well. We pre-baked the crust for 11 minutes, added our toppings and baked for another 5-7 minutes and the result was outstanding!

Last week was Sophie’s Indiana University graduation party. 🌮 Taco ‘ bout a Grad was the theme.

Guess what. We had two giant packs of soft tortillas left. So, tonight, it was chicken quesadilla night.

A Pat of 🧈 butter in the skillet, canned chicken, 🧀 cheese, avocado 🥑, taco sauce and then a blob of Ranch dressing to dip in.

The crispiness of the soft tortilla was sensational! The flavor was delicious!

This Bad Boy was Restaurant Quality!!!

This was so incredibly simple, yet flavorful. This could happen often!

I only have 38 more tortillas to go.

Kay’s Kafe in Brownstown is a 😎 cool place to get your designer tea and coffee. As well, there are 🥯 bagels, 🍪 cookies, biscuits, and sweet breads depending on your breakfast preference.

Nice touch with the “All Things Brewed and Blessed” tag line. 🙏🏻

Heidi and Sophie set up at the Stuckwish Farm Market today selling baby blankets etc.

So, maybe Heidi spent more than she sold, but she had a good time. Meanwhile, I was In Charge of dinner.

While I was grilling the Luke Combs song 🎵 “Long Neck Ice Cold Beer Never Broke My Heart” came on and I think it is a work of genius. After that, the Walker Hayes “AA” song came on. Did I tell you that I re-wrote part of the chorus for that one? It goes like this:

I’m trying to keep my wife, from figuring out

That I married up, and she married way, way down “In Jackson County

Where they love Busch Light, teaching Language Arts, just living for Friday night, to play, Hey!”

But, Hey! The sweet potato 🍠 with butter and brown sugar and the sweet corn from last year’s garden didn’t even need the steak to make a wonderful meal. Hey!

E Sushi, located on East 25th Street in Columbus was a pleasant surprise! It was Heidi’s Friday night choice and she picked a good one. The atmosphere was great and the Shrimp 🍤 Tempura was amazing!

On another prom night, after pictures at Chateau de Pique, Heidi went to Columbus by ourselves as the kids always have something better to do.

This was incredible! There long fried sticks are fried 🍤 shrimp. Like nothing I have ever had. With an 🧅 onion ring on 🔝. Also, fried zuchini, broccoli 🥦 and 🍠 potato. Heidi and I enjoyed it very much!

After getting home from the Brownstown Central Middle School golf match, (with a heavy Lutheran Central flavor) I found Sophie in the kitchen making shrimp tacos for dinner. She was so cute scrolling the recipe on her computer and rummaging through the cabinets looking for cumin.

We had soft taco shells, shredded 🥬 cabbage, perfectly sliced 🥑 avocado, cheese and some Buffalo 🦬 Ranch sauce. Great combination of fresh veggie coolness and spice from the sautéed shrimp. Kudos to our soon to be college 👩‍🎓 graduate trying new things in the kitchen.

“Nothing Bundt Cake” is where Heidi got the idea for this masterpiece. A Red Velvet cake mix with some tiny chocolate chips added in there to add to the texture. Finally, topped off with strips of homemade cream cheese frosting. And a pool of frosting in the middle just in case you didn’t get enough.

This cake was firm and the frosting was exquisite. The chocolate chips were a pleasant surprise. Add a glass of cold 🥛 milk, and it is the breakfast of champions!

It’s another great day being married to Heidi!