My Favorite Truck

First and foremost, I hope everyone had a fantastic Fourth of July because I certainly did! (My trifle was a hit too!) I mentioned in my last post that the Fourth of July is one of my favorite holidays due to Mike and Martha's delicious desserts, however I also love the parade.

The parade is a massive event in my small town and every year, local businesses and organizations go all out with their floats. From the All-American Elvis impersonators, to the Lawn Mower Brigade, people dress in their red, white, and blue, and wave their flags while watching the floats drive by. It's always exciting to hear live music, whether it's a high school band or a trio of elderly ladies singing their hearts out to, "Brown Eyed Girl," but every year without fail, there's always an awkward moment of complete silence as one of the trucks (not even a float) drives by.

Personally, I love their product. In fact, I'm sure everyone does. But no one is ever brave enough to applaud or wave their flag for this truck. Until last year...

A few floats came through with free water bottles and candy, and kids were eager to grab their fair share of freebies. Suddenly, the music died down as the "fun floats" drove away, and silence was upon us. The kids all stared with disappointment at this truck as it drove by without any music or freebies when unexpectedly, a dad stood up and yelled, "GOOO BUTTER!!!!!" Following in their father's lead, his children jumped to their feet and started cheering with him. From that moment on, I decided to cheer for the butter truck because let's face it...I love butter.

This year, I was completely prepared to cheer and shout for the butter truck and to my surprise, they handed out these really cute foam cows!

So long story short...GO BUTTER!

Happy eating & pass the butter please,

-Leanne

It's The Most Wonderful Time of The Summer...

My sincerest apologies for being MIA for the past few months...whoops! There are honestly no good excuses for either of our absences besides, "writer's block." Ha!

I thought I'd get the ball rolling again, now that it's summer and there's an abundance of time (not 100% true) during these few smokin' hot months. And what a perfect time to start blogging again with the Fourth of July tomorrow!!

The Fourth of July is my second favorite holiday next to Christmas Day. I'm a huge Fourth of July fan for many reasons including the annual Fourth of July Parade when the entire town shuts down for five hours, the many BBQs throughout the afternoon, Fireworks at night time, and the entire day consists of lots and lots of dessert! (A diabetic's nightmare...my dream come true!)

Every year, my family goes to our long-time friends' home for both Christmas dinner and Fourth of July BBQ. This year, I'm making dessert for the BBQ. To say the least, I am honored. Our family friends make the most spectacular desserts. Think explosions in your mouth. In the past, they've made homemade apple, peach, plum, and rhubarb pies with homemade whipped cream. It's amazing. So amazing, that Christmas Day and the Fourth of July have become my two favorite holidays.

You may be wondering why I am making the dessert this year because it's very clear that I'm not a gourmet chef or anything close to that. It turns out, they are coming back from vacation tonight (July 3rd) and don't have time to make a dazzling dessert. So, what do I make? I've already come to terms with the fact that my dessert will never measure up to their homemade from scratch pies, so I've decided to go with something that looks appealing to the eye. Not to say that it won't taste good, but I'm thinking a trifle will score some major presentation points.

I'm basing my trifle on these two images:

I'm thinking I'll (try my hardest to) replicate the sides of the first photo, and the top of the second. I hope it turns out! Wish me luck...I'm going to need it.

Happy Fourth of July weekend!

-Leanne