Baseball and Eggplant Parmesan

So what do you do on a weekend in Vicksburg?

Go to Jackson, of course. Especially when the Mississippi Braves minor league baseball team is playing the Chattanooga Lookouts!

Actually, I really don't care for baseball, but I went with a group from work so it was fun regardless.

The game had barely begun when I took this picture, but I really appreciated Dunkin' Donuts' advertisement on the fence. Dunkin' Donuts coffee with blueberry flavoring and skim milk is almost my favorite thing in the world. [Please note the hyperbole.]

About ten minutes into the game, Emily and two other friends and I went to The Grill to eat dinner, which had so far been neglected. It took a pretty long time, but that was just fine with me. Instead of paying attention to the game, I took pictures of the sunset. The clouds were striking last night!

When I woke up this morning and opened my window, the sky was absolutely gorgeous. I thought to myself, "This will be a day to spend outside." I am so very thankful for restful weekends, and I am increasingly thankful that God made the outdoors for us to cultivate and enjoy. I'm learning I really can't live well without spending time outside.

Thankfully today, Dad was game for my idea of walking down to the Farmers' Market to pick up some veggies. I think I'm going to be visiting our twice-weekly farmers' market often!

This is one of the two pictures I took on our walk before my camera's batteries died. The Vicksburg's claim to fame is that it is the tallest building in Vicksburg (unless one of the churches has a taller steeple, but I doubt it). Pretty cool!

I must say, I had a joyously productive morning. Getting fresh corn downtown in preparation for my Quinoa, Corn, and Mint Salad was just the beginning...

After Dad and I got home, I began working on the window! You may remember seeing the antique window I bought a few weeks ago in Monroe, but that project has been on the very farthest backburner since I started work. Anyway, I worked with paint stripper paste for the first time ever. Oh my gosh! SO fun. Check out these cool bubbles that you just scrape away!

This is what I've done so far. Mom says the next step will be to "sand" it with steel wool. I am so excited, and I promise to stay up-to-date on the pictures and blogging. I cannot wait until I get to paint it!

Mom and I went down to the lake this afternoon. Em was already there with a group wakeboarding and water-sporting. I viewed this two-hour getaway as a chance to catch up on my reading. The Red Badge of Courage is taking longer than I would like, but so be it. I'm enjoying the story.

This is what I do not do at the Lake! :)

After getting home, it was time to start cooking. I've been planning since Wednesday to make Eggplant Parmesan tonight with eggplants from the mid-week farmers' market. I have never made Eggplant Parmesan, but it ended up being very delicious-- everyone agreed, too! (I have no problem with thinking my own food is amazing; sometimes I am the only one, ha!) I have attached the link if anyone is interested.

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=332680

The glorious thing about Saturday is that you still have Sunday after it.