Posts about me and my family

My brother, Brandon, with my son, Brian

It’s Been A Year

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It was a year ago today that my younger brother died. I’ve spent the last 365 days wondering how this happened, and I still don’t have an answer. Everyone grieves in their own way. I grieve quietly, I suppose.

My son idolized Uncle Brandon. He would ask about him all the time. He always wanted to send him a video message through Facebook. And he loved getting a response back. He would just light up at the sound of Brandon’s voice calling him “Buddy,” or seeing Brandon’s face.

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Steak and paprika sweet potatoes

Sous Vide Steak and Paprika Sweet Potatoes

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In my quest to experiment with two new meals per month this year, I’m continuing the sous vide experience into August.  I decided this month to make a dinner with steak and paprika sweet potatoes.

My friend, Andy, told me a while back that cooking steak was one of the primary reasons he bought a sous vide immersion cooker.  I wanted one primarily for ribs, but I’ve found a number of great uses for it since then, including brisket, flank steak, butter-infused potatoes, and several cocktails. Read more

Meat counter at my local butcher shop

Weekend Cooking Adventure

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Earlier this month, Jen’s best friend, Meagan, and her husband, Graham, along with their two daughters, came to stay with us for a weekend visit.  They brought their sous vide immersion cooker on their last visit (back in July) and converted me from someone who enjoyed ridiculing people who “sous vide” their food into a true believer.  I got one for Christmas and have had a blast exploring new foods (and continually making a few family favorites) since.

During planning discussions for this trip, Megan and I talked about how great it would be to just have a weekend of amazing menus with two cookers going simultaneously.  The concept continued to evolve and a weekend cooking adventure was born. Read more

Flank steak searing on the grill

Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

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I got a sous vide immersion cooker for Christmas and I’ve been using it pretty regularly since.  I spent at least a year mocking people for posting about it (I used to regularly see the Will It Sous Vide? series on lifehacker.com and it annoyed me) but then a family friend brought theirs and we made ribs.  And they were amazing.  And I was sold.

This week, I made flank steak with chimichurri sauce.  This was one of the lower effort meals I’ve experimented with and will certainly be one that we end up revisiting with some regularity.

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Brian talking to his new sister

Then There Were Four

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Our family is growing! We welcomed our daughter into the world this week.  She was born on March 5 and weighed 6 lbs, 12 oz.  We’re so glad that she is happy and healthy.

Things are about to get downright crazy around here!

Our son is ecstatic and very excited to be a big brother.  I expect that to last at least 15 or 20 minutes, until he figures out that he’s not the center of attention all the time.

NC State Farmers Market

N.C. State Farmer’s Market

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Since moving to the area, we’ve noticed that Farmer’s Markets are a big thing around here.  We have the Holly Springs Farmer’s Market, which is open weekly during the spring and summer; they’re open during winter, but it’s bi-weekly.  The town of Apex (just down the road) has the Apex Farmer’s Market during the summer.  Fuquay Varina, a town in the other direction, has their Grower’s Market.

None of these compare to Raleigh’s State Farmer’s Market.  They’re not even close.

The State Farmer’s Market offers building and market space, as well as open air spots for North Carolina farmers to sell fresh produce, plants, and other specialty items produced on local farms.

The Raleigh Farmers Market is one of four regional Farmers Markets owned by the State of North Carolina and operated by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.  These Farmers Markets are strategically located across the state to serve North Carolina farmers, both large and small.

The Farmer’s Building alone has 30,000 square feet and is filled with freshly baked goods, produce, flowers and plants.  It smells amazing!  We bought a couple of air plants in decorative pots for the house and some produce.

The market space is indoors (read as: warm break from the winter breeze!) and offers seafood, ice cream, canned goods and crafts.  We scooped up some amazing Blackberry jam from The Berry Patch there.

This was our second trip (we went a couple weeks earlier with my Aunt and Uncle while they were in town) and it was only about 40° while we were there.  We had a great time and it was an excellent place to get outdoors, walk around and enjoy time with friends or family, and also pick up some produce or other items that support local farmers and other businesses.

Halloween (2017)

Halloween in Holly Springs

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Last night was our first Halloween here in Holly Springs.  My wife loves holidays, and this one ranks near the top.  She loves to decorate and she lives for handing out candy to all the little kids in cute costumes.

When we moved into our new house in Jacksonville back in 2008, she bought the best candy, dragged a couple camping chairs out to the end of the driveway to await the kiddos.  We had six people stop by for candy.  Six.  Seriously.

Aside from the fact that we were a dead end road in our neighborhood (albeit one with a full block or more of houses past ours), there was a local church that did a Trunk-and-Treat event near us on the same night, and we’re pretty certain a lot of the kids end up going to that.  Regardless, it was a huge let down and she was devastated.

The following years were similar, I think we probably had 20-25 kids last year.

HOLLY SPRINGS IS TOTALLY DIFFERENT!!

We probably saw between 250 and 300 kids last night.  Little ones that were just learning to walk and older ones that are probably in high school.  They just kept coming!  Even after we ran out of candy (oops!) and turned the lights off, we occasionally got hopeful visitors testing the doorbell.  It was a steady flow from 6pm to 8:30 or 8:45.

Brian had a blast — he dressed up as a skeleton — and got tons of candy that he really doesn’t need.  We hung out with the grown-ups in adjoining houses and, as always, had a great time with them.

We’re already excited about next year!

Fire Station 1 in Holly Springs

Fire Station Open House

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The Holly Springs Fire Department holds an annual Fire Station Open House each October.  They invite residents to tour the firehouse and learn about the fire department.

There’s a bunch of activities for kids as well, ranging from using a fire hose, sitting in the fire trucks, putting out a small fire with an extinguisher and, of course, meeting Cinder, the fire dog.

We spent an hour or so up there and had a really nice time — Brian especially had a blast sitting in the fire trucks.

He also learned what it was like to use the fire hose to put out a fire.  I wish I had video of how abruptly he turned on the hose.  It was pretty spectacular.

The community outreach of our local fire department seems more pronounced than in Jacksonville, though in all fairness, this is a small town and their presence is much more detectable.  I’ve had a number of interactions with members of the Holly Springs Fire Department and they’ve all been super positive.  They’re very engaging with our son and I can’t count how many times they’ve encouraged me to just drop by the station for a visit with him.  Oddly, given my background in law enforcement, I’ve had virtually no contact with our local police department, though I think they have similar community interactions.

North Carolina State Fair (2017)

North Carolina State Fair

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The North Carolina State Fair was first held in 1853 and has been at its present site since 1928.  It draws a pretty significant crowd each year — last year reaching its second highest ever attendance with 1,028,364 visitors.  The record was in 2010 when it saw 1,091,887 people attend.  It’s held at the State Fairgrounds in Raleigh, about 20 minutes from our home.

Judging by the map, we only saw about 25% of what’s there.  We went after our son woke from his nap, which means we didn’t get there until 3:30 or so, entering the park around 4:00.  We left when he started getting punchy a little after 8:00, giving us four hours to explore and check out what’s there.  We watched a BMX/Motocross stunt show by King BMX (you may have seen them on the X Games, Dew Tour & America’s Got Talent).  We got some fair food (tator tots with ranch and bacon, gyro) and my son rode several of the rides in Kiddie Land.

In general, we didn’t see any of the exhibits or contents, or take in any of the adult rides.  There was a ton there that we didn’t get to see, so if you have a little person in tow, you may want to play to do this in two trips, or maybe even get a babysitter for one of them.

Overall, we had a blast.  The people-watching can’t be overstated.  There were definitely some characters there.  I never went to the fair in Jacksonville, but I assume it was very similar, albeit smaller in size.

More information about the fair can be found on their web site: http://www.ncstatefair.org/2017/index.htm

Ken's Korny Korn Maze

Ken’s Korny Corn Maze

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Fall is arriving and we decided to head out to explore the area again.  My wife loves decorating for holidays and Halloween is right up near the top of her list.

Here are some of the things available at the Corn Maze:

  • Hay rides and games (corn hole, checkers, etc.),
  • Wooden monster truck, tractor and pirate ship to climb on/in,
  • Corn and hay barn for kids to play in, and
  • Six-acre corn maze with 2.5 miles of paths

They’re open September 22 to November 11 and have a haunted corn maze from October 20th, 21st, 27th, 28th and 30th and 31st.

They’re located at 3175 Benson Road, (Hwy. 50 South) in Garner, NC and you can find more information as well as directions on their web site: http://www.kenskornycornmaze.com/directions/