A Spot of My Life

Welcome to Afternoon Popcorn Snack, a spot of my life! 

Not my whole life, just a spot of it...

I’m not standing in the middle of Rodeo Drive, shopping bags in hand or lying lazily on the sands of a Mediterranean beach.  I didn’t awake this morning prepared to hike The Great Smokies or saunter a European cobblestone street.  I wasn’t hit with the sights and sounds of a Seattle market when I walked out my back door this morning, a mug of freshly brewed Folgers in my hand.

Noooope.

Right now, I’m sitting in the shade of a comparatively small parcel of land, family dog at my feet, a couple of horses grazing the pasture next door.  My children’s plastic garden tools, toys & first fishing poles catch my eye, evidence of the most precious segment of my life.  A red wheelbarrow my husband bought me contains compost to spread and the picnic table we inherited from his grandparents – the one his grandfather gave his grandmother for their 50th wedding anniversary holds a few tomato plants, a dog bone and a pair of shoes my son quickly shed after walking outside.  A hornet lingers on my coffee mug; a rooster crows in the distance and I can hear the leaves rustling as a fresh Oklahoma breeze blows across our peaceful piece of Earth.

And it’s blissful.

Hi! I am Amy, and I am an Oklahoma girl through & through, having lived here all of my life. While I’ll never stop dreaming of a little house on the beach or a cabin in the woody mountains, I am mostly happy growing right where I am with my husband and two boys.  Some may refer to this place as a ‘dead-end’, but it holds the simple hopes & dreams of people I love, have loved & who love me.  Our life is not fancy nor is it pretentious; just a nice balance of ‘ought to do’s’ & ‘want to do’s’ with our feet firmly planted on the ground.

Afternoon Popcorn Snack is my personal blog by which I share photography, recipes and other bits from my life. The majority of my childhood memories occurred in a kitchen, around the table or in the great outdoors and always included people I love – some of whom have passed on, but left indelible impressions on my life.  My favorite things include: creativity, art, color, photography, an occasional flavorful beer, a steaming mug of coffee, words, gardening & outdoors, time with those I love and sharing goodies prepared in my kitchen.  There are days I would opt instead for 2-seconds of “priacy” in the bathroom.  A wish for 2-seconds of peace and quiet would almost be wasted, but I thoroughly enjoy the happy noise, some days better referred to as ‘pandemonium’ of my two toddler sons and savor our days together along with my husband, friend & biggest fan who also doubles as a fun and attentive dad and is our token angler, hunter, conservationist & spider killer.

Thanks for visiting my blog! The Recipe Index page includes all posted recipes and the Blogroll ~ a list of some of my favorite bloggers. I think you will enjoy them too. :-)  

One hour of life, crowded to the full with glorious action, and filled with noble risks, is worth whole years of those mean observances of paltry decorum.
~ Sir Walter Scott


142 thoughts on “A Spot of My Life”

  2. Hi Amy, thanks for visiting my blog. I’ve been through some of yours and I really like it! I have a friend who lives for food and new recipes so I will give her the link to your blog. Now that I’ve seen your blog–I’m hungry! :) Take care.

  8. I would never refer to Oklahoma as a dead end! I visited there once and found it beautiful – much different than my beloved home state of Louisiana, but with its own brand of beauty. Love your blog! <3

    • It is a beautiful place-in it’s own unique way. It’s nice to live in the middle of the country, travel to see other beauty and come home.

      My husband’s grandmother was born and raised in Lafayette, LA. Much of his extended family still live in the Lafayette area and Iowa/Lacassine. It’s a beautiful place, rich with wonderful people, food and a colorful culture. I hope to feature some of their Cajun recipes on my site.

      Thanks so much for stopping by and for your thoughtful comments. I hope you have a wonderful day. :-)

    • :-) Thank you, except I still have a lot to learn. But I figure we only have one life, better to not live it in strife. :-) Thanks for your compliment and for visiting. I hope you have a wonderful day. :-)

  12. Wow Amy you have the life I always dreamed of when raising my son all by myself. Didn’t find that peace of land and heart until recently moving to SouthWest Indiana. It still amazes me how the sounds of the land can give you peace. I love your blog and find inspiration in the way you have designed it. I am so new to this whole blogging thing so am very happy that you found me so that I could in return be introduced to you blog.

    • Thank you for your kind words and for following my blog. When my husband and I found this little piece of land we didn’t have children, but I’m so glad we live in the quiet now. It’s a perfect place for kids to run and play. Grass & trees beat the concrete any day, IMO. I am very new to blogging myself, but am enjoying it. Have a great day! :-)

  13. Well hello Amy thank you so much for coming by my blog so I could discover yours. I’m bookmarking the lemon shortbread bars right now because I. must. have. some. – who doesn’t love a really good cookie? LOVE your photos and I can’t wait to learn new things from you.

  15. Hi Amy, Thanks for the ‘like’! Your blog looks lovely. I love the photos and it sounds like you have an idyllic life- certainly a long distance from us here in New Zealand but some things sound very familiar- kids,noise, outdoor adventures. We’re new to blogging , it’s actually my children’s initiative. I’ve been employed as the ‘assistant’!!. But that’s all good, I’m really happy that they are doing it. I might have to go and secretly start my own!! Look forward to reading more from you.Phillipa

    • Thank you! I would LOVE to visit your country. Talk about idyllic and beautiful! Sounds like you have some pretty fun, ingenuitive kids as well. :-) I look forward to reading more from them & you. Have a great day! :-) ~ Amy

  22. Thank you for the comment for the Skinny Frappuccino. I tried one last night…..it was delicious. I had the dry coffee creamer already ….the French Vanilla from Walmart.

  23. hey Amy, thanks for the like and for following me! Yours looks truly inviting – im perusing happily now! Lovely blog – and life in Oklahoma sounds wonderful. :)

  26. “Our life is not fancy nor is it pretentious; just a nice balance of ‘ought to do’s’ & ‘want to do’s’ with our feet firmly planted on the ground.”
    I love these lines, Amy.
    Thanks. :)

  31. Thanks for coming by and following my blog. I can see that I’m going to have great fun exploring yours—though I will have to try to resist cooking all the recipes that look so good at the same time!

  34. You just started your blog in April. Already, you have such a nice group of followers. That tells me there is much here to appreciate. You life is just about right. I like all of it. :-)

  40. Amy, I’m glad to have found your site! I know I have found a new friend with similar interests and appreciates her life just the way it is :) Thanks for dropping by my blog. I’m subscribing to yours!

    • Well, I’m not sure its paradise. A view would certainly be nice, but it’s what we have right now and we really do enjoy our life. I guess any place can be ‘paradise’ if your heart is in the right spot. :-) Thanks for stopping by and for your comment! Have a great day!

  44. Amy, I just passed along the One Lovely Blog award to you in my post today. If you’d like, you can pick it up there. You do have one lovely blog, you know. And you are a lovely person too. Your photography is superb, by the way! :-) George

  47. Reading your description of your surrounding makes me jealous. It must be awesome to have your own horses and farm animals. Nevertheless, I’m so glad we meet here. We’re only a couple of states apart. I’m in CT. So Amy, so nice to have you. Anytime you’d like to try some Indonesian food or my original recipe that I created, look me up.

    Di

  51. Hi Amy! Thanks so much for the follow! I really appreciate you stopping by my blog! Unfortunately becuase I switched from wordpress.com to wordpress.org my new posts no longer show up in the wordpress.com reader – if your still interested in following, please stop by and enter your email address to receive the new recipes! Thanks and have a great day!

      • It’s a self-hosted version of wordpress.com – anyone who follows me with the “follow” button on wordpress.com can no longer see my posts (they are separate companies) the new site only uses emails to to follow people. The difference (besides the following part) is that you are free to do whatever you like with your site – design wise, advertising wise, whatever. It’s pretty cool!

  52. Hi Amy,

    I’m really glad you found my blog http://moreimagesfromme.wordpresscom and you took the time to leave a like for one of my images, so thanks for that, it is appreciated :) If you have time, please take a look at my other photo blog http://reflectionsofchina.wordpress.com this site is for images i take in China, the country where i live and work. I do hope you like that site too :) …You have a really nice blog here, with some really nice images and mouth watering recipe’s, so I will follow and take my time to enjoy your world.

    Thanks again and Regards Mark.

  57. Hi Amy,

    What a fabulous blog you have going here! And some serious delicious recipes I simply cannot wait to try myself :)

    My friend and I have recently started our own blog called ‘Honey & Lulu’ and if you would be interested in following us, we wold really appreciate the support! We would love to follow your blog too and cant’t wait for your next post!

    http://honeyandlulu.blogspot.com.au/

    All the best,

    Sarah

  62. Amy – I’ve spent almost an entire hour on your blog tonight!! Wow – time passed quickly. You are one of the most inspiring people I know. I feel so fortunate that I know you personally! You have such a wonderful life and I envy the opportunities and time you have to enjoy the things you love. I will continually come back to use your recipes so Nate and Sylvia think I’m awesome! Lots of love XOXO

  63. Hi, Amy:

    Your blog is so nice. I really enjoyed reading about your life in Oklahoma as well as your dreams. I love the photographs; my favorite is “Feeding Time.” That is way too cute.

    Of course, I just happened upon your blog before dinner time, and after seeing some of your wonderful recipes and photos, I’m SO hungry.

    Thanks for sharing your life with us. Lovely blog!

    See you on Twitter.

    Best,
    Lisette

  64. Hi Amy – I loved Oklahoma when I visited Tulsa many many years ago – I did a painting course with Priscilla Hauser (tole and decorative painting) – didn’t see much but I could easily live where you are. It would be perfect! I could paint my way through each blissful day! :) Hugs from South Africa

  65. One of the more impressive blogs Ive seen. Thanks so much for keeping the internet classy for a change. Youve got style, class, bravado. I mean it. Please keep it up because without the internet is definitely lacking in intelligence.

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