Cicada Screamers.

My husband's band, Cicada Screamers, played the Black Owl "Ballroom" this past Friday night. The show was supposed to be IN the Black Owl, but the owner of the building across the street offered his space to have the show since there's a TON more room in there. It didn't have quite the same feeling as a Black Owl show, but there was plenty of room in there for the crowd that showed up...and it was so much fun! I absolutely love Daniel's new band. I mean, I know I'm pretty biased...but even if he wasn't in the band, I would still love them. They're garage rock with a little surf influence and everyone that's heard them so far has loved them. The lights were pretty sucky in there, but I was decently happy with most of the shots I got.

update!

I've been a busy little bee...feels so good! I finished a logo for a contest the No'Ala is having next year called Shoals Perfect Wedding. They're giving away a free wedding to a bride...so awesome! Local vendors are donating their services and I was chosen to do the invites and other paper goods. I'm so excited! They also wanted me to do the logo for the contest.

I sent it tonight...still waiting to hear back and see if I need to make any changes to it.

I've been working on a campaign for a local community college as well. It feels good to get more freelance work! I also had a bride get in touch with me this week to do a wedding in December. I feel so blessed to be getting work.

Also, I've been making plans to start my own wedding-related business.........more on that later.

I'm SO CLOSE to having our new house in order! I'll post photos of it once it's done. =) I've got to finish painting our studio and kitchen and then get those in order...then all that's left is getting things hung on the walls. SO READY to have it done!

That's pretty much all I've got as far as the update goes. Photo post later from the Cicada Screamers show last Friday.

SOUP!

So, I know I said I would make a pot of soup every week since it's cooled off...but our life has been a little crazy lately. Daniel and I moved into a new house about a month ago, and I haven't been cooking very much because we've been getting settled and such. However, we're finally settled enough that I felt like cooking tonight. SO...here's the recipe I used for tonight's soup!

From myrecipes.com:

Roasted Red Pepper-Tomato Soup

Ingredients

-3 red bell peppers, rinsed, stemmed, seeded and halved

-3 tablespoons olive oil

-1 onion, peeled and chopped

-2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

-1 can (28 oz) whole plum tomatoes

-1 tablespoon paprika

-3 cups vegetable broth

-2 teaspoons lemon juice

-salt and pepper

-creme fraiche or plain yogurt

-chopped parsley

Preparation

1. Preheat the broiler. Place the red pepper halves, cut side down, in a baking pan and broil 4 to 5 inches from heat until the skins are black and blistered, about 8 minutes. Let cool, uncovered, 10 to 15 minutes. Peel the peppers and place in a bowl, reserving any juices.

2. In a 3- to 4-quart pan over medium heat, add the olive oil and the onion; stir often until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until translucent, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the roasted peppers and tomatoes, along with their juices, and the paprika. Bring to a low simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes.

3. In a blender or food processor, purée the soup in small batches until smooth. Return purée to the pan and stir in broth and lemon juice. Stir over medium heat until hot. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into cups or bowls and garnish with a dollop of crème fraîche or plain yogurt and parsley.

Yields 10 to 12 servings.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 72

Protein: 1.5g

Fat: 3.8g

Carbohydrates: 9.3g

Fiber: 1.5g

Sodium: 127mg

Cholesterol: 0.0g

This soup was so easy to make! I love tomato soup, but I wanted something a little different. I bought a roasted red pepper and tomato soup at Trader Joe's a while back and LOVED it. This was the first recipe I found when searching that didn't use store bought roasted red peppers. I wanted to roast them myself.

I actually ended up making a double batch of this because I want to freeze some...so it made a ton! So yummy! And it was extra-delicious with a grilled cheese sandwich.

Now...it's time to go cut the pumpkin bread I've got cooling on the stove. YUM!