Revisiting Ouray

I miss Ouray. Not only is the quaint southwestern Colorado town the inspiration for my books, it's become a part of me. Whenever I'm there, I'm rejuvenated. So, since I'm not able to go there right now, I'll have to visit vicariously. And the best part about that is that you get to go with me on my virtual journey.

Do you see this? This is why I love Ouray. The untouched beauty created by God alone. From the mountains to the wildflowers...

On our last trip the Columbines were out to greet us.

Along with some cute little creatures, like the chipmunks at Box Canyon.

This little fella likes to hangout at one of the area's many abandoned mines.

Can you see him there in the middle, atop the cinder block? That's a Pika. A little mountain creature that has no problem telling off those folks who dare intrude on his turf.

This secluded spot will make an appearance in an upcoming book.

And then there's the town itself.

Inviting. Historic. Unique. And unlike most places, it's virtually unchanging.

Of course, no trip to Ouray is complete without a visit or two to Mouse's Coffee and Chocolates.

Are you drooling yet?

 How about now?

There were so many wonderful things about Ouray. But the best thing of all is that it's chock full of story ideas. And I can't wait until the next trip to see what we uncover next. 

Now it's your turn. Where is your favorite place to travel and why? 

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Three-time Carol Award finalist, Mindy Obenhaus, lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children, two dogs and countless cattle. She's passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining and sometimes adventurous manner. When she's not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more at mindyobenhaus.com. 

Refreshment for the Soul

I want to start today by thanking Missy for filling in for me last week. It's been a crazy couple of weeks for the Obi family. First the grief and sorrow of saying goodbye to a loved one, immediately followed by a trip to the mountains for a time of refreshment and rejuvenation.

The weather was perfect and the wildflowers were in full bloom. A first for us, since we usually go to Ouray earlier in the season.

Even the Columbines were out to greet us.

Along with some cute little creatures, like the chipmunks at Box Canyon.

And this cute little fella we met at one of the area's many abandoned mines.

Can you see him there in the middle, atop the cinder block?

That's a Pika. A little mountain creature that has no problem telling off those folks who dare intrude on his turf.

We found some secluded spots.

And hubby, who has always had an affinity for trains, got his fix when headed into Silverton for an awesome burger at High Noon.

Oh, and look what I found on Main Street in Ouray.

But, like the dork that I am, I forgot to come back and add a couple of my books.

By now I'm sure you're wondering where the food is. Well, there was a new restaurant in Ouray called Brickhouse 737 that we couldn't wait to try out. So on our last night in town, we decided to treat ourselves.

All of the guys--hubby, our youngest son and our oldest grandson--got the Elk Bolognese with bucatini pasta and rosemary mascarpone.

While I sank my teeth into a melt-in-your-mouth braised, boneless short rib with horseradish whipped Yukon potatoes.

Oh. My. Goodness. I'm drooling at the memory.

Of course, no trip to Ouray is complete without a visit or two to Mouse's Coffee and Chocolates.

Are you drooling yet?

 How about now?

As usual, there were so many good things about this trip. The best thing of all, though, was coming back with some new story ideas.
So now that we are home, it's butt-in-chair time because I have another proposal due soon.
And I can hardly wait to get started.

Kids Do the Darnedest Things

Tex here and, once again, I have no recipe. I was in Ouray with the family from the 9th to the 16th, then I left yesterday to head to San Antonio, via the ranch, for Romance Writers of America's annual conference. Best I could manage for cooking during those four days at home was the daily slab-o-protein. You name it, fish, chicken, beef, pork... Just throw in a salad and call it a meal.

Going anywhere with ones children can be interesting. I don't care how old they are, you never know what they're going to do. My boys are 19 and 15, but there were times I thought they were 9 and 5. 

Like when Michael was determined to get to the other side of the creek.

He did it all right, causing his mother to have only the slightest heart palpitations. 

Here he's on his way back, solving the mystery of how he got to the other side in the first place.

Speaking of crossing creeks... 

This was supposed to be an opportunity for the boys to fish. 

Instead, Ryan saw a cave on the other side of the stream.

I'm sure you can guess what happened next.

You should have seen the look on his face when he got to said cave. And I could have shown you, except Blogger wouldn't take my video. :(

Suffice to say that he went through all that effort for nothing. The cave was caved in. 

But at least he settled his curiosity.

Then there was our hike on Ouray's Perimeter Trail. 

My husband and I spotted this pretty little waterfall.

My boys saw a challenge.

Sure enough, a little farther down the path, they found a way to get to that waterfall.

Yes, they're all about the photo opp.

And there's nothing like returning from vacation to discover that one of the little beasts hijacked your camera somewhere along the way.

You find pictures like this.

Really? 

That's just rude to take a shot of someone while they're stuffing their face.

Apparently we're doing commercials now.

And lest we forget the gratuitous selfie.

Yeah, including this one in my blog post might teach him a lesson.

NOT!

All kidding aside, we had a great trip. Saw some new things, had new experiences and made some great contacts. We did it all together AND lived to tell about it. :)

Have a great week.

Next week, highlights of RWA!

Farewell Ouray, Hello Discipline

Tex here, back home in Texas after a wonderful week in Ouray, Colorado. For a tiny town, they sure have some good eats. And I think I tried just about all of them. From Mouse's incredible chocolate to the Beaumont Grill's amazing fried brie. Oh. My. Goodness. You have no idea. I'm getting choked up just thinking about it.

 

But, alas, all good things must come to an end. Although feeling bloated isn't necessarily one of those good things. The bloating I did want to end. That meant I had to get back on track and start eating healthy again.

 

So I wanted something yummy--something besides potatoes--to go with my grilled chicken breasts. I've had this big bag of quinoa in the pantry for while now. I loved it mixed with roasted cauliflower and spinach (recipe here), but whenever I've tried use it as a substitute for potatoes or rice, the quinoa lacked appeal.

 

 

I hit the Internet, looking for quinoa recipes. Quinoa Pilaf? With pine nuts? I love pine nuts. Hmm...

 

Guess what? It was totally delicious! I will definitely make this again. Not only was it yummy, it was easy. And we're all about easy, right?

 

Here's what you'll need:

• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• half of a large onion, chopped
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
• salt and pepper

Put the broth and quinoa in a medium-sized saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, until liquid is absorbed and grain is tender.

 

While that's cooking, toast your pine nuts in a large dry skillet over medium-high heat until golden brown and fragrant, stirring frequently. Remove toasted nuts from pan and set aside. Heat the oil in the same skillet and add the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions soften and begin to brown.

(Yes, they are turning brown. I promise.)

 

When the quinoa is done, fluff with a fork and transfer to a large serving bowl. Stir in pine nuts, onions and parsley. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Good thing that salad is there. Otherwise we'd have a monochromatic meal. And that would not be fun. I think that's why God created so many colorful veggies.

 

I did not have any fresh parsley, so I added about a tablespoon of dried parsley to the quinoa toward the end of the cooking time. But the onion and pine nuts were what made this dish. I love the different textures and the flavors paired very well.

 

I'm sure our GAL knows this, but did you know that quinoa is wheat and gluten free AND a good source of protein? That makes it one of them there super foods. Which is good, because I plan on making this more often.

 

Have you ever had quinoa? What are your thoughts on this super food?



Foodie Field Trip - Yes It's Research

Greetings from beautiful Ouray, Colorado. Not only is this place one of the most gorgeous on earth, it's also the setting of The Doctor's Family Reunion.

 

In addition to that, this place has some great eats.

 

My writing bud, Becky Yauger, and I flew to Colorado yesterday and with our flight arriving at lunchtime, you know what was on our mind.

 

 

Our first stop was the True Grit Café in Ridgway.

 

This place has some awesome food and everything is homemade. Unfortunately, we both devoured our meals before I even thought of taking pictures. But there was still dessert. The Grit has some of the best blueberry pie I've ever had, so I was delighted to see it on the menu.

 

Yes, we each snagged a bite before I remembered to take the pic.

 

Then it was on to Ouray. We settled into our hotel, did some visiting with old friends, talked to local folk about my upcoming release, and explored Main Street. An exhausting afternoon for sure. Especially when you consider that we started the day at 500 ft. elevation and ended up somewhere around 7800 ft.

 

Ouray is full of great eating establishments. So many that we almost had to do rock, paper, scissors to decide. Ultimately, we ended up at the Western Hotel.

 

Yes, this is one old building, built during the gold rush.

 

 They have some unique items on their menu, and the appetizers were what really appealed to us.

 

Hmm...decisions, decisions...

 

You know, sometimes you just have to go for the gusto. And that's exactly what we did.

We had some smoked trout...

 

Then added in this delicious Mediterranean Medley, with cheese and salami...

 

But there was one more thing that sounded too good to turn down.

Sweet potato fries with an ancho chili mayo.

 

Oh, my. These were the best sweet potato fries I've ever tasted. And the dip was the perfect compliment. Not spicy at all, just a wonderful flavor.

 

All of this food meant more walking needed to be done, despite the rain. Of course, no meal is complete without something sweet. So we just happened to walk right into Mouse's Chocolates.

 

More decisions.

 

Tonight, the sea salt encrusted caramel and a dark chocolate truffle fit the bill.

 

Be still my heart. But, oh, what a delightful day we had. Which leaves only one question...

 

What adventures will tomorrow bring?

 

 

 

Story Time (With Red Velvet Cake)

So I sold a book. My FIRST book.

Am I excited?

You bet your sweet bippie :-)

Now before I break into the long, drawn out, possibly boring story of THE CALL, I want to entice you with some of this wonderful red velvet sheet cake. (The recipe will have to wait until next week)

Go ahead and eat all you want, it's on the house. (Just don't tell Ruthy)

When I started writing, some eight and a half years ago, I just knew I was destined to be the next Nora Roberts.

Then I joined a writer's group and got a nice dose of reality.

Back then, I was writing for the secular market. Shoot, I didn't even know there was such a thing as Christian fiction. No, that's not true. I had heard of it, but they were all prairie romances (no offence intended), and I was not a prairie romance kind of gal.

But God had other plans. And He used whatever avenue necessary to let me know that He wanted me to write for Him.

About that same time, I heard about a group completely devoted to Christian fiction and that people wrote just about everything that was in the secular market, but from a Christian worldview.

So, in 2006, I joined ACFW and have never regretted the decision to write for God's glory.

In 2010, my first novel, a romantic suspense, finaled in the Genesis. But it still wasn't good enough for publication. And today it still sits on my shelf because I had another calling--romance.

Oh, how I love to watch people fall in love. And what better place to do it than in a breath-taking setting like Ouray, Colorado. I fell in love the first time my MIL introduced me to the small alpine town where her parents' homesteaded in the 1920's.

Fast forward to ACFW Conference 2011, a conference I almost missed because my husband broke his back ten days before I was due to leave. He could barely get out of bed on his own, let alone dress himself. Nonetheless, he was determined that I was going to go.

So I did.

I pitched my Ouray story to Melissa Endlich and she requested the full manuscript. I'd never had a request for a full before, so this was VERY exciting.

I came home, polished that puppy, got it out the door in early October, and waited. And waited. Which turned out to be a good thing since, through the broken back, they discovered my husband had kidney cancer and had to have his kidney removed. Long story, just know that it was contained and he's cancer free.

Long about last spring I received a revision letter from Melissa. I brainstormed, rewrote, and sent it back to her this past October. Again, I waited, knowing that God's timing is perfect, and I would sell in His time.

So Friday morning I had just finished my quiet time. I was still in my comfy quiet-time chair, checking emails on my Ipad, when a new email popped up. Oh, my gosh. It's from Melissa Endlich! And she wants to talk to me!

My serene moment was over as my heart about pounded out of my chest. I rushed up the stairs to my husband's office.

"I just got an email from Melissa Endlich."

"So email her back." (like I wasn't going to)

When she called, she said those words I will never forget. "I'd like to offer you a contract."

I guess I had spent all my excitement before she called, because I was surprisingly calm. But then I screamed as soon as I hung up the phone.

So my book will come out THIS September, I'm fixin' to be neck deep in revisions, I finally get to see what an art fact sheet is, and I have no idea what my title will be.

But I got THE CALL. And it's every bit as exciting as I dreamed it would be. Actually, even more so, because by Friday's end, I had signed with Tamela Hancock Murray of the Steve Laube Agency as well.

The publisher of my dreams, the editor of my dreams, and the agent of my dreams...all in one day.

God is so stinkin' good to me.

Oh, and in case you want to know a little bit of what my story is about:

Dr. Trent Lockridge came to Ouray, Colorado for a fresh start. What he finds is a son and the woman he betrayed ten years ago. Having grown up in the foster system, Trent’s greatest desire is to have a family. Is he destined to be alone or is love strong enough to overcome the past?

How about another piece of cake? You know you want one.