Time Surely Does Fly!!

I can't believe the Labor Day weekend is here---this week has just flown by. We always look forward to 3-day weekends. That may sound funny since we're basically retired---as they say, every day is Saturday. But that's really not true. There's just something more fun about the weekends. In fact, it's about the only time I get up before 5:30 a.m. anymore---I'm anxious to get a jump on the weekend.

We don't have a lot planned, but that's okay by me. I have so much unpacking and re-organizing from last week, that I have plenty to keep me busy. I started today and did get pictures taken of my layouts. I'll post them soon.

We're going to dinner and a movie tonight with friends---Hugh and Pam---she called---I was shocked!! You have no idea how rare it is for Pam to make plans. While Butch is playing golf tomorrow, I plan to take Stephanie and myself antiquing---remember, he interrupted me the last time when his car broke down. I'm looking forward to it---and the Mexican food I plan to have for lunch.

On Sunday, the girls, Carson, Cameron, Steph and Nicky, Merrill, Tucker and maybe Jimmy (Steph's friends) are coming over for an end of the season swim party and BBQ. The girls want us to play poker in the evening. I'm still finding it unbelievable that teenagers want to spend time with their grandparents---and, for that matter, our grown children and their friends. We will never say "no" to them---whenever they want to spend time with us, we're all over that!! This is the first time we've been able to work Steph's friends into our busy schedule! Unfortunately, that means that while Merrill and Tucker will be here having fun with us, Bill and Nancy will be babysitting. I guess that's what Bill gets for not playing cards!

Okay, now let me take you back 2 weeks to our trip to St. Louis. We ended up leaving on Thursday because Butch had a business meeting on Friday morning. We had lunch with Jeanne after his meeting. On Friday night, we went to a movie---"The Other Guys"---it was pretty good, but goofy in some spots---and then went out for Italian food for dinner. Butch and Walter went geo-caching on Saturday and set a record---25 "finds" in one day. Besides the caches they found, Butch "found" poison ivy again---and started breaking out right away. This time, he took my advice and started with the prednisone right away. By the time I got home the following Sunday, it was nearly gone, but you could tell that it would have been another severe case. (A side note---it's definitely poison ivy as while at my doctor's office, they had a chart on the wall of poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac along with where it is located. Only poison ivy grows in the MO or TN area).

We had a fun weekend with Walter and Chris. I always look forward to the new recipes that Chris tries. She's a great cook. I had planned to report what she made, but now that so much time has gone by, my memory fails me. Walter grilled some marinated pork tenderloins. Chris made a new brussel sprouts recipe---she knows that is probably my most favorite vegetable now, so always tries to come up with something new.

I took Butch to the airport on Monday morning. Then it was on to mom's...report on that to follow!

PS By the time I was ready to post this, we had already gone out with our friends. We saw "Get Low". OMG, it was horrible---could be the worst movie I've seen in a long time. Anyway, I had to listen to Butch complain all the way home about how this is the exact reason he doesn't like to go to movies. When I finally had heard enough, I told him "FINE" (in that tone I seem to have) that from now on, I would turn down every invitation to go to the movies. That's it, I give up. Luckily, I get to go with my friends. In fact, we have a date in October already on the calendar.

And the Winner Is....

Jeanne!!! She won the layout contest at the scrapbook retreat. "When in Rome" was a great title for a great layout. Notice her use of the pearls around the circles. The girl is good and needs no help from me! Way to go Jeanne!

Wow, I Have a Lot to Report!

It's been over a week since my last post. I have a lot to report and will do it over the next couple of days. This can tide you over until then. I asked Sandy to email me with a rundown of the first week of school. My comment is at the bottom.

"Mom,

Everyone seems to be happy with school thus far. Victoria had a great first day and really likes her teacher. Victoria gets to see her friends from the other class at recess, so for now all is well with her.

Elizabeth likes school but hates naptime. She says it's so boring because all you can do is lay there and no talking. On the first day she said that the little boy that was resting next to her told her to ask her mom if she could spend the night at his house. She told him that she didn't think she could because she doesn't even know him. We asked her what his name is and she said she didn't know. We all got a kick out of that! When I picked Elizabeth up yesterday for her half day, the first thing she said when we got outside was "YES! No naptime today!" I just laughed and told her that there might actually be some days that she'll be tired and happy to take a little rest. She's still not convinced.

Mitchell likes his teacher okay, but is thrilled to have almost all of his friends in his class this year. On the first day he got moved to the math class with the less boring and better teacher so that was an unexpected bonus. He hasn't had too much homework yet so he's happy.

The school has added an extra mass a week this year, so the kids (and me) have already gone twice in three days. They are all hating that. I think they could have eased the kids in a little better, especially the kindergarteners. The whole school goes on Wednesdays, and then different grades go on different days the rest of the week. I told the kids that I would go once in a while, but not every time, or else I would be at mass on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays. And that is just too much church, even for me! Mitchell and Victoria don't mind me not going, but Elizabeth wants me to go whenever she goes. I'm beginning to see my free time slipping away...

All in all, a good start to the new school year!

I hope you're having fun scrapbooking! I'm hoping to be able to do a little myself!

Love,

Sandy

All I can say about the Mass schedule is that you should be happy it's not the 50's and 60's in St. Louis. We had to go EVERYDAY---and the Mass was in LATIN! We had to go on Saturday too since we lived so close. If we didn't, the nuns would ask us on Monday where we were. The only cool thing about going to church everyday was that we got to eat breakfast at school---at least until Vatican II and they changed the fasting rules. I can still remember how toast smells when you open your lunch box.

PS Sorry about not being able to get Sandy's email in paragraphs like it came to me. Blogger can be a pain when you try to copy and paste. Just one more thing I have trouble with.

The Best Brain Food

I just read an article and thought I would share the results. Some of these we've known for awhile now. The coffee surprised me. Still, I'm a tea drinker and do not plan to switch. One thing that is not listed that has been on the list for ages is walnuts and almonds. I'm just going to try to use these things more in my diet. Especially the grape juice---I haven't had that since I was a kid.

salmon

blackberries

coffee---3-5 cups a day

apples---one a day

chocolate---semi sweet or milk equal to 2 kisses a day---also lowers blood pressure

cinnamon

spinach, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower---3 servings a day

olive oil

concord grape juice

curry and tumeric

Another New Recipe

Malinda Wilkinson, Steph's childhood friend and the daughter of my friend, Connie sent me this recipe. She sent it because I had shared some recipes here. I told her that I would post it for everyone to try. If anyone else wants to share, feel free. Sorry, I couldn't get the picture to show up.

Taco Salad with a Twist Recipe

* 1 pound ground beef
* 1 package (11oz) torn iceberg & romaine
* 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
* 1 cup sliced green onions
* 1 can (16 oz) kidney beans rinse/drain
* 2 cups (8 oz) shredded Mexican cheese
* 8 cups corn chips
* 1 cup green goddess salad dressing
* 1/2 cup sour cream

In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain and cool slightly. In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, tomatoes and onions. Add the beef, beans and cheese. Drizzle with salad dressing; toss to coat. Dollop with sour cream. Serve immediately. Crumble corn chips on top as served or use chips to scoop mixture.

One Crazy WEEK!!

Our family week in August is always jam-packed with fun and craziness. Add the girls' boyfriends this time, plus a few of their friends---well, let's say it was extra nuts around here. We were really happy that Mindy got to come home for 2 days. We went to Bowling Green, KY one day to The Lost River Cave. That was pretty lame, but you just never know about these things.

Before everyone arrived, the refrigerator was packed full. By Tuesday, ALL the food I bought for the whole week was GONE!! I did a lot of cooking---several new recipes. Sandy always makes a point of trying new things when I visit, so I decided to return the favor.

I made 3 BIG meals (Crispy Baked Pork Chops, Crunchy Hot Chicken Salad and Spicy Shrimp Liguine), 2 smaller meals (sandwich meals---BLT's and White Castle Burgers) and 3 desserts (Cherry Cheese Trifle, Praline Cake and Lemonade Pie). I thought I'd share some of the recipes. They were all pretty good hits.

Linguine with Spicy Shrimp

8 oz. uncooked linguine (I substituted angel hair---my favorite)

2 tbsp. butter

1/2 cup chopped onion

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tomatoes, diced

1 lb. medium shrimp, peeled, deveined

1 1/2 tsps. Cajun seasoning

1/2 tsp. ground red pepper

1/8 tsp. salt

1/2 cup half and half

1/3 cup chopped flat leaf parsley (just realized I completely forgot this)

1. Cook pasta and drain.

2. Melt butter in skillet. Add onions and saute for 3 minutes. Add garlic and tomatoes and saute for 2 minutes. Sprinkle shrimp with Cajun seasoning, red pepper and salt. Add to pan. Saute 3 minutes or until shrimp turn pink.

3. Add half and half to shrimp and pour over pasta.

I tripled the recipe but quadrupled the pasta (I cooked 2 lbs.) This was really good.

Praline Cake (this recipe is from my friend Karolyn Broussard)

1 stick butter, plus 3 T., softened

1 cup light brown sugar

4 T. light corn syrup

2 cups chopped pecans

1 box butter pecan cake mix

1 1/4 cups water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

Mix first 4 ingredients in a small bowl. Spray a 13x9 pan with Pam or Baker's Joy and spread pecan mixture over the bottom. Prepare cake mix using water, oil and eggs as directed on the package. Pour batter slowly over the pecan mixture. Bake at 350 for until cake is done---about 45 minutes. When done, immediately invert pan on heatproof tray or covered board. Leave pan over cake for 2-3 minutes only. Remove pan. Top with ice cream or cool whip.

Sweet and Hot Cheese Spread

1 --8 oz. pkg. cream cheese

apricot preserves

1/8 tsp. ground red pepper

1/4 cup slivered almonds (sliced is okay)

Crackers (I use Wheat Thins)

Top cream cheese with preserves. Sprinkle with pepper and almonds.

Layered Black Bean Dip (I had planned to make this, but never got around to it)

1--8 oz. pkg. cream cheese

1 cup canned black beans, rinsed

1 can Rotel tomatoes, drained

1 cup Mexican style shredded cheese

Top cream cheese with beans, tomatoes and cheese. Serve with tortilla chips.

Cherry Cheese Trifle

1--8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 can Eagle brand milk

1--12 oz. container Cool Whip

1/2 tsp. almond extract

1 prepared angel food cake

2 cans cherry pie filling

sliced almonds for garnish

Combine cream cheese and Eagle milk until smooth. Stir in half of the Cool Whip and almond extract. Tear angel food cake and place half in trifle bowl. Spoon half the cream cheese over filling and top with can of pie filling. Repeat layers and top with remaining Cool Whip. Sprinkle with sliced almonds.

Crispy Baked Pork Chops

Pepperidge Farm corn bread stuffing, crushed

Eggs

Milk

Mix a little milk with the eggs. Dip pork chops in egg mixture and then crumbs. Bake at 400 for 30 minutes or until done.

White Castle Burgers (I got this recipe from my niece, Marci)

1 lb. ground beef

1 pkg. dry onion soup mix

3" of Velveeta, cubed

Brown meat, add soup mix, add cheese until melted. Do not drain grease (I did anyway).

Serve over buns. I tripled this recipe--everyone loved it.

We had several poker and game nights. We watched Glee. We swam everyday for hours on end. We shopped. We ate out. We did a little of everything.

Damage report---and this is only what I saw---who knows what else happened:

Bathing Beauty figurine in the pool bath broken

Picture frame broken

1 spilled drink in the family room

2 spilled drinks in the dining room (during poker game)

1 spilled drink---bounced down the rec room stairs---I heard a voice say, "why did you knock my drink down the steps"---and then a person, who shall remain nameless, came down and got the roll of paper towels.

When the family is here, I just close my eyes and don't "wig out" about anything. When they leave, I do the clean up. On Sunday, I wiped the spill marks all along the wall to the rec room--it was obvious that the drink bounced down. And just when I thought I didn't need gloss paint anymore. I won't even mention the laundry.

After 10 Years, Jordan Gets Verification

What can I say? We're a "geeky" family! We have a family book club and we take our bird book on vacation with us (when we remember). This past week with the whole family here, we were talking about the bald cardinal that we have. The head is blue---we didn't know that cardinals were blue under their red feathers. Butch said he saw it last year or the year before which lead to a discussion about how long birds live. We don't really know the answer to that, but then this morning, I remembered the bird Jordan swore she saw when she was only 4. I told her that it didn't count unless someone else saw it and could verify it. She drew the picture below so we could be on the look out for it. After over 10 years, she's been vindicated!!

I guess birds can live for more than 10 years---or we have a family cardinals that have a terrible genetic defect. Why not---people inherit baldness? I guess it just really "sucks" for a bird.