Monday: Pork Chile Verde with rice
Tuesday: Hash Brown Quiche
Wednesday: chicken something casserole
Thursday: Pancakes and Bacon, OJ
Friday: Camping...campfire food
Saturday: Sandwiches
Sunday: Dinner at mom's


Summer in full swing here. I feel like I'm going to pass out in the heat that is already 96-98 every day. At least hubby took mercy on me yesterday and put our bedroom window air conditioner unit in. Aaahhhh. Nice little Sunday nap.

Kids and I went to the park for free lunch today - we were at the back of the line and they ran out! Not very prepared for the first day of elementary out of school, if you ask me. Try telling a 3 year old after 5 min at the park that there's no lunch and you are getting back in the hot car. Yeah, pleasant. We hurried to the other park in town and luckily they still had a few.

But we have open, free time which I LOVE. It is the reason I can't wait till the kids are all home.
I want to do lots of fun, cheap (free) things with them this summer that will build family memories and lead them into the next year of school feeling like we really did something with our time off. I want to hit lots of different parks, and wear out the slip 'n slide with many uses. Here's to summer.

A princess lives here

Make that a princess with brothers.




Found this fun little discovery while cleaning a little in her room yesterday. Made me smile.

Very interesting quote

"So much attention is paid to the aggressive sins, such as violence and cruelty and greed with all their tragic effects, that too little attention is paid to the passive sins, such as apathy and laziness, which in the long run can have a more devastating effect." Eleanor Roosevelt

So what's my problem?

Menu Plan - late again

Yesterday we had impromptu tostadas. It was great! It started with needing to use up corn tortillas, and before long, hubby was frying them and crisping them up and we topped them with all kinds of stuff. My favorite? Shredded chicken, a packet of mild sauce from Taco Bell (ha ha), a big spoonful of black beans, lettuce, and a bit of cheddar cheese. It was a hit!

Tues: Stuffed Shells (the regular spaghetti sauce ones. The kids vetoed ever doing tuna again) with corn and garlic bread
Wed: BBQ pork, funeral potatoes (never got around to it last week), jello
Thursday: Corn Dog casserole, fruit salad
Friday: Daddy gone at Youth Conference, maybe pizza or something

Sweet Land of Liberty

Yesterday the kids had their musical program at school. They did a great job! One of my oldest son's songs was called "Lift the Flag for Freedom". Oh, it almost made me cry. It was so neat and they all had paper flags they had made. Each was backed by either solid red, white, or blue as well. So at various points of the song they held up their color and seeing the whole fourth grade do it together was wonderful.

Please forgive the horrible copy (I did not have my camcorder; this is just my little digital camera) but it will give you an idea. Potter is in the white polo shirt, middle row.




MANY of the songs were patriotic in nature, and it got me thinking about how much I love this country. I took the chance to set out some flag decorations.





I have always considered myself patriotic. Pretty much the best part of the whole summer is fireworks, parades and red-white-blue. As a little girl I remember getting goose bumps when I heard the national anthem. I have always been passionate about the flag and seeing it displayed properly. My grandfathers/uncles were military and brother is about to be.

I am so glad I got to be born here.

I am so glad that even though our nation is at war, at the present time it is not on this soil.

And I am so glad that my kids can dream and be whatever they choose. Because that's what America is.

Are you a 1930's wife?

89 As a 1930s wife, I am Very Superior Take the test!

LOL...and Strider even made supper last night. Go figure.

Music to my ears

What are the loveliest words from your hubby's mouth?

No, not "I Love You", although that's nice.

It has to be "We're going out tonight."

Thankful Thursdays

Today I am thankful:

1. To be a SAHM. I don't usually have to be anywhere and I love it.

2. For my kids. I can't believe how often I miss them when they are away just even for the school day.

3. For plenty of food to eat. I never have to wonder where my next meal will come from. I may wonder what side dish to have, but there's always a myriad of choices.

4. That I can lie down when I feel tired or crappy. My life is flexible that way and my littles are great at keeping themselves busy.

5. That I have a nice cool home to keep me out of the heat that I hate so much. Strider gets the cooler running at the first hint of hot weather and I love that he cares for my confort so much!

6. For a clean family room. We all pitched in a little yesterday and got it semi under control again. I even went down there with the kids today to hang out which I never do.

7. That I have healthy, capable kids.

8. That they forgive me for my many faults.

9. For my kitchen tile. I love that it is easier to keep clean than Pergo.

10. That I got to plan our anniversary this year. It's in a month, and last year we decided to take turns planning. Last year he took me on a Great Salt Lake dinner cruise, which is a bit hard to top. But this is my first time, and I think I did well with the budget we discussed. Shhhh...don't tell!

11. For my old-and-still-running-great-so-far van. 'Nough said.

12. For my down comforter. I love it and can't remember what it was like not to use one. I thought it might be a bad idea with kids all over, but it has been great.

13. For a husband that I look forward to serving. He makes it easy and desireable to do things for him because he lives with gratitude. Of course he does so much for me that I will always be indebted.

Young Webster

Balection.

buh/LECK/shun

No, I don't know what it means. My three year old apparently does, however. She uses her new found word all the time. And I keep thinking I'll figure out its meaning by the context of how it is used. But I can't.

She says her brother has it. She interjects it into stories she "reads" to us. And on and on.

Who knows what it is. Right now we just laugh when we hear it. Maybe in 20 years she'll have a job with Webster.

Menu Plan...Wednesday?

I have been so out of it. Not feeling well, not cleaning well, not planning or organizing my life well.

Last night hubs did supper and that never happens. I really need to get things running again.

Tonight: Tuna Stuffed Shells (from a Woman's Day email this morning), recipe follows
Thursday: Teriyaki Chicken in crockpot
Friday: Eggs and toast
Saturday: Ham Pot Pie Stew
Sunday: Pork Roast w/ funeral potatoes

Side Note: My oldest left for summer camp today :( I miss him already. I can't believe he's old enough for Mill Hollow, but I guess it's that time.




Tuna Stuffed Shells
Nancy Dell'Aria

COOKING TIME
Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes

INGREDIENTS

18 jumbo pasta shells
1 can (6 oz) light tuna in oil, well drained
1 cup fresh white bread crumbs
1⁄4 cup finely chopped onion
1 large egg
1⁄4 cup minced fresh parsley
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 can (103⁄4 oz) condensed cream of celery soup
1⁄2 cup milk
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
Paprika (optional)


PREPARATION
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat an 11 x 7-in. baking dish with nonstick spray.

2. Boil pasta as package directs until just firm-tender.

3. Meanwhile mix tuna, bread crumbs, onion, egg, 1⁄2 the parsley and the lemon juice to blend.

4. Drain pasta shells. Rinse gently to cool; drain. Fill each shell with 1 Tbsp tuna mixture. Place in prepared dish.

5. Whisk soup and milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until hot. Remove from heat; stir in remaining parsley. Pour evenly over shells. Sprinkle with cheese and paprika. Cover with foil. Refrigerate overnight, if desired.

6. Bake 20 to 25 minutes until bubbly.

Best Banana Cake

So, we got back from vacation and I had bananas to use up. Okay, they were black and I was going to throw them away. But I also had buttermilk to use up and thought it might be worth taking a minute to search for a good recipe combination.

Here ya go! Oh, and I didn't use butter in the frosting, just cream cheese. I kind of made it up.

Is it good? Well, after a few bites last night my sister said I should sell it. So there you are.



Best Banana Cake



Hands on time: 30 minutes Total time: 2 hours and 15 minutes Serves: 15
Ingredients:
FOR THE CAKE:
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3)
2 teaspoons lemon juice
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups buttermilk


CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
15 servings
Hands on: 5 minutes
Total time: 5 minutes
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon milk (optional)
Instructions:
FOR THE CAKE: Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Grease and flour a 9-by-13 inch pan.

In a small bowl, mix mashed bananas with lemon juice and set aside. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternating with the buttermilk. Stir in the banana mixture. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place directly into the freezer for 45 minutes. When the cake is cool, frost with Cream Cheese Frosting.

FOR THE FROSTING: With an electric mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the vanilla. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high until frosting is smooth. If the frosting is too stiff to spread, beat in milk. Spread on the cooled cake.

Back to the grindstone

Being married to a teacher is an interesting thing.


Fact: There is never enough time in the day to get all the planning and grading done. Period. Even when he gets home on a school day there is tons of stuff to do.

Fact: They do not get three months off from school. Strider has less than two months before having to be back in the classroom (June 10-Aug 4).

Fact: Teachers have to love what they are doing or there is no way they would work the long hours for such low pay. Strider started another job yesterday because we can't survive to just have him "home" during these two months.

Fact: Before he got this other job I thought I would go crazy with him here at home all the time. Now he's working again after only having two days off and I miss him :(

We're Back

I know, I know. I disappeared.




On Wednesday, still nursing my icky ear but slowly improving, we left for our Brown Family trip.


We had a great vacation in Liberty, UT and Pineview Reservoir. What a gorgeous piece of Utah!

Here is some of our fun time (warning: mega pics!)
















With a little sunburn and a lot of sandy towels, we got home Saturday safe and sound. It was so nice to relax and have lots of family together time. I even rode the Wave Runner with Strider. Too amazing for words! I'm so glad I did it!


My sister did all of the planning and stressing for the trip. Big thanks to her and her generous hubby!

OUCH

Pain! I am battling a nasty ear infection. Not Otitis Media like babies get, but Otitis Externa. Oh my. My whole ear and side of my face is swollen and tender and the pressure in my head is unreal. I am on two kinds of drops, containing steroids, antibiotics and pain meds.

Lets hope it clears up quickly so I don't go insane.

Look at what 3 weeks can do

Front flower bed in Mid-May

Same area three weeeks later

Thanks for all your encouraging words.

We were able to do a last minute date to the temple last night (Thanks, H.L.!) It was a great evening and was exactly what I needed in order to feel the spirit so strongly and put everything back into perspective.

We are ready for our talks, and most of my callings have been taken care of. I am thankful for being able to serve!

With so much to do today and tomorrow I am having a hard time not freaking out (what i do best). I need to really focus so I can accomplish all the things for my home and family and callings, not to mention preparing talks for Sunday.

~breathe~

I can do this.

Mom! I can spell

The Princess has been listening to her Kindergartener brother spell things all over the house.

She thought she would try.

Two minutes ago she hopped up here on the computer desk and looked at the mouse.

"D...E...L...L.....spells Computer"!!